Danganronpa: Puppets String

{Authors Note: I apologize for the lack of promised chapter yesterday, I didn't get home until a lot later than expected so I didn't have time to work on the chapter so today is an extra long bone.}

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 It was a cold night. It was a dark night. I was on my usual walk through the park. Nighttime walks have always helped me clear my head. The only issue was this time my walk wasn't so peaceful. 

??? - Move it bitch I'll make good money from you.

I know I should have just kept to myself. I was only 7. They say curiosity killed the cat after all. I would have continued on as well. Only there was an issue. My head began to hurt. They were getting louder. They were hurting me. They were begging me. I had doner my best to keep them at bay, but I knew. I knew this was different.

{[???]} - Show us.

Its all they were saying. So I did. I went to the sound. I saw an old fat man and a young girl my age. They old guy look to be in his 50's or 60's, overweight, and bald. The girl was wearing a school uniform I didn't recognize. As I approached I step on a stick.

??? - Who's there.

I didn't answer. I just ran forward. Grabbed a knife and jabbed it into his eye. I had long stopped questioning where these weapons and things came from. All i knew was that "They" liked to see them in use. As I stabbed him in the eye, he threw me off of him. My back hit a tree. The wind was knocked out of my chest. I struggled to my feet, knife in hand and ran once more at him. This time I used my full weight knocking him over. I stabbed him. I stabbed him so many times I lost count. After it was over I walked to the girl. I reached out a hand. She took it. 

?!? - He won't hurt you anymore. What's your name.

the girl looked into my eyes. Her eyes began to show this crazy glint in them.

??? - My name is Junko, Junko Enoshima. What is your name.

?!? - My name is...

Malachi - Ng... gah...Huh...?Wh-Where am I?

 As if it had become part of my daily routine, I woke up in yet another room I'd never seen before.

Malachi - Okay, so... Where am I now?

[Malachi's Room]

[Objects: Note, Trashcan, Key, Door, Monitor, Lint Roller, Shower Door, Bed, 2x Iron Plate, Security Camera, Notepad, Drawer]

{Note}

There's a piece of paper hanging up on the wall, which says...

 "Announcement from Headmaster Monokuma:"

 "Each room's lock has been designed to completely protect against tampering or lock-picking."

 "Remaking an individual room key is quite troublesome, so please make sure not to lose yours."

"Your room comes furnished with a shower, but please note that the water is turned off at nighttime."

"Also, the bathrooms in the girls' rooms include a lock of their own."

 "Finally, we've prepared a small gift for each of you."

 "For the girls, a sewing kit."

 "And for the boys, a toolkit."

 "The sewing kit includes a map of the body's vital organs. One stab will do the job, girls!"

 "For the boys, we believe a strong blow to the head with any of the tools should be ample."

 "Don't think! Just feel! And let's all enjoy ourselves!"

Malachi - ...

 I crumpled up the sheet of paper and threw it in the trash.

{Trashcan}

 Just an everyday trash can. I don't see any kind of trapdoor or hidden compartments or anything...

 All that's in the trash can is the paper I wadded up and threw away.

[1 Monocoin]

{Key}

 This must be the key to the room...

 My name's written on the keychain.

 Which means it must be mine, right?

 I'd better hang on to it for now.

{Door}

 Looks like this door leads outside.

 It's locked...

Malachi - So some of the rooms have locks, huh?

{Lint Roller}

 It's some kind of lint roller. I guess we're supposed to clean up after ourselves...?

{Shower Door}

Malachi - This would appear to be... the bathroom.

*Rattle rattle*

Malachi - Huh? It's not opening. I guess it's locked.

{Bed}

 There doesn't seem to be anything particularly strange about the bed.

{Notepad}

 It's a notepad.

 I guess the school must have given one to each of us...

{Drawer}

 It looks like there's something in the drawer...

 It's... a toolkit.

 It must be brand-new. It's still in the shrink-wrap.

 I don't really need it right now, so I'll just leave it here.

[After investigating everything]

MN - I think I'm starting to understand. This room must be my assigned dorm room. Someone must have carried me here after I fell unconscious. So that answers that question. The next question is what's everyone else is to right now?

 There's only one way to find out...

 And that's to get out of here.

{Upon Exiting}

 I rushed out of the room to meet up with all the others. But there was someone waiting for me there. It was like something out of an old TV show...

*WHAM*

??? - Ahh! 

Malachi - Oh-! ...Sayaka? Sorry! Are you okay?

Sayaka - I-I'm fine. I hope you're okay... Sorry about that...

She had an embarrassed smile on her face. I stood up slowly.

Malachi - Are you okay, Sayaka? Are you hurt?

Sayaka - Hmhm, you make it sound worse than it is. I'm completely fine. I know how I look, but I've actually huilt some pretty good muscle jumping up and down on stage!

