A/N:

So happy to see all of the reviews! Thank you all so much. Feedback means so much to writers, and really encourages them. Even really small reviews pushes us that extra mile, and it makes us feel appreciates. I want to thank you all for taking time to read my story, review it, favorite it, follow it, etc!

Reapergenesis32: You reviewed really fast! And I'm surprised that you guessed the Arcana for every party member, even those who haven't appeared yet. I don't want to say too much, but you got one guess spot-on! Of course, I'm not going to say which one.

Nightly7: It's actually really interesting that you mention P3! Ya'll might be seeing some P3 characters in later chapters. I have to say, a lot of this story isn't completely planned out, but do expect to see some of the P3 cast... especially those who you did not see in Persona 4 Arena!

EternalCombOver: You certainly combed over the last chapter pretty well! You caught some errors that I made, and you pointed them out to me in a really helpful way! I fixed 'em all! Thanks so much for helping me out!

Dash master 48: Hit me with as many questions as you want! I love them! But as for making a P3 version? I'd have to say probably? I think for me, P3's plot and characterization is going to be a little harder to work with. But if this story goes well, count on it!

Tjfanfics99: Who'll be donning the suit, you say? Well, not who you'd expect? Additionally, the... suit-donner, will not be the Star Arcana. But there will be a (hopefully) cute mascot! And as for your guesses, you got one right!

roughstar333: I'm glad you liked the addition of Teddie and Naoto! In this story, there's going to be a lot more interaction between characters that didn't get to interact with each other in the original. Expect more relationship building-wise.

Metisi: It's pretty early to see who is who! But I have so much fun reading guesses, that it doesn't matter to me if they're wrong or right, because they're all so interesting for me to read!

Death walks among them.

It was late afternoon and fog had settled into the area. He was hunched in the shadows, hangs trembling as he fumbled with a cigarette lighter. It was a quick fix for a desperate, needy addiction. I can't let anyone see me like this. He knew that he had little to no friends. But if anyone saw him smoking, the chance of actually getting friends would diminish. It was the same habit that killed his father. What if his mother saw him? She didn't know. And she couldn't. What if she gets disappointed in him? What if she abandons him?

He leaned against the damp, brick wall. Smoke puffed from the lit cigarette, and his eyes closed. He could fall asleep like this. But no matter how much he wants to, he really can't. He has too many things to worry about. Too many.

A scream rang through the area. It echoed off the walls. Instantly, his heart rate flew through the roof. Hands turning clammy, he stumbled to lean against the wall, eyes wide, searching for the source of the horrible noise. His senses muddled, and he began to grow dizzy. Soon, light footsteps could be heard from down the street, forcing him back to reality. His wide eyes watched as the shape of a young woman raced towards him. In a panicked move, he ducked behind the wall, breathing labored.

She ran past him, oblivious to his existence. He watched her flee into the deep fog.

He wanted to be relieved. He really did. But what was out there? A murderer? A rabid dog? But only silence answered him. He should get out of here. He should leave. But he couldn't. Morbid fascination forced him to wait around, to endanger himself. His eyes moved towards the sky.

Then he sees it, dangling from a telephone antenna.

He should be scared.

But he can't help but smile.

"Attention, there's been an emergency. All students are to remain inside of their classrooms until told otherwise."

Rise dragged her gaze upwards towards the speaker, perched above the chalkboard. Today had been... exhausting, to say the least. However, after the brief spat between Teddie and Yosuke, everything had really smoothed out. From a few, abet lengthy conversations, she had learned quite a bit about her new seatmates. Teddie, although at times perverted and flirtatious, could be quite easygoing and kind. His lackadaisical attitude seemed to easily spread, causing others around him to become mellow, as well.

Yosuke Hanamura was arrogant and admittedly carefree, as well as prone to making innuendos and using rougher language. However, his pride was routinely stomped on by classmates, who would jibe at him over his attitude and... lack of muscles. Most of this information had come directly from Naoto, who hadn't waited a moment to tell her all of Yosuke's weaknesses.

Naoto, however, remained the biggest mystery to Rise. The only major trait that Rise had managed to pick up... was that Naoto had the attitude of a leader. Her classmates seemed to respect him.

