Right? What on earth were they trying to do, fight the people behind this?
[...]
...In hindsight, that's likely exactly what they were trying to do. I'm honestly kind of impressed too, even if it amounted to nothing, it seems...
[Their own group wasn't even close to this insane. What the fuck. What the actual hell is wrong with these people.]
How stuck is that knife onto there? Are we going to need something else to cut it off? [Ugh, just--hang on, she's kind of just gonna start taking care of some of this shit or at least start to sort it out, holy actual fuck--] Or maybe...we should just hide these in the office? It's not like they gave us any actual weaponry at all, did they? Maybe it'll be good for us to have something in case they decide to do this again, but--
[Oh god, one of the paint balloons rips open as Sayaka tries to pick it up, and she jolts back.]
[Give him a moment to see if any of these other pool cues and their stupid knives can be freed... nope. Nope, okay, this sure is happening—]
Fuck, this person was no amateur, these would probably hold up in a real fight.
[Not that he's suggesting trying it out, but damn... At Sayaka's question he looks over and winces as the paint balloon pops.]
We're the unluckiest bastards in the whole damn world to be stuck dealing with this shit. Look here, leave this crap to me. Go get cleaned up and start on dinner while I move all this shit to the control room, okay?
[Honestly, Mondo isn't wrong. Their luck is just the shittiest in the world right now, and it doesn't look like it's going to improve anytime soon. So with a sigh, Sayaka nods her head.]
Yeah, that'll work much better. If there's anything you need help with, though, give me a holler and I'll come by to help. But let me go clean up and make something good, then.
[And with that, Sayaka is absolutely gonna be off--she'll be cleaning herself up and scooting over to the kitchen. Curry is definitely an old, reliable recipe for her, but she decides to do something a little different; Mondo's likely gonna be in there for a little while, so maybe something a little more hearty and filling would be good.
It's what sees Sayaka making a stew, and by the time Mondo gets done down there, it'll likely almost be done; Sayaka will just be in the kitchen adding some finishing touches. Not that she's just making that, though, because she's absolutely making dessert since she has the time. So the smells from the kitchen will likely be a little mixed, but it should still be good. Hell, it even sounds like she's singing to herself a bit if he listens closely...]
[Moving all the weapons to the control room is a pain in the ass, but thankfully it isn't anything particularly difficult. Mondo has to take several trips to get them all, and those paint balloons are being popped in the bathroom so he has less space to clean up once he's done. Moving those seems like a bad idea!! So after everything's moved and the bathroom's clean, he finally makes his way to the kitchen.
Something definitely smells good, though it seems like Sayaka's making something else too, huh... Anyway, he pauses in the doorway, leaning against it and listening to her sing for a moment. It's easy to forget when trapped in a murdergame that she's a goddamn idol. Sayaka Maizono is a name known throughout countless households and her music is something that has touched a lot of people. She doesn't have that here, but that sort of fame is kind of baffling to think about. Mondo didn't exactly stay up on pop culture, so if he's heard her songs, it's only in passing. It's so bizarre that they never would have met if they both hadn't attended Hope's Peak and were then thrown into their first murdergame. It's even more bizarre to consider that only their second one actually brought them together.
It's weird thinking about it. He doesn't like it. So after a moment he pushes off the door frame and approaches.]
[Sayaka turns easily when Mondo approaches, her smile as calm as ever in this situation. It's something she's trained herself into; no matter what the situation is, she just needs to smile and stay calm and collected. Smile, keep calm, and be polite.
It's a simple motto, and one that rings true even now. Even if she's a little more inclined to let Mondo see the uglier sides, it's still easy to smile around him, and it's...nice, honestly. It's strange that they ended up so close; her managers would have her head if they saw her getting close to a guy, after all, and Mondo's definitely a rough person who's hard to approach. She never thought they'd ever become friends.
What a strange, strange world they live in.]
I thought you might like it, Oowada-kun! After working so hard, something nice and filling would be good, so I figured some nice, meaty stew would hit the spot. There's plenty too, so you can have as much as you want!
[Oh! The timer goes off for the oven too, and Sayaka goes to grab an oven mitt--]
Oh, and I baked some Castella cake too--would you like some? I was honestly craving something sweet, and once this cools off, it's gonna be delicious.
All of that sounds good. Feels like it's been forever since we last had a good meal.
[Thinking about it is going to do his head in. It feels like it's been weeks since the final trial, but somehow that happened earlier today. His sense of time has been completely fucked by murdergames. It definitely won't be improving here.]
