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When Ibuki had called a meeting in the morning on their day off, some of her classmates had grumbled. Most didn’t understand why she insisted on it, or what she deemed so important, but nonetheless they all showed up in the restaurant that morning, finding Ibuki pacing back and forth. She’d managed to set up the room so that all the tables were together, all the chairs facing one direction. They filtered in, and the more that arrived the more excited she was getting. She refused to tell anybody what the big deal was, though.
“Not until we’re all together! This is like, super important!” She’d insisted, even when the only one missing was Fuyuhiko, who had just recently started warming up to doing anything with the group, despite how long they’d been together on that island.
When he showed up and took his seat, she finally began.
“Every year,” she began, voice uncharacteristically low in an attempt to dramatize what she said. She continued her pacing “we humans celebrate many holidays. New Years, Easter, Christmas...we celebrate any chance we can get, for any reason we can think of. Doing so is just...the most human thing.
“But one holiday...it stands out from the rest. It’s the best holiday, because you get to do whatever you want, and be whoever you want, and most importantly...you get to eat, like, as much candy as you want!” Her voice returned to normal as she described it, unable to contain her excitement. Her pacing gave way to spinning in place as she squealed, just thinking about all the candy she could consume. “And that is why Ibuki’s been counting the days since we got on the island! If Ibuki’s calculations are correct, since we got here the day we got to Hope’s Peak...iiiiit’s almost Halloween!”
“Wait, you’ve been counting the days?” Hajime asked, visibly surprised.
“How’d you manage that one? They’re all the same! I lost track after, like, 20,” Akane spoke despite her mouth being full. She’d refused to sit until she could get plate filled to the brim in front of her, and she hadn’t stopped eating since then.
“Halloween?!” Sonia clapped her hands together, “I have always wanted to celebrate a traditional Japanese Halloween!”
“There’s nothing traditional about it, you know,” Hiyoko yawned, “It’s just some boring foreign holiday we adopted for some stupid reason.”
“But surely the Japanese celebrations differ from what I have grown accustomed to!” Sonia insisted, “I have read of some yakuza families which host events to allow young children to demand sweets from the members! Maybe we could get Fuyuhiko to allow us to extort him for candies?”
Fuyuhiko groaned, a hand over his face, “I knew one of you fuckers would bring that up, should’ve known it was going to be Sonia .”
“Hey! Are you calling Miss Sonia a fucker? She’s a lady you kn-” Souda started, but Sonia quickly cut him off.
“I apologize, Fuyuhiko! Was the information incorrect? I did not mean to offend you!”
“No, no, my family does it, it’s just…” he sighed, “It’s really not that fucking big of a deal, okay? We hand out candy, it’s not even that rare for people to go trick-or-treating anymore so it isn’t like it’s something special anymore.”
“Oh please, I’m not playing some silly game extorting candy from him, ” Mahiru interjected, “I like the idea of us having a celebration, but why can’t we just do a party?”
“You got a problem with me, dumbass?” Fuyuhiko yelled, temper flaring, “I didn’t even say I wanted to do it. I’m not letting anybody fucking extort me for goddamn candy.”
“Awwww, but that would be so fun,” Ibuki pouted as she whined a bit.
“I agree, I would enjoy it very much,” Sonia only seemed let down for a moment, her face quickly lighting back up, “but if you prefer we do not, then that is okay! A party would be just as entertaining, and we could enjoy a lot of sweets together!”
“We can’t only eat sweets, though. There’s nothing substantial about them. If we are to host a party, there must be real food there as well,” Byakuya insisted.
“A party sounds killer, I’d totally be down for that, especially if there’s some good food!” Akane added in, wiping her mouth off on her arm.
“Then it’s decided! A super Halloween party!” Ibuki was practically bouncing in excitement, “There’ll be food, and candy, and we all gotta wear super cool costumes!”
“Hold the fuck up--” Fuyuhiko started, at the same time that Mikan said, “C-costumes?”
“ALRIGHT!” Nekomaru added, “Costumes will be great!”
“Uh-uh, I’m not wearing a stupid fucking costume,” Fuyuhiko insisted.
“Mm~” Teruteru didn’t look like he’d paid any mind to what Fuyuhiko was saying, he was more interested in thoughts that made him look like he was about to start drooling, “I can’t wait to see what some of you ladies wear~”
“I...I could get behind costumes,” Kazuichi added, looking at Sonia dreamily.
“...Maybe costumes aren’t the best idea, then,” Mahiru suggested, nose scrunched as she looked at Teruteru and Souda. She mumbled something about perverts and how men shouldn’t act that way, but it wasn’t loud enough for either of them to hear properly.
“Oh, but they would be so fun! I have so many ideas for what I might wear already,” Sonia disagreed.
“There have to be costumes! It’s not Halloween without costumes, it would just be a ‘random day in fall’ party! Ibuki doesn’t want that!” Ibuki insisted.
“Hah! You fools...you may wear any costumes you desire, but I simply have to strip off a layer of the costume I wear everyday for you to see an inkling of my true self,” Gundham joined into the conversation.
“Well if he isn’t wearing one, then I’m not wearing one either,” Hiyoko pouted.
“I have never had a costume before,” Peko stated simply, “I am not sure if I will be able to decide what to wear.”
Akane stood, walking behind the group to take her plate for a second serving and just so happened to be near where Peko was sitting when she spoke. She slapped Peko’s back, “Aw, it’s all good! I’ll help you choose.”
