Just One More Time

1 - The Rebirth

⏳ Your usual, first chapter Trigger Warnings ⏳

This story includes:
Murder (Including from the protagonist's POV)
Violent themes/Gore
Self-deprecation
Executions
Suicide (From the protagonist's POV)

This story won't be exactly the same as the game's dialogue when it should be as I want to shake it up and prevent anyone from getting bored. I hope that's okay :)

It will also be mainly about the murders and class trials without too much filler, so it'll be slightly fast-paced.

(The number at the beginning of each chapter title represents which 'rebirth'/'world' Shuichi is in).

-*_*⏳*_*-

My head is killing me, what happened? I remember seeing Harukawa and Yumeno crawling out of the rubble, and there was a gigantic hole in the dome around us, but I don't know what happened afterwards. Attempting to walk forward, Shuichi bumped into something with a metal thud, hearing a yelp nearby. Peeking around, everything looked pitch black except for a white rectangle in front of his cramped body. This seems familiar...

Without warning, Shuichi found himself on the floor, his hat drooping over his face as he groaned in pain. Shuichi glanced up from the floor to see Akamatsu standing above him. Alive. "Akamatsu! Oh my God, you're okay! I missed you-"

"Sorry, I don't mean to interrupt, but do I know you?"

Shuichi's heart stopped, had Akamatsu lost her memory? "You don't remember? We were in a killing game with fourteen others, I'm the Ultimate Detective and you're the Ultimate Pianist."

"Wait, how do you know that? How do you know my name too? I've never met you in my life, and to pretend we were in something as absurd as a killing game is insane!" Akamatsu shouted, backing away from the detective who clambered to his feet.

"Do you remember killing Amami? You rolled a shotput ball down a vent to the library and it hit him on the head, although-"

"I'd never kill someone, or even attempt it! I think your detective skills have you paranoid..."

"No! I saw you get hung and Monokuma used your body to play the piano and-"

"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Akamatsu screamed, turning and running out of the classroom. Tears poured from Shuichi's eyes as he turned and kicked the locker, shouting with rage.

"Way to fucking go, dumbass! You destroyed the friendship you desperately wanted back, are you fucking happy now?!" Shuichi screamed to himself, picking up a chair and throwing it against the wall as an outlet for his anger.

"You have some strength there. What's going on, are you alright?" Shuichi turned to see Amami standing in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe and smirking at the blue-haired male. He's alive too? No, don't say anything, not until you figure out what's happening. "No need to answer, I heard the entire thing. That woman's going to kill me huh?"

"Not exactly..." Shuichi sighed, falling to the ground and pulling his knees to his chest.

"Woah, what's the matter?" Amami rushed forwards, putting an arm around the male. Shuichi felt surprisingly safe in the situation as he raised his head, starting to take in the familiar surroundings of an overgrown classroom.

"I'm just overwhelmed. Sorry, you probably think I'm insane now after what I said to Akamatsu."

"No, I don't, we're in Danganronpa, right? A fictional world where none of us exists and we all kill each other until two remain," Amami rattled off the explanation as if he'd studied it for life.

"Right, you're the Ultimate Survivor, of course you know," Shuichi mumbled to himself. "Want to know what happened?"

"Sure, only if you're comfortable with telling me."

"You go into the library because you're the only one who knew about the secret door to the mastermind's lair. Akamatsu and I worked together to set up a trap to catch the mastermind. Long story short you were caught in it and a shot put ball was supposed to roll down a ramp of books and kill you. It actually missed and Shirogane, the mastermind, had to sneak out and killed you with the ball instead, but Akamatsu was executed."

"Woah, brutal, but smart plan," Amami mumbled, holding his chin in thought with his free arm still wrapped around Shuichi's shoulders. "Shirogane is the mastermind huh? Interesting, she and I were in the same game last time, we both sacrificed ourselves through a loophole. I guess we aren't going to be close friends now."

"Let's go to the gym, Monokuma will want us there for introductions." Amami nodded, helping Shuichi to his feet as the detective led his new partner to the gymnasium. As they entered, the two noticed they remained alone.

"Why don't we wait here until everyone comes in? Maybe you could tell me about the others if you don't mind," Amami asked. 

"Why do you trust me so much? For all you know, I'm the mastermind and I'm lying to you about everything," Shuichi snapped. He didn't want to be stabbed in the back, or in another killing game, or watch his friends die a second time.

"A reaction like the one you had earlier when you thought you were alone? No way that was fake, and the mastermind wouldn't react like that and risk revealing everything to that blonde girl, Akamatsu was it?" Summoned by her name, Akamatsu and Iruma entered the gymnasium, the latter pointing to the detective and whispering to the pianist.

"Yeah, Akamatsu Kaede, the one with the backpack, she's the Ultimate Pianist. She helped me learn that I can't be afraid of uncovering the truth as a detective."

"She seems nice, it's a shame the way your reunion went. Who's the other one?"

"Iruma Miu, the Ultimate Inventor. She never misses a chance to make sexual remarks, and she moans when Ouma insults her..."

Amami grimaced, "really? I suppose I shouldn't judge." As Shuichi and Amami talked amongst each other, the other twelve students filed into the gymnasium. Continuing to explain everyone's Ultimate titles and personalities to his new friend. "Everyone seems interesting, especially Ouma, I wonder why he's like that. How do you know everyone though?"

"Well, you've been in a killing game before, so have I, except I was in this killing game. I survived the last one, and it looks like this is restarting."

"Don't isolate yourself. I know how shit it feels, but you need to keep someone on your side." Shuichi nodded, opening his mouth to respond before a high-pitched laugh filled the room. Monokuma is here, oh no, everyone's going to freak out now, should I pretend to be shocked? Where are the Exisals?

"Puhuhu!~ Welcome students, I am your headmaster, and welcome to your killing game!" His heart dropped as Shuichi's prediction came true, the speech cementing the idea in his brain. He felt stronger now, he could do anything, but the accusatory glare from Akamatsu across the room burned a hole in his heart.