DISCLAIMER: I do not own Persona 4 or anything related to it.


CHAPTER 1

Song: "The Real Folk Blues" by Seatbelts ft. Mai Yamane


Inaba has been the home of regular rain showers since way back when the place was still underdeveloped and only had rows of farmlands. There was even a time, not long ago, wherein the rain induced fear and excitement into the Inaba residents, specifically if it consisted of a turned-off television and continuous rain till midnight. So anybody, whether resident or visitor, expected rain to appear at least twice in a week. It was just a question of, "which day of the week will it be?" For that, they all rely on the daily weather forecast.

But given the track record of weather forecasts these days, what with the climate change and all, it was usually slightly off, or worse, completely inaccurate.

Take for example, today.

There was at least one person cursing at the sky for suddenly changing its mind. Dojima Ryotaro definitely was.

The gruff yet capable 36-year old police detective of the Yasoinaba Police Department was soaked to the bone, having completely trusted the weather girl and bringing nothing, not even a raincoat. Unfortunately, he had just cleaned out his car last night and removed the old umbrella he always had hidden underneath his seat for situations just like these. It was going to be fine, he had thought then.

"Goes to show what overconfidence can do," he mutters, shivering slightly as he drove through the town.

He was en route to his house, having decided to briefly stop by and change his clothes before he caught a cold while on patrol. To be efficient, he decided to finish half of his patrol route beforehand.

Driving through the town, Dojima couldn't help but think how unbelievably peaceful everything was compared to the chaos that ensued months ago. Adachi was in jail, Yu had gone back to the big city and visited from time to time, and occasionally Yu's friends would stop by his house and play with Nanako (which he really appreciated). Namatame was even running for mayor; after having seen the darkness, he now wished to bring light to everybody else and help shape up this town, moving forward. Things were great. This was the Inaba he knew; no, it was even better when you think about it.

But even with the optimism that led his thoughts, he was unable to stop his mind from remembering the gory images of death and despair, and Nanako's pale face when she briefly left him in this world. When he thought that the only ray of sunshine in his life would disappear forever... Like his wife dying again and again, ten times over.

Guess he wasn't really over Chisato's death as he thought. Maybe he's still running away. Or maybe he was meant to never be fully happy again... Not with her gone from his side.

Maybe he was becoming a bitter, lonely, pessimistic old man.

Tch, I missed my turn.

He took a shortcut, signaled and turned the car right, and passed by the deserted train station.

That's when he saw her.


Mizuhara Kaho, unlike what her name suggested, was not happy about the large puddle of water at her feet and strong rain bearing down on her clothes and back.

What a perfect, dismal day.

She had expected that the rain would have stopped by the time she arrived in Yasoinaba station. It was more or less a 3-hour trip, it was enough time. Obviously, that was not the case.

"Guess I should always check the weather before running away," she sighed, her turquoise eyes looking up at the sky. She pulled her auburn hair away, which was plastered on her face.

Stupidly, she didn't go back into the station to shelter herself from the rain. For some reason, she felt going back in was a sign of defeat; she was half-afraid she'd take the return trip and go back to the place that was her home for over 20 years. After being stepped on and pushed over by so many things and people in her life, she felt that, though this was ridiculous, she didn't want the rain to win and have her skitter back into the shade. So she firmly stood at the bottom of the station steps, unmoving, wet and cold like an abandoned kitten. An abandoned kitten with a big suitcase, two duffel bags, and wearing a dripping wool jacket.

To add further to her situation, she opened her bags to bring out the umbrella she thought she had, only to find out she left it back in Tokyo. Wonderful. It was so funny how everything was going absolutely perfect, she started laughing out loud. So loud, she didn't hear someone approaching.

"Hey… Are you okay?"

Hearing a voice other than hers, Kaho looked up to see a middle-aged man in a dark gray shirt, red necktie, and pants, covering himself with a black jacket (that wasn't really helping). She looked blankly at his face, his stubble, and his dark, piercing eyes. They were so dark and fierce, like whirlpools of deep waters that sucked her in at first look. She began to wonder. What color are they?

"Are they black?"

The man gaped at her, looking confused. "What?"

"Your eyes," Kaho continued. "Are they black?"

He paused, wondering why the hell she would ask about his eyes, but answered anyway.

"No, they're gray."

"Oh. They look cool."

"… Thanks. Yours look nice."

"Thank you. They're turquoise. You know, blue-green."

"I see."

There was a long pause, before Kaho realized what just happened.

What the hell? I'm standing in the rain, cold, wet, and laughing all by myself… And I just rambled on about eye color to a total stranger?