“I can help too! Ibuki’s reaaaally good at costumes!”
“I would offer to help, but with my luck you’ll end up hating whatever you decide on,” Nagito chuckled.
“It’s decided, then? We’ll have a party for Halloween?” Chiaki asked with a yawn, “It sounds fun...I think.”
And with that, the preparations began. The group talked a while longer, deciding on where to host it and choosing the old building for it’s eerie features. Teruteru offered to cook for the event, and Komaeda offered to clean. Ibuki and Sonia put themselves in charge of decorations, stating that the party had to really feel like Halloween because the weather didn’t make it too obvious.
The date for the party was set seven days after they first planned it, on the day that Ibuki said was Halloween itself. Most of the group spent a lot of time as they worked on gathering things for Usami’s crafts talking about what they would wear, and some even got Usami’s help finding and making things specifically for their costumes.
Akane and Ibuki held true to their words, approaching Peko as they were eating about halfway through the week.
“So, did’ja decide on something yet, Pekoyama?” Akane had asked before shoving a good portion of rice into her mouth.
“Oh, not...not particularly. I am not too familiar with what is acceptable,” she answered, truthfully. She’d seen Fuyuhiko and Natsumi dress up every year but they always went with such different themes, and she wasn’t sure which ideas were appropriate for her at her age. It wasn’t like she had ever put much thought into it, she never truly planned on wearing any costumes unless they were assigned to her so she might go undercover.
“Really? Well, what kind of things were you thinking? You could do a monster, or like, a character! Or, you could do a sexy version of one of those things! Or a sexy animal!”
“Yeah! I’m doing a wolf,” Akane added in, “Why don’t you, like, do a vampire? You’ve got the red eyes and pale skin already so it wouldn’t be that hard!”
“Ooooh it’d look so cool! You’d just have to look at people with that one really creepy face, I bet people would be freaked out!”
Peko stared at Ibuki for a moment. She’d been told before that her face was scary, even when she didn’t believe she was making one, so she wasn’t sure what expression Ibuki was referring to.
“Yeah! Like that!”
“...I see,” Peko ducked her head to eat some, “I am...not so sure that I want to look scary, though. Souda has informed me that you are supposed to dress up as something you are not, is that correct?”
“Well, yeah, but you aren’t a vampire, are you?” Akane pointed out.
Ibuki gasped, “Are you? That’d be totally cool! You could, like, drink our blood and stuff!”
“I...no, I am not. But even so, I still do not know if I want to look scary,” Peko insisted.
“You could be a sexy vampire. You’ve got the tits for it,” Akane shrugged.
“I bet Fuyuhiko wouldn’t mind that!” Ibuki suggested, eyebrows waggling.
Nobody was supposed to know that they had grown up together, but many of their classmates had figured out something, or at least they suspected it. Ibuki was one of the first, assuming that Peko’s young master had a crush on her, and while Peko wanted to explain it was not possible, that would involving explaining her role, which he had expressly forbidden before they had left for school.
“I am not sure that is the case,” was all she could say, hoping that they wouldn’t notice the light blush on her cheeks.
“Oh please,” Akane scoffed, amazed at Peko’s apparent ignorance, “He looks at you like, all the time. And it’s not like you two don’t spend enough time together or something.”
“Our relationship is purely friendship,” Peko insisted. It seemed odd, stating that what they had was something as simple as ‘friendship’ when it ran much deeper than that. She continued with the lie, though, she had no choice but to follow orders. She had to pretend that she and her young master had simply become friends during this school trip.
“Live in your bubble all you want, but I still think you should do something sexy. It’d just prove our point, you know?” Akane shrugged, “If not a vampire...then I dunno, a witch?”
“Or! Orrr! You could do a mouse! It’d look cool, with your gray hair! You could even make the ears out of your braids!” Ibuki suggested.
“Or, like, a lot of women do sexy nurses.”
They continued to suggest various sexy outfits, and each suggestion made Peko blush a little deeper.
“What about a sexy crayon? You could be funny AND sexy!” Ibuki eventually said, making Akane shake her head.
“What kinda costume is that? How do you make a crayon sexy, even?”
Before Ibuki could explain the dynamics, Hajime walked by the group, pausing in front of them, “Hey girls, talking about the party?”
“Yeah, Peko doesn’t know what to be still,” Akane explained, “We keep suggesting things but I don’t think they’re sticking. I still say go with sexy vampire.”
“I...am still not sure about that,” Peko said politely.
Hajime looked at Peko, a look over understanding on his face when he saw her little blush, “Uh...well, maybe I can help?” He offered, taking a seat on the free chair.
“Oooh yeah! You’re good at helping people!” Ibuki bounced in her chair, entirely forgetting her spiel about sexy crayons.
“Alright, well...do you know what you don’t want to be?” Hajime asked to start.
“Hm...I was thinking of not doing something scary,” Peko explained, “Souda told me you are supposed to be something you are not.”
“Just ‘cause some nerds who couldn’t handle your sword called you scary doesn’t mean you are, though. You look pretty intense, but you’re not that scary,” Akane said.
“I don’t think you’re scary either, but it’s okay if you don’t want to wear something scary. There are a lot of other options, too,” Hajime had a point, but the amount of options that were still available still seemed pretty overwhelming.
“That’s what we’ve been telling her! She could go sexy too!” Ibuki jumped in, “Hajime don’t you think Fuyuhiko would nut if she walked in dressed as a sexy nurse?”
