Chie ran.

Through the rain, the wind, the cold, and the fear. All she could do was run.

Every step shot water into the air like a geyser, soaking her uniform all the way through. She had no idea where she was going, but she knew that she had to stop Yosuke from doing something idiotic. Her first reaction was to grab JoJo, but she didn't have a clue on where to find her. All she could do was rush to Junes in hopes of catching Yosuke in time before he threw himself back into that place.

Her chest ached as her breaths became shorter and harder. Her lungs felt as though they had spikes in them. She shot her head to each side, trying to find where she was at. The local tofu shop pointed that she was in the shopping district, and not too far from Junes. Tennis shoes slammed into the ground like meteors as she ran further.

"Please don't do anything stupid!"


JoJo's head felt like it was on fire. Yet her body froze and made her shiver. Every breath was labored and ended with her coughing up things best not described. She could barely move as Nanako moved about; handing her cold medicine and soup, changing the rag placed on her forehead, and making sure her pillow was fluffed.

"Good... little..."

JoJo lost her thoughts as the fever drained her once more. Any attempt at thinking caused her eyes to drift closed, knocking her unconscious into a nap before she was awoken by Nanako handing her more tissues. JoJo begged for her body to cool down, yet clutched the blankets her smaller housemate gave to her to fend off another shaking episode brought on by the cold.

"As I suspected..." a powerful voice in her head said. Just hearing the being's speech made her feel better, as though it rejuvenated every part of her being. "It was much too early for you to become exposed... We must awaken you to your power as soon as possible."

"Wh-What...?" JoJo thought, trying to communicate with the voice. She would have said it out loud, had she the strength to do just that. Strength resumed to spill from her, like water from a glass. The thought crossed her mind that she might die on that couch more than once. Especially with how worried Nanako began to look. The child's lip would tremble as she handed JoJo more and more medicine. It would mark the fifth time JoJo had taken a dose of cough syrup that day. She would have warned Nanako not to over-dose her, but her mind and body where unable to come together.

"Rest, dear child," the voice echoed in her skull, giving JoJo the oddest feeling of familiarity. In fact, the voice seemed familiar as well... where had she heard it before?

"Rest, and allow me to fight."


"Damn it..." Yosuke said, as empty as a shell. He placed his hand on the same television that kidnapped them the day before. The exact same one that stood in the center of the Electronics Department of Junes. Surrounded by customers, fluorescent lights, and backbreaking cement floors barely disguised by tile. But despite of how hard he pushed at the screen, his hand wouldn't go through. It would press against the screen, leaving an unsightly hand-print on the empty black screen that reflected the young teen's face.

He knew deep down that he must have imagined it. That he had a fever dream, or just a day dream, and that he never really entered the TV. Yosuke sighed as the realization hit him. He twisted Saki's death into something it wasn't. There wasn't a horrid supernatural entity picking people off from inside of a TV. It was just a sick, deranged person that killed her. He was simply too afraid to admit it; that someone could just kill her like that.

"Yosuke!" Chie called, running through the crowd of confused customers. The bowl-haired teen dripped water from every angle. Whether it was rain water or sweat, it didn't matter too much. She huffed and puffed as she tried to catch her breath, finally running into the one she was trying to find. While she was terrified at seeing him that close to the screen, she thanked God that his hand wasn't going through it.

"Oh, hey..." Yosuke said, shrugging his shoulders at Chie so faintly that she barely caught the movement. The energy and goofiness of her friend was long gone. His face was dark, bent down towards the floor. He refused to look in her direction, still facing the TV. The pitter patter of water graced the tile as tears fell from his eyes.

"Yosuke..." Chie said. She planned to bark his ears off about rushing ahead and endangering himself. That her and their friends would be alone if he died. That he was an idiot and needed to think about others for a change. But seeing the broken man before her silenced her.

"Do you think she was afraid?" Yosuke asked, shocking Chie. He turned his head to her, making Chie look away. The silence between them was all consuming. Neither could speak. Neither needed to. They could only bask in the sorrow.

"Yosuke," Chie said after several moments of silence, "let's just go home, man. You need to process this."

"I know," Yosuke said, shrugging his shoulders once again. "I mean, I barely even knew her compared to her family. She's got a brother and everything, so I kinda feel like a dick for being so melodramatic."

"It's fine to be upset," Chie said, patting him on the back, "just don't let it eat you up inside. It's not what she would've wanted."

"I know," Yosuke repeated, nodding his head. He rubbed his eyes, wiping away any excess tears. "I get it. I gotta just pray that whoever did this is gonna be caught. It's the best I can do."

"Right," Chie said, a small smile on her face. "It's not much. But it's enough."

The two once again stood in silence. This one was not as cold or suffering as the previous. It was a silence that showed they understood each other. One that signified that the conversation was over.

"So," Yosuke said, perking up considerably. His trademark grin was back on his face as he readjusted his headphones. "Let's try to find JoJo's place, what do ya say?"

