pokebox | LOCKED TO ardent

LOCKED TO ardent

The first thing he noticed was the off-white ceiling and plain walls. It didn't occur to him that there was anything weird about that for a minute or so, instead he sat up, glancing around at the unfamiliar room. The bed he was lying in wasn't particularly hard or soft - not as comfy as the one at Hope's Peak, but it wasn't uncomfortable either - and there was a desk beside the bed with a set of clothes, a note, and two red-and-white balls. Mondo reached for one of the balls without thinking, only stopping himself when his memories of the previous days came flooding back like a tidal wave.

Fujisaki. How could he forget, even for a moment? Fujisaki had come to him, seeking help, expressing a desire to become stronger, and what had he done? He'd blacked out. No, that wasn't right - he'd blacked out and killed the kid. Mondo's fists clenched and he drew his hand back. That's right, then there had been a trial, just like the first time someone was found murdered in Hope's Peak Academy. Monobear had called them all down there and they had gone over the evidence. Well, if by "they" he meant Naegi, Kirigiri, and that jackass Togami. First they had outed Fukawa as Genocider Syo, then they'd blamed Togami for altering the crime scene, and then...

...And then the truth had come out. If he hadn't been so careless with what he was saying, Fujisaki's secret would have been safe and he wouldn't have hurt Ishimaru, his aniki. Of course he had noticed the way Ishimaru reacted - the screaming, the denial, the tears, the desperation - and Ishimaru had voted for someone else. Even when he had acknowledged his defeat, Ishimaru hadn't. Ishimaru had believed in him until the very end - but he shouldn't have. He had betrayed not only Fujisaki's trust, but Ishimaru's as well.

It was a good thing he hadn't gotten away with murder though. Mondo doubted he could have lived with himself if he had. Even the execution wasn't that bad - from what little he remembered of it. It could have been worse; he could have been chained to a signpost and bludgeoned to death by millions of baseballs. He still had nightmares about Leon's death. He didn't even know Leon all that well. No, Mondo's death had been relatively quick and he'd gotten to ride a motorcycle one last time. There was something freeing about that, something he doubted he could ever really put into words. His last action had been his favorite. Maybe that was suiting.

So why was he here? Why was he waking up? He was dead, he was sure of that. He was equally sure that this wasn't Hope's Peak. There weren't any windows in the room, which meant that he could be underground, but he doubted Monobear would have let him live after the murder. He hadn't gotten away with it; he hadn't "graduated." So where was he?

Mondo finally got up, snatching the note off the top of the clothes folded on the desk. There was a large, red "R" on the shirt front, but Mondo ignored that for the time being to scan the note. Apparently he was now working for an organization known as "Team Rocket." That title meant nothing to him and he set the note aside, picking up the clothes next. It was a very standard uniform that looked like it would be way too tight-fitting for his taste and Mondo set that aside as well. Finally, he picked up the red-and-white balls, turning them in his hands curiously. He wasn't a Super High-School Level Baseball Player, but he might be able to use them as weapons if he needed to. He tucked those in his pocket and turned to the door. He expected it to be locked. It wasn't.

The hallway was just as nondescript as the room, though the ceilings were a bit low for his liking. Mondo picked a direction at random and started down the hallway, absently wondering if he could find some way back outside. It felt like it had been a long time since he had seen the sun.

He was stopped on his way by a shorter, scrawny man wearing that uniform (yeah, it definitely looked like it would have been too tight on him). The man frowned at him and pointed one gloved finger down the opposite hallway. "You should be heading to your first day of training! Why aren't you in uniform?"

"Fuck off," Mondo replied, shoving the smaller man out of his way. The guy definitely looked older, so he could assume that this wasn't the school. No one else was in the school after all, right? Just the fifteen of them - well, eleven of them now (did he even count anymore?) - and the person controlling Monobear. Mondo brushed that thought aside; this wasn't the school. That was what he would focus on.

He didn't find his way out. His sense of direction had always been good, but that was on the roads, in the open air. He had always gotten turned around in Hope's Peak as well, but never like this. He couldn't believe he'd managed to wander in a circle, finding himself back in front of the room he'd woken up in. Maybe this was some kind of trick; he couldn't move on until he'd gone to his first day of "training" or whatever.

