In response to his voice, Mako slammed his knee into the desk, presumably out of surprise. Sato cringed when he saw the pain on the second year's face. Sato watched the younger teen eagerly as he awaited his response, and what he got was not what he expected, so Mako's laugh came out as a bit jarring.

"Am I cool with it? Are you? I thought for sure you were gonna have security take me away when I was just standing there like an idiot in your hospital room!" Mako said, getting out of his seat as he continued on. "Yeah, I'm perfectly comfortable putting all that awkward BS behind us. No problem."

"That's great," Sato said, almost under his breath.

"Well, uh... did you want to grab something to eat? I know a few decent places in town. My treat?"

At that suggestion, Sato perked up again. He was about to say yes without a second thought, since it legitimately sounded good, but he immediately recalled two things: archery practice, and Rokurou's text. Would it be... good, to just kinda skip over that? It'd be kinda awkward to shoot down anything Mako was going to suggest immediately after saying that he wanted to reconcile.

"Sure," Sato replied, switching to a more comfortable position with his weight shifted to one hip. "Let's do that."


Sato found himself at some restaurant Mako dragged him to. Thankfully, the younger boy didn't try to pull some weird joke and try to take them over to the maid cafe. They were seated by the winow, as per Sato's request, and were waiting for their meals. Despite the friendly setting and the conversation they mustered, Sato's mind was sidetracked. The place they were at was very close to the alley he was kidnapped in. For some reason, there was a vivid memory of this particular restaurant in his head. Thinking about it, he wasn't sure if Mako knew that Sato was a victim of the cult, let alone if he even cared about it all. Well, Mako showed at the hospital. He had to have known, right? Thinking back on it, Sato wanted to say it was Mako who'd asked about the kidnappings before the exams, but he soon recalled that it was that one Toma kid.

Sato sighed, leaning back into his chair. When would their food arrive? He was hardly following the conversation anymore, only reply to whatever Mako was saying with the same amount of thought of when he was showering in the morning. After the whole shadow incident, he'd wanted peaceful days to deal with everything, but since the persona ability came with facing your shadow, it was only natural that he was to be thrust into a much more exciting life soon. Sure, he could've said no to Rui when he asked him to join the team, but if he could use the power he acquired to save others that were kidnapped... how could you say no?

Oh, food's done.

Sato didn't even remember what he ordered. It was some kind of donburi or something. He didn't even care, really. Anything sounded good. It tasted pretty good too, Sato decided as he started eating it. Whatever they were talking about died out once the food arrived, and Sato stared at the steam rising from their table until the silence was almost painful.

"Hey," Sato said, "About those kidnapping... do you know anything about them? As in, have you ever seen anything of the cult around town?"

Things were going better than anticipated, which made Mako feel a lot better about this whole debacle. As a rule, he had deliberately avoided the Star Drop Cafe, and in fact had tried to find a place as far away from that whole situation as possible. He'd have to be some kind of an asshole (or idiot) to think going back there was a good idea. Besides, this place had the best yakisoba in town- what wasn't there to love?

Still, even with the nice conversation and the smell of their food drifting in from the kitchens, Sato seemed... distracted. Like his mind was in two different places- here, and somewhere else.

Well, obviously. It hasn't even been ten days since he was kidnapped. Less than a day since he's been back. Of course he's going to be sidetracked.

That was the other subject he'd been deliberately avoiding today. While he was burning with questions about it, he figured that anything Sato had wanted to say about it had already been said a dozen times to a dozen different people. Pushing any further wasn't going to make him remember or want to reveal anything else. And besides, if he was right, the upperclassman probably wanted to forget all this had happened in the first place, and tearing open that wound was... counterproductive.

Mako perked up when their food had arrived, sizzling pleasantly- his yakisoba, and Sato's donburi. Excellent choice. They ate in silence for a little while, before Sato seemed to gather himself slightly.

"Hey," Sato said, "About those kidnappings... do you know anything about them? As in, have you ever seen anything of the cult around town?"

Mako paused, a bite of noodles halfway to his mouth. Hmm. Now he's bringing it up. Unexpected, but... He set the bite of food and his chopsticks down with equal care, pondering Sato's question.

"I... I know very little about the case, to be honest. I mean, it's not like this cult is running around in broad daylight, flapping their robes around like idiots- might be bad for their reputation, such as it is. All I really know is... I guess what everyone else knows. A lot of kids go missing for a few days, then just as mysteriously as before, come back."

