-A/N-
Decided to try writing something for my own amusement. If you've got any criticisms, suggestions or have spotted a mistake or anything, feel free to drop a review or a PM to me. I'm more than willing to listen and get more ideas to keep this fic going, be that in the form of new characters, scenes and whatnot or edits to existing ones that'll help flesh out the story and make it all the more enjoyable to read. I can't guarantee any form of an update schedule, but I'll try my best to push out chapters when I can!
If there's any edits, they'll be mentioned here. Please, enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own H.O.T.D nor any of it's characters, nor do I own any other franchise that may be mentioned.
Waking up is one of those things everyone does in the morning, begrudgingly or otherwise- you open your eyes and gaze at the world around you, the sight familiar to your brain as it kicks itself into gear for the day ahead.
Personally, I was getting pretty fed up of waking up with a headache, but it's been something I've lived with since I found myself in this situation- and by situation, I mean in another reality in a different body. It's been a couple months since those first days I spent hyperventilating and coming to terms with the facts at hand.
Said facts being I am in a different body, unable to recall my name in a world that is likely an anime, although I have no actual proof of such outside of how people in this reality look and how the average person from my experiences thus far is... stronger, for lack of a better word. The peak of human fitness is higher, same for strength.
I have no clue what brought me here, let alone why. I had looked up some major historical events as soon as I had the ability to do so and I couldn't see any differences, but I do know from my checking that my music collection was taken with me to my new phone, so thank you to whatever threw me here. Don't know what I'd do if I didn't get my tunes, they make the monotony of having to do homework that much less painful.
My name is Rei Smith, child of Edgar Smith and Mari Smith. I'm 17 years old and enrolled in Fujimi Academy in my Third year, and while it's been a couple of months, I still have trouble recognizing when people say my name. I've got blonde hair and green eyes, alongside a body that sits in the middle of the average scale- not too fit or strong, but definitely not weak. Sticking with the theme of average, Rei's grades were much the same- not great, but not bad either. Passable, although they did take a dip when I arrived.
I know Japanese, and some of the life of Rei before I arrived- such as the fact we live in Tokonosu City, Japan. Nowhere near as much of the 17 years of life Rei went through as I should- but then again when an extra 26 years appear out of thin air in your head and take over that's going to happen.
Myself and Rei were quite different, especially with 'me' being from an entirely different country and reality, but we share the same surname and Coca-Cola Zero addiction, so I'll put up with the weird habit he had of tapping his foot constantly, even if it does earn me glares. At least he wasn't a coffee addict- hate that swill with a passion that would have made my situation ten times more unbearable.
"Rei! You'll be late if you don't get a move on!"
What? Oh- right. Shit. "Yep, I know!" I call back down to my father, replying in English.
It's a Monday, and therein, a school day. School's never been enjoyable for me, but it's definitely a necessity. Got too caught up waking up and letting my brain go on about what's happened. Again.
I tear the covers off and stand up, grabbing a glass of water and chugging it down like my life depended on it, going through the motions built up and memorized over the months being here. In no time I was in uniform and rushing down the stairs, phone in hand.
Naturally, being in a rush, I barely avoid tripping on the letters nestled on the stairs edges towards the final few steps and jump over them with a loud thud- quickly checking my phone as I grab my bag and thrust it on my shoulders. I better not be late again..!
16/04/18 - 06:42
I hear a voice speak up to my right, its smug aura mocking me "So, you can wake up on demand! Well done, Rei. Well done."
My eye twitches as I restrain the urge to let loose some specific words at the fellow blonde haired man before me.
Turns out, I've got time to spare. No thanks to a certain someone who didn't let me lay around in bed for longer before I have to rush off and catch the bus, although I did begrudgingly accept his peace offering of toast given the extra time allowed me to do the one thing I had been keeping up with since I got here, something the original Rei did not do very much of- exercise.
Now, I don't know about anyone else, but I consider exercise to be a necessary evil. Do I enjoy it? No. Does it make me ache in all the most annoying ways possible? Yes. Is it worth it in the long run though? Yes, absolutely. I've been the target of bullies before, and building myself up to take them on if needed is definitely a must. I don't want to be the one stuck against a wall without the strength to at least get a solid punch in.
And get a solid punch in I can. I look average as all hell, but that doesn't mean I can't pack a mean right hook if I put my mind to it. All those extra years really help me know just how to throw a punch or swing a bat even with my mediocre strength, especially with my time in the Cricket Club before I took over Rei.
My exercise routine wasn't very good- merely a routine of stretches, push ups, pull ups and a quick run around the area, but it definitely was better than nothing at all. It's during this routine as I step outside to begin my run that I took the opportunity to get a solid look at my home and the surrounding area.
