Welp, here we go again with a new story. This time I hope that this story will survive the laziness spell that I have for myself. But, enough of that. Welcome to my Persona Fanfiction, Persona: Eclipse. I've been dying to write something about this ever since I played Persona 4 for the first time.

I would like to give a shoutout to Narukami Dan for helping me out with this fic, mostly for the advice he had given me. Check out his fic, Persona: Gaiden: New Class. It is so fantastic, it'll blow you away.

Anyways, lets get started on this! Hopefully I'll be more responsive if you guys give me reviews!

Disclaimer: I do not own Persona 4, I'll say this once, but I'll say it twice if need be.

Monday, September 15th, 2017
Cloudy

Somewhere in the bustling city of Morishibe, in a tiny house, a man wakes up from his slumber. He stretches; getting the kinks out of his back from the restless night he spent and throws the covers off of himself, realizing he was late for work.

After hurriedly putting on a dress shirt with some black slacks, he runs downstairs, fiddling with his untied tie. His mother meets him, crooning over her working son and she ties the tie for him. He thanks her, eats his breakfast, and grabs his briefcase, kissing his mother's cheek as he does so.

"Be safe on the road, Yori!" She calls as the man goes down the steps and into his car.

He waves from the driver's seat, and then pulls out of there, into the morning day.

Yori tapped his fingers nervously as he enters the morning traffic on the highway. This was a most important day for him. What he had worked on in his workplace, a giant in video entertainment products, Horiuchi Corporation, was being considered in a meeting that he was only three minutes late too.

His heart thumped heavily in his chest, and he tried to distract himself from it by looking at the dark clouds. The weather was looking bad, and the forecast said that it might rain, but he hardly paid attention to those things. After all, when was the weather in the favor of the forecast?

At last, he pulls out of the highway, and exits it. Yori enters a bustling road with cars coming and going at a usual pace. He sees his turn, and makes it, parking in his usual spot. He rushes to get out of the car, and heads into the building. Then, he exits and comes back, realizing he forgot his briefcase, the embarrassment showing on his pale face.

The secretary looks up as he walks up to her, his badge in hand.

"They're waiting for you," She said.

"Yes, I know, thank you." Yori said.

He walks past the desk, to the elevators. Yori makes it to the fourth floor and gets out of the elevator before walking left down the meeting rooms. Room 4 was ajar, and Yori could hear people talking in there. He had the presentation done, the notes and reports taken care of, and the blueprints were in the files he had made. Hopefully, the board would back him up.

Yori paused in front of the meeting room, took a deep breath, and pushed it open. Already they were all there, talking cheerfully as they sipped tea or coffee. The board looks up to see the 29-year-old man as he walks up.

"Ah! Yori-kun!" His boss said, smiling.

"Hello, Atsushi-sensei," Yori said, bowing slightly.

Atsushi Furuta laughed. He was a 50-year-old man who worked in the tech-building department. He was in charge of manufacturing the products that Horiuchi Corporation makes and ships to the public. Next to him was Hishashi Hagiwara, a balding, thin-bodied man with a white beard and a formal suit on with the tie loosened. He was in charge of marketing, and he was good at it. Also, there was Daichi Asato, public testing, and finally, Juro Nagahara, the aid to the CEO of Horiuchi. They all were there, just as Yori predicted.

"We came when you called the meeting via e-mail," Hishashi said, sipping his tea. "The project is already done?"

Yori nodded. "It's a little bit over the deadline, but yes, the blueprints are done,"

He put his briefcase on the meeting table and clicked it open, revealing the vanilla colored files. Yori passed them out, and then the board took their seats, ready for the meeting to begin. At first, Yori was nervous, hell; he was scared out of his mind. But, as he talked, the board became a little more interested as he talked.

"Me and my team been testing the system since the prototype came on day five, and we've been improving on it ever since." Yori then switched off the lights in the boardroom and turned on a projector that his computer was connected to.

Photos of him with three other people, a 25 year old man with blonde hair, a woman with straight black hair, and 26 year old man with spiky black hair and piercings on his left ear appeared on the wall. Five computers and a pair of headphones surrounded them with a large "H" on it.

