A/N:
FredFusch86: You'd think so, but the official DR3 chart actually lists her in the same "radical" group as Kyosuke and Juzo. I'm assuming Chisa does it to further drive that "despair must be eradicated" mindset into Kyosuke.
WizardingWorld97: I think Makoto would still be plenty shocked even if he knew there was a traitor. He wasn't expecting a Final Killing Game, nor to get thrust into it again, nor for Junko to apparently be alive again, and that's what shocked him the most, not the news of a traitor.
Guest: Haha, I felt the same. On the one hand, the thought of Nagito actually making someone hate both hope and despair is pretty funny to me. On the other…their presentation was pretty sloppy. As for Chiaki's reunion, it's coming up. Just a few more hurdles :)
For the first scene, please imagine "Despair Pollution Noise" playing at a certain point. You'll know when~
A quick phone call to the hospital and talk with her direct superior sorted out when Chiaki would pick up Gekkogahara-san's mother. Avoiding rush hour—a nightmare ordinarily, never mind when escorting someone with a broken ankle—meant either getting up even earlier than normal, or leaving her shift sooner. Fortunately, everyone agreed to the latter, and so, at the end of her work next day, she headed over.
Gekkogahara Emi was a woman who had once been beautiful, but had it worn down by time. Her hair and eyes were several shades lighter than her daughter's, so pale blue as to almost be white, nearly indiscernible from the fine silver streaks winding through her bun. She was very sweet and well-humored, cracking bad jokes about her broken foot and thanking Chiaki as she helped her with doors. Neither her crutches nor her big black boot seemed to hinder her energy and cheer.
She also talked a lot.
"It's always just been Miaya and me," she said as they boarded the subway. "So we've always been a little overprotective of each other. It took me the longest time to trust her to get to school on her own…"
"I couldn't be prouder of Miaya for what she's accomplished," she babbled as they left the subway. "Her peers always said she'd never make anything of herself because of her disability, but look at where she is now…"
"We didn't always live in Meguro," she chatted as they walked through the neighborhood. "Not until Miaya graduated Hope's Peak and started getting a bunch of high-paying job offers. It's a nice change, that's for sure!"
Fortunately, she didn't seem bothered by her companion's polite "mhms" and awkward silences. It was a bit uncomfortable, being told all these personal details about her boss, and that made conversation exhausting. Chiaki couldn't imagine how someone so chatty could be related to someone as shy as Gekkogahara-san.
The Gekkogaharas had a house, which Chiaki was beyond grateful for—she would have cried if Gekkogahara-san had one of those fancy penthouse apartments. It was a nice blend of modern and traditional, with stone-walled gardens and hipped roofs. It reminded her of her parents' house. They'd lived in in Den-en-chōfu, in a far grander house, a far emptier house. She would spend all day there, alone and subdued, parents nowhere in sight, turning up the volume on her games just so the silence wouldn't be so stifling…
Chiaki shook her head, as if the past was an annoying, buzzing fly that could be scared away. Emi-san, as she'd insisted on being called, smiled at her as they stepped up to the front door. "Thank you for escorting me. And for humoring my chatter. Not many have the patience for that nowadays…"
Now she felt guilty for her earlier discomfort. "It was no trouble."
Chiaki took the keys from Emi-san's fumbling hand and filtered through them until a nod indicated she'd found the right one. Turning it in the lock, she held the door open. "Will you need me to grab you anything before I leave? Water, trip to the bathroom?"
The old woman shook her head as they stepped into the entrance hall. "Just help me into my room. I'll just stay in bed and read a nice book until someone else gets home. Don't bother kicking your shoes off," she added, seeing Chiaki bend to do just that. "There's no point when you're leaving right away."
That made sense, but it was still weird to walk through someone's house with her shoes on. She helped Emi-san take her single shoe off and put it in the shoe cabinet. They shuffled past each other, and Chiaki opened the living room door.
What lay beyond was unexpected.
Then again…change, disruption, death…disturbances in one's daily routine were always unexpected.
At first, she didn't quite understand what she was seeing. The room beyond was a mess, tatami scuffled and furniture overturned. Gekkogahara-san was resting there, right at her feet, and her light blue eyes were staring up at Chiaki's, and that shouldn't be possible. Because—she was lying on her stomach, but looking straight up. And your head couldn't turn completely around on your neck. It just couldn't.
