[Mini series] A game you cannot win (1/6)
Title: A game you cannot win
Author: tsuchi8562
Beta: syunikiss1990
Pairing: Katayama Yoshitaro/Yoshimoto Kouya (Sakuraiba)
Rating: PG-15
Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the school. The school is mine
Summary: A young girl dies in Chihara High School. Was it suicide or was she pushed off the roof? A policeman starts his investigation and gets involved in a game by some strange teacher...
A/N: Phew, finally wrote it! Based on wonderful fanvideo which can be found here. Thank you laurachan2 for letting me writing it *bows* Requested by my two friends andreja1989 and syunikiss1990, hope you will like it ^^ Yoroshiku!
*MASTERPOST*
The evening was rainy and probably that prevent detective Katayama Yoshitaro from fainting. All in all, rain washed away the scent of blood that made him dizzy whenever it hit his nostrils. The body was covered with thick plastic bag and the claret managed to soak in the ground so the crime scene was safe.
“What do we have here?” Talkative as always Ishizu Ryouhei asked the pathologist who was peeking under the black bag, looking carefully on the corpse lighten by floodlit by flashlight.
“Young girl, 18 years old, Arita Reiko. She was a student in Chihara High School, third grade. Apparently she fell from the roof and hit her head on the sidewalk here.”
“Did she jump by herself or was she pushed?” Yoshitaro asked, looking up and trying to see a thing in this darkness.
“I will be able to say more after I exam her. Now excuse me, I have another call. Some stupid kid got hit by a bike. Teenagers these days…” The pathologist bowed and disappeared in no time. Few technicians were still looking for any traces that could lead them to the truth about events that took place not so long ago. Soon the body was taken away and each member of the police crew slowly went back to the station to write a report. The only men that stayed at the scene were Katayama and his partner. Even though there was nothing more to do, they decided to look around and check if there was any witness that could help them solve the riddle. It was quite doubtful, considering that it was almost the middle of the night, but as good detectives they had to check everything. In the night's muteness the only sound that could be heard was a tiny bell that rang when a cat desperately climbed out of Katayama's bag.
"What is it Holmes?" The detective smiled and looked at his pet, who majestatically jumped on the ground and started to play with something he found near the kerbstone. Yoshitaro frowned and kneeled, trying to check what enchained the cat's attention. He noticed small, round object lying just next to Holmes's paw. "What is it?" The man pulled a white glove on his hand and took whatever he just found, trying to recognize the thing in this darkness.
"What did you find?" Ishizu asked and came closer with a flashlight. "It looks like a button... Somebody must have lost it... I don't think it has anything in common with the incident..."
"I want to check it. Look, it has part of material still attached to it... I will give that to our technicians." Katayama carefully secured the button and hid it inside his bag. It was too late and cold and the rain started to pour harder than before so both detectives went back to their homes to get some sleep before the staff meeting in the morning.
The next day was very busy for the young detective. Yoshitaro was late for the gathering and of course was scolded, but in the end he had to share the report from the crime scene. After the news passed by pathologist, it was sure that the girl died due to basal skull fracture and a hemorrhage caused by the fall. She also had old bruises on her forearms and few fresh abrasions - a sign she was fighting just before she fell from the roof. That means it wasn't a suicide nor an accident; the student was definitely pushed off.
“So a murder case, huh?” Ryouhei sighed and leaned back in his chair. He was tired and apparently didn't like the fact he will have to work on the case for quite long time. Katayama nodded and read the report once again, trying to find something he didn't catch before.
“Do we know anything about that girl? Did she have any enemies?”
“She was a model student, with good grades. But remember, this is a high school we are talking about... You know what happens in schools nowadays.”
“You think she may be bullied? But this is Chihara High School we are talking about, place for elite with no flaw...”
“On the surface. Maybe they didn't want to loose their prestige and hid everything? We won't know a thing unless we will talk to people from there. Are we going there together or do you want to split and I will go to her parents and you will check the school?”
“I don't know...” Katayama pouted and looked through the window, trying to think of a way out. There is no use when they both will go in one place, so after a longer while he decided to go to school. Even with his all empathy he had in his heart he knew well that sight of distraught mother will be too much to handle and he could forget to ask important questions. Not that Ishizu was coldhearted, not at all; he was just more professional than Yoshitaro. After half an hour Katayama was standing in front of the school building that looked like nothing had happened. Students were maybe a bit quieter than he expected and teachers gloomy but everything seemed to be normal. The detective maybe expected more grief or anything that will show that Reiko was their classmate and friend but there was no proof that Arita existed in the first place. No black ribbons nor her pictures. I felt like everybody wanted to erase her presence from their memories.
