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Chapter Text

Kokichi Ouma didn't exist until six months ago. He'd put his old name behind him, just like his life. With the birth of the name came the metaphorical rebirth of the person. He loved his name and held it with pride. A new school also meant that no one would know him as anyone else.

By sheer luck, though not by the lottery that had been abolished years ago, Kokichi was to be a student at the prestigious Hope's Peak Academy, a first year. As the Ultimate Supreme Leader, no less!

Kokichi tightened the belt wrapped around his left leg to match the right, simply there as an accessory with no practical purpose but to look cool. His uniform was a near direct copy of the costumes he and his group of friends wore, minus his signature cape, mask, and hat.

Getting the belt adjusted to not fall off or cut off circulation, he hopped up from his bed and did a little twirl in front of the mirror. Perfect!

Kokichi grabbed his bag and headed downstairs. "I'm ready to go, mama!"

"Alright baby, one moment." A short woman, though not as short as her son, grabbed her purse and two paper bags. Her plum-colored hair was tied up in a ponytail, and despite the icy blue color, her eyes were warm as always. "Are you sure you have everything?" His mother, Yua Ouma, asked.

"Of course, I double-checked!"

"And you're alright taking the subway home? I'll be back by six, but you know you can call me if you need anything." Yua handed him a bag. "Your lunch, don't look until then, alright?"

"Awe, okay." Kokichi pouted, and they headed out.

Once they arrived at Hope's Peak, Yua kissed Kokichi's forehead. "Have a good day, baby, try to make some friends if you can."

Kokichi jumped out of the car, a smile on his face. His mom was optimistic, sure, but it wasn't her fault. It was sweet that she loved her son so much that she couldn't imagine how anyone could not. It was hard for him to make friends, though, considering his personality didn't often mesh with others. His life-long friend group, DICE, was enough for him anyway.

Yua got out, too. "One second." She snapped a picture on her phone. "There we are, I'll see you tonight. Be safe." She left.

He seriously couldn't believe Hope's Peak was a high school. It looked like a college campus, based on how big and expensive it was. It even had dorm rooms for students who lived far away! Kokichi was lucky enough to only live twenty minutes from school and have a mom who worked nearby and could drive him in the mornings.

Ugh, it was only just settling in that he was going to a private school. Gross. He always made fun of people who paid for schools before college. Just for some fancy uniforms and bragging rights. He would continue to, Hope's Peak was a little different considering it was only accessible by scholarship and couldn't be applied to normally. No, wait, that actually made it worse.

At least it didn't look like a prep school on the inside. Well, empty, it might, but full of students, it was clear that the rules were more lax than pretty much anywhere else in the country, save schools that just didn't care.

Kokichi really doubted that there was a dress code. People seemed to wear whatever they wanted to accessorize their uniforms, which were tailored to match each individual. They weren't required, though, so a few upperclassmen didn't seem to be wearing them at all.

Considering this was a school that focused on honing talents, Kokichi wondered what they'd do for him. Since he wasn't sure how his talent even made the cut. Supreme Leader was just a title. The reality was that he played leader in the games he and his friends would play, and it stuck. They called him "boss" and "leader" as a joke. All he really had going for him was quick thinking and charisma that he didn't normally use if he didn't have to. It didn't warrant being called a talent, but that didn't mean he had any intention of passing up the opportunity to go to a school that would supposedly guarantee him success in life.

Five minutes before the start of class, Kokichi walked into the classroom of people he'd be spending the next three years with. Thirteen people now, himself included, meant that three were yet to arrive. Three rows, six chairs each, plus the teacher's desk. Middle row against the wall was a safe choice to draw attention when he wanted, and avoid it when he didn't.

One of the nice things about going here, Kokichi figured, was that no one knew each other from the start. Everyone in the room was a stranger to everyone else. The more extroverted students were talking, of course, but that was expected. Kokichi wasn't introverted by any means, but he didn't go out of his way just for a little conversation. People in the back row weren't as talkative, a few even with unapproachable auras.

There were some he recognized, naturally, seeing as they were the best and brightest of their age. Kaede Akamatsu, a famous pianist. Angie Yonaga, an artist, Miu Iruma, right in front of him, she was an inventor, apparently.

A boy walked in two minutes to the bell, with a hat obscuring his face. He shuffled to an empty seat in the back. From his posture alone, Kokichi could tell that this guy didn't feel like he belonged. He couldn't say he recognized him, but he assumed that there was a reason behind it.

Minute left, a guy that struck him as the exact opposite of the previous walked in, front row. He radiated overbearing friendliness, wore his jacket on only one arm(which looked dumb), and struck up a conversation before he even sat down. Kokichi already didn't like him.

Whoever the last person was had to be a character, showing up late on the first day at the most prestigious school in the country.

Their teacher seemed to walk in with the bell, a tall, slim man who appeared in his late thirties or early forties.

"Hello students, my name is Hiroto Murata, and as I'm sure you've guessed, I'll be your teacher for the next three years. Now, in regards to the last student to arrive, they are on their way from the office and for today are exempt from being counted as tardy." A knock sounded at the door of the classroom. "That must be them."

The door was opened to reveal a person who looked strikingly...metallic? Kokichi's interest was certainly piqued.

"Well, that's everyone. Let's get on to introductions then, shall we? Name, pronouns, and talent, everyone! I'm Hiroto Murata, as you know, he/him."

"My name is K1-B0, the Ultimate Robot, they/he. But please call me Kiibo. I understand why my talent may put some metaphorical distance between us, but I hope that soon you will see me as nothing more than your classmate, or even friend."

Holy shit, a robot? They nodded and took the empty seat beside Kokichi. Which was probably a mistake.

"I'm Kaede Akamatsu, the Ultimate Pianist, she/her! I'd love to become friends with all of you if possible." Sheesh, outgoing much?

"Kaito Momota, Luminary of the Stars. Ultimate Astronaut. And uh, he/him, I guess?" Kokichi hated him even more. Kaito totally gave off dumb jock with a heart of gold vibes. Gross. And how the hell was he an astronaut at fifteen?

"My name is Kirumi Tojo, she/they, and I'm the Ultimate Maid. If you ever need anything, I would be happy to help." She seemed polite, Kokichi didn't mind her.

"Miu Iruma, she/her, Ultimate Inventor! But you dickheads already know that!" Miu barked out. The teacher told her to watch the profanity, and she just scoffed.

"Me next!" Kokichi shot up. "I'm Kokichi Ouma, he/him, and I'm the Ultimate Supreme Leader of a top-secret evil organization made up of over 10,000 people!" He dropped back down in his chair with a self-satisfied smirk. Quite a few people were whispering about it.

The boy with the hat he'd seen earlier stood up. "I'm Shuichi Saihara, he/him, and I'm the Ultimate Detective. Ouma-Kun, I'm not a full-fledged detective by any means, and I'm not sure I deserve the title of ultimate, but I've never heard of any organization that matches that description."

"Duh, 'cause it's top secret! Nishishi!" Kokichi giggled. Shuichi seemed like he wanted to say something else, but he didn't have the chance.

"What's up, I'm Rantaro Amami, he/him, Ultimate Adventure." A green-haired boy from the front said. He seemed to interrupt deliberately to dissolve any tension. Shuichi looked embarrassed and sat back down.

Angie Yonaga, she/her, Ultimate Artist.

Korekiyo, aka Kiyo, Shinguji, he/him, the Ultimate Anthropologist.

Tenko Chabashira, she/her, Ultimate Neo-Aikido Master.

Gonta Gokuhara, he/him, Ultimate Entomologist.

Himiko Yumeno, she/her, Ultimate Mage.

Tsumugi Shirogane, she/her, Ultimate Cosplayer.

Ryoma Hoshi, he/him, Ultimate Tennis Player.

Maki Harukawa, she/her, Ultimate Assassin.

A wide range of people, by the end Kokichi wasn't the one everybody was wary of. That award went to Maki, hands down. So, there were at least two murderers in the room. How fun.

All in all, it was a pretty uneventful day. Kokichi bugged people, of course. They learned that next week they'd start personalized courses meant to tailor their talents. With specific tutors for each of them. It was a new program, introduced only five years prior. And it sounded pretty dumb and like a waste of money.

At lunch, Kokichi saw that his mom had packed something pretty normal, but with a little note saying that she loved him. It was a simple gesture but made him smile like an idiot nonetheless.

After school ended, a few students headed home, most back to dorms they'd stayed in over the weekend too. So some people did know each other already after all, but they weren't close. Kaede and Shuichi had seemed to hit it off, which was a surprise considering what little he knew about their personalities clashed. Maybe that was what started it, though.

The subway ride was as boring as a subway ride could be, and the fifteen-minute walk to his house was too. Kokichi played video games for the next couple of hours until his mom got home.

"Hey, mama!" Kokichi hugged her after she put down her bags.

Yua, laughed, hugging him back, and kissed the top of his head. "Hi baby, how was school?"

"Good! There's a robot in my class, isn't that awesome!? Like, an actual sentient and shit robot!" He bounced on his heels excitedly.

"Really? That is cool. You'll be nice, won't you?"

"Yeah yeah, I'll try. What's in the bag?"

"Well, I thought I'd pick up food to celebrate your first day."

"Woohoo!" Kokichi cheered.

They talked about the day while eating, Kokichi told her about the rest of his classmates and the teacher.

"Mama, can I keep my hair dyed for all of high school? I really really like it purple." Kokichi asked, twirling a piece of hair around his finger.

"Of course, it suits you. I planned on it anyway unless you'd changed your mind."

"Nah, black hair is boring anyway. You have the best hair color, and I'm your son so it should be the same!"

"You're my son no matter what color your hair is, Kokichi." Yua ruffled his hair lightly. "But if it makes you happy, we'll touch it up now and then."

"Yay!" Kokichi giggled. "And I know all of that. You're stuck with me, have been ever since you signed your soul away to me."

"Good. It's late now baby, we've been talking for a while, why don't you head up to bed?"

"Awe, alright." Kokichi pouted, and they hugged before he headed to bed.

He might actually enjoy high school. Things were finally looking up.

Chapter Text

Shuichi didn't belong at a place like Hope's Peak Academy, a place for the exceptional. He wasn't even a real detective, he'd just solved a case by accident a couple of years ago. He'd met some of the other students, a star pianist, a painter who could make a masterpiece with ease, as well as an anthropologist and an adventurer who'd traveled all over the world. He didn't belong with people like this. It was a fluke in the system. He would've dropped out if his uncle hadn't convinced him to go. And now there was no backing out.

Shuichi spent most of his weekend hiding in his new dorm, reading. He liked the dorms well enough, they were spacious and he'd had time to decorate seeing as he hadn't left for longer than to eat. Well, he hadn't decorated much, he just shelved his frankly unreasonable number of books ranging from mystery to fantasy to autobiographies. Mainly mystery. That was how he'd solved that case. He'd seen a similar scenario in a novel, and simply remembered and pointed it out. No amount of reassurance from his uncle, or anyone else, could convince him that it wasn't a massive coincidence.

Aside from that, it was clothing, a few personal belongings, and general essentials. He didn't have much in the way of actual décor.

On the morning of his first class, Shuichi found himself awake at five with only three hours of sleep. His anxiety was running rampant, and the insomnia medication he took had barely done anything. Still, without it, he doubted he'd have gotten any sleep at all. So, shower done and dressed for the day, he sat on his bed tapping his foot, watching the clock turn to 6:03. Breakfast started at seven, and his class was at eight. He jumped when his phone rang, and picked it up to see the caller ID. 'Uncle'. Was something wrong? It was early, why would his uncle be calling now?

"Is something wrong?" He asked anxiously.

"Clearly." He heard his uncle's laugh over the phone. "I know your alarm is for 6:15, and I also knew you'd be awake way before then. How much sleep did you get."

"Only three hours," Shuichi admitted.

"Better than nothing. Just promise you won't get used to it, kay?"

"Alright, I'll try," He sighed.

"I've got to head to work, just wanted to check in on you. Call me if you need anything, make some friends, and have fun. You're at Hope's Peak, make the most of it! Everyone is a stranger starting off. If things really don't feel right still in a couple of months, because I need you to give it some time, then I'll let you drop out. But you're a great detective kiddo, so don't let your head get in your way. Love you, I'll talk to you later."

"Love you too." His uncle hung up, and Shuichi laid back on his bed. He knew he was right, he was worrying too much, and things probably would be fine. Everyone else was telling him that he deserved this chance, so why didn't he believe it? Okay, he could do this.

Shuichi left the dorms with his phone and wallet, quickly changing into more casual clothing beforehand, opting to skip the school's breakfast today and head to a nearby coffee shop instead. He wouldn't survive the day without caffeine, and the cafeteria was too crowded and loud to relax.

Two blocks away, the atmosphere was nice and warm, with several people there, but no one seemed fully awake anyway. He ordered a black coffee and a blueberry muffin, which was his default the past two years on the way to junior high, and sat down at a booth near the window to eat.

Overall he spent close to an hour there, timing his getting back to the now lively school with fifteen minutes to spare. It wasn't hard within that time to get dressed and head to class, with two minutes remaining once he sat down. Most of the students were already there, and originally he had planned to be the first one there, but spending a lot of time waiting at his seat worrying would've made things worse. He went to the back, most other seats full, and sat beside a girl with blue hair he didn't remember being in the dorms prior. She might have been one of the three students who lived at home. The seat to his right was empty, but next to that was Maki Harukawa, someone he did remember. She gave off an unpleasant aura that told him to stay away, hence why he'd chosen where he did.

From what he could tell, all but two people were there. Thankfully he was feeling better by then, and as the bell rang, now one person missing, and the teacher informed them all briefly about the situation with the final student, he was only feeling a little anxious.

The student walked in soon after, and Shuichi was shocked to discover they were known as the Ultimate Robot. They seemed friendly though, and frankly, he wasn't sure he would be very shocked by anything in this academy.

As introductions got underway, Shuichi was starting to feel inadequate again because of how incredible some of their talents were. A robot, an astronaut, an inventor? He could never compare to that. One boy caught his attention in particular.

"Me next!" A short boy in white practically jumped out of his seat. "I'm Kokichi Ouma, he/him, and I'm the Ultimate Supreme Leader of a top-secret evil organization made up of over 10,000 people!" He seemed pretty proud of that, plopping back down into his seat after the supposed reveal of his talent.

Shuichi was confused, and his natural curiosity seemed to force him to question Kokichi. "I'm Shuichi Saihara, he/him, and I'm the Ultimate Detective. Ouma-Kun, I'm not a full-fledged detective by any means, and I'm not sure I deserve the title of ultimate, but I've never heard of any organization that matches that description." He was a bit embarrassed by his self-deprication accidentally slipping into his question.

"Duh, 'cause it's top secret! Nishishi!" The giggle annoyed Shuichi a bit, but the deliberate ignoring of the question stood out more.

"What's up, I'm Rantaro Amami, he/him, Ultimate Adventure." A bit flustered that someone had to intervene, Shuichi sat back down.

He half-tuned out the rest of the introductions, contemplating Kokichi Ouma. He could never seem to ignore a mystery, and that boy was most certainly a mystery if he'd ever seen one.

His train of thought didn't last long, facing the same shock and borderline horror at the fact that the girl sitting two seats from his was an assassin. Based on the lack of correction from the teacher, he was forced to believe it was true.

The rest of the morning was spent going over rules and expectations, what made Hope's Peak different, and other general first-day topics. He attempted to eat lunch alone, but the pianist, Kaede Akamatsu, seemed to have decided to befriend him. Her friendliness was a bit overbearing, but surprisingly he enjoyed her company. She seemed happy to carry the conversation. Maybe having a friend would help him feel like he belonged.

Shuichi was particularly interested in the prospect of specialized courses. Some of the talents, he wasn't sure what could be done to enhance them, such as the supreme leader. And what in the world would they do for the assassin?

Before he knew it, the bell rang. As everyone left, Shuichi realized that it was in a fashion exactly like any other high school. Nothing was setting these students apart from the rest of the world except talent. If anything this group was rowdier than his junior high classes.

Shuichi still wasn't feeling the most confident after he returned to his dorm, but it'd be a lie to say he wasn't feeling a little better. He grabbed a couple of things and headed to the kitchen area of the dorms to make a cup of tea.

Now, wrapped in a fluffy blanket on his beanbag with his peppermint tea and a new mystery novel, Shuichi was happy to relax the rest of the afternoon. It was his favorite way to calm down after a particularly bad or stressful day. And, frankly, he had quite a few.

He read for a while until he realized it was dinner time and had been for twenty minutes. He stood up, stretched, yawned, and headed to the dining hall feeling recharged.

If there was one thing he could say for certain Hope's Peak was amazing at, it was the food. Even if he did like most things, the food they served was better than pretty much anything he'd ever tasted.

Just as he was leaving, someone flicked the brim of Shuichi's hat, startling him.

"Woah, you good? Saihara, yeah?"

"Huh? Um, yeah, that's right." Shuichi looked over to see his classmate, Kaito Momota, smiling at him. "Did you need something?"

"We should hang out! You seemed tense all day, and working out gets rid of stress in a breeze, so after nighttime hits, you should come work out with me!"

Kaito seemed like, to put it simply, the Ultimate Extrovert. It was a little intimidating, but seeing his confident yet friendly grin made Shuichi cave.

"Alright, I guess. I don't think I can handle too much though, I don't work out regularly."

"Awesome! Meet me in the courtyard at 10, got it?"

"Yeah, I'll see you."

Shuichi headed back to his dorm, suddenly hit with the realization that he'd found two people who wanted to be his friend. Two of the most outgoing people in his class, even! Wouldn't they be disappointed to find out he didn't deserve his talent, though? Realistically, probably not.

When the clock struck close to ten, Shuichi got changed into something easier to move around in and headed to the courtyard. They did fifty sit-ups and fifty push-ups. Well Kaito did, Shuichi managed fifteen push-ups before his arms gave out completely. According to Kaito, though, he'd improve and something about the impossible being possible.

After he got back and got ready to sleep, Shuichi flopped onto his bed with a small groan, back aching. He'd probably be even sorer by morning, which he wasn't looking forward to.

As he covered himself with blankets, Shuichi smiled, deciding that if every day was like this, he might want to stay after a month. And he may not be a talented detective now, but with the training he'd surely get, he could be. He'd probably start doubting himself again once the euphoria word off, but for now it was nice. And he was happy.

Chapter Text

Rantaro Amami hated his dorm room already. Well, he didn't hate it, exactly, but he hated being in it. An extended amount of time trapped between four walls was foreign to him after three years spent more on the ocean than anywhere else. It felt...not claustrophobic, he did just fine in small spaces. Just stuck. He could be doing so much more than going to class, but as soon as Hope's Peak sent out the invitation letter, his parents practically begged him to go. How could he refuse?

It's not like he was any closer, anyway. Even though he'd spent every minute he could since his sisters all vanished without a trace searching, there weren't any clues.

And, quite frankly, that was always on his mind.

He couldn't sit still. Rantaro didn't spend five minutes sitting down all weekend. If he wasn't pacing his room, he was wandering the halls or nearby streets. He even got lost once, but he didn't mind. In fact, it made him as happy as it could.

His parents tried all they could, had for years, in fact, to stop him from blaming himself. It never did work though.

Despite that, Rantaro wouldn't call himself depressed. Even if a lot of others did. But he wasn't hopless. In fact, he believed with all his heart that, no matter what, it was only a matter of time before he brought his sisters home safe.

Really, that made going to school even worse. It took up precious time. But maybe, his parents had reasoned, he'd learn more about adventuring and it could be of use. Plus, he'd discovered, one of the students was a detective. With his help, maybe it would be worth it. While bringing his sisters home was worth any risk, Rantaro refused to rely on that fully.

There still wasn't any information online. There never was. There was never anything, at all. Sometimes he almost caught himself wishing to find a dead body, so he could at least know they weren't all suffering.

At least the uniqueness of the other students could draw him from his contemplative and endless thought for a minute or two. His interest, aside from the detective, lay more with the anthropologist, simply because their talents held the key similarity of taking their holder outside the borders of Japan. All but a few had shared their talents the first night, some with common talents and some with lesser known. The artist especially must be incredibly talented to beat every other of Japan's artists.

In a way, it started to make Rantaro feel inferior about his own talent. It wasn't something amazing, didn't actually take skill as far as he was concerned. His family was rich, so he had a boat to travel on. Sure he had some survivor capabilities but he didn't think it warranted the title.

He wasn't the only one, though. He sensed it from multiple others who didn't feel like they belonged in the country's most amazing school. The detective was among them, Rantaro noticed.

The areas around the school were nice. He'd discovered a few small shops that he liked, too. He always had a habit of that, rarely shopping at the big chains if it wasn't absolutely necessary.

He wished he could go for a walk now, but he had class soon, first class of high school, and Rantaro always thought he'd be more excited for this day. Instead, he'd rather be just about anywhere else, sitting down in the front row with ten minutes to spare. Only a few people were already there, one being a girl to his right who he remembered as Angie Yonaga, the Ultimate Artist.

"Hey, what's up?" He asked.

"Ah?" She turned to look at him with a curious expression, which soon evolved into a dazzling smile. "Good morning! Your name is Amami, yes? This is such a splendid day to begin school, is it not? Atua has granted his blessings, nyahaha!" She clasped her hands together.

A small chuckle escaped Rantaro. This girl was certainly a bit strange, but she seemed to brighten the atmosphere around him so effortlessly.

"Yeah, it's great. By the way, who's Atua?"

"Atua is our handsome god!" She cheered. "He watches over us all with kindness and love. It is he who inspires my craft. I could never have become the Ultimate Artist without his guidance." She spoke fondly.

"That's pretty cool. I've never heard of him though, where are you from?"

"A little island, you wouldn't have heard of it. Atua is our island's diety, but he loves all, even those who have never heard his name."

They chatted until the bell rang. Rantaro was glad, their conversation had been a good distraction for him.

He was curious about the robot introduced as a student, one who seemed to act not much different from any human. Technology really was something, wasn't it?

He dispelled a little argument, if you could even call it that, between two of his classmates. Tension certainly did seem to be brewing between the two, but it was gone as quick as it appeared. A detective and a supreme leader, it wasn't much of a surprise that they'd clash a few times, considering.

Being among ultimates, Rantaro couldn't say he necessarily felt out of place, but he did feel a sense of unease. Maybe it was simply because he was an ultimate, and what that meant for him, his family, and his future.

Rantaro couldn't deny that the thought of being set up for success was both incredible and intimidating. People would always have the highest expectations of him, and he had no idea if he'd meet them, or want to. And it wasn't like he intended to be an adventurer, even if he did sometimes enjoy the thrill, it wasn't for life. Only until he found his sisters, then he wanted to sit back and have the most normal life he was permitted.

Once upon a time, he'd been excited about high school and the prospect of going to parties and maybe finding a cute boy to date. That wasn't on his mind now, though. Huh, he hadn't noticed how much he'd changed.

Maybe he still would do those things, it wasn't like he didn't want to, just that it didn't matter much if he did. It wasn't strange that his mind had been consumed with the thought of finding his sisters, really. What was strange may have been that he thought he could find them all, that there was even a chance his strategy would work. Not that he'd accept or admit that.

The rest of the day was simple enough, and he hung out with Angie at lunch. They seemed to connect instantly.

After class, his teacher pulled him aside.

"Amami-San, your parents did inform me about the situation with your sisters. I want to let you know that, while I do want you to work your hardest and take school seriously, you can still come to talk to me if you're struggling."

