Chapter 15: The Imposter's Idea, Ibuki's Insanity

Hope's Peak Academy

General School Grounds

Thursday, August 19th, 2010

Early Evening

The Super High School Level Imposter, ever since coming to this academy, had been taking on the form of Ryota Mitarai, the Super High School Level Animator. The exchange was a simple and straightforward affair. The former had agreed to masquerade as the latter and that was pretty much the end of it.

Ryota was so determined to see his vision come to fruition that he was willing to deprive himself of basic necessities and companionship. It was admirable, even if misguided. The world was indeed full of despair and loneliness, but by the same token, so too was it filled with hope and friendship.

As of late, Class 77-B had been coming together not just as classmates but as friends. They were reinforcing relationships while also forming new ones and it was in no small part thanks to Chiaki Nanami, the class representative and the Ultimate Gamer, a combination not usually considered typical, but it worked for all of them, so why bother fixing what wasn't broken?

The Imposter knew exactly what he was doing and he knew what this job entailed, but the more that he threw himself into the role that he had been cast as, the more that he felt guilty about the entire thing. He had taken on Ryota's name and used his talent to bond with the rest of Class 77-B. Because he was using this identity, he was able to share in the fun and joy that his fellow classmates exchanged with each other. It felt wrong to say it, but the time he spent with all of them was something that he always looked forward to.

But no matter how much he had fun, in the back of his mind, the happiness he felt didn't fully connect with him. It wasn't really him there; it was someone else there, and even that was false. Ryota should have been the one to share in these memories. Despite the boy's extremely shy and timid attitude, he was a good guy at heart. The animator could have easily integrated into the class if he had a little push.

The Imposter couldn't help but think that he wasn't doing enough. At the end of the day, neither of them were solving the true fundamental problem.

How long could the two of them keep this up before they were found out? Sooner or later, the truth was going to get out, whether they revealed it themselves or if fate decided to take a turn.

Those had been his thoughts before he wound up losing his e-handbook and coming face to face with the boy called Hajime Hinata, the one that everyone seemed to know in one way or another.

"The last one?" Hajime repeated the words spoken to him. "So… I've met everyone in class 77-B?"

"As far as I know." The Imposter took only a moment to think about his response. "You must have some incredible luck in that regard."

"Yeah, I do." Hajime laughed weakly. "But I'm sure Nagito wouldn't like hearing that. He seems to have some serious problems with me."

"Not just you." The Imposter knew of what the Reserve Course student was speaking about. "All people without talent. Nagito can't speak to anyone normal without it sounding arrogant or condescending."

"Yeah, good point." Hajime nodded in agreement. "But we haven't exactly said we hated each other, so maybe things aren't as bad as I think."

"Who can say?" The Imposter shrugged his shoulders. "Even I don't know what he's thinking and I know my classmates well."

It was no exaggeration to say that he was more than capable of impersonating all of his classmates should he be required to do so. In fact, he had made an effort not only to learn about his classmates, but all of Hope's Peak Academy's students. He wasn't the Ultimate Imposter for nothing, but nobody aside from a select few knew about the true extent of his talent and his background. This talent wasn't just useful strictly for posing as someone else. It was also helpful in figuring out the types of people he was interacting with.

"Now that we're talking about our mutual friends, I wonder what it's like being in the same classroom with all of you together." Hajime chuckled lightly at his words. "I mean, there's so much energy with just one or two of you, but all of you? How does that even work?"

"Honestly, it's as high-octane as you're imagining." The Imposter had experienced the overdrive of energy that Class 77-B could produce. "We're all the best at what we do and we move to the beat of our own drums. That can create some pretty volatile results."

"I kind of want to know what that's like." Hajime stared up at the Main Course building. "I'll admit, your classmates wipe me out every time I'm with them, especially Akane and Nekomaru. Chiaki is chill and so is Peko, so they don't count really, but I don't regret spending time with any of them. If anything, I'm glad that I spend time with them at all. I'm getting to do all sorts of things everyday, things I never could've or would've done otherwise."