"The product has been successful at times, but several viruses have been found with the program that we have designed to go along with the product. Luckily, they have been dealt with, but there will be one or two bugs that will be in the program."

Daichi raised his hand. "But will the game be heavily affected by these bugs?"

Yori shook his head. "No, the bugs will not affect much. Just some audio problems, mostly,"

Hishashi raised his hand next. "But will that affect the market as well?"

"The game will mostly be children's stuff in a few months," Yori scoffed. "Soon, most software companies will be begging for a share in it!"

There were a few murmurs and nodding of heads. This was good. And now, time for the kicker.

"Also, I had a friend in advertising work on a prototype ad that would help with the promotion of it," Yori then walked over to his computer, and went to the next slide. A video popped up, and he clicked on it.

Streams of light flashed through the black screen as soft techno music played.

"Have you wanted a perfect gaming experience?" A female voice whispered, "One that made you perfectly in tune with what you are playing?"

Yori looked up as he stepped away from the computer. The board was staring at the wall with intent.

"Well," the voice said, "then look no further than Horiuchi Corporation's new immersive system exclusively for the Horiuchi Gaming Personal Computer Mark 3!"

The techno music pulsed louder and the headphones spun into view. The headphones now had square glasses on them, designed to be the screen.

"Slip these on, and the music will immerse you in a better experience! And now with Brain Pulse technology, you don't have to touch the keyboard, or fiddle with the controller." Big white text appeared, claiming that, with the female voice, "You are truly are the controller."

Then, the screen went black. Yori walked over to the wall and switched the lights back on. The board squinted, adjusting to the lights as he quickly went back to his place.

"And, that's what I got to say," Yori said.

He then sat down. The board looked at him, thinking.

"Mr. Kurosaki," Juro said, standing up. "That… was an interesting proposal."

Yori's eyes lightened up.

"But," He continued, waggling a finger, "Here's the thing. We don't have, "Brain Pulse" Technology yet. It's still in its baby stages, for god's sake. And, we're supposed to release it for people with disabilities! How can we finish a six year project, at best, for this year?"

Yori sighed, shaking his head. "It's simple! We leave it as it is and we patch it as we go!" He explained. "It can be easily fixed!"

Hishashi also stood up. "And if we go with it, how much would it cost?! Even if we follow the plan, even with how revolutionary it may be, we would want people to believe that it truly works and follows a good price!"

"And are you really sure it works?" Daichi added.

"Trust me," Yori said, "It does."

The board looked at each other, and then uneasily back to Yori. He had his eyebrows furrowed. He was positive, he sure, it would all fall into place.

"…Mr. Kurosaki." Juro said, placing his hands on the table and looking directly at him.

"Yes?" He asked.

"You must be really dumb, or really smart and we're not getting it, to think that we would consider this."

A lump grew in Yori's throat.

"This is too big for us," Juro said, "I'll have to talk to my boss about it, with the board's full support on it."

Yori couldn't believe it.

"Congrats Mr. Kurosaki," Juro said, walking over to him and shaking his hand. "You're about to be a true figurehead in this company."

As soon as Yori got out of the meeting room, he saw that his colleagues were there, waiting for him. The woman with straight black hair stood up from her seat on the wooden bench.

"So? How'd it go?" she asked.

Yori put his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "It was too much for them," He said, sighing. Then, he grinned. "They're taking it to the CEO, with full support!"

She put her hands over her mouth with tears in her eyes while the other two cheered.

"I thought they were so tight assed they wouldn't even consider it! Yet here we are!" The man with the piercings roared.

"Hell yeah!" said the Blonde haired man said, raising his fists in the air.

"Takeo, Hitoshi, stop acting like that, you're raise attention!" The woman said crossly.

The two shrunk back. "Sorry Chikiko…" Takeo said, scratching his head.

"Yeah…" Hitoshi added.

Yori shook his head. "Yeesh," He grunted, "If you guys are so pumped about this, then why don't you guys plan out a celebration party or something?"

Takeo's eyes lit up as the word "celebration" exited out of Yori's mouth. "Actually, that doesn't sound like bad idea!" He said. "How 'bout drinks at the new sushi bar or something? They do a KILLER 50 piece "around the world" special!"