Malachi - That's good, then...

Sayaka - But... are *you* okay? You know, from when Mondo hit you...

 That's true... I got knocked out right there in front of everyone. I guess I revealed my lack of cool right from the beginning...

Sayaka - Malachi...?

Malachi - Oh, uh, I'm fine! Nothing wrong here!

Sayaka - Oh, that's good. I was kinda worried...

Malaki - Th-thanks... By the way... what are you doing here?

Sayaka - Actually... I came to get you.

Malachi - You came... to get me?

Sayaka - Well, if you really are feeling better... I was hoping you could come to the dining hall.

Malachi - The dining hall...?

Sayaka - After you got knocked out, everyone decided to go and do their own thing. We decided it would be more effective if we split up to investigate. So we agreed to get together later on and talk about what we'd each found out.

Malachi - So does that mean it's almost time to get back together? If that's what's going on, then of course I'll go with you!

Sayaka - Good. I'll go on ahead and meet you at the dining hall, then.

Sayaka - I can't believe no one's here yet. But I'm sure they'll start showing up soon...

 Almost like he'd timed it, Taka threw open the dining hall doors right as Sayaka said that.

Kiyotaka - Ah, Malachi! Sayaka! So you two got here first, huh? Too bad... I was sure I'd beat everyone here. I guess that just means I don't have enough fighting spirit yet! Well I won't give up! Next time, I swear I'll win no matter what it takes! Justice shall always prevail!

Sayaka - That's a bit much, don't you think?

 And soon after that everyone else came strolling in one after another.

Kiyotaka - Okay! It looks like everyone's here. Time to start the meeting! Let's all go around and share what we found out during our respective investigations! The sooner we find out what's going on, the sooner we get out of here!

Junko - Wait, hold on a sec!

Kiyotaka - What's wrong!?

Junko - What about, uh... what's her name? You know, the silver-haired girl. Uhh... oh yeah, Kyoko!

Kiyotaka - ...What about her?

Junko - She's not here.

Kiyotaka - What!?

 I took another look around the dining hall. Sure enough, she was nowhere to be seen.

Aoi - I wonder where she went. Has anyone seen her?

 But everyone just shook their heads.

Chihiro - Wait, so *nobody's* seen her...?

 Why hasn't Kyoko shown up yet? Could it be because...? Is it possible? Was she really...? No, no. I'm just overthinking things.

Kiyotaka - Darn it, Kyoko! You're really going to be late like this on the first day of school!? Not only is she late, she didn't tell anyone she would be late! A most unbecoming personality trait...

Junko - You're being a real jackass right now, you know that?

Kiyotaka - Well what do you want me to do!? Punctuality is everything! Now then, I declare that the first session of the Hope's Peak Academy briefing meetings has begun!

Sayaka - Okay, so since you're in the dark about all this, let me lay out what's been going on. Everyone split up to investigate different parts of the building, but... Byakuya and Taka each went off on their own, and so did Kyoko.

 Byakuya - I wanted to try and find some clue as to who's responsible for imprisoning us here... But unfortunately, I made no such discoveries. That's all from me...

 Kiyotaka - Really? That's it?

 Byakuya - If I'd uncovered anything, naturally I would have more to say. But I didn't. So I don't.

 Kiyotaka - R-Right, understood...

 Kiyotaka - I spent some time looking around the dormitory, and... There I made the discovery of the century! I found that there was exactly one room for each person!

 Aoi - Well yeah, I figured that out before anything else...

 Junko - Each door already has a nameplate on it, so I guess all the rooms have been assigned already.

 Sakura - And each room key was attached to a keychain with the owner's name precision-etched onto it.

 Which confirms that the room I was in earlier is, in fact, my room.

 Junko - And Chihiro and I found out that all the rooms are totally soundproof.

 Chihiro - Your next-door neighbour could scream their lungs out, and you wouldn't hear a thing...

 Celeste - Well, each room also had a private bathroom, which could also lock.

 Junko - But it looked like there were only locks on the bathrooms in the girls' dorms.

 Huh? But when I checked my bathroom door before, it definitely seemed like it was locked... That's weird... I should double-check that later.

 Mondo - Okay, so they got a bunch of rooms ready for us. They're assuming we're gonna be here a while...

 Kiyotaka - Well, better to have than have not! At least we don't have to worry about surviving like wild animals.

 Toko - Th-That can't be all you have to r-report, can it Mr Honor S-Student?

 Kiyotaka - ... That's all for my report! Let's move on to whoever's next!

Sayaka - It looks like Leon, Hiro, Junko and Chihiro all grouped up together.

 Junko - We went all up and down the school, double-checking the windows in all the hallways and classes. We wanted to see if we could get any of those metal plates to come off. And what happened was...

