Before we go into the chapter.

The voice of Takuto Maruki in Persona 5 The Royal, Josuke Higashikata in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Galo Thymos in Promare, Ferdinand von Aegir in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Naofumi Iwatani in The Rising Of The Shield Hero, Naoto Kurogane in BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle, and countless other roles.

Thank you for blessing us with such talent and passion.

Rest in Peace, Billy Kametz.

(1987 - 2022)

Kyoko was looking around the TV world, rubbing her arms. When they had all gone through the TV, she couldn't help but feel uneasy, as if someone was watching her. She brushed it off for now, as they had a mission to complete. The Investigation Team approached Teddie, who was looking away from them.

"Hey, Teddie, you okay?" Chie asked.

"I wasn't crying…" The bear said, flopping down on his face. "Everyone was having fun out there. You forgot about me. I was abandoned."

"W-We would never do that!" Chie said.

"I'm sorry… Were you lonely?" Yukiko asked.

"I was bored. It made me all listless. I'm a useless bear. I don't even know what I am. I couldn't figure it out… No one would come visit me…" Teddie mumbled as he pushed himself back up. "Then I thought I heard voices from your world. They were all having so much fun… I was so lonely that I tried to cry. But I couldn't…"

"Well, you are hollow inside…" Yosuke said, as Kyoko sighed at the lack of tact.

"Shut up! Stop saying I'm hollow!" Teddie snapped.

"Don't snap at me! This is your world, isn't it!?" Yosuke shot back. "You're the one who said you just want to live here peacefully, and made us promise to find the culprit!"

"C'mon, I'm sure Teddie's just tired from thinking so much, right?" Chie said.

"When I'm alone, I think too much. It makes me even lonelier. I was so sad that my chest would burst and cotton would fly out…" Teddie grumbled.

Chie and Yukiko rubbed the top of his head to reassure him. Kyoko was about to do it herself, before Teddie spoke again.

"Can I try scoring with you three someday?" He asked.

Kyoko immediately retracted her hand.

"Sure, go right ahead!" Chie said, surprisingly. Probably to help keep Teddie happy, though Yukiko and Kyoko didn't share that feeling.

"Can we please drop the whole "scoring" thing...?" Yukiko asked, clearly wanting to forget it.

"Anyways, we wanted to ask you something!" Yosuke spoke up. "How's it been over here? Did a girl called Rise Kujikawa show up? Can you sense anything?"

"Rise Kujikawa? Hm...?" Teddie said, clearly unsure.

"You can't tell...?" Yosuke realized. "Your nose is kinda losing its edge lately, huh?"

"I'm a pretty shabby bear…" Teddie said, depressed again. "Soon, I won't be useful at all. Then I'll get thrown away…"

"That's not true." Kyoko almost immediately said.

"I can...stay with you all?" He asked.

"Course you can, Ted." Kanji said, speaking for the first time.

"Okay. Then we'll go look for something that'll help you search, like last time." Chie said.

"I can't tell for sure. But I can kinda sense someone in here… I think I'll be able to find her. I just need some kind of hint." Teddie said.

"I'll talk with Teddie some more, ask if there's anything important." Kyoko said. "The rest of you should head into town and search for possible clues."

The rest of the Investigation Team nodded, as they left.

"There's a lot of things I don't understand." Teddie said quietly.

Kyoko knelt down, patting Teddie on the head. "We'll figure it out together. I promise."

"Thank you beary much. You're really kind, Sensei…" Teddie said with a smile. "I'll try even harder from now on."

Kyoko could feel Teddie's determination as she heard glass shatter in her mind.

Thou art I... And I am Thou...

Thou has established a new bond...

It brings thee closer to the truth...

Thou shalt be blessed when creating Personas of the Star Arcana...

"I'll be waiting here..." He said.

Kyoko turned to the TV exit. "We're all counting on you, Teddie."