"Oh, thanks, I suppose. I'll be fine though, so don't worry about it." He chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head. Rantaro wasn't big on talking about it, which his teacher seemed to understand.

"Offer stands regardless. Have a good rest of your day, Amami-San."

"You as well Murata-Sensei." He bowed politely before retreating to his dorm.

Rantaro groaned as he shut the door. He wanted to be on the water more than anything, sailing to the next place in search of his sisters. It was probably pointless, sure, but at least then he was trying. He wasn't doing anything here. Not for them, at least.

His restlessness didn't last long before getting interrupted by his new friend knocking on his door with a wide smile on her face.

"Hey, Yonaga-San, what's up?" He smiled casually.

"Atua would like to know if you'll explore the academy with us!"

"Ah, yeah, I'd love to. Let's get going."

"Wonderful!"

The academy really was incredible, he'd give it that. By then they'd only seen the inside of the dorms, which was a three-story building to accommodate each class. And the main building, which had the classrooms, and by comparison to the rest of the campus, but wasn't too special.

There were multiple other buildings too, focusing on broader topics similar to school subjects where people could hone their individual talents. Angie was practically entranced by the art building, which wasn't surprising at all of course. Rantaro couldn't say he wasn't impressed too, both with the resources they had and how expertly they used them. He was pretty sure the whole campus had been designed by students too, at least the newer portions.

Rantaro didn't know what building he'd be in, considering he didn't actually know what buildings were there in general. As an adventurer, his so-called talent mainly included traveling from place to place and adapting well to different situations. Maybe it would be more PE based, then?

Well, he'd find out soon enough, he supposed. Specialized classes would start shortly.

"Huh?" Rantaro's phone buzzed, and he saw his dad calling. He motioned to Angie that he had to take a call and picked up. "Hello?"

"Rantaro, how was your first day of school?" His father's gruff voice sounded over the phone.

"It went well, I'm hanging out with my new friend right now, we're just exploring campus. It's really amazing, you and mum will be impressed when you visit in a couple weeks."

"We're looking forward to it."

"I'll talk to you later dad, tell mum I said hi, kay?"

"Of course."

His mother, Iku Amami, was his father's fourth wife. Because of Atsushi's money, most women didn't marry him out of love. His tendency to marry quickly in desperation for his children to have a mother hadn't helped. Rantaro and a few of his sisters had been the products of his first marriage, and he had children with two others before wedding Iku, the mother of the two youngest sets of Amami twins, and they'd been together nearly a decade. Iku was a kind woman, and Rantaro was thankful his dad had found her.

"Hey, Yonaga-San, I'm going to head back to my room. I've got some stuff to finish up real quick. Catch you at dinner?"

"That sounds divine! Bye-onara, Amami-San!"

Rantaro returned to his dorm, feeling better than when he'd left.

He laughed softly to himself. What would Hatsuko, his oldest sister, say to him if she knew what he was doing to himself? She'd probably scold him for beating himself up so much. Any of them would. Gosh, he missed them. Three years, he just hoped they were all okay.

Rantaro smacked the sides of his face and smiled. "Stop worrying so much, dude, everything will be fine." He told himself.

He grabbed one of his numerous notebooks, his most important possessions, and skimmed through it. He had one for each country he'd visited, documenting everything he found interesting about the terrain, plants, animals, and climate. Even some notes about the culture, though he admittedly never spent long enough in the towns to learn much. He assumed his classmate, Kiyo, would have a lot more knowledge than him. Maybe they could share notes sometime.

The main reason for his documentation was to show his sisters, once they were found. He knew that they'd find all this stuff as fascinating as he did, and he wanted to at least get something out of what would otherwise seem like pointless expeditions. He'd bring back souvenirs too, both for his parents and his sisters. He had boxes now of things for them, little trinkets for each one.

By nighttime, he wasn't exactly happy about being trapped in school(not literally, but it sort of felt like it), but he supposed maybe he'd be content. It was just another adventure after all, and it wasn't like he had to give up. He'd work something out, and most importantly, he'd make sure he was someone his sisters could be proud of. No matter what, he'd work it all out.

Chapter Text

During his first week at Hope's Peak, some people gravitated together. Kokichi noticed that quickly, and what's more, people seemed to gravitate away from him. He didn't blame them, naturally, not when he was the one pushing them away with insults and lies. They slipped out, he couldn't help it. He was a liar, right?

Well, at least Kokichi could rely on Miu to match his energy. They traded insults often, much to the dismay of their teacher and the people sitting nearby. He couldn't tell how she felt about him, or how he felt about her. But the game they had was fun, so he didn't care to overcomplicate things.

Today was the day they started personalized courses. The past week had consisted mostly of reviewing from junior high, and Kokichi was itching to move past it. It was boring, he knew all that already. He was ready to see what Hope's Peak was all about.

He hadn't had much time to explore, but Kokichi knew that there were buildings for several subjects, and there were classes for each of their individual talents located inside. Kokichi wasn't quite sure where he fell under, but then again there were multiple classes he'd have, as was the same for the majority of his class, due to his uncommon talent.

They all had personal tutors, as well, which really showed how high-up this school was. To afford a tutor for every student, it did prove how seriously they took the cultivation of talent. If the literal decades the school had been running wasn't evidence enough already, that is.

Ren Saito, that was the name of his tutor. He'd met them briefly on Friday, they were supposed to get to know each other a bit, but Kokichi got bored of the small talk quickly and asked to go back to class.

Unfortunately, he'd have to deal with them again today, and every school day for three years. How exciting.

He didn't dislike them or anything, he just didn't see how they could possibly help him cultivate a talent that didn't exist. It was a waste of time, and he hated wasting time.

"Ouma-San." Ren sighed. "Please take this seriously." Sadly, his tutor didn't exactly know what his talent meant either. Poor kid was hardly briefed on the position, given the name of his talent and a month to do anything they thought they could to prepare themself to prepare him. They looked like they were barely out of college too, Kokichi almost felt sorry for them.

"Look, Saito-Sensei, I don't know what you want out of me. I've already perfected my talent, there's nothing left to be done! I've already taken over the entire world! Unless you want to help me concur the universe or something." Kokichi rolled his eyes.

"At the very least, can you tell me what your talent means?"

"Hmm..." Kokichi thought for a minute. "Nope, no idea! It kinda got shoved on me as suddenly as it did you, so I don't got a clue what it actually means!"

Ren looked like they were going to have a stroke. "How exactly did you get your talent."

"Let's see, I got in big trouble for stealing something, and the school offered to have my record wiped clean, cause apparently they can do that and it seems insanely shady, and in exchange, I had to be a student here. I couldn't exactly refuse, so here I am." It was a half-truth, Ren didn't need to know what exactly he'd done.

"This job is actually going to be the death of me. Okay, at the very least, can you tell me about your organization?"

"Of course not, it's top secret!" Kokichi smiled innocently. "You've been asking a lot of questions. I want to know, what do you think a supreme leader is?"

Ren frowned. "Well, I'll admit when I first heard it, it seemed like the title of a cartoon villain or something. Some mob boss maybe, not something I'd expect for a kid. What brought you down the path of a supreme leader?"

"Playing make-believe with my friends." Kokichi shrugged, and Ren gave him a look that made it obvious they didn't believe him. "No joke! It started with just me and a group of friends running around the orphanage and school causing trouble, and eventually, it got to a point where a lot of us were in bad situations, so we had to steal sometimes, and it turns out committing crimes is a lot of fun, so we all became professional murderers and other crime stuff!"

"I can't teach you anything if I don't even know what your talent means."

"There's nothing to teach. Because my talent is fake. I don't know why they did it, but I barely even count as a leader. The only thing that could even be considered a skill is that I'm good with people when I want to be. I don't want to learn how to rule over people. I don't have any more authority than anyone else in my group. They only call me leader because I brought them all together."

"So, you're charismatic, and a natural leader." Ren leaned back in their chair and sighed. "I can work with that. Yeah, that works. I think there are some labs in the Japanese building that'll work, can't think of anything else that would benefit. Except maybe PE."

"Gross." Kokichi faked a gag.

Ren laughed. "I'm with you there. Let's see, you probably need quick thinking too, and I'd say resourcefulness. I'll need to ask the headmaster for a list of the specialized courses, that way I can figure things out for sure. Hey, quick question, what do you want to do for a career?"

"I want to be an infamous phantom thief!" Ren raised an eyebrow, and Kokichi groaned. "No fun. I don't have a clue."

Ren nodded. "Then I have homework for you." Kokichi faked a gag again. "I don't need you to decide now, but I want you to think about what you want to do. Make a list of anything that interests you, if you want."

"Fiiiine." Kokichi sighed, leaning back in his chair.

The rest of the school day passed quickly, and Kokichi was headed home.

He supposed he probably should do his homework. But it was easier said than done when he was sitting at his desk, twirling a pen in his hand when he was supposed to be writing. He knew this was something he had to take seriously, it was his future after all. But, well, he'd never really expected to make it to high school, and he never cared to worry about it even if he did. I was always a distant future until it became the present.

He wasn't like the other students. He couldn't make a career out of his talent. Not a legal one, anyway. So what could he do? A leader, what would being a leader do for him? He didn't want to go into business, it was boring. Being the boss at any random place didn't seem like his thing either. He didn't strive to be filthy rich, either.

His hobbies wouldn't be much help either. He liked playing video games, drawing, and committing fun crimes. He could go into art, he supposed, but it had nothing to do with his talent. He wrote down artist anyway, just because he didn't have any other ideas.

Kokichi snickered, tempted to write down drug dealer, but decided against that one. He wrote phantom thief instead because even if it wasn't something he was actually pursuing, it was a fun product of childhood imagination. Maybe an animator? He put that down too.

He grabbed a snack, glancing around to see if the assorted items would give him some ideas. He noticed a plant with heart-shaped leaves and giggled. How much trouble would he be in if he put prostitute? This was tough.

Grabbing his phone, Kokichi texted the other members of DICE, explaining his dilemma, and asking if they had any ideas of what he should do as a job. There were plenty of joke replies, of course, but a couple were worth writing down. Daycare worker or a primary school teacher. He wouldn't have thought of that himself, but Kokichi supposed he did work well with kids when he had to. He wasn't sure though. He wasn't sure about any of these.

He got it though, it wasn't like any of the others had much of an idea what they wanted to do either. He jotted down orphanage worker and put the paper away. He'd ask his mom once she got home, but even then he wasn't sure she'd be able to help much. Hopefully what he had was enough, he hadn't been given any requirement for how many he needed, so it should be fine.

In a way, this made Kokichi feel even more disconnected from his classmates. Their careers were pretty much picked for them, or at least there was plenty of stuff similar to their talents that they could work with. Detective, inventor, astronaut. Those were already things that could last their whole lives.

Kokichi sighed and turned on a video game. Thinking about the future was too much work. Way too much.

When he heard the door unlock, he paused his game and ran to greet his mom.

They hugged before Kokichi explained his problem.

"And I really have no idea what I want to do, do you have any idea what would suit me?"

"Well, what do you have down already?"

"Artist, animator, preschool teacher, orphanage worker. I don't really know how I feel for sure about any of them, though."

Yua smiled. "Those would all be wonderful for you. You should consider it for a while longer before you decide on a career in art though. I know you do it to relieve stress, and if you do it for a job, you might not enjoy it anymore."

Kokichi nodded. "Yeah, that's true. But what should I do? Technically, I should probably choose something related to my talent."

"Teacher fits that category."

"Huh?" Kokichi raised an eyebrow. "How does being a crime leader related to teaching at all?"

Yua shook her head. "You're thinking on it too hard, baby." She ruffled his hair. "Being a teacher means earning respect from the kids, and your charisma would be amazing for it. Not only that but there's the fun parts too, like playing with the kids and making sure they enjoy their time in your class."

Kokichi gasped. "You're right, I never thought of it like that." He smiled widely. "Mama, I think I want to be a teacher."

She laughed softly. "You'll be an amazing teacher, I'm sure."

"I guess I should thank Ai, she suggested it. Do you really think it'd be a good idea for me to inspire the future generations though?"

Yua nodded. "I really do, Koko. You're very intelligent, and you have a kind heart. You already know that kids love you since you volunteer at the orphanage."

"Yeah, that's true. I can tell them stories too, they'd love that!"

A teacher. That was a good dream to have. Something he'd love, and be proud of. As much of an ass as he was, Kokichi usually respected his teachers, because of what they did. He wasn't dead set on preschool, but he'd rather teach younger kids.

His own childishness made it easy to get along with kids, but they also tended to respect him because they could relate to him. He didn't think he could ever get bored of it, either.

Maybe kindergarten. He'd love to teach kids to read and write. It was a hard skill for him to pick up, but therefore he'd learned ways to make it easier, and fun. Yeah, that sounded like exactly what he wanted to do.

Besides, Ouma-Sensei had a nice ring to it.

Chapter Text

Shuichi truly did wish to become a detective. He'd admired his uncle for as long as he could remember, and the idea of being able to save people was incredible to him. But he knew that things didn't always turn out for the best. He'd experienced it first-hand, on total accident, and it made it hard to really strive towards being a detective. He didn't think he could handle the backlash he knew his uncle still received every day. He couldn't handle a glare from one person! He'd been bouncing back and forth on his dream since that day, but now he wasn't sure if he had a choice at all. It was his ultimate. Could he really just decide to abandon it? He'd be taught to master it in the next three years, and he'd feel guilty not following through with it.

Shuichi wished people would praise him less. He wished they'd stop calling him a hero and saying he had a gift. He hated the spotlight more than anything, which was likely a product of his parents loving it more than they loved him. He was afraid the spotlight would consume him as it had them, even though realistically, there was a very small chance of that happening, specifically because he was so afraid of it. Knowing that really didn't help, though.

Even with Kaito and Kaede, who really seemed to consider him a friend, feeling like he fit in was hard. He felt like a fraud, some days more than others. Some days, he wanted to scream that his talent was a mistake, that he'd solved the case on accident. Some he wanted to beg them to push him away and say he wasn't worthy of being there. And some he wished somebody would promise him that he'd done the right thing.

Shuichi Saihara wanted more than anything to be a detective and save lives. But he was so afraid to ruin them instead.

"I've made a plan to help you get started. We can adjust as we go." Hotaru Nakato, his tutor, said. He seemed nice and clearly knew what he was doing. "You're far from the first detective this school has taught. In fact, the previous headmaster's daughter was an Ultimate Detective. Therefore, we have a good amount of knowledge on how to help you reach your true potential. We'll work on your problem solving, you'll be able to solve real, active cases, and of course, there'll be courses you can take outside of general detective work. PE is recommended, as it is for many of the talents we see. We'll work on interrogations, dealing with graphic crime scenes, and much more."

Shuichi gulped. There was so much expected of him, and he wasn't sure he could manage it all.

"I know it sounds like a lot, but we have three years to fit all that in. We have two hours together every day, Saihara-San, so there's no need to worry. I'm always open to any sort of suggestion on my teaching or the kinds of things you learn."

"Thank you." Shuichi bowed in his chair. He bit his lip, then sighed. "I'll do my best to live up to your expectations. Please forgive me if I fall short."

Hotaru laughed. "Kid, you're an ultimate. I've been doing this a long time, and I've never had a student fall short. I'll always underestimate you guys. You can do completely mediocre, and you'll meet my expectations, alright? But I can tell already, that won't happen. You wouldn't be here otherwise. Hope's Peak doesn't mess up. They look at thousands of candidates every year. And believe me, they know what they're doing. In fact, I'd say the kids are more and more talented every year."

Hearing that reassured him a bit. He wanted to refute that maybe this one had been a mistake, but he knew it wasn't true. Even if he wasn't the most talented in the country, he was damn near close if Hope's Peak had even given him a second thought. And he knew that. As much as he sometimes thought he didn't, he really did earn a place among the country's best.

"I want to learn as much as I can. I want to help people and save as many lives as possible. That's my dream. I won't fall short. I'll study every night, and I'll do everything you ask of me. I want to make my uncle proud. And my friends."

"That's a good answer. We'll get started tomorrow, nothing major. I want you to start working out, too, even if it's just ten minutes a day."

"Actually, I already do." Shuichi smiled. "My friend insists that I work out with him every day. I'm not very strong, but he's good at motivating me."

Hotaru smiled. "That's great. It's good to have someone helping you out. I've seen your records from junior high, and I can tell that you're extremely smart. And also that you have a passion for solving things. I'm aware that people like you tend to push themselves an unhealthy amount, and I have a feeling you have that tendency as well. You shouldn't study more than you have to. If you understand the material and have done well on any practice you've done, then you don't need to cram in another hour. Understand?"

Shuichi nodded. "Yes, sir." He wasn't wrong. He did tend to study much more than he had to

"Good. I won't assign you much to do outside of class. Much of what we'll do is hands-on work. If anything, I just want you to keep your brain active. Read books, solve puzzles, and go to escape rooms. You're fourteen. You deserve to have fun. Ultimates tend to forget that sometimes. If I teach you anything, I want you to remember to have fun even when you're an adult."

"I guess I'm pretty easy to read, huh? I get burnt out easily, and when I do, I only push myself harder until I physically can't get myself out of bed. I've been trying to get better about it, but it's difficult, even with my uncle's help."

"If you feel yourself reaching that point, let me know. And it's not that I can read you exactly, but I've known a lot of Ultimates that you remind me of. Well, that's all for today. Remember, my office is always open during school hours, and you can email me if you need anything outside of that. Don't worry about bothering me. It's literally my job to do all of this."

Shuichi nodded, grabbed his bag, and stood up. "There is one thing, actually. Can we practice dealing with people, too? That's my biggest weakness, having to convict someone and deal with any backlash."

"Of course, that's a great idea, actually. Learning how to deal with the emotional strain of being a detective in a safe environment will be good for you."

"Thank you very much." Shuichi bowed before leaving. He'd work his hardest. Even if his talent felt undeserved now, he'd work until he could truly be worthy of being called a detective. He'd make his uncle, teachers, and friends proud.

By the time class ended for the day, he was already doubting himself again. He'd never be a good detective if he only had confidence when he was being actively reassured. He worried that he'd fall behind if he didn't push all of his energy toward school. But, as he'd told Hotaru earlier, doing that would only make it impossible for him to do anything, which began an endless cycle of unhealthy hyperfixation and burnout.

He couldn't rely on his friends that much, either. For one thing, he'd only known them a week, and honestly, he was a bit hesitant to actually say they were friends. For another, even if they were, he was horrible at keeping contact with people when he wasn't actively seeing them, so after high school, he'd probably never talk to any of them. His uncle and aunt were the only people he could really talk to, and his aunt was so busy with her job as a doctor that he rarely saw her anyway. Hell, the only reason he ever saw his uncle on a regular basis was due to interning at the police station.

Shuichi already felt a bit burnt out. He'd been trying to take better care of himself, set aside time for relaxing, but in doing so he felt like he had to double his already unnecessary effort in order to make up for it, and in the end it just made things worse. Maybe his uncle was right. He should consider therapy.

It was something that had been brought up a few times in the past, by family, friends, and teachers. He always thought he didn't have enough time, that it would be pointless and he didn't need it. But maybe he did. With the expectations placed on him and the intensity of being an Ultimate, he couldn't afford burnout. At the very least, maybe he could get prescribed something for his anxiety. That seemed to be the root cause of most of this, anyway.

He'd think about it. Honestly, he was probably just exaggerating. Anxiety and burnout sucked, sure, but he could handle it. He always did. The insomnia medication was plenty. That way, he got enough sleep to be at his best every day. His anxiety wasn't even that bad. He knew that he made it seem like a bigger deal that it was.

No. How many people had to tell him that he was actually making things seem less important than they were? He wasn't exaggerating anything. Why was it so hard to understand that?

Shuichi grabbed his math book out of his bag. Hope's Peak generally didn't give much in the way of homework, allowing most things to he done in class, so he just reworked the problems they'd done that day to make sure he understood them. He did, without much difficulty, considering they were just review still.

He always did this. Every time he'd start to question his mental health, he'd distract himself. He didn't have time. As long as he could make it through the day, he was fine.

He did the problems all two more times each, and it was dinner time. His head hurt, looking at the numbers made it infinitely worse, and he lay his head down on his arms. He should skip dinner. He wasn't hungry. No one would notice he was gone, so it didn't matter.

Shuichi groaned. Why did he always have to feel this way? He was important to people. Even if he wasn't, it didn't mean he wasn't important. So why wasn't he allowed to feel that way? How could he know for a fact something was true and not believe it? Some detective he was.

Shuichi grabbed out his phone and stared at it. He opened his messages with his uncle, scrolled up, and looked at the number he'd been sent for a therapist his uncle recommended.

He saved it to his contact book, just in case he decided that he needed it later on. He set his phone down, bit his lip, thought for a minute, and picked it back up. His finger hovered over the call button. Was it too late in the day? It was six. They didn't close for an hour, but he didn't want to disturb anyone.

Shuichi sighed and put it back on the desk. No, he shouldn't bother them. He didn't need it that badly anyway.

Shuichi thought about all the days he'd spent laying in bed, crying because he couldn't force himself to get up. How he thought he was lazy and didn't deserve to be taken care of by such kind people. When his aunt had explained executive disfunction to him, and he had finally understood. Maybe this would help him with even more.

"Hello, my name is Shuichi Saihara. How can I book an appointment?"

Chapter Text

Rantaro had no intention of staying an adventurer when he grew up. He enjoyed it enough, sure, but it wasn't a long-term goal. He had always intended to go into business, like his dad. He didn't know what he'd do with it, but he'd been a bit distracted. He knew his talent didn't have anything to do with that, but at least being an Ultimate did supposedly mean he was guaranteed success in life. And it almost always proved to be true, with only a few exceptions that he knew of.

Heh, maybe his business could be something travel related.

Rantaro spent a lot of the next week with Angie. Her energetic personality seemed to go well with his calm one, and they were both pretty carefree most of the time. He learned a lot about Atua, and she showed him some of her art. It wasn't an exaggeration to say she was among the best in the country. Despite that, it didn't really go to her head. She still got really excited when he said her work was amazing. She told him that it's Atua possessing her body to create art, but either way, it's impressive.

The schoolwork wasn't that bad, which surprised him a bit. He'd assumed that the best school in the country would be insanely hard. He supposed it did make sense though, since they focused more on talents than academic work.

Aside from a few students who kept almost exclusively to themselves, like Maki, Kiyo, and Ryoma, everyone seemed to be making friends rather quickly. Well, he wasn't sure if Miu and Kokichi were friends. He didn't know what was going on with those two. Their energy matched, if nothing else.

All in all, Rantaro didn't really have anything to complain about when it came to the school. It was great, and they clearly knew what they were doing there. He'd heard that Headmaster Naegi had been the Ultimate Class President during his time in school, and it had clearly paid off. His grandpa had been the previous headmaster, in fact, and his parents had both attended as well.

In the week since class started, Rantaro had learned a lot about the area surrounding the school. He and Angie had spent the weekend exploring local attractions, of which there were quite a few targeted towards teens. They'd gone to a couple of museums, a park, an arcade, and a few other places.

They'd run into some other Ultimates too, from their class and others. It seemed that every student at Hope's Peak Academy was peculiar in one way or another. You didn't get into the best school in the country for being normal, though.

Rantaro wanted to find his sisters soon, before he graduated at least. He wanted to show them these places, introduce them to his friend. Who knows, maybe they'd get the chance to attend Hope's Peak as well? They were all incredibly bright, after all. That was a nice thought. Yeah, he'd be the best student he could, that way his sisters would he proud.