"Sounds good!" Chie all but cheered, herself perked up as well. "Besides, I'm worried about how she never came to school. I mean, it's only the second day, and she doesn't seem the type to skip."

"Agreed," Yosuke said, turning away from the TV to face Chie. He tapped his foot as he thought. "Do you think we can try to find anyone she lives with? I mean, I don't think she's by herself."

"Well," Chie started, putting a finger to her chin, "there is that old cop guy we met."

"Wait-what!?" Yosuke all but shouted. Maybe he didn't know JoJo as well as he thought... "When was this!?"

"It was the first day she showed up," Chie explained, crossing her arms across her chest. "We walked past that crime scene about the reporter lady, and her uncle came out of nowhere to talk to us."

"Wait," Yosuke said, his face going white. "Her uncle's a cop?"

"Yep," Chie said, giving a nod.

"Well that's just great..." Yosuke said, slumping his posture as he stood.

"Sorry you're so upset, lover-boy," Chie teased, poking his shoulder with one of her slender fingers. She stuck her tongue out when he sneered back at her.

"That's the exact reason I'm paranoid," Yosuke said, waving a hand. "The last thing I need is that guy getting all clingy to his niece and stalking us every time we all hang out."

"Oh come on," Chie said incredulously, "you really think he'll get that bad?"

"I don't know..." Yosuke said, rubbing his eyes once again. "Just call it a gut feeling for now."

"Companions!"

Chie and Yosuke turned, eyebrows as high as the ceiling as they saw a strange sight before them.

It was JoJo, a large, fake smile on her face. She held a bright pink designer bag across her arm, a cappuccino in one hand, a cell phone in the other, and wore dark sunglasses that completely covered her eyes. Instead of the dark gray that they had seen JoJo wear on her uniform, she wore a hot pink blouse and short skirt that matched. The makeup she wore looked expertly put on, her lips accentuated by gloss and eyes made striking with dark mascara. Blush did its job of hiding any blemish that would have ruined her complexion, had she any to begin with. If they hadn't known better, they would have assumed that the girl in front of them was one of those popular girls that hung around Ebihara all the time.

"Jo-JoJo!?" Chie stammered out, seeing the strange attire her new friend wore. The sunglasses were what confused her the most. It was raining and dark outside, yet she felt the need to wear those things?

"Yes, tis I-" the tall gray-head stopped herself midway, catching the words threatening to spill out. "I-I mean: Yes, it is me! Your friend."

"Uh..." Yosuke found himself staring at the strange sight before him. "What's the matter with you?"

"I am not aware of what you are suggesting," 'JoJo' said, her voice sounding regal and commanding. Though it kept the pleasant pitch of a young woman, it was clear that whoever was speaking was not the same friend they had talked to the day before. "I am a regular teenager such as yourselves. Now! Let us inspect this device that sends the pleasant images and sounds to our brains."

'JoJo' stepped ever closer to the wide screen that had sucked them in the day before, getting dangerously close to the screen. Sweat dripped down her head, barely enough to see, but noticeable if you had already thought her suspicious. Her brow threatened to sink into a scowl, like a hardened soldier pretending to be a clown.

"Riiight..." Chie said, approaching her 'friend'. She scanned her over, trying to catch subtle giveaways to what was going on. "JoJo, what are you doing?"

"I-I am once again perplexed by what you and our mutual friend are insinuating," 'JoJo' said, acting offended by raising her nose to the sky, like a stereotypical princess. "I am rather upset that you and master Yosuke are claiming that I am not your friend M-"

'JoJo' stopped herself short, face gone red and hand clenched against her mouth. The drink she held fell to the ground, breaking apart the cafe cup and spilling hot coffee against the ground. Her sunglasses were askew, nearly exposing her eyes. 'JoJo' snapped her head to all sides, checking for any onlookers.

"We don't know her real name," Yosuke said with a smirk, catching the doppelganger redhanded. "Now do you mind telling us who you are? Like, are you an estranged twin or some-?"

Yosuke was cut short as 'JoJo' shoved him with all of her strength into the television, flowing through the screen like water.

"WHAT THE-!?" Chie screamed before she herself was thrown in, 'JoJo' grabbing her shoulder before chucking her through the screen.

"I do apologize," 'JoJo' said as she slid through the television as she followed the teens. "But the child, Misako, will require as many allies as she can muster for her coming battles..."

The impersonator removed her glasses as she fell into the fog, revealing bright, piercing yellow eyes.


A/N

So yeah, that happened.

Now you know JoJo's real name. Good for you. You're special. You're number one.

Haha... no you're not...

Anyway, I wanted to get this done since I'm gonna go see Star Wars tomorrow, and that's all I'm gonna be thinking about for the next few days.

Oh, that and

BERSERK IS GETTING A NEW ANIME, MOTHER FUCKERS!

The hype of when I found the articles talking about that are beyond any comprehension.

It has been a kickass Christmas time for me. Hope it's the same for all of you.

Until Next Time!