Chapter Text
As per the instructions of the e-mail, I walk through the gates and approach the door. A sign next to it says 'SHOW INTERVIEWS HERE' and a paper one on the door itself tells me that I must wait outside and take a number from the table. I glance to the side. There is a table, and it holds two stacks of thin cardboard, each with numbers. One is...thinner than the other. The one with less numbers seems to be for students, and the other for actors. I take out the one with the number 1 on it from the student deck. The moment I do, someone walks through the doors. Her blond hair is tied up into two huge piggytails that look washed but not brushed. On second thought, it looks like a wig, but I can't know for sure.
"Yanagimoto-chan! The very first replier to my e-mail! Glad to see you're the first here too! But, can I call you Yanagi for short?"
I can only assume this is Enoshima-san. She isn't very formal, and...something feels very off about her. She wasn't even a student of Hopes Peak, why does she want it as a set? For a murder mystery no less? Hopefully, some of her questions to me will provide the answers I'm looking for.
"Come in and take a seat! Just sight right on that couch I've set up against the wall..." She inists.
As I walk over to the couch, Enoshima-san walks over to a professional-looking camera on a stand, which sits next to a Director's chair of sorts where I assume she will be sitting. When I sit down, she adjusts the camera position before hitting a button and sitting in the chair herself.
"Please state your name, age and occupation!"
I clear my throat before I answer, choosing to stare at Enoshima-san instead of the camera.
"My name is Yanagimoto Itsumi. I am nineteen years old, to turn twenty in October, and currently I work as a Police officer. My goal is to become a Detective within my department." I explain.
"Ahhhh, a young police officer! You gotta be some sorta prodigy then, eh? That's just what I expected from someone who went to hopes peak!"
...her cheery attitude feels like a big act. Something sinister is beneath the surface. She pulls out a notepad from...her cleavage, and scrolls across the paper with the tip of her long, red nail.
"Right now uh...next question uh....Oh! Where do you live right now? What's your living situation like, Yanagi?"
"I moved out last year. I'm currently living in a small aparment close to my station. I live alone. And yes, I'm aware that such thing only adds to the idea that I'm some sort of prodigy. Most of it was me just saving funds from part-time work while I was in highschool, though." I explain, gently pressing my knuckles to my chin.
She chuckles. "Ah, so adult! A lot of people our age still live with their parents!" She clasps her hands and swings her arms cutely, trying to over-act. She then flips the notepad by one page and mutters to herself before asking more.
"Ok, I want to know what your life was like while attending Hopes Peak." She asks, her glare becoming sharper as she leans in.
I clear my throat before I answer.
"There wasn't a lot of students, due to the elite nature of the school. Classes were small and just about everyone knew each other. But just because you know everyone doesn't mean you're friends with everyone. I admit to not making a strong connection with anyone, even my classmates. There was only ten of us...Yamada-san, Dubois-san, Nagano-san, Hada-san, Shinohara-san, Kawa-"
"Uh, are you seriously gonna name every one of your classmates?" Enoshima-san groans.
"...you asked me about my time at school. I'm telling you my classmates."
"Uhm, yeah...ok...but uh, what's with the Doob-wah? Isn't that name like, Italian or something?"
"...it's French. Dubois-san is half french, and Half Japanese. He's blonde, though, so his mother probably has blond genes from somewhere in europe as well, likely not truly half and half but says it for the sake of simplicity."
"...Ohhhh shit! You were in Shiratori's Class?"
"...you know him?" I tilt my head, confused.
"Yeah! He replied to the e-mail I sent out too!"
I go quiet. She seems...strangely excited. I just shake my head and sigh.
"May I continue?"
"O-oh yeah, go on!"
"Where was I...ah, Kawaguchi-san, Akamine-san, Horie-san and Johnson-san. That makes the ten of us." I stop to take a breath.
"...and? There's gotta be more, right? Go on!" She eggs on, pulling a pencil from behind her ear and flipping to a new page of her notebook...she's only now taking notes?
I roll my eyes but choose to amuse her and continue recounting.
"Well, I don't think our class was exactly standout. We were an alright mix of physical prowess and intellect, and of course we all had different strengths. Shinohara-san for example has since gone on to work in statistics, as his strongest point was mathematics. The chemistry was...average, though. Some strong bonds, some people disliking each other, but in the end we could all cooperate at the least. I'm probably not who you want to ask about all that...juicy events. I generally kept to myself. Dubios-san was the class representative, and he came off as a natural-born leader, so you'll have to ask him once he shows up."
There's silence before Enoshima-san giggles, looking up from her written notes. "That's nice. Now, what about the bigger picture of the school? How were the teachers, lessons? Other students?"
I lean into the couch a bit. How much does she want out of me?
