A penny spins on a table. You turn around and see it spin. You watch it, mesmerised. You turn back to face the wall. Seconds later the spinning stops and you turn your head once more. The penny is gone. No-one entered the room, so it couldn't have been stolen. You pat your pockets and check your hands. It isn't there. You scour the ground, but it hasn't fallen. And slowly, slowly...

you begin to believe there was no penny there to begin with.

The Understudy

Chapter 1:

A Body in the Cold

February 26th, 2:32 am, Hope's Peak Academy (cafeteria)

8 months, 12 days, 3 hours. Mind you, it's not like many people were counting. 7 months, 12 days, 3 hours ago there may have been a few. But at some point in time, life had to happen. It had to go on, leaving only the one person sitting at a cafeteria table in Hope's Peak alone to care. 8 and (bordering on) a half months had done little to help Kazuichi Souda – and in truth that amount of time can cause turmoil in a person's heart and mind and leave scars outside and in, and in truth it most certainly did. The spark of hope that nestled itself into Kazuichi's heart was fighting to stay alive, fighting for some kind of justice. The irrational part of his brain took hold sometimes and vied to keep Kazuichi going, but it was nigh on impossible to keep it going for long. And so, no matter what Kyoko Kirigiri told him, no matter the official police report, no matter if anyone else so much as decided to tell him to continue – if there was (as there always seemed to be the past months) no progress on the case then his will was irresolute. No matter what, he would pronounce Chihiro Fujisaki dead on the spot and strike him from his heart forever. No longer missing, but dead. And thus his throat closed as it did every 26th of the month and his hands began to tremble in apprehension and anticipation. This next report would quite literally be a matter of life or death.

June 26th, 11:29 pm, Kazuichi's Dorm

No moonlight wormed its way through the curtains of Kazuichi's room. Only the soft lamplight and dim glow of a phone screen gave off luminescence and, though little, it was homely and comforting for Kazuichi, who for so long had felt so out of place amongst every student of the Academy. Kazuichi moved in a rhythmic, side-to-side pattern on his chair, which squeaked ever so slightly and eventually laid the phone down on the hardwood of the desk and went to climb into bed. Chihiro had promised to sleep with him tonight, something Kazuichi was looking forward to. The more time he could get with his partner, the better. So perhaps it was the fact that the person knocking he had opened the door to see wasn't, in fact, his lover, but rather a sickly pale girl with purple-ish hair and eyes that couldn't quite meet his that first raised his suspicions. Kazuichi's brain worked quickly. He was a complete numbskull at times, yes. He was an airhead, moron, baboon, idiot, brainlet, whatever insult you could throw at his intelligence, he certainly was. At times. But sometimes an intelligence, motivated by strong emotion, sprung forth. Be it fear or compassion, confidence or rage, whenever Kazuichi was emotional but lucid enough to control said emotion, he was capable of great things.

"Something's wrong." He told Kyoko. "What is it?"

"Hmm? You could tell. Curious." She responded.

"Don't be coy, what's wrong? You won't meet my eyes. Tell me what's wrong."

"Do you have a habit of assuming the worst whenever a detective knocks at your door? Or is it just because I work with the police? Would you treat, say, Shui-"

"Kyoko, please! I don't like what you're doing. You're rambling because you're nervous and your eyes won't meet mine and-" Kazuichi's voice cracked and he could speak no more. He was naturally scared and Kyoko was right, he did assume the worst. But something was off about this visit. Kazuichi knew full well no good was to come of it.

"You had… best sit down. You're right. You won't like what's coming next. But please try and remain calm." Kazuichi did as he was instructed. His fingers were trembling and waves of terror began to swell and crash in his chest. Authority figures as imposing as Kirigiri scared Kazuichi, someone who looked like him was almost their natural prey – and yet by the way Kyoko was acting Kazuichi knew for a fact it wasn't about him… and that was what terrified him most of all.

"Kazuichi. Tonight, on the way back from the centre of Tokyo, there was an abduction. CCTV recorded the whole thing. There was evidence of a struggle found on the scene, but nothing to ID the perpetrator." The room was deathly silent and deathly calm, which scared Kazuichi half out of his wits. He wanted to scream already and he didn't know what was coming next.

"And…?" Was the only word he could choke out, his throat still sealed tight with emotion.

"The victim. I'm sorry, Kazuichi. I really, truly am. It-" Kyoko sighed and at that moment Kazuichi felt a searing pain in his forehead. "It's Chihiro. He's the victim."

The searing pain subsided, though it was only there for a second anyway. Replacing it was a blast of static in his skull, which echoed and tore at the walls of it. A low, dull ringing began to sound in his eardrums and even the silence itself sounded drowned and faded like it was far away. But it was silence, that's all. Silence so loud it was deafening. The air became acrid and Kazuichi suddenly wanted to claw at and tear away chunks of flesh from his throat, leaving only the sore, raw, exposed flesh to breathe freely against the air. He wanted to scream, to vomit, to cry and hit something all the same time but as his eyes and cheeks became red hot and tears began to flow, he knew he had only succeeded in doing one of those things. "Why?" He asked through gulps and sobs. "Why him?"

"There's no clear motive, I'm afraid. The only person who knows why is the perp." Kazuichi didn't even bother responding. He was too miserable to do anything but cry until Kyoko became too distressed to stay in the room any longer, leaving without another word. And so, Kazuichi was alone and that night failed at even crying himself to sleep.