He looked out the window, his expression going stern. "I don't like it. For the first part, they're targeting kids. That's pretty messed up, I have to say. And worse, no one seems to know why. The police are completely baffled, it seems like, or they just don't care, since everyone has come back. Well, what if next time, they don't? What if someone gets hurt, or worse? What's it going to take for someone to take all of this seriously...?"

His hands clenched slightly.

"But you know what the worst part is? How useless I feel. My classmates are getting picked off, one by one- or even two by two, now- and there's not a damn thing I can do to help. Shirohane-san... she's in my class. What if she didn't come back? What if you hadn't? What if next time... something really bad happens?

"...And no matter how much I keep wondering about it, it's not going to help anything. I mean, I'm just 17, I'm basically still a child. I can box, sure, I can fight, and I know my way around town, and I'm handy with a knife when I need to be... but what can I really accomplish? I'm not a detective. I'm not a policeman. I'm just a high school student who did better than anticipated on his midterms. Which, given the circumstances, doesn't amount to much."

He sighed, then turned back to Sato, a rueful grin starting to spread across his features. "Sorry. Guess that got a little too heavy for a minute there. I just... I wish I could do more," he said, staring at his half-touched yakisoba. Suddenly he wasn't as hungry for it anymore.

Ryan walked out of class with a frown on his face. It was strange, he was close to catching up completely but he was still unhappy. He was going to do very well grade wise, yet nobody was around to see his good grades. His mother was constantly busy and his father was... yeah. He headed over to the Anime and Manga club and sat down at a close desk. He pulled out a copy of the new RWBY manga, he watched the show on YouTube, and began reading.

After a few minutes he looked up and realized that he was the only one there. Man, he was a real loser. Showing up more often than the actual president. He shrugged and went back to his manga. He didn't have anyone to impress.

The day came to a swift end as the teacher concluded his lecture, he announced that they'd be having a test on the subject on Friday, making Ayano groan, she didn't understand the topic all that much...Maybe she should spend less time on her games and more on her studies, but then again...It's not like it's going to be the end of the world if she fails...With a sigh, the brunette rose from her seat and grabbed her bags, today was a club day so it'd be nice to lounge around for a while. Curiously, Akane didn't come over the other day, what happened? Must've been something important...Or she just couldn't be bothered to. Shrugging, she made her way to the club room, opening the door and much to her surprise that Ryan kid was actually there! Why he didn't attend on Monday is a mystery to her.

Entering and greeting the boy, Ayano set up her bag near her seat and stretched for a while. Deciding to break the ice between them the girl decided to make small talk, "RWBY, eh?" she said, a hand on her chin. Truth be told, she never actually watched the show, but she has heard of it...That and its creator is dead. Surprising they managed to keep the legacy up until now. Deciding to ask a question, she looked straight to his eyes. "So...What's it about?" What made her even more curious is the fact it has its own manga, astonishing jump from 'Animation' to 'Manga', huh.

Rui decided to stop by the manga club. There weren't any exams in the near future, and in the wake of exams everyone wants to unwind so maybe he should too. As he opened the door, he realized there were only two people here... The Ryan kid from before, and this girl... He recognized her, Ayano? In any case he simply took a seat too. It looks like she was asking about RWBY, the manga in Ryan's hands.

"Ah, that series. Simply put it's about an Academy of fighters who fight against monsters called Grimm, as well as occasionally other kinds of forces. RWBY, R-W-B-Y is the name of the main character's team... As well as her name", he explained quickly. If he remembered, the comic only started... Very recently. The animation was a fair bit through already if he remembered correctly. The first season was already done by now.

"You're better off watching it though. The choreography is amazing, not something you can capture in comic form", he suggested.

Out of the blue, an unfamiliar boy waltzed into the room without making his presence known, talk about a dynamic entry. As he went on to explain the gist of the show, Ayano's curiosity skyrocketed. Sure, it was far from being an original premise, but the way he said it made it seem like it was well-worth watching. "Oh, is that so?" The brunette could swear she almost had a sparkle in her eyes, it was settled then; first thing she's going to do when she gets home is to watch the series THEN read the manga. The cover certainly was an eye-catcher.

There was lull in the air, Ayano began to realize something, it had been bugging her ever since that boy entered. "Not to be rude but...Who the hell are you?" the girl said, her eyebrows furrowing in an almost annoyed manner. She certainly hadn't seen this guy before, did Akane not mention him? Then again, Ayano doesn't know that much people.

Ryan looked up and saw Ayano standing near him asking about his manga. He took a quick glance around to make sure she wasn't talking to anyone else and stared at her. His gaze brightened somewhat as he thought of a response. "The series is a bit complicated and it has a very deep lore. Let me think for a second... Well, the series is about-" Ryan was then soundly interrupted by a new person.

