Ace Attorney Investigations: Virtual Despair

Chapter 2: Fatal Secrets ~ Part 2 (Daily Life)

~ Ultimate Software Engineer Zachary Moore's POV ~

*DING DONG BANG BONG*

"Goooooood morning, everyone! It is now 7am. Let's get up and get ready to greet another beeeeeeee-autiful day!"

I got out of bed and left my cottage, shielding my eyes from the blazing sun overhead. I headed for the restaurant to get some breakfast. I appeared to be the first one there, until I noticed Niamh in the corner. She was gazing out of the window, an untouched plate of toast in front of her. "What's wrong?" I asked, sliding into the chair opposite her. "Come on, you can tell me."

Niamh hesitated before sighing, her blue eyes meeting mine. "It's... about the new motive Monokuma gave us. In order to commit murder... It's just... how would he know something like that?"

"What was it?" I prompted.

"Well... the fact that I'm an orphan."  my cousin replied. "I... I mean, nobody knows except you and Angelica... Sure, it's something I don't want anyone to know about... but I could also never kill anyone a-and sacrifice the rest of you...!"

"Shhh... It's okay..." I soothed, pulling her into a hug. "I don't know how he got all this information about us... but I'm certain that no secret will be so bad that someone would kill over it."

"My trust in everyone is already slipping away because of this..." Niamh continued, shaking her head slowly. "What happened with Toshiaki and Octavio... We've known each other for years, and yet..."

I sighed. "You always were a big worrywart, you know. You sound just like Mom."

Niamh gasped, her eyes widening. "I know! That's what we should do! As soon as we get out of here, we should go visit Aunt Harriet! I bet she's better already! So we can graduate from school and be the best programmer and detective we can be! I bet she'd be real proud of us!"

I smiled. "Me too... I bet she'd be proud of us, too."

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~ Ultimate Comedian Susumu Toshi's POV ~

I stopped in front of Akari's room, thinking over what I was going to say in my head. I saw her face when we all received our motives; she looked positively traumatized. I was curious about what she could be hiding, but I doubted she'd tell me. After all, I'm not so keen on sharing my own secret...

I pressed the doorbell, adjusting my scarf as I waited. The door opened slowly and one of Akari's violet eyes peeked through the crack. "Oh! Susumu!" she exclaimed. She opened the door wider and stepped aside to let me in. "Is there something you needed?"

"I just wanted to check up on you," I replied. "You looked really... afraid earlier. When Monokuma gave us our motives..."

Akari paused, looking away. "If something's bothering you, then you can talk to me about it." I continued. "I mean, I won't force you into saying anything you don't want to say. I just want to help. I'm not exactly a therapist, but... you know."

Akari paused, her eyes staring back into mine for a few moments before she sighed. "Thanks, Susumu... but I don't think I can talk about it just yet... or ever, really..."

I paused, carefully choosing what to say instead of blurting out just anything. "But... it's not so bad that you would kill anyone over it, right?"