Upon entering Chie's classroom, I notice that there are a lot less people here than there are in my room. Chie runs over to a girl in the middle of the classroom. This lady breaks dress code in a manner very similar to Chie, except with a red sweater instead of a green one.
"Hey Yukiko!" The red-clad girl looks up and gives a shy smile. Yukiko. I'll try to remember that. "Meet the new transfer student, Naoto Shirogane." I give her a hesitant wave, not knowing what to do. Yukiko bows her head slightly. I mimic the action.
"I'm Yukiko Amagi. Nice to meet you." That's weird. She seems so shy compared to Chie.
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well." The girl appears to be lost in thought.
"Shirogane. I feel as if I've heard that name before," she mumbles to herself. A realization hits me.
"Oh, you must have heard about my family on the news before." This catches the attention of Chie as well. "I come from a relatively famous family of detectives. It's been going on for generations."
"Wow, that's so cool!" Chie cuts in. "I wish I came from a family like that."
"Are you planning to follow in their footsteps?" Yukiko asks.
"Yes, technically I already am. I've worked on some cases already. I haven't done anything too big yet, though."
"Oh my god, that is so cool. I've always admired people in the police force. Wait, do you have a badge!? Or a gun!?" Thought Chie's hyperactive voice is starting to make me feel uncomfortable, I continue to answer all of them until we all notice another student walking in our direction.
"H-Hey, Yukiko-san. Mind if I ask you something…?" I can see Yukiko tense up. "Is it true that announcer's staying at your family's inn?" Announcer? Is he talking about Mayumi Yamano?
"I can't discuss such things." I can tell that Yukiko is really uncomfortable. Chie must think the same thing.
"Y-Yeah, I guess not." The rumor-loving student jogged back to his friends.
"You're Family owns an inn?" I ask with the hopes that she girl will prefer this conversation more.
"Yes, we own the Amagi Inn down by-" Chie inadvertently cuts her friend off.
"It's amazing. It's practically the pride of Inaba."
"I wouldn't go that far."
"I would. It's been in all sortsa magazines as a hidden treasure." Chie turns back to me. "It's a great in. Yukiko here's going to take over someday." I doubt she even realizes it, but it seems that her words are making Yukiko uncomfortable again. I need to change the conversation.
Before I even get a chance to say something, a man I recognize as the person on the bike his morning walks over with a DVD case in his hands. "Uh, umm, Miss Satonaka…?" This can't be good. "This was really awesome. Like, the way they moved was just amazing to see…" I'm not even going to ask. "And… I'm really sorry! It was an accident! Please just have mercy until my next paycheck!" Oh no. After Chie grabs the case from his hands, the student says "See ya! Thanks!" and attempts to bolt.
"Oh no you don't!" Chie runs after the poor student. After hearing a crashing sound and a gasp from the boy, I rush over to where they were standing only to find him once again experiencing pain in the same region as before. "What the!? I can't believe this! It's completely cracked… My 'Trial of the Dragon'" She sounds as if she is about to cry. Wait, did she kick him BEFORE she found out it was cracked?
"I think mine's cracked too… C-critical hit to the nads…" To be honest, right now I feel more bad for him than Chie.
"Are you all right?" I ask worriedly.
"He's fine, Naoto." Right after the words leave Chie's mouth, the bell rings.
"Oh. I guess I better go."
"Okay then. See you later, Naoto-Kun. Or, umm" Why does she seem to be struggling with her words… Oh, right.
"Naoto-Kun is fine," I reassure her.
"Okay then, goodbye!"
"Gooday Chie-senpai. Yukiko-senpai." I proceed to make my way outside the classroom and back to mine. Upon my return, I notice that most of the students are already present. Before they're violent stares can wear me down too much, I rush to my seat. The bell rings once more as Mr. Morooka enters the room. Taking a look around, I make note of the fact that the punk student from earlier is gone. That's weird.
