Into the Fog

by Knowledgeseeker66

Life has never been normal for Narukami Rei. When she arrived at Inaba, she had hoped that she could finally have the quiet, easy life she always desired. She soon found out that she was wrong. Within Inaba lies a mystery and adventure that Rei will never forget. For better or worse, Rei's life will never be the same.

14. New Girl of Interest

Author Notes: I made sure to have this chapter prepared in time for the launch of Persona 5 in the West. I'm glad that I was able to accomplish this.

The fact that Persona 5 was delayed from February to April was a real blessing in disguise. Not only did it give Atlus a chance to incorporate dual audio, but it gave me a chance to complete certain goals. I was able to finish this chapter without needing to worry about doing a rush job, and it gave me time to complete Tales of Berseria. I figured it'd be good not needing to worry about two massive JRPGs being released within weeks of each other, but now I especially know that was the case.

I have to say, I loved playing Tales of Berseria, and I would highly recommend it not only to other fans of the Tales series but JRPG fans in general. Tales of Berseria is an awesome game with great characters and a compelling story. Velvet Crowe is the first solo female protagonist, and she is awesome. Great voice actors in both English and Japanese. You don't play as straight up heroes. This is definitely a game filled with lots of grey and dark areas since both sides have done their fair share of bad things for good reasons.

In regards to Persona 5, I've done my best to avoid spoilers for Persona 5. However, we know some conduct some undesirable actions or were delinquents. I guess having protagonists who are in the grey/gray area are becoming more popular in JRPGs, especially given the positive reception by both critics and fans. Both Tales of Berseria and Persona 5 have received great reviews. I know they both deserve them, and we should be sure to support both of these great JRPGs. Let's hope it'll encourage the studios to continue making them at this great caliber.

This chapter will mark the beginning of the new story arc of "Into the Fog." It has been something in planning for some time, and it is finally time to release the first chapter. I hope you will all enjoy. As usual, please be sure to leave a review after you're finished reading. Written feedback will be greatly appreciated.

/

Into The Fog

Story Arc Three: Investigation Team Formation

Chapter 14 – New Girl of Interest

/

When you make some noise

You will be on the radar

Try to tread wisely

/

Date: ?

Location: Kyoto – Narukami Apartment

As far as Rei could tell, she generally had an easy time falling asleep. She could close her eyes and have a peaceful slumber. However, as she slept, there was one night in particular that filled Rei's head. It was a night Rei had long since forgotten.

On that night, Rei found herself wide awake. Her parents were nowhere to be found as usual. Ordinarily, Rei would not be awake at this time, but she had an impulse to watch a few late night programs. While Rei innocently watched the late night program, the poor girl had no way of knowing what was about to happen next.

While she waited for the next program, the clock struck midnight. No sooner had the two hands reached twelve, Rei could feel the air in the apartment suddenly shift. Without warning, the room became darker. The lights and TV stopped working. At first, it appeared to be a simple power outage. Nothing out of the ordinary. However, a 'chill' that crawled up Rei's spine warned her otherwise.

Rei did not try moving. At first, she thought things would return to normal any minute. To put it more accurately, she was hoping they'd return to normal. Rei remained perfectly still on the couch for almost twenty minutes. During that time, neither the clock on the wall nor her watch had moved a second. They remained firmly at midnight. Both of them ran on batteries not electricity, so Rei had proof this was more than a mere blackout.

When it became clear to Rei that this was not a 'normal' blackout, Rei's upper and lower jaws involuntarily came closer, and her teeth began to chatter ever so slightly. Rei could feel her body shaking as the chill crawled up her spine again. She could feel the hair on the back of her head standing up. Rei wanted nothing more than to wrap herself up in a blanket, but she was too frightened to look around let alone get up. Her eyes remained fixed on the vacant TV screen in front of her.

"Ah huff … Ah huff …" The room was silent except for the sound of Rei's deep breaths as she crossed her arms and held herself.

Grrrr! Crash!

Rei's eyes widened as she jumped up from her seat at the unexpected sounds coming from outside. Her head was looking towards the door and windows of her parents' apartment as her breathing hastened.

Crash!

Another loud sound caused Rei to jump back, and she moved away from the door and windows. Her eyes scanned the room for intruders despite the darkness impeding her vision. She then ran towards the kitchen before she tripped and fell on the floor. She closed her eyes and held her elbows up as she braced for impact. Luckily for her, the impact was minimal.

"Uggh …" Rei softly groaned as she tried to pick herself up and slowly opened her eyes.

When Rei opened her eyes again, she saw something that she could never expect. "Huh?" The silver haired girl was bewildered by what she was witnessing. She could see everything in front for her with a strange glow. It was as if her eyesight has been equipped with night vision. "Wha … Wha … What's going on?!" The girl nearly shouted in fright. "What's happening to me?!"

Through this vision Rei was able to see there was still no one else in this apartment except her. However, she could still hear some strange sounds outside that caused her to shiver and briefly lose her breath. Her eyes widened and she then quickly took a deep breath. Rei looked in front of her to see the kitchen table was still where it should be. Rei crawled to it as quietly as she could.

From that moment on, Rei remained shivering under the kitchen table. Rei could still hear the sounds coming from outside as she put her hands over her mouth to muffle any sound. As Rei listened more closely, the sounds seemed to come from a distance, but Rei was not taking any chances. She did her best to remain perfectly still which was impossible due to the shaking.

As Rei remained in place, the silver haired girl suddenly heard, "Don't worry. That thing isn't going to notice you." It was a voice that wasn't hostile, but it wasn't friendly either. Rei's eyes widened after hearing the voice as her eyes darted all over the room to see who it was. "That's cute." The voice was clearly amused at Rei's actions. "You're not going to see me like this, so you're better off not bothering." Every time the voice spoke, it felt like it was speaking to her into a loudspeaker or radio in her head.

Apparently only she could hear it since nothing outside seemed to be attracted to the voice. Even with that in mind, Rei could still feel her heart beating rapidly as she took several deep breaths. "Good to see you're not panicking." The voice sounded sincere as it spoke, "That is quite impressive. Most impressive for a girl your age."

The voice speaking to Rei inside her head was distorted. Rei couldn't tell if the voice was male or female. All she could do was nervously whimper, "Who … Who are you?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" The voice responded, "The answer is actually simple really. We've actually met before, but I doubt you'd remember, and you're not ready to know yet."

"Huh?" That did nothing to cure Rei of her curiosity.

The voice stated in amusement, "You truly are a wonder. You definitely appear to be different from the others. You truly might be worthy of awakening your power."

"My … My power?" Rei hesitantly asked. As frightened as she was, she could not mask her interest in the voice's statement. Something about what the voice was saying seemed somewhat familiar but far away from her.

The voice ignored Rei as it replied, "But that time isn't here yet. That day is both close and far away. I can't risk you dying on me until that day comes to pass. Not until you're strong enough to fulfill your destiny. I suggest you take my advice from before and become stronger."

"What?" Rei asked out loud.

"Hmph." Rei could picture whoever was talking to her grinning as the voice told her, "There's no need for you to worry about such things. You're still a child. For now go back to sleep."

"Wait … What …" Rei suddenly felt her head droop. It was becoming harder for her to stay awake. It was as if she had been hit by some kind of sleeping dart. Her consciousness was fading fast as the darkness took over. "Wha …" Rei could barely form a word now as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

"Children like you should be asleep by now." The voice replied, "Things will be better off for you." The voice closed it's 'assurances' with, "I promise."

No sooner had the voice finished speaking, Rei's head was on the floor. The night vision she had experienced faded and all she could see was darkness until darkness finally overtook her as she slowly closed her eyes. Sleep had conquered Rei until the sun would gleam through the blinds.

The following morning Rei groggily woke up to find herself lying underneath the table on the kitchen floor without a clue to how she ended up there. When she tried to get up, she could feel as if someone played bongo drums inside her head. When Rei put her hand on her head, she could swear she felt something banging in there.

"Uggh …" Rei groaned as she rubbed her head.

At first, Rei thought she might've hit her head on the table or a chair, but she couldn't feel a bump. Something else must've caused this pain. As she tried to collect her thoughts, Rei could hear the TV still playing in the den.

Rei's eyes widened. "Aw crap!" Rei scrambled out of the kitchen to turn off the TV. Luckily for her, her parents weren't home to see this.

After turning off the TV and straightening up the table, Rei did her best to recollect what happened last night. Rei remembered staying up late to watch some late night programs, but she could only remember until around midnight. After that, it was all a blur. Try as she might, she could not make it any clearer than that. Nothing but a blur.

After a few more attempts, Rei decided it was for the best not to dwell on it. She had more immediate concerns to take care of. Rei made sure everything in the apartment was presentable for her parents for when they came home. Whenever they came home. Rei had no idea when that would be.

After that day, Rei didn't feel as much of an urge to stay awake past midnight until she began high school. Her instincts told her it'd be all right. Thankfully for her, Rei never had to deal with another situation like that again. Even if she had, she would probably be unable to recall it.

/

Date: Saturday, April 16th, 2011 – Early Morning

Location: Inaba – Dojima Household – Rei's Room

"Ahh!" Rei nearly jumped out of bed when she woke up. She catapulted from where she was sleeping and she remained sitting up on the bed until her thoughts could catch up to her. "Ah huff … Ah huff …" Rei brought her hand to her head as she could feel the inside of her head banging once again.

Rei shook her head as she asked herself, "What the hell was that? That … That was insane." Rei shifted her sitting position as her feet were placed on the floor. "Was … Was that a dream? A memory? I …" Rei shakenly asked herself as she tried to remember every detail of it, "Did I … Did I see in the dark? It … It was like I could see without a flashlight? There's … There's no way that could be possible … Could it?"

While Rei was interrogating herself, Rei suddenly remember her first misadventure in the TV world. "Wait a minute … Wasn't I able to see in the fog without glasses?"

Rei then put both hands on her head and shook herself, "What the hell happened? And that voice … What was that? Was that one of the voices I hear now? Was it a different voice or … Ugh! Damn it! I can't figure this out?" Rei's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of one of her alarm clocks forcing her to look at the clock. "Crap! I'll have to worry about this later!"

As Rei quickly put on her extra uniform she said to herself, Rei was reminded of what happened with Yosuke yesterday. "I'm definitely going to need to make sure these uniforms don't get torn up anymore."

While Rei was finishing the preparations, she could feel herself calming down and she was able to get her head together for the day to come. She thought, "Okay Rei. Okay. You had a very weird dream last night, but whatever it was, I can worry about it later."

Rei's head tried focusing on what she saw last night on the Midnight Channel as she spoke out loud while looking at a mirror. "There are more pressing matters to be worried about. If Amagi-san really was the person I saw on the Midnight Channel last night, then her life is in danger. I need to check if Hanamura-san saw the same thing, but right now I'm going with that."

"Hmm …" Rei brought her hand to her chin as she thought, "Assuming Amagi-san is the next target, protecting her is going to be difficult even if we have Satonaka's help. I really hate to think it, but we're probably going to need Teddies help too."

After Rei was finished getting ready for the day, she had a quick breakfast with Nanako. The two then went their separate ways. Rei had a fair amount of time before school started, so she used her walk to school as time to consider everything that happened.

As Rei walked to school, she could occasionally hear splashes when her feet made contact with the surface. There were still a few puddles on the ground from the storm that occurred yesterday. Rei looked up to see storm clouds above her were still gathered rather ominously. Based on the weather forecast, it was likely to start raining again later that day as well. This also meant it was likely Rei would be able to use the Midnight Channel again which also meant it could present her with more clues.

"Hmm …" Rei had her arms crossed as she walked towards the school. Rei made sure to keep her thoughts to herself as she saw other students walking among her. "Can Amagi-san really be the next victim? I want to believe that won't be true, but given what's been going on it seems very possible. In fact, it seems pretty likely after what happened to Konishi-senpai. Not to mention, Amagi-san appears to be pretty vulnerable. She's never looked to well."

"Hmm …. Not to mention ... I hate to think it, but there'd be a benefit to Amagi-san being kidnapped. If she gets kidnapped after the Midnight Channel warns us about it, then that means we might be able to use the Midnight Channel to help save other people besides Amagi-san and possibly catch the killer." Rei scratched the back of her head and shook it. "Ahh … I can't believe I actually went there …"

"What options are there really though?" Rei asked herself before returning to her thoughts, "I doubt the cops can handle this." Rei shook her head. "No. They can't handle this. They wouldn't even believe us. Even if we put our hands in the TV, they'd probably lock us up rather than work with us. There's also … hmm … this is the mystery Igor said I needed to solve, but even with these powers …" Rei glanced at her right hand, "can I really do it?"

As Rei walked, she noticed notice a newspaper article lying on the street that mentioned the 'Detective Prince.' Rei smiled and thought, "Hmph. Well if one kid is capable of making a difference, maybe we can too."

When Rei was getting close to school, Rei then thought of something else she was considering beforehand. "Hmm … I'd hate to think about it, but … could the TV world be even bigger than being used as a means to commit murders? I wonder if I should mention to Hanamura-san or Satonaka about the whole fog thing. Maybe I should try asking them this."

Ding! Ding!

The timing could not have been any better. Rei could hear a familiar sound behind her. She turned to see it was Yosuke riding his bike. Thankfully this time he was not about to crash it. He seemed to be in perfect control this time.

"Hey Narukami-san!" Yosuke shouted as he rode his bike to her and started to slow down.

Screech!

Yosuke's bike coasted to a stop as he hit the brakes. Yosuke ended up right next to Rei, and Rei could not help but chuckle at the sight of that.

"Heh." Rei remarked with a smirk. "Nice to see you stop without hitting into something."

"Hey!" Yosuke protested. "You caught me on a bad day!"

Rei tilted her head as she curtly asked, "You mean two bad days in a row?"

