A/N: Edited as of 4/13/2017; Grammar, character/story development, sentence structure, plotholes. I also fixed up the reference to Yosuke's Persona. When this was first published, I was doing a lot of reading into mythology, spanning several cultures, so I got a few things mixed up.
CHAPTER 6
Since coming across the grisly statue on the Samegawa, things in Inaba were really starting to get worse. Souji had heard, through rampant rumors that during the night of that full moon, any TV that had been on at around midnight had all of a sudden and out of nowhere, turned a sickly red, casting a decidedly creepy crimson glow from the screen and emitting an ugly and harsh white noise that grated on the nerves of all who had heard it, reminiscent of nails on a chalkboard.
Souji confirmed this on May 20th, the night of the new moon, when the normally black disk of the new moon he knew was hanging out there in the pitch black sky was instead lit up in the same crimson glow of his TV.
What he wasn't expecting, though, was the ghastly sight of thick, fresh blood oozing from the TV screen, dripping down onto his floor.
Another statue was found the next morning; the final moments of the woman it represented continually reminding Souji of the peril that waited for them all.
It didn't help the situation or to ease Souji's misgivings that Dojima had confirmed that two new Missing Persons reports had been filed, the descriptions matching perfectly the statues currently on display in the town.
Vandalism was common now, as more and more cars were wrecked with their windows smashed in and tires slashed; fences were torn down; and any property not bolted down was destroyed. The wild dogs that rampaged during the evening hours were destroying the abandoned buildings of the Shopping District, one by one, leaving a trail of broken glass and crumbling rubble in their wake, and Souji had seen the beasts a few times already.
They were not normal dogs, by any means. He preferred to think of them as some kind of hellhound, actually, resembling something closer out of a demonology compendium instead. The dogs were far larger in size than wolves, broad in the shoulder and long with thick, sinewy muscle, and dark bristly hair covering their powerful bodies. Glowing crimson eyes shone menacingly in the darkness of the streets, matched perfectly by the coronet of blue sparks and embers that formed a flaming crown upon each beast's head.
The Shopping District kept getting hit the most, with the vandalism of the buildings, the consistently torn up asphalt making it impossible for any car or bike to travel through the street, and every single power pole had now been torn down by unseen forces and shredded into tiny pieces, sending the neighborhood into frantic chaos as the people who lived there tried to adapt to living without power. Junes had sold out of portable battery-operated generators within a week. Kanji and Rise had already packed up their families to the relative safety of the Amagi Inn, but were staying in their homes themselves, to keep an eye on the worsening situation.
After the third statue was found, Souji made sure none of his fellow Persona Users walked around unarmed.
After the new moon the night of June 19th, a few days after the fourth and fifth human statues were found, Souji was walking home after school, having made sure the culture club girls, Ayane and Yumi, as well as Ai made it home safely before turning in the direction of home as the sun hung low in the sky, but it was not yet even twilight when he first heard the ominous and threatening snarling of the hellhounds from behind him.
He was crossing through a park off of the Samegawa, and he spun around sharply at the sound, coming face to fearsome face with a pack of the beasts coming out from within the shadowy depths of the trees, and his hand slowly reached down and into his pocket, where his Izanagi Tarot card was kept.
He still didn't know how to use it; didn't know how to release the power within the card.
It surprised him that the beasts were coming out in daylight, since all reports of them had them as nocturnal creatures, and he didn't know if he could fight them off alone, in fact, Souji greatly doubted his ability to do so. His other hand crept ever so slowly up the unobtrusive sword case he'd only recently gotten from Deidara's weapons shop, currently slung over his shoulder and concealing his most powerful weapon, the Blade of Totsuka within it.
Damnit! He really didn't have time for this now! Cursing under his breath, Souji decided to run, pivoting on his heel, knowing that he would be sorely pressed to win in a battle against this pack as he was; if he could figure out how to release Izanagi, then he would be alright on his own.
He bolted, sprinting towards the closest and more populated street, hearing behind him the rally cry of the hellhounds as they took off after him. Dusk had set in fully, casting the passing scenery with dark looming shadows, but he paid no head, keeping his hand on his sword case, ready to draw his weapon if he needed to.
Just as he felt the beasts catch up to him, felt their hot rancid breath panting as they nipped at his heels, Souji turned a corner and slowed as he nearly collided with a mailbox a few blocks shy of the Shopping District. As he righted himself, breaking into a brisk jog, he heard the hellhounds backing off in defeat, disappearing once again into the mounting obscurity of the darkening night.
He didn't slow to a walk, preferring to keep the pace of his jog the rest of the way towards the safety of home as he fumbled in his pocket for his cell. When Yosuke picked up on the other end, Souji was quickly approaching the house, grateful for the sight of Dojima's car in the small driveway.
"Dude, are you okay? You sound out of breath." He could hear Yosuke's concern over the phone.
"Yeah, I'm fine, just a close call. I had a thought; are you ready to tell the others? About us, I mean?"
