[3rd Person POV]
Following what they talked about yesterday, Y/N woke up earlier than Monokuma's announcement and got himself ready.
"I wasn't sure at first, but this outfit is really growing on me."
He made sure to tie the ribbon on his neck properly as a way of constantly upholding a wish from a friend.
"Looks good, don't ya think? I like that I can hide the creases with the vest. But I wonder if my hair is alright?"
After straightening himself up and making sure his gloves are on the right way, Y/N grabbed the note from his bed and set it on the table nearby his old outfit.
He patted the note gently and smiled.
"Well then, I'll be going now, Taeko. I'll be back later."
He whispered before exiting his room and locking the door with his key.
There was a lack of people outside, which is to be expected, considering that it's nighttime and not a lot of people left.
But what he wasn't expecting, is for Kirigiri to also exit her room at the same time he did. He even made sure to wake up extra early just to surprise her again, but it seems she's already expecting him.
The moment both their doors shut and the locks clamped, they made eye contact. Y/N was a little surprised to see her, but judging by Kirigiri's expression, she did this deliberately.
"Ohayo, Kirigiri chan~"
Y/N greeted her warmly.
She only nodded as a response.
"Shall we go? I assume there's a lot to unpack on the 4th Floor."
"We should."
The duo scoured the newly-opened 4th Floor, this would make it Kirigiri's second time investigating it, and Y/N his first time as he wasn't present during the initial opening.
"Hmm, the Chemistry Lab will most likely have something to do with it, if another death happens."
Y/N cupped his chin as he studied the 3 sections of the cabinets.
"Poison, in particular. Probably swap it with one of these harmless ones?"
Kirigiri glanced at Y/N, just one look at the cabinets and he already predicted something... Well, she also doesn't deny the possibility of this happening. Poison is probably gonna be one of the more common causes of murder.
"I don't mean to predict again, but... It's probably gonna be Ogami chan who dies to something such as poison."
The broker's gaze turned to Kirigiri as the girl narrowed hers.
"How can you be so sure?"
"You really can't kill her by normal means unless she doesn't fight back, but I doubt she won't fight back, at least, enough to kill her. So, you know... Poison. She already drinks protein shakes as is, it isn't a stretch to think so."
Kirigiri understood where he's coming from, considering Ogami had just been outed as a mole, people are probably going to gun it for her, but since they're already small in numbers, it should dawn on them that they'd be found out so easily.
But it isn't out of the realm of possibilities.
"Well, we've stuck around here for too long, so we should move on."
"Right."
Kirigiri brought Y/N to places that piqued her interest as she was curious to know what he thinks about those points of interest.
They reached the locked data-processing room, and she expected as much that Y/N would be interested in this the most.
"Huh... I can't pick the lock on this one. There's a specific key to this that doesn't actually turn the doorknob, rather it's just automatic."
"They may be hiding something important here, don't you think so?"
Kirigiri cupped her chin while watching the broker press his face on the small glass window.
"Yeah. Most likely. The data-processing room would probably be the kicker or something."
Then Y/N ruffled his own hair, finding no way to gain access through the door without breaking any school rules.
But he wasn't really affected by this, rather... He was more concerned about something else.
"Kirigiri chan, this might be weird to ask, but... I wonder where they store the bodies of our dead classmates?"
"Huh? Why are you curious?"
"There's probably a morgue here, it can't be outside since we'd notice whoever is coming in and out of here... There's another floor after this, right? Then that might be where it is."
"What are you thinking?"
"I'm thinking that the shelter plan here is more likely to be true, but the killing game was never in the plans. Someone has to have done something... If there's a morgue, people are expected to die from the get-go, but I highly doubt we're expected to go through a battle royale."
Thinking about it, it made sense. But with neither the evidence or access to prove it, they couldn't confirm it.
So in the end, it becomes merely speculation.
"Let's save that when we have actual leads, for now, let's just investigate the floor. We only have one more place to go."
"Ah, you're right. Principal's Office, right?"
Kirigiri nodded and went ahead, Y/N following closely behind her.
It didn't take long for them to arrive there, and Y/N tried opening the door at first but it didn't pry.
"Hm... Yeah this is where it probably is..."
"What is?"
"The unlocking-everything-thing... The uh... you know... the thingy..."
"The...thingy...?"
Y/N had trouble picking words for some reason, and Kirigiri could not help but raise an eyebrow and find it adorable.
He always knew what to say, so something like this was a form of gap that she wasn't expecting.
"You mean something like a “Master Key?”"
"Yeah, yeah. That thing."
"If what you say is true, then that would indeed be our second most important asset."
"Yeah, but unless Monokuma removes the rules--which is unlikely, I doubt we'd be able to get in there. I could pick the lock but because of restrictions, I can't."
"Maybe that is why he doesn't want us gaining access to it."
The two's conversation were suddenly interrupted by the Morning Announcement from Monokuma.
"Well, this has been a well-learning experience. We know that whatever is in those locked rooms would give us a significant advantage over Monokuma and the mastermind."
"Then I guess our next step is to check on the lockers."
"Might as well. Any information from it will be extremely helpful. I wonder if we could..."