"Um …" Yosuke wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that before indignantly stating, "Whatever … Just forget it!"

"Heh." Rei chuckled as she looked Yosuke over from top to bottom for a moment before commenting. "I see you're feeling better."

"Yeah." Yosuke nodded before he glanced at his hand and flexed it as he remarked. "I feel good as new just like you said I would."

"Glad to hear it." Rei smiled hearing that.

Yosuke looked back at Rei and told her, "It's thanks to you."

As happy as Rei felt hearing Yosuke say that, Rei glanced around to see more students heading their way. Rei sternly suggested, "Perhaps we should continue this conversation somewhere else. Maybe the roof?"

Yosuke turned his head to see what Rei meant, and he nodded. "Yeah."

Afterwards, the two finished their 'journey' to Yasogami High. Thankfully, she did not have to fish him out of a trashcan this time around. On their way to school, Rei noticed Yosuke still seemed to have his happy demeanor. It was a welcome change to what she witnessed yesterday.

Rei could not help but wonder, "I wonder if he's really feeling okay?"

/

Date: Saturday, April 16th, 2011 - Midnight

Location: Yasogami High

After Yosuke parked his bike, the two headed straight to the roof. Unknown to them, one or two of the third years shot them a look as they took the stairs. However, no one followed them. They were able to continue their conversation from earlier without interference.

When they were on the roof, Rei could see there was no one else there but them. However, before assuming too much, Rei jogged from one spot to the other, and she saw there was definitely no one in the corners. Everyone else was probably talking in the classrooms. Even then, Rei and Yosuke made sure to stand far away from the door just in case anyone happened to pay the rooftop a visit before class.

As they stood there, Rei could not help but look out to the town from the rooftop. Even with the clouds gathering above, Rei could not help but look towards the suburb that laid in front of her. It was in this town she thought things could be different. She had found out that she was right for more than one reason.

"This a pretty nice view wouldn't you say?" Rei glanced over her shoulder to glance at Yosuke. "Even when it's cloudy."

"Yeah …" Yosuke replied. His tone was more solemn than it was when they were talking earlier.

"I'm sure the view is the same as yesterday, but a lot has changed in a day." Rei remarked as she turned her head back to look at the town. "It's incredible when you think about it. Who could possibly think so much could change in so little time." Rei grinned as she continued, "I've seen it happen before, but it never cease to amaze me when it does. They do say life is full of surprises after all. Whoever said that wasn't kidding."

Yosuke merely replied. "They really weren't."

Rei then turned around and asked Yosuke, "Are you really okay Hanamura-san? Are you feeling better?"

"Well …" Yosuke hesitantly replied, "… I'd have to go with yes and no."

"Can't blame you." Rei crossed her arms. "What you heard yesterday must've been a real shock."

"Kinda …" Yosuke averted his eyes briefly as he admitted, "Not so much when I think back on a few things."

"…" Rei remained silent as she could see Yosuke wanted to say something else.

"Heh … Heh …" Yosuke bitterly chuckled to himself as he stated, "They do say that 'hindsight is twenty-twenty.'" Yosuke closed his eyes as sheepishly scratched the back of his head with his left hand. "Heh … Whoever said that wasn't kidding either."

"Hanamura-san …" Rei put her hand on Yosuke's right shoulder as she reassured him, "If you need help, I'll be more than happy to listen." She closed with, "We're supposed to partners now right?"

"…" Yosuke took a moment as his left hand fell down to his waist. It took a moment for him to let it process before replying, "Yeah. We are … Thanks Narukami-san."

Rei took her hand off of Yosuke's shoulder and lightly punched him with a smile. "Don't mention it."

"… Heh …" Yosuke chuckled.

"By the way," Rei asked, "do you feel different from how you were yesterday?" Rei quickly clarified, "Physically?"

"Kinda, yeah." Yosuke held up his hand and looked at it as he flexed it again. "It's really hard to put into words, but I do feel something."

"I know what you mean." Rei stated, "It's really hard for me to describe how I am now too. I guess one word would be stronger."

"Probably." Yosuke replied. Yosuke then realized, "Oh yeah. There's something I wanted to ask you yesterday, but I forgot."

"What is it?" Rei tilted her head.

"Um …" Yosuke was a little hesitant to request. "This may sound strange Narukami-san, but in light of what's been going on, maybe it'd be a good idea to trade numbers."

"Wha …" Rei's eyes widened as she asked in surprise "… What did you say?"

"Well …" Yosuke rephrased it. "I'm saying we should probably exchange phone numbers. We'll probably need to call each other, so …"

"You serious?" Rei voiced out her question which interrupted what Yosuke had to say.

"Huh?" Yosuke was slightly taken aback. "Of course I'm serious. I mean we'll probably need to call each other about this case."

Rei stepped forward and asked, "I mean you seriously want my phone number?"

Yosuke took a step back on reflex in surprise as his eyes widened slightly. "…" It took him a moment before asking, "Why wouldn't I? We're friends now aren't we?" Yosuke pointed out, "You just said we are didn't you?"

"…" It took Rei a moment before she could reply as well. "… Sure. Of course we are." Rei smiled as she took out her cellphone. "I'd be happy to. Let's take care of it now before we forget." Yosuke nodded. The two quickly exchanged numbers. Both added a new number to the rather low number of contacts they had.

After closing their phones, Yosuke then moved the conversation to the other topic they needed to talk about. "Speaking of the case, did you see the Midnight Chanel last night?"

"Yeah." Rei remarked, "I saw it."

Yosuke grimaced as he asked, "You recognize who it was?

Rei bluntly answered, "I think it was Amagi Yukiko."

"I knew it!" Yosuke exclaimed. "It wasn't just me!"

"So does that mean she's going to be the next target?" Rei questioned. "I mean I saw her yesterday. She couldn't have already been thrown in there right?"

Yosuke raised an eyebrow. "You saw her yesterday? When?"

Rei replied, "I ran into her on my way back to my uncle's. It was by that river. She said she was doing some errands for the Inn."

"I wonder if she just wanted an excuse to be away from it." Yosuke suggested.

"Wouldn't surprise me." Rei shrugged her shoulders. "After that ridiculous interview she was put through and needing to take over for her mother, I wouldn't be surprised if she felt like skipping school."

"That interview …" Yosuke gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. "That asshole who interviewed Amagi-san … He was the same one that interviewed Konishi-senpai wasn't he?"

"Sounded like it." Rei dryly remarked, "The press obviously don't have a lot of integrity do they?"

"Since when have they ever?" Yosuke replied.

"Touché." Rei shrugged her shoulders and nodded again in response before saying, "So what happens now? Should we try talking to Amagi-san at class?"

"Maybe." Yosuke put his hand on his chin as he considered the possibility. "We can get Satanaka to talk to her for us. She saw what we saw the first time around. I'm sure we can get Amagi-san to believe us if was ask for her help."

"Grh …" Rei groaned at that suggestion before replying, "If she wants to help us, that'll be fine with me."

"Why wouldn't she?" Yosuke asked in confusion, "They're friends. I'd think she'd want to help Amagi-san above anyone else."

"Yeah … right …." Rei then added, "I guess we also owe her a few explanations for yesterday too."

"Right …" Yosuke then grimly remembered, "I also owe her some steak too."

"Heh. Heh." Rei chuckled at that last part much to Yosuke's chagrin. Before they could continue their conversation, Chie burst through the doors of the rooftop much to Rei and Yosuke's wide eyed surprise

"There you are!" Chie exclaimed as she then ran towards them.

"Speak of the devil." Rei remarked under her breath and Yosuke softly chuckled at it.

"You guys saw it didn't you?!" Chie was practically shouting when she was by their side.

"Calm down Satanaka." Rei responded.

"You're telling me to calm down?!" Chie gritted her teeth at Rei before shouting. "I just saw my friend on the Midnight Channel last night! The last person who was on it died! Don't tell me to calm down!"

"Yelling at us isn't going to help!" Rei raised her voiced as well. "I get you're friends, but this isn't going to get anything done!"

"Grrh …" Chie gritted her teeth at Rei before replying, "Fine."

"…" Rei took a moment before replying, "To answer your question, we both saw the Midnight Channel last night, and we both believe we saw Amagi-san."

"That's what I thought!" Chie exclaimed. "But why did we see her? She's still here!"

Rei raised an eyebrow as she inquired, "She is?"

"Yeah." Chie replied, "I was freaking out when she wasn't answering her cellphone, but she finally answered a few minutes ago."

"If she answered, why were you yelling at us?" Rei asked in a deadpan tone.

"Because when she answered, she didn't seem to be all there, and she wouldn't tell me more than that." Chie curled her fingers into a fist as she bitterly remarked, "I'm worried about her okay? I saw her on a killer screen, and there's nothing I can do to help her." Her nails dug deeper into her skin as she looked towards the ground. "I'm not even sure what to do even if I could do anything."

"…" Rei was not sure how to respond to Chie.

Yosuke decided to step in. "Did she say whether she was going to come today or not?"

"She said she'd come later today." Chie answered.

"Then that means she's definitely still here in our world." Yosuke continued, "If Amagi-san is still in our world even though we saw her on the Midnight Channel what does that mean?"

"…" Rei took a moment to suggest, "Maybe a warning?"

"Huh?" Both Chie and Yosuke looked to Rei.

"Think about it." Rei pointed out, "Konishi-senpai appeared on the Midnight Channel before she died. It could've been a warning about who the victim was going to be. If people apparently saw the reporter on the Midnight Channel before she died, maybe the Channel was warning people of her death too."

"That …" Yosuke considered Rei's words as he replied, "… That would make sense to me."

"Then what should we do?" Chie pointed out, "It's not like we can do much about Yukiko right now. She's still at home running the Inn."

"Hmm …" Rei rubbed her chin as she considered the situation. "Maybe Teddie might know something about this." Rei suggested, "We should try asking him about it after school."

"Good idea." Yosuke nodded.

"I'm coming too!" Chie insisted. "You're not leaving me out of this one!"

"You really want to come with us?" Rei bluntly stated, "It's not like you can fight against those things. They might see you as easy pickings."

The space between her eyebrows shrunk as the wrinkles on her forehead formed. "This has something to do with my best friend! I'm not just going to sit around this time!"

Before Rei could respond, Yosuke jumped in between, "We should just let her come Narukami-san. It'd be for the best."

"…" Chie looked in Yosuke's directions as the wrinkles on her forehead began to fade.

"Hmm …" Rei reluctantly replied, "Fine, but don't try fighting those monsters again."

"I won't." Chie replied.

"…" Rei then decided to bring up, "By the way, I saw Amagi-san yesterday when I was on by way to my uncle's, and she wasn't exactly a hundred percent either."

"You did?" Chie questioned.

"Yeah." Rei remarked, "Based on what was going on yesterday, I don't blame her. With her mother feeling under the weather and that nasty interview she was put through, Amagi-san has a lot on her plate."

"You got that right." Chie pounded her fist into her palm as she declared, "If I was there, would've bashed those assholes head in."

"And you would've gotten arrested." Rei dryly remarked.

"Yeah!" Chie proudly replied, "And I would've …" Chie's eyes widened slightly as she realized what Rei just said. "Wait! What?"

"Heh." Yosuke couldn't help but chuckle at that.

"I only said the truth." Rei grinned as she checked her watch. "Looks like we're gonna have to end it here for now." Rei glanced over to Yosuke, "Wouldn't you agree Hanamura-san?"

"Yeah. I'm sure the warning bell will be ringing soon." Hanamura replied. "We should get going Satanaka." Both Rei and Yosuke began walking toward the door with Chie reluctantly following behind them.

/

The rumors that started following the death of Konishi Saki yesterday had started spreading like wildfire. They were being spread throughout the time Rei and Yosuke were exploring the TV world yesterday, and they were continuing to be spread as they spoke on the rooftop. It was the topic of interest for several students before classes began.

A tall third year student remarked, "Apparently a few hours before Konishi got snatched she got into this argument with that silver haired transfer student."

One of his friends asked, "Any clue what that fight was about?"

The tall third year shook his head. "Not a clue, but I heard it got real nasty."

His friend replied, "I wonder what happened."

"We could try finding out, but it might not be easy." Before his friend could ask, the tall student stated, "Problem is I think that silver haired girl is a second year student."

"So she's our kōhai?" His friend asked.

"Looks like it." The tall student remarked.

"That might make approaching her difficult." The two students considered how to get more information to these rumors while other students had conversations of their own.

/

In Ebihara Ai's classroom, she was sitting by her desk as her ears perked upon hearing what a rumor loving student wearing glasses had to say. "Anyone find it odd how after that silver haired girl transferred here, a body was found on the antenna, she gets into an argument with the person who found the body, the girl she argued with goes missing, then the same girl ends up dead too. This can't be a coincidence. Am I right or am I right?"

One of the other classmates in Ai's class spoke up, "It sounds like that girl is getting into an argument with others is a natural thing for her."

"What do you mean?" The rumor loving student asked. Ai looked to see the student had a grin on his face at the thought he was about to hear something rather 'juicy.'

The other classmate said, "I was talking to my friend in the other class. He's in the same class as that silver haired girl. When I was there, I saw that silver haired girl get into an argument with Satonaka on the first day."

The rumor loving student took a step closer as he inquired, "Any clue what that was about?"

With a grin, the student replied, "I'm not entirely sure, but I think it was about how Satonaka was treating Hanamura."

"Hmm …" The rumor loving student considered what he heard. "Doesn't the Hanamura family run Junes?"

"Yeah." The classmate nodded.

"Didn't Konishi-senpai work at Junes?" The rumor lover inquired further.

"Yeah. I think … Oh … OH!" The classmate exclaimed. "You think Hanamura had something to do with her fighting Konishi-senpai too?"

The rumor lover slyly remarked, "I think Hanamura had everything to do with both fights."

"Oh." The classmate grinned as he asked, "Could the new girl have a crush on him?"

