Truth, Perjury, and Sacrifice

Trip to France

Future Foundation Flashback: 

Karen sat up in bed once again, for the fifth night since they arrived. Doing her best to not wake anyone, she slowly slid out of bed and slipped her robe on. She carried her slippers in her hand as she gently walked through the Division 14 common room. The other Future Foundation members had long since retired for the night, leaving only the night lights on to illuminate the floors. Karen entered the dining hall and through the door to the outdoor deck. Mostly, the few smokers who worked here would be the only ones to come out here, but that was one habit that Karen didn't feel the need to pick up.

She slid a sparkly cell phone from her robe pocket and clicked the power button. The screen illuminated, showing a photo of Junko and Mukuro as the background photo. She managed to find a cell phone charger that would work in one of the numerous spare parts boxes kept in storage. Karen clicked through the phone, reading old text messages between her and Junko, playing old videos Junko took when they went partying and looked through the old photos. There were a lot of photos of Junko getting ready for photoshoots, but later on, there were several photos of her with Junko and Nagito. Sometimes Mukuro would make an appearance; the dates on the photo suggested that these pictures were from during their time at Hope's Peak.

"Sad, ain't it? All those memories, just poof! Gone," a voice said behind Karen.

But when Karen turned around, no one was there.

"We were best friends. And you let me die." Again, Karen turned around to find no one.

"Whoever you are, stop right now! This isn't funny," Karen continued to glance around. There wasn't really any place to hide out on the deck, but she checked under the two tables that were left outside anyway.

"No? I think watching you fall further into despair is pretty fun!" Finally, a figure emerged from the corner of the deck.

Karen began to shake her head fervently, "No, that's not possible. You're dead. We....I watched you kill yourself!"

"Did I really kill myself? Or is that what your guilty conscience is telling you?" Junko slowly approached Karen. "Cause last time I checked, you voted for hope. So, I was only following the rules."

"The rules you set! No, this is insane. I'm seeing things." Karen shut her eyes, took a deep breath, and reopened her eyes. Only now, Junko stood closer. Karen gasped.

"Yup, you're for sure seeing things," Junko smiled. "So, no matter what you do, you can't get rid of me."

Byakuya nudged Karen's shoulder, "Are you ready to go?" Karen gasped and jumped, gripping Byakuya's hand. "Are you okay?"

She looked around, remembering they were at the only operating airport as of the moment. Kotoko and Nagisa were standing closer to the plane stairs; Kotoko was excitedly jumping around. "Yes, you just....caught me in my thoughts."

"Junko?"

"The hallucinations. I still feel like I was going crazy, or being haunted." Junko's cell phone was now buried in a filing cabinet at Future Foundation. Karen made a mental note to print the photos of their class when they returned from France.

"Hey, the bags are all packed!" Hina ran up to them, smiling. "And...they're all safely prepared for travel." The bodies of Karen's family had been prepped and packaged away in the back of the plane. "It's been...two years, right?"

Karen thought for a moment, "Yes, going on three now. I don't expect to find much standing, unfortunately." She noticed Hiro waving, giving them a thumbs up. It was time to depart.

"Hey!" Several voices called out. Byakuya, Hina, and Karen turned back toward the airport entrance and found their friends rushing toward them. Masaru and Jataro ran past them and toward Nagisa and Kotoko. Sakura caught up with Hina, wishing to say their temporary goodbyes separately. Karen received most of the hugs, high fives, and fist bumps from the group, "We'll be back in a week, guys!"

"We know, but..." Sonia tried to smile to mask her worry.

"Just come back safe, alright?" Mahiru said. "And you protect them!" she pointed at Byakuya.

"Of course. I will make sure we all come back safely."

"Yeah, man, I don't want to have to send anyone out to look for you guys," Fuyuhiko said.

"Likewise. I think you're all forgetting the situation we're in," Karen said. "Or at least forgetting that you need to stay safe as well. So, don't get distracted, okay?"

"Right!" The group said. A few waved goodbyes and started to return inside. Nagito, Hajime, Makoto, Kyoko, Komaru, and Toko remained.

"Can you handle everything okay without us here?" Karen asked Makoto and Kyoko. "Reinforcements are only a phone call away, any time."

"We'll be okay," Kyoko said. Although awkward, the two leaned in for a quick hug. "Just keep us updated, okay?"

"Of course," Byakuya nodded.

"Are you sure you want to take them?" Toko asked. "We can watch them for you."

Byakuya shook his head, "No, I think....this will be good for them. For all of us, hopefully." He glanced back at the kids, then back at Toko and Komaru. "Thank you for the offer, though." Karen and Makoto couldn't help but smile at how civil the two could be around each other now. "We should be boarding now," he said to Karen.

"Right," Karen nodded. She quickly leaned in to hug Makoto, Komaru, and even Toko. "Be safe, all of you." She looked at Hajime and Nagito and pulled them down to wrap her arms around their necks. "You two stay out of trouble for what it's worth."

Nagito glanced at the plane, instinctively hugging Karen tightly in return. "Call me when you land."

Karen pulled away and smiled, "Of course." She placed on hand on his cheek and squeezed. "Try to keep him occupied if you can, Hajime." She returned to Kyoko's side for a moment, and leaned in close, "If anything happens to us, there's a safe under our bed. Just follow everything that's inside, okay?" Kyoko's brow furrowed, but she sighed and nodded. "Thank you. Okay, kids, it's time to go!" She called out.

They each sat by the windows at first, waving to their friends and the plane began to take off.