After some more long, dull lectures, the final bell rings. "That's all for today," Mr. Morooka says in his normal off-putting voice. "Normal lectures start tomorrow." While I am in the middle of packing up my school supplies, I sound is heard over the intercom.
"Attention, all teachers. Please report immediately to the Faculty Office for a brief staff meeting. All students must return to their classrooms and are not to leave until further notice." Somethings wrong already? I wonder what this is about.
"Hrnh. You heard the announcement. Don't go anywhere until you hear otherwise." Not looking as if he's in any hurry, the teacher exits the classroom and goes into the hall. What am I supposed to do now? Sadly, an activity presents itself instantly after the buck-toothed man walked away.
"So, what's up with you, anyway?" The student in front of me asks.
"Excuse me, but I don't know what you are referring to."
"I mean your uniform. You ARE a girl, right?" I knew this was coming.
"I just don't like skirts. Is that going to be a problem?" I say sounding as threatening as a person of my size could. All that does is make the boy laugh.
"Was that supposed to scare me off? No way." The kid turns back to his snickering friends. I guess I will need to watch out for him. Even though bullies throughout my school years have not affected me too much, I would much rather not have them around. Before I can do anything else, the intercom turns on again.
"Attention, all students. There has been an incident inside the school district. Police officers have been dispatched around the School Zone. Please stay calm and contact your parent or guardians as soon as possible, and quickly leave the school grounds." An incident? I wonder what's going on. Well, if police are there, Dojima will probably be able to tell me something. Quickly I leave the room and head towards the door. On the way out, I hear a familiar voice come from behind me.
"Hey! Naoto-Kun!" Turing around, I am greeted my Chie and Yukiko.
"Oh, hello," I respond timidly.
"Are you walking home by yourself?" Chie asks. I nod in return. "We're going to go hang out at Junes. Wanna come?" Hmm, well, if Dojima is working on whatever happened, surely I won't be missed.
"Okay, as long as you're sure. I wouldn't want to be a bother."
"No, of course not. Right, Yukiko?" The second girl looks up in surprise.
"Oh, yeah. Of course." She still seems quite uncomfortable. Then again, I'm sure I do as well. Once we are all in mutual agreement, we proceed outside the building into the schoolyard.
"So, how long are you-" Chie attempts to ask before being cut off by an unknown voice.
"You're Yuki, right? Y-You want to go hang out somewhere?" The disturbing individual is wearing a uniform nothing like the ones at Yasogami. Who is this man?
"What…? Wh-who are you?" That confirms that Yukiko-Senpai does not know this man. Other students from our school gather around.
"What's up with him?" one of the boys asks. "What school's he from?"
"Never mind that, He's going for Yukiko-san?" another says. "Man, you'd think he'd at least wait until she's alone to make his move…" It's probably good that he didn't.
"I bet you a can of TaP he gets knocked out." What causes him to make such a claim? Yukiko doesn't seem like the violent type. Then again, I did only just meet her.
"No bet. Haven't you heard how difficult the Amagi Challenge is?" The Amagi Challenge? What is wrong with the people at this school?
"Um, s-so… are you coming or not?" asks the fish-eyed man bringing my focus back to the issue at hand.
"I-I'm not going…"
"…Fine!" the man screams before running off like a child throwing a tantrum.
"Wh-what did he want from me…?"
"What did he want…? Obviously he was asking you out on a date." Chie answers.
"It sounded like he wanted more than that to me," I mumble under my breath.
"Huh? Really…?" How oblivious is she?
"You really had no clue? Sheesh… But then again, that was way over the top. It's creepy how he called you Yuki all of the sudden." How did he find out her name, anyway? The sound of a bicycle comes from behind us.
"Yo, Yukiko-san," Turning around, I recognize him as the man Chie kicked earlier. "Turned down another lovelorn fool, huh? Man, you're cruel… You got me the same way last year." How is simply not excepting a date cruel.
"I don't recall doing that." Yukiko sounds angry now.
"Whoa, you serious? So then, you wanna hang out sometime!?"
"…I'd rather not."
