It had been an entire year since he had been in Inaba. Souji ran a hand through his hair calmly; he recalled a few final thoughts that had seized him during the battle with Adachi. 'I was disgusted with myself…disgusted because I could understand how he felt.' he thought while releasing a soft almost sarcastic chuckle from his lips. Cars could be heard honking outside in the traffic outside his apartment. He looked into his mirror with a forced smile.

"Bonds that could never be broken…my ass." He said out loud to himself. He wondered why it was that in the entire year none of his friends had called or written to him. He shook his head and laughed a little bit more. 'I sound like a crazy person…I sound like Adachi' he thought as he looked at himself again, his grey eyes were blank almost.

"Why am I punishing myself this way?" he asked himself half expecting his reflection to talk to him. 'It's because in the beginning you thought of your power and the TV world as a game.' He thought.

"It's because I did find it entertaining. That's why I was able to remain so calm throughout everything that happened. It was all a game to me." He said it again and again until his fist shattered the mirror. He could feel the shards of silvery glass inside his hand. He could feel the burning of salt in his eyes as he sunk to his knees. 'Am I just like Adachi?' he asked himself.

"Once the game was over I left them no address and no number." Souji Seta had never given them his real name. In Inaba his name had been Keiske Suzumiya. Ryotaro was well aware of his family's state of witness protection especially after what his father had witnessed. It had all been in vain. Souji remembered the day he got off of the train back into Tokyo.

Souji smiled thinking back on the year he had with his friends. The friends that he had never thought could be made in a town full of country bumpkins. It was quite a surprise to him that he could end up having such an abundant love life there. A smile quickly formed on his face as he recalled his brief romance with Chie, but it was soon replaced when he met her. She was born and raised in Inaba but had relocated herself to the city. He believed it was her he missed the most. Rise Kujikawa. Her tears were still fresh in his mind even if they were a little bit exaggerated.

"I love you, Senpai!" her words still echoed in his head.

"Attention, we have made a speedy arrival in Tokyo and would like to wish you all a pleasant future." He heard the voice recording as he stepped out of the train and onto the concrete where two bodyguards awaited him. They were both tall and brawny but he wondered if he even needed them now that he could fight on his own even without his persona. Both wore a solemn façade as they escorted him to a police station.

"We have some bad news for you." An older man said. Souji could half guess what they were going to say next. There was only one bad thing that could have happened .

"My parents are dead aren't they?" he asked with a calmness that almost scared him. The sounds of phones ringing and clicks were lost in ambiance as the gravity of it all sunk into him.

"I am truly sorry. Someone who knew must have leaked the information. It seems that we were betrayed." The man said with a raspy voice.

"Did my uncle know?" Souji asked him a question which he knew would be replied to with a nod.

"It must have been his partner. Tohru Adachi. He probably knew their location and he has every reason to hate me because I'm the reason he's going to jail. I found him out." Souji didn't know why he let all of this slip.

"I'm not good at dealing with people who are grieving but you no longer need to be in protection because the person who was after your parents was also found dead." Souji stood up and walked out of the police station. He had nowhere to go. He wasn't ready to go back to Inaba, not like this. After collecting his inheritance and selling three of his parents' houses he didn't care about living somewhere fancy. Living in the country had taught him the importance of relationships.

Souji looked at his bloody had and walked into the bathroom. After cleaning his wound he took another good look at himself. His hair was long now and waved against his will. His bangs hung to the side loosely and he had grown at least a full six inches over the last year. He was still all lean muscle of course he would still have a soccer players build. He tied the top half of his hair up and glared at the pile of dishes in the sink. 'When did I become a slob?'he asked himself as he went to start washing the dishes he saw his hand. The bandage was tightly wrapped from his knuckles to his wrist. He looked at his old cellphone. He wondered if Dojima had changed his number. He dialed it and heard the voice of his little cousin.

"Dojima Residence!" she answered cheerfully.

"Nanako, it's me." He let the words slip from his mouth.

"Big bro?" she asked shocked. She sounded as if she could drop the phone.

"Who are you talking to Nanako?" he could hear his Uncle in the background. Souji hung up the phone his heart was beating so fast. He didn't think he was ready to face them. He didn't think he could face Nanako not after treating everything as a game until he almost lost her. The closest thing to a little sister he would ever have. Souji turned on the television where he saw her on television, Risette. Did he only want Rise back or did he want them all by his side again?

"One at a time I must reenter their lives." He thought as he decided to do anything it took to become close to her. At this point the closest he would ever get to her without a fit of tears was coming in as a new idol. Could he even hope to be successful? When he went back to Inaba it would not be alone.

AN : This is my first Persona story. Please be a little bit understanding I just beat the game. :} Two hours ago. R&R

RisexSouji