"Who knows, but it can't be a coincidence right?" The rumor lover curtly asked.

"She must be into him. That must be it." The classmate remarked, "Hanamura is a loser, but I guess some people might want to be on his good side because of his family."

"Yeah. I'm almost surprised more people haven't tried kissing up to him yet." The rumor lover replied. "That silver hair must really know how to make things work."

"…" Ai had a good ear. She remained silent as she listened to what her classmates were causally discussing as if no one else could possibly be listening in. She considered herself an expert on overhearing rumors for good reason. However, this was one time when she could feel her stomach turn with what every word the students said and narrowed her eyes in disgust. She tried to keep her distance from those students. She felt it was for the best.

/

Elsewhere in the school, two sport loving students, Ichijo Kou and Nagase Daisuke were looking out the window outside their classroom. Similar to Rei, they were taking in the view, but they were not enjoying it as much as she did. When Daisuke saw the clouds gathering, he could not help but moan.

"Aww man …" Daisuke remarked, "It's gonna rain again. This sucks."

"Well …" Kou patted his friend's shoulder, "Look at the bright side. It's not like clubs have started yet, so let's hope some of this bad weather is out of the way, so it won't be so bad when things can get rolling."

"Heh …" Daisuke chuckled. "I guess."

As they chatted, they could not help but overhear students talking as they walked by them. One student with dyed blond hair remarked, "Sounds like that new transfer student is bad news."

"I know right." His friend remarked, "Two people dead right after she shows up. Let alone that she got in a fight with one of them before it happened."

"Yeah." The dyed haired student stated, "Hope she doesn't come anywhere near us."

"…" Both Kou and Daisuke could not help but look at those students as they passed by them.

"That doesn't sound very good." Kou remarked.

"No." Daisuke shook his head.

/

It didn't take long for Rei herself to hear some of the rumors herself after she entered the classroom. Rei noticed several eyes moving in her direction. It wasn't unusual for some people to look in her direction thanks to her unique feature, but something felt a 'little different' about how these people were looking at her. It seemed as if they were all observing her like she was an animal at the zoo waiting for her to move, so they could take a 'memorable' picture.

When Rei looked in the different students' direction, they turned away pretending as if they had not been staring at her a few moments ago. However, Rei could still feel the eyes on her as she moved through the room and sat at her desk. Rei was far from the only one to notice this development.

Yosuke whispered to Chie, "This doesn't seem right."

"No." Chie replied as she saw that the attention was completely on Rei. Afterwards, they took their seats.

As they waited for the one they referred to as 'King Moron' to arrive, one of the students walked over to Rei and asked, "Hey Narukami-san."

"Yes." Rei looked in the student's direction.

The student asked outright, "Is it true that you had a fight with Konishi-senpai?"

"What?" Rei was taken aback by the question.

"!" Both Chie and Yosuke's ears perked upon hearing that.

"I heard that you had a huge argument with Konishi-senpai in the Central Shopping District before she disappeared." The student asked again, "Is that true?"

"…" Rei was initially silent for a few moments, but she saw no point in hiding it. "Yes."

"Oh!" Rei was sure she heard some other students whisper around her.

"Thought so." The student grinned as he pressed on. "So what was it about? I heard it had something to do with …"

"All right you slackers!" The door of the classroom opened before the student could continue his little 'interview' with Rei. Everyone turned to see their bucktooth homeroom teach roughly opened the door as he entered the room.

"Phew." Rei could not help but be grateful for 'King Moron's' arrival than she was then as the curious student was forced to stop talking and moved back to his seat. However, Rei understood that was not the end of this. She would soon find out for herself that these rumors were all over the school.

/

When it was finally lunch period, Rei wasted no time picking up her things and left the classroom posthaste. She did not even wait for Chie or Yosuke to say anything to her. She headed straight to the exit.

Chie glanced over to Yosuke and asked, "Do you think she left so no one else would try talking to her or do you think she doesn't want us to be dragged in too?"

"Probably both." Yosuke suggested. "Let's go." Yosuke stood up with Chie nodding. The two stood up and made their way to the door as well.

Before Chie and Yosuke could catch up to Rei, Rei was already partway down the hallway as she walked by Ai's classroom. Rei happened to be passing by the door when Ai exited the room herself. As soon as she saw Rei, she exclaimed, "Oh!" The sound of Ai's voice caught Rei's attention as Ai stated, "Looks like you saved me the trouble of finding you 'New Girl.'"

"Huh?" Rei was surprised to hear Ai say that as the girl approached her. Ai grabbed Rei's wrist and told her, "Come on. Let's get going before anyone else gives us trouble." Ai then began leading Rei away, and Rei's instincts told her it 'might' be a good idea to follow this girl's lead, so she cooperated.

Down the hallway, Chie and Yosuke were dumbfounded by the sight, especially Chie. Before she knew what she was saying, Chie asked, "Is Ebihara helping Narukami?"

"Looks like it." Yosuke replied.

"Are they friends or something?" Chie asked in a dumbfounded tone, "Since when does Ebihara actually become someone else's friend?"

"Not a clue." Yosuke replied. "But it looks like Narukami-san might be okay this time. Maybe we should have lunch on our own too. Might as well make good on telling you more about what happened yesterday."

"…" Chie continued to stare at Ai and Rei for a few more moments as they disappeared in the increasing crowd of students heading to their lunch destinations. She reluctantly replied, "Fine." She also reminded him, "I also didn't forget that you also owe me a steak dinner later too."

"Um … right." Yosuke replied, "Can we just focus on the story for now?"

"Fine." Chie replied, "Let's just find a place we can talk." Chie and Yosuke then headed off on their own.

/

It didn't take long for Ai to lead Rei to the area behind the gyms of the school. The sun was hanging directly above them when they came across a tree that provided plenty of shade. It seemed rather isolated. Rei looked to see that not too many people would probably notice them even though they were still on school grounds.

When Ai was satisfied with their location, she let go of Rei's wrist and replied with a smirk, "We should be okay here. Not a lot of people bother hanging around here when it's lunch."

"Really?" Rei asked as she tilted her head.

"Most people either eat lunch on the roof or in their classrooms." Ai motioned to an area behind them, "If people do come outside, they're more likely to hang out at the field over there. They don't think about coming over there …" Ai added, "Usually."

"Okay … Sounds great." Rei nodded, "Thanks Ebihara-san."

"Not a problem." Ai sat by the tree and told Rei, "Come on. Our lunches aren't going to eat themselves."

When Rei sat next to Ai, she couldn't help but ask, "Why did you help me Ebihara-san?"

"I just felt like it." Ai nonchalantly answered before taking a bite into the rice ball she had in her hand and took a big gulp.

"Oh …" Rei replied as she looked toward the ground.

"Good thing I did." Ai stated in between bites, "There are some nasty rumors going about you 'New Girl'."

"I noticed." Rei dryly responded.

"Of course you did." Ai then continued with her lunch.

"Just so you know," Rei turned her head as she said, "I had nothing to do with Konishi-senpai. I had an argument with her, but that was it. I never saw her again after that."

"Gulp!" Ai loudly swallowed her food as she shrugged her shoulders. "I figured as much. Rumors can really get ridiculous. People can get really stupid sometimes. It's just too annoying."

"Yeah. Sounds about right." Rei replied as she continued to eat her own lunch. "Well you don't have to worry about me."

"Who says I'm worried?" Ai remarked. "You seem like you can handle yourself."

"Yeah. I can." Rei averted her eyes as she replied, "I'm used to it." While Rei wasn't looking, she felt Ai's shoulder nudge into her which caused her to tilt over. "Hey!"

Ai was looking at Rei with narrow eyes as she scolded the silver haired girl, "That's a pretty piss poor attitude to have!"

"!" Rei was surprised by the strong reaction she was getting from Ai.

Ai continued her point, "You shouldn't have to get used to stuff like that! That's not how things should be!"

"… I'm …" Rei hesitantly responded as she tried setting herself straight, "What do you expect me to say?"

The space between Ai's eyes grew apart as she had trouble coming up with a response, "… I … I don't know."

"…" Rei remained silent as she looked away from Ai.

Ai rhetorically asked, "You were picked on because of your hair right?"

"That was a pretty easy guess for you wasn't it?" Rei dryly remarked.

"Of course it was." Ai shrugged as she remarked, "People always like picking on someone who doesn't fit in with the 'norm.' Your silver hair really stands out."

"I think that goes without saying." Rei bitterly replied as she looked towards the ground.

Ai could tell by Rei's tone that she did not want to talk further about it which Ai understood. "Anyway, the rumors will die down soon. When the police catch the son of a bitch that's responsible they'll all forget about you."

"Yeah …" Rei remarked, "I can only hope, but they'll get tired of talking about me anyway. They always do." Rei added, "When they get that I didn't have anything to do with Konishi-senpai's disappearance, they won't care about me anymore." Rei seemed oddly confident in her assessment. "It'll happen sooner or later. It's just a matter of playing waiting game."

"…" Ai remained silent for a moment before replying, "Well … I suppose that's true."

"Since there's nothing we can do, I'm just going to mind my own business and let things run their course." Rei slowly replied as she looked to the side.

"Hmph." Ai seemed rather amused by Rei's plan. "Not a bad tactic."

"It's the best one I've got, and it works." Rei replied.

"Hmm …" Ai eyed Rei before taking out her phone and suddenly asking, "By the way, would you like to exchange numbers?"

"Huh?" Rei's eyes widened as she looked over to Ai again.

"Numbers?" Ai held her phone out as she simplistically repeated her question, "Exchange them?"

"You …" Rei could feel a case of déjà vu as she asked, "You want my phone number?"

"Duh. What other number would I want?" Ai bluntly asked in a dry voice.

"Yeah …" Rei glanced to the side for a moment before looking at Ai again, "… right."

"So?" Ai shook the phone in her hands. "What'll it be?"

"Sure." Rei nodded her head, "I'd be happy to exchange numbers." Rei took out her phone and the two exchanged numbers. Rei hardly expected to be adding a new contact number to her list. She found it to be quite a pleasant surprise.

"Hmph." Ai was quite satisfied by this display. After putting Rei's number in her phone and closing it, she remarked, "You know. You can be quite amusing."

"You're probably not the only one." Rei then took another bite out of her lunch. Rei seemed to have a little trouble swallowing her food. Rei could be briefly seen struggling with a lump in her throat before gulping again. "Ah …" Rei let out a sigh of relief.

Ai noticed the display. She waited until after Rei swallowed before asking, "Are you okay 'New Girl'?"

"Yeah …" Rei replied, "I'm fine."

"You're definitely acting differently than you usually do." Ai bluntly asked, "Do something about me bother you?"

"No!" Rei shook her head. "It's not that. It's just …" Rei hesitated as she tried to find the right words.

"It's just …" Ai attempted to lead on the conversation.

"I'm just curious." Rei asked, "Why did you want my cell number?"

Ai looked at Rei incredulously. "Seriously? Isn't it obvious?"

"Not really." Rei bluntly replied as she shook her head.

"I find you very interesting 'New Girl.'" Ai replied which caused Rei to raise her eyebrow. Ai seemed to notice this as she then told Rei, "It's not just because of your silver hair." Ai quickly added, "It is a 'contributing factor,' but it's not the only thing you've got going for you. If it was, I wouldn't be interested."

"Hmm …" Rei listened to what Ai had to say intently.

"This town is always so boring, but I think you'll be a breath of fresh air for this place in more than one way." Ai grinned as she stated, "I'm interested in seeing it for myself front and center."

"I …" Rei was not entirely sure how to respond to that. "… I see.

"Hmph." Ai shrugged her shoulders as she told Rei, "Well think of it this way 'New Girl,' as long as I'm interested, you've got at least one ally in this school." Ai smirked as she informed Rei, "If you ever want to talk or lie low until the rumors die down feel free to call me. If you want, I can help you skip class without anyone noticing."

Rei's eyes widened on the last part. "Skip class?"

"Yep." Ai grinned as she proudly proclaimed, "It is a personal skill of mine. I can probably make it work for two." Ai bragged, "I'm just that good."

"Hmm …" Rei put her hand to her chin as she considered Ai's words before replying, "I might take you up on that."

Ai raised an eyebrow at Rei's response. "That was fast. You'd seriously be okay with skipping classes?" When she didn't hear Rei object, Ai chuckled, "Heh. "You're more scandalous than I thought."

Rei shrugged her shoulders and shook her head. "I think I'm already scandalous as it is. It doesn't make a difference now."

"Hmph." Ai amusingly replied, "True. Anyway, I'd be able to help us skip out in a way that most people wouldn't notice, so you wouldn't have to worry about being marked absent."

"Really?" It was Rei's turn to raise an eyebrow as she inquired.

"If it works, we'd be able to get away with skipping a few classes and no one would be the wiser," Ai made sure to add as she held up one finger, "but it would only work once." Ai added, "Just like magicians should only try pulling a trick in front of an audience once."

"Hmph." Rei replied, "I see. That does sound interesting."

"It does doesn't it." Ai continued to grin.

"So this would be a once a year type move?" Rei inquired.

"Pretty much." Ai then added, "However, I think I could pull it off in two different semesters, but even that could be risky."

"Hmm …" Rei considered Ai's words before replying, "I can see that."

"Anyway, let's talk about that later." Ai then asked, "Do you have any plans for tomorrow 'New Girl'?

"Tomorrow?" Ai nodded. "Hmm …" Rei thought before remembering, "Oh right!" Rei scratched the back of her head a she sheepishly replied, "… I'm sorry, but I already made plans to hang out with Hanamura-san."

"You going to hang out at Junes?" Ai rhetorically asked.

"Um … Kinda of." Rei nodded as she glanced away for a moment before looking back Ai in the eyes and told her. "We're going to be doing some other stuff." Rei quickly explained, "Hanamura-san hasn't been feeling that good these past few days, so I'm trying to help him out." As soon as Rei said that, her eyes widened, and she bit her lip.