He laughed softly, shaking his head, “I don’t know if that’s too much her style, either. Right, Peko?”
Peko hesitated before nodding. She didn’t want to offend her friends, but...if she truly could choose any costume, she was not especially interested in being sexual.
“Oh, well that’s the problem then. You could just do, like, a regular nurse instead of a sexy one,” Akane laughed, “Why didn’t you just say so?”
“Wouldn’t that just be cosplaying Mikan then?” Ibuki pondered, a finger on her chin as she thought.
“Yeah that might get a little weird, especially if Mikan does like, a zombie nurse or something,” Akane shrugged, “So probably not a nurse. You could do some job outfit, though.”
“That is a lot of options…” Peko frowned, still overwhelmed.
“Well...what sorts of things do you like?” Hajime asked, “We could help you at least make it easier to decide.
“Swords,” was Peko’s immediate answer.
“You can’t be a swordswoman though, you already are one! Unless you wanted to do, like, a zombie swordswoman, or a sexy one,” Ibuki pouted, “But you said you don’t wanna do scary or sexy.”
“Could do a ninja or something,” Akane suggested, “Or like, a pirate. They have swords.”
“Those are options, yeah,” Hajime nodded, “Is there anything else you like?”
This time, it took longer for Peko to think about. She did have things she liked, but they were rarely ever on her mind as they would cause distractions from her duty. She truly had to take a second to remember what she had last liked, simply because she liked it.
She thought back to the beach, where she had been collecting shells the other day, and how some of them she had been tempted to keep for herself. Those ones were always pretty, some had a nice shine to them while others had nice shapes and pretty colors. Then there was the ranch and forest, and she’d been fond of the flowers and cute animals at both. Really, the more she thought about it, the more it could basically be explained in a few words.
“I do like cute things.”
The admission seemed to make Ibuki gasp. She sat up on the edge of her chair, “And Fuyuhiko! You like him! I could steal his clothes if you want to be him for Halloween!”
“Oh please, have you seen him? He’s so small, her tits would bust his shirt open!” Akane told her, making Ibuki pout a bit.
“I...really don’t think anybody should be stealing things, Ibuki. Besides, I don’t think that’s what Peko was talking about,” Hajime attempted to diffuse the situation before it got any more embarrassing, though the blush that had just barely faded from Peko’s cheeks had returned.
“Aww, that’s so boring,” Ibuki whined, “Don’t worry if you change your mind, Peko, just ask me!”
Ibuki winked at Peko, which made Hajime chuckle, “Let’s stick with something cute, for your costume.”
“What, like an animal? Ibuki did say mouse earlier, you could do that. Just, like, don’t make it sexy,” Akane suggested.
“Yeah, you could do a mouse. Or really, any animal you wanted,” Hajime agreed.
“...I see,” Peko nodded. The pool of options had shrunk considerable, putting her more at ease, “I will consider an animal, then.”
The conversation continued from there. They started talking about what the others were going to wear, Ibuki revealing she was going to be a zombie while Hajime admitted he was thinking about going with a vampire, or maybe a wizard.
After they finished their meals and went their separate ways, Peko spent most of her afternoon considering what animals would be cutest, and which costumes would be most realistic and get in the way the least.
That evening, when all the others were busy or already in bed, Peko made her way to the beach. She and Fuyuhiko had a list of meeting points they rotated through so they could touch base every three days. The meetings were never long, but she had insisted that they have them in case they needed to communicate in secret.
That specific meeting started off the same as many of the others. Fuyuhiko said there was nothing interesting going on, insisted he wasn’t that interested in befriending anybody there. (“Especially that bitch Mahiru,” he said. It was always whoever had upset him the most in the past few days and nearly everybody had been mentioned at least once. Peko had started keeping a list and tallying whose names had shown up the most and who he didn’t bother mentioning at all anymore.)
He always followed that up by asking Peko if she’d made any friends, and she would report any meaningful interactions with her classmates that she had had. One time, she mentioned Teruteru offering to go on a swim with her, and Fuyuhiko had gotten red in the face. He told her that she didn’t have to befriend him, called him a pervert. Ever since that meeting, she stopped interacting with him any more than necessary to be polite.
Sometimes, Fuyuhiko would dismiss her then, or they would stand together and watch the waves(or the cows, or whatever view they had from wherever they were standing) in silence. Other times, he’d ask her if she misses home. He’d tell her he misses his family, “even if they can be absolute shitbags sometimes.”
This time, they stood in silence for a little while, Fuyuhiko watching the waves and Peko pretending to do the same, though she kept her attention on him. She noticed when he would look over at her, open his mouth like he wanted to say something, then shut it again and glare out into the ocean as he tried to think of his words. Peko waited patiently, same as she always did when he wanted to say something but didn’t know how.
“Are you...planning on actually going to that stupid Halloween party?” He eventually asked, voice quieter than usual.
“I am, yes,” Though he should have known that. She had been instructed not to skip social events.
“I mean...do you want to? You don’t have to keep going to all their stupid little parties, you know.”
“Oh…” she kept that in mind, thought about it for a moment. Suddenly skipping all the events when she had spent so long going to them all would seem unusual, and not fit the act she had been playing. Many of their friends may get concerned, too, so it was for the best that she attended some of them, she decided. That was beside the point, though...Fuyuhiko asked if she wanted to, and, well… “I was looking forward to going, so I believe I will still go...if that is alright.”
