DISCALAIMER: Persona belongs to Atlus and Square Enix, I make no claim to the ownership of the name nor themes therein.


Date: Monday 2nd June

Weather: Snowy

Moon: Full


It's snowing… Snow in June?

A peculiar thought. A truly surreal one. One that would be utterly out of place in any other person's mind, but one that nonetheless is at home in this scattered psyche of mine. It is also the last thing I remember before…did I fall asleep? I couldn't be capable of higher cognitive thought if I was unconscious. However I am obviously not entirely awake either. My mind can't seem to focus on anything at all. My thoughts seem even more scattered than usual. It feels like my brain has been dipped into water and, although soothing, the water is lifting my thoughts and swirling them around. Am I awake, or am I asleep? I find that it feels like how I imagine someone who is on heavy drugs must feel at the peak of their effectiveness. I must say… It doesn't feel unpleasant. Far from it, in fact. I could get used to it, given enough time. The state of my consciousness once again rears its head, and I begin to question it again, just as a blue void begins to expand into view. Regardless of whether I am awake or asleep, I now find myself in a room, though… Is it a room? Although the walls and floor remain impervious to even the slightest hint of vibrations, through the windows on either side of the room, the surroundings appear to be moving. Though all that can be seen out of the window is snow. Wait…

Snow in June…?

Turning my attention back to the immediate vicinity, the entire place is draped in blue velvet. In fact, absolutely everything is some shade of blue; the only exceptions are the flames on the candelabra illuminating the 'room'. After the vibrancy of the colour, the next most obvious thing about the room is the furnishings. Before me is a circular table, with a deck of tarot cards sitting in the centre of it. My mind somehow seems to focus on that deck, for some reason. For the first time since…awakening? …in this place, I become aware of my body, or rather, I seem to remember its existence. I feel the urge to reach out towards that deck, but decide against it, upon finally realising the most obvious thing about this room – I'm not alone here.

To my right is perhaps the most beautiful young woman I have ever seen. I say woman, but she can't be any older than myself. Her skin is pale, it looks as delicate as porcelain, as if it would fracture if I were to even lightly touch her. Her hair is a dirty silver, similar to the colour of city snow, and reaches just down to her fragile-looking, bare shoulders. She wears an ultramarine, sleeveless polo-neck reaching down to just below her chest, whereby a tight corset continues down to her waist. Underneath the corset and short frock, she wears a slim dress appearing to reach from her neck down to her lower thigh. Knee-high boots and elbow-length gloves complete her attire, along with what appears to be a chauffer's cap perched on her head. Resting on her knees is a leather-bound book. It's rather thick and seems to captivate my attention almost as much as she does. Her face is as delicate as the rest of her appearance. She looks like a designer doll. I suddenly take note of the fact that she's looking at me intensely. She probably has been for some time. I don't maintain eye-contact for long, but saw that her eyes were a brilliant gold and filled with a complex mix of emotions. I try not to stare, but for some reason I find myself taking note of her every feature. Every stray hair, every crease… I don't really believe in love at first sight. Love is a by-product of the desire to pro-create that sometimes happens to become an emotional desire all of its own. And before you ask, no. I wasn't always this cynical. It's an acquired taste that I really don't wish to recall the circumstances of.

To my left is a tall elegant man dressed in an extravagantly-smart tuxedo. His hair is short, and yet rather messy. His eyes are covered by a blue velvet blindfold, which is curious considering that he is playing the most expensive-looking piano I have ever laid eyes upon. The room doesn't seem that large at all. And yet, a grand piano can fit in here rather comfortably. How curious. The music he is playing is even more beautiful than the instrument creating it. For that matter, so is the operatic singing I can here coming from somewhere behind me. I then notice what is perhaps the most striking thing in the room. One I'm not sure exactly how I could have missed. Namely, the balding elderly gentleman sitting opposite me, fingers clasped before him. He too, is dressed in a suit, but that's not what striking about his appearance, rather, what is striking is his bulbous blood-shot eyes and his abnormally long, bird-like nose. It is at this point that I am jerked out of my thoughts at last by the peculiar-looking gentleman speaking to me.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room, my dear." His voice is smooth and calm, yet eerie and full of mystique. I can't help but feel relaxed by that voice; accompanied by the soothing atmosphere and beautiful music, I find I feel truly at ease here.

"This is the space between consciousness and unconsciousness – mind and matter, it is a room that only those who are bound by a contract may enter. I must admit, I am pleased to welcome you back, after all you have already signed our contract several years ago." Contract? What sort? I don't recall signing any contracts! I observe the gentleman's face. He's peering at me over his hands. The girl is still staring at me. I… Have I been here before? I… I can't really think straight…or maybe it's that for the first time I am thinking straight.

"My, and what an intriguing destiny you have. We have not had a guest like you in quite some time, not since the time of fog, I believe. Now then, in case you have forgotten, I am Igor, a servant of Philemon, and presider over this Velvet Room. I understand you've been going through some emotional trouble lately, so, to confirm you know yourself as well as we do, what is your name?" That last question is the most straightforward thing this guy has said. Actually scratch that, 'know yourself as well as we do'? What kind of crap is that?

