The air was colder than the day before by the time the sun rose and Monokuma's morning announcement rang through the air. 

I had cried myself to sleep, but luckily I woke up feeling much better. Well, not much better, but a little better. I still missed Tora. It was weird to think about how just 24 hours ago she was still here, and now she was gone. I could practically see her, sitting up in her bed and stretching her arms. The first thing I saw just yesterday morning was her sweet, welcoming smile.

I thought that her smile would be how I started every morning.

Sometimes, we need to be strong.

But it's okay to be weak, too.

I gathered all the strength I had, then sat up and got ready for the day. I didn't know exactly what I was going to do, but another motive would probably drop sooner rather than later. I considered going back to the training center to get more supplies, but I couldn't bear the thought of setting up more traps on my own. 

I supposed I would just have to wait and see what the day threw at me.

Or, more like what would be waiting for me the moment I swung open my cabin door.

"We need to talk," Daiki said, making me squeal and jump back. 

"Daiki!" I gasped, placing a hand on my chest and catching my breath. "You scared me. What are you doing?!"

"We need to talk," he repeated. 

"Now?"

"Unless you're doing something else."

I thought about telling him I was busy. I mean, I barely knew him. I felt a little uneasy just going off alone with him.

But... he really did help me last night. He shared his voice with me. I felt like I owed it to him.

"Alright..." I trailed off, reaching my hand out. I expected him to grab it and lead me away, but he instead turned away and started walking. Not that I minded. Sometimes, I forget that not everyone likes having a hand to hold. 

His pace was fast. I was having trouble keeping up. He led me down paths I had never explored before, so I wasn't sure where we were even heading. I was way too scared to check my monopad map and risk losing sight of him.

"Daiki, what's going on?" I asked. "Is something wrong?!"

I was met with silence, although that wasn't unusual coming from him. It was still a little shocking to me that he could actually talk. Had he ever spoken to anyone else? 

Kichiro... he must have spoken to Kichiro at least once. How else would the ultimate unlucky student have known his name and talent before the monopads were given out?

But why Kichiro? And why me now? Did it have something to do with our talents? I mean, Kichiro was the ultimate unlucky student. A seemingly worthless talent. Heck, it was actually less than worthless. Then there was me. The ultimate daydreamer. I mean, I don't want to sound ungrateful for my talent, but it's really nothing special...

We kept walking until we reached a river. There was this quaint wooden picnic table set up. He stood on one side and motioned for me to sit at the other end. I followed his lead but felt a little uneasy. The way he leaned over the table reminded me of those intense movie interrogations.

Interrogation Song from The Muppets popped into my head, and I couldn't help but swing my head to the imaginary beat as my mind sang the words. 

Kermit, let's begin, describe the day you played Berlin. We rehearsed and then we walked about, we ate bratwurst and sauerkraut-

"Suki, did you hear me?" Daiki quietly asked, snapping me out of my brief trance. 

"Yes! I mean no! Sorry, got distracted," I muttered, embarrassed.

He stayed silent for a moment, and I grew afraid. Was he doubting me? Was he changing his mind about talking to me? I didn't even know what we were going to talk about, but whatever it was it must have been important.

He shook his head, then softly smiled and sat down so his eyes were at my eye level. I felt significantly more relaxed now that he wasn't taller. Perhaps he was doing this on purpose. Being a spy, he must have known all kinds of tricks for approaching and speaking to people.

"Don't worry about it," he whispered. "It's okay. I get distracted a lot too."

I was having a hard time believing that. In fact, he seemed like the kind of guy to NEVER be distracted. His eyes were always wide and alert, a lot like Ruji's. Only with him, they were far less fearful. It was like he was always focused and taking in all his surroundings. 

"Would you like me to repeat?" he asked.

I nodded. He nodded back, then he folded both his hands together. He leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on the table.

"I'm working on a way out of here," he whispered. His voice was always rather quiet, but he had lowered it a significant amount. "Before you speak, I need to inform you that you cannot say a single word about this. Even when you think no one is listening. Someone is always listening. This is a safe spot because the sound of the water overpowers my voice... but I don't want to risk you being heard, so just nod or shake your head. Understand?"

I nodded.

"Good," he breathed. "Now... you absolutely can't tell anyone about this. You can't write about it either. All this information stays safe in your mind, where no one can get it."

I nodded.

He let out a breath and briefly looked down at his hands, then back into my eyes.

"I need a team of people to help me. I saw the way you helped solve the last case, even while battling your own grief. You're strong. And most importantly, you didn't let your pain get the best of you. Even when you found out who did it, you remained... well... you. It takes power to be able to do that."

Wait... he asked me here because he saw potential in me?

But... I was so normal compared to everyone else. I mean, I didn't really do much to solve the trial. I wouldn't have even figured anything out if it weren't for Rantaro or Ruji. Heck, I thought that Ruji pointing out the missing outfit in Tora's drawers was just a random coincidence at first. I could have messed up everything.

"I have one other person involved in helping me... but I don't think it's wise for me to say who," Daiki explained. "You can say no... but if you do, please don't tell anyone about this. Ruji can't know. I know you're close with him... but... I can't take any risks. I know Yuuki sees strength in numbers, but I see strength in stealth."

