So, to address the elephant in the room: No, I am not cancelling Xross. However it is on hiatus until I can get out of my current creative block. A global pandemic, rising far-right terrorism around the world, my transition into adulthood, cutting out a lot of toxic people in my life, moving cities, realising I was bisexual and my own mental health generally spiralling into the endless, yawning abyss tend to do that. Anyway, yeah. Got Persona 4 Golden when it came out on Steam back in 2019, and I then got Persona 1, 2IS, 2EP & 3 Portable through VERY LEGAL MEANS and 5 Strikers on Switch. And as you could probably tell from me writing this, I liked them (even if I wanted to strangle about half of the playable cast of 4).

Anyway, just like Xross is to Yu-Gi-Oh!, this fic is more a thematic sequel to the Persona series. Meaning an all-new setting, a cast made up predominantly by OC's and similar, but different themes to the other entries in the franchise with loosely-connected continuity and references to the main series. That said, I gonna let you guys know beforehand that some elements of mainline SMT will be present in this fic. Now, on with the show!

More noise. He was never goning to be able to get to sleep at this rate.

The sounds of crying children and in-flight movies played slightly too loudly permeated the plane cabin as the engines outside faintly roared in the background and the rain beat against the windows. And in the centre of it all sat a tall young man with spiky white hair and grey eyes in a black t-shirt and a wristwatch with a spade logo engraved in the middle of the face, awkwardly reclining back in his seat in a vain attempt to get some sleep. It had been at least 4 hours since the plane had departed, and it wasn't any easier for him to get the shuteye he desperately needed.

"Attention passengers, we all hope you're enjoying this flight from Osaka to Los Angeles so far." The captain said over the intercom. "We're currently experiencing some mild turbulance due to the rain, but we're still on schedule and will touch down in approximately 8 hours, which is 9:00 A.M. local time. Please enjoy the rest of your journey." The message ended with a short blip.

The man looked over at the window to his left, and stared out into the dark clouds before closing his eyes and finally drifting off to sleep.

...

As he opened his eyes, everything somehow looked different. He didn't recall the plane cabin being so... blue, nor looking like the interior of an opera theatre.

"W-What the hell?!" The man cried out, as he immediately stood up in panic, his eyes frantically darting around in search for an exit.

"Ah, it seems we have ourselves a guest." a voice calmly called out. The man looked further ahead at the front of where the conductor would sit, only to be greeted by a hunched-over and long-limbed old man in a tuxedo, complete with white gloves, alongside bulging, bloodshot eyes, a long hooked nose and a sinister-looking grin on his face. "Welcome to the Velvet Room. My name is Igor. I am delighted to make your acquaintance."

He was accompanied by another man: a seemingly mature-looking man with wavy white-blonde hair in a ponytail, piercing yellow eyes and a stern expression. He wore a blue full-dress military uniform with black and gold highlights. The man in blue glared at him, though otherwise remained silent.

"I was just on the plane earlier, this has gotta be some kind of dream!" The young man said in a panic.

"Indeed it is." Igor reassured him. "Do not be alarmed, you are fast asleep in the real world. This realm is a strange place that exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. Only those bound by a contract may enter this place." He leaned forward in his seat and place his elbows in the desk in front of him. "And I believe you've signed one before. A long time ago, in fact."

A piece of paper materialised in the young man's hands. He read through it, only to find his name signed at the bottom in his own handwriting. "方白 聖真", "Shouma Tashiro". Shouma paused for a moment, furrowing his brow at the contract. When did he sign this?

"'Contract'...?" Something was nagging at him, as it looked familiar, yet he didn't know why. "I-I don't remember anything about it."

"That is alright." Igor assured him. "Your memory of the event may come back to you in time." He then placed his right hand on the face of the desk. "Tell me, do you believe in fortune-telling?" He asked him. He snapped his fingers to reveal a deck of cards with a blue butterfly pattern on the backs of the cards.

Shouma looked somewhat shocked by the sudden appearance of the cards. "Not really. Guess I was kind of interested by it, though." He put his hands behind his back. "Are those Tarot Cards?"