The Investigation Team had split up in order to ask around more about Rise. Thinking logically, the first stop Kyoko made was the last place they had seen Rise; Marukyu Tofu. She walked up to the store, seeing Rise's grandmother at work.

"Excuse me?" Kyoko spoke up.

The elder woman looked up from her work. "Oh, you're that girl from the other. Looking for Rise?"

"Yes, I am, Ma'am." Kyoko said. "Do you have any idea where she may be?"

She didn't pull out her detective license for this. She didn't want to cause her to worry about the sudden disappearance of her granddaughter.

"Sometimes she leaves the house without telling me… I hope she's okay…" Her grandmother slightly frowned. "I've heard that some person with a camera has been wandering around recently. I think that person was called a "papa rat" or something. The people in this district try their best to get rid of that person but he just keeps coming back… I heard that he's often at the flood plain."

"Thank you, Ma'am." Kyoko said, before turning and leaving.

The flood plain… I walked by it on my way here earlier, but didn't see anyone with a camera. Perhaps I ought to try tomorrow.

It was raining after school the next day, as Kyoko walked around the flood plain to look for the man Rise's grandmother described. She stopped, seeing a man with an umbrella and camera.

"Damn, it had to start raining the only day I didn't bring my protective case…" He muttered. "I was hoping to get good shots of Rise too…"

"Excuse me." Kyoko said, walking up to him. "What can you tell me about Rise Kujikawa?"

"Huh?" The man raised a brow at the teen. "You're looking for information about Rise, too?"

"I'd appreciate you telling me what you can." Kyoko said.

The man thought for a moment, before proposing an idea. "Well, how about this? Why don't we exchange information? You tell me what you know, I'll tell you what I know. Sounds fair, right? The people in the shopping district are making it hard for me to do any information gathering."

Kyoko tightened the grip on her umbrella. Not only did she lack any information about Rise, but she didn't feel like giving any of said info to the man in the first place. She was just about to turn and walk away, before another voice spoke up.

"How about a different trade?"

They both turned to see a blue-haired girl holding an umbrella, before she took off her hat.

"Sayaka?" Kyoko blinked. "What are you doing here-?"

"N-No way, Sayaka Maizono?!" The man said in shock.

"Why don't you tell us what you know about Rise Kujikawa, and I'll give you a special insider scoop of yours truly?" Sayaka suggested.

"Sayaka, what are you-?"

Sayaka held up a hand, as if saying 'I've got this.'

"Y-Yeah! I'll tell you what I know!" The photographer said quickly, quickly fumbling through a notepad. "Um… she's here in Inaba-"

"I think everyone knows that." Sayaka said.

"R-Right. I looked through a few things, and it's impressive how different her stage personality is compared to her real personality. It's highly unlike you, sweet onstage and off." The photographer said. "Dunno why you drag yourself down with your idol group though, especially that one with the big nose…"

"...say anything more about my friends, and I could show you how sour I can be." Sayaka said with an unfriendly smile as she clenched a fist. Kyoko sweatdropped, hoping the man wouldn't say anything else to enrage her.

"O-Oh, last thing!" The photographer said. "Couple of people said she looked stressed. Well, she's probably just worried about the TV coverage regarding the shocking hiatus. I'd heard that "Risette" was getting tired of her made-up personality. "The real me and the different me who has to act like an idol" ...She couldn't stand living two lives anymore… or something like that."

"Well, thank you." Sayaka said. "Here's the inside info."

Sayaka handed the photographer a slip of paper with some writing on it. The man practically whooped. "This'll make a smash hit of an article! Thank you for this!"

The man ran off cheering, as Kyoko turned to Sayaka.

"Sayaka, you didn't have to-"

"What're friends for?" Sayaka said with a smile.

"But wasn't that private information you have him?" Kyoko asked, concerned.

"Kyoko, I'm not that dumb." Sayaka said. "That's just one of the many slips of paper I have that say something that anyone can just google about me. It's just re-worded in a way that they don't realize it."