Not while you were alive, at least.
As soon as she had that thought, the rest of the world rushed back. The coppery smell of dried blood hit her nostrils. A scream of "Miaya!" ripped out from beside her. Emi-san's crutches fell to the ground with a clatter. Automatically, Chiaki reached out and grabbed the other woman as her legs crumpled, holding her up, trying to keep her weight off her bad ankle.
Emi-san didn't seem to care about her ankle. She flailed, shrieking her daughter's name over and over, face a wild mask of hysteria. "No! Let go of me! Miaya!"
Chiaki didn't answer. She couldn't stop staring at those empty eyes. She'd thought the bodies in the Killing Game were horrifying, but this was so much worse. Here, there were smells and the glare of the lights and the sensation of sweat under her arms. Every one of her senses seemed to be magnified, drawing the room into horrible crystal clarity. "Gekkogahara-san?" she whispered.
"Miaya! Miaya, honey, answer me!"
The cogs of her brain finally, mechanically, grinded up. "I…I don't think there's anything we can…"
"Don't say that! My baby needs my help—"
"We can't touch her body!"
The word body rang through the air like a deep, ominous bell. At the sound of it, the fight drained out of Emi-san. She slumped over, weeping with enough force to shake her entire body.
But Chiaki couldn't seem to make a sound. Shouldn't I be more disturbed? Her boss was dead right in front of her. Shouldn't she also be screaming and crying? Why was everything just going numb instead? Had her life really become so full of death…so full of pain, so full of despair…that something like this was no longer shocking? That wasn't comforting at all.
A detached thought floated through her head. We should go outside. Emi-san doesn't need to look at this any longer than she already has.
"C'mon," Chiaki murmured gently, pulling the other woman up. "Let's go somewhere else while we call for help…"
"I c-can't…I can't luh…leave her!"
"We won't be far, I promise."
She escorted Emi-san away, one hand dialing the police on her cell as the old woman's heartbroken sobs filled the air.
The world crawled by at a dreadfully slow pace as they waited for the police to arrive. Emi-san was inconsolable, her crying terrible to listen to. Chiaki sat on the steps to the house, knees curled to her chest, gaze transfixed on a ladybug crawling across her shoe. She still couldn't believe what she'd just seen.
Gekkogahara-san…she'd been so kind and welcoming. She never hesitated to loan an ear to her employees, and she'd been a staunch advocate for peace, someone working her hardest to find non-violent methods to despair. Her creation of the Neo World Program might have saved the people most important to Chiaki. She could surely have done even greater things in the future.
But she wouldn't, because her life had been tragically cut short.
I was just talking to her yesterday…
Her chest clenched painfully, the numbness starting to wear off. Chiaki buried her head in her arms. A light breeze ruffled her hair. In the distance, there was a high-pitched wailing, growing louder until it filled her entire head. Sirens. The police.
Everything sped up again, a whirling rush of footsteps and voices and people. Chiaki was jostled away from Emi-san and interrogated. She told them what she'd been doing and gave them the name of Emi-san's nurse at the hospital, to support the story. Her voice cracked throughout the report.
While the police compared her account to Emi-san's and checked their alibis, another body was found, further inside the house. Female, identified as Gekkogahara-san's personal care assistant. As more people hurried to make more calls, a cab pulled up. A suited figure stepped out. Chiaki would later remember that Future Foundation had ties to the police, but at the time she had no idea how they found out. All she knew was that suddenly Ueno-sensei had arrived, his dark face several shades paler and his hands lighting a cigarette as he spoke to an officer.
"Damn," was all he muttered when he sat beside her. "Damn it." He blew out a stream of smoke.
"What are you doing here?"
"We got word that Gekkogahara-san was killed. Akagi-kun sent me to check things out. The police didn't give your name, so we didn't know someone was already here…" A bitter smile twisted his lips as he added, like an afterthought. "I've been promoted to new Acting Head. Hooray."
She accepted the news with a solemn nod. "The coroner arrived a little while ago…I think they're almost done."
His eyes looked her over. "Are you alright, Watanabe-san?"
Gekkogahara-san's snapped neck is imprinted on the back of my eyelids. "I'm fine."