"Indeed they are." Igor replied. "It is always intriguing... readings are done with the same cards, yet the result is always different. Perhaps you could say it's much like life itself." Igor chuckled before leaning over to the deck and drawing seven cards, laying all of them face-down in a pattern. He flipped one of the cards to reveal a large tower being destroyed by a bolt of lightning and the number 16 in Roman Numerals. However, it was pointing towards Shouma instead of towards Igor.

"Most intruiging. The Tower in the reversed position." He pointed out. "This means that your life will go through a significant transformation, whether you're ready or not for it to do so. It may also lead you to question everything you've come to know over the course of your journey."

Shouma frowned upon hearing this. "...Go on." He said, clearly somewhat impatient.

Igor reached for the second card. "As for your next card...", The card depicted a star with a face in the middle and the number 17 below it. This one however, pointed towards Igor and not Shouma.

Shouma was visibly uncomfortable from this. "How about we don't flip any more cards for now? Let's save the rest of it for later."

"I understand completely." Igor responded. "Learning of one's own fate can be a daunting experience, and not all are ready for it. Very well, I won't reveal any of your fate more than you wish me to." He sat up in his chair. "But to explain what this reading means, you will eventually be faced with a difficult choice that will lead to your renewal as a person, and maybe give hope to others who may need it." He explained.

Shouma leaned back in his chair. "Riiight..." He then looked over towards the man in blue. "So, what's his damage?"

"My 'damage' is to assisit master Igor in his duties in helping you. You will be grateful for what master Igor provides you, or else." He snapped back.

"Easy, Walton." Igor raised his hand. "This man is our guest, we should try and make him feel welcome."

Walton chaffed at Igor's response. "I-... Yes, master Igor."

Igor then looked back at Shouma. "Please forgive my assistant. He's young, and hasn't had much experience with humans yet."

Shouma looked seemingly disturbed at the fact Walton wasn't human despite his appearance. "..Got it." He responded.

Igor then crossed his fingers. "But as he said, We are both here to assist you in your coming journey."

"Assist me with what?" Shouma asked.

"A terrible danger awaits at your soon-to-be home." Igor warned. "A threat so great, it threatens to upend the very order of your world." He relaxed his arms. "We shall discuss the details another time. Until then, I bid you farewell."

Shouma's vision began to blur, as everything suddenly went dark.

"...ir? Excuse me, sir?" Shouma opened his eyes to see a flight attendant standing over him. He was back on the plane. "We've arrived at Los Angeles Airport."

"Oh, r-right." Shouma dusted himself off and stood up. Grabbing his suitcase above him and walked off the plane.

Saturday, March 2nd, 2024
Morning
Los Angeles Airport

Shouma grabbed the rest of his luggage and walked through the bustling, white & blue terminal and out towards the front of the airport, passing people from nations all around the world along the way. All the while, calls for various flights blaring out over the loudspeaker. He looked around expectantly for something before his phone started buzzing. He pulled it out and saw he'd gotten a text.

"Held up in traffic, be there in 5 minutes - Dad"

Shouma sat on a nearby bench, stretched his legs and began fiddling with his watch. He then noticed a pamphlet on the ground and picked it up. "Camus Institute of Higher Learning" it read. The university he had enrolled at, what a coincidence. Shouma then overheard a conversation between two young women, both clearly domestic students.

"I heard a lot of foreign students are enrolling at the college this year. Is that true?" One of them asked.

"You know how some of the professors were brought in from around the world, right? Well I hear that the chancellor decided to return the favour by handing out scholarships for students from other countries." The other responded. She then looked away sheepishly. "I wonder if any one of them will be as cute as Daigo..."

Her friend scoffed. "You've been on about Daigo for the past year now. I don't even think he's interested in anyo-" She then looked to her side. "Well speak of the devil, he's already here!"

The first woman immediately turned and began panicking. "Wait, what!? Ohmygod, he's here. What do I do?"

Shouma turned to see a man who looked to be in his early 20's with a tall, athletic build. He had a pale skin, grey eyes and long, slicked-back white hair, the same colour as his own. He wore a long white coat with black scale patterns over a navy-blue shirt and grey pants, as well as black leather gloves.