It's a simple two-floor house with a raised stone wall and wrought iron gate- two bedrooms, one bathroom and all the basics any family would need, sitting snug in a neighbourhood surrounded by similar homes, albeit without the wall in most cases. We're on a hill with a decent overview of the surrounding area, the sea visible in the distance even if our neighbours homes and the nearby apartment buildings block off the view of the river.
Nothing special, as per the usual running theme of my family. New family, excuse me. I'd like to keep that distinction for as long as I can.
Cresting the corner and heading uphill at a brisk jogging speed, I look up as far as I can into the sky- barely missing running into one or two people as I do so. The sky is surprisingly clear as per the norm. Compared to my reality, this one doesn't seem to have much light pollution and just pollution in general, and it makes the sights and smells all the better.
The sound of distant waves crashing against a shore, rumbling cars on the move bringing people to where they need to go, birds chirping as they fly between the houses to a nearby grove of trees- it's all so much more vivid in a way I can't properly describe.
I shake my head- can't get too distracted or I'll trip. Again. I flick a glance to my phone after I pull it out of my pocket and keep running the loop that should end just as the bus arrives. I'd rather not be late again- running all the way there was as exhausting as it was embarrassing.
Now, what subject was it first again? Maths? That's not too bad.
It was bad, simply because of the teacher. I don't have many lessons with the slimy so-and-so known as Koichi Shido, but those I do have with him I'd prefer to forget. An entire lesson of being intentionally chided for being a gaijin or simply fumbling one question? Not fun. Especially when he assigns extra homework.
I'd honestly prefer if he got kicked out of the school, so would many others from what I've seen and overheard, but that's unlikely to happen. If someone could have kicked him out, I have zero doubt it would have happened already.
I feel someone shoving into the back of me with far more force than necessary, sending me against the lockers with a loud bang "Oi! Don't just stand in the middle of the hallway, people are walking here!"
Ugh. Of course he'd be here when I'm grabbing the books I need. Closing the locker, I turn around to face him.
As per usual, I don't meet his gaze. I meet no-ones gaze, simply staring off into the space next to or above them, an ingrained habit from my prior reality- one that's certainly seen its utility with how eye-catching everyone is "What do you want, Miura?"
He's wearing a red-orange shirt beneath his unbuttoned jacket, a messy mop of brown hair over his eyes. One of Shido's favoured. Does their little clique even have a name?
He grins and moves to reply "I-"
"Wait, never mind, I don't care." I interrupt him, suddenly brushing past him and moving down the corridor before he had a chance to say anything. I can hear him moving up behind me to try and get me to stop, but unfortunately for him, I'm very adept in the art of weaving through a crowd. Comes with living in a denser city than Tokonosu.
"Get back here, Coward!" he exclaims trying (and failing) to catch up to me in a vain attempt to say whatever it is he wanted to say.
Unfortunately for him, I don't in fact get back there. Instead, I move towards the flight of stairs. It's lunch right about now, so there's a fair amount of people in the hallways and cafeteria, but the classrooms? Completely empty. Same for the roof, which they leave unlocked... for some reason.
As I weave through the crowd and up the stairs, I catch glimpses of hair colours that shouldn't at all be natural. Blue. Pink. Hell, one even had green hair, alongside all different kinds of physics defying hairstyles that would otherwise have been painful to maintain.
I step through the door leading up and close it behind me, taking a deep breath of the crisp clean air of the city, oblivious to the distant smoke coming from towards the airport.
Glancing around, I let my thoughts run as I move towards one of the air conditioning units to sit against it, pulling out some books and a bag of crisps to get some studying done in peace while snacking. Sometimes I wish I bothered to socialize a bit more to break up the monotony, but Rei didn't and therein neither did I.
Of course, my studying is interrupted as soon as its begun. The first few times I went up here, there was no-one, but as of late people seem to have realised it's unlocked and have been steadily showing up during their own break periods, and as much as I might want to I can't quite blame them.
No feeling quite like going from a stuffy classroom to a nice, outside raised surface with the wind blowing through your hair and a great view to back it up.
Glancing up from my book, I pause mid-chew as a boy moves towards the edge of the roof and leans over the railing, as he always does. I don't know him, but he doesn't bother me and I don't bother him, and that alone is enough for me to start ignoring his presence as usual. Hell, our longest interaction was a staring contest followed by a nod of acceptance. No, I'm more concerned with the person who came after him.
Someone I know, but haven't spoken to before except in passing. A member of my class. Emi... something-or-another. I forget. And knowing my shit luck, she's going to be- yep, here she comes in all her brown haired glory. Did I ever mention that everyone here looks great? Because they do. And I don't mean that in a weird way, but in a factual way. Everyone looks great, without exception.
I sigh, shutting my book with a loud thud "Do you need something?" I ask bluntly, distracting myself from my thoughts.
