Chapter 10: First day at University

While Kanji and Yukiko wandered around the lounge and gathered the glass shards, Souji and Chie lay down the still unconscious Kou on his bed. Naoto was still leaning over the TV and was studying it.

"Hmm... I wonder how that Shadow exactly appeared on TV this time...", she mumbled to herself. "It´s not nighttime, it´s not raining, and there´s no screen left... Strange..."

"Did you find something?", Rise asked, curious.

"No, not really.", Naoto responded. "The only thing that I can tell is that the one who destroyed the screen must be really wounded now." She motioned at the few remaining glass shards of the TV. They were covered in blood.

"There´s some blood on the shards on the ground.", Yukiko added.

"Then...", Souji started and looked at Kou whose body was full of bleeding scratches, especially his hands. "... Do you think Kou destroyed the screen himself?"

"Well, if I were seein´ myself inside the TV, I´d do crazy stuff like that, too, ya know.", Kanji said.

"That´s actually not a bad idea.", Naoto agreed. "Yes, if his Shadow had appeared inside the TV, he may have destroyed the screen due to his shock. Hmm... But... maybe destroying the screen is also... hmm..." She looked at Teddie who was staring at Kou. "What´s the matter, Teddie?"

"I don´t feel it...", Teddie murmured in sadness.

"What?", Chie asked, confused.

"A soul. I can´t feel his soul.", Teddie explained.

"Whoa, whoa, wait, stop! What?!", Yosuke shouted, eyes huge, and leaned over Kou just as Naoto had done before to check if Kou was still breathing, which he was. "But he´s still breathing!"

"A person can still live without their soul.", Teddie explained. "Shadows can do it, too, after all!"

"What... do you mean?", Rise asked.

"Shadows are the negative thoughts and fears of humans, having taken physical form. If a human manages to control his Shadow, that Shadow will become a Persona.", Teddie explained.

"Yeah, we know that already! Get to the point, dude!", Yosuke interrupted him.

"A Shadow only consists of thoughts and fears. Its core has no soul, no conscience. It doesn´t feel pain, nothing. Its inner self is completely empty, lonely...", Teddie resumed his explanation and cried out in pain the next moment when Chie whacked him on the head. "Ow! Chie-chan, you can´t just hit such a cute, fluffy teddy bear!"

"Hmm... But you seem to feel pain.", Chie just said.

"Hrmmm... Yes... I don´t really know why, either...", Teddie said. "Maybe it´s because I reacted to human feelings and changed?"

"Whatever the reason, if I understand you correctly, Kou won´t wake up anymore since he´s now only an empty shell?", Souji asked.

"Yes.", Teddie said and hung his head low. "I think it´s his Shadow that stole his soul and disappeared into the TV world with it."

"Why the hell should he do that?", Kanji asked and jumped up the next moment when Naoto and Yukiko suddenly gasped beside him.

"T-Teddie, can a Shadow become a normal human being, if he absorbs the soul of his real self?", Yukiko asked, voice shaking.

"Y-yeah, I think so.", Teddie said, sounding confused.

"Uh-oh...", Souji said.

"Okay, that´s enough. Let´s go inside the TV world and beat that Shadow Thing up!", Chie snarled and wanted to storm outside.

"I am sorry to have to say that, Satonaka-senpai, but could it be that you´re a bit obtuse?", Naoto stopped her.

"What did you say?!"

"If we take any TV other than the one that is currently in Kashiwagi-sensei´s possession we will get to some part of the TV world that we don´t know anything about, without any guarantee that we will ever be able to get back outside.", Naoto calmly explained.

"Then what should we do?! Go to Inaba and steal the TV?!", Chie snapped back. The others´ eyes went huge. "... W-what?! Did I... strike up gold again?!"

"It´ll be a very risky untertaking.", Yukiko said.

"Yeah. I don´t think that old bitch will just hand over the TV like that. Not for free.", Rise agreed. "She´ll surely take one of the men in our group as hostages!" She looked at Yosuke, then at Teddie and stopped at Kanji. "Okay, which one of you three will become her sex toy?"

"WHAT?!?", Yosuke screached in horror. "No way! Nu-uh! Never ever! When hell freezes over! Did you take your time to study that woman´s body?! That´s just ewwwww! And besides, what about partner, huh!?"

"Souji-senpai´s mine, only mine! He´s not up for bidding!", Rise snapped at him and looked at Kanji. "Okay, Kanji, you´ll do it."

"WHAT THE HELL!?", Kanji screamed like a girl. "NO FUCKIN´ WAY!!!"

"Oh, it won´t be that bad. You´re not into women anyway. Just let her do whatever she wants and think abouzt - I dunno - Yosuke-senpai or Kou-kun wearing panties.", Rise shrugged.