By the morning, the hollow feeling that had buried itself into his chest had not subsided as Kyoko (and two rather distinguished looking policemen) took to the assembly hall to break the news. Some took it hard, others were indifferent but the mood and temperature of the room dropped upon the speaking of the announcement. By afternoon, Kazuichi had everyone looking after his every need, tending to him, when all he really needed was time to reflect. Fuyuhiko pledged support of some Yakuza members he was still in contact with, despite the fact he had sworn to distance himself from that lifestyle. Mondo had already sent the message out to his gang to keep an eye out for Chihiro, giving Kazuichi a knowing nod when he had done so. Kazuichi, Mondo, Kyoko, and Shuichi were the only ones who knew Chihiro's secret but when Kokichi suggested he get DICE involved because "You all seem to worry a lot about this…" he let out an insufferable gremlin snicker, "guy.", Kazuichi began to wonder if maybe Shuichi's oath of secrecy was worth a lot less than his detective skills. Nevertheless, area covered was valuable and by the end of that day Kazuichi felt his mood lift – all over by the end of summer, he thought. And then silence. Dead, radio silence.

February 26th, 2:35 am, Hope's Peak Academy (cafeteria)

Moonlight wormed its way into Hope's Peak cafeteria, with no curtains to shut it out, the massive singular-paned panoramic window that acted as a 'wall' to the dining area let every single pure silver beam into the room, to dance across the walls and on the tables and chairs and tiles on the ground. The beams that danced on the door were rudely interrupted by Kyoko, who flung open the door with gusto and came in holding a file in her gloved hand. Well, one says holding; yet what one really means is the gloved hand was crushing the base of that file into a fine pulp, adrenaline and excitement spurring on the massacre of perfectly good paper. She slammed it on the table and for the first time in Kazuchi's memory grinned. A wide, genuine grin, pure as could be. It was infectious and Kazuichi knew she came bearing good news. "Kazuichi." She panted. "Oh, Kazuichi."

"What…?" Was the only word he could choke out, his throat now sealed tight with emotion.

"They found Chihiro." At that instant, time stopped. Kazuichi felt something hard and cold and dense as lead melt away in his chest and let out a guttural laugh.

Kyoko interjected. "But…" Kazuichi stopped laughing. The room darkened again, as if to remind him it was still night.

"But what? Wait, he's not…"

"Not dead, no. But he was found half-dead, naked and in a trance on a road leading out from a youth hotel in Austria sometime last night. Last night over there, that is."

"A-Austria? Isn't that like… 6,000 miles away?"

"Yes. Which is certainly a cause for concern." She took a seat and entered a tense stance, a solemn departure from her happiness only moments before. "You see, now it's a matter of pride."

"Pride…?"
"National pride, to be exact. You know how important we are to Japan. Hope's Peak is internationally recognized as the standard for excellence. Do you know how many tabloids have been printed about people like you and me internationally?"

"I… don't pay much attention to that trite."

"It's astronomical. Now, say you were the Japanese government. One of your national treasures, one of the greatest technological minds of today's youth goes missing… and then shows up in a foreign country."

"They'd be suspicious – beyond that."

"Exactly. But Austria, why Austria?" Kyoko looked at Kazuichi, expecting an answer, like a teacher to their student. Kazuichi mulled this question over and as he did so, his eyes lit up.

"Well, the Austrian government would have no need for him, right? They have a military but nothing that requires a programmer of his caliber to control. Maybe he'd be useful to the government in some way, but if you're asking me…" Kazuichi closed his eyes and tried to fit the pieces of the puzzle together. "Well, it's right in the middle of Europe. Kind of a big middle finger, right? That it shares so many borders and yet the whole international community couldn't find someone of his status, right?"

"I'd say you're dead on. Interpol has been licking its wounds after this incident, I've heard. The entire Japanese wing of the organization apparently resents its European neighbours for not being able to root out the kidnapper and our government agrees. Someone like Chihiro Fujisaki shouldn't have been able to have been smuggled out the country and into another that easily. I remember my superiors in the force showing me the reports, he was the top priority for every international power – the Ultimates like you and I are excellent leverage for our country because everyone else wants a piece."

"So, whoever kidnapped Chihiro wanted to raise international tensions?"
"Not necessarily. It could've all been completely coincidental. But it certainly has succeeded in doing so and I'm sure someone sick enough to lay a finger on that boy would probably be getting a kick out of it right now."

"So, um, after they found him… what happened?"

"Ah, right. Well, first and foremost they didn't want to move him to a hospital. Too high profile, apparently. They're caring for him in the youth hotel just up the road from where he was found. He won't lose any limbs, miraculously, but that's… about all I was given."

"…I'm just glad he's safe."

"You could go see him, you know." Kyoko blurted out.

"Hm?"

"You could be necessary for his recovery." "Recovery…?" Kyoko frowned at this question.

"He was missing for 8 months. His mind isn't the same as it was before then, Kazuichi. No offence, but you should really know that. And besides, you're important to his recovery for one reason we consider very relevant to this case." Kazuichi's blood ran cold, perhaps colder than the snow and ice his boyfriend had collapsed in many hours beforehand. "Chihiro was found by a coach of students on their way to a restaurant to celebrate the end of their trip. Austrian Polizei questioned them later. Some were pretty torn up about it, but they could all remember one thing clearly. Chihiro was only capable of uttering one, singular word." Kazuichi knew what was coming next, but pressed on anyway.

"What word was that?"

"Your name, Kazuichi. Your name." Kyoko rose silently out of her seat and left Kazuichi to stew pensively over that fact, perhaps wondering whether he'd find solace or horror in it, before adding, "And pack your bags. We leave for Dover tomorrow."

"Wait, Dover?" Kazuichi shook out of his little trance and futilely called out to Kyoko. But like the moon behind clouds, she'd disappeared without a sound.

And, like on that night 8 months, 12 days and 3 hours ago, Kazuichi found himself unable to sleep.