The woman cautiously walked over to him. "Um... h-hi Daigo... I-" Daigo walked past her without even noticing her, stopping in front of Shouma.

"It's been too long, Shouma." He said in a stoic, almost monotone voice.

Shouma stood up, stretching his arms. "Yeah. You're right, nii-san." He held out his hand for a handshake, smiling. "Good to see you, Daigo."

Daigo hesitantly raised his hand to meet his brother's before shaking it, attempting to hide a smile. Shouma overheard the two women reacting to the event.

"W-Wait, what does 'nii-san' mean again?" The first one asked, still clearly shaken by seemingly being rejected.

"I think that's his brother. I didn't know he even had one." Her friend responded.

"Hey, slow down! Don't go ahead of me like that!" An older voice cried out. Shouma and Daigo turned to see a middle-aged man with a somewhat-grizzled face covered in stubble and a cane walking towards them. His combed-back hair was white like theirs, though it was partially greying, and he wore a grey suit with a black tie. Shouma immediately recognised him: Wataru Tashiro, his father. Wataru turned towards Shouma and smiled. "Well if it isn't little Shouma! I've missed you so much for all these years!" He beamed.

Shouma glared at him for a few seconds. "...Dad." He said with a mix of spite, sadness and embarrassment.

Wataru sighed with resignation. "We can discuss this more later, but I am so sorry for leaving you behind all these years." He said regretfully.

Shouma awkwardly looked away, seemingly unable to look at him.

"We should probably get going." Daigo interjected. He walked the way he and Wataru came and pointed in the same direction. "The car is this way."

"Y-yeah. We need to get back home." Wataru replied. He hobbled over to follow Daigo before briefly turning back to look at Shouma. "Coming?" Shouma walked ahead without a word.

St. Bradley

After a few minutes of driving, the Tashiro family arrived at a smaller district of the city along the freeway. "Welcome to St. Bradley, Los Angeles. Your new home." Wataru told Shouma. Shouma however wasn't paying attention to him, preferring to look out over the town itself. St. Bradley looked to be a small city mostly consisting of suburbs and apartment complexes, thought he also noticed some other landmarks like a drugstore, a Mexican Resturant and a park. To the other side of the street, Shouma could still see glimpses of the utterly-packed beach to the west.

It was at that moment it finally sunk in for him. He wasn't in Osaka anymore, but was now living a whole ocean away from Japan in a whole new country.

Arriving at an apartment complex, the car backed into the driveway. As the three made their way up the stairs, they heard a voice. "Ah, Wataru! Daigo! Back so soon?" The three turned to see an short, old brown-haired woman with curling rolls in her hair and a thick New Jersey accent. Her face was caked in makeup and had long, painted fingernails.

"Yeah, we're back." Wataru replied. "Shouma, this is Susie, our neighbour. Susie, this is my second son, Shouma." Daigo seemed paralysed by fear.

Susie walked over to Shouma and pinched his cheeks. "Wait, I- Mgrh!" He tried to say before having his face grabbed.

"Oh, and he's just as handsome as his brother! He even reminds me of my little nephew, too! Do you have any more little pets like this that you haven't told me about yet?" She asked, clearly happy to meet Shouma.

"Nope, just these two." Wataru responded.

"Hm. That's a shame." Susie said, disappointed. She let go of Shouma's cheeks. "How good is his English, by the way?" She asked.

Shouma gathered his breath. "...I'll make due." He said, still out of breath from the experience.

"Well that's good to hear. Wouldn't want you to get lost in the big city, now would we?" Susie beamed as she put her hand on his shoulder. "So Wataru, how's your Cockney-watchamacallit going?"

Wataru unlocked his door. "Cognitive Psience, but it's going rather well. Can't give specifics yet, but I think we've made a huge breakthrough."

"Well isn't that fantastic!" Susie chimed. "Anyway, you all have fun. I have to go and call Martha." She said as she shuffled back through her door into her apartment.

"That lady... has an iron grip...!" Shouma said, still shaken.

"You have no idea." Daigo replied, fear shaking his voice. "She could probably strike fear into a grizzly bear."

Wataru turned back to his sons. "Come on now, she's a nice lady. She might be... overbearing at times, but she's a sweet and loving person." He reassured them.