"Is that right?" Ai didn't seem the least bit surprised by that answer.

Rei let go of her lip to reply, "… Yep."

"Hmph." Ai seemed rather amused before she bluntly asked, "So the rumors about Hanamura having a thing or Konishi-senpai were true?'

"Umm …" Rei's head moved back at the question as she raised her eyebrows. "There were rumors about that?"

Ai put a hand on Rei's shoulder. "Listen up 'New Girl' and be sure to listen well." Ai informed Rei, "When the son of the Junes manager is seen constantly hanging out with the girl whose family store is being run into the ground because of Junes, word tends to spread, especially here. I'm sure you've already come to realize that."

"Ah huh …" Rei shook her head as she sighed, "It seems like people here don't have anything better to do than gossip."

"Ain't it the truth." Ai patted Rei's shoulder before shrugging her own. "But you got to understand New Girl that in a small town like this, it's hardly surprising. Until recently, this place was pretty quiet and boring. People like to spice things up, and that includes paying attention to rumors. They always look for something new."

Rei looked over to Ai. "I'm sure what's been going on has been giving them plenty of juicy material to sink their teeth into."

"It goes without saying," Ai put her hand through her hair as she informed Rei, "and I'm sorry to tell you this, but you're not part of the meat yet."

Rei replied, "Yeah … Kinda figured …"

"But you did say so yourself. People will get tired of talking about you soon enough." Ai sounded reassuring as she stated, "Based on how fast rumors are coming and going, people might get distracted by something else before long."

"Probably." Rei then asked, "Would you like to hang out another time? Are you free any other day?"

Ai replied, "That's fine with me. I'm free to hangout during the week too, so feel free to give me a buzz."

Rei smiled after hearing that. "Thanks."

"Not a problem 'New Girl.'" Ai added before continuing her lunch, "Just keep things interesting for me."

While Rei and Ai were eating lunch under the tree, Kou and Daisuke were walking by. As Ai stated, not too many students walk by this area, but these two athletic enthusiasts were the exceptions to this norm. As they walked by, they caught sight of the duo.

The pair knew who Ai was, and it was easy for them to figure out who she was speaking with. Rei's unmistakable silver hair made it crystal clear to them who she was. When Daisuke saw the silver haired girl, Daisuke could feel his jaw drop and all movement in his body immediately ceased. For that instant, nothing else in his line of sight could interest or distract him.

Kou didn't notice Daisuke's reaction as he was distracted by the sight of the two girls as well. While Rei's hair was a curious sight to Kou as well, it was far from the only one. There was something that was almost as unbelievable happening before his eyes. His mouth also went agape as well as he attempted to process and contemplate what he was witnessing.

"Is …" Kou asked in disbelief as his gaze remained fixed on the girls, "Is that Ebihara? Is Ebihara acting friendly towards the new girl? Am I seriously seeing that?"

Daisuke seemed to recover in time to hear Kou's question. He observed the situation with Kou as he replied, "It … It looks that way." Daisuke continued to look at Rei specifically before he said, "Hmm … Think we should introduce ourselves?"

"Huh?" Kou looked over to his friend in surprise. "You actually want to talk to the new girl?"

"…" Daisuke hesitantly replied, "A little …"

"That's a real turn around." Kou remarked.

"Hey!" Daisuke defensively stated as he looked Kou in the eyes, "The girl is getting pounded by those rumors! She doesn't seem too bad to me! I think it'd be good if she knows some other people can be friendly too!"

"Hmm …" Kou broke eye contact and considered Daisuke's words. "That's a good point."

Daisuke declared their new objective, "Let's try to make the new girl feel welcome!" The two friends walked over to where the two girls were eating their lunch.

It didn't take long for Ai and Rei to notice Kou and Daisuke were approaching. Ai was actually surprised by this turn of events. She lightly blushed as she exclaimed, "Ichijo! Nagase! What're you two doing here?"

Kou replied, "We saw you two here and figured we'd say hello."

"Really?" Ai's voice rose as she both hopeful and skeptical at the claim as she stood up, so they could be at eye level. Rei followed suit after she put her lunch safely on the ground.

"So um …" Daisuke awkwardly approached Rei while scratching the back of his head which caught Ai's attention. "You're the new girl right?'

Rei dryly asked, "What was your first clue?"

Daisuke was embarrassed to answer, "Well … um … I heard you have silver hair so … um …" Suddenly Daisuke was nudged by Kou's arm in the stomach. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Dude." Kou remarked, "That was rhetorical."

"Oh …" Daisuke then sheepishly shook his head and hands as he replied, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to …"

"Ha! Ha!" Rei broke the awkwardness by laughing at the soccer player's responses. No one knew how to respond to that until Rei told them, "Don't worry about it." She put her hand through her hair as she said, "My hair's not a big deal." Daisuke could not help but look relieved.

Kou decided to step in and share the introduction. "My name is Ichijo Kou," pats Daisuke on the back, "and my awkward friend here is …"

Daisuke took Kou's cue and formally introduced himself, "Nagase Daisuke. It's a pleasure to meet you." Daisuke even bowed his head slightly.

"…" Ai could not help but raise her eyebrow at the display.

When Rei stood up and introduced herself, "My name is Narukami Rei. It's nice to meet you too." Rei then offered her hand.

"…" Daisuke shook Rei's hand as he told her, "Welcome to Inaba Narukami-san."

"Heh." Ai chuckled. "Wow." Ai was probably the most amused by this than anyone as she remarked, "Nagase is talking to a girl. I never thought I'd see the day."

"Huh?" Rei looked over to Ai with a puzzled look.

Daisuke's eyes widened as he protested, "Ebihara!" When Rei was looking his way again, he nervously attempted to reply, "It's not like that it's … um …" Daisuke scrambled to say something.

Kou decided to step in and stood in front of his friend as he remarked, "I think we could say the same." Kou crossed arms as he redirected the conversation. "You're acting nice to someone. Who would've 'thunk' it?"

"Hey!" Ai defensively exclaimed, "I can be nice when I feel like it!"

Kou had a grin on his face as he skeptically asked, "Oh really?"

"Yeah." Ai insisted.

"Um …" Rei stood on the sidelines to this exchange as she awkwardly kept shifting her head from looking between the two of them.

"Oh." Kou looked toward Rei as he apologized, "Sorry about that Narukami-san. My awkward friend and I wanted to come here and welcome you to Inaba."

"That's right!" Daisuke furiously shook his head before suddenly coming to a stop. "Wait a minute …"

Rei tilted her head as she asked, "You're not here to ask me questions about the rumors?"

"Nah!" Daisuke brushed it off and told Rei with a grin, "We figured you've been asked about that enough, and we wanted you to know that some of us are friendly."

"…" Ai remained quiet as she observed this. Her eyebrows were raised higher than ever before. Likewise, Kou could not help but cross his arms and grin slightly at the sight of this.

"Um …" Rei awkwardly replied, "… Thank you …" Rei tried to smile as she said, "I greatly appreciate that."

"Heh! Heh!" Daisuke sheepishly chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "You're welcome."

"…" Both Ai and Kou silently glanced at each other.

"So … um …" Daisuke struggled to break the ice as his eyes glanced to the sky momentarily before beginning to blurt out, "How are you liking Inaba so …" Upon hearing his friend's question, Kou facepalmed himself, and it took a moment for Daisuke to realize he was already stepping on a landmine as his eyes slowly widened. "Oh wait! Sorry!" Daisuke raised up his hands and waved in panic. "Sorry! I'm really sorry! That was a dumb question! I'm so sorry!"

"Heh." Rei could not help but chuckle at this display as she answered. "It's fine."

"I really …" Daisuke trailed off when he heard Rei's response. "Huh?"

Rei repeated, "I said it's fine. Don't worry about it."

"Um … okay …" Daisuke's attempts at not being awkward were clearly not working.

Rei then expanded her answer, "Despite how much of a mess things are, I've been having a very 'interesting' time in Inaba."

"Really?" Daisuke was rather relieved to hear Rei say that.

"Yeah." Rei nodded her head. "My cousin and uncle have been very welcoming."

Daisuke couldn't help but inquire, "You live with your cousin and uncle?

Rei answered, "They're putting me up while my parent are working overseas."

"You're parents are abroad?" Daisuke was amazed by this revelation. "That sounds pretty cool!"

Rei replied, "That's right. They're in New York City."

"Wow! That really is cool!" Daisuke was rather excited to hear that. "How long are they going to be there?"

"Hmm …" Rei thought for a few moments before replying. "I don't really know the specifics, but they told me it'd be about a year."

Daisuke was interested in knowing more. "What'll happen after that?"

"Well …" Rei shrugged as she replied, "I guess I'd move back to Kyoto."

"Oh … I see." Daisuke sheepishly replied, "That makes sense."

"It's a little early to say how things will play out." Rei remarked, "It's a year away after all. Lots of things are up in the air, so a lot can happen."

"Heh." Daisuke chuckled. "I … I guess that's true."

"…" Ai and Kou remained silent on the sidelines as they continued to watch this 'conversation' continue.

"So … um …" Daisuke seemed to be drawing a blank on what he should say next until he said, "Sorry things have been crazy for you since you got here."

"Don't worry about it." Rei reassured Daisuke. "Sure. Things might not have started off so great, but I think things will turn around."

"Of course …" Daisuke nodded his head. "Of course things can always turn around. You never know what'll happen right?"

"Heh." Rei chuckled again. "Yeah. You can say that again."

Daisuke then pounded his chest and declared. "I'll try to help if I can."

"!" Both Ai and Kou were taken aback by that.

"You will?" Rei asked.

"You bet!" Daisuke excitedly stated, "I'm not just saying this! I really do want to help you! Just say the word, and I'll be happy to help you out."

"Okay …" While Rei would be lying that hearing Daisuke said that made her happy, she couldn't help but feel a little taken aback by what he declared as well. After all, they only just met a few minutes ago. She did her best to reply, "… Thank you very much Nagase-san. I would greatly appreciate that."

"Heh! Heh!" Daisuke bashfully replied, "No problem. Anytime. Feel free to ask for help anytime."

Rei looked over to Ai for a moment who could only shrug. Before Rei could say anything, she suddenly heard a familiar voice in her head tell her, "This is an excellent opportunity. It would benefit you to capitalize on it." Rei's eyes briefly widened upon hearing it, but they quickly returned to normal.

Daisuke seemed to notice something was off with Rei as he asked, "Are you okay Narukami-san?"

"Yeah." Rei nodded her head. "I'm fine." Rei then decided to ask something she never expected to say. "So um … Does this mean you'd want to exchange numbers or something?"

"Numbers?" Daisuke absentmindedly responded, "Numbers?" It took a moment for it to process, "Numbers! Yes! Of course!" Daisuke excitedly replied, "I'd be happy to."

Rei then turned to Daisuke's friend and asked, "How about you Ichijo-san? Would you like to exchange numbers as well?"

"Um …" Kou was temporarily taken aback by the surprise proposal, but he replied with a shrug. "Sure. Why not?"

"Hey! Don't forget about me! I'm right here!" Ai interjected.

"But didn't we …" When Rei looked at Ai, Rei then realized, "Oh! Sorry … We shouldn't leave you out of it."

"…" Daisuke and Kou glanced at each other this time.

While Kou and Daisuke were far more reluctant to exchange numbers with Ai, they did not want to seem rude in front of Rei, so they did. They didn't mind letting Ai know their numbers, but they weren't excited about it either. A few minutes later, Daisuke and Kou excused themselves while Rei and Ai continued eating under the tree.

As the athletic duo walked away, Kou glanced to see his friend happily looking at his opened phone. "I have to say that was quite unexpected."

"I know." Daisuke continued looking at his phone as he walked alongside Kou. He happily asked in disbelief, "Who would've thought she'd be willing to exchange numbers with us? We only just met."

"That too, but I was talking more about you." Kou remarked.

"Huh?" Daisuke closed his phone and glanced at his friend.

"Don't 'huh' me." Kou pointed out, "A while ago you weren't interested in talking to girls period. But then after you saw her, you took a 180."

Daisuke stopped walking as he protested, "It wasn't like that."

"Oh really?" Kou skeptically asked with slightly narrowed eyes.

"It …" Daisuke hesitated as he clarified, "It wasn't entirely like that." Daisuke admitted, "She's cute yes, but you heard people gossiping about her didn't you?"

Kou replied, "Yes …"

Daisuke remarked, "Well … It's just not right for someone to go through a hard time like that, especially someone who only got here. I honestly didn't want her to think everyone was like that."

"Hmm …" Kou admitted, "That is a good point. She did seem to appreciate that."

Daisuke looked down at his phone as he asked, "Do you think that's why she was so willing to exchange numbers?"

"Maybe." Kou then suggested, "I think you really got the ball rolling when you told her she should feel free to ask for your help 'anytime.'"

"I said …" Daisuke then remembered, "Oh wait … I did say that."

"Hmm. Hmph." Kou nodded. "You sure did. She might've thought you wanted her to exchange numbers with you. Maybe she didn't want to be rude to you."

"…" Daisuke's eyes widened as his face dropped. "Oh crap." Daisuke's right hand moved up this hair and his fingers were grasping at it. It looked as if he was about to pull it out like they were weeds as he panicked, "I hope I didn't give her the wrong idea! Do you think I did?"

"Well …" Kou did try to sound hopeful as he told his friend, "She did give you her phone number, so it couldn't have been that bad."

"Heh … Yeah …" Daisuke was not feeling that much better.

"But I do have to say," Kou remarked with a grin, "despite all of 'that' …. you were surprising smooth."

"What're you talking about?" Daisuke remarked, "I was anything but smooth."

"I mean I'm surprised at how well you handled things." Kou replied.

"What does that mean?" Daisuke asked.

