Heir & Heiress

24 Hours

"No! Absolutely not! I told you I didn't want him involved," I crouched into Monokuma's face.

"You might not like it, but we all have to do things. We. Don't. Like," his paw poked my shoulder with emphasis.

"You are not one to talk," I clenched my fist.

"Why are you mad at me? Your curiosity got ahead of you. Isn't much of a surprise," Monokuma's half-smile caught the gleam of the ceiling lights. He said that as if he knew me; I bit my lip and turned my gaze away. "Oh, come now, don't mope. The fun's only just begun!" The bear walked towards the door, "I'm rootin' for ya!" The door clicked shut.

I thought we'd lost our minds. No, I was certain that Byakuya had lost his mind. Was he seriously going to accept a twenty-four-hour death sentence? "I was trying to uncover information, not get us killed!" I blurted, tossing clenched fists to my sides.

"You created this mess. I won't sit back and watch you get yourself killed".

"I was trying to keep you safe," I huffed.

"In the worst way possible. Did you ever stop to think about after you were murdered or executed? Leaving me here, alone, to fight for other people who I care nothing for?" Byakuya's posture slacked, forcing himself to stand. "You were the one who cried at the airport every time you had to depart from Japan. You were the one who rebelled our separation. Why do you insist on keeping me just out of reach, when we both know that this," He took my hands, "is what we both want?"

"Even if I die, I know you'll get back on your feet, like always," I said between harsh swallows.

"I refuse to lose you for a third time!" His raised voice shook the air around us. He was scared, just like me. 'If you love me...drop the scissors', we fixated on each other. I had dropped Jill's scissors. 'I suppose a morbid confession befits the context', I thought, watching Byakuya remove a piece of paper from his pocket. The image of Nagito and me broke the fixation, "You know how I despise repeating myself, Karen". I nodded, pulling the note out of his hand and let it drop to the floor.

The crackling monitors were white noise over the static of fascination our senses had with each other. "Twenty-four hours," I said, "it's do or die".

"Then I suppose till death do us part," he grinned.

"Till death do us part," I smiled back. 

In the secured surroundings of Byakuya's room, we discussed the actual information I had uncovered. Though most of it was blacked-out, Byakuya agreed that it was still worth the risk. "Besides Alter Ego, you haven't done anything else?"

I shook my head. I worried about future instructions, but I was more focused on the now fully exposed bandages wrapped around Byakuya's torso. "Is...Toko okay?"

"You didn't injure her. But...you did scare most of them," Byakuya held my hands, stroking the backs with his thumbs. "Makoto and Hina tried to hold you back, but Kyoko said that you were too far gone to convince".

"But you didn't believe her," I smirked.

"tch, of course not. No matter how angry you are, I trust that you will still hear me". We fell silent, continuing to stall and dance around the matter.

"I...dropped the scissors when you....," I choked out. "I had told Toko that this wasn't...that I wasn't," I couldn't force the word. "Did you mean to say that?" I clutched his hands tight. It was dumb to ask or clarify. "Never mind, that's self-explana-".

"I meant it. It was distasteful timing, but I have...loved you since our last dance," he turned his face away. Byakuya struggled to keep a straight face with the scolding red crossing his face.

"Of course, it would be the most bittersweet memory". My mother had insisted I host my thirteenth birthday. The ballroom was decorated for a glamourous masquerade; the fresh October air danced with the rich orchestra music. "I didn't wear red for a whole year afterward," I recalled. "Your father was always such a brutal man".

"That legacy still persists. He was furious when he found out about my proposal".

"What will happen when we escape?" Thinking about what the outside might look like, how were we certain we could handle escaping? If we didn't die here, then we'd be the only two survivors. Byakuya and I stared at one another and nodded. If we could survive this, we could survive anything.

(Side Note: 24 hours by Jem is a really good song)