"...well, that's at least good to know." Kyoko said, letting out a breath of relief. "But thank you for your help."

"By the way, why are you asking about Rise Kujikawa, anyways?" Sayaka asked. "Is it related to the case you're working on?"

Kyoko briefly hesitated. "Well, I'm working with the police department in Inaba, as my uncle is a detective there. I was asking for information on Rise in case the need arises."

"Oh, it is for the case." Sayaka deduced. "Anyways, I gotta go. I ordered a bike in order to help me get around the place. Don't have my license yet, so no scooter for me."

"I see. Well, I need to meet up with my friends." Kyoko said. "I'll see you later then, Sayaka."

"Right back at you, Kyoko!" Sayaka said, walking in the opposite direction before stopping to look back. Can't hide everything from me, though. Now, to get that bike…

Kyoko regrouped with the rest of the Investigation Team at Junes.

"So you got some info?" Yosuke said. "Oh, sweet!"

"It's really annoying…" Yukiko muttered. "We knew exactly who the culprit would target next, and yet…"

"Eh, what's done is done." Kanji shrugged. "We got no choice now but to go in."

"But man… The Midnight Channel's becoming a mess…" Yosuke said.

"Let's hurry and rescue her!" Chie added, before turning to a certain someone. "Yosuke! You better not slack off, hoping she'll "bare it all" if we take our sweet time!"

"I-I wouldn't pull a stunt like that!" He said.

The girls all stared at him in silence, while Kanji coughed into his fist.

"Wh-What's with the silent treatment!?" He defensively asked. "I won't do that, I swear! Believe me, I know! We'll rescue Rise before the fog sets in!"

Kyoko sighed. "We've spent enough time out here. We should head in now."

"Yeah, let's go!" Chie said.

Making sure no one spotted them, they quickly made their way to the TV. They all put their glasses on.

"I'm still impressed that the cameras never pick up anything…" Kyoko said, adjusting her pair.

"This is a corner of the store that isn't under constant camera view." Yosuke explained. "No one would be dumb enough to try and steal a TV, anyways."

"But aren't we gone for long periods of time?" Yukiko said. "Wouldn't someone realize that we've been in this area of the store for quite a while?"

"As long as it isn't something like vandalization, I don't think anyone cares." Yosuke shrugged. "Besides, my dad would probably let things slide as long as they're not to extreme-"

"Hey! Stop her!"

The teens turned around to see some sort of commotion outside.

"Kyoko~!"

Kyoko widened her eyes. "S-Sayaka?!"

The others all had similar looks of shock. Biking straight towards them was none other than Sayaka Maizono.

"Wait, she's biking in the store?!" Yosuke shouted.

"That's what you're worried about?" Chie said.

"I'm coming too~!" Sayaka shouted, pedaling faster.

"W-Wait a second!" Kyoko yelled, her composure breaking. "Hold on-!"

CRASH

The security guard ran onto the scene, but raised a brow.

There was nothing and no one there.

He rubbed the back of his head in confusion. Was he losing his marbles?

The bike rolled and fell over. Teddie blinked several times to make sure he was seeing correctly. It'd be bad enough if his eyes got as worn out as his nose.

His eyes weren't playing tricks on him this time. As he saw the Investigation Team all fall out of the TV onto the floor.

"Ugh…" Yosuke groaned, before quickly standing up. "Everyone okay…?"

"We're fine!" Chie said, as she and Yukiko sat up. Kanji gave a thumbs-up.

"Wait, where's-?"

"Owie…"

Sayaka sat up, rubbing her head.

"Okay, not one of my better ideas…" Sayaka muttered.

"Um…" Yosuke pointed down. "Maizono-san, can I call you that?"

"Sayaka is fine."

"Okay then, Sayaka-san." Yosuke said, meeting in the middle. "You're sitting on Kyoko."