"I'm talking about how you kept asking her questions to talk about herself." Kou lightly punched his friend on the shoulder, "Good move. Girls love it when you do that, and it looks like the new girl is no exception. Never thought you'd be able to pull that move off."

"Hey!" Daisuke protested, "Just because talking to girls isn't my forte doesn't mean I can't talk to them. I had a girlfriend remember."

"Yep." Kou didn't seem all that concerned as he replied, "I know. I know. It looks like you kept some lessons in your head."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Daisuke asked in dismay.

"Oh. Nothing much." Kou shook his head. "Come on. Let's go."

/

While the athletic duo were walking away, Ai and Rei continued eating their lunch. When she was sure they were out of earshot, Ai remarked, "I have to say, it's a little surprising you were willing to let someone else have your phone number so easily."

"Hmm …" Rei was not entirely sure what to say in response. "I guess I was really in the mood for it. I exchanged numbers with Hanamura-san earlier."

"Really?" Ai asked.

"Yeah." Rei smiled as she remarked, "It was kinda nice to exchange numbers."

"Hmm …" Ai looked at Rei curiously as she replied, "I see."

"Besides, Nagase-san seemed okay to me." Rei inquired, "You've met him before right? Has he ever done something inappropriate?

"I've met him before, but it's usually when he's hanging out with Kou." Ai stated, "I don't know much about him besides how much he likes kicking the ball around and he usually doesn't talk to girls."

"Hmph." Rei remarked, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised."

"Yeah." Ai informed Rei, "He apparently had a pretty nasty breakup with a girl, so he's been into sports even more than before."

"Is that right?" Rei asked.

"Yep." Ai stated, "I was pretty surprised he took the initiative. He definitely could use some work, but he didn't do a bad job." Ai made sure to add, "Considering."

"I didn't mind it. He was pretty nice." Rei remarked.

"Well …" Ai crossed her arms as she thought of a more appropriate response, "… if you want my honest opinion, you don't have to worry about either of those two, especially Kou. They're not the type to cause trouble for anyone. I doubt they'll give out your number to anyone either."

"Oh crap!" Rei's eyes widened. "I didn't even think about that."

"Calm down New Girl." Ai felt like she was attempting to muffle out the flames as she told Rei, "I just said they won't give out your number to anyone."

"You sure about that?" Rei asked.

Ai nodded, "Positive."

"Phew …" Rei breathed a sight of a relief.

"But you might want to be more careful about who you trust with it." Ai warned Rei, "You never know what might happen."

"Yeah." Rei then stated, "Since they're not like that, I'm sure that's why you wanted their numbers too right?"

"Um …" Ai was not sure how to respond to that.

"Whatever." Rei remarked, "You helped me out, so I'm glad this helped you out."

"Hmph." Ai shrugged, "Yeah sure. Anyway, what's important is that you don't let the wrong people get your number." Ai smirked as she told Rei, "Luckily for you, I'm more than happy to give you some insight on some people you're better off avoiding."

"You can give that to me?" Rei asked.

"I pay attention to the rumors and dirt that goes on around town as much as possible." Ai then pointed out, "Why do you think I already knew you were already dealing with these crappy rumors before lunch?"

"Well …" Rei did not have much to say in response to that.

"I paid attention to what the dimwits were saying." Ai finished Rei's response. "Anyway, based on some other things I heard, I got some advice for you. You're better off staying away from the roof for a while."

"What?" Rei was taken aback by this advice. "Why?"

"To avoid the third floor." Ai answered.

Rei inquired, "What's wrong with the third floor?"

"Did you forget already?" Ai reminded Rei, "That Konishi was a third year student and she has more than a few friends who are well aware of that fight you had with her thanks to all those gossipers."

Rei's eyes widened in realization. "Oh …"

"Now you see." Ai leaned against the tree as she remarked, "If you thought your fellow second years were giving you trouble, wait until you have a chat with the third years."

"…" Rei did not have anything to say in response.

Ai repeated her warning, "As appealing at the rooftop is, you're better off avoiding it until the heat dies down."

Rei replied, "Thanks for the advice."

Ai smirked, "Not a problem 'New Girl'. Not a problem at all. Just think of it as a favor you can owe me."

Rei raised an eyebrow. "A favor?"

Ai continued to smirk as she told the new girl, "Yeah. I help you out. You help me out. Sounds fair right New Girl?"

"…" Rei took a moment before replying, "Yes. Yes of course. That makes sense. But do you mind if I don't pay you back right away? I've got some plans for the next few days."

Ai shrugged. "Fine by me. I'm more than happy to wait, but fair warning." Ai pointed to her head. "I have a good memory, so don't think I'm just gonna forget so you can just welch out of your debt."

"No." Rei shook her head. "I'd never try to do that."

Ai continued to smirk. "I didn't think so."

/

While Rei was expectantly enjoying her lunch break with Ebihara Ai, Chie and Yosuke were eating on the rooftop. The two were discussing the TV World as Yosuke stated, "I think things are going to be fine with checking things out in the TV World. Narukami-san is really strong."

"Yeah." Chie dryly replied, "I kinda noticed that."

"Not just that." Yosuke grinned as he enthusiastically told Chie, "You didn't see her take on this huge monster. It was way bigger and stronger than anything we've seen so far." That caught Chie's attention as Yosuke remarked, "It knocked me to the side like a ragdoll and Narukami could've escaped while that monster finished me off, but she didn't. She held her ground and beat it. I was in and out of it, but from what I remember she was incredible." Yosuke quickly added, "Oh and Teddie also pulled me out of the way."

"…" Chie had remained silent as Yosuke gave her his summary of the previous day's events as she asked, "Are you serious?"

"Of course I'm being serious about this Satonaka-san." Yosuke stated, "You really think I'd lie about something like this?"

"Well …" Chie reluctantly admitted, "No I guess not."

Chie's hesitation was not lost on Yosuke as he sarcastically remarked, "Gee thanks."

"So what happens now?" Chie asked in concern. "Don't tell me you're going back in with her. She can handle herself, but what about you?"

"All right I won't tell you." Yosuke dryly replied.

"Hanamura …" Chie wasn't able to say anything much in response.

"What do you expect us to do?" Yosuke countered, "If what that bear says is true then the killer is using the TV world to kill people. It's not like the police could do anything about it. It's up to us." Yosuke proclaimed, "We're the only ones who can do this. If we don't, the killer will get away."

"…" Chie hesitantly replied, "I get it, but I don't know …"

Marks began to form on Yosuke's forehead as he asked, "You don't know what?"

Chie answered, "Can't say I'm comfortable with the whole going in a TV world filled with monsters."

"I don't think we're supposed to be comfortable with that, but what else are we supposed to do?" Yosuke demanded, "Let the people die?"

"Well no …" Chie attempted to reply.

"You'd have a different tune if Amagi-san really was trapped in the TV world." Yosuke interrupted Chie.

"…" Not even Chie was able to think of anything resembling a response to that one. The only thing she could do was bite her lips gently and clenching her fingers into a fist.

Yosuke then asked, "Besides, who said anything about you coming with us?"

Chie's eyes widened, "So you don't want me to come."

"You'll only get yourself hurt." Yosuke countered, "Narukami-san and I are the only ones with powers, so it's only right that we go."

"Not if Yukiko's life is in danger." Chie then quickly realized something, "Wait a minute! You have powers? Since when?"

"Since yesterday." Yosuke answered.

"How?" Chie skeptically asked.

Yosuke explained, "I got them after Narukami-san saved me from that monster I mentioned earlier."

"What? Seriously?" Chie was still having a hard time believing that.

"Well ... um …" Yosuke awkwardly answered, "… it's hard to explain, but … something about that battle 'awakened' the power." Yosuke quickly cleared his throat, "Ahem. That's the short version of it."

Chie narrowed her eyes and tilted her head. "Is that really what happened?"

"Pretty much." Yosuke looked to Chie who was then scratching her chin before warning her, "Don't you get any ideas. I would've been killed if it hadn't been for Narukami-san. That shadow would've ripped me to shreds if she didn't step in."

"I wasn't thinking about that." Chie stated, "I'm just worried about Yukiko. As long as she's okay, I don't want to go in that TV world again. I'd rather stay out of the heroes' way."

"Hmph." Yosuke snorted before going back to eating his lunch.

/

Yukiko did end up coming to school later in the day. She arrived towards the end of lunch. She didn't get in trouble with the teachers thanks to the Amagi Inn staff explaining the situation. However, most of them already knew the gist of it thanks to watching the 'interview' that aired the previous night. Yukiko was primarily there to speak with the different teachers and obtain some material for the next few days, so she wouldn't fall too far behind in school. Running the Amagi Inn in her mother's place was expected to last a little while.

As Yukiko traversed the school, even the most unobservant person could see running the Inn while still in high school was taking its toll on her. Between the yawning and the sleep deprived eyes, it was apparent that the past few days had not been easy. The dark marks under her eyes were visible for all the see, but she kept pressing onward with the day.

After school was over, one of the employees was waiting outside the gates to pick her up. Apparently, he was there to discuss matters with her before she arrived at the Inn, and it could not wait. Chie was not happy to see that her friend would not be in school for a while, but she knew there wasn't anything that could be done.

Chie walked alongside Yukiko as they walked towards the escort. "Is everything going to be okay Yukiko?"

"Yes …" Yukiko tiredly replied, "… Everything's fine Chie."

"Don't lie." Chie snapped which caught Yukiko off-guard. Chie hesitantly brought up, "Yukiko … I … I saw that interview last night."

"Oh …" Yukiko averted her eyes as she replied in a monotone voice, "… I see. Try not to worry about it."

"But that reporter was completely unprofessional." Chie gritted her teeth as she told Yukiko. "He barely let you answer any questions. If he tried pulling that crap with me there, I'd tear him a new one."

"Heh …" Yukiko couldn't help but chuckle at that as she replied, "I'm sure you would."

"I'm serious." Chie insisted.

"Ah huff …" Yukiko replied, "I'm sure you are."

"Yukiko …" Was all Chie could say.

"Don't worry." Yukiko attempted to reassure her friend. "It's fine." However, Yukiko's monotone delivery wasn't doing much to put Chie's feelings at ease. "The staff was there to help me. I don't think I'll be dealing with an interview like that again."

Chie stopped walking as she crossed her arms which caused Yukiko to stop walking as well. "I wouldn't be too sure. Wasn't that reporter the same one that interviewed Konishi-senpai?"

"Hmm …" Yukiko thought about it for a moment before shaking her head, "I don't think that matters. I'll be more focused on running the Inn rather than handling PR. In fact, after today, I might not be coming to school for a while."

"You were really serious about that?" Chie asked much to her dismay.

"I am." Yukiko stated, "Someone needs to take care of things while my mom's sick."

"But …" Chie attempted to weakly protest, "But what about school?"

"It's taken care of." Yukiko informed her friend, "They understand the situation. They know I'm going to be absent for a while, and it won't be used against me."

"Even so it's still crazy they even expect you to run the Inn." Chie continued her protests, "I don't care if they've been training you." Chie raised her voice, "We're the same age! It's ridiculous you have to do this! Can't one of the other workers step up instead?"

"…" Yukiko averted her eyes and lightly bit her lip before finally replying, "… It's not an option."

Chie asked, "Why not?"

Yukiko repeated as she continued to avert her eyes, "It's not an option. I have to do this." Chie was taken aback before Yukiko then slightly altered her sentence, "I need to do this. I'm sorry Chie."

"…" Chie's mouth was slightly agape Yukiko's response. She could tell there was nothing she could tell Yukiko that would change her friend's mind.

Yukiko finally looked at Chie as she replied, "We might not be able to hang out much for a while, but I'll try to make it up to you later. I promise." She put her hand on Chie's shoulder and requested, "Just let me do what I need to do. Please." She then let go of the shoulder.

"…" Chie blinked before reluctantly replying, "Okay, but just call me when you need help. You know I'll always be there to help you right?"

"Ah huff …" Yukiko sighed as she glanced to the side before telling Chie, "I'm also afraid I won't be able to walk home with you. Someone will be picking me up." Yukiko seemed to ignore Chie's question entirely.

/

As Chie was speaking with Yukiko, Yosuke and Rei stood to the side waiting for Chie to finish. Yosuke remarked at the scene, "Besides the lack of sleep, she doesn't seem too bad to me."

"I don't think she's going to die due to sleep deprivation." Rei dryly replied. "I think we need to worry about her ending up with the shadows."

"Hmm …" Yosuke didn't have much to say in response.

"Thinking about Konishi-senpai?" Rei rhetorically asked.

"Yeah …" Yosuke averted his gaze before replying, "Speaking of her, I need to you to be honest with me."

"Of course." Rei nodded, "What do you want to know?"

"You …" Yosuke hesitantly asked, "… You did have a fight with Konishi-senpai right?"

"Yes." Rei replied without hesitation.

"Was the fight about me?" Yosuke asked.

"Ah huff …" Rei sighed before reluctantly telling Yosuke, "It was." Rei didn't need to say anything else.

No other words were needed. "I see." Yosuke when inquired, "Was it like how it was in the TV world? Did she say those things?"

"There were …" Rei tried to come up with the right thing to say, "… similarities, but I told her to shut up. I said a lot of things to her, and she shut her mouth. I think she might've had second thoughts about some of the things she said."

Despite Rei's best efforts, it didn't seem to put Yosuke at ease as he glanced away. "It was obviously not enough to change her mind." Yosuke's lips may have been smiling, but his eyes were not supporting it.

Rei could see through it. "I'm sorry."

Yosuke replied, "Don't be. It's not her fault either. A lot of things were messed up."

"Hanamura-san," Rei patted his back as she reassured him, "it's not your fault either. Things were outside your control. There were things outside her control too. There are times when it's no one's fault. There was a lot of hatred, but it's no one's fault. It's just what happened."'

