Chapter 4: Gathering(part 1)
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"Will that be all, sir?", the porter asked. "Yes, thank you very much", Nate replied. He's in an airport in Washington and heading off to Lunarvale. He's dressed in a formal business suit. He's now the head of Trinity Corporations. He has quite a reputation among businessmen. It didn't really come as a surprise since he's only 25, a very young age for someone of his position. He still haven't forgotten his roots though. He still occasionally think of Alfred, his butler who died during the incident 10 years ago. He chuckled as he walked off with his briefcase towards the departure halls. He couldn't help but chuckle whenever he thought of how obnoxious he used to be. He thought back to his conversation with Naoya the night before. They hadn't talked to each other for what, 4 years now? He wondered how Naoya would look like now. What he said last night bothered Nate. Persona users appearing again, and it might be worse. That can't be good. He planned to get his special division teams to look into the matter. Discreetly. He arrived at the gate and went inside the plane into the economy cabin. A man was reading the latest addition of Times and looked up at him. He stared for a moment, looked at the cover of the magazine and looked at Nate again. Nate smiled slightly and put a finger to his lips. He could understand the reaction. Not many people expect a corporate owner like him to travel in economy class, but Nate is different. He learned that such luxuries were really just a waste of money. He prefer to blend in with the masses. He quickly found his seat and sat down. He closed his eyes. He might as well relax now while he still have the chance. He might not get another chance to relax for a while. He slept a few minutes after the plane took off.
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"Hey, is this the place?", a man asked. "Yup, this is it. My hometown", a girl answered. She had blonde hair reaching down to her shoulders, with those around her ears tied back with a ribbon. She's wearing jean jackets, jean miniskirt, and yellow tank tops. They're in a van with several other men and women, heading into Lunarvale. "So, when do we start filming, Ellen?", a man across the girl asked. "That's up to Mr. Director here", The girl, Ellen, points at a man beside her. He's middle aged and wore the usual ensemble of shirt, tie, and long pants. "Well, I guess we could relax first. Perhaps we will start filming in 3 days or so", the director said. Ellen smiled and said, "Sounds good to me". Ellen used to live in Lunarvale. Right now, she's being asked to do an autobiography by her boss. She could use the 3 days break to look up some of her friends. As far as she could tell, Naoya and Chris are still in Lunarvale. She knew Chris is married and owns a small shop and Naoya is doing odd jobs for a living. Mark is usually overseas, as is Nate. Brad is a talk show host and she met him several times on her job. Alana lives in a small town nearby Lunarvale with her husband. Yuki, as far as she know, is a teacher at St. Hermelin. Mary lives near the suburbs of Lunarvale and has a fiancée. She couldn't wait to meet them again. "OK, we're here", the driver said as he pulled up in front of a luxurious-looking hotel. The crew got out of the van and a hotel staff took the van to the parking lot. "We're supposed to meet our guide here", one of the women in the group said. Ellen sighed. She didn't think the guide was necessary, but her boss insisted on the base that none of the other crewmembers knew the place.
"Glad you could find the hotel", someone said behind them. They whirled around to see a red-haired man wearing black t-shirt, pants, shoes, and gloves. Ellen looked at the man. He looked familiar. "Ah, so you are our guide?", a man wearing a cap and holding a camera (obviously a cameraman) asked. "Yes, I'm sorry if I startled you", the red-haired man said again. Ellen listened to the voice. It sounds very, very, very familiar, but she couldn't put a name to the person. "My name is Naoya Toudou, by the way. You can call me Naoya", the man said again. Ellen's eyes widened and she stared at the man. The others saw her reaction and gave her a questioning look. "Naoya?", she asked. The man looked and her and answered, "Uh, yes. What is it?". Ellen walked up to him and said, "Don't you remember me? I'm Ellen. We used to be schoolmates in St. Hermelin!". Naoya seemed to be taken aback and looked at the sky as he tried to recall. He looked back at Ellen. "Ellen? But..you look so different..what happened to your tail?", he asked her, referring to her ponytail which was tied back with a ribbon, which was one of Ellen's distinguishing features along with her scarf back in high school.