Chikiko rolled her eyes.

"You can have that," She said, disgusted. "I'll be having just the drink, thanks,"

Hitoshi pulled out his phone. "Should I make the reservation then?" He asked, his thumb hovering over the number pad.

"Maybe," Takeo said, "What do you think, Yori?"

Yori was taken aback. "What?"

"You were team leader," Takeo said, "So it's your choice, should we, or is there another place in mind?"

Yori was again appalled. First the meeting, and now this choice… Hmmm…. He put his hands in his pockets and looked up, thinking.

"…Call it," Yori said, grinning.

What the hell? It was their crowning moment, time to celebrate. Hitoshi grinned.

"That's what I wanted to hear!" He punched in some numbers and held the phone to his ear, animatingly talking to the hostess on the other line.

"This is going to be so cool!" Takeo laughed. Yori chuckled as well. This was going to be somewhat interesting, indeed.

40 minutes later.

Evening

After the meeting with his team, Yori found himself, 40 minutes later, looking down at the dregs of his third beer. The meal was good, sushi was Yori's guilty pleasure, so he had fun, and they celebrated their success multiple times.

"Y'know, all of this is because of us," Takeo said, sipping at his drink, "And I couldn't believe that I was accepted into this project. Man, I have to say thanks because of this!"

Yori raised his glass in response. "You were the only one that wasn't swamped with the shit we go through, you know?" He chuckled.

Hitoshi laughed at that. "Yeah," He said, "Although there are some little bits that still need to be looked at." Hitoshi reached in the breast pocket of his blazer and took out a notepad. He flipped through it, staring at the scrawled notes. "There are still the AI function tests that need to be looked at, as well as the-"

"Dude. We're celebrating! No need for those here!" Takeo said, punching Hitoshi in the arm.

"I'm just recapping on what we need to do, sheesh," Hitoshi grumbled.

Chikiko shook her head in wonder. "You two should control yourselves, not like there is anything else to control with your attitudes."

Takeo laughed, and was about to finish his drink when his cell phone rang. Yori watched as Takeo answered the phone.

"Hello? Takeo Futo speaking," Takeo stood up from his seat and looked up at the ceiling. "Hiro?" Takeo asked, "Hey! What's up? How's Chihiro?" He smiled for a few seconds before his smile dropped. "What? She's- is she alright?" He asked, a little hysterically. "Okay. There were real contractions? No shit?"

Takeo paced up and down behind Hitoshi and his own chair. "She's at the hospital now? Thank god…" He breathed out, and then angrily replied, "No, I don't need a car. I'll get there, posthaste… Hiro, I know you're being the caring brother here, but listen…"

He started to pace again, tongue in cheek. "…You're right, I'm coming… Thank you for telling me this, bye!" Takeo then pressed the end call button.

He stood there, the phone on his hand, and a small smile on his face before breaking in a huge grin. Yori was the first to speak.

"What happened?" He asked.

Takeo slid the phone in his pocket and placed his hands on the head of his chair.

"It was my wife's brother, Hiro. He was looking after Chihiro as I was working on this whole project. She's giving birth as we speak." There was silence at the table as the news sank in.

"A baby?" Hitoshi asked.

"Yup," Takeo said, grabbing his coat. "Looks like it," he said, putting it on.

"Wait, looks like it?" Chikiko asked, "Takeo, you're wife is having a baby! Why are you so calm?"

Takeo shrugged. "It's not my fault I'm so cool."

"Yeah, right." Yori grunted, draining the last of his beer.

"Anyways, I'll be leaving now." Takeo said, turning to Hitoshi. "How much do I owe for the tab?"

Hitoshi put his hands to his lips and pondered on the question. "About… 17,000 Yen?" he guessed.

Takeo pulled out his wallet and then picked out a bank card. A waitress walked up to the table and asked if he was paying for his meal. Takeo nodded and the waitress took the card and went into the back room. After he left, 15 minutes later with good luck farewells following him, Yori then took Takeo's drink and chugged it down.

His wife was giving birth. Yori chuckled at the thought. Good for him. Hitoshi left shortly after Takeo, being a work night and all. That left him and Chikiko. She had finished her second drink and was ordering a glass of water.