"…" Yosuke could not help but be silent at Rei's statement.

Rei remarked, "A lot of things that should've been said weren't said either."

"No …" Yosuke bitterly remarked, "They weren't."

"There's nothing we can do about what happened." Rei stated, "The only thing we can do is try to learn from what happened and try to move on."

"Ah huff …" Yosuke sighed, "Easier said than done."

"I know," Rei glanced down as she replied, "but we have to do it." Rei looked up and raised her fist as she tried to sound encouraging, "We won't get anywhere if we start thinking about things like that."

"How can I just move on?" Yosuke asked out loud as he continued to avert his eyes.

"…" Rei couldn't answer right away.

"I know what I said yesterday, but I thought about it a lot. It keeps playing in my head." Yosuke moved his head as he told Rei, "I knew her for months. I really liked her. I mean I 'really, really' liked her. I thought we might have something. After she died, I not only find out I didn't really know her at all, but I find out she really hated me." Yosuke sighed before finishing, "That's something I can't forget."

"Then don't." Rei replied.

"What?" Yosuke looked over to Rei.

"I never said you had to forget." Rei advised her friend, "In fact, you should never forget it. No good would come of it."

"Yeah …" Yosuke reluctantly replied, "… I know. I know."

"I'm very sorry things turned out that way." Rei told Yosuke.

"Don't be." Yosuke remarked. "It's not your fault. You've done a lot for me, and I won't forget that."

"You still plan on helping me solve the case right?" Rei questioned.

"Of course." Yosuke responded, "I know I sounded a little off, but I was just trying to … you know get it off my chest." Yosuke sighed again. "I hate to say it, but you're kinda the only person I can talk to about this. I can't even talk to Satanaka about this."

"So you didn't tell her about what happened yesterday?" Rei inquired.

"Not exactly." Yosuke grimaced as he scratched the back of his head. He admitted, "I did tell her about how you and Teddie saved my life, but I didn't tell her it was from my own shadow. I left those details out."

"I see." Rei shrugged, "Can't blame you."

"Anyway," Yosuke curled his fingers into a fist as he retold Rei his resolve, "even though Konishi-senpai didn't care for me, I still care for her. What happened to her was still wrong, and I don't plan on letting that slide. I want to help you bring that bastard to justice."

Rei couldn't help but grin a little. "Glad to hear it. Something tells me I'll need your help."

"Don't worry." Yosuke smiled a little in return as he declared, "You got it." Yosuke held out his hand.

Rei was more than happy to accept to gesture and shook his hand in return. Despite Yosuke's moment of weakness earlier, she could feel there was a fire in Yosuke's heart. He truly did have the drive to press forward and help her solve this case. That made Rei certain that she could trust Yosuke to have her back.

/

Crash

No sooner did Rei believe she could trust Yosuke, she could hear the sound of what sounded like shattering glass once again. She knew that signal. Rei could feel the world freeze in place as she witnessed Yosuke glow before her again. It was the same thing that happened when she first formed the social link with him after his shadow was defeated.

Suddenly Rei heard the words ring her in her head, "You have achieved the second rank in the social link with one Hanamura Yosuke. The abilities of the Magician Arcana hath grown stronger for both thyself and Hanamura Yosuke."

Over the short period of time, Rei had grown accustomed to this sensation, so it didn't surprise her so much now. Rei heard that, she thought, "So developing the social links will increase both mine and Hanamura-san's powers?" Rei internally shrugged as she thought, "Looks like I already increased his powers before going into his first fight. I guess that works out better for us. I look forward to seeing what he can do."

/

Rei was able to straighten her face back to normal in time before the world returned to normal. Yosuke didn't notice anything out of place as he continued to speak as if nothing happened. He took a step closer to Rei and lowered his voice to make sure neither Chie nor Yukiko could hear them. "By the way, do you think the three of us will be enough to solve the mystery?"

"…" Rei glanced at Yosuke for a moment before answering, "If by three of us, you mean you, Teddie and me, I think we might be able to manage."

"I was talking about Satonaka." Yosuke replied. "I told her it might not be a good idea for her to get involved, but she is insisting if Amagi-san is in danger she wants to be involved."

"Why?" Rei scoffed at the idea, "Does she have a Persona that I don't know about?"

"No …" Yosuke hesitated for a moment before replying, "… I don't think so."

"That's right she doesn't." Rei bluntly stated, "She won't be able to do anything to help us."

"Teddie can't do anything either." Yosuke attempted to protest, "He …"

"No." Rei sharply interrupted her friend. "That's where you're wrong, and you know it. Don't forget you're alive partly thanks to him."

"…" Yosuke bit his lip. He couldn't believe he was so quick to overlook that fact, especially after mentioning it himself earlier.

"You also shouldn't forget this." Rei reminded him, "He knows the TV world, and he has a scanning ability. Teddie can't fight but he's useful." Rei bluntly remarked, "Satanaka is neither useful nor helpful. We don't need her. It's bad enough we're taking her this time."

"You …" Yosuke asked, "… You don't want her to be on the team do you?" Even though he asked the question, he felt like it was probably rhetorical.

"I don't see why we should." Rei shook her head. "Like I said, we don't need her. We don't need someone on our team who can't do anything."

"But …" Yosuke attempted to protest again.

Rei cut Yosuke off with a good old fashion question. "Remember how helpless you were yesterday?" Before he could answer, she answered for him, "You couldn't land a single hit."

"…" Yosuke remained silent.

"Don't forget. That's exactly what happened when she tried attacking a shadow herself," As soon as Rei said that, Yosuke's eyes couldn't help but look towards her cheek that was covered in makeup, "and it'll happen again, and I don't feel like babysitting."

"I'm … I'm sure I won't be useless this time." Yosuke weakly protested.

Rei crossed her arms as she reminded her friend, "You won't be, but that's only after you almost got killed by your own shadow." Rei asked Yosuke in a dry tone, "Do you want us to have to fight her shadow and put her life in danger? Because it seems like that might be the only way to get Personas."

"Well … um …" Yosuke couldn't come up with a proper response to that.

Rei gave Yosuke a few moments. When he couldn't give her an answer, she said, "I didn't think so."

"…" Yosuke couldn't help but bite his lip again.

"Ah huff …" Rei sighed as she calmly explained to her friend, "As far as I can tell, these shadow battles are a winner takes all gamble. I'd rather take as few of them as possible. Not to mention, we shouldn't put someone without powers in danger."

"Well …" Yosuke admitted, "I guess you have a point there."

"You were right the first time." Rei remarked, "Stick with your gut."

Rei and Yosuke looked to see Chie and Yukiko go their separate ways. Yukiko was being greeted by one of the Amagi Inn employees. This particular employee was named Haruto. He looked in their direction before continuing his escort of Yukiko. Rei looked to see Chie approaching them, and her head was looking down averting eye contact.

"Ah huff …" Rei sighed. When Chie was within earshot of Rei, Rei told Chie, "At least Amagi-san has someone to escort her. She should be okay for now."

"Yeah …" Chie looked up in Rei's direction. She clearly didn't feel confident with that logic as she couldn't bring herself to look Rei in the eyes, "… I guess."

"Don't worry." Rei told Chie, "We'll get to the bottom of this Satonaka. I won't let Amagi-san end up like the other two."

"How can you be sure about that?" Chie looked up again and stared Rei in the eyes as she asked that.

Rei stared back before telling her, "Because if anything does happen, I can do something about it. If I have to, I will. I promise you that I won't let Amagi-san die."

"I … You … I just don't know what to do." Chie placed her right hand on her stomach and looked down. "When I saw her on the Midnight Channel last night. I've been having this weird feeling in my stomach that hasn't gone away." Chie looked over her shoulder to see Yukiko enter the car and be driven away. "She's right there, but I don't know what to do."

"…" Rei crossed her arms as she then remarked, "Feeling helpless is a sickening feeling, but let's try not to focus on that." Rei then stated, "We know Amagi-san was on the Midnight Channel. We might not be able to do anything for her now, but we might be able to figure out why she was on it. We can stop her from ending up like Konishi-senpai and the announcer as long as we focus on what we can do."

"Hmm …" Chie reluctantly replied, "… You're right."

"Anyway, we won't do any good standing around here." Rei began walking towards the bus stop as she said, "We've got an investigation to start." Rei was a few steps ahead of them before they followed her.

As they walked to the bus, Yosuke looked to see other students talking as they kept an eye on Rei. Yosuke wasn't sure if she noticed or not, but she was moving as if she didn't. However, he couldn't help but ask, "By the way Narukami-san, are you going to be okay?"

Rei continued walking and looking forward as she replied, "I'm fine. Why?'

"Why? Do you have to ask?" Yosuke picked up the pace, so he could walk alongside her as he said, "People are spreading rumors about you. Doesn't that bother you at all?"

"A little, but not really." Rei replied.

"Not really?" Chie voiced her disbelief, "You serious?"

Rei gave a blunt, "Yes."

"How?" Chie asked as she caught up with Rei as well, "How is that possible?"

"You guys forget something?" Rei pointed to the silver hair that stuck out of her head.

"Umm …" Neither Chie and Yosuke comfortable were comfortable with where this was going.

Rei remarked, "I'm used to people talking about me behind my back." Rei shook her head as she continued in a tired voice, "It's … It's not that I like this, but I'm used to it."

"But … But isn't this much different?" Chie protested. "People don't care about your hair. They're making it sound like you know something about a crime."

"And I don't blame them." Rei shrugged as she stopped walking. They were right by the bus stop with no one else near them. "I was one of the last people to see Konishi-senpai alive. Even my uncle had to question me about it when he heard what happened, but he knows I had nothing to do with Konishi-senpai's death. I was at his place when it happened and he saw me there, so that's good enough for me."

Yosuke replied in a deadpan tone, "I seriously doubt you could tell everyone else that."

Rei responded, "No, but like Ebihara-san said, these rumors will die down eventually."

Chie remarked, "I wouldn't count on it happening anytime soon."

"I never said it'd happen soon." Rei nonchalantly pointed out. "I just said it would."

"What's with this attitude?" Yosuke stated, "I don't care if you're used to this or not. This is really serious."

"Is there anything we can do about it?" Before either could reply, Rei continued with a barrage of questions, "You can't stop people from talking about rumors once they're out there right? Or do either of you two have some kind of magical ability that can do that or get some dirt that can distract everyone else?"

"…" Yosuke & Chie could only glance at each other.

"Didn't think so." Rei then turned her body around and faced the street, so her back was to them. "The only thing I can do is what I've done before. Keep my head down and try not to draw any more attention to myself then I have to. Eventually people will get bored. They always do."

"…" Yosuke glanced at Chie before speaking, "Narukami-san we're just worried about you okay? I mean we're friends now aren't we? That's what friends do. They worry about each other. You know we're here to help you right?

Rei could feel her mouth fall and become agape for a moment before replying, "… You're right." Rei couldn't bring herself to look either of them in the face as she told them, "… Sorry."

"It's fine." Yosuke then tried to sound upbeat, "Anyway, we might be able to do something about it. The sooner we catch that son of a bitch, the sooner everyone will be talking about something else."

"Maybe," Rei looked over to see the bus approaching them as she told them, "but let's focus on talking to Teddie. Let's see if we can straighten out this Amagi-san business."

"I agree." Chie remarked. "That comes first."

Rei couldn't help but think, "Of course you'd say that."

"Well you're right about that." Yosuke admitted. "Although I wonder if that bear really will know something. He seemed kind of clueless about things too."

Rei stated, "We'll just have to find out."

/

As the trio rode the bus, Chie's head was anywhere but there as she gazed out the window. Rei and Yosuke did not try to break her train of thought. Instead, they decided it would be better to have their own conversation about their upcoming visit to Junes. For all they knew, things would be far more dangerous this time around.

Rei stated, "Hanamura-san we need to be sure to bring some apples with us if we're going into the TV world again."

"Why?" Yosuke asked.

"Don't you remember?" Rei reminded Yosuke, "Eating those apples really helped us out yesterday."

"Um …" Yosuke thought for a moment, "… Yeah. I do sort of remember that."

"Your head was still a little jumbled up after what happened, so I guess you might not remember too much." Rei stated, "Well. I don't know about you, but eating them helped make me stronger and put my mind at east. They were just like recovery items in a video game."

"I do remember feeling a little better when I ate one of the apples, but do you really think they'll be that helpful?" Rei nodded in response but that further intensified Yosuke's confusion. "How is that possible?"

Rei surmised, "I think it was because of that world. It not only gave me powers, but I think it affected everything we brought with us.

"Hmph. I guess that'd make sense." Yosuke took it all in stride as he remarked, "It wouldn't be the weirdest thing that happened in there anyway."

"Then we should probably buy some apples just in case." Rei suggested.

"Let's not jump the gun." Yosuke pointed out, "If we talk to Teddie and find out there's nothing we won't need them. If we do need them, one of us can go back and buy them right?" Yosuke motioned to Chie, "I'm sure we can even let Satanaka come with us for something like that."

"Yeah." Rei replied, "I guess."

Yosuke then stated, "We'll go with that then."

Rei sighed as she stated, "Here's hoping we won't have someone sitting on the other side when we get back."

Yosuke grimaced at the idea. "We shouldn't try jinxing our chances."

/

After a short bus ride, Rei, Yosuke, and Chie arrived at Junes and quickly made their way to the Junes TV section. However, much to their surprise, the area was far more crowded than usual. The very fact there was anyone in their at all besides them made it crowded. There were several customers moving around the area checking out the TVs. There was no way for them to get to the TV world without someone noticing.

"Okay …" Chie was the first to voice her disbelief, "What the hell?!"

Rei was furiously looking around the TV section as she remarked, "This place was empty yesterday. What's going on?"