"Yonaga-Kun, do you have any siblings?" Rantaro asked curiously.

"Yes!" She beamed. "I have a young brother, he's only three years old. He's a little artist himself, blessed with Atua's power himself, no doubt. It's truly divine!"

Rantaro smiled. "Sounds like it. I have twelve younger sisters."

Angie gasped. "Twelve. Ah, no wonder you're always so quick to step in when people argue!"

Rantaro looked confused. "I don't do it that much."

Angie shook her head. "You do! Every time people have a disagreement, you make sure things don't escalate. You must do it naturally with so many siblings."

Rantaro smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I never noticed."

Angie gasped and turned to Rantaro, grabbing both of his hands excitedly. "Let's go shopping together after class today!"

Rantaro laughed. "Sure. But what spurred this idea?"

"You must be very fashionable due to having so many sisters, correct? Neither Atua nor I knows where to start with Japanese fashion, it shall be fun!"

Rantaro smiled. "Sure, why not? It sounds fun."

They met up after school, and began walking to the subway. "So, Yonaga-San, how'd your meeting with your tutor go?"

"Simply divine! She's going to teach me many new forms of art that I've never heard of before. And she says the art gallery is willing to buy some of the work i create! Did you know that all of the artwork there was created by Ultimate Students?"

"No way, seriously?" Rantaro laughed. "This place is seriously insane, huh? I'm glad that we don't have to deal with people crowding around outside like when Hope's Peak first opened. It makes sense, I mean it is the location of some one the most talented young people in the country, but it must've been pretty annoying for the students. Sure, there's people wanting autographs and to meet some of the especially famous people, but things were really crazy around here a century ago."

Angie tilted her head curiously. "Do you know a lot about the history of our school. In truth, I don't know much myself."

"Huh? Yeah, I like to do my research on any new place I travel to. Hope's Peak is pretty interesting, I guess, but it's nothing compared to what I learn about whole countries and the stuff there. I've seen a lot of art from different places too, it's incredible. I don't have as much time to learn about the culture in all the places I visit as I'd like, unfortunately. I take photos of the landscape though, some of them are seriously amazing."

"Oh, Angie loves photography!" She beamed. "It is not among my favorite forms of art to practice, but the things some people can capture are as beautiful as a painting. I've painted my island before too, many times. You should visit some time, over summer vacation perhaps!"

Rantaro nodded. "Can't promise I'll stay long, but sure, I'd love to stop by."

The subway ride was about as uneventful as it could be. Rantaro preferred it to riding in a car, but he'd still much prefer another form of transport if he had the option. Unfortunately, he didn't.

Due to the crowded subway, Rantaro didn't realize he'd misplaced Angie until they reached their stop.

"Hey, Yonaga-San!" Rantaro looked around, and half sighed half chuckled when he saw her having a friendly conversation with a stranger. "Dude, it's our stop." He tapped her shoulder.

"Huh? Ah, already?" She smiled at the woman she'd been speaking to. "I have to go now, may Atua always watch over you!" The woman looked confused, but wished Angie well.

"Wow!" She gasped as they stepped out of the station. "The mall is even bigger than our school!" She shook Rantaro's arm and pointed at a store displaying women's fashion. "Let's go there! Atua demands it!" She took off before Rantaro could say anything. He just shook his head, smiling, before walking after her. It was almost like taking his sisters shopping.

He stopped in his tracks when the thought crossed his mind. Then he smiled. He missed this. His sisters would love Angie. His parents, too.

He continued following her. Once inside the store, he saw her bouncing from one display to the next, misified by the surely unfamiliar fashion.

Rantaro glanced around a bit before picking out a top that he thought she would like.

It wasn't too complicated, a bright yellow semi-short top with cute flower designs. It seemed to fit her style, though. He picked out a denim skirt, too. Overall, it wasn't a whole lot different from what she normally wore.

"Yonaga-San!" Rantaro yelled to get her attention from the manaquinn whe was currently staring at with bright eyes. "What do you think of these?"

Angie gasped upon seeing the clothes. "They're divine!" He handed them to her, and she dashed to go try them on.

She ended up buying the outfit, as well as a few more, and a few accessories, like clip-on earrings and some hair clips. They picked up sky blue nail polish as well, since Rantaro ended up having to promise her that he'd paint her nails when they got back.

The ride back to campus was uneventful, and they went to Rantaro's room after.

"Ah, wow, you have so many books!" Angie was easily transfixed, wasn't she.

"Haha, yeah, I write a journal for every country I visit. Plus, I like to have books for the boat ride. Not much else to do."

"Angie would love to travel like you do. But unfortunately, I have a duty to my island. I was reluctant at first to accept my invitation to this school, but my people insisted. I have to go back after we graduate, though."

Rantaro was a bit surprised, he'd never seen Angie anything but happy and bubbly. He knew everyone had their shit they were dealing with though, so he didn't press.

"I'm sure you'll be able to spare a few days here and there though, yeah? I'll take you to some places nearby. And even if you don't have time, I can always come visit for a bit."

"Really?" Angie looked at him, smiling wide. "That would be wonderful!"

Rantaro smiled in return, sat on his bed, and opened up the nail polish. "Come here, I'll get your nails painted."

Angie watched transfixed as he applied the nail polish. Her nails were often splattered with paint, but that was much different than them being painted to look nice. They'd probably get ruined before long, due to how frequently she painted, but she'd enjoy them while it lasted.

The sky blue looked good on her, standing out against her tan skin. She laughed and hugged Rantaro once he finished.

"Haha, woah, careful there!" Rantaro held up his hands. "Dont mess up your nails, they aren't dry!"

"Oh, yes." Angie copied his hands, holding them up on the sides of her head. "They look divine, Rantaro! You may be as skilled an artist as I!"

He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Nah, I can't do anything fancy. If you want to see some real talent, I should take you to a nail salon. I've just painted a lot of nails, having twelve sisters and all."

"Ah ah ah~" Angie waver her finger in front of his face. "Art is not about talent. It's passion that gives you skill. You were very focused while painting Angie's nails, it looked as though Atua possessed you, and that is true skill."

"Huh, never thought about it that way. I guess if you put it that way, I'm a lot better at art than I am at traveling. I'm not really that passionate about it, to be honest. It's for personal reasons, I'd rather not get into it right now."

"I see, I see?" Angie seemed to ponder something for a bit. "Ah-hah! Angie knows Rantaro's real talent!" She proclaimed, and he chuckled.

"And what would that be?"

"Rantaro Amami is the Ultimate Big Brother!"

"Huh!?" Rantaro's mouth hung open in shock.

Angie smiled, though, confident in her conclusion. "You always talk about your sisters with so much love, it's clear how much they mean to you. Instinctively, you take care of others. Like me, you always keep Angie out of trouble."

Rantaro smiled, albeit a bit sadly. "Nah, I'm no good at being a big brother. I just do what anybody would."

Angie shook her head. "There are a lot of siblings who simply do not care about their younger brothers or sisters. You care not because you must, but because they are genuinely precious to you. Atua can tell, you are a wonderful person." She pat his head lightly.

Rantaro wiped his eyes with his sleeve, tearing up a bit. "Nails, Yonaga-San, I don't want nail polish in my hair." He laughed softly, and she did as well.

"Yes, right, Angie forgot again."

Was she right? Was he really a good big brother? He'd let all of his sisters get lost, though.

And yet, even when it was virtually hopeless, he never gave up. He dedicated everything to finding them, no matter how miniscule a chance he had. Didn't that mean something?

Huh, he'd never had time before to really put much thought into how he was doing.

Chapter Text

Kokichi hadn't admitted it yet. It had been another week, and he hadn't said out loud his choice of future career to his tutor. It seemed stupid. He knew that. But in admitting to someone he didn't trust that he was more than evil, and cruel, and a thief(of which he was only one), then that was the same as rendering himself completely and utterly vulnerable. And that wasn't something he was ready for.

Ren seemed like they were losing their patience with him. Or, maybe not. He couldn't really tell. He'd have lost his patience with him by now.

His mama and DICE were the only ones who got to see him as he really was. Even then, he lied more often than he would like to. It always slipped out, white lies, and instinctively hiding his true feelings. He hated it, he hated lying to his family. And even though they understood, it somehow only made him feel so much worse.

Why did he still try to keep up appearances with the people who genuinely loved him just as he was?

'I'm gonna be at headquarters for a few hours. Anyone who wants to hang out can stop by, we won't be doing anything important.' He sent a text to the group chat he'd made with DICE. He didn't get any answers. People would either show up or they wouldn't. RSVP wasn't necessary.

"Mama, I'm headed out for a bit!" He called while pulling on his boots.

"Alright baby, be safe!" He heard her reply from downstairs.

Kokichi skipped down the stairs two at a time, seeing his friends always prompted excitement.

It wasn't horribly far, but the walk took a good half hour since it was in an abandoned part of town. Just added to the charm, Kokichi always said.

As he'd half expected(and happened ten times out of ten), Kokichi heard a motorcycle behind him within the first five minutes.

"You could just wait for me." Shiku, his friend and self-proclaimed bodyguard, sighed as Kokichi put on the extra helmet his friend had brought with and jumped on the back of the vehicle.

"I know, but I wasn't absolutely a hundred percent positive you'd be here!" He held onto Shiku. He was glad his friend was a year older, considering it meant he was able to drive a motorcycle. And be Kokichi's personal chauffeur when his mama was busy.

"Have I ever not picked you up since getting my license?" Shiku started driving.

"Nope, but I never know! What if you die or get kidnapped by pirate ants?"

"Pirate -" Shiku chuckled. "I'll give you a call to let you know I'll be late, if that happens. Alright?"

Kokichi sighed loudly. "Fiiine. If you're late to pick me up just cause you're dead, I'm docking your pay."

"You don't pay me."

"And I'll pay you even less!" Kokichi giggled.

They reached DICE headquarters before long, quite a few people already there when they arrived. Which wasn't surprising, considering some of those people did live there.

Shiku shook out his black, fluffy hair once the helmet was removed. "How much do you wanna bet everyone shows up?"

"I'm not taking up a bet that I'm guaranteed to lose!" Ai yelled, her pink hair tied in a ponytail while she and Daiki played video games.

Ai wasn't her real name. No one there knew it. She never told, and they never asked. She was the youngest, as well, two years younger than Kokichi. She, Daiki, and Kohaku(the oldest, being seventeen) were the three who lived there permanently. Taru and Sei were there already, too.

Their little abandoned warehouse served them well. It belonged to Yuka's family, who never used it, so they'd renovated it years ago. There were beds, couches, and some kitchen stuff. They kept it clean and well-stocked. It had, for all of them, been home for one reason or another since they made it their hideout near a decade ago. They hadn't all been there at the time, but it didn't make any difference.

Some had lived there, at least for a time, some used it as an escape, and the rest just associated it with friends and good memories. It was Kokichi's first home, no matter how much his house was home, too.

Kokichi flopped onto one of the couches. A spring poked his back through the cushion, but it wasn't enough to hurt, so he ignored it. Beggers couldn't be choosers, and frankly, he preferred it.

Sei, who was sitting on the couch already, smiled and started playing with his hair. She was a kind woman, Shiku's twin sister, and had been one of the original DICE members. "Are you going to tell us what's wrong when everyone gets here?"

"Yeah, yeah." Kokichi huffed, shuffling to lay his head on her lap. "Can't get anything past Seikatsu." Her code name, they always used them. His was O, but they called him any number of things. Even though his alias meant king, they were all equals.

Kokichi was happy to relax until Ame, Habiki, and Yuka arrived.

"Aaalright." He sat up, and everyone crowded around him expectantly. "So, long story short, I have to tell my tutor what I want to do for a career in the future. And, as you all know, I chose primary school teacher. Problem is, I'm having trouble telling them, and also don't know if I'll actually be any good at it."

Taru laughed. "Dude, seriously? Have you met yourself? Boss, I say this with utmost respect. You're being an idiot." Leave it to Taru to be bluntly honest. "You're awesome with kids. Ask any of the little ones at the orphanage. They're always excited to see you when you go to volunteer. They love your stories and you. Hell, everybody that you let in adores you!"

"He's right." Yuka smiled. "You're patient, and kind, and lots of fun. If anyone is qualified to work with kids, it's you."

Kokichi huffed, crossing his arms with a soft blush on his face. "You guys are too nice. I should've known better than to ask you. I guess you're right, though."

Ai clapped her hands together. "Alright! Now that that's out of the way, how's school been?"

Kokichi shrugged. "Ah, you know, it's been pretty boring. All the people suck."

Ame laughed. "No, boss, you just suck with people."

Kokichi gasped in fake offense. "People just don't deserve me!"

Daiki shook his head, smiling. "Sure, whatever. That answers the question on friends. Is there anyone cute in your class?"

"Just me!" Kokichi grinned, hands behind his head.

"Fine, we won't pry!" Daiki put his hands up in surrender, knowing he wouldn't get anything else out of Kokichi there.

They all continued to catch up for a while, not usually all being there at once. Kokichi ended up cuddled up to Shiku, knowing all of his friends were more than happy to give the touch starved boy some much needed affection.

"I miss hanging out here during school." Kokichi smiled. "Sucks that I'm too far away to come here and skip now."

Taru ruffled his hair lightly. "I'm glad you're farther away. Maybe you'll have decent grades for once."

"I did fine on tests!" Kokichi whined.

"You failed half your classes in junior high." Yuka pointed out. "That's not doing fine. Unfortunately for your lazy ass, you actually have to do well in school to be a teacher. So at least try, okay?"

Kokichi sighed. "I know, and I really will try. Sometimes, I forget that I'm actually in a safe place where I'm allowed to have dreams. The place I live is more than worth being called home, and I have mama, who loves me. I'm just not used to it yet."

"It's okay. We know that these things take time." Sei smiled. "We're all just glad that you finally do have those things."

"Thanks." Kokichi grinned. "I'm gonna do my best for all of you. I'll study, do my homework, and at least try to make some friends. Who knows, maybe I'll do great as a normal teenager."

"As normal as a weirdo like you can be, you mean." Kohaku snickered.

"Hey, I'm having a genuine moment here!" Kokichi whined. "Shi, tell Obake to stop being so mean to me!"

Shiku just smiled and ruffled his hair. "You're our weirdo, and we love you."

"Mph." Kokichi huffed, laying his face on Shiku's chest. "Now you're bullying me to? Some big brother you are."

"Awe, come here, Koko, I'll save you." Sei laughed, holding her arms out for Kokichi to sit on her lap instead. He hugged her, to which she returned, while pouting.

"You're my favorite sibling now." Kokichi stuck his tongue out at Shiku, who shook his head with an amused sigh.

Kokichi loved this time with DICE, and he truly did consider them all to be his siblings. Even Ai, whom he hadn't known for nearly as long. He stayed until rather late, when his mom called to say she was starting dinner.

Shiku drove him home, and he was smiling uncontrollably all the way.

"Hey, Ko, one more thing." Shiku hopped off his bike in order to give Kokichi a hug. "I don't want you to skip school, but if you ever do get overwhelmed, give me a call. I'll come and get you, no questions asked."

Kokichi hugged back, nuzzling his face against Shiku's shoulder. "Thanks, I appreciate that."

"Anything for my baby brother." Shiku ruffled his hair lightly. "I should get going, I want to practice some archery before it gets dark."

"Yeah, alright, just brag about how fit you are." Kokichi stuck out his tongue teasingly before they said their goodbyes, and he headed inside.

"I'm back, mama!" He walked into the kitchen, where Yua was just finishing up cooking.

"Did you have fun with your friends?" She asked, seeing his bright smile.

"Mhm! I'm feeling more confident about being a teacher someday now. And Shi said he'd help me skip school sometimes."

Yua laughed softly. "Promise me you won't do it just for fun, only when you need to?"

"Awe, fine." Kokichi pouted. "I did swear to focus more on my grades, so whatever. Stupid supportive family."

"Well, therapy doesn't work for you, so it is a relief that you have people who will hear you out and help you when they can." Yua served up their food and handed a bowl to Kokichi, who thanked her.

Kokichi sat down at the table. "I want to volunteer at the orphanage more often. That way, I get more experience with kids."

"I think that's a wonderful idea." Yua sat down across from him. "You do understand, though, you won't be able to breeze through classes as easily as you used to. Even if you are doing everything that the school asks, you'll have to make time to study as well."

"I get it, I'll just volunteer on weekends. But I want to do it more consistently, once a week if I have the time."

They continued to talk while they ate, Kokichi catching her up on how he and DICE were doing.

Even though she'd only known him this past year, Yua was proud of how far her son had come. He had a long way to go, sure, but his excitement for the future was a huge step from the boy who was barely clinging to life, both physically and mentally. Despite being part of her family for so little time and having no blood relation, she truly did love him as though he'd been her son for all nearly sixteen years of his life.

Chapter Text

Iyashi Yano.

That's what the nameplate on the door had said. The name of the woman who's time he'd be wasting.
Shuichi knew this was pointless. He didn't actually need this. He'd come close to canceling the appointment dozens of times over the past week. He didn't know why he hadn't. He should've, someone else needed this time way more than he did.

After the hour was up, he'd thank her and promise not to take up her time anymore. He had more important things he could be doing, too. He always did. He didn't need therapy.

Shuichi jumped when he heard the door open. He'd been told she'd be there within a few minutes, so he wasn't sure why he was surprised. Maybe he'd just been that deep in his head.

"Hello there, you must be Shuichi Saihara. I'll be your therapist, Iyashi Yano." Iyashi had a kind, patient smile, no doubt product of her years spent in this profession.

"Yes, ma'am, thank you for making time for me. I really don't know why I made the appointment, though. I don't have any need for therapy." He explained, feeling embarrassed.

She seemed to be analyzing him while he spoke and nodded. "Well, that's alright. Even the happiest of people can benefit from therapy. You did mention having difficulty with anxiety though, would you like to talk about that?"

"It's really not all that bad. I get burnt out once in a while if I overwork myself. I tend to do that a lot." She'd get mad and tell him that he had no reason to be in therapy. That wasn't nearly good enough. He was just being dramatic.

"Saihara-San, do you overwork yourself because of a need to do perfectly in every area? That's something I see very often, but that doesn't take away from the immense effects it can cause your mental and physical health."

Shuichi shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Was he really so easy to read? "Yes, that's true. Whenever I relax, I feel like I have to work twice as hard to make up for it. But I already know that it's unhealthy."

Iyashi smiled. "Identifying that something is wrong is a step in the right direction, but sometimes taking the necessary actions to remedy that is harder than acknowledging the problem. Saihara-San, it's okay to need help."

"I don't need help, though. I'm not suicidal, I don't hurt myself, so I'm fine."

"That's good, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you're okay. Not every person who struggles with their mental health has those thoughts, but that doesn't make the things you do struggle with any less valid." She explained, but still, Shuichi was having trouble believing her words.

Shuichi pursed his lips. Why was he fighting her on this? Did he really need help? No, of course not. He was fine. "What other signs can there be that I do need help?"

"Well, if you struggle to complete tasks that you feel you shouldn't have any trouble with, such as eating, keeping yourself and your room clean, and getting out of bed in the morning. Low energy can be a big sign of depression."

"It is hard sometimes." Shuichi admitted.

Iyashi nodded. "Are there any other things you struggle with? If this is our only session, since you don't think you need therapy for any reason, I'd like to learn what I can to give you some tips."

Her patience just made him feel worse. "I guess I have some trouble with feeling like I'm not good enough and not living up to what I'm capable of achieving. Actually, I'm working on becoming a detective, like my uncle. I-I'm a student at Hope's Peak. But I don't think I deserve it, I'm not talented at all. Everyone keeps saying that I am, though, and I don't know why I can't believe them."

Iyashi looked thoughtful for a moment. "Would you mind giving me a brief run-down of your home life? I don't need any details."

"Oh, okay." Shuichi sighed. "I live with my aunt and uncle. My parents, they left when I was pretty young. They moved to another country to become actors. My aunt is a doctor, and my uncle is a detective like I said, so they're usually pretty busy. It's fine, though, I take care of myself well, and they really do try to look after me."

"I think I have an alright picture of your situation now, thank you." Iyashi jotted down some quick notes before setting her notepad to the side. "Saihara-San, the hardest part of getting better is admitting that you need help. The fact that you made this appointment at all proves to me that you're on the right path."

Shuichi figgited uncomfortably. "A lot of people deal with this stuff, though. It's not a big deal. I manage on my own."

"Other people going through similar things doesn't mean it's healthy to brush it off. And just managing doesn't mean you don't need help. Let me phrase it differently. You deserve help. Your well-being is not more or less important than anybody else's, understand?"

Shuichi nodded. "Yes, I think so. Yano-San, so you think I need help too, like my uncle and aunt?" He bit his lip. Did he really need this? He wasn't just being dramatic, right?

"In my professional opinion, yes, you could certainly benefit from therapy. When anxiety prevents you from being able to function properly, then it's a serious problem. While therapy doesn't work for everyone, I do believe it's worth a shot."

Shuichi sniffled, his eyes stinging and blurring. He was so stupid. Obviously, something was wrong with him. It wasn't normal to work so hard and get burnt out so easy.

"I lied to you, I'm sorry." He choked out. "I do hurt myself. But I just scratch myself, I don't cut or anything. I don't always think that it counts because I'm not hurting myself enough for it to matter, but I know that's stupid."

He never said it out loud. Even when he scratched his arms so hard they bled and dug his nails in so hard it scarred, it didn't count, because he wasn't cutting. It was only self-harm if he cut, and he didn't, so that meant it was fine. Wow, he sounded so stupid.

"Saihara-San, I know these things can be hard to accept. Let's use a metaphor. Cutting is like smoking. It's harmful, and everyone knows that. What you do, that's like vaping. It seems like a safer way of doing it, but in reality, it still hurts you. Does that make more sense?"

Shuichi nodded. "Yes, it does. I don't like doing it, I don't always realize at first. Like biting my lip, it just happens. Or when I'm really anxious, I just need some relief. Maybe it is like vaping. I've sworn that off, so how can I consider this okay? I'll stop, I promise."

Iyashi nodded but sighed softly. "The harmfulness isn't the only part of the metaphor that works. Both nicotine and self-harm are addictive and extremely hard to break, especially in your case when it's subconscious."

"My uncle and aunt would be so disappointed." Shuichi mumbled. "They'd be mad at me for hurting myself after promising not to so many times. And for not telling them sooner. They deserve a better nephew than me."

"Do you think they'd agree?"

"Well, no, but -"

"Then it's not true. That's not up for you to decide, Saihara-San. Your aunt and uncle seem like they really love you, and I doubt they'd want anyone else. Nobody is perfect."

"I think I'll make another appointment." Shuichi bit his lip.

Iyashi smiled. "I think that's a great idea. We're almost out of time, but there's one thing I want you to do first."

"Anything." Shuichi looked at her, his eyes still stinging. "I owe it to you for helping me so much."

Iyashi laughed softly. "It's a very difficult task, but I think you can do it. I'd like for you to say the words 'I need help.' Can you do that?"

Shuichi was taken aback. That certainly wasn't what he'd expected her to ask. Well, he didn't know what he expected, but it surely wasn't that. "I, um..." He trailed off, a lump in his throat.

"Take your time." She smiled reassuringly.

"I-I need..." He trailed off again and chuckled humorlessly. "I thought you were joking when you said this was hard."

