Kaede's POV:
Shuichi: "Kaede, where should we look for evidence first?"
Me: "Well, I say that we check Himiko's Lab first. We need to prove Kokichi innocent."
Shuichi: "Makes sense."
I grab him and we run down to Himiko's Lab. When we get there, we open the door to see Himiko comforting Kokichi.
Is he... crying?
Himiko: "Kokichi... it's okay..."
Kokichi: "No... it's not... what if the murderer..."
Himiko: "I'll be alright, Kokichi. I know that I'm safe with you..."
Aw, that's so sweet!
Suddenly, they look over at us.
Me: "S-sorry, bad time?"
Kokichi weakly sits up.
Kokichi: "N-no... come in."
Shuichi: "We're here to look for evidence to prove your innocence."
Kokichi: "Innocence?"
Me: "We know that you aren't the killer. We just need concrete evidence."
Kokichi: "I... well, thanks."
Himiko: "I told you that everything would be okay!"
Kokichi: "You're right... thank you..."
We all start looking around for anything that could help us. We search for around thirty minutes, before we hear a thud. We look over, and Himiko is laying on the floor.
Kokichi: "Himiko, are you okay?"
Himiko: "Nyeeeeeh... all of this investigating is making me tired..."
Kokichi: "Say no more."
He picks her up on his back and she instantly passes out. He starts to walk out of the Lab.
Kokichi: "I think we should go..."
Me: "Yeah... I'm sorry that we couldn't find any evidence to help you."
Kokichi: "It's no problem at all!
He smiles at us creepily.
Kokichi: "Just prove the true killer guilty and you're set."
We should have started with that.
Me: "We should ask Miu if she saw anyone near her lab when she got there."
Shuichi: "Sounds good. By the way Kokichi, I don't think that anyone would blame you for staying with her."
Kokichi: "How did you...? Ah, whatever, you're not the Ultimate Detective for nothing."
Shuichi (Under his breath): "Except I kind of am..."
I turn towards him and I angrily puff out my cheeks. I hate it when he talks like that.
Kokichi: "Anyways, thanks for that. I just want to make sure that she stays safe tonight."
Me: "Aw, that's sweet of you..."
Kokichi: "Hey! I am NOT sweet!"
Shuichi and I laugh as he sighs in annoyance.
Kokichi: "All right, see you guys."
We all walk out. Kokichi heads down to the dorms while we make our way to Miu's Lab.
When we reach her Lab, we are relieved to see that the lights are still on. We knock before entering this time, and Kiibo comes rushing to the door.
Kiibo: "Well if it isn't the dynamic duo themselves. What brings you back here?"
Me: "We need to ask you and Miu some questions."
Miu: "Then stop standing out there and get the fuck in here!"
We walk in and grab some chairs.
Me: "So Miu, did you happen to see anyone near your lab when you got back?"
Miu: "Kiibo, can you go through your memory?"
Kiibo: "Sounds good."
He closes his eyes. Thirty seconds later, he reopens them, surprised by something.
Kiibo: "G-Gonta was there!"
Me: "Gonta?"
Kiibo: "Yeah, and he was carrying a bag. Here, give me a second."
He walks over to a printer, and he plugs himself into it from his index finger. Suddenly, a picture comes out of the printer. Kiibo unplugs himself and he walks over to us with the picture. He points at one spot, and sure enough, Gonta is standing in the shadows, staring at the camera. I mean, at Kiibo. Miu took a pair of goggles with several lenses and put it on. She puts a few of the lenses down. They must be magnifying glasses. Shuichi pulls his own magnifying glass out of his pocket and puts it on Gonta. Miu suddenly gasps at what she sees. I look at Gonta in the picture, and he seems to be holding something that looks like a red megaphone.
Miu: "It was fuckin' Gonta!"
Me: "What do you mean?"
Miu: "He stole my amplifier and my knife!"
Me: "So that's what happened to it!"
Kiibo: "But what would Gonta want with either of those things?"
Shuichi: "Well, Tsumugi was at Gonta's Lab. Maybe she saw or heard something!"
Me: "Good idea, Shuichi! Let's go to her Lab!"
Shuichi: "Thanks for the help, you two!"
Miu: "No need ta' mention it! Now get the fuck down there! You've only got fifteen minutes until we have to go to our dorms!"
Shuichi: "You heard her, let's move."
He grabs my hand and we run to Tsumugi's lab as quickly as we can. When we arrive, we see Tsumugi sewing an outfit that looks oddly familiar. A black school jacket with a circular patch that looks like a school logo. The patch is divided into four sections, the top left is white, the top right is black, the bottom left is black, and the bottom right is white.
