Chie's eyes opened slowly as soft sunlight began to gradually filter through her window. The night before had been warm and muggy, making the house a little uncomfortably warm. A Chie rose, she began fanning her tank top with one hand and covering her mouth with the other as she let out a loud yawn. Footsteps outside alerted to her someone's presence, and sure enough it was none other than her mother who suddenly peeked inside.
"Chie?" Noticing her daughter was awake, she tutted softly. "I see you're finally awake. You just missed your father, he wanted to wish you a happy birthday before he left for work but didn't want to wake you." Walking out of Chie's sight, the elder Satonaka woman called over her shoulder, "I suppose you may want to go out for a jog, it isn't quite as hot as usual yet, for whatever that's worth, and it is lovely outside. Either way, the bath is ready for you whenever you are and I'll have some breakfast for you in the fridge." Popping back to the entrance of her room for a moment, her mother winked at her before adding playfully, "Oh, and happy birthday!"
Chie barely got to utter a groggy 'thank you' before her mother was once again out of sight. Truth be told, she had almost completely forgotten about her birthday with everything that had happened before and after Mitsuo Kubo's arrest. Getting off her futon, she half-heartedly rolled up the pad before tossing it carelessly in the corner of her room. Peeking through the blinds, she confirmed her mother's previous statements: While it was still morning, it looked as if the day they would be in for would be bright and sunny with nary a rain cloud in sight, mercifully. Deciding that, yes, she was going to jog, she headed to her house's entryway and slipped on her running shoes, a well-broken in pair of Adios that were far newer than their slightly worn appearance suggested. Calling out her departure, Chie made her way outside. While it certainly wasn't cold outside, the morning dew did afford her a slight yet nonetheless enjoyable coolness for the moment. The sun still had some hours yet before it reached its zenith, ample time for Chie to squeeze in a jog before the full brunt of the summer heat bore down upon Inaba.
Having made it to the street that ran through her neighborhood, Chie began to perform a variety of kinetic stretches involving her legs and abdomen. Feeling sufficiently loosened up after a few minutes, Chie proceeded at a steady clip toward the Central Shopping District. The shopping district hadn't quite woken up yet (waking up late for Chie was pretty early for most others), though Chie did run into several of the older owners preparing for the day's business, at least, those which hadn't already closed following the grand opening of Junes. The shopping district had become noticeably quieter with only Aiya, Marukyu Tofu, Shiroku and the renowned Tatsumi Textiles still seeing regular business. It was strange really, the place seemed so different than it had been while she was growing up. The shopping district had been lively and the people within it cheerful. Many of the districts denizens now seemed almost somber. Indeed, things had seemed markedly different, especially once the serial murders had begun. Shaking her head, Chie attempted to dismiss such thoughts from her head. Surely things would get a little better now that the culprit had been caught.
"Hey there, Chie-chan!" An elderly man called out jovially, once she had made it to the Samegawa River Bank. "Hmm… this old man seems to remember that it's your birthday today! Shouldn't you be out with your boyfriend?"
"Wah! Oji-san, why do you always have to say embarrassing things like that?" Chie cried out in protest. It was a familiar exchange: Whenever the old man saw her in the morning he seemed to make a point of teasing her about boys. Chie had gotten used to it, but now that the old-timer's words had a hint of truth in them she found her cheeks once again reddening in embarrassment.
The old man chuckled heartily. "Hmm… you know, the old ladies have been gossiping about you and Dojima's boy. Good looking kid, seems polite, level-headed." Upon seeing Chie sputtering with protest he continued. "No? Maybe the troublemaker, that Junes kid? You two and the rest of your friends seem to be together a lot."
Aww hell no! Chie thought, finally finding her mental grounding at the old man's latest suggestion. "Definitely not!" Chie denied vehemently.
The elder man chuckled softly. "Still as energetic as ever I see. Take care, Chie-chan! Oh, and don't worry, I won't let your father know about your boyfriend, and I'll see to it that the old hags keep quiet as well!"