She was careful not to phrase it as a question, he always got upset when she asked him if she could do things. He’d throw his hands up and tell her she could do whatever she wanted, and it always confused her because they both knew that was not the case. He’d reword it, tell her to do whatever she thought was best, that he didn’t care either way, and she would try to decide which option he would prefer without having to ask him again. Simply saying she intended to do something if it was alright usually made him less upset, though, so she grew used to requesting permission in that way.
“Yeah, by all means, go ahead,” he huffed, “Don’t expect to see me there, though.”
“I did not,” she never did. He rarely showed up to any parties they planned, made it a special point to avoid things unless they said it was important or he knew whoever was really upsetting him at the time would not be around.
Fuyuhiko nodded, and continued staring out at the waves. He still didn’t dismiss her, though, so she stood with him, watching and waiting for whatever else he wanted to say. It took him fewer tries the second time around, though he still had a few false starts.
“So...did you decide on a costume?”
“Not yet. Ibuki, Akane, and Hajime have helped me narrow down the options, but I am not sure which would be best for my first Halloween costume,” she explained, still facing the sea as Fuyuhiko was doing the same thing.
“What were you thinking, then?” He asked, glancing at her for a moment before looking back at the ocean. If anybody saw them, they might believe the two both just happened to decide to watch the ocean that night.
“Hajime suggested I do something I like. I said I like swords, but Ibuki said I could not simply be a swordswoman. I do not want to be a zombie or sexy swordswoman, though.”
Fuyuhiko laughed, and it felt like something in her chest fluttered, but she was used to ignoring that feeling by now, “Yeah, wasn’t Souda making a big deal over being something you’re not on Halloween?”
“He did, yes,” she hadn’t thought Fuyuhiko had been listening at that point...he usually could only handle so much interacting with their classmates before he would give up, and he had been silent for quite some time before Souda had said that. She had always assumed that he was ignoring them all, at that point.
“Did they help you think of something else?” He asked. This time he wasn’t facing the sea. His shoulders stayed turned out, but his eyes were focused on her.
“Yes,” she mirrored him, head turned as her body still faced the ocean, “Hajime asked what else I like, I decided I like cute things, so they suggested I dress as an animal.”
She noticed his small, gentle smile. He made those rarely, when Natsumi would tell him she’s as amazing as she is because she’s his sister, or when the two of them would go out on a task for the family and stop by a shop that had stationary with sakuras on it, and she would run her hand over it because it was very pretty, but she could not buy it as she had no money of her own. Sometimes, he even made that face when they were assigned to the same task. She wasn’t always sure why, but she sometimes just saw him making that face after he caught her looking at the cows, or when she found something she thought was especially pretty.
Just like every other time, the smile only lasted a moment after she noticed. He turned his head back to the sea, expression as blank as he could manage as he nodded.
“Well...you should decide tomorrow. There isn’t that much time left, you need to start putting it together soon.”
“Understood. Would you like me to tell you when I have chosen?”
“Tch...no, you don’t have to tell me everything, you know. You’re allowed to have secrets.”
He would say that sometimes, too, despite the fact that it was not true. Peko could not keep anything from the Kuzuryuu’s, that went against how they had trained her. She stayed silent, as she could also could not correct him, and eventually he sighed.
“Alright, that’s enough. Meeting officially over. Meet you by the diner next time,” he turned away from the ocean finally, but refused to look at Peko. She was used to it, though. Sometimes he simply did not want to look at her, and though she did not understand, she respected it anyway, “Don’t tell me what you’re going to dress up as unless you want me to know, it’s not like I care.”
She nodded. Of course, not telling him something because he did not care was much different from not telling him in order to deceive. That was not against the rules.
“Alright. Goodnight Fuyuhiko,” he waved back at her, but didn’t say a word. He only ever did when she used to still call him young master against his wishes. It was easy enough to train herself out of saying it out loud, even if calling him by his name still felt awkward and too informal to her.
She waited until he was several yards ahead before following after, putting enough distance between the two of them that it would not appear that they were together. There was always a chance that somebody would be awake and out of their cabin for some reason, so they had to use extra precautions such as putting distance between themselves as often as possible.
The next day, Peko had been assigned to the forest. She was sent with Nagito, and while she would prefer Fuyuhiko’s company, he had expressed that he was tired and Hajime had agreed that he deserved a day to rest.
Working with Nagito wasn’t too bad, anyway. Despite some of their classmate’s complaints, Peko found that the two of them often got along. He had no problem working in silence most of the day, which allowed Peko to focus on her tasks. He also never really complained about how hard the work would be. It was a little frustrating, when they killed a creature and he would comment on how unlucky they were and how he understood how they felt, but Peko could ignore that. She did not like to choose favorites, as she knew she would sacrifice any of them if Fuyuhiko’s life was in danger, but if she had to, Nagito would be somewhere in the upper half of the list.
That day, they were sent to find green flowers and eggs, so the pair took their baskets and worked on their own. They stayed close enough to each other that they would not get lost, but still had enough space that they would not be searching the same areas that the other had already gone through.
Peko spent a good portion of the first half thinking about her costume options. She thought about being a bear, as teddy bears were very cute, but she remembered from the time she and Fuyuhiko got lost in the mountains that real ones were much scarier. Then she considered a deer, but she wasn’t sure how to do that makeup, and the only way she would know how to get those antlers would be to kill one for them, which just seemed cruel. Her mind continued to roam as she walked around, picking the green flowers they needed for one part of the project.
