shsl-lukewarm-fan

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Death flags & SukaSuka

Guys let’s talk about spoilers. Well, I wanna talk about death flags, if you consider a death flag as a spoiler. Now, the show that I wanna discuss is SukaSuka, also known as WorldEnd, also known by a much longer title that I don’t feel like typing out. Now, if you don’t wanna be spoiled, then read no further than this paragraph. But otherwise, keep reading.

First minute of the first episode starts with a shot of Willem hugging Nephren, falling. A shot of Nopht fighting, and a shot of her lying on the floor of the ship, bleeding. And shots of Chtholly and her glorious red hair, looking outside towards Willem and Nephren falling. And we can read Chtholly’s monologue (‘cause come on, when you normally watch anime, you watch it subbed, not dubbed amirite), which describes a vow she made with a guy -- obviously, the guy falling outside -- in which they promise that they would be together forever, and how that vow gave her happiness. Now, as I continued through the show, I noticed that a few strands of Chtholly’s hair initially turned red at the beginning of episode 7. As I thought about this, and as I noticed that her hair just continues to turn red as the show continues, I realized that the very first minute of the first episode were shots that occurs towards the end of the series. Chtholly’s hair only began to turn red at the beginning of episode 7, and yet, there were shots of her having a full head of red hair at the beginning of the first episode. The only logical conclusion from this is that Chtholly’s hair will eventually turn all red. So, the show basically spoiled that about itself. Not only that, but this is a death flag, in and of itself. After episode 7, we see that as Chtholly’s mental health deteriorates, her hair becomes more and more red. So, there is a clear correlation between the color of her hair and her mental health. It’s such a clear correlation that we can use her hair as an indicator of her mental health.

Now, let’s talk about the other death flags in that first minute and that became evermore glaring as the show continues. Her eyes. They’re dull. Here’s a picture of her eyes when she’s normal:

Her eyes have the white spots that make them look shiny and lively. And they have 2 different hues of blue, too, so they’re not flat and dull. These are what her eyes look like when she’s normal.

And here’s a shot of her eyes during that first minute:

Eyes look dull & lifeless as fuck. Mental deterioration at its max.

See the difference in her eyes between the two pictures? She looks pretty normal in the first picture, and her eyes have white dots that make her eyes shiny. As a result, she’s normal and lively in the first picture. In the second picture, her eyes are dull, practically lifeless. This signals her incoming mental deterioration.

Now, the situation was extremely dire, with Nopht fighting and bleeding, the ship flying as debris, beasts, and people fall out of it. And the girl is deeply in love with the guy falling outside, as evident by the monologue. And her eyes and hair signal her mental deterioration. So, in this dire situation, someone’s gonna die. For sure. And, with her mental deterioration and her deep love for Willem, Chtholly’s gonna die saving Willem. So, the first minute of the first episode is a pretty glaring series of death flags of Chtholly to me, and these death flags became ever more glaring as the show continues.

Oh, and as the show continues since episode 7, we can see that Chtholly starts to forget stuff. This is itself a death flag, and it corresponds nicely with the death flags from the first minute of episode 1. Starting with when she was cooking and she forgot where the pepper was. Her forgetting where the pepper was is the very first sign of the gradual loss of all of her memories. All the uneasiness she experienced before episode 7 didn’t clearly show that she was losing her memories. Her forgetting the pepper is the very first evidence of her losing her memories. Now, if you think that that was a bit insignificant, I’m gonna argue that that was very significant. We know that Willem loves spicy food because of a shot in an earlier episode in which Chtholly was cooking. After tasting a pot, she then took out some ingredients and proceeded to add some of those ingredients to the pot. She sneezed while she was adding those ingredients. It’s pretty easy to conclude that she was adding something spicy, like pepper. And then, Ithea appeared, tasted the pot, and suggestively noted that it was spiced to fit a certain person’s (Willem’s) taste buds. So, it’s pretty evident that Willem likes spicy food, and Chtholly, as part of her strategy to get her man, tries to exploit this by cooking Willem spicy food.

So, if Chtholly knows that Willem likes spicy food, and if Chtholly frequently cooks Willem spicy food, how can she not know where the pepper was? The only answer to this question is that she forgot. And it ain’t just some simple forgetting. That’s because, again, she frequently uses the pepper to cook Willem spicy food. So, if it ain’t simple forgetting, what is it? The answer: she’s losing her memories. Permanently. Another death flag, yay. A gradual loss in memories, and gradual, mental deterioration, can only lead to one conclusion: this character is gonna die.

Oh, and Scarborough Fair. I fucking swear, this entire fucking song is a death flag to begin with. It was the OP of the first episode. As I was searching up this song, I notice that there are multiple versions of this song. This song was originally an old ballad from Britain that was passed down the generations. Simon & Garfunkel sang a version of Scarborough Fair. SukaSuka made yet another version of Scarborough Fair.

Now, the song takes the point of view of a specific, unnamed person. This person makes references to their lover, who just so happens to be male. Now, Chtholly is in love with Willem, yes? And Willem is male, yes? So, this unnamed person in Scarborough Fair is Chtholly. This song was taking the point of view of Chtholly. Before I dive into my interpretation of this song, it should be noted that although the point of view is Chtholly’s, the demands that she made are not meant to be taken literally. Rather, the demands are a death flag.

Now, in this song, Chtholly makes pretty impossible demands of Willem, like demanding that Willem makes a shirt out of a fancy fabric called cambric, and one that has no seams. How the fuck do you make a shirt without seams? I don’t sew, but that’s pretty damn hard, if not impossible. Oh, and the word “sea strand” means seashore. And Chtholly demands that Willem finds an acre of land between the salt water and the sea strand. So, she wants Willem to find her an acre of land between the sea water and the sea shore. So, she wants Willem to find her land smack dab in the boundary between the sea and the shore, and specifically in that boundary. Not land in the sea, or land on the shore. Land right in that boundary. And Willem has to find her an acre of that. Don’t know about you, but that sounds pretty impossible to satisfy.

