Double upload because I've had exams and haven't updated for a while. I still have three exams left , so the next chapter won't be for a while either.

Anyway , hope you enjoy my double upload.

Reuben woke up the next morning to hear a familiar, chirpy voice conversing with his parents.

Damn dude, she's early.

He got up and went to the bathroom to brush his teeth , not bothering to rush , but not deliberately being slow either. When he returned to his room to get changed, Megan yelled through his door for him to hurry up. When he didn't bother to reply , he heard Megan stomp down the stairs.

When he went downstairs, Arielle was in the middle of an animated discussion with his parents , who were just leaving. She was carrying Matilda.

"I forgot that you're such an early bird." Reuben told Arielle.

"Birds!" Matilda giggled, wriggling out of Arielle's grasp.

"And good morning to you too, Reu!" Arielle responded. After his parents had left , they went into the kitchen , and Reuben fixed a breakfast for both himself and Matilda. When he asked Arielle if she wanted any , she declined.

"I had it before leaving." She explained.

When breakfast was made , they sat down , and Reuben and Arielle chatted while she attempted to feed Matilda. Megan joined them halfway through Arielle's tale of the dog her uncle had bought .

"So, we eventually decided to call her Cloudy, because she's white and fluffy and that's a better name than Ice-cream. And now there are a bunch of weather-related jokes in relation to Cloudy , which , as you can guess , is all Zarah's fault!"

"Cool." Reuben munched for a moment , then asked "So , is the dog male or female?"

Everyone gave him an odd look.

"She." Arielle said eventually , emphasising the word and making Reuben feel stupid.

"Huh. But maybe it's a she-man." He grinned , making a joke to cover up his embarrassment.

"Oh god , you two! I forgot what it was like." Megan groaned in between her laughs. "Reu , you're an idiot!"

"Seems like that everyone's forgetting things today , huh?" Arielle asked.

"Apparently." Reuben said drily.

This made them all laugh .

"Right." Arielle eventually said. "If you'd ever finish breakfast , perhaps we can get on with what I actually came here for."

"Right." Reuben got up and took the plates to wash.

"Well , I'm clearing outta here. I'll take Matilda with me." Megan said.

"Where we going?" Matilda asked.

"Somewhere fun."

"Won't that . like , cramp your style or whatever?" Reuben asked Megan.

"Nah. They all think she's cute!"

"Whatever. Be back by lunchtime , or at the very least bring her back by lunchtime. "

"Okay. Come, Mattie!"

His sisters left , and then they went up to his room.

…

"So…where is this Kimiko girl now?" Arielle asked after he had told her just how he had come to the conclusion that all of the video events were real.

"Somewhere between here and Japan. I think." He responded.

"Well, that always helps. " She was looking at the pin-board , taking it all in. "Did you try and contact anyone for help? Or confirmation?"

Reuben found the screenshot evidence for the death threats and showed it to her.

Her only response was to say. "Man, people are stupid. "

They stayed silent for a while , each of them thinking , and then Arielle spoke up again.

"Well, I looked through most of the highlights yesterday , and did some this morning. Put up the next vid. Let's watch it together. "

Reuben shrugged. "Okay then. " he quickly pulled up the website and found the next video.

It started with a confused Monobear questioning Kyouko's request.

"Oh , what's this? Super Duper Detective cannot find the answers herself? Sorry , it doesn't work like that! I can't hand the answers to you like that!"

"If you must know , we've already ascertained that it was Isaki-san. This is to clear up the details."

"Oh…Oohhhhhh , well , since you're a detective…here!" the bear didn't appear to do anything , but the screens all flickered into life.

"Well , wasn't that easy?" Arielle muttered as she watched.

It was a weird feeling-watching a video within a video. The scene showed on-screen-Kosuke leaving on-screen-Akaya's room as Akaya lay in bed and on-screen-Suzu sat at the end of it. Once Kosuke had left , Suzu stood up and looked around. Akaya pointed to her bandaged leg , and said something , but as the sound had been muted for some reason , nobody could hear what she had said. But then , Suzu picked up the pillow from under Akaya's leg , and then held it in her hands , as if unsure what to do with it. Akaya said something else, and Suzu began to put the pillow over Akaya's face , but then hesitated. She began to pull the pillow away when Akaya grabbed Suzu's wrists with surprising strength and held the pillow in place. Suzu tried to pull away , but Akaya's grip remained fast until her body went slack. It was at that point that Shika burst in , holding up the incriminating notebook , seemingly shouting something.

The screens went black.

"Okay, that's all I feel like showing you! Happy now?" Monobear asked.

"Not particularly." Kyouko said. "I'm not entirely sure that I would class this as a murder."

"Neither would I!" Arisa said. "I mean , c'mon. Kiyomizu-san practically USED her."

"Yeah! This is technically a suicide-I mean , Suzu-Chan was just the weapon…or something along those lines!" Shika said .

"Uuuu…despair isn't hitting you , is it? That's too bad…" Monobear cackled.

"Shut up , bear. Can't we record this as a suicide and let this be?" Janus asked .

"Err…let me think about that….erm, NO!" Monobear's grin stretched. "Now get on with the votes! Hurry!"