Sayaka looked down, before yelping and standing up. "Sorry! Sorry!"

Kyoko stood up, before taking a deep breath in and out, rubbing her temples.

"Sayaka… what in the world were you thinking?" Kyoko asked, her voice eerily calm.

Crap, she's pissed! Sayaka thought. A distraction! I need a distraction!

"Wh-Who is she?"

Sayaka turned to see what she assumed was a large plushie walk up to them.

"This is no place for ordinary h-"

"So cute~!"

Teddie didn't finish his sentence, as Sayaka immediately glomped him.

"Oh he's so fluffy and adorable…" Sayaka said, snuggling into him. Forget needing a distraction, she just wanted to cuddle with the giant bear.

"W-Wow… beary nice…" He said quietly.

"The bear's living every teenage boy's dream…" Yosuke said, a hint of envy in his voice. At least, until Chie stamped on his foot. "Ow!"

"Sayaka." Kyoko said, her voice still in the chillingly calm tone.

Well, I'm gonna face the fire at one point or another… She stopped hugging Teddie (much to the bear's disappointment), before turning to face them. "So… I bet you're wondering why I'm here, huh…?"

"That would be a bit of an understatement." Yukiko said with a sigh.

"Well, a while back, I was watching the TV in my room at the Amagi Inn and I saw what I think was Rise Kujikawa?" Sayaka recalled. "She seemed way different though. I know Rise, and she wouldn't be the type to… well, bare it all."

"You watched the Midnight Channel?" Chie asked.

"Yeah." Sayaka said. "Was one of the first things I heard about when I got here, so I was curious. Was pretty surprised when it turned out to be a real thing."

"Go on." Kyoko said.

"Knowing you, Kyoko, I bet you already knew something about it. You don't let anything slip by you, after all." Sayaka reasoned.

"So when I felt someone watching me earlier…" Kyoko realized.

"Yeah, that was me." Sayaka said, rubbing her fingers apologetically. "It's why I showed up when you were interrogating that photographer."

"Looks like you let your guard down, Senpai." Kanji said.

Kyoko would've glared at Kanji, but now wasn't the time. "But why the bike…?"

"I just needed a fast way to get here." Sayaka said. "Not one of the smarter things I've done, I'll admit that."

"Is she always like this?" Chie asked Kyoko.

"Yes." Kyoko said, almost too quickly.

"But enough of me getting interrogated." Sayaka said. "What's this… big foggy place?"

She looked around, seeing all the fog around her (at least from her point of view).

"Should we tell her?" Yosuke asked Kyoko.

"We're sending her back." Kyoko said. "I'm not involving her."

Sayaka almost comically put her hands on her hips. "I'll jump back in here by myself if I need to. And I will do it!"

"Yeah, we believe you, Sayaka-san." Yosuke said, before turning back to Kyoko. "Plus, you did mention that we were on the trail of the killer."

"Are you blaming me?" Kyoko asked.

"No, not that. I think we should keep her close for now, yeah?" Yosuke suggested. "We'll explain the whole situation to her. You get Teddie to sniff out where Rise is."

"...fine." Kyoko said, walking past Sayaka to kneel down to Teddie.

"Sensei… are you angry?" He asked her.

"No. No I'm not." Kyoko said, briefly glancing back as the others talked to Sayaka.

"If you say so… Did you find out more about this girl, Rise-chan?"

Kyoko nodded. "It seems she doesn't know who her "real self" is."

"Hmhm… Her real self… I see…" Teddie said with a nod. "She's just like me. The delicate, sentimental type."

"Delicate?" Kyoko repeated, raising a brow.

"Then… Hrmmm…" Teddie sniffed the air. "Whaah!? There's something out there! Is this it!? Did I find her!? Follow me!"

"Hold on a moment." Kyoko said. "Teddie, do you have a spare pair of glasses?"

