Big Book of Writing

Put on a Show, Nice and Slow (Sanniuri, SDRA2)

I always wondered how things would go if the fourth island had never been modified. We'll never know what the Hatano island might've been, but here's my interpretation!

Warning: spoilers for Chapter 4 and the members of Void

***

"I'm sorry to interrupt everyone's nighttime preparations. Everyone, please come to the Hatano Colosseum immediately."

Nikei sighed as the crow mascot's voice played over the intercom. He was planning to go to sleep early after a long day of looking around the island for his supplies and dodging Mikado, but he wasn't expecting something like this to be happening.

He tried to remember what Mikado had told him about the fourth case for the re-enactment: "Monokuma called the participants to a ballroom event to foster their bonds, then let them leave so he could bring a sixteenth student in and crush those hopes..." Nikei muttered to himself. But there was already a sixteenth "student," one that was added too early...

Nikei sighed and grabbed his hat, notepad, and pen from his dorm's table. He knew that tardiness wouldn't be accepted by Monocrow, especially after all eyes were on him already. Publicly betraying Void didn't do wonders for his image, but the wizard's reaction was just priceless.

He headed out of the Monocruise and onto the fourth island, where the Colosseum stood like a beacon. The sight of it provoked some irritation in him. He wanted to interfere with the island and set the stage for Mikado's execution, he even had it designed somewhere in his notepad. But to his misfortune, it just didn't happen.

Nonetheless, he wandered through the entrance to find that he and Teruya were the first ones to show up. The merchant looked over at him, but he quickly averted his eyes. If someone came in and saw any signs of conversing with him, then they'd catch onto his revised plan. He couldn't have that.

He looked up at the sky instead. The Colosseum was well-lit, but the moon and stars above seemed to make it a bit brighter. It was almost a pity that the moon and stars here weren't real.

Hearing footsteps behind him, he turned to see the rest of the group arriving. "Are we all here?" Sora wondered aloud, looking around at the group.

"I think everyone's- Oh, wait." Shinji did a quick headcount. "Syobai's missing."

The sudden sound of something light popping up signified their "teacher's" arrival. "This is unacceptable! I explicitly said this was mandatory!" Monocrow cried out.

"Cool your jets, birdass," a snarky voice came from the entrance. Only a little later than the others, Syobai stepped through the entrance and leaned against the wall.

"Hm... Well, it wasn't very tardy, so I'll let that slide," the crow decided. "Anyway, welcome to Hatano Colosseum! I'm sure you've all visited here when you explored the islands, but we will also be hosting our nightly event here. So make sure you get plenty of rest! I will even set the morning announcement to be one hour later for the duration of your stay."

"Nightly event...? You mean we're going to be doing something every night?" Iroha questioned.

"That's correct, Ms. Nijiue. You see, this is something of a gift to my dear students. After three long cases, I understand how spirits must be low." And since Monocrow was apparently required by law to say something death-related, he added, "If the group's energy is too low, then nobody will have the will to try bonding, much less escaping the island."

"Get on with it," Syobai complained from the back.

"Yeah, get to the point," Nikei huffed. "What are we supposed to be doing here?"