Around the time when she was considering a cat, Nagito spoke up. His voice was soft, as usual, but it still startled Peko a bit because of how sudden it was, “A little distracted today, are we?” He’d said, simply.
Peko’s eyes must have told him just how right he was, as he chuckled when she looked at him, “...I am trying to decide on a costume. I must make up my mind today if I want to be able to create it in time.”
“Oh? I thought you all had decided already...I guess having a talent doesn’t always make it easier to choose, though.”
“It does not,” She replied, not saying anything for a moment longer as she inspected a patch of land for the flowers, “Have you decided on yours?”
Nagito found that funny for some reason, laughing under his breath, “I have an idea. I would rather not share, though. The plan relies on somebody else agreeing, so you’ll have to wait and see.”
Peko nodded, moving on to another part of the field they were working their way through, “I understand. I was hoping yours may help inspire me.”
“Mm...not likely. I’m not nearly as interesting as you, with my lack of talent and poor luck. I doubt that my simple little idea could inspire you in any way.”
The way he spoke of himself tended to bother some of the others, but...it felt familiar to Peko. He believed that all of them were exceptional human beings with skills that could bring hope to the world, but that he was an exception to that rule, a fluke in the system. She was not an exceptional human being who could bring hope to the world either, though; she was simply a tool that had trained hard enough to be seen as one. So, while many of the others would’ve told him to shut up or rolled their eyes, she nodded.
“I guess you are correct, in some ways. It is a strange thought, that another person’s costume could help me decide on my own.”
“Mhmm,” he hummed, “but if you don’t mind talking to somebody like me, you could tell me your ideas.”
So she did. She briefly explained how she had decided to do a cute animal, and that a bear or a deer or a hedgehog were out of the question. She mentioned that she had considered a cat, too, but wasn’t too sure on it. He helped her think of a few other animals she considered cute; ducklings, finches, cows and chickens...but each one she eventually turned down; either they would be too difficult to get the point across with just a few days’ time or she wasn’t sure how to even create a costume that would be easily recognized for the creature. The cow would be the easiest, other than a cat, but it still did not feel right to her, and she wanted her very first Halloween costume to be something she loved.
At some point during their chat, Nagito had found a whole field of green flowers, so the pair sat together, picking the most beautiful of them all. Neither one wanting to disturb the quiet of nature by being too loud so their voices remained low and calm, and eventually a little rabbit came out from hiding and began crossing the field, a few yards away from them. Peko found herself staring at it; she’d always been especially fond of rabbits. Their ears were very cute, especially when they were floppy, and the way their noses and ears twitched always seemed charming to her. She knew she could never get close to one, they were such timid creatures and even animals that weren’t so easily frightened avoided her, but she found herself wishing that weren’t the case more and more every day.
Nagito must have noticed when she didn’t respond to a question he asked; “Why don’t you do a rabbit?”
Peko glanced at Nagito for a moment before looking back at the rabbit, watching it continue down it’s path, “That...is a good idea. It would not be too difficult, and it sounds very cute.”
“And Usami probably has some rabbit themed things you could use. You know, considering she is one,” he suggested, laughing again as Peko nodded, deep in thought.
When they returned with their findings, Peko kept the idea to herself. She did not even share that she’d chosen until the group had already mostly dispersed. When she finally told them, the small collection of remaining students immediately wanted to know more.
“Oh please share! I am excited to hear if we might be matching!” Sonia’s eyes lit up, hands clapped together.
“Aw hell yeah! Did our talk help at all?” Akane asked.
“Have you decided to unleash your inner demon?” Gundham laughed, “If you wish to be a truly frightening demon, I could teach you a few tricks...if you think you can handle it.”
“Aw no, she said she didn’t want to be scary when we were talking yesterday, so probably no inner demons,” Ibuki stuck her tongue out, making a noise for a second, “But Ibuki could totally handle it! Show Ibuki how to be a scary demon!”
“Wait a second, I want to hear whatever stupid ideas she has,” Hiyoko snickered, “It’s probably something dumb, like a mouse.”
Ibuki gasped, “We suggested that too! How’d you know?”
“It’s easy enough to guess what sort of dumb ideas you people have, I just think of the stupidest things I can and then try to somehow make it dumber.”
“Hey, what’re you talkin’ about dumb ideas? A mouse would make sense with her gray hair!” Akane frowned.
“Yeah, whatever, just let her say whatever it is she’s going to wear, already,” Hiyoko rolled her eyes, arms crossed in front of her chest.
All their eyes turned to her, and despite the size of the group and the fact that they were mostly her friends, all the attention being turned to her made her nervous. She was used to being in the background, the most attention she got growing up was either from Fuyuhiko, or from her teachers telling her the mistakes she was making with her sword. People having their eyes on her...felt unnatural. But she had to work through it, pretend that it did not bother her.
“I chose a rabbit, with Nagito’s help,” she told them, getting a chorus of ‘awws’ from most of the girls.
“A noble creature,” Gundham hummed, “A fine choice. I would not expect anything less of you, Pekoyama.”
“That’s pretty cute, I guess. Not as epic as a sexy vampire, maybe, but I see why you chose it,” Akane shrugged.
“Oh it is a perfect choice! The rabbit is a very special creature in Novoselic, known for their speed and the strength with which they can kick their enemies!” Sonia reached forward, taking one of Peko’s hands in her own, “We must gather your materials!”
