Scenario:Aqours Second-Years - Back Again

Back Again

One morning, Chika awakens to find herself back in the Sky Realm, where she and the rest of Aqours decide to participate in a school idol event. In order to earn money to repair their damaged costumes, (Captain) and company accept a mission to investigate a mansion being considered for the event's venue. Along the way, Chika notices that You and Riko are acting strangely.

---

Chika: Mm... Morning already? What time is it? I gotta get ready for school...

Chika rubs her eyes sleepily and pulls the covers over her head.

Chika: Huh?

On this otherwise ordinary morning, Chika realizes something is amiss.

Chika: The sun sure is high in the sky...

Chika: I'm late!

Chika: Did Riko and You not come by to pick me up today? Geez! Why didn't Mito wake me up!

Chika: Wait... Huh?

She blinks and looks around in confusion, suddenly noticing that she isn't in her room.

Chika: Oh... I see what's going on here. I must've somehow come back to the world where (Captain) and the crew live.

Chika breathes a sigh of relief at the realization that she isn't running late. But just then she hears a commotion outside the door.

All Eight: Wow!

Chika jumps at the sound and rushes out of the room.

Outside she is greeted by the familiar faces of (Captain)'s crew and her fellow Aqours members.

Chika: Hey, everyone!

You: Oh, morning, Chika!

Chika: What were you guys talking about?

Ruby: Something really neat happened while we were away!

Kanan: Word of the school idols from Tenacie—the town we visited—has spread all the way to other islands.

Lyria: School idols have turned into Tenacie's most famous attraction!

Dia: More and more people are taking up singing and dancing themselves after attending one of their concerts.

Yoshiko: They're descending one after another! The fallen angels will continue to multiply until they engulf the entire world!

Yoshiko: A true catastrophe is upon us!

Chika: Wow... So school idols are popping up all over this world too now, huh.

Riko: Hehe. That's music to Chika's ears.

Hanamaru: They're even gonna have a school idol event in the town where we are now, zura!

Chika: Whoa!

Mari: So, about that, Chika... What do you think Aqours should do?

Chika: Isn't it obvious? We gotta perform in the event and get everybody hyped up!

Riko: Thank goodness... That's our Chika!

Chika: Huh? What do you mean thank goodness?

Riko: N-nothing! Okay then, what do you say we start getting ready for the concert?

You: Oh! Hey, Chika! Riko! How about the three of us make a list of all the things we need?

Chika: The three of us? Wouldn't it be better if we all worked on it together?

You: Oh... I-I guess you're right! I just thought it might be nice to shake things up once in a while...

Chika: ...?

Ignoring the nagging feeling at the back of her mind, Chika joins her friends in preparing for the event.

Yoshiko: Heh... That was child's play. The contract sanctioning our descent was forged quickly and easily.

Vyrn: Oh, that's good news. In other words they were okay with anybody jumping in?

Ruby: Hehe... Actually, the townspeople here knew who we were. They said they'd love for us to perform.

Hanamaru: Yoshiko's pretty famous around here, zura. They know her as the fearsome fallen angel who summons storms and makes apocalyptic prophecies, zura.

Yoshiko: My name's Yohane. And I never expected it to turn into such a big deal...

Lyria: Haha... I think I went a little overboard. Sorry about that.

Ruby: Hehe. It's fine. Yoshiko looked like she was having the time of her life.

Kanan: I'm glad they agreed to let us perform, but we've still got some issues to work out on our end.

Hanamaru: Are you talking about the costumes, zura?

Mari: Yes. Our outfits got all messed up, so we tried to get our hands on some fabric to fix them, but...

Dia: Take a look at this quote.

Vyrn: You could buy a full suit of armor with that kind of money.

Riko: There's no way we can afford it with the funds we have on hand.

You: I know we ran into the same problem while making costumes last time, but I still can't get over how expensive fabric is in this world...

Mari: But we can't exactly perform with our costumes looking like they are now.

Dia: And that's precisely why I got a list of low-danger missions from the Knickknack Shack that I thought we might be able to handle!

Chika: Ooh! Great idea, Dia!

As the girls shuffle through the bundle of requests in Dia's hands, one particular sheet catches their eye.

Kanan: Oh? Hey, this one looks pretty promising. The client is listed as the School Idol Committee.