There was silence on Yosuke's end for a few moments as Souji unlocked the front door and let himself inside, responding absently to Nanako's welcome home greeting, ascending the stairs for his room.
"Um, sure, if you are. Are you seriously okay?"
Souji nodded, even as he realized that his boyfriend wasn't there to see it. "I am now. I just had a close call with those hellhounds. They're getting bolder, and I suddenly felt that we shouldn't have to hide our relationship; I want to be able to hand you hand in public, or kiss you when I want to." He closed the door of his room behind him, dropping his sword case against the wall beside the door.
"Okay, sure. When do you want to?" He was positive that Yosuke was blushing fiercely on the other end of the line.
"Does tomorrow sound good? We can all meet after school, on the roof or at Aiya's."
"Then it's settled. Have yourself a good night okay, Partner? I'll see you tomorrow."
Souji bid Yosuke good night and got dressed for the night. After his run from the hellhounds, he wasn't even hungry, just fricken tired, and considering what he'd just set himself up for tomorrow, well, he'd need the extra rest. He figured it'd go just fine, but there was still a tiny niggling bit of doubt in his mind, no matter how much he reassured himself.
At school the next morning, Souji managed to track down Ai, since she already knew about him and Yosuke, during the lunch hour. She was hanging out with both Yumi and Ayane, and Souji was pleased that the three girls had become fast friends. They'd be good for each other.
"Hey, how are my favorite girls?" He said, smiling as the three Arcana members greeted him with cheerful smiles. He sat down between Ayane and Ai, winking at the shopaholic. She caught on immediately, how he had no idea, and she grinned madly.
"Hi Souji!" Yumi grinned at him. "What's up?"
"Well, I've got a little something to say, it's kind of important to me, and I'd love to share it with you girls." Souji looked at the three girls a little nervously, but Ai just poked him in the ribs with a pointy finger.
"Oh, just spill, already!"
Souji cast the brunette beside him a look that had her giggling. "Would you hush? I would get to it if it weren't for the interruptions. Anyway, I've realised that I may not be as exclusive to one gender when it comes to my feelings for someone." A quick inspection told him that none of the girls were upset by his admission. "So I guess that I'm saying I'm bisexual, and that I'm dating someone."
"And he's dating Yosuke Hanamura! Isn't it great? They are so adorable together!"
Before he actually admonish Ai for spilling his secret before he could, Souji's hearing was rattled at the sudden squeals from Yumi, her grin widening with glee as she clapped her hands together, and Ayane shyly thanked him for telling them.
She was such a sweetheart, really.
"Okay, ladies! Could you keep it down a little, though? I haven't told the others yet."
"Fine, we'll keep quiet, right girls?" Yumi asked, getting a nod from both Ai and Ayane before she turned her full attention back to Souji, startling him with the ferocious glint sparkling in her pretty eyes. "So... how far have you gotten with Yosuke?"
Souji couldn't stop the rush of blood flooding his face as he sputtered, sending the girls into further hysterics, and he sighed, shaking his head.
"Like I'd tell you bunch of shameless gossips! Anyway, I gotta go, so I'll see you girls later. And Ai, don't tease Yosuke too much, okay? And be careful, all of you! I don't want anything to happen to you; you three are some of my favorite girls, after all!" With that, Souji stood, submitted affectionately to the hugs that each of them insisted on and left in search of Yosuke for the rest of the lunch hour.
The rest of the afternoon passed quickly as their different teachers lazily went through their respective subjects (no one was really wanting to be at the school), and right after the last class of the day, Souji sent Yosuke to grab Rise, Naoto and Kanji before they could leave, and asked Chie and Yukiko to meet them on the roof, which was sure to be deserted, and to call Teddie to come, too.
Ignoring their confused looks as they agreed and left, Souji hurried into the hall and into the classroom beside his own and easily spied Kou and Daisuke, and the soccer player was actually talking to Ai Ebihara, and Kou was encouraging the conversation. He smiled at that, knowing the girl's attraction to the big lug.
"Hey, sorry to interrupt; but could you guys come up to the roof with me? I've got something I want to share with you." He grinned when they agreed, standing from their seats. "Sorry, Ai, but I gotta borrow them."
"Oh, is this about-!" She giggled when he nodded engulfing him in a hug. "Sure, go ahead, I'll just find the girls! Good luck, Souji! See you later, Daisuke!" The she was gone out the door, leaving the two athletes staring after her in confusion and a little shock.
"Uh... what was that about, dude?"
"She already knows what I want to talk to you guys about. Come on, the others are probably waiting for us now."
The scene on the roof would have been funny to Souji had he not been nervous about why he had brought most of his friends to the seclusion up here. Yosuke was surrounded by the others, with Chie and Rise demanding to know what was going on, on both side of the teen, as he adamantly stayed quiet, shaking his head in blatant refusal, his arms crossed in defiance. Kanji was leaning against the large vent, grinning at Yosuke's plight, while Yukiko settled for sighing dramatically at her friends' antics and Naoto was struggling to hide her grin.