"I´M NOT GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!", Kanji shouted as loud as he could.

"Welcome to Bad, Bad Bathhouse, your host Kanji Tatsumi reporting in.", Yosuke said, voice slightly nasal and held an imaginary phone in front of his mout, trying hard not burst out laughing.

"I´M GONNA GET YOU FOR THAT!!!", Kanji screamed and chased a loudly cackling Yosuke through the lounge while Yukiko had to lean against the couch before she fell over in her laughing fit.

"Chrm, chrm...", Naoto cleared her throat soundly, a vein pulsating heavily over her eye. "As Amagi-senpai already said, this won´t be an easy undertaking, and yes, Kujikawa is right. Kashiwagi-sensei won´t just give us the TV."

"Then our only option is to steal it.", Souji concluded.

"That is correct.", Naoto said and nodded.

"What?! But that´s...!", Yukiko started and stopped laughing abruptly.

"Well... I don´t really see any other way, Yukiko.", Chie said and scratched her head.

"We´ve got no other choice.", Souji said and looked at Kou who was laying on his bed like a dead person. "Just to be sure, he´s not going to wake up until we get back his soul, right?"

"That´s right.", Teddie confirmed.

"How long before the Shadow will be able to absorb Kou´s soul?"

"It won´t accomplish it right now. It has to wait until the next time the fog appears in our world and lifts inside the TV world. That´s the only time when Shadows get especially powerful. He can only do it then."

"So the time limit is still the same... until the next foggy day.", Souji said. Teddie nooded. "Did someone watch the feather forcast?"

"Yeah, I did. It´s going to be sunny this week.", Yosuke said, now that Kanji had lost his nerve to chase him around feeling save again.

"Good. Then we´ll take a train to Inaba next Sunday when we don´t have any seminars.", Naoto decided.

"But what about Kou? He has seminars, too.", Rise said.

"Teddie could dress up as Kou!", Teddie suggested exitedly.

"Drop it, dummy!", Yosuke snarled and whacked him on the head.

"But it´ll still be a problem.", Chie sighed.

"No, not really.", Souji disagreed. The others stared at him questioningly. "Well, everyone that´d been present today inside the PC - basically the whole University - has seen how Kou had hurriedly left the room. Nobody will ask anything else, if we just tell the professors that he´s ill and can´t go to his seminars."

"Hmm... Right. That might work.", Yukiko agreed.

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The next day, Souji was wandering down the hallways to his first seminar, Yosuke who was yawning every few seconds a little bit behind him, trying to keep up.

"Ugh, I´m so sle-he-epy!", Yosuke yawned and stretched again and again.

"It´s your own fault.", Souji said, not feeling sympathy for hist best friend in the least. "You just had to spend all night in front of your laptop!"

Another yawn was Yosuke´s only answer while they entered the aphitheater for literature. Souji wanted to sit in the front.

"Whoa, whoa, stop right there! We´re not sitting in the front!", Yosuke protested, suddenly wide awake.

"Huh?"

"I refuse to sit in the front during this seminar. Our professor´s that asshole Bagman, for crying out loud! No way!", Yosuke whined.

"But Yosuke! You´re already his favourite student together with your cute little teddy bear!", Souji said in mock horror and just about dodged a book that Yosuke threw at him.

"We´re sitting in the back! Get moving right now!", the music loving man said and stormed towards the back in annoyance.

Souji chuckled and bend down to pick up the book Yosuke had thrown at him, making one of the female students who had looked at him squeal loudly and drool. But someone picked it up before him and was extending it towards him in a what seemed rather shy gesture. Souji looked up from his current position and recognised the young woman Ikas Ito who Mr. Bagman had yelled at yesterday the whole time.

"H-here. Y-Your friend d-dropped th-that.", Ikas stammered and looked to the side.

"Thank you.", Souji thanked her, took the book from her, smiling at her as genuine as he could and went towards the back to sit next to Yosuke. Ikas sat down in the front shakily.

"Hmm? Isn´t that the woman from yesterday?", Yosuke asked and looked at Ikas who was staring at him until he noticed him looking. She whirled around as fast as she could, blushing beet-red.

"Yap. And I think she really, reeeeaaally likes you, Yosuke.", Souji said.

"Um, well... uh...", Yosuke stammered and scratched his nose, but was spared to give an answer when an older woman with short red hair who wore glasses entered the room. The woman was wearing a fur coat that was far too hot for this season, its hem whisking over the floor like a cleaning mop.

