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heyiwrotesomethings · 2 years

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Kakegurui - Kirari Momobami × She/Her Reader

Could you possibly do one where Kirari and Sayaka are together like they were planning on getting married. However, the clan elders arranged a marriage with Kirari and Y/n to strengthen the bond between the families. Kirari continues her relationship with Sayaka and is constantly around her so much so that they are together in front of Y/n even though she is married, Kirari absolutely hates Y/n and is awfully rude her at the beginning while Y/n is very sweet and kind towards her even making her breakfast before she leaves the house. Kirari slowly falls in love with Y/n. Until Kirari found out that Sayaka been cheating on her the same day she has to meet the elders. Where she truly realizes she loved Y/n as her wife defend Kirari from elders at a moment of weakness before Kirari absolutely rains down on them. They live happily ever after with a family of their own.

Thank you. You're like my favourite author ever!!! Your stories are so amazing and enjoyable to read. Thank for writing my request Spoken For - Kanae. I enjoy very much, thank you. I just want you to know your the best and I love all of your stories!!! There alway very good!!

Arranged Marriage

Kirari Momobami x She/Her Reader

A/N: Thank you very much! I hope you like this one too! Sayaka cheating?! Idk about y’all, but if someone like Sayaka cheated on me, I’d just give up. She is loyal to the point that it’s a self-destructive flaw. Then we got Kiari over here… she is so difficult! I always gravitate towards how head empty she is in Kakegurui Kari because I love that for her, but it makes her so hard to take seriously. Tried to do better this time, but she has a total Howl from HMC moment. Which seems fitting for her, but I don’t really know. AH! Hope you like it! Word Count: 5,004

Kirari couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She, head of the Momobami Clan, was to marry someone chosen by the elders. Apparently all of her years spent terrorizing the other branches of the family came with a price after all. Now her life was crashing down mere months before she and Sayaka were supposed to be married.

Kirari took a deep breath, not allowing her poker face to slip.

“And what makes you all think you have the power to ask such a thing of me?”

“It has been a legal action written in the laws of our family for generations. Sorry you couldn’t be bothered to read them.” Terano explained with a smug smile.

“If the conditions have been met, and believe me, with your record, they have, the heads of each branch get to chose the spouse themselves.”

“And you expect me to comply?”

“You will if you want to keep your position in this family. Otherwise you’ll be left with nothing but the shirt on your back.” Rin chimed in with a cocky grin.

“And what of Ririka?”

“She’s her own person,” Sumika shrugged, “She’s never given us hell like you have. We have no reason to dictate her partner.”

“And you think interfering with my wedding to my dear Sayaka will do what exactly? If you thought I was bad in high school, I will have this family eating itself into nothingness.”

“You can’t,” Terano spoke calmly, “again, a little reading on the the laws and customs of our family would have done you well. With this marriage, you will not be able to pass any decrees without coming to an agreement with the spouse we’ve chosen for you. If you can’t come to an agreement, your legislations will not pass.”

“You really do have everything planned out don’t you, Terano?” Kirari chuckled coldly. “Fine. Call upon whoever you wish, but let it be known that this is far from over.”

Kirari left the conference room and breezed down the hall and out of sight. She found her way to an empty room and after a minute of silently standing in the sunset bathed office, she slammed her fists down on the closest table. Then pounded a couple more times before taking a deep breath and composing herself.

She had to go home and tell Sayaka. She could just imagine the heartbreak. Poor Sayaka had been waiting for their wedding day for years. Kirari shook her head despondently.

No matter. It was just a flimsy piece of paper anyway. Hell would freeze over before she stopped seeing Sayaka. Kirari has seen loveless marriages, heard the gossip of adulterous relationships within the branches of her family. It was just part of having Momobami blood she supposed.

Kirari met her driver out front and signaled him to drive her home. All the while she plotted. She would make her assigned spouse’s life miserable. Perhaps they would find a breaking point that would lead to Kirari getting what she really wanted, to marry Sayaka and make her family pay for dare thinking they could interfere with her life like she was a lowly house pet.

This may just be her most interesting gamble to date.

When she arrived home, heels echoing against the marble floors, Sayaka popped out of the home office, nervous as always when Kirari had to go to family meetings. Though this time the worry was warranted.

“How did it go? What did they want to talk about? Are you okay?”

“Slow down Sa-ya-ka,” Kirari smiled sadly placing a finger over Sayaka’s lips, “let’s sit down.”

They sat down together in a fancy leather loveseat amongst Kirari’s carefully curated aquariums.

“We can’t get married.” Kirari sighed tiredly, looking more like it was a minor inconvenience rather than a life changing statement.

“What…?” Sayaka paled.

“Apparently there’s a silly little statute that allows the family to decide on a spouse for me if there is reasonable belief that I can’t be trusted to make decisions with the family’s best interests at heart.”

“How can you sound so unbothered by this?”

Sayaka, the poor dear, would have collapsed if she hadn’t already been sitting down. She had dedicated years of her life to Kirari, all leading up to this. Kirari was supposed to be marrying her. She was supposed to be her number one. Her one and only.

“What we have is something infinitely more special than what an earthly marriage can convey. If I have to be married to someone else, so be it. But you will always be my first priority, Sayaka.”

Tears welled up in Sayaka’s eyes, causing Kirari to smile as she wiped them away.

“Don’t fret…”

“Can’t we just run away together?” Sayaka hiccuped, burying her face in Kirari’s shoulder.

“I would effectively be disowned, all of my assets liquidated and spilt back amongst the branches. We would have nothing, but coming across it in the most painfully boring way.”

“We can build something new together, Kirari. We don’t need Momobami money. All I need is you.” Sayaka was prepared to live under a bridge if it meant Kirari would be hers and hers alone.

“That’s silly Sayaka,” Kirari chuckled, running her fingers through her now ex-fiancée’s hair, “this is a gamble I have no intention of running from. We may still be married yet.”

Kirari pulled Sayaka into her lap and together they schemed, using the bitterness in their hearts to think of the best ways to annoy the person who would be trying to come between them.

Whatever spouse the family supplied Kirari with, they would need to be resilient to say the least.

***

It felt so surreal to (Y/n), getting married to someone she didn’t really know so she could free her family from the burden of their debts to the Momobami Clan.

Her family made sure to let her know that she didn’t have to do such a thing, but she wanted to help. Maybe it wouldn’t even be that bad. She and Kirari could even be friends. As long as her family could live more comfortably, she could endure anything.

We’re ready to sign the papers, you can come with us now.” Terano beckoned when Yumi opened the door.

“Thank you.” (Y/n) felt butterflies flutter in her stomach as she rose to her feet to follow behind Yumi as Terano rolled ahead.

“I respect your resolve and reasoning for taking this offer, but be sure to protect yourself. Do not show weakness. Kirari is a heartless woman. She will no doubt be looking for a way out of this.” Terano warned.

(Y/n) was one of the first people she had suggested to the committee. She was kind and fair, but also not a push over. They had known each other since childhood, so Terano had a lot of faith in her. She thought that (Y/n) could be the person to keep Kirari in check.

“I’ll be okay, Terano. I won’t forget what I’m doing this for.” (Y/n) smiled.

“Yeah, you can do it (Y/n)!” Yumi nodded excitedly. “Don’t let Kirari try to push you around!”

“I’ll kill her with kindness.” She assured, Terano peered back at her over her shoulder.

“Don’t waste your time. Someone like Kirari would never appreciate the efforts people make to give her comfort.“

“I don’t think it would hurt.” (Y/n) shrugged.

“I just don’t want you to put all this effort into making a working relationship with someone who couldn’t care less. It’s worse than she doesn’t care, she is going to be working against you every step of the way.”

“I appreciate the concern, Terano, but I’ll be alright.” (Y/n) was prepared. Everything Terano was telling her now, she had heard leading up to this day. She could handle whatever Kirari threw her way.

“If you’re certain,” Terano sighed, “Good luck.”

Yumi skipped ahead of them to open the doors of the crowded room. Sitting at the table in the center of it all was Momobami Kirari, legs crossed over the thigh, a cold smile upon her face.

“Not too late to back out.” Kirari teased once (Y/n) took the seat in front of her.

They haven’t even laid eyes on each other for a minute and she was already talking like that? (Y/n) smiled as well.

“It’s nice to meet you, Kirari. I hope we can learn to get along.”

“Hmm,” Kirari hummed, already bored again. “Then if we are going to do this, let’s finish it up quickly,” she motioned to Sayaka seething in the first row, “I intend to take my future wife on a little honeymoon to the Maldives after we wrap up here.”

“I see, let’s not keep her waiting then.” (Y/n) said without skipping a beat. She signed the papers and slid them over to Kirari with a smile. “I hope you two have a good time.”

“We will.” Kirari said, her smile growing tighter though it was not at all noticeable. She picked up the pen and signed the papers, sealing their fate.

***

(Y/n) had two weeks to make herself at home in Kirari’s grand, traditional Japanese mansion before she came back from her trip. Well, from the outside it looked traditional, but the renovations inside looked kind of like a globalization nightmare. Though chaotic, (Y/n) supposed it suited Kirari. Nothing she couldn’t get used to. It was better than how she had been living before anyway.

(Y/n) moved into one of the guest rooms suggested by the staff. It was in the same hallway as Kirari’s. The closeness might prove to be a mistake as time went on, but (Y/n) wanted to try to get along and that wasn’t going to happen if they lived on opposite sides of the mansion.

She made herself comfortable and learned how to navigate the mansion and maybe, she hoped, she’d learn about Kirari in the process. She seemed to enjoy fish of all the aquariums were anything to go by. There were gambling dens, a swimming pool, theatre, library, rock garden, even a modest sized (if you could call it that) baseball diamond.

(Y/n) was lounging in the main sitting room as she liked to do. The mansion was so big she would hate to miss Kirari and Sayaka’s return. She was paging through a book full of exotic fish in an attempt to learn about Kirari’s interests when she heard a pair of approaching footsteps and quiet laughter.

When Kirari and Sayaka came into view, their laughter stopped upon seeing (Y/n). Sayaka scowled and Kirari smirked.

“Welcome back.” (Y/n) closed the book. “Have a good trip?”

“We had a marvelous time. Too bad you had nowhere to go.” Kirari said, studying the blue of her nails, painted to match the beautiful shade of the water near their resort.

“Oh I’m fine. Getting used to this crazy place is a vacation in itself. You have everything in here. You just need to build a roller coaster or something and you’ll literally be all set.”

“A roller coaster?” Sayaka scoffed. “What a childish notion.”

“Come Sayaka, ignore her.” Kirari beckoned, making a show of kissing Sayaka a little too sensually in polite company.

(Y/n) rolled her eyes and turned the page in her book.

“Ooo, do you have koi somewhere in here? You seem like you’d have a nice koi pond somewhere.” She asked, ignoring their obnoxious display.

“I wonder.” Kirari answered disinterestedly, leading Sayaka away by the waist once she realized (Y/n) didn’t care about their public make out.

“Guess I’ll just have to look around some more. Are you guys going to be around for dinner?”

“You think we’d want to eat dinner with you?” Sayaka’s face only seemed to get redder the more she had to be reminded that (Y/n) existed.

“It’s just a suggestion. I know you two aren’t going to do anything you don’t want to.” (Y/n) said, putting her hands up in mock defense. “I was thinking the weather is nice so I asked the staff if it would be alright to eat out on the terrace… and you are both walking away… okay good talk.”

Well, it could be worse she supposed. Hopefully they would warm up to her eventually, but she could handle a little antagonism. She understood that Kirari and Sayaka had reason to be upset. This wasn’t exactly the future she imagined for herself either, but it was for the good of her family and apparently for the safety of the Momobami Clan too.

She did managed to find a koi pond eventually. In a whole indoor greenhouse-type room she had somehow overlooked in her previous adventures. Yeah, this place was overwhelming, but very neat.

She took dinner on the terrace, unsurprisingly alone, but she did video chat with Terano and Yumi while she ate to talk about how things were going, so that was nice.

When she went upstairs to retire for the night, the pulsing music and other noises that (Y/n) wished she could unhear that were coming from across the hall made it a bit difficult.

She would have thought they’d have sound proofing in a ritzy place like this. Maybe she’d have to hire somebody to do that. She had more money at her disposal now then her family had in five generations. Maybe more. She could afford to sound proof a couple rooms. Kirari probably wouldn’t notice anyway if she and Sayaka kept making a habit of being anywhere (Y/n) wasn’t.

But for now she had the next best thing, earbuds and an assortment of media. She put on a movie and turned off the lights, falling asleep sometime in the middle.

***

(Y/n) was surprised to see Kirari walking into the breakfast nook early the next morning for two reasons. A, it sounded like she had a busy night to be getting up so early and B, (Y/n) was already in there so by that logic Kirari wouldn’t be caught within a hundred foot radius of the space.

“Making your own breakfast? Strange.” Kirari hummed.

(Y/n) put on her most welcoming smile and gestured to the stove.

“Do you want some? I swear it’s not poisoned. I can make some for Sayaka too if she likes.”

“Sayaka already left to go to work. But she would rather be force fed literal poison than eat something you made I wager.” Kirari chuckled. “But I’m curious.”

It was already early as is. Getting up as early as Sayaka must have sounded absolutely dreadful.

(Y/n) scooped up the food from the pan and set it before Kirari. She actually felt a little nervous in doing so.

“It’s nothing fancy obviously, but the flavor is there.”

“Hm. How quaint. Looks like something that Saotome would make. Is this poor people breakfast then?”

No actually, that would be called no breakfast. Is what (Y/n) wanted to say before taking the plate and eating it in front of Kirari. But she didn’t. This was the most Kirari had said to her since their ‘wedding’.

She shrugged instead then turned to get a new plate ready for herself and changed the subject.

“So Terano and the elders sent some documents they would like us to discuss. Do you have time after breakfast or is there a better time later?”

Kirari didn’t answer instead opting to pick at the breakfast before her, (Y/n) sighed.

“I’m going to get the papers. Be right back.” She took a piece of toast and jogged out of the room.

By the time (Y/n) returned to the nook, Kirari was gone. In her place a half eaten plate arranged as a winky face with its tongue sticking out.

When she turned to her own plate, she found a bite taken out of every item on it.

“Oh come on!” She griped.

Guess she would be making a third breakfast after all.

***

(Y/n) made a habit of giving Kirari breakfast when she showed up to the nook and presented her with whatever paperwork they needed to get done. That was when Kirari was most insufferable, but they did manage to get the work done.

That’s how the first few months went. Though Kirari was oddly more tolerable when Sayaka wasn’t around. She could still be petty, but she wasn’t as rude as when Sayaka was present. It seemed like she was over the arrangement but still needed to seem spiteful for Sayaka’s sake.

