Notes

It was a peaceful morning within the walls of Hope’s Peak Academy.
The sun was peeking above the distant horizon and was shining down upon the small city, fixtures of light flitting through the large windows. A few teachers were already awake but barely alert as they prepared for another day of teaching, though few paid attention to a student already being awake.
Everyone within the teaching staff knew of the daughter of the headmaster, Kirigiri Kyoko. Neither seemed too close to the other nor did they speak about their relation, although it wasn’t unusual for Jin to request his daughter’s presence to speak to her on some official matters.
The halls around Kyoko seemed to distort and twist themselves around her as she kept up her speedy pace. As she got closer to the headmaster’s office, the windows became bolted up and any other traces beside herself disappeared. She was used to this, as she already knew this was nothing but a dream.
Although she wasn’t entirely conscious, the detective was aware of what was happening. She had walked through these same circumstances multiple times before and knew she would again. The only reason why she kept pushing herself through this was that she knew she would inevitably wake up, despite an ever-present nagging feeling that told her that maybe someday she wouldn’t.
She finally paused before the door of the headmaster. The same feeling of dread that always overcame her when she stopped flooded over her, and she looked down at her hand as she watched herself involuntarily shake. She clenched her fists tightly, and after taking a deep breath, grabbed the doorknob and twisted it open.
It was the same as she always remembered it. A medium sized room with modest furnishing and a trophy case off to the left side. As she stepped inside, she could see the layer of dust that had formed over the surface of the small coffee table. Her heart began to heavily thud in her chest as she kept her violet gaze focused on the floor in front of her. She only started to lift her chin up as the feeling of something cold lapped at her pale face.
The entire front of the office had been destroyed, and the large windows that used to peer off into the bustling city were destroyed. Faraway smoke could be drifting across the magenta-colored sky, melding smoothly with the color of the fires that danced across the top of the ruined city.
Kyoko stepped over some ruined books and began to involuntarily move closer to the desk. The sound of her own breathing began to rise in her ears over her internal soft reassurances of this just being yet another dream, though she still gave the same stiff reaction as she looked into the ruined desk.
Her father’s remains lay slumped in the seat. The only way she could tell that it was him was due to the clumps of purple hair that still clung to his mummified corpse’s head. Its body seemed to have melted into the chair and was slightly curled up, the horror of its death still resting on its shrunken, gray face. Its entire body seemed to shake as it began to slowly lift its chin up, focusing its dull, glassy eyes on her. Its thin mouth began to move, a single dusty hand being lifted.
But before he got a chance to finish what it was going to say, the former detective was awoken by the sound of pounding on her door.
Kyoko woke up with a start, lifting her head off the small table she used as her desk within her room. It was barren of anything beyond a neatly made bed and a small kitchenette with a few empty ramen cups still on the counter, although a small bit of space on the wall behind her desk was dedicated to a pin board that was a mess of red strings and photos. A frown went across her face as she stood up, ignoring the discomfort of having fallen asleep on a plastic chair as she shuffled over to her door.
A foundation worker stood on the other side, a cheerful smile on their face despite it most likely being early morning. “Good morning, Kirigiri-san!” They chirped, not seeming put off by her disgruntled appearance. “Some new information has been found out about some of the remnants!”
Taking the file as it was eagerly shoved into her arms, Kyoko dipped her head a bit. She already opened up the file and flickered through the pages- more information on the possible location of Koizumi Mahiru, and more possible sightings of others. She pursed her lips.
“Koizumi was last spotted somewhere in Italy, has there been any information on how she has managed to move all the way to Hong Kong so quickly?” Kirigiri lifted her head, focusing her cool gaze on the Foundation member. They shook their head. “No… Just the same theories we’ve always had, but why we can’t find any proof of the transport is hard to place. But she’s slipped up a bit in another area! That’s good, right?”
Kirigiri swallowed back her annoyance. “It could be a trick… Or something big might be in the process of being prepared. What else do I have to do?”
Kyoko silently listened as the worker quickly gave her the rest of her duties for the day, giving another peppy farewell before finally leaving for her to wallow in silence. She turned her back to her door, clutching the small folder to her chest as she looked at the opposing wall.
Just another day. But tonight, she’d need more caffeine.