A few notes as a "little" foreword:
In Persona 4 stories, the main characer's name is often Souji Seta or Yu Narukami. For this story, it's Seta Narukami. And there is a reason for this, but to be honest, it's not at all important. The point is, WE KNOW, so there's no need to point it out to us.
The beginning chapters of the story were written way back in April and thus, we'll have to discount anything that happens in Arena or Golden. As a continuation of sorts, this story will contain spoilers for the true endings of both Persona 3 and Persona 4.
Much of this story runs on "I have an idea! Let's do it!" We've done our best to make it flow smoothly, but we apologize in advance if there are any minor inconsistencies. If you find any, feel free to let us know and we'll try to fix it.
The story, in our opinion, seemed to be on the line between T and M. After debating over it for a while, we ended up placing it under T. If anyone thinks it's too low at all, feel free to let us know and we can bring it up again.
A few edits had to be made in terms of format, but hopefully, it all works out okay.
The first two chapters were originally just their e-mail messages and spoken dialogue, however we have had to rewrite them in order to fit FFnet's rules. Also, should be obvious, but just in case: Their e-mails are NOT real.
Phew...With all that said, we hope you enjoy!
To: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Fri, July 27, 2012 at 3:46 PM
Subject: Hey
Hey. Sorry for the lapse in contact. It shouldn't happen again. I don't think it's been long, but the days run together after a while. I doubt I missed anything in Inaba, but I wanted to ask, just in case. Things have been a little weird over here.
To answer your last question, I believe in that scenario, the train is so far off the rails that it crashed into a brick wall, through it, over a cliff, into a pit of spikes...no, a pit of reapers, that happen to fire spikes from their guns...sorry, speaking of trains, I lost my train of thought. It's improbable, is what I'm saying.
Seta Narukami
...
I stared at the keyboard uselessly. I was exhausted...I shook my head, laughing bitterly at my own choice of words. A little weird. Yosuke was going to catch on. I knew he would. Whether it was because he internally wanted adventure, or because he knew me so well, he pounced on anything vague I said.
My parents would be coming home later this evening.
I'd make dinner before they got back...I had about two hours...
Yosuke was probably at work right now...
I needed to lie down.
...
To: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Fri, July 27, 2012 at 4:28 PM
Subject: RE: Hey
No problem, good to hear from you again. You haven't missed much, it's been kinda normal around here. Aside from Kanji trying to ask Naoto out once-she still will not get a clue. What do you mean by 'weird' stuff happening over there?
...Dude, I think we've both lost the train at this point. I don't even know what you're talking about.
-Yosuke
...
I hit Send, finding myself grinning slightly. I'd missed his e-mails, to be honest; I'd just passed off his silence on him being busy with exams like the rest of us were, but damn, it really was good to hear from him again. I couldn't help but wonder what he meant by 'weird' though...what could be weird that was going on over there?
...And what were we really talking about last time? I seriously could not remember for the life of me.
"Hey, Hanamura!"
I sighed and clicked out of the browser before pocketing my phone and standing. "Coming!"
...
To: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Fri, July 27, 2012 at 5:08 PM
Subject: RE: Hey
...If he asked her out, and she still has no idea, we may as well give up now. It doesn't get more obvious than that. Seriously, Naoto? I seriously wonder if she's that clueless or...I don't even know.
Weird...I'm not sure where to start. It's a bit hard to explain. Lots of fog around here. Weird hallucinations at midnight. I need to sleep more.
If you can't find the e-mail, and you don't remember, it's probably not important. But the train's probably a wreck at this point, so I hope you didn't leave anything important on it. Then again, you probably don't need a train once you have a motorcycle...have you gotten your license yet?
-Seta
...
Yeah. Fog. That was gonna tip him off. Hallucinations would, too...sleep had nothing to do with this. I was pretty sure at this point that I wanted him to know...But what could they do about it from Inaba? Check the TV world, I guess...
As for Naoto and Kanji, was this really as hopeless as it sounded? Some good news would be nice...
Damn train.
Probably should start making dinner now...
...
To: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Fri, July 27, 2012 at 8:40 PM
Subject: RE: Hey
Nah, I'd say there's still some hope left for them. He kinda ran off in the middle of asking her, yelling something about sewing class, so...
Lots of fog? You mean like a constant fog like the one that happened here last December? And what kind of hallucinations do you mean?
It couldn't have been that important if I forgot about it. Even if it was, I'm not going through a brick wall over a cliff into a pit of reapers firing spike guns to remember it. And yeah, I have my license, but still no motorcycle. It's kind of depressing.
-Yosuke
...
Oh man, if only we could get Kanji and Naoto together. I'd had to bug him for over a week to get him to even start asking her...and then he'd botched it by running off anyway.
The instant he mentioned fog I found myself starting to worry. Was it really as bad as I was imagining it? I hoped not. I didn't want a repeat of seven months ago. And hallucinations? I hoped Seta wasn't actually imagining things either.
...Where the hell was the second half of this conversation going anyw-
There was a giant crash from downstairs, and I shot to my feet. Goddammit, Teddie, what the hell did you do this time?!
...
To: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Sat, July 28, 2012 at 1:21 AM
Subject: Fog/Hallucinations/Trains?
Sounds like Kanji to me. Maybe they just need encouragement? Yukiko could get them a room at the inn and force them to share it...think that'd work?
Yeah, fairly constant. It's not too thick, but thick enough to keep me constantly on edge. I've kept an ear out for anything worrying being said, but nothing so far. Even stuck my head through my own TV, but nothing seems to be off in the TV world, either...Teddie may have a better idea than me, so ask him.