"I understand the feeling." The Imposter knew what that felt like very much. "At times, I'm overwhelmed by what we all do, but I'll admit what we've got going on now is much better than when the school year first started."

"That sounds like a story there." Hajime seemed to pick up on his opposite's slight change in tone. "What happened earlier in the year?"

"It wasn't anything tragic or horrible, mind you." The Imposter thought back to the early weeks of the year. "I'm pretty sure you don't know this, but Ultimates aren't mandated to go to class. As long as you pass certain criteria, you keep your title. Most of us take tests, but some of us with talents related to a lifestyle or some status just need to keep doing what they're doing. Basically, pass that and you're in the clear."

"Oh." Hajime appeared to connect the dots. "So based on what you're saying, that means that a lot of them weren't attending class."

"Right on the money." The Imposter thought back on the day they all convened for the first time. "Basically, we were all focused on our talents, but Miss Yukizome dragged us all back to the classroom."

"I see." Hajime nodded, then made eye contact. "Wait, now that we're talking about it, you're the guy that tried to run from Miss Yukizome."

"I'll admit, that wasn't my proudest moment, but she literally took me from my room and I was working on an important anime." The Imposter could only snicker. "But now that I'm friends with them all, they've given me tons of inspiration for my animation, so I'd say I gained more than I lost."

"So it all worked out, huh?" Hajime sighed and looked to his side. "I guess that's what so amazing about you guys. You just get people involved and that's enough to inspire you in a way you couldn't inspire yourself. That's awesome. I wish I could do that."

"Well, who says you can't?" The Imposter knew first-hand what it took to cultivate a talent. " I know that most people believe talent's something you're born with, but that's not always true. I'd be willing to bet serious moeny that in my class, most of them found something that interested them earlier in life and dedicated time, effort, passion, and determination, but it's not easy to be so focused on one thing for years on end."

"When you put it like that, I feel guilty a bit." Hajime frowned. "I just look at them all as they are now, not who they were in the past."

"I don't think any of them blame you for not knowing or asking about their past." The Imposter felt compelled to encourage the Reserve Course student. "At least I haven't heard anyone complain about you in that way. They just seem happy enough that you're around. Who knows, you might find inspiration for a talent of your own. We all like you enough. That has to count for something."

That wasn't simply words spoken for the sake of encouragement. The master of impersonation genuinely believed that his fellow student was more than capable of achieving the sort of talent that his homeroom was full of. Maybe the rest of them too had somehow figured that Hajime could be so much more than he was right now. All of them had to know that on some level.

And if this guy wanted to join the ranks, then why not give him a chance? After all, he seemed more than motivated to make a change in his life, or at the very least, he was willing to think big thoughts. That was the first step to accomplishing great things.

The Ultimate Imposter usually wasn't one to meddle in other people's business, but for some reason, his gut instinct told him to help someone achieve their dreams. He had never done anything like that. Hell, he wasn't even fully sure what he wanted out of life. He was an imposter, never revealing himself fully to anyone.

It was a confusing dichotomy.

Hope - - - Despair

Music Room

Saturday, August 21st, 2010

Afternoon

Hajime found himself continually impressed by Ibuki's level of enthusiasm for her craft. Even among her classmates, she stood out as arguably the most energetic personality. She was competitive with even Akane and Nekomaru and they were practically willpower incarnate.

Keeping up with her could be extremely taxing, but over time, he had grown more accustomed to her rhythm for lack of a better term. He could attribute this to an increase of energy in himself courtesy of the Ultimate Gymnast and Team Manager; their training not only provided him with more physical strength, but more mental focus.

Now he just needed to apply his slowly-accumulating physical endurance and apply it to how he played the bass. As Ibuki had instructed, Hajime had been consistently playing a little bit every day. He didn't do a ton considering his other obligations as a student not to mention his activities with the other students of 77-B, but he could always manage at least half an hour a day, mostly before he turned in for the night. What started off as a rough sound that barely constituted a note was now turning into a simple but smooth rift.