In fact, Naoto was the first to notice him and she brought him to the others' attention, saving Yosuke from even more harassment.
"Senpai, why are we here?" She asked, noting the addition of the two athletes behind him, so it couldn't be something terrible or related to the dangers they faced against the supernatural.
Souji settled himself beside Yosuke, taking a deep breath in preparation. "Well, to be honest, I have something to tell you all. All of you are my friends, my closest friends, and I reached the point where I don't want to hide anything from you."
"Sensei?" Teddie asked, prompting him to continue.
He decided to just spit it out. "To put it bluntly, I've figured out that I'm gay, or at least bisexual. I want to know if you don't like or approve, so I can stop hiding my relationship."
He was met with a stunned silence for a moment, and he spared a minute glance at Yosuke, finding the teen beside was tense, mouth pressed in a thin line as he stared at the group of people around them, waiting for their friends' responses.
"Good on you, Senpai!" Kanji stated boldly, a wide grin plastered across his face, jolting the others from their stupor. "S'not like you to hide from us, and you've always been there for us, so I'm with you on this!"
Souji was warmed by the blond's open support, a smile tilting his lips. "Thank you, Kanji. That means a lot."
"Who are you seeing?" Yukiko demanded, thrown for a loop, and Souji repressed a grimace, recalling her affections for him. "Its fine, there's nothing wrong with you being that way, but I was hoping we could, I don't know, go from where we last left off."
"I'm sorry, Yukiko. That ship has sailed its course. But, to answer to your question..." He shrugged, giving Yosuke his chance.
"It's me." Incredulous stares turned to the brunet beside him, who turned a lovely shade of red under the scrutiny. Souji reached over and grabbed Yosuke's hand in his, his thumb caressing the smooth skin. "We've been dating since April. More or less, since right after he came back."
"So long as you're happy, Kou and I don't care who you're seeing, guys or otherwise. You deserve to be happy, man." Daisuke grinned at them and Kou elbowed him in the ribs playfully before sitting next to Chie.
"He's speaking for me again, but yeah, he's right!"
"I had already come to the conclusion, actually." Naoto smiled warmly at them. "It wasn't that hard to hard to figure out if one was truly observant and willing to see."
"What does 'gay' mean? I haven't heard of that, yet. What's 'bisexual'? Does this you get to 'score' with Yosuke?" Souji had to refrained himself from slapping his forehead in exasperation to Teddie's questions, grinning when Yosuke followed no such restraints.
"Oh my God, bear. Shut up already!"
"I don't even know how to answer that and keep a straight face, Teddy. Rise; could you explain it to him later?"
She giggled at them and nodded fervently. "Of course, Senpai! Oh, you and Yosuke-Senpai are soo cute together! Just adorable! You two suit each other!" She squealed much like Yumi had at lunch, and Souji wondered if he should be worried about his hearing, with all the ringing it was doing from the higher frequencies.
"How'd it happen? I want details, mister!" Chie pointed a finger at him, a familiar determined look about her and Souji nearly groaned. "When'd you find out you like guys? When'd you tell Yosuke, and when was your first kiss?!"
"Chie, dear, you're making them uncomfortable." Kou grinned at his girlfriend, the two having hooked up about a few weeks previous. "Should I be worried about you going all 'fangirl' on them?"
She blushed herself, smacking Kou on the arm. "Uh, wha- hey! I'm being nice! I'm just curious, is all." She huffed indignantly and Yukiko giggled, brought out of her sulk.
Souji grinned at his friends, happy to have told them and feeling relieved, and he adjusted his grip on Yosuke's hand, instead twining their fingers together. "I'm happy you're all okay with this. We were kinda worried, a little."
"Yeah; especially with how I acted like such an ass last year." Yosuke looked over to Kanji. "I'm still sorry for that, Kanji."
"S'alright, Senpai. I just get to hold that over your head for a little while, and then I'll be good." The taller teen grinned, looming over them and Souji laughed.
"Hey, and in a town this weird," Kou said, arm wrapped around Chie's shoulders. "We have to be pretty accepting, so this is nothing big, and you're our friends."
"Thanks, guys."
Souji was hanging out with Yosuke on Sunday, July 1st; the day itself a lazy Sunday of clear weather and completely uneventful, curled up together on his couch watching movies while reclined on extra pillows and blankets when his cell phone rang. Dislodging himself from his lover, which proved to be a somewhat monumental task on its own, Souji answered the call, blinking as he registered his uncle speaking on the other end.
"Hey, I'm going to be late tonight, again. Could you take care of dinner and put Nanako to bed when it's time?" Dojima asked, and he sounded dead tired to Souji's ears, his deep voice rougher than usual. Souji knew the constant phone calls about the rising cases of petty vandalism and destroyed property was starting to wear thin on his uncle.
So maybe he felt a little guilty, since he knew what was causing the rising crime in Inaba, but he didn't how to bring the subject up; especially with Dojima's disbelief about the TV world. Souji knew he would have to have irrevocable proof, or a first-hand witness account from Dojima himself before his uncle would believe him.