"I guess we're stuck here, with nothing to do." Yosuke grumbled, before a sly grin spread onto his features. "I can think of a few entertaining things to get up to while we're stuck in here, if you catch my drift, Rise-chan." Rise resisted the urge to shiver in disgust at his attempts at being smooth. Whatever retort she might have come up with was interrupted when Teddie burst out into hysterical laughter, clutching his chest. "What!?" Yosuke's expression furrowed into a scowl as he snarled at Teddie, who didn't seem to be the least bit intimidating.

"Y-Yosuke-kun!" Teddie wheezed. His hand began to slap the desk, exaggerating his amusement at Yosuke's poor pick-up line. "That was so bad!"

Rise saw Naoto roll his eyes. This time, the blue-haired boy didn't interrupt the conversation. He simply closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat. She couldn't blame him. Being stuck between the two all day must be exhausting. From his attitude when interacting with them, she realized that he likely knew them very well. She knew for sure that their constant bickering had tired her out, and it was only her first day at school! If she had to listen to the commotion all year, her brain would rot.

"...And like you're one to talk! All the lines you use sound like they're from fifty years ago." Yosuke finished retorting to Teddie with a small huff. The two looked at each other with venom in their eyes, and scowls on their faces. And suddenly, Rise couldn't stand it anymore! She had been enduring this all day!

"The two of you need to stop!" Her exasperated outburst took the two by surprise. Her voice raised and the pitch became higher, causing her anger towards them to become obvious. Immediately, silence fell between the two of them. A pout formed on Teddie's face, while Yosuke only seemed to become solemn. The two of them remained quiet as she continued to go on. "If the two of you argue like this all the time, then why do you even hang around each other?" They hadn't of given her the best first impression. Or second impression, or third. But at least they hadn't of tried to interrupt her while she scolded them. It wasn't like she wanted them to become best friends or anything, but if they learned to get along, it'd make her time at school much more bearable.

"We don't hang around each other all the time." Yosuke was quick to explain. He seemed to dislike being associated with Teddie in such a way. "He just plopped down without realizing I was here." It admittedly made sense, Rise realized. Teddie had been incredibly focused on her, above all else. "And now, we're gonna be stuck like this all year round." Yosuke's voice was bitter as he finished speaking.

"Then learn to get along!" Rise exclaimed in aggravation. "I won't be able to stand listening to the two of you bicker all year!" She had endured an immense amount of torment and agony throughout the past couple of months. And now, Rise was fed up with being put in undesirable situations that she had no control over. "I don't care how you do it! Just learn to co-exist, please."

Before either could muster up a reply, another announcement came from over the loud speaker.

"Attention all students, there has been an incident close to school grounds. Please, vacate the area and get home as soon as possible. Do not bother the policemen stationed around the area."

Never had Rise moved so fast. In a quick flurry of motion, she stood from her seat and threw her bag over her shoulder, marching from the room. She exited alongside the steady stream of students, ignoring the exhaustion that threatened to weigh her down. The further she got from the classroom, the more her anger faded. Soon enough, she felt dead on her feet. Her first day at school had been utterly exhausting. She had met potential friends. But if Yosuke and Teddie didn't learn to get along, she would most certainly lose her mind. At least Naoto seemed grounded enough to try and make the whole arrangement work. She continued to walk down the hall, weaving around slower students.

"Kujikawa-san!" She froze as Naoto's voice called out to her. Immediately, she turned around, a weak smile blooming on her features as she spotted Naoto hurrying to catch up with her. He quickly reached her, just barely out of breath. Relief flooded over her. Maybe she had found her first friend, after all. "I'm sorry about what happened back there. It's difficult to reign the two of them in." He explained, obviously feeling guilty. "They're not usually that terrible. I urge you to give them a second chance, when everything's mellowed out."

"It's fine, Shirogane-san." Rise shook her head, smile widening as she felt some of her pep kick back in. "If anything, I should probably apologize for snapping. I might have made the entire situation even worse."

