Author's Note: Going to be on vacation in an internet-less region for a couple of weeks - so updates are going to be a little slower, but I'm going to have plenty of time to write during my vacation, so that's going to be cool. I'll miss being able to check up on reviews every so often, so make sure to leave plenty so when I do go into an area with internet I may be pleasantly surprised :)

Here, have some more genderbent cast, while you get to know them and the ways that they are alike and different from the canon cast. Also, the alternate title of this chapter is "Attack of the Implied Love Triangle Which Is More Like a Sort of Mild Crush Square When You Get Right Down To It".

#12: Let's lay low for now

Several days earlier…

"There aren't enough chairs," murmured Yukihiro dazedly, rubbing his eyes. "We can't have a meeting without enough chairs for all of us…"

Chiyuu charged over to an adjacent empty table at the Junes food court and came back dragging an extra chair. He steered his friend into the seat. "Jeez, Yukihiro, you're really out of it today!" he said. "Did you get any sleep last night?"

The black-haired boy shook his head. "N-no… I couldn't get to bed after the Midnight Channel aired." He frowned sadly. "I can't believe Kajiko still got kidnapped, even though we warned her."

"Y-yeah," said Chiyuu guiltily. "About that…"

Yoshiko stood up hastily. "Hey, Yukihiro-san, I could… fetch you some coffee if you want," she interrupted, with an ingratiating smile. "I'll pay for it!"

"Oh! That's very kind of you, Yoshiko-chan," Yukihiro said. "You don't have to buy it for me, though. It would be improper of me to—"

Yoshiko waved him off. "It's no biggie. I guess you can pay me back later somehow." She giggled. "Lemme treat you for once; you look like a walking corpse."

As the nicknamed 'Princess of Junes' dodged away through the tables of the food court, wrestling her wallet out of her pocket, the fourth member of the group looked up from the paper crane that she was folding from her napkin. "I suppose the only thing left to do is enter the TV and ask Kitty to look for her," said Yue. "We did all we could up until now."

"Y-you know, we didn't really…" Chiyuu poked at his beefsteak despondently. "We didn't really… get the chance to… well… warn her." He looked at Yue pleadingly. "It all went nuts before we could get to that part."

"Oh," said Yue. She blinked. "Why?"

"You better ask Yoshiko about that," Chiyuu told her, fiercely attacking the steak with his fork. "She's the one who told me not to let on to Kajiko that we knew what was going on."

"Huh? Ask me what?" Yoshiko had returned with the coffee, which she slid across the table to Yukihiro before taking a seat. "Here you go, Yukihiro-san. On the house."

"You didn't want to warn Kajiko?" Yue asked her, confused.

Yoshiko twirled a finger around a strand of hair. Today, she had tied it into two short ponytails, one on either shoulder. "Y-yeah, I… I just wanted to be careful, y'know? I thought it would be a bad idea if certain people started to notice that we were really involved with all this."

"Certain people?" Yue repeated, folding her hands in front of her. "I get the sense that you're theorizing again, Yoshiko. What's on your mind?"

The red-head laughed uncomfortably. "Y-you know me too well, Narukami," she admitted. "Yeah, I've been thinking about this a lot lately, and… I think I have an idea of what might tie all the victims together."

"Neat!" said Chiyuu, surprised. "Let's hear it!"

"I'm all ears," added Yukihiro, eagerly leaning in. "I've been thinking all this over too, but I couldn't come up with anything."

"Go ahead," Yue told her. "We're all listening."

"Well, I guess it all starts with the murderer, and I don't have a clue who he is yet, but…" Yoshiko stretched her arms behind her head, basking in the attention. "So let's say the murderer is up to something illegal. I figured something like drug running, you know?"

Yukihiro shivered. "How unpleasant! Why would you think that was something like that was going on here in Inaba?"

"Because…" Yoshiko leaned in and lowered her voice. "Because let's say Kajiko Tatsumi was caught up in it somehow," she said. "She got real defensive when we asked her if she was 'up to something' and we know there's a possibility that she's involved in gang activity—"

"Yeah, but that was just a rumor!" protested Chiyuu. "Besides, the biker gangs around here are just a bunch of punks. I can't see them being organized enough to do all that!"

"Keep your voice down, Chiyuu!" hissed Yoshiko, wincing. "Tell the whole world, why don't you?" She rolled her eyes. "I said it was a theory, anyway! Just roll with it."

"How does that connect up with Mayoku Yamano and Sakito-senpai, though?" asked Yukihiro, obligingly bringing his volume down to a whisper. "I'm not following you here."

"I'm getting to that! Jeez!" Yoshiko spread her hands. "So, you guys remember how upset Kajiko was when that interviewer came over to her during that special report?"

"Yeah…" agreed Chiyuu, a light dawning. "She was all, 'Get bent!' And we know that Yamano had visited Kajiko's store for a tie, the same one we saw tied into a noose in that weird room. Do you think that maybe Yamano and Kajiko had met with each other? Maybe they had an argument—?"

