AN: I've wanted to write something about Persona 4 (Golden) for quite some while but haven't gotten to finish it. Feel free to review if you want more! (I mean, not for this, but in general more Persona)
"Watch me," a soft voice buzzes through the static of the TV that came to life on its own exactly at midnight, illuminating the young detective's room. Alerted from the sudden noise, she turned herself away from the files she studied.
"Interesting," she muttered as she slowly walked towards the screen, as to not scare away anything – or any person – that may be present, as irrational as that may seem. For Naoto Shirogane, a student, yet at the same time a detective, this case meant a careful approach, whatever would happen. Even if her TV of all things was talking to her.
A serial killer was on the loose, found were only corpses of which no autopsy could determine any cause of death. The victims – a female announcer and some high school students – were in good health, neither body seemed to have been violated any more than seemingly appearing in strange places, like on antennas, out of the blue.
Naoto wasn't one to believe in the supernatural, neither ghosts, nor demons – or at least, she hoped that neither of those existed. If this case wasn't related to anything of that sort, however, it would mean that a human could murder without leaving a trace. In a way, that would prove to be a much scarier prospect.
As she stared into the screen, a pair of yellow eyes appeared, meeting the detective's gaze and holding it. "Come here and look at me," the voice purred out of the TV, in a tone almost too cheerful to fit the words spoken. "I'll show you everything." Naoto swallowed, wondering if maybe she just fell asleep at the desk and this is all but a dream. Or maybe, it's a matter of electronics. An old recording, or an accidental broadcast of footage originally never meant to be made public. Any rational explanation for the TV's behaviour, at least.
Maybe it was just a creepy, barely known show on some adult channel. A channel that maybe was in some way encrypted, which would explain the static and that she can barely make out anything. These assumptions contained too many maybes to be any satisfying for the detective prince. Against all reason, but to disprove even the slight believe in this being of paranormal nature, Naoto decided to test the TV to respond to her.
"Who are you?" She asked the most obvious thing. The static continued, and Naoto almost cursed herself for her naivety, feeling embarrassed to have fallen for such impetuous ideas merely because there was a lack of rationale in this occurrence. Of course, a TV channel doesn't have an own conscience, it's just impossible for the show to react to anything said to the TV it's broadcasted on. Not in this time and age, at the very least.
"I'm Rise Kujikawa," the TV voice hummed, as if to mock the detective for not knowing that herself, and Naoto felt her blood running cold. In pure shock, she didn't move an inch but risked a quick glance to the desk next to her on which the files of her current case were spread out. The detective had read through every single detail of each file so often and so thoroughly, she knew all there was to know about it, or similar cases of kidnapping.
And the next person she figured would vanish was, in fact, Rise Kujikawa, a famous idol who just recently returned to Inaba. Students who disappeared before turned up dead a few days later, in the same way as the first woman did, albeit in other places. The police weren't able to save any of them, which is why Naoto was called – and in a matter of days, she had figured out a pattern that didn't make too much sense to her, but which serial killer's mind would make any sense to a normal mind?
The last victim, Kanji Tatsumi, she couldn't save, but she swore to herself it would be different this time. Was she too late already? Just this afternoon she had talked to the real Rise, though she was brushed off quickly by the brunette.
"You are most certainly not the real Kujikawa," Naoto states to the TV, and the static lifts just enough so she can make out a face – unmistakably the face of the idol she assumed to be the next target, smiling at her as to emphasise her disproving the detective. Naoto swallowed hard. Her best would be for this to be a dream after all, but she was growing more and more afraid that this was really happening.
"Oh, but I am. The real Rise Kujikawa," Even with the part static, Naoto's cheeks flushed slightly as she could make out the figure's hands travelling slowly over its own body, almost seductively. "Every little bit of me is real, come here and I will show you."
Naoto bit her lip, contemplating on whether or not to follow this suggestion. If this wasn't a dream and neither some imagination from exhaustion, then this was surely some sort of trap and she wouldn't be the great detective she aims to be if she fell right for it.
On the other hand, an innocent girl's life is on stake, and she knew that her pride as detective couldn't possibly be worth enough to let anyone die.
"How would I be able to?" Naoto finally asked, even though she hoped there would be no answer. Against her optimism, however, the figure's hand reached out, seemingly close to touching the TV's screen from the other side.
"Take my hand, detective prince."