The new person had an aura of confidence about them, practically the exact opposite of Ryan. He seemed to know about RWBY though, so he was alright in his book. "Yeah, that's exactly what it's about. There's a Japanese dub out right now if you're interested. It's the first American anime to be dubbed in Japan." Ryan smiled and looked at the new boy. "Although I must ask as well, who are you? I'm Ryan Chideta, a recent transfer student." Ryan closed his manga and reached out his hand for a handshake.

Although surprised, Mako ended up answering his questions and a little more. Sato tried a bit more of the food he ordered as he listened to the second year talk about the incidents. After hearing the despair in some of Mako's words, Sato felt a little disheartened. Mako was right. Whatever skills they had, whatever they've accomplished, they were still just highschool students trying to make it through the next test.

But that was wrong. He'd never fought a day in his life, but he had a bow, a persona, and some heart. If Rui and the others didn't fight back because they're 'just kids', who would? With a new found determination sparkling in his eyes, Sato looked up from the rice dish and at Mako's face.

"We're not getting 'picked off', Mako. We all made it back safely, right? I can't say why, but I'm confident that next time, if someone gets kidnapped, they'll come back just like I did. You can beat me up if I'm wrong." Before he could continue on his sudden whim of inspiration, Sato stopped for a second and realized how dumb that sounded. He started snickering at himself, a wry smile on his face. "Forgive me for being weird. I just... really hope that this ends soon. It's kinda hard waking up every morning, a nagging worry in the back of your mind about if someone got kidnapped. Especially after, y'know..."

Sighing heavily, Sato put down his chopsticks. "I... I can't really do this right now. I'm sorry." And with that, he pushed himself up, getting the rest of his food to go and setting his half of the bill in front of Mako. It wasn't that he was in a debilitating melancholy, but it was just hard to keep being at this restaurant with Mako after everything that's been happening. He'd forgotten the reality of everything for a while, when he was in the hospital, but the memories of being kidnapped, the fear he had felt in that place...

He couldn't stand to let Mako see him tearing up. Stepping outside of the restaurant, Sato wiped his eyes with his fingers, brushing the liquid off on his pants. Before he started heading home, Sato finally decided to check his phone. Surprisingly, the message wasn't the cue to head over to Rokurou's place, but instead a heads up about some thing they needed to do during practice today.

Hopefully it wasn't important.

"Rui Shinichi, I'm also a member of this club... Although Akane isn't around to account for that", he responded, introducing himself as he got comfortable at the table.

"I think I saw you Ryan last time I was here, but you were busy reading, so I guess you didn't see me, I was only here briefly last time", in any case, today seemed to be fairly standard, and with no exams or anything keeping them down, they basically just did whatever they wanted. Eventually they all relegated to their manga of choice after discussing a few newer series popping up, and naturally the day ended like that. Rui would be the first of the three to leave, bidding them farewell at the end of the day.



It was Saturday, so school was out extra early. The school week went by pretty quickly, and being rather uneventful. He spoke with Kotori and Sato throughout the week about the whole shadows and personas thing. In any case, today he was out to do grocery shopping, but he went out early to have his own fun for awhile. The weather was pretty good, it was cloudy, but projected to rain lightly tomorrow. He considered going to visit Shizu, though he seemed to have seen Kami at the shops today too. He wanted to ask how the investigation was going, but Kami seemed far too busy to bother him at the moment. Maybe he should head to the game arcade today... Oh well, in any case, he had the day to himself.

Ayano groaned as the bell rang and signaled the end of their classes. She still can't believe why they're slaving away at school when they could be perfectly comfortable in the confines of their houses? It just boggled her mind, but what was she going to do about it? With no club meetings for the day the girl decided she might as well do something productive in her time. The Shopping square seemed like the perfect place to go, and with extra money with her today, she might as well spend half of her allowance on the arcade or maybe buy something new, her closet isn't the most impressive out there, but who was she going to impress anyway? Destination in mind, the brunette began to head to the shopping center, hoping to get her mind off of school and into the upcoming weekend.



"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all..." the girl sighed, it's probably been forty-minutes ever since she entered the shopping center but all she's done is window shopping. Whenever she came across an item she seemed mildly interested in, she would either change her mind or simply didn't have enough money for it. Just as she was about to give up, a familiar figure did she chance upon. All she could do was groan in disbelief, of all the people to have crossed paths with today it had to be Kami. Sutoraiki Kaminari. Her childhood friend that, as much she won't admit, is arguable her closest friend. Then again, it had been a while since the two ever hung out, there was the time he offered to walk her home but that didn't exactly go according to plan. Maybe now was the time for that chance to arise again? Breathing deeply, she walked towards her friend, mustering up the courage to talk to him. Ayano didn't want to admit it, but she always felt a little embarrassed whenever she found herself talking to Kami, what was so embarrassing about talking to an old friend anyway? They made small talk and conversed for a while, catching up on each others lives and making small mentions of the rumors of the cult that have been plaguing the city.