Whenever Sayaka was out, which seemed to happen a lot lately, Kirari would usually hang around (Y/n) until she had to go somewhere. She claimed it was out of boredom, but (Y/n) didn’t buy it. They were becoming friends.

(Y/n) was scrolling through her phone on while laying in bed one night when Kirari made an unexpected visit.

“You could at least knock, that would be nice.” She said without looking up from her phone.

“It’s you, I know there’s nothing interesting I’d be walking in on.” Kirari flopped down onto (Y/n)’s bed. “Unfortunately.”

“Couldn’t you be bothering Sayaka right now instead?” (Y/n) asked, moving her legs out from under Kirari’s body.

“She’s working late again.” Kirari frowned.

“Again?” (Y/n) looked up from her phone.

Kirari looked troubled while staring up at the ceiling and didn’t answer. (Y/n) sat up and gave Kirari a sympathetic pat.

“Alright, what do you want to do?”

“Can we play that card fish game you told me about?”

“Go fish? Sure.”

(Y/n) kept Kirari company until Sayaka finally came home in the very early hours of the morning. Kirari abruptly left (Y/n) to greet Sayaka. (Y/n) cleaned up the cards, unable to shake the feeling that something bad was coming to a head.

***

(Y/n) was searching the whole mansion for Kirari. They were supposed to have a meeting with the elders to discuss matters pertaining to family business, but Kirari had inexplicably disappeared when it was time to go. (Y/n) was preparing herself to grovel at the elders feet when her phone rang and Kirari’s name popped up on the screen.

“Where are you? I swear, if you left me to go do this by myself—“

“Sayaka has been cheating on me.”

(Y/n) did a full stop.

Sayaka? Cheating? The woman who dedicated dedicated her whole life to Kirari? Who fell out of a five story building for her? That Sayaka? (Y/n) was almost too surprised to speak.

“Oh Kirari, I’m so sorry.”

“Jabami Yumeko…” Kirari slurred, “Out of all people, I never would have gambled on those odds… who am I kidding, I would have.”

“Are you drunk?”

“Not yet, but I will be.”

“Where are you? I’m coming to get you.” (Y/n) was already halfway out the door.

“Leave me to die.” Kirari moaned dramatically.

“Kirari…”

Kirari hung up and (Y/n) swore. She tried calling back, but Kirari wouldn’t pick up. Fortunately she wouldn’t have to cruise around the city looking for her because not long after she received a text from Ririka telling her she could pick Kirari up at her house.

(Y/n) drove up and her heart ached for Kirari. She didn’t know it was possible to see her look so broken. Kirari was laying on the floor in front of Ririka’s couch, a wine glass raised high over her head. She waved it at Ririka as she walked past her to greet (Y/n). Ririka didn’t take the glass and pulled (Y/n) into the kitchen.

“She looks awful. Poor thing. How did this happen?” (Y/n) asked, peering out at the lump still visible from the doorway.

“Apparently it’s been going on for awhile. Kirari went to Sayaka’s office last night to surprise her and caught them together. She’s been here since one in the morning.”

(Y/n)’s phone rang again and she put it to her ear without looking.

“Hello?”

“(Y/n), gimme some more wine. I know Ririka is hiding it.”

“No more wine. That’s not going to make you feel any better. I’ll talk to you in a minute when I’m back in the living room.” She hung up and heard Kirari moan from the other room.

Before she could talk to Ririka some more, her phone rang again and she answered it with a frustrated huff.

“I know you’re hurting right now, but give me a minute, please!”

“What are you talking about?”

Oh, that wasn’t Kirari.

“Terano! Hi, what’s up?”

“You were supposed to be here half an hour ago. The elders are getting restless.” Terano informed. “Where are you? I can’t even get a hold of Kirari.”

“Is it possible we could reschedule? We are having a little trouble right now…”

“No, it has to be today. I can buy you maybe an hour more, but you had better be here not a minute later. The elders are already fuming.”

“Okay, we’ll be there. Sorry Terano.” (Y/n) shoved her phone back in her pocket with a groan.

“I don’t know what to do Ririka.”

“I’ll try to help you sober her up, but there is nothing I can really do about this.”

“Could you maybe give her some clothes to borrow and put them in the bathroom? I’ll bring her up.”

“If you’re sure.” Ririka nodded and went to do as (Y/n) asked.

(Y/n) went back to the living room and sat down on the floor beside Kirari. She didn’t even look over at (Y/n), she just kept staring despondently at the carpet.

“I’m really sorry, Kirari.”

“For what? Did you sleep with Sayaka too?” She murmured bitterly.

“No.” (Y/n) rubbed the back of her neck. She really didn’t know what to say. There was no time for coddling. If they weren’t standing before the elders in an hour, Kirari would have even more problems.

“Kirari, I know you’re upset. You have every right to be, but we need to get you ready for the meeting with the elders.”

“Sayaka used to remind me about things like that. Now she’s too busy screwing Yumeko to remember I exist.”

“Yeah, well it’s her loss. Come on.” (Y/n) hoisted Kirari off of the ground. “Right now we have to get you ready. When we get home, you can do whatever you want, okay?”

Kirari kept a sullen face, but made no fuss about (Y/n) having to half drag her to Ririka’s bathroom.

“Can you help her with this part?” She asked Ririka.

The older twin nodded tiredly. The sooner she got Kirari’s appearance fixed up, the sooner she could go back to sleep.

“See, doesn’t that feel better?” (Y/n) asked, fixing Kirari’s bangs when she and Ririka emerged half an hour later.

Kirari still looked far from her usual well put together self, but she was at least presentable and didn’t smell terribly of wine and sadness.

“I can’t feel anything.” Kirari numbly declared.

“We’re almost at the finish line. Try to keep yourself going for just a few hours more.” (Y/n) patted Kirari’s back, startled when Kirari lowered her head to rest against her shoulder.

“Thank you for your help, Ririka.”

“Not my first time I’ve had to clean up a Kirari mess. Good luck with the elders.” Ririka gave her sister a water bottle for the road and saw them out and waved to them as (Y/n) drove away.

The trip there was a little scary because (Y/n) thought Kirari was going to throw up, but they made it without having an accident and had about five minutes to spare.

“Okay, try to hold it together Kirari. I’ll do all the talking, okay?”

(Y/n) tugged Kirari along. They briefly saw Terano who looked surprised by the way Kirari was holding herself, but there was no time to ask. She gestured to the double doors and the arranged pair went inside. (Y/n) tried to take control of the situation right away, but the elders immediately took notice of Kirari’s weakened state and descended like vultures.

“Such an obvious display of weak emotion!”

“Is this why we had to wait nearly two hours?”

“You’re supposed to be the head of the clan, yet you show up looking like this?”

“Are you truly worthy of such a position?”

“I knew she would never grow up!”

“That’s enough!” (Y/n) sharply proclaimed, jolting everyone in their seats. Kirari looked at her through the eyelashes of her downcast eyes.

“You people are incorrigible, really! You all think her to be an unfeeling monster that wants to destroy everything, so much so that you felt the need to assign her a spouse to try to keep her in line. But now that she is showing genuine emotion, you all want to stomp it out! It’s completely asinine!”

The elders stared in shock. How dare (Y/n) talk back to them like that after they granted her such an important task that brought her family out of the dirt? A few got ready to shout at her, but she didn’t give them the chance.

“You can’t treat her like that. And you wonder why you feel the need to protect the families… seems like the families need protection from you and how you think things should be dealt with around here!” (Y/n) declared. She felt out of breath, she was ready to keep going if she had to, but Kirari put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a small smile.

“Thank you, (Y/n), but I can take it from here.”

Kirari seemed to have regained a little life since (Y/n)’s outburst. Her gaze was sharp enough to draw blood and the elders cowered.

She told the elders all the desired points mentioned that were supposed to be discussed and then left them with a warning of the hell that was to come in the following months.

“I have really been wanting to make some changes about the ways our family operates. I’ve been holding off discussing anything with (Y/n), but I think we could find common ground on some issues.”

They elders paled and leapt over themselves to advise (Y/n) on how to conduct herself, but Kirari was already leading her out of the room, their previous obligations met.

Kirari attempted to get into the driver’s seat, but (Y/n) waved her away.

“You are running on alcohol and zero sleep. Also I’m not sure you’ve ever actually driven before. I’m driving.”

Kirari pouted and shrugged, then got in the passenger seat. (Y/n) got in the driver’s seat and took a deep breath.

“Alright. Do you want to go home, or is there somewhere else you’d like to go?”

“Somewhere else?” Kirari tilted her head to the side.

“Yeah, someplace you like that you can’t get the same experience at home. Someplace that manages to make you feel happy or relaxed when all else fails.”

Kirari thought about it for awhile, blue polished fingers tapping against her knees.

“Can we go tomorrow?”

Momobami Kirari, asking (Y/n) for input? She seemed to be genuinely asking too.

“Of course. Whatever you want.”

“Today I want to lounge in my theatre and eat an obscene amount of fast food.”

“That we can do.”

***

The next few months weren’t easy for Kirari. That was to be expected when her girlfriend since high school accused Kirari of not treating her like her number one, but only after she had been caught cheating did Sayaka share that insecurity.

The day after the affair came to light, Kirari and (Y/n) went to the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in Motobu. They had a good time exploring every inch of the place. Even after they saw everything and their feet ached, they visited their most favorite exhibits once more before heading home.

Day after day they grew closer and Kirari began to fall for (Y/n), through their talks and getting to learn (Y/n)’s perspective, a change was brought upon Kirari. She made sure to make-up for their rough beginnings, wanting (Y/n) to know that she really cared about her before proposing they try turning their relationship into a romantic one.

She hid her nervousness in asking (Y/n) on an official date well, but she couldn’t stop the wide, genuine smile on her face from spreading when (Y/n) accepted her proposition.

Then about two years after that, Kirari popped the question.

“Will you marry me, (Y/n)?”

“…we’re already married?” (Y/n) blinked down at Kirari kneeling before her in front of the arowana tank, her hand in Kirari’s.

“Marry me again, for love this time.”

(Y/n) joined Kirari on the ground and hugged her, her heart leaping for joy when Kirari’s arms quickly snapped forward to copy the gesture.

“Okay.”

***

The Momobami Clan had been fundamentally changed. No more raising children to be gambling prodigies forced to be pitted against their siblings and cousins. No more sneaky, underhanded dealings between branches. The rot was taken out of the family, and the elders that could not change their ways were replaced.

The Momobami Clan was healing. It was slow healing, but healing nonetheless.

Once Kirari was certain they weren’t going to slip back into their old ways, she asked (Y/n) another very important question.

“What do you think about children?”

“I like kids. They’re a lot of work, but the journey can be rewarding. Why? What do you think about kids?”

“Fascinating little things. I don’t know why they make any of the choices they do. I never thought about having any myself. As the therapist says, my upbringing with Ririka was less than ideal for healthy development. I suppose I understood that in a way, which is why I never thought about it. But things are different now, and… I think I want to have children.”

“You sound like you’ve put a lot of thought into this.” (Y/n) smiled and Kirari nodded, she took her hand. “Okay, let’s talk about it.”

Before the end of the year, they had adopted a pair of siblings. Kirari could not imagine having them sent off to separate homes, so she resolutely applied to take them both home with (Y/n) supporting her every step of the way. They had never been happier.

#kakegurui oneshots #kakegurui x reader #kirari momobami x reader #kirari x reader #kirari momobami #requests #anonymous

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ohsayaka · 2 years

Note

*FOAMS AT THE MOUTH* CELESJUNKO. they’re so good they’re SO GOOD junko first takes an interest in celeste when she sees celeste win a game of poker against a smug sleazy adult man,, the man just breaks down and junko is intrigued bc “ohhh that’s a good flavour of despair…” and celeste is so unaffected by it?? it draws junko to her, that this girl can make people so desperate and broken without batting an eyelid

they’re similar to maizoshima in the whole “my ultimate revolves around understanding people. i know you” vs “you know nothing. i am planning your death at your loved one’s hands” EXCEPT while sayaka sees Nothing wrong w junko, celeste can tell there’s smth… off abt her - the part that drives her insane is that she can’t figure out what it is. she’s spent so long watching people’s tells and figuring out exactly what they mean, and she recognises junko’s tells every time they happen (a flick of her hair, studying her nails, her hand squeezing mukuro’s arm) but she can’t work out what they signify. junko is the one person she can’t quite understand, and she hates it

THEYRE SO GOOD AS DESPAIR GFS TOO,,, celeste is v difficult to make fall into despair bc she’s not particularly one for human connection, like sayaka w her bandmates or makoto w komaru - her main motivation is money, to secure her dream. so junko takes kind of a “if you can’t beat em, join em” approach and tells celeste just enough to rope her in - promises of money, if celeste is willing to kill to get it. again, celeste can tell there’s something more to this deal that junko isn’t telling her about, but her dream is so close she can taste it, so she accepts anyway. she finds she has a taste for it, forcing the embodiments of hope to kneel at her feet, and junko starts to feel something other than despair - awe. they bring the world to its knees together, with celeste rolling in money and junko relishing in the destruction they create

OKAY IM DONE i just have many Them thoughts,, thank u for ur time <3

hi iam so mindblown at your brain i have nothing else to add. thank you so so so so much this is so delicious & real all of it. jaw dropped.

#danganronpa #dangan ronpa #celesjunko #celeste ludenberg #celestia ludenberg #junko enoshima #dr #meta #obsessed i am so obsessed. holy fuck.#starship-promise #asks

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rnboolive · 3 years

Text

hello @certifiedboyf , I was your gifter for @danganronpavalentines and I hope you enjoy this fic I made, have a wonderful day !!

If people were more like businesses, Byakuya would have this relationship thing in the bag. But alas, people are far more complicated than any private property he owns.

Luckily for him, Makoto didn’t seem to mind one bit. For months, the two took their sweet time, more on Byakuya’s part on accepting that relationships do in fact involve feelings. Tch. Poor, sweet Makoto, out of all the people in the world, he had to be head over heels for Byakuya.

If he ever could, he would present a powerpoint on everyone he knew that would definitely be better for Makoto. But, Makoto wouldn’t even heed it and just compliment him or something. Stupid.

Not only that, he can’t just buy things for him. He’s way too nice to accept anything, and just gives it back. And he says this every time,

“Being with you is enough for me!”

Idiot. You know how much people would give up for a gift from a Togami? How dumb could you be to not realize? He had every antique, every jewel, every delicacy, that there ever was and he always had a reason to reject it. Which gave Byakuya even more reasons to buy him something else.