Still made Souji feel bad about the deception, though.
"Sure thing, dinner's taken of already. There are even some leftovers in the fridge if you want them. Just... please be careful coming home tonight, okay? I almost got attacked again last week, so those creatures are hanging around, I think."
"Yeah... I will, Souji. Tell Nanako I'll be home tomorrow and on time for me, okay?"
"I can do that. Is it okay if Yosuke sticks around?"
He knew then, in that very instant that he wasn't fooling his uncle; that his uncle knew about him and Yosuke, simply from the distinct weighted pause before his uncle spoke. "Just make sure to lock your door after Nanako's in bed, and no funny stuff before then, got it? I don't want to have to answer any awkward questions."
"Okay, Uncle, I got it. See you tomorrow."
Yosuke was staring at him with something akin to horror as Souji shut his phone, setting it down on the table. "He so knows, doesn't he?"
"Yep, we're totally busted. It's about time for Nanako's bedtime, so I'll just be a few minutes. Could you go downstairs and check to see if our furry friends outside need anything, please?"
The rest of the evening passed smoothly as the two boys got Nanako ready for bed, and prepared for the next day for themselves, while discussing plans to prepare for the next full moon on the 3rd of July, still two days away. Once everything had been taken care of inside the house, and Nanako was fast asleep, the two teenagers retreated for the relative sanctity of Souji's bedroom, where they tumbled into bed together.
Sleep wouldn't come to them for a few hours yet.
The next two days were filled with a sense of stark anticipation and disconcerting dread that sent chills down Souji's spine and had him on a constant high alert, making him edgy and nervous. Something big was going to happen soon, and he had the sneaking suspicion that it was going to happen tonight, during the full moon. He couldn't seem to shake the feeling that whatever was undoubtedly going to happen tonight would change the course of how he was going to deal with his mission to once again save the world.
And it scared the crap out of him.
After the last bell rang, Souji sought out each and every one of his friends, from Naoki before the underclassman could leave, to Ayane and Yumi as the two girls were headed for their respective clubs, to Kou and Daisuke out by the soccer field, and told them all to go home. He had a feeling, he said to each of them, that something bad was going to happen, and he didn't want any of them to get hurt. Shaken, they all did as he asked and hurried home under his watchful gaze.
He found Ai with Chie and Yukiko, asking his fellow Persona users about some of the schoolwork assigned today, and he sent them home as well, telling them he'd explain tomorrow if they still had questions.
He called Eri Minami and told her to stay inside after she'd picked up Yuuta from the daycare, telling her he had a bad feeling about tonight, and that he wanted her and Yuuta safe. She was startled and a little worried, but she promised to be quick and would be indoors long before the sun set.
He called Shu Nakajima too, also warning the boy to stay inside, no matter what happened that night. Luckily, he didn't have to worry about Hisano, since he knew the old woman would be safe in her home, and Sayoko was still out of the country.
He found the rest of his friends, Naoto, Kanji, Teddie, Rise and Yosuke in the front of the school, getting their things from their shoe lockers. He sent them home, too, addressing his underclassmen and the Shadow. He told them about his uneasiness and sense of dread, and they agreed to go home right away.
He turned to Yosuke, the only one of his friends remaining at the school. "Could you come with me? I have the feeling that whatever happens tonight will scare Nanako, so I could use the help."
Yosuke nodded grimly, reflecting his mood as he grabbed his bag. "Yeah, sure thing, Partner. I'll just call my folks when we get there."
"Thanks."
They passed by Aiya's restaurant on the way and picked up some take-out for dinner, and they both noticed more and more of the hellhounds hanging out in the alleys of the Shopping District, waiting, watching them and growling menacingly as they passed, picking up the pace as they went.
Yosuke kept his kunai holstered at his belt, his hands twitching every so often, and Souji continued to keep one hand on the case of his Sword of Totsuka, just in case, and he made a mental note to visit Deidara's shop soon for some armor, specifically the God's Garment or the Coat of Thoroughness. He also wondered briefly, absently, why Deidara gave his special creations such... interesting names.
Now wasn't the time for such inane thoughts, so he dismissed it altogether.
To Souji's immense relief, Nanako was already home when he and Yosuke arrived at the house, happily playing with the fox kits in the living room, with the Hermit fox watching them from her chosen spot curled up beside the TV.
"Yay! Big Bro's home! And you brought dinner!" Souji grinned as his younger cousin raced over, still carrying one of the kits in her arms.
"What, no 'hello' for me, Nanako-chan?" Yosuke grinned down at the girl, setting the food down on the cluttered kitchen table.
While Yosuke kept Nanako occupied, Souji took the time to try and call Dojima at the station, to see whether or not his uncle would be making it home tonight. So long as his uncle kept himself safe, Souji could deal with keeping Nanako occupied and safe.
"Dojima speaking." From his terse tone, Souji started to think that maybe he'd called at a bad time, but this was a necessary phone call.
"It's Souji, uncle. I just wanted to know if you were going to be home tonight, but I take it that you're not."