"You're one to talk. You look so different, I couldn't recognize you at first", she retorted, looking at Naoya's slightly messy shoulder-length hair. She also noted that Naoya looked taller and more muscular than 6 years ago, the last time she saw him. 6 years ago, they were of about the same height. Now, he's half a head taller than her. She also saw some scars on his exposed arms. "Great, so you two know each other?", the director asked. "You can say that", Ellen said. Naoya crossed his arms and nodded. "We go way back", Naoya added. "We haven't seen each other for 6 years, though, so I couldn't recognize him at first" Ellen said. "And I had no idea that the famous person I am supposed to be guiding to be you", Naoya said. "You're kidding, right? You don't know about Ellen's visit? We had to take the van because her fans here are always harassing us", one of the women in the group said. Naoya shook his head and said, "I haven't been watching TV for a while". Ellen smiled and shook her head. Naoya is always like that. She'd be surprised if he knew the difference between Britney Spears and Ayumi Hamasaki. "Well, doesn't matter, as long as you do your job", Ellen said. Naoya smirked and shrugged. "Well, it's nice to see you again", he said. Ellen nodded and smiled. "You too", she said.
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"Hey, Mark. Wake up!", a young woman said to a man beside her. "Whassisit? Re weder?(what is it? Are we there?)", the man sleepily answered. The man is Mark. He's changed quite a lot since his days in Lunarvale. He's got a goatee, mustache and all. He still wear a hat everywhere he goes, only this time it's black and white instead of the usual yellow. He wears a t-shirt and cargo pants. Overall, he looks like a rapper. The woman beside him is his fiancée. She's dark-skinned like him and has straight, dark hair. She wears pretty much the same stuff Mark wears. She's 2 years younger than Mark. They met during their studies in America. After Mark became a successful artist, she became his assistant and things went on from there. "We will be. In 3 seconds", she answered. "Well, wake me up 3 seconds later then, Alicia", Mark answered as he fell asleep again. Alicia shook her head. To think he had been so excited about going back to Lunarvale and meet up with his old friends. She looked outside the window. Lunarvale, the city was called. It looks like just any other city. But it certainly has an interesting past, to say the least, if any of Mark's stories about it are true.
After the plane touched down, the pair went off in a rented car. They went straight to Mark's house to rest. Mark's mother was ecstatic at her son's return. It has been 6 years now since she last saw him. She was surprised that Mark has a fiancée. She's even more surprised when she learn that Alicia can speak fluent Japanese. After the introductions, Mark went off to sleep while Alicia took a bath. Mark's mother chided him as usual. Mark ignored her and went on sleeping. He had a dream. In it, he was meeting Demo, his persona. "Why have you come?", Mark asked the persona. They're floating in a black abyss. Demo said into Mark's mind, "I have come as a representative. We, your persona, has felt a change and you shall need our help soon". Mark answered with his telepathy, "What could be so urgent that it requires your awakening?". Demo bowed his head and began to disappear. "You shall find out soon. Your friends shall guide you", Demo said before he disappeared completely. Mark woke up and began to think about the dream. It is a short dream, but he felt that it contain a very big message. He went down to the living room and began to read the newspaper on the table. The headline news was about 6 high school girls who disappeared without a trace just a week ago. There are other news about mysterious murders. Mark looked at them all and began to think. These might be why the persona inside him has begun to awaken after so many years. He called the art exhibition hall in Tokyo to tell them he might have to postpone the exhibition until god knows when. He has a feeling he will be staying here for a while. A long while.
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"Here you go, sir", the clerk said. "Thank you", the man in front of the counter answered. They're in a pharmacy with the frog statue near the entrance. "Hey, Mary, are we ready to go?", the man asked a girl with brownish-red hair standing in front of one of the counters. She had long hair reaching down to her waist and tied at the top with a ribbon. "Sure, Eric. Let's go", Mary answered. They both exit the shop and head towards a white Mazda parked outside the shop. "Damn, I'm glad we're out of there", Eric said as they entered the car. Eric is a handsome man with short black hair and nicely formed body. He usually ears a vest over a shirt and jeans. "Why?", Mary asked as she put on her seatbelt. "I can't stand the goddamn song. I can't seem to get it out of my head...", Eric said. Mary giggled as she remembered how Nate used to say the same thing as he unconsciously hummed the tune over and over again. At those times, he would always ask Naoya to hum the tune along so he won't feel like a total idiot. Going to the pharmacy during those times were inevitable, though, as they need as many medical supplies they could possibly get in order to fight the demons. Eric saw her giggling and knew better than to ask. Asking would only clam her up. He started to drive towards an apartment near the outskirts of Lunarvale.