The pathetic conversation stuttered to a halt. Ueno-sensei waited with her quietly as the police continued to search and the coroner examined the bodies. Chiaki couldn't have said how much time passed; her sense of it seemed to have melted away.
Eventually, the coroner announced that the two women had been dead for hours. Estimated time of death was sometime late last night or early this morning. No crime weapon was found at the scene, but judging from the wounds on their bodies, he deemed that the assistant had been taken off-guard, stabbed in the throat, and died instantly. Signs of a struggle indicated Gekkogahara-san had either fought or tried to run, as best she could, before being killed. The police's search for how the intruder got in, another officer explained, had revealed a broken window near the small, private garden in the back. Unfortunately, the stone walls had prevented the neighbors from seeing anything, or even realizing anything was amiss at all.
"You're free to go, ma'am," the young, freckled officer finally finished, the police apparently having decided there was nothing more to be done here.
Chiaki rose slowly, knees popping. The sky was perpetually red, so there was no way to know for sure how long she'd been sitting on that pavement. But it felt like hours. It just might have been; her stomach was rumbling, a telltale sign it was past dinner. Ueno-sensei had gone through almost an entire box of cigarettes as he'd waited, and the ground by their feet was littered with the orange butts.
As she stretched, Ueno-sensei approached her, having stepped away briefly to take a call. His phone was clenched fiercely in his hand, his mouth drawn into a harsh, slanted line. "I've just received a call from Akagi-kun. I'm sure you want to go home, but we need to go back to the division building."
She glanced up. "Why?"
"Officially? Akagi-kun wants to hear the first-hand account himself. Unofficially?" His eyes darted around, and his voice lowered. "There's an emergency."
A chill ran up her spine, and she nodded without further protest. They passed Emi-san as they left. One of the neighbors, a young man, had come over to investigate the commotion. He was now sitting near her, trying to coax her into drinking some water. He'd wrapped her in a blanket and propped her broken ankle up on a pillow. Emi-san was shivering; her eyes were hollow, and she hadn't spoken since giving her account to the police. Chiaki glanced at her, pity settling in her stomach. "What about Emi-san?"
Ueno-sensei followed her gaze. His brown eyes softened in rare sympathy. "Future Foundation will put her under protection and find a place for her to stay. I doubt she wants to sleep in that house any time soon. But we need to go now."
She chewed her lip, gaze darting back to the forlorn figure. "Gimme a minute," she decided.
Without waiting for an answer, she hurried over to the old woman's side. Her neighbor glanced up, his eyes wary but not unfriendly. Crouching, Chiaki licked her lips. "I'm sorry."
Emi-san just blinked at her.
Chiaki searched for more words. She wished she had something more to say, something deep and profound and insightful. But that was all she could offer. Just "I'm sorry".
Gekkogahara-san's voice, a ghost from a memory of one of her seminars, floated through her head, "Sometimes, offering condolences is all you can do for your client. And that's okay. It's better to be simple and honest than give fake advice."
It didn't feel like it was enough. It never felt like it was enough.
She waited a heartbeat, but Emi-san didn't respond, just lowered her head. The gamer rose quietly, smoothing out her skirt. Then she hurried away and followed Ueno-sensei to a cab.
The seventh division building had been closed to the public. But the interior was a bustle of grim activity and nerves, the employees antsy and the air crackling with tension. Chiaki was escorted immediately to Akagi-san, who looked to be reeling from his unexpected promotion, where she was quickly told to impart everything. And so, for the second time that day, Chiaki gave her account of events.
Akagi-san looked even more weary and drawn when she was done. He ran a hand through his mullet, then pulled his glasses off and pressed his face into his palm. His voice was a little muffled when he spoke. "They were sure it was her?"
"Positive." Chiaki nodded. "Her mother was there, she identified her right away…the poor woman was hysterical…"
He swore lowly. "Damn it. Gekkogahara-san being murdered would be bad enough on its own, but now with all this…"
Chiaki looked between them. There was a bleak ambiance in the room, a certain tightness to the two men's faces. Grief was normal in a situation like this, of course, they'd all loved Gekkogahara-san, but this…this was a different type somehow. Not the sort that came from hearing bad news…rather, the type that came from having pieces of bad news dropped on you one after the other.