It kind of has, hasn't it? Well, at least we can fix that for the time being.
[...Sayaka's trying really hard not to think about it either, don't worry, Mondo. Either way, Sayaka smiles as she pulls the cake out of the oven to cool off.]
It's a rather delicious treat! It's like a vanilla cake, but it's much spongier. I put some honey in the cake batter too, so that'll make it a little extra sweet...hopefully not too much, though!
Oh, feel free to help yourself while I get this out of the pan to cool!
[Sayaka's just gonna do that nice and carefully, mostly trying to make sure the cake doesn't crumble or fall apart in the process. Have at, Mondo!]
[While Sayaka handles that, Mondo goes through the cabinets looking for a bowl. Surprisingly, the kitchen is in remarkably good condition. Sure, there's some graffiti on the cabinets and the counters have seen better days, but everything is very clean and there's a lot of it. Mondo locates some bowls and silverware easily, and scoops out his own portion of stew.]
Thanks again for handling this, Maizono. C'mon, let's see what the dining room's like.
[Alright, done! Just let her grab a bowl and pour some stew in for herself, and she'll nod her head eagerly.]
It's no trouble at all! I'm glad to be able to help.
[To the dining room! Which has...likewise definitely seen better days, and if anything, there's a lot more graffiti around here than even the hallways, but it seems entirely centralized to the walls. There's quite a few large patches of repainted walls, though. It helps that the dining room is very large; it was a large scale cafeteria at one point or another.
Either way, the table they sit at is pretty old, but it looks like it's still been treated pretty well. Barring some carvings of obscenities and the like, to the surprise of likely nobody.]
Well, I don't know what I would have expected...but this probably should have been exactly it. It looks like people used this room to try and plan things a lot, though...
[It's sort of run-down, but at least it works. Mondo shrugs a bit as he studies the things carved into the table before dismissing it. It feels so strange to be here after countless people suffered through games like this, but he's not going to stop and think about it.]
This is probably a good meeting area. Large enough to gather everyone and they can offer food to convince people to show up. Some of them did that during our game; probably explains why some people went to the meetings at all.
[He was absolutely bribed by food, but he was trying to help too!!]
Yeah, I remember that. I helped out a lot when they were trying to host those meetings.
[Sayaka is nothing if not good at making food, so it's good to see that it was successful at bribing people out!!]
...It's almost nostalgic. It feels really stupid to say that, though. And it wasn't exactly great when anyone else who could cook started getting targeted...
But it was nice. Everyone was certainly pretty colorful during those meetings, weren't they?
[It's quiet, for once. It's painful to think about Ishimaru and the others. They're all dead, and yet two of the people who died during the game got a second chance like this. Sure, it was hard-fought and their struggles are nowhere near over yet, but they survived, against all odds.
Ishimaru would have hated this, but he can't help but wish Ishimaru had been able to survive too.]
Kinda hard to think about that shit, I guess. I wish we could go back there and put a stop to that bastard and save 'em.
Sayaka had hoped that it would help Mondo to be able to recall those times without worry, but Sayaka's face softens with a bit of sympathy. How could she not feel anything towards this? People might think she was just cold-hearted and didn't care for anyone, but she can't help but feel like everyone at Hope's Peak deserved better. Far better than what the two of them got.]
...I understand, Oowada-kun. They all deserve a lot better than what they got, and I'd do the same thing, if I could. It's...it's awful, that they're all just...gone like that. We all could've been normal students in a class together...
[It's hard for her to recall too, though.]
It's probably stupid to get caught up in something that can't happen, though, but...they were all really good people.
[...Yeah, Sayaka's definitely used to the aggressive subject changes by now. Still, it gets a smile out of her.]
Of course, Oowada-kun.
[Let her just get that and then set it out, along with some ice cream, and then just...take approximately half of the cake for herself while setting the other half out for Mondo! Listen. It's been a rough day, we all need a lot of sweet shit, don't judge.]
Here you go! Oh, and feel free to get some ice cream, too, it goes really well with this stuff!
[...She says that but oh my god sweetie, you're gonna be in a sugar coma. But the cake should be pretty damn good! Sayaka stuck very close to the recipe, so it should be very nice and fluffy while also having a subtle hint of honey in it.]
[He grins at that, though; it's cute to see Sayaka so excited about something like this. After everything they've been through, finding joy in anything can be a bit difficult, so this is... nice, really.
And the cake is really good on top of that. Mondo's not really big on sweets normally, but this is great.]
