I've been neglecting writing author's notes for a while, and I can't for the life of me remember why. I hope you enjoy this fic, however.
So I recently stumbled on some unused voice clips for Naoto...shame that they weren't put in Golden at least.
"Let us continue this conversation..in your room."
The rosy pink that dusted Naoto's cheeks made its presence known as she tilted her cap down to hide her eyes. However, Souji noticed her crack the tiniest of smiles at the thought of being able to have a few hours of alone time with him. Gesturing towards the shoe lockers, he let Naoto go on ahead as he fished his phone out of his pockets. First, he called up Yosuke.
"Souji? What's up?"
"Hey, Yosuke. I need the house to myself for a bit, so is it alright if you look after Teddie for the rest of the day?"
"Uhh…sure! I have a shift at Junes today, so can you send him there? May as well get him to do some work rather than let him stuff himself with food instead of…stuffing."
"Clever you. Thanks, Yosuke."
"Sure, partner. Leave him to me for today. Good luck with…whatever it is you're doing.
Hanging up, he quickly found Teddie's number in his contact list. As the number dialed, he retrieved his shoes, smiling disarmingly at Naoto as she shot him a quizzical look. "Teddie."
"He~y, Sensei! Did ya need something?"
"Actually, Yosuke needed some help at Junes. Think you can give him a hand for the rest of the day? He promised a Junes dinner for you as a reward."
"Well…I guess I can. Sure, Sensei! I'll head there now. You'll be home in time to watch the house, right?"
"Yeah. See you later, Ted."
"Later, Sensei!"
Souji tucked the phone back into his pocket as he followed Naoto out the door. As he silently appreciated the sights and serenity of the snowy streets of Inaba yet another time, his simple joy intensified now that he had someone to share it with. "Senpai? What were you calling Teddie for?"
"Oh…I didn't want him in the house while we were there."
"That seems a tad cold, doesn't it?"
"That's just the weather. The last time I invited you over he tried to make tea for when you arrived…" Souji coughed a bit, loath to recall the atrocious concoction that had almost incapacitated him that day. "…needless to say, his way of apologizing is shameless."
"Would you say he created the partner drink to this "Mystery Food X" you've told me about."
"Yes, it would seem so. I wouldn't want to dream of the damage the two could cause together."
"Would that not be a nightmare?"
Souji chuckled quietly at the little joke, and Naoto soon joined in as they turned a corner. His attention drifted from the street to the light snowfall, and his eyes followed a single snowflake, tracking its descent as it fell. Reaching out, he let it land in his palm, musing at how quickly it dissolved from the newborn heat. Sighing, he felt a tinge of sorrow as his time was being shaved away with the coming of the next seasons. "Hmm…it'll be spring soon."
"Indeed. The seasons seem to be changing much more quickly this year…unfortunately. But, there's still plenty of time before then, and…if you don't mind…" Souji turned his head to look at her as her tone sank to a murmur. "…can you spare some of said time…for me?"
Her gaze turned to meet his, and Souji's expression softened as he beheld Naoto's face. Her expression betrayed nothing, but the affectionate, yet pleading, look in her eyes tugged bashfully at Souji's heartstrings. Nonetheless, the effect it had on Souji made it incredibly difficult to even think about saying "No" to tease her. Firmly nodding once, he responded with a degree of devotion in his voice. "Was there ever any doubt?"
Naoto allowed a small smile to show as she returned the nod, and as they walked down the road to the Dojima Residence, Souji could have sworn that she was walking a bit closer to him than when they initially set out from Yasogami. Finally, the door to the house was visible, and Souji swiftly unlocked the door, entering with Naoto following close behind. "Sorry for intruding…"
Souji smiled at her as he removed his jacket. "You've been here more than a few times, you know."
"Etiquette is a staple. Especially when it's at the house of someone important to me."
Souji raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh..of course. Mind if I take your coat?"
As she handed him the heavy coat, he led her towards the kotatsu, handing her the TV remote as he did so. "We can warm ourselves down here for a while, then head up to my room if you'd like. Is hot cocoa alright, or do you want coffee?"
"The former is fine, thank you."