Chie smiled softly and shook her head before she took off, then turned around for a moment to wave farewell. Geez, that guy never changes. Can't ever resist giving a parting shot. The old man brought up several items as food for thought, however. Should she be expecting something from Yu today? They'd only been dating for a few weeks after all. Should she expect him to do something? Nothing? Groaning in frustration, Chie pushed herself even further as she ran, hoping to clear her mind from these invading thoughts.
After making her way to Yasogami and then looping back towards Samegawa, Chie pulled off to the river bank to do cool down stretches. Midway through her routine, her phone began to chirp loudly. Pulling the offending device from her pocket, she determined the caller to be none other than Yukiko.
Before Chie could even muster a greeting, Yukiko blurted "Happy Birthday Chie!"
"Ahaha, thanks Yukiko," Chie replied happily.
"Do you have any plans today?" Her friend asked.
Chie paused for a moment. Err, if I make plans with Yukiko and then Yu calls… Urgh! "Um, I'm not really sure actually, haha," Chie offered lamely. "Not sure if my family wanted to do something or not," Chie went on, trying to fish for a reasonable excuse for why her day's plans were in flux.
"Oh, okay," Yukiko replied, sounding slightly disappointed. "Well, if you want to come by today, the inn isn't too busy so the chefs could make you a nice cake, or maybe some gyudon."
Guilt suddenly welled up in Chie. Surely Yu would understand if she at least stopped by for a little bit. "Yeah, I'll definitely at least swing by later!"
"Oh, okay great! I'll let the chefs know! Maybe I can help! I'll see you in a while Chie!"
Before Chie could protest, the line went dead. Suddenly a feeling of dread began to flow through her. Loathe as she was to admit, both of their skills in the kitchen were… less than ideal. Yukiko had proven… especially creative in her efforts, and the thought made Chie grimace slightly. Still, Yukiko had sounded so excited. Sighing, Chie resigned herself to her fate, preparing herself mentally for the potential onslaught to come. Hopefully the chefs will step in… Chie mused.
Continuing her stretches, a sudden though occurred to Chie. Does Yu even know that it's my birthday? There hasn't exactly been a time to bring it up, with all this murder stuff. Not to mention that the guy has probably taken every job in the city and still has to go home and take care of Nanako-chan. Of course, Yu could have taken the time at some point to ask someone, but with how busy he was, Chie found herself doubting it.
Pulling out her phone again, she decided to just ask him what he was doing today, and see if she could find out based on his response. If he didn't bring up any plans involving her, she decided she wouldn't press the matter. He already pushes himself too hard. I wouldn't want him to feel guilty over something that isn't that big of a deal… Bringing up Yu's contact she began to compose a message. 'hey! Wut r u up 2 today?' There! No implications, just something plain and simple.
Yu responded quickly, as per usual. 'Sorry. Full day of work today. Let me know if you're busy tomorrow! Or you could come over tonight, I'm sure Nanako would be happy to see you, and Uncle Dojima wouldn't mind.
Chie couldn't help it when she felt her heart sink slightly. Despite preparing herself, she couldn't help but be a little disappointed. Suddenly she shook her head, attempting to dispel those negative emotions. I don't want to be selfish. Yu's done enough, not just for me, but everyone…
Sighing, she decided to make her way home.
After wolfing down the miso soup her mother had prepared earlier (there had even been pork in there for her birthday, much to Chie's delight) and taking a quick bath, Chie shot Yukiko a brief message announcing her departure. The weather was still holding, so she opted to simply walk to the Amagi Inn. It wouldn't be as quick as the bus, but Chie was in no hurry, so she didn't mind much. After spending nearly half an hour enjoying the outdoors, Chie found herself at the inn she had come to know so well over the years. Stepping inside and removing her shoes, Chie entered the inn's lobby.
"Hello there, Chie-chan. Happy birthday!" A raven-haired woman who Chie immediately recognized as Yukiko's mother greeted her.
"Amagi-san! It's good to see you!" Chie replied cheerfully.
The woman smiled kindly. "I believe Yukiko-chan is in the kitchen putting the finishing touches on your cake in the kitchen. Go ahead to the dining room, I'm sure she'll be out shortly."
