I do not own Jojo's Bizarre Adventure or the Persona series.


"W-what the hell?" Chie gasped, utterly frightened by what she was seeing. Another Johnny? How was that possible?

"Dude, what's going on?" Yosuke whispered to Johnny, who just stared at his copy in shock. Just what is this? Is this another trick from this place?"

"What are you?" Johnny asked, and his copy smirked before jumping off the horse, standing beside it and staring at Johnny with sadistic glee on its face.

"I'm you, of course." The copy answered with dark amusement. "And as such, I know everything about you! All your fears, all your thoughts, all your guilt, all your secrets… I know everything in such great detail." It then began petting the 'horse', grinning while not taking his eyes off of Johnny."Like I know that you're only in this stupid fucking town because you didn't have the balls to blow your brains out back home!"

Johnny's eyes shot open in horror. How? "How the hell does this thing know?"

"Dude…"

Johnny's gasped and turned his head towards Yosuke and Chie, who were both staring at him with wide eyes.

"You… what's he saying?" Yosuke asked, gesturing to Johnny's doppelganger.

"Johnny did… did you try to kill yourself?" Chie asked in a small voice.

"N-No! I mean, I-"

"He sure did!" The Johnny copy interrupted, sounding quite cheerful as he confessed to Johnny's attempt at such a horrible act. "Of course, he never told anybody. Didn't want to have anyone's fake pity. Didn't want anyone to go out of their way to help him so they could brag that they "saved" him from himself! What a bunch of crap!"

The copy began circling the trio, grin widening as it stared directly at Johnny. The boy stared at his copy, who was walking on legs that weren't crippled before turning the copy's voice pulled his attention to its face.

"You don't want their sympathy, but your situation is so bad that you can't stop feeling sorry for yourself! Because you were such an idiot you lost your legs, and there were no more fans, no more awards, no more praise, and nobody gave a damn about you! You couldn't handle it anymore, so you raided your dad's gun drawer, put the thing in your mouth, and just sat in place like a fucking idiot before putting it down! God, you're such a pathetic loser!"It then looked at both Yosuke and Chie. "Hell, I know you even hate having to be with these two!"

"Shut the fuck up!" Johnny shouted out, looking from side to side as Chie and Yosuke just started at the copy with shocked faces. How did this thing know so much? No, that didn't matter! It was revealing everything! He didn't want anyone to know this! It wasn't their right! It was his! His alone!

His shame alone…!

"You think they're like those assholes and bitches that you used to hang with, when really they are totally different! You knew that our 'old pals' were faking whatever friendship they had by just giving you blind praise. They just wanted to have the perks of being friends with someone famous! Hell, why else would those guys let you push them around and those chicks let you bone them? Soon as you lost your legs, they left you in the dust!" The copy continued on as if never interrupted in the first place. Johnny's eyes were now showing its panic. It really knew everything!"You're so afraid of being fooled again that you try to push everyone away, yet these two just keep trying to be friendly to you! It boggles your mind why they would even stick around you, when you've been nothing but a cynical little shit to them! And not just to them, but to everyone! You're such a paranoid asshole that your willing to blow any friendship or connection you can get just on the off chance you'll get hurt again. Whatever. I mean, it's not like you deserve any real friends anyway. Not when you act like such a jackass to everyone, before and after you lost everything."

Yosuke looked at Johnny, who now seemed utterly scared by all that was being revealed. "That's why he acts like a jerk? He just doesn't want to have sucky friends anymore?"

Yosuke knew how much it hurt for people to be taken advantage of and tossed aside when his use was fulfilled, but actually leading to believe that you care about them then taking it back? That was just horrible.

"I said shut up!" Johnny shouted frantically at the copy, scared out of his mind. Both Chie and Yosuke were looking at him with pity in their eyes! "How can you know these things? Who the fuck are you!?"

"I told you, I am YOU!" The copy replied, angry at the question. "I know that the only reason you came to this town, the only reason you came to this place, and the only reason you're living with your uncle is because you want to give a 'useless person' like yourself some sort of reason to keep on living!"

"Shut your goddamn mouth!" Johnny shouted, now shaking in both fear and anger. "That's not true! It's not!"

"But it is." The copy then became deathly serious, stopping just before the horse and looking at Johnny with a blank expression. "I know this because I am you. I am your Shadow 'Jojo'. I know EVERYTHING about you."

"A… Shadow?"

Then that meant it really wasn't him. It was just one of those things that the mascot was worried about! It was just trying to psyche him out!

"Shut up you bastard! I know what you really are! And there is no way…"

Something in the back of his mind told him that it was true. Hell, that everything that the Shadow said was true, but he wouldn't listen. He would tell this thing off right now and get it off their backs!

"There is no way you're me, you freak!"

Chie and Yosuke watched as the Shadow became silent, and an oppressive air fill the area. "I-I think we should run…" Yosuke muttered to Chie, who dumbly nodded.

"Hehehe… Hahaha…!" The Shadow began to chuckle before throwing its head back and erupting with joyous laughter. "HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Black energy seemed to erupt from the very ground and envelop the Shadow Johnny and the horse together. It then sneered at the three, and especially at Johnny."You're goddamn right I'm not you! I'm my own self now! I'm not you…!" The energy then completely covered the two beings, and the three teenagers were forced to turn away. "…NOT AT ALL!"

