Despite being a school entirely funded by the government, Hope's Peak does not exist on any of it's official records. Despite being a specialist school, there's no entry exam or registration programme. It's one of the most prestigious school's in the country, and yet it doesn't seem to have any rhyme or reason to how it recruits students; the most bizarre and unrelated students would be selected via letter and asked to attend, and seldom would they refuse.

Hope's Peak acts in such a strange way because it is not a mere school. It doesn't merely educate, it trains. It's full, official name, which has been wiped from any and all documents that may contain it, is Hope's Peak Academy of Espionage and Reconnaissance. It takes in students who show potential skills that could be utilised by agencies that operate in the shadows, government factions that don't strictly speaking exist. Students who look like they can fight, or lie, or cheat, or steal, or lead, or hack, or programme, or investigate, or just keep the whole operation a secret. The charismatic, the hopeful, the deceitful, the athletic, the intelligent - there's a place for them at Hope's Peak. And after they leave Hope's Peak, there's a place for them in the cracks and crevices of society, in government-bought headquarters for agencies that aren't real and cannot be found on any records or documents of any kind.

The school mixes lessons on how to kill, disarm bombs, hack into databases and break out of prisons with Maths, foreign languages, Science. It's students look, from the outside, to be the most promising in the country. And the outside does see them, sometimes, but only when they're allowed to.

It doesn't see them when they're sent on their first attempts at a mission. This is where Hinata Hajime is now. This is why he's dressed in dark colours and carrying an extremely heavy rucksack, in the middle of some arctic wilderness, surrounded by snow and little else, listening to Komaeda Nagito babble on about something, even though he should be listening to Nanami Chiaki explain what's going on through his earpiece. He's a member of a small, six person squad, led by Sonia Nevermind, who's back at their base with Nanami, watching over their mission through cameras and projections and diagrams.

They haven't been told too much about their mission, other than it's their first non-simulation. The other two members of their team, Kuzuryuu Fuyuhiko and Pekoyama Peko, were dispatched earlier, and in a different location, meaning that they had two mission objectives, but Hinata couldn't make any sense of what's going on from that. Komaeda is beside him, ranting about something, and Hinata just wants him to shut the fuck up, but getting hostile won't help his mission.

Through his earpiece, Nanami's soft, gentle voice reminds him, "You need to enter through the sewage pipes. The grate should be coming up right about now, if you carry on in the direction you're going. Also, Komaeda-kun, you really need to stop talking so loudly; the pipes will project your voice."

"Got it, Nanami-san," Komaeda nods. "How's the first dispatch team doing?"

"That is none of your concern," Sonia's voice is blasted through Hinata's mind, stern and yet friendly, softened slightly by a lilting accent. "Were that information of any relevance or benefit to your mission, you would have been given it. You were not."

Komaeda laughs. "I'm sorry, I was just asking-"

"Perhaps you should focus on the mission at hand," Sonia's tone is chiding, as if she's Komaeda's mother. "This isn't a simulation; if you fail, you really fail. If you get shot, you were really shot. If you die-"

"We're well aware of the risks," Hinata cuts in. "Let's just get this over with."

He hears Nanami's gentle noise of agreement, before she asks, "Do you see the grate yet, Hinata-kun?"

"Not yet," he mutters. "I think I can make something out-"

"I can see it, Nanami-san," Komaeda says cheerfully. "I'm not sure I much want to though!"

"Why?" Hinata can almost hear the way Nanami's brows furrow from her tone. "What's wrong?"

Komaeda chuckles again. "It's surrounded by guards. They can probably hear everything we're saying."

"What on earth are you talking about?" Hinata asks, but as he pivots around he can see exactly what Komaeda is on about. Five heavily dressed men are stood beside the grate, one of them tossing a pair of nunchucks from hand to hand, the others smiling menacingly. "He's right," he murmurs, gulping. "We are surrounded and have been spotted."

"But that's impossible!" Sonia cries. Hinata can hear footsteps, and he knows she must be frantically running around the base, checking screens and stats.

"We're not picking anything up, Hinata-kun," Nanami's tone is laced with worry. Komaeda steps forwards, his fists raised, ready to engage the guards in battle. "Someone must have leaked info to them. They're not only expecting us, but they've seen out equipment and know how to cloak themselves from it."