Which is how he ended up this predicament. For some ungodly reason, Byakuya was coerced to laze around the city as some sort of bonding exercise. His classmates were far scattered for him to even bother to look for them, and Makoto was nowhere to be found. Sighing, he takes a slow sip from the cheap latte he purchased a while ago, glancing at the boutique in front of him.

If you thought Byakuya was gonna ignore this opportunity to buy Makoto another present, you’d be wrong. Looking around, he snuck into the boutique, browsing the fragile trinkets and jewelry. Finally stopping, he found a treasure among the trash, a relic for the ages. Hidden deep within the shelves, was a locket. It was the stereotypical miniscule, golden kind but he knew it was the one.

Grinning to himself, he began to proudly stride towards the counter, paid for the locket, and exited the store. Upon exiting, an enticing aroma took him by surprise, turning to find a bakery not too far. This trip may have been worth it after all.

“Come on Makoto! Or we’re going on ahead!” Sayaka states, causing Makoto to snap out of his daze, catching up to the girl in question.

“You seemed to be thinking about something, what’s up?” Sayaka asks

“Nothing really...I just have that feeling”

“What feeling?”

“Byakuya must’ve bought me another store again”

Now, he didn’t really buy a whole store. Just enough sweets and gifts that would last a lifetime, there was a clear difference. Proud of himself, Byakuya texts Makoto to meet up in the plaza whenever he has the chance.

This is where the realization kicks in. He bought him more stuff again.

Yikes.

He was currently sitting at the water fountain, his eyes darting from his phone to the corner just in front of him, tapping his leg as he waited for the other boy to show up. Normally he would chastise himself for acting in this foolish manner, but his head was too muddled to argue with himself.

Why even bother in the first place? He’ll reject them again and say something really sappy, not like he ever hated the sappy words. On the contrary, Byakuya seems to take anything Makoto has told him to heart, drinking up the sweet nothings he’d whisper in the more silent moments. Though he would rarely admit it, Makoto always told him the words he wanted to hear, and he would respect his boundaries and never went too far. His aura is so calming, it almost moves him to tears.

How can someone so kind, so selfless deal with such a selfish monster?

Putting his thoughts aside, Byakuya glances at his phone to find a message from Makoto, telling him that he’d be at the designated area in a few minutes.

“You know I never get why you reject Byakuya’s gifts” Sayaka notes, Makoto looks at her quizzically

“What makes you say that?”

“Well Byakuya...isn’t the most touchy feely person. Maybe buying you stuff is just how he appreciates you”

Makoto was well aware, but it still felt ingenuine. Prying Byakuya about his personal life is a feat in and of itself, so he’s grateful for anything. But, he wishes that Byakuya knows he values him as a person, not just a name. However, the progeny’s heart is solid frozen, it won’t budge anytime soon.

“I know but, what if he thinks I only want him for money?” Makoto asks simply

“We both know he’s not that stupid” Heading off, Makoto is left to chew on Sayaka’s words.

When he looked up again, Byakuya found Makoto awkwardly waving at him. With a small smile, he begins to make his way towards the other. Interlocking their fingers, the two head off in silence. The silence eating up the previously warm atmosphere, Byakuya was starting to feel like a child who was a second away from getting scolded for their behavior.

“You got more stuff” Makoto starts

“..And if I did?”

“I don’t find it to be that big of a deal you know? Just…”

“Just?”

“Do you think I use you for your money?” Makoto asks flatly

Taking both of his hands, Byakuya begins to chuckle. He kept at it, his quiet chuckle turning into an obnoxious laughter, filling in the chilling atmosphere, seemingly ignoring Makoto’s protests

“This isn’t funny Byakuya!”

“I know, it’s hilarious!” catching his breath, he cups Makoto's cherry cheeks, giving him one of his rare smiles.

“If you did, I don’t think our relationship would’ve lasted that long” he laments, he goes in for a quick peck, leaving the other frozen on the sidewalk.

“Hey hang on!” he catches up to the taller, grabbing his wrist.

“Are you sure?”, turning around, his eyes brighter than they’ve ever been, and with a smug grin on his face he responds

“You tell me Naegi”

#danganronpa valentines #naegami #makoto naegi #byakuya togami #makoto x byakuya #danganronpa fanfiction #writers on tumblr

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prompt-master · 4 years

Text

It's Snooping Time

Makoto had the nosiest little sister. He had to shoo her out of his room all the time to keep her from getting her grubby little hands all over his things. He couldn't even begin to count the amount of manga Komaru just straight up stole from him. Not to mention that she even went so far as to snoop through his mail and open his Hope's Peak Acceptance letter while he was out.

He'd made sure to rid his room of anything he didn't want her taking before he left for Hope's Peak. It was the only precaution he could make with even a chance of working. It was such a strange feeling moving into his dorm and not having to worry about Komaru checking every nook and cranny when he turned his back. It was relaxing, honestly. He did miss his sister, and he loved her dearly! But he didn't love some of the crap she pulled.

But that's alright, because now Makoto had a chance to catch up and remind himself of all the things he loved and hated about Komaru. After the Ultimate Pharmacist accidentally caused a risky chemical spill that managed to leak to the dorms through the vents, everyone had been given a week off campus!

He'd been having the time of his life attending as an Ultimate. All his new friends were so lively and made him excited to face each day. He treasured every bond he'd made over the course of the year. It was a bit overwhelming at times being surrounded by the most talented eccentric individuals Hope's Peak's scouters could find, and walking into his quaint little home only reminded him of how average he really was compared to everyone else in the school. He somehow managed to be more average than other raffle winners.

"I'm home-"

"Makoto!"

His mother pulled him into a quick unexpected hug.

"Ack- mom-!"

"Aw, Makoto we missed you! I've never been away from you from so long, you're growing up!" Her arms curled around his back, pulling him in tighter and tighter. One hand ruffled his hair from the back, the other lay on his shoulder.

"I missed you too mom" Makoto laughed, embarrassed as his mom planted a kiss on his head, "but can you please let go? You're crushing me."

"Makoto!" Another voice cried out and Makoto held his chest, recovering from the previous hug.

"Hi Komar- oof!"

She gave him a heavy slap on the back before another hearty hug, giving him a mouthful of hair. He could feel her usual energetic excitement, she pulled off of him quickly, hands on his shoulders and starry eyes wide, "How was it?! Are the students as weird as the internet says?! Do you have any hot upperclassmen?! You go to school with your stupid idol crush now don't you?!"

Just about a year ago all this energy would have left Makoto dizzy and tired, now he considered it low energy compared to the intensity of everyday life around the Ultimates.

Makoto laughed, a soft sweet sound. Home sweet home, after all. He did have much he wanted to tell his sister. She was going to freak out when she found out Yamada Hifumi, the author of her favorite doujin, was in his class. "Calm down Komaru, I just got home."

"Geez," she said, tone light and teasing, "you go to an elite school and come back like you went on a life changing journey! Where's my brother who gets annoyed at all my questions, huh?"

"Give your brother a break, Komaru." Their dad joined the scene, clapping a hand onto Makoto's shoulder. "You'll have plenty of time over the week to hear about all his adventures."

"You just want to hear about it too, dad."

"Guilty as charged." their dad put up his hands in admission, chuckling softly.

"You should get settled in," when his mother smiled, she had little crinkles around her eyes. It was such a small detail but he missed seeing such a genuine joy on someone's face, "we won't have as much to tell you as you will us though."

"That's ok mom!"

Makoto found himself relaxing. Even though he'd been away from home for so long he fit right back in like he always belonged here. After an awkward wave he left down the hall to get into his room. On his way there, an unfamiliar glint of light from the living room wall caught his eye, causing him to look up. There was a new frame up on the wall. More of Komaru's art, maybe?

He came closer to the simple black frame, seated in a spot that was rather obvious. Like his parents wanted all visitors to see this particular frame. From a distance it looked mostly white and blank. He got close enough to make out the little black text that simply and quickly announced Makoto's acceptance into the school of a lifetime.

Makoto smiled. They framed his acceptance letter. He was really happy to be home. He felt loved before he left, but now he felt adored.

As he pushed open the door to his room and dropped his bags to the floor he briefly wondered how different things would be after starting out a new path in his life. But once he sat down on his bed he felt like he'd never really left. He was excited to have dinner with his family again, but he also has text messages from his new friends to look forward to!

The problem was Makoto got too relaxed. He was used to sleeping in a cozy locked dorm where everyone only bothered to knock in order to ask him to hang out elsewhere. So when Makoto went to dinner he left his backpack free for the picking on the floor of his bedroom.

And of course, Komaru wasted no time poking her head into said room. How could she not?! Her brother is getting a once in a lifetime opportunity! No, not even that, most lives don't get to experience even a taste of what Makoto gets to indulge in. How could she not want to know more?! A quick inspection of the bags he brought over showed pretty much only clothes and a teddy bear wearing the Hope's Peak emblem on its shirt.

And then she turned her attention towards his backpack. Maybe she'd find some embarrassing doodles in his notebooks, Makoto did have a tendency to scribble when lectures bored him. She zipped open the bag, bouncing up and down in anticipation as to what she might discover.

Ugh, boring. Why did Makoto only have a bunch of school supplies in his backp- oh. Well actually, that did make sense. Even though Makoto was accepted into the school unconditionally it seemed he still wanted to prove himself.

Well, average grades. It's certainly not exceptional but...he is trying.

Feeling a bit dejected at the lack of juicy information, she opened the front pocket of his backpack with much less vigor than prior. Then she paused.

Oh my, oh my, oh my. What do we have here?

Within the pocket were several small envelopes each sealed with a well placed red heart sticker.

Confession Letters.

Naegi Makoto had confession letters.

There was NO WAY anything in this world could keep Komaru from digging further. She quickly took one of the letters into her hand and inspected it.

"Maizono Sayaka"

She gasped, it was the idol crush! That was definitely Makoto's handwriting, it was always a bit distinctly messy. No doubt in her mind that her brother wrote these.

She looked back into the bag, where so many envelopes lay in waiting for the day someone would open them. She felt herself building up an uncontained excitement. Was Makoto so enamored with Miss Maizono Sayaka that he had to write several drafts of his confession? She could totally imagine Makoto about to hand over his letter before going red in the face and sprinting away in panic.

She wondered if she could open up some of these without getting caught, she desperately wanted to read the embarrassing contents. She picked another letter from the back of the pouch and turned it over.

"Kirigiri Kyoko"

Her amusement grew three sizes. She was trying hard not to laugh, her brother was crushing on two girls who were most certainly out of his league? What did he think he was, an anime protagonist?

She picked up another, buzzing with excitement.

"Togami Byakuya"

Her eyes almost popped out of her head at that one. Togami Byakuya? Wait… Togami? Like THAT Togami? Togami Corporation? Wait- a BOY?

No way. No fucking way. She totally called it. But to think that Makoto wasn't just crushing on a TOGAMI but was writing letters hoping to confess. The image of her average joe brother handing, not just a random someone but a TOGAMI, a handwritten letter made her giggle.

She continued to pick through the letters. He certainly had a thing for Kyoko and Byakuya as there were SEVERAL versions of those letters. There were a few more for Sayaka, and a few singles for others such as someone named Asahina Aoi, and someone named Ikusaba Mukuro.

Was Makoto just falling in love with anyone who so much as looked at him?

She needed so desperately to know more. She was trying hard not to sputter with laughter at the assortment of letters now in her lap. Makoto didn't just think he was an anime protagonist he seemed like he thought he was a harem protagonist.

The door opened up, leaving Komaru without even a single moment to put everything back.

"Komaru, you know I don't like you in my-..." Makoto's slightly annoyed tone cut off as he processed the sight in front of him.

Komaru. His sister. With all his very personal letters in her grasp.

Makoto quickly sprung into action. "Ack! No! No stop that! Why are you going through my bag!?" He dropped to his knees, sliding on the wooden floor and scrambling to rip all the letters away from her.

She held on tight to one of them, it was one of Byakuya's letters. Her face was smug, knowing all too well she was about to bring the motherfucking gavel down on him.

"Komaru let go!" Makoto whined trying to snag Komaru’s prize for snooping.

"I- ppftt - I can't believe you wanted to date like half your class!" Komaru disregarded her brother's pitiful plee and kept the letter just out of his reach. Her brother's face was beet red as he glared at her.

"H-hey it's not HALF!" Komaru continued to laugh at him, unable to even get a sentence out between her wheezes. Makoto picked up a pillow from his bed and threw it at her face.

She rolled back with the impact, hopping up onto her feet and balancing on her heels. She held the letter high above her head.

"I never thought you'd be the type to write CONFESSION LETTERS!"

Makoto felt panic rushing through his very veins, "its not…!" He couldn't even do much but stay on the ground desperately trying to think of a way out of this situation "They aren't confession letters!! I dont have crushes on all of them now give it back!"

His face, all the way to his ears, had gone so bright red you could make a paint swatch out of it.

Komaru's amusement somehow grew worse at his words. She stood tall over him, her smile reminiscent of a cruel villain from an shounen anime. "All of them?" She said.

Her face hurt from being unable to stop smiling, "All of them?! You have crushes on all of them at the same time?!"

"No…!"

"Oh my GOD I thought you just kept switching crushes because you're sensitive! Not piled them up!"

"I didn’t-!"

"What was the plan here Makoto?!"

"I don't know! There is none!"

"Oh my God I have to read one."

"No!"

That got Makoto back into action, jumping up to once again try to tear the letter by force out of his sister's hands. She retaliated by licking his hand when it came near her face.

"Gross! Komaru!"

"Makoto please you need to tell me. You're seriously going after a TOGAMI?"

She was pretty sure if Makoto blushed anymore he'd pass out from a head rush.

"Tell me what you like about him" she said "or I'll tear this bad boy open!"

"Honestly, I'm not too sure either…" Makoto had far more memories of Byakuya insulting him for being an 'optimistic commoner idiot' than he did memories of him being nice.

Komaru flopped back, throwing herself down onto Makoto's bed hard enough that she got a bit of airtime. "You go to an elite school and now you think all these Ultimates are in your league!" She propped herself up on one arm "I mean, I expected this for Maizono, but I always thought you were more modest than this Makoto. You should know the harem comes to YOU, not the other way around!"

Makoto's voice reached a pitch that she thought should be impossible, "I don't want a harem!"

Completely sitting up on his bed now, waving the letter in her hand mockingly, she said "No? Trying to pick one lucky fella then?"

"How am I supposed to choose?!"

"No way you actually are. Pffftt…! You're in some deep shit Makoto!"

"It's not my fault..! I mean...they're all so amazing! Maizono-san and I became good friends right away...and when she told me she remembered me from middle school I was a goner…!