Sonia dragged her away from the group, helping her plan the costume. She was so animated about the idea that Peko wondered if Sonia should be the one dressing as a rabbit. She didn’t mention that, though, instead concentrating on what the outfit would look like. They decided she shouldn’t do anything too complex, with the amount of time she had, and eventually chose on a design. Sonia took her to talk with Usami then, asking their little rabbit mascot for help getting what they would need.
The outfit came together quickly, and just as he had requested, Peko did not tell Fuyuhiko anything about her plans. She noticed him hanging around Hajime more, and at some point when she planned on going to see Usami, he was talking to her, but she gave him privacy. If he wished to tell her something, he would tell her when he was ready.
That evening was the night before the big party. More importantly, to Peko at least, it was another meeting night with Fuyuhiko. She arrived first and went around to the side of the diner, where nobody could see them from the parking lot or the sidewalk. It made for a great meeting point, public but private enough that nobody would see them together. She waited a good ten minutes before Fuyuhiko arrived, but she was not worried. He had yet to miss a meeting, and it was agreed upon that their arrival times would be anywhere between 9:50 and 10:20, each of them choosing at random.
Fuyuhiko leaned against the wall, crossing his arms as he stared at the ground. The area was dark and shadows covered most of his face, but Peko could still tell that he was thinking about something. She waited until he was ready, as she always did.
“You’re still going to the party, right?” He eventually asked, eyes fixed on the ground still.
“I still plan to, yes,” Peko confirmed. The question ‘is that alright?’ hung in the air, but she did not ask it. If he chose that she should not go, he would tell her, and if he still did not mind he would get upset at her for asking.
He nodded in response, silent for a moment before speaking, “I think I might, too.”
Peko’s face remained neutral, except for her brows raising slightly. He enjoyed parties at home, sometimes, but he had always shown such disinterest in everything their classmates did, so the concept of him choosing to spend an evening with them was...surprising, to say the least. After a second of her silence, he glanced up at her and Peko realized he was expecting a response.
“I am sure that our classmates will enjoy seeing you,” she kept her voice even, “I am happy to hear you are going, but...may I ask why?”
Fuyuhiko scoffed, “We’ve been stuck here for, what, like six months? Usami said we need to all become friends, so if I want to get back to the clan then I need to suck it up and play friendly with these losers.”
Peko nodded. Getting him back to the clan was a top priority, of course. The two of them knew the importance of it, and how without contact to the family they may eventually assume that she had somehow gotten him killed.
Before she could reply, he spoke again, “Besides, there’s going to be a fuckton of sweets, right? I might as well check and see if they got some karinto.”
He still had his eyes on her, so he saw the way her lips twitched up at the mention of his favorite treat. She should have known, he rarely ever turned down an opportunity to eat something sugary.
“I hope they do. I think it may be too late to request it, though,” she told him, “And please do not forget that Mioda will not allow you to enter without a costume.”
“I got one put together. It’s nothing fancy, but she also gave us a fucking week’s notice so if she’s going to be picky about it she can fuck off.”
Peko simply nodded in response, not asking for any details about his costume, and the two stood in silence for a few minutes before Fuyuhiko spoke again.
“Guess we should get to business. Have you been talking to the others?”
“I have. Komaeda and I talked while working in the forest, he helped me choose my costume. Then when I told some of the others, Sonia got very excited and helped me with planning it and talking to Usami. She has also been helping me with making it. That is everything outside of small talk.”
Fuyuhiko nodded, “Good. Are there any you aren’t at least kind of friends with?”
“I have not spoken with Hanamura any more than necessary because you said he is a pervert and that I do not have to befriend him. I am not close with Saionji or Togami, either.”
He sighed, “Yeah...those fuckers aren’t going to be easy. I don’t fucking get why Usami sent us all here when obviously some of us don’t want a bunch of stupid friends, but whatever. Maybe if we get close enough to everybody being friends she’ll let us go.”
“She did state we must become friends with everyone and collect all these ‘hope fragments,’” Peko reminded him, though it did worry her. Saionji was rather rude, and Koizumi did tend to make remarks about the men on the trip, so it seemed unlikely that they would all become good friends. For Fuyuhiko’s sake, though, she would try.
“The whole fucking trip is bullshit. My family will destroy Hope’s Peak for this, you know. You can’t take the goddamn heir to the Kuzuryuu clan and cut him off from his family and get away with it,” Fuyuhiko’s mood soured as he thought about it more.
“I apologize that I have not found a way to return you to your family yet,” Peko attempted to calm him. She should have been working harder, maybe gone swimming to see if she could find anybody from the outside world to save them.
Her attempt just angered him more, he glared at her with a scowl on his face, “You don’t have to fucking apologize, Peko, it isn’t your fault, you know. If anything, it’s mine since I haven’t been trying all that hard to make friends with these morons.”
“Do not blame yourself,” she insisted, “It is my duty to make sure you escape any hostage situation. Although this is not a typical one, it is still a situation where you are being held against your will. I should be doing as much as I can to get you out.”
“Well, you are. You’ve been talking to everybody, and if the only way we can get out is to be friends, then you’re doing more than me. Stop fucking blaming yourself for shit that isn’t your fault, okay?”
“...I understand,” she said, though she still felt some responsibility for their situation.
He huffed, turning his glare to the cracked asphalt at his feet, “...I still wish you’d stop letting me boss you around. You can say no, you know.”
She never understood when he said things like that, as if he was not her young master. She could very easily say no to anybody else, it was not that she was not aware of the word, but to say no to him or his family...would go against how she was raised. She didn’t say anything, because he was wrong and she could not tell him that.