The energy then died down, and Johnny looked at the thing that stood in the Shadow's place in growing horror.

What was standing before them looked like a person riding a horse, but the two beings were nowhere near human. The horse looked like it was just bits and pieces of disjointed black armor in the shape of a horse, with spiked hooves and golden flames coming out of the eye sockets. It was big, lean, and despite nothing being inside the armor per-say, it looked powerful. On the sides of the 'horse's body were the engravings of a white mouse.

But the rider was the most monstrous part.

It was wearing a dark pink mask, but it had two white fangs coming from the bottom. It had a single rusted metal horn acting as a nose, and seemed had no real discernible features other than the eye sockets and the top edges extending about a foot above its head like a demon's horns. It was wearing what looked like a tattered black cloak, revealing a skeleton underneath that looked cracked and broken yet still held together by some unknown force. Over its right arm was what looked like a tattered American flag, acting like some sort of cape. On its back was what looked like a staff with red rust covering the blade at the end, and its hands which grasped the reigns of the horse were rusted metal claws. Not only that, but the bones that were supposed to be its legs were broken and splintered, disjointed at odd angles yet still somehow managed to rest firmly against the sides of the horse.

"I am a Shadow… The TRUE inner self!" The transformed Shadow Johnny declared in near manic glee while the horse whinnied in agreement. "I'll give a reason why a useless person like you kept on living all right… and that was so you could last long enough so that I could kill you myself!"

"RUN!" Yosuke shouted as he began bolting to the house, with Chie following him. Who knew what that thing would do after it killed Johnny? It would probably go after them next!

"We gotta get to the mansion!" Chie screamed as the three began running to the house. "We gotta hide in there!"

"No way… That can't be me…" Johnny muttered to himself, his eyes dilating as the event replayed in his mind's eye over and over again. Everything felt muted to him. Ever since the Shadow transformed, everything seemed empty. All emotions other than denying that thing was him seemed as if they were shut down.

"Oh, I'm the only one who suffered! I'm the only one who had my brother die, I'm the one who has his father hate him, and right after that I got crippled! Woe is me!" The Shadow mocked as it pointed to the retreating three. "The sad part is that you know deep down that is a load of crap! You're nothing but a self-centered brat! You know for sure that people suffer all around you, but you don't care since your troubles are somuch more horrible! So disappear! LIGHTING OF DESPAIR!" Clouds began to form over Johnny and Yosuke, but only Chie could see them.

"MOVE!"

"Huh?" Was all Yosuke could reply before Chie tackled him away from where he was standing and onto the ground, just as a massive bolt of red lightning rained down from the cloud and hit the area he was just on.

The ground became scorched and burned in an instant, and Yosuke could only stare in horror at the place. "Oh crap, I almost just died…"

"That's right! Run from your problems! Just like you ran from Danny!" The Shadow shouted as it snapped the horse armor's reigns, making the thing begin to move forward. "That little white rat! You remember him! You ran away from the very thing you caused!" It then pointed the spear again at the retreating three and shouted, "Winds of Tragedy!"

A mighty gust then rushed forward, and all three were swept off their feet. Chie and Yosuke screamed as they flew through the open door and landed hard on the floor inside the mansion. Johnny was beside Chie, still with his eyes closed in denial while Yosuke was closer to the door. Normally, they should have felt pain. However, the fear that Yosuke and Chie were experiencing dulled the pain and Johnny himself was too busy denying everything the Shadow was saying.

"Stop it!" Johnny cried out as Yosuke scrambled up and slammed the door shut. "Shut up! Shut up! Shutupshutupshutu-"

*SMACK*

A loud smack echoed through the mansion, and Johnny's left cheek now sported a red hand mark.

"Y-you stupid jerk!" Chie cried out, looking furiously at Johnny. "You acted like an ass because you didn't want to be hurt by other people? You really thought we were like that? You thought we would just ditch you whenever we felt like? Of all the stupid, idiotic… How can you even try to be like that? Alone!? How can you… How can you just try and give up on life!?"

"B-But that thing isn't…" Johnny feebly denied, only for Chie to shake her head.

"Don't lie to me! Even if that thing, even if it…!" Chie bit her lip as tears swam in her eyes. "…You just don't lie about something like that…!"

Johnny looked away, ashamed. He never wanted to reveal it. That he almost committed suicide before coming to Inaba. He was just so tired, so ashamed of everything. Of his life, of all the choices he made, of his current situation… everything. He thought it would have been easier just to give up. He created a suicide note for his mother and everything. But before he could pull the trigger, he thought that there must have been something to make his life worth living. He didn't know what, but there had to be. That one hope was what made him put the gun down.

Yosuke decided to look back at the door. Why hadn't that monster try to ram itself through yet? "Listen, I don't mean to interrupt, but we gotta hide."

"R-Right…" Chie muttered before looking around. She spotted a living room with a massive TV over a fireplace, a kitchen, a dining area, and a stairway. "Let's go…"

"You couldn't leave Danny in his cage. You felt sorry for him…" The Shadow's voice echoed throughout the mansion, and the three looked around frantically for the origin. "But when you tried to feed him table scraps, dad found out and wanted you to drown him as punishment."