Eventually, the two were walking out of the center, still talking to one another about how it had been too long since they've talked to each other and how she's actually slowly becoming more sociable, the brunette just brushed it off, her cheeks emitting a soft pink glow. Little did they know that light rain had already started to fall, Ayano didn't even bother to bring an umbrella because the forecast wasn't exactly sure as well.

Thankfully, her friend seemed to have taken precautions and reached into his bag to bring out an umbrella, asking her one more time if he can walk her home. The girl wasn't sure what to do...Her heart was pounding hard, she swore she could almost feel every beat reverberate in her ears, her eyes kept on looking back and forth to Kami and the umbrella, she didn't know what to do...Was it okay? Is it okay? What was she feeling? Barely a word escaping her mouth, Ayano quickly began to run away from the boy, he voiced his shock and began to trail on her. No...No...What was she doing? Why is she running away again? She thought she was finally able to come clean and say it right to his face, but she was wrong, dead wrong. The clouds began to take on an ominous shade as the rain poured heavily on the city, her footsteps and the pitter patter of the rain were the only things she could hear, Kami's not long behind hers. Her legs began to feel weak and as fortune would have it, an alleyway was readily available for her, disregarding anything else but her pursuer, she quickly ducked into the alley, her panting could almost echo throughout the alley. She closed her eyes and clutched her head as she slumped.

"What's wrong with me?!"

She cried out, the rain evolving into a violent storm and turning her into a soaking mess. She stayed in that alley for a few minutes, hoping to have lost Kami, but given her situation right now, what she wouldn't do to have the boy escort her right in front of her house...She wanted nothing to do right now than go home. Her ears picking up the sounds of light footsteps she looked up with a smile, hoping her friend had come to her rescue...However, her smile changed into a look of horror as she looked up to see a robed figure, looming over her like a predator catching its prey. There she was, looking straight into the eyes of the same cult she was investigating, and where it led her, she didn't want to know anymore. The girl's whole body froze from outright fear, her brain only said one thing right now 'Run!'. With all of her strength, she quickly darted to the other side of the alley only to be stopped by more of the shady members, before she could even react, a man from behind had gripped one of her arms tightly, disabling her chances of escape. Within mere seconds, a cloth had been pressed to her mouth, filling her nostrils with a nauseating scent, her vision starting to blur and her body becoming weak.

Why? Why? Why? The thought looped on repeat in her mind as she struggled to keep herself awake. Why her? What did she do? What could they have possibly wanted with someone like her? It didn't make any sense, and the more she tried to think of it, the more her vision started to darken. Soon she felt nothing and her consciousness drifted away...

Akane Hanazawa // Warakuma Recreational Center
Saturday, June 6th, 2015
After School

After a tiring a week of dealing with a double dungeon and Kendo practice the following day, she decided it was time for her to take a break and relax. And for that break, it finally gave her a reason to check out the new rec center she never had the time to check out. There were many things to do but in the end, she decided on swimming. It's been quite a few years since the last time she was able to swim, given how distracted and busy she was. She been to plenty hot springs to relax in but swimming in a pool was something else entirely. She could get some exercise in while having fun at the same time, killing two birds with one stone.

Staring at the ceiling of the center as the floated about on her back, her thoughts turned to Kotori. Akane felt a little guilty about not visiting her in the hospital. Even though they weren't particularly close with her, she was a classmate who just went through the same ordeal as her, she could've at least she was ok. Kotori had to have been confused as she was after everything but considering her growing disdain for hospitals, she decided against it. Plus, she was sure Rui would drop by and clear everything up like he did for her. Kotori was in good hands, probably. She grinned as she turned over and began swimming seriously.

"Phew... It's finally complete." Hidden hazel eyes gazed proudly at the majestic, white long coat settled atop the sewing machine table. With just one glance, one can clearly tell that it was a male wear but what they wouldn't know was that Shizuka had tailored it specifically for herself. No, she did not discover a new true passion as a crossdresser to seduce young maidens to fall for her dashing, male counterpart looks. It was quite simple, the theme for the incoming week at the cosplay cafe she worked at was gonna be a royalty banquet with princes and princesses. But it doesn't end there, the waiters and waitresses are required to crossdress.

