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The nurse didn’t seem to think anything was terribly wrong with him, just gave him a note and told him to go lay down in his room for a while, and that she’d make sure one of his classmates took notes for him. He thanked her and left, grateful he didn’t have to refer to her by name at any point because he’d never seen the lady in his life. Of course, it wasn’t his room he’d be going back to, but accepting Kokichi’s invitation, only partially because he’d not remembered to note what room number his own was.
Well, talking to Kokichi wasn’t exactly his first priority, but he wouldn’t know where to find Maki or Himiko anyhow. He could ask him where to find the two, maybe, since he was currently the only lead he had on anything here. No one else would ever believe what had happened, and he certainly didn’t want to worry anyone. But, Kokichi had flat out asked him if he were the Shuichi everyone here knew. Maybe he knew something, or more likely he was just observant.
Room 228, that would be up a flight of stairs, right? Second floor, probably. Maybe his body was actually getting unwell from all that had happened, because it felt far too difficult to climb up the stairwell. He has to stop to catch his breath at the top before continuing down the hall. Why would he be getting sick? Was this body rejecting his presence or something? He assumed the fever was just his own panic, but maybe he wasn’t doing well.
The room numbers were hard to follow, so he got turned around a fair bit looking for 228. Before he could even figure out if he was in the right area, someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around, expecting a smug purple-haired grin making fun of his lack of directional sense, but instead found someone he hadn’t expected to find without looking.
“Himiko!” He smiled at the sight. Finally, someone else who might be in the same boat as him. She looked like she’d just gotten out of bed, not even dressed yet and with a sleepy frown on her face. “Finally, I’ve been hoping to find you!”
The red haired mage put her hands on her hips and scowled. “Then why didn’t you come like you promised,” she demanded.
“H-huh?” He jumped a bit in surprise. “What- what do you mean?” Ugh, did she not remember either? He shouldn’t be upset that she couldn’t remember seeing all her friends die, but he’d really expected her to. Did that mean Maki wouldn’t remember?
She pouted. “You promised… And you forgot too? I thought you were supposed to be the Ultimate Butler! What kind of Butler abandons a fair damsel in her time of need?”
Butler?! What? Was that what his talent was supposed to be? Kokichi had acted weird when he said he was the Ultimate Detective, so he shouldn’t have been surprised no one else would know him as that. But Butler? Like, how Kirumi was the Ultimate Maid? He could barely keep his own room clean, how was he supposed to clean up after others?
“I- uh, sorry, uh…” He was sputtering, unable to move forward in his thoughts. He glanced around, hoping he’d ended up near Kokichi’s room. Ah, there! 228, right by him. He casually leaned on the door and knocked on it, hoping it would get him to open up and come bail him out here. “I was headed to go talk to Kokichi!” He practically shouted that last part, in hopes he’d be heard.
Himiko glared at the door. “Oh, so you were knocking off to spend time with Ouma? I thought better of you, Saihara.”
“I-I’m sorry, I just, uh…” He looked pleadingly at the door, willing it to open. Was he being pranked or something? Of all the times-
Thankfully, the door snapped open, and he managed to regain his balance before falling. “Hey, knock it off, your Royal Bratness,” Kokichi huffed. “He’s sick, and I offered to keep him company while he recovers.”
She just frowned. “Oh… sorry! I was being rude. Can you help me when you feel better, then?”
“Y-yeah, of course!” Shuichi exclaimed, having no clue what he was promising. “I should go, I don’t want to get you sick too.”
He slipped into Kokichi’s room, closing the door behind him with a sigh. It was as much of a chaotic mess as he remembered, just without any life sized wax effigies hanging from the ceiling. “That… didn’t go well…” he mumbled, more to himself than anything.
“Why didn’t you just tell her you were sick?” Kokichi asked. “That would have been a way better excuse.”
Maybe he was right- okay, definitely he was right, but Shuichi tried to come up with a good response. “In my defense, I didn’t understand a word she was saying. For one, why did she call me the Ultimate Butler?”
Kokichi stared blankly at him for a moment before shaking his head. “Right, you said you’re the Ultimate Detective. Well, uh, this Shuichi is the Ultimate Butler. Kind of a way different talent, huh?”
“I-I’m sorry, what ?” Like, seriously, what was going on in this world? He would think this was just Kokichi messing around had it not been for Himiko corroborating it. “Do you have like… a yearbook or something that would list all the talents?”
“Uh… somewhere in here, let me look.” Kokichi turned away from him, starting to clear off a desk covered in what looked like magazine clippings. “...I’m guessing we must not have been friends in what you remember, huh?”
Shuichi fell silent. “I… I guess not…” He wouldn’t have called him a friend, but he wasn’t really sure exactly what to call him. He wasn’t just a classmate, and not exactly an enemy. It was hard to really put a name to their relationship, whatever it had been. “I didn’t get much of a chance to know you in the Killing Game, or at least I never got to know what you were like in a regular situation.”
“Killing Game?” Kokichi repeated the words while still refusing to face him, pushing something into a drawer he couldn’t quite see. “You said we all died except like, you and Maki, right? Can you elaborate on that a bit?”
He really would rather not, but he of all people knew that it was important to get testimonies laid out. “How… much of this do you want?” he asked.
Still not facing him, Kokichi held up a notebook and pen. “As much as you’re comfortable sharing.”
Finding a relatively clutterless spot on the bed amongst papers and stuffed animals, he sat down and sighed. “Well, it started with me waking up in a locker in a strange school.”