Naoto took a seat and tucked herself into the kotatsu, sighing in satisfaction as she felt herself starting to warm up. Smiling, Naoto closed her eyes and listened to the sounds of Souji in the kitchen complemented by the droning of the news on low volume. "Mew?" Her eyes shot open at the new noise, and she scanned the room in confusion. Senpai owns a cat?
Naoto's investigative gaze fell on the small cat that was perched on the opposite side of the table, staring curiously at her. The two stared at each other for a moment, and the cat found the want to speak first. "Meow."
"Um…hello."
"Meow."
Reaching out cautiously with one hand, Naoto watched the cat's reaction as it started to sniff her hand. It reacted favorably, much to Naoto's joy (she's very fond of cats), and the cat nuzzled affectionately against her palm. It scooted closer until it was able to lay down in front of Naoto, and as she started to stroke its fur, it basked in the attention it was getting. "Senpai?"
"Yeah? Oh, you've met Tora."
"Tora?"
"Yeah. Doesn't he look like a little tiger?"
The cat seemed to nod affirmatively as it sat up to nuzzle against Naoto's cheek. "Yes…he does. Where did you find him?"
"While it was summer, he would just relax outside the house. It didn't seem right to leave him in the snow, so he lives here now."
Naoto turned her attention back to Tora, as he had started licking her fingers. "Hmm…you fit right in here, don't you, Tora-kun?"
"Me~ow…"
"Here you go."
She turned her head to look at Souji, accepting the cup with a small smile. "Ah, thank you."
Souji took a seat adjacent to her and and watched as Tora wandered off into Dojima's room. Taking a sip of his drink, he gazed at Naoto out of the corner of his eye. She was absently watching the news, nursing her cup as she stole a glance at Souji. As their eyes met, a blush crossed her face, and her gaze shot back to the TV. Souji hid a grin and turned his gaze back to the same place, but he caught Naoto staring at him every so often. "Not drinking?"
"O-oh, I'm sorry, I just…got distracted." She tried to take a sip of her cocoa, but burned her tongue, forgetting to cool the drink down first. "Ow…that's…hot."
Souji chuckled a bit and blew on his cup to cool it further. "Here, this should be better." Reaching out, he held his cup a few inches away from her face, offering a nip at his own drink. Naoto stared at Souji, pondering what he was going on about, evidenced by the blush that was returning for the sequel. Finally, she let go of her regular embarrassment, and leaned forward a bit, taking the hand that held the cup in one of her own to stabilize the grip. Closing her eyes, she took a draft of Souji's cocoa, silently enjoying the flow of warmth that she received from doing so. Letting go, she sat back and exhaled in contentment. "Mm…thank you, Senpai."
"Haha…it's no trouble." The two finished their drinks in comfortable silence as the news droned on at low volume. "Should we head up to your room now?"
Souji took her cup and headed to the kitchen sink to handle the dishes. "Go on ahead. I'll finish up here first."
"You don't think I'll booby-trap your room?"
"Ha. If you do, then Tora can disarm whatever you got."
Naoto failed to stifle her laugh as she walked up the staircase, mock bowing to Tora as she passed. The cat cocked his head to the side before giving its intelligent reply.
"Meow."
✨ Dojima Residence, Souji's room (After School)…it's snowing outside.
Souji silently let himself in, and saw Naoto sitting on the floor in front of his TV, studying one of the models he had displayed on his shelf. Taking a seat on his couch, he watched Naoto as she examined the two scooters she had gingerly taken from the shelf. "You have a lot of these models tucked away…"
"There wasn't enough room on the shelf."
"Did you build all of these?"
"Everything but the Persona Dolls. They look familiar?"
"Yes…you've summoned some of those in the TV world, no?"
"Bingo." He leaned forward a bit as her eyes lit up.
"These two…they look like our scooters. Did you put them next to each other on purpose?"
"Yes, I did. Despite them being so simple…they're special to me."
