Persona: Between Light and Shadows

April 5, 2014: Saturday

Two people are driving by the country side of Japan in a silver sedan model. One of them is somewhere in his early forties, wearing thick glasses, a very nice blazer suit set, and a neatly combed mustache. The other is a 16 year old boy with orange hair (like Ichigo from Bleach or Kyo from FB), wearing a tight black jacket, a cheap necklace, fingerless gloves, and a watch. The boy looks really annoyed and depressed.

"Hey…dad…" said the teen with voice that makes you think of Heavy Rain (I suck at describing things okay) "Are you sure we're going like this place? Not that I care though…"

"Don't worry Naoki." Said the father as he drives by through the scenery "My friend found a small place in the country for the both of us to live in. He also enlisted you into a local high school for you to attend to. I'm sure you'll like Shura." They see many sights, but none catches Naoki's eyes. Eventually they reached a quaint little town with a shopping district, a park, and other places with not much to do. The two of them drove uphill to reach a security booth who greets them with a smile. What they see isn't what they expect…

…It is a mansion, 5-stories high that looks incredibly clean and gaudy with its neatly trimmed gardens, a giant fountain in the shape of an angel, and luxurious yards. The pair is flabbergasted by all this.

"H-Hey…dad…I thought you said you brought a small place for us…not an entire mansion…" said Naoki slowly.

"I…I thought so as well…I mean I've asked my friend to find a small, cheap place to live in…"

"You don't mean…you're super-rich friends, do you? Cause to them, it seems cheap…" said Naoki as he is still lose for words to describe this.

"I guess so…" said Naoki's dad as he sighs "Well they already made the down payments to this place, so we should be courteous and stay there for a little bit."

(Great, we are here for 5 minutes and already I don't like this place one bit. How could this get any worse?) As soon as he finished that thought the double doors burst open and squads of maids are all ready to greet them. (Apparently the universe likes to ruin my day.)

"Welcome Master Arata Hijiko. We've been expecting you." greeted the head maid as they all bow their heads to him. "Although…we weren't expecting any guest that you'll bring to the mansion or we'll be more prepared."

"Huh? Oh, him…that's my son, Naoki Juntomo. And to be honest…we weren't planning to live in the mansion…" said Arata embarrassingly. He turns to Naoki and says "Sorry about that. I guess that wasn't what we had in mind. But maybe you'll like Suzihama High School."

"Yes, I just know you will like it." Said one of the maids "It's such a nice high school with: tons of activities, have a perfect record of students graduating, and are on the cutting edge of education."

"Oh, really?" said Naoki as he tries to put a smile (Something tells me I'm going to have SO much fun there.) He sighs and asks Arata if he could spend some time outside wondering around.

"Ah, that will be fine. Just get back before its dark or I'll call the police looking for you." he said the last statement with a smile. Naoki laughs it off, but he knows Arata WILL do it. The maid gives him a map around the country.

He heads to Zuki Shopping District where the people are doing something or conversing with other people. Naoki doesn't really mind the atmosphere and says hello to anyone who notices him. Things are really looking good to Naoki (Maybe it's not bad as I thought it'll be). While walking he sees some punks entering the drug store. Another moment later they're wrecking havoc inside with the owner to give back the medicines. Apparently nobody wants to get involved in this as they continue their lives. Three punks come chuckling on the rewards of it carrying a sack full of cash and bags of medicine.

"Boy did you see how that old hag's expression?" said the 1st punk.

"Yeah, TOO easy man!" exclaimed the 2nd punk.

"Maybe we should've done this a long time ago! After all, this town is full of cowards and weaklings anyway!" suggested the 3rd punk.

Naoki is silent for a minute as he walks towards the punks. He quietly get behind them and gently taps on their shoulder.

"Huh? What do you want you bit-"before the punk finishes his sentence Naoki punches in the cheek real hard. He proceeds by punching him again in the face, followed by rapid set of jabs to the abdomen, and finally a roundhouse kick squarely into the chest. Probably a bit overkill but did get the job done. He proceeds by breaking the other punk's jaw by using an uppercut. The last one tries to get away, but Naoki picks up a trash can and throws it at the punk. He picks up the stuff the thugs stole and return them to the owner.