"That'll teach me to get my hopes up." The man climbs onto his bike. "Anyways, you two better not pick on the transfer student too much."
I jump to their defense. "Oh, they're not-" The student cuts me off.
"It's okay, I know how they are." He takes off.
"We're just trying to talk, is all!" Chie screams after him. Yukiko turns to me.
"U-Um, I'm sorry for dragging you into this…"
"Oh, no, it's fine. Do you encounter people like that a lot?"
"I guess so, but Chie's always around so nothing ever happens."
"Oh, well that's fortunate." More students begin to gather around.
"C'mon, let's go. Everyone's staring." Chie goes on ahead while the two of us quickly follow after her.
"So, why did you transfer schools? It's kinda hard for me to imagine someone moving from the big city to a small town like this by choice." Chie asks as we walk down the street.
"Oh, well, my grandpa took a job in America to help out there for a year. I don't really have any family to stay with so I'm staying here with an old friend of his." Somehow my response made the girl laugh.
"Haha, I thought it was something way more serious than that." She looks around. "Still, it must suck. There really isn't anything here."
"That's what makes it nice though, right? I'm sure in must be peaceful."
"Well, yeah, but there really isn't much to show to people from the outside. Though, there is something from Mt. Yasogami… I think our dyed clothes or pottery or something is kinda famous. Oh, and the Amagi Inn! That's pretty cool too!"
"It's nothing that interesting. I'm sure that you have been to better in the city," Yukiko says, speaking for the first time since we started walking.
"What are you talking about?" Chie turns to her friend. "The hot springs on their own are awesome."
"Well…" Yukiko turns to me. "Anyway, how do you like your classes, Naoto-kun?" she asks, desperate that change the conversation.
"They are easy enough, if anything boring. The teacher might be a problem though," My voice trails off. Even so, Chie seems to instantly know what I'm talking about.
"Oh, no! You don't have King Moron, do you?" She sounds worried.
"King moron?" I ask.
"Mr. Morooka. Do you have him?"
"Yes, why do you ask? Did you?"
"No, but Yosuke did." Before I can ask who Yosuke is, she continues. "He's terrible. Apparently, one time a girl answered on of his questions wrong, and he yelled at her so much she started crying."
"Couldn't he get fired for that?" I ask even though I'm relatively certain the answer is yes.
"I dunno, maybe. Then again, you would know, being a detective and all." Chie suddenly smiles. Anyway, do you think Yukiko is cute?"
"What!?" WHERE DID THAT COME FROM? "Um, yeah, I guess so." How am I supposed to respond to that!?
"I KNEW IT!" Chie screams. What happened to this conversation? Is it like this supposed to be like this?
"Come on…" Yukiko mumbles. Why does Chie always insist on making her friend fell uncomfortable? " Don't start this again…"
"She's really popular at school, but she's never had a boyfriend. Kinda weird, huh?"
"Maybe we shouldn't-"
"I'm right though, right? Yukiko should have a boyfriend."
"C-Come on, stop it." Yukiko intervenes. "You shouldn't believe that, okay? It's not true that I'm popular, or that I've never had a boyfriend!" I give her a weird look. "Wait, n-no! what I meant to say was, I-I don't need a boyfriend." Chie just laughs.
"Sorry, I'm sorry. But this is our chance to talk to someone from the city and you've barely said a word! Why don't you just-" She cuts herself off. "Hey, what's that?" We all both look to where she's pointing. There are a bunch of people standing in front of a crossroads blocked by police officers. Out of curiosity, we walk over to the site.
"So that high schooler left school early, and as she came down this street…" Some housewives ae gossiping."
"Wow. Who could imagine THAT hanging from an antenna?" Could this be what the announcement at school was for?
"I wanted to see it too."
"Uh, you got here too late… The police and fire department took it down just moments ago."
"Well, I think it's terrifying, a dead body showing up here…" A DEAD BODY?
"Wait… what did she just say? A dead body!?" Before any of us can do anything, I see Dojima in the background walk over to us.
"Hey, what're you doing here?" He questions.