Shaking off the first impression he came inside the school and asked first student that he met about principal's office. The reply the policeman received was muttered and he could swear the boy was afraid of something, but he had much more important things to do than worry about it. After wandering around the building for a while he reached the office he was looking for and knocked quite firmly. For a longer while nobody answered and he started to wonder if the head of the school is there. Katayama knocked again, this time louder.
"Come in." A woman's voice sounded and the detective walked inside the room, involuntarily squeezing inexistent bag's strip. Because the school doesn't allow anybody to bring any animals, he had to leave his cat in the car. For a moment his thoughts came back to Holmes and he tried to remember if he left the window at least slightly open but woman's cough brought him back.
"Good day, madam. My name is Katayama Yoshitaro and I am..."
"A policeman as I presume. I am Kurogawa Keiko, a principal and owner of this private academy. If you want to talk about last night's event unfortunately you reached the wrong person. I don't know a thing about the accident." The principal didn't even look at the man in front of her. This, her words and tone she said them made Yoshitaro tense but as polite as he could he smiled and sat on the chair. No matter what he needs to get at least some tiny clues.
"I understand you weren't here at night and don't know anything about the incident itself. However you can tell me about Arita Reiko. What kind of student she was? Did she have any friends, enemies? Any piece of information will be very helpful..."
"Katayama-san, I can pass you her chart. It will be easier and faster." The woman smiled coldly and was about to pick up her phone to ask her assistant to bring the documents but the detective stopped her.
"With all due respect Kurogawa-san but I would prefer if you told me yourself about her. All in all you don't have that many students and I believe you knew her, at least a little. I would really appreciate your help." Yoshitaro smiled and took out his little notebook, ready to write down every little detail he might find out. The principal sighed, called her assistant and after fifteen minutes, with the late student's chart in hand, started to talk.
"I never taught her class, so all I can say about Arita-san is what I know from these papers and from those few times I talked to her and her parents. She wasn't the best student, but her grades were good. She had some problems with history classes but nothing out of ordinary. We have very exacting new teacher, who works here for less than a year and few students' grades went down. "
"Thank you. Can you tell me what kind of person she was? Was she active in any club?"
"Yes, she was vice-president of kendo club, but she was kind of quiet. I talked to her two times after our club won the National Championships last year but she seemed to be very shy. Just as if she was scared of something..."
"Scared of what?" The detective asked and looked at the woman in front of him. Kurogawa shrugged and closed the files. All hopes he had disappeared. Yoshitaro thought that the head of the high school will know her students better but is seemed that in such elite place like Chihara High School everybody was anonymous.
"This is all I know. I am a principal, not a teacher. I talk with students only after winning some competitions."
"In that case, would you mind if I talk with the teachers?" Katayama smiled and ignored the annoyed snort that came out from principal's throat.
"I don't really have a choice, do I? Fine, as long as it won't disturb the daily schedule. The classes end in thirty minutes, students will go home. You can talk to the teachers then. Now excuse me, I am busy." Without even waiting for a reply the woman started to look in some papers, totally ignoring her guest. Detective apologized for taking her precious time, bowed and went out, trying to find the staffroom. On his way he also checked Holmes but because cat was sitting in front of the school (unlike him) Yoshitaro shuffled without a rush to his destination point. The classes indeed ended in half an hour and all the teachers came back, quietly cursing the students until they saw some stranger, smiling widely and bowing politely.
"My name is Katayama Yoshitaro and I am from Tokyo Police Department. I came to ask few questions about Arita Reiko. Could you kindly please tell me who is her home teacher?" The policeman asked first person he met, which happened to teach English. The young man pointed on some silhouette in the back of the room and mumbled something, disappearing soon after. The detective smiled and walked to the teacher, who was pointed as a home teacher and had to wait, because the young woman was talking over her mobile phone. After few minutes, she smiled and looked at Katayama with questioning eyes.
"How can I help you?"
"I am Katayama Yoshitaro and I am in charge of Arita Reiko's accident investigation. Can I take some of your time so we can talk about her?"
"I don't have much time, but please, if I can help I will gladly tell everything I know. Though it won't be that much. Please, sit down. Oh, how rude of me... I didn't introduce myself. My name is Matsumoto Ayaka, I am Japanese teacher in here. Nice to meet you, even though in those horrible circumstances..." The woman sighed and leaned back in her chair. She looked worried but not particularly sad; more like she was concerned by the fuss around her student's death.
"How well did you know Arita-san?"
"Well, she was very shy and quiet girl, so I didn't know her much. She didn't talk much, only when she was asked. She was a very good student, the best in class when it comes to Japanese, of course. Here teachers care only about their subjects..."
"Did she tell anything about her problems? Or maybe she started to act in a different way recently?" Yoshitaro scribbled something in his notebook, writing few question marks on the side.