The thought of being in charge of the make up and hair dressing the waiters into princesses excited the raven haired girl as it posed a challenge. Briefly recalling the incident with Sato, she had more practice with the make up kit to further improve her skills and techniques ever since. She'll have the waiters transform into elegant, graceful princesses or she'd die trying or at least to the point where she can't lift a make up brush anymore. But of course, not only was the cosplayer practicing to make males into pretty females, she had to try her hands at the other way around too. Since she hadn't cosplayed male characters or masculine characters so far, all she could manage to pull off was to make herself look bishonen or pretty boy and nowhere near masculine. Oh well, at least modern Japanese girls were into those types nowadays. If it pleases the customers then she saw no problem with it.

Aside from her long coat prince outfit, the costume that Rui had ordered to be made was done as well. It had actually been done a little earlier in the week but Shizuka figured that informing him on the weekend would probably be more convenient for the other. Bringing out her mobile phone from her purse, she texted away:

Subj: Costume ready for pick up ♪
The costume you had me make is done, Shinichi-senpai! You may come and pick it up any time. In case I'm not available, just make sure to inform the lady at the desk that you're there to receive the order for Shinichi, Rui!
- Shizu

Ryan wandered about the mall, looking for some form of decoration for his room. Maybe something anime related? That seemed to be his latest hobby, a strange one but a hobby nonetheless. Oh wow, he finally has a hobby. Cool. Ryan sat down at a nearby bench and pulled out his phone. What were the popular anime nowadays? If he had a hobby then he should probably get stuff related to the popular anime. After a few minutes he had a list. Naruto, Bleach, some more obscure stuff like Nanatsu No Taizai and Black Lagoon, and RWBY. That was the one thing he already knew about.

He made his way to some sort of shop for anime and manga and began browsing. After about ten minutes he had bought way too much stuff. He struggled to walk out of the store with all his bags of stuff, passing by the game arcade before collapsing in a nearby bench. Ryan looked at all of his anime and manga related merchandise and sighed. Perhaps 30 pounds of figurines, posters, manga, and DVDs was too much. He may have also blown his monthly spending allowance. "I doubt she'll notice." He whispered to himself, unsure of whether he was assuring himself or stating a fact. He looked at the game arcade and shrugged. Ryan picked up his bags and walked in, heading straight for the Street Fighter machine.

"I saw them...", he said.

"I saw them, and I didn't do a thing!", Kami was definitely beating himself up over this. He explained earlier that he saw the cultists take Ayano, which was why he called everyone here. He spent all of Saturday calling everyone to go on that very day, but Rui reasoned that he needed to calm down and approach this carefully. If they went in such an emotional mess, they would surely do more harm than good. Today Kami seemed more calm.

"They had masks, so I couldn't identify them, and when they turned the corner, they were just... Gone. I suspect they have a truck and were immediately ready to move... Why would they even take her? What is their motive...", there was silence. No one knew the answer to that.

"Rui, take me with you this time", it wasn't a request. It was an order, but it wasn't like Rui was going to refuse this time.

"Understood, but if you do anything reckless I'll stop you myself", he warned. With that figured out, they watched as Kazuki and Megumi emerged from the big mirror.

"I've managed to confirm where she may be, Tadao and Riku are already on their way there, so we should take a bit of time to prepare to move", with that agreed, the party began checking their inventories.\

The team was two stronger this time. Sato and Kotori showed up too this time. Rui was still thinking of the party to take along, but it looked likely the party was going to be Kotori, Sato and Kami. He would have Akane in charge of the backup crew though, since Kami was in the front line with him.

Kotori Shirohane - Shirohane Flower Shop | Saturday, June 6 2015 - After School

With a bow and a still awkward attempt at a bright smile, Kotori thanked the newest customer and bid them goodbye - before breathing a small sigh of relief after they were gone. Though she'd promised herself to put herself forward a little more, it wasn't exactly going to just happen from one day to another. Still, she did at least not feel like shrinking away all the while she was talking, so maybe there was some hope at least. Seeing as there were no other customers in the store at the moment, she looked around the shop - even as her thoughts slowly returned to the events of the past week.

As expected, there'd been a lot of buzz about the whole kidnapping - but once it became clear that there wasn't much more to go on than last time, the school-wide interest died down as quickly as before. As such, it was soon back to business as usual - even if Kotori was slightly worried about how much she might have missed due to her absence.

Then there'd also been the talk with Rui - though they'd spoken about the subject on the phone already, that had been mostly clarifications and summaries, leaving the details for later. Once this later came to pass, things became a lot more clear - and less so at the same time. The kidnappings, the strange other worlds and the powers they had there, what they knew about shadows and personas - it was mostly guesswork as there just was so little to actually go on besides what they'd experienced directly. Still, it was good to know that there were those out there who would try and help - and Kotori only reconfirmed that she would do so too.