Oh, and Willem has to satisfy these demands in order to be considered her “true lover.” Now, as I stated above, these aren’t literal demands; nowhere in the anime did Chtholly literally tell Willem to make her a cambric shirt with no seams. These demands are a metaphor for the impossibility of a lasting relationship between the two of them. These demands are impossible to fulfill. Now, if they cannot be fulfilled, that means that Willem can’t be her lover. Now, if Willem can’t be her lover, that means that someone in this relationship is gonna die, either Chtholly or Willem.

The anime especially rubbed this in as a death flag by playing this song as the opening to the first episode and also during the last episode when Chtholly defended Willem and Nephren from the beasts. During the part that this song played in the last episode, Chtholly’s incoming death is all too apparent. I mean, this girl was held up by tentacles that stabbed through her at one point. She was gonna die. And Scarborough Fair was playing during this part. This song is really, really strongly associated with death.

I mean, on a more positive note, she died being the happiest girl in the world after finally getting her man. I’m happy for her

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Here’s a very random thought:

The perfect mood music for when you’re having sex is the Scrum Debate track from NDRV3

Just kidding don’t do it. Actually, why not? I’m genuinely curious what that’s like after suddenly having this thought

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Gotta say, I love how Danganronpa dissects death. Like, seriously, all those murders and executions, and the characters’ reactions to those murders and executions. The franchise deals with death so extensively.

Like, with the executions. They’re so ironic. Take Chiaki’s execution. Her talent is being the Ultimate Gamer, so what’s her execution like? Let’s count all the video games in there. First video game, when Chiaki and the Monomi copies were being shot at by Monokuma in a tank, that resembles Space Invaders. Second video game, when Chiaki and the Monomi copies were running away from Monokuma and the Monomi copies were rolled over by some large ball, that resembles pac man. And finally, Tetris, when the last Monomi copy and Chiaki were trapped in a small space and had blocks fell on top of them.

Gotta say, that’s pretty ironic, no?

And the music is so damn funky!!!! It’s so good!!!!! It’s like, “Hey, your favorite character is gonna die anyway, so why not add some funky music?”

This irony and this funky music really makes the executions memorable and make Danganronpa stand out. The games, in a certain sense, treats death so damn lightly with the music that it plays during the executions and by making the executions so ironic as if to throw salt onto your wound. But that’s pretty cool, so I’m not complaining.

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

“You finally got rid of that emo hat! Is this cuz Kaede died or whatever?”

Oh Oma Kokichi. I love you. But fuck you. But I love you. But fuck you.

I feel so conflicted hearing him say this

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Spoilers!!!!!!!!

Gotta say, the English voice actor for Fuyuhiko was pretty damn good, especially during the 2nd trial.

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Kodaka has such a weird sense of humor. At first after I collected all the hope fragments from Chiaki, and I got her underwear, I thought that Kodaka ships hinanami but then I played dangan island and I’m like... ok Kodaka

We anons hijacked hajime's eyesight so we know what each of class 77's underwear and panties look like.

That’s impossible, you can’t do that!

Besides, I already have all their underwears…

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

More talent ramblings

Danganronpa focuses so much on talent and I love it. I love the debates on talent that it holds. Nagito proclaiming that talent is the only thing that gives you worth in this world. The real-life Chiaki complaining about how talent is a shackle and that those without talent has the most freedom. Aaaahhh, this is great. I see definite connections between what Danganronpa says about talent and how we treat talent in reality, and given this sometimes fierce debate, boy are these connections interesting.

So, you guys how Nagito believes that talent is the only thing that matters? Well, he also believes the same thing about hope, too, that hope is the only thing that matters, and that talents will contribute to hope. That belief is associated with another of his beliefs: that a person is either born with a talent or without a talent, and, therefore, a person either has worth because of their talent or is completely worthless. Are any of these beliefs actually true? Is it true that a person either has talent or does not have a talent?

I feel as if, to a certain extent, we do believe that this is true. Take me and English, for example. I hate half of my high school English classes. I dreaded every single day coming to class for my freshman English class. As for AP English Language during my junior year, I just feel sluggish and don’t wanna be there. And guess what? I remember that I didn’t do so well on my essays in my freshman English class. Same with AP English Language. Also, I find it extremely hard to read some of the books in AP English Language. Like Scarlet Letter. Man, I hated that book. The way that the book is written, it sounds so fucking decrepit that I failed to notice the symbolism behind the bad eyesight of the priest. I also missed a ton of other things in the book and felt really bad when my teacher pointed them out. So, I couldn’t critically analyze Scarlet Letter. The same was true for some of the other books I’ve read in AP English Language. While I sucked at analyzing books in AP English Language, other people suck with math. There are those who just needs to copy down notes as the teacher teaches and do their homework and they would ace their tests. There are some who don’t even do their homework and still ace their tests. And then there are those who do all of the above but get B’s. Or C’s. Simply because they just suck at math compared to those who have the skills to simply copy down the teacher’s notes and still get A’s on their tests.

What does this say about Nagito’s belief that you’re either born with talent or you’re not born with a talent? That seems to be true, right? I mean, some people are just good at certain things but bad at others, so this must be true, right? Well, to a certain degree, yeah. Some people are just incredibly smart and there’s no way for you to get on their level. There’s no way that my literary analysis skills can compare to those students who got academic awards in English. There’s just no way. So Nagito’s belief is somewhat realistic. But still, his belief isn’t entirely correct either.

Nagito, in believing that a person either is born with a talent or not, doesn’t think that some skills inevitably need development. Take my literary and rhetorical analysis skills in my English classes. As I’ve already made clear, I sucked at analyzing the books I’ve read in AP English Language. I probably still suck at analyzing similar books if I ever take another class like that again. Still, my analysis skills developed. Even though I couldn’t analyze Scarlet Letter, 2 years later in college, I read and analyzed Briar Rose by Jane Yolen, a modern retelling of Sleeping Beauty that the author used to discuss the Holocaust. And I ended up writing a 6 page essay that analyzes how Yolen emotionally influences the reader and kept them hooked to the story. Think about it. I went from hating the books I’ve read in AP English Language to writing a fucking 6 page essay that analyzes a book. That’s some development of my rhetorical analysis skills, right there.