The Reserve Course student knew that the Ultimate Musician was more into music that wasn't popular or mainstream. She preferred heavier and raw-sounding music, something that he personally wasn't a fan of, but ever since he started playing the bass, he had no concept of what he liked in music because he didn't listen to music all that much, so he had not voiced any objections.

Then again, he honestly had no idea who he was as a person. Even now, as he was continuously taking steps outside of his comfort zone, he still wasn't sure about his identity. Maybe that was why he couldn't find the genre that suited him best. The only way he could concretely define himself was by his past, which constituted many memories that he found bitter and painful.

Ibuki had left the room to grab some items, so he was alone in the room, waiting for her. The silence was stifling to say the least because he was so used to it being loud and noisy with the hyperactive girl being the main attraction.

Do something. Hajime commanded himself. Stop lazing around and do something.

That's right. As much as he wanted to emulate the Ultimates, he did want to forge his own path sooner or later. He had to, otherwise his entire time at Hope's Peak Academy would be compromised. The Reserve Course, the Main Course, the Project, all of that could very well go down the drain.

So he did something. A small step granted, but a step forward nonetheless.

He strummed a single note out. It was a clean sound and he mentally noted that. He played another note. Again, a clean sound. His third note produced the same quality. He went up the G scale, then back down again. He then played the C scale up and down, only taking less than half a second to adjust himself.

Once he felt that he was properly tuned in, he just began to string notes together. He tried for a major, but found that it wasn't quite the sound he was looking for. He then tried for something minor. It was a slightly better shift, but still not exactly what he was seeking. Maybe he was on the wrong scale.

Hajime took a deep breath, paused in his movement of his hands, then began to play again as he let out the air in his lungs. He heard something flowing more seamlessly as he began to think less about a structured approach and simply freely played what made sense to his mind. This freedom was limited by the time he had spent playing the bass. He had less than a month of experience and even with constant practice and Ibuki's tips and tricks, there was only so much he could do.

But he still tried to play something resembling a sort of melody despite not playing an instrument optimized accordingly.

His effort to continuously play transformed a minute into five minutes, then ten. Perhaps he would continue on until the sun set or until his fingers could no longer operate correctly, but neither of those possibilities would come to pass as he subconsciously shifted his head to see the master of music standing in the doorway, listening to him. The moment his mind connected with what his eyes saw, he froze.

"Nonononono!" Ibuki was displeased the moment he stopped playing. "Keep going! Ibuki wants to hear more!"

"I was just playing to pass the time." Hajime quickly made something up. "I don't even know what I was even doing. It probably wasn't even that good."

"But you played from the heart and that's what matters the most!" Ibuki latched onto his words. "Yes, your technique wasn't all that great, but that can improve with time and practice. Playing from the heart is something unique from person to person! That's not something you learn. You find it for yourself and that's what you were doing!"

This was the first time that he had seen her so serious about anything and the shift completely blindsided him. He stared at her face as it displayed emotions he wasn't used to seeing adorned on her face.

Just what was it about his playing that had gotten her so riled up? He didn't think he offended her, but there was something going on in her mind, something that had awoken this previously-unseen side of her personality.

She moved so that she stood within less than half a meter between them both. His hands had long since fell to his sides, the bass now resting against his body.

"I don't know enough about music to make anthing good." Hajime attempted to rationalize. "I need to learn more from you before I get serious about making an original song."

"Ibuki is your teacher!" Ibuki brought her clenched right hand to touch his forehead, but there was no force behind the contact. "She is not your master! She can't tell you how to do everything!"

"Where is all this coming from?" Hajime asked her, not understanding one bit. "I don't understand what you're getting at."

From what he could see of her face, it was like she realized what she was doing was out of character and she quickly shifted from clear outrage to a calm face and then back to her trademark smile. All of that occured in less than five seconds and then there was no sign of any mounting tensions.

What just happened?

"Ibuki is expressing herself!" The Ultimate Musician poked him in the forehead. "Did you like my acting? Maybe a career in acting is just what the doctor ordered!"

While her chipper personality had returned, the Reserve Course boy was still replaying her little stint from a few seconds prior. After having grown used to her always being a certain way, a change in the perceived status quo was far more jarring than he had expected. Of course, it was unreasonable to assume that Ibuki was only a happy go-lucky girl. He knew her well enough, but he didn't know her intimately.