"We were just passing by. What happened here?"
"Nothing you should concern yourself with."
"..You know this guy?' Chie asks, throwing me off guard.
"Yes, he is my temporary guardian." I quickly answer.
"I'm Detective Dojima. Uhh... Well, how should I say this…? I hope you get along with her. But you three ought to head home."
"Wait." I say as my detective instincts kick in. "Can you at least tell me something? I am detective, after all."
"Yes, but still, you aren't legally assigned to the case. Even if I could tell you something I wouldn't. I don't think your grandfather would like that." Before I can protest, he walks away. Soon after, another detective runs past us to throw up. Is it really that bad? "Adachi! How long are you going to act like a rookie? You want to be sent back to the central office!?"
"I'm sorry," he nauseated man says.
"Go wash your face, quickly." The man runs past us again.
"Was this what that announcement was about…?" Chie asks what we were all thinking.
"More than likely, yes." I respond.
"What do they mean… it was hanging from the antenna…?" Yukiko sounds disgusted.
"Maybe we shouldn't go to Junes today." The green-clad girl says.
"I concur. We should go." I agreed.
"Good idea…" Now that we are all in agreement, we all go our separate ways.
On my way back to my new home, I run into multiple people gossiping about the incident. Sadly, none of them give me information. Every time I ask an officer, they tell me to go home. Just short of 6 pm, I finally take their advice. Once I enter the house, I see Nanako sitting at the table watching the television. She hears me come in. "Oh, hello." She looks sad again.
"Hello, Nanako-chan." Looking around, I am relieved to see that Dojima has not returned home yet. The little girl in front of me, however, most likely does not feel the same way. This girl has it tough. Maybe she would feel better if I sit with her. I offer to watch TV with her. She simply nods and turns her head back to the screen as I sit down.
"Do you want to watch something?" She asks. Now that I think about it, I might be able to find out more on the news.
"If you don't mind, I would like to watch the news for a bit. Then we can watch whatever you want." Without a word, she changes the channel.
"Our top story this evening concerns a bizarre case in a quiet suburb," the news anchor says in a monotone voice. "Around noon today, a woman was found dead near the Samegawa River in Inaba. The deceased has been identified as Ms. Mayumi Yamano." Wait, isn't that the announcer involved in that scandal? "The results from the investigation by the police department in Inaba reveal…"
"Ah! Th-That's where Dad works!" Nanako's voice stops me from hearing the rest. After the words leave her mouth, she begins to look worried.
"Don't worry, your father is perfectly fine." I assure her.
"…I know. That's his job, so this stuff happens."
The announcer continues. "The body was found hanging from a large television antenna atop a local resident's roof." Hanging from an antenna? How did no one notice the killer doing that? "Authorities are uncertain as to why the body was in such a state. With the cause of the death also uncertain, police continue to investigate whether the death was an accident or a homicide." Are they seriously thinking it could be an accident? How do you accidently hang yourself off of an antenna?
Nanako's voice cuts off my thoughts. "They found her on the roof? That's scary…" Oh, tight, she's just a little kid and I'm making her watch morbid things like this. How could I have been so thoughtless? Before I can apologize, a commercial comes on. "Oh, it's Junes!" The girl calms down as the same commercial from yesterday plays. "Every day's great at your Junes!" She sings again.
"You're a good singer." I tell her.
"Thanks, I'm the best in my class!" It seems that she forgot all about the story.
After sitting with her for a while, I begin to feel exhausted. Once I had excused myself, I travel back up to my room and go to sleep.
Authors note
Hello peoples. I'm hope that you guys like the story. I would like to apologize for the fact that I may have been characterizing characters wrong. So far only one person has said anything about it but I don't know if anyone else has a problem with it. I will try to do better in the future. I would also like to remind you that I am still taking votes for social links. I have decided that I don't think Naoto will be joining any club because I cannot imagine her doing so. She may still have social links with these characters anyway, just outside of the club. Anyway, I hope to be updating soon. Until then, au revoir.