"Hey, TJ! Are you home?", Mary called out as she pounded the door of the apartment. A woman with long blue hair opened the door. "Oh, Mary. Thanks for bringing the medicine", the woman said and invited the 2 guests into the house. "Not a problem. You should really tell your husband to watch his health", Mary said as he entered the apartment with Eric. TJ chuckled and said, "Not like I didn't, but he's too busy looking at numbers to ever listen. That airhead!". "I HEARD THAT!", a nasal voice called out from the room close to the entrance. Eric laughed and went into the room. Soon after, the 2 men could be heard laughing and chatting. TJ sighed. "What will I ever do with that man?", she said. Mary chuckled and sat down on a chair in the living room. "Oh, Mary, I heard that Naoya and Nate has been looking for you", TJ said after she went to the kitchen to make some tea. "Really? What is it about?", Mary asked. TJ leaned in closer and whispered into Mary's ear. Mary's eyes widened as TJ whispered. "I..is that possible? A repeat.?", Mary said to TJ. "I don't know, but you better contact them quickly", TJ said. Mary nodded. If what TJ said was true, then there is no time to waste.
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Chris read the paper again. It's the fifth time he read the article now. He had wanted to stop reading, but something compels him to go on. He has heard rumors as well. About strange deaths caused by strange creatures. It's beginning to look like something from 10 years ago. Except less obvious. He had heard that Naoya had been trying to get some of the old persona users to come back together. Chris had not been asked to join them, and he appreciated that. He sighed. He's going to see how things go before he deals any hand into it. He went to the kitchen and saw Mayumi, his wife. She had short, bluish hair, as opposed to Chris', whish is tied back in a wavy ponytail. His son is sleeping. "Is something the matter, dear?", Mayumi asked. Chris looked at his wife and answered, "No, nothing is wrong. Just thinking about something". Mayumi smiled and laid down several plates for their late dinner. Chris did not want to make his family worry. Not now.
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"Alana, we're here", a man said in the driver seat of an old Trueno. Alana is also one of the persona users. She's a lot different from what she was 10 years ago. Her brown hair hung down her shoulders in wavy locks and she usually wears ordinary housewives' clothes. That day, she and her husband are going to visit her mother and stay for the holiday. "Hang on, dear. I have to feed her first", Alana said as she spooned a mouthful of oatmeal into Miki's, her 7-month old daughter, mouth. She has 2 children. Terry is 3 years old and just starting to walk. Miki was just born 7 months ago. Her husband's name is Kenji. He wears spectacles and many thought he's 30ish, although he really isn't that old. In fact, he's about 26, just 1 year older than Alana. 'It's the glasses', Alana would always say. Kenji has black hair with gray streaks, which doesn't help matters any. They stepped out of the car as soon as Alana is done feeding her child.
A few hours later, Alana and Kenji went out again. Their children are sleeping soundly in Alana's parents' home. They went to the Augustus temple to pray. "There's quite a few people here today", Kenji commented as they walked in the gates. "Sure is. I wonder where they're from?", Alana replied. They looked around. Alana saw 2 person who looked oddly familiar. She went closer. Kenji followed her. She went up to a blonde girl first. The girl was talking to a group of other people. "...Ellen?", Alana asked. "Eh?", the blonde girl turned around and saw Alana. "Who are you?", she asked. Alana bunched up her hair into 2 ponytails on the side of her head. "It's me!", she said. "Alana! Oh, my, I couldn't recognize you!", Ellen said and grabbed both of Alana's hands. Kenji shook his head. His wife can go into a high school with a uniform and pose as a student. And no one would suspect a thing. A red-haired man suddenly stepped forward from behind him. "What's going on here?", the man said. "Oh, Naoya", Ellen said. "Naoya?", Alana said as she turned around and looked at the red-haired man behind her. "...Naoya? My god, you look so different! What happened to your hair? Have you been working out or something?", Alana said. "Ummm, who..are you?", Naoya asked. "Naoya! It's Alana, remember?", Ellen said. "Alana? Damn, I couldn't recognize you.", Naoya said as he tried to superimpose the image of airhead Alana over the new Mother Alana. "Not a big surprise. You're always absent when we have reunions", Alana said. Ellen chuckled. "That is SO true. No wonder you couldn't recognize any of us", Ellen said. Naoya shrugged. "Well, I better get back to planning the tour route. You girls enjoy yourselves", Naoya said and left. "Hmmph! He's always like that", Alana said. Ellen sighed. Alana looked at her. It may be just her feeling, but Ellen's sigh seemed to be really heavy just now.
