The Fear of the Past //Saiouma (Pregame)

Chapter 22

Kokichi stood inside The Shrine of Judgement, waiting for the others to arrive. Since he was with Kirumi at the time the announcement had played, they had went in together.

He tapped his foot slightly against the floor as the others started coming in. Kirumi noticed his behavior and gave him a worried look.

"Is something the matter?" Kirumi whispered loud enough that Kokichi could hear her, but low enough that nobody else could hear her. "You seem to be anxious."

Kokichi stoped the tapping and turned to look at her. "Pffft- me? Anxious? Ha! No way!" He thought about it for a while before talking again. "Kirumi, it's fiiinee. I'm okay, it's just that... I'm impatient for the trial to start. Everyone is so slow coming in here."

Kokichi felt weird while saying that. He wasn't used to opening up to others, so telling Kirumi how he really was feeling was new to him. But even so, he had to admit that it felt nice.

Kirumi opened her mouth to say something else, but was interrupted when the last of the students came in and shut the door. She turned to look at Kokichi and nodded. He understood what she was trying to say.

"Come on guys! We can do this! If we just work together, I'm sure that we can find the one who... killed Angie!" Kaede said positively as she and Shuichi walked up to the statue.

After some tinkering and touching, the statue started moving. Soon, an entrance to an elevator was revealed.

The remaining students looked at themselves hesitantly, but after remembering Kaede's speech, they put on a face of determination and walked inside.

Kokichi stood there not moving, just staring at the students. Once he realized what he had been doing, he hurried to go inside the elevator and join them.

The elevator ride was completely quiet. If a mind reader had been in the room, all he would hear would either be people reviewing what they found in the investigation, or people suspecting others. It'd probably be a mess in everyone's minds. It made Kokichi glad he wasn't a mind reader.

After a while of them just standing there in silence, the elevator stopped and the doors opened to reveal the courtyard. Kokichi's expression hardened as he stepped in. It was now, or never.

Monokuma watched the students get into their assigned podiums, and once they were all in, he stood up.

He stretched his arms up. "Let's begin with a basic explanation of the class trial! So, your votes will determine the results. If you can figure out whodunnit then only they will receive punishment. But if you pick the wrong one... then I'll punish everyone besides the blackened, and the one that deceived everyone else will graduate!"

Kokichi got the same shiver he got everytime Monokuma explained the rules. They were fair, yet so unfair at the same time.

As Monokuma rambled on, Kokichi griped tightly the podium he was on, reviewing quickly his information.

"Now, let's start this crazy awsome, totally not boring class trial!" Monokuma exclaimed before sitting down and giving them the 'go ahead' gesture.

"So, what should we discuss first?" Kirumi started them off.

"Hmmm, how about the murder weapon?" Kaede responded. "I mean, we gotta start somewhere right?"

"Yes, Kaede is right. Let's discuss the murder weapon." Kiibo chimed in while raising one finger.

Endless Debate Start!:

"According to the Monokuma File, Angie's cause of death were burn marks." Kirumi said.