However, with a new face revealed, his curiosity was now piqued. He wanted to know more about her. He wanted to know where she came from, who her friends were, what sort of family life she had, all that type of stuff. It might help him better understand why it was that she was fixated on his moment of freedom free from her instruction.

"Alright!" Ibuki tugged on his cheeks "Are you ready to get our rock 'n' roll on?! Let's get this party started right!"

"Yeah, shhhure." Hajime struggled to speak.

"That's my boy!" Ibuki let him go. "Now let's do it!"

For the next hour, it would be nothing but pure metal, that much he could say for sure. She certainly did love this genre with a passion. While he disagreed with her tastes, he could respect her commitment to what she wanted to do. She seemed to have everything figured out about herself and that extended to her talent.

Hajime simply listened to her as she gave her usual pointers and corrected him whenever he was holding the bass either incorrectly or inefficiently. All the while, he watched her carefully, secretly hoping to find a crack in the armor for lack of a better phrase.

Did he just witness a fluke?

A part of her inner self?

Something else?

Whatever the case, he would need to stick close to her and listen to her carefully. She may or may not reveal more about her life before Hope's Peak, but he could piece together a more complete picture of who Ibuki Mioda was inside and outside. After all, he was spending a fairly sized portion of time in his week being a duo with her. He didn't think it was unreasonable to believe that they would grow closer as a result.

But with this girl, who could say if common sense and logic applied to her?

Despair - - - Hope

Reserve Course Entrance

Monday, August 23rd, 2010

Afternoon

Fuyuhiko had noticed a change in his little sister over the past few weeks. It was strictly from his point of view and he chose not to speak about it to anyone because he couldn't confirm it to be true, but he was sure that he wasn't mistaken.

He usually talked with Natsumi at least once a day either via a phone call or a face-to-face meeting. The latter choice was usually their go-to method and he preferred it this way because when he looked at her, he could get a more clear reading on what she was thinking, what she was feeling, and what she might do down the line.

Her most recent behavior had mildly caught him off guard. Her usual irritability and moodiness made her difficult to converse with at best. These days, he was managing to talk to her for a few minutes without so much as a single fluctuation in attitude. In his eyes, that was a considerable improvement.

Not only had Natsumi not been being a total bitch to every single person that she interacted with. She seemed somewhat more content about her school life. She hadn't forgotten the reason that she came to this school, not by a long shot. Being an Ultimate was one of her goals here, but unlike when she first transferred to Hope's Peak Academy, she spoke of it less obsessively and more as an aspiration, something to work towards.

He didn't know if what she wanted was possible, but even if it wasn't, that wasn't what mattered to him. All he needed was for her to be alive and be happy. He wasn't sure if she would ever understand that, but that was how he felt on the matter.

At this point, all he could do was support her, even if he didn't fully understand her reasons or her feelings.

Fuyuhiko had observed all of these changes in Natsumi a long time ago, but he had been holding his breath all this time. A part of him believed this to be nothing more than a temporary thing, a slight diversion from the usual, but with the momentum showing no signs of stopping, he felt his satisfaction at the situation rise.

Additionally, because Hajime had succeeded in befriending his sister where many others had failed, he couldn't help but want to get to know him more. Another part of him wanted to believe that maybe, just maybe, the Kuzuryuu name wouldn't have to be feared by the average person.

Even if only one person.

So here he was, calling out the Reserve Course student in question for a little chat. He didn't anticipate this taking very long, but it was a conversation the Ultimate Yazuka felt necessary if he was working out a relationship with this guy.

Waiting by the gate of the Reserve Course grounds, he was avoided by all the students pouring out. Naturally, he paid them no mind, being used to people treating him with caution and wariness. It was how most people were around his family and his clan. His eyes scanned each face that passed by. For a minute, he simply flickered his eyes left and right.

"Hey." Hajime's voice called to him. "What's up?"

"Same old, same old." Fuyuhiko's head adjusted slightly to meet that of his fellow student. "Sorry for calling you out. I'll be quick about this."