"Gotcha! Oh, and thanks for having me! I hope I'm not, uh, interrupting your services or something," Chie said, with the older woman responding by gracefully dismissing her concerns. Wasting no further time, Chie quickly made her way to the dining room. The inn was relatively large, but years of playing with Yukiko in the halls (much to her friend's parents chagrin) Chie practically knew the place by heart.
Gingerly sliding the entrance door, Chie called out, "Excuse me!" Turning into the room she barely made it a single step inside before a chorus of 'Happy birthday's' assailed her. Scanning the room she found all of the members of the Investigation Team, including Yu, present.
"Guys…" Chie began, momentarily speechless.
"Here, Chie," Yukiko said, moving forward from the group, presenting Chie with a magnificent looking cake.
Chie was unable to conceal her surprise. "Wow! It looks great!"
At this Yukiko pouted slightly. "Yu came over to help and the chefs kicked me out after seeing how good he was at cooking. They even asked if he could cook for us part time!"
"Sorry Yukiko," Yu replied sheepishly, while rubbing the back of his neck. "They seemed pretty disappointed when I told them I was pretty much fully booked on jobs." Looking over at Chie he continued. "Go ahead, I'm sure it's going to be great. I was even able to learn a thing or two from those guys."
Yukiko placed the cake carefully onto the dining table and the Investigation team gathered around. Yu had procured a knife and proceeded to methodically cut the cake into evenly divided portions, save for Chie's, which was slightly larger than the rest.
Examining the perfectly prepared cake Yosuke sighed slightly. "Man, dude is there anything you aren't good at?"
Yu 'hmmed' slightly as he slid Chie's slice onto a plate. Smiling slightly he said, "I'll get back to you on that one."
"Aww, quit messing with me man," Yosuke groaned, prompting laughter from the rest of the group.
Yu then slid the cake towards Chie. "It's kasutera. Nothing too over the top, but I thought you would prefer something that wasn't too sweet." Chie noted that his expression seemed almost anxious… well as close to anxious as Yu's expression ever got anyway. Still Chie had to suppress a chuckle.
"Well, itadakimasu!" Chie proclaimed, digging into the moist cake with a pastry fork. As Yu had stated, the cake was simple, yet the slightly sweet cake went well with a citrus glaze that lightly coated the desert. "It's great!" Chie reported happily, prompting a light smile from Yu before he began to distribute cake to everyone else.
"Oooh, I finally get to try senpai's cooking!" Rise exclaimed excitedly.
"It's beary delicious! That's sensei for you!"
"Lemme see… Woah! That's a hell of cake senpai!"
Yukiko proceeded to try a piece as well. Her eyes lit up for a moment before she began pouting. "No fair…"
"Seriously dude, hold back a little for us mere mortals," Yosuke sighed, clearly concluding Yu did indeed have another nearly perfect skill to add to his seemingly endless repertoire. Chie couldn't help but smirk a little. Guess he realized that, when it comes down to it, there's really no competition.
"Is there anything senpai isn't good at, for real?" Rise asked.
Yu suddenly looked defensive. "I'm not good at everything," He replied, dismissing the notion. "For example, I'd have no idea where to start with sewing. Kanji would probably have me beat there."
Kanji suddenly looked fired up. "I could teach ya, senpai! Yeah, I'd make a badass tailor out of you in no time. 'Sides, a guy as sharp as you could probably pick it up easy! There ain't nothin' to it."
Yu rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Uh, yeah… sure. I'm sure Nanako would love it if you came over and did a lesson."
Kanji suddenly looked excited. "Hell yeah! We could start with stuffed animals and make 'em extra cute for Nanako-chan!"
Yu sighed slightly before smiling good-naturedly, seemingly accepting his fate.
"Hey what time is it?" Yosuke asked suddenly. "Oh crap! Come on Ted, we got some shifts to cover in a bit!"
"Whaaat!" Teddie cried. "No fair! Sensei and Kanji get all the girls to themselves! And I haven't even gotten to give Chie-chan her birthday smooch yet!"