In contrast to the cold, her cheeks suddenly burned with embarrassment, and she tried to change the subject. The man was looking at her weirdly now, but he didn't back away, so that's a good sign.

"I'm sorry. I just realized that must be weird, asking about your eyes all of a sudden. I'm alright, just to answer your earlier question…" Kaho trailed off, unsure what to say next.

"You don't really look okay. You're soaked. Is nobody picking you up?" The man asked, looking around.

"No. I don't know anyone here."

He stared at her face, then shrugged. "Yeah, I figured you're new here. Nobody here stands in the rain without an umbrella, wearing only a jacket as thin as yours in spring."

"So I guess you're not from here too? Seeing as you're soaked from head to toe with only a jacket as well." She replied, slightly miffed by his words.

The man blinked, then smirked. "I'm from here, but touché." He approaches her, quickly puts his jacket on her head to lessen the onslaught of rainwater, and picks up her bags. "You can pull that suitcase, right? I'll carry the two other bags."

"What? Wait!"

"If we wait any longer, we'll both die from a fever and a severe cold. Hurry up, I'll drive you." He takes her large duffel bags with ease, and walks briskly towards the car a few feet behind him. Kaho panics for a moment, throws up her hands in defeat, then pulls her suitcase and follows suit.

"Alright," the man says, opening the car's trunk and putting the bags in, "leave that there and get in."

Kaho drags her suitcase near him, promptly opens the passenger side door and gets in. It was only when she was seated that she started feeling the intense coldness of her body. She saw her pale hands becoming even paler, and felt the water from clothes seeping into the car seat.

How long was I standing out there? I'm freezing!

The man got into the driver's seat and turned to her.

"Thanks for the jacket," Kaho murmurs, handing back the soggy piece of clothing he so kindly offered to her as a rain shield.

"Hn." Dojima takes the jacket and throws it in the back seat without a glance. "What's your name?"

"… Huh?"

"Don't tell me you just get into any man's car without knowing each other."

She gasped. He was right. She didn't even know his name!

"Er, I'm Mizuhara Kaho. Nice to meet you. And you are?" She bowed.

He cocked his head to one side. "Mizuhara, huh? I'm Dojima Ryotaro. Nice meeting you." Giving a short nod, he turned the key in the ignition. "Where to, Mizuhara-san?"

She started, surprised by the sudden use of her name in conversation. "Er, uhm, I was supposed to meet the principal of Yasogami High School to discuss my teaching contract as soon as I arrived…"

"… You're a teacher?" Dojima looked surprised.

Of course he's surprised. What kind of teacher, let alone a decent human being, would stand in the rain laughing out loud all alone?

"… Yes, is there something wrong?" Kaho asked, worried. Was he a parent in the high school? Had she already failed as a human being? Was she fired before she had even begun?

"No, nothing. Just thought you looked young for a teacher. In any case, you can't really meet anyone looking like that. Why don't you take a shower, dry up, and change your clothes first?"

"Okay… But where?" She looked into the rainy horizon, scanning what she could see of the town. It was only now that she observed how seemingly deserted and quiet this town was. Unbelievable that there was so much news about this place and those murders a few months ago. They weren't kidding when they said Inaba was rural as they come.

"… my place."

"Sorry, what?"

"You can do it at my place."

A pause.

"… What?!" Kaho shrieked. She squeezed herself to the car door, ready to flee.

Dojima sighed, scratching his head. "Don't freak like that. I'm not going to do anything to you. If you haven't noticed, I also need to change my own clothes." He gestured to his obviously soaked ensemble.

"Why should I believe you?" She looked long and hard at his face. He looked rugged and tired, but he didn't look like a rapist or anything (Well, what do rapists look like, anyway?). She actually thought he would look very decent if he shaved, and he was really quite handsome for his age (which she could only guess).

Jesus, Kaho, what the heck are you thinking?!

She shook her head. Now was not the time to be checking out older men.

Grunting, Dojima pulled something out from his pocket and showed it to her.

It was a police badge.

"… You're police?"

"A police detective. I wouldn't touch a hair on your head unless I want to arrest myself for kicks. Also, I have a kid. It's past 3 PM, right? She's most likely home by now."

Okay. He's a police detective. He's married. He has a kid. And that kid is at home now. That's good.

The relief must have been obvious on her face, because he raised an eyebrow, put his badge back into his pocket, and turned back to the wheel.

"You have a daughter?"

"Her name's Nanako. She's six. I'll introduce you later. You've calmed down, right? Let's go." Ending with that, Dojima started the engine and drove away.

Needless to say, it was a quiet drive.