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"And that's all for today, folks. Stay tuned for the next episode of Brad Chat! This is Brad Uesugi, bidding you adieu!", the TV blared in the hotel room. Brad smiled. He'd never imagined he would land a job as a talk show host. He doesn't look different from his high school days, except he doesn't wear goggles now. Heck, he sometimes wears his old uniform for kicks. He finished the last of his drink and walked outside the hotel. His parents had asked him to stay with them when he came to Lunarvale, but he knew they had limited space and had declined, especially when he heard that his cousin had married and moved into his old house. He sighed and walked into a Peace Diners outlet near the hotel. He took a seat at one of the counters on the wall. "Hey, Brad!", someone called behind him. Brad turned around. "Hehey, Mark!", Brad said as he got up and gave Mark a high five. They laughed. It has been a while since any of them saw each other. "How are you?", Brad asked. "Great! C'mon, let's sit down and we'll talk", Mark replied. They sat down and discussed their lives in the past few years. Alicia joined them and Mark introduced her. After they're halfway through their food and Alicia had left for the restroom, Mark looked at Brad. "What is it?", Brad asked, noting his friend's serious expression. "Brad, has your Persona awakened?", Mark asked back. Brad was shocked by this. "Wh..what? What do you mean?", Brad said. "My persona has awakened. Just yesterday. And it's telling me something is up in this city", Mark said. Brad looked at Mark. Mark wasn't a person who would joke about something as serious as this. "My persona is still dormant..What is going on?", Brad asked again. Mark took out a newspaper from his pant's pocket and pointed at the headline. It's the same thing as yesterday's paper. Another mysterious murder. Brad was silent for a while. "You know what? I think we need to find Naoya and ask him", Brad said at length. Mark nodded. Just then, Alicia came back. Brad and Mark quickly resumed 'normal' conversation.
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Chapter 5 coming, still about returning characters. I hope someone is reading this..
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"Will that be all, sir?", the porter asked. "Yes, thank you very much", Nate replied. He's in an airport in Washington and heading off to Lunarvale. He's dressed in a formal business suit. He's now the head of Trinity Corporations. He has quite a reputation among businessmen. It didn't really come as a surprise since he's only 25, a very young age for someone of his position. He still haven't forgotten his roots though. He still occasionally think of Alfred, his butler who died during the incident 10 years ago. He chuckled as he walked off with his briefcase towards the departure halls. He couldn't help but chuckle whenever he thought of how obnoxious he used to be. He thought back to his conversation with Naoya the night before. They hadn't talked to each other for what, 4 years now? He wondered how Naoya would look like now. What he said last night bothered Nate. Persona users appearing again, and it might be worse. That can't be good. He planned to get his special division teams to look into the matter. Discreetly. He arrived at the gate and went inside the plane into the economy cabin. A man was reading the latest addition of Times and looked up at him. He stared for a moment, looked at the cover of the magazine and looked at Nate again. Nate smiled slightly and put a finger to his lips. He could understand the reaction. Not many people expect a corporate owner like him to travel in economy class, but Nate is different. He learned that such luxuries were really just a waste of money. He prefer to blend in with the masses. He quickly found his seat and sat down. He closed his eyes. He might as well relax now while he still have the chance. He might not get another chance to relax for a while. He slept a few minutes after the plane took off.