And then Kirigiri-san trusts me - ME Komaru! - to help her on investigations. And- and sometimes she gets this adorable pout when I spend time with other friends for too long. And when she smiles at me...it's so rare but she has the prettiest smile...anyone would be lucky to have her!

And oh no, Togami-kun. He seems almost like he hates hanging out with me, but then he gets upset when I seem disinterested. He tells me all these personal details about his life as if he wants me to be closer to him. How can I not look into that!

All these people are messing with my head!"

"Woah woah lover boy calm down!"

Makoto panted, having to catch his breath after blurting out such a very personal speech about his feelings. Realizing just how embarrassing that entire thing was, he zippered his hood up all the way so that Komaru had no chance of seeing his embarrassment. He dropped himself back down so that he was sitting on the floor, reflecting on all the actions and words he picked to get him in this situation. Maybe if he just sat quietly he would actually disappear.

"Aren't you the older one here?"

"Shut up…"

"You always did have a soft heart, you fell for Maizono-san just from talking to her once! And now you've got all these guys to worry about"

"I don't know what to do…" Makoto mumbled, "I'm lucky enough to be friends with them."

"You really like all of them, huh?"

Makoto nodded, unzipping his hoodie just a smidge, enough so that his eye peeked out, "every chance I get to spend time with them feels really special"

Komaru, still sitting down on Makoto's bed, leaned her head back against the back wall. A much softer smile graced her face, it was a small little thing but Makoto understood the meaning. Komaru thumbled the envelope in her hands, then placed it by her side.

"You're just...you're kinda amazing, Makoto."

"Huh?" Makoto didn't understand that at all, he wasn't anything special at all! He only got lucky, otherwise he was the most average guy in Japan. He unzipped his hoodie all the way, embarrassment forgotten in his confusion.

"I mean look at you!" She lifted her head back up, gesturing wildly to all of Makoto, "you're out there, making friends with the most amazing people in the world just by being yourself! I mean...what is up with that?!"

Makoto smiled, "They are the most amazing people, huh?"

"You've always been pretty good at making friends-"

"So are you though!"

"-but I never thought you'd be this good! You're going places! You're making connections!" Her excitement and gestures began to slowly lose steam as she spoke. Her movements more sluggish and heavy, her smile going away.

"And I'm still gonna be here. Just a normal girl."

Well...that made sense. Makoto felt exactly the same. He and his sister may be rather different, but they were also incredibly similar. They were both optimistic, friendly, they both saw the good in a lot of people, but they also both felt like they were painfully average. Makoto lifted himself off the ground and joined Komaru on the bed, sitting next to her. He knew that just telling her she was special wouldn't help much, he'd experienced people telling him that over and over and he still felt like he cheated his way into being "special".

After a pause, Makoto said, "you know...I know a few Ultimates I think you'd make good friends with…"

Komaru looked up at that, "Wait, really?"

"Yeah! You'd get along great with Maizono-san, Enoshima-san-"

Komaru gasped, "Enoshima? Like Enoshima Junko?"

"Uh, yeah!"

"She's a total BABE Makoto where's her letter!"

Makoto laughed, she sure cheered up fast, "Maybe you can write it after you talk to her for a bit."

"You really think she'd talk to me? I'm not an Ultimate."

"Sure! If she can talk to me, she'll get along just fine with you! Ah but...careful...she can be kind of intense on pranks…"

"She sounds great!"

"And that's not all! There's also people you already know! You've read Yamada-san's fan books and one of Fukawa-san's novels!"

"You know them?!"

"You don't need to be in Hope's Peak and you don't need to be special to go places, I think you're fine as you are!"

Komaru's shoulders lifted and she curled in on herself, a genuine grateful look on her face, "thanks Makoto...you're a good brother"

"Any time, Komaru." He smiled sweetly, "now give me my letter back."

#danganronpa #dr #dr:thh #makoto naegi #komaru naegi #naegiri #naegami #fanfic #glad to see i can still give my fanfics the dumbest titles ever #the read more is way lower than i put it but i guess f u c k me right tumblr #this is not junko/komaru #it's snooping time

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ethereaiin · 4 years

Text

Breathe | Puella Magi Madoka Magica

synopsis; to give into despair would mean to give up your humanity. you could not stand the thought of leaving them and so you would continue to hope against all odds. [female reader]

featuring; you, tomoe mami, kaname madoka, akemi homura, miki sayaka, and sakura kyoko. | AU

There was a strange scent in the air, it smelled of strongly of fire and tears. The tears were not her own, neither were the flames created by her hand. She could feel the despondency hovering the air, filling her lungs with not only the smoke of flames, but the fear of death.

She stood in the middle of five other girls, her position being at the front of the group and her arms outstretched into a defensive stance. Her [eye color] eyes, which burned with an unwavering intensity, were locked with the towering figure of the witch before them. It's body was distorted, its top half ceaselessly spinning while the doll like bottom half hung limply. It's eerie laughter pierced the tense air and the mere notion of it taking joy in their hopelessness had only made the [hair color] haired girl grit her teeth in frustration.

Her fingers clenched around the handle of her weapon, the [favorite color] gem embedded on the inside of her palm glowing in response to her growing anger. Her heart beats harshly in her ears, her throat constricting with tears she desperately attempted to will away. She couldn't afford to look weak now, not when she was the only one left who could finish the job. She exhaled a bated breath, relieving some of the heaviness in her chest and only when she lifts her weapon slightly in preparation to charge the oversized witch does she hear the soft call of her close friend, Tomoe Mami.

"Don't!" She freezes at the blonde's words, her head slightly tilting to meet the gaze of Mami's through the side of her eye. "It's too strong, it'll. . ."

The sharp hiss that left her lips, caused [name] to kneel before her, hands hovering over her shoulders as her brows furrowed with concern. Mami held onto her side, the brown corset of her magical girl outfit was stained and ripped from a gash given to her by none other than the witch before them. [name] casted a glance towards her other companions, her gaze lingering on their pained expressions and the red that stained their clothes. Their normally smiling faces were dirtied from the earlier fight and various scratches litter their cheeks. She would have been just as injured as them if it weren't for her regeneration magic.

"[name]-chan, please don't go." Her gaze flickered towards the pleading eyes of Madoka. "I can't stand to see another one my friends—"

Her gloved hands clamped over her mouth as sobs racked her body. Her shoulders shook with despair and her rose colored eyes fluttered shut in a weak attempt to cease her tears. At her words, [name]'s attention flipped towards the two beside the pink haired girl. Sayaka's back was turned towards her, the upper portion of her body hunched over the body of Kyoko. She could see Sayaka shuddering slightly with muffled whimpers as she continued holding onto Kyoko's corpse.

As much as she wished she could follow Madoka's and Mami's words of protest, she knew that there would be no end to this unless someone destroyed the witch terrorizing them. Kyoko sacrificed her life for them and she wasn't going to allow her death to be in vain. With a wistful smile picking up at the ends of her lips, she rose back up to her feet. Her hands once again clenched, readying her weapon as she swilved back towards the still giggling witch. It was almost mocking how it seemingly awaited for them to finish conversing with a smug patience; as if it already knew of its victory over them.

"Don't worry," She assured, though the words sounded empty to her companions. "I'll make sure we get out of this together. For Kyoko-chan."

"I'll help you then." Her ears perked at the sound of a gun cocking and when she turned around, she was met with the determined gaze of Homura. [name] furrowed her brows, her lips parting to voice her concerns before the raven haired girl cut her off with a prepared answer. "My wounds aren't as serious as everyone else's, I'll be fine."

With a huff the older girl nodded before turning her gaze to Madoka who looked between the two with tear brimmed eyes. "Madoka-chan," Her voice was warm, filled with an affection that felt so out of place in the situation they were in. "Keep watch over Mami and Sayaka-chan, okay?"

"Wait!" A harsh tug to her sleeve was felt by the [hair color] haired girl. She stopped in her tracks, glancing down at the blonde who struggled to keep a grasp on her amongst the intense waves of pain. She was still seated on the concrete floor, Madoka hovering next to her; hands steadied on the blonde's shoulders.

Mami's teeth sunk into her bottom lip, her fingers still bundled in the fabric of [name]'s sleeve despite the weakening grip. Her free hand was wrapped around her waist, cradling her open wound. There was a melancholic countenance in her dandelion gaze, her worries leaking out in the form of tears. [name] felt the urge to wipe them, to hold her close and reassure her of returning back, but she knew filling the girl with hope only to crush it would be a fate worse than death.

"Y-You have to come back." Her voice slightly wavers despite the stern frown pulling at her soft lips. The grip on [name]'s sleeve tightens once again. "You promised you wouldn't—"

"Leave you." [name] finishes, her calm smile never leaving her face. She slightly moves her arm, shifting it so her hand could grip Mami's. "Don't worry, I didn't forget."

[name] gives her hand a squeeze before dropping it. She turns back to Homura as another shrill bout of laughter is emitted from the witch. Her warm smile is dropped completely and replaced with a tenacious frown. There is a deep exhale vented from her lips and the beating of her heart once again picks up it an erratic pace to indicate the nervousness that she desperately tried to hide. Homura walks beside her, their paces carrying a reluctant but convicted gait. Both of them were determined to end the life of the witch who not only killed one of their friends, but threatened the lives of the others. It would be no walk in the park, they both knew that, but what else could they do other than place their hope into an arduous task?

"Homura," the older girl called, her voice low but not quiet enough to go unheard. There was a silent agreement in their connected gazes and from the tone of voice [name] used to call her name, there was also an unspoken question that begged to be understood.

"I know." She responds, her eyes hardening slightly before returning back to the sight before her. Despite never admitting it outloud, the both of them held trust in each other's capabilities. They were strong, formidable among their companions, but even they had limits. There was no such thing as immortality in their line of work, a fact the two have been faced with numerous times.

Mami stared after the two, an endless stream of tears staining the pale skin of her flushed cheeks. Her hand that held onto [name]'s felt as if it were burning with a tingling sensation. She held it close to her chest, her heart heavy with a unwanted sorrow that only reminded her of the reality of their situation. As much as she wanted to believe in [name]'s promise—their promise—their adversary was strong, too strong for just two people. Her head lowered, bubble tears falling from her lashes and onto her beige colored skirt.

"You can't die." She sniffled, her whispered plea being carried off into the wind like the fleeting hope lingering in her chest. "I'll never forgive you if you die."

Madoka sat next to the blonde, her attention solely focused on the backs of her brave friends. Despite Homura assuring them that she was well enough to continue fighting, Madoka knew she was far from being 'fine'. If it should have been anyone who accompanied [name], it should have been herself. She was relatively unscathed compared to the others, yet she couldn't will herself to protest against Homura's actions. She knew why hesitation weighed heavily on her lack of action. She was afraid. The fear clawed and twisted at the pit of her stomach and her heart felt as if it were harshly beating in her throat. Each and every swallow of saliva felt as if it were made of lead and her fingers trembled within her tightly clenched hands.

There was a semblance of shame forming in the back of her mind. She essentially abandoned the two girls she called her friends to a similar fate Kyoko suffered. They left to fight for them, to protect them, and yet she couldn't even force herself to offer assistance. She's always admired the bravery and leadership they offered when situations become complicated. She wanted to be like them, to emulate their fearlessness and to abandon the meek and shy Madoka she hid behind.

Turns out she hadn't changed one bit.

The quietude of peace was anything but serene. Crimson painted the pale blue of her blouse and leaked from her parted peach colored lips. The strong metallic scent that lingered in the air filled her senses and burned her nostrils. As she collapsed to the concrete below, she found herself thinking that the scent of fire was better than the scent of blood.

The sharp sound of her weapon clattering to the ground had fell onto deaf ears and had gone ignored by its wielder. Her eyes, a once vibrantly colored [eye color], now dulled with fading life. Her arms ached with exhaustion and her lungs stung with the lack of air her blood was preventing her from getting. She coughed, more of the crimson liquid spewing from her mouth and splattering onto the ground she crumpled against.

The witch, the one she and her companion attempted to rid the world of, still stood strong before her fatally injured form. It's laughter filled the once droning silence. It was mocking them, its screeching giggles an indication of how ineffective their feeble attacks were against it. It took joy in their suffering and it was then that the hope [name] tried so hard to preserve, was beginning to flicker out.

Her hand weakly reached for the handle of her fallen weapon, each movement of her body causing a wave of pain to shudder through out her body. Her regeneration magic was slowly mending her wounds, but at this rate she would die from blood loss before then. Her fingertips graze the edge of the cold metal, the prickling sensation that began enveloping her arms alarmed her of what she already knew was coming. Her hand dropped flat against the ground, fingers no longer wiggling on her command.

"H-Hom. . . ura." She calls, her voice shaking from the lack of strength. The gaping hole in her abdomen protests against her actions and more of the dark red liquid spills from her lips. She quickly loses the strength to keep herself up and her cheek is forcefully pressed against the rough concrete below. Her breaths are ragged, uneven and unable to keep a rhythm that guarantees her survival. She could feel blood pooling around her form, staining her pretty blouse in a foreboding color.

There is another moment of tense silence before there is a quick shuffling of movement that catches her eye. Homura falls to her knees next to her, her hands hovering inches above her body as if she were attempting to find a way to help. There was an expression of concern laced onto the normally stoic girl's features that [name] would have laughed at if it weren't for the world of pain she was experiencing at the moment.

"Why—" She winced at the blood staining her leggings, the thundering beating of her heart slowing to an agonizingly slow pace. The girl beneath her looked worse for wear, her face caked in dried blood and her clothes ripped and shredded from a nasty tumble she took. That familiar feeling of frustration built up in Homura's chest. "Why'd you save me? I could have easily dodged it!"

[name] weakly smiled, her lips only twitching slightly before falling once again. Homura knew she was barely holding on, the fading light in her dull eyes was just another sign of her sealed fate. "Because. . . you can—" She swallows another mouthful of blood, its taste lingering on her tongue even after it was gone. It reminds [name] of her own failure to uphold the promise to the blonde still awaiting her return. ". . . still save. . . them."

Homura reached for the girl's hand, brows furrowing at the chill her skin carried. The soul gem embedded on her palm is cracked and the ravenette winces at the pieces that crumble at her touch. "Don't speak." Her voice held an edge of command that caused [name] to feebly shake her head. "Your magic can't heal you if you keep wasting your strength."

"Tell her. . . I'm sorry."

She didn't need to ask to know who [name] was referring to. Her lips parted, the reassurance she meant to speak melting on her tongue before disappearing completely. The blankness in [name]'s gaze and cease of wheezing had determined her slow death. That agreement they made before departing from their friends was one that they made long ago, the day they became magical girls.