The man in the Rocket uniform came walking down that hallway at just that moment. "Gotten yourself lost, huh?" He sneered. "Just follow this hallway and hook a left. The training facility's there. You'll meet the other new recruits and get started on your two weeks of training."

Two weeks? Like hell he was going to hang around for that long. Mondo rolled his eyes and followed the man's directions, ignoring the shout for him to get back and change his clothes.

The training facility was more decorated than the hallways or the room, and well-lit at that. There were several other young men (wearing that hideous uniform), all gathered in the center of the room, talking quietly. It looked like the instructor hadn't shown up yet. Mondo was tempted to leave, but this might be his best chance to get information on this place. He frowned for a moment, before walking up to join the others. He stood at least a head taller than them, which made him stick out even worse than the clothes he was wearing. Not that he cared.

"What's this "training" gonna consist of anyway?"

None of the other men seemed to know, and Mondo began to wonder just how badly things were going to go. It wasn't like it could be any worse than Enoshima being stabbed through by spears in the gym, right?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"And do you think I want to see you in pain because you think I can't handle it?! I'm enduring just as much in that school as anyone else; I've been in pain since this 'school term' started, I just see no point in complaining about it, especially when I have the rest of you to look after!"

His stance shifted into something decidedly more aggressive then, as opposed to the defensiveness from moments ago. "I make no secret of whatever pain I'm in, that's true, but I don't see a reason to hide how I feel from others! That doesn't mean that I can't handle it! Especially if it means that you won't have to try to handle it on your own! I have no doubt that you can, but the point is that you don't have to - I'm willing to handle whatever you throw at me!"

Mondo was silent, staring wide-eyed at Ishimaru for a long time. The cheerful ding! announced that they had reached the ground floor, and after a moment, Mondo got off the elevator. He wasn't trying to leave Ishimaru, but he needed to mull this over before he spoke.

Yes, he knew that Ishimaru was going through the same thing as the other students. He cared more about Ishimaru because the Super High-School Level Hall Monitor was his friend, but that didn't mean he didn't care about the others. He wanted to save them after all. But because of his title, Ishimaru felt the need to protect the rest of them, something that would undoubtedly stress him out.

What was really striking him was Ishimaru's assertion that Mondo could handle his own pain. That obviously wasn't true - not after what he did to Fujisaki - but the trust Ishimaru still placed in him was overwhelming.

Finally Mondo turned to Ishimaru, expression set in a determined smile. "You're right. We can both help each other out and there's no reason to keep anything from each other! We can handle this together! You can rely on me too, aniki!"

Ishimaru let Mondo leave the elevator before him, waiting for a few seconds before following him; there were a few reasons, the first being that that was...possibly the first time that he'd been honest with another person about how he felt in regards to his duties. He didn't feel like looking after the others was an obligation, and while he had been pleased that they'd split off into their own little groups and formed general alliances with one another - that was a good sign, he thought, and until a set started conspiring to kill the others he would continue to see it as a good sign - he hadn't had anyone, before Mondo, that he was close to himself. While normally he didn't mind that, it meant that the others would be able to support one another when things became difficult; he generally had no one to confide in, no one to talk to bluntly about how the entire thing was affecting him, and he was more or less left to handle it on his own. He knew that was just how the real world worked, and as such there was no reason to complain, especially when the others needed leadership of some sort - even if they didn't appreciate or want it, leadership was necessary to keep everyone together. It wouldn't be acceptable for him to complain or actually talk directly to others about his feelings; they made themselves plain enough with all the tears, but physical expressions and being able to talk about something were two different things.

It...troubled him, in ways, that that had slipped out so easily and so straightforwardly; Mondo managed to pull him out of his thoughts as he finally made his way off the elevator, moving toward the hallway his room was situated down.

"...Ah, I...!"

...aaaand the words Mondo used to do the aforementioned pulling-out-of-thoughts were completely and utterly unexpected, clearly.

"I...yes! The best way to get through hardship is through cooperation, trust and finding fortitude in one another! We'll get through this together; I'll stay with you, to hell and back!"

"Great! Though I doubt there's anything even resembling "hell" here. That was back home." Mondo laughed, though the sound was hollow.