Damn, you really weren't kidding, this is incredible!
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no subject
[...]
...In hindsight, that's likely exactly what they were trying to do. I'm honestly kind of impressed too, even if it amounted to nothing, it seems...
[Their own group wasn't even close to this insane. What the fuck. What the actual hell is wrong with these people.]
How stuck is that knife onto there? Are we going to need something else to cut it off? [Ugh, just--hang on, she's kind of just gonna start taking care of some of this shit or at least start to sort it out, holy actual fuck--] Or maybe...we should just hide these in the office? It's not like they gave us any actual weaponry at all, did they? Maybe it'll be good for us to have something in case they decide to do this again, but--
[Oh god, one of the paint balloons rips open as Sayaka tries to pick it up, and she jolts back.]
Oh, ew, gross! Ugh, why us?!
no subject
Fuck, this person was no amateur, these would probably hold up in a real fight.
[Not that he's suggesting trying it out, but damn... At Sayaka's question he looks over and winces as the paint balloon pops.]
We're the unluckiest bastards in the whole damn world to be stuck dealing with this shit. Look here, leave this crap to me. Go get cleaned up and start on dinner while I move all this shit to the control room, okay?
no subject
Yeah, that'll work much better. If there's anything you need help with, though, give me a holler and I'll come by to help. But let me go clean up and make something good, then.
[And with that, Sayaka is absolutely gonna be off--she'll be cleaning herself up and scooting over to the kitchen. Curry is definitely an old, reliable recipe for her, but she decides to do something a little different; Mondo's likely gonna be in there for a little while, so maybe something a little more hearty and filling would be good.
It's what sees Sayaka making a stew, and by the time Mondo gets done down there, it'll likely almost be done; Sayaka will just be in the kitchen adding some finishing touches. Not that she's just making that, though, because she's absolutely making dessert since she has the time. So the smells from the kitchen will likely be a little mixed, but it should still be good. Hell, it even sounds like she's singing to herself a bit if he listens closely...]
no subject
Something definitely smells good, though it seems like Sayaka's making something else too, huh... Anyway, he pauses in the doorway, leaning against it and listening to her sing for a moment. It's easy to forget when trapped in a murdergame that she's a goddamn idol. Sayaka Maizono is a name known throughout countless households and her music is something that has touched a lot of people. She doesn't have that here, but that sort of fame is kind of baffling to think about. Mondo didn't exactly stay up on pop culture, so if he's heard her songs, it's only in passing. It's so bizarre that they never would have met if they both hadn't attended Hope's Peak and were then thrown into their first murdergame. It's even more bizarre to consider that only their second one actually brought them together.
It's weird thinking about it. He doesn't like it. So after a moment he pushes off the door frame and approaches.]
Whatever you're making smells great, Maizono.
no subject
It's a simple motto, and one that rings true even now. Even if she's a little more inclined to let Mondo see the uglier sides, it's still easy to smile around him, and it's...nice, honestly. It's strange that they ended up so close; her managers would have her head if they saw her getting close to a guy, after all, and Mondo's definitely a rough person who's hard to approach. She never thought they'd ever become friends.
What a strange, strange world they live in.]
I thought you might like it, Oowada-kun! After working so hard, something nice and filling would be good, so I figured some nice, meaty stew would hit the spot. There's plenty too, so you can have as much as you want!
[Oh! The timer goes off for the oven too, and Sayaka goes to grab an oven mitt--]
Oh, and I baked some Castella cake too--would you like some? I was honestly craving something sweet, and once this cools off, it's gonna be delicious.
no subject
[He peeks into the pot, nodding appreciatively.]
All of that sounds good. Feels like it's been forever since we last had a good meal.
[Thinking about it is going to do his head in. It feels like it's been weeks since the final trial, but somehow that happened earlier today. His sense of time has been completely fucked by murdergames. It definitely won't be improving here.]
Not sure I'm familiar with Castella cake, though.
no subject
[...Sayaka's trying really hard not to think about it either, don't worry, Mondo. Either way, Sayaka smiles as she pulls the cake out of the oven to cool off.]
It's a rather delicious treat! It's like a vanilla cake, but it's much spongier. I put some honey in the cake batter too, so that'll make it a little extra sweet...hopefully not too much, though!
Oh, feel free to help yourself while I get this out of the pan to cool!