So some skills need development. That’s where Nagito is wrong. Not all skills are inherent since a person’s birth. Some skills need to be developed. To be good at analyzing books, even though some people may find that they have an easier time than others at doing so and are, therefore, “good” at English, this does not mean that analyzing literature is a skill that is inherent in a person’s birth. A person can still develop their literary and rhetorical analysis skills. This also applies to math, as well. Some people may find that they have an easier time with math than others. Still, this doesn’t mean that you can’t develop your skills with math if you suck at it.

And also, if skills can change over time, it’s kinda pointless to base your entire worth on them, no? Like the beloved Nanami Chiaki (best girl imo) said, having a talent is rather restrictive. So, Nagito, you’re partly right. But you’re kinda wrong as well.

Guess Nagito wasn’t called the ultimate bullshit for nothing, huh?

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Nnnnoooo!!!! I failed Island Mode! Fucking hell how am I supposed to collect all the hope fragments when I don’t have enough presents

Guess I’m gonna have to play Danganronpa 2 again just to collect enough presents to help collect all the Hope Fragments later on

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Thought that Island Mode is just gonna be a dating sim, but turns out I still got shit to do! Like ALL THAT MINING and then collecting Hope Fragments. Why???!!! I don’t wanna work!!! I just wanna relax!!!

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Danganronpa, the real world, and talent: some ramblings

So, one of the main themes that Danganronpa focus on is talent. All of the characters have some kind of talent. Well, except for Hajime Hinata during most of Despair Arc and Danganronpa 2. But still. All of them have a talent of some kind, and I feel like rambling about it right now. I feel like there are quite a few similarities between talent in Danganronpa and the real world. Let me explain.

“Talent” in Danganronpa, in a certain sense, means the same thing in the real world. Fukawa is the Ultimate Literary Prodigy, or something like that. Essentially, she’s a successful novelist. Imagine, someone who is a successful novelist even before entering high school. That’s quite a talent, no? So let’s translate that to the real-world. In high school, I often hear of a select few students in my school and how stellar they are. So, let us talk about a senior that I met while I was still a junior in high school. She is the definition of stellar. She did research at a university lab during high school. Think about it. A high school student, doing research at a university lab. And she’s also on the board of a few clubs. And she took 6 AP classes her senior year. 6!!!! How insane are you to take 6!!!! Oh, and she was ranked like 3rd in her class or something. I know because the local newspaper ran an article on how she got a scholarship from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. By Danganronpa’s definition, this girl is hella talented. I don’t know, her talent can be something like Ultimate Student.

This ain’t an isolated thing. I’m sure. You guys do know people like that, right? The kind who sets up clubs in high school and is at the top of their class and is the same in college? The really over-achieving people that you can only dream of becoming and not actually become? Those people are pretty damn talented, right? Makes you feel a bit bad if you’re the type who compares yourself to others.

Talent can also be translated as “status,” too. Take Byakuya. Ultimate Affluent Progeny. What the hell kind of a talent is that? Being in a rich and powerful family is a talent? Well, how about we call it a “status” instead. Maybe a “position.” And it is because of this status that some of the characters in Danganronpa hold especially powerful positions. Like with Byakuya, he later became the vice-leader of the 14th division, according to Wikia. And Sonia Nevermind. Ultimate Princess. Because of her status, she helped to lead the world into despair. I remember seeing a shot in Despair Arc where she stood behind and over other people in a room that resembles the room from which you see in the movies NASA monitoring space launches. That suggested that she’s pretty damn powerful and important politically. Like Byakuya, she holds a leadership position purely because of her “talent” which would be more appropriate to call a status.

I’m sure that there are similar examples, too, where people ascend to powerful political positions simply because of their status, and nothing else. Look at Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. Kushner is a White House senior advisor, and what the hell does he have besides marrying Ivanka Trump? Sure, you can say that he did help Donald Trump in his campaigns, and that gives him some merit to be the senior advisor to the president, but who really believes that? He works for his father-in-law’s presidential campaign and is working under him again under a much more powerful position. Same with Ivanka Trump. What kind of qualifications does she even have to work in the presidential administration? Nothing. Nothing at all. No experience in public service at all. And yet, here she is, an advisor to her dad, because her dad just so happens to be the President of the United States.

So you can see similarities between the way that Danganronpa discusses talent and the real world. A real talent, one that is an actual skill, is present both in Danganronpa and the real world. However, a “talent” as in a “status” is also present in the real world, and just like how characters with these statuses acquire powerful positions due to the nature of their status, so too, are there people in the real world who get to where they are because of their status, like our beloved Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, daughter and son-in-law, respectively, of our very own president.

And this is like a side note, here. I’m not sure if something like this is what Tadaka had in mind when he was making this franchise, that there are uncanny similarities between the franchise and the real world and that these similarities are intended as some sort of social commentary. But, hell, who gives a shit? There are definite similarities between the franchise and the real world. Now wouldn’t it be a great idea to look at the real world through the lens of Danganronpa? Of course, there are no killing games in reality. Well, if you don’t count the Romans and their gladiator fights, but still, there are no killing games in reality.

Nevertheless, we can look at the real world through Danganronpa in other ways. We can use Danganronpa to talk about privilege here, as I alluded to when I was talking about Byakuya and Sonia. Or, on a different note, with how the Reserve Course students rose up in Despair Arc, we can use that to compare power relations between the elites -- in reality, we can call these elites as the billionaires, the top 1% who holds about 40% of the wealth in America or something like that -- and the commoners -- everyone else not part of the top 1%. The uprising in Despair Arc illustrates this so, so well. The Reserve Course students are under the impression that they’re trampled upon by the school. Ain’t that similar to how the top 1% got so much wealth, almost at the expense of the bottom 99%? You can use Danganronpa to talk about so many world issues here, and I’m not kidding.