"There's something I need you to promise me."

There's a breeze that gently blows across the bridge they occupy. [name] stares her down with a rare serious expression that completely contrasts her usual sly grin. The sunset outlines her figure, basking her in an orange glow that adds to her serene features. For as long as Homura had known [name], there was never a time that the girl ever asked anything of her. The two were childhood friends, sticking by one another through the years, an unbreakable bond between them. Homura hums in response to her statement, tilting her head slightly as she continues to gaze at the [eye color] eyed girl.

"Tomoe Mami." Her brows are pulled together as she utters the name of the older girl who was in the same class as [name] and a fellow magical girl. Homura remembers the blonde as the one who introduced them to witches and showcased the duties one would undertake if they chose to create a contract with Kyubey. "If anything were to happen to me, I need you to make sure that she'll be alright without me around anymore. Despite how mature she acts, she's terribly fragile."

"Don't talk as if you're planning on dying." Homura flicks the girl's forehead and she laughs in response. Her hand goes to cradle the spot after Homura retracts her own hand away from her. She pays no attention to the feigned whine of pain emitting from the [hair color] haired girl's lips. ". . . But fine, you have my word."

"You're feeling soft today, huh?" A genuine smile filled with gratitude lifts at the corners of [name]'s lips and her eyes twinkle with appreciation. It was the first time Homura had ever heard the girl speak seriously and it indicated just how much Mami must have meant to her.

Homura sighed through her nose, shifting slightly when [name] threw her arms around her shoulders to bring her into a one sided embrace. "Shut up."

If Homura had known that it would be the last time she may ever get the chance to embrace her friend, she might have relished in it a lot longer than she did. She lifts a trembling hand, slender fingers grazing against the pale cheek of [name]. Her hand travels further up her friend's face, swiftly closing her lifeless eyes in one swift motion.

Tears brim the rim of her eyes, her breaths shudder and her violet eyes flutter close in an attempt to keep any tears from falling. There is a heavy feeling weighing down on the center of her chest, one she recognizes as the feeling of both sorrow and anger. Her gaze snaps open, eyes narrowed in determination as she rose back up to her feet. The soles of her heels are dipped in the crimson red of her friend's blood, a reminder of the being who had damaged the girl beyond repair.

'I can fix this. . .' Homura thinks as the looming shadow of Walpurgis towers over her. Its shrill laughter taunts her as she lifts her arm possessing her magical weapon. The silver shield rotated counterclockwise, indicating her usage of her time magic. 'I can fix everything.'

Her eyes lifted to meet the cheshire grin of the witch before dropping back down to the body of [name]. There was a flash of bright light that enveloped her, surrounding her in a warmth that comforted her with the assurance of rewriting fate itself. Her lips twitched into a small smile, her head filling with images of her friends alive and happy, their gazes filled with mirth rather than hopelessness. The memory of [name]'s teasing grin, her fluttering laughter and warm embraces placed an airy feeling to replace the strain in her chest.

"I'll save you this time," She promises herself, her eyes filled with resolve. "I'll save you all."

#writing #reader insert #x reader #reader insert fanfiction #puella magi madoka magica #pmmm #one shot #madoka kaname #homura akemi #mami tomoe #sayaka miki #kyoko sakura #fanfic #fanfiction #anime fanfiction #Female reader #reader interactive #writeblr

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kokichi-and-co-imagine-blog · 6 years

Note

I’d love a part two to the Pokémon Mystery Dungeons Naegiri thing!! That was awesome to read

Anon: Kyoko please make a part 2!!!!!!!!!1!! That was great but you left me wanting moar XD!!!!!!!!!!Mod Kirigiri, for the Mystery Dungeon Au, can we have the reactions from the rest of the Detecive Society when Kyoko tells them Naegi is gone?

Well… this took longer than anticipated. College is rough I suppose.

If it’s rough around the edges, well, I’ve rewritten this about 50 times, so I don’t know what to say.

Enjoy…?

(Part 1 is here if you missed it!)

…It Simply Means “I’ll See You Again Soon”

“U-um, I’m sorry to interrupt but, where’s Makoto?” Chihiro asked, and suddenly all the noise in the room ceased to exist. Kyouko felt herself unintentionally tense for a moment. Everyone began to look around, whispering to themselves about her missing partner, before finally settling their gazes onto her. She swallowed down a sigh and closed her eyes, trying to collect her thoughts.

It wasn’t that it was a difficult question to answer—it was perhaps the easiest one she’d been asked in the past few days, and it wasn’t unexpected either. No, the actual answer itself was quite simple, it was actually coming out and saying it that she hesitated on. It wasn’t that she didn’t think the others deserved to hear or could handle the truth—the day she let that stop her was the day the world actually ended. It was that she really had been putting off thinking about it since earlier that day, and the emotions that’s she’d suppressed were threatening to rear their ugly head.

She hadn’t stayed much longer in the spot they been after Makoto bid his supposed “temporary farewell”; she had too many conflicting feelings to want to remain there. And regardless of whether or not she’d wanted to, she didn’t have the time for it. She’d still had a ways to go to get back to Hope’s Peak, and given how drained she already was physically, mentally, and now emotionally as well. So she took Makoto’s attitude to heart and just kept moving forward, burying the feelings from earlier that day to deal with later.

By the time she’d finally reached Hope’s Peak again, it was dark. Still, that didn’t stop the other members of the Detective Society from practically running her over upon her return to them (including a near crushing hug from Hina that still left her sightly wheezing), nor did it stop them from bombarding her with enough questions to make her head spin. But she’d sat through patiently and explained the entire tale to them, start to finish without a detail spared, and when they realized that the entire world had just been saved, a celebration had been proposed to take place at Celete’s Cafe.

She’d been planning on quietly slipping away when the Rockruff’s absence was finally pointed out to the group as a whole.

She finally opened her eyes and kept her gaze toward the wall. “He’s… no longer around,” she answered, keeping her tone as even as possible.

“The hell? What the fuck does that mean?” Mondo snapped, a flash of fear coming over his face for a moment.

“While I disapprove of his language choice, I must agree with his question! What do you mean he’s ‘no longer here’?” Taka added.

Hina gasped. “Don’t tell me… he didn’t…” she trailed off and put her hands to her mouth at the very idea. Kyouko understood the meaning immediately.

“What you’re thinking of didn’t happen,” Kyouko was quick to shoot the idea down. “However… his time in this world did end, in a sense.” She was met with more worried and confused stares. She took in another deep breath.

She’d delivered worse news in her life before. She’d been met with sobbing and grieving family members as she told them the horrible truths, been yelled at and attacked countless times by Pokemon that were often twice her size, and never flinched in any of those situations. Her life had been threatened numerous times, yet she’d never wavered in the face of it.

So why was it this situation that was threatening to crack her carefully crafted composure so much?

Taking advantage of her silence, Byakuya sneered. “Simpletons. If your brains actually function, you’ll recall Makoto was originally a human.”

“Wait, say what!?” Hiro shouted. Ah, that was right, he wasn’t originally there when the others found out. His shock quickly morphed into anger as he stomped his feet a bit, the ground shaking beneath them all. “Stop messin’ with us! Humans aren’t real! They’re just fairytail crap!”

“Yeah, of course I remember that!” Hina huffed. Hiro’s gasp was ignored. “But what does that have to do with anything?” Her tail swished a bit behind her in irritation.

Byakuya gave her a slight glare as her tail came dangerously close to smacking him. He did a side step away from it before continuing. “Makoto’s very existing in our world implied that he was here for a specific purpose; humans don’t just turn into Pokemon all that often,”

“Yes, that’s exactly it,” Kyouko nodded, then tried her best to ignore the smug look now adorning his face “He was originally sent here with the express purpose of saving our world from Junko’s future plans—something which he’d volunteered to do.”

“W-wait, you’re for real? But he never mentioned anything like that! He seemed just as surprised as everyone else when everything went down!,” Leon exclaimed.

“Because he forgot about it. The process that sent him here unintentionally muddled his memory. He didn’t learn about this goal of his until after he and I went to investigate Mukuro’s whereabouts following her escape. Finding Junko as quickly as he did was just a coincidence,” she averted her gaze again. “And once he finally did accomplish his goal-“

“He had no reason to stay in this world any longer afterwards. There was no point in staying,” Byakuya cut in. Silence reigned through the room once more, this time with an undertone of shock and horror in it.

“…” Kyouko remained quiet as well. What was she supposed to add to it now? That was all there was to it. It was in that silence that she realized how much… dimmer, the room seemed without Makoto brightening it up.

Of course, they also wouldn’t be in this situation in the first place had he still been there.

“S-so you mean… he left, just like that?” Chihiro asked, his voice even quieter than usual. “How could he just do that…”

Sakura bowed her head in though, crossing her arms over her chest. “It does seem rather abrupt for him, yes,” she agreed.

“He promised he’d come back ok…” Hina muttered, fist clenched tightly and shaking. “He promised!”

“It wasn’t as if he had a choice in the matter. He truly didn’t want to have to leave.” She closed her eyes for a moment and suppressed a shutter at the memory of his final moments: the passionate look on his face as the light whisked him away, likely to never to be seen again. “Stop,” she told herself. This was not the time to think about that.

She opened her eyes again and looked towards Hina to distract herself. “He would like to extend his apologies, Hina, that he had to break that promise.” She felt a paw against her back and tensed for a moment. To her left she saw Sayaka standing beside her with a sympathetic expression on her face.

“I’m so sorry, Kyouko,” she said, almost whisper quiet.

She ducked of the touch. “I don’t see why you’re apologizing about it.”

“Well, I know that you were close to Makoto. It’s hardly fair that he lef-“

“What’s ‘unfair’ is for anyone to expect him to stay after all was said and done. We’re fortunate he even wanted to volunteer to save our world in the first place.” To that, no one seemed to have an immediate response. She was hoping that meant it was the end of the conversation. She did not have the patience to be arguing about this right now.

But then, Byakuya just had to open his mouth.

“Including yourself?” He jabbed back. “I hardly believe that his ‘investigative partner’ wouldn’t have any qualms about his departure, expected or not,”

“…My opinion of the situation hardly matters,” Kyouko stated, her voice still even.

“F-fine, ok yeah but… you said he wanted to stay too, didn’t you? Shouldn’t that be taken into account? It’s not fair to him!” Hina argued.

“He hadn’t regained his memories. I suspect his opinion would’ve been wildly different if he had. He had a life back in his world long before arriving here after all.” Kyouko shot back.

That wasn’t entirely true. Makoto had told her that himself; that regardless of what memories he was missing he would never regret coming to their world. That he couldn’t wait to save the world and continue investigating with her, provided she’d have him.

That was, of course, right before he’d discovered the truth of what would happen upon defeating Junko. Not that anyone needed that leg up on her.

“Well…” Hina faltered. “B-but still! It could-”

“Any of our thoughts or opinions on the matter aren’t going to change anything about the reality of it. Makoto is gone because he accomplished his mission, and he’s not coming back.” And at her own words, she found herself internally wincing.

Makoto’s words echoed through her head “This isn’t our goodbye. This is just… this is just a temporary farewell. Because we will see each other again, I won’t let it be any other way!”

She didn’t want to doubt his words; she wouldn’t have made it this far with him if she’d written off his words as empty platitudes. His words did carry a certain amount of weight to them. There was an undeniable fire that lit up in his eyes whenever he set out to do something. That fire was there in full force, through the tears that he’d been trying to keep back, as he said those words to her. She truly wanted to believe in them.

But the logical part of her, the part of her she always listened to, kept nagging at her in the back of her head any time she tried. It screamed at her about there was no reason to believe that he’d ever return, that his ‘temporary farewell’ was actually a ‘goodbye’ that he had just been to naive to see it as. That he’d been proven wrong before, he was too short sighted to believe in, and so many more reasons why.

Logically, she had no reason to believe him when he said he’d find a way back. But she wanted to anyway.

Putting faith in something or someone based almost solely on emotions was… foreign territory for her. Having to put aside her logic in favor of what was essentially blind faith was new to her—nor something she planned to make a habit, but she could make an exception this one time. Still, she was trying her best.

But as more time passed and the more she thought about it all, the logical side of her was winning through. She had to wonder how disappointed Makoto would be in her for it. She’d probably never know.

She closed her eyes and let out a quiet sigh for what felt like the hundredth time that day. She didn’t have the patience for this anymore. She picked herself up and began to stalk past the other members, her destination towards the corridor towards her room.

“H-Hey! Where are you goin? Celete’s place is the other way!” Hiro exclaimed.

She stopped and turned her head slightly to look at him and everyone else. “I’m aware, Hiro,” She continued before he could add whatever thought he’d had. “I’ll catch up later, I’d like to rest for a bit first. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day as well,”

“W-w-what’s so s-special about tomorrow?” Touko questioned.

“Because tomorrow I’m leaving Hope’s Peak,” she said.

Hiro laughed. “Oh, is that all? Then- wait a sec… WHAT!?”

She heard similar reactions shouted at her all at once.

“You can’t just leave, Kyouko!”

“Why would you even say that?! You can’t go!”

“But who else will I be able to tell such epic tales about?”

“Quit fuckin’ around! You can’t just leave!”

“And why do you say that? The Detective’s Society requires all it’s members be a part of a team, and in case you haven’t noticed, my partner is gone. I’d be in violation of the rules if I stayed.” Kyouko countered, not quite looking at the former gang member.

“Er… well…” Mondo stammered. “Junko—or Mukuro I guess—was allowed to stick around-”

“They were also manipulating the system to work however they needed it to,” she reminded him.

He scratched the back of his head. “Oh… right…”

“Still, I doubt anyone higher up would have a problem with it! You’re one of the best around! The rule is mostly for newcomers anyways!” Hina tried her best to sound encouraging.

“It doesn’t matter to me either way, I’ve made my decision.” She’d joined the Society for information regarding her father and nothing more. Or at least, that had been her initial intention.

Befriending the random stranger she’d used to get into the group had not been a part of her plan at all. She’d intended to go up in the ranks with him, as someone who could keep up with her skills at least someone, until she’d have access to their archives. After which, she would slip away to continue her solo work. She’d never liked working in large group such as this one was.

But then Makoto just had to use his childish and naive charm on her. She suspected it wasn’t intentional on his part, he wasn’t the type to be aware about that. He’d somehow managed to get her to warm up to him to the point where she considered him her best friend, and then went out of his way to help befriend the other Society members. To continue to be a pat of it without him felt… wrong.

“Well then answer me this: are you really telling the whole truth? You seemed perfectly fine with it when he was still around. Or are you just using that as an excuse?” Byakuya asked, using exaggerated air quotes.