Yosuke crossed his arms and shook his head as he remarked in a deadpan tone. "I did say we shouldn't try jinxing our chances." Rei shot him a look with a puffed face that Yosuke didn't notice. Yosuke saw one of his Junes co-workers and told his companions, "Stay right here. I'm gonna go check." Yosuke ran towards the worker and began talking to him.

"Well …" Rei eyed the TV they had used the previous two times to enter the TV World as she remarked, "… this definitely puts a damper on our plans. It'll be a problem if we hit roadblocks like this often."

"… Yeah." Chie said dejectedly.

Yosuke quickly walked back to the two and told them, "Turns out a sale is going on."

"You didn't know about it?" Rei asked.

"My father doesn't share everything he plans on doing." Yosuke then added, "Besides, my father might've been told by someone else to do this."

"Hmm …" Rei then stated, "Will it be long?"

"I think it's a one day thing." Yosuke stated. "Let's hope it works out. They need some reason to keep these TVs here right?"

"Hmph …" Rei admitted, "Good point." She then asked, "What should we do then?"

"Hmm …" Yosuke looked around and thought, "Maybe we could just stand in front of the TV we use. When people crowd around something, other people might not bother with it."

"That could work." Rei suggested, "If I just put my hand in the TV, I might be able to get Teddie's attention."

"Would we be able to talk to him through the TV?" Chie asked.

"No clue, but it's our best shot." Rei answered which Chie couldn't deny. The three then walked to the TV, and as Yosuke predicted no one was coming anywhere near them. However, it didn't change the fact it would be easy for someone to notice them attempting to go through a TV. Rei lifted her hand and said, "Let's give it a shot."

Rei put her hand through the TV. As with the previous times, Rei could feel the screen ripple like she was putting her hand through water in a pond. She put her entire hand in and didn't stop until she was past her wrist. Rei checked over her shoulder and no one seemed to notice what was happening. Their bodies seemed to be enough to obscure anyone's view of this supernatural activity. To the casual person, they were three teenagers checking out an expensive TV that'd look awesome in their rooms.

"Phew …" Rei couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as she turned her attention to the TV. Her hand remained in the TV, but she didn't feel herself getting pulled through the nexus like she was the previous times. Rei theorized, "Maybe it's because I have my powers that it's not sucking me in this time? Maybe I …"

As Rei was theorizing, Rei suddenly felt something sharp encircle her hand and clamp down on it. Rei's eyes widened and her back stiffened as she could feel so many things threaten to break through her skin. It only took Rei a second to realize that something was biting her. Luckily for her, whatever was chomping down on her was nowhere near as strong as the shadow that bit her originally. Doesn't change it was an unpleasant feeling.

"Grh!" Rei gritted her teeth as she then pulled on her arm and roughly withdrew it from the TV. "Gah!" Rei then looked at her hand and saw a bite mark which caused her eyes to remain wide. Seeing the bite mark on her hand caused Rei to tense up. She could tell by looking at it that this would not leave a scar, but it still felt too close for comfort. She could not stand the sight of this mark. Rei's teeth remain gritted as she tried to look away from it.

"Are those teeth marks?" Chie asked in alarm as her eyes widened. "Are you okay?"

"It won't kill me." Rei replied. Rei then looked at the TV screen and asked, "What was that for Teddie?"

"Sorry. It just looked too yummy." Rei and the others could hear Teddie's voice through the TV screen. Rei then glanced around again, and it seemed like the voice didn't catch anyone else's attention. Anyone who heard it might've dismissed it as someone turning on one of the display screens. Teddie then asked, "Is this supposed to be a game?"

"No!" Yosuke tried to keep his voice down as he angrily told the bear, "Of course this isn't a game! Do you sense anyone in there right now?"

"Whose 'anyone'?" Teddie's filtered voice could be heard through the screen. "I'm just a lonely little bear like always. This land feels so …"

"So there's no one inside?" Chie interrupted the bear. "Are you sure?"

"I … I'm not lying." The trio could faintly hear something that sounded like a 'sniff' before Teddie then said, "My nose has been running as good as ever. I don't sense anyone in here besides me."

"…" Chie wasn't sure what to make of this.

Rei then said to the TV, "We'll talk about this later Teddie. We got to go."

"Don't leave me alone too long." Teddie replied. Afterwards, the three made their way out of the Junes TV section.

Yosuke brought them to an area where there wasn't anyone, and it was unlikely anyone would be walking by either. When they were sure the coast was clear Chie asked, "You two did see Yukiko on the Midnight Channel last night right? You really did see her right?"

"Well …" Yosuke glanced aside.

"I'm very sure it was." Rei affirmatively replied, "There's hardly a doubt in my mind."

"…" Neither Chie nor Yosuke provided an immediate response.

Rei told them, "When I saw Amagi-san on my way back to the Dojimas, she was wearing a kimono which she wore during that interview."

"Yeah …" Chie admitted, "I noticed that too."

Rei said with certainty, "The girl we saw on the Midnight Channel was definitely wearing the same Kimono that I saw Amagi-san wearing. If that wasn't enough, the girl had long black hair like Amagi-san. Assuming the Midnight Cannel was trying to warn people that Yamano-san and Konishi-senapi were going to be victims, I'm sure it's warning us that the same thing will happen to Amagi-san if nothing changes."

"Wow …" Chie uneasily responded, "… You're about as blunt as a hammer aren't you?'

"And I don't plan on softening up." Rei replied, "Even though Amagi-san is not in the TV world right now, it seems like she might end up in it sooner or later. It's not like we can watch over her now. She's not even going to be at school for a while if what you told us is true. There are too many blind spots. The best we can do is prepare for what's next."

"But …" Chie wasn't sure what she could possibly say next as she tried to come up with something to say, "… But …"

Yosuke chimed in, "We'll do our best to keep an eye on Amagi-san, but we also need to investigate the TV world."

"Exactly." Rei explained, "Something tells me investigating the TV world will help Amagi-san since she was the one to show up on the Midnight Channel."

"…" Chie & Yosuke remained silent as they could see that Rei wanted to say something else.

"How about this?" Rei provided a layout, "Assuming there's nothing that'll get in the way, Hanamura-san and I will explore the TV world with Teddie to see if see if we can get any answers. Meanwhile Satanaka will stay behind and try to keep tabs on Amagi-san." Rei focused on Chie as she spoke, "I don't know how much you can keep track of her, but it'll be better than nothing. There's also a chance you can spot anything funny. Does that sound fair?"

"Hmm …" Chie considered Rei's plan before replying, "… Yeah … Okay … I can do that. I'll call Yukiko tomorrow and see what I can do. You two better find some answers though."

Rei answered. "We'll do what we can."

"All right …" Chie was still uneasy as she began to step away, "I'll see you later."

Rei & Yosuke both replied, "Later." Chie then walked away.

When the two of them were alone, Yosuke looked at Rei and told her, "By the way, has anyone ever told you that you should be a little less blunt?"

Rei nonchalantly replied, "Not as much as you'd think."

"Hmph." Yosuke narrowed his eyes as he asked in a deadpan tone, "People got tired of telling you?"

"Not exactly." Rei shrugged her shoulders as she answered, "Most people never bother saying it in the first place."

Yosuke raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"Ahem." Rei cleared her throat as she crossed her arms. "It's not important. Just focus on what we need to do. Satonaka has her part and we have ours."

"You think Satonaka can keep Amagi-san safe?" Yosuke skeptically asked.

Rei answered with another question of her own. "From a killer who has the same powers as me and we have no clue who it is?"

"Um …" Yosuke replied in a dumbfounded tone, "… Yeah."

Rei bluntly remarked, "If he shows up, I'd say the odds are stacked against her."

Yosuke was taken aback by that as he asked, "Then what the hell is she supposed to do?"

"I don't think she'll need to worry." Rei stated, "I doubt the killer would make a move as long as Amagi-san is with other people. If anything, this could buy us time to figure things out."

"Hmm …" Yosuke couldn't argue with the logic, but he still felt uneasy as he lightly bit his lip before stating, "… I hope you're right about that."

"I wouldn't have suggested her to check in on Amagi-san if I thought she really would be in danger." Rei clarified, "I may not like Satanaka, but that doesn't mean I want her to get hurt." Rei the explained, "I doubt the killer would want to identify himself. There'll be a lot of people surrounding Amagi-san at the Inn, and Satanaka will be there too. I'm sure they'll be okay while we can investigate the TV world."

"Well …" While Yosuke did feel a little better, he still felt uneasy as he replied, "… You do have a point."

Rei kept focused as she stated, "Regardless, we have a big job tomorrow, and I hope you'll be ready for it."

"I'll …" Yosuke's voice wavered a little as he replied in a 'slightly' nervous tone, "I'll be as ready as I can."

"Since you have a Persona, you should be able to hurt shadows." Rei clarified, "Not just with your Persona, but hurt them physically as well."

Yosuke inquired, "So I'd be able to punch them out too?"

"Probably." Rei warned her friend, "As I said before, using a Persona is draining so having a weapon will make a big difference. I'd say using shovels again, but they did break on us, so I'm not sure what we should use."

"Weapons huh? Hmm …" Something started to come to Yosuke's mind.

Rei raised an eyebrow. "You got something in mind?"

"Maybe. I need to ask my dad about something first." Yosuke looked at Rei as he asked, "Can you meet me at the Junes Food Court in the morning?"

Rei nodded, "Sure."

"Good." Yosuke grinned. "I'll see you there."

Before they went their separate directions, Rei made sure to tell Yosuke, "Be sure to check out the Midnight Channel tonight. There's always a chance we might get another clue if we pay attention."

"You got it." Yosuke readily agreed. "We can use all the clues we can get." Afterwards, the two went their separate ways.

/

Date: Saturday, April 16th, 2011 – Evening

Location: Inaba – Shopping District

As the previous night, rain was falling hard on the little town of Inaba. This constant rain was not doing anyone favors, especially the police. Between the fog and rain, it was as if Mother Nature herself didn't want the police to investigate. Despite that, Dojima Ryotaro was not going to give up so easily. While holding his umbrella, he knelt down to further inspect the area where the latest victim had been found to find something, anything that he might've missed. He was certain there had to be something.

"How many times do you think we'll need to keep checking this area Dojima-san?" Adachi asked in an exasperated tone.

Ryotaro remained kneeling on the ground as he turned his head and informed his partner. "With two similar deaths, the department wants us to be as thorough as we can despite the weather conditions."

"Are we still not calling these deaths homicides?" Adachi asked.

"Not yet." Ryotaro informed his partner, "We can't be a hundred percent sure these deaths are homicides."

"Um … sir." Adachi stated, "I think it's safe to assume these deaths are homicides. You said so yourself that you'd find it hard to believe these were accidents."

"Yes you're right, but the higher ups want us to be absolutely sure before we say anything official." Ryotaro firmly stated, "Nothing like this has ever happened before."

"I understand sir, but still …" Adachi trailed off as he looked at his partner.

"…" Ryotaro remained silent. He wasn't sure what he could say right now.

"What else do we know about the case so far?" Adachi asked.

Ryotaro answered, "Besides the obvious that the two victims were females and they went missing prior to their deaths, there were a few things that stood out."

"Really?" Adachi inquired, "Like what sir?"

"Ah huff …" Ryotaro sighed, "You did receive the updated autopsy report didn't you? It stated what they believe to be the time of death."

"Um … yes … I wrote that down …" Adachi scrambled for his notepad as he attempted to protect it from the rain. "Here it is!" Adachi proudly proclaimed much to Dojima's annoyance. He quickly flipped through the pages before reaching the page in question. "… It looks like both victims were killed between midnight and two in the morning on the day they were found."

"Exactly." Dojima stood up as he explained, "That alone proves wherever the victims disappeared to they were not killed right away."

"But what could've killed them?" Adachi looked up from his notes as he reminded Dojima, "The autopsy reports can't identify the exact cause of death. The best they could do is rule out what didn't cause it."

"We can work on that as we investigate." Dojima walked towards Adachi. With each step he took, his feet splashed in the puddles, but he paid no mind to them. "There is something else I noticed that should be important."

"Really?" Adachi raised an eyebrow. "And what's that sir?"

"I believe it might be a pattern." Ryotaro surmised, "Both victims were killed on a foggy day. Their bodies were left up in high spots not only when it was still dark but the fog would give them perfect cover. Additionally, the bodies were left in a way that they would eventually be found as if to show off their work or be a challenge."

"A … A challenge?" Adachi took a step back as he nervously asked, "You … You mean the killer could be saying something like," Adachi lowered his voice as he spoke, "'Try as hard as you can, but you'll never catch me.'? Is that what you're going for?"

"More or less. When these murders took place, our culprit must know Inaba pretty well between understanding our general climate and where he can go. It has to be someone very familiar with Inaba."

"…" Adachi remained silent as he waited for Ryotaro to draw a conclusion. His fingers wrapped tightly around the umbrella handle not daring to let it go for a moment.

"Our culprit wouldn't be someone passing through or a new arrival." Ryotaro seemed rather confident in his assessment. "Our culprit would most likely be someone who lives here and has been living here for some time."

"I see …" Adachi hesitantly replied. "That would rule out some people, but how are we going to rule out other suspects? Inaba might not be big, but the population is still rather large. It'll take a while to work through all the suspects."

"We need to keep paying attention to any and all potential leads." Ryotaro instructed his partner, "If we pay attention, we just might find that key clue we need. All we need is just one solid clue. That might be enough to shut this case."

"If you say so sir." The glum look on Adachi's face made it clear he was not as certain.

"I do." Ryotaro tightened his grip on his umbrella as he ordered, "Now let's stay focused. This might be a long night."

Adachi nodded, "Yes sir."

/

Date: Sunday, April 16th, 2011 – Night

Location: Inaba – Amagi Inn

The police were far from the only ones having a rough night. Amagi Yukiko was having troubles of her own. Attempting to run a business while still in high school proved every bit of challenging as it would sound. Thankfully, she was not alone in dealing with this issue. Two of the Amagi Inn workers, Haruto and Jirou, were working with her.