"Nah, it's cool." Hajime raised his hands. "So, what did you want to talk to me about? Is this about Natsumi?"

"You could say that." Fuyuhiko stopped leaning against the gate and stood up straight. "Come with me. I'd prefer not to broadcast my words to everyone here."

"Sure." Hajime gestured. "Lead the way."

The two young men walked away from the academy grounds side by side. Their silence was only to last for a minute or two before they both were in a less crowded place.

"So, before I get to the meat of this talk, I'll ask." Fuyuhiko started off. "How's Natsumi doing? And be honest with me. Good, bad, neither, it doesn't matter. Just give it to me straight."

"I think she's doing well." Hajime spoke, then decided to add more. "Well, as good as she can get. She's at least managed to talk to other people in our class without resorting to immediate insults and threats."

"Good enough." Fuyuhiko appreciated this confirmation from a second pair of eyes. "I'm not worried about her as much, but there is still the fundamental matter of her moving to the big leagues and all that."

"I've… never really talked about it with her." Hajime let out a breath of air. "I mean, I mention it offhand and she's okay, but that doesn't tell me what she's really thinking. I'm not sure if I should ask upfront or something."

"That's exactly how you should do it." Fuyuhiko knew how to best deal with this. "Look, I get that you're trying to be considerate and all that, but remember, we're yakuza. We're used to dealing with tough shit. If we weren't, our clan wouldn't be what it is now."

"So be a hard charger then." Hajime tightened his expression. "Right."

"Look, it's not as hard as you're making it out to be." Fuyuhiko shoved his hands in his pockets. "Natsumi isn't all that bad. You know that."

"Yeah, I got it." Hajime nodded his head twice. "I hope."

This kid loved to think too much, that much the yakuza heir could tell just by the way he hesitated. It wasn't a luxury that he was afforded at all. With violence and death being so commonplace in his life, any sort of indecisiveness was met with swift and grave consequences. Even when he took no action, the mere act of existing was enough to bring violence and death to their doorstep.

It wasn't a coincidence that he and Natsumi had few people to trust in their lives. They were damned regardless of whether or not they did something or did nothing and anyone associated with them were potential targets as well.

"You really need to stop doing that, you bastard." Fuyuhiko slapped his companion on the back. "Didn't you know that everyone respects a man that makes a decision and sticks by the results?"

"I've heard, but hearing and experiencing aren't exactly the same thing." Hajime did his best to rebound from the unexpected physical contact. "I'm just worried. It's a reflexive thing for me."

"Yeah, sure, it's cool to think it over so you don't do stupid stuff, but there's a limit to how much you ought to think." Fuyuhiko said. "Just go for it. You're going to have to do that sooner or later anyway, so why not get it over with?"

Because of the harmless looking face standing beside him, it felt natural to dispense advice and be friendly, yet calling his sister's friend weak didn't seem like the correct term to use. Although the guy was in some twilight place between the Ultimates and the Reserve Course, he seemed to fit just right for both. He was simultaneously part of both sides yet not fully connected to either.

"Does Natsumi have a favorite food?" Hajime's question came out nowhere.

"Where the hell did that come from?" Fuyuhiko gave a strange look. "Are you going to sweet-talk your way to the hard stuff?"

"No." Hajime sounded skeptical about his own response. "Well, maybe, yeah. I just want to have every advantage that I can get. I figured I might as well give it a shot, right?"

The Ultimate Yakuza did indeed know a food that Natsumi loved to eat. It was the same thing that he had a guilty pleasure for, but that part didn't need to be revealed.

Fuyuhiko gave it a few more seconds. "She likes fried cookie dough. Actually, she likes lots of sweets that are fried."

Anything fried tended to be very unhealthy, but goddamn was it so good to eat. It was one of the things that the Kuzuryuu siblings could agree on without question. Whenever the two of them needed to cool off or if they needed favors from each other, they could just offer each other their favorite sweets. They were both aware that they acted like suckers at these times, but they weren't dead yet, so it wasn't really that much of a weakness.