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"Hey, is this the place?", a man asked. "Yup, this is it. My hometown", a girl answered. She had blonde hair reaching down to her shoulders, with those around her ears tied back with a ribbon. She's wearing jean jackets, jean miniskirt, and yellow tank tops. They're in a van with several other men and women, heading into Lunarvale. "So, when do we start filming, Ellen?", a man across the girl asked. "That's up to Mr. Director here", The girl, Ellen, points at a man beside her. He's middle aged and wore the usual ensemble of shirt, tie, and long pants. "Well, I guess we could relax first. Perhaps we will start filming in 3 days or so", the director said. Ellen smiled and said, "Sounds good to me". Ellen used to live in Lunarvale. Right now, she's being asked to do an autobiography by her boss. She could use the 3 days break to look up some of her friends. As far as she could tell, Naoya and Chris are still in Lunarvale. She knew Chris is married and owns a small shop and Naoya is doing odd jobs for a living. Mark is usually overseas, as is Nate. Brad is a talk show host and she met him several times on her job. Alana lives in a small town nearby Lunarvale with her husband. Yuki, as far as she know, is a teacher at St. Hermelin. Mary lives near the suburbs of Lunarvale and has a fiancée. She couldn't wait to meet them again. "OK, we're here", the driver said as he pulled up in front of a luxurious-looking hotel. The crew got out of the van and a hotel staff took the van to the parking lot. "We're supposed to meet our guide here", one of the women in the group said. Ellen sighed. She didn't think the guide was necessary, but her boss insisted on the base that none of the other crewmembers knew the place.
"Glad you could find the hotel", someone said behind them. They whirled around to see a red-haired man wearing black t-shirt, pants, shoes, and gloves. Ellen looked at the man. He looked familiar. "Ah, so you are our guide?", a man wearing a cap and holding a camera (obviously a cameraman) asked. "Yes, I'm sorry if I startled you", the red-haired man said again. Ellen listened to the voice. It sounds very, very, very familiar, but she couldn't put a name to the person. "My name is Naoya Toudou, by the way. You can call me Naoya", the man said again. Ellen's eyes widened and she stared at the man. The others saw her reaction and gave her a questioning look. "Naoya?", she asked. The man looked and her and answered, "Uh, yes. What is it?". Ellen walked up to him and said, "Don't you remember me? I'm Ellen. We used to be schoolmates in St. Hermelin!". Naoya seemed to be taken aback and looked at the sky as he tried to recall. He looked back at Ellen. "Ellen? But..you look so different..what happened to your tail?", he asked her, referring to her ponytail which was tied back with a ribbon, which was one of Ellen's distinguishing features along with her scarf back in high school.
"You're one to talk. You look so different, I couldn't recognize you at first", she retorted, looking at Naoya's slightly messy shoulder-length hair. She also noted that Naoya looked taller and more muscular than 6 years ago, the last time she saw him. 6 years ago, they were of about the same height. Now, he's half a head taller than her. She also saw some scars on his exposed arms. "Great, so you two know each other?", the director asked. "You can say that", Ellen said. Naoya crossed his arms and nodded. "We go way back", Naoya added. "We haven't seen each other for 6 years, though, so I couldn't recognize him at first" Ellen said. "And I had no idea that the famous person I am supposed to be guiding to be you", Naoya said. "You're kidding, right? You don't know about Ellen's visit? We had to take the van because her fans here are always harassing us", one of the women in the group said. Naoya shook his head and said, "I haven't been watching TV for a while". Ellen smiled and shook her head. Naoya is always like that. She'd be surprised if he knew the difference between Britney Spears and Ayumi Hamasaki. "Well, doesn't matter, as long as you do your job", Ellen said. Naoya smirked and shrugged. "Well, it's nice to see you again", he said. Ellen nodded and smiled. "You too", she said.
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"Hey, Mark. Wake up!", a young woman said to a man beside her. "Whassisit? Re weder?(what is it? Are we there?)", the man sleepily answered. The man is Mark. He's changed quite a lot since his days in Lunarvale. He's got a goatee, mustache and all. He still wear a hat everywhere he goes, only this time it's black and white instead of the usual yellow. He wears a t-shirt and cargo pants. Overall, he looks like a rapper. The woman beside him is his fiancée. She's dark-skinned like him and has straight, dark hair. She wears pretty much the same stuff Mark wears. She's 2 years younger than Mark. They met during their studies in America. After Mark became a successful artist, she became his assistant and things went on from there. "We will be. In 3 seconds", she answered. "Well, wake me up 3 seconds later then, Alicia", Mark answered as he fell asleep again. Alicia shook her head. To think he had been so excited about going back to Lunarvale and meet up with his old friends. She looked outside the window. Lunarvale, the city was called. It looks like just any other city. But it certainly has an interesting past, to say the least, if any of Mark's stories about it are true.