"It wasn't an issue to walk about the halls since at most, the population of students and staff combine reached just over one thousand, and even then it wasn't crowded due to the size of the school. It has at least ten floors, but two were off-limits. The yards were also very spacious, including a huge running track and field for the athletes. There is a pool outside, but also on the inside...to my knowledge, the inside pool on the second floor was built as a flex of architecture." I suck in another breath before changing topic slightly. "As for lessons and teachers, they were all top of their field. And every class had a zero percent failure rate. This was thanks to how the curiculum was structured, the teacher to student ratio, and I think the hours of the school helped with that."
"The school hours?"
"...yes. It wasn't like an average highschool, it was more Akin to an Elementary school. Classes started at Nine AM sharp, and ended at Three PM sharp. While you may think this would only make us slackers, it gave us more free time to ask questions and develop our strongest points out of class hours, while still being on school grounds. Most Staff left by Seven PM, which gave us time to ask the said questions as well as a lot of time to use the equipment and such we didn't get access to during class that day."
"Oh, so it was like, trying to be Norway! Or something!"
"I think you mean Finland..."
I wonder how much attention she paid in school...she doesn't seem booksmart at all, but her way of talking and mastery of social gestures seems like she's skilled with manipulation...that's all that matters in her line of work, doesn't it? Manipulate your way to the top these days...
"One last thing is...the lead science teacher was my father. I mean, I didn't need him to get in and I even rejected his help in trying to get a scholarship, but he is very important in not just my schooling history, but my life as a whole."
"Ooooooo goodie! I was going to ask you about your family next anyway! Please talk more about your dad!"
I pause to glare at her for a moment before starting up my train of thought again.
"...well, I'm a single child, and my father is a widow. I never knew my mother." I explain in a deadpan tone. "My grandmother was my female role-model. Sometimes my aunts would show up but less so than my grandmother." I add. "I think that has something to do with my mother favouring my father since she's his only son out of four children, and he's the youngest." I gently tug at my thin braided lock. "I like to think I wasn't spoilt, but I probably was to some degree, considering my father and I are very close, and he takes pictures whenever he can. I'm the only child of my father and it will likely stay that way, since he's never re-entered the dating scene. But aside from that, nothing much about my family stands out, I don't think."
"Any good friends of yours?"
"Not really. Like I've said, I keep to myself. I can get along with people but I don't hang out with anyone or have kept in contact with people. Even my co-workers don't really chat much to me or seem to ask me to hang out."
"Right then, uhhh...what was next..."
Enoshima-san flips through the papers before her eyes light up and turns back to me. "Second to last is...why did you reply to the e-mail I sent out? It's easier to ask this since there was more people that didn't reply than did, ya see..."
I sharpen my glare.
"...I want to know what you are planning to do here. No one just buys out the lot of a school that was to be torn down and instead repurpose it for a show set. And you don't have much acting experience just yet. Your portfolio is mostly background characters in teen dramas. Your only standout role was a secondary character in a horror movie that got killed off halfway through the movie."
She seems to recoil a bit but quickly regains composure.
"Ah, you're either nosy or truly dedicated to me to look online for my portfolio of acting!" She smiles. "I've merely been fascinated by Hopes Peak for a while. It had a 100% graduation rate, yet it wasn't funded for very long. Only five years, yeah? How tragic! You barely got to finish your schooling experience..."
"I am aware it closed right after I graduated. Where are you going with this?" I frown.
"Oh, nowhere in particular. It's just...the way this place is built, why tear it down, you know? I can't imaine destroying this...anything could happen in a place so big, don't ya think?"
Her words are making me queasy, she's highly suspicious, and can easily take control of the conversation if I'm not careful.
"Whatever you say...are there any more questions for me?" I try to relax my shoulders as I fold my arms.
"Yep, just one more! I want to know what like...ultimate talent or skill you'd want to have if you could have one."
"Ultimate...talent? What do you mean?" I ask as my eyes light up with curiosity.
"Uhhh, how do I put this? Like...I'd say what you want to be the very best at. Liiikkkeee...uhhh...Sushi chef, or Janitor, or Painter, or Achitect. Kinda like a job but it also doesn't have to be a job. You could be the ultimate Collector, or the ultimate world record holder, or...um...yeah!"
I tilt my head down so I don't have to look at her face while I think. Something I want to be the best at...
When I come up with my answer, I look back at her.
"Well, since I aim to be a detective in real life, I'd want to be the best one there was. Is that enough for you?"
"Oh, that's perfect!" Enoshima-san says as she scribbles down in her notes. Then she takes a deep breath. "Well...thanks for coming, Yanagi! I'll be sure to keep in touch with you! Since I'm prioritising actual students of this place for the show, you'll probably be a shoo-in for the cast." She then stands up and presses a button on the camera so it stops recording.
"Why do you say I'll be guaranteed?" I ask as I stand up.
"Oh cuz like...if everything goes to plan, I only need fourteen other people, and only like...ten of you students responded, soooo...." She looks at her nails halfway through talking. "Anyway, you can go home now or whatever."
She gives a hand wave, still focused on her nails.
I just start walking to the door...
There's something very off about this whole setup. I feel like accepting to join the cast would be very dangerous, but it's hard to tell why. How many masks is she wearing? What is her true self; true intentions?