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1
Fuyuhiko could recognize that he had made a mistake. A very big mistake. Maybe there really was a reason his parents didn’t let him and his sister wander around by themselves.
Sure, he knew he was the son of the leader of the biggest Yakuza clan in the country or whatever, but was something really that bad going to happen if he went out just to explore. It was a new place, and he was curious. He didn’t even go that far out. Just a mile away at most. And he brought Peko with him. He was perfectly safe.
Or not.
Maybe he was just really unlucky.
Because along with the weirdly colored flowers and cute animals that always ran away when Peko got close too quickly, they saw two burly guys with guns coming their way too. And they definitely didn’t look friendly.
Peko pointed them out to him and grabbed his arm before taking off in the other direction. It scared him how quickly her expression changed from being disappointed about the rabbit that ran away to a determined glint. With one look behind him, Fuyuhiko could understand why. The two men were quickly chasing after them, guns pointed out. He picked up his speed.
He was not going to sneak off from his parents without permission ever again. He might be born into a Yakuza family, but he definitely didn’t know how to defend himself against two huge guys with guns. They were like three times his height and had weapons.
And that definitely gave them an advantage because soon they were right behind them. There was no way they could outrun them at this point.
Stupid. Your great idea is going to get not only you but Peko killed too. There was no way Fuyuhiko could hold off these two for even the amount of time it would take Peko to escape. Maybe they would just let her go. She wasn’t the one they were after. It was him. They wouldn’t hurt some random kid, right?
Who was he kidding? If they were going after him in the first place, they probably didn’t care.
But that didn’t mean he couldn’t hope, right?
Peko looked behind her, and seemed to recognize that there was no way to outrun them. Her eyes narrowed dangerously and she pushed Fuyuhiko away further before turning around and drawing her sword.
“What are you doing?” He shouted.
The two men stopped in front of them and smiled crookedly.
“Don’t worry Young Master,” Peko replied calmly. “I’ll protect you.”
“Idiot. Run away. They’re after me not you.”
Peko set her feet down into position and raised her sword towards the men. They looked at her and laughed before one of the guys put his gun away. The other one pointed the pistol straight towards Fuyuhiko.
“That’s cute girly, but we’re after the Yakuza brat. You can just run off. Unless you want to die too,” one of the men laughed.
Peko glared at the man with enough ferocity that the two men faltered for a second. “Letting me leave doesn’t sound wise. I know what both of you look like after all.”
Fuyuhiko lightly bonked her on the back of the head. “What are you doing?” He hissed. “Run.”
Peko looked towards him for a second and her gaze softened slightly. “I can not do that Young Master. This is my duty as your tool.”
Fuyuhiko held himself back from yelling. “Then as my tool, I’m telling you to run. Are you going to disobey orders.”
Peko frowned conflicted and looked at him upset. Fuyuhiko slightly felt bad, but whatever it took to get Peko to safety. Thinking that his plan worked out he stepped forward and gave the two men the meanest glare her could.
He knew he was going to lose, but he had enough pride that he wouldn’t go down without at least some semblance of a fight.
But before he knew what was happening, he heard the sound of a gunshot and saw Peko standing in front of him. And before he could even say her name in horror, she sped forward and slashed her sword through both men, killing them instantly.
And then she fell with a hand over her stomach and the other tightly gripping her blade.
It took a few seconds even after that for Fuyuhiko to finally call out to her and run over to her side.
“Peko!”
He crouched down next to her and slipped off his jacket trying to make some bad substitute for gauze. He quickly tied it tightly around the bullet wound to stop the bleeding. Peko looked up at him tiredly.
“Stupid. Why would you do that?” Fuyuhiko scolded.
“It’s my job Young Master.”
“I don’t care what your job is. Don’t get yourself hurt.”
Peko looked away sadly. “I’m sorry for hurting you Young Master?”
Fuyuhiko finished his work and looked at her surprised. “Hurting me? You’re the one hurt!” He sighed. “Just...thanks for protecting me I guess.”
Fuyuhiko positioned her to sit up. “I’m going to carry you back.”