"Is this thing in control of the mansion too?" Yosuke asked as he began slowly inching to the living room. "Was this all a trap?"

"Don't ask me!" Chie replied in a scared voice as she followed Yosuke's lead.

"You couldn't do it. You didn't want to hurt Danny. But that's when your big brother, the oh-so perfect Nicholas, got the idea to release him to the wild and present Dad with a fake corpse!" The Shadow continued, and the three could hear the phantom clacks of the horse's metal hooves on the ground. "You were so happy! Danny could live and it was all thanks to your big brother!"

Suddenly, the TV turned on in the living room, causing Chie and Yosuke to jump before a pictured formed. It showed two boys, one taller than the other, with matching stripped sleeping clothes. The shortest one had blonde hair and blue eyes, and looked mostly unsure of himself. The taller one had wavy black hair and dark brown eyes that somehow conveyed kindness.

Johnny could instantly recognize who it was. "Nicholas…"

Chie and Yosuke looked back at Johnny, and saw him to just be staring at the picture. Was this… his brother?

"You're so good at everything Nicholas." The voice of the young child, which Yosuke and Chie presumed was Johnny, said to the older dark-haired boy."Maybe I'm not your real brother? We don't even look alike…"

Nicholas placed is hand on top of the the younger Johnny and smiled, an expression of pure and honest brotherly love. "Listen Johnny… you're still young. No matter what dad says, even he was impressed by when you first rode a horse. You know that and so do I. But you still need some practice. When you get older, I'll teach you how to ride for real. We'll ride around the world together, and help each other out when things get tough. No matter what, I'll always be here for you. That's a promise."

Johnny didn't bother trying to hold back his tears anymore. He remembered that day. He promised with Nicholas they would always stick together. To support one another. But…

Yosuke watched the 'channel' change to show the track where they were just before, but on a clear day. This time, the seven-year old Johnny was watching from behind the fence as Nicholas rode on top of a black horse. Then, all of a sudden, the horse jumped up, and Nicholas fell down on the ground with a mighty crash as the horse kept on running.

"What…?" The young Johnny asked in shock while the adults raced to his brother.

"What happened!?"

"The horse got scared! I-I think I saw a white mouse run past it!"

"Wait, white mouse… Does that mean it was Johnny's old pet mouse?" Chie thought in horror as she looked at Johnny, who was now trembling.

"Oh Jesus, he's not breathing!"

"Someone get a doctor!"

"NICHOLAS!"

"That's right, you knew that Danny came back! And because of that Nicholas died! It was all your fault that your big brother was dead!" The Shadow shouted from somewhere within the house. It still wouldn't reveal itself, and Chie held Johnny close while Yosuke began frantically looking around for something to fight with. "But that's not all! You have so many more secrets and shames! Take a look at this little tidbit!"

The screen then changed, and this time showed a much taller and older Johnny. A caption at the bottom stated 'Johnny Joestar, Age 14'. The younger Johnny then opened a room, and inside was a made bed and a dresser. On top of that were several awards, and a picture of Nicholas smiling at the camera.

Johnny remembered that day. He had accidentally broken his riding boots at the bottom, and needed a new pair. He decided the only pair immediately available for him to use for practice was in Nicholas' room. Johnny planned on taking good care of the shoes, and clean them before return them after practice, and then immediately buy a new pair for himself. He meant no harm to his big brother, but he needed something to wear for practice.

The younger Johnny muttered a quick 'sorry' to the picture before going into the closet and picking up a pair of black riding boots. One of Nicholas' many pairs of boots their father gave him.

"What are you doing Jonathan?" Johnny then turned around to see an older blonde-haired gentleman with a mustache, and a black-haired asian woman wearing a red dress behind him. Jonathan's father and mother.

"Oh! You're back dad!" Johnny declared in surprise. "I thought you and mom were going out today…"

George Joestar would have none of that. "Explain yourself."

"Oh, well the bottoms of my boots fell off, so I thought I could borrow these for practice today. I think the quality is bad…" Johnny feebly explained to his father, who just stared coldly at the boy.

"I see, but those are Nicholas' boots. So return those to his closet."

"I know that, but I don't have a pair of spare boots. My feet are around Nicholas' size, so I thought I could…" Johnny now looked uncomfortable, now shrinking under his father's glare as the man stepped forward.

"Perhaps it is your fault that your boots are ruined because you weren't taking care of them properly."

A fire seemed to light in Johnny's eyes, and he once again tried to state his case. "I said I know that! But… I have practice today, for the tournament later this week. I promise that I'll win."

George raised an eyebrow at that statement. "Win? That's strange. Winning means you'll be number one. But that British boy won't be competing, and you have never been able to beat him. Nicholas… he was far superior to that British punk…"

Orihime Joestar looked worriedly at her husband. He had been like this ever since Nicholas had died. She had grieved just as much as he and Johnny did, and moved on with Johnny. But George always seemed stuck in the past. "George, please…"

Johnny clutched the boots even harder in his hands as his father drew closer. "Dad, just let me borrow Nicholas' boots this one time. I'll put them back after practice and get a new pair."