"Always have a few." Teddie said, reaching into a pocket and pulling them out and putting it in Kyoko's hand.

"Sayaka." Kyoko said.

The Ultimate Pop Sensation turned, catching the pair of glasses thrown to her. They were a sleek dark blue pair with a bit of a darker tint to the glass, a lot like Kanji's. They had the same rainbow band on the side as all the others did.

"Ooh, these are nice." Sayaka said. "But what do I do with-?"

"Put 'em on." Yosuke said.

"Oh right, you're all wearing glasses." Sayaka remembered as she put them on. The second she did, she took a step back. "Whoa! Where did all the fog go?!"

"Same reaction we all basically had." Kanji remembered. "Basically with those on, all that annoying-ass fog goes away."

"That's convenient." Sayaka said with a smile.

"Lead the way, Teddie." Kyoko said.

"You got it!"

The walk was nowhere near silent, as Sayaka chatted with the Investigation Team (minus Kyoko, who was walking up front with Teddie) and getting to know all of them as they explained the situation.

"So the killer throws people into the TV and they die after a rainy day?" Sayaka asked. "And it's because of these… shadow monster thingies?"

"Shadows." Yukiko said.

"Yeah, those." Sayaka said. "So you guys save the people thrown in here before that happens?"

"That's about it, yeah." Chie said.

"Wow." Sayaka said in awe. "Kyoko being on the trail of a killer is nothing new, but a killer like this is something else. But these Shadows sound pretty tough. How do you guys fight them?"

"Well, with weapons." Yosuke said, holding up his pair of kunai. "And our Personas."

"Personas?" Sayaka said. "What're those?"

"Everyone, stop."

Kyoko held her arm out, as the others stopped walking. It was then that they had noticed that they were in a near-pitch black location.

"What is this place?" Chie said. "It's all dark…"

The moment Chie said that, their surroundings lit up in a burst of light. After letting their eyes get used to the harsh light…

"...I was afraid of this." Kyoko said, fixing her glasses.

They were surrounded by pink curtains with hearts on them. There were several open booths with velvet couches. In the center of them were wooden podiums with metal poles sticking up. Everything was decorated by lights, including a main entrance which was practically beckoning them to come in.

"Whoa…" Chie blinked. "Is this a…?"

"Oh, like the kind you always find in resort towns!?" Yosuke said, a little too excited.

"Ah, I think you're right." Yukiko said. "Oh! B-But we don't have one… Our inn is not like that...!"

"Why are you so defensive when we know that?" Kyoko asked.

"Huh. So this is a strip joint, eh?" Kanji said, rather bluntly.

"Strip!?" Teddie shouted. "Aha! I know what that is! It's the thing zebras have, right!?"

…

…

…

You could hear a pin drop with that silence.

"Strip… Like a zebra, right!? Right!?" Teddie said again.

"It's so bright here… Even with the glasses on, my eyes hurt." Yukiko said, squinting.

"It's not so bad." Sayaka said. "My concerts were way flasher than this."

"...flashier?" Yosuke asked, trying not to laugh at his own joke.

"Not that way!" Sayaka said, blushing. "I meant by lights! …well okay, there was that one sicko fan…"

"Doesn't anyone get the joke!?" Teddie asked. "Okay, let's try one more time… Strip...It's something zebras have…"

"Can anyone shut this thing up!?" Chie shouted.

"Teddie, right?" Sayaka said. "Here's a tip. A joke isn't funny when you have to explain it."

"Huh? Zebra...?" Yukiko looked away from the lights and back to the group. "Sorry, what're we talking about?"

"I-I won't say it again…" Teddie muttered. "Let's hurry on…"

"Alright, first order of business." Kyoko said. "Sayaka, you're staying by the entrance."

"Oh no, none of that!" Sayaka said, crossing her arms. "I'm coming with you, and that's final!"