“I can walk Young Master.”
“No.”
Fuyuhiko glared at her and she bowed her head. Fuyuhiko positioned her onto his back and began walking back to where his parents should be. There was a nurse there. Peko would be fine. He just needed to hurry.
That was the first time Fuyuhiko had ever seen Peko kill someone.
2
Fuyuhiko needed something sweet. It had been like a month since his secret stash of sweets had run out, and he couldn't find the opportunity to sneak out and buy more since. And he definitely couldn't ask Peko.
Of course, Fuyuhiko shouldn't feel the need to sneak out. All of his classmates were his friends or some shit Yukizome sensei told them. But Fuyuhiko had a reputation of being a fierce Yakuza. He wasn't going to ruin it for something stupid like this.
Maybe he could tell Hanamura to make something and then lie and say it was for someone else. Peko would cover his lie. No. No. He could not ask Peko. Peko was just another student at this school. He wouldn't use her for something like this.
They were just classmates.
Just classmates.
Stop thinking about it.
He needed to find some way to sneak out. He couldn't skip class, and someone always roped him into some nonsense when they didn't have class, and the stores were closed at night.
He just needed to sneak something back to his dorm without anyone at this school noticing. Why was this so hard?!
But he finally got the opportunity. No class, and he snuck out before he got dragged into anything. Now he just needed to head to the closest grocery store and grab as many as he could get his hands on.
And he did. And he might have gone a little overboard because his price total was higher than he planned and he had four bags filled. Oh well. It would just last him longer. It would be a pain carrying them all back though.
But it was okay. This was worth it. This was definitely worth it. He just needed to make it back to his dorm without anyone he knew seeing him. Soon.
Something whizzed past his ear and Fuyuhiko quickly leaped over to the side and spun around to look at where it could have come from. Some women glared at him and she held out a long knife and hissed as she ran in his direction.
Fuck.
Fuyuhiko threw the bags in his right hand at her as he jumped back, pulling out the knife he kept on his person.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Why was she coming after him in broad daylight? Sure, there weren’t many people around on this street, but anyone could pop up at any moment. Was she planning to kill them too?
He wouldn’t let that fucking happen. There was any alley way close by. A short cut to the road near Hope’s Peak. If he cut through there fast enough he could get away. She couldn’t chase him once he was in the Academy’s territory. And he didn’t see any guns on her, so as long he kept enough distance…
How the fuck was she so fast?!
He quickly turned into the alleyway. He looked back quickly and threw the other two bags in his hand back at her. She easily dodged them and stayed hot on his trial.
Shit.
Faster. Run faster.
“Ah.”
Huh?
He risked a look behind him, and instead of seeing the woman from before chasing after him, he saw Peko holding her bamboo sword with the woman sprawled across on the ground. Fuyuhiko turned around and ran up to stop in front of her.
“Pe...Peko?”
“She is just unconscious Young Master. Do not worry?”
“That’s not what I’m worried about. What are you doing here?”
Peko tilted her head and swung her sword onto her back. “I saw you leaving the Academy, so I followed after you.”
What?
“Weren’t you supposed to be with Sonia today?”
“Yes. But I cancelled when I saw you sneaking out.”
Fuyuhiko sighed and slapped his forehead. “I thought I told you that we’re just classmates now. You shouldn’t be following after me.”
“But I am your tool Young Master. It is my job to protect you.”
“Goddamn it Peko! You’re not just my tool!” He sighed again. This wasn’t the time or place to be having this conversation. He wasn’t going to get rid of years of his parents words embedding that into her head just by yelling at her now. Maybe if he had done something sooner…
“Let’s just get going,” he said.
Peko nodded and stepped over the woman still lying on the ground. They walked a few steps before Peko stopped.
He turned around towards her. “What is it?”
“Did you not want to pick up your groceries?”
Fuyuhiko looked behind her at the spilled bags. He supposed he might as well pick up the ones that were close by.
“I guess…”
Fuyuhiko’s eyes widened as the woman jumped up back onto her feet and sprung at the two of them. Peko turned around sensing it reaching for her sword.
No. It would be too late. She was too close.
