3rd Person POV
The air hung heavy on the group, pressing down on their backs. But however heavy it was, it was pierced by Y/N's words.
"Well what are we gonna do now?! Just stand around like a bunch of wet lemons?"
"Y/N is right. We can't just stand and glare at each other! Sometimes, even if you're nervous or afraid you just have to step forward. To forget such a simple fact... I can't forgive myself! Please, someone hit me! Punish me!" Taka shouted.
"By Lucifer, he sounds like a masochist. I was not expecting to hear those words from a moral compass like him." Belial thought.
"Jesus, if you've got time to yell about it, then you've got time to fuckin' DO something!" Mondo said.
"Perhaps, but uhhhh... what is the mission exactly?" Hiro asked, scratching his head.
"To look for a way out, dumbass! Doy!" Leon said.
"But b-before we do any of that, m-maybe we should take a look at the handbook? It's probably best to check out the regulations Monokuma before doing anything else." Chihiro suggested.
"That is true. If we stumble around with no clue, something like that might happen again." Celeste said.
"Fine. Then let's hurry up and check out these stupid rules already." Junko huffed.
After turning on his E-Handbook, Y/N's name showed up front and centre. Then, an itemised list appeared on-screen. It was the school regulations. In other words, the school rules. The 6 rules were as follows:
1. Students may only reside within the school. Leaving campus is an unacceptable waste of time.
2. The 'night time' period lasts between 10pm and 7am. Some areas of the school are off-limits at night time, so please exercise caution.
3. Sleeping anywhere other than the dormitory will be seen as sleeping in class, and will be punished accordingly.
4. With minimal restrictions, you are free to explore Hope's Peak Academy at your own discretion.
5. Violence against Headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited, as is the destruction of one or more surveillance cameras.
6. Anyone who murders a fellow student and becomes 'the blackened' will graduate, unless they are discovered.
It also mentioned how additional regulations may be added over time.
"Wow that bear sure is taking this whole killing game seriously. This will be entertaining." Belial thought with a dark chuckle.
"What?! This isn't a game! This maybe a game to you, but isn't to me, and it probably-no, certainly isn't for the others!" Y/N thought.
"Even that gambler you've been blushing over? She is the Ultimate Gambler after all, so she may think that this is a game of life or death, just like me." Belial thought.
"S-shut up you! I-I know that she doesn't. In fact, I'm sure of it! You'll see soon enough." Y/N thought, with a light blush emerging on his cheeks.
"Well this is all a bunch of bullshit! What kinda rules are these?!" Owada shouted.
"Well then, why don't you wander around the school without a care in the world? Personally, I would love to see what someone breaks one of the rules." Celeste pondered.
"As would I." Belial thought.
"Well, ever since I was a kid, my older brother pounded something into my head. When a man makes a promise, he has to keep it, even if it kills him."
"So what?" Junko asked.
"I've made a lot of promises I still have to fuckin' keep, that's what! I can't afford to die here!" Mondo shouted.
"What you just said didn't make any sense to me, but I would assume you meant you are sticking to the regulations, yes?" Celeste asked.
"Err... yeah I guess you're right." Mondo said.
"Guys, I have a question? For regulation number six, what does that second half mean, 'unless they are discovered'?" Sayaka asked.
"I was wondering about that myself." Makoto said.
"It's saying that if you want to graduate, you have to kill someone without anyone finding out it was you." Byakuya explained.
"B-but why? W-why do we h-have to do that?" Toko asked.
"I don't see any reason to worry about that. The only thing to worry about is following the rules as they've been explained to us. Frankly, I don't want to hear a single word from someone who waits for others to decide what to do." Byakuya said.
"Well, let's forget the silly junk about murdering each other. Now we know what we can and can't do, let's start exploring the school!" Asahina suggested.
"Aoi is right! We need to find out exactly where we are. Is there a way out? What about food and supplies? There are tons of questions we need answering!" Taka said.
"Damn straight, Taka! Okay let's start looking around!" Leon shouted.