"Ah huff …" Yukiko sighed after signing a document. "This'll take forever."

Haruto remarked, "I hate to say it Lady Amagi, but this is sometimes expected at times like these."

Yukiko looked up and replied, "I know Haruto-san. I'm very well aware of the late nights my mother had to go through."

"I … I apologize my lady." Haruto bowed his head slightly as he sheepishly replied, "I didn't mean to offend you."

"It's fine Haruto-san," Yukiko then stated, "and you don't need to keep calling me Lady Amagi or 'My Lady.' You can just call me Yukiko."

Haruto shook his head, "It wouldn't be proper. You're the current Lady in charge of the Inn. Even if it is temporary, it is still your title."

"You've know me since I was a little girl Haruto-san." Yukiko protested, "If you want to be formal, calling me Yukiko-san should be sufficient."

Haruto smiled and nodded. "Very well. Yukiko-san."

Yukiko smiled as she replied, "Much better. Anyway, I do greatly appreciate you and Jirou are helping me with this."

Jirou looked up from his work and stated, "Not a problem."

"It is as you said." Haruto stated, "We've known you for a long time. We're more than happy to help the future successor."

"Hmm …" Yukiko's smiled seemed to slowly fade as her eyes then moved towards the clock. "On that note, how much more do you think we need to do before we can call it a night? It might be Sunday tomorrow, but I still need to sleep."

"Let's see …" Haruto looked towards the clock and his eyes widened, "Oh! It's that time already? Hmph." Haruto scratched his chin, "In that case, I think we can probably stop in an hour or so."

"Oh!" Yukiko could feel herself sinking in her seat a she happily remarked, "Thank goodness."

"In the meantime," Jirou stood up in from this seat and stated, "I think we could use a little fuel to finish this. I'll go make us some coffee." Jirou then looked to Haruto and asked, "Mind getting us something form the kitchen?"

Haruto replied, "Sure. Okay."

Yukiko stood up as she began to suggest, "I could always try making something if you …"

"No!" Both Haruto and Jirou shot that suggestion down very strongly which caused Yukiko's eyes to widen and take a step back in surprise.

"Umm …" Yukiko had no clue how to respond to that.

"Just stay here." Jirou requested. "We'll be back in a few minutes."

"Um … Okay." Yukiko was a little uneasy, but she did as she was told and sat back in her seat.

"We'll be right back." Jirou replied, and the two workers headed toward the kitchen.

When the two were no longer within hearing range, Yukiko said to herself, "That was … weird. What was that about?" Yukiko pondered what was their deal before shrugging, "Oh well." Yukiko decided to continue with some work on her own before she heard something. "Huh?" Yukiko looked towards the sound and then she heard it again.

Ding

There was no mistakening it. It was a doorbell. Yukiko got up from her seat as she thought, "Were we expecting any late night delivers or something?" Yukiko shook her head, "They seriously don't tell me everything do they?"

When Yukiko opened the door, she greeted the guest, "Hello?" However, there was no one there. "Huh?" Yukiko looked around and took a step forward, "Anyone there?" There was no response. "Hmph. Could I have been …?!" Yukiko would not be able to finish her sentence when she felt a cloth and a hand cover her mouth.

"Mmh!" Yukiko gasped into the cloth. Whoever was holding it, made sure to muffle any screams she might attempt to produce. Based on the lack of alarm from any nearby workers, this person's efforts were effective.

"Huff …" She breathed in what was in the cloth. Before she could attempt to struggle, her head suddenly began to spin. She couldn't see straight as everything began to bend. "Wha … What's … happening to me … I … what … who am I? … Where am I? What … Wha …?" Yukiko's eyes began to rollback before long.

"Shh! Shh!" The mysterious man whispered into the girl's ear. "Don't struggle anymore. Give into it. It'll all become better." He made sure to add, "I will save you." In mere moments, Yukiko's body went limp. There would be no more futile resistance. The stranger was able to pull her away unopposed. He softly whispered, "That's more like it." As he pulled her away, he assured the unconscious girl, "You'll be okay. I promise I'll save you." When the man was done pulling Yukiko's body, he was standing in front of a TV and he told her, "You'll be safe in here. I promise you'll be safe in here."

At around the same time on the other side of the TV, Teddie's ears perked up. He stood up from where he was sitting and looked in a direction he felt something. "What was that? Did a new arrival come?" He closed his eyes and took a whiff. He opened his eyes and remarked, "There is someone new here. It must have something to do with what Sensei and the others were talking about." Teddie turned around and looked at the mount of TVs he set up as a portal. "I hope they come back soon."

/

Date: Sunday, April 17th, 2011 – Midnight

Location: Inaba – Dojima Household – Rei's Room

After saying goodnight to Nanako, Rei returned to her room to prepare for the following day. As she prepared, she patiently waited for the clock to strike midnight. With the rain trickling down outside, Rei knew this would be another night for the Midnight Channel to turn on. She hoped it could give Yosuke and her some clue about what to look for when they went exploring.

When the Midnight Channel came on, it was one thing that Rei did not expect. Unlike the previous times when Rei could only see a blurry image, it was coming in clear this time. It was like she was watching a regular program. Rei was beginning to wonder if she was watching someone else until something on screen made it crystal clear that Rei was watching the Midnight Channel.

This would be a memory that'd be engraved in Rei's mind forever. The person who came onscreen was none other than Amagi Yukiko, and her attire was rather 'strange' to put it mildly. She was wearing a pink princess outfit most people would expect to see in the fairy tale movies complete with the many frills. Not only that, the dress was designed in a way that showed off a fair amount of Yukiko's cleavage which this 'Yukiko' had no issue displaying directly in front of the 'camera' which made Rei blush.

'Yukiko' was holding onto a pink microphone and cheerfully said, "Good evening." Her voice was completely upbeat. It was totally unlike the lower more monotone and depressed voice that Rei had heard from Amagi Yukiko over the past few days. Yukiko then happily introduced herself, "Tonight Princess Yukiko has a 'big' surprise." If that wasn't enough, Rei then heard 'Yukiko' say something she never would have expected, "I'm going to score myself a hot stud. Welcome to 'Not a Dream. Not a Hoax.' Princess Yukiko's hunt for her prince charming."

Rei's eyes widened more and more with every other word that 'Yukiko' spoke. Rei was unable to say anything as she watched this. The only thing she could do was think, "What the hell?"

'Yukiko' smiled at the camera and said, "And I came prepared." 'Yukiko' touched her lower area as she happily informed the audience, "I'm wearing my lacey unmentionables," 'Yukiko' then bent down to show off her cleavage in front of the camera as she continued to speak, "staked from top to bottom."

"!" Rei's eyes reached their limit with that line as she took a step back and blushed furiously.

'Yukiko' fiendishly looked at the camera and told the audience, "I'm out to catch a whole harem, and the best of the bunch will be all mine." Yukiko then happily announced, "Well … Here I go!" 'Yukiko' then dashed off towards red and black swirling doorways that Rei and her companions had encountered during their previous TV world visits. She then vanished as soon as she ran through it.

The camera zoomed out, and Rei could see that 'Yukiko' had entered what appeared to be a castle. Unlike the Konishi liquor store lookalike, this was not small by any means. It looked exactly like a castle that you'd read about in a fantasy series or see in pictures of Medieval Europe. There would be plenty of places to hide.

/

After Yukiko disappeared into the castle, the TV screen went blank again. If there was one world that cold describe Narukami Rei at this moment, it would be 'dumbfounded.' Rei was left standing still speechless with her mouth agape. Her eyes widened and her body was perfectly still as the light from the TV faded and she was staring at a blank screen again. She remained standing still as if she was under a spell.

Everything she had seen was the opposite of what she has seen Yukiko as. It took a few moments before Rei could find her voice again. "Wha … What the hell was that?"

Her phone began ringing as if to answer her question and snap her out of her spell. She rushed to grab her phone as quickly as she could. The last thing she needed was for it to wake anyone up. She didn't need caller ID to know who it was, and she didn't need to guess what he wanted to talk about.

As soon as Rei answered the phone, Yosuke immediately asked in a rushed voice, "Did you see that?"

"Yeah." Rei then asked the question that was on both their minds, "What was that?"

"No idea." Yosuke had no trouble voicing his mutual disbelief, "I've never seen Amagi-san act like that."

"Yeah …" Rei remarked, "There's a lot of things wrong with this picture."

"I think that's an understatement." Yosuke dryly replied.

Rei stated, "I think we should start with the dress she was wearing."

Yosuke raised an eyebrow on the other side of the line. "The princess outfit?"

"Of course." Rei pointed out, "I've seen Amagi-san in her school uniform and in a kimono. I've even talked to her myself the other day. She doesn't strike me as someone who'd wear something like that or talk like that." Rei bluntly stated, "I could never picture her wearing something that reveals so much cleavage."

"Wow you actually said that." Yosuke then muttered to himself, "Guess I shouldn't be surprised."

Rei could hear what Yosuke said as her eyebrows grew closer together as she asked in annoyance, "Excuse me?"

It was Yosuke's turn to feel a chill crawl up his spine as he nervously replied, "Never mind. Never mind." Yosuke quickly replied, "Anyway, you do have a good point." Yosuke's voice sounded slightly calmer as he informed Rei, "I've known Amagi-san for six months, and she wouldn't be caught dead wearing something like that."

Rei nodded her head. "Exactly. I haven't known Amagi-san long, but everything we saw just now is completely out character or her. It's like she was a completely different person."

"Yeah. I know." Yosuke mulled over. "She definitely seemed like someone else."

"…" Suddenly, a thought came to Rei as she considered what had already happened before she came to the conclusion, "Or maybe she is."

Yosuke asked, "What do you think?"

Rei answered, "I'm not entirely sure yet, but we've seen that the TV world can do some pretty messed up things. Could the TV world have done that to her?" Rei suggested.

"Wouldn't surprise me?" Yosuke then asked, "So does that mean Amagi-san is in the TV world now?"

Rei replied, "Not a clue. You got her number by any chance?"

"Nope." Yosuke replied.

Rei rolled her eyes as she thought, "Figures." Rei then stated, "Either way, we definitely need to investigate this. Something tells me Satonaka might've seen what we saw too. I bet Satonaka would be interested in this too. Can you reach her?"

Yosuke replied, "No."

"You don't have her number?" Rei bluntly asked, "Aren't you two friends?"

"Sort of." Yosuke replied as he was scratching his head.

"Ah huff …" Rei sighed as she shook her head. "Whatever. She knows we'll be at Junes before we head in. If she needs to talk to us, I'm sure she'll come to see us off in the morning."

"You're probably right." Yosuke replied, "Be sure to meet me at the food courts first. I've got something I want to show you."

Rei declared, "Don't worry. I'll be there."

"I wasn't worried, but still …" Yosuke then said, "I still can't believe what I saw."

"Heh." Rei remarked, "I know. As strange as it sounds, I wish I taped it." Rei stopped in her tracks. "Why did I say that?"

Yosuke smirked. "Well that was quite a show. I doubt we could ever get Amagi-san to pull a repeat performance."

"Um … Yeah. That would be something." Rei quickly stated, "See you in the morning. Meet you by 9:30."

"Sounds good to me partner." Yosuke then hung up.

Rei and Yosuke immediately went to sleep. They knew they would need to be prepared for what lay ahead. They just didn't know how much they would need it though.

/

Omake:

Rise: Time to get a new story arc started.

Rei: Yep. Just in time for the worldwide release of Persona 5. I know the author is looking forward to it, and I hope the rest of you will support the series as well.

Rise: Yeah. Let's help the Persona series keep going strong.

Rei: There really isn't a reason to support it. The reviews are in, and the scores are good.

Rise: Has the author read any of them?

Rei: Nope. The author wants to avoid spoilers, especially since the Gamespot one apparently has numerous spoilers in it, so it's best to stay away.

Rise: I see.

Rei: Readers and players beware of spoilers. Be sure not to post spoilers of Persona 5 on here either. That would be discourteous.

Rise: Anyway, this was a good start to the new story arc. You had quite a few good moments with different characters.

Rei: Yep. I enjoy talking to different characters. It brings out different sides to me.

Rise: Yeah. I like that too. I look forward to when we will interact.

Rei: So am I.

Rise: As usual, be sure to leave a review and leave your thoughts.

Rei: We want to hear your thoughts on the chapter.

/

Author Notes: I'd like to announce that I have taken up a Tumblr account. While I will be checking out other people's posts, I will occasionally make posts of my own, including possible updates on my various stories. You can also feel free to message me on occasions in regards to progress on chapters.

As you can see, there is still plenty of tension between Chie and Rei. While Rei doesn't like Chie, she doesn't want Chie involved mostly because Chie really can't do anything useful for them. She'd get in the way, and it does seem like the only way to get Personas is for the potential person to be in grave danger which is something Rei would rather not happen. She may not like Chie, but she doesn't want Chie to get herself killed either.

For this chapter, I personally enjoyed the expansions I made, such as Rei and Ai's scene along with them meeting the sport loving friends. I definitely have some plans for this dynamic which will be occurring in future chapters. It was great to finally introduce it in this chapter. I hope you liked it along with Ai giving Rei the pet name 'New Girl.' It definitely feels like something that Ai would call Rei. I'll also keep in mind other notable aspects of other character that are either canon or original to this story.

I'm happy that I started the new story arc before July. Starting off with a release or two before then is much more satisfying, especially since I won't need to make my readers wait nearly as long for new content. I know how it feels to wait a long time for new content from your favorite stories. As usual, I will do my best to complete the chapters and keep the story moving. It might not always happen fast, but it will happen.

As usual, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Be sure to leave a review. As the Omake indicates, I definitely want to know your thoughts of the chapter. See you next time.