He hadn't missed the way Ishimaru seemed to come out of his thoughts though, and after a moment, he addressed that. "You seemed pretty surprised. Were you thinking about something else?"

Well, whatever he had been expecting Mondo to say after, it plainly wasn't that, judging from his expression.

"No, I just...!"

He stopped himself, however; hadn't they just agreed to be more honest with one another? "I shouldn't have spoken as I did just now about our situation back home. I take pride in what I do, and hard work always has its rewards; I shouldn't complain about it, and I shouldn't act as though my responsibilities to all of you are hindering me by preventing me from complaining in the first place."

That...wasn't exactly it, but it was easier to explain it that way than to admit what he was actually thinking; besides all of that was true, as far as he was concerned, so it wasn't as though he was lying, was it?

"I know what you mean," Mondo said with a nod. "It sucks not being able to complain about shit around other people, but that's what a leader's gotta do. They have to hold it together for everyone else." He was very glad that he wasn't the "leader" of Hope's Peak's students. He wasn't sure he could deal with that.

"But that doesn't mean that you're not allowed to complain! We're here now, we're in no danger here. So it's fine to complain about the situation back home because it fucking sucks. Besides, you're allowed to talk to me about anything, aniki!"

And for a good moment Ishimaru just kind of stared at him; as much of a delinquent as Mondo may have been, he was a leader as well, wasn't he? Admittedly not in a way that Ishimaru necessary approved of, but at the same time, he would have some idea about how much responsibility it entailed, even if he went about handling it differently.

...At least he managed to refrain from tearing up yet again, though it was obvious from the slight catch in his voice that he was strongly considering.

"...Thank you, aniki, it...means a lot to me." He paused for a moment before grinning again. "I'll keep that in mind! It isn't something I'm used to, but if something is bothering me, I'll try to tell you!"

"Ah, hey, don't worry about it!" At least Ishimaru wasn't flat-out crying again... "You haven't had someone to talk to about shit like this before, aniki?" Ishimaru had said that he was his first friend, but surely Ishimaru had discussed things like this with other people, right? The disciplinary committee totally sat around talking shit about other students, right?

"No, of course not!" This wasn't a conversation he really wanted to have while standing around in the hallway, however; he was quick to start back to the room, gesturing for Mondo to come with. "People want solutions to their problems, they don't want to hear about mine! And besides, even if there was anything to complain about in my old school - and there usually wasn't - it would set a bad example for the rest of the students if anyone on the disciplinary committee were to complain about it so openly!"

Mondo followed, still baffled by what Ishimaru was saying. "So you didn't even complain in private? I would've thought the disciplinary committee would get together and bitch about the other students. You guys didn't do that?"

It was only just now starting to occur to Mondo that Ishimaru really had been telling the truth - he really was Ishimaru's first friend. Such simple things he took for granted hadn't been a part of Ishimaru's life until now. It was mind-blowing.

"I'm sure some of them did, but if the others had something to say, they would say it among themselves. If there was a valid problem it would be brought to me, if necessary, but idle gossip and excessive negativity weren't acceptable!"

...Well, that would certainly explain why they didn't shit-talk with Ishimaru...

"I see." Mondo said after a moment of thought. "Well, you don't have to worry about that here! You can always talk to me about it! It's good to get things like this of your chest, you know!"

The idea was...awkward, for some reason Ishimaru couldn't put into words; he quickly busied himself with unlocking his door once they got to it, grateful for the timing giving him an excuse to not have to look at Mondo when he replied. "Only if you're sure, aniki."

"Yeah, of course I am! It really sucks not being able to talk about the shit that's bothering you. It feels better getting it out there." He would know, he felt a hell of a lot better after discussing everything with Ishimaru. Naturally he'd never feel quite as good as he had before Hope's Peak, but that was to be expected. There's no going back after murder.

"Is something wrong?" Ishimaru reaction was pretty dull in comparison to most of his responses, so Mondo had to wonder. "You can talk to me about anything, aniki. It wouldn't bother me or anything."

Well, that got him to turn around rather quickly once he had the door open. "Ah - no, no, everything is fine!" Admittedly, this was accompanied by some light flailing that may have undermined his point a bit, but that was more through not knowing what to say than anything else. "There's nothing wrong, aniki, I'm just...very glad that we can talk like this. It will take some getting used to, that's all!"