Y/N put a hand on his hip before stopping himself. Whatever it was, Kirigiri is sure that it was about Alter Ego, otherwise he wouldn't need to stop himself from talking.
It was nice that Y/N's taking things seriously this time around. Despite his tendency to cause trouble, or make messed up comments, he's a huge asset to have on their side. So much so that Monokuma had to restrict him from participating, and even had insurance in the form of Ogami Sakura before she defected.
"Let's go then. We shouldn't waste any more time."
Kirigiri took the lead as always, knowing full-well that Y/N would follow her from behind.
Their entire walk was quiet though, Y/N opted to glance around the areas they'd already investigated, but his eyes would avoid specific places. He avoided looking at the Infirmary when they passed by it, he even avoided looking at the library.
It was only a few days after all, the guy probably has nightmares about it.
But soon enough, they arrived at the locker rooms and Kirigiri pulled the laptop from one of the lockers and on to her lap.
"Ah, I'm very happy that you've come to see me again! And I see that L/N kun is looking better!"
The AI greeted
Kirigiri began typing.
{Did you find anything new?}
"Aside from what I've already relayed. There's nothing on this computer's hard drive. Sorry."
"Well, that sucks..."
Y/N commented before crossing his arms.
"But I have something else to tell you!"
Alter Ego suddenly projected it's voice.
{What is it?}
"Before that, I would like Naegi kun to be here too!"
{Wait there.}
"Mhm! Thank you!"
Kirigiri closed the laptop monitor and put it back in one of the lockers.
"So uh... You talked to him already or...?"
"....."
"You still haven't, huh? Well, now's your chance!"
"If I were to do that, then you need to stay here."
"Hah? Why?"
"...I wouldn't be able to..."
"Pffft... You're gonna get embarrassed, huh?"
Y/N lifted a hand near his mouth while giggling at the girl.
This caused Kirigiri to give him a grumpy stare.
"Alright, alright! I won't follow you."
Y/N raised both hands in defense.
"Stay here, and don't talk to Alter Ego unless I come back."
"Hai, hai. Come back safely."
Kirigiri stepped out of the locker rooms just in time for both of them to hear Ogami screaming.
Y/N immediately stood up, intending to follow her, but he was stopped by her raising a hand.
"Don't. It's fine."
"Kirigiri chan..."
"I'll be fine."
The broker relented hesitantly before taking a seat on one of the chairs there.
Kirigiri saw that look on his face, that terrified expression... Judging from what happened only recently, he's probably suffering from severe PTSD.
Celeste's death really did hit him harder than she initially thought.
Which makes her question just how close those two really are, and to what extent, Y/N did say he saw her as a sister...
...why should this matter again?
Shaking her head, she walked quickly to where she'll find Ogami in a raged state, but she's confident that the Martial Artist won't really harm her.
"What is this ruckus about?"
"Kirigiri san, help us stop Ogami san!"
Naegi pleaded
Then the white-haired Martial Artist calmed down suddenly.
"There's no need to stop me. I won't do anything. I'm simply... going to settle things."
"W-Wait!"
When everything has settled down a little, Naegi had a conversation with Kirigiri.
"Hey... Are you still mad at me?"
He started, but Kirigiri didn't answer.
"You are, aren't you? Of course you'd be."
"No. The issue with Ogami san was what you were hiding from me, wasn't it? You didn't want to cause an uproar based on some speculation. So you kept it to yourself, right?"
Kirigiri concluded causing Naegi to look down.
"Where do you get off being so considerate, Naegi kun?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, that just means you don't trust me."
"I-I guess so... I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I'll forget about it. Besides..."
Kirigiri suddenly went a little quiet.
"...I got a little...too angry myself."
"Hm?"
"Let's leave it at that. More importantly, you-know-what apparently has something to tell us. L/N kun is already waiting there.
[-at the locker room-]
Naegi and Kirigiri found Y/N huddled in a corner, which caused the Lucky Student to sweat drop.
"He really is full of surprises, I wonder what he's doing there?"
"He likes tight spaces, I think...?"
Even Kirigiri isn't sure how she knew, but somehow she just knows... It was the same feeling she's had whenever she's experiencing bits and pieces of her memories slowly coming back to her.
Does that mean she had not only forgotten a number of memories, but also memories involving Y/N? She can think about it later, what matters right now is seeing what Alter Ego wants.
"Took you two long enough. I was planning to take a nap."
"You know that taking naps on any place besides dormitories breaks school rules."
Kirigiri commented whilst pulling Alter Ego off one of the lockers.
"No cameras means I'm a free man!"
Y/N stood up and glided towards Kirigiri and Naegi.
Upon opening the laptop again, Alter Ego was already waiting.
"You came back!"
It greeted.
"For Alter Ego to ask us to come see him, I wonder what it could be."
{What did you want to say?}
"Mhm. I'd like you to take me somewhere with network connectivity."
Alter Ego requested.
"Yeah, I suspected as much. We'll turn the entire school on it's head once Alter Ego gets in the system."
Y/N commented
{Why?}
"I want to fight alongside you! I'll do what I can to help you escape this academy. That's why, I want to be of any use to you all, I must connect to the network."