"I see…"
Naoto fiddled with the models, further admiring Souji's attention to detail. Carefully putting them back onto the shelf, she noticed the Mokoi doll that was stood in the corner of the storage box Souji had tucked into the corner. As she picked it up, Souji remembered the surprise it held, but was torn between watching or warning her to the secret. His curiosity for the former won in the end, and he hid a smile as she sat down and set the doll on the table. It didn't take long for the doll to start dancing, much to the shock of Naoto, who jumped a bit in surprise. "Wah!"
Souji, by now, had failed to suppress his laughter any longer, and his chuckle only served to feed the fire that was Naoto's blush. "Senpai! T-that wasn't funny!"
"Hahaha! Sorry…I'm sorry, Naoto."
Naoto put the doll back in the box and sat back down with a pout, glaring up at Souji from her seat on the floor. Souji matched her glare with an amused gaze, but his sympathy took control again. "Naoto?"
"…Yes?"
Patting his lap, he smiled kindly. "It doesn't look very comfortable where you are."
His offer only served to fluster Naoto even more, and her blush deepened as a visual effect. "W-what are you saying?"
"Come on, you know what I mean. If not here, the couch is still big enough for us both."
Naoto regarded him with a questioning look, but the sincerity in Souji's eyes made it hard for her to focus on a counter remark. Slowly, she stood and treaded over to take a seat next to Souji on the couch. Souji inched a bit closer out of curiosity, and stopped as he heard her default reaction.
"I told you before…y-you're too close…"
Grinning a bit, he shifted back to his original position. Watching with interest, he observed Naoto fumble about for her words, as their closer proximity seemed to put a lock on her normal conversational skills. "Um…err…"
"Mew."
"Ah!"
Tora had snuck up next to Naoto and, sharing Souji's gift for mischief, decided to get her attention in the most subtle way possible. Naoto jumped off the couch, but almost slipped on one of the toys that belonged to Tora, Struggling to keep her footing, she fell back and prepared for impact. Instead, however, she landed on Souji's lap. While it knocked the wind out of him, it also amused him to no end. "S-Senpai!"
"…Did Tora scare you?"
"Um…I-I-"
"Seems we're closer than before…do you want me to set you down?"
It was a very embarrassing position for Naoto, but she couldn't help but feel relaxed in his arms. As such, she was reluctant to move, but…"Why do I get the feeling that you and Tora-kun set this up?"
"You wound me, madam. My actions are usually direct and not thought through, no?"
Naoto lifted herself out of his grip but, to his surprise, didn't move to the position he expected. Instead, she shifted to rest her head on his lap as her legs balanced on the arm of the couch. "Better?"
"…Mm. Don't comment."
"But-"
"Senpai…"
Souji leaned back on the couch as he took her cap off and set it on his desk. Using the same hand to brush some hair off her face, he gently groomed her as he took her features into detail. His eyes narrowed a bit as he fell into a rhythm, and Naoto closed her eyes and murmured with pleasure. He slowed his movements a bit, deigning instead to stroke her cheek, marveling at how perfect her skin felt against his hand. Naoto opened one eye to observe Souji's face, and the warm look in his eyes caught her attention, prompting a query. "Senpai?"
"Hmm?"
Naoto was unwittingly inching up a bit, as if in silent question as to why Souji hadn't figured out her desire yet. They both shared a sheepish smile as Souji leaned down to bestow a tender kiss upon Naoto, to which she returned in a happy trance. She shifted upwards, just enough to be able to touch his shoulder with one hand, fervently deepening the doting gesture. Souji broke the kiss, leaning back to observe Naoto's expression, and shifted his leg to make her more comfortable. She had a content grin on her face, perfectly accompanied by a light dusting of pink adorning her cheeks. "You always manage to get your way, don't you, Senpai?"
Souji pretended to ponder her words, before smiling lovingly. "Maybe, but...this is ideal, isn't it?"
Naoto played along, a wry smile present on her face. "I'm not sure...It might take me some convincing to believe you."
Souji leaned down to whisper, and Naoto couldn't help but feel a strange thrill as his breath tickled her ear. "If it helps with your investigation, who am I to refuse?"
Before she could think of a reply, he effectively silenced her with his lips, giving her something much better to focus on.
Tora sat atop the television, purring in contentment at the affection evident between the two, well complemented by the light snowfall outside the window.