"Close your eyes." She instructed. "Maybe it will be easier to pretend you're only saying it to yourself."

Shuichi did as he was told and tried a few more times to force out the words. "I n-n...I need help!" He cried out and immediately covered his mouth. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to yell!"

Iyashi shook her head and beamed. "You did it. I'm proud of you, Saihara-San."

"I did." Shuichi gasped. "I actually did it. This is so stupid to be getting excited over, but I did it!"

"That's all the time we have today, unfortunately. I'd like you to work on something until we see each other again. Try not to call yourself or you feelings stupid anymore, alright?"

Shuichi nodded. "Okay, I'll try." He stood up and bowed. "Thank you, again, this has really opened my eyes."

After scheduling another appointment in a couple of weeks, Shuichi headed back to the dorms and called his uncle.

"Hey Shuichi, is everything alright?" Ayato asked, not used to spontaneous calls from his nephew.

"No, it's not. Um, sorry, what I mean is that I just had my first appointment with a therapist. And I'm going to continue going." Shuichi said, smiling.

"That's amazing, Shuichi, I'm proud of you. I know it hasn't been easy for you to admit that you're struggling. You scared me a bit when you said things weren't okay, though!" He laughed, and Shuichi chuckled softly in embarrassment.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I was just excited that I finally admitted it. I know it will take a while, but I'm going to get better. I do deserve to be happy. Thank you for supporting me all this time, uncle."

"We're family, kiddo, I'll always support you. Unless you decide to murder someone without a good reason."

Shuichi beamed. "Yeah, you've got it."

They said they're goodbyes, and Shuichi flopped down on his bed.

He knew this was only the first step on a long, hard road. Even getting to this point was like climbing a rock wall in the rain. Every time he took a step upwards, he lost his grip and slipped, sometimes back further than he'd been previously. But he had to keep climbing. He'd finally found a ledge, and though he couldn't see the top, and frankly, he didn't know if there was one, at least he knew now that he had people helping him through it.

Shuichi giggled softly and curled into a ball. What had he been thinking? It was like he'd been looking directly at the wall and saying it was only a few feet high and genuinely believed it. Why was he happy that he was struggling? He wasn't sure. He supposed it was because he finally saw a way for things to get better.

Later that night, his aunt texted him, saying how proud she was for him to have taken this step and that she loved him.

Kaito picked up on his almost giddy mood, and when asked about it, Shuichi just said he'd had a good day, to which his friend seemed happy about.

Shuichi felt his mood dimming by the time he was ready for bed but pushed down the thoughts that were saying he was exaggerating. He couldn't keep them away forever, but for now, he'd shove them away. He was happy with himself, even just for a little. He wanted it to last.

Chapter Text

Rantaro had to say that his favorite part of being at Hope's Peak meant he got to see his parents more often. They were still across the country, sure, but he preferred that to across the world. They could come visit every couple of weeks without problem or having to work anyone's schedule around it, stay for the weekend, and head back home. His father still had work, of course, but since it was still in Japan, he could do anything he needed there.

Angie was excited to meet his parents, and they were even more so. It had been a long time since he'd made a friend, and the two of them stuck together like glue the first three weeks of class.

Rantaro had gone to pick them up from the airport and met them as they were leaving the plane. They hugged as soon as they were able to get through the crowd.

"You look happy, Rantaro." Iku smiled. "Hope's Peak has been good for you, I can tell."

"Haha, yeah, I guess so." He rubbed the back of his head. "It's mostly Yonaga-Chan who's been so great, though. Hard to be upset when she's around so often. You'll love her, mom."

"I'll have to thank her for looking after my son for me." Atsushi held his wife's hand. "Let's head over, shall we?"

"Sounds good." Rantaro agreed.

They continued to catch up on the subway ride, both Atsushi and Iku seeing how obviously Rantaro had needed a break. Needed friends, and school, and a chance to be a normal teen.

Rantaro brought his parents to the hotel they'd rented at for the next couple of nights first so they could get their room and drop off their things. Afterward, they got breakfast, seeing as his parents hadn't had time that morning before they had to hop on the plane.

Rantaro began to notice things he hadn't before. His father's green hair that matched his own now speckled here and there with grey. His mother not being able to keep pace with him like she used to. The offhand comment about joints aching. His parents had gotten older while he'd been so focused on his sisters. It had only been two years, but he could see it. What else had he missed, for nothing?

"Mum, dad, I'm sorry for being away for so long." Rantaro sighed. "I should've been with you guys. I knew what I was doing was pointless, but I did it anyway, not for them, but because I couldn't stand the guilt. I was selfish. Please forgive me." He dug his nails into his pant-leg, lip quivering.

Atsushi reached across the table to put a hand on Rantaro's shoulder. "Son, we've all been coping in our own ways. If traveling the world did anything to help you, even in the slightest, it wasn't for nothing. I have confidence that your sisters are okay. They're strong, like their big brother."

"Thanks, dad." Rantaro wiped a few stray tears from his face. "Don't know what I expected you to say. I couldn't ask for a better family."

Rantaro wondered if he'd changed too. He was probably taller, his hair was a little longer. Had they noticed the same way he had? Was there other things, too, things he didn't notice? And how had he changed? How will his sisters have changed when he can finally see them again? Change was normal, but it hurt when he realized how much of it he'd missed.

"Do you think I could stay with you guys over summer break?" He asked while they walked to the subway station. "You know, I lose track of time while I'm traveling, and I don't want to miss school cause of it."

Iku smiled and nodded. "You don't have to ask permission to stay at your own house."

"Oh, right." Rantaro laughed sheepishly. How did he forget? Why did the words his house seem so foreign?

"Do you want to take a break from traveling for a while, at least for the year?" Atsushi asked, and Rantaro knew his parents saw right through him.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Maybe it was best for me at first, but I don't think that's true anymore. What's best for me now is staying home, and being with my family. There's a detective in my class, as I said. If I ask for his help, I think there's a better chance of results than aimlessly sailing around, anyway."

"Just as long as you don't get too overworked about it." Iku told him. "Remember, he's only a kid, and so are you for that matter. Don't get angry at him if there aren't any results."

"Come on, mum, when was the last time you saw me angry?" Rantaro remembered as soon as he said it. "Sorry. That was the last time, though." He'd never been mad since he learned about his sisters' disappearance. He hated being angry more than anything. He'd never snapped at his sisters or anybody else. It just wasn't his thing.

Rantaro hadn't actually approached Shuichi about it. Or anything else. He hadn't had a conversation with the detective at all aside from a casual greeting here and there. He never saw a good opportunity, and even if he had, he didn't know how to bring up the topic. How do you ask a classmate out of the blue to help you track down your twelve missing sisters? He didn't want to hear that it was a pointless search again, not like the police had told him. And he knew that Shuichi doubted his own ability, so the chance was there he'd turn it down because of that.

"Things have been busy since class just started, so I'll probably ask sometime this week. I won't put too much pressure on him. As good as he is, a kid can only do so much."

"You're a kid too, don't forget." Atsushi reminded him. "That detective kid is the same age as you, so you can't put too much pressure on yourself either. Got it?

"Yeah, dad, I know." Rantaro waved him off with a chuckle. He did forget that a lot. Being at Hope's Peak was a big change from being fully independent for the majority of two years.

He figured Angie was probably waiting for him, seeing her mere moments after they arrived at the school.

"Rantaro!" She smiled and hugged him. "I finished the painting I started last night!"

"Yonaga-Chan, please tell me you weren't up all night working on it." He laughed softly.

"Atua says I'm not supposed to lie."

"Yeah, figures." He rubbed the back of his head in exasperation. "Mum, dad, this is my friend, Yonaga Angie. Yonaga-Chan, these are my parents." He introduced them.

"It's simply divine to meet you!" Angie clapped her hands together with a big smile. "Rantaro speaks very fondly of you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Yonaga-San. Rantaro says the same of you." Atsushi smiled. "I can understand why you guys are friends. He always seems to attract people with a lot of energy. Keep him out of trouble for us, will you?"

"Naturally! Atua will look after him, after all." She beamed.

"Would you like to help Rantaro give us a tour around campus?" Iku asked.

"That sounds wonderful!" Angie grabbed Rantaro's hands. "Where are we going first?"

"Why don't you show my parents some of your work? Your talent is one of the coolest to display, in my opinion."

Angie shook her head. "My talent is only easy to display. I believe Kiibo's is most impressive."

"Yeah, but their talent is just existing." Rantaro reminded her, then turned to his parents. "Kiibo is the robot I told you about."

"It would be cool to meet them, but I'd love to see Yonaga-San's work." Atsushi said.

"Well, in that case, off we go!" Angie skipped off towards the art building, to which Rantaro chuckled and, along with his parents, followed her.

"Ta-da!" Angie exclaimed, throwing open the door to her personal workspace. Because there were only a few less than a hundred students in the whole school, and a small margin of that had talents even slightly similar to each other, Angie and the other art students had a whole large workspace just for them to work.

Rantaro hadn't met any of the other classes, not even the one in his grade. The school had expanded from one class of sixteen each year to two, which allowed for them to worry a bit less about choosing the very best, having 32 spots to fill per year instead of 16. Not only that, but it also increased the odds of having someone with a similar talent attending the school, and that proved to be a big help to both students. Rantaro supposed he sort of had that with Kiyo, but none of his other classmates shared even remotely similar talents.

His parents were in awe of Angie's work, naturally, but she was as humble as always. Did insisting her god took over her body and created all of it himself count as humble? She did seem a bit flustered.

The rest of the tour was similar. His parents had never been to Hope's Peak, so of course, their attention was caught by everything. Angie explained the architecture a bit, and they met a few of his other classmates. Kaede even offered to put on a small show for them, to which they were delighted.

"Are Rantaro's sisters busy? I assumed at least a couple would have joined since he has so many." Angie asked curiously, reminding Rantaro that he'd never actually disclosed the details of his situation.

The mood darkened noticeably around the Amami family, confusing Angie even further. Rantaro pulled her away and sighed.

"My sisters are missing. That's, uh, why I travel so much. I'm trying to find them, but I don't know where to start. None of them disappeared in Japan. Authorities in and nearby the places they were last seen know nothing. It's been two years, but we haven't given up hope. It's still a tough topic, though." He loosely crossed his arms.

Angie looked thoughtful for a bit before hugging him. "You are even better of a big brother than I thought. Don't worry. Your sisters will return home safely. Atua is watching over them."

Rantaro cracked a tiny smile and hugged her back. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Yonaga-Chan."

He never expected her to react any different. Her kind and cheerful disposition meant she'd never really insulted anyone, not with any malice behind it, anyway. She wouldn't look down on him, not for something out of his control that he'd tried so hard to fix. She was possibly among the most logical in the class, in fact.

Not only that, but she'd clearly thought about what she should say. Many times, she'd said things without thinking, just spouting out whatever was on her mind without acknowledgment of how others would feel. It wasn't meant that way, but she couldn't help it. Truly, she was one of the kindest people he knew. His parents seemed to agree.

Angie was invited by his mom and dad nearly all weekend. It lifted Rantaro's spirits and kept conversation light and fun.

Early on Monday morning, when it was time to see him parents off, his mom hugged him.

"Keeping spending time with Yonaga-San. I haven't seen you so happy with a friend in a long time, maybe ever. I couldn't think of any way you could have a better friend than her."

Rantaro laughed softly as he hugged her back. "Thanks, mum. I promise, I've got no intention of stopping. I'll talk to you guys soon, yeah? I love you."

"We love you too." Atsushi kissed his head before they had to board the plane. Rantaro waved them off, smiling. For once, he wasn't thinking about his sisters at all.

Chapter Text

Kokichi didn't know how it had happened. He didn't mean for it to happen. It always just slipped out. He lied on purpose about having an organization of a thousand members. It was a joke and a bit of a sentimental one to him. Each of his friends was worth a thousand people. To them, so was he. He liked that lie. He lied on purpose when he claimed to be a master thief. He was okay at it. He didn't steal anymore. He didn't have to. It was a fun lie, though. He loved fun lies. The fun lies were deliberate.

"Nah, I had a big breakfast." He'd been asked by Miu if he wanted to get lunch before they worked on the project they'd been assigned together. They were going to work on it over lunch since it wouldn't take long, and since he didn't live at the school, it would be difficult to work on it out of school hours. He'd barely eaten that morning because his stomach hurt, but it was fine now, so he was starving. But the lie slipped out, and he couldn't take it back without looking like an idiot, so the whole day he had to hope his stomach didn't growl and give it away. Why did he lie? Why did he say it? It wasn't fun, it didn't help him at all. He hated lies when they weren't just for fun.

"Hey, limp-dick!" Miu grinned and threw an arm over Kokichi's shoulder as he was leaving the building.

"The hell are you touching me for, pig-face?" He scowled.

She laughed. "Let's go to the arcade! I've been wanting to wreck someone lately, but no one's interested, so I'll settle for video games instead." She snickered at her own joke, making him roll his eyes.

"No way! I don't want to be seen in public with a whore like you!" Why did he say that? He wanted to hang out with her. Why did he have to say that?

She squeezed her arm tighter around his shoulders. "C'mon, you worried about curfew or something? Let's go!"

She didn't give him a choice, and despite the complaints being constantly spit from his mouth, he was happy to let her drag him the couple blocks to the arcade.

He texted his mom to say what he was doing, knowing she'd be more than happy to let him hang out with a friend. Friend. Was she his friend? Watching her laugh and talk about whatever vulgar thing it was now, he thought that maybe she was. And he smiled.

"Alright, what am I gonna destroy your virgin ass at first?" She put her hands on her hips, finally releasing his hand. It didn't last long, though, before she dragged him to a shooting game. "Bet your aim is as bad as your fashion sense." She put a coin in, and he did the same.

"You bet it is!" He grinned. "I'm stylish and a good shot."

His aim wasn't great, but her aim wasn't either. In the end, he won by a few points but celebrated nonetheless.

They played games for a couple more hours, lies sprouting consistently from his mouth, but she somehow seemed to understand what he meant, shoving back with insults of her own.

"Hey, abortion." She ruffled his hair aggressively. She'd started off calling him a lying little abortion but shortened it to abortion. It felt like a weirdly endearing nickname.

"Ack! Get your dirty hands off me!"

She just laughed. "We're friends, alright? I know you've been confused about it. It's been written all over your grubby little face."

"Like I'd ever want to be friends with a skank like you." He scoffed.

"Sure thing, dickwad." Miu smirked. "Lie all you want, but I'm already in the process of building a foolproof lie detector, so you're not safe for long! The gorgeous girl genius can do anything she puts her mind to." She boasted.

"So you don't mind the lying?" She would eventually, even if she didn't now.

She crossed her arms. "Of course not! I've put up with ya this long, I get it! You've probably got a good reason for lying so much, and I'm not going to pry on that. Just take care of yourself or whatever, and make sure you tell me if something actually is wrong, got it? I'll hang ya if you don't."

Kokichi giggled. "You're so dramatic! Fine, I'll tell you, whatever."

"Great!" She smiled and handed him a strip of paper. "My number. No sending nudes without warning though, kay?" She winked.

He snickered before hearing his phone ring. He assumed it was his mom, but instead, it was Shiku.

"What's up?" He answered.

"Yua wanted me to pick you up. I'm outside. I was in the area anyway, and it's quicker than the subway. You ready to go?"

"Aw, boo!" Kokichi complained. "Yeah, whatever, I'll be right out." He hung up. "Gotta go, unfortunately I'll see your whore ass tomorrow. Later."

"See ya, shota!" She called as he left.

"Did you have fun?" Shiku asked as he shoved the strip of paper and his phone into his pocket, put on his helmet, and hopped on.

"Yep! I made a friend, just like you wanted."

"That's awesome, Boss." Shiku started driving.

"I won a lot of games." Kokichi continued. "But she's pretty good. Not as good as me, of course."

"Of course." Shiku echoed. "I'm proud of you, Koko, seriously. And I'm happy for you, too. Give me a call if she's being mean to you, alright? Or if anyone is being mean, for that matter."

Kokichi rolled his eyes. "Spoken like a true bodyguard."

Shiku chuckled. "I'm not talking as your bodyguard. I won't let anyone hurt my little brother."

Kokichi huffed and hid his face in Shiku's back, as though the other could see him. "Why exactly do I need more friends when I have you guys?"

"Because we aren't around when you're in school. Someone needs to look after you. Besides, you're going to rule the world one day, and you need as many powerful friends as you can get. What better place to find some than Hope's Peak?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right. What about the days when I don't feel like being an all-powerful supreme leader?"

Shiku chuckled. "Then you just need friends to spend time with and make you look forward to school, at least a little."

"How do I stop lying?" Kokichi asked after a while.

"Hm? Well, it won't be easy. You can probably treat it like tying to get over smoking. It's not quite the same, but in a sense, you're addicted to lying. Start by trying to correct yourself when you lie, for real. Not just yelling, 'It's a lie!'" He laughed. "Really, just work on it bit by bit. Can you do that?"

"Yeah, I guess." Kokichi sighed. "So much work, blegh. I'll give it a shot, though. I don't lie to you, really."

Shiku nodded. "Well, you do it as a defense thing. So naturally, you're not going to lie much to the people you trust."

Kokichi lay his head against Shiku's back for the rest of the trip, using him as a pillow despite the helmet making it not entirely comfortable. He thought about it. Would he ever really be able to stop lying when he didn't want to? It seemed impossible. Lying was one of his key personality traits, even if he didn't like it.

"Alright, come on." Once they got there, Shiku took both of their helmets off and picked Kokichi up. "Is someone feeling particularly attention starved today?" He teased lightly.

Kokichi huffed quietly and held onto Shiku. "You say particularly as though I'm not always attention starved. You just want to show off how strong you are."

Shiku hummed in acknowledgment. "Well, the only person who likes how strong I am more than my boyfriend is you, so that's fine. But I guess, to me, you were six years old only yesterday."

Kokichi rolled his eyes. "You're only a year older than me, dumbass."

"Still." Shiku grabbed his copy of the key from his pocket-both he and Sei had one-and went inside. "Miss Yua, we're back!"

Kokichi's mom insisted his friends could use her first name, being they were practically family, but he still refused to be wholly informal. Sei and the rest of DICE copied suit.

"Perfect timing! You're welcome to join us if you'd like, Shi." Yua called from the kitchen.

Kokichi gave him puppy eyes, and he sighed. It was more so if Kokichi wanted, Shiku couldn't say no. And Kokichi always wanted.

"I'd love to, thank you ma'am." He set Kokichi down on a chair and stretched his arms before sitting down as well.

Yua smiled as she served food. "Did you have fun?"

"Mhm!" Kokichi grinned. "We played a bunch of games, and I won obviously. She said that we're friends!"

He giggled suddenly, but he did so often enough that Yua and Shiku didn't think anything of it. Just thinking about his classmates' faces if they saw him acting this way. It was a complete 180 from how he was in school. He'd built up so many walls that who he really was hardly shown through around people he didn't call family.

For one, he was even more talkative at home. About anything and everything. He didn't have to strain his voice to sound deeper(though it didn't work much). Voice training was great, really, and it did work a little. But it was hard to keep it up constantly. Really, he didn't mind his natural voice, but he'd be damned if he risked anyone at school find out.

And the more obvious part, his mask fell away around people he trusted. So did most of the lies. He was affectionate and loved to tease people, but they all agreed that he was very sweet and never pushed boundaries intentionally. He'd like to grow to trust his classmates, at least some of them. They would be spending three years together, so he'd kinda be screwed if he didn't get along with anyone.

After dinner, Shiku went home after being tackled in a hug by the short leader.

The Ouma house settled down soon after, they tended to eat late dinners some nights, and would spend an hour or two talking after.

As much as Kokichi had loved being with Miu, then Shiku and his mom, he was admittedly pretty glad to be on his own for a bit. He certainly wouldn't call himself an introvert, but he needed time to recharge.

He smiled as he set up a video game that he'd surely be up way too late playing. Miu didn't care if he was a liar. She had her own 'quirks', if they could even be called that.

And he had so many people gladly willing to help him, too. He always forgot that. He'd been through so much, why shouldn't he be able to heal at his own pace? Things didn't have to be all better over night, or even over a year. He was told that often enough that you'd think it had sunk in by now.

He'd try to lie a little less. He was a liar, but that wasn't such an awful thing. Even if it was a bit embarrassing, at least in his eyes, all he had to do was correct himself. His class probably wouldn't think anything of it. He had to remember, a little eccentricness wasn't out of place among people at Hope's Peak.

Chapter Text

Why did he feel worse?

Shuichi groaned and rubbed his temples. Half his brain was scolding him for actually believing he needed help. The other half was scolding him for not believing it. There was just no winning, was there? Was he destined to feel like a failure no matter what? Was there any scenario in which he would feel like he deserved this?

No, of course there wasn't. Something was wrong, something that made it impossible to accept that something was wrong. He didn't understand. He didn't have depression(yes, he did). His anxiety wasn't all that bad(it was awful). He'd manage just fine on his own(he was barely keeping himself together).

"Shuichi, are you okay? Does your head hurt?" He flinched when he felt a hand gently touch his shoulder. Right, he'd been eating lunch with Kaede, Kaito, and Maki, whom Kaito had insisted(forced) to hang out with them. His intentions were good, and she seemed to secretly enjoy his company. He'd been quietly nodding along to their conversation when the thoughts started, saying that he didn't deserve to be their friend, to be here.

"Yeah, sorry, I'm fine. Just a headache, it'll pass." He brushed off with a smile.

"If you were fine, you wouldn't be crying." Maki pointed out, nonchalant as ever.

Shuichi blinked in surprise, reaching up to touch his cheeks. She was right. He was crying. He was pathetic too, he supposed.

"Want me to take you to the nurse, dude?" Kaito asked, concerned. "I'm sure she's got something you can take."

"No, really, I'm okay! Don't worry about me. It doesn't even hurt that bad. My eyes always water when my head hurts. It just happens." Please, just drop it. He didn't actually have a headache, just the usual stress. But he couldn't tell them what was actually going on. They didn't deserve to be bothered with that.

Kaede rummaged through her pocket. "Don't worry, I keep stuff in my pockets to help with pain." She proudly held out a small bottle of painkillers. "Way easier than going to the nurse."

"But I'm fine, I don't need anything!" Shuichi raised his voice a little bit as he stood up. "I think I'm just overwhelmed, I'm going to the bathroom." He mumbled before rushed off and dumping the rest of his lunch in the trash. He wasn't hungry anymore. At least that wasn't completely untrue. He was starting to feel overwhelmed.

Not wanting to deal with a crowded school bathroom, Shuichi headed directly to his dorm. He splashed water on his face and sighed. Well, he'd just ruined his friendship with three people at once. Go him. Why did he have to be so messed up? They were just trying to help, and he shut them down. Idiot.

He's not supposed to say that though. Yano-San told him not to say those things about himself. She'd gone through so much trouble to help him, why couldn't he do one simple thing for her. He was the worst.

And, oh, look, he's crying again.

Shuichi sobbed, quickly wiping tears away with his sleeve. Once again, he'd let everything build and build until the dam broke. Right in front of his friends.

He heard a knock at his door and considered if he should open it. Whoever it was, probably one of his friends, would have assumed he'd come here instead, meaning it might be suspicious if he didn't.

Making sure his face was clear of any sign he'd been crying, he opened the door to see all three of them. Why did they all come here? Weren't they eating lunch? He was just wasting their time. He never should've worried them. He should've done a better job convincing them.