To this, Kyouko said nothing.

She could hear the smirk. “That’s what I thought. Still, I think you’re wrong. I think we’ll be seeing both of you bright and early tomorrow. I’m not going to let two of the best members leave us just like that, after all.” Her ear twitched. There was some shuffling going on behind her, some quiet gasps, a strange ringing sound. Had she heard him correctly?

Both of you…

Both of you…?

What?

“No…” Her eyes went wide. The frantic whisperings behind her had only increased in volume, as had the strangely tinny ringing sound behind her. A ringing sound she that’d she’d heard before.

Earlier that day, in fact.

She whirled around, almost making herself dizzy in the process. But with the current sight in front of her, she didn’t care.

There was a ball of light that had descended from the sign just outside of the door to the headquarters. It was almost blinding to look at. But gradually, the light started to fade, and a silhouette could be made out from in it, one that looked distinctly small and puppy-like.

She didn’t even need to see that to know that it was him; who else could it have even been? Still, the sight of him left her at a loss for words. She probably looked ridiculous, she wagered, standing there just gaping, but that was the least of her concerns in that moment.

After what felt like an eternity passed, the light finally faded entirely. Stood in its place was Makoto, giving the group a bright grin, as if to say that nothing had ever been wrong.

His eyes narrow a bit as he scans through the crowd in search. He lets out an excited gasp when their eyes meet “Kyouko!” He exclaimed, and then-

“Oof!” He’d moved so fast that she hadn’t even realized what was going on until he tackled her to the ground. They tumbled to the ground in a heap.

He nuzzled gently into her neck. “I told you I’d find a way,” he said quietly.

She finally snapped herself out of her stupor, and returned the affectionate gesture. “So you did,”

The whole room let out a cheer, even louder than the one she’d been greeted to upon walking in. Even those less excitable (or more apathetic in generally) were celebrating in their own ways; Byakuya was wearing a slightly more natural smirk as he let out a low chuckle, and Touko was trying her best not to look at them, lest she risk smiling.

“Alright, now this is worth celebrating about!” Leon laughed. “C’mon! Lead the way, Celeste!”

“Certainly.” The room began to shuffle out. Makoto was given a few pats on the head as some of the larger members passed by. His tail wagged in contentment at each one.

He stood up from their spot. He held out a paw to help her as well, but his eyes widened at the sight of her. “Kyouko… you’re crying!”

She raised a paw to her face. “…So I am,” she muttered.She hadn’t even noticed. Makoto raised his paw to wipe them of her face. A small smile graced her lips.

He smiled back. “So, what’s this about a celebration…?”

((Welp this took awhile. Sorry! Hope it helped heal your hearts after last time at least?))

#mod kirigiri #naegiri #Makoto Naegi #Kyoko Kirigiri #Kyouko Kirigiri #danganronpa #Mystery Dungeon AU #danganronpa trigger happy havoc

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raincoastgamer · 6 years

Text

Anime Ramble: Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Magical Girl anime have this tendency to provoke a binary reaction. Either you see Magical Girls on the promo material and want to watch the show, or else you don’t. So, I’d like to preface this bout of gushing-about-a-show-that-I-watched by saying that your initial reaction to seeing the below poster should be discarded and you should just watch this show.

No, really, I think it’s safe to say that if you have an initial gut reaction of “I’m not interested” then you are probably going to appreciate this show quite a bit, while those who are avid fans of the Magical Girl genre might actually end up being put off by their expectations. Not because of what this show is, but rather by what this show isn’t.

In the same way that everyone knows that Darth Vader is Luke’s father or that a certain noble from the North loses their head, there are some story twists which percolate into the general cultural consciousness due to sheer popularity and end up becoming common knowledge. Puella Magi Madoka Magica is a series which blew up to such popularity in 2011 that you’ve probably seen the characters somewhere before even if you don’t watch a lot of anime. You’ve probably also seen this little guy

around, often in the context of memes in which either 1) he tries to get people to make a contract or 2) people inflict violence on him and his smug little face never changes.

So while I want to say that Madoka Magica will surprise you when it pulls a left turn into darkness and despair, not only have I just ruined that specific surprise for you but the internet at large more than likely already did that job for me. Not only was this show popular, which translates into a more widespread awareness of its overall tone and some of its twists, other more recent shows have pulled a similar deception. Only last year did we have Made in Abyss, which I haven’t seen yet but which I understand exists for the sole purpose of having cute kids set off on an exciting adventure only to be eaten alive by Uncle Lovecraft’s Happy Fun Time Cave. If you’ve been around the anime niches of the internet or, like me, have a former otaku for a sister then you know from the onset that this show is far more than meets the eye based on reputation alone.

To start with, take a good look at the promotional material for this show, such as the trailer. The production team did their damndest to ensure that from the outside the show would look like the most derivative Magical Girl show ever made, up to and including keeping Gen Urobuchi’s involvement in the production a secret. Gen Urobuchi (aka ButchGen aka The Urobutcher) is a writer who is known for being a bit of a downer, having been involved in projects such as Fate/Zero and Psycho-Pass. He’s very outspoken when it comes to his distaste for heroic archetypes played straight and his tendency to drag his characters through the mud, so his presence as the show’s writer was what you might call a dead giveaway.

So what happens when a writer like this tackles a genre known for being all about hope, courage, and the power of friendship and love? There are many people who argue that Madoka Magica deconstructs the Magical Girl anime (Magical Girl Warrior subgenre) as codified by Sailor Moon or Cardcaptor Sakura. Some even say it’s the Neon Genesis Evangelion of the Magical Girl genre. As NGE showed us just how psychologically messed up a Giant Robot show would be if populated by actual human beings, Madoka Magica is about how having child combatants fight monsters in an urban environment with no support network does not make a well-adjusted childhood.

The effects of this kind of pressure and isolation on a bunch of adolescents is one of the elements of Madoka Magica, but fighting monsters with magic isn’t the only thing that makes a Magical Girl story. They’re traditionally as much coming-of-age stories as they are stories about definitions of femininity and self-determination. Madoka Magica has the trappings of a MG show: an all-loving protagonist, a dark and aloof rival, a tomboy friend, a non-magical friend, transformation sequences, fighting against the manifestations of dark emotions, and a cute(?) mascot. It’s talking the talk, but at its heart this is not a story about Magical Girl stories in the same way NGE was about Giant Robot anime (that’s what Revolutionary Girl Utena is for). It certainly plays with many common elements of the Magical Girl anime, but at its heart Madoka Magica is about hope, despair, idealism and selfishness. It’s a psychological drama and grand tragedy. It just happens to be wearing a Magical Girl outfit.

Which is not to say that one is superior to the other, of course. Just set your expectations accordingly if you’re already a Magical Girl fan. If you’re not, well, you might be in luck...

Twelve episodes isn’t a whole lot of time and Madoka Magica does a lot in those twelve episodes, so while I’m willing to spoil the tone of the story discussing the plot itself is a bit trickier. Kaname Madoka is our pink-haired milquetoast protagonist who doesn’t think she’s anything special, and just wants to make friends with everyone. We’re introduced to her via dream sequence, where she witnesses a dark-haired girl fighting against an enemy ravaging the city. A strange white bunny-cat creature asks Madoka to make a contract and become a magical girl, and then she wakes up. It turns out that when not dreaming of plot foreshadowing, Madoka has a pretty good life; a cool mom, a loving dad and good friends. But today it turns out the new transfer student at school - Akemi Homura - is the same girl from her dream. Homura warns Madoka to never change, to stay exactly as she is if she doesn’t want to lose her friends, family, everything she has ever loved. We wouldn’t have much of a story if Madoka never changed, though, so it isn’t long before the bunny-cat creature from the dream crashes into the narrative as well and introduces himself as Kyubey.

Kyubey offers Madoka and her best friend Sayaka an opportunity: make a contract with him and he will grant a single wish, any wish. In return the wisher receives magic powers and must now fight Witches. Not the pointed-hat, broomstick-riding variety, but rather strange, eldritch beings which bring about despair, death and suicide among ordinary humans. It sounds like a good deal: get magic powers and a superhero job on top of a wish? Who wouldn’t want that? But the catch is that this job is for life. If you’re spending all your free time saving the world, you’re not spending time with friends, getting a boyfriend, even just having fun. Is your wish worth dedicating your life to?

This story has a lot to say about good intentions. Our characters are living pretty good lives, so is there really anything worth giving that up for? Perhaps the wish is better spent on someone who needs it. But, remember, make a wish and you’re essentially fighting on behalf of that wish for the rest of your life. Is what you wish for really what you want, or do you really want some other outcome? Say you wish for a dying friend to heal; do you actually want them healed, or do you really want their eternal gratitude? All the characters in this story have the best intentions, but there’s a gap between intention and execution. If you don’t know what you really want, all the idealism in the world isn’t going to save you from your own regrets.

The phrase “I just wanted what was best” is a damning one. It's key to remember that the characters are adolescent girls, with all the contradictory vulnerability and immovable self-righteousness which comes at that age. It's the age at which ideas of how the world should be collide rudely with how the world actually is, and a person can either deal with it by changing themselves and developing coping mechanisms - healthy or unhealthy - or else break themselves on the impossibility of making their ideals fit with the system. Then again, it might be possible to change the system itself... but that’s a long shot.

At one point Madoka’s mother gives her a piece of advice: if you see your friend hurting themselves while trying to to the right thing, maybe the best thing to do is to do the wrong thing for them to break them out of their self-destructive cycle. After all, they’re all still young, they’re at an age where recovering from mistakes is supposed to be easier than when you’re an adult. But this advice happens to come at the wrong time, because these kids are stuck in a situation where a mistake can cost one’s life.

As it happens the relationship between Madoka and her mother is one of the highlights in the series. Mom is a career-chasing businesswoman who still takes the time to talk to her daughter, and though she may not be working her dream job she’s living life on her own terms and is obviously an inspiration for Madoka. Her relationship with Madoka plays a surprisingly important role in the story, which is a refreshing change since parents are usually a non-factor or killed off for backstory purposes. The rest of the characters fit much more neatly into standard archetypes. Madoka herself has a big heart and wants everyone to get along, while her much more outgoing friend Sayaka is the go-getter who will take on problems head-first. We’re introduced early on to a much more experienced magical girl named Tomoe Mami, and she ends up taking a sort of big sister mentor role. All three of these girls believe in helping and protecting others, though each has their own take on the best way of doing so. Homura on the other hand is the dark and mysterious loner who for some reason is fixated on Madoka. We feel like she’s an antagonist, but another character who enters the story later turns out to be even more hostile. The red to Sayaka’s idealistic blue, this new magical girl feels like the antithesis to the magical girl ideals we’re used to: selfish, violent and hedonistic.

As elemental as each of these characters is, by the end of the story each one ends up in a very different place than where they started - or else had their starting position shifted altogether. Not everyone is what they seem. Homura’s backstory in particular hits like a truck when it finally arrives and ends up being key to the resolution of the plot. That said, Madoka Magica is not a story that goes in for particularly complex characterization. Its twelve-episode runtime forces a fast buildup and resolution. Friendships and other relationships don’t really have the time to mature on screen, and a lot has to be left to subtext or inference. Each character’s arc takes them where they need to go for the story to progress, and it’s not necessarily a bad thing. Some of these character arcs are desperately tragic tales of misunderstandings and misplaced idealism, but in the end these are still archetypal characters, though perhaps not the archetype you expected. Ultimately, they serve more as conflicting views on the show’s central themes than as the driving force of the story itself. The short length of the show is a weakness, keeping the story from being able to develop the cast as much as would have been ideal.

On the other hand, the show’s compact twelve episode structure is also its strength, and the ‘realism’ of the characters is much less important than what each one represents in the story as a whole. It’s hard to say whether or not Puella Magi Madoka Magica would’ve been able to hit as hard as it does if was any longer. This is a story very much focused on building its plot and keeping a steady pace, layering the tone and atmosphere and absolutely killing it in the aesthetics department. It is a straightforward story when all’s said and done, but it is densely constructed and cohesive. Every element of the show works as part of a whole and builds on the others, the visuals, the cinematography, the music, and even in the way the plot is structured. It’s got no time for cheap fanservice, it makes full use of every moment, and it only gets better on repeat viewings. This isn’t a show that supports casual viewing, and it expects you to be paying as much attention to the way a character is being framed in a shot as to what’s being said (or not said) in the dialogue. This is ultimately a simple story, yes, but it’s dense and constantly being told on multiple layers.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica’s ace in the hole is its mixed-media action scenes. Whenever our characters are fighting a Witch the show pulls a Terry Gilliam and starts doing very strange things with the animation. The medium of the art itself changes, with our cel-animated characters fighting against and among stop-motion objects. Paper cutouts and cotton balls. Lace and embroidery. The effect is unnerving and psychedelic and sometimes overwhelming. It can be difficult to follow the action whenever this happens, but then again these are supposed to be things that aren’t quite in sync with reality, beings which practically run on magic. The fact that these unreal things and spaces are being represented with real-world objects intruding into the animation is a clever touch. It’s an effect that I’ve rarely seen used in anime, and never in an action-heavy context.

(Author’s addendum: I’m aware that director Akiyuki Shinbo’s thing is this mix of visual styles. I do think its usage in Madoka Magica is still notable, if only because it works really well here.)

Even when it’s being more conventional Madoka Magica is visually accomplished. Even though the wide-faced character designs threw me for a loop at first (so wide!) they did eventually grow on me. There’s something about how the eyes look almost penciled-in which keeps them from straying into overly-cutesy territory. The cinematography is likewise superb. Strong, stylized color work drives home tone and emotion. The setting often dwarfs people within vast, empty cityscapes, the background itself being a reflection of the characters’ emotions and the series’ tone. In dialogue-heavy scenes we get momentary flashes of expression and action illustrating what’s happening inside a character’s head, and the framing of characters in a scene tells you everything you need to know about their relationships without saying a word. Whatever else you might think about Madoka Magica, it looks beautiful and tells much of its story visually through color, framing, light and shadow.

Going further than that, the structure of the plot is beautifully constructed as well. You could divide the story into four arcs of three episodes, each following the development of a different character, or else three arcs of four episodes, each one ending with a new point of no return. The third and tenth episodes mirror each other as well, each one shifting the stakes and giving us new context for everything which came before. The reason why this show shines so much brighter on a rewatch is because things that seemed like inconsequential melodrama or lazy writing the first time around take on a whole new meaning once backstory and motivation are revealed. It’s for this reason that I’m not terribly concerned about revealing Puella Magi Madoka Magica’s swerve into darkness; high stakes and dark subject matter are not the only secrets that this series has got up its sleeve. By the end of the story we’re not only dissecting the intentions and desires of our characters, we’re asking hard questions about why this story had to happen the way it did at all, questions which lead to what might be one of the most satisfying conclusions to an anime I’ve ever seen.

