Danganronpa: Locked Doors of Despair

Ch.3 Deadly Life Part 3: Of Truces, Turned Tides, and Traps

Kana

People are soaking and refusing to give me an explanation. And I have to pretend to be pissed off at my life partner while still focusing enough to help solve the case.

"So! Let's try and do this like we did it last time! We'll lay out all the evidence and then play a good ol' fashioned game of 'Weird Possibilities, or Just Impossibilities.' Sound like a plan?" I take charge.

"Fine. As much as I hate takin' orders from all ye self-righteous pricks, it DID serve us well last time." Wakumi nods vigorously. It shakes yet another spray of droplets onto me (as though the fall didn't get me wet enough).

"What do you mean, 'self-righteous pricks?!" I yell automatically.

"You would forgive us for having hang-ups about the whole situation, especially given that nobody gave us any warning!" Azumi snipes back.

"I-I just wanted to help!" Chimon whimpers.

"Are we still fucking arguing about this?! There are more important things!" Yuu yells.

"Yeah! C'mon, guys, we're never going to figure this out if we don't cooperate!" Haruto agrees, squirming uncomfortably. He never has liked conflict, it seems.

"As much as I love this soap opera drama, it's bound to get boring eventually! And time runs out when I get bored!" Monokuma concurs in a sing-song voice.

"Everyone, let's just kiss and make up," Ren smirks, clearly trying to look seductive.

"Let's call a ceasefire, at least temporarily. If we wanna still be pissy afterwards, then fuck it, but now's not the time," Gou leads.

"Yes, please! I'm really tired of all the fighting... So let's get started with the evidence sharing," Fujiko nudges.

Chimon speaks up first. "Aside from the state of the body, which you all know about from the Monokuma File, Monterio and I found that her boots had been tossed aside, and her staff is weird; the top part is gone, and there was a cap covering a sharpened tip. Wakumi reports that it hadn't been there before."

"Oh! We found the top!" Ren interjects. "It was on her desk, completely broken! We also found a notebook open to a torn out page, with nothing in it. In the hallway, we found a note with the word 'Gotcha,' and it wasn't Joanie's handwriting. And right outside her door was a scuff mark from a shoe."

"And that mark indicated that someone took a sharp turn out towards the stairs," Yuu chimes in.

"Kana and I noticed weird things in the beautician's. Somebody moved the nail polish remover last night, and I dunno why. Also, there was a random tube of super glue in the lipgloss section, and the hairdressing capes were super wet!" Fujiko exclaims

"As wet as these two," I tease. Wakumi shoves me, and Monterio gives me a glare that, to anyone but me, would look very bitter. I cackle mischievously.

"Hmm... super glue? I see." Azumi purses her lips briefly.

"There was a bucket with traces of soapy water in the Warehouse! Maybe someone cleaned the capes? Also, there was a dried-out marker without a cap on it. Not sure if it's important, but we'll see!" Gou announces.

"Lastly, we took notice of some peculiar circumstances in the craft room. Two of the stands had hooks drilled into them— and the one closer to the entrance had blood on it, but the vase on top did not. Also, in a pot that nobody Haruto's size or larger can fit inside, a drill was tucked away," Azumi summarizes.

"Umm... Wild Idea number one..." Haruto starts, "the hooks were drilled into the stands so that they could be dragged somewhere, and probably used as the murder weapon."