 Leon - Nothing. Not a damn thing. We couldn't get a single one ton budge even a little bit.

 Chihiro - There wasn't any hope of escape anywhere... The school really has been totally cut off.

 Junko - This sucks... It *really* sucks! It sucks sucks sucks sucks SUCKS! What the hell are we gonna do!?

 Leon - Goddamn, calm down! You're starting to make me nervous!

Sayaka - The same goes for Hina, Sakura, and Mondo. Celeste, Toko, and Hifumi were left over, so they joined up.

 Aoi - We thought maybe we could find some way to communicate with the outside, so we went looking all over! But... we didn't find a thing. Sorry...

 Mondo - I went back to the main hall, thinking maybe we could do something about that giant hunk of metal. But even with Sakura and me both, it wouldn't budge. We hit it with desks and chairs, and nothin'... It was hard as, like... metal.

 Celeste - Well yes, it *is* metal...

 Mondo - Anyway, if we're gonna get outta here, it's not gonna be through there.

 Aoi - I feel like I could just cry... But no, I have to hold it in! I have to manage my hydration...!

 Sakura - I shall tell you what happened next... It has nothing to do with communicating with the outside world, but it's still worth worrying about. In both the school and dorm areas, there was a set of stairs leading up to another floor.

 Aoi - But there were gates there, and we couldn't find any way to open them, so we couldn't check it out.

 Sakura - In other words, at this point we are only able to search the 1st floor. We can further assume that there is potentially something above the 2nd floor, as well. And if that's the case, there is at least a chance it may lead to a way out.

 Celeste - If I am being honest, I can't quite say we acted as one. Rather, we did *nothing* as one. We spent the entire time in the gym. Honestly, we are not exactly the types to go running around a school like a gaggle of junior detectives.

 Junko - What the hell were you thinking, just sitting around the gym the whole time?

 Toko - W-Well it's not like any of you i-invited me along! Nobody said hey, c-come with us. I blame y-you for leaving me out! I-It's your fault!

 Junko - If you wanted to go with someone, you should've just said something!

 Toko - Hmph. F-Forget it. Like I'd w-want to go anywhere with a dirt s-slut like you...

 Junko - Slut...?

 Toko - Your mind is as th-thin as your body. You m-make me sick to my s-stomach...

 Junko - I... I don't even know how to react. How can you say something so awful to someone you just met?

 Yasuhiro - Alright guys, everybody just calm down, okay? All this stress is bad for your skin, y'know?

 Sayaka - Yeah! It sounds you two are so close now you're fighting like sisters!

 I... don't think that's what's going on, Sayaka...

Sayaka - So that's what they have to say, huh?Then I guess I'm the only one left... I went and had a look around the dining hall... I found a fridge in the back of the kitchen, and it was overflowing with all kinds of stuff. I guess we don't have to worry about food, at least.

Hifumi - Sure, for now. But even with all that, there are fifteen of us. How long can the food last...?

Toko - Y-You can just eat sesame s-seeds or something...

Hifumi - Huh? What am I, a parakeet?

Sayaka - I don't think we have to worry about it. All the food gets restocked automatically each day. At least, that's what Monokuma said...

Junko - You saw him!?

Sayaka - Yeah, he came out of nowhere while I was checking the fridge, told me that, then disappeared again. He was so fast, I can't believe someone could have been moving him around with a remote control...

Malachi- A weaponized puppet that can just appear from nowhere... I'm almost impressed.

Aoi - But was everything okay? He didn't try to like, eat you or anything?

Hifumi- E-Eat her...? Um, what do you mean by that? I mean, when you say "eat", what kind of eating are we talking about?

Aoi - C-Come on, man!

Leon - What the hell, fatty!? You're acting like some kind of sleazy drunk dude.

Yasuhiro - Not like there's a good kind of drunk dude...

Junko - Hey! Stop screwing around, all of you! Are you still asleep or something? We're prisoners here! We could all just die any second!

Mondo - She's right. We can't be makin' stupid jokes right now. We gotta do something, or-!

 A voice cut through the noise, interrupting Mondo.

??? - You're all spending an awful lot of time yelling and carrying on. Do you really think you can afford to do so? Have none of you accepted the reality of the situation?

Kiyotaka - Kyoko! Where the heck have you been!? We already started the meeting without you!

 She didn't say a word. Instead, she just dropped a piece of paper on the table.

Kyoko - It appears to be a map of Hope's Peak Academy.

Malachi - A map...?

Kiyotaka - Wh-What the...? Where did you find this?

Kyoko - It doesn't matter where I found it.

Kiyotaka - It DOES matter! You're really freaking us out right now!

Junko - Never mind that. What's it mean?

Kiyotaka - Just look at it.