Mari: Hm... Looks like the event sponsor wants someone to survey a vacant house in hopes of using it as the venue for the concert.

Chika: Huh? The event's gonna be in an empty house?

Chika: Oh, I see—it's a big mansion with a concert hall and everything.

Dia: That makes sense... I haven't really seen any other locations around that could be used for the event.

Riko: How about we go with this mission, Chika? Without a proper venue, the event could end up being cancelled after all...

Chika: Yeah. Let's do it!

And so the members of Aqours make their way toward the vacant house to investigate.

Io: It sure is a big place. Are we sure it's not dangerous?

Vyrn: There's been no sign of anybody goin' in or out for decades, so they don't think there are any monsters or weirdos livin' inside.

Vyrn: But it's hard to tell if the building's still usable or not from out here, so they wanna know about the floor plan and what it looks like inside.

Kanan: Thank you guys for coming with us. I'm really glad you're here.

Mari: Kanan? Why do you look so scared? This mission isn't supposed to be dangerous.

Kanan: Well... I mean, just look...

Lyria: I-it's really dark...

Vyrn: Yeah... It's kinda creepy...

Chika: Yikes. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a ghost in there.

Lyria: Eek! A-a ghost?

Kanan: Ch-Chika, don't say things like that!

Io: Are you scared of ghosts too, Kanan?

Kanan: I-I wouldn't say I'm scared of them... I just don't like them...

Io: Gotcha. But don't ghosts usually appear in places like graveyards and whatnot? I doubt we'll run into any around here.

Kanan: You're making it sound like ghosts really exist in this world. I could have gone without knowing that...

Io: Oh... S-sorry about that. Don't worry. I'll scare off any ghosts that decide to mess with us.

Kanan: Thanks... I'll try not to get in your way.

(Captain) and the others decide to split into three groups to search, one for each floor of the mansion.

Kanan, Dia, Hanamaru, Vyrn, and Lyria will search the third floor.

And the second floor will be searched by Chika, You, Ruby, and Io.

You: Aw, that means Riko's not on our team. That's too bad...

Chika: Huh? What's wrong, You?

You: Nothing. Let's give that second floor a good searching together, Chika!

Yoshiko: Then I, the fallen angel Yohane, will use the power of darkness to conquer the first floor with the help of my little demons—Lily and Mary.

Mari: Hehe. Let me know if you get scared, Riko.

Riko: Huh? I-I won't get scared! Don't worry! You won't catch me giving up!

Mari: ...?
What's wrong, Riko?

Riko: Nothing!

Riko: Nothing at all... Everything's perfectly fine...

Chika: Hmm...

Chika: Hmmmmm...

Vyrn: Whatcha thinkin' so hard about?

Chika: Well... I can't quite put my finger on it... but You and Riko are acting kinda weird.

Chika: They seemed totally normal back in our world. But ever since waking up here, things have felt kinda awkward between us.

Chika: I tried asking what was bothering them, but they both told me nothing was wrong.

Io: I can see why you'd be worried...

Chika: I wanna talk to them about it, but I wonder if they'll be honest with me...

Although slightly concerned by how You and Riko are acting, (Captain) and the others set out to explore the mansion.

Back Again: Scene 2

After (Captain) and company split into three groups to explore the mansion, Chika confronts You about her odd behavior, but You dodges the question. The girls realize they're lost and decide to start over from square one, but Chika winds up falling through a trapdoor that opens beneath her feet.

---

The three groups split up to explore their respective floors.

Just as promised, the search progresses without any hint of danger. There's only one problem...

Lyria: Umm, this is the third floor where we're supposed to explore... right?

Vyrn: Yeah. At least I think it is...

Kanan: Why does this place have such a complicated floor plan? Living here must have been a huge pain.

Vyrn: Big shots used to make their houses really confusing with hidden passageways and stuff, just in case they got invaded.

Dia: Kanan, Hanamaru, make sure not to get lost, okay?

Hanamaru: Munch, munch... Don't worry, zura. I'm dropping breadcrumbs behind us just in case, zura.

Dia: Everything from the first floor all the way up to the third floor is completely covered in dust. It's ridiculous.

Vyrn: Well, we haven't seen any footprints, so I guess it's true that nobody's been in here in forever.

