This is an idea I've been cooking up and to be honest, it's been fun writing this chapter. I think it flowed naturally. I wanted to post the first chapter I written because this is the first Persona story I've written and I honestly want it to be seen, but I'm not comfortable posting it until I'm at least 10 chapters in. I also wanted some readers reactions for feel free to comment.


Evening- Sapporo


The street lights of Sapporo never cease to amaze her no matter how many visits she has made to the bustling Japanese city. It was raining at the moment, but the reflections that the falling liquid casted against the windows of the limo made the view almost ethereal; dreamlike. Walking out amongst the crowds of natives and tourists would be even better. She could almost feel the cool liquid dripping upon her shoulder as mouthwatering ramen and takoyaki mixed with the refreshing scent of rainwater. The only thing that would make the experience better is if she was spending it with-

"Ataru? Ataru!" Her daydream was ruined by the constant calling of her name and a shake of her shoulder. She turned her head to see her coach, her brows furrowed together in frustration. "I swear I wish I knew where you disappear to when you drift off like that."

"Sorry Hiro-san. What were you saying?" She blinked in doe-like innocence, an act the middle aged woman was far too used to.

"You need to focus, Ataru" The brunette only sighed and stared back out the window as her coach started to go back over her schedule.

"We should be arriving back in Tokyo at 8 o'clock if we don't run into traffic. After we arrive back in Tokyo you also have a 70 minute pole training session starting at 5:00. Tomorrow you have a 90 minute aerial silks session starting at 6:30 pm at Pole Dance Tokyo Studio. Both are in Minato City."

"That's it?"

"Both the director and I felt that you deserve a break after being on tour for so long."

"Well, thanks. I guess." Her mind suddenly flashed with the image of a lanky boy with short unkempt blue hair and haunted blue eyes. It's been so long yet his memory never seemed to blur in her mind. "Minato City, huh?" He would've loved to eat the ramen here.

A touch of a hand over her own snapped her out of her musing this time. Her coach now had a look of concern, squeezing her hand. Ataru managed to offer back a small small and turned slightly in her seat to cover her other hand over hers. "I'm okay, Hiro-san. It's been awhile since I've been to Tokyo. Minato is close to Shibuya too, right?"

Hiro sighed and drawled out her name in an exasperated manner, "Ataru."

"It's been a whole freaking year, Hiro-san. Why can't I see him."

"It's been a pretty busy year, Ataru-chan."

"Yeah, because of the director," the ponytailed brunette grumbled.

"He's only looking out for your career."

"Sure, Hiro-san." Ataru managed to refrain from rolling her eyes. Her gaze found itself back at the window at the zooming city outside. "What else is on the schedule?"

"Wednesday you also have a meeting with the Director. The rest of the week is a surprise."

"What for?"

"The director thinks you should broaden your horizons. He wants to introduce you to neww things to further you in your career."

"New things like what?"

"You'll have to ask the director yourself."

"Hiro-san," she drew out.

"You have a long week ahead of you, tomorrow. You'd best get some sleep." In a rare moment of teasing for the mostly professional woman she squeezed her hand one last time before turning over and curled up in her seat, using her arm as a pillow.

"Hiro-san!"

"Good night, Ataru-chan.

"Ugh!" Ataru slumped back against her seat with a huff. It was still late, and it seems like she wasn't getting anything out of Hiro-san. She could already hear the light snores coming over from her side. The small bumping motion of the limo driving from over the concrete was slowly lulling her to sleep too. 'I guess I should just go to sleep.'


Early Morning - Hamarikyu Gardens, Minato City


Minato City in the morning is probably just as busy as Shibuya on a regular day. With it being a famous tourist town, Minato City is full of people, early risers or night owls; coming in and out of the subway, walking around looking at tourist attractions or walking to their jobs.

None of the busy men and women of Minato would notice a teenager wearing glasses, baggy clothes and headphones marching to the beat of her own drum and maybe doing a little dance and a few twirls in the middle of the intersection while trying to cross the street.

Okay, maybe they did throw her a few weird looks. But did she care? No, not really at the moment.

There go the sun

Here comes the fun

Drop that base and pop that trunk

Rollin' on up

Stepping on out

It's our night let's live it up

You got the light

I got the love

Tap that keg

And fill my cup

It's our life, it's our choice

Turn up the beat and drop that noise

Ataru was carefree, dancing around pedestrians and humming her heart out with her headphones up on the highest volume. Ear damage be damned.

They had just gotten in late enough for her to fake conking out on the hotel bed until Hiro went to sleep, where she promptly played video games until daylight hit and she crashed. She was lucky enough to get at least two hours of sleep before Hiro practically tugged her out of bed for breakfast.

After breakfast she left to get out on the town. This was one of the rare moments she gets when her schedule isn't filled to the brink and ready to overflow. So Ataru grabbed her headphones and quickly made her escape. The Hamarikyu Gardens was only a sixteen minute walk anyway.


The gardens were actually beautiful. In the early summer of June, the fields of peonies and cosmos were starting to bloom. Some of the flowers were already starting to bud, too. The trees surrounding the gardens and the blue glistening waters of the two duck ponds created a secluded sense of inner peace for the young teen. The upbeat music blaring through her headphones made the scenery even better.

The rainbow over her head started to fade though when her headphones started beeping, interrupting the music to warn her of its impending shut down from a low battery.

"Damn it," Ataru pushed down her headphones to wrap around her neck. With a hold of a button, she disconnected them from her phone and tucked her cellular device in her jacket pocket. She puffed out a breath.

"Hey, have you heard of that painter guy?" There was a small conversation going on in front of her between two high school students by the look of them, both male.

"You mean Madarame. Man, that was freaky. How he just came on live television and confessed like that."

'And I thought girls gossiped a lot.' Ataru isn't really one for gossip but her only other entertainment just died on her so…

"They say it was the work of the Phantom Thieves."

'Phantom Thieves?' Ataru remembers hearing about them at one point in the streets of Sapporo during one of their bathroom breaks. It was about a high school volleyball coach. The man was revered as a champion athlete until he suddenly confessed to abusing the volleyball team and sexually assaulting some of the women of the same high school. 'What was that school name again? Dujin? Kujin?'

"Yeah right- Hey! Is that a photo shoot over there?!"

"I heard Takamaki-chan's starring in this one!"

The two -seemly very hormonal- boys ran over to where it looks like a small crowd had already formed. The people were gathered around a black rope. Behind it were a lot of people in motion. Models in flowy dresses and stop-at-the-knee shorts (or way higher) were fanning themselves with their hands or getting their makeup touched up while waiting for the camera crew to finish setting up.

One look at the load of clothes and packed on makeup and the big crowds and Ataru wanted to turn right back around. Heavy amounts of makeup and women posing like pinups just weren't for her. But just as she was about to take one exaggerated step back, she was bumped into. She used her hands to catch her weight before her back met dewy grass. Her headphones weren't so lucky.

"Oww." Centering herself, she felt around for her headphones.

"I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

When she looked up all she saw were bushels of blonde curls and beautiful blue.