Kyoko - The building we're in right now is laid out in precisely the same way as Hope's Peak Academy.

Malachi - So what you're saying is... this really is Hope's Peak Academy?

Kyoko - Well, in terms of its construction, yes. But it looks like it's had a number of strange... renovations done to it.

Malachi - Renovations...?

Kyoko - I don't know all the details yet. All I found was details about the 1st floor.

Chihiro - But then... this really is Hope's Peak. We didn't get kidnapped and taken to some other place...

Mondo - So stupid it's not even possible. *This* is where the country's future elite are supposed to come and learn.

Aoi - But if this really is Hope's Peak, where are all the other students?

Yasuhiro - Hey, come on, guys. Let's just stop talking about all this... you know, negative stuff...

Malachi - But aren't you worried? Things don't look good...

Yasuhiro - Worried? What's there to be worried about? I mean, this was all planned out, right? The people in charge of Hope's Peak put this all together, right? Man, if I got stressed every time something like this happened, I'd have ectoplasm shooting out of my mouth! Good things come to those who wait, right? So we just gotta chill and everything'll work itself out!

Celeste - Hahaha!

Toko - Wh-Why are you laughing? What's so funny!?

Celeste - I am just happy, that is all. It seems splitting up to investigate was a good idea, after all.

Toko - Haven't you b-been listening!? Looking around was a t-total waste of t-time! We d-didn't find a way out, didn't f-find who's behind this. We still have no idea what's g-going on!

Celeste - Huh? Is it not crystal clear to you what is going on? It is perfectly obvious that we have been imprisoned in some secret location, with no way out.

 None of us had any response to that. We didn't want to accept that reality - but it was staring us right in the face.

Toko - You didn't h-have to go and s-say that. I w-was trying not to th-think about it... N-No way out... We're t-trapped here. What are w-we supposed to d-do...?

Byakuya - It's very simple. If you want to leave, you just have to kill-

Junko - Don't even joke about that!

Sayaka - Everyone just calm down, please! We need to stop and think about what to do from here.

Leon - There's gotta be *something* we can do...

Celeste - All we can do is adapt. Adapt to living our lives here from now on.

Chihiro - Live here...? Are you saying we should just accept it?

Celeste - A lack of adaptability... is a lack of survivability. Survival is not based on who is the strongest or the smartest. It comes down to who can adapt. As someone who has come out on top more than once, I have a suggestion.

Mondo - Huh? What do you mean?

Celeste - We all understand that we are trapped here. Which means we will be spending the night. However... You all remember the rule regarding nighttime, right?

Rule 3: Sleeping anywhere other than the dormitory will be seen as sleeping in class and punished accordingly.

Celeste - So regarding this "nighttime", I think we need to add a rule of our own. Going out at nighttime should be prohibited altogether. The school regulations do not actually tell us not to go out at night. I would like to make it official.

Toko - B-But why...?

Celeste - The way things are now, every time night comes we will all start to get worried and anxious. We will all be afraid someone might try and come kill us.

Sayaka - What!?

Celeste - If we have to worry about that night after night for who knows how long, it will wear us down in no time.

Sakura - So you're suggesting we limit our activity at night as a kind of preventative measure.

Celeste - However, unlike the other rules, nobody can be forced to comply. We all have to agree to follow it.

Junko - I see what you mean. But... I think I can agree to that. It's like the little goth lolita said. Without something like that, we're just gonna self-destruct.

Kiyotaka - On behalf of all the men here, I agree to comply!

Leon - Hey, you can't just decide to speak for us!

Celeste - So everyone is in agreement? Good. Then if you will excuse me...

Chihiro - Huh? Wait, where are you going?

Celeste - It is almost nighttime. I want to take a shower before it arrives. So... goodbye.

 Moving with pure elegance, Celeste left the dining hall. Her behaviour seemed so natural, I couldn't imagine anyone even trying to stop her.

Hifumi - S-So I guess it's pretty obvious where we go from here. We'll be spending the night, it looks like.

Sakura - Adaptability...

Junko - So, Mr. Chairman... what next? One person already left.

Kiyotaka - U-Umm... Well then, what say we call an end to today's meeting!? Like she said, it's almost nighttime anyway. We can reconvene first thing tomorrow morning!

Chihiro - Do we really have to stay the night here...?

Junko - We don't have a choice. We can't go for long without getting some sleep.

Mondo - So we have to just give up...

Toko - That's all f-fine and good for t-today, but what do we d-do tomorrow?

Sakura - Our only option is to split up and look around again, and let everyone know if we find anything.

Aoi - Yeah, okay. Let's do that...!

Junko - Then we're done for today? Good, I'm exhausted... [Leaves]

 And so heavy movements, everyone headed off to their private rooms.