He explained as much as he could without breaking down in tears. There was a lot to go over- Monokuma and the Monokubs, the murders and executions, the eventual truth of the matter… He definitely started crying at some point, but fought to keep his voice steady as Kokichi took notes.
“And… then Keebo sacrificed himself so we could get out, and Tsumugi got crushed in the rubble. That’s… really all I remember before waking up here…” Once he finally finished, he found himself laying back on the bed, accidentally lying on a stuffed horse. He raised his head and moved it a bit, feeling bad. “And now I’m here. Telling everything to you.”
The noise of Kokichi dropping his pen on the table was his only warning before he found himself being hugged closely. “I’m sorry,” he said, sounding as if he were close to crying himself. “Shu… I’m so sorry…”
“Huh- why are you sorry?” And why was he hugging him? He wasn’t sure if he should return the hug or not, so he just sort of awkwardly patted his shoulder as best he could with the weight of a very bony guy laying on his arm.
“You’re hurting, and I can’t help you…” Kokichi mumbled. “Plus like, it’s kind of upsetting for your best friend to not remember anything in general, but especially that you went through so much.”
“So…” He trailed off. What did he want to say? “So you believe me?” “So we were best friends?” “So you really are serious about wanting to help?”
The best he could settle on was a meek “I’m sorry I’m worrying you.”
That warranted a small chuckle, and Kokichi poked his cheek. “You, stop that. You’re always worried about that kind of stuff- you’re allowed to worry me, it’s fine, not something to apologize for. I guess that much hasn’t changed about you, huh?”
“Do I do that a lot?” He stared up at the ceiling, watching the ceiling fan rotating slowly. “...sounds like something Kaede would say.”
A brief and awkward silence fell over them. “...maybe so,” Kokichi said softly. “I know you don’t really trust me, but I want to do all I can to help you. Even if I’m not your friend, you’re my friend. Even if you don’t remember, you’re still a lot like you were, even if I’m not… what you remember.”
It was really strange to hear him talk and not hear that edge of sly cunning in his words. A sincere Kokichi felt like an oxymoron. He was almost creeped out, but it was also nice to talk to him in a straightforward way for once. No mental gymnastics needed to keep up with him right now, just actual emotion.
“You’re not what I remember at all,” he admitted. “But, I didn’t know the real you very well either. I feel like I only saw a glimpse of him after he was already gone. I’d be happy to work with this you, if you’ll bear with me.”
He could see Kokichi smile out of the corner of his eye. “Course, I’ll do all I can,” he assured him. “Do you need anything?”
“...I mean, I need to figure out how to act normal to everyone else so I don’t freak them out, because I doubt everyone will buy the fact I’m a different Shuichi than they all know,” he admitted. “Plus, I need to know why I’m here and I need to find Maki…”
“Maki? Oh, right, she didn’t die, so you think she’ll remember?”
He shook his head. “If Himiko didn’t remember, and she definitely didn’t remember, I doubt she will. But, I need to check. Just in case.”
“Alright. She’s probably in class right now, but I’ll ask her to bring you notes,” Kokichi said with a nod. “She takes them for Kaito anyways, it won’t be a big deal to make one more copy.”
The mental image of Maki copying notes for Kaito made him smile a bit- that seemed right, somehow. Like how he’d imagined things might be in a regular school for them. He was really relieved that they had some semblance of that- or at least he wanted to be. But, he was still nervous. Him being here wasn’t right- whatever this place was, he wasn’t supposed to be here. He needed to find a way to restore things to normal, somehow.
Kokichi suddenly sat up. “Oh! Right, you need a yearbook, right? I was gonna find mine, give me a second.” He returned to the cluttered desk and threw one of the drawers open. Shuichi sat up to glance at the contents, trying to act as a second pair of eyes. He noticed a binder and what looked like an overturned picture frame in there, but no notebook. Kokichi opened a few more as well, with countless papers and pens and tidbits in there. Reminded him of every drawer he’d ever owned.
“Ha! Here it is!” He held up a hardcover book with “Hope’s Peak Academy, 51st Class” printed on it. “This is last year’s, but all the people you mentioned are in second year with us, so it should be fine.
So if they were first years when the 51st Class graduated, that made them the 53rd, right? He felt a chill run through him at that. There was a connection to be certain, but he hadn’t the slightest idea what connected this version of him to this world. Still, he took the yearbook with a slightly forced smile. “Thanks, this should help. Do- do you want me to go?”
“Only if you want to,” Kokichi said, shaking his head.
“But, I am probably sick,” Shuichi countered. “I don’t think that would be a nice way to repay you for your help, by passing it on.”
A familiar chuckle came from his classmate. “Nah, I’m really good at not getting sick.”
“Is that what your talent is?” Shuichi joked. “I mean, if it’s not Supreme Leader-”
Kokichi opened the yearbook and pointed to his own picture. “Might as well be,” he said with a smirk.
Shuichi shuddered a bit as he read his talent, but couldn’t process why for a moment. “Ultimate Child Caregiver,” it almost made a degree of sense with Kokichi’s more toned down version of his mischievousness. He’d probably be good with kids, but that had been Maki’s fake talent, right? So, was it fake for him as well?
He looked up at this Kokichi, feeling a bit uneasy. If he was the Ultimate Assassin too, was this just a much better act? Was he not safe trusting him after all?
He thought back to that picture on his bedside table. Everyone had looked so happy. Kaito and Kaede certainly trusted being around him, so why shouldn’t he? Besides, despite her talent, Maki ended up being a great friend in her own right, so even if he was the Ultimate Assassin, he shouldn’t distrust him just because of that.
Sitting back on the bed, he opened the yearbook more properly. “Alright, let’s try to go over all of this.”