The Disappearance of Koizumi Itsuki Part I:

It was that time of the year again, when the sun streamed through the club room window, and the wet, humid heat's stifling hold around our necks tightened with the arrival of summer. The season's hellish temperatures, however, hadn't yet reached their fullest culmination, as the dying breaths of Spring's faltering winds still occasionally fluttered against some of the papers in the room. This would be one of the last of our meetings for the school year, with break being just a couple of days away.

Of course, just because we were about to be liberated from the shackles of school, that didn't mean Haruhi wasn't working us like dogs harnessed to a sleigh; our annual SOS Brigade Summer Vacation Trip still needed to be planned.

Admittedly, for once, I was in a good mood about matters. The way I saw it, things couldn't possibly get much better; very soon, the two biggest causes of stress in my life would be gone for nearly three whole months. No more exams, and, best of all, no more Haruhi! If the last I had to see of her for a while would be on our summer trip, then I could deal with that. Surely, one extra week with her- not to mention, with a bikini-clad Asahina-san to balance out her presence- would hardly be a hassle if it meant getting away from her for months afterwards.

Heaven's gates were waiting there, right before me, and entrance was but a leisurely stroll away. However, even if it wasn't Haruhi standing in my way this time, of course there had to be somebody there to block me.

There to ruin my entire vacation stood Koizumi Itsuki, his smile- potentially more full of bologna than the town in Italy of that name- prepared to taunt me for months to come.

By the end of that day's meeting, we- and by "we," I mean Haruhi- had decided to venture back once again to the island that Koizumi's alleged distant relative had invited us to once before. Instead of playing another murder mystery game, however, we figured that perhaps this time, we should give that notion a break and simply use the time on the island to relax. For some reason, as I thought back to our prior time spent on the island- particularly the boat trip home-, I couldn't help but tense up, as if there were something I was forgetting.

What's bothering me? Did I leave the sink running this morning? No, couldn't be that.

Upon the meeting's conclusion, we all left the club room on our own times. Haruhi, surprisingly, was the first to leave; apparently she had a doctor's appointment- just a check up. I couldn't imagine that girl ever getting sick. Asahina-san was next, which left just Nagato, Koizumi, and me in the room alone.

Koizumi and I were finishing up a sort of Othello grudge match, which was what was keeping us. In the middle of our game, though, he pushed the board aside and glanced nervously around the room.

His usual smile disappeared for a moment as he stood and started rummaging haphazardly through the room's various heaps of junk and cabinets. He reached one cabinet and pulled out a strange device I had never noticed before. I suppose it sort of resembled a more futuristic version of a camera.

"Koizumi, what are you doing? Don't tell me you're giving up already."

Damnit, I was finally going to win for once . . .

Not speaking a word, he turned his head towards me and put a finger to his lips. Intrigued as I was, I didn't say anything more. Instead, I turned to the playing board and tried to figure out the best move to make in case he felt like resuming the match.

Or at least I was trying to until he threw the device to the ground and crushed it beneath his foot. He continued his search until he found another device- an older looking tape recorder. This, too, he smashed.

Seemingly satisfied, his smile returned as he sat down across from me once more.

"Kyon, there's something I have to tell you."

"Wait, was that a camera you just smashed?"

"Yes, that was, in fact, a camera, as well as a tape recorder. You see, this room is always under heavy surveillance by both my Organization and Asahina-san's agency."

I shook my head a little in an attempt to rid my mind of the idea of there being video footage of Asahina-san undressing out there somewhere in some Organization's archives.

"Anyways, please save any other questions for when I'm finished. This one's going to be a mouthful, Kyon. There isn't that much I can go into detail about, but during our Brigade Trip, there is a high probability that somebody might make an attempt on my life."

What? I know you're annoying as hell, but why would anybody go as far as to try and kill you?

"You recall how I've told you before about how there are numerous factions within my Organization that believe Suzumiya-san's case should be acted upon in various different ways, right?"

I nodded.

"Well, as of right now, a coup d'état of sorts has broken out, and those factions are fighting to overtake my own."

What faction are you even a part of?

"A couple of close colleagues of mine have already fallen victim to this coup, and I fear that it's possible that I might be next. In fact, I risked a lot even coming to school today. There's not much I can do about it, and I'm almost certain that it'll happen during the trip, because that's when Suzumiya-san would be most likely to see it. All that I ask of you, Kyon, is that you prevent her from finding out the truth once it happens."