"If you don't mind, I will be searching alone." Byakuya said, as all heads turned to the Affluent Progeny, who was already making his way to the doors.
"You think that's smart, rich boy?" Junko asked.
"As a matter of fact, I do. For all I know, one of you may already be plotting my untimely demise. So I am simply acting in accordance which I think is best for me." Byakuya said. He kept on walking before Mondo stopped him in his tracks.
"Oh no you don't asshole! You're not going anywhere! Like hell I'm just gonna let you run off and do whatever the fuck you want!" Mondo shouted.
"Out of my way, narwhal." Byakuya calmly said, not batting an eyelid at the biker gang leader.
"OHHHH! Your paranoia is about to be right on!" Mondo said, cracking his knuckles and staring menacingly at Byakuya. Before he could do anything, Makoto rushed over the two.
"Hold up guys! The last thing we wanna do is fight!" Makoto said, trying to deescalate the situation.
"Say what! The fuck you just say you goody-goody little bitch?! You wanna lecture me or somethin?!" Mondo asked.
"This is going to be most entertaining, would you not agree Y/N?" Belial thought.
"No it isn't! Someone's about to be hurt. Badly!" Y/N thought.
Before Y/N could react, Makoto was sent flying through the air. It looked like something straight out of a comic book. Y/N and Sayaka raced over to him, worried sick about the lucky student.
"Oh my God! Makoto, are you ok?! Say something, anything!" Sayaka panicked, almost hyperventilating.
"Don't worry, Sayaka. He's ok. He's been knocked unconscious, that's all. Can someone help us move him, preferably to his room?" Y/N asked the others.
"I will." Sakura said, coming over and picking up Makoto with one arm. She was clearly strong if she could lift someone like Makoto with ease.
Timeskip
Makoto walked with Sayaka to the dining hall, hand on an ice pack covering his head. It was obvious that Mondo's punch was pretty heavy. With Sayaka's aid, he sat down between Mondo and Y/N.
"You ok? You've been out for a few hours, and we were starting to get worried, ya know?" Y/N asked.
"Yeah I'm ok. My head hurts that's all. Other than that, I'm fine." Makoto said, still holding the ice pack.
"Hey, let's just blame the stress for what happened, yeah?" Mondo asked, with his feet on the table.
"Yeah, no worries Owada. I mean, we're all on edge, tempers flare up every now and then." Makoto said.
"I mean, let's be honest. I doubt anyone will kill in a room full of witnesses, right?" Y/N asked.
"Y/N is correct. Given the circumstances we are currently in, safety in numbers would seem to be the correct course of action." Celeste said. She noticed the small blush on Y/N's cheeks and silently giggled to herself.
At that moment, Taka slammed his hands on the table and stood up.
"Alright listen up everyone! I hereby call to order the first HPHSRCBAA!" Taka declared.
"The first...what now?" Hiro asked.
"It is better known as the Hope's Peak High School Reconnaissance Committee Briefing on Academy Affairs. Now, let's all go round and share what we found out during our separate investigations!" Taka said.
"Wait just a sec, aren't we missing someone? You know that lilac-haired girl? What's her name again?" Junko asked.
"You mean Kyoko? Yeah, I haven't seen her since we were in the main hall. I don't know if any of you guys have seen her since then." Y/N said. Everyone shook their heads. It was as if she had upped and vanished.
"Wait, so nobody's seen her?" Chihiro asked.
"Damn it, Kyoko. Not only is she late for the briefing, she also didn't tell anyone she was going to late! That is unacceptable behaviour, especially when it's the first day of school!" Taka said.
"You're being a real jackass, right now." Junko commented.
"Well what am I supposed to do Junko? Now then, back to the topic at hand. What has everyone found out?"
"Well, I wanted to try and find some clues as to who our mysterious captor is, but I did not make such discoveries. That's all from me." Byakuya said.
"Is that really it Byakuya? Nothing else?" Taka asked.