"Oh, on the contrary. I think you might have shaken them enough to get them to listen." Naoto informed her politely with a small grin. Rise could tell that he was immensely pleased with what she had done. The pig-tailed girl suppressed a sigh of relief. It seemed like she had done the right thing by scolding them. But she was also glad that Naoto had followed her. He had made an effort to interact with her more than he had to. She could definitely see herself becoming good friends with him. He was rational and cool-headed, which was definitely what she needed right now. "They've become so accustomed to me scolding them that they've gained an immunity to it."

"I'm glad you think I helped." Rise stated, slowing down so Naoto could keep up. By now, they were close to the entrance of the school. She could see a thick layer of fog outside, and turned to Naoto with an inquisitive gaze. "I wonder what happened." She stated thoughtfully. She saw several groups of students began filing out of the school. Most of the teenagers seemed to be busily chattering. Maybe they were gossiping about what could have happened.

"Whatever did happen, it'd be wise to steer clear." Naoto told her. "It's very likely that the scene could be dangerous. I'll head out with you." Rise suppressed the urge to tease him. What a knight in shining armor! Naoto seemed to be an incredibly courteous individual. Rise was truthfully grateful that she had met him. With that in mind, she walked out of school with him, and began to tread through the courtyard. Despite the warnings that had been said over the loudspeaker, several clusters of students seemed to be remaining close by. Everyone seemed to be pretty animated and energetic. She could hear students hollering and gossiping with each other.

She turned her gaze towards the school gates as she heard police sirens wailing from a little bit away. As she exited the school gates alongside Naoto, she gave a soft sigh.

"True... I hope no one got hurt." Rise stated with a small frown. She didn't think that Inaba was the type of place where violent crimes happened. It had seemed like such a sleepy, quaint town. She disliked the idea of any sort of drama occurring. She had been going through enough stress as of late. The last thing she needed was to worry about criminals in the area.

Her eyes looked along the rows of houses, taking in the rustic architecture and pretty gardens that each home seemed to have on the side. Inaba wasn't too fancy, but it wasn't a bad place, either. She liked it here better than she liked the city. And she had only been here for a day! The loud noises, and the business of the city grew old really fast. Inaba was a welcome change of pace.

"Me too." Naoto agreed calmly. They continued to tread down the street, only for Naoto to pause as bright lights appeared up ahead. It looked like they were close to the crime scene, instead of avoiding it. "Although it looks like we're about to find out. They should've set up road blocks so students passing by would be re-directed." The blue-haired boy noted casually. But he continued to move forward without any hesitance. "We might as well go through it. It looks like we'll be able to."

"Are you sure we should be here?" Rise questioned fretfully, although her nervousness was mostly lost as she spotted a familiar figure up ahead. Her uncle Dojima stood with his hands stuffed in his pockets, a cigarette in his mouth. He seemed to be deep in discussion with another, uniformed man. As they reached the scene, the uniformed man walked away, ducking under the yellow police tape. "Dojima-san!" Rise called out to him. At the sound of her voice, he turned around, eyebrows raised. "Sorry. We're just passing through. Did someone get hurt?" She questioned.

"Hate to say it, but someone did." He answered with a harassed sigh. "Can't tell you too much now. Though you're bound to see it on the news later. I think you should go home. I'll see you later." He was gruff, but she could understand. His job was likely stressful enough without a large crime happening.

"I'll see you later, then!" Rise nodded, turning to Naoto. He had been quiet for the entire duration of the conversation. Eager to leave, Rise spoke quickly and began to walk further down the street. "Let's get going!"

"Yes, let's." Naoto agreed, following her as she hurried down the street, away from the wailing sirens and bright lights.

A murder.

Rise couldn't believe her bad luck. During her first day at school, a murder had happened. The body of an announcer had been discovered strung on a TV antenna. The conditions surrounding the body and crime were absolutely chilling. It had kept her awake late into the night. Just the thought of someone being killed while she was oblivious to it caused her to shiver. Today was only her second day of school, and she had to do her best to remain optimistic, despite everything horrible that had gone on yesterday. After getting home, nothing of note had really happened. She spoke with Nanako, helped make dinner, and watched the news report, before turning it off. She didn't want Nanako to become frightened.