"Hey. Chikiko."

"Hm?"

"Do you really think that the CEO would take my idea seriously?"

"Well, it wasn't yours to begin with, at first." She said, sipping at the water.

"But still." He said, slightly slurring. "If it wasn't for me, no one would have taken us seriously. I mean, I'm a guy with a dream, you're a babe who takes what she does to the next level, Takeo's an ex-band member with the piercings and the attitude to take on the world, and Hitoshi's… well… Hitoshi, I guess."

At the mention of the word, "babe", Chikikio's cheeks became flushed.

"You're drunk." She said, pushing back a thread of hair.

"Yeah. I guess so." He said, "But not by that much."

"Do you need a ride back home?" She asked.

Yori waved a hand lazily. "I'm fine." He said, placing the glass on the counter. "I'll drink a lot of water and I'll be fine."

With that, Yori asked for a glass of tap water. The waiter obliged and came back five minutes later with the full water glass. He gave him the beer glass and sipped at the water.

"But still, You should get a cab." Chikiko said. She stood up and shouldered her purse.

"Where're you going?" He called.

"Home." She said, walking past the hostess's desk and out of the restaurant.

Yori stayed there for five more minutes before paying his bill and following suit. As he walked out of the place, he bumped into a man wearing an overcoat. From the looks of the man, he was probably from somewhere else. Yori turned to confront him, but the man was too far away.

Turning around, he was then conflicted by a horrible headache. He placed his hand on the wall and stumbled down the sidewalk to his car, still parked in front of the place. He got in, turned the car key, and sluggishly entered the evening traffic. Lights flickered behind his eyes as he tried to focus on the road, but he couldn't.

As the car next to him moved up, Yori couldn't focus. All he felt was writhing pain, the headache, the ringing in his ears… Then, a squeal of tires, added with the crunching of metal as two cars crunched up against each other. The airbags expanded in Yori's face, but it was suffocating. Already he could feel a pain in his waist, which was starting to make his legs feel numb. Then, he couldn't feel them! His brain started to slow down, as an injury on his forehead started to bleed out. It was too much. Yori felt cold… and then…. He closed his eyes… he was so tired, and his head hurt so much…

He had ended up in a crash. The police pulled him out of the wreck, safely. But his medical reports showed that he had suffered through a massive head injury from the back, and was paralyzed from the waist down. But, while one life was in the flux between life and death in one hospital, another life was created in another hospital.

"Push Chihiro! Push!" The doctor cried, and as Takeo's wife clutched his hand and screamed bloody murder, the baby was born.

It turned out to be a small little kid with thin black hair and closed eyes. Takeo looked at it with pride, and then his smile grew wider as the doctor proclaimed it was a boy. The doctor then cut the cord, rubbed him off, wrapped him in a towel, and then gave it to Takeo's wife. She took him tiredly and supported him so he could suckle.

"He's beautiful." Takeo muttered.

"Yeah, guess so."

"Listen, Chihiro, if you-"

"I'm fine, really!" Chihiro said, chuckling.

He stepped back, and watched as the nurses took his child from her and measured him, measuring the height, weighting him, all of the usual things. He sat down in a hospital chair and watched as the nurses bustled around, doing their routine. As he softly smiled and his eyes started to close, he felt someone tap his shoulder. It was a nurse, but she had a facemask on and a clipboard.

"Have you thought of a name?" She asked, her pen hovering over the paperwork.

"I- uh, er…" He said, stumbling.

"Yohane," Chihiro muttered in her sleep. "Little leaf. Yohane… That's what our son will be called,"

"Yeah, what she said," Takeo said.

The nurse nodded and scrawled the name on the paper before walking away. Takeo leaned back again. Yohane Futo. He thought as the baby was returned to Chihiro, his mind lulling to sleep. Had a nice ring to it. Yes… And then he fell asleep.

The moon was already full and high in the sky as it peeped from the clouds, shining a light blue over the baby Yohane. His eyes fully open and watched as a tiny glowing butterfly flapped through a crack in the window and fluttered around, landing on his blankets… and then disappeared.