"What's happening, sir?" she asked tentatively.
Ueno-sensei and Akagi-san exchanged glances. "She'll find out soon enough anyway," the latter finally sighed, just as his phone started ringing. The tired sloop of his shoulders grew as he glanced at the number. "Can you explain it to her, Ueno-kun? I need to take this…"
As the redhead walked out, her former mentor turned back to her. "There's no easy way to say this," he said after a short pause. "Gekkogahara-san's murder is such a shock…moreso of a shock, rather…because us senior members saw her off this morning."
Chiaki blinked. "What?"
"We saw her off this morning," he repeated. "She got on a helicopter and flew to the meeting. I was there myself, I spoke to her. I…" Ueno-sensei shook his head, voice trailing off. A shaking hand withdrew a box of cigarettes from his pocket and flicked it open. He muttered a low curse when he saw it was empty.
Icy claws of dread dug into Chiaki's skin. "If Gekkogahara-san is dead…who went to the meeting?"
"That's the big question," he sighed, forcefully throwing the box in the trash. "But that's not even the worst part. We can't get in contact with anyone there. Phone calls, emails, texts, nothing's going through. If one leader was killed…"
She filled in the blank. "The others might be in danger too. Gekkogahara-san's murder and this blackout…they have to be connected."
"Exactly."
"So, what are we going to do?"
"I don't know."
Chiaki frowned. The honest answer was not what she'd expected, nor wanted. She'd wanted reassurances. A plan of action. Something. Anything to alleviate the nervousness itching in her chest.
"…Is there anything I can do to help?"
Ueno-sensei pressed his fingers to his forehead, rubbing in small circles. "Stay in the building and wait for Akagi-kun's orders. Everyone's on overtime until this is resolved."
It was late at night when news finally came. Chiaki had called her neighbor and asked them to feed Yumigami; grabbed a quick bite from a snack machine; and then, rather than go to her small office, curled up in a chair in a third-floor lobby. Her phone was in hand, her fingers tapping at Battle Cats. It felt strange to be playing games while in such a state of tension, but the familiarity of it was calming.
"Hello everyone." The entire room jumped at the sound of Akagi-san's voice; it had been deathly quiet for so long that the blare of the intercom was as startling as cold douse of water. As one, their heads tilted towards the ceiling, expectant.
They were not long in waiting. "As I'm sure you're all aware of by now, our beloved branch leader, Gekkogahara Miaya-san, was murdered sometime yesterday or today. Someone wearing her face has gone to the board meeting in her stead, and all attempts to reach those there have failed.
"I've been communicating with the other divisions, coordinating our efforts to get to the bottom of all this, and Togami Byakuya of Branch 14 recently informed us of several things. First, that he suspects Gekkogahara-san's murder was incited by Towa Monaca; second, that he already has agents on Towa's trail; and third, that he was finally able to establish a connection with Naegi Makoto and Asahina Aoi, who were at the meeting."
Smiles and applause broke out around the room. Chiaki waited quietly. She'd had a nagging fear that it was her classmate, the Ultimate Imposter, who'd killed Gekkogahara-san, and it was a relief for that to be dispelled. But she sensed there was a catch coming up. And she was right.
"The news is dire, I'm afraid to say." Akagi-san paused. "Those at the meeting have been trapped in a killing game."
It was almost comical how quickly the mood shifted. A stunned, disbelieving silence descended on everyone. Empathy for Kirigiri-san, Asahina-san, and Naegi-kun surged through Chiaki. She had an awful enough time reliving that maze in her nightmares; being in the exact same situation all over again, for real, must be horrible beyond words for them.
"We were able to trace the call, but we know very little about the situation, so for the time being we are treating it as if it were a repeat of the Second Killing Game. That is, as if they are trapped in an enclosed location with outside defenses. A rescue mission is of utmost priority, and we reached a decision that Togami-kun will lead an advance force to scout while the rest of us mobilize.
"Though we are not a combat division, we have received military training like every other branch, and as such we are required to send aid. Twenty people from the cyber department and twenty people from the therapist department have been selected to go. Those remaining here will be on standby until the situation changes."
A pause. "I'm sorry for conscripting, but this is an emergency. If you hear your name called, please report to Room 622."