The hallucinations are a bit strange. Lots of coffins, the sky's green, and the moon seems way too big. No lasting harm done by them, though...maybe they're just dreams?
I'd only go through all that if Nanako was on that train. I'd make those Reapers sorry.
(You'll be able to afford one eventually, no worries.)
-Seta
...
There would be nothing left of those Reapers. Nothing.
The fog was thick enough that I was wearing my glasses outside. My parents hadn't noticed, but then, they didn't notice much.
Dreams? How long am I going to call them dreams? Who do I think I'm kidding? It just happened again an hour ago...
It was too late for this. I needed to sleep.
...
To: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Sat, July 28, 2012 at 11:25 AM
Subject: RE: Fog/Hallucinations/Trains?
Oh, man, why didn't I think of that before?! If only it weren't tourist season right now, Yukiko's been telling us how booked solid they are...Chie's been over to help them out quite a bit lately.
Damn, you're lucky you didn't get sucked in again like you did the first time...that sounds kinda unsettling though. You don't think it could be Ameno-Sagiri trying to make a comeback, do you...?
Coffins? A green sky? And you're seeing it repeatedly? ...it wasn't something you ate, right? Please tell me your fridge isn't as bad as the one at the Dojimas'.
Hah, you would! And you know we'd have your back every step of the way too.
(I hope so.)
-Yosuke
...
That idiot...trying to stick his head through an unfamiliar TV like that? He was really lucky he hadn't fallen through, even if he had been careful about it.
Dreams? Yeah, right, nice try, Seta. I had no idea what was actually going on over there, but even I could tell he knew they weren't dreams.
Oh man, what I wouldn't give to have my own motorcycle...
"C'mon, Yosuke, or you're gonna end up walking!"
I sighed and shut my laptop. I'd have to settle for getting a ride from my dad for now.
...
To: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Sat, July 28, 2012 at 2:24 PM
Subject: RE: Fog/Hallucinations/Trains?
Attachments: MyFridge,jpg
Hm. See what you can do. Let me know how it goes. As soon as Kanji and Naoto start dating, I'll throw them a party or something.
Um...it tried. Had a bruise on my shoulder for a bit thanks to that. Again, you should send Teddie or Rise in, just in case. I hope not, but if it comes to that, we should all go in and take it out once more. Prove that it shouldn't mess with humanity. With us.
I've considered that it was something I ate. I have an ingredients drawer that I keep clean, but the rest of the fridge may as well be foreign matter. Here's a picture, if you're interested.
I know you would.
-Seta
...
And what a party it would be. There would a banner hanging on the wall that read 'EVERYONE COULD SEE IT BUT YOU, NAOTO'. Or maybe that'd be mean.
A bruise on my shoulder...a scorched arm...my parents must be blind...
At least taking a picture of my fridge had made me smirk. Yosuke was gonna flip.
...They would be with me. They always have been with me. So why, why was I still hiding?
I'd get some fresh air, and then I'd begin telling him my concerns.
...
To: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Sat, July 28, 2012 at 2:45 PM
Subject: …
You know, I've been understating the situation to you guys. The severity of it. I guess I just don't want to worry you when there isn't much you can do.
I met a blue-haired man in what was definitely a dream the other day. I haven't felt the same since.
Something's going on. I get the feeling it's pretty big...but I have no idea what it is.
Am I the only one seeing this?
-Seta
...
Was I losing my mind?
...
To: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Sat, July 28, 2012 at 11:58 PM
Subject: RE: Fog/Hallucinations/Trains?
I'll give it a shot. It took a lot of nagging to get him to start asking her in the first place...and look where that ended up.
Yeah, I'll ask Ted about it. I think Rise's still finishing up some business from her last tour, sent us an email a while back saying she was gonna come back and stay in Inaba for a few weeks. I'll ask her when she gets here, too. And damn right we'll set that thing straight. We're not gonna keep letting it mess with us.
...Dude, please don't tell me you actually eat half of that stuff.
-Yosuke
...
Haha, a party for Kanji and Naoto. They'd either die of embarrassment or try to kill us.
I opened the image file, then jerked back and nearly fell out of my chair. Oh god, that could not seriously be his fridge. He could not seriously be eating that...stuff.
There was another e-mail in my inbox...I glanced at the clock. I guess I could reply to this one before I went to sleep.
...
To: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Sun, July 29, 2012 at 12:04 AM
Subject: RE: ...
...Just how much are you 'understating' things, Seta? I haven't seen or heard anything of a blue-haired man (naoto doesn't count), and I'm sure the others would've brought something up if they had.
...Maybe I should come over and pay you a visit. I've been curious to know what your place looks like, anyways.
-Yosuke
...
How much was he not telling me?
...
To: Yosuke Hanamura (magician94 (a)atlus .co .jp)
From: Seta Narukami (wildcardizanagi2011 (a)atlus .co .jp)
Sent: Sun, July 29, 2012 at 6:00 PM
Subject: [no subject]
True.
Ask him.
I have bigger things to worry about than my diet.
I'm only just realizing how much I've underestimated things.
Yosuke, please call me as soon as possible.
I'm scared.
-Seta
...
I shut my eyes and picked up my cell phone. Braced myself. Walked down the hall. A reminder to myself that someone had to be told, or next time, it would be my blood on the walls, and my life on the line. And any person, any non-Persona user who had no idea, who came too close to me could be next.
Then again, what was stopping this from reaching Inaba?
I sat down on the sofa and waited.