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

A Good Ending We All Deserve (Chapter 5, part 2)

Izuru sat down next to her on the bench. They were silent, with Chiaki feeling too awkward and somewhat discouraged from starting the conversation after what happened in the classroom.

She finally summons enough courage. “You know, having Yukizome-sensei dragged you around, that’s a sign that you’re a bad student.”

Izuru is silent.

“You never came here by yourself ever since the experiment, have you?”

Silence again.

“All the other times that you came here, it was because I brought you here.”

“Was I like this before the experiment, too?”

“No. Before the experiment, it wasn’t like this. You came here because you wanted to play video games with me. You came here because you wanted to.

“Is it like that right now as well? That you came here because you wanted to?”

“No.” Izuru curtly replied. He then thought otherwise and corrects himself, “maybe.”

“Oh.” Chiaki said. Well, she thought to herself. That is rather unusual of him. It’s so unlike him to sound this ambivalent.

“So why have you come here, then?” Chiaki asks, her curiosity now piqued.

“Koizumi badgered me. And Yukizome-sensei threatened to kill me after the others told her about what I did.”

“Oh, so that’s why.”

“And also because I feel … something unusual.”

Chiaki’s curiosity is further piqued. “So what is this thing that you’re feeling?”

For once in his short-lived life, Izuru encountered something that even his analytical abilities cannot explain. He find it hard to describe to Chiaki. He hesitates, but then proceeds, “I feel like what I did was wrong. You cried because of me, and that somehow felt wrong. I don’t understand. What is this sense of right and wrong that I’m feeling?

“I’m not supposed to feel anything. The scientists who did the experiment on me emphasized that my brain will drop all emotional baggage in the pursuit of talent. Yet, why do I feel like what I did was wrong?

All while Izuru gives his monologue, Chiaki feels her chest getting tighter. Is there a part of Izuru that is human? If there is, could that part be her beloved Hajime?

Izuru continues on with his monologue. “I tried to understand why you ran away, and it’s plain to see that my words did upset you. However, I failed to understand why it is that you ran away. My words upset you. But why? This was what I failed to understand.”

“Nee, Izuru-kun. Did you know that you were my very first friend at Hope’s Peak Academy?”

“No.”

“Well do you remember what I told you about how we met?”

“Yes. You walked into me because you were too engrossed with your video games.”

“That’s right. We met because I was too engrossed in my video games. Because of my talent.

“Izuru-- no, Hajime. Hajime, even though we met partly because of my talent, that doesn’t mean that talent is the only thing that is important in the world. I met you, Hajime. You’re important. My friendship with you was very important to me. Those times where we sat out here playing Gala Omega, I had fun during those times.

“I don’t consider my memories with you to be worthless, Hajime. I value them as much as I value my memories with my classmates, if not more. You were my very first friend, Hajime, and I simply can’t sit and let you forget like that.” Chiaki’s voice starts to break as tears well up in her eyes. She turns to him.

“Nee, Hajime.” Chiaki mumbles as she futilely struggles to hold back her tears. “Nee, do you remember me?”

Izuru is silent. His red eyes stare piercingly at her. This, coupled with his long, black hair that reaches his feet, would unnerve anyone, but not Chiaki. She pressed on.

“We used to play Gala Omega together by the water fountain,” Chiaki continued. “Nee, please tell me that you do remember me.”

Izuru continues staring at her in silence.

“Please!” She quietly sobbed. “I want to play more games with you!”

Chiaki lowers her head and cries. She sees a vision of herself reaching her hand towards him in her mind. Hoping that she can reach him. That she can touch him and make him human again. That her beloved Hajime -- the boy who she played video games with by the water fountain every day after school, who gladly shared her interests, and who was her very first friend -- returns to her.

Suddenly, she feels a warmth wraps itself around her body. She looks up in surprise as she realizes that Hajime is hugging her.

Memories of his past life come rushing back to him, causing an uncontrollable overflow of emotions that resulted in a similar overflow of tears down his cheeks.

“How could I forget you, Chiaki.” Hajime whispers in her ear. “You loved me despite my lack of a talent. I’m so, so sorry for disappearing on you.”

Realization broke all over Chiaki. Hajime is back! Her beloved friend who had been separated from her for over a year now, is now back!

“Hajime! I miss you!” Chiaki cries as she squeezes Hajime. “I waited for you every day at the water fountain, and then every afternoon for weeks at the Reserve Course gates. Why?!”

“I didn’t realize it then, but I realize it now. I was obsessed with having talent, Chiaki. I wanted to have a talent so that I can be of worth to you.”

“But you are! I don’t care about whether you have a talent or not! You’re you! You’re Hinata Hajime! Memories are more important than your talent and I wanna make more with you!”

“Yes, but I didn’t realize it till now. Now I see why there are more important things than talent. Even when I was Izuru, you still pushed me to have fun. You forced me to play video games with you. You dragged me around the school festival. All for me to have fun and to remember myself again.

“Thank you, Chiaki. Thank you, thank you so much. Thank you for loving me despite the way I act to you.”

The mood turned from a solemn one into one of sheer joy and relief. They cry tears of overwhelming happiness and relief, happy that they found each other again. Hajime found a sense of security in recognizing his friend who had done so much for him even when he was not … him. Chiaki, likewise, felt secured upon reuniting with an old friend who had been very dear to her heart ever since they met.

They continue embracing each other in silence, enjoying feeling the other person against them, the sense of security that that brought, and the overwhelming emotions associated with the union. Each was able to understand how the other felt. After what seemed like a long time, Chiaki relaxes her arms and slightly pulls away, looking at Hajime in his eyes with their faces still inches away from each other.

“Nee Hajime, let’s play games again.”

“Yeah.�� Hajime smiles at her.

“Let’s play games with our classmates, too.”

“Yeah. I’d like that.”

“I’ll organize more class trips for us, too.”

“Yeah. It’d be fun to spend time getting to know everyone after they dealt with Izuru for several months.”

Chiaki laughs. “Let’s make more memories together.” She places her lips against his and kisses him lovingly, feeling him kissing back in return. They pull back to breathe after a passionate and satisfying kiss, and Chiaki rests her head on Hajime’s shoulder.