Hinata thinks he can hear Sonia mutter, "Oh God... You don't think that's why we lost communication with-" but then there's a huge bang and Komaeda, who is kicking one of the guards, suddenly yells and rips his earpiece out. The small distraction was enough for the men to grab at him.

"Hinata-kun!" he screams. "Run!"

And Hinata doesn't need to be told twice. He's spun around and is running as fast as he can. This is why he was recruited, after all. His sheer speed is unmatchable, his reflexes and wits sharp and quick. As he runs, he shouts, "Nanami! Contact Kirigiri and let him know this has all gone to pot!"

He doesn't get a response from Nanami, though. He just hears some form of commotion, loud banging and crashing sounds, a few grunts and thumps, like someone is getting continuously battered or hit.

"Nanami!" he cries again, checking over his shoulder to see that Komaeda is being carried away by one of the men and that three of them are hot on his heels and dear God please say that the snow he's currently struggling through isn't red with blood. "NANAMI!"

Nothing.

It's freezing cold and there a tears pricking the edges of his eyes but he's still running. He can't salvage this mission. No one can. Not if Nanami's gone. Oh God, please don't let Nanami be gone.

Hinata never had a chance to tell her how much she meant to him. Hinata never got to hold her hand, kiss her pale cheeks, run his hands through that silken strawberry hair, that hair that appeared a soft pink when her round face was illuminated by computer screens as it was so very often. He never got to hold her, full stop, or kiss her, full stop. He never got to whisper, "I love you," and hear her gentle voice whisper it back.

His face is stinging with cold, and his tears aren't helping. He's only a child. He's barely fifteen. This isn't the sort of things he should be doing. He should be getting into fights with his mum and complaining about homework and going out on dates and getting into trouble for that. He shouldn't be risking his life. Nanami shouldn't be risking her life. Nanami shouldn't be gone.

"Na... Nanami?" he whispers, one more time, starting to run out of breath, run out of energy, starting to give up on running. He's going to get caught and hurt anyway. He just wants to hear her voice one more time, before whatever these men plan to do to him happens. "Nanami, are you there?"

There's static, and then footsteps. Cautious footsteps. "Hi- Hinata-kun?"

"Nanami!" he cries, well aware he's about to be caught. "You're okay."

"Our base was attacked. We held them off. We suspect another wave will be upon us in moments. Are you alright? Did you get away?"

"No," Hinata's breath comes in heaves. "I'm running. I'm going to break this earpiece in a second, so that when they catch me, they can't utilise it."

"That doesn't really matter," an exhausted Sonia states, "they already know where we are."

"Hinata-kun," Nanami sounds determined. "We're getting the supplies we need, and then we're coming after you. Just... Just stay alive."

"Nanami, don't risk it!" Hinata screams. "I'm not worth it!"

"We have to finish the mission," Sonia shouts. "That's what we're doing."

There's a pause, and when Nanami speaks next, her breath sounds heavier, and her nose stuffy, like she's crying. "We'll be there as soon as we can, Hinata-kun. Please, do your best to survive."

Hinata's bottom lip trembles. "Y- You too," he stutters, and then his world goes black in a blaze of pain.

...

They had been a group of six. They were some of the most promising students in their class. Now look at them. It's almost too much for Nanami to bare. Tears start to roll down her cheeks, but Sonia stays strong; or, at least, she does a good job of appearing unbothered. Nanami supposes this is why she's team leader.

"Nanami-san," Sonia's voice doesn't waver, as Nanami's would, "I think that it's very evident someone on our team leaked some form of information."

Nanami's heart goes still. "You don't... You don't suspect me, do you, Sonia-san?"

Sonia licks her lips, and tosses the braid she's tied her hair in for this mission over her shoulder. "It must have been one of us," she says, turning around to face Nanami. The two had been walking for a while, trying to put as much distance between themselves and their base as possible. It had began to snow while they were walking, and light flakes brush pass Nanami's face. They land in her eyelashes and she wants to brush them away, but she can't take her gaze off of Sonia. "It doesn't make any sense for any of the others to do it; they've all been hurt and held captive because of this. We're the only ones who haven't."

"We would have been taken captive too, if we hadn't fought back," Nanami's voice is weak. She's crying and she's scared, and Sonia has this gleam in her eyes as she shakes her head, and steps towards Nanami.