After a few seconds of silence, he realized she had no intention of responding. “At least while we’re here, okay? My parents aren’t going to know shit that happens here, and if they do, and they have a problem they can fucking come at me with them. I already told you, I want you to act like your own person. That includes being able to say whatever you want, alright?”
“Alright. If I feel the need to deny a request, I will do so,” she agreed, with no intention of actually denying him anything. It wasn’t even just that she couldn’t deny him anything, she also...never truly wanted to. He hadn’t asked her to do something she did not want to do in...truly, she could not remember if he ever had, other than his requests for her to leave him alone when they were in middle school. Even those were minor, and she could not obey because his father had ordered that she stay nearby, in case he needed her.
Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes, then looked at her. The anger was still there, but it was a thin veil over another emotion...something that reminded her of sadness. She felt shame, thinking she might have caused him to become upset. Maybe he knew she wasn’t planning on saying no, or maybe he thought she should have said no to that request.
“Good.”
Then it was silent again. Fuyuhiko was watching her, studying her face, so she did her best to stay still. After a few minutes, he spoke again, “You said last time that you like cute things...what kind of cute things?”
Though the question was unexpected, and questions about herself were usually difficult, she found that the answer came naturally this time, “A lot of the shells we collect are very cute. I also like a lot of the animals at the ranch and in the forest.”
“Huh...yeah, you always have liked animals. You used to want to befriend the strays when we were younger, remember?” He still looked a little upset, but his tone of voice softened considerably, and he was almost smiling.
“Yes, I did. They did not feel the same way about me, though,” she always loved the cats that usually ran around the property. They had such pretty fur and before she learned better, she used to envy the way they got to nap whenever they wanted. They were not tools, though. They did not have to train.
“What are your favorite animals?” He asked.
“Rabbits, I think. I enjoy cats and deer as well, but rabbits are...very cute,” She watched him as she spoke, saw the way his mouth turned up, and the little sparkle in his eye as he listened to her. Though she did not know why he cared, she would tell him anything he wanted to know.
“I would’ve thought you’d like something fierce, but I guess rabbits are pretty fitting.”
“Yes. They are not predators, but I enjoy their ears, and the way their nose twitches,” She wasn’t sure why she continued, when he hadn’t specifically asked, but...it was a little nice, simply talking about the things she liked.
“I’m happy you’re figuring out shit you like. Keep doing that, okay? Even if you don’t tell me, just...keep finding shit out about yourself,” he requested. She couldn’t tell if that was one of the requests she was supposed to deny, but it wasn’t a difficult one. She assumed that she would end up doing it even if he had not ordered it, so denying it would be silly.
“I will,” she said simply, “May I tell you? If...if I want to?”
His eyebrows shot up at her request, and he didn’t even seem upset by the question, so she made a mental note of how she worded it, for later use.
“Yeah! I mean, yeah, you can if you really want to,” and he was smiling. Not the small smiles he used when he caught Peko looking at stationary, not even the proud smirk he had when he was telling his classmates about his family. The smile he had just then was the one that made Peko’s heart do something funny, it was the one he used to make when they went out to catch fireflies at night or when he would pull her away from training just to read a story together. It was big enough that his eyes were practically closed and it was beautiful enough that if Peko wasn’t careful, it would leave her blushing.
“I would like to,” she agreed, voice soft. She couldn’t look away from him, she needed to enjoy his smile as long as possible because it wasn’t a common sight anymore. Maybe she should tell him that his smile was one of the cute things she liked?
“Good, I’m...I’m happy that you want that,” Fuyuhiko’s voice was softer when he spoke, too. It was...she wanted to say it sounded affectionate, but she was not sure if that term was correct.
She didn’t say anything back. They just...kept looking at each other, enjoying the other’s company, until Fuyuhiko spoke again.
“I guess we should probably get back. I need to finish a part of my costume tomorrow, so I should probably go to sleep,” he said, finally looking away from Peko. She found that she didn’t want him to, though. She wasn’t ready to look away from him.
“Okay. Goodnight, Fuyuhiko. I will see you at the party,” she did not move, though, waiting for him to leave first as she always did.
He stood straight, shoving his hands in his pockets, and turned towards the parking lot. After taking a few steps forward, he paused and looked over his shoulder, back to Peko.
“One more thing, actually…”
“Yes?”
“Since we’re supposed to be making friends with everybody anyway, it probably wouldn’t be that weird if we hung out together at the party. You can say no, but would you want to maybe hang out for a little while?”
“I would like to, yes,” She admitted, and she thought he might have grinned wider at it, but he was too backlit for her to tell clearly.
“Great. I’ll see you tomorrow. Sleep well, Peko.”
“Sleep well, Fuyuhiko.”
He left then, and Peko waited a little longer than usual to leave. She wasn’t sure, but her face felt a little warm, and she did not want anybody to see her blush. She was lucky enough to not run into anybody the rest of the night.
Peko began getting ready about an hour before the party was set to begin. She slid on a pair of white tights, rather than her usual black, but wore her normal skirt with it. Instead of her usual top, she pulled on a pink hooded sweatshirt; with Ibuki and Sonia’s help, she’d sewn big floppy bunny ears on the hood and a fluffy tail on the back. Usami was able to supply a shirt that was a little larger than what Peko would normally go for, Sonia explaining that long sleeves and a little bagginess would be very cute and work well with the concept. Peko hadn’t had time to get new shoes, so her regular brown loafers would have to do. Despite the fact that it did not match the costume, she brought her sword anyway, pulling the bag so the strap went across her chest in the same way she always wore it. Just before leaving her room, she went to the bathroom and pulled out some makeup Usami had provided, painting a small upside down pink triangle on her nose and connecting it to her lips with a brown line. She extended her mouth and created an upwards curve on both sides, just like how Sonia had showed her. It wasn’t complex makeup, but it still took her longer than necessary because of her lack of experience.