It was Kaito who hugged him. He choked on a sob he hadn't even felt coming. So much for making sure they didn't know he was crying.

Shuichi clung onto the back of Kaito's jacket like a lifeline. With their nightly training ever since class started, they'd become close friends, and even though he was a bit clueless at time, Shuichi had come to trust him.

That's why he broke down. He didn't know what he was crying over. Everything, probably. Every emotion he kept shoved down because he didn't have time and didn't deserve to cry. Because things weren't that bad for him. But how could he not cry when he was surrounded by concerned people who made him feel safe enough to let it out?

Kaede rubbed his shoulder gently. "You know you can talk to us, right? I mean, sure, we haven't known each other for very long, but we're friends, and friends can rely on each other."

Shuichi nodded. "I've just been overwhelmed lately, that's all."

"Being an ultimate student is a lot of pressure. That's nothing to be ashamed of." Maki stated, arms crossed. She may not seem to, but Shuichi had learned to tell that she really did care. Kaito had been right about her, and him. Some people just didn't know how to reach out first.

Shuichi didn't quite feel ready to tell them everything. They all seemed content with leaving it at that for now.

They all stayed silent for a few minutes, Shuichi still clinging onto Kaito. Eventually, the aspiring astronaut spoke up.

"You've gotten stronger already, I can tell." He obviously just wanted to break the silence, but admittedly, it cheered Shuichi up more than he thought it would.

"Really?" He hadn't thought their training had actually helped him all that much, if at all.

Maki nodded in agreement. "You've been getting tired less and less quickly with each night, I've noticed too. Maybe eventually you'll be able to keep up with me." She cracked a small smile.

Hearing Maki joke was an extremely rare occurrence, and Shuichi couldn't help a small laugh. "Yeah, maybe I will. I'll have to work really hard, though. I think that working out has been good for me, though. I have a lot of trouble with anxiety, and it seems like it's lessened recently. Not by as much as I'd like, but a little. I'm not sure how much is due to training and how much is because I have you guys as friends."

"Aw, Shuichi!" Kaede laughed. "I'm happy that we've been able to help you. Everyone has trouble sometimes, so don't worry about relying on us a bit more. We're happy to help, okay?"

Kaito ruffled his hair, making Shuichi smile. "Yeah, come on, man! You're my sidekick, so you can always count on me!"

Shuichi laughed softly. It was strange at first being called someone's sidekick, but he didn't mind it now. He stepped back from Kaito. "Thank you, all of you. I can't promise I will rely on you as much as I should. I have trouble believing that I deserve help, or that I need it. I prefer to handle things on my own, so it's hard to reach out. I've started going to therapy, which will hopefully help with that, as well as other things."

Maki nodded. "At least you're doing something to help yourself. You don't have to say anything to us. Just lean on us a little when you need to. Kaito is more than happy to help people, even when they don't want it." She shot a pointed yet friendly glare towards him. "I may not be the most open person, but if you ever need someone to listen to you, I don't mind."

"I'll try to remember that." Shuichi smiled. He wasn't sure what he did to deserve all the support he was given, both from friends and family. He was lucky. He could recognize that. But that didn't mean he couldn't struggle. He had to lean on people sometimes, especially since he didn't live with his uncle and aunt currently. As little as they were home, they always tried to be present and there for him when they were.

"You know, I have trouble with anxiety sometimes, too." Kaede grinned. "I've been told before that it's hard to believe. But, even though I'm considered ultimate level, I still can hardly eat or sleep right before a performance. I'm really not as confident as I seem."

She was obviously trying to make Shuichi feel better. And honestly, it was working. If someone as talented as Kaede got anxious, it wasn't that strange that he would. And he did understand that anyone could have anxiety or depression and that it was a problem with chemicals in the brain. He knew that, but still, he sometimes did feel unworthy of feeling those things because he had no reason not to be happy. And he did consider himself happy, which only made it harder to accept.

"Lunch is almost over. Sorry for preventing you from eating." He said quietly.

Kaito threw an arm over his shoulders. "C'mon, man, it's not a big deal! You're more important than that, right?"

Shuichi blushed, a bit embarrassed. "Yeah, I guess so."

Maki sighed. "No, Saihara, it's not I guess so. You are more important. Skipping half of lunch to make sure you're okay is a perfectly reasonable thing to do."

"Right, yeah, sorry." Shuichi smiled awkwardly. That was obvious. He was being stupid again. Ugh, no, he wasn't supposed to think that.

The bell rang, signaling it was time to go to class. After lunch, they all met with their tutors, so they'd be parting ways. Shuichi wasn't sure he was ready to talk about his future and career as a detective right now, but that didn't matter. He had to keep working hard.

Kaede hugged him. "Want me to walk you to your class? It won't be far out of my way."

Shuichi hugged her back, but shook his head. "No, I'm okay. I'll see you guys later, alright?"

Kaito ruffled his hair. "Take care of yourself, okay sidekick? You need to be at your best for training later." Maki elbowed Kaito in the side. "You know what I mean! You're a great detective. Everyone thinks so, so don't beat yourself up over the little stuff. You can lean on me whenever you need."

Maki gently punched Shuichi's shoulder. "He's trying. You do need to look after yourself, though. Don't push yourself too much with your detective work, okay? I'll teach you some self-defense later, give you a break from push-ups." She smiled.

Maki had decided she wanted to teach self-defense. Not long before the school year started, the police busted the leaders of the organization that kidnapped her and arrested the majority of the people associated. All the kids who'd been taken were to be rehabilitated in different ways. Maki was offered a place at Hope's Peak due to her age.

Shuichi nodded with a smile. "That sounds good. It'll be nice for you to get the practice in, and it will probably benefit me as a detective. I won't be going after criminals myself the majority of the time, but who knows what could happen?"

Shuichi said goodbye to his friends before heading to his tutoring session. He was feeling a lot better now, thankfully.

It was nice to have so much off his chest, too. It was a struggle trying to pretend he was completely fine in front of everyone, himself included. Most of the people in his class were kindhearted, with the exception of a few people he just couldn't read.

"Hey, Saihara-San! Got a minute?" Shuichi was snapped out of his thoughts by someone yelling to him. He turned to see Rantaro.

He was a bit confused. It wasn't that they didn't get along, but they rarely spoke to each other.

Shuichi stopped to wait for him to catch up for a few seconds. What would Rantaro need from him? He seemed to do just fine in class, and their talents weren't related at all, so that couldn't be it.

"I know you're just a student, but there's something I'd like your help with. A missing persons' case, specifically. I'll pay you well for it."

Shuichi was taken aback. He'd never seen Rantaro, who was normally so relaxed, looking so serious.

"I-I'll see what I can do."

A small smile cracked on Rantaro's face. "Great. Let's talk after class."

Chapter Text

Rantaro did feel a little weird pulling a classmate he didn't know all that well into this. But he was desperate, and the police weren't getting any answers. At least he'd be paying Shuichi, so it wasn't just wasting the aspiring detective's time. Truth be told, he probably would reach yet another dead end, just like every other attempt. But maybe, if he kept finding new places to start, they'd eventually end someone different too.

After being dismissed from homeroom, he saw Shuichi telling his friends that he had something to do real quick and to go ahead without him.

Rantaro tried to keep the chill, friendly demeanor he always did as he approached him, that way he didn't scare Shuichi off. That would be the end of his plan if he did.

"We can talk in my dorm, it'll be easier. This isn't really something I want everyone to know about."

Shuichi seemed nervous, but then again, he usually did. Still, he nodded.

Rantaro tried to make small talk while they walked, asking Shuichi how his day was and such, but the other was mostly quiet, and answered shortly.

"Sorry for being so unfriendly." Shuichi picked at his nails. "It's just, I don't know if I can really help you. At the very least, don't pay me until I solve it."

"Huh?" Rantaro looked over at him from unlocking his dorm before smiling and shaking his head. He held the door open for Shuichi, who nodded respectfully and went inside. He followed. "I'm not going to do that. I'll pay for just you trying."

"Why are you asking me, though? I'm just an apprentice, surely a professional could do a lot better."

Rantaro sighed. "The professionals had three years, and found nothing. I'll be grateful if you just try. A single piece of evidence would be more than anyone's ever found so far."

Shuichi avoided eye contact. "What makes you think I'll do any better?"

"Because you're a fresh perspective. That's what let you solve that one case, yeah?"

Shuichi gulped, but nodded. "Who is the missing person, anyway?"

Rantaro smiled in relief. "Not person, people. Twelve, to be exact. My sisters."

Shuichi was taken aback. "Twelve. All twelve of them went missing, and there's been no evidence whatsoever?"

Rantaro nodded and sat on his bed, gesturing for Shuichi to do the same. "Yep. All younger, ages eight to fourteen. Five to eleven when they went missing."

Shuichi's face made it clear that he felt bad for Rantaro, and he looked at his lap. "Where did they go missing from?"

Rantaro crossed his arms. "That's the tricky part. Four different places, it was on a huge vacation that my parents had planned. Mum, dad, and our maid each took us to different countries. Three or four in each group. Rome, New York, and Brazil. The two that made it back vanished soon after returning to Japan. It doesn't make sense, police from all four places made an effort, but there's been nothing."

Shuichi squeezed his hands around the hem of his shirt. "Give me any details you can, I'll see what I can do."

Rantaro smiled. "Look, don't feel like you've gotta do this out of pity. I know that, realistically, the chances of this being worthwhile are pretty much zero."

"No, I'll do it." Shuichi said quickly. "It's worth trying every angle. And, well, I solved a cold case once. Maybe I'll have another fluke."

"You're sure?"

"I am."

Rantaro nodded. "I'm sure I have the details written down somewhere, plus you could probably get access to the case file if you wanted."

He got up to rummage through his notebooks, searching for the one that contained every piece of evidence he knew of in regards to his sisters. Once he found it, he gave it to Shuichi.

Shuichi glanced over a few of the pages. "This is great, thanks. I'll see if my uncle can get me the file."

"Feel free to ask me anything." Rantaro assured him. "And don't worry about getting it figured out as soon as possible or anything."

Shuichi smiled awkwardly. "Well, no promises on that last part. I have a habit of needing to solve mysteries as soon as I discover them. I'll study them for hours sometimes, I've even forgotten to eat and sleep."

Rantaro laughed. "Oh, you mean that you hyperfixate, yeah? I get it, I do too sometimes. Set alarms for when you need to do things so you don't get too sucked in. And make a habit of doing that thing the moment the alarm goes off."

Shuichi looked up from the notebook and blinked a few times. "There's a word for it?"

Rantaro nodded. "Yep. It's associated with different mental illnesses."

"Oh, I didn't know that. I don't really know anything about that sort of thing, though."

Rantaro shrugged. "I don't know a whole lot, but with twelve sisters and myself, I learned a few things."

"That makes sense, I suppose." Shuichi returned to glance through the last bits before setting the notebook aside. "As a family member, the information you gave me about the missing people themselves is perfect. You gave vivid descriptions and photos, as well as updates on approximately how they may look now. Having information about their personalities and how they've reacted to danger in the past is amazing, too. For evidence about the case itself, though, there really is hardly anything. I thought you were exaggerating about nothing being found, but there really hasn't been."

Rantaro nodded, frowning. "I've never even heard of any criminal organizations working on such a global scale."

Shuichi nodded. "Really, that's not so unbelievable. If they were working so largely, they'd have to be extremely talented at keeping undercover. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to expand so far to began with. Still, that just makes things harder. I can start by looking at the local crime organizations to see if I can find any links to unknown sources.

"I appreciate it, seriously."

Shuichi shifted nervously. "So, you got your talent because you spent three years travelling the world. I'm assuming you were looking for your sisters? Sorry if that's inappropriate of me to ask, I was just curious."

Rantaro smiled. "No worries, you're fine. But, yeah, that's why. I know it was pointless, I never found anything, and I know I never will."

"I understand. I can't imagine it would've been easy to stay home. At least you felt like you were doing something. And, well, it wasn't completely pointless." Shuichi smiled. "You have an ultimate talent because of it, and if I do find something, it will be all because of your effort. We would've never met otherwise."

Rantaro chuckled. "Yeah, I guess so. You're sounded a bit more confident now, too, I'm glad."

"Ah, yeah, it's probably not very reassuring to have someone with no confidence working on this, huh?"

Rantaro shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I'm confident in your abilities, and that's enough for me. You're good enough to be considered an ultimate, so you deserve to have confidence too."

Shuichi smiled softly. "I'm going to solve this case. Not because I feel obligated to, or because you're paying me, but because I want to. As a friend."

Rantaro laughed. "Now I get it, that's why you're the Ultimate Detective. It's cause you don't view it as a job. Yonaga-Chan talks about how ultimate level talents come from passion most of the time, not innate ability. And from what you've told me, you're really passionate about what you do."

Shuichi thought about that for a moment. "I guess that's true. I do love everything that comes with being a detective. Both solving the cases and helping people. That's probably why my last case discouraged be so much." He admitted.

"What happened with your last case? If you don't feel up to telling me, no worries, but I'm curious."

Shuichi bit his lip. "It was a murder case. I got someone arrested who'd only been trying to avenge his family. You see, his family had gotten involved in some bad things because of the victim, and had been driven to suicide because of it. I can't give you the details on what those things were. The culprit had just been trying to avenge them, because they police wouldn't listen. I feel the responsibility of the whole police force sometimes, because I feel like if I'm also to blame for not doing better. Things could've been different, and I ruined that man's life even further."

Rantaro kneeled down in front of him and put his hands on Shuichi's shoulders. "You were just trying to do the right thing. Saihara-Kun, you're still just a kid, this isn't your burden to bear. What if he was actually a serial killer, and you'd saved countless more lives?"

"But he wasn't." Shuichi whispered.

"You didn't know that. He was by no means innocent, he murdered someone. You did the right thing." Rantaro assured him.

Shuichi sighed. "No matter how many times I hear that, I don't believe it. I'm sorry."

Rantaro smiled. "What are you apologizing for? I asked, so if anything, I'm the one who's sorry."

Shuichi looked down at his lap. "You had every right to be curious."

"And you had every reason to arrest that man." Rantaro squeezed Shuichi's shoulders. "Have you ever solved any cases with good outcomes?"

Shuichi nodded. "My first case. A classmate asked me if I'd help find her pet, a miniature alligator. I did some research on what that species likes and its natural habitat, and ended up finding it in a small creek about a half mile from her house. She was grateful, and even gave me chocolates for Valentine's Day as thanks." He smiled at the memory. Hearing her thank his was what first sparked his passion in detective work. He wished he could help more people like that. Unfortunately, few cases ended with thanks.

Rantaro snickered quietly. "Uh, Saihara-Kun? I don't think those chocolates were just as thanks. She probably liked you."

"Liked me?" Shuichi echoed in confusion before he realized and blushed. "Oh my gosh, I never realized! I'm really dense, I honestly thought she was just being nice."

Rantaro laughed and pat his shoulder. "Don't worry about it dude, plenty of people would miss it." He sat down next to Shuichi. "And hey, there's a chance that I'm wrong. But, you know, most people opt for different methods of showing gratitude."

"No, I'm pretty sure you're right." Shuichi sighed. "It's probably for the best I didn't know. I wouldn't have known what to do, and probably just would've been awkward around her from then on. She was nice, but I wasn't interested in her like that."

Rantaro nodded. "I get that."

Shuichi rubbed the back of his head. "Anyway, I was wondering, how were you allowed to travel the world so young, all by yourself? I can't imagine your parents would just let you."

"Well, I wasn't completely alone. Our family's maid, Minami-San, accompanied me. She worked for my dad since I was born, so my parents trusted her. And, well, with thirteen less people in the house, there wasn't much for her to do at home. She was always nearby, but she wasn't always directly with me. We split up a lot, to cover more ground. Or, well, more like she couldn't keep up with me. The thing is, all my jewelry has trackers in it. I always wore this stuff, so it made it easy. My parents were worried, after what happened to my sisters, it keeps their minds at ease. Plus, Minami-San would always be able to find me. It was annoying at first, but they have every right to be paranoid. That's why you never see me without this stuff."

Shuichi nodded. "I see, that makes sense. Well, even so, you must have always been pretty responsible for them to trust you so much."

"Yeah." Rantaro laughed. "Having twelve little sisters helps, you know?" He checked the time on his watch. "I promised I'd meet up with Yonaga-Chan soon. See you later?"

Shuichi stood up, holding the notebook. "Of course, I'll look over this a bit more, see what I can find. I'll let you know the moment I do."

"Thank you, again."

Shuichi smiled. "I'm happy to help."

Maybe there hadn't been any progress yet, but Rantaro had a good feelings. Shuichi seemed to genuinely care, unlike all of the police officers and private detectives that his family had hired before. He didn't know why, but he was almost positive, Shuichi would make sure his sisters all made it home.

Chapter Text

Kokichi Ouma was, and always had been, a problem child. At the orphanage, in school, and in foster homes. He was always getting into trouble. Problem child, attention seeker, annoying, brat. He heard those things all the time growing up. And he embraced them. He sought out trouble, he caused problems, and was a menace to all those who had the displeasure of meeting him. They never affected him, because DICE called him all those things first. They were terms of endearment growing up, things he later learned his friends heard the orphanage staff and other kids calling him behind closed doors. So, they made sure he heard it from them, first. But some people were more cruel.

Kokichi had heard swear words, and the occasional slur thrown at him. Those didn't bother him much, he'd roll his eyes and usually flipped the person off or retorted with his much more cleverly crafted insult. But some words really got him.

"Man, I feel bad for Ouma's parents. I know my grandparents would be disappointed if I'd turned out like that."

He wasn't supposed to hear it. Kokichi considered it much worse to insult someone when they didn't know it. That's why he never talked bad about people to others, but would do so openly to their face. He had standards, you know? He leaned against the wall outside the classroom. He didn't feel like a confrontation right now. Had it been anything else, sure, but not that. If there was one thing Kokichi couldn't stand, it was the idea of disappointing the people who loved him.

"Don't say things like that." He heard a voice scold the other. "I hate it when you do that. It's not right to gossip about people, no matter how much you dislike them." He recognized it at Shuichi, who he'd remember mentioning that he didn't like gossip. The other voice, of course, was Kaito. A good guy at heart, but pretty dense and spoke his mind way too often. Acted like he knew people when he didn't.

"C'mon, you don't like him either, right?"

"That's not true. I don't dislike any of our classmates. I mean, sure, I don't like that he always tries to get on everyone's nerves, but he's not nearly as bad as you think." Well, he had to admit, it was nice that someone was defending him.

He heard a sigh. "Actually, I have to agree with Kaito on this one." That was obviously Maki. "No, I don't agree with gossiping, but Ouma is that bad."

Things were quiet for a bit, and Kokichi waited a few moments before adorning a large smile and skipping into the classroom, acting as though he'd only just arrived.

"Morning, peasants! Weird to see you here so early." He looked at Kaito, grinning ear to ear.

"Oh, good morning, Ouma-Kun." Shuichi tried awkwardly to smile. He and Kokichi were usually the first there, and while he didn't quite appreciate the constant teasing he endured each morning before someone else arrived to shoo Kokichi away, usually Kirumi, he couldn't say he hated it.

"Hi, Saihara-Chan!" He put on a much less sarcastic smile when looking at Shuichi. They weren't friends, but he didn't have many problems with the aspiring detective. At least in comparison with some of his friends.

Kaito looked between the two of them. "Since when are you friends with him?"

Shuichi froze up. Poor guy, Kokichi almost felt bad.

"We're not friends, idiot!" Kokichi crossed his arms. "Saihara-Chan and are are something else, right beloved?" He winked at Shuichi.

Shuichi blushed and waved his hands in front of his face. "N-No, it's nothing like that. We're, um, acquaintances, I guess. He's actually kind of fun to be around, and he's nice to me, for the most part. It's just, we talk a bit before school sometimes, since no one else is usually here when I first get to cla. That's all." Trying to appeal to both parties, huh? Kokichi smiled. At least this guy wasn't that much of a pushover.

Maki rolled her eyes. "Saihara-Kun can be friends with whoever he wants, Kaito, he doesn't need your permission."

"I didn't say he did!" Kaito defended.

"You would've judged him if he'd said yes."

"Ah, I should've known." Rantaro laughed from the doorway. "Who started it this time?"

Shuichi let out a small sigh of relief. Rantaro had taken on the roll of mediator from day one, always breaking up any arguments in class. He gave a small wave, to which Rantaro returned.

Kokichi ran up to Rantaro. "They're being mean to me again, it isn't my fault!" He whined.

"Settle down, everyone." Hirohito told them. He'd started coming in a lot earlier than the bell due to how rambunctious his students were this year. "Saihara-Kun, what's actually going on?"

Shuichi flushed. He hated being the one the teacher always looked to for the truth, it always put everyone's attention on him, and if he told the truth, or even if he lied, someone would always be upset. He liked that he was trusted, but was it really worth it? "Nothing, just the usual bickering. Everything is fine."

Hirohito nodded. "Thanks. You've got seven minutes to the bell, so get all your energy out now, then sit down before it rings."

Class passed as usual, and Kokichi noticed that Shuichi was staying back a minute to finish a couple more questions. As per usual.

"Hey, Shumai!" He grinned, hovering over the aspiring detective. He jumped in surprise, looking up at Kokichi.

"O-oh, um, I just wanted to finish this up first. Do you need something?"

"Nope!" Kokichi sat on the desk in front of Shuichi, kicking his feet. He'd waved Miu on ahead of him, wanting some alone time with Shuichi.

Kokichi had decided to really dedicate himself to becoming the person he wanted to be. And that meant making himself more approachable, more friendly, without diminishing the qualities he loved about himself.

"Actually, I just wanted to thank you." He smiled.

Shuichi cocked his head. "For what?"

"For sticking up for me, duh! This morning, before I walked in, I heard what he said about me."

Shuichi gasped. "Oh, my gosh, I'm so sorry! You never should've had to hear that, it was completely out of line for him."

"Relax, it's fine." Kokichi shrugged. "I mean, it's not fine for him to say stuff like that, but I've heard worse, so whatever."

Shuichi shook his head. "That really isn't okay, either. Just because you have heard worse, I think that makes it even more important that you shouldn't hear those things again."

Kokichi glanced at Shuichi's paper and pointed at one of his answers. "You only got that one wrong."

Shuichi looked at where he was pointing and frowned. "Oh." He sighed. "This is what happens when I don't study as much."

Kokichi looked at him in confusion. "But it's just a practice worksheet to figure out what prior knowledge we've got on the subject. I mean, we haven't gone over this stuff in class, so it's actually really impressive that you only missed the one. We aren't really supposed to know all this yet."

Shuichi shifted in his seat. "But you know all of it."

Kokichi rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I'm also a genius. I have friends a couple years older, and I've helped them with their homework and studying, so I've seen this stuff before. That's why I'm always so bored in class."

Shuichi erased his answer. "I have to do well in school, so my aunt and uncle don't have to worry about my grades. If I disappoint them, I'll have failed. They were kind enough to take me in, so it's the least I can do."

Kokichi studied Shuichi's face as he changed his answer, now correct. "We're pretty similar, huh?"

"We are?" Shuichi looked up at him.

"Mhm." Kokichi grinned. "Right answer, good job. But, anyway, I'm in the same boat. I'm adopted, and I don't want mama to have to worry about me so much. She chose me, so I can't disappoint her, either."

Shuichi set his pencil down. "Parents will always worry. Well, you know what I mean. My actual parents don't care, but my aunt and uncle do. They're more like parents to me."