As obviously futile and stupid such an attempt was, Naoto reached out nevertheless, until her fingertips almost brushed the screen. Then, she hesitated. Part of her was afraid of what could happen if this was real, and it would be a smarter move to call the police, to get backup.
"Why are you holding back? Do you have no interest in the real me?"
Naoto swallowed, realising that if this really was Rise, then she would need help as soon as possible, and the police wasn't too likely to believe this is happening anyways. Whatever she meant with the latter part, maybe just a trick to gain attention, or sympathy. An idol would surely know how to do that.
She closed her eyes and moved her hand forward, expecting to touch the cold screen and be stopped dead in her tracks by it any second, but it didn't happen. Instead, it felt like she just pushed her hand forward into an empty, cold room.
Just as she opened her eyes, the hand inside of the TV had already gripped her wrist and slowly started to pull her inside. Naoto's eyes widened in shock, this was real in fact and she was pulled into a TV.
"W-wait," her voice cracked, realising the seriousness of the situation, albeit too late – before she could utter any more words, her consciousness was gone.
A while later
As Naoto slowly came to, she couldn't possibly tell for how long she passed out. She found herself on a chair in some location that definitely didn't look like a girl (or anyone) her age belonged here. When she wanted to get up, she realised that she felt much too dizzy to move too much, let alone stand.
Looking around, she took in her surroundings more closely: It didn't take as much of a genius as she was to realise she was in a strip club, the mere realisation flushing her cheeks.
Why would anyone abduct people to bring them to a place such as this? She wondered, especially about if this was really where the previous victims have been killed.
"Oh, you've finally woken up," an all too familiar voice purrs happily, swinging her hips as she walked towards Naoto.
It was unmistakably Rise Kujikawa, in a light orange bikini, but now that Naoto saw her without any static she realised a big difference – this 'Rise' had yellow, piercing eyes, while the real Rise she had met had hazel eyes. Either such a detail escaped Naoto – which was very unlikely – or Rise now wore contacts – even less likely in such a situation – or this just wasn't the real Rise after all.
"You are not the real Rise Kujikawa," Naoto repeated, feeling stupid for falling for such a trap. Yet, how was the whole TV matter even possible?
"But I am," the girl declares, moving over to sit herself down on Naoto's lap, wrapping her arms around her shoulders, coming a little too close for the detective's comfort. "I'm her Shadow, the true side of Rise Kujikawa. The one you know is a fake, a façade to please everyone. I discarded all these shells, and I don't mind peeling off the small remainder to open up about who I truly am."
Naoto swallowed, feeling the girl's breath on her cheeks didn't exactly help her to clear her mind, and the dizziness only added to that. It all went over her head, and against all rationalism. She cleared her throat, ignoring the embarrassment of such intimacy, and made another attempt to make sense of this.
"For what reason have you taken me here?" 'Rise' merely chuckles, observing the detective's features more closely.
"You're always so serious, looking for answers and solutions to everything. For the truth," she explains, taking the detective's blue hat, then putting in on her own head. "I want someone to see me, all of me."
Naoto was speechless, feeling suddenly so irrationally vulnerable after losing her hat to a mere stranger, who may or may not be a victim of kidnapping. In fact, she herself now ended up in the situation of being kidnapped and this 'Rise' in front of her, or Shadow, as she called herself, might just be the perpetrator.
"Plus, you're cute."
Heat rushed to Naoto's cheeks; this was the compliment she never wanted to ever hear again, especially now that she grew older. She didn't want anyone to see her as cute, it was just embarrassing and simply nothing she'd want to be.
"Almost too cute for a boy," the girl adds, rendering Naoto completely speechless, as she knew that if she attempted to disagree now, her voice would break and give her away. The detective averted her gaze by looking down, yet immediately regretted choosing this direction as she now stared at the cleavage of the girl on her lap, flushing her cheeks just more.
Never before did had she been this close to another girl, or even person, her age and she couldn't help but notice the flawless, white skin, covered by nothing more but the thin fabric of a swimsuit.
"Like what you see?" The Shadow asked, twirling a strain of Naoto's dark blue hair around her finger, successfully bringing the detective back from her mindless ogling.
"T-that's not—" Naoto tried to explain herself, however immediately noticed that she failed to keep up the calm, low tone of voice she usually puts on to appear more mature and reliable and stopped dead in her tracks. She cursed herself for being caught off-guard this easily.
A smirk decorated the Shadow Rise's face now. She pushed her own body up against the detective's, bringing her lips close to the reddened ear of the latter. "Look at all of me," she whispered. "Don't turn away from me after you've seen the real me."