"I'll have to make a stop by Teruteru for some." Hajime conveyed to no one in particular. "He'll know the best way to cook them."

"Just… don't tell him that it's for Natsumi." Fuyuhiko had his own opinion about the Ultimate Cook, but he largely kept it to himself. "Whenever any girl is involved, he can get really perverted real fast. Fuck, I don't even want to know how that guy gets his rocks off."

"Huh?" Hajime had a puzzled look.

"You have met Teruteru, right?" Fuyuhiko questioned.

"Once. I just asked him for some stuff." Hajime replied. "Why?"

"Watch your step around him." Fuyuhiko looked to his left and right before saying his next words. "Like i said, he's got this real perverted thing going on and it can get a little dicey at times."

And didn't everyone in 77-B know it.

Hope - - - Despair

Main Building, Teacher's Lounge

Monday, August 23rd, 2010

Late Afternoon

Chisa sat at her desk, being unusually unproductive. At this time of day, she ought to be finishing up her duties as a teacher or compiling whatever information she could so that she could send a report to Kyosuke soon.

But ever since her little chat with Juzo, she had found herself reviewing her every move thus far and figuring out when to make her next move. She knew perfectly well that at this point, trying to seek out private information about Hope's Peak was a dead end. She could continue to search on her own all she liked, but it was time to give up and proceed with a new avenue of attack.

The former Ultimate Boxer had met with her nearly a week ago and he had given her a way in, a guaranteed pass into the depths of their alma mater. It was a key card that had been lifted from one of the board members. If that wasn't a golden opportunity to do some snooping around, she didn't know what was. That being said, as she stared at this piece of plastic which could cut straight to the heart of the ultimate secret of this academy, she felt a growing sense of dread.

If she knew the whole truth, what would she do?

There was no doubt in Chisa's mind that something less than savory was going on; all the mystery was proof of that fact. If an institution had truly noble goals and aspirations, transparency did wonders for publicly, brand image, and brand loyalty. In the business world, a business that was more open about what they did, they were more likely to receive business from previous purchasers. In the case, Hope's Peak's goal was still to nurture and grow talent, but there was one other goal, one which was quite illusive.

Plus, as a relatively new teacher in the Main Course, she wasn't fully accepted by the other teachers. It wasn't that the disrespected her. It was quite the opposite. The issue was that she was still technically on probation. She was being monitored and her performance was being evaluated as time passed. It didn't matter that she was a graduate of this place. A job was a job and she needed to deliver.

Be that as it may, the once Ultimate Housekeeper had this feeling that their distance from her wasn't simply a matter of professionalism. It was like they too were in on the big secret and they didn't trust her.

Well, I've found myself in quite the pickle. Chisa leaned her head against her arm. I can't bring myself to go all the way, but if I don't, then we'll have to settle for Hajime answering some questions and I'm not sure if his answer is going to be any different.

The homeroom teacher of Class 77-B knew what she had to do. She needed to get her head in the game. She was doing this so that Hope's Peak Academy could become an even greater hope that it already was.

And profound change could never be achieved easily.

When you have to write for so many characters, it can be challenging to squeeze in time for all of them while still keeping in mind that the protagonist needs to be prevelant in all of those interactions. Still, with such variety, it's really fun to see what scenarios can result. The imagination is the limit.

Despite being busier than ever, I've been managing to write more and more and strangely enough, I'm not too bothered by being so busy with life. Yeah, I've got less free time than I used to have, but keeping busy just means that I'm not lacking for things to do. That's a good thing, especially since in a few months, things for me might change very drastically.

Next chapter, I'll need to get back to Sonia and Kazuichi. They've only gotten one chapter of interctions and if I'm being honest, I am really partial towards Sonia. Some questionable passions and interests aside, she's just the best. I'm sure that many people think that she and Gundham are a great pairing, but this is the way I see it: if Island Mode gives me the option to marry her, then I'm sure as hell going to do so.

But enough about all of that. What did you guys think about this chapter? Feedback and suggestions are always welcome.

I hope all enjoyed reading.

"Everything that is done in the world is done by hope."

Martin Luther