Kokichi didn't know what it was about this boy that he could be so open with him. Maybe it was simply because he could understand. Both of their caretakers weren't their real parents, but they were the closest they had. And Shuichi could understand his need to make his mom proud.

"You're way more tolerable than those friends of yours." Kokichi pointed out, and Shuichi smiled sheepishly.

"Ah, sorry again about them. They just think there's nothing more to you than a prankster, and you are sort of rude sometimes."

"And you think there is more to me?" Kokichi asked. "Like what?"

"Like what?" Shuichi echoed. "Well, you're nice to me, sometimes." He laughed softly. "And you're smart, obviously. You might say things that are mean, but I know you try not to cross boundaries. You annoy people, but you don't want to actually hurt them."

Kokichi stared at him for a moment before giggling. "If I didn't know any better, that sounds like you have a crush on me. Are you this observant with everyone?"

Shuichi blushed. "N-No, that's not it! I just think you're interesting. I don't understand you. But I want to."

Kokichi poked his forehead playfully. "Relax, I'm kidding. You're a detective, so I suppose always wanting to understand things is in your nature. Good luck figuring me out, Saihara-Chan!" He grinning and turned to walk out of the room.

He heard Shuichi calling for him to wait, but ignored him. He ran to the lunchroom to meet up with Miu, not caring when someone yelled at him not to run in the halls.

When he plopped down his tray beside hers and sat down, she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Took you long enough. Did you guys fuck or something?"

Kokichi scoffed. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"In that case, stop blowing me off just to flirt with that limp-dick virgin!"

Kokichi sighed. "The whole cafeteria can hear you, you'll get detention again." He warned. "And I'd rather not have to put up with you complaining for the next week."

"Tsk." Miu crossed her arms. "When are you gonna ask him out, anyway?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, please!" Miu yelled, to which Kokichi shushed her. "You make puppy eyes at him all the time, dumbass, don't think I haven't seen it. And none of your lying bullshit this time, alright?"

Kokichi sighed dramatically. "Fine, he's hot, you caught me. I'm not gonna ask him out though."

"And why the hell not!?"

"Volume, again. And it's because I'm not ready to date, simple as that." He shrugged. "Besides, if I'm being realistic, he's too much of a people-pleaser. He always wants to make everyone happy. And, well, his friends don't like me, so even if he did have feelings for me, he wouldn't agree to date me."

"Well that's his problem." Miu scoffed. "He shouldn't be such a pushover."

Kokichi rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. So, do you have anyone that you like?"

"Nah, not really. People I think are hot, sure, but none that I'd consider a crush."

"Fair enough."

They finished eating, chatting a bit more. Kokichi thought about what she'd said. He did like Shuichi, but what was he supposed to do about it? He'd never even had any experience to know where to start. And it was true what he'd said before. Eh, maybe he could ask Shiku about it. He was one of the few people in DICE who'd ever dated anyone, and he'd been in a relationship for close to two years.

Kokichi was happy when Shuichi waved goodbye to him at the end of the day. He noticed that Shuichi was hanging around Rantaro a lot more, and couldn't help wondering if something happened between them. Chances were no, and he wouldn't be jealous if they had, he was just curious. Maybe he'd ask tomorrow, it wasn't out of character for him. He snickered a bit at the thought of Shuichi getting really embarrassed and defensive about the claim, just like he had earlier. There'd be no way to tell if it was true, because the detective-in-training got flustered so easily. But, that just heightened the appeal. Really, Kokichi thought, how could he not find it cute?

Chapter Text

Shuichi was a very likable person. He'd heard it a lot before. Throughout his life, very rarely did anyone dislike him. And yet, he had trouble making friends. Shuichi was the same to most people he met. Someone reliable, responsible, and sometimes enjoyable to talk to, but an acquaintance at most. That was the strangest part of Hope's Peak for him. He'd made friends quickly, people who almost seemed drawn to him. Kaede had hung out with him since day one, Kaito not long after. He and Maki hit it off well, even if she didn't warm up to him as fast. Then Rantaro, who he'd really started to consider a friend since he began working on the case he'd been asked to. He hadn't found anything yet, as frustrating as it was, but that wasn't all they talked about. That wasn't all he was to Rantaro.

Then there was Kokichi. He didn't know what Kokichi thought of him, or what he thought of his classmate, for that matter. He was intriguing, for sure, easy to talk to. He felt himself letting his guard down around him, and liked talking to him more than most of their classmates. But he wouldn't say they were friends. They talked almost every day, in the time before class. He liked Kokichi, he thought he was funny more often than the others, even if it wasn't all the time. Most of all, when talking to Kokichi, he didn't feel insecure at all. There was so much energy radiating off of him, he couldn't help it.

That made four friends, and one whatever Kokichi was. He felt lucky. He felt undeserving. But, then again, when didn't he?

Well, that wasn't entirely true. With Rantaro, he was also doing something important for him, and putting a lot of work into it. So, even though it felt a bit unwarranted, he wasn't doing nothing to return his friendship.

And Maki, he could say with certainty that even though they did get along, their friendship came from Kaito. She wasn't his friend just because of him.

Kokichi was different in his own way. He was an enigma. He didn't give nothing but unfiltered kindness. He teased Shuichi, made himself entirely impossible to read most of the time. He rarely complimented him. And yet, when he did, Shuichi knew it was genuine. And he wouldn't even hear it when Shuichi tried to talk himself down. He showed kindness in his own way. Despite what many of their classmates thought, Shuichi believed Kokichi to be genuinely kind.

Kaito and Kaede, though, as great as they were, they overwhelmed him. They were so nice, and so much. It energized him when he was around them, but sometimes he just couldn't keep up. And he wasn't doing anything for them, so he felt occasionally like he was wasting their time.

Therapy helped. It really did. It was helping him understand himself a little better. The term imposter syndrome had been brought up a couple times, more conclusive evidence was needed but it sounded like that was what he had. Knowing that didn't make it easier.

"Shumaiii?" Kokichi's drawn out voice sounded rather close to his ear, and he jumped in surprise to see the short boy smiling down at him. "Whatcha thinking about?"

"Ah, nothing much, just stuff my therapist and I talked about recently."

"Hmm..." Kokichi leaned against the desk beside him. "We should play a game to get your mind off it!"

Shuichi shook his head. "I don't think there's enough time before class for a game, sorry."

"Aw, boo." Kokichi pouted. "Then, can I ask a question?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"Are you in love with Amami-Chan?" He grinned mischieviously.

Shuichi flushed. "No, of course I'm not! We're just friends, absolutely nothing else. I mean, sure, he's really nice, and friendly, and he's funny, b-but I don't feel that way towards him, or anyone!"

Oh no. One glance at Shuichi's face told him he'd only made the teasing worse.

"Oh really? You didn't have to say all that, you know. Just a simple no would've sufficed. Come on, we're friends, right? And friends tell each other all about their crushes, right?"

Shuichi sighed, calmed down a bit. "We aren't friends, Ouma-Kun." He paused. "Are we?"

Kokichi cocked his head. "I dunno, do you wanna be? I mean, currently my only friend in class is Miu, and I certainly wouldn't want to be lumpied in with her."

"U-um." Shuichi looked at him, and Kokichi seemed genuine. Was their friendship status really up to him, though? "I-If you want, then yes, I'd like to call you my friend." He gave a small smile.

Kokichi grinned. "Now you're caught in my trap! You're stuck with me now."

"That's fine. I don't mind being stuck as your friend."

Kokichi rolled his eyes. "You're too nice, you know?"

Shuichi blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Kokichi shrugged. "Eh, nevermind, forget it."

"Okay?"

People started coming in soon, with class being close to starting. Most people hung around friends until a few minutes before class, and Shuichi supposed he was in that group too, now, just in the classroom. He would've joined to begin with, but his friends tended to be too loud for him in the mornings.

Shuichi couldn't help his mind from wandering to how his friends would think of him being friends with Kokichi. Kaito especially. Even if he meant well, Shuichi didn't like how quick he was to jump to conclusions about people. He decided how he felt about someone almost as soon as they met. It had been the same with him and Maki, but instead he decided a higher opinion of them. Maybe that was something he'd have to talk to him about. He hated confrontation, though.

He'd have to eventually. His friends were worried when he was even quieter than usual at lunch, and he told them that he was working on a particularly hard case at the moment, which was true, but not the cause of his silence. Speaking of, he should continue to review that. Maybe he'd missed something. The only problem with that was that he almost never missed anything because of how thorough he was. And he'd already checked three more times.

But he couldn't give up, not when Rantaro was counting on him. He'd gotten police files, and unfortunately, any traffic cams or such weren't around at the time of disappearance, nor was anybody else. Any cameras in a couple mile radius had been checked time and time again, he'd even gotten access to the footage. Still, nothing.

Though, there was one lead. On one of the oldest, Emiko Amami, who was thirteen years old at the moment. Ten when she'd vanished. It had been in regards to a different case, a break-in to a convenience store only eight months after she disappeared. A long blue hair found at the scene that matched her DNA, as well as being dyed to the root. Meaning she'd altered her appearance.

Well, technically, it wasn't necessarily hers. Her twin sister, Hana, would also match the DNA, but of the two, Emiko has gone missing in Japan, so it was more likely to be her. Still, Shuichi supposed, it would be silly of him to rule out any alternatives. It really didn't help progress the case, anyway. She could very well have re-dyed her hair. And enough people in Japan dyed their hair that specific blue that it was yet another dead end. Not to mention, she wasn't even for certain the one who bought the dye. Somebody else could easily have gotten it for her. It was a dead end no matter how he looked at it, but it was all he had.

Was it a coincidence that she was at the scene of a crime? Had the people who kidnapped her forced her to steal for them. No, that was highly unlikely. The only things stolen were food, so the theory was that it had been someone without much money. Not a global crime organization. In that case, there was a chance she hadn't been kidnapped, but was on the run. Still, why not seek help, or at least assure her safety to her family? If nothing else, Shuichi could be certain there was more going on here than he could understand.

Even if there wasn't much, if any, evidence supporting them, he wrote down every possible theory. He'd bring them to Rantaro later. He had to make his contribution worthwhile, wasting his friend's time was not an option. Even if he could just propose a few new ideas.

Maybe them hiding out in places, at least a few, wasn't totally far-fetched. They could have reasons, not wanting to put their family in danger, it would make sense. It would also explain the lack of demands from whoever had kidnapped them. Or not. In fact, how could he be sure some big organization like that was even behind this? No, if they were hiding, it was likely out of fear.

A huge crime organization that's he'd never heard of, that was something he'd been told about rather recently. Was it in any way possible...no, of course not. Kokichi wouldn't be involved in all of this. What was he thinking? Kokichi was the Ultimate Supreme Leader, yes, but he was also just a kid. What would he have to gain from kidnapping twelve little girls? In the times he got to see Kokichi as he really was, when he took something seriously, he was normal. Well, not normal, exactly, but not such an enigma either.

Shuichi got back to brainstorming. Could the yakuza be involved? They were primarily Japanese, though, weren't they? Big groups of criminals rarely cooperated with each other, so it had to be something that stretched that wide. If they hadn't been caught thus far, how was he supposed to expect himself to? Shuichi sighed. Because he had to, that was why.

He knew a lot about missing person cases. The longer it took to find them, the lower the chance was. Most of the time they were with family, a partner, or a friend. Genuine kidnappings, though, those were hard. It was even harder to find the victim alive. Shuichi didn't want to deal with that possibility. He hated working with murder cases. The one he'd solved hadn't even been him, not really. He'd pointed out a possibility to his uncle on an old cold case, and he'd been the one to put the pieces together from there. His big debut case that got him into Hope's Peak wasn't even his, as much as his uncle insisted that it never would've been solved without him.

Shuichi closed the notebook. He couldn't work on this anymore today. The first lesson his uncle taught him in being a detective was not to feel guilty for taking breaks. He understood that it felt as though he was only allowing the victim to be in danger for longer, but without rest he wouldn't be at his best, and thus would never be able to solve it. Everyone's lives didn't depend solely on him. He deserved to relax sometimes too. It was still a hard truth to accept, though.

How many people had told him something similar? His aunt and uncle, his teachers, all of his friends. He had to constantly be reminded that he was still just a teenager. How hypocritical of him was it to think Kokichi couldn't commit a crime like this because he was just a kid, and forget that he was the same age? Rantaro had explicitly told him that he didn't expect Shuichi to solve this case. And yet he took it upon himself to think that he had to. Rantaro wouldn't be disappointed or let down if he didn't. He had no expectations going in. The only way to surprise him was positively. Shuichi always did put way too much pressure on himself.

He leaned back in his seat and sighed. He needed to stop thinking about this case for a bit. Kaito would be dragging him off to train soon, anyway. He'd solve this case. It wouldn't be today, or tomorrow, probably nowhere soon. But he wouldn't give up. Not because he had to, but because he wanted to. It was okay. He was okay. As much as he tried to convince himself it was, this case was not his responsibility. He was only a first year in high school. It wasn't fair to act like their lives were on his shoulders. He wasn't the primary person responsible for any of this.

Chapter Text

First term would be ending soon. He'd spend almost a month and a half at home, the longest he'd been with his parents in three years. Angie would be back home, so he wouldn't see her. Shuichi would most likely be pretty busy with work, though he had agreed to find time to hang out when he could. He hadn't told his parents that he had enlisted his classmate's help. He didn't see a need to. He didn't know half the people who had worked on it in the past.

One thing Rantaro did want to do before summer break was to talk to Kiyo a bit. He was one of the quietest in class, rarely speaking during any subject that wasn't related to his field. One thing he had noticed, however, was that though he never spoke to anyone, Kiyo looked lonely. Rantaro had more than once caught him staring at people laughing together. He could've just dismissed it as his fascination in humanity, but he figured there was probably more to it than met the eye. But he also knew that Kiyo had difficulty carrying a conversation if anthropology wasn't the subject.

So, at lunch, two days before term let out, he approached Kiyo with a friendly smile. He sat alone, always just observing others.

"Hey, mind if I sit here?"

Kiyo was obviously surprised, even if all Rantaro saw was his eyes. He nodded, though.

"Thanks." Rantaro sat down across from him, not wanting to cause him discomfort. "Do you mind if I ask you something?"

Kiyo nodded again but didn't say a word.

"I don't really know how to word this. I know you travel around a lot, so I was wondering, have you ever run into a criminal organization that stretches across the globe?"

Kiyo shook his head. "Apologies, I can't say that I have. Is there a reason you're curious?"

Rantaro sighed. "Well, worth a shot. But, yeah. A few years ago, my sisters were kidnapped from various continents around the same time."

"I see." Kiyo paused. "Human nature is strange. You still seem hopeful after all this time."

Rantaro nodded. "Heh, yeah, I am. Not much else I can do. I won't give up hope."

Kiyo seemed happy with his answer. "You'll be the first to know if I discover anything. Is that all?"

"Huh? For important stuff, sure, but I've been wanting to talk to you anyway. We're the two of our class whose talents made us travel around. Sure, they're still pretty different, and I think yours is quite a bit more impressive than mine, but you're probably the only one who gets how cramped the school makes me feel sometimes." Rantaro ran a hand through his hair. "Besides, I think you're pretty cool."

Kiyo seemed to study him for a bit. "Yes, I suppose you are correct. It is odd to spend most of my time on this campus instead of traveling the world and exploring new cultures. There's still much for me to study here, though."

Rantaro looked around. "Yeah, I guess so. Humanity is the one thing you could never stop studying, right?"

Kiyo nodded. "I agree. Some find it creepy, my fascination with humanity. I assume you don't share that thought?"

"Nah, I think it's cool. A lot of people think humanity is inherently evil and awful, and it's not hard to see why. But you find the beauty in us. I think that might be your real talent."

Kiyo chuckled beneath his mask. "You may be right. But can't we all say the same? Every terrain can be treacherous with many ways to kill you, yet you love to explore it nonetheless. In your presentations, I can tell."

Rantaro smiled. "Can't argue there. See? I knew you'd be cool to talk to."

"You're different than many humans I've met. Talking to you does provide a good research opportunity."

Rantaro laughed. "C'mon, man! I'd rather not just be considered a lab rat, you know? Can you at least call me a friend, too."

Kiyo stared at him a moment before nodding. "I suppose I could. Do you have an interest in becoming my friend?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Most find me too strange."

Rantaro sighed. "I'm friends with Yonaga-Chan too, remember? Doesn't get much stranger than her. Maybe I just like hanging out with weirdos." He joked.

Kiyo chuckled. "Maybe. In that case, yes, I will consider you a friend."

"Cool! So, what kind of things do you like to do?"

They chatted through the rest of lunchtime. Rantaro was glad to have made friends in Angie, Shuichi, and Kiyo. He might even consider Kokichi a friend from how much to short boy seemed to love bothering him.

"Amami-Chan!" Speak of the devil. Class had just ended, and as he was leaving, his name was called by a very recognizable voice. He turned to wait as Kokichi ran towards him.

Kokichi was a bit annoying at times, but he was also very friendly. And as much as he insulted people, he never seemed to want to genuinely hurt anyone.

"Hey, Ouma-Kun, what's up?"

"Do you like me?"

"Huh?" Rantaro studied Kokichi's face for a moment. He looked completely serious, maybe even a little nervous. "I think you're cool, and you're funny sometimes, so yeah, I like you."

Kokichi seemed relieved. Was he worried that people didn't like him?

Rantaro smiled and ruffled Kokichi's hair lightly. "If people are being mean to you, you can let me know. I'll talk to them. I know you never mean any harm."

Kokichi blinked up at him, face a soft pink from the unexpected affectionate gesture. He'd just been worried that he annoyed Rantaro and the taller boy was too nice to say anything. But, due to the times that he'd overheard people insulting him with real malice behind it, he nodded. "Thank you." He mumbled.

Rantaro smiled and withdrew his hand. "I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yeah!" Kokichi smiled brightly, brighter than he usually did, before running off.

Rantaro laughed to himself as he walked to his dorm. Only a few days left of the term.

From all the journals he'd kept in his time traveling, Rantaro had discovered a love for writing. His thoughts, his feelings, his experiences. Maybe it would be fun to document his thoughts on his classmates, too. See how it changes over the years.

May as well start with his best friend, in that case.

Angie Yonaga: She's really cheerful, and fun to be around. I enjoy her company more than most. She brightens any room, and while she might be confusing at times, she never lacks spirit. She loves her god, Atua, and her people unconditionally, just as much as she loves art. She's a bit dense at times, but very smart, and a quick learner. She doesn't care what people think of her, and expresses herself confidently. All in all, I respect her.

Next was the polar opposite of Angie, but someone he considered a friend nonetheless.

Shuichi Saihara: He's really anxious a lot of the time, but has no lack of conviction. When he sets his mind to something, he'd almost certainly accomplishes it. He loves to help people, maybe even a bit too much, and values the opinion of those closest to him. He has a strong sense of what's right and wrong, and won't bend his morals for anyone. Another person I can't help but respect.

Rantaro laughed, thinking about how embarrassed it would probably make Shuichi to know what he'd written, whereas Angie would simply be happy. He supposed he'd do Kokichi next.

Kokichi Ouma: He's a hard one to figure out, but Rantaro has a pretty good idea. He likes jokes, pranks, and anything he deems fun. He doesn't like to see people sad and prefers that any anger be directed at him. He pushes himself out as a scapegoat so everyone else can be happy. Because of that, he gets nervous that the people he enjoys being around won't like him. He lies a lot, but only about little things. When he does say a bigger lie, he usually backtracks. It seeks like it might be a bad habit that he's trying to fix.

He hadn't realized how much he knew about Kokichi. That was the nice thing about writing these things down. He learned the things he already knew, but never put into words. In this case, well, he supposed that Kokichi was a friend.

Korekiyo Shinguji: Goes by Kiyo. He's very quiet, and usually keeps to himself. He's fascinated by humanity, finding beauty despite any number of flaws. A lot of people consider him strange for it, but it's pretty cool.

And he hardly knew anything about Kiyo. It wasn't much of a shock, though, the anthropologist had kept to himself the whole term. Still, he'd like to learn more about him.

That about summed up the people he was friends with. He didn't know most of the others to form much of an opinion.

Still, he wrote little snippets. Just his first impressions and similar things. He wrote for over an hour.

Miu was loud, vulgar, but incredibly smart. Kaede was very sweet to everyone, a bit overly optimistic, and had confidence in herself and others to spare. Ryoma was the quietest of the class, and as far as he knew, nobody knew a thing about him. Kaito trusted easily, had a bit of a hero complex, and based everybody on his surface impression of them. Tsumugi thought she was too basic to be an ultimate, but was incredibly skilled and passionate. Kirumi was reliable and kind. Maki was intimidating, but rather playfully sarcastic at times. Kiibo was interesting and pretty dense. Tenko hated men, but seemed to warm up to them pretty quickly a lot of the time. Himiko was cool, a bit childish, but she was certainly a good mage. Gonta was a bit of an odd guy, but he respected his conviction.

And that was it. Rantaro really wanted to learn more about his classmates. More than just a couple of traits he'd been able to pick out from the start. Even after a full term, he didn't know a whole lot more about most of them.

Then again, it wasn't like many people knew a lot about him, either. Angie and Shuichi were probably the only ones. It was far from unusual to only know a bit about most of his classmates, anyway.

Rantaro came from the small school of his hometown with only twenty-three people in his whole year. He knew each of them well, young children still being so friendly. Then, he spent junior high with only his maid as a private tutor.

He still wanted to know more about the other class his year, too. He knew some of their talents already. Ultimate horror writer, ultimate escape artist. They were interesting, and he was curious. But he almost never saw them.

Rantaro stood up with a sigh. His room was feeling cramped again. Maybe that's what he could do next term. He was fine not being everyone's friend, but he wanted to be an acquaintance. He always thought the chill guy in movies who seemed to know everyone was the coolest. Everyone seemed to like that guy.

His sisters like those characters, too. They'd think he was so cool if they knew. And anyway, the more people he knew, the better off he'd be. Especially the more Ultimates. There was business to it as well. Having strong connections was the most important part of the business world.

His dad had a lot of strong friends. Good friends, too. They still met up to gold every other weekend. He and his sisters used to tease his dad for liking golf.

Rantaro laughed to himself. There were so many sides of him working towards the same goals. Past, living only with the hope of finding his sisters. Present, trying to find himself. And future, wanting to succeed in life so his loved ones wouldn't have to worry.

It was all the same, though. Really, all Rantaro wanted was to spend his life happy with a lot of close friends and family.

Chapter Text

As a kid, Kokichi never really got why breaks from school were such a big deal. Life sucked just as much as home, usually more. The only nice thing about breaks was getting to run off and hang out with DICE, which he always just did anyway, so it didn't matter much.

Therefore, it felt weird. The first day of summer break, he spent in his room playing video games and talking on the phone with Miu. No more dreading when the front door would open, spending all day cleaning in hopes they wouldn't be in a bad mood.

Kokichi considered himself happy when he skipped school to be with DICE or hid there until his drunk foster mom passed out.

He was no longer glancing every few minutes at the clock, counting down to when someone would be home. At least, not in the same way.

His mom had promised to get off work a couple hours early to take him shopping. So, as the minutes passed, instead of fear welling in his stomach, excitement blossomed.

Kokichi had turned his game off ten minutes before she'd be home and got his boots on, wanting to be ready to go as soon as she got back.

The moment he heard the door open, he ran downstairs and hugged her, Yua barely had time to close the door beforehand.