[Sayaka's just gonna do that nice and carefully, mostly trying to make sure the cake doesn't crumble or fall apart in the process. Have at, Mondo!]
no subject
[While Sayaka handles that, Mondo goes through the cabinets looking for a bowl. Surprisingly, the kitchen is in remarkably good condition. Sure, there's some graffiti on the cabinets and the counters have seen better days, but everything is very clean and there's a lot of it. Mondo locates some bowls and silverware easily, and scoops out his own portion of stew.]
Thanks again for handling this, Maizono. C'mon, let's see what the dining room's like.
no subject
It's no trouble at all! I'm glad to be able to help.
[To the dining room! Which has...likewise definitely seen better days, and if anything, there's a lot more graffiti around here than even the hallways, but it seems entirely centralized to the walls. There's quite a few large patches of repainted walls, though. It helps that the dining room is very large; it was a large scale cafeteria at one point or another.
Either way, the table they sit at is pretty old, but it looks like it's still been treated pretty well. Barring some carvings of obscenities and the like, to the surprise of likely nobody.]
Well, I don't know what I would have expected...but this probably should have been exactly it. It looks like people used this room to try and plan things a lot, though...
no subject
[It's sort of run-down, but at least it works. Mondo shrugs a bit as he studies the things carved into the table before dismissing it. It feels so strange to be here after countless people suffered through games like this, but he's not going to stop and think about it.]
This is probably a good meeting area. Large enough to gather everyone and they can offer food to convince people to show up. Some of them did that during our game; probably explains why some people went to the meetings at all.
[He was absolutely bribed by food, but he was trying to help too!!]
no subject
[Sayaka is nothing if not good at making food, so it's good to see that it was successful at bribing people out!!]
...It's almost nostalgic. It feels really stupid to say that, though. And it wasn't exactly great when anyone else who could cook started getting targeted...
But it was nice. Everyone was certainly pretty colorful during those meetings, weren't they?
no subject
Yeah. Feels fuckin' weird to put it like that, but yeah, I get it. Those meetings were actually pretty fun sometimes, huh? Feels kind of like—
[...how Ishimaru used to lead their meetings and try to rally everyone together.
Mondo sighs and rubs the back of his head.]
Anyway, things'll be different this time. No telling what'll happen next.
no subject
[Still, Sayaka stares at Mondo for a moment, before a light smile comes onto her face.]
It's kind of like how Ishimaru-kun rallied us in the morning, back at Hope's Peak. Right?
no subject
[It's quiet, for once. It's painful to think about Ishimaru and the others. They're all dead, and yet two of the people who died during the game got a second chance like this. Sure, it was hard-fought and their struggles are nowhere near over yet, but they survived, against all odds.
Ishimaru would have hated this, but he can't help but wish Ishimaru had been able to survive too.]
Kinda hard to think about that shit, I guess. I wish we could go back there and put a stop to that bastard and save 'em.
no subject
Sayaka had hoped that it would help Mondo to be able to recall those times without worry, but Sayaka's face softens with a bit of sympathy. How could she not feel anything towards this? People might think she was just cold-hearted and didn't care for anyone, but she can't help but feel like everyone at Hope's Peak deserved better. Far better than what the two of them got.]
...I understand, Oowada-kun. They all deserve a lot better than what they got, and I'd do the same thing, if I could. It's...it's awful, that they're all just...gone like that. We all could've been normal students in a class together...
[It's hard for her to recall too, though.]
It's probably stupid to get caught up in something that can't happen, though, but...they were all really good people.
no subject
...Yeah.
[Mondo groans and runs a hand through the back of his hair.]
Shit, we don't need to be dragging the mood down like this. Let's try some of that cake you made!
[It's a really aggressive topic change, but that's probably what Sayaka's come to expect from Mondo by now...]
no subject
Of course, Oowada-kun.
[Let her just get that and then set it out, along with some ice cream, and then just...take approximately half of the cake for herself while setting the other half out for Mondo! Listen. It's been a rough day, we all need a lot of sweet shit, don't judge.]
Here you go! Oh, and feel free to get some ice cream, too, it goes really well with this stuff!
[...She says that but oh my god sweetie, you're gonna be in a sugar coma. But the cake should be pretty damn good! Sayaka stuck very close to the recipe, so it should be very nice and fluffy while also having a subtle hint of honey in it.]
no subject
[He grins at that, though; it's cute to see Sayaka so excited about something like this. After everything they've been through, finding joy in anything can be a bit difficult, so this is... nice, really.
And the cake is really good on top of that. Mondo's not really big on sweets normally, but this is great.]
Damn, you really weren't kidding, this is incredible!