When Peko arrived at the party, a handful of her classmates were already present. Sonia was an intricate white dress with her hair dyed blue and skin painted a similar shade, some bits made to look like the skin had rotted away to reveal bones, chatting with Gundham over a bowl of fruit punch with some peculiar shapes floating in it. Gundham was wearing a suit, and when Sonia waved to Peko, Gundham turned to face her and Peko saw that his hair was down, but still pushed back, and the gray bits had been colored over. The area around his eyes would have looked almost like dark circles, except that they were a comically dark color.
Before Peko could walk up to them, Ibuki was approaching her, dressed as a zombie in a very cute, very pink outfit. Her arms stuck out in front of her, hands hanging awkwardly as she walked comically slow.
“Braaaiiiiins,” she said, then laughed before giving Peko a tight hug, “What do you think? Does Ibuki look spooky enough?”
“I think you look very nice. The outfit is a very interesting choice, as well.”
“Thank yoooou! Ibuki’s a zombie school idol!” She took Peko’s hand, pulling her to where Chiaki and Akane were waiting and dragging her into the conversation.
Akane had wolf ears and a tail, her skirt replaced with a longer one that matched the color of the fur. Her shirt hadn’t changed, though, and Peko was glad to see she wasn’t the only one recycling her every day clothes for the costume. The only other difference was a black shape painted on her nose, connected to her lips by a thin black line.
“‘Sup, Peko? You look pretty cute,” she said before shoving something from her plate into her mouth.
“I like the hoodie,” Chiaki agreed, looking up from her handheld game for a moment, “And the little nose you painted is really cute.”
She was dressed as a video game character, one of the rare ones that Peko actually recognized; overalls with a red shirt and a large hat with an M painted on it made it clear enough, even if she didn’t draw a mustache on her face.
“Thank you both, I enjoy your costumes as well,” she glanced around the room, noticing more of the decorations, “And the room looks very nice, too.”
“Thanks!! Ibuki and Sonia worked sooooo hard, it turns out Sonia’s like, super into Halloween too! She wanted to make it suuuuuper cool!” Ibuki was practically bouncing as she spoke.
“You both did very well,” Peko encouraged her, “I hope you are enjoying the party?”
“For sure! Every party is a cool party!” Ibuki paused for a second, thinking, “Except, like, grandma’s birthday parties, but that’s ‘cause they didn’t want Ibuki to play music!”
“You are performing later on?” Peko asked, but before Ibuki could answer, another guest stepped into the room and she ran off to greet them.
The others filtered in rather quickly after that. Mahiru and Hiyoko showed up together, dressed as Supergirl and a witch. Shortly after that was Nekomaru, as a baseball player, and Byakuya a few moments later with a cape and fangs. Kazuichi showed up as a racecar driver, as he had said, and Hajime and Nagito came together, Hajime dressed in a simple demon costume, and Nagito wearing Hajime’s clothes.
(“That doesn’t count as a costume!” Ibuki had said, but Nagito replied, “It does. I’m dressed as a good person people genuinely want to be around.” And it made Ibuki laugh and Hajime blush, so she decided that it counted enough.)
Mikan came as a mummy, and shortly after she arrived Teruteru came into the room to drop off a platter of expertly cooked ham and vegetables, wearing a pair of gold rimmed sunglasses, a large purple fur coat, and a smug expression. Apparently he was a pimp, though the ones Peko knew never dressed like that.
Fuyuhiko and Byakuya showed up at the same time, Byakuya in what appeared to be a Totoro kigu and Fuyuhiko as a pirate, eyepatch and all.
As soon as he arrived, Fuyuhiko began looking around and only stopped once he found Peko. He smiled, but as soon as Ibuki started trying to play zombie with him he started scowling again, telling her that she sounded like a dumbass. It was amusing, from Peko’s perspective...some things would never changed, she thought.
Fuyuhiko didn’t approach Peko immediately, though he kept glancing as her as he went to the sweets table and started grabbing a few things. Peko chose to get some more savory dishes, but eventually she joined him. She began to pick out a few treats, more for him than for herself. (He didn’t want anybody to know just how much of a sweet tooth he had, so Peko was used to taking some for herself and sneaking them to him at any opportunity.) There was, in fact, karinto, and both of them took a fair amount. They moved closer to each other as they gathered the sweets, until the were standing next to each other.
“I like your costume,” he said, eyepatch flipped up so he wouldn’t miss anything good, “Should’ve known it’d be a rabbit, I guess.”
“Thank you,” she spoke softly, “Sonia is very good with costumes, she showed me what to do for this one.”
“Yeah? I’d thank her, but...that’d be weird of me,” he laughed, and Peko smiled at him in return.
They spent a good portion of the night near each other, though at times Fuyuhiko would go off to talk with Hajime and Komaeda, or Peko would go talk to Sonia and Gundham. The conversation was light, easier than usual because for once, Peko was not the Tool and Fuyuhiko was not the Master. They were just two kids, enjoying Halloween with their friends, laughing and having snacks and listening to Ibuki play music.