"Hi mama!" He giggled.

"Did you have a good day?" She smiled, returning the hug.

"Mhm! It was so long, though!" He complained. "I couldn't wait! Can we go now, please?"

"Of course, where would you like to go?" After a few seconds of silence and Kokichi giving her a look of uncertainty, she decided to be more general. "Do you want to look at some new clothes?"

"Ooh, yes please!" Kokichi told her excitedly. He still didn't know much about stores in the area. Really, he didn't know much about stores in general, except the best to steal from, and the ones he was banned from. He wanted to avoid those, however.

"Your grades came in for the term already, Hope's Peak is really on top of that." Yua said once she'd turned on the car. "You're doing very well, I'm proud of you."

Kokichi's stomach sank when he heard mention of grades, as it always did. Hearing praise for his hard work instead of insults, however, made it go away. He was doing well, he knew that. Even when he hadn't been last year, his mom still hadn't been anything but kind about it.

"Yep, I'm making sure I get all of my homework done, and I'm studying too!" He smiled.

"I know, your efforts certainly paid off. I'll buy you ice cream later as a reward."

Kokichi cheered. Being rewarded for his grades instead of punished? That was a new one.

"So," she continued, "has anyone in your class caught your eye?" She asked with a teasing grin.

Kokichi gasped and felt his face go red. "Uhhhh, maybe?" He giggled nervously. "Iruma-Chan didn't tell you, did she?"

Yua laughed. "No, no, nothing like that. I really had no idea, I was just curious."

Kokichi looked down at his lap. "Okay, good."

"So," she continued, "what's this person like?"

Kokichi smiled a bit. "Well, he's the Ultimate Detective, Saihara Shuichi. I've mentioned him before."

"That you have." Yua recalled him saying that they were friends, though if he had said anything else about him, she didn't remember it. "Is he nice to you?"

Kokichi relaxed. Of course the first thing she'd want to know was how Shuichi treated him. "Yeah. He doesn't-He doesn't get mad when I'm annoying him at all." He almost said that he doesn't let other people talk bad about him, but he didn't want his mom knowing that was happening at all.

Yua nodded. "Good. Make sure you're being nice, too. When will I get to meet this boy? You should invite him over."

Kokichi blushed. "I don't have his number or anything, so I don't know. We really aren't that close, we just hang out and talk before class."

"That's a shame. None of your other friends have his number either, do they?"

Kokichi thought about it. "Actually, one of them does. Amami-Chan gave me his number so we could work on a project together if we ran out of time in class, which we didn't. I still have it somewhere, though. He and Saihara-Chan are friends, so he might have his number. I don't know how I'd ask him, though."

Yua smiled. "Well, you could just ask if he could give it to you. He probably wouldn't think that much of it."

Kokichi shrugged. "Yeah, fair enough. I'll do it later."

"Alright. We're there, anyway."

Their destination was a pretty small store, but the clothing was colorful and full of fun designs. Just like Kokichi enjoyed. They'd gone there once before, he'd pointed it out while they were driving, and his mom agreed to check it out. He loved it.

She'd lost him practically the moment they got inside, Kokichi darting around and looking at everything as fast as he could. He found some tall, purple socks with cat faces on the edge, and little ears peaking off the top. He also grabbed a shirt covered in various colors and patterns, that would probably be too wild for some people to even look at.

Kokichi found a pair of dangly earring with dice on the ends. They were cute, but he couldn't wear them sadly.

Yua finally found him, inspecting some earrings that were most definitely his style, and walked up to him. "You can get your ears pierced if you want. I'll need you to think on it for a bit to make sure it's what you want, but we can get those if you decide to."

Kokichi shook his head and put them up. "Nah, piercings are a girl thing."

Yua put her hand on his shoulder. "Kokichi, plenty of boys get their ears pierced. And even if they didn't, so what? You can express yourself and wear whatever you want."

"I know that." Kokichi mumbled and crossed his arms. "But a lot of people don't think that way. I don't know if I'd be able to handle it if someone said it to me." He sighed.

Yua squeezed his shoulder with a smile. "That's perfectly fine." She picked up the earrings. "I'm going to get them anyway, just in case you change your mind."

Kokichi grinned and hugged her. "Thanks, mama! I think I will want to someday, when I'm a bit more comfortable."

She hugged him back with a smile. "Of course, baby, you know I'll support you every step of the way."

Kokichi nodded and pulled back, showing her the things he'd found already. "Aren't these cute!"

"Very. Want me to hold onto them so you can look around a bit more?"

Kokichi handed them to her. "Yes, please!" He said before running off.

The only other thing he got was a set of white hairclips with grapes on them. They'd come in handy when he bangs got a little long.

After everything was purchased and they left, Yua took one of the clips out and put it in Kokichi's hair, clipping his bangs to the side.

"They look nice." She smiled and ruffled his hair lightly. "Do you want to get ice cream now?"

"Uh-huh!" Kokichi looked in the car's mirror and grinned at his reflection. He looked so cute! But..."Hey, mama? I don't look, you know, like a girl with this, right?" He looked down at his lap.

Yua shook her head. "Of course not, you look like my son. It makes you look a bit younger, I suppose, but that's all."

Kokichi looked at himself again. "Yeah, you're right." He giggled. "I look like the kinda guy that scares old people."

Yua chuckled softly. "Whatever makes you happy."

Kokichi looked at his hands. He wondered if he'd like his nails painted? Maybe he could ask Rantaro, he knew that he was good at it, and had done Shuichi's once before.

For a long time, he'd deprived himself of any form of what was seen as femininity. He thought it was wrong of himself to want or enjoy those things, that he'd be questioned for it. Still, even if he did like those kinds of things, his mom and DICE were the only ones who actually knew his secret. They wouldn't judge. They never did.

Kokichi used to draw himself in skirts and similar things, when he was little. When he was twelve and figuring himself out with the help of DICE, he'd torn them up. It had been four years now. Maybe it was time to stop caring how others would view him. He rarely did in any other aspect.

He'd start small. Painted nails or clip-on earrings. Little hairclips that looked cute and made him happy. He was a boy, that was all that mattered. How he chose to express himself was his business.

Kokichi got cookies and cream ice cream, his mom got strawberry. He ate through the sinking feeling in his stomach, knowing they'd be going home after this, afraid that this fun evening was only because of bad news to come. That probably wasn't the case, but it had happened before, with others. The only news he ever got from her after these days was good.

They'd been eating here, for example, when she'd first told him she had plans to adopt him. He'd cried harder than he ever had in his life in front of people he didn't know, but he couldn't help it. They'd gone to the movies before she told him that she'd bought the hair dye he wanted, after he'd expressed an interest in it. He knew that she didn't have the money to treat him often, so it was special, even without good news.

After he finished, Kokichi stared down at the table. Pale blue, white swirls, he could almost see through it.

"What's wrong?" Yua asked. "Do you feel sick?"

Kokichi shook his head. "No, just thinking. I really wish you'd found me sooner."

Yua held his hand gently. "I know, baby, there's nothing I want more. But I found you, and I'm happy about that. Adopting you was the best choice I ever made, even if it was a bit late."

Kokichi nodded. "Can we redo my hair when we get home? My roots are getting pretty dark."

Yua smiled. "Of course we can. Do you want to get your hair cut this weekend, too? It's getting a bit long."

Kokichi twirled some hair around his finger. "Yeah. It's not curling as much as it usually does." He'd been asked before what he did to get his hair in that style, but truthfully, it always did that. If it was short enough, the ends curled up quite a bit. He'd has foster families who forced him to straighten it, or grow his hair out so it would stop. He'd always found it cute, though. His mom did, too.

When they got home, Kokichi put his new stuff in his room and took out the clip. Then, Yua helped him touch up his hair. She'd never dyed hair before Kokichi's, but she'd done a lot of research to make sure it was done well, and while she wasn't perfect, it looked really good. Not as natural as hers, of course, but that didn't matter.

Once she finished, Kokichi looked in the mirror. Back to full purple! It matched his eyes well too, which he liked. But it only took him a moment to squeeze his eyes shut.

"What's wrong?" Yua asked, noticing that her son was upset. "Does it look bad?"

Kokichi quickly shook his head. "No, it looks really good, thank you. I just had to take my binder off when we got home, and I forgot that I had. I don't always remember that my chest is...like this, so when I'm reminded, I just feel gross."

Yua frowned and rubbed his back gently. "I'm sorry, baby, I wish there was something I could do. You just have to manage a couple more years, okay? I'll help you pay for surgery."

Kokichi shook his head again. "You don't have to do that. I'll be okay, it just surprised me." He turned around and opened his eyes with a forced smile.

Yua folded her arms. "You're my son, of course I'll help you. I'm getting a new job soon, I just got confirmation a couple days ago, so I'll be making more money." She smiled. "You deserve to be happy, so I'm going to do anything I can to ensure that you are."

Kokichi gasped. "Really? That's amazing, mama!" He grinned. "Once I'm older, I'll make sure I take care of you too, okay?"

Yua laughed softly. "Alright then. Just make sure you take care of yourself, too."

Of course he would. He had so many people who would make sure of it. All of DICE, his mom, his friends at school. They all cared about him, and made sure he knew that. Rantaro stood up for him if people were being mean, Shuichi too. Miu made him promise to tell her if something was wrong. People really wanted him to be happy. He smiled. It took them long enough.

Chapter Text

Shuichi felt like a failure every time his nails dug into the palms of his hands. Shuichi felt like a failure every time his aunt asked if he'd eaten and he couldn't lie to her. He got moments of reprieve from trying to be everything he felt he had to and hating himself for failing when his friends messaged him, but then he only felt awful for rejecting any requests to hang out.

His aunt, Reiki, spent her day off with him, tried to watch a movie with him, but he was simply too restless. There were so many other, better things he could be doing. She could tell. He felt like he could cry when she turned the movie off, knowing it was his fault, he was ruining one of the few days she got off.

Reiki hugged him, and he did.

"Is therapy helping at all?" She asked him. He didn't know.

"I'm sorry." He hiccupped, sobs escaping full force as he hugged her back. "I'm sorry you and uncle got stuck with me, I'm sorry that I don't know how to be happy as I am, I'm sorry that you have to worry about me all the time." Therapy made him recognize his feelings, made him confront them, made him know they existed. He knew it was supposed to help in the long run, but it just seemed to make everything so much harder right now.

"You have nothing to be sorry for." She told him. "Ayato and I wanted you, we both love you as though you're our own son. You are not and never were a burden to us."

"Why can't I believe that?" Shuichi hugged her tighter.

"I don't know," Reiki admitted. "I treat people's physical wounds, not their mental ones. But, if I had to guess, I'd say it's most likely because that's how your parents thought of you, and you expect it from everyone, even if it's not true." She pulled back and brushed some of Shuichi's hair from his face. "We didn't have to take you in. But we loved you, Shuichi, we still do, and we'd never even consider that we might've made a different choice. I know we both work too much to take care of you as well as we should, but we do our best."

"I know." Shuichi wiped his tears. "I couldn't ask for more. I love living with you and uncle, and I'm proud to be your nephew."

Reiki smiled. "Then that's all that matters. We're family, Shuichi, so you can tell me these things. I'll always make time for you." He nodded. "So," she continued, "how about we just talk for a bit. We haven't had the chance to catch up in a while."

"I'd like that. Are things going well at the hospital?"

She shrugged. "As well as they can. A cancer patient was finally discharged recently, though. Her chances of survival had been slim for a long time, but she pulled through, and was officially announced cancer free."

"That's amazing. She must be really strong."

Reiki smiled. "She is. What about you, how's school?"

"It's going well." Shuichi told her. "I've made a lot of friends. Well, it's more accurate to say a lot of people wanted to be my friend. I can't say I feel I deserve it, but I'm happy. They're all kind, in their own ways."

"I'm proud of you, really. I'd love to meet all of them some day. You should invite them over some time. I'm sure you'll keep them out of trouble."

Shuichi frowned. "They've been asking to hang out, but I-I've denied every time. It's not so bad at school, they'll drag me around anyway, and it's easy to spend time with them. But at home, there's so much planning, and if they did visit, then I'd have to make sure everything is clean, and make sure I'm a good host. If we went somewhere else, I'd have to figure out how to get there, and timing, there's just always too much." He folded his arms, feeling anxious just thinking about it. "I can't do it."

Reiki ruffled his hair lightly. "You always keep the house clean anyway, and don't worry about being a good host, your friends just want to spend time with you. You never have trouble making things on time, and even though you aren't the best with directions, you always have your phone's gps to help."

Shuichi sighed. "I know. It never ends up that bad, but I still can't help being anxious about it. Is that bad?"

"No, I don't think it is. It's better than being underprepared, if you ask me. So, I know you have a lot of friends, but has anybody caught your eye? Your uncle and I met in high school, you know."

Had anyone caught his eye? Shuichi couldn't say, he never really thought much of romance. He thought Rantaro was cool, and he certainly couldn't say he wasn't attractive, but that didn't mean he had a crush on him. Kokichi had asked him if there was anything between them, but there wasn't. Just friends, just helping him with a case, nothing more.

"So is that a yes?" Reiki teased, and Shuichi realized that his face felt hot.

"I don't know." He admitted. "One of my friends, I like being around him, and I never feel like I have to be anything more than myself with him. I think he's really handsome, but I can recognize that a lot of people are attractive without actually having any feelings for them. I don't know what a crush would even feel like."

Reiki chuckled. "Well, how does he make you feel? Do you look forward to being around him more than your other friends?"

Shuichi thought about it. "Yeah, I guess so. It's just because he's more calm, though, my other friends are all really energetic. Except Harukawa-Kun, but we're really only friends because of someone else. And I mean, Ouma-Kun doesn't really tire me out either, even though he has more energy than any of them, but we also don't talk much other than before school, so that's probably why."

Romance had never been a priority for him, he usually had too much on his mind to even consider it, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized how much more his heart pounded and he felt nervous around Rantaro, but not in the way he normally did. It wasn't a kind of nervousness he minded so much.

"His name is Amami Rantaro, he's the Ultimate Adventurer." Shuichi smiled a little. "I don't know if I'd consider it a crush, but maybe. He makes me happy, and I'd like to say yes if he asked me out, I guess." He laughed nervously.

Reiki grinned. "Ask him out yourself, then. From the sound of it, he probably wouldn't make a big deal of it even if he doesn't feel the same."

"No way!" Shuichi felt extremely anxious just thinking about it. "I don't even know how to do that, and I think I want to figure out my own feelings first. Also, I'm not sure if I'm doing well enough myself to be a good boyfriend right now, even if things did go that way."

Reiki smiled. "I'm proud of you. I knew you'd answer that way, I was just putting the thought in your head."

Shuichi sighed. "Yeah, that makes sense." He smiled. "You, uh, you already figured out that I liked guys, right?" He'd never officially 'come out', this was his first time mentioning romantic attraction to begin with. He knew he liked both girls and guys, but he'd never voiced it until now.

Reiki laughed. "I always had a hunch. I mean, when you were little, you wanted to marry both princes and princesses in your games. You even said that you didn't care if you married a boy or a girl, as long as they were nice."

Shuichi flushed. "I-I did!?"

"Yep. You stopped before too long, though. You were still living with your parents at the time, I have a feeling they'd gotten mad at you for it. Ayato and I always tried to support you, though, in everything."

Shuichi's shoulders fell. "I had no idea. I-I'm glad they decided to leave me, sometimes. They never actually cared, I was just a burden to them." He sighed. "You and uncle were always more like parents to me than they were even before I was living with you permanently. So, thank you, for actually caring."

Reiki flicked his head lightly and smiled. "Of course we care about you. No one in their right mind wouldn't. You're a wonderful kid, Shuichi, and I'm glad you're here too because my brother-in-law never appreciated you like he should've, same with his wife. You were always a blessing, those two just cared too much about money to realize that."

Shuichi felt tears rise to his eyes and hugged his aunt. "Thank you. I forget that sometimes. I don't always understand that I didn't have a great childhood, because I have so many good memories with you and uncle."

"We must've done a good job, then. That was the idea."

Shuichi nodded and felt his phone buzz a few times in rapid succession.

hi saihara-chan!
its ouma, I got your number from amami-chan
we should hang out soon!
promise not to murder you and sell your organs on the black market, okayyyyy?

He couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped him. Ouma was so strange, in an almost endearing way.

Reiki smirked. "Is it that boy you were talking about?"

"No no, not him." Shuichi laughed nervously, blushing a bit. "Someone else, he was just asking if I wanted to hang out. I-I don't know, though."

"Well, do you want to hang out with him?" Shuichi nodded after a moment. "Then say yes!" She laughed. "Spend time with your friends, okay? You're only a kid for a few more years, so embrace it. I don't want you spending all of high school studying."

Shuichi sighed. "Yeah, you're right."

Sure, that sounds fun.

He sent the reply, and got a series of excited messages in return. Kokichi asked if he wanted to come over and they could hang out at his place in a few days, sent the address, and Reiki helped him map out how to get there.

Shuichi hadn't been sure if hanging out with Kokichi for so long would be good for his sanity(it probably wouldn't), but he seemed so excited. He could imagine exactly how Kokichi was probably smiling, the same way he had been when Shuichi agreed to officially be his friend. Genuine, happy, and truthfully really cute.

The rest of the day, Shuichi hung out with his aunt without any more problems. He was feeling better about himself due to the affirmation that she really was proud of him. He never really doubted it, he knew his aunt better than that, but he had been a bit worried nonetheless. The finished the movie, played a board game, did a puzzle, and he helped her cook dinner. Well, more along the lines of she was teaching him to cook a bit more.

Due to them being gone so much, Shuichi still hadn't gotten the hang of actually cooking for himself. He was incredibly independent, more than his aunt would've liked at only 15, but cooking took a lot of teaching. Reiki didn't like her nephew living off of microwave foods so much, but unfortunately, there wasn't much she could do except cooking things when she had the time and energy and leaving plenty of leftovers for Shuichi to at least get something a bit more nutritious.

Sometimes Shuichi missed when they didn't work so much. But when his uncle was promoted and the other hospital nearby closed down within a year, Shuichi was stuck twelve years old and on his own most of the time. His uncle took him to the agency to help, and he'd found a love for detective work, but he still rarely saw his uncle. At the time, he'd been afraid they'd abandon him like his parents had. The difference was his parents had time for him, but chose to spend it as far away as they could. His aunt and uncle didn't have that time, but found every piece they could to be with him.

Chapter Text

It was still hard for Rantaro to be at home. His house was big, it had to be to accommodate sixteen people. Personal space was practically nonexistent due to his youngest sisters. At least, it had been. He wasn't used to it being so quiet. It shouldn't be. He'd had the same problem those few weeks he spent at home after his sisters disappeared. It hadn't gotten any better. Last time, he'd run away, he couldn't stand it. But this was something he had to manage. He still had hope that they were out there, and he'd miss the quiet when they finally came home. That's what he had to tell himself.

When he'd first come home for the summer, he'd expressed that. His father had assured him that he was right, that they'd all be home someday. They'd already had one child come home after being lost for so long, so of course the rest would too. Rantaro cried and hugged his father like he should've three years ago. He missed them so much, and now that there wasn't travel or even school to distract him, he felt so empty, just like the house. His parents knew exactly how he felt.

Rantaro missed them, but he still refused to grieve. They weren't dead, just missing, and they would come home. He just had to keep hoping. He didn't think he could handle it if he stopped. Shuichi still had nothing but theories he'd heard before, but that was okay. He was trying harder than any of the cops had, and he couldn't ask for more. He didn't want to.

Angie was home for the summer, so he didn't have her to hang out with. He'd considered going to visit her, but that would have to wait. He needed to spend some time at home. It would be good for him in the long run, especially if the worst case scenario that he refused to even consider came to pass.

He was doing a puzzle in the dining room when his phone buzzed. Rantaro's family had one of those unreasonably long tables that he'd only ever seen otherwise in movie castles, but it was necessary to accommodate so many. It felt empty without everyone, but at least it gave him plenty of room, and he could grab a snack if he wanted.

amami-chan!

Rantaro chuckled seeing the text. The number was unknown, but based on the text alone, he had a good idea who it was.

Ouma-Kun?

He asked, though he doubted there was a need.

howd you know??????

The texting style was so him. It was a little endearing, if he was being honest.

Lucky guess. What's up?

Knowing Kokichi, he wasn't texting him just to say hi.

do you have saihara-chans number? i wanna prank call him

Ah, of course. Rantaro smiled. He knew that wasn't the real reason, he had a feeling Kokichi just wanted to be able to talk to Shuichi. He'd figured out a while ago that the short boy probably had a crush on him, if the constant staring, finding every opening to talk to or tease him, and beaming whenever Shuichi said anything nice to him meant anything. It was cute, and he hoped things worked out for him. Kokichi deserved to be happy.

Yeah

He sent the number, hoping Shuichi wouldn't mind. The two were friends, so chances were he wouldn't.

thank you!!!!
youre the best amami-chan!!!!!!!!

Undeniably cute.

Let me know if he doesn't treat you right, okay?

Though Shuichi was a good friend, and he knew him to be a caring person, he hadn't known him that long. And he wanted to continue to assure Kokichi that he could talk to him.

awwwww you care about me!

of course I do.

Was Rantaro's reply. It took Kokichi a minute to respond, which surprised him.

thank you
if i didnt know any better id think you were trying to make me fall in love with you

Ah, there was the Kokichi he knew. Rantaro chuckled. He did care, and he was starting to understand that Kokichi had his reasons for a lot of things. He'd let him have his fun.

What if I was?

He decided to play along.

unfortunately for you my heart already belongs to someone else!

There was his confirmation, not that he needed it.

Ah, darn. Well, that's okay. I'm good with just being your friend. It means I get to tease you about your little crush on Saihara-Kun.

Rantaro really didn't understand why his classmates didn't like Kokichi. He was a bit annoying, and a troublemaker, but rarely did he instigate actual conflict first. The more someone disliked it, the more he liked to mess with them. It was harmless fun, though. Maybe he just had a higher tolerance for it. With so many sisters he couldn't get annoyed easily.

O//////O
howd you know?????????

He could practically hear Kokichi giggling on the other end.

maybe if you didn't stare at him so much it wouldn't be as obvious.

Rantaro smiled. If he ever had a crush on someone and Kokichi found out, this would absolutely come back to bite him, but it was worth it. This was what friends did, after all.

aaaaahhhhh ffffffiiiiiiinnnnnneeeee
now you have to spill who you like!
pleaseeeeeee?????

Rantaro chuckled. He didn't have a crush on anyone, at least not at the moment. His friends were all just friends, he thought people were attractive, but that was it. For example, he could easily admire Shuichi's soft, almost feminine features and cute mannerisms, or how Angie seemed to glow when she was happy, or that Kokichi's genuine smile was possibly the cutest thing he'd ever seen. He could say someone was cute, pretty, handsome, but that was just observation. He'd love to fall for someone one day, go on dates and get married. But for now he just wanted to love his friends. He couldn't even imagine falling in love romantically with someone he wasn't already close with.

I'm not interested in anyone right now. I'll let you know when I am, kay?

Hopefully Kokichi wouldn't push.

aw, boo
i gotta go now, bye bye!

Rantaro smiled and said goodbye in return and set the contact to Ouma-Kun before setting his phone down. Kokichi's question did get him wondering, he'd been told before he was strange to take so long to develop a crush. He thought it was stranger to like someone you barely knew, though. He didn't care, exactly, just didn't understand how he was the weird one. Then again, he was already thought by a lot of people to be weird for not caring about the gender of his future partner, either. Why shouldn't it be the person who matters?

