A/N: Hey everyone~ Trying something a little different here.

Like all the stories, this one goes with all the ones on our account that we've already posted and will post. However, unlike all of them so far, it's not contained to one day or short period of time. This one will cover a longer period of time, during which other stories will be going on. We'll post up the chapters in roughly the order they happen still, so this one will get updated between other stories depending on what makes the most sense. Some of the other stories will have references to this one to show about where they are, depending on what happens in them.

So enjoy!

-Chapter 1: Noise Report-

Rhyme crouched down on the bridge at Miyashita Park, tilting her head at a mushroom. Though mostly orange, it had a few red swirls along the cap to give it some character. An interesting sight, to be sure, but the way it sat smack dab in the concrete was not normal. "I know that's you, Haruki," she giggled, and the mushroom seemed to jump on its pale stipe in surprise.

While most people might've owned a cat or a dog, Rhyme didn't own any sort of pet-her family was far too poor to care for one. She had, however, recently come across a creature only she could observe and name, a creature that most of the many passersby couldn't even see. Haruki shifted back to his normal form with a puff of smoke and a hiss, his one tail splitting into three as he grew agitated. He was a white fox Noise with scarlet markings and a changing number of tails that melted from red to yellow.

Rhyme didn't let his annoyance faze her and smiled at the vulpine. "That was a cute trick," she complimented, though as much as she wanted, she didn't dare reach out to try and touch him. Chances are, her hand would go right through; she lived on a different plane from the Noise, after all. Plus, she knew that once a Noise latched onto someone, they would eat away at that person's Soul until someone either stopped them or nothing remained. The Noise were dangerous creatures.

Despite that, she came back day after day to watch this peculiar fox. Her time as a Noise had given her the ability to see them to some extent, but usually, unless she concentrated, she could only see them when they became active-when they sensed a Soul in distress to cling to. This one was different, though, for she found she could see him all the time with ease. He was a particularly powerful Noise with nothing to snack on, leading him to try and play in the park or spend long hours napping when he thought no one would catch him.

Now, the Noise called Haruki turned his back to her and stretched his hind leg up to scratch his ear, pretending to ignore Rhyme. He did that quite a bit, but she wasn't about to let him off the hook so easily. "I had a lot of fun at school today. During lunch, this kid in my class called Shooter held a Tin Pin tournament, and he let those of us without any pins borrow a few for it. I actually did pretty well!" Like always, she told him about her various classes and teachers, her friends and family. She hoped that maybe, just maybe, she could reach the human Soul buried deep within him, if only because he reminded her so much of her own time as a squirrel.

"You know, entrance exams are almost here for my brother," Rhyme mentioned to the fox. "He's kinda far behind 'cause he didn't care about school before, but... Now, he really wants to go to the same school as Neku and the others. He's shooting high, and I think he can do it, but he's still so stressed." She lowered her head before confiding, "I wish I could do something to help him."

"Hm? Is that... Rhyme, was it?"

Rhyme peered back up at the sudden voice and turned to find a woman with short, flared blonde hair standing there. Noa, she recalled-a Reaper. They'd briefly met in Ramen Don not too long ago. No's eyes bounced from the girl to the Noise, taking the whole situation in. "You can see it?"

Haruki growled as Noa approached, his tail count jumping up to six.

"You mean the Noise?" Rhyme confirmed her theory with a nod, face bright. "I can see Noise sometimes, but he's the only one I found I can see all the time. I call him Haruki."

Noa kneeled down next to the girl, holding her hands up to show Haruki that she had no intention of harming him. He still kept his guard up, though, keenly watching her every move. "Haruki, huh? That's kinda cute. Using what kanji?"

"Sunlight and life. He seems to live out here, so I thought it fit," Rhyme answered. Glancing at the Reaper, she then asked, "Did you come here to see him, too?"

Noa nodded. "Yep. I keep tabs on all the particularly strong Noise like this one. Well, all Noise in general; studying them is kinda my thing. But powerful ones like him are special. You've probably already noticed that he doesn't act like other Noise."

The kid tilted her head. "Well, he still shows signs of instinct and feeding off people's emotions, but he has a life besides instinct. He's almost more like a real animal in some ways."

"Bingo. Unlike other Noise, he's aware of his existence and the existence of those around him-not that it'll stop him from erasing someone, but..." Noa glanced back at the Noise. "Look at him. He knows that I'm a Reaper, and he's seen me in the UG plenty of times before. He doesn't initiate battle, though, because he knows there's a chance he could lose. He's powerful, and he's been here at least as long as I've been studying Noise, but he's never once attacked a Player without being provoked first."

"Because he still has a Soul, right?"

That question caught Noa by surprised, and she stared at the little girl with wide eyes. Rhyme didn't look back, but kept her own gaze trained down. With a sigh, the woman gathered her thoughts before answering, "Yes... I think so, anyway." She sat down properly and leaned back, staring up into the sky. "Haruki, otherwise known as the Progfox, is likely a first-gen Noise. I've only seen four others that have managed to survive like him."

"What do you mean by first-gen Noise?" Rhyme questioned.

"Well, according to my studies, when a Player's erased, they become a Noise. How powerful of one depends on their Soul and imagination," the Reaper explained. "Most Noise will then go on to fight Players and get erased, which then scrambles up their Soul. Rinse and repeat a ton of times..." She held out her hand, and a tadpole appeared in Rhyme's vision, wiggling around for something to feed on. "And eventually, you get Noise like these guys. Do you know why they're so weak?" When Rhyme shook her head, the woman said, "Because what they have now is the equivalent to a baby's Soul-a new Soul that's never had a chance to grow and be refined or imagine anything." She let the tadpole slither off in search of food, even as Haruki tried to play with it. "As you've probably seen, they become more and more common the further in the cycle they go. But that's exactly what makes Haruki and the other first gens so interesting. They may be the same animal as others, but they're one of a kind with their own abilities."