Fuyuhiko pushed Peko away and raised his arm over his face a millisecond before the lady swung down her knife. The knife cut deep into his arm and over his chest before Peko jumped at the woman. Fuyuhiko backed away with a hiss applying pressure onto his arm to stop the blood flow as much as possible.
Damn that hurt.
Peko stood up from the woman a fierce glare on her face. “Should I kill her?”
Fuyuhiko looked down at the woman unconscious on the ground. If he was his father, he wouldn’t have spared her even the first time. And he was supposed to be heir, but…
“Just leave her. Come on.” He hissed as he moved. “We should find Tsumiki”
Peko looked over at him, and it was as if she was just now processing that he was injured. Her expression quickly morphed from hatred into concern as she rushed forward to his side.
“Yes Young Master. I will get you there as quickly as possible.”
And before Fuyuhiko knew what was happening, Peko had picked him up bridal style and started running towards Hope’s Peak.
“Hey!” He shouted. “What the fuck is this? I can walk perfectly fine!”
“No time,” Peko spoke with worry in her voice. Weird. She normally didn’t let emotions like that spill into her voice.
Fuyuhiko grumbled under his breath but didn’t complain. They got to the nurse’s office in a few minutes and Tsukimi screamed at their arrival before going full on nurse mode and patching him up.
Peko stayed by his side the whole time and then helped him to his dorm.
He laid down on his bed with a huff.
What a day. And he didn’t even get any sweets.
The next morning he opened his door to find a box full of fried cookie dough.
3
Peko had jumped in front of him before the Future Foundation member could attack. The rest of his followers quickly intercepted and pushed them away. He stared down at her injured body. He ordered one of his members to go take care of her.
If she wanted to be his tool, who was he to stop her.
He smiled at the pain in his heart as Peko was carried away.
It didn’t matter. None of this mattered.
4
He was an idiot. He was such a fucking idiot.
What the hell was he thinking when he decided to talk to Koizumi? Was he expecting that to go well? With his temper?
He should have either made sure Peko wasn't there, or he should of just not done it.
And now look what his stupid thoughts of revenge had gotten him. Koizumi was dead, and Peko was surrounded by Monokuma's stupid dolls being controlled like a damned puppet.
And it was all his fault for being a goddamn idiot.
This was his fault. His fault. His fault.
He was not going to let Peko just get killed for his own stupidity. He could hear everyone behind him call out as he rushed forward.
He didn't care. He didn't care if this was hopeless. He didn't care if he ended up dying too. He deserved to die anyway. This was his own fault. And there was no way he would just let Peko die! She didn't deserve this. She deserved to have a happy future and live her own life.
She didn't deserve to die in this fucked up execution. And maybe, just maybe if Fuyuhiko died instead, Monokuma would let Peko live.
He should have expected Monokuma to know what he was doing.
Peko practically flew over towards him and slashed her sword up cutting at his face. It hurt. It really fucking hurt.
But whatever as long as...as long as Peko…
What was she doing? Why did she stop moving? Fight the things. Run away. You're the Ultimate Swordswoman. Just run. Please run!
The enemies came closer and Peko hugged him close as the swords pierced through her.
None of the stabs or cuts hurt anywhere near as much as the pain in his heart as she smiled at him for the last time.
5
It had been two years since they had woken up from the Neo World Program, and Fuyuhiko was proud of how much progress the world had made since then. Cities were being rebuilt and people began starting up some semblance of a normal life. The Future Foundation still had work to do, however. Though things were getting better, the fight wasn't over yet. But as long as things kept progressing as they were, maybe it would be soon.
That was true for him and his class...friends as well. It still scared him how much he had fallen until eventually becoming a Remnant of Despair. Getting his memories back after waking up was like a slap in the face. It was as if he understood how every step led to his eventual fall, but at the same time he couldn't believe it.
He supposed that much was to be expected when he was being pushed by the bitch whose talent was to literally play people like they were puppets on a string.
Nonetheless, things were better now. The memories of the evil acts they committed would stay with them for the rest of their lives, but as long as they also held onto the good memories they could keep moving forward. And he supposed the whole talking about his problems thing helped too. Whatever.