After the plane touched down, the pair went off in a rented car. They went straight to Mark's house to rest. Mark's mother was ecstatic at her son's return. It has been 6 years now since she last saw him. She was surprised that Mark has a fiancée. She's even more surprised when she learn that Alicia can speak fluent Japanese. After the introductions, Mark went off to sleep while Alicia took a bath. Mark's mother chided him as usual. Mark ignored her and went on sleeping. He had a dream. In it, he was meeting Demo, his persona. "Why have you come?", Mark asked the persona. They're floating in a black abyss. Demo said into Mark's mind, "I have come as a representative. We, your persona, has felt a change and you shall need our help soon". Mark answered with his telepathy, "What could be so urgent that it requires your awakening?". Demo bowed his head and began to disappear. "You shall find out soon. Your friends shall guide you", Demo said before he disappeared completely. Mark woke up and began to think about the dream. It is a short dream, but he felt that it contain a very big message. He went down to the living room and began to read the newspaper on the table. The headline news was about 6 high school girls who disappeared without a trace just a week ago. There are other news about mysterious murders. Mark looked at them all and began to think. These might be why the persona inside him has begun to awaken after so many years. He called the art exhibition hall in Tokyo to tell them he might have to postpone the exhibition until god knows when. He has a feeling he will be staying here for a while. A long while.
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"Here you go, sir", the clerk said. "Thank you", the man in front of the counter answered. They're in a pharmacy with the frog statue near the entrance. "Hey, Mary, are we ready to go?", the man asked a girl with brownish-red hair standing in front of one of the counters. She had long hair reaching down to her waist and tied at the top with a ribbon. "Sure, Eric. Let's go", Mary answered. They both exit the shop and head towards a white Mazda parked outside the shop. "Damn, I'm glad we're out of there", Eric said as they entered the car. Eric is a handsome man with short black hair and nicely formed body. He usually ears a vest over a shirt and jeans. "Why?", Mary asked as she put on her seatbelt. "I can't stand the goddamn song. I can't seem to get it out of my head...", Eric said. Mary giggled as she remembered how Nate used to say the same thing as he unconsciously hummed the tune over and over again. At those times, he would always ask Naoya to hum the tune along so he won't feel like a total idiot. Going to the pharmacy during those times were inevitable, though, as they need as many medical supplies they could possibly get in order to fight the demons. Eric saw her giggling and knew better than to ask. Asking would only clam her up. He started to drive towards an apartment near the outskirts of Lunarvale.
"Hey, TJ! Are you home?", Mary called out as she pounded the door of the apartment. A woman with long blue hair opened the door. "Oh, Mary. Thanks for bringing the medicine", the woman said and invited the 2 guests into the house. "Not a problem. You should really tell your husband to watch his health", Mary said as he entered the apartment with Eric. TJ chuckled and said, "Not like I didn't, but he's too busy looking at numbers to ever listen. That airhead!". "I HEARD THAT!", a nasal voice called out from the room close to the entrance. Eric laughed and went into the room. Soon after, the 2 men could be heard laughing and chatting. TJ sighed. "What will I ever do with that man?", she said. Mary chuckled and sat down on a chair in the living room. "Oh, Mary, I heard that Naoya and Nate has been looking for you", TJ said after she went to the kitchen to make some tea. "Really? What is it about?", Mary asked. TJ leaned in closer and whispered into Mary's ear. Mary's eyes widened as TJ whispered. "I..is that possible? A repeat.?", Mary said to TJ. "I don't know, but you better contact them quickly", TJ said. Mary nodded. If what TJ said was true, then there is no time to waste.
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Chris read the paper again. It's the fifth time he read the article now. He had wanted to stop reading, but something compels him to go on. He has heard rumors as well. About strange deaths caused by strange creatures. It's beginning to look like something from 10 years ago. Except less obvious. He had heard that Naoya had been trying to get some of the old persona users to come back together. Chris had not been asked to join them, and he appreciated that. He sighed. He's going to see how things go before he deals any hand into it. He went to the kitchen and saw Mayumi, his wife. She had short, bluish hair, as opposed to Chris', whish is tied back in a wavy ponytail. His son is sleeping. "Is something the matter, dear?", Mayumi asked. Chris looked at his wife and answered, "No, nothing is wrong. Just thinking about something". Mayumi smiled and laid down several plates for their late dinner. Chris did not want to make his family worry. Not now.