Rantaro sighed gently and returned to his room, not feelings much like building a puzzle right now. He looked around his room. Even with all the nostalgia, it no longer truly felt like home. Not really. He looked at his bookshelf, full of books with the top shelf dedicated to little trinkets he'd gotten while traveling with his family. Snow globes and bells and little spoons, he wanted to collect but never decided on one thing. He stopped collecting things like this after he stopped travelling for fun. Everything he bought as a souvenir was for his family. A lot of the time, he forgot about himself. He wasn't important.

Rantaro knelt down and grabbed a thick book, full of pictures. It was the only one that wasn't dusty. He'd told his parents not to worry about cleaning his room, it had always been his responsibility, and just because he wasn't there didn't mean they should worry about it. The few times he was home, though, he didn't have much energy. If his space got dusty, that was on him, and he understood that, but he didn't care after a while. He did now. He'd make sure to clean it the next day.

Every time he was home, he looked through this book so many times. Pictures upon pictures of his family having fun. He wasn't in many, these were all taken by him, but all the ones he was, he was happier than he'd been in years.

Birthdays, holidays, trips, first days of school. Rantaro loved to document things. He'd gotten that love from his father. Every wall of their large house was decorated with family pictures, the smiling faces of his parents, sisters, and himself. They were all older now, none had been added while his sisters were gone. While he was gone.

Rantaro slipped one of his rings off and turned it between his fingers as he flipped again through the pages. He'd been told it was weird to have trackers in his jewelry, and even if he understood the motive, kind of creepy that his parents always knew where he was. He disagreed. In fact, he'd brought it up first. It was always a safety precaution, he felt better because of it too. And he didn't have anything to hide. He got why a lot of people his age would hate it, even if they didn't need to hide anything either. Just something that worked with his family, probably because lack of trust had never been an issue.

He put his ring back on. It always haunted him most that he wasn't taken with them. He tried to never think about it, any reasons that would ever cross his mind just made it worse.

Rantaro set the book down and sunk into his bed, covering his eyes. He felt useless and awful for not doing more, not having found them. He felt like a shitty big brother even though there was nothing he could've done. Being trapped between four walls still made him anxious sometimes. It did now.

He wondered if he felt so protective over Kokichi because he reminded him so much of his oldest sister, Hatsuko. She had the same tendency for playing pranks on people, and loved to cause harmless mischief. Maybe he was projecting his need to protect someone onto Kokichi, so he didn't feel so useless. It wasn't fair, but he did genuinely care for his friend too. It was like Angie said, that protectiveness was ingrained into him as well. He smiled. His sisters would truly love all of his friends.

Rantaro remembered, growing up, he never thought he'd be an ultimate student himself. No, it was Kagome, if anyone. She was only eleven now, younger last he saw her, but her whole life she loved to create clothing. She'd probably get along great with Tsumugi. Even when she was just four or five, Rantaro helped her make clothing for her dolls. She adored every aspect of it, by the time he last saw her she could create amazing clothes all on her own. Rantaro always hoped she'd get into Hope's Peak. She deserved it.

As kids they'd all thought of what ultimate talents they'd have. It was all a game, they never expected to, but it was fun. His sisters had called him the Ultimate Big Brother because he hadn't been able to decide. Kagome had made uniforms for all of them. It didn't fit anymore, but he still had his.

He'd had friends at school ask him if he got annoyed by his sisters, but he'd always really loved them. He always indulged in whatever games they wanted to play. He'd love to do that again, no matter how stupid it might be. His family had always been the most important part of his life.

Growing up, Rantaro rarely complained about his family, unlike a lot of classmates. Even the women his father married for barely a year at a time, who never treated him like their own child, just the son of a man with a lot of money. Iku had been his mother the majority of time he spent in school, anyway, and he never had any complaints about her.

It was the ideals Rantaro was raised with, by a father who loved him and his sisters unconditionally, and before long a mother who did too. He knew he was lucky with the family he had. Maybe that was why things had to go so wrong. He knew his life wouldn't be perfect, that he'd encounter hardship he didn't know how to bounce back from. But this wasn't fair. His luck had to be pretty poor for everything he'd ever known and love to come crashing down with no clues as to how to fix it. He wouldn't stop trying, wouldn't stop hoping, just as it wouldn't stop hurting.

Chapter Text

Kokichi couldn't say how long it had been since he'd invited over a friend that wasn't part of DICE. He wasn't sure he ever had. Not a crush, for sure, that had never happened until now. He was excited!

Kokichi spent the few days leading up practically bouncing off the walls at any given time, driving Miu and his family half-crazy because he was always either talking about it or clearly thinking about it. Yuka, one of the younger members, had teased him about how head over heels he was the second she had seen him last.

When Shuichi finally did get there, he truly felt like he was maybe six years old, tackling the taller boy in an energetic hug. "Shumai, I missed you!"

Shuichi's shock was evident, and expected, but Kokichi was happy to feel the hug and excitement returned.

"It's good to see you too." Shuichi chuckled, and Kokichi bounced back to invite him in.

"My mama will be home in a few hours, we can do whatever until then."

Shuichi nodded as he walked inside and removed his shoes. "Alright. How has your summer been so far?"

"Great! I've been thinking about getting my ears pierced, mama is fine with it as long as I'm certain, but do you'd think I'd look cute?" Kokichi had been thinking about it more, and it wasn't as though he would base his final decision on what someone else thought, but he was curious. He also wanted to hear Shuichi admit he was cute.

Shuichi nodded without having to think much. "Yeah, I do. I think-I think boys look really good with piercings." He smiled awkwardly.

Kokichi giggled. "Ooh, does Shumai have a thing for that? Amami-Chan has a lot of piercings, doesn't he?"

Shuichi blushed. "Shush, it's not like that!" He rubbed the back of his head. "I can't say I don't find it a bit...attractive, though." He admitted shyly.

"You're never this open at school." Kokichi pointed out. Not that he minded.

"I guess not." Shuichi shrugged. "It's just us, and I don't have to worry about anyone else overhearing, so I guess that's why. I do struggle sometimes with upholding an image of myself that I want people to see."

Kokichi hummed in understanding. "Do you not care what I think of you?"

Shuichi took a moment to think on his answer. "That's not it. You don't seem to care much what anyone thinks of you, and I admire that. I also know that any front I try to put up, you'll see through right away. We're actually hanging out as friends, so I feel like I'm better off not trying to hide anything."

Kokichi grinned. "Good! I don't like when people hide things from me. Do you like video games?"

"Hm?" Shuichi was starting to get a bit better at adapting to Kokichi's sudden change of tone. "Oh, I don't play much. It can be a bit too intense for me."

Kokichi studied him a moment before nodding. "Alright, we can play Minecraft then. I think you'll like it." He grabbed Shuichi's arm and dragged him to his room.

He didn't tend to play it too often, preferring faster paced games with set instructions, but he had a feeling Shuichi would like this one.

Shuichi took a moment to glance around Kokichi's room while he set up the game. The walls were painted bright purple, a bright, rainbow-colored rug taking up most of the floor. His bed was pushed in a corner with equally bright sheets. Pillows, blankets, and stuffed animals were tossed haphazardly about, but all were confined to the bed. Various things were littered about, little trinkets that he didn't take the time to identify fully. Overall, it matched his friend greatly.

His eyes landed on the ceiling, two flag pinned up on each corner. He recognized one, the pansexual flag. He'd done a bit more researched, since finally coming out himself. The other one, a gold background with a multi-colored infinity symbol was new to him, though.

"Ouma-Kun?" Shuichi asked a bit quietly, hoping that he wouldn't be rude for asking. Kokichi responded with a small hum as he finished setting up, indicating he was listening. "What does the gold flag mean?"

Kokichi glanced at him, then his gaze at the ceiling. "Means I'm autistic." He shrugged and went back to what he was doing. "There's other flags, that's the most common one far as I know. Adds more color when I'm staring up at the ceiling, you know?"

Shuichi nodded absent-mindedly. "Where did you get them?"

"Ordered them online, why? You wanting one?"

"I think so, yes. I think I might want a bisexual flag." He bit his lip. This was his first time coming out to a friend, that felt like a big step. He never considered coming out to be something important, but it was nice knowing that other people knew.

"Yeah, that would match your style anyway." Kokichi handed him a controller. "Blues and such. What do you think of my room, anyway?"

Shuichi smiled. "I like it. It suits you. It's a bit more...eccentric than my tastes tend to be, but it seems very you."

Kokichi grinned. "That a bad thing?"

Shuichi shook his head. "Not at all. I can't always keep up with you, but I like you as you are. And your room is very, well, you."

As he finished getting into the game, Kokichi bumped his shoulder lightly against Shuichi. "Relax, you don't have to be so tense. We're just friends hanging out. I haven't had just a friend over in a while. All the friends I did have before this year are family to me. So, I'm sorta new to this too, yeah?"

Shuichi nodded and accepted the controller from Kokichi as it was handed to him. "Can I ask you something a bit serious?"

"Hm?" Kokichi cocked his head. "Sure, if ya want."

"How do you express yourself so easily? I mean, you don't seem to care what anyone else thinks, and you're so confident. I'm a bit jealous, honestly." Shuichi tucked a piece of hair behind his ear, feeling almost a bit silly for asking.

Kokichi rocked back and forth a bit. "Well, I'm not. I'll give you a serious answer cause I can tell how anxious you are, I'm not all that confident. But I know most people won't like me regardless, so I just don't try to impress them when their opinion will always remain the same."

"Ah." Shuichi was silent for a minute as they got their bearings in the game. "I'm worried about what my friends would think of me. If I come out, or act how I want to."

"Fuck 'em." Kokichi grinned at him. "If they don't like you for who you are, then fuck them! You deserve better, got it."

Shuichi was a bit taken aback, but Kokichi's positive energy was contagious, and he smiled. "I guess so. I know I shouldn't bother with people who don't like me for me, but I really do care about all of them."

Kokichi nodded. "I get where you're coming from, but honestly? I think you're worried for nothing. Amami-Chan is definitely cool with like, everything. He knows I like dudes. Akamatsu seems like she'd be fine with it, same with Harukawa. Momota might give you trouble for it, but he's just an idiot, and I can almost guarantee that he'll come around. You've got good friends, you know? Much as I don't like them, you should give them a bit more credit."

"You're right." Shuichi laughed softly. "I shouldn't worry so much."

"Exactly." Kokichi bumped their shoulders together. "No come on, let's go gather some wood so we can build a decent house. Look out for sheep, we'll need wool otherwise we can forget about sleeping. We can even put our Minecraft beds together!" He giggled.

Shuichi smiled. "Alright." He followed Kokichi's instructions for a while, finding he did in fact enjoy this game. It was simple, but with endless possibility. Even just designing a small house was fun. When Kokichi explained dyes to him with flowers, he got a bit overexcited.

Kokichi giggled, watching's Shuichi's eyes practically sparkle as he turned his bed blue. Upon catching him staring, he flushed, frown stretching his face. His shoulders dropped, and his grip on the controller lessened.

"Sorry, I don't know what got into me." Shuichi mumbled.

"Why?" Kokichi asked, concerned by the response. "You didn't do anything wrong, it's good to get excited over things. Do your aunt and uncle not like it when you do?"

Shuichi shook his head. "No, of course not! They're always super supportive about everything I do, they've never once been upset with me for getting overexcited. It's just, my parents, they always wanted me to hold up a specific image."

Kokichi hummed softly. "Well, your parents suck. They didn't stick around for you, so why keep trying to live up to their expectation? Also," he gestured to the flags on his ceiling. "I'm the last person who would get upset over a little excitement.

"Yeah, that's true. You seem to be trying really hard to be yourself around me, so the least I can do is try the same."

Kokichi shrugged. "I'm not doing that much, I just wanna get better about my lying. Mama promised to take me shopping again in a couple weeks if I could go this whole time without lying to you, at least about things that aren't important. Obviously, there's things I won't tell you."

"It's really impressive that you're working so hard to better yourself. I needed therapy just to tell me that I'm struggling." Shuichi sighed. "Sorry, I don't mean to bring things down."

Kokichi bonked his head lightly against Shuichi's, frowning. "Hey, don't do that. You're allowed to have feelings, you know. If you need to vent, then go ahead and vent! It's way better than keeping everything inside."

Shuichi pulled his knees up to his chest. "I vent to my therapist all the time."

"So? Venting to a peer is easier than an adult. You don't need to be so anxious with me. I might love to tease people, but I don't cross important boundaries. I'd never mock someone's mental health unless we're really close, and that's generally just dark humor, no malice."

"You're so much more mature than me." Shuichi bit his lip. "We're polar opposites in that regard. I act like an adult, and put responsibility on myself like one, but I'm so anxious all the time that I never know what I'm doing. You act childish, but deep down you're probably one of the most mature people in class."

Kokichi giggled. "Nah, you've got it wrong. I just embrace that I'm still a kid, while you're trying to force yourself to be an adult. I just know how to world works. I couldn't be a kid when I was younger, so I make up for it now, you know?"

"That makes sense. My aunt and uncle let me be a kid, but my parents valued maturity above all else. Part of me is still trying to be someone they'd be proud of. I guess, even if I know I'll never have it, or need it, I still want my parents to love me." Shuichi sighed.

"Your parents do love you." Kokichi stated. "You said your aunt and uncle were more like parents than your biological ones, right? Blood relation doesn't mean shit, I have no blood shared with any of my family, but they're still family. That being said, I don't think your dumb for wanting your bio parents to love you. You spent years seeking their approval I'm sure, so it's not going to be easy to stop."

"You," Shuichi laughed softly, "you'd make a good therapist, you know? Mine says a lot of the same things."

Kokichi scoffed. "Hell no! I don't want to spend my day listening to people trauma dump! I'm gonna teach kids." He grinned. "When I was little, one of my teachers was really nice, and at the time was one of the few presences in my life that I felt secure around. I wanna be that. I want to give little kids who are having a tough time, but don't know how to tell anyone, a place to feel safe."

Shuichi smiled. "I think that's wonderful. You truly are such a kid person, Ouma-Kun."

Kokichi rolled his eyes. "Yeah, shove a sock in it. You're about to die, by the way."

Chapter Text

Shuichi didn't understand the game much at first, but Kokichi's energy with everything he did was contagious. They played for a few hours before he'd even noticed, and he understood Kokichi a lot better, too. Maybe he'll be able to invite Kokichi over without feeling like a nuisance or a burden soon. It didn't feel like it should be such a big step, but it was for him.

Shuichi heard the front door opening and Kokichi immediately popped up and ran downstairs. He smiled, setting his controller down before following.

He felt a bit awkward standing to the side when Kokichi hugged his mom, and was nervous as he expected to be when he introduced the two of them.

"Mama, this is my friend, Saihara-Chan!" He was nearly bouncing on his heels, wide grin spread across his face as he flapped his hands around in what Shuichi assumed was out of excitement.

Shuichi greeted her politely, distracted from his anxiety by Kokichi's happiness. It was really cute, he had to admit.

The meeting was unfortunately cut short, however, when his phone rang. He apologized before he picked up, anxiety kicking back in when he saw it was the detective agency he interned with. "Hello, this is Saihara Shuichi. Is something the matter?"

"Hey, Saihara-San, don't worry, everything's fine. Actually, there's been a development in the case you've been working on. Those disappearances? There's been another DNA match. Similar to the last one, but we had more evidence from witness testimony. I thought you'd like to know."

Shuichi gasped. "Really, there has? Do you think we might be able to find her from it?"

The voice on the other end laughed softly. "There's a chance. Best there's been in years, at least. Do you want to take a look?"

"Yes, I'll be right there!" Shuichi's heart pounded. He might really be able to do this! He could help people, save people. "Oh, um..." He felt his heart sink, remembering he was still at Kokichi's house. It was rude to leave now, right? Luckily, Kokichi addressed it before he could.

"Well, get going already! You have a case to solve, right Detective-San?" Kokichi giggled. "Don't worry about me, I get to brag about being friends with the coolest detective in the world, so go save people or whatever!"

Kokichi's mother smiled. "It was good to meet you. Kokichi is saying that he was glad to be able to hang out with you, but you don't need to put proper social etiquette over work. Especially not with us."

"Thank you." Shuichi put his phone back in his pocket and slipped his shoes on. "I'd like to spend time with you again, if it's okay."

"Duh!" Kokichi grinned. "We're friends we can hang out whenever! Just don't stalk me, okay? That's my thing."

Shuichi laughed softly before leaving. He couldn't stop bouncing his leg on the subway ride to the station. Excitement always made it hard to sit still. Missing persons cases tended to scare him. Either it would end with a tearful, happy reunion, or the news had to be broken to the family that their loved one was gone. He always hated bad news like that, but unfortunately detective work would never have a 100% positive outcome no matter the case. He avoided murder cases for that exact reason. No matter what, there was no positive. He could find the culprit, he could do everything right, but it wouldn't bring anyone back. Having DNA evidence proving that at least one person was still alive, it was better than nothing at all by far. He didn't know or have any leads on the fates of the others, but one was alive. And he hoped she could give him clues to where the others were.

Shuichi was out of his seat as soon as the subway came to a stop, squeezing out the door and apologizing as he pushed his way to the surface. He didn't have time to waste. His uncle told him time and time again. With missing persons cases especially, every second mattered, no matter how long it had been. Especially now.

As he rushed to the station, Shuichi felt grateful that most of his coworkers took him seriously. He knew it was mostly due to his uncle, but he appreciated it. If they didn't he never would've been informed, and he may not have been able to do anything.

Yui Sato, the woman who'd called him, met him at the front. "Saihara-San, perfect! Come with me." He nodded, following her. She was a bit younger than his uncle, and he'd always gotten along with her well. She respected him without his uncle's influence.

"It's the same match as last time, police were working at a crime scene where a guy had attacked a young girl in an alleyway. Someone else had stepped in, and as soon as she was free, the girl bolted. Her blood was found at the scene. The man who rescued her described a strange mask, similar to the other incident."

Shuichi gasped. "That's right, I completely forgot about the masks! I was so overwhelmed trying to focus on everything that I really wasn't focused at all." He sighed.

Yui chuckled. "Don't worry, Saihara-San. It wouldn't have gotten you far. Police have been working on that case for years. Mostly just robberies, food and necessities. It's calmed down these past several months, though. Really they're just chalked up to be a group of kids, most likely not very well off either."

"Yeah, that's true. I should focus on trying to look into them, though. It could give me some valuable insight." Shuichi thanked her when they reached their destination, and she left to work on her own cases.

His uncle was already there, he probably alerted Yui to call him since he didn't have time.

"Shuichi, you're here, good. I have to thank you for reopening this case. There's a good chance that your efforts might bring this girl home." Ayato smiled proudly at his nephew.

"Huh?" Shuichi was a bit taken aback. "I didn't do anything yet, though."

Ayato shook his head. "Maybe not on the surface, but your interest in the case is what brought the idea to mind to check if the blood was hers. And it is." He waved Shuichi over. "Come look at these photographs."

Shuichi stepped beside his uncle, looking at a few blurry pictures. There was hardly any. Otherwise, there were drawing.

Of the photos, it was of people in brightly colored hair and white clothing, but little else could be made out. "Sato-San said that there were many incidents of these people breaking into stores and such. Are there no other pictures of them?"

Ayato shook his head. "None. These are all old, too, none taken less than several years ago. Any camera footage there would be of them is always gone. We assume they have a talented hacker on their side. All we have is a few witness accounts. They do well to avoid those, too."

Shuichi picked up one of the drawings. A mask that reminded him of a clown.

"From what we've heard, each mask is a bit different, but this is essentially what they look like." Ayato sighed. "Our witness did a pretty good job helping us out. His evidence might be what we need." He handed Shuichi another drawing. "This is what he says her uniform looks like. He didn't get a great look in the dark, but we matched it with some other witness testimonies we've gotten, and we think we've got a good idea."

Shuichi took the paper, feeling a sense of familiarity from it. But where would he have seen something like this?

Of course. The thought had crossed his mind once, though in different context. It all seemed to match up. He took a deep breath.

"I think I know where she is. I mean, I think I know someone who does. Can I explain more later? I don't want to say anything in case I'm wrong."

With confirmation from his uncle that it was okay, Shuichi returned home. He didn't want anyone to overhear his conversation. Once his shoes were slipped off, he called Kokichi.

"Awe, miss me already?" He heard Kokichi giggle on the other end.

"No-well, yes, I do, but that's not why I'm calling." Shuichi smiled a bit as he paced across his bedroom. Kokichi always knew how to brighten his mood. Even unintentionally.

"Fine, what's up? You sound anxious. Is it about that work call?"

"Yes, it is." Shuichi took a deep breath. "I think you might be able to help me solve it. Maybe not you specifically, but one of the members of your organization."

"No." Kokichi cut him off. "Sorry, but DICE is my family. I don't care what they did, I'm not letting them become part of a police investigation. Not happening."

Shuichi's heart sank. He'd never heard Kokichi sound so serious. Still, that wasn't his intent. "That's not what I mean! I think one of them might be the girl I'm looking for. She's been missing two years, Ouma-Kun, and I know it might not be safe for her to return home, but if I can just talk to her, maybe I can find a way make it safe. I don't know the situation, but I know I have to follow every lead I find."

Kokichi stayed quiet for a while. "Fine. I...think I know who you're talking about. I'm gonna talk to her first, though, kay? Can you wait?"

"Yes." Shuichi exhaled slowly. "Thank you, I mean it. I don't want to put you or anyone you care about in danger, I promise. I haven't told anyone what I think yet, and I won't. This is just between us for now."

"Thanks. I'm gonna go now."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye."

Shuichi felt a pit in his stomach when he hung up. Of course he felt bad, he didn't want to drag Kokichi into this at all. He wasn't at fault, even if his hunch was correct! He couldn't remember ever hearing the lighthearted, childish tone of Kokichi's voice vanish like that. Whether he was using it as a front, or genuinely happy.

Shuichi sat down on his bed, head in his hands. He sincerely hoped this didn't scare her off, if it did he'd be back at square one, and Kokichi would be angry with him. He wanted to help her, but if she didn't want help, what could he do? Should he call Rantaro and tell him what was going on? If it wound up a dead end, would it be worth getting his hopes up?

Yes, it would. Rantaro hadn't had any news to make him truly believe he'd see any of his sisters again, and this was a pretty solid bet. He deserved to know. At the same time, it didn't seem like something to say over the phone. Shuichi preferred greatly to share important information in person, if possible.

Shuichi pulled out his phone and sent Rantaro a quick text.

Can we hang out sometime soon?

It didn't take long for a reply.

Sure, sounds fun. Why don't you come over to my place? Day after tomorrow sound good?

Shuichi blushed, he couldn't help it. That wasn't what this about, though.

That works fine for me. I'll see you then.

Of course, it wasn't more than a silly crush. Maybe someday, in the future, once everything was wrapped up with this case. He could ask Rantaro out, maybe ask Kokichi for help because he didn't have the slightest clue how to confess his feelings. Or Kaede, if he was out to her by then. He knew she'd be kind about it, and she seemed like a good wing-woman. But honestly, even if Rantaro stopped caring about him after this case was solved, he'd be happy. Just to bring him some happiness. Realistically, they'd just stay friends. He would love that, too. Romance wasn't a priority, nor did he ever see it being one. He was happy, he could make his friends happy. That was all he needed.