"Why thank you young man." Said the old lady as she gets her belongings "I don't believe we've met before though…"

"Um, that's because I just moved here, but, damn, they were taking what isn't theirs. And yet, nobody tried to do a thing to help you." Said Naoki a bit bitterly.

"My, what a thoughtful young man you are." The store owner thinks about for a minute "Tell you want my dear…I will some type of reward for your troubles. And I won't take no as an answer."

"But…!"

"Don't worry about it my dear. It's my way of saying thanks." The store keeper gives Naoki 5000 yen and some ointments. "Be careful my dear and if you ever get sick than you can always come for medicine."

"Thank you ma'am." Said Naoki as he bows his head. He only realized that the fight drew a lot attention towards him with mixed results.

"Man this guy is trouble alright."

"Hey he took down some punks like it was child's play."

"Boy he looks cute."

"What is with the orange hair? Is he a juvie or something?"

"Mommy, will I be strong like that man over there?"

All this attention is starting to make Naoki nervous. People staring at him just make him feel uncomfortable…like he did something wrong. (W-What did I do? Can't those people figure it out from my…whatever I showing?)

"They're just simply impressed by your skills." Said a teenage girl among the crowd. She is wearing a pure white gown, a short skirt covered in sparkling glitter, and a military cap with a 6-pointed star on it. She has silver gray hair that is made to be in a bun style. Based from her height and other features, she can't be any older than Naoki.

"Please forgive my rudeness. My name is Miyuki Chisaome." Introduced Miyuki

"Um…nice to meet you…name's Naoki Juntomo." Replied Naoki without any confidence. It's not like he can't talk to girls, but this is the first time he ever talked to someone so…casually.

"So you must be the new kid moving to Shura, huh?" stated Miyuki elegantly "I'm sure you'll like it here."

"T-Thanks, I guess." Replied Naoki as he looks at his watch. "Well I better get going. Dad will super worry if I'm not home on time. Hope to see you at Suzihama High!" Later that evening Naoki calls out saying he's here. He hears Arata talking to somebody in the living room. Naoki smiles when Arata is talking to his latest patient who is grieving over the loss of her son. (That's dad, the psychiatric.)

He heads up to his room to see everything is set up. A bookshelf, a tv, some of his toy models he made, study desk with his textbooks, a coffee table for various activities, and a futon. The walls are adorned with various posters of video games and anime. He sighs as he looks out to the window next to the bookshelf.

(Man why couldn't dad and I get that small apartment like we hoped. Seriously this place is too big and the only other residents are the butlers and maids. Geez, how can rich people live like this?) thought Naoki. He looks at his watch…11:55 pm. He sets up his futon hastily and lies down to go to sleep.

Elsewhere, in a spacious building that looks like a castle from England, Miyuki opens the huge double doors and enters the place. The interior room is pure white with suits of armor lining up in a row with a sword and a shield. The chandeliers are made of glass and emit such light that you need shades to marvel at the elegance. Literally. The floors are made out of silver marble whose lust shines so brightly it might even get a blind man's sight back.

"Ah, Miyuki, my dear, welcome back." A man comes to Miyuki in the room. He must be in his early forties, wearing what appears to be yellow regal suit, a white cape, and is carrying a rapier. He has a smoothly combed gray mustache, his face doesn't emit any negative emotions, and he has very long hair. "Tell me, how was your search for allies to aid in our quest?"

"Good news, Lord Cyphele, I think I found someone with THAT power." Stated Miyuki as she bows her head.

"You 'think'?"

"Well…I couldn't the obvious signs, but I felt it for sure."

The two of them converse and plan for their next move for a good while. Behind them is a picture of two people…a man and a woman with their privates covered.

Author's notes: Hope you enjoy this story. This is actually my first fan fic, so I really enjoy if you can give some constructive criticism. Please tell me what I can improve on and I'll give it my all.