"Sorry, Souji, it's... it's just been a long day, with weirder stuff happening today than usual, these days. I might be late. You'd think that most people would realize there's very little the police can do about this freaky stuff."
"That's okay, I understand. If you're going to be too late, close to or after midnight, then it might be best to just stay where you are."
"What are you talking about, Souji?"
"I just have a very bad feeling, that's all. Be careful."
"Sure thing, Souji. I might see you later, and take care of Nanako for me."
"Of course."
Souji ended the call and looking at Yosuke, he shook his head in a negative. The brunet understood his meaning and nodded before focusing back on Nanako as he served dinner. His boyfriend was really fond of his cousin, and that made him smile, because he loved the little girl with all his heart, and he'd do anything to keep her happy.
He walked over to where his fox friend was lying, pulling one of her kits into his lap as he sat down beside her. He idly scratched her head, watching as she preened under the attention.
"You guys should stay inside tonight. I think it'll be safer for you."
The fox nodded in understanding before nudging Souji over to the table where Nanako and Yosuke had dinner set up, chatting away animatedly and without any further a due, the three of them started eating, feeding the fox kits under the table.
Ryotaro Dojima sighed heavily as he drove his car through the deserted streets of Inaba from the police station towards home, driving much slower than usual due to the quantity of hellhounds that were roaming about.
He must have been crazy to leave the station.
Especially after his nephew's warning over the phone.
Souji Seta was not one to have random bouts of adolescent paranoia; in fact, he was more level-headed and serious than almost all the adults at least twice his age; Dojima worked with several of the idiots!
So, why, he was asking himself, had he not paid attention to the late hour and listened to his incredibly smart and perceptive nephew when he said to stay at the police station?
"Too late, now." He muttered to himself with a grim frown, trying to stay focused as several of the beasts charged a little close to his car, darting around the vehicle and reaching out to scratch at the metal and he cringed at the sound of their claws.
He pushed down on the gas, speeding past this particular pack of creatures, and he heaved a small sigh of relief as they pulled away from the car.
Now if only he could make it home.
Tension slowly eased from the middle of his spine as he approached his street, now just a couple of blocks away and all Dojima could look forward to was just collapsing in bed. He wasn't even sure at this point if he wanted to bother with changing his clothes once he got in. Thank god he had tomorrow free, although the likelihood that he'd called in was very high; nonetheless, he desperately needed and wanted his day off!
The amount of fucks he had to give was dropping dramatically by the second.
Dojima eased off the gas just a fraction as he looked around the deserted street. Something was wrong, something was happening.
Then he heard it, a faint humming sound from outside, as if from something electrical, before all the lights went out, dousing the night in pitch darkness, and effectively killing his car.
Shit! The car spun out and collided with a metal fence railing, jolting him forward in his seat only to be stopped abruptly by his seatbelt, still holding him secure, and bringing back horrible flashbacks from last year, when Nanako had been kidnapped and the subsequent car chase and crash.
Head pounding from where he'd slammed it into the steering wheel, Dojima was able to bring himself back to reality, and he told himself that his daughter, his precious Nanako was safe at home, safe with Souji, and once his head was reasonably clear (although he couldn't feel the impending migraine), and something itched terribly on his back, he started rummaging around his now-cluttered space and grasped his gun holster, the police-issued standard weapon still secured firmly.
But how could a power outage short-circuit his car? If that's even what happened! The car battery is an independent system, so it shouldn't have happened, and his car shouldn't be dead.
"Crap." This was JUST what he needed!
He scrambled around a bit more and found a flashlight that should have worked, but, just like his car battery, the bloody, stupid blasted thing was dead.
Dojima peered out through the cracked windshield and into the darkness, and was relieved to recognize his surroundings; he was only two blocks from the safety of home.
Taking a look through the back windshield, the detective could already see the growing flickering blue lights of a pack of hellhounds coming closer. They were still some distance away, from what he could guess, so maybe he could get home before they caught him.
He decided to take the chance, and forced open the car door, broken glass clattering noisily to the pavement as he got out and started walking away and quickly.
Luckily, he was just able to see with the light of the full moon above him, but he couldn't help feeling uneasy about it, as well.
Every stone statue had been found directly after the full and new moons. That wasn't a coincidence.
An eerie howl ringing through the empty night quickened his pace and he turned the corner onto his street, catching sight of his house, and flickering candlelight in one of the windows.
But at the end of the street past his home were at least three of those beasts, halting his footsteps.
They looked like they were waiting for him, and Dojima unclipped his gun from its holster.
What little light there was changed suddenly, startling Dojima and jerking his sharp gaze upwards, towards the moon, hanging full in the sky. His breath caught in his throat and his heart dropped to his stomach at what he saw.
Red. The moon was red. Casting a sickly, bloody tinge across the world, the moon above, full in its gruesome, crimson splendor, was red, just like oozing blood and Dojima felt fear lurch its way into his throat as he stood there beside the wreckage of his car, stunned.