Everyone hesitated , but Suzu made a point of looking them all in the eye and nodding. Janus refused to make any kind of vote , so in the end Suzu did it for him while he stood there , trying to keep his expression neutral and failing. The one time when his acting abilities failed him.

"She's so brave." Arielle said quietly as they watched.

"I know, right?"

When all the votes were in, Monobear had fallen off his throne, laughing manically . Everyone stared at him as he rolled around.

When he got up , he started walking towards Suzu.

"Well then , let's get things rolling! I have a very , very special execution for you , I'm so happy that I'll get to use it , I never thought that I would get to. Oh , the joy , the-"

"Don't touch her!" Janus said suddenly.

Monobear tilted his head curiously. Everyone stared.

"Don't touch her. She isn't anything like the other murderers. So don't you even think about it!"

Monobear seemed to consider this. Then he spoke.

"If you're so insistent…why don't you take her there? I'll lead the way."

Janus gasped, opened his mouth to respond, but all that came out was a surprised silence.

"That is cruel…" Emi muttered from somewhere in the background.

As Janus searched for something to say , Suzu wrote something in her notebook. She held it up to him.

In wobbly English letters, the words simply said 'Itll be less scary if was you taking me."

Janus didn't say anything to that. He simply nodded, and took Suzu's hand, and they followed the rapidly disappearing Monobear.

The others followed them down the long corridor that led to the odd area behind the chain link walls where Marvin Karin and Nanako Tamuro's executions had taken place. Today , there seemed to be nothing behind the chain link wall apart from a giant glass box with curtains drawn across it , so nothing could be seen within it. Janus and Suzu were led a bit further away until Monobear said.

"Right! This is it! I'm afraid you cannot go any further, Upupu!"

"Don't do this !" Janus commanded in a tone both arrogant and pleading, in a last ditch attempt to save Suzu.

Monobear merely laughed.

"Upupu, did you say anything? No? Well then , let's begin. But maybe I'll be nice, let you guys have one last snog or whatever. "

Despite the situation, Monobear's words made Suzu go red , which Reuben found mildly amusing. They opted for a simple embrace, during which Suzu slipped a piece of paper into Janus's pocket. When they let go , Janus touched his pocket quizzically , to which Suzu responded with a look that only he seemed to be able to understand. Then , she moved away from him and disappeared into the darkness.

A spotlight appeared out of nowhere , and projected light onto the curtains . The result was what looked like a pattern , but Reuben was soon able to discern that it was actually Japanese characters. Subtitles appeared soon after , but appeared to only be a Romanisation of the word , as it merely said 'Mizuhako'.

"Is this the title card for the execution?" Arielle asked.

"It looks like it." He replied as the spotlight moved away and the curtains opened.

"Odd. I wonder what it means."

"Perhaps we'll find out if we watch." Reuben guessed. They returned to silence to watch the execution .

Suzu was now inside the large glass box , and there were also large blocks of ice , as well as what looked like a tool box. Suzu seemed confused , and simply wandered around for a while , warily looking around her as she did so. When she caught sight of her classmates watching her , she waved at them . The gesture was sweet and also heart-breaking , and it caused Arielle to gasp.

There were a few more moments , and then eventually Suzu went to the tool box , found a chisel , and went to one of the ice-blocks and started sculpting.

Monobear had been suspiciously absent until then, but now he appeared at the top of the box , creating a small opening where there was none. Through this opening, he shoved a giant hairdryer which he shouldn't have been able to carry, and then secured it in place so that it wouldn't fall through. Then he turned the hairdryer on, and disappeared.

The noise made Suzu look up, but she carried on with her ice-sculpting regardless –it wasn't' as if she could do anything to change her situation at that moment. Better to go while doing something she loved. Or something.

The noise was almost deafening to Reuben and Arielle as they listened to it via earphones, and so Reuben couldn't imagine how loud it would sound to those actually there. But he didn't get the point of the hairdryer.

At least , until the ice started to melt. It happened so quickly that he only just had time for the idea to click before he was overwhelmed with shock. At that moment , a song started to play , the lyrics recognisably Japanese , although Reuben was only able to mentally translate some of it.

The water rose quickly, and by the time it reached her knees, Suzu had dropped the tools she was using and was now clearly panicking. Janus darted forward.

"She can't swim! Do you hear me, Monobear? She can't swim!" He grabbed ahold of the chain-link and shook it in vain , any façade he may have been able to put up completely shattered.

In the background, Kosuke and Akihito gave each other a look, and then nodded before stepping forward to hold him back by the arms. Their expressions as they did so were regretful and sad. His response was to struggle harder.

"Abandonato-kun, I think that might be the point." Kyouko told him gently.

By the look on his face, Janus seemed to register her words, but didn't stop trying to struggle. It was only when Akihito muttered angrily at him to not do anything stupid that he stilled somewhat, although neither Kosuke nor Akihito were willing to let go of him.

Thankfully, when Suzu floated to the top , somewhat like a dead fish , the video ended. The song has finished playing twice.

"That…was that the most recent video?" Arielle asked.