"No! You have no right to Nicholas' things!" George then grabbed the boots in Johnny's hands, but the young man wouldn't let them go. If anything he just clutched them even harder.

It now looked like Johnny was about to burst into tears. "What? W-What is it dad? You're always talking about Nicholas this and Nicholas that… My brother died seven years ago! Please, just let me use these boots! I'm practicing hard! Just come to my race for once…! I'll win it for you!"

"I said put back Nicholas' boots in the closet Jonathan!" George ordered as he placed his hand on Johnny's shoulder and attempted to yank the boots off, but Johnny just pulled back.

Orihime was now becoming frantic. She then began pulling on George's arm in a feeble attempt to stop her husband. "George, stop! You're going to hurt him!"

"NO! These are old boots! They're just old things, they aren't my brother's anymore! They are not Nicholas'! He's dead! He's been dead for so long…!"Johnny now had some tears out of the corner of his eyes. He was looking at Nicholas' picture, and felt slightly ashamed about making a stand here about this of all places.

"You spoiled brat! How dare you disrespect your brother!" George roared out as the tug of war commenced between the two.

"Jonathan! George! Stop this at once! Stop doing this in Nicholas' own room!" Orihime tried to yell in order to stop the two men, but it was for naught. The two seemed to be in their own little world.

"I won't!"

"Let go of them!"

"No!"

"You…!"

"GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME!" Johnny then actually let go of the boots with his left hand and pushed his father hard in the abdomen. The shock was so great that George stumbled back and let go of the boots…

…only to land on the mirror behind him.

A glass shard fell and sliced a gash along the right side of George's neck, causing blood to spew out."Gahk!"

"GEORGE!" Orihime was instantly on her husband's side, getting his hands and placing them on the wound before applying pressure on them.

"Oh God, Dad!" Johnny was about to rush to his father, to come to his aid or something. But what George said next stopped him in his tracks.

"Oh… why…" George muttered as he pressed his hand against the wound in order to try and stop the bleeding. "God… why did you take… the wrong son?"

The whole room went silent, as did Yosuke and Chie.

"No way, did he actually say…?" Chie whispered as she looked at Johnny, who was now trying to cover his ears and shaking his head. Was this really what Johnny went through with his parents? Did his father really say he should have died instead of his older brother?

"What kind of father says that to his own kid?" Yosuke spat in disgust, glaring at the TV. This was just sick and wrong on so many levels! No normal parent would say something like that!

"…What? Dad… what did you just say…?" Johnny seemed to equally be in shock, and was shaking as he stared at his father.

Orihime didn't seem to want to believe it either. She just stared at her husband in horror and reached out her hand to him. "George, you didn't just say…"

"Get… out…" George gasped out, still clutching the bleeding wound and tears falling from his eyes. Tears came out of Johnny's eyes, but this time, his fists clenched and his eyes burned of utter hatred. He threw the boots on the ground and ran out the room. He went down the stairs and swung the front door open, only staying to shout one thing.

"I HATE YOU!"

This was just too painful to watch. Chie could see that Johnny was coming apart from all these reveals and revisited memories. "HEY! Stop this!" Chie shouted out loud. "If you want to come and get us, just do it already!"

"Chie! Shut up!" Yosuke frantically shouted as he sat Johnny down on the floor, who now seemed to be just a sobbing mess now. "Oh man, if this keeps up there's no way we'll be able to move him!"

"All in good time, but there's one last thing you just GOT to see to believe!" The Shadow replied in sadistic amusement. "After all, this is the highlight of the reel! His crowning achievement! Ladies and gentlemen, let's see how Johnathan "Johnny" Joestar got crippled!"

Yosuke wouldn't admit it out loud, but he had been kind of curious. But from what his memories stated, Johnny rode horses a lot. He was probably a jockey or something. Surely he lost his legs in a horse-related accident… right?

The TV 'channel' switched again, this time to show Johnny with an angry expression on his face with an arm of some extremely tan and big-breasted girl two years his senior walking in the city at night.

Johnny definitely remembered this night. It was the night of the day he had the incident with his father. He blew practice and called up a girl who he had recently got a number from for a 'date'. Well, it was more like him just trying to stay away from his house as long as possible. He had been originally planning to go to someplace and blow some steam off with her, but…

"Hey, isn't that the new club they just opened?" The girl asked, making Johnny look to see some night club. "Come on, let's go!"

"You're kidding me right? The line goes from there to the end of the block!" Johnny protested, looking at the line. "Besides, you know the law! We're minors! We couldn't go in even if we wanted to!"

"WHAAT!?" The girl shrieked out in astonishment before looking at Johnny with puppy dog eyes. "But I want to go! It's super in right now, and all my older friends are talking about it!"

"Still, we can't go in. Besides, it's probably not worth it to wait in line." Johnny muttered, only for the girl to look at him with a confused expression on his face.

"But you're famous aren't you? You're Johnny Joestar."

Johnny just stood there, looking unsure but still determined. He even gave a confident nod.

"Let's just grab that empty spot in the front." The girl said, pointing to a spot big enough to fit two people in. "We'll just say it was open."