Kanan: At this rate it doesn't look like we'll run into any danger. What a relief...

Hanamaru: Munch, munch... But, Kanan, we still can't afford to let our guard down, zura.

Kanan: Huh?

Hanamaru: I've heard rumors about places like these, zura. Sometimes objects that sit around unused for decades take on lives of their own, zura.

All Three: Lives of their own?

Hanamaru: And then they transform into ghosts that come out when night falls, zura!

All Three: Eeeeek!

Dia: Hanamaru, stop that.

Hanamaru: Are you scared too, zura?

Dia: O-of course not! It's just that anything could happen in here, so we need to stay on our toes!

Vyrn: W-well, there's nothin' to worry about. No matter how old somethin' is, stuff is just stuff. Like that vase over there...

Vyrn points at a vase caked with dust.

Hanamaru: Whoa, that's a real antique, zura. It looks just as old as some of the china we have at our temple, zura...

Her interest piqued, Hanamaru approaches the vase.

Hanamaru: Zura?

At that moment the vase begins to shake noisily.

Hanamaru: The vase is moving on it's own, zura.

Lyria & Kanan: Whaaat! It's a g-g-g—

Dia: H-Hanamaru! Enough with the creepy jokes!

Hanamaru: B-but I'm not even touching it, zura! It's shaking all by itself, zura...

Slime: ...!

All Three: A ghooost!

Slime: ...!

Vyrn: Nah, it's just some silly slime monster!

Vyrn: Get outta here! Shoo! Shoo!

Slime: ...!

Lyria: I-it was just a monster...

Vyrn: Geez, those things spring up everywhere the second a place gets abandoned...

Having discovered the true identity of the ghost, Vyrn and the others breathe a sigh of relief and continue their search of the third floor.

Slime: ...

Slime: ...!

Meanwhile the group on the first floor continue with their investigation.

Riko: Lobby, check! Corridor, check! Doesn't look like there's anything dangerous lurking around, so let's start exploring!

Riko: Let's go, Yoshiko! Mari! (Captain)!

Yoshiko & Mari: ...

(Captain) and the others notice that Riko has been acting strangely throughout their search.

Mari: Is something wrong, Riko?

Riko: Huh? N-no, nothing at all.

Yoshiko: I can feel it. The darkness of the little demon Lily is emitting irregular wavelengths...

Yoshiko: She must be frightened by the presence of dark monsters!

Riko: Th-that's not it! I was just thinking the faster we get done with this job, the sooner we can get started on the next one.

Riko: We're doing this for the sake of this town's school idols! You won't catch me giving up!

Yoshiko: (Hey, Mari. What's wrong with Riko?)

Mari: (I have no idea... But I get the sense that she's worried about something. Do you have any idea what it might be, (Captain)?)

(Captain) shrugs. But it's clear that Riko is indeed acting incredibly restless.

Riko: Floor, check! Walls, check! Ceiling... check!

Riko: All clear... Now we just need to split up and search the floor for real!

However, at the sight of Riko working so earnestly, the captain is unable to broach the subject.

1. Let's keep an eye on her for now.

Choose: Let's keep an eye on her for now.

Yoshiko: So rather than place a curse on the darkness within her, we'll just wait for it to show itself. Very well.

Mari: Okay. If it seems like she wants to talk, I'll ask her what's going on.

Yoshiko: Wait... Huh? Where'd she go?

Mari: Oops. Looks like we got separated. She must have wandered ahead while we were talking.

They had agreed to move around on their own only after confirming it was safe to do so.

And so Yoshiko, Mari, and (Captain) follow the footprints in the dust in search of Riko.

Suddenly they hear a scream.

Riko's Voice: Eeeeek!

Yoshiko: Lily!

The voice grows closer, accompanied by the sound of footsteps.

Riko: Nooooo!

Yoshiko & Mari: ...?

Riko dashes past Yoshiko, Mari, and (Captain) and makes a beeline for the lobby.

From the other end of the corridor, they hear a rustling sound.

Mari: What in the world was chasing Riko?

Yoshiko: Is that the sound of... flapping? Am I hearing the wings of the envoys of the heavens?

(Captain) steps in front of Mari and Yoshiko, weapon at the ready, prepared to intercept whatever may be approaching.

Moth Swarm: ...!