She blinks owlishly for a moment, surprised. "Ah- sorry to bother you, Smith-san! I just wanted to ask if you had any intentions of joining a club?"
"What, like an after-school club? I might. Why are you asking?" I raise an eyebrow curiously.
She puts her hands together behind her back, squirming slightly at my hostility. Unfortunately for her, I never was much of a people person. "Well, myself and some others are trying to open up a club, and I wanted to know if you'd be interested..!"
My expression remains unchanged, although I do see a slight hint of red on her cheeks. It's not that hot up here, is it? "Ahuh. What's the club?"
"It's a chess cl-" "I'm in."
Don't know about anyone else, but Chess is a game I enjoy greatly. Sure, I don't play it all the time, but I do play it when the opportunity arises to go against a non-computer player. That and grand strategy games.
"Haah? Just like that?" She asks in confusion, hands on her hips.
Nodding from my seated position, I shrug my shoulders "Just like that. What, expecting me to be hard to convince?"
"I- er... maybe?"
Can't say I'm surprised about that. "Understandable. Out of curiosity, why come to me with this offer?"
"Well, whenever we're in class, you seem very lonely-" Lonely?! "-and kind of grumpy-" Grumpy!? "-but after what I saw in the corridor I can safely say your not mean, so I figured I might as well ask you! We've been needing an extra person to formally make the club, and I think you'd be a good fit!"
Mildly baffled at how she thinks I'd ever be a good fit, and doing my best to ignore the sharp jabs to my ego, I shrug my shoulders "-eh, works for me. Where do I need to be, and when?"
"We're all meeting in Classroom 2-B after classes tomorrow! I look forward to playing against you, Smith-san!" She finishes with a bow, smiling brightly before turning around and moving for the roofs exit before I can even get a word in.
Still not sure on her full name, so that'll make an awkward interaction tomorrow. But hey, on the bright side, there's someone who might be able to be a friend! Lord knows I need some and am too much of a nerd to get some on my own.
Catching a glimpse of the boy with spiky black hair looking towards me as she leaves, I turn to face him and like clockwork, he looks away. Good. I do actually need to study, even with all the extra years thrown on giving me an advantage in doing such.
The final few classes were simple, and I'd like to think I did well in them, although there wouldn't be much of a way for me to tell until the exams came around. Glancing left and right as I cross a road, I slowly begin my long trek home- while the bus goes to the school, it doesn't go back to any of the stops near my home, so I get an involuntary long walk each day, but it helps keep me in shape so I can't complain too much.
Besides, gives me time to think, and lord knows I need enough of that. This reality is baffling, simply due to what I can only describe as 'anime logic'.
Now, I'm still hazy on just what kind of anime the world I find myself in is, but given my age it's got to be something to do with that, right? So, why is it that in every single video of a fight I've seen people go flying from simple punches, or get nosebleeds from looking at people who many- such as myself- deem beautiful? I don't get it. It's like there's some unseen force that adds an effect multiplier if things are done in a certain way.
Why would an anime reality wherein people are of a Highschool age have that though? That is, of course, assuming that I've been dumped in the same area as whatever the 'main cast' might be. Hrm. I know there's no real explanation video, I looked it up before alongside a bunch of other stuff, but another check wouldn't hurt...
Bringing up my phone, I swap to YouTube and begin flicking through the recommended videos. My search history is well and truly fucked since getting here, simply due to all of my insane searches, so I get some pretty unusual recommendations- but there's one that stands out above the rest. The sort of video with an odd name that you'll see once in a blue moon that's somehow gotten popular, and fast.
042419-eod
I plug in my earphones and watch the video as I walk. I've got the data to spare, and getting lost in my own thoughts doesn't sound like a very good idea.
The video starts with a shaky camera perspective, looking over a beach. Can't quite say where, but it certainly looks good. Like one of those scenes you'd see on a postcard. Suddenly, it flicks to the right as a chorus of screams become audible. From the background, the town looks quite small. Isolated, even.
The screams are those of people fleeing others, a small group of bloodied individuals trudging along, grabbing someone and tearing into them
Flesh torn from bone in a visceral display of gore. The camera begins moving as the holder backs up before breaking into a sprint. Low, mindless growling marks a sinister undertone amidst the cacophony of screaming, desperate people. The visuals are an afterthought, but there's glimpses between the run, people on the floor tearing into others with the sickening crunch of bones shattering and blood exploding from newly opened wounds, others trying to fight back as the bloodied ones shrug off the damage like it was nothing, until..!
The video ends abruptly, the final frame being that of a rapidly decaying corpse on the floor, a bite-mark in its arm, crawling towards the camera holder. He must have hit the stop button on accident, or it did so automatically.
A sinking feeling in my gut makes itself known as I check the view count of the video in question. Four million already, with a description simply stating 'end of days'. The account has never posted anything before. That... can't be right. Right?