Tashiro Residence

Shouma, Daigo and Wataru walked into their apartment. It was a little messy and disorganised, with papers scattered across the floor and tables. But yet it felt charming in a homely kind of way.

"Sorry it's not much. Daigo and I never really have the time to clean up around here." Wataru said modestly.

"It's fine." Shouma replied. "It's a lot better than mom's place." The air grew thick with tension the moment he said that as the three of them stood in complete silence.

"Um... Y-you want me to show you your room?" Wataru asked, desperate to change the subject.

Shouma followed his father to a room on towards the end of the hallway. Inside was a decently-sized bedroom with a comfortable-looking bed, a drawer, a shelf, a TV monitor and a desk with a Madicce-brand laptop that looked rather expensive. On the wall was a large poster of the famous tokusatsu show Fuzhou Sentai Featherman, Shouma recognised the particular incarnation as Featherman Brave.

"That's the one you liked when you were 7, right?" Asked Wataru, somewhat concerned.

"Yeah. I remember it." Shouma quietly replied.

"W-Well, good to hear." Wataru said, relieved he had gotten it right.

The awkward silence continued for a while, before Wataru walked away.

"Dad." Shouma called out. Wataru turned around to his son waiting for a follow-up. "...Thanks. Thanks for letting me stay with you, and everything else, too." He admitted.

Wataru smiled proudly at Shouma. "Don't mention it, Shouma." He said before walking off.

Evening
Tashiro Residence

Several hours later, Shouma was lying in bed awake, playing with his watch again. He pulled out his phone again and opened the browser. The search engine default language had chaned from Japanese to English. He still couldn't believe he had moved to the United States. He stepped out onto the balcony to clear his head only to find Daigo already there.

"How are you adjusting to the new place?" Daigo asked.

"It's still setting in, I guess." Shouma looked out over the orange horizon watching the sun set and the colour leech out from the sky. "I know I said this before, but it's great to see you again."

"Agreed." Daigo responded before looking back out at the sun. "Eleven years. Half my life ago and more than that for you. And yet somehow it still felt longer."

"Yeah." Shouma turned around towards Daigo. "Is L.A. itself any better than Osaka, nii-san?"

Daigo furrowed his brow, appearing to be in deep thought. "It's different, but in a way that's hard to describe. Though I can tell you right now, it's not like how those movies made it look." He replied after deliberation.

"Shouma! Daigo! Dinner's ready!" Wataru called out.

"Better head in." Said Daigo, as he and Shouma went back inside and sat at a table.

Wataru came to the table with plates of a food Shouma immediately recognised.

"Is that shrimp and ginger okonomiyaki?" He asked expectantly?

Wataru smiled. "Just how you used to like it. As a toast to your safe arrival, and as one last taste of Japan before settling into America proper." He sat down after placing each of the plates on the table. "So, let's-"

Immediately interrupting his sentence, Daigo's phone started ringing. "Sorry, I'll take this." He quickly answered the call. "What is it?"

"Daigo?" A woman's voice could be heard on the other end. "We were planning on going tonight and-"

"You need me to come along. Got it." He replied.

"Yeah. Meet us as the usual place." The woman requested before hanging up.

Daigo sighed and shook his head. "Why now of all times?" He stood up and left the table. "Sorry Shouma, but I have some business to attend to." He then turned to Wataru. "I'll be back later. I'll make sure to have dinner later."

Wataru nodded. "Right, go ahead."

Daigo then ran to his room and came out a few seconds later with a golfing bag and a first-aid kit.

"What's going on?" Asked Shouma.

"Just some college stuff." Daigo replied almost immediately.

"Yeah, it's for the club he's a part of." Wataru added.

Shouma didn't seem convinced by the story. It all seemed too perfect, like it was scripted and rehearsed. But at the same time, he felt he wasn't going to get anymore details out of his father or brother. "Uh-huh. Well, have fun anyway." He said skeptically.

Daigo then nodded and went outside and then downstairs. A car turned up at the apartment to pick Daigo off before driving away into the night.

"He'll be back soon." Wataru assured Shouma.