"Sayaka, it's dangerous where we're going-"

"Oh, don't you pull that on me!" Sayaka said with a frown. "We've been through a lot of tough things together!"

"Wait, this isn't your first case?" Yukiko asked.

"If I told you just how many times Kyoko ended up getting a classmates help for her cases, we'd be here for a long time-"

"You all involve yourself in them." Kyoko said. "I never asked you to help me. And this is different, Sayaka."

"If I had a nickel for every time you said "this is different" to one of us, I'd have… I wanna say 73 nickels." Sayaka counted.

"Sayaka-"

"Just cut to the chase." Sayaka said. "I know you're gonna cave because you realize me staying here by myself is a really bad idea."

The others looked at Kyoko, who was silent at Sayaka's words.

"Whoa." Kanji said. "How'd you know that?"

"Because I'm a psychic." Sayaka said with a wink.

Yosuke and Chie rolled their eyes, though Yukiko and Kanji looked impressed.

"But nonetheless, Kyoko." Sayaka turned back to her friend, before reaching out and grabbing one of her hands. "I want to help you."

Kyoko looked down at Sayaka's hand grasping hers. She felt Sayaka's fingers rub across her gloves.

"Fine." Kyoko said, feeling their bond grow stronger. "Just promise me that you'll stick with us and be careful."

"You have my word." Sayaka smiled.

"So does this mean that Sayaka-san's officially part of the team, then?" Yosuke grinned. "This is so cool."

"I'll say." Chie said, as Kanji nodded in agreement. "Never thought I'd see the day an idol joins us."

"Welcome to the team, Sayaka-san." Yukiko said.

"I appreciate the warm welcome." Sayaka smiled, before raising a fist upwards. "Now, let's go save Rise!"

"Right." Kyoko said, as they turned to the entrance of the welcoming dungeon. "Let's go, everyone."

"Yeah!"

Kyoko's Social Links:

Magician (Yosuke Hanamura): Rank 8

Chariot (Chie Satonaka): Rank 7

Priestess (Yukiko Amagi): Rank 7

Emperor (Kanji Tatsumi): Rank 2

Star (Teddie): Rank 1

Justice (Nanako Dojima): Rank 3

Hierophant (Ryotaro Dojima): Rank 3

Fool (The Investigation Team): Rank 4

Hope (Hope's Peak Academy Students): Rank 3

A/N: A little shorter this time around, as we basically only covered the lead-up to Rise's dungeon.

Sayaka biking in like that is a direct reference to Kamen Rider Saber, btw.

And now, we have another big mix-up here. I did tease that Sayaka was gonna be involved, but I never went on exactly how much, did I? I enjoy teasing my readers like this. And I still haven't delved in all the way on what I have planned for her.

Why is Sayaka getting this involved, you may ask? A couple of reasons. The first is that I had always planned for another Investigation Team member that was from the Danganronpa cast. I narrowed it down to someone from the first game, since Kyoko would bounce off them much easier than someone from the casts of the other two games since they'd actually be classmates. I was juggling on who to use, until I read "I Told You, I'm Psychic!" by MaizonosMyGirl, which is a Danganronpa AU where Sayaka's the main protagonist instead (the fic is on AO3, for the readers on FF net wondering where to find it). Sayaka's one of the prime examples of a character not being utilized to their fullest potential. And if you know me, I like a lot of characters that don't have a lot of time in a narrative (such as Chelsea in Akame ga Kill, Kanade in Symphogear, Flora in Fire Emblem Fates, and Yuto in Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V to name a few), so I felt like giving her a shot in this story. She's a fun character to write for too, and with Rise's arc starting, it felt like the perfect time for her to fit right into the story. She was initially going to be just a quick guest character like Mahiru and Mondo, but I ended up expanding a lot more for her, as you've already seen.

As for her Shadow and Persona? I'll leave that part unanswered for now. Can't reveal my full hand this early, can I?

Feel free to leave a review. See you all next time.