Ominous growls from behind him tore his gaze from the ghastly sight above as he whirled about, drawing his gun. Four more hellhounds were no less than a hundred feet from him, snarling as thick drool dribbled down onto the pavement, the rest of the pack quickly gaining on him.
They were hunters, and he was now the hunted.
Crap! He bolted, sprinting for the relative safety of home, and he heard all the creatures charging after him, the three in front racing to cut him off before he could reach safety.
He raised his gun in front of him, and taking aim while he ran, Dojima fired a shot, elated for a moment when he heard one of the hellhounds fall back with a pain-laced yip.
The front door of his house flew open, revealing his nephew Souji, holding a goddamn katana of all things, his boyfriend Yosuke, and Nanako, standing in the open doorway, shocked to see him there.
Nanako tried running out to meet him halfway, but Dojima was glad when the Hanamura boy pulled her back and Souji stepped out in front of them, raising his sword as he pulled something from his pocket.
By now, Dojima had made it up the driveway, mere feet away from the open doorway, when his legs collapsed from under as razor sharp teeth sliced into his left leg, forcing a pained scream from his throat.
He was vaguely aware of Nanako screaming, and Souji shouting something, but he hit the pavement then, his gun gone from his hand.
Powerful jaws started pulling him backwards, and he was just able to turn himself around enough to see a couple of the beasts snapping at each other if one got too close, and he kicked out with his free uninjured leg, knocking the hellhound loose.
Later, he realized that's what saved his life.
Souji and Yosuke had been awake, waiting for midnight in anticipation of the moon's transformation, and Souji, for his part, was hoping that his uncle had stayed at the station, but he wasn't counting on it either. Nanako had already been tucked safely in bed, and hopefully she'd stay there.
The power had gone out only a few minutes before, and between the two of them, they were able to get enough candles lit to have a somewhat comforting glow in the living room, even if the fire lighting the candles was blue.
Then the gunshot was heard, deafeningly loud and terrifyingly close by, that had Nanako awake and rushing downstairs from her sleep and all of them running to the front door to see what was happening.
Souji wasn't surprised to see his uncle racing towards them with a pack of hellhounds on his tail, gaining rapidly.
He knew his uncle wouldn't make it in time.
As Nanako tried to rush past him, Yosuke pulled the little girl back, telling her it wasn't safe and that she shouldn't be there, and Souji stepped in front of them, raising his sword defensively in front of his family and removing his Izanagi Tarot card from his pocket, wanting to protect them at all costs.
Then Dojima was down, brought down by the hellhounds, and Souji leapt forward, scooping up the gun his uncle always carried as it skittered into his path. He wasn't even sure why he grabbed the gun; Souji didn't know how to use it.
Time froze.
His vision flickered out, and he saw a boy in front of him, around his age, standing on the roof of a building that was slick with puddles of blood, tinged black by the light of a sickly green moon.
The boy, in a school uniform he thought he recognized, was skinny and kind of short with messy blue hair, and Souji felt a certain... kinship to this boy he had never met.
A voice in the back of his mind whispered to Souji. "The Fool, a Wild Card."
The boy, a Wild Card, like himself faced off against a giant monster with far too many arms wielding too many swords, calmly placed a gun to the side of his head, a slightly glazed look to his eyes as his mouth quirked into a manic smirk.
"Per...so...na."
He pulled the trigger and shards of light, tinkling like glass, exploded outward to swirl up behind him and coalesce into a figure, but the vision faded and time started up again.
Knowing now what he had to do, Souji held his Tarot card face out in front of him, placing the tip of the gun to the back of his hand, ignoring the shocked and frightened look on his uncle's face and ignoring the shouts from Yosuke, demanding to know what the hell he thought he was doing.
"I am thou... Thou art I... From the sea of my soul, I call upon thy name and release my power... Izanagi!"
He pulled the trigger of the gun, shooting the back of his hand, ignoring the fiery pain that erupted, and watched as his blood began to crystallize and shatter and circle back to him, twisting around his body until he could see nothing but crimson, glittering blood.
Oh, he felt the changes happening to his body, as his body lengthened in form, and his vision was slightly obstructed by a visor he recognized, and a familiar coat fluttered in a non-existent wind, a great polearm, the Ameno-nuboko polearm materialized in his clawed hand and as the remnants of his crystallized blood faded from view, he let out a great roar in challenge, leveling his weapon to the infernal beasts before him.
In a city hours away from Inaba, in the Port Island Kirijo Group office building, it was just another late night for one Mitsuru Kirijo, Chief Executive and Owner of the Group and one Akihiro Sanada, her acting advisor, bodyguard in view of the public and close friend.
There was nothing unusual with these two sharply dressed individuals still being in the office, let alone awake, past midnight, but this night, they weren't focusing on the growing piles of paperwork and classified documents involved in managing a large company dedicated to searching for and hunting Shadows, even if the Dark Hour was long over and done with.
Instead, their disbelieving eyes were glued to the state-of-the-art TV mounted on the wall across from Mitsuru's ridiculously large mahogany desk, which was still neatly cluttered with various papers and folders.