“I look forward to that the most.” Hajime breathes, and Chiaki smiles in response.

A/N: How do y’all like that????!!!! My goodness I wanted them to do something like this so, so, so badly ever since I played Danganronpa 2! And watching episode 9 of Despair Arc didn’t help either. Oh, Kodaka, you’re a bastard for what you did to Chiaki. But hey, at least they sailed in this ship. That’s all I need

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

A Good Ending We All Deserve (Chapter 5, part 1)

A/N: This is the finale!!!!! Man, I felt a lot of different emotions as I wrote this chapter. Actually, I felt a lot of different emotions throughout the entire process of writing this fanfic.

Since this chapter is a bit long, I decided to split it into 2 parts. So yeah, have fun reading the first part.

Chiaki sits at the water fountain where she and Hajime used to hang out before he became Izuru, solemn and dejected.

Earlier she asked him to play Gala Omega with her by the water fountain again, but he refused, stating how boring Gala Omega is.

“But it’s not! I love playing that game and so did you!” Chiaki protested.

“That’s because it’s part of your talent. You have nothing more than your talent, but that’s fine, because anyone who doesn’t have a talent is worthless.”

“Izuru-kun, why are you saying this? What does that make you before the experiment?”

“A worthless human being. No. Less than that. Your memories with me, therefore, meant nothing. They did not serve to develop any of my current talents, and you were spending your time with a worthless piece of trash anyway, so my past memories, and your past memories, are worthless.”

She stood up. Hot tears streamed down her cheeks as she felt the stung of Izuru’s words. To hear that her memories, her friendship with Hinata Hajime, and Hinata Hajime as a person, meant nothing in the grand scheme of things, this was too much for her. These things are too precious for her. There is no way that she can abandon them. They’re as much a part of her as her memories and relationships with her classmates are, if not more. To abandon a sense of her identity like that, to have it be insulted and called worthless, is too traumatizing.

Ignoring her classmates’ cries, she ran straight out of the classroom. She ran down the flights of stairs and can feel the physical exertion on her body. She kept running, attempting to distract herself from the pain that Izuru’s words brought on by the heavy breathing and physical strain she feels from running. She reached the ground floor and ran out, eventually arriving at the water fountain. There, she slumped on one of the benches and cried.

She eventually stopped. She took out a video game console and played, seeking comfort in her love for video games. She laughs quietly to herself. Playing video games is her talent. Yet, she felt restricted by it. She used to be envious of Reserve Course students for their lack of talents as they are not bounded to their talents and can instead choose to be who they want to be until Yukizome-sensei made her realized that she can make friends with her love for video games. Yukizome-sensei was right. She did unite the class with video games, and her beloved classmates chose her as the class representative. She can make friends with video games.

But Izuru was a glaring exception. Yukizome-sensei, you’re not always right, after all, Chiaki bitterly thought. Hajime forgot about me. How do I make friends if they forget about me, Yukizome-sensei?

As time passes, these thoughts gradually receded to the back of her mind as she distracts herself by intensely focusing on her video games. Her mood remains solemn, unaffected by the video games she’s playing.

Suddenly, she hears a voice

“Chiaki! Where have you been?!”

She looked up from her console and swivel her head, looking for the voice. She eventually found it. Yukizome-sensei runs towards her.

“Hey, what’s wrong, Chiaki?”

“Izuru-kun forgot about me, sensei. He forgot about me.” Chiaki replies, tears welling up again. “How am I supposed to make friends that way?!”

Slightly made uneasy by her crying and sudden emotional outburst, Yukizome-sensei attempts to soothe Chiaki. “Hey, what’s going on, Chiaki? I heard from the others that Izuru made you ran out here, but what’s wrong?”

“Ah,” Yukizome-sensei sighs. “So that’s what’s bothering you.”

Chiaki nods. At least now she feels somewhat better after telling Yukizome-sensei about Izuru’s past.

“You know,” Yukizome-sensei said, “when I first met Izuru, I had a feeling that I’ve met him before, too. There’s something about his voice that’s so familiar. And his face. I didn’t realize until now that that’s Hinata-kun.”

“Yukizome-sensei.”

“Yes, Chiaki?”

“How do I make friends? You told me that I can make friends by sharing my love for video games. So why couldn’t I become friends with Izuru-kun?

“He forgot about me, sensei! I feel like all of my efforts have been wasted! Why, sensei?!”

“Shhhh,” Yukizome-sensei again calms Chiaki down and hugs her. “Hey, you did make friends with the entire class after sharing your love of video games, right? Am I wrong?”

“No.” Chiaki sniffles.

“See? It’s possible to make friends with what you love, Chiaki. You become friends with the entire class. Not only that, you united them as well. They even elected you as class representative, too, Chiaki.

“Look, you became friends with the entire class, Chiaki. 14 students! So it’s not impossible to become friends with another one, right?”

“Yeah.” Chiaki replies.

“Right. You can do it, Chiaki. If you did it with 14, you certainly can do it with one more. So have some confidence in your talent, Chiaki.”

“Yeah.”

“Look, I brought Izuru-kun out here. I had a feeling that you guys are important to each other, even though I didn’t know that he’s Hinata-kun until now. But now I know for sure that you guys are important to each other.”

Chiaki nods, trying to hide her surprise.

Yukizome-sensei then calls Izuru from the other side of the fountain towards them. She then leaves Chiaki and Izuru to themselves.

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

A Good Ending We All Deserve (Chapter 4)

A/N: I apologize if this is rather long, but hey! Class 77th (including Hajime, in this fanfic anyways) is going to a school festival!!!!!! Ain’t that exciting???!!!

It was the time of the school festival. While the talented students of the Main Course do not have to prepare anything, the Reserve Course students do. As a result, the Main Course students continue on with their usual daily routines of attending class, going on events that Chiaki organizes, and enjoying the camaraderie of each other. Surprisingly, Izuru come along to these events too. Although he was often bored of them. The Main Course students continued this relaxed lifestyle as the Reserve Course students are busy preparing for the school festival.