Yoshiko & Mari: ...!

(Captain) and the others shudder at the sight of countless moths filling the corridor.

Yoshiko & Mari: Eeeeek!

The captain lets out a shriek and breaks into a run.

Yoshiko & Mari: Eeeeek!

Ruby: Eep!

Chika, You, Ruby, and Io flinch as they hear screams echoing on the floor below them.

Chika: What were those voices just now?

You: It sounded like Mari, Yoshiko, and (Captain)...

Io: Look out the window. (Captain) and the others just came running out of the lobby.

You: Whoa... Look at all those bugs swarming around them...

Ruby: Mari and Yoshiko are surrounded by bugs too... I'm scared. I wish Sis was here...

Io: I'm sure they're harmless, but that definitely doesn't look fun...

Chika: That's creepy... What if a bunch of bugs pop out on our floor too?

Io: Lyria said not to worry. According to her, there aren't any creatures or monsters on the second floor.

Ruby: Did Lyria use her special power to figure that out?

Io: I think so.

Io: Wait... You know, now that you mention it, I wonder how Lyria was able to tell even though there weren't any primal beasts involved...

Ruby: Maybe she borrowed the power of a primal beast that can use X-rays or something! And she used it to see through the whole building!

Io: I don't remember a primal like that...

You: Hey, Chika. Shouldn't we get started with our own investigation?

Chika: Yeah!

Io: Then let's split into two groups—me and Ruby, and Chika and You.

Chika: Let's see... This room is connected to the one over here...

Chika sketches a rough map of the building as they walk along.

You: I'm kinda disappointed...

Chika: Huh? Why's that, You?

You: I was just thinking it would've been nice if Riko had been in our group.

Chika: Hm? Why? We're basically always together anyway.

You: Yeah, but...

You falls silent.

Chika: You know, ever since we came back to this world, you've seemed really worried about something. That goes for Riko too.

You: I guess that's because we forgot about all the stuff that happened here while we were in Uchiura.

Chika: Hey, You, did something happen?

You: Nope, nothing at all! Let's keep working on that map...

Chika & You: Huh?

Chika: This connects in a really weird place.

You: If this map is correct, it would mean the mansion's shaped like a donut...

Chika: Wanna go back and start over?

You: Yeah. Something's not right...

Chika: This is the door to room number five on the map, right?

You: Huh? It's around the corner of the hallway, so that makes it number three, doesn't it?

Chika: ...

You: ...

You: Chika, do you think we're...

Chika: Lost? Yep. What do we do now?

You: Don't worry, Chika. All we need to do is go room by room, just like you said!

Chika: Yeah! Hey, You, do you remember seeing this bronze statue before?

Chika places her hand on the statue. At that very moment, she feels something move.

Chika: Wha!

A hole suddenly appears beneath her feet.

Chika: Whoooa!

You: Chika!

You reaches out toward her friend, but it's too late. The hole in the floor swallows Chika and closes behind her.

You: Whaaat! Is there some kind of switch on this statue?

You inspects the statue desperately, but the hole refuses to reopen.

You: Where is it? Where's the switch?

She continues to struggle with the statue, trying to figure out how to follow after Chika.

Back Again: Scene 3

You follows Chika through the trapdoor where they encounter Riko, and the girls discuss their lingering fears over the visions they saw during their fight with the primal beast Nihilith in Tenacie. Just as they are starting to feel relieved, Nihilith suddenly appears before them. The primal apologizes for everything and disappears.

---

Riko: ...

After confirming that the first floor is safe, the members of Riko's group separate to investigate the floor individually.

While searching the large hall, one particular object in the room catches Riko's attention.

Riko: What a huge piano...

She places her fingers on the dust-covered keys, hesitating for a moment before pressing down.

Riko: The strings are coated with dust from sitting here with the top open for so long. No wonder they won't make a sound.

Riko: ...

Riko finds a cloth and a brush in a nearby drawer and begins to clean the piano's strings.

Chika: Whoa! Oww...

Riko: Chika?

Chika: Riko!

Riko: Why are you here?

Chika: Turns out this building's like a huge maze. There are even traps and stuff all over the place.

Chika: I was walking around with You, when suddenly I fell through a trapdoor... I wonder if she's all right by herself...