"As I said, she was shy and closed person. I don't believe she even had friends here... I never saw her talking with anyone. She even was eating her lunch alone, on the roof... I am sorry but I don't know much."
"Can you tell me how she acted yesterday? Did she act in a different way?"
"Now, when you speak of this... She tried to talk with one of our teachers about something. It was kind of strange, knowing she was a loner. She seemed to be bothered by something but Yoshimoto-sensei calmed her down. I don't know what they were talking about though... I am sorry, but I won't help you... This is all I know. I believe you should talk with her parents..."
"We will talk with her family of course, but we need to talk with her teachers and classmates as well. Can you tell me where is Yoshimoto-sensei?"
"He's right..." Matsumoto pointed to an empty chair and frowned. "He was there a second ago, I swear... Oh well, he must have go home already. He will be here tomorrow though."
"Thank you, I will back tomorrow then. Goodbye." Katayama bowed and left the building, trying to put everything he heard in one piece. It wasn't much indeed, all he found out was that Reiko was an average student with quite good grades and she was good at kendo. Nobody knew about her problems, if she had any of course. Yoshitaro knew from experience that such quiet people can hide all the pain inside which gets on surface only when the worst thing happens. Such as suicide... The detective didn't want to believe that the student killed herself; there has to be some explanation of that death. He made sure about his hunch after he talked with Ishizu.
"Her parents did help us. Her grades dropped recently and she closed herself in her room more often, but she didn't want to tell what was bothering her. Few weeks before her death Reiko started to have nightmares. She screamed at night and when her mother woke her up she was sobbing, not able to say a thing."
"Did they try to talk to her about it when she was calmer?"
"Of course. They even came to school and talked with the teachers and the principal. Nothing. Nobody knows a thing what was going on with Arita. They got an anonymous letter though. I have it here, read it." Ryouhei gave his partner a plastic bag with a piece of crumpled paper with a message, written with very beautiful handwriting.
"To Arita family,
Your daughter is a filthy liar. If she doesn't stop, she will end up pretty bad. Are you brave enough to know her secrets?
Friend"
Yoshitaro frowned and leaned back in his chair, trying to figure out what could really happen. Who would send such message to Reiko's parents and why? What was this friend's purpose?
"Did you ask her parents about it?" Katayama asked, already knowing the answer.
"Of course, but I got nothing. They asked her about that but she just closed herself tighter in her shell. Her mother went to school but of course nobody knows a thing..."
"I know... They just keep repeating she was shy and quiet but good student. Nothing more. Though I have some clue... I have no idea if it will be useful though... Do we have any information about the button?"
"Yes and no... There were no finger prints on it, only a small spot of victim's blood. But pathologist found something interesting under her finger nails... Epidermis and some blood. That means she was fighting with someone and she was pushed."
"It's not a suicide then. I believe this will be tougher than we thought... "
"Why do you think so?" Ishizu frowned and read the letter for the nth time, trying to find anything between the lines.
"Think, what kind of person is at one hand shy, quiet and on the other has secrets so big it scares some 'friend'? Whether we have some girl who is some kind of criminal or she was hurt so bad that she couldn't say anything... Maybe she was threatened?"
"You and your theories... Better talk to that teacher tomorrow and then let's make some picture of the situation. Right now it's not a suicide case. It's murder and we can't afford for any mistakes here. Let's call it a day. Tomorrow I will talk with her neighbors, I heard she was close with their son. And you talk with the teacher."
"Sounds fair. See you tomorrow Ishizu-kun." Katayama sighed, rubbed his eyes and finished his report before going back home. The house was empty, his brother was promoting his new criminal novel and their sister came along, simply because she needed a trip. Yoshitaro didn't like the silence but on the other hand it was blessing. It allowed him to think in peace and try to fit the pieces of the puzzles in his head.
"Stop thinking, your ears are smoking." Familiar voice broke the stream of thoughts and brought him back to earth. Indeed, he was thinking too much about the case and he should be resting instead. The man smiled and turned in his chair to face person who was talking to him.
"I just can't understand who could hurt that pretty girl... Something is fishy here and I don't know what... Holmes, what do you think?" The detective looked at his cat which was in its very human form and sighed. It just shrugged and sighed, sitting on the bed and clicking its tongue.
"I just know that answers sometimes are that close you don't see them. You need to keep some distance to notice them." Before Katayama could ask any more questions, Holmes returned to its natural form and looked at the man with its green eyes.
"Close, huh?" Yoshitaro took a deep breath and felt tiredness hitting him. He had a long day and it won't be any easier tomorrow. Trying to quiet his thoughts he took a hot shower which made him drowsy and fall asleep in no time.