Off topic.
She notices us and stops sewing.
Tsumugi: "Oh! Hello, Kaede and Shuichi! How can I help you two?"
Me: "Hi, Tsumugi! We need to ask you a few questions in order to help with Gonta's trial."
Tsumugi: "Oh, I'd love to help! Go ahead!"
Shuichi: "Thanks. Now, can you tell us what happened when you reentered Gonta's Lab?"
Tsumugi: "Of course! Gonta was having a conversation with Korekiyo when we arrived."
Me: "Korekiyo?"
Tsumugi: "Yeah... he said something along the lines of 'If you don't bring me what I asked for,, then you won't ever see them again. Also, if you tell anyone, then I'll kill them on the spot.'"
Shuichi: "Wait, could he have been talking about Miu's amplifier and knife?"
Me: "You may be right..."
Tsumugi: "Gonta looked extremely angry, so I asked Korekiyo if he wanted to show Kirumi and I around his lab."
Me: "Any idea when this happened?"
Tsumugi: "Around two o'clock."
Me: "So then Gonta had time to go down and steal them from Miu's Lab!"
Shuichi: "And that's why you lock doors in a killing game."
Me: "No kidding."
Tsumugi: "Our tour ended at 6:30."
Me: "And that's within the time frame that the murder took place in."
Shuichi: "Then I guess we know why Korekiyo was jumping from person to person in the trial. We have our prime suspect. Tomorrow, let's see if we can get into his Lab to see if his alibi holds up."
Tsumugi: "I'm glad that I could be of help to you two!"
Shuichi: "Thank you so much, Tsumugi. Stay safe over the night. If Korekiyo is really the killer, then who knows what his motives are."
Me: "That just made the fact that he was staring at all of us girls even scarier."
Shuichi looks at me with wide eyes.
Shuichi: "Y-you're completely right."
Tsumugi: "Hey, on a completely unrelated note, are you two dating?"
Me: "Ah! We... um..."
Shuichi: "...y-yeah..."
Tsumugi: "PERFECT."
Me: "Huh? What do you mean by that?"
Tsumugi: "You'll see! You two keep each other safe!"
Me: "Yeah, thanks. See you!"
Tsumugi: "Mhm!"
We walk out of her Lab, and I grab Shuichi's arm tightly.
Shuichi: "Scared?"
Me: "A bit..."
Shuichi: "Don't be. I'm staying with you tonight. I-I mean, if you want..."
Me: "That would be great, Shuichi..."
He lovingly smiles at me, and I smile back at him. I'm glad that I have someone like him to keep me safe.
He's like a Guardian Angel.
Shuichi: "I keep saying that this shouldn't be a regular thing, but we keep being thrown into it."
Me: "Must be fate."
He chuckles at this. After a while, his chuckle fades away.
Shuichi: "You know, we should probably remind the others to stay safe."
Me: "You're right!"
We take out our Monophones and Shuichi starts a new chat with everyone except Korekiyo.
____________________________________________________________
(Detective Prince)> Hi
(Detective Prince)> I just wanted to let everyone know to stay safe
We have evidence on who the killer is.<(Treble Queen)
(Detective Prince)> It's Korekiyo
(Panta Tyrant)> Not bad, Mr. Detective!
(Girl Power)> The most degenerate one here
(Girl Power)> I won't be sad to see him go
(Maid Mom)> I trust your claims
(Praise Atua)> I also trust them! You're the detective, after all!
We don't know his motives <(Treble Queen)
So for now, he's still dangerous <(Treble Queen)
Lock your doors and barricade them with chairs <(Treble Queen)
If anyone comes to your door, don't let them in<(Treble Queen)
(Panta Tyrant)> Way ahead of you
(Panta Tyrant)> I already barricaded the door for Himiko and I
(Girl Power)> AND I? THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?
(Panta Tyrant)> I'm with her tonight
(Panta Tyrant)> I'm going to do everything in my power to keep her safe
(Girl Power)> But...
(Panta Tyrant)> I know that we've had our differences
(Panta Tyrant)> But please, trust me for one night
(Girl Power)> ...Fine then
(Girl Power)> Keep her safe
(Girl Power)> And if you hurt her, then I'll kill you.
(Girl Power)> I don't care if I'll be executed
(Panta Tyrant)> Thank you.
(Girl Power)> I'm trusting you for once
(Girl Power)> Don't let me down
(Star Lord)> Thx for the heads up, Sidekick!
(Mr. Roboto)> Miu and I have barricaded our door
(@$$@$!N)> Done.