{If we do that the mastermind will find out.}
"I know it's risky. But I have to do it! Don't worry. The thought of you all gives me courage. You probably think that sounds weird coming from an AI, but I'm telling the truth."
Alter Ego explained, and despite having neither body or a hand. He seemed to have the biggest heart amongst the surviving students.
"Can't believe my heartstrings are getting tugged on by an AI."
Y/N laughed
"Naegi kun. Let's connect him to the network. I want to respect his wishes."
"Kirigiri san..."
"Also, there's a chance that the mastermind won't notice if we do it there--the hidden room on the 2nd Floor. That room didn't have any surveillance cameras. Besides, I'm pretty sure it had network connectivity. However, we can't be sure that the mastermind isn't monitoring the network. But it is still worth a shot."
Kirigiri proposed this to Naegi who nodded and agreed.
"In that case, I'll take Alter Ego there."
Naegi immediately took action and took Alter Ego before exiting the locker rooms.
"Aaaa~ To think Kirigiri chan and Naegi chan have been changing secrets behind my back. I'm kinda jealous."
Kirigiri sighed and looked down.
"In any case, we can rely on Naegi kun while we continue investigating the school for any way we can gain access to the locked rooms."
"Don't just change the subject like that. I didn't know about the hidden room on the 2nd Floor."
"Naegi kun was attacked by someone when he entered the hidden room. I didn't want to tell you because everything had already been taken when Naegi kun woke up."
"I see, I see..."
"....."
"Hmm... You found that out before Taeko's trial, and then you told Naegi chan after her trial, then he got whacked and that's when he saw Monokuma and Ogami fighting... Naruhodo, Naruhodo..."
Kirigiri stared at Y/N with her eyes slightly widened, he figured out everything.
"Then you didn't tell me at the time because Taeko had just died, right?"
She could only nod.
"I see. So you were looking out for me. Thank you, Kirigiri chan."
Y/N softly smiled at her.
As opposed to Kirigiri who remained seated, Y/N stood up and spun slowly.
"How about another prediction today then? Just a little something to give my thanks to you."
The lavender-haired girl's interest was immediately piqued, she had to know what he's thinking.
"Well, not really a prediction, but an observation!"
"What is it...?"
Y/N pointed to her.
"You haven't been moving from that position in a while."
"....."
"You're experiencing pins and needles, aren't you? I mean, why else ask Naegi chan to do something for you?"
Y/N had this stupid smirk on his face while he took a step closer to Kirigiri. This is his way of thanking her!?
She scooted as far away as she could without destroying her nerves with the sensation.
"...."
"Now you can't move from that spot or you'll be doing all sorts of random stuff! Luckily, there are no people or cameras here. So it's just as two!"
Y/N seemed to reach for her as Kirigiri gulped and prepared to sock him in the face.
"D-Don't touch me."
She stuttered after having accidentally moved her leg.
Then Y/N took the seat next to her.
"Why would I touch you? You're uncomfortable, right?"
"...."
"Were you thinking I was gonna do something?"
Kirigiri squinted her eyes at him.
She knows he's not gonna do anything inappropriate, but he'll dead*ss move her around. That's not out of his options, just as long as he bugs her.
The feeling on her lap is slowly getting better, so she only needs to spend a certain amount of time before she can move again.
"Ahh~ I can't believe I'm envious of a Lucky Student and an AI..."
Said Y/N while resting his chin on his hand, the elbow resting on his knee.
"What are you talking about?"
"You're relying on both of them, aren't you? It makes me feel so out of place, it really hurts you know? Even though I'm doing everything I can for your sake~"
That wasn't true at all. What were those secret meetings in the laundry room even for, if not a sign of her relying on him. Not to mention, during investigations.
Was it because she's suspected him multiple times now that he feels she's against him? Not an unlikely conclusion. Should she tell him?
"Not to mention, Alter Ego gets to lie on your lap for so long you had pins and needles!"
"..........."
"................."
Having regained feeling on her legs again, Kirigiri immediately stood up after Y/N's comment and made her way towards the exit.
"A-Ah, Kirigiri chan wait!"
He tried to stop her and apologize for teasing, but before he could, Kirigiri suddenly turned around and whispered something in his ear.
"Urusai, hentai...(shut up, pervert.)"
Before flicking his forehead with her gloved finger.
"Ow!"
"I'll be relying on you more from here on out."
She said while running her hand through her hair and fully leaving the area.
Y/N was stuck there for a while, his hand softly massaging his forehead in pain.
But slowly, a pink hue made it's way towards his face.
"W... Was she mad...?"
He didn't know what to make of that, she flicked his forehead, but her whisper didn't sound like she was mad. Was she getting back at him?
It was the first time that Y/N didn't have the answer for something. And it would seem like it'll take a while before that blush on his face died down.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some Y/N x Kirigiri! Who knew you could have fluff in a killing game!
For balance sake, here's a sad fact:
Y/N didn't sleep after Celeste's execution and just cried the entire time, he passed out the day after and slept the whole day, when he woke up, he started to tear up again but wiped his tears and forced himself to bathe and get dressed.
-Mod Ibuki