That is perhaps what makes Madoka Magica the show that it is. Though the ultimate shape of the story is straightforward, we journey there through layers of twisting color and twisting plot. Though we have our perspective on the events of the story constantly re-contextualized about once an episode, it’s always building to a conclusion that both feels inevitable and yet less likely the closer we get. And when the end does arrive, it takes everything that has happened so far, every mistake, every hope, every good intention gone wrong and it makes them matter. Though the ending is theoretically open ended, it’s entirely self-contained. It has introduced us to a new world, revealed the lies underlying this world, and has shown us what these characters do about it. It raises questions, and in the end tells us what it’s been saying all along. Few shows, anime or otherwise, use such a cohesive combination of visuals, narrative, and music to deliver a message. Beautiful to look at, beautiful to listen to, and beautiful in how it unfolds.

As it turned out, a sequel movie was made anyways. I refuse to provide any comprehensive thoughts on Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Rebellion for now, because doing so runs the risk of being flayed alive by the fandom no matter your take. Suffice it to say that it’s incredibly self-indulgent, visually stunning, and it will make you regret wishing that the ending of the original series could have been happier.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica is beautiful, and you really should watch it.

- Taihus, the wish-granting @raincoastgamer

(And I somehow manage to write all of this without actually discussing the soundtrack. The thing is, I don’t really know how to critique a soundtrack. It’s good, its use of leitmotifs is masterful and actually brought me to tears in episode 8, Magia represents the show’s true face behind the pleasant pink facade, and I’ve still got Sis Puella Magica stuck in my head.)

#puella magi madoka magica #pmmm #madoka magica #review #ramble #anime #anime ramble #anime article #anime review #I wrote a thing #gen urobuchi #akiyuki shinbo #studio shaft #aniplex #ume aoki #yuki kajiura

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saya-milky · 6 years

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Sayaka and Miyuki’s Big Adventure, Chapter Nine: Kobii to the Rescue!

Sayaka and Miyuki have been best friends since they were four. When Miyuki comes up with a plan to sneak away from Namba Kindergarten one day, Sayaka is a little hesitant. But after an exciting afternoon of candy, train rides, and peach soda, things take a scary turn when the six-year-olds find themselves hopelessly lost in the middle of Osaka. Will Sayaka and Miyuki find their way back home? Who knew that such an ordinary day would end up becoming the biggest adventure of their lives?

Previous Chapter: Making Up Chapter Nine: Kobii to the Rescue!

“Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Hanshin Tigers! Yay! Yay! Yay! Yay!”

While Kobii looks up the directions to the game center on her phone, Antonio, Sayaka, and Miyuki have started singing to pump themselves up. By now the sun has set and all the buildings and street lights are aglow. Miyuki rides on Antonio’s shoulders while Sayaka walks in between the two teenagers. According to the map Kobii pulled up, they’re only a few minutes away from the game center, and Osaka Station is only a couple more minutes from there. Considering how close in proximity the two places are, Kobii can’t help but wonder how long Sayaka and Miyuki were wandering around lost.

After walking down a few more streets, Sayaka begins to recognize where they are. The game center should be close. Just as before, Sayaka is the first one to spot the red building in the distance. “I see it! Miyu-chan, let’s show them where the crane machine is!”

Antonio sets Miyuki down and the six-year-olds lead her and Kobii to the crane machine filled with stuffed tigers. Sayaka and Miyuki peer inside the glass with just as much excitement as when they were here earlier that afternoon.

“I think we’re gonna need more change.” Kobii pulls out her wallet and heads towards one of the nearby change machines. “You guys can start, I’ll be back.”

“Antonio-neechan, it’s that one,” Sayaka says, showing Antonio which tiger she’s been wanting. Judging from its position, it must be the same one she and Miyuki tried to win earlier.

“Seriously? It’s already so close to the edge,” Antonio comments, feeling confident. She pulls out a coin from her pocket and inserts it into the machine. “Prepare to be amazed.”

Sayaka and Miyuki jump up and down and cheer as Antonio moves the claw around. “Go! Go! Antonio-neechan! Go! Go!”

When Kobii returns, she shakes her head and has to hold back a laugh at the sight before her. “Sayaka-chan, Miyuki-chan, I have more coins.”

“Kobii-neechan!” Miyuki turns and latches onto Kobii’s legs, smiling up at her. “Antonio-neechan’s gonna win the tiger!”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Kobii warns, pointing. Miyuki looks back just in time to watch the claw drop and come back up empty. “Antonio’s terrible at these.”

“Hey!” Antonio tries to mask her embarrassment. “I’m just getting started!”

Sayaka was hopeful at first, but she quickly loses faith as she watches Antonio fail at the crane game several more times. Miyuki’s been trying to help by observing the claw at all angles and telling Antonio which way to move it, but even that hasn’t worked. Does this mean she won’t get her tiger after all? Today has been a long, scary, disappointing and exhausting day for Sayaka, and now she just wants to give up and go home. She wonders if her papa is already waiting for her at the station.

“Sayaka-chan, come here,” Kobii calls out gently, waving the child over. The poor thing looks like she’s about to cry, and it pulls on Kobii’s heartstrings. Antonio and Miyuki may be too preoccupied with the crane machine to notice, but there’s no way Kobii can leave Sayaka looking so miserable. Kobii holds her arms out and Sayaka comes to her, burying her face into the soft, pink material of the older girl’s nurse uniform.

Enough is enough, Kobii thinks, and although it’s very kind and admirable of Antonio to want to be Sayaka’s hero, the overzealous yankee and her teeny sidekick are getting nowhere fast. Taking Sayaka by the hand, Kobii steps over to the crane machine and wordlessly takes control of the joystick, smiling when Antonio and Miyuki look up at her in confusion. “Can I try next?”

Defeated, Antonio reluctantly steps aside. Kobii takes her turn, inserting one of her coins into the slot. “It’s this little guy that you want, right, Sayaka-chan?” Kobii taps the glass in front of one of the tigers, and Sayaka gives a pouty nod in reply. Kobii skillfully and speedily moves the claw and presses the drop button with several seconds to spare. The claw lowers, and Antonio and Miyuki watch in suspense. Sayaka covers her eyes.

Kobii doesn’t boast or brag, but she does have a rather smug grin on her face as Sayaka’s tiger drops perfectly into the prize chute. Miyuki can’t believe her eyes. She was so close to just giving up on the crane machine like Sayaka, but now she lets out a loud, excited cheer.

Antonio shakes her head. “Typical Kobii.”

“You’re amazing, Kobii-neechan!” Miyuki gushes. “Sayaka-chan, look!”

Slowly, Sayaka peeks through her fingers. Her mouth opens wide.

It’s her big, fluffy tiger!

For the first time that day, Sayaka breaks into a huge grin that stretches from ear to ear. She takes the tiger from Kobii and hugs it tightly to her chest. Smiling up at Kobii shyly, Sayaka goes over and gives her a long, equally tight hug. “Thank you, Kobii-neechan.”

Kobii returns the hug, but soon Miyuki interrupts by pointing out that there are still four credits left on the crane machine. Sayaka and Miyuki stand next to Kobii and cheer her on while she goes back to take on the claw a few more times. “Go! Go! Kobii-neechan! Go! Go!”

In the four remaining turns, Kobii manages to win three more tigers, which is enough to give Sayaka a complete set and even an extra to Miyuki. The children are ecstatic, giggling and skipping in a circle around the teens and waving their tigers in the air. Antonio chuckles and puts a hand on Kobii’s shoulder. Biting her lip to hold back a smile, Kobii responds by playfully elbowing Antonio in the side. The two yankees watch Sayaka and Miyuki for a moment before sharing a slightly guilty look. Now that they’re done at the game center, it’s time to head back to the train station. Neither of them wants to break it to the kids that it’s time to go home.

“Sayaka-chan, look! Purikura!” exclaims Miyuki, running towards the back section of the floor where there are several photo booths. “Antonio-neechan, can we take some?”

“You guys, it’s getting late. We really should head out now,” says Antonio.

Miyuki gives Antonio her saddest pouty face. “Pleeease?”

Antonio sighs, but grumbles and reaches into her pocket. “You’re lucky you guys are cute, you know that?” She hands the children a few coins. “Hurry back. Kobii and I will be waiting right here.”

But Miyuki shakes her head and pulls on Antonio’s jacket sleeve. “Nooo! You and Kobii-neechan have to be in it too!” Sayaka joins in and starts tugging on Kobii’s arm.

“You really want us to be in your photos?” Kobii asks, laughing slightly.

“Yeah, because what if we never see you again?” Miyuki suddenly sounds a bit sad. “If we take purikura together, me and Sayaka-chan will always remember you.”

Kobii and Antonio glance at each other in surprise, both at a loss for words. They’ve only known Sayaka and Miyuki for a few hours, but the kindergarteners have already managed to squeeze their way into their hearts. The yankees share a nod before turning back to the children, smiling. Miyuki is right. It would be nice to be able to look back and remember today. The four girls head towards the photo booths, each happy to be able to spend a little more time together for what could possibly be the last time.

#fanfiction #sayamilky #yamamoto sayaka #watanabe miyuki #nmb48 #sayaka and miyuki's big adventure #LadySoymilk

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pyropsychiccollector · 6 years

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Danganronpa: Another IF (Chapter 2, Part 1)

By the time everyone had left the courtroom, it was almost nighttime. They all moved to the cafeteria, after Monokuma told them he’d cleaned up the body and crime scene so that they could use the laundry room again. Not really eager to believe the monochrome bear, the students had Kirigiri check on the former crime scene for them; and as it turned out, the bear was telling the truth. Naegi would’ve done it himself, but he had his hands full comforting Sayaka.

“The room was pristine. The body has been removed.” Kirigiri reported. Out of everyone, she seemed the most calm and collected, even after everything they’d been forced to witness. Mondo was the first of them to speak as he clenched his hands.

“Fuck… We don’t even get time to grieve?” The biker tsk’ed.

“Ahh… What of my bedsheets?” Yamada asked as he was slumping forward in his chair. It had been ‘decided’ that Togami would not go without his, and while Sakura did offer hers to Yamada, the otaku just let her keep them.

“They were cleaned once more and folded neatly on the table.” Kirigiri told him calmly, running a hand through her lilac hair. “To be honest, it was as if a murder hadn’t occurred in that room, when I inspected it.”

Junko scowled from her place as she hugged her elbows.

“So much for ‘remembering’ Fukawa’s sacrifice…”

�� Naegi shook his head as he rubbed Maizono’s back soothingly.

“No… Even if we don’t have a physical reminder, we can’t just forget about her! Or Hagakure. We should walk toward the future, carrying them in our hearts…”

As she nuzzled into him, Maizono nodded sadly in agreement. As a number of them appeared to take time to grieve in their own ways, Asahina spoke up in a chipper tone.

“C’mon, guys! Cheer up! We gotta turn those frowns upside down! ‘Sides, if we all work together, I’m sure we’ll get out of here. Sooo… Let’s all join hands and push forward with a great big smile!” The swimmer mustered the biggest smile she could. However…

“Cut the crap… You’re not making anyone feel any better.” Togami spat out.

“Huh?” Asahina, among others, looked toward the heir with confusion.

“A murder still took place, regardless of your preaching… It won’t be long before we see fallout. Murder isn’t just a fantasy or a nightmare anymore, and everyone here is uncomfortably aware of it.” The air around the blond was smug and arrogant. And though he didn’t seem to agree, Leon acknowledged his point.

“Hagakure mighta fired the first shot… But dude, it’s like Naegi said. The guy never would’ve murdered if Monokuma hadn’t given us those videos!”

Togami turned on the All-Star in aggravation.

“And you don’t think Monokuma can produce the same result again? Manipulation or not, Hagakure has shown what we all are capable of.”

Asahina stared, wide-eyed.

“B-But… We’ve gotta work together and fight back against the Puppetmaster so that no one else gets hurt…!”

“What did I just say? Cut the crap!” Togami snarled. “You’re not making anyone feel any better… ‘Fight back’? ‘Work together’? Pah! This isn’t some damn never-ending ninja comic!”

“Or is it…?” Yamada wondered.

“It seems whomever is behind this – the ‘Puppetmaster,’ so to speak – has far more power than we had imagined.” Celes pointed out. “This Puppetmaster has taken over Hope’s Peak Academy – despite its heavy security – and then fortified it even further… He built the seemingly high-tech Monokuma – he assembled a vast store of daily necessities for us… And above all, there’s that execution… Far too much effort has been put into all this… That this could be the work of a mere madman is unfathomable… I believe it’s safe to say that resistance is not in our best interests.”

“If so, what are we to do?” Sakura asked.

“We abide by the rules.” Togami crisply replied. “If you absolutely want out… then cheat everyone else and win the game… That’s your only option.”

Fujisaki looked down miserably.

“I… I can’t…”

“What was that?” Togami snapped.

“I don’t want to live… if it means someone else has to die… I can’t bear… to kill anyone else…”

Leon cocked his head.

“Waddya mean ‘else’?”

“Hagakure! He’s dead because we voted for him!” Fujisaki argued. “We killed him!”

“You know we would have gotten killed if we hadn’t voted for him, right?” Junko tried to placate the programmer. “We… didn’t have a choice…”

“Indeed! Any further attempts at self-flagellation and you’ll have crossed the border into masochism!” Yamada chipped in. However, Fujisaki didn’t look any more comforted by their situation.

“Hey, Fujisaki…” Naegi said in a gentle voice. “You’re not the bad guy here. Neither are Hagakure or Fukawa… It’s all his doing… All of this is on the Puppetmaster’s hands. He coerced us into casting those ballots… and who knows what would have happened if we said no… He called it an ‘execution,’ but, in the end, the Puppetmaster’s still the one who pulled the trigger! So… it’s not ourselves we should hate… but that damn Puppetmaster!”

Not even a moment after Naegi gave that speech, the school bell rang out, signaling that nighttime had arrived. As usual, Monokuma appeared on the screen, though he had a little more to say this time.

“Ahem, may I have your attention, please? The time is now 10 P.M. ‘Nighttime’ is now in effect. The cafeteria is now off-limits, and the door will be locked momentarily. Oh, and one more thing… There was an ugly trace of self-justification poking its head out of that discussion you guys were having. Here and there and gone and yon… I could whack that mole with my eyes closed! Listen up, and take this to heart… The act of judging someone is a heavy cross to bear! Make sure you can feel that weight! Order can only survive on the shoulders of sacrifice and responsibility! And with that, I wish you all a good night. Sweet dreams…”

Junko’s hand twitched as she scowled.