Scrolling down to the comments reveals the usual denial of the situation, and attempts to get a location for where this happened, if it did truly happen at all. One of the most liked comments points to a popular tourist trap of a town in Spain that has matching scenery-
A horn blares to my right as I quickly take a step back, avoiding being run over by a small red hatchback. Close one. Right. Still walking- Split your focus. Or try to, at least.
My heart thumps in my chest as an uneasy wave of adrenaline hits me- not completely from my near death experience just a moment ago, but from the crushing realisation that I might just be in a reality where everything goes to shit in the worst of ways. An apocalypse. Granted, an anime-logic apocalypse, but still an apocalypse. And I haven't prepared properly one bit.
I shove my phone into my pocket and break into a sprint, suddenly wishing I was in one of those sappy high-school drama animes. Hoping that this video was a fluke, a well edited piece of fiction.
Of course, if it wasn't, I needed to prepare with what little time I had. If there's one thing every piece of zombie related fiction has taught me, it's that it'll spread unrealistically fast. All I can hope for is that it's not sprinters. Everyone hates sprinters.
The moment I make it in the front door, gasping for breath, I move up the stairs and to my room. I knew for a fact my new mom and dad wont be back for another hour at the very least- comes with working late up the road at the Takagi Estate- and that gives me a nice window of opportunity to do some research and see what I need to get my hands on.
A quick search up of the towns name on the internet brings me to reports of 'violent riots', and quick looks at other news sites show that this isn't an isolated incident. These 'riots' are taking place all over, and that alone is all the confirmation I needed to begin preparations in earnest.
You ever played a zombie game or watched a zombie movie? It's usually implied that riots of a violent nature are the first sign that somethings wrong. Besides, even if nothing happens, better safe than sorry.
I throw my backpack on my bed and rush back down the stairs, my unbuttoned jacket flaring up behind me as I skip the last few steps as per the norm. Now- what would I need for an apocalypse...
Food is a must, same for water- but I can also get those later if need be, lord knows there will be enough of it for at least the opening weeks. I grab two cans of beans and a can opener from the kitchen alongside two bottles of water, placing them in a small plastic tub.
Hate beans, especially cold beans, but it's better than nothing and wont go out of date any time soon. Next on the list of basics, a weapon. I'm a fan of bats and long, blunt weapons simply due to my time playing cricket, but a knife is always useful as a tool if nothing else. I grab a sharp one from the kitchen, including its holder so it wont break through my bag and shank me.
I burst out the back door of my home and towards the shed, finding it unlocked as always. If there will be a weapon I'll know how to use, it'll be in here alongside all the tools that have seen varying degrees of use over the time.
So hasty was I that I almost forgot about my fear of spiders, which reared its ugly head when I almost run face first into a web. As much as I might want to suddenly shrug all of this preparation off rather than handle the big beady-eyed menace, I needed to be ready.
As a result, I threw a bike at it, with mixed results. On one hand, the spider is gone. On the other hand, it is rapidly approaching my location on the FLOOR-
I shut the shed. There's got to be something inside, right? Something that I wont have to deal with certain crawling insects for?
Searching through cupboards and closets alike, I do find something. Sort of.
By sort of, I mean it's in no-way what I was hoping for, but it'll work in a pinch. It's a bright blue crowbar. The issue isn't what it is, as a crowbar can be one hell of a tool as much as it can be a weapon, but it's more how it is. It's rusty, big, unwieldy and notably heavy. A big crowbar for big jobs, not one very ideal for someone of my mediocre strength to be swinging around, let alone concealing, but... better than just a knife.
Now I just need to shove it in my bag and-
I hear a door unlocking. Shit.
Quickly going about closing the various closets and cupboards I left open in my haste, I stay out of sight of the front door and take off my jacket, wrapping it around the crowbar and tub o' beans.
"Rei, we're home!" My mother calls, moving confidently to the kitchen that I'm standing dumbly in. I'm suddenly reminded of how beautiful everyone is as she walks in, long brown hair flowing down to her shoulders as familiar green eyes meet my own.
"Oh- does your jacket need washing? Here, let me-" She leans forward to take my bundle of stolen goods, and I pull away instinctively. Right- how to get out of this situation...
"Ah, sorry! I got lost in thought, Mom. No- I'm just taking this upstairs. It's hot outside, and I was doing some exercise." Not technically a lie given I ran back from school rather than walk, but...
"Well, that's quite alright. Go on then- I'll get started on dinner" She smiles at me, placing a kiss on my cheek.
My gut sinks lower, knowing things are going to take a turn for the worst.
And that's the Prologue, setting the scene and what's going on. The basics. I don't think I did a very good job of it, but that might just be me being pessimistic. Next up, the first chapter. The beginning of the end (and canon as we know it).