"Does he go a lot?" Asked Shouma, worried about his brother.

"Every now and then." Answered Wataru. "He's also been helping out with my research where he can. Although..."

"Although what?" Shouma was getting more and more curious with each response.

"I-It's nothing, really. You should probably get some sleep early tonight. You're definitely jet-lagged after your trip across the Pacific." Wataru said evasively.

Shouma stared at his father. How dumb did he think he was and who did he think he was fooling? "...Sure thing." He replied.

About an hour later, Shouma laid in his bed and turned out the lights. Maybe this time he'd at least get some sleep in something more comfortable than a plane seat.

? ? ?

"Come..." A deep, almost otherworldly voice boomed.

"Huh? Shouma stood up. He observed his surroundings, and noticed that he seemed to be in a room looking like the interior of an ancient castle or temple, except he didn't recall the world around him being so... grey. In fact, nothing around him was in colour, not even his own body.

"What the hell is going on?" Shouma frantically looked around.

"If thou seek answers, come..." The voice called again.

With no other recourse, Shouma followed the voice.

He opened the door to a long and winding hallway, and walked ahead. Finding another door at the end, he reached for it, only for everything around him to crumble as he pulled the lever. Shouma fell for what felt like an eternity before finally hitting the ground. Yet it appeared nothing was around him at all.

Except for a shadowy, almost amorphous figure that stood before him.

"At last, thou hath arrived..." It spoke.

Shouma hesitantly walked toward the figure. "Who... Who are you?"

"I am thou... Thou art I... From the sea of thy soul I come forth..." The figure responded firmly, yet calmly.

"That... What do you mean?" Shouma asked, incredibly confused.

"Thou shalt understand when the time comes..." Two piercing golden eyes materialised on the figure. "The time shall come where thou must don thy mantle and pursue thine own ascension."

Shouma looked around confused. "I don't... I don't know what you mean! How do-"

"We shall meet again soon." The figure interrupted. "Until then, know I will watch over thou. Always." It errupted into a raging torrent of water and launched itself at Shouma, waking him up back in his bed.

Sunday, March 3rd, 2024
Morning
Tashiro Residence

Shouma wiped the sweat off his brow and got out of bed. The morning light shone through the window and onto his face.

"Again with these dreams... What the hell's going on?" Shouma asked.

"Shouma! Breakfast is ready!" Wataru called out from the other side of the hallway.

"C-Coming!" Shouma replied. He shook his head and went out into the dining room.

To be continued...

Party:

Shouma Tashiro - ? ? ?

Social Stats:

Moxie: Subdued
Wisdom: Beginner
Charisma: Unremarkable
Empathy: Blunt
Wits: Innocent

Personae:

N/A

So, that's the first chapter of this fic down, a vague, indeterminate number left to go! ...God help me.

You might have noticed that this was a lot shorter than Xross's chapter length. The reason being is that Persona: a video game series, is paced differently from the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime/manga. So I thought it'd be fitting to make the fics similar in pacing to their home franchise, if that makes any sense. That, and it's just work on my end. To make up for it, I'm also writing multiple chapters at once to get more stuff out, especially since I haven't posted in well over a year.

I also did way more research into L.A. for this than I care to admit, compounded by the fact that I myself am not from, nor have I never been to America, let alone California in particular. And yes, a lot of it is (hopefully) gonna pay off in later chapters. In case you're wondering, St. Bradley is based on Inglewood: a city in the Greater L.A. Area, and is named after the international terminal of the Los Angeles Airport: the Tom Bradley Terminal, continuing the hometown of the hero being named after train stations. I added the "St." at the beginning on the basis of "Because fuck you, that's why".

I'll also explain the stats, lore, title and some important details about Personae and Shadows just before the after-chapter author note when they'll appear later down the line if any of you are curious as to which obscure myth or esoteric religion I pulled out of my ass this time.

Btw, you guys need to try some okonomiyaki sometime. I made it Shouma's favourite food for a reason. I had some when I was in both Kyoto, and it was really fucking delicious. I've also had the Hiroshima variant, but the Kyoto one is way better in my opinion.

So, yeah. Looking forward to seeing you guys next chapter!