And then the time comes for the school festival. Everyone was excited for it, except for Izuru, of course. They decided to meet up at the gates of the Reserve Course before heading into the school festival. Everyone showed up, Izuru included. They then proceeded past the gate towards the Reserve Course building, excitedly chatting with each other about what the Reserve Course students have planned.

“Nee, Izuru, are you excited for this?” Chiaki excitedly asks Izuru.

“No. I’m bored. There is nothing unpredictable about this.”

“Jeez, this guy. He’s bored of everything. Might as well as avoid him, right Sonia-san?” Kazuichi turns towards Sonia for approval only to be disappointed upon noticing her being engrossed in conversing with Gundam.

“Man I’m so excited for the all the food that I get to eat! And all the fights I can pick with the Reserve Course students!” Akane exclaims.

“What a man needs is good food AND A GOOD SHIT!!!!!!!!” the Ultimate Team Manager, Nekomaru Nidai, shouts.

“Well? What are we standing around here for? Are we gonna go or not?” Kuzuryu impatiently asks the class.

“Yes, young master. Let us go.” The Ultimate Swordswoman, Pekoyama, replies.

The class dispersed, with each person or group going their separate ways towards particular Reserve Course classrooms hosting particular attractions. Saionji, Mahiru, Tsumiki, and Ibuki headed to a particular classroom whose class performs a traditional dance for their audience. Kuzuryu and Pekoyama headed off to a section of the gym that is reserved by a class who is hosting a kendo competition, which Pekoyama joins. Nagito goes to see a play that a particular Reserve Course class is performing. Meanwhile, Chiaki drags Izuru throughout the school building, going from attraction to attraction, ranging from butler and maid cafes, magician shows, and mini-concerts set up inside classrooms.

They eventually found an arcade, set up in one of the classrooms. There is an attendant at the door, a student who is part of the class who set up the arcade.

“That will be 300 yen per person, 500 yen per groups of two or more, please!” The student shouts to the line forming from the classroom door while handing a student a ticket.

“Nee, Izuru-kun, I’m so excited to play for all of these video games!” Chiaki beams.

Izuru is silent. He is bored and he is sure that none of these arcade video games will relieve his boredom.

“Nee, I know what you’re thinking. That you’re bored. But don’t you remember how you just couldn’t beat me at Gala Omega?”

Chiaki notices a reaction from Izuru. It was subtle, but she noticed it nonetheless.

“It could be the same for all the other video games too. You might not beat all of them. After all, I’m the Ultimate Gamer.”

Izuru remains silent. He entertains in his head the possibility that Chiaki might beat him again. Impossible, he thought. I am the embodiment of talent. I, too, have the talent of the Ultimate Gamer. There is no way that she can beat me. He remain unfazed, completely calm that she would not beat him. He began running through possible scenarios in his mind of how the games would turn out, starting with the games that the class would be able to gather given the resources they can feasibly gather. Chiaki paid their fee as he mentally continues his analysis. Strange how he seems so intent on beating her. This is unlike the usual bored Izuru.

Some of the games appeared to be PvP while the others appeared to be co-op. As they entered, Chiaki marvels at all of the games present in the arcade.

“Izuru, look! There are so many games here!”

Izuru observes her as she gushes over the games that are present.

“Oh my gosh there’s Time Crisis?! I haven’t seen this game forever! And there’s House of the Dead, too!! And there’s Mario Kart! And there’s … is that … it can’t be … it’s Gala Omega! Izuru there’s Gala Omega here! Huh? Izuru?”

Chiaki notices Izuru’s expression. The corners of his lips seem to want to go up, as if wanting to curl into a slight smile. His red eyes, usually piercing but normally apathetic to everything going on around him, now appears more relaxed as they stare at her, as if her reaction is amusing to him. Is he enjoying spending time with her here?

“Izuru?”

“What?” Izuru asks as he snaps his attention back to the situation.

Chiaki smiles. “Nothing. Come on, let’s go play some games.” Chiaki grabs his hand and leads him to their first game, Mario Kart. They sit down in front of a large TV, and Chiaki leans forward to grab 2 Wii remotes, one for Izuru, and one for herself. They started the game, with Chiaki playing as baby princess Peach and Izuru playing as baby Mario, which Chiaki picked after Izuru could not -- or did not -- choose a character.

They both streaked out at the start. Izuru overtook her at a bend after she screwed up the turn.

“Damn it.” Chiaki cursed.

Chiaki managed to snag a power-up, which turns out to be a piranha plant. She immediately uses it, allowing her to gain on Izuru. They round another bend and Chiaki managed to collect another power-up while at the same time maintaining her distance behind Izuru. She then carefully gauged her aim and distance, successfully striking him after another bend.

“Whoo hoo!” Chiaki exclaims as she passes him.

This slightly annoyed Izuru. Yet, there is a part of him that enjoys this. This was something that he did not expect. He did know that there is a chance that something like this could happen; after all, she is the Ultimate Gamer. Still, this did not feel so bad. It feels … familiar.

“I’ve had fun, Izuru.” Chiaki said as they exit the arcade. “It reminds me of when we used to play games by the water fountain.

“Those were some pretty fun times, right, Izuru?”

Izuru is silent. Still, Chiaki is sure that Izuru had fun. He gave her a pretty close match in every game they played in the arcade, after all, as if he’s trying his best to win. That’s something that the old Hajime would do.

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

A Good Ending We All Deserve (Chapter 3)

“Come on! Come on!” Chiaki exclaims as she drags Izuru by his hand to the water fountain.

“What are you doing?” Izuru asks.

“We’re gonna play Gala Omega together!” Chiaki is excited. Or, rather, hopeful. Hopeful that this would trigger his past memories of them hanging out near the water fountain in the past and playing Gala Omega.

“Come on!” She insisted.

Seeing that there were no ulterior motives behind her demands, Izuru complies. He lets her drag him towards the water fountain. After all, he was bored out of his mind and any stimulation will help. A girl who is claiming that they have been friends before is something that he did not predict. For with all of his infinite array of talents and formidable analytical abilities, he could not seem to understand why this girl named Chiaki was so adamant in telling that he was her friend. Izuru was piqued with interest for the first time in his pursuit to understand her efforts.