"I… Yes, I mean, no," Naoto stammered. If not for her whole flustering demeanour, this Rise obviously had some issues. Deep inside of herself, the detective knew she couldn't possibly turn her back on someone miserable. Not that she had a choice to go right now, even if she wanted to – the weight on her lap, albeit somewhat pleasant, prevented her.
Shadow Rise reached back to lift the knot that held her bikini top up, after which Naoto immediately wrapped her own arms around the other girl, keeping her close.
"I don't think touching is allowed here," the girl teased amusedly, though Naoto couldn't see her probably smug expression. "But I'll make an exception for my detective prince."
Naoto gritted her teeth, she didn't mean anything indecent, she just happened to thankfully react fast enough to keep the cloth from falling, revealing the full view of the other's breasts. It's nothing she wanted to see, her face felt hot enough to be able to boil water already. She fumbled around with the strings, trying to knot them back together, but the dizziness got to her a bit too much, making such tasks impossible for her fidgeting fingers.
A wet sensation on her neck stopped Naoto dead in her tracks yet again, sending small, almost electrifying shocks through her body. 'Rise' was not only kissing her neck, but also sucking on it with such expertise that it easily knocked the rationale out of the young detective.
Had she not instinctively bitten her bottom lip hard enough to keep her mouth shut, a soft whimper surely would have escaped her and she was very determined on not letting her guard down enough for anyone to hear her like that.
"My, you're a sensitive one," 'Rise' notices as she slowly removes her lips from Naoto's neck, a thin trail of saliva connecting them just for a second before it broke. Naoto's resistance was broken enough to let go of the girl on top on her, yet the bikini top was still dangling in front of her bust, not revealing much more than before, for which Naoto was incredibly grateful.
Seeing how much the abducted detective tensed up after such a simple thing, she opted for the blue coat she was wearing, slowly opening the buttons just to remove it – or so she would, if not for Naoto gripping her wrists with surprising strength, making her plans impossible.
"Don't," she panted, having mostly held her breath in the last few moments.
"You would rather see another's truth than reveal your own, hm?" 'Rise' slowly licked her lips, indicating her willingness to just remove her own clothing instead.
"No, that…" It was more than just hard for Naoto to connect her thoughts. This girl on her lap was potentially dangerous, every fibre in her being screamed that much. Yet, the proximity brought a strange level of comfort to her.
'Rise' leaned forward until her forehead touched Naoto's, making the latter's stolen hat finally fall down to the floor. Her yellow eyes stared right into Naoto's soul, or so it felt. Almost hypnotising and for a few seconds, maybe a whole minute, Naoto completely discarded her surroundings, these yellow eyes being the only existent thing for her.
"I see," 'Rise' concludes just as the detective came to again. "No wonder you are so cute."
For some unexplainable reason, Naoto felt her mind invaded, and the other's words just added to that fear.
"I cannot follow," Naoto feigned ignorance, and her act would have carried it, if not for the fact that the Shadow Rise was able to scan every other being, looking deep into them and revealing whatever they may be hiding.
"You understand, don't you? Keeping up a façade, just to please. This isn't you, not the real Naoto Shirogane." As master manipulators, Shadows were very much able to fake sympathy, though there was more behind it than Naoto would be able to tell.
"I am the real Naoto Shirogane, there is no other Naoto," the detective stated calmly.
"The real Naoto Shirogane is hidden right under this," 'Rise' insinuates, softly resting her hand on the other's chest.
Naoto immediately thought of some cliched situation where she would be told that her real self is inside of her heart, but she was proven wrong when the clothes on her torso were easily and fast discarded by skilful hands, just a binder remaining.
Almost cursing under her breath, Naoto felt even more vulnerable than before. Any strong act she would or could have pulled, this chance lies behind her now. She wouldn't give her abductor the satisfaction of seeing her cry, although she already felt the tears dwell up in her eyes.
"Now, will you also look at the real me?"
Naoto averted her gaze, simply ignoring her. There was nothing else she would be able to do.
"…you won't either, huh."
Shadows were too easily aggravated, as they were born from very emotional outbursts that never happened on the surface. A simple gesture decides one's fate when dealing with another's Shadow.
Piercing yellow eyes stared into frightened hazel eyes. "You're next," its distorted voice muttered after being rejected yet again.
Originally I planned for this to be smut but it kinda ended up a bit different. Whoops.