The two then slipped on in front, and hardly anyone noticed them… except for the person they just cut in front of. It was a short man with blonde hair, and had sort of a crazy look in his eye but still seemed nervous.

The person tapped Johnny's shoulder, making him turn. "E-Excuse me? The back of the line is over there…"

"Oh yeah?" Johnny asked, not showing any interest in the person. He then turned back to the girl and began making some small talk with her.

The person tapped his shoulder again, and Johnny turned with an even more annoyed expression on his face. "T-The line is back there! I've been waiting here for hours on end!"

"Look man!" Johnny then grabbed the person's shirt and lifted him. "I'm in a really foul fucking mood today, so listen good! I just bought this spot now. You wanna ask somebody? Ask the bouncers!"

Chie could not believe was she was seeing. Johnny was a bully? One who just took what he wanted from people just because he was famous? That honestly made Chie a little sick. She hated people like that with a passion!

"So, he let his fame get to his head huh…?" Yosuke asked himself as he looked at Johnny, who now seemed to be slinking even more into depression. He supposed it made sense. Yosuke had no idea what he would do if he suddenly became famous. But still…

"Hey guys! I just bought this spot right?" Johnny asked to the bouncer that was closest to him, waving several hundred dollar bills at the bouncer. "This guy wants to start something, so throw him out!"

Surprisingly, the bouncer did just that. He took the money and began dragging the person away despite his protests. Johnny himself sighed as he fixed his hair. He then looked at his date and muttered out, "This better be worth it…"

"Oh, don't worry. I'll show my appreciation later!" The girl replied happily to Johnny, who looked away in response.

Then, Johnny saw the same person run up to him and knock against his back. Johnny glared at the person, who was now looking both scared and shocked."YOU AGAIN!? You're a persistent guy aren't yo-!?"

Johnny then noticed the object that the guy was holding in his hands, and the look of horror spreading across his date's face.

It was a gun with a smoking barrel. He then looked at the path it was aimed at, and saw a gaping hole in the left side of his back, angled towards his spine.

He looked at his right hand and saw blood on it.

"You…" Johnny looked at the person, who was now trembling while dropping the gun. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO!?"

Johnny then collapsed onto the ground, as the pain began to make him black out he heard his date's scream and saw the bouncers tackle the guy who shot him to the ground.

Chie had no words to describe what she felt about this. While she was all for bullies getting what they deserved, this was just sickening to watch. Did she really just see how Johnny got crippled? She wouldn't wish that on anyone! Maybe a punch or a kick to the face or the nads, but crippling someone? It was too much!

Yosuke was also sickened by what he saw. It was just painful to watch. Was this what made a person like Johnny? Just one tragedy after the other? And what? It all lead up to this?

Johnny let out another sob. He didn't want to see this! He didn't want to live through this again!

The screen then changed to show Johnny opening his eyes in a hospital bed.. He could not move his head, due to there being a neck brace. He was stripped of all his clothes, and bandages were wrapped around his midsection. Worse of all, an adult diaper was on him.

"Nurse, nurse!" Johnny rasped out, his eyes showing both freight and horror. "Someone, please help me! It reeks! It stinks! I-I…" Johnny's eyes then filled with tears."I can't feel my legs… Oh God I can't feel my legs! Help! Please!" Sobs then came out of Johnny as he laid in the hospital room alone."Someone…. please help me… I-I think I soiled myself…"

"But nobody came did they? Not your dad, not your 'friends', not your 'girlfriend'… nobody. Sure your mom came, but you could tell that she wanted to be anywhere other than there!" The Shadow's voice shouted before a crash was heard, and the Shadow creature burst through the front door."They knew that the reason you were like this now was all your own fault! Nobody wants to visit a loser who got crippled just to impress some girl! And you know it too!"

The horse then whinnied before trampling towards the direction of Johnny. With the blunt side of its staff, it whacked Chie to the other side of the room. She cried out in pain as her body slammed onto the wall before falling to the ground.

"Oh shit! Chie!" Yosuke shouted out before looking back at the Shadow, who towered before him and Johnny. He had to think of something quick. He had to find something to stop this thing, even for a second! "Ah, dammit!" Yosuke then ran away to the the direction of the kitchen area, leaving Johnny alone.

Chie's vision was hazy, she hurt all over. What was going on? "I-I was just hit right?" She just saw Yosuke run. "Yosuke? Where are you going? Come back…" He couldn't have just left them right? Left them to die…

Johnny didn't even care that Yosuke ran away. Nothing seemed to matter anymore. He was going to die here, but this time two people who never had anything to do with this would die because of him. Just like Nicholas died because of him…

"You feel so sorry for yourself don't you? Everything is your fault!" The Shadow said as it then used the blade of its staff to lift Johnny by his school jacket to eye level. "After that day, you decided to never trust anyone ever again! That you would be fine on your own! Well, that suits me just fine. I'll be just fine by myself, and after I'm done with you I'll take care of those other little shits too!"

That comment, for some reason, seemed to light a fire in Johnny's eyes. He stopped grieving for himself if only for just a second, and could only look at the helpless Chie. No! He could not let her die like this! Or Yosuke! Plus, what the hell would he die for? Because he was stupid enough to touch the TV? "L-Leave them alone! You want to kill me don't you? Then just do that and let them go!"