Rhyme let the information sink in before asking, "So there are four more like him?"

"Yep." Noa held out her fingers to count as she answered, "Woolly AOR, who is a pretty huge elephant that likes either sleeping or stomping around the Scramble; Goth Metal Drake, who tends to fly above Dogenzaka; and the two connected ones that are strangely similar, the Grindcore Minks. They live near the AMX, and though they get pretty restless easily, they never actually attack anyone on their own."

Rhyme considered them a moment. If there were others like Haruki-and like she had been-she kinda wanted to meet them.

"So, you and your brother are both kinda special, huh?" Noa asked, watching as Haruki's tails diminished back down to one. He poked the tadpole with his paw, cutting it off every time it tried to slink away as his tail swished back and forth. "He can see us in the UG still, and you can see them. I guess he makes sense since he was once a Reaper, but what about you?"

Well, this woman was studying the Noise, right? Rhyme rested her head on her knees with a soft smile. Noa had already given her a number of the answers she'd been seeking. "I was a Noise once-a first-gen like Haruki. But my brother kept me close, and it's because of him that I'm alive now."

Noa blinked a few times. "Wait, so it's really possible, then? For a Noise to become a human again?"

"Well, it was kinda a special circumstance for me, but... Yeah." Rhyme pulled out her phone as they talked, only to find texts from her mom asking when she'd be home for dinner. The girl stood and said, "Looks like I need to get home now."

Noa glanced up, not moving. "Hey, think you might come back tomorrow? I'll give you a copy of my notes on the Noise if you do."

Rhyme nodded and said, "Of course. I come here every day, so I'll see you then!" With that and a wave, she hurried on home, leaving Noa alone with the Noise.

It took Haruki a moment to notice that he'd been left alone with Noa, and as soon as he saw, he jumped to the defensive again. The Reaper let out a little laugh as she stood, turning away from him with a stretch. "Haruki, was it? Thanks. You and Rhyme gave me some hope." She began walking, pulling out a small notebook to jot down some quick notes. "Even if that little idiot's not a first gen anymore, I'm gonna find his Soul and grant his wish. That's a promise!"

Rhyme entered her house, taking her shoes off and setting her school bag down. "I'm home," she announced as she followed the scent of grilled meat into the kitchen.

"Welcome back, Rhyme," her mother greeted, standing at the stove with a spatula in hand. She kept her long blonde hair tied back with a white handkerchief. "How was school?"

"It was a lot of fun," Rhyme answered, and while she did divulge a few of the day's activities, she saw no need to list out everything she'd already told Haruki. Her mother listened and congratulated her on anything to do with tests or grades as she worked on dinner. Before long, though, she cut the conversation short and told Rhyme to let her brother know that dinner was ready.

That meant that Beat beat her home. Rhyme headed into his room, half surprised that he hadn't stopped by the park to skateboard. But the cursing she heard on the other side of the door told her why: he was studying for the entrance exams. "Beat?" she called through the door as she knocked on it. "Dinner's ready."

The door soon opened, and Beat tried his best to give his sister a sloppy smile. "Hey, Rhyme! Where ya been?"

"I was hanging out with a friend," she explained simply, knowing he wouldn't like it if he knew the truth. "How's studying going?"

"Jus' fine, yo," he answered as he walked past her, but the way his shoulders drooped and his lack of his usual excitement betrayed the truth.

Rhyme followed him into the kitchen to help set the dining room table. As they sat down, their mother told them that their father would be working late again. She then asked Beat about the studying, though he gave her the same sort of answer before chowing down on the food. Rhyme rested an elbow on the table as she watched their mother scold him for eating too fast, letting out a little laugh. Things certainly had gotten more lively around the house since they came back from the Game-and for the better. Although neither of their parents remembered their death, Beat had changed, and they could all sense that. He had no longer given up on himself and had decided to become a better student, and just like that, their parents had regained their hope for him.

"We've always wanted a better life for you and Beat, you know," Rhyme remembered their father once confiding in her. "We thought we'd failed to give that to him, but he's grown-he's becoming the man we want him to be, one step at a time. I know we made the wrong choices with him, but we'll try better, too, to help him live up to his dreams."

"Maybe you should invite one of your friends over to study with you," their mother suggested as they finished up dinner, letting out a small chuckle. "I'd love to meet those two girls you've mentioned. Shiki and Eri, was it?"

That made Beat's face jumble up in surprise. "Why you wanna meet them, yo?"

"Because you getting involved with two young ladies shows that you're growing up in more ways than one."

"Huh?!"

A giggle escaped Rhyme's lips, which she tried to cover up. It'd already been enough to grab Beat's attention, though. "Not you, too, Rhyme! 'Sides, Shiki an' Neku dig each other, and Eri's a million leagues outta my league, yo."

"It is a good idea, though," Rhyme pointed out as she helped with the dishes. "You should invite them over for a change and study together. They'll have to take the tests, too, after all."

"Maybe another time." He threw a thumbs-up back at his little sister, rejuvenated now that he had food in him. "I'm gonna knock 'em off their feet wid how knowlendable I've become!"

Rhyme laughed, but she didn't bother to correct him as he returned to his room to study more. She watched as the door closed, thinking. More than anything, she wanted to do something good for someone. She wanted to help him get into that high school, and to help Haruki and the other first-gens find their humanity again.

But could these noisy dreams that rang loud in her head really be possible to accomplish?