...right, into the room then, now that that was out there. "Though I might ask something of you, if you really don't mind!"

Mondo didn't believe that for a second. If everything really was fine, Ishimaru wouldn't be giving him that nearly-horrified look. But his friend's question caught his attention, and Mondo chose to pursue that rather than point out how Ishimaru's words and actions weren't matching up. "Yeah? What is it? You know I'll do what I can for you, aniki."

"After some time, people tend to stop talking to me, even intentionally avoiding me, without giving me a reason why. Naegi-kun has made me realize that there are several shortcomings in my behavior that cause this; I've also been made aware that I have a tendency to upset people, I apparently have no sense of tact or what's appropriate to discuss casually, and I know that I'm seen as strange at best!"

All of that was delivered completely matter-of-factly; there weren't any tears or theatrics involved, just the normal - if still ridiculously high - level of volume. There wasn't any point in getting worked up over it; it was just the way things were.

"While I know you said I can tell you anything, should I do something wrong I would prefer you tell me about it rather than leaving me to wonder what I've done. You've always been blunt with me in the past; I don't think this will be too much to ask."

That was when it finally hit Mondo - Ishimaru had literally not had any friends before. Oh sure, he had believed Ishimaru, but the idea was so ridiculous that he couldn't even fully process it. Now he understood. To be perfectly honest, he kind of wished he didn't.

"I'm not going to leave you, aniki!" He protested immediately, reaching out to grab Ishimaru's shoulders again. "I wouldn't do that to you!" Maybe Ishimaru didn't realize how important the bond of brotherhood was to Mondo, but leaving someone behind who he called a "brother" was completely preposterous. Mondo would never do something like that.

"I don't think I'll ever have any problems with you like that. I mean, sure you can be a bit... odd sometimes, but it's not that big of a deal." He paused, thinking about it for a moment. "But if anything does come up - and I really can't see that happening - then yeah, I promise I'll talk to you about it. I won't leave you, aniki. I promise, as a man."

That sort of gesture would likely never fail to startle him; Ishimaru flinched as Mondo gripped his shoulders, but he didn't try to pull back or shove Mondo off of him, either. He simply remained where he was - of course he was still looking as though he was, indeed, questioning why this, but it wasn't distressing him enough to try to move away from it.

It took a little while for the words to sink in; they nearly brought him to tears again when they did, but he managed to choke the reaction back for now - having been in this world for so long had at least ensured that he could do that some of the time, at least.

That didn't stop the fact that he was shaking, however.

"...Good. That...it means a lot to me, and I know that I can trust you! I just had to be certain."

The fact that Ishimaru didn't burst into tears wasn't lost on Mondo, but he wasn't really sure what to make of it. This world really had changed Ishimaru. "Of course you can trust me! And from now on don't assume any shit like that, you got it? I'm never gonna ditch you! I would never do something like that to you!"

"A-Aniki..." He swallowed hard, but again, he didn't cry. "I could never explain to you how important this is to me, how important your friendship itself is to me..."

He shook his head; he was still trembling a bit, but he seemed to recover at least somewhat. "You can consider all of that returned - I promise I won't leave you, no matter what happens!"

"I appreciate it." Mondo said, grinning. "I'm really proud to have a friend like you, aniki!" That much was true; Ishimaru wasn't anything like most of Mondo's friends, but they say opposites attract and all that!

...Except for the "attracting" part, obviously!!

...Something you'd like to share with the class there, Mondo?

"I hope to continue making you proud, aniki! But for now we should sleep, or at least attempt - like I said, I won't let us waste the day tomorrow!"

Nope not at all!!!

"Ah, yeah, good point! Can't have you brushing off your duties tomorrow too!" That was teasing though, and Mondo immediately removed the coat, throwing that over the back of the chair again. He kicked off his boots and flopped back on the bed, resting his hands on his stomach again. "I really appreciate your help, aniki."

Good man!!!

Ishmaru's boots took a bit longer to deal with, what with the high laces and everything; he settled himself on the side of the bed while he undid them, glancing over his shoulder at Mondo as he did so. "How many times do I have to tell you that's what I'm here for?" He didn't sound displeased, however, his expression light. "Don't worry, aniki, I'm here for you, all right?"

LOCKED TO ardent

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