Agriculture Club, meanwhile, had been a little odd. Not out of the ordinary necessarily, but knowing that Matthew was a fellow persona holder - and had been so for longer without her knowing - did feel feel slightly on the strange side. He did seem a bit apologetic about the whole matter, but seeing as going further into the matter with Shizuka present would be a little difficult, Kotori was left to wonder exactly why that would be.

Kotori's thoughts were brought to an abrupt halt when a sudden movement before her caused her to nearly jump in surprise - which, a moment and a breath of relief later, turned out to be her mother's hand being waved in front of her face. Apparently, she'd been deeper in thought than she'd known or intended - much to the amusement of her mother, judging by the smile on her face and the way she laughed when Kotori quickly apologised for it before focusing back on the shop here and now.

Kotori Shirohane - Abandoned Warehouse | Sunday, June 7 2015

Hearing the boy who'd been introduced to her as Kaminari, or Kami for short, talk about what had unfolded the previous day left a heavy feeling on Kotori - and everyone else, judging by the silence that followed his question. After it was decided that he'd be going along, Megumi informed them that the other two from Shoujin High, Tadao and Riku, were already underway ahead of them and recommended everyone get their preparations done.

Looking about, Kotori wasn't quite sure what to do - she'd been given a very brief rundown and introduction, but little more given the pressing matter. Megumi had helpfully identified Kotori's Persona's abilities more closely whilst Rui had explained that the rather large assortment of strewn about was intended for use on the other side, given that they were able to bring equipment with them - and having a backup weapon would never be a bad idea. Furthermore, it had been decided that she'd be on the team going in - together with Rui and Kami as well as Sato, who had been kidnapped on the same day as her. On one hand, Kotori was glad to be of help - but on the other, she couldn't help but feel nervous about it. Still, she promised to do her best and fully intended to uphold said promise.

JUNE 6RD 2015, SATURDAY
Afterschool
"Say cheese."

Click.

The picture of Rokurou sitting on the floor, Naomi perched on a stool behind him, was so cute it made Sato nauseous. The way Roku's hair floofed up reminded Sato of a bird. Aside from the noxious levels of adorability, looking at Naomi in the photo sent a pang of benign jealousy through the teen's body.

Rokurou ripped the camera from Sato's hands, tossing it into some random cardboard box to the side. "Rude," Sato said, walking up and over to the box the camera was thrown into to. "This'll be for stuff I'll keep, okay?"

"Yeah," Rokurou continued sorting through the box he had his legs wrapped around, occasionally putting things in a different box or staring at something for a while. Seating himself by some other mound of junk, Sato continued shifting through for things of interest or relevance. The general rule Rokurou gave to him and Naomi for sorting was that anything that anything they'd think would be important to him or his family was to be kept. It was a little vague, but turned out to be easy enough. For example, the priceless family heirloom was to be put in the designated box. The finger painting his baby brother did was not. The trombone was kept. The Beginner's Guide to Guitar was not.

"Remind me why we're cleaning out your garage, Rokurou."

"Because," he said, pointing at Sato with what looked to be the remnants of a baseball bat. "it's basically my closet. And Dad said I had to."

Sato rolled his eyes, before continuing on with the monotonous task of prepping for a move. The reality of the situation started creeping back into his mind, though he quickly forced his thoughts onto something else once a sense of melancholy started eating at him. The object of his focus became an archery bag. Opening it up, he found a worn-beyond-use bow and a bunch of arrows. Normally, he'd just toss them considering the age and apparent use of it all, but the arrows packed in with the bow caught his attention. They were... real. Well, not really. They were the same kind of arrows they had at the range, though the heads were replaced with something a little more sharp. Is that illegal? Why Rokurou had them, he could only guess. The conversation Sato'd had with Rui a while back flashed through his mind again. If he were to go into that 'mirror world' and fight 'shadows', something more potent than the practice arrows he had would be helpful.

Stashing them beneath books and sheet music, Sato got up to set the box he'd been filling with undesired desirables outside the garage door, to be taken on his way out at the end of their cleaning adventure.

---

JUNE 7TH 2015, SUNDAY
Mid-day
"I saw them..." The boy said.