The Shadow's yellow irises then seemed to widen, as if momentarily surprised by the action before letting out a cruel distorted chuckle. "Aw, ain't that cute? The petty former jockey is trying to stick up for some losers he just met! Makes you feel like your death will mean something, right?" Johnny's eyes widened in horror. "Well, it won't mean shit! You were a nobody from the very beginning and you'll di-"

"HHAAAAHH!" Yosuke then suddenly jumped behind the Shadow and slammed a wooden chair on its back. The thing broke into several pieces, and it startled the Shadow enough to release its hold of Johnny.

He had run to get some sort of object to hit the Shadow with. Nothing in the kitchen like knives would mortally wound it, stabbing it would probably piss the Shadow off. So he just grabbed a chair and decided to hit the creature with it, hopefully to cause some sufficient blunt force trauma.

"You annoying punk!" The Shadow's left hand then shot out and grabbed Yosuke by the neck, choking him as it lifted the young man. "Why are you even bothering with his ass? He's nothing but a self-pitying asshole! He hates you! The smart thing to do would be just running with the girl!"

"F-Forget it!" Yosuke struggled out, glaring at the Shadow. If he was going to die, might as well go out sounding like a hero. "L-Like we could leave someone to die alone!"

"Yosuke…" Johnny thought to himself as he looked at the teenager. Time seemed to slow down to him. "You… and Chie…" He looked at the girl on the floor. They were staying by his side, they were defending him! Not because they felt sorry for him. Not because they thought they would get something out of it. They just wouldn't leave him to die, just like any other person. "To think… I was trying so hard to push them away…"

Taking a deep breath, Johnny looked straight at the Shadow and said…

"…You're right."

The Shadow then stopped, dropped Yosuke and seemed to stare at Johnny in shock. "What? What did you just say?"

Chie's eyes fluttered open as she saw Johnny now looking somber at the still Shadow. Yosuke was also clutching his throat, coughing while staring at the scene."What's Johnny doing?"

"You're right. I am a cynical, self-pitying, self-centered asshole. I haven't been able to enjoy a day in my life since I lost my legs, and the only reason why I lost them was because I just wanted to prove myself to someone, anyone. Hell, I didn't even want to go to that damn club." Johnny gave a cold chuckle to himself. "Man, I almost just gave up on life just because I thought it wasn't worth living anymore. Pretty stupid huh?"

"GHHAAAHHH!" The Shadow screamed in pain, its hands now clutching its head. "You son of a bitch! You think accepting some flaws now is going to do anything!? I'll kill you! Just…" It then grabbed its staff and brought it down on Johnny, the rusted blade making a screech as it cut through the air. "…DIE!"

"I still think that Nicholas' death was my fault!" That comment cause the blade to shatter into nothing right before it stabbed him. The Shadow fell off the horse as it rose up, the animal fading away into nothing as the Shadow struggled. Johnny just continued speaking. "I still blame myself, when it all could have been just an unfortunate coincidence! And some days, I really do think that… I should have died instead of Nicholas. I miss him. I miss him so goddamn much, and I even miss my father and mother!"

"GYAAAAHHHH!" The Shadow then seemed to distort, as if it were static on a TV. "Shut up!"

"I push people away because I'm scared, because I don't want to be hurt again by false friendships. I came to this town only to find a reason to keep on living…"

"DAMN YOU!" The static was now becoming worse, and the Shadow was even shaking its head in pain. "You're just going to accept me now of all times!?"

"You are a part of me, the part I try to keep bottled in my head. The part of me that I always use as an excuse to be alone and feel sorry for myself." Johnny admitted. Unconsciously, he used a chair that was to his left and lifted himself up. His legs shook from disuse, and they even hurt as Johnny shakily stood. "It hurts like hell to actually face you. But the fact of the matter is, I acknowledge your existence."

"RAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" The Shadow let out one final screech before its body dissipated into a blue light, and it revealed the Shadow Johnny in its human form once more. This time however, it's face was blank. And its yellow eyes looking at Johnny with what seemed like anticipation.

"Whether I like it or not… You're me. And I am you." Johnny did not know why he said that part, the words just seemed to flow out of his mouth.

But that did not matter. The Shadow Johnny seemed to smile in relief and nod in acceptance. Then it disappeared, and in its place was another form. It was … small to say the least. Around three feet tall to be precise. It looked a bit like a miniature pink-colored elephant with several yellow stars littering its back and a big yellow star on its forehead, with a strange silver antenna-like device coming out of the center of its forehead and reaching its nose. The nose itself was a sharp metal spike that seemed bolted on the being's face, and the eyes were a beady purple which seemed to convey a sort of sadness. It had eight tentacle-like limbs on its head. Two on the top of its head, one on each side of its head underneath its two long floppy ears, one on each side of its cheek, and one on each side of its chin. Its arms were short and stubby, and its hands had four fingers on them arranged to look like a star. On the bottom was a single tail, and on each side were two more slender tails, which each had what appeared to be a heart-shaped fruit at the end.