Displayed prominently on the large screen TV was a ten foot Persona, one they didn't recognize, wielding a bladed polearm and making swift work in killing a multitude of strange wolf-like creatures they knew not to be Shadows.
There hadn't been many cases of Shadows recently, not since the Dark Hour ended, and sightings had been in decline for a while now.
The TV had flickered on in static first, drawing their attention from the still unfinished documents that Mitsuru had previously been laboring over, but was now forgotten, and together, Mitsuru and Akihiko had watched, as a somehow familiar stranger they'd never seen before had physically transformed into a Persona they knew nothing about.
Not released a Persona, but transformed into one. That shouldn't be possible, as Personas were a part of the human mind, a manifestation brought to the surface of the psyche.
Without taking his eyes away from the TV screen, Akihiko opened the laptop he carried everywhere with him and, playing back the constantly recorded footage, captured a shot of the older man, a detective, by the look of him, that had been attacked at the beginning of the footage, also capturing a shot of the silver-haired teenager, for identification purposes.
As the battle came to a close, which had been an impressive display of brutal swordsmanship, he proceeded to run both screenshots in every visual database at their disposal in an attempt to find out who these people were and where they were now.
The screen flickered back into static before shutting itself off, and the office was silent for a few moments.
"What do you think that was, Akihiko?"
"I'm not sure. But that was definitely a Persona!"
"On that, I agree." Akihiko's laptop beeped and the redhead pulled the machine closer to her. "There's a hit in the Inaba police database of the victim; Ryotaro Dojima of the Inaba Police Department, a senior detective. Immediate family, wife, deceased; daughter, Nanako; sister, recently deceased; and nephew, Souji Seta. Here's a picture of the nephew."
With a few clicks, she brought up the picture on the laptop screen and Akihiko frowned. "The guy that turned into the Persona."
"Exactly." Further conversation was put on hold as Mitsuru's private cell phone rang; the shrill tone sharp in the quiet office. She pulled it out and answered, smiling briefly as she recognized the caller.
Akihiko waited as Mitsuru spoke with whoever it was calling and took the time to study the teenager on the computer screen in front of him.
Aside from the obvious physical differences, this Souji Seta reminded Akihiko of someone he hadn't thought of, for fear of remembering, in a long time. He reminded him a great deal of Minato Arisato, his friend and leader who had died to save them all a few years ago. There was just something about this kid, something that was familiar, and he hated it.
Since losing Minato, something had been missing in Akihiko, a lack of drive. For all he enjoyed working with Mitsuru in establishing a Shadow Hunting organisation, he still felt... empty.
Watching this kid transform had brought back a spark of that drive.
Akihiko wasn't sure what to make of it.
Mitsuru finished up with her phone call, sighing as she put it away. "That was Fuuka, calling from her university dorm in Tokyo. Apparently, we were not the only ones to witness this unforeseen event; Ken and Aigis also witnessed it in a similar fashion. Something needs to be done about this, and I believe I know exactly what needs to be done."
As his long time friend left her desk in search for something, Akihiko continued to stare at Seta's picture, trying to narrow down what it was that resembled their dear lost friend, Minato.
"Does this kid, Seta, remind you of Him?"
Mitsuru came back from wherever she had disappeared to, carrying a briefcase in hand. She glanced down at the picture, and she shrugged. "Perhaps a little. I would like you to go to Inaba, Akihiko, and investigate and assess this situation, and I'll inform Aigis to remain in standby; she can be your backup if necessary. If he really is a Persona user, we need to know about it, and how this has escaped our notice until now. You also might need these."
She held out the briefcase to Akihiko, and he took it from her, opening it up to check its contents. He looked up at her sharply. "You'll think I'll need these?"
"It's always good to be prepared."
He nodded. "Okay, I'll go. I can leave first thing in the morning. From what I know, Inaba's pretty far from here, it'll take me a day on the train to get there."
"Good luck, Akihiko."
"Thanks. I get the feeling I'll need it."
The last of those hellish beasts were destroyed, and Souji felt something snap inside of him, shattering the Izanagi façade he wore. He dropped down to his normal height as the last of the long coat and the polearm disintegrated away, and he turned for the house behind him.
The Hermit Fox had taken charge of Nanako, allowing Yosuke to pull Dojima into the safe confines of the house, and the slightly hysterical girl had, under Yosuke's instruction, pulled the first aid box down. Now Yosuke was disinfecting Dojima's leg while pulling out some bandages from the medical box, speaking quietly to the detective as he worked.
Souji shut the door behind him and knelt down beside his uncle, checking the wound with a frown. Yosuke had torn Dojima's pant leg up to the knee, to give himself some room to work, and while it had been bleeding a little heavily, the bleeding had about stopped.
"Uncle Dojima, are you okay?" He asked, putting a hand on the detective's shoulder, watching the older man grimace as Yosuke wrapped up the wound.
"I'll be fine." He grunted out, trying not to show the pain. "But what I would like to know is what the hell happened out there?"