"We don't have any evidence for this yet, but… what if Yamano was doing some digging into this illegal thing that we're going to say was going on," continued Yoshiko. "It would make sense for him to be killed if he found something out, right?"

"That's true!" agreed Yukihiro. "And Sakito may have found something as well, since he was the one who discovered the body. Then it would also make sense for him to be the next victim! The murder's trying to cover up any leads on this operation."

"We don't even know if there is an operation yet," Yue reminded them.

"I'm still not convinced," said Chiyuu. "Why would Kajiko be targeted if she'd on the killer's side?"

Yoshiko smiled, letting everyone know that she'd had an answer ready at hand for that question. "Because she was going to blab. She was talking to the police."

"Huh?' said Chiyuu. "How the heck would you know that?"

"That weird boy that she kept meeting with, remember?" Yoshiko said, as if this was obvious. "I know he was young, but he acted really official. He was asking her a lot of questions, and she looked pretty nervous about it. Almost like she was being interrogated, huh?"

Chiyuu was beginning to nod along. "So the killer's trying to get rid of anyone who might know about whatever he was up to?" He blinked and then scowled as something occurred to him. "Hey, wait a second! Why would he target Yukihiro, then? You trying to say he's involved in all this?" Chiyuu leapt up from his seat and slammed his fists on the table. "Well you can forget all about that idea!"

"It's all right, Chiyuu," Yukihiro said, tugging on the sleeve of his friend's green sweater, trying to placate him. "I'm sure Yoshiko-san wasn't trying to imply anything."

"I wasn't!" exclaimed Yoshiko hastily. "I can't imagine Yuki-kun being caught up in anything immoral, haha… He's too nice!"

"Don't forget, the first victim was staying at the Amagi Inn," said Yue. "It's possible that the killer thought that Yamano had let something slip to Yukihiro."

They all looked over at Yukihiro Amagi, who turned a delicate shade of scarlet. "He never said anything to me about… about something like that!" he insisted. "Don't you think I would have told you all if he had?" He sat back, a little rattled, and swirled his coffee. "It does all seem to add up, but it's just speculation. It all hinges on the idea that Kajiko was involved with something illegal. I don't know if that's really the sort of person she is."

Exasperated, Yoshiko shook her head. "Come on, Yukihiro-san. Didn't you watch the Midnight Channel? You saw what her Shadow is like! 'My name is Kajiko Tatsumi and I just LOVE being bad?'Just because she used to be all nice and cute when she was little doesn't mean she's still like that now. It's pretty clear that she's bad news."

"Well, are we all ready to go inside the TV and ask Kajiko herself?" asked Yue, standing up and pushing in her chair.

"I'm all in!" agreed Chiyuu, bounding to his feet and saluting. "Man, I've been waiting for you to say that!"

"Wait, wait, wait," Yoshiko said, pulling Chiyuu back down into his seat. "Hold on. What if that's what the killer's expecting us to do? He knows that someone saved Yukihiro, but be probably doesn't know who yet. If we got rushing off the day after Kajiko got kidnapped, that could give us away! We want to stay one step ahead of him, don't we? I think we should lay low for a little while."

Chiyuu shook off Yoshiko's hold. "That's crap! We can't just wait around because we think all this stuff is going on! We don't even know if Kajiko has anything to do with this! It could just be the killer going after people who show up on TV, like we figured before! You're saying we should just leave a fifteen-year-old girl inside the TV world for a little while because she might have been guilty of something?"

"Well…" Yoshiko looked over at Yue pleadingly. "It's up to you to decide, really. You're our leader, aren't you? But I really don't think we should just… rush in to the TV world every time we get the chance to. We… we gotta be careful."

Yue studied the girl's expression and remembered what Yoshiko's Shadow had said. I just came in here to have fun! I don't really care about finding out who killed Sakito-senpai; I just wanted to get some excitement out of this boring-ass town I got stuck with! I'd take any chance I can get to be the hero, huh?

And Yue had been the only one to see these repressed inner feelings. No one else here had been privy to that secret.

"I think Yoshiko is right," she told the group, hoping that she wouldn't regret this decision. "Sorry Chiyuu, but we do have to be cautious about this. We'll have to wait a couple of days before entering the TV world."

The energetic, green-clad boy seemed to go limp with disappointment at this statement like a stalk of wilting grass. "I guess… You're the boss, Narukami." He bounced up on his toes again, trying to make the most out of this turn of events. "I'll be training the whole time, though! You guys can all join me if you want!"

"That sounds like a good plan," Yue said, smiling. "I think that would be fun."

"I'm sorry, Chiyuu, but I have to catch up on work for the inn for the next few days," said Yukihiro, patting his friend's shoulder. "I missed a lot while I was in the TV world, and then while I was recovering, so a lot of paperwork piled up."

"Sheesh…" Chiyuu said wonderingly. "They're really running you ragged, aren't they? Isn't there anyone else who could do all that work?"

"I'm the best at doing the math," Yukihiro ruefully told him. "Dad trusts me the most to do the budgets." He folded his arms and sighed. "I'm only doing it now because he's not going to get that kind of help once I leave the inn."