For some reason, Johnny felt like he was familiar with the entity. As if it were an old friend that he had just met once again. Once that thought finished, the figure disappeared and it was replaced by a card that had a black figure of a man carrying a bundle-stick as it stepped off a box, with a dog following behind it. On the bottom of the card was the number 0. The card then dissipated, and flickers of blue light disappeared into Johnny.

For some reason, he felt at ease. Johnny felt better than he had for years. He even smiled a bit before he turned to Yosuke and asked softly, "You okay?"

Yosuke could not help but blink at the question. Johnny just defeated a monster and was asking if he was okay? "Man, I would have wanted to pass out…"Still, Yosuke could not help but feel jealous of Johnny. He defeated the monster and saved both him and Chie… "OH CRAP! CHIE!" Yosuke scrambled to the still downed form of the girl and lifted her. She was still breathing, and now clutching her head.

Johnny was about to go to, but just as he tried to move his legs they buckled and he fell to the ground on his knees. Figured, he hadn't walked for years. Instead, he began crawling to Yosuke and Chie.

Chie moaned in pain before her eyes fluttered open to see both Yosuke and Johnny looking down on her. Her body felt sore all over, but she could still feel everything. "W-what happened?"

"Well, Johnny beat the monster… Shadow… thing." Yosuke replied with a smile of relief.

"All I did was talk it down." Johnny refuted, giving Yosuke a small smile. "Too bad we didn't have a camera. Seeing you slam a chair into the back of all my pent up fears and issues is the highlight of my year."

"Oh, well, ah… no problem." Yosuke gave an embarrassed chuckle before helping Chie up. "Point is, we're still alive."

"Yeah… sorry you guys went through all that because of me." Johnny said, looking away in shame. He was going to say more, but Chie slapping him once again cut off whatever he was about to say. "Ow! Chie, what the-!"

"That's for all the crap you did before you lost your legs, and for trying to give up on everything." Chie explained before letting out a sigh of relief. "But… I'm glad you're safe."

Still… it wasn't fair. A part of Chie angry that she hadn't done more. She hadn't done anything to help Johnny, and in the end he'd saved her. Yosuke too. She should have been the one to save him…

"You guys have no idea how much it sucks to face yourself…" Johnny muttered as he shook his head. Hell, he was still hurting inside. But still, he accepted his other half, and acknowledged all his faults and fears. That counted for something. "I'm just glad you came off with only a couple bruises Chie."

Yosuke looked glanced at Chie, and could not help but agree. From what he saw, he expected Chie to be seriously hurt. But it just looked like she had some scuffs and bruises all over her body. "Are physics wacky in this place or something?"

"Who knows? Let's just try and find an exit and…" Johnny could not finish his sentence, as three of the monsters "Shadows?" suddenly flew into the mansion and hovered over them.

"Oh, come on! Them again!?" Yosuke shouted out as he still held onto Chie. They were in no condition to run! Each of them were too exhausted and too injured to do anything that strenuous!

"You don't think they're here to finish us off do you?" Chie asked, her eyes darting to all three creatures.

Johnny clicked his tongue and glared at the Shadows. He just defeated his other self, and now these things were circling around them like vultures! How was he going to get them out of this? How would they even hope to leave? What was there to…?

I am thou… Thou art I…

"What the…" Johnny asked before his eyes glazed over. It was that voice again! What was it doing now?

He saw several visions. One was two unearthly occupants in a blue velvet car. Another was a girl with short dark hair wearing a blue cap. Another was six unidentifiable figures with their backs turned, yet somehow Johnny felt a connection to them. And finally, he saw a girl with auburn hair tied into a high ponytail with red eyes and wearing a school uniform he did not recognize, giving him a small smile despite having chains on her wrists.

You have accepted me, and the time to show the power you have within… is NOW!

Unconsciously, Johnny raised his right hand from his kneeling position, and the card appeared to be floating on it. It was engulfed in a blue flame, yet Johnny felt no heat from it.

Yosuke and Chie gaped as Johnny was erupting in blue energy.

The image of the girl appeared in his mind's eye again, and she smiled as she opened her mouth. As she did that, Johnny felt his mouth mimic her.

"Per…"

The Shadows paused in fear, unsure of what to do as they focused on Johnny.

"…so…"

Yosuke honestly had no idea what was going on anymore. First Johnny beat the monster, and now he was getting some sort of crazy power with it? "Is this really happening?"

"…na!"

Chie could not help but gape as Johnny crushed the card, and the sound of breaking glass was heard. Suddenly, an entity she had never seen before appeared behind Johnny, hovering above the American. "W-what the heck is that!?"

A confident smirk then grew on Johnny's face, and the glasses he was wearing reflected the blue light coming from the energy surrounding him. He felt… good. No, more than good. Powerful! Like he could do anything!

The Shadows did not waste another second, as one soon came barreling at Johnny. Johnny raised his right arm, his hand clenched into a fist, and punched forward. The Persona then shot forward at fairly impressive speeds, hitting the Shadow underneath and stabbing through it with its nose. The Shadow disappeared in a burst of dark energy, completely and utterly destroyed.

"Holy crap!" Chie repeated out loud while Yosuke just watched what went before them in mute awe.