(Star Lord)> I see that ur using the username I made for u
(@$$@$!N)> It's cute. Don't judge.
(GeekSquad)> Once again, I'm glad that I could help in the case!
(Detective Prince)> We're extremely grateful, Tsumugi
(Detective Prince)> Goodnight, everyone
(Detective Prince)> And once again, stay safe
____________________________________________________________
Shuichi and I walk to his dorm, and he quickly unlocks it. As soon as we walk in, he locks the door and barricades it with a chair.
Shuichi: "There, we should be safe now."
He sighs in relief before he opens his eyes and facepalms.
Shuichi: "You need some clothes for the night, don't you?"
Me: "It would be nice..."
He takes away the chair and unlocks the door. He walks me to my dorm. A few minutes later, I'm changed into a Pink t-shirt and Purple shorts. When I leave my room, Shuichi is leaning against the wall next to my room. He's wearing a long sleeved Navy Blue shirt and Black sweatpants. It's really hot out, why would he wear something like that?
Me: "Shuichi, It's eighty-five degrees right now! Why are you wearing long sleeves?"
Shuichi: "Um... I'm just not... comfortable with showing my arms and legs."
Me: "Are you not confident?"
Shuichi: "No, it's not anything like that. I just don't like it."
I nod at him. Somethings don't need reasons.
We walk into my room this time, and I instantly lock the door behind us. Shuichi props a chair beneath the door knob, and we turn off the lights and get into bed.
I cuddle closely against him, and I start to think about all of the recent incidents that led to this.
Gonta's death, Miu's missing device, and Korekiyo...
As soon as I think about Korekiyo, I can't help but start to shiver a bit. The way he stares at us has never been more terrifying. I can't help it as my mind starts to imagine what he wants from us...
That's when I Shuichi's arms wrap around me as he begins to comfort me.
Shuichi: "Kaede... it'll be okay. Tomorrow, we'll have Korekiyo executed, and the nightmare will be over."
I cling to him tighter, and withing a few seconds, I pass out.
...
...
...
I wake up to the sound of birds chirping. I look to my right to see Shuichi reading his book.
Me: "Morning, Shuichi!"
Shuichi: "Morning, Angel."
He puts down his book and he walks over to me. He gives me a light kiss on the forehead.
Shuichi: "I should be getting back to my room. Everyone else is about to wake up."
He removes the barricade and unlocks the door. Once he steps outside, I lock and barricade the door again. Thirty minutes later, I'm ready for the long day this will be.
I walk outside, and I see Shuichi yelling at someone.
Shuichi: "What does this have to do with you? I can wait for her if I want, especially since a killer is on the loose! Plus, you're in no place to talk about being creepy!"
Oh no.
It's him.
Korekiyo: "Ah, good morning, Kaede. I'm so sorry to disturb. I just found Shuichi here outside of your room like a creepy stalker, so I told him to leave."
I grab Shuichi's arm.
Me: "Leave him alone! He did nothing wrong!"
Korekiyo groans as he walks away. I pull Shuichi into a warm hug.
Me: "Thank you, Shuichi."
Shuichi: "I... no problem."
We walk down to the cafeteria, and everyone quiet today. Everyone is keeping watch on Korekiyo as he eats. His expression is one of confusion.
He knows what he did. He doesn't get to play dumb.
Shuichi and I quickly eat, and we both quickly get up so that we can continue our investigation.
We walk out and we instantly run to Korekiyo's Lab. We reach his Lab, and we are amazed to see that he did not lock his door.
Me: "Not locking his door... he must be pretty confident that he can escape execution."
Shuichi: "...yeah..."
We walk in and we start looking around. Unfortunately, we weren't able to find anything to prove him guilty.
That is, until...
Me: "Is there really nothing here? Maybe we jumped the gun in accusing Korekiyo."
Shuichi: "Yeah, you might be right. Maybe he was telling the truth when he said that he was polishing and dusting his artifacts."
Me: "Hey, wait..."
Shuichi: "What's up?"
Me: "Polishing and dusting? Do these artifacts look dusted or polished?"
Shuichi: "N-no, they don't! The only thing that looked somewhat polished was the first exhibit in the entire Lab!"
Me: "So he only polished one thing so that Kokichi wouldn't be able to tell that he was lying!"
Shuichi: "Kaede, you're a genius! This is the evidence that we need!"
Me: "Then we should tell Monokuma to start up the trial again early!"
Shuichi: "You're right!"
Within thirty minutes, we were back in the elevator to the trial room. Just like last time, we walk out nervously into the brightly lit room and to our pedestals. Only this time, we have everything we need.
It'll be easy.
...
...
...
Right?