"I think we were meant to overpower them, Nanami-san," she mutters. "I think they sent their weakest agents after their precious spy, and they told those agents to go easy on her, so she could make her escape."

"That's not true..."

"Admit it, Nanami-san!" Sonia screams. "You're the traitor, and our teammates- No, our friends could be injured or dead or worse because of you!"

"That's not true!" Nanami shouts, dropping to her knees, ignoring the bite of the cold. Her tears flow freely now. "It's not true at all!"

"Who else could it be?!" The wind is growing stronger and louder, and Sonia's voice is too. "Who other than you, Nanami-san?!"

Nanami can't bring herself to answer. She just sits there, in the stinging cold, her lips trembling, her breaths heaving, her shoulders shaking.

Sonia seems to take her sobbing as a confession, and she licks her chapped lips, nodding. "Of course. It makes perfect sense now. The 78th Class, the ones who came before us and went insane and killed each other... You were friends with some of them, weren't you, Nanami-san?"

"I'm not... I didn't... I'd never hurt you!" Nanami cries. Her voice is meek, and she would have wiped her eyes, and maybe even her nose, with the back of her sleeve, but she senses this isn't the right time. She can't bring herself to meet Sonia's gaze.

"Prove it," Sonia states, her voice finally becoming clogged with emotion. "Prove you aren't a traitor! Prove you aren't working against us, and that you didn't try to bring us all down!"

"Prove that you're not working with them," Nanami forces her head up, and stares deeply into Sonia's eyes. "Prove that Kuzuryuu-kun or Pekoyama-san or Komaeda-kun or... or Hinata-kun aren't working with them. All you have to go on is this idea that we didn't get hurt, and they did, and we don't even have any proof that any of them got hurt!"

The blonde is silent for a moment, before she snaps. "I don't have time to listen to a traitors lies," she spits, pulling her gun from it's holster. "Give me one good reason not to end this, right here, right now."

Nanami's eyes widen. The gulps. "Because I'm not a traitor," she says, calmly. "I didn't hurt any of you."

Sonia shakes her head, and clicks back the safety, and Nanami suddenly knows that no matter what she says, Sonia won't believe her. She chokes out a, "Please, Sonia-san, don't do this," and wets her dry lips, feeling even more tears stream down her cheek. Her eyes are sticky and her heart is racing.

"I don't know who I can trust anymore," Sonia screams. There are tears eroding her sharp cheekbones and elegant face. The hand holding the gun is shaking. "I don't know if I can believe you!"

"Please," Nanami whispers. "Please believe me."

Sonia steadies her aim. Nanami closes her eyes. The wind whips around her, and pulls at her clothes and sends her hair flying back and forth. The only sound she hears is breathing; her slow, heavy breaths that have accepted they are numbered, and Sonia's loud, panicked breaths, untrusting, scared, plentiful.

Nanami waits for the bang, but it doesn't come. She hears Sonia collapse into the snow. She hears Sonia shriek and wail and sob, but she stays put, and she keeps her eyes closed.

They're barely more than children. This shouldn't be allowed to happen to them. This shouldn't be happening to them. You can't put a gun into a child's hand and call them a soldier.

When there's silence again, Nanami opens her eyes. Sonia's stood above her, a hand extended, a watery smile painted across her pale face. "I lost it for a second there," she apologises, "but it won't happen again."

Nanami takes Sonia's hand, and allows herself to be pulled up. Sonia pulls her close and holds her for a second in a warm embrace. "I'm so sorry," she whispers. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine," Nanami replies. "You were scared."

Sonia lets go of her, and smiles. "Come on," she states. "We've got a team to save."

author's note: was nanami the spy? was it hinata ? komaeda? sonia herself? maybe it was... jUNko enoshima? its up to you to decide
real talk though im a huge nerd and i cried while writing this thats why i left it up to you to decide the ending. its more heartbreaking if you decide yourself whether they save hinata and the gang or whether sonia shoots nanami or whether sonia betrayed them or hinata betrayed them or komaeda betrayed them or whatever (originally, yes, it was going to be the notorious junko enoshima who leaked this information, but i preferred this ending so this is how i ended it)

thank you to everyone who has been taking the time to read and review this work! ill see you tomorrow.