"I kinda have to help out around Junes a lot," admitted Yoshiko. "We're getting new shipments of produce today, and you know you gotta stock that stuff fast before it goes back." She winked. "Guess it's just gonna be you and Narukami alone together at training, huh?"

Yue went a little pink at the idea, but Chiyuu didn't notice this, and he huffed, "Yeah, I guess so. Why're you making a big deal about it? I don't mind if you two have things you gotta do. I totally get that you've all got jobs and stuff."

"Oh, nothing," said Yoshiko innocently, gathering up the group's plates and cups. When she reached Chiyuu's place she hissed into his ear, "It's still just between the two of us, isn't it?"

"You are so weird sometimes, Yoshiko," the boy grumbled. "Okay, Narukami, let's head outta here."

But the group lingered for a little while, exchanging small talk, a little unwilling to return to their chores. It was only after a couple of store employees noticed Yoshiko and pulled her off to work that the rest of them finally were able to break up the meeting and go their separate ways. Chiyuu eagerly towed a somewhat blushing Yue off, aiming for the Samegawa riverbank, the choice spot for training in his opinion.

"You sure that Yoshi-chan's got the right idea about this?" Chiyuu asked doubtfully, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "If Yukihiro thinks that Kajiko isn't the sort of person to do anything illegal, then I guess I got to trust him on that. He's the only one of us who knows her at all." He bit his lip and then said, "I know you sided with him but… You figure maybe Yoshiko just needed to blame someone for what happened to Sakito Konishi?"

"That's exactly what I think," Yue said, unexpectedly.

"Whaaaat?" exclaimed Chiyuu. "So why'd you go along with her?"

"I think it's important for Yoshiko to feel that she's really doing this because she wants to help people," Yue carefully explained. "And I get the sense that she needs to take those few days before going into the TV world again."

"I guess," Chiyuu said, pulling a face. "Even though that doesn't really make sense, it sort of does when you say it. And she did call me up after the Midnight Channel aired. She sounded pretty freaked out. I mean, the other Kajiko on that show was pretty, uh, out there, but it's weird that Yoshiko would be really bothered by it." He was bouncing back and forth on his tiptoes again, revving himself up for training.

"Everyone does have things that they have to face up to, things they don't want to admit, right?" said Yue. "That's how the TV world works."

"Didn't Yoshiko already face her other self, though?" Chiyuu asked. "She had to have, to get her Persona." He leaned closer. "So…uh… what was it like?"

Yue serenely bowed her head.

"I guess you're not really going to tell me," admitted Chiyuu. "Figures. I… kinda want to figure out what's going on with that chick." He sighed. "She's so silly sometimes, such a goof, but then others she gets all serious, you know? Like she's got the weight of the world on her shoulders… you do that too sometimes, but I mean Yoshi-chan takes it to both extremes."

Yue noticed the faraway look in the boy's eyes and felt a flicker of jealousy. She wasn't about to let the flicker become a twinge, or even a pang, however. Chiyuu and Yoshiko had known each other before Yue showed up, after all, so it was only fair to give them a chance first. They did argue quite a lot, but perhaps that was all part of it.

"Well, anyway, let's get training!" said Chiyuu cheerfully, and high-kicked. "Take that, Shadow scum! Hii-YAH!"

"I don't think I can do that, but I'll try," said Yue, and dutifully drew herself into a fighting stance. "Let's see… left foot here, right foot goes up…"

"Why don't we start with throwing punches?" said Chiyuu after watching this with some interest. He laughed. "So everyone in the movies always stands sorta like this… And then they…" He demonstrated.

"Ah. I can do that," agreed Yue, shifting her weight. "I can definitely do that."

"Okay, cool, now you try throwing a punch at me and I'll try blocking it," said Chiyuu, oblivious to the steely glint that had formed in Yue's eyes. "Ready… one, two, three…"

After Chiyuu had picked himself off the ground and dusted his jacket off, coughing, he nodded. "Yeah, that was… that was pretty good," he grunted. "Right to the stomach… Didn't really expect you to aim there…"

"I'm so sorry," said Yue contritely. "I didn't realize I would knock you over." Perhaps she had allowed the flicker to become a twinge after all, though now it was more someone else's twinge than her own.

Her time in the TV world had certainly heightened her reflexes, a lot faster than it should have. Still, their fighting skills in the real world would always be nothing compared to the Shadow realm, and that wasn't even counting Persona power, but Chiyuu seemed to feel that it was worthwhile training over here. Perhaps it made it easier for him to handle letting time be chiseled away if you occupied yourself. Yue felt she was beginning to understand Chiyuu a little more.

"Yeah, it's all good," said the boy hoarsely, thumping his chest. "I like your style there. Very good balance."

Yue bowed deeply. "Thank you… Sensei."

"Aw, shaddup…" Chiyuu grinned sheepishly. "Don't… don't say things like that so seriously. It makes people think you really mean it or something!"

Yue merely settled back and prepared to try another punch.

Oh, and don't forget to follow this story if you want constant updates (even though I just said updates were going to be less frequent for the next few weeks so it's a moot point).