danganronpa - deluded | fanganronpa

[ prologue - eyes? ]

Akira somehow ended up going the same way she came.

She only knew because she saw the same candle themed ride she saw before, only this time, someone was in front of it.

He had light, almost white, orange hair. Most of it was contained by his hat, which had a black rim and an orange, puffy top. His bangs fell so far down they covered his eyes, meaning Akira couldn't see them. He wore a thick orange one-piece with a black apron tied around his back. A pouch held two rubber gloves and some containers full of green stuff inside of it. An orange belt was tied around the apron with two mini-pouches, each one holding an orange candle. He wore gray knee-high boots with long, black laces.

Akira cleared her throat. "Hello, there!"

The boy turned around, waved, and smiled. Akira smiled back and walked over to stand next to him. "What are you doing here?"

The boy pointed towards the candles outside the ride. Akira could understand he was looking at them, but the fact he didn't want to talk bothered her. Maybe he was mute?

"...Are you gonna tell me your name?" She asked. When he seemed hesitant, she tried to help him feel more comfortable by doing the same. "I'm Akira Sashiki, the Ultimate Archer. It's nice to meet you."

He cleared his throat and finally spoke, albeit quietly. "Raizo Baisho... Ultimate Candlemaker... sorry for being quiet... voice is weird..."

RAIZO BAISHO

ULTIMATE CANDLEMAKER

"Weird? You sound perfectly normal, Raizo. In fact, you have a cool talent," Akira said with a polite smile. Truth be told, his voice did sound a few octaves too high, so he kinda sounded like a girl, but it isn't like he sounded like a monster.

Raizo flushed and nodded. "Thanks... Yours too."

"Why, thank you," Akira replied. "Speaking of which, can you even see with all that hair in front?"

Raizo nodded. "Yes."

"Would you mind if I saw your eyes? It makes a conversation less awkward to see someone's face, you know."

"E-Eyes?" Raizo asked, suddenly sweating. "No eyes, no eyes!" Despite Akira not being able to see half of his face, Raizo blushed a bright red and covered his entire face with his hands, shaking his head quickly.

"What's wrong? Is something wrong with your eyes, Raizo?" Akira asked, blinking. If he didn't want her to look, she wouldn't, of course, but if he was blind or had an eye condition, she'd like to know what it was. The school nurse would need to see it.

"Eyes look dumb," Raizo murmured, still keeping his face hidden, "too big and girly... ugly eyes!"

"I won't ask, but I'm sure your eyes look perfectly fine," Akira said softly. "...how about this. Tell me about how you make your candles instead."

Raizo beamed and nodded feverishly. "Okay! Melt wax in a boiler... put in smelly oils... get container for wax... dip wick in melted wax, then let harden on bottom of jar until it's stuck, then pour wax into jar, but keep wick upright with chopsticks. Then, when wax hardens, put more on top and cut wick."

"Sounds fun! Are the gloves in your pocket so you don't burn yourself?" Akira asked.

Raizo nodded. "Clumsy... I spill wax a lot... sometimes, though, I make big, big candles. Need to get mommy's help for those."

"Aw, your mother helps you?" Akira asked with a big smile. That reminded her of when her own mother helped her when she started practicing archery. "How sweet."

"Yes!" Raizo chirped. He brushed some hair out behind his ear (Akira could barely see the outline of his left eye) and sighed. "Miss mommy. She didn't hate eyes."

"I won't hate them either. Just let me see!" Akira pleaded. She usually wasn't this curious, but her mother had always told her to help friends with insecurities. If this guy was gonna be her classmate, she might as well try.

"No..." Raizo murmured. He took some hair from behind his ears and covered his face with it. "D... Don't want you to see."

Akira sighed and admitted defeat. She didn't want to ruin a possible friendship by being pushy. "Well, I'll go then. Sorry for bothering you about it. If you want to show me anytime, feel free to."

Raizo nodded. "Oh. Bye, Akira. Was nice to meet you."

"You too!"

OBTAINED TICKET FRAGMENT!