"Good morning, dear students.", the woman said and entered the podium in front of the giant blackboard. She took of her coat and hung it over the chair, revealing a rather tight leather outfit that she wore under the coat. Yosuke started gaping in horror. "My name is Wendeline Takedo. I am a professor of this University.", the woman named Takedo introduced herself. "As you may already know, poor professor Bagman had crashed against a door with his head yesterday, resulting in a pretty bad wound on his head, and has now to rest at home. In the meantime I while take GOOOOOOOD care of you." When saying the word `good´, she made a movement with her hand as if she were some dominatrix swinging her whip. Yosuke gaped some more, but stopped when Souji subtly kicked his shin. "Well, my little darlings..." She looked rather horny at the male students who immediately started shivering. Her gaze rested on Souji.

`Kashiwagi´s evil twin from hell! Oh happy day!´, Souji thought and groaned mentally.

"Let´s just check if everyone´s present...", she opened her briefcase and started looking for the piece of paper with the list of all students who would take this seminar, effectively showing off her huge ass. Ikas who was sitting in the front backed away as far as possible.

After having found the list and sitting herself on the chair so that really everyone could see her operated boobs, she read out every student´s name, looking at the female students in a rather insulting way, but winking at the male students in a way that she thought was erotic, which if DEFINITELY was not.

"... Ichijo, Kou...", professor Takedo read out loud and looked up, drooling in anticipation for the next male student. No reaction. "Chrm, chrm... Ichijo, Kou...?", she repeated.

"Um, Takedo-sensei?", Souji called and stood up.

"Yes, dear?", professor Takedo asked and looked at Souji, thinking about all the things she would do if she´d just had him tied up in her bed.

"Ichijo Kou is unable to attend this seminar due to illness.", Souji explained and sat down again.

"Oh, really? On his first day already?", professor Takedo asked and raised a blue-painted eyebrow.

"Well, he´s the student who´d stormed out of the PC yesterday.", Souji said.

"Ah, that cute little guy with that hot as--", professor Takedo began, but abruptly stopped and giggled, trying to avert the student´s attention from her last sentence. "It´s allright. I believe you.", she finally said, analyzed Souji´s body one more time with a look full of relish, then continued with the list.

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"Ugh! Damn, dude! That was scary!", Yosuke said after the seminar was over while walking towards the cafeteria. "And I thought Kashiwagi was bad! Believe me, if we break into her house at Sunday, nothing´ll be able to shock me anymore! Kashiwagi is an angel compared to her!"

Souji nodded in agreement and picked up a tray. He noticed some students picking on Ikas again.

"Hey, are those hard-boiled eggs?", he asked the chef who just shook his head and went back to the kitchen to fetch some more food. "Very good...", Souji said, took some of the eggs, aimed and threw them at the students picking on Ikas.

SPLATSCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"What the fuck!?!", one of the students shouted, his face red with anger, and looked around for the perpetrator while the egg yolk ran down the back of his head.

Everyone else had been to absorbed in their food, and only now looked up because of the scream of fury, noticing the students full of splattered eggs and started laughing.

Ikas managed to get a way and ran towards the exit.

"Th-thanks...", she whispered towards Souji when she passed him.

"Nice shot, partner!", Yosuke chuckled and together with Souji went towards their friends who were laughing at the now dirty students as well... everyone except Naoto who was looking at Souji disapprovingly.

"What?", Souji asked, trying to sound innocent.

"That was waste of precious food.", Naoto admonished him. "If you have to throw something at those barbarians, then please use the bullets of my revolver next time, Senpai."

"Uhh...", Yosuke slightly backed away from her while Souji burst out laughing.

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"Ih hih hih hi hi...", a person shrouded in darness laughed, observing the spectacle in the cafeteria through some kind of mysterious orb. "Oh, they have so much fun, those mingy human things!" The person´s face became a grimace. "Fun that they have WITHOUT ME!!! ... Well, it´s not like I don´t have my own kind of fun, oh noooo... They´ll be here soon, here in my play paradise! And soon I will have just as much fun as them, if not even more! It´ll be sooo much fun to see them all writhing in pain and begging for mercy! Ih hih hih hih! It´ll be so much fun! Don´t you think so?" The figure looked behind them to a huge door-like building.

Silence...

"Oh, I almost forgot. You can´t talk anymore. Oh ho ho ho!!!" Yellow fog swirled around the place where the creature stood, just as yellow as the creature´s eyes that still observed the spectacle inside the cafeteria.

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Annotations: I... think that was enough for today. Wohoo! Two chapters in one day! Yay! ^^

Also, I´ve posted some kind of summary that points out the most important aspects of this story. So if you just can´t wait to know who the killer is or whatever, just ask me and I will give you the link to the side where I´ve posted that summary.