Reuben checked.

"Second most." He replied.

"Right. So I'm hoping nobody else has died yet. "

"Judging by how often videos get uploaded and how long it takes, I would think so ."

"Hmm…" Arielle thought about this.

"Right." She eventually said. "Hold on a moment." She took her phone out from her pocket and scrolled through , looking for something. When she found it , she reached for a paper and pen that was lying on Reuben's desk and wrote down something , before putting her phone away and handing the paper to Reuben.

"Here. Email this guy."

"Why? Who is 'this guy'?"

"Byakuya Togami."

"Bless you."

"What?"

"Eh? Didn't you sneeze just now?"

Arielle facepalmed. "Look yeah , let's just call him by his surname. Togami. He's some hotshot guy in Japan , heir to the economy or whatever , and we've been penpals for a while. "

Reuben didn't bother to ask how on earth that could have happened. As he turned the name over and over in his mind , he realised something.

"Oh. Hey , wait! I think I recognise his name…"

"Yeah. I'm sure that this school is the one he attended. I think he was in the year below your Kimiko."

Reuben rolled his eyes. "She isn't my anything."

"Semantics. Look, just email him. He's like , the king of everything. He'll know how to get things done."

"Okay….what makes you think he'll listen to me?"

"Just mention my name. He seems to have a soft spot for me. I think I remind him of his dead friend."

"You seem awfully sure of yourself…." Reuben muttered.

"Oh just shaddup and get on with it. "

For the next half –hour, they debated the exact wording of the message, and just what he should attach to it before finally sending it.

"Well…I guess now it's a waiting game." Reuben said.

"Isn't everything?" Arielle responded. "Anyway, don't you have revision to do?"

"And this is coming from the person who invited herself around…" Reuben was promptly hit in the face with a flying ball of paper.

"Let me use your computer to finish some work, and you can use the desk. "

Reuben rolled his eyes , but decided not to rise to it.

"Fine , okay."

…

Arielle left later that afternoon , and Reuben got on with some revision , finding that now he felt that there was some weight off his shoulders , it was a lot easier.

I really do have a knack for finding interesting things at the wrong times , he thought at one point.

Periodically, he checked his emails to see if Togami had replied, but he hadn't. Reuben was not all that surprised, considering the significant time difference. So he wasn't too worried.

But he did end up feeling pleased when he checked his email just after dinner to discover a reply.

It simply asked him for his phone number and a list of times when he could not be reached. It also stated the time difference between England and Japan.

Reuben thought about this carefully , then looked for his exam timetable before sending a reply.

A few minutes after it sent , his mobile phone began to ring. He picked up immediately.

"Hello?"

"So , you're Reuben Goodrich." The voice at the other end was crisp and no-nonsense , with only the faintest accent.

"Yes. You must be Togami…-san?"

"Who else do you think this would be?"

"Erm…isn't it rather late for you over there?" Reuben had been warned of Togami's rather abrupt manner , but was still taken aback somewhat.

"Yes , and? This is urgent , isn't it? More so for me than you , as this was my school ."

He decided not to respond to that , instead asking "So , now that I've told you about it , what will be done now?"

"Talk me through everything again. How you found the videos , when you realised something was wrong."

So Reuben did. He talked through every little detail , starting from that moment where he had typed random words into the search engine out of pure boredom. It felt like such a long time ago now.

When he finished , Togami said.

"Ah, Ishi-sempai. I remember her. Quiet girl, kept her head down and got on with things. Certainly a good person to have around. Anyway, I'm recording this call ,it will be instrumental in getting the police to listen. Not that they won't anyway. My name is Byakuya Togami after all."

Reuben stifled a laugh at that last sentence, and tried to remember the meaning of the honorific '-sempai'. He knew he had heard it before, from an earlier video.

"Wait, you're recording the call?!"

"Yes, I told you that. Don't teenagers these days listen?"

"I did …I'm just a bit surprised , that's all. You didn't even ask me. "

"Why should I have to?" Togami asked , sounding surprised. "My name is Byakuya Togami. "

Geez ,this guy really likes the sound of his name.

"Never mind then…what else should I do? I want to be able to help, as much as I can obviously . "

Togami instantly rattled off a list of things, and Reuben used his free hand for a paper and pen to write them all down before he forgot them all.

"You got all that?" Togami asked at the end of his list.

"Y-yes…"

"Well then. I have meetings to attend. " Togami hung up immediately after saying that. Reuben sighed , and just stared at his phone for a moment. Then , shaking his head , he went to stick the to-do list on his pin-board. He could start on that tomorrow , and get Arielle to do some of it.

Finally , he felt as if the weight on his shoulders was becoming less.

The song in question is 'Mizuhako' , sung by Nagi Yanagi. The title translates literally as 'water box'. But in a YouTube video that had lyrics to the song , it was also translated to 'Ice Box'.

Also , part of the conversation that Reuben and Arielle were having about the dog is based on a conversation that I was partially involved in. The bit where Reuben asked what gender the dog was , Arielle's response and then Reuben's reply to that actually happened. My life is weird like that. So are those two friends of mine , but I wouldn't have it any other way .