Sato stood beside the other new member of the team, Kotori Shirohane. He was unsure of her abilities, but regardless, she had the power of a persona and was sure to be a strong asset. While they were already acquainted with the majority of their team members, anyone that was left were done moments ago. The witness, a boy named Kaminari apparently, urged the team on to get moving, but everyone decided to be careful and prepare accordingly. Additionally, hearing the name Riku surprised Sato a bit. He only knew one Riku... there was no way that guy was in the team too.

Slipping the archery bag off from his shoulder, Sato bent down to sort through his equipment. He figured if he was going to fight, he'd use a weapon he was used to. How potent years-old makeshift arrows would be on shadows, Sato had no idea. Well, he had no idea what a shadow was even. Or how to use his persona, even. Megumi had given him and Kotori a quick rundown on everything and what they specifically could do, at least. Either way, Sato had a dozen arrows and the bow he'd gotten a few months back strapped to his back. It was only then that he realized a fatal flaw in his plan. If he ran out of arrows or had to fight close range, all he had were his arrows and persona. He needed something better. Something a little more reliable...

And Sato found just that. There was a spread of equipment on a table nearby, and upon rustling through it a bit, the teen found just the thing. Drawing it out of its sheath to quality-check, Sato picked up a knife from the table. Hopefully nobody else needed it, as he was taking it. Now feeling adequately prepared, knife at his side and bow weighing at his back, Sato walked over to where Rui was, waiting for some kind of order. Though it was undeniable that the pit in his stomach was of fear, there was no stopping now. He could do something about the cult's kidnappings, and he'd made a promise to.

"So this is where she is...", he muttered. Kami was already quick to rush in. Sato and Kotori were new to this, but he explained to them briefly to simply follow his lead.

This dungeon looked probably the most familiar out of all the dungeons they've been to so far... It was a house, Rui didn't recognize it, but Kami made a note that it looked exactly like Ayano's house save for the foreboding atmosphere and the fact that it looked pixelated. Sure enough emerging from it's doors was Tadao and Riku. Riku looked a little pissed, while Tadao was as calm as usual. He explained Riku was pissed since he wanted to keep going, but without support and more party members it was too risky. The

"It's strange though... It looks exactly like a normal house inside, but it also goes on and on forever... It doesn't feel like this dungeon has an end, which is unique", that was true... So far all the dungeons had a progression. It was likely this one did too, but this winding style they described was likely just one of those stages.

"Well, we should get going, before Kami decides to go it alone...", he recommended.

"Akane, be ready to rush in, in case we call for back up", with that agreed, the party headed on through the doors.

It was as they said... It didn't look too different from a normal house. Of course, Kami would know it was Ayano's house, recognizing every single detail. At the same time akin to the exterior of the house, many features seemed to have a retro pixelated style. This portion seemed to be just... Walking around the house, it didn't feel at all like a dungeon... It was quiet. At the same time it was also as Tadao and Riku said, it went on and on forever. They went through door to door, and everything repeated...

"These must be some kind of trick... Everyone take a look around, there's probably some shadows hiding out", it was probably the doing of some shadows... They just had to find them.

"Megumi, run a scan for this area",

"... Can't... Out!... zzzzz.... bzzzt..."

"Huh...?", this was strange, their communications were being jammed or...? Well in any case, at least they can depend on Kami's fervour for this. He had already begun looking for a way through. After a bit of searching it turns out the next area to go to is the second floor, and as Rui can predict, Ayano's bedroom...

"Looks like communications aren't working...", he muttered. It was troubling, but there was only one way, and that was forward, not to mention Kami wouldn't have it any other way.

Sato found themselves entering the dungeon before long, with the two people that were in it emerging (also confirming that yes, it was the Riku he had met), with the simple instructions of following Rui's lead. It seemed only he, Kotori, and that Kaminari guy were heading into the dungeon at the moment. Sato didn't really have an opinion on the party composition. Rui and Kami were basically the oldest members of the group (not counting those private school kids), so it made sense they'd be there with the two rookies.

Entering the dungeon, it wasn't really what Sato expected. Sure, that room his shadow was in was basically just some office but weird, but this... This dungeon was essentially just a house. Apparently, it looked like the victim's, Ayano's, house. Though, something was off. Sato didn't notice it immediately due to his nerves, but upon entering the place, the teen noted the peculiar appearance of the place. Everything was... pixelated? Like an old game's style of pixel art. He wasn't sure if it was just him, but the air felt like it was pressing on his chest. The atmosphere made his skin tingle.

Rui lead the team through the house, though 'through' could be debated. They just kept going through doors and doors and doors, like they were going in a circle. "There must be some kind of trick... Everyone, take a look around. There's probably some shadows hiding out." Rui told them, already beginning the search. "Megumi, run a scan for this area." Sato followed Rui's example, idly combing through any shelves or cupboards. Nothing really stood out to him.

