"Time heals all wounds"

Chapter 1

All he could hear was beeping. A constant noise in his ears, the pierced through his skull as he lay there, unable to see. The world was empty save for the consistent sound in his head. It hurt him. Ringing, ringing, ringing. A tiny light was appearing in his vision. A small, glowing fragment of hope floating in front of him. A pale hand reached out to grab the light but was met with an invisible force. Clenching his hand into a fist, he began slamming on the wall in front of him. The beeping got faster and faster, until suddenly... the light enveloped him, and the barricade vanished. A gasp escaped his lips as Saihara Shuichi, Ultimate Detective and a survivor of the 53rd Killing Game, sat up and opened his eyes.

He was in what he recognised as a pod - almost identical to those from the room behind  Momota's lab - except for the fact they were on the floor, not standing upright. As soon as he sat up, a crowd of what seemed to be nurses surrounded him. He screamed at them to leave him alone, to let him go, let him be free. As the nurses attempted to calm him down, a sharp voice carved a path through the air like a knife.

"Let me see him."

"But... but ma'am-" One of the nurses replied, shakily.

"I can help him."

The nurses moved aside, allowing the person who had spoken to sit at the end of the detective's pod. Her white button-down t-shirt had a dark red lining - only visible due to the rolled-up sleeves. Paired with a pair of camel-coloured cargo shorts and combat boots, she looked like she meant business. Red eyes looked him up and down, as her short brown hair moved slightly with a breeze coming through an open window. It took Saihara a few moments to realise who he was looking at.

"Harukawa?" He murmured, astonishment in his voice.

The girls' face broke into a slight smile, "That's me, Saihara. I woke up yesterday. You can trust these people, and this place."

"Ah, but who?" He began, "Where? How? I don't-"

"Sir, please calm down," one of the nurses requested.

"Saihara, relax. These women work alongside the KG Rescue Foundation, which is dedicated to helping those of us who were in Killing Games. We're in their hospital made for the 53rd Season's participants. How..." Harukawa paused, tucking a strand of her short hair behind her ear, "We... were in a Virtual Simulator made by Team Danganronpa to mimic the first real Killing Game."

Saihara gaped at her, open-mouthed,  as she told him this. A Virtual Simulator? A tiny shimmer of hope flashed within him before it died like so many things he's known. "But... is everyone...?"

"They are all alive." The assassin confirmed, before continuing, "You're the last to wake up."

"B-but how?! They a-all..." The words Virtual Simulator flashed in his mind, "...died in the simulation?"

"Yes. However, the nursing staff here managed to make sure everyone was alive and well once they'd woken up."

"E-everyone...?" He murmured, amazed. Harukawa only nodded. Saihara's breath hitched. He could finally apologise! Apologise to Akamatsu, who died because of his failed detective work; Apologise to all the victims who died because he couldn't see the signs; apologise to Momota and Ouma for ruining their plan to end the Killing Game - however fake it ended up being. Harukawa laid a comforting hand on the detective's shoulder, calming him down. The nurses had dispursed as the pair had been talking, which Saihara only just noticed.

The assassin's red eyes had a sort of friendly glow in them, as she placed a hand on his shoulder. They sat there in a calm silence, Saihara deep in thought about their classmates, and Harukawa thinking about... something. Her face gave nothing away other than her care for the detective she was next to.

A quiet knock came from the large double doors opposite the pair. Looking up, Saihara saw a young girl with short blonde hair and brown eyes. She was dressed in some sort of uniform that Saihara didn't recognise. Harukawa stood up.

"Hello. What do you want?" She asked, a familiar sharp edge to her voice.

"I got told to get you two. By a friend of yours." The blonde sighed, arms crossed.

"Ah, um, which friend?" Saihara asked.

She looked at her nails, "I'm sure you know him. Momota Kaito?"