"If I had actually uncovered anything, I would have told you all, but I didn't." Byakuya snapped back.
"A-anyways. I spent some time around the dormitories, and I made the discovery of the century! I found that there was exactly one room for each person!" Taka said.
"That's not really what you would call the discovery of the century, Taka. Just saying." Y/N said.
"Well me and Chihiro found out that each room key is attached to a keychain with the owner's name etched into it, and that all the rooms were soundproof." Junko said.
"Y-yeah. Your next door neighbour could s-scream their lungs and you w-wouldn't hear anything." Chihiro said.
"Well, each room has a private bathroom, which has a lock on it." Celeste said, twirling a strand of her hair.
"Actually Celeste, I think only the girl's bathrooms have locks installed." Junko said.
"Okay, so they got a bunch of rooms ready for us. Seems like we're gonna be here for a while then." Mondo said.
"Well it's better to have rooms than not! Now then, who's next?" Taka asked.
"Me, Junko, Leon and Chihiro went up and down the school, double-checking the windows, to see if would get the iron plates to come off." Y/N said.
"But nothing happened. Not a single damn thing. We didn't even get one to budge even a little." Leon said.
"Maybe I could have helped." Belial thought.
"No. You need to keep a low profile for now, ok?" Y/N thought.
"There wasn't any way to escape. The school is completely cut off." Chihiro added.
"Eurgh! This sucks! It really sucks! It sucks sucks sucks S-U-C-K-S sucks! What the hell are we gonna do?!" Junko asked.
"Calm down Junko, you're starting to make me nervous, for God's sake," Leon said.
"Anyway, me, Sakura and Mondo thought we could maybe find a way to communicate with the outside, but we didn't find anything, sorry." Asahina said.
"Well I went back to the main hall and found this stupid door. I kicked at it for an hour. And nothing happened, didn't leave so much as a dent. The thing's as hard as iron." Owada said.
"That's because it is iron, Mondo." Celeste said.
"Anyway, it's obvious we ain't getting out that way, that's for damn sure." Mondo said.
"Me and Asahina found a stairwell leading to an upper floor at the end of the hallway. But there were, and we couldn't check out. In other words, we can only search the 1st floor for now." Sakura said.
"Well, Toko, Hifumi and myself spent the entire time in the gym. We are not exactly the types to go running around like junior detectives." Celeste said.
"What the hell were you thinking, just around in the gym the entire time?" Junko asked.
"W-well I wouldn't want to g-go anywhere with a d-dirty slut like you! At least my m-mind isn't as t-thin as my b-body!" Toko said, standing up from her seat.
"Did you just call me a slut? I...I don't even know how to react. How can you say something so awful to someone you just met?" Junko said, glaring over to Toko with an evil look in her eye.
"Guys! Just calm down, ok!" Y/N shouted, causing Toko and Junko to shut up and sit down.
"Thank you. Now I think Chihiro wants to say something, am I right?" Y/N asked Chihiro.
"I-I do, yes. I searched the kitchen and found enough food in the fridge to feed an army. It's safe to say we won't go hungry." Chihiro explained, all while a small blush emerged on her cheeks while looking at Y/N. Y/N noticed it but said nothing.
"Ah, it seems the programmer likes you. What will you do with that knowledge, considering that you are attracted to the gambler?" Belial thought, secretly making Y/N grin.
"Stop it Belial, all of us only met this morning. Now is not the time to discuss who I like." Y/N thought.
"What? Surely there isn't enough food to feed 16 people for the rest of their lives?" Hifumi asked.
"There is, the fridge gets restocked everyday based on how much we've eaten the day before. Monokuma told me himself." Chihiro said, smiling.
"Wait what? You saw him?" Junko asked.
"Yeah I did, but he disappeared before I could see where he went. That's all I have to offer." Chihiro said before sitting down.
"Well, is there anything else to report?" Taka said.
"R-report? We're still in the dark about who's behind all of this, and w-were still t-trapped in here. This investigation was j-just a massive waste of t-time." Toko said.