"Just how am I supposed to do that?"

"I don't know, Kyon, but you have the most influence over her. I'm sure you'll be able to figure something out. If you can't, then . . ." He glanced over at Nagato, who sat silently in the corner. "Nagato-san might be able to help you out. Right, Nagato-san?"

". . . Yes." She didn't look up from her book as she said that.

"One last thing. Kyon, remember that I'm a Brigade Member first, and a member of my Organization second. Since not everybody in my Organization has shared the experiences that I've shared with all of you, they aren't likely to be able to sympathize. Because of this . . . Just be careful who you trust outside of the SOS Brigade. I hope to see you again soon."

Before I could get out a single word of response, Koizumi opened the door, walked out, and shut it behind him. Abruptly, I stood up and left the room myself, if only for just a moment. I glanced down the hallway in both directions; he was gone.

It wouldn't be until the day of our trip that I would see him again.

. . . . .

"It isn't like him to be late! Where the hell is he?" asked Haruhi, presumably taking a head count of the Brigade. Asahina-san, Nagato, Haruhi, and I all stood together at the edge of the same dock we had waited on the last time we were preparing to head off to the island. Mori-san had been waiting for us when we arrived. Koizumi was nowhere to be seen.

For five minutes more, we waited for him, and surely enough, he soon slinked around the corner of a building with Arakawa-san at his side. When I first rested my eyes on him, I was shocked. His usual, phony smile had been wiped clean off of his face, and his face itself was tinted with the ghastly pallor of somebody ready to purge his stomach of its contents. The poor guy looked sickly, feeble, and just about ready to fall over, so naturally, I rushed over to assist him.

"Kyon . . . ," he croaked, his voice as frail as his appearance.

"You mustn't speak, Koizumi-kun," Arakawa-san murmured, trying to keep his voice low.

"Koizumi, you look like crap. What happened?"

"Poison," he choked.

"What? Somebody poisoned you? We have to get you to a hospital, the-"

"No, it's fine. Arakawa-san helped me induce vomiting."

Well, that explained his appearance. Haruhi, followed by Asahina-san and Nagato, strode up to us with a concerned look on her face.

"Koizumi, you're not looking so swell. If you want, we can reschedule the trip and-"

"No, no, it's alright. I just got a little bit of food poisoning. I ate some bad tuna this morning, is all. I'm sure it'll pass soon, so why ruin a good vacation for something as minor as this?"

"Are you sure?" Haruhi asked.

"Completely."

Haruhi still looked hesitant, but she took Koizumi's word and things carried on as planned. One by one, we boarded the boat. Arakawa-san continued to tend to Koizumi, leaving Mori-san in the driver's seat.

No matter how beautiful the ocean looked- the glistening waves lapping at the boat's sides, the water so blue that it looked almost as if it were a second sky-, it was hard for any of us to enjoy the scenery with the pale, frail esper ready to crumble into dust and blow away at any moment. With every passing minute out on the ocean, I grew more and more concerned for Koizumi's health; we still hadn't finished our game of Othello, and I couldn't be bothered to find a new partner should he have died. When we finally reached the island, Arakawa-san and I ended up having to hastily carry him up the hill and into the villa, where we set him down on a sofa before heading back out for the luggage.

On the way back up the hill, I walked along with the rest of the Brigade.

"How's Koizumi-kun?" Haruhi asked, the worry pouring out with her voice.

"He's resting inside on the couch. He should be fine, so long as he gets enough sleep."

"Ah, that's good. I'd feel horrible if his condition were to get worse under my watch. Maybe we should have stayed behind on the mainland and brought him to a hospital after all . . ."

"No, don't worry about it, Haruhi. I'll make sure that he gets better. You guys can focus on relaxing. Koizumi wouldn't want the vacation to go to waste over something like this, would he?"

"Well, no, I suppose not . . ."

Feeling glad to have skillfully talked Haruhi out of thinking much of Koizumi's illness, I was awash with relief until we stepped through the door. Immediately, everybody aside from Nagato dropped their bags.

In the middle of the room, sprawled across the floor, Koizumi was lying on the ground, blood seeping out of his body and into the carpet.

I ran towards the body, stumbling over our bags.

Asahina-san screamed and fainted.

Haruhi froze in place.

Nagato was generally unaffected.

Koizumi was dead.