Today was her second day of school, and she was fighting to keep her spirits high. To take her mind off of the tragedy that had occurred, she spoke to Nanako.

"Do you know how to make pancakes, Nanako?" Rise questioned curiously. She had watched her own parents make pancakes before, and it hadn't of seemed that difficult. Of course, the one time when she tried it, she managed to burn everything that she had made. Still, she figured that Nanako would be talented enough to cook various dishes, no matter how young she was. It did bother her to see Nanako so alone all the time. She knew that Dojima was busy working, but couldn't be spare a moment for his own daughter?

"No." Nanako shook her head with a slight frown. "Dad said that he'd show me. But he never really did. He's been busy working." Rise saw loneliness in Nanako's expression, and came to a resolution.

"Then, we'll learn together!" Rise exclaimed. "I mean, there are usually descriptions on the box, right? If we just get some pancake mix, I'm sure that we'll be able to figure it out." It seemed like an ideal way to bond with her little cousin. Nanako seemed to be a skilled cook, and Rise needed to improve on her own abilities. They could learn how to make pancakes and bond at the same time. Fortunately, Nanako seemed to like the idea, a smile brimming across her face.

"Yeah! Maybe we can get some at Junes!" The little girl cheered. Rise grinned, glad that Nanako was on board. Getting along with her was fortunately really easy. Nanako was a pleasant and patient girl, who was also quite intelligent. They continued to walk down the foggy street, before they reached fork in the road. "I'll see you later!"

"Wait!" Rise blurted out, causing Nanako to turn to her with an inquisitive expression. Rise remained silent for a brief moment. There had been a murder in town yesterday. Which meant a horrible criminal was walking around the streets of Inaba. Under such circumstances, Rise decided that she didn't want Nanako walking to school on her own. Dojima might be too busy with his work to take care of her, so Rise knew that she needed to step up. "I'll walk you there."

"Really?" Nanako's eyes went wide, before she smiled again. "Yay! Let's go!"

Rise nodded and hurried down the street with her little cousin. She knew that she would most likely be late. But making sure Nanako was safe would be worth it.

After walking Nanako to school, Rise had rushed to get to class. Fortunately, she had discovered an alleyway that cut through, allowing her to just make it into school. She hurried down the hall, up the stairs, and into class. She struggled to breath properly, but managed to stumble to her seat, flopping down into it.

"Rough morning?" A voice beside her inquired. Unlike yesterday, Yosuke seemed rather concerned with her well-being. Maybe what she had said had changed his mind about being rude. Rise turned to him, eyeing him with interest. He seemed hesitant to speak with her, as though she might yell at him again. Better to be feared than loved by him, she figured. Rise was still catching her breath and regaining her bearings, so she merely nodded.

"Had to bring my little cousin to school." She said slowly, in between panting breaths. "Her dad isn't usually there in the mornings. And I don't feel safe with her walking around town alone, especially after what happened yesterday." Yosuke nodded as she explained. From in front of her, she heard Teddie swoon.

"Rise-chan is such a considerate girl!" He flirted shamelessly. "I'm serious! I've seen tons of parents send their kids to school alone. Don't they know that we could have a murderer still walking around out there?" Teddie seemed immensely troubled by the news. Already, today seemed to be going better than yesterday. Yosuke and Teddie weren't at each other's throats like they had been before, which was a great sign. A soft smile settled over Rise's features as Yosuke spoke up.

"It's true." The tawny-haired teen agreed, a frown twisting at his features. "But knowing our useless police force, they probably won't catch the asshole for awhile." He sighed, leaning back in his seat. "Oh, Rise-chan. I was going to ask-do you want to come to Junes with me after school?" Was he already asking for a date? Rise felt her eyebrows furrow. "I was going to ask Naoto-kun, too. Although he doesn't seem to be here, yet. Not that I'd mind spending time with you one-on-one..." He drawled.

