Chapter 1: Surprise!

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Monokuma's morning announcement brought an irritating start to a new day. As if the day couldn't get any worse, he had also called the students to the gym. The robotic bear was quite eager to start the killing game. Who knows what other trick he might pull to get the students involved in it?

"Okay! Lift your arms up, and down! One, two, three, four!" Monokuma chimed as he stretched his body. "One, two, three, four!" Taka repeated the bear's words as he copied the bear's actions. The others stared at them in silence as the self-proclaimed headmaster and the Ultimate Moral Compass finished their morning exercises. "Ahh, doesn't this feel just great!?" Monokuma panted, "being stuck inside like this, you gotta make sure to stay healthy!"

He began to blabber more aimless things before the students interfered, demanding to know the actual reason they were called to the gym. "Ahh, l'd like to make an announcement!" Monokuma declared, "Every time you overcome a class trial here at Hope's Peak, a whole new world will open up to you!"

"It'd really suck if you had to live here forever with nothing new to stimulate you! I know how you kids get these days with your ADD and ADHD," The bear gave a sinister smirk before continuing. "That's why your beloved headmaster has hidden a surprise in this brave new post-trial world! Consider it your special reward for giving me such an entertaining class trial last week. Go ahead and look for it! Even if you don't like it, you can always have fun ripping it to shreds! Phuhuhu!" With that Monokuma left, and the students began forming their next course of action.

" A new world with a surprise?" Makoto wondered. "Is he talking about....a way to get outside, perhaps?" Aoi suggested, her face lighting up at the thought. "That seems...unlikely," Celeste said. Whoever had placed the students in this situation must have went through quite the trouble. It's unlikely that they would let them go after just one murder.

After some discussion, they agreed to searched the school again. It wasn't long before they gathered around the staircase next to the gym. For some odd reason, a banner with huge letters spelling the word 'SURPRISE' hung from the ceiling. "Look! The gate blocking the stairs is gone...,Taka yelled. "It would seem a path to the second floor has opened up!"

"Then, shouldn't we go explore the second floor now?" Makoto asked, peering up to the second floor.

"Yes! But it's also of utmost importance to double-check the areas we already know about, just in case!" Taka replied.

"Umm...sorry for interrupting but....does anyone have any idea what the surprise Monokuma could have planned for us?" Chihiro asked, glancing at the banner.

"Knowing that bear, I would say that the surprise is probably another motive to have us murder one other," Byakuya said.

A silence fell upon the students upon hearing Byakuya's blunt reply. If that was the case....then wouldn't it be better to not explore the second floor? The murder only happened yesterday, there's no way they can face the whole experience again....

"What? There's no way l could be a motive for murder!"

Huh?

"Hey, who the hell said that?" Mondo asked, clenching his fists.

"It was me!"

The students looked for the source of the unfamiliar voice. Their gazes landed on the figure at the top of the staircase. Even if Monokuma had been keeping secrets, he wasn't lying about this being a surprise.

On the second floor of the school was a girl sitting on a wheelchair. She was rather plain looking, wearing a white long-sleeved collar shirt with a brown sweater. A light yellow ribbon was tied around her neck, matching the color of her eyes. She also wore a black skirt with suspenders, similar to Chihiro's.

Noticeable features did stand out, such as two hair clips depicting a bumblebee pollinating a flower pinned on her black hair, and the fact she wore no shoes. Her socks were also mismatched: the left sock being pink with black hearts, and the right sock blue and kitty themed.

While the students are still staring at her, the stranger started descending down the stairs. She spun her wheelchair so that she would be facing backwards to the stairs. Gripping the railing for support, she lowered the wheelchair to each step of the staircase.

"Ah! Is that safe?" Makoto asked. Having to deal with an injured girl whose name you don't even know is a situation most would prefer to avoid.

"Yeah! I have done this before!" The wheelchair finally touched the first floor, and the girl turned the students. Her eyes concentrated on each one, as if analyzing their reactions, before wheeling herself under the banner and raising her arms.

"My name is Chihime Tsutsumi," The girl gave them a radiant smile, "And congratulations! You have found the surprise!"

Word Count: 824 words

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A/N: A special thanks to the epipl3ion on Quotev for drawing the picture of Chihime above!

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