Everyone in the lobby seemed to hold their breath as name after name was recited. Chiaki listened, biting her lip, so filled with hope and expectation she could barely stand it. A single thought, a single resolution, had exploded into her head ever since the full situation was explained, and that was all she was centered on.
I'm sorry Kamukura-kun, but I have to help. I hope you aren't angry with me for hoping I can.
There was a spark of fear in her chest, of course. This mission would likely be dangerous, and she'd had her life's fill of danger. But this wasn't a matter of what she wanted. Because Yukizome-sensei must have attended the meeting, must be in peril. Even knowing the risks, knowing what Yukizome-sensei was and had done to her, Chiaki couldn't abandon her. The events of the past week—her memories fading, obtaining her license, and now Gekkogahara-san's murder—had sparked a fuse in her chest. A desire to no longer stand on the sidelines, but to be actively partake in working towards a reunion.
Please, please let me get the chance to do something to help…
"—Watanabe Keiko, therapist department. Honda Michio, therapist department—"
Thank you.
She immediately hurried to the stairwell, running to the once-forbidden sixth floor with a burst of determined energy. As she passed through it, she could tell why it used to be restricted access: the rooms she caught glimpses of were hives of technology and weapons, a reminder that Future Foundation was more than just a simple restoration or research company; it was a military force as well. Fittingly, the best way to describe the huge Room 622 was 'war room'. The back half of the room was elevated, the walls covered with large monitors and computer equipment. Shadowy figures crouched over them, hard at work. The front half was dominated by a large, circular table; several of the chairs were already filled with the senior members of the division—Akagi-san, Hayami-sensei, Ueno-sensei...
Her former mentor instantly spotted her and stepped over. "I hope you're up for this, Watanabe-san," he said. "I told them you'd never been in the field before, but Hayami-san was adamant you come—"
"She has some of the highest marksmanship scores in the division," the combat instructor called, sounding irritated. "And it's not like we're throwing her on the front lines. A rescue mission's a nice, safe first mission, and she'll be in the reserve squad."
So that was what got her assigned to the mission. But, more surprisingly…this was the second time today Ueno-sensei had hinted at concern for her. She couldn't help feeling a little touched. "I'll be fine," she said firmly. "Part of me's glad, honestly. I wanted to help."
Ueno-sensei searched her eyes. What he saw there must have convinced him, for nodding slowly, he stepped back and let her take a chair. Despite how many floors she'd had to run up, her resolution had given her wings; there were only half a dozen conscripts there before her.
One by one, more people drifted in. The same image was stamped on all their faces: fear and worry, but also resolve and a desire to avenge. Chiaki had to swallow down a lump of emotion. This was nothing like her own ill-fated rescue mission. This was a group of professionals coming together after a careful plan, not a ragtag bunch of teenagers. She suddenly felt fiercely proud to be a part of the Future Foundation.
When everyone had arrived, Akagi-san stood. "I'm not very good with words," he began. "But thank you all for being here. I know I didn't leave you with much choice by my conscription, but I'm sure if she were still alive, Gekkogahara-san would be proud of everyone here."
Ha paused, letting them all bow their heads respectfully. "Hayami-san and I will be leading the rescue. Ueno-kun will be staying here to organize a defense; we can't discount the possibility of other attacks coming. Helicopters are being prepared as we speak. It's an hour to our destination, and we leave in another. Hayami-san and I will brief you on mission details, then we'll gear up and head out.
He gave Chiaki and some of the people near her—the people she'd trained alongside—a glance. "I know, for some of you, this will be your first time in the field. Don't fear, you'll be in the back lines, while the more experienced members go up front.
"Now, the cyber department will be setting up surveillance and, if possible, hacking the network for information. The therapist department will be guarding them, and will also be on standby to assist in search-and-rescue or medical evacuation if necessary…"
A/N: *whispers* I'm sorry Miaya
Just looking at Future Foundation branch duties, they basically have fingers in every pocket of society. So, if it isn't clear by now, my interpretation of how they work is part-government, part-socioeconomics, and part-military. As such, all able-bodied personnel serve as a military reserve force, and can be called on for deployment if necessary—and there's no way a crisis of nearly all branch heads disappearing wouldn't count as "necessary".