"These things… they're nothing to me!" Johnny thought to himself with confidence before he grunted in pain and was thrown to the side. He saw that the Persona was knocked to the side by one of the Shadows. Seemed like if it got hurt, so did he.

"NIII!" The Persona gave off a high-pitched squeak of pain as it attempted to right itself. Johnny himself fell on his side, skidding across the floor. Some wooden shards from his Shadow and the chair Yosuke broke over it were still on the floor, cutting through his uniform and cutting some of his skin underneath before stopping ten feet away.

"Johnny!" Chie screamed out and was about to rush to the young man, but Yosuke held her shoulder. "Yosuke, why are you…?"

"You bastard!" Johnny shouted in anger before he pushed himself back up on his knees, ignoring the pain he was in while the Persona shook its head and shot forward. It then stabbed the Shadow right through the center, twisting its body clockwise at high speeds to form a makeshift drill. The Shadow seemed to screech in pain before it disappeared just like the first one.

The other Shadow then began to turn around and flee. "Where the hell do you think you're going?" Johnny shouted out as he raised his right arm, with his left hand placed over it while his right index finger pointed at the Shadow as if aiming for it. A cyclone appeared in his mind's eye, and Johnny shouted, "Eat this!"

The Persona seemed to glare at the Shadow with its eyes, and raised its left arm and pointed out at the retreating Shadow. Suddenly, a mini cyclone appeared underneath the Shadow, shooting upwards and knocking it hard onto the ceiling. It screeched in pain before it disappeared in a dark mist, just like its brethren.

Johnny breathed in and out with a smirk on his face as his left hand lowered to his hip, but his right hand was still pointing at the place where he destroyed the Shadow, as if he were posing. He didn't know why he was doing that either, it just felt right. His Persona disappeared after that, becoming blue energy that disappeared into Johnny once more.

"Dude… Just what the hell was that?" Yosuke was the first to find his voice, while Chie still stared, amazed at what she just saw.

Johnny remembered the name he had muttered out. "Persona…"

"Persona?" Chie blurted out in confusion, while Johnny's smirk just turned into a small smile.

"It's a part of me… and I'm a part of it. I think that's how it's supposed to go." Johnny replied, lovering his hand before looking at its palm.

He had come to Inaba originally to try and find a reason to keep on living.

One could say that he just found that reason.

"You were freaking awesome!" Chie shouted out before covering her mouth. Johnny turned to her and gave a smile.

"Yeah… I sure was wasn't I?"

Still… Johnny was sure that they were not out of danger just yet.

Something told him that there was more to this place than what it appeared as.


[To Be Continued |\|]


Note- Hey! It's TIM here with the final part of the 'Tusk' Arc! It was betaed by both Kiiam and Sir Godot, who helped to contribute greatly and encourage this bizarre crossover! Thanks guys!

Man, what a lot of developments here! Johnny was able to beat his Shadow by just accepting his faults, which makes sense in context, because his problems are so big his acceptance of them gets a bigger reaction from his Shadow. As for why Shadow Johnny didn't kill the three outright, well it had to do more with the fact that they had nothing to defend themselves with. I always reasoned that Mayumi and Saki's Shadows fucked with their minds more than physically kill them. It's even hinted with the room that the kids stumbled into on their first visit to the TV World. Of course, here Johnny beats himself up mentally. So you can be assured that his Shadow tries to kick the crap out of him physically with equal measure.

Think of it as Shadow Johnny playing with his food.

Speaking of Shadow Johnny, as you can tell one of the major changes I'm putting in here is Tusk being Johnny's initial Persona and not Izanagi! Don't worry, Izanagi will be coming soon, but Tusk is the manifestation of Johnny facing himself.

Here's Tusk's Stats (Currently) by the way, and they won't be by Persona Stats, but by Stand stats. Trying to merge the two the best I can. Same will go for all future Personas.


Name: (Unknown)

User: Jonathan 'Johnny' Joestar

Destructive Power: D

Speed: D

Range: D

Durability: B

Precision: D

Development Potential: A

Powers:

-The Ability to spin the wind of an area within ten meters at high speeds and force. Causes light damage to targets

-Can use horn as a physical weapon to attack with, but can be knocked back by enemies with minimum force.


Some things I've changed within Tusk so that it can at least stand a chance against Shadows, as well as fit some Persona criteria. So you can now tell it's wind based.

The little bit about Johnny's suicide attempt is both for narrative purposes and also how I view a younger Johnny who got everything ripped away from him, with two of the biggest events of his life happening in the span of one day. Johnny seemed suicidal to me in SBR, due to viewing himself as a useless person and searching for the Corpse Parts, which was suicidal all on its own. Here, it's just more apparent and taken to the extreme.

As for Johnny's attitude in the end, think of Johnny being in a really good and somber mood. Does not mean he'll still be like that the next morning, after all change does not happen to any of the characters immediately after facing their Shadow. Just like them, Johnny needs to grow and accept things. It's his story after all, and he still has his own problems.

Also, I recently found out that this fic just got a recommendation and its own page on TV Tropes! Thank you Space Cowboy! You can all find the link on my profile. Please add whatever you may find appropriate.

Anyway, please review. Seriously, show support or criticize. This story needs both to become better.