They come towards a bench next to the water fountain and Chiaki sits down, pulling Izuru onto the bench with her. She then pulls 2 video game consoles out of her backpack and hands one to Izuru.

“Nee, this is how you turn on the--” Chiaki attempts to explain to Izuru only to find out that he already turned on the console.

“Oh, right. I forgot that you’re the Ultimate Hope and have all the talents in the world.”

Izuru ignores her, being a bit too intently focused on the game. For someone who is bored by everything, you sure are paying a lot of attention to a game, Chiaki thought.

She turns her attention towards her console and turns it on.

“Well, wanna do some PvP? I’m ready to play now.”

“Ok.” Izuru replied. Both of them then play in silence, with the only sounds being the splashing of the water behind them and game beeps  on their respective consoles.

GAME OVER

Izuru stared at the screen as the message appears for the 5th time. For someone who has all the talents, he can’t even beat a stupid little video game. He was dumbfounded.

Chiaki smiles. “Did you have fun, Izuru?”

Izuru was silent.

“Did you have fun even though you didn’t beat me once?” Chiaki teases Izuru, to which he responds by turning away his head. Oh, she thought, amused. Could it be that he is embarrassed? She smiles to herself as she entertains that thought.

She muses, “I remember you telling me that I’m more than just an Ultimate Gamer before you disappeared. That I should make more memories with my friends. Yukizome-sensei also told me that I can make friends using my love for video games, too.

“So I did exactly that. I organized school trips with my classmates and we played video games together in-class. Teruteru would cook us meals in-class. I remember how for one of the meals, Saionji mixed in some aphrodisiac soup into our food, and everyone acted pretty funny after eating. Those were good times.

“The times when we hung out here at the water fountain playing video games were also times that I cherish. It’s so simple, really. I walked into you that one time because I was too distracted with my video games, but then we started meeting here ever since in the afternoon just to play video games. I mean, it was all so simple. That was all that we ever did together. Yet, I treasure those moments. I really, truly do. I had fun playing video games with you just for the sake of playing video games with you, Hajime.

Izuru sits in silence. Chiaki was unsure what he thought of her pouring her heart out to him. Still, she doesn’t believe that he is ignoring her. His eyes, she is sure, don’t appear apathetic; they look as though he is deep in thought, as though he is mulling over the possible memories of his previous self. Chiaki imagines that her words might have left an impact in Izuru, and that somewhere deep inside him, Hajime is still there.

A/N: Ah, doesn’t this just bring back your memories of them hanging out before the experiment? Hopefully y’all like this, throwback, in a sense.

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

Harry Potter houses as anime stereotypes

Gryffindor: passionate screaming while powering up and defeating an enemy, random running in an opening, epic J-rock soundtracks, hot-headed shounen protagonist with spiky hair, empowering speeches to teammates and the people they care about, wanting to be the very best, Eren from SNK

Slytherin: sexy villains, really gory torture scenes, beating up the guy you like, cool popular kuudere boys in high school, high pitched noble woman's laugh, tsundere girls, Ojou-samas, characters, "it's not like I like you or anything but...", Louise from Zero no Tsukaima

Ravenclaw: meganekko characters, strangely quirky scientists, highly analytical dorks who make mundane tasks look awesome through their Sherlock-like deductions, Seinfeld like conversations about the world, Rei from free! Iwatobi swim club

Hufflepuff: inspiring speeches about friendship, naive every girls who gain magical powers,moe-blobs, slice of life scenarios, touching emotional scenes where the protagonist becomes closer to their friends,delicious looking food, tearjerkers and heartwarming endings, Nagisa from Clannad

i haven't even read or watch Harry Potter but this is fucking funny XD

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

A Good Ending We All Deserve (Chapter 2)

A/N: What’s it like talking to Kamukura Izuru? I don’t know, this is how I imagine what talking to him is like.

“Nee, Hajime.” Chiaki said as she and Izuru walks out of the classroom together. Yukizome-sensei sent them on an errand carrying stacks of papers to the teacher’s lounge.

Izuru curtly replied, “Who?”

“Right, I’m sorry.” Chiaki apologizes. So he really can’t remember me, she thought. No. This is unacceptable. I will make him remember me, somehow. I just have to make him remember the days we spent next to the water fountain playing video games.

They walk in silence, Izuru in front, Chiaki following.

Gathering courage, she cautiously spoke up again, “nee, Haji-- Izuru-kun, what’s your talent?”

“You should already know. I’m the Ultimate Hope.”

“Yeah, I know, but why are you called the Ultimate Hope?”

“I believe that I told the class already. It is because I have multiple talents. I’m the embodiment of talent.”

Izuru then fell back into silence. Getting him to talk this much is quite a feat. Chiaki sighs as she thinks about how everyone in the entire class had trouble talking to him. Their initial enthusiasm at him entering the class faded as they quickly realized how unsociable he is. At least this has not disrupted the class chemistry. They are still friendly and close to each other in the odd ways that they are.

“So can you tell me about some of the talents you have?”

“I don’t want to talk to you. You are boring.”

With that, the conversation is shut down one more time, even as it had just begun. Feeling somewhat demoralized now, Chiaki continues to follow Izuru to the teacher’s lounge. No! She thought to herself. I must keep going!

“Nee, Izuru-kun. Is everything boring to you?”

Izuru paused before answering. “Yes.”

“Why?”

“There is nothing in this world that is unpredictable.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“I have supreme analytical abilities. I’m the Ultimate Hope. I have all the talents in the world because my existence revolves around developing talent.”

Chiaki suddenly remembers how Hajime was constantly insecure about his lack of a talent. No, she thought. Everything doesn’t revolve around your talent, or talents. There is more to life than just talent. Why have you done this to yourself, Hajime?

“Nee, why did you do this to yourself, Hajime?”