Ruji? Did people think Ruji and I were close?

We did solve the last case together. Now that I thought about it, with Tora gone he did step up and fill that spot. Oddly enough, he was one of the last people I expected to do that. When we met I thought he was too awkward and nervous.

"There's strength in both," I whispered, wincing as I remembered his request for silence.

He didn't scold me though, which I was grateful for. His gaze was intense, yet warm at the same time. He had a complex aura surrounding him.

"I know... and I know Yuuki has his own ideas for getting out. But... I think if we work together on the side, we can find a peaceful way out of this faster. My first helper already is starting to pick up on some hints. So... can I trust you?"

I didn't even have to debate. My heart was forcing me to nod before I even fully processed what I was agreeing to. 

His smile brightened slightly and his eyes seemed to light up. 

"Thank you," he said. 

There was a glimmer of joy in his eyes, but beneath it, I detected a subtle touch of melancholy. It was as if happiness and sorrow were tangled within him, creating a complex and layered emotion.

It was those words. Can I trust you? As a spy, I can bet he spent his entire life never trusting anyone. So this probably meant more to him than I could even begin to imagine.

It meant a lot to me too. When he spoke, he made it seem like he thought I was worthwhile. And not because of the title I held, but because of the way I acted during the previous trial. He wasn't making judgments based on who I was being presented as. He was making judgments based on who I was.

He chose me. Me, and some other person, not because we were ultimates, but because we were trustworthy people.

. . .

"There you all! Your friend was so worried!" Yuuki exclaimed once I made my way back to the cabins. 

Daiki had gone off on his own by then, not giving any hints about where he was headed. I didn't ask, he didn't answer.

"My friend?" I asked.

"Ruji. He was knocking on your door all morning. He was afraid someone got you or something," Yuuki breathed, patting my shoulder with a grin. It seemed everyone thought Ruji was my friend now, not that I minded. "I'm glad you're okay. Almost everyone else is at breakfast. I think we're going to all try to have breakfast together from now on!"

"Why?" I asked. "I mean, most days I don't even eat breakfast."

"Really?! Then how do you energize yourself then?!" Yuuki exclaimed. "Suki, the best way to start your day is with friendship and good food. Besides, if we all eat together we can all feel that much closer. It'll take a team to get us out of here, and we need as many players as we can get! So come on! We're going to be late!"

He really did have a different way of going about this whole situation as opposed to Daiki. I still wasn't sure which methods I felt more confident in.

Daiki never explicitly said that I couldn't be a part of both. It was impossible to resist Yuuki's infectious positivity and lively nature.

"Alright," I shrugged.

"Great! Now, you haven't seen Rantaro, Daiki, or Kichiro, have you?" Yuuki questioned, placing his hands on his hips and looking around. "None of them were in their cabins. Saikoro told me that Rantaro left for the training center again as soon as the morning announcement rang, but I didn't see him there..."

"I... um, nope. I have no idea where any of them are," I fibbed. Well, technically speaking, it wasn't a complete lie. I had no clue where any of them were at the moment. Sure, I saw Daiki earlier, but his current whereabouts remained a mystery. So even if I spilled the beans, it wouldn't be much assistance.

"That's fine! I can find them and tell them about this breakfast thing later! We're also going to try to have dinner together. I think dinner will be the best time for us to make plans. We can report everything we've found during the day! This'll be like a big team-building exercise! It might even be fun!"

It probably could have been fun, if kids our age weren't being murdered before our very eyes...

When we arrived at the lodge, practically everyone was waiting. Even Kichiro and Daiki were there, which was a small surprise because Yuuki just said they were missing. 

"Oh thank the spirits," Ruji gasped upon seeing me. "You're not dead!"

Maikeru, lurking behind him, seemed to make a little snide comment and give an exaggerated eye-roll at the ghostbuster's reaction to my presence.

"I'm not dead," I smiled, ignoring Maikeru. "Sorry for worrying you. I just... took a morning walk. I wanted to take advantage of the cooler temperatures."

"Smart," Keiko chimed, her voice loud and positive once again. "Agh, I should have done that. It's probably going to get too warm later in the day."

As we settled down and began our meal, the whole gang started buzzing with conversation. But deep down, it felt a bit off munching away without Rantaro around. It was like we were unintentionally excluding him. I made a mental note to fill him in on this new breakfast and dinner routine later.

If I ever saw him again...

I tried to shake the dark thoughts away. No one else was going to die. We were ultimates. We were better than that. Now that we knew about the class trial thing, surely no one else would try to do something like that. We were good kids. No one would put everyone else's lives on the line just to escape.

I sat down between Yuuki and Ruji. A part of me wanted to go across the room and sit by Daiki, but I didn't want to draw more attention to us. I didn't really know how this whole spy thing worked. Besides, he was sitting by Kichiro, and I really didn't have the energy to deal with him so early in the morning.

I didn't have the energy to deal with Monokuma either, but that didn't stop him from just showing up out of the blue.

"Announcements, announcements, announcements!" Monokuma sang, suddenly popping up in the center of the room.