"David Beale" I answer after a while.

"I see." He says with a slight smile. "Don't worry. Right now you are fast asleep in the real world…" …So this guy is trying to have me believe I'm asleep. Having said that I'm the one who is confused about his own state of consciousness right now. Perhaps… Perhaps I am asleep. Regardless of my being lost in thought, Igor continues. "Well then, do you believe in fortune telling?" I take a minute to register what he means. I do believe in fortune telling, in fact I conduct readings myself on a semi-regular basis. I reply by nodding my head in confirmation. Igor then waves his hand over the deck of cards, spreading five out into a pentagram, with a sixth in the centre.

"Very good. I find that fortune telling shares its key principles with life itself." He says in a philosophical tone. Granted, I can kind of see that analogy. However it occurs to me that this whole thing should be filling me with panic and paranoia. According to him, I'm asleep, but I could just as easily have been drugged and brought here. I don't know why, but I dismiss that thought immediately. Being here is kind of like… It's kind of like someone is thinking for me. A dart of movement snaps my attention back to the reading. "Let's see now…the card representing you is…'The Fool', in the upright position. It seems that a great journey is ahead of you. The job of this room, and those who dwell within, is to aid you on that journey however we can. Your immediate future is represented by…Ah, 'Death' also in the upright position. It seems you will not be the same at the end of your journey as you are now, and that a great change is about to befall you." This is rather peculiar already. In my own readings, 'The Fool' generally crops up in relation to me. But what is even more interesting is that I know for a fact that a rather large change is ahead of me. I'm not overly believing in coincidences, but I decide to see the rest of the reading before making a decision. "Beyond that is…'The Wheel of Fortune', also upright. It appears that the changes foretold by 'Death' may indeed be beneficial, although they may not seem that way at first." He laughs. "Let's see, the future after that is…'The Strength' upright as well. This indicates that the changes you will undergo will allow you to 'tame the beast within', my…how fortunate. Following that is…'The Justice' in the reverse position. It seems the law itself may become your enemy. Finally, it seems the last card is…'The Tower' in the upright position, indicating a terrible catastrophe. I cannot foresee anything beyond that… It seems that your journey may take any number of paths, or even end prematurely, based on your own actions."

So… I… I'm speechless. 'The Tower' ? It's position in the reading seems to indicate something akin to a 'bad end' in a video game. Is that what my life is heading to? Igor then seems to realise something, speaking up again.

"Ah… It seems I have neglected to introduce my companions to you. This is Nameless." He waves his hand in the direction of the blindfolded pianist.

"Greetings. I am Nameless. I am the one who will open the locked doors of your heart." His voice is smooth and suave, kind of like James Bond, if James Bond were an ethereal pianist.

"And I am Belladonna~ Praise be to you, our visiting guest~ You who shalt challenge the beast within~ That beast we call 'self'~" I turn around in my seat to see that behind the sofa I am sitting on, there is an elegant woman standing on a balcony, wearing a long, sleek dress, with grey-ish hair sticking out from her gorgeously made-up face. I hasten to add, she is also getting covered in snow. I begin to realise that I'm in what appears to be a horse-drawn carriage. Now it makes sense. The singing I can hear is coming from this woman. She appears to be standing outside of the protection of the roof, due to most of the room being taken up by the piano, Igor's table, and the sofa I'm sitting on. Poor woman, it looks awfully cold out there.

"… And this is Alice" Igor concludes by gesturing to the beautiful girl to my right.

"Salutations. I am Alice, keeper of the book of the heart. Whenever new bonds are formed, it is my duty to record them here." Her voice is as soft as her appearance. Looking at her for too long seems to have an odd effect on me. Like she's trying steal my soul through my gaze. She gives me a delicate smile, one I try to return…though I'm not sure if I succeed.

"For you to continue on your journey, you will be in need of our aid." Igor says with a knowing look. "But do not fear. We will summon you here when next your destiny demands it." Igor then knocks on the ceiling, signalling to the driver, before turning to me again. "It seems our time is up. We shall meet again, when your destiny requires it, until then, farewell."

My vision fades to black. I'm losing all sense of my surroundings. I'm adrift in my own thoughts. I then feel the pleasantness of the seat beneath me. I realise I have indeed, been asleep. I open my eyes groggily, I'm on a train, just as I should be. It's taking me from Kyoto to Tokyo. I muse on the specifics of my journey as I look out the window, trying to wake up, taking note of the blizzard out of the window.

It's snowing… Snow in June?


Chapter's End Corner~

Well, by request, I've reposted/rewritten this. It wasn't actually as bad as I remember, so I think I'll be continuing this, as was the actually request, haha. The original is actually rated M due to language, but there wasn't much of it, and I decided that what there was could be removed easily.

Note on the name: I coined it back at the beginning of the year, when I wrote the original (Which, as is said above, is still here on , under 'M'. It isn't some kind of prequel, rather '0' is used to give it a numerical name without stepping on the toes of an eventual sequel.