"Let's get you fixed up and get Nanako back to bed, then I'll explain everything."
His uncle glared at him, scowling. "I'm holding you to that!"
Souji nodded, helping Yosuke to tie off the end of the bandage wrap, and while his boyfriend rummaged about for any kind of pain medication, Souji took Nanako upstairs and got her ready for bed again, the fox accompanying them.
"Big Bro?" Nanako's voice was quiet, trembling as she tried to hold herself together.
"Yes, Nanako-chan?"
"Is Dad going to be okay? I don't wanna lose him, too, like I lost Mom."
Souji smiled sadly at his cousin, remembering how the girl felt about her mother, and he remembered his own parents. "Nanako, he's going to be perfectly fine, I promise. Nothing is going to take him away from you."
"Okay. G'night, Big Bro." She closed her eyes sleepily, utterly exhausted now that the adrenaline was fading and Souji moved away from her bed, smiling in appreciation when the fox tossed her three kits onto the bed before jumping up herself, settling in beside Nanako.
"Thank you."
He hurried back downstairs, finding that Yosuke had gotten his uncle to take some pain pills and together, they hefted him up onto his good leg and got him settled comfortably on the couch.
Souji sat down at his usual spot in front of the small table by the couch and took a deep breath in preparation of the interrogation he was waiting for him by Dojima.
"Tell me what's going on. Now."
"Those things prowling outside? They're not normal; you can see that, and you already knew they weren't normal. They're supernatural creatures, a hellish beast from the Spirit world that is merging with ours." Souji looked at Dojima directly in the eyes, daring his uncle to contradict him, or to interrupt. "I know you had suspicions last year, that my friends and I were somehow connected with the serial murders. Well, you were right."
"We figured out how they were getting killed, and it seemed that only we had the power to stop it." Yosuke added in, flinching slightly from the detective's harsh glare.
"What I told you last year, about being able to get inside the TV was real, it was the truth, and that's where the killings were taking place. Adachi shoved the first two victims into the TV himself, and convinced Nametame that he would be saving them if the councilman pushed them in. It's entirely convoluted, and full of manipulation on Adachi's part, but right after the reporter's death, I found that I had the power to go to the world inside the TV."
"That makes no sense. That's... that's impossible." Dojima shook his head in denial, though the denial was half-assed at best. His nephew had said much of the same thing when he'd confronted him before Adachi's capture.
"The TV was only a portal, the connection made by Izanami, and the world inside is the representation of people's hearts. We traveled there to rescue all the possible victims, fighting for our lives to protect those around us, to protect our friends. Yukiko Amagi, Kanji Tatsumi, Rise Kujikawa, Naoto Shirogane, and Nanako would all be dead if Yosuke, Chie Satonaka, and I hadn't found the way inside the TV, and discovered the means to fight the monsters that were there, killing the victims." Souji spoke calmly, legs crossed and hands folded on his lap, and Dojima could not hear a word of a lie in anything his nephew was saying.
"...You mean that... thing you turned into. Speaking of that, why the hell would you go and just shoot yourself?" Dojima demanded and Souji had the courtesy to fidget nervously.
"Yeah, about that, well, it seemed like a good idea at the time." He shrugged while his uncle fumed silently. "It's not the usual method of summoning but that was my Persona, the form and face of my true self, my inner self."
"What do you mean by that?"
"I mentioned that the world inside the TV was the manifestation of what was inside the hearts and minds of people. We were able to release our Personas for the first time in that world, so our Personas reflect a part of us deep inside our hearts." Souji withdrew the Izanagi Tarot card he'd stashed in his pocket after the battle and passed it to Dojima. The detective picked it up and studied it closely.
"Huh. It suits you."
"His name is Izanagi, and I guess that you could say that, well, Izanagi is a large part of me, of who I am."
Dojima turned to Yosuke, who flinched at the sudden scrutiny. "So, you got one of these... Personas, too?"
"Ah! Y-yeah." He removed his own card with Susano-o displayed and passed it to Dojima. "Name's Susano-o."
"That's the name of a god, isn't it? The Storm God?"
"I think so. Never really paid too much attention to mythology, though."
"So what happens now, Souji?"
"Now? Nothing's changed. I will still fight, just like I always have since coming here, and I will stop the merging of our worlds, with the help of my friends and the Personas we wield. Now that your eyes have been opened to the truth, you can help us, on the public side of things. When your leg's healed, you can go about your job like always, or you can deny everything I've just said, and have me committed, because it does sound insane, and you'll doom us all."
Dojima glared darkly at his nephew, who just looked back at him nonplussed. "Great endorsement of the faith you have in me, Souji. Thanks."
"Sure thing." He grinned at his uncle impudently. "Now I think we should get some sleep; I, for one, need it badly; I'm fucking exhausted."
Dojima reached over and smacked Souji upside the back of his head, snarling. "Hey, watch the language. Just because you can turn into a god doesn't mean I can't come over there and kick your ass for that mouth of yours."