Chika: By the way, what were you doing, Riko?

Riko: I was cleaning the piano...

Riko: I-I wasn't slacking off or anything.

Riko: The strings are so covered in dust that it won't play. It kinda felt like the piano had given up on performing, and that made me really sad.

Chika: So that's why. In that case, mind if I help?

And so the pair begin cleaning the piano.

Chika: Riko... Have you been worried about the idea of not being able to play again?

Riko: Yeah.

You: Oww...

Chika & Riko: You!

You: Chika, Riko... What are you two doing?

Chika: Haha... We're cleaning the piano...

You: I was really worried about you, Chika.

Chika: Oh, s-sorry about that. I didn't mean to leave you all by yourself.

You: I know...

Chika: You... Were you worried about something in that vision we saw too?

Riko: The one Nihilith showed us?

You: Yeah...

The illusion they saw during the battle with Nihilith in the town of Tenacie flashes through their minds.

You: A school idol? Are you serious, Chika?

Chika: Hey, Riko. Wasn't it a lot easier back when you gave up playing the piano?

Riko: Does it even really matter if you're around, You?

Riko: Ever since coming back to this world, I keep remembering what happened back then.

Riko: It felt like I needed to keep convincing myself that I wasn't going to give up again.

You: I keep thinking about all those awful things I said to you...

You: I know it was all a dream, but still...

Chika: Riko... You...

Chika: Don't worry. None of that was real!

You & Riko: ...!

Chika: You, I know you'd never say anything like that to me in a million years!

Chika: And Riko, you looked like you were having a blast when you started playing the piano again!

Chika: So... What I'm trying to say is...

You & Riko: Chika...

Riko: Hey...

You: Was that vision bothering you too?

Chika: Haha... Just a little...

The girls look at each other in surprise.

All Three: Hehe...

Overcome with relief at having finally been able to discuss their worries, the girls' faces break into bright smiles.

Chika: Hey, let's all hold hands.

Chika, Riko, and You form a circle and join hands.

Riko: This brings back memories.

Chika: Yeah. It was dimly lit back then too, but warm.

You: You're talking about when we put on our first concert, right? Feels like just yesterday...

Chika: We've been working so hard ever since then.

Chika: So don't worry. No matter what happens, we'll be all right! Okay?

You & Riko: Yeah.

Chika: I'm glad we got to talk like this. I've been really worried, you know? You two were acting so weird...

The girls stand silently for a moment, hand in hand.

But suddenly they are greeted by some unexpected company.

???: ...

All Three: Eek!

All Three: Aaaaahhh!

Io: Wh-who is that?

Ruby: I hear Chika! Those voices came from the floor below us, Io!

Hearing their friends' voices echoing through the building, (Captain) and the others hurry toward the lobby where the screams originated.

Vyrn: Are you gals okay?

Chika: W-well...

Nihilith: ...

Vyrn: Oh, it's just Nihilith. What're you doin' here?

Nihilith: U-um... I came to help...

Lyria: Before we started searching the building, Nihilith went ahead to make sure it was safe inside.

You: Umm... How exactly did she do that?

Nihilith: Well... I'm a primal beast, you know...

Nihilith: All I had to do was send these little ones in to scout around. They'd be able to tell me if there were any bad guys lurking inside.

Chika: So you helped us out.

Nihilith: ...

Nihilith: Well, you told me it was okay to be ordinary... So...

Riko: Ordinary?

Nihilith: ...!

Nihilith: I-I'm sorry for appearing out of nowhere and scaring you.

Nihilith: All the terrible things that were said back then were just my words disguised as your own... They were all lies...

Nihilith: I'm sorry for putting you through all that.

Chika: There she goes...

Lyria: Nihilith said she wanted to keep the whole scouting ahead thing a secret... I wonder what changed her mind?

You: Am I hearing things, or did she just say she was sorry? I thought she hated us...

Riko: Yeah... M-maybe she's not a danger to us anymore...

Chika: She apologized...

Chika: Hmm...

With Nihilith's help, (Captain) and the others are able to successfully complete their mission.

But Nihilith's true goal remains a mystery.

Chika: I'd love the chance to talk to her again sometime.

Chika hopes that one day they might be able to learn more about the mysterious primal beast.

Chika: Next time, Heartfelt Lyrics.