"How rude, Yosuke!" Teddie huffed, glaring over at Yosuke with a pout. "You're inviting everyone but me!?" He was admittedly right. Yosuke inviting everyone but him was quite rude, Rise noted. But she didn't speak up or intervene. A part of her was interested in seeing how Yosuke would react. Would he start another fight? Or would he make an effort to get along with the blond?

At the prodding question, Yosuke leaned on his desk and began to rub at his temples. He looked as though he was about to argue. But a defeated expression settled over his features.

"Fine, you can come, too." He grumbled, before turning to the front of the classroom as their teacher walked in. Rise immediately smiled. It seemed that yesterday's events may have changed his mind. She was glad that he had avoided starting another quarrel. Despite his shortcomings, maybe Yosuke wasn't as bad as she originally thought he was. "I wonder where Naoto-kun is."

The school day seemed to fly by. Luckily, there hadn't of been another incident, which Rise was grateful for. After the end of the day, she had decided to head to Junes with Teddie and Yosuke. Even though she hadn't of been wild about the idea at first, she had decided to pick up a few things. They were almost out of apples. She would come back with Nanako for the pancake mix, since her cousin had seemed so excited about making a trip to Junes. It was lighter out than yesterday, but grey clouds still hung above, and fog still settled over the town. She arrived at Junes alongside Yosuke and Teddie.

"I can't believe that Naoto-kun blew us off!" Teddie complained, stretching his arms out above his head with a yawn. The three of them stepped into the food court, which wasn't all too crowded. Colorful banners were all around, and posters displaying details were pasted all over the brick walls of the area. Steel, circular tables with chairs were scattered all around. "Did he even give you a reason, Yosuke-kun?" He questioned, folding his arms with a displeased expression.

"No. I didn't ask because I didn't want to be nosy." The tawny-haired boy replied quickly. He seemed exasperated by Teddie's constantly energy. And Rise couldn't quite blame him. She didn't know how Teddie stayed so uppity all the time, either. "You had to go get some stuff, right?" He questioned, turning to Rise. Immediately, she nodded. "You might wanna go now, while Teddie and I grab some food."

"Good idea." Rise said simply, before turning on her heels and heading towards the sliding doors. "I'll meet the two of you back here!" She called out, before hurrying inside of the super store. Junes was admittedly quite an impressive establishment, inside and out. They had everything from food to electronics. It was like several stores all packed in one! Luckily, the food court was located near the grocery section, so Rise had an easy time locating what she needed. She hummed along to the music playing in the store as she searched for what she wanted. After walking down some isles full of food, she quickly found the bundle of apples that they needed. As she turned around, she was taken by surprise. Someone had been standing behind her the entire time!

"Woah!" The girl also stumbled backwards, before regaining her footing. She had long sandy-colored hair and freckled skin. "Sorry! I just noticed-are you the transfer student from Yasogami high?" Without waiting for a reply, the young woman continued to speak. "I'm Saki Konishi. I'm a third year there. And I work here." Her words were rushed, but not energetic. Rise quickly noticed that there was something dazed about Saki, something that wasn't quite right.

"It's nice to meet you!" Rise immediately rebounded. While she wasn't sure why a third year would be approaching her, she remained friendly. Saki returned her smile.

"Say, are you friends with Yosuke?" She questioned. It took Rise off guard once more. Was this girl involved with Yosuke? It took a moment, but Rise realized that Teddie had mentioned someone named Saki yesterday. Was this the infamous Saki-chan she had heard of? "He's the manager's son, that's how I know him." Saki elaborated. "He can be real nosy sometimes, so if he annoys you, don't hesitate to tell him off." Rise was about to reply, when Saki beat her to it again. "Well, I have to get back to work! It was nice meeting you. I'll see you around!"

With that, the sandy-haired girl rushed off, leaving Rise confused and in the dust.

A/N:

So, whose POV was it at the beginning?

Admittedly, not much went on in this chapter! Most of the bigger plot events will be coming in the next chapter.

Also, I'd like to promote Tjfanfics99's new Persona story, which I beta read for him! It's off to a really great start!

Here's the link:

https : s/12079208/1/Crossed-Paths

Just delete the two spaces in the front!

Thank ya'll for reading so much! If you liked this chapter, I'd love it if you posted a review!