After a moment, they heard Megumi's voice. "... Can't... Out!... zzzzz... bzzzt..."

The sound of the communications dying put Sato even more on edge. Something like this had to happen on his and Kotori's first (well, technically second) time in the mirror world. It was, to say the least, concerning for the teen. As they searched the seemingly repeating rooms, Sato toyed with more of the surroundings. A cushion. A family picture. Squatting down until his eyes were level with it, Sato stared at the TV resting on some table. Curiously, he fiddled with any buttons on it, trying to turn it on or something.

Kotori Shirohane - Cave of Solitude | Sunday, June 7 2015

With the preparations complete, the team headed off into the other world. It was a slightly... odd sight. From her own experience and what she'd heard of the others, Kotori had expected some twisted world of bizarre sights - but instead, they found themselves in front of a normal house. Or rather, mostly normal - the house itself seemed blurry and unclear; like a picture that hadn't quite loaded yet - or if she were to look at it without her glasses. They'd only gotten a brief look at it when the doors opened - but instead of some shadowy monster, two human figures appeared who turned out to be the Tadao and Riku who had gone on ahead already and gave a report on their findings.

Leaving the remaining members outside in case they needed backup, the team entered the house - Kotori would have to lie if she said she wasn't feeling rather nervous. Still, she wasn't alone - and this was to help a kidnapped victim, so she'd do her best to help them out. Kaminari meanwhile seemed even more anxious than her - though for different reasons, given how eager he was to get things going. After entering the house, things were quiet - no signs of shadows even on the second floor, only the continued theme of blurriness if one excepted the endless corridors thing; much like the recon party had described. Rui gave it a moment's thought before ordering them to search around for any clues, figuring it to be a trick of sorts.

If this had been a novel she were reading, Kotori would probably be quite engrossed in the strange mystery - but being an actual part of it made things decidedly less fun and interesting. Still, they had a mission to accomplish here - and it wouldn't finish itself just by standing around after all. As such, she too began to look around - even as Megumi's voice was heard, albeit with the telepathy apparently having rather bad connection. No one seemed too worried about it however, so Kotori put that worry aside and focused instead on her surroundings.

Kaminari had identified the house as the victim's, Ayano Wakahisa. Despite the slight blurriness, things were still recognisable and seemed to be what one would expect to find in a normal house. Still, there had to be something strange here - of that not only Rui was convinced. The others had already fanned out to begin the search for... anything, really. Kaminari was pacing around, looking and poking at anything and everything whilst Sato - himself new to the team, much like herself - seemed far less hesitant than her and was already checking anything that looked remotely shadow-y.

Looking around, Kotori decided to go for the classic in such a situation - and checked for any bookcases, just in case there actually was some secret passage hidden behind a fake book for once.

As the party went around investigating this little trap, Sato with the TV triggered a few sparks but nothing more with the TV. A similar result was achieved when trying to interact with any of the other electronics. Kami would also find that the family pictures began to become increasingly disturbing the further through the repeating rooms they went through... Kotori would also find that the books would not budge. The stove would always violent light in a pixelated flame, while game-like, the heat was very real. Rui soon found the one thing that wasn't abnormal, and that was a TV guide. Though the contents were strange and disturbing, there was a note inside for a specific channel. Once they put it in, the TV began to respond.

It was what appeared to be Ayano's life, but painfully and cheesily done in a drama fashion, complete with dramatic music and cheesy lines. It went through her school years, birthdays, soon it was of any of her times with Kami, and then it was a single shot of her sitting in her bedroom on the computer... The channel wouldn't change, she wouldn't move, but other ambient objects would move, signifying this was indeed still going.

As the silence uneasily set over the room, they began to feel it warp, the TV screen enlarged, until it engulfed the entire view, and pretty soon they were in the room depicted in the TV itself, and getting out of the chair, the one they thought was Ayano, was beginning to elongate as she turned and sat up from the chair. Each step taken, making the shadow taller, larger, lankier, until it was nothing but a silhouette with eyes towering easily a dozen feet above everyone else. As the party began to back away to prepare to fight it, they would hear laughter behind them.

They turned, the Ayanos from all the other scenes were there, standing behind them, laughing, their faces changing, and pretty soon they took on a similar appearance to the first that they saw. It was a bad fight, they were already surrounded, and with no communication-

"I-I've gotten through! Are you all okay?... Wait these are Shadows! And they have you surrounded!",

"Excellent... Everyone, attack from all sides. Break their formation", he ordered. Basically... Go wild. They needed to break the formation somehow first, before they can mount a winning battle.