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"Alana, we're here", a man said in the driver seat of an old Trueno. Alana is also one of the persona users. She's a lot different from what she was 10 years ago. Her brown hair hung down her shoulders in wavy locks and she usually wears ordinary housewives' clothes. That day, she and her husband are going to visit her mother and stay for the holiday. "Hang on, dear. I have to feed her first", Alana said as she spooned a mouthful of oatmeal into Miki's, her 7-month old daughter, mouth. She has 2 children. Terry is 3 years old and just starting to walk. Miki was just born 7 months ago. Her husband's name is Kenji. He wears spectacles and many thought he's 30ish, although he really isn't that old. In fact, he's about 26, just 1 year older than Alana. 'It's the glasses', Alana would always say. Kenji has black hair with gray streaks, which doesn't help matters any. They stepped out of the car as soon as Alana is done feeding her child.
A few hours later, Alana and Kenji went out again. Their children are sleeping soundly in Alana's parents' home. They went to the Augustus temple to pray. "There's quite a few people here today", Kenji commented as they walked in the gates. "Sure is. I wonder where they're from?", Alana replied. They looked around. Alana saw 2 person who looked oddly familiar. She went closer. Kenji followed her. She went up to a blonde girl first. The girl was talking to a group of other people. "...Ellen?", Alana asked. "Eh?", the blonde girl turned around and saw Alana. "Who are you?", she asked. Alana bunched up her hair into 2 ponytails on the side of her head. "It's me!", she said. "Alana! Oh, my, I couldn't recognize you!", Ellen said and grabbed both of Alana's hands. Kenji shook his head. His wife can go into a high school with a uniform and pose as a student. And no one would suspect a thing. A red-haired man suddenly stepped forward from behind him. "What's going on here?", the man said. "Oh, Naoya", Ellen said. "Naoya?", Alana said as she turned around and looked at the red-haired man behind her. "...Naoya? My god, you look so different! What happened to your hair? Have you been working out or something?", Alana said. "Ummm, who..are you?", Naoya asked. "Naoya! It's Alana, remember?", Ellen said. "Alana? Damn, I couldn't recognize you.", Naoya said as he tried to superimpose the image of airhead Alana over the new Mother Alana. "Not a big surprise. You're always absent when we have reunions", Alana said. Ellen chuckled. "That is SO true. No wonder you couldn't recognize any of us", Ellen said. Naoya shrugged. "Well, I better get back to planning the tour route. You girls enjoy yourselves", Naoya said and left. "Hmmph! He's always like that", Alana said. Ellen sighed. Alana looked at her. It may be just her feeling, but Ellen's sigh seemed to be really heavy just now.
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"And that's all for today, folks. Stay tuned for the next episode of Brad Chat! This is Brad Uesugi, bidding you adieu!", the TV blared in the hotel room. Brad smiled. He'd never imagined he would land a job as a talk show host. He doesn't look different from his high school days, except he doesn't wear goggles now. Heck, he sometimes wears his old uniform for kicks. He finished the last of his drink and walked outside the hotel. His parents had asked him to stay with them when he came to Lunarvale, but he knew they had limited space and had declined, especially when he heard that his cousin had married and moved into his old house. He sighed and walked into a Peace Diners outlet near the hotel. He took a seat at one of the counters on the wall. "Hey, Brad!", someone called behind him. Brad turned around. "Hehey, Mark!", Brad said as he got up and gave Mark a high five. They laughed. It has been a while since any of them saw each other. "How are you?", Brad asked. "Great! C'mon, let's sit down and we'll talk", Mark replied. They sat down and discussed their lives in the past few years. Alicia joined them and Mark introduced her. After they're halfway through their food and Alicia had left for the restroom, Mark looked at Brad. "What is it?", Brad asked, noting his friend's serious expression. "Brad, has your Persona awakened?", Mark asked back. Brad was shocked by this. "Wh..what? What do you mean?", Brad said. "My persona has awakened. Just yesterday. And it's telling me something is up in this city", Mark said. Brad looked at Mark. Mark wasn't a person who would joke about something as serious as this. "My persona is still dormant..What is going on?", Brad asked again. Mark took out a newspaper from his pant's pocket and pointed at the headline. It's the same thing as yesterday's paper. Another mysterious murder. Brad was silent for a while. "You know what? I think we need to find Naoya and ask him", Brad said at length. Mark nodded. Just then, Alicia came back. Brad and Mark quickly resumed 'normal' conversation.
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Chapter 5 coming, still about returning characters. I hope someone is reading this..