“What… the hell was that?!”

“All of this is on us? Somehow, I don’t buy that…” Leon scoffed.

“That piece of shit! Always sayin’ whatever the hell he wants…!” Mondo roared.

Everyone filed out of the cafeteria soon after that – they didn’t have a choice, with nighttime in effect. They dispersed and returned to their rooms, resolving to figure out what to do the next day. Well. Almost everyone went to their own rooms…

“Um… Makoto?”

Naegi noticed the idol hadn’t bothered to leave his side, or move toward her door, which was the next one over.

“What’s up? Want me to stay with you for a while?” The Luckster blushed a little as he knew that suggestion might’ve been… a little too intimate, but considering the events they’d gone through that day, Maizono looked like she needed that intimacy.

Which is why he was a little confused when the idol blushed even more deeply than him.

“W-Well… Sort of. I was actually wondering if you’d be okay if I stayed in your room for the night.”

As Naegi’s brain registered Maizono’s request, his blush deepened as well, and he totally lost his composure. However, his brain soon realized what she really must have been requesting.

“O-O-Oh… You m-mean like a room exchange…”

Sayaka dragged a foot on the ground, and she did not look up at him as her blush did not go away.

“Um… no. I really do mean, can I stay the night with you?” Only now did she look up at the Luckster, and he could see the most serious and hopeful gaze he had seen from her yet. This wasn’t some joke. As he desperately tried to work his jaw, Maizono shyly tried to explain herself. “I-I mean… I know it’s unusual, frowned upon, whatever… I just… I need that reassurance you won’t die on me next… y’know? Even… if it’s just for one night…”

Makoto’s heart thundered inside of his chest a mile a minute, the more Sayaka spoke. She… cared about him that much? Granted, he was the only person she ‘knew’ in this godforsaken place, but he was honestly touched. He was… ecstatic. Excited. And yet… he didn’t want to get carried away. Whatever special connection they had now, that could all go away the minute they left the academy. There was no way an ordinary guy like him would end up with the Ultimate Pop Idol. He shouldn’t even be thinking about that stuff when the thing Maizono needed was companionship after a traumatic experience.

… But he was human, and Makoto couldn’t help but lingering on those thoughts, even if only momentarily.

“S-Sure! I don’t mind!” Makoto yelped out after he realized he’d probably made her wait several minutes in uncomfortable silence. Thankfully, she didn’t seem to mind, and her relieved smile was enough to send his heart aflutter again.

“Thanks, Makoto…”

Naegi was not expecting the heartfelt hug… but he did not shy away from it, as his arms wrapped around her waist and he buries his nose in her hair. He could never get enough of her scent.

~*~

“Arms out! Up and down, up and down~! One. Two. Three. Four…”

“One! Two! Threeee! Four!”

“Faster on the up and down! Bring ‘em in, and out again! In and out! Work that muscle tone! Speed and power! Let’s burn that butter!”

… The next morning, Monokuma had summoned them all to the gymnasium. A good number of them dreaded that the monochrome bear was hitting them with another motive so soon… But no… Instead, he attempted to make them do exercises. Most of them didn’t participate – hell, the only gung-ho one was Ishimaru, though that was hardly a surprise.

“Ahh, man… It feels great to get a good workout! Being indoors all the time is bad for your body!” The sadistic bear gushed. Leon just rolled his eyes.

“You’re the one who locked us up in here, man…”

“Don’t fret the small stuff! That’s my motto~. Ack! I just said something cool just now, didn’t I? Have I won you over? Have you fallen so hard for me you could die? Is the weight of your love crushing?”

“What do you want from us?!” Sakura bellowed. “Surely you did not call us here simply to exercise…”

Monokuma straightened up rigidly.

“Simply… to exercise? Waddya mean, ‘simply’?” He raised his arms threateningly. “You only mock my workout… because you can’t handle my workout! The Monokuma Workout is filled to the brim with secret techniques from the Monkey Assassin Style! Techniques passed down through the generations, from a secret fighting style used in an empire of darkness~.”

Yamada just gaped in awe at the childishness.

“That sounds like the kind of embarrassing idea a middle-schooler would come up with…”

Makoto sighed.

“Whatever, just answer the question… Did you really just call us here to do some exercises?”

Monokuma shook with rage.

“Goodness gracious! Heavens no! I don’t have that kind of time!”

“Sooo…?” Makoto prompted him.

“Ahem! I have an announcement! For every Class Trial you survive, a whole new world inside the academy will be made available to you!”

“A new world?” Junko cocked her head.

“Don’tcha think it would be kinda suckish if you had to spend your whole lives here without any excitement? Plus, you Generation Z-ers start getting all cranky when you run out of things to do! So with that… you’re free to begin exploring. Enjoy the post-Trial world to your hearts’ content!” Giggling, Monokuma took his leave. The students were left somewhat flabbergasted by this development.

“A new world…?” Sayaka murmured.

“Like, a way out?” Asahina exclaimed.

Celes frowned.

“The chances of that are low…”

“You can’t say shit ‘til you’ve actually looked!” Mondo bellowed.

“Regardless… It seems we need to perform yet another search of the premises...” Sakura suggested.

“All right, soldiers! Let’s split up and move out!” Ishimaru declared. “Once we’ve completed our rounds, we’ll rendezvous in the cafeteria for a debriefing!”

Togami rolled his eyes and scoffed.

“Are those the only words you know?”

“It’s called consistency! Now, move out!”

They didn’t need further prompting. The thirteen remaining teens dispersed, with a handful staying on the ground floor to check out the locked areas there. Most of them moved up to the second floor…

~*~

“So, this is the second floor…” Naegi mused as he and Sayaka reached the top of the stairs. Other than the hallway lighting changing a little, the second level of the school gave off the same creepy vibe as the first.

“The hall looks pretty long…” The idol remarked. And she was right. Other than one little turn, which could easily be avoided, and the one branch-off by the stairs that led to some double doors with an anchor painted on them, the corridor looked like it could go on for a while.

“Well, let’s have a look around! If we can’t find an exit, maybe we can find some clue to the Puppetmaster’s identity!” Naegi remained hopeful. Sayaka nodded in agreement, and the two set off for the double doors first, since that was the closest place to check out.

Inside, they found a bunch of lifeguard equipment, two more doors that had what appeared to be card readers next to them, and…

“A Gatling gun?!” Naegi yelped as he took a step back out of instinct. For indeed, there was a gun mounted on the ceiling, pointed at the doors. Implying that there was some rule about who could go through which door.

… In hindsight, Naegi supposed he shouldn’t be surprised by the lengths Monokuma went to for “punishment.” He just hoped no one would fall victim to the gun… That’d be way, way too similar to how they lost Hagakure…

“Yeah, you just missed him.” Junko explained as Naegi regained his bearings. The Luckster only just realized that she, Fujisaki, Asahina, and Celes were there in the room, too. “Basically, only girls can go in the left changing room, and only guys can use the right one. We use our ElectroIDs to get in, and he’s gonna update the rules so no one can borrow each other’s IDs.”

Celes folded her hands under her chin pleasantly.

“You can thank me for that. We would not want Yamada or Leon to slip in uninvited.”

Naegi sweatdropped as Celes specifically named them. Leon might’ve been a bit of a womanizer, but he wasn’t nearly as bad as Yamada… At least, in Naegi’s humble opinion…

“The changing rooms also have exercise equipment! Fujisaki chirped. But she was easily outdone by Asahina’s enthusiasm.

"Naegi! They have a pool! A pool! You gotta take a dip with me!!!”

Naegi grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

“Maybe later, Hina. We still got some investigating to do, don'tcha think? Besides, do you even have a swimsuit?”

Asahina pouted and tilted her head.

“I’ll just swim with my clothes on. No biggie.”

Naegi’s face became a tomato as perverted images ran through his brain of Asahina’s clothes sticking to her well-toned body, and for the first time in a while, he heard Sayaka giggle beside him. And despite his embarrassment, he couldn’t help but crack a small smile. Even if the last trial still plagued her mind, it seemed like Maizono was steadily feeling better. This made him feel a lot better, too.

“Do I need to chaperone you kids~?” The idol teased and stuck out her tongue. Needless to say, Asahina was confused, but the other three girls looked as amused as Sayaka did.

Naegi just pressed on as best as he could, despite his intense embarrassment.

“A-Anyway… I’ll still hafta pass, Hina. I still wanna explore other areas before any… swimming.”

“Aww! Not you, too! These three all passed on it, too.” The swimmer humphed cutely. “Swimming’s always the answer!”

’… No, I think that only applies to you, Hina…’ Naegi dryly thought to himself.

“You’re probably right~. She IS a swimmer, after all.” Sayaka teased Naegi, making him look gobsmacked at her. Again.

“H-How did you…!?”

“You should know by now, silly~. I’m an esper!” Sayaka chirped. Naegi just twitched a little.

“Yeah, you’re kidding. You just have really good intuition.”

Sayaka tilted her head back and forth cutely.

“Nope~. Definitely psychic!”

“…” No matter what, Naegi was not going to fall for that again. No way, no how.

…… But still… There was always a possibility… Right…?

~*~

“Huh… So there’s a third floor, too… Probably even more.” Naegi muttered as he and Maizono looked at the gate covering up the stairs to the next level. Leon was loitering around that area of the hall, too.

“Yeah… Same deal as before. Sakura couldn’t budge it an inch, and the same goes for the plates on the windows.”

“… I hope we don’t get access to that third floor…” Sayaka wearily sighed. They all knew what they had to do to get another level of the school opened to them, and that just wasn’t worth the price.

“So, what else does this floor have to offer?” Naegi asked the All-Star, who crossed his arms.

“Well… There’s a couple more classrooms, and there’s a library. I didn’t stay to check it out, ‘cause libraries aren’t my thing… Kirigiri, Togami, and tubs stayed, though.”

“How about the first floor? You originally stayed behind with Mondo and Ishimaru, didn’t you?” The idol asked curiously.

“Yeeeah… But Ishimaru kinda gave me the boot, ‘cause the nurse’s office was still locked, and there was only so much in the dorm area that was locked. I’m sure somethin’ opened up there, but Mondo and Ishimaru have it covered.”

Makoto rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“So… We have a pool, some exercise rooms, and a library as the second floor’s ‘main attractions’… It’s not a whole lot to get excited over. But maybe the library…”

“Yeah, I think we should go and check on those guys,” Sayaka agreed. “There might be something in there.”

Leon rubbed the back of his head roguishly.

“Hehe… You guys do that, I’m gonna scope out the pool, if ya catch my drift~.” Leon winked and took his leave. Sayaka groaned terribly contained exasperation, and Makoto laughed bashfully.

“So, let me get this straight… It’s bad when Leon’s perverted, but when I get perverted thoughts, suddenly it’s okay?”

Sayaka puffed out her cheeks adorably.

“It’s different! Very, very different!”

“How?” Naegi was truly baffled.

“It’s cute when it happens to you!”

… Aaand the Luckster was back to doing his impersonation of a tomato…

~*~

The library was clearly the largest room on the second floor. And still, despite its wealth of books, there wasn’t a whole lot that was useful to them. There was an archive room with various files, too – but if there were any hints to the Puppetmaster’s identity planted amongst the shelves, they would be at it for a while, sorting through the “useless” books. Yamada was rather put out there wasn’t any of his doujinshi in that library… But that was neither here nor there.

There was a laptop that didn’t seem to be working. Kirigiri was planning to show it to Fujisaki later, to see if there was anything she could do with it. The last thing was a dusty letter that was left lying out in the open, which in essence explained that Hope’s Peak, for vague reasons that they didn’t go into detail about, was forced to close its doors for an indefinite amount of time. Their current working theory was that it had something to do with why they were trapped and imprisoned there, but without more information, there would be no way to confirm or deny it.

Once Naegi and Maizono had a cursory look around the library and archives, they followed Kirigiri, Togami, and Yamada down to the cafeteria to rejoin their classmates. It wasn’t too much of a surprise that they were the last group to return, but it didn’t look like the others had been waiting too long.

“Good work, soldiers! Does anyone have anything to report?!” Ishimaru initiated the meeting.

“There is a library!” Yamada exclaimed exuberantly.

“There’s a pool! A pool! And changing rooms with a whole bunch of exercise equipment!” Asahina added with just as much energy.

“However, there was nothing resembling an exit…” Sakura conceded. Naegi vocally agreed. Ishimaru just nodded his head.

“Despair not, my friends. For I have made a groundbreaking discovery… Listen to this! We now have access to the storeroom and the large bath here in the dormitory! There’s a wealth of food, clothing, and supplies in the storeroom! Why, it’s an exercise in excess! Now we can snack whenever we want!” The prefect chuckled heartily.

Celes placed her hands on her hips.

“Try not to forget that leaving your room at night is forbidden…”

Mondo seemed dissatisfied with all their attitudes.

“And what about the important part: a way out?”

Ishimaru hesitated in answering.

“Well, uh… You see…”

“Was there somethin’ in that storeroom we could use to bust outta this joint?!” Mondo’s hand twitched angrily.

“I-I… I regret to inform…”

“Damnit, guys… This ain’t the time to be squealin’ about new places to jerk around in! We’re trapped in here, damnit! Trapped! We’re supposed to be lookin’ for a way out!”

“Now, now… Trying to find faults in everything we do isn’t going to accomplish anything…” Celes chided the biker. “Adaptability. It’s all about being able to adapt… So let’s enjoy being locked up together~!”

“Screw that!” Mondo snarled.

Ishimaru sighed.

“Well, for the time being, continue your recon, and if you find anything, you can make a report then…” The prefect sounded much more dismal than when he had started the meeting.

“So we’re done for the day?” Kirigiri asked for clarification.

“Ah, yeah…” Ishimaru sighed again. He had truly believed they had gained some precious commodities with these new territories to explore – they all had believed that – but to be reminded there was still no sign of a way out… It was disheartening.

Naegi suspected this was the Puppetmaster’s strategy. He would build up their expectations, only to knock them back down; to be honest, that did seem to fit with his “all I want is despair” M.O. Regardless, as tough as it was to swallow, Naegi was not going to lose hope. New discoveries were still waiting to be made, and their group’s harmony was still fairly strong, even after everything that had happened to them thus far.

If only he knew about the despair that was to come in the near future…

#Danganronpa #Makoto Naegi #Sayaka Maizono #Mukuro Ikusaba #Makoto x Sayaka #Makoto x Mukuro #Naegi x Maizono #Naegi x Ikusaba #Naezono #Naekusaba

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