"Fuyuhiko? I think this is it."
He snapped out his thoughts at the sound of Peko's voice. He looked over at the building they were standing in front of.
This was indeed the place. Oreki Cafe. The popular one that all of the Future Foundation members were talking about. Apparently they had the best desserts. He would be the judge of that.
Or well, he would be if he could calm his nerves down enough to eat.
Seriously, what he so nervous about? It was just him and Peko. On a date.
Date.
No. It didn't matter that this was their first official date or whatever. He's known Peko for his whole life. There was no way he could mess up more than she had already seen before or worse. No way.
But...but…
This was their first official date. They had both finally decided that they had made enough recovery to at least start slow. He couldn't fuck this up. If he messed up, Peko would decide to hold it off longer. Or forever.
"Fuyuhiko?" Peko repeated.
He needed to focus!
"Sorry. I zoned out."
Peko looked him over with a worried look. "Are you feeling alright? We can postpone if you don't."
He quickly shook his head. "No. No. I'm fine. Let's go in. I can't wait to see what they have!"
The date didn't even start yet, and he had already messed up. Focus Fuyuhiko. Focus.
Don't fuck this up.
The two of them walked into the cafe and one of the waiters led them to a table near one of the windows. They sat down across from each and Fuyuhiko did his best to try and look away. The waiter placed two menus down in front of them and told them to ring once they knew what they wanted before leaving to attend to other customers.
Fuyuhiko opened the menu and began looking over the contents. According to Naegi's little sister, they had the best strawberry shortcake apparently, so that was somewhere to start. Peko seemed to have the same idea since they both ended up ordering it and some green tea.
The waiter took their menus and walked away. Now they wait for their orders. And they were supposed to...talk? That's what people did on dates.
Alright talk. That was easy. Peko and him talked all the time.
…
…
What were they supposed to talk about?!
Why was this so fucking hard?!
"Are you sure you're alright?" Peko asked with a worried look.
Shit. She was starting to notice him acting weird. What to do? What to do?
"I'm fine. Just thinking," he answered.
Of course he was thinking. What else would he be doing sitting in silence and staring out the window? Good job dumbass.
"If you're sure. You look worried about something."
This was a disaster. A huge disaster.
"Just uh…"
Think of an excuse. Come on!
"Are you nervous? About our date?" Peko asked.
"What...How did you know?"
Peko looked him over and frowned. "I've known you your whole life. I think I can at least guess a few things."
Of course.
"But if that is what's bothering you," she continued, "may I ask why?"
Oh great. Oh no. She could read him too well. Well, shit.
"Umm...I…"
Fuyuhiko looked away from he. He looked around the cafe trying to look anywhere but at Peko's face. That's when he saw someone pull out a knife from the table next to them.
Fuyuhiko watched as they jumped out of their chair and aimed the knife straight towards Peko. He pushed himself over the table as Peko stared in shock before jumping out of her chair in the other direction. The knife stabbed into his side and slashed out as he fell to the ground gripping his side.
Other customers screamed at the display, and the staff tried to lead them out the door as one of them was at the phone dialing for someone. Fuyuhiko pushed himself up and watched Peko grab a fork and small knife from off the nearby table and block the assailants attacks.
A waitress jumped up behind the assailant and grabbed them from behind to restrict their movements. He struggled in surprise as Peko quickly disarmed the knife from his hand and helped the waitress pin him to the ground.
Future Foundation guards soon showed up and restrain the man before one stopped next to him.
"We have someone hurt," the member called out to the others.
Fuyuhiko hissed as he leaned himself against the table. Peko crouched down next to him and lifted his hand off the wound quickly assessing the damage.
"It's not too deep. But it's bleeding a lot," she stated.
The member nodded and got up before rushing away. Fuyuhiko didn't look to see where he went.
"We get in too much trouble," Peko mumbled slipping off her cardigan. She wrapped it around his injury swiftly and tightly tied it to slow the bleeding.
"Sorry. I ruined our date," Fuyuhiko mumbled.