“I’m not Hajime--”

“You were, until you became this. Why did you do this to yourself? Life is more than just your talent, Hajime. What have you done to yourself?”

A moment of silence occurs before Izuru replies, “whoever I was back then, that person is gone. My existence now is for the sole purpose of talent.”

Chiaki realized the lack of progress she has made. Slightly depressed, she stays silent as they continue the rest of their walk to the teacher’s lounge.

Chiaki opens the door and excuses them as they walk in. They walked over to Kizakura-sensei’s desk and left the stacks there, a stack of scouting reports of prospective students for Kizakura-sensei to review. They walked out, with Chiaki closing the door behind them.

“Nee, Izuru-kun, so what gave you all these talents?”

“I was told that it was an experiment. They had done something to my brain to modify it so that its sole purpose is to develop talent. That means that any unnecessary baggage, like past memories, are erased to facilitate talent development.”

Ah, Chiaki realizes. So that’s how you lost yourself, Hajime. Even so, I will get you back. No matter what!

[shsl-lukewarm-fan]

A Good Ending We All Deserve (Chapter 1)

A/N: So, I’ve decided to write a fanfic! Hinanami, whooo!!!! So, this is set in an AU in Despair Arc where the Kamukura Project did happen, but Enoshima Junko didn’t take over the school. Watch the entirety of Danganronpa 3 Despair Arc before watching this! Or don’t, that’s fine too. But anyways, have fun reading!

Edit: So I had a friend of mine read over this, and he suggested quite a few changes. This is the updated version of the first chapter.

“Nee, Hajime.” Chiaki mumbles as she futilely struggles to hold back her tears. “Nee, do you remember me?”

Izuru is silent. His red eyes stare piercingly at her. This, coupled with his long, black hair that reaches his feet, would unnerve anyone, but not Chiaki. She pressed on.

“We used to play Gala Omega together by the water fountain,” Chiaki continued. “Nee, please tell me that you do remember me.”

Izuru continues staring at her in silence.

“Please!” She quietly sobbed. “I want to play more games with you!”

“Alright, class, today we have a new student!” Yukizome-sensei announces to her class.

“Eh? Who is it, sensei? Ibuki likes having new classmates!” Mioda Ibuki excitedly raises her hand.

“Hmph, as long as he doesn’t get in my way, I’m good.” Kuzuryu spat.

Komaeda beams. “My, my, another talented person to add to our class! I can just imagine how much greater our hope will increase!

“Jeez, Komaeda, you’re always going on and on about hope,” Kazuichi was disgusted. “I’m fucking sick of it! Can you just stop with it already! This is why no one in this class likes you!”

Komaeda put his hand up, “Ah I am so sorry. I’m just mere trash and I know that I’m not worthy of being with talented individuals like you.”

Meanwhile, Saionji casually continues eating from her bag of gummy bears, “Eh I’m fine with whoever he is as long as he doesn’t associate with this pig barf.”

“Ehhhhh????!!!! Please don’t hate me!!!! I promise that I won’t be a bother to you or anyone!!!” Tsumiki bawled upon Hiyoko’s insult.

“Come on, Saionji, you should stop insulting Tsumiki,” Koizumi reprimanded.

“Ehhh? But who even likes this rotten orange excuse for a human?” Hiyoko whined.

Nanami Chiaki continues playing her video games, content with how her classmates -- and friends -- are interacting with and talking over each other.

Seeing as her students are getting distracted, Yukizome-sensei raised her voice to once again gather her class’s attention.

“Guys, quiet down! You’re being disrespectful to the new student! Izuru? You can come in now.”

The class quiets down as an individual with long hair enters. This is a completely unusual site for them. Everything about this person makes him stand out. His jet black hair reaches his feet and perfectly matches the black suit that he is wearing. He is slow, and he wears a bored facial expression, as though he is uninterested in the class or in even life itself.

Chiaki looks up from her console as the student walks in. There is something that seems very familiar about him, as if she had seen him somewhere. No. Not just seen him. She knew  him. At least that’s what she thinks. She wonders why this boy seems so familiar to her. He definitely piqued her interest, so she turns off her video game console and put it back in her backpack.

“Why don’t you introduce yourself, Izuru?” Yukizome-sensei laughs somewhat nervously.

His red eyes stare lazily to the back wall of the classroom. In a monotone, he introduced himself.

“My name is Kamukura Izuru. I am the Ultimate Hope. You all bore me.”

At the sound of that familiar voice, realization breaks all over Chiaki. Hinata Hajime! The student from the Reserve Course that she had been friends with before his sudden disappearance from her life a few months ago! “Hinata-kun?!!” She thought. “Hajime?!”

However, as Chiaki is emotionally overwhelmed by this unexpected reunion, Izuru’s comment angers Fuyuhiko. “What did this guy just say??!!!! Are you looking for a fight, bastard??!!”

“Now, Kuzuryu, calm down. You have to get along with your classmate,” Yukizome-sensei reprimanded. “Now, let’s hope that we will have a good year together and that you will have fun being a part of this class, Izuru!”

Ibuki exclaimed. “Whoo hoo!!!! I like how gloomy he is!!! You’re gonna be my inspiration for so many songs! Welcome, Izuru-chan!!!”

“Hehe, the heavens and earth approves of this newfound addition to this hellish association. I, Tanaka Gundam, and my Four Dark Devas welcome you!” Gundam shouts, and his four hamsters squeak in agreement.

The entire class cheers and each person shouts their approval. All except for one. Chiaki. It’s not so much that she doesn’t approve of this addition. No. She is overwhelmed with a contradictory mix of emotions. She is happy upon this reunion with her long-lost best friend who she deeply, deeply cares about. She had waited at the gates of the Reserve Course for almost a month ever since the last time they met at the water fountain where they had play video games together. She waited and waited to no avail, hoping that she would see him walking out of the gates. So of course she is happy upon seeing him again!

This was not the only emotion she felt, however. She was distraught upon his appearance. Why must he change so much? Why does he not seem like … him … anymore?

She can only stare confused and unsure at Hajime while the class enthusiastically welcomes Izuru.