"No, that's incorrect. Some useful information was acquired during our investigation. We are now aware of the boundaries of our confinement, and that we'll be here for a while." Celeste said.
"Monokuma has made that perfectly clear. From where else should the incentive come for us to kill?" Byakuya asked.
"Aww man, what are we gonna do? I mean there's gotta be something, right?" Leon asked, his hands on his head.
"Adapt I suppose. All we can do is adapt. After all, a lack of adaptability is a lack of survivability." Celeste said.
"So what, we just suck it up and accept that we're prisoners?" Junko asked.
"Yes, my dear. Survival is not about being the strongest or smartest, but being the one most willing to adapt." Celeste said, smiling while interlinking her hands under her head, before continuing.
"Therefore, I would like to make a suggestion. In the regulations, there is a designated curfew. With that in mind, I think we should make a rule of our own." Celeste said, before standing up.
"Yeah, and what would that be?" Mondo asked.
"We each stay in our rooms. Think about it my dears, given our predicament, every time night time comes we will all start to get anxious. Even the tiniest sound will persuade us that there is foulness afoot. Needless to say, I believe this restriction must be self-imposed. However, unlike the other regulations, no-one will be forced to comply. We all have to agree to follow it." Celeste said, before sitting down. The room was completely silent. That is until Makoto decided to speak.
"Well, I mean I don't know about the guys, but we'll comply."
"Yeah, Makoto's right. The boys agree, right?" Y/N asked.
"Hey, who said you two could speak for us!?" Leon said.
"I mean, I guess the girls agree with the goth lolita, right? If we don't we'll just self-destruct." Junko said, and the girls nodded in agreement.
"Then we are all in agreement, yes? Now then, if you'll excuse me..." Celeste said, while strolling to the exit of the dining hall.
"W-wait, Celeste, where are you going?" Chihiro asked.
"It is almost midnight, my dear. I want to take a shower before it arrives." Celeste said.
"Celeste is right. I think everyone should get some rest, and then we can take this up in the morning with clear heads." Y/N said, before exiting. He walked towards his dorm to see Celeste opposite him.
"Ah, Y/N my dear, it seems we are opposite to each other. Is that a good thing, for each of us? Only time will tell." Celeste said, before silently heading into her room and locked the door behind her. She had noticed that Y/N was blushing as red as beetroot, and laughed to herself.
Y/N didn't move for a good few minutes. It was clear that he already had a huge crush on Celeste, and it had only been a single day.
"And you said you had to have an emotional bond to like someone." Belial thought, laughing so much he almost made Y/N laugh.
"You. You shut up right now, or I swear I'll- Y/N thought before he was interrupted by Belial.
"You'll what? You have NO power over me. I have all the power, you best remember that." Belial thought.
Y/N sighed heavily, before going into his room, making sure to lock it. He hadn't managed to go to his room, so this was his first look at where he would be staying for the foreseeable future. It had red floral wallpaper, and a blue carpet. It had a single bed, with white duvets and pillows. It somewhat resembled his personal chamber back in the guild hall.
"Speaking of the guild hall, I wonder what the guild are doing, now I'm here?" Y/N thought, changing into his pyjamas. He took off his mask and glove, before going into the bathroom. He looked at the mirror, and stared at his reflection.
"I wonder how long your- no, OUR secret will last in this place." Belial physically laughed.
"Shut up. All I can do is try my best, ok? Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to bed. So can you be quiet?" Y/N asked the daemon, while getting into bed.
Belial went silent, and then Y/N slipped into unconsciousness, finishing his first day in Hope's Peak, unaware of what would happen in the next few days. And on of those, someone would die. And not of natural causes.
***********
So Y/N is settling into life in Hope's Peak. Also, if it wasn't painfully obvious, one of Y/N's love interests is Celeste. Well, one of them anyway....
But you'll have to find out next time. So thank you for reading, and I'll see you guys, gals and non-binary pals later!
-B