Just his luck.
"We'll just have to try again."
"Huh?"
Peko paused and gave him a strange look. "I still want to try their strawberry shortcake. So we'll try again." Peko smiled. "And besides. We've made it through worse."
Right. They had made it through worse.
"You're an idiot you know," Peko continued.
"What?"
"You were worried that I wouldn't want to come with you again. I've been with you almost our whole lives. There's almost no stupid thing that you could do that would change my feelings."
Fuyuhiko felt heat rise to his face, and he almost forgot the pain in his gut for a moment. Of course Peko would figure him out that easy. And of course she would tell him what he needed to hear.
"Yeah. I am an idiot. My feeling won't change either. I was worried over something stupid."
Peko nodded her head as a paramedic crouched down beside her and started looking at his wound.
"Yes," Peko smiled. "Because we're...partners."
Yeah. They were partners.
And nothing would change that.
+1
The attack came out of nowhere. It smacked him straight in the chest and face, and he fell to the ground in a distorted heap.
Peko rushed over. She crouched near him, setting her weapon down at her side.
"Are you alright?" She asked.
Fuyuhiko looked up at her and sighed. "I think...no."
Peko looked down at him and gasped. "Don't worry. I'll get you to a doctor…"
Fuyuhiko grasped her hand. "No. It's...it's too late. You need to stop her and…"
The culprit giggled at their exchange. He couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe that she was laughing. Here he was, dying in the love of his life's arms and she was laughing. The betrayal.
Peko grasped his hand back. "No! You have to hold it together! Fuyuhiko!"
"It's too late for me Peko. You need to save everyone else. Please."
Peko looked down at him and clenched her eyes shut as she turned away.
He smiled up at her. "I love you."
Peko opened her eyes and smiled back. "I love you too."
And with that, Fuyuhiko shut his eyes and limped into Peko's arms. Peko let out a quiet sob as she set him down on the floor. She turned towards the culprit who was still quietly giggling a few feet away. She slowly stood up, aiming her weapon.
"How dare you? Your own Father?! It seems I have no choice but to stop you now. I... am sorry."
Fuyuhiko slightly opened his eyes to see Peko rush over towards their still giggling five year old and lightly strike her with the pillow in her hands. She then dropped the pillow and picked her up, spinning her around before dropping her onto the couch.
"This is the end," Peko announced dramatically. "Any final words?"
"You might beat me here," their kid, Hikari, shouted pretending to be in pain as she stood up, "but this is not the end! My people will win!"
And with that she fell onto the couch and closed her eyes.
Fuyuhiko sat up with a laugh of his own at the dramatic display and clapped his hands. Peko and Hikari joined in on the laughter for a few minutes before Hikari yawned.
"And now it's time for bed," Peko announced.
Their daughter complained for a minute before yawning again and nodding her head. Peko then scooped her up and walked over to the bathroom to get her to brush her teeth.
Fuyuhiko smiled as he stood up and picked up the pillows scattered around their living room.
As he was carrying them back to the spare closet, his eyes looked out the nearby window. The sun had already set and stars were now twinkling overhead along with a half Moon. A few people were walking around outside the apartment complex and lights were on every other window.
There were people smiling, shops open, clear skies, and...well, life.
It was amazing how much things had changed over his life and while a lot of it was bad, a lot of it was good too. And he wasn't going to complain about where he ended up. If this was how things were going to be, he supposed, that maybe, everything would turn out alright.
He snapped out of his daze when something smacked his back. He dropped the pillows in his hands and stumbled forward while turning around with a glare. Peko looked back at him, pillow in her hand and a smirk on her face.
"Peko?"
"Ready your weapon," she ordered with a smile. "It is time we battle!"
Fuyuhiko laughed as he picked up one of the pillows from the ground. Was he going to lose? Probably. But he wasn't going to go down without a fight.
"You're on!" He shouted back.
They stared at each other for a second before taking off and swinging their pillows. They ran around the house, swinging and dodging, trying to keep their laughter as quiet as possible to allow their daughter to sleep.
Yeah. Things somehow turned out alright.