"Yeah, I'm sure she's real disappointed," Yosuke replied sarcastically. "C'mon, we gotta head out. Catch you all later!" Yosuke waved goodbye while forcefully dragging Teddie toward the exit, the latter flailing in vain protest. This left only Yukiko, Kanji, and Yu. The group chatted amicable for a bit. Suddenly Yukiko shot Chie a mischievous look.
"Kanji, I need to pick up an order from the shop." Yukiko stated suddenly, before Chie could even voice what the girl's earlier expression had meant.
"What? Even on Chie-senpai's birthday?" Kanji replied, looking puzzled. "Anyway, thought the next order would be next week, that's-"
"Kanji, I need that order, now," Yukiko cut off, in a tone that brooked no argument.
Kanji immediately stiffened. "Err... got it senpai. Well… why don't you come down to the shop with me and we'll see what ma- err I mean, the old hag has to say."
The raven-haired teen quickly offered her assent, forcefully pushing Kanji out of the room, leaving Chie and Yu alone. Yu raised an eyebrow at her questioningly. "What was that about?"
Chie reddened almost immediately. "Err… Yukiko's been trying to help me w-with y-… uh… Geez this is so embarrassing," Chie stuttered, pressing her hand to her forehead as the room suddenly seemed much warmer than it had a moment ago.
Looking for any way to change the subject, Chie desperately wracked her brain on a way to shift the conversation against Yukiko's machinations. This prompted Chie to ask the question that had been nagging at her ever since she had walked into the surprise. "A-anyway… I thought you said you had work today?"
Yu avoided her gaze and smirked playfully. "I may have been exaggerating a little bit…" He answered, prompting Chie to hit him lightly on the shoulder. "Sorry, I wanted it to be a surprise."
"Geez," Chie groaned. "What am I supposed to say when you put it that way?"
"Hmm… I don't know…" Yu drawled, smirking. "Maybe some praise about what a great boyfriend I am."
"I-idiot!" Chie shrieked, quickly punching him in the shoulder once more. "Besides…" She went on, her voice almost a whisper, "That goes without saying…"
Yu's eyes widened suddenly in surprise, and he suddenly averted his gaze from her. There was no mistaking it, a light red was now dusting his cheeks, something Chie probably would have took more pride in if she wasn't more preoccupied with crawling in a hole and dying after her embarrassing admission.
Regaining his composure, Yu cleared his throat, his eyes finding hers once more. "I'm glad you had a good time," He said, sidling up next to her.
Chie suddenly found herself staring intently at the table in front of her. He's so close!
"Chie…" Yu said softly, one of his hands gently cupping her face and directing her gaze toward him. Chie found herself spellbound by his steel-grey eyes. He smiled gently, and Chie became acutely aware of her heartbeat hammering inside her ears. "…Happy birthday…" He whispered drawing her face slowly toward his. Chie found her eyes fluttering closed almost instinctively as he brought her in ever closer. Suddenly she could feel his breath ghosting on her lips, prompting Chie to brace herself for what surely was going to happen next. Suddenly his breathing stopped, and his hand moved off her face slightly. Confused, Chie opened her eyes, finding Yu further away than he had been moments ago.
Before Chie could ask anything, she heard Yu mutter, "Company…" under his breath, before scooting away from her suddenly.
"Excuse me!" A voice called out, with the entrance to the dining room opening a moment later, revealing the matron of the Amagi household. "Ah, Chie-chan! You're still here? I'm sure I saw Yukiko leave just a moment ago with Tatsumi-kun, I thought for sure you would have gone with them." The woman tutted slightly, "That girl… She's so smart, and yet sometimes I wonder where her head is at. Please forgive me for my daughter's rudeness," She apologized, bowing slightly.
"Aah, please don't worry about it Amagi-san! Really I should thank you for letting the others use the inn for my birthday!" Chie exclaimed, waving her hands in a panic.
"Yes, thank you for allowing me to work in the kitchen," Yu agreed, bowing his head.
"So polite," The woman said, smiling at the two of them. "As expected of Dojima-san's nephew."
"Excuse me, Amagi-san," Yu began, "It's getting late, I should probably walk Chie-san home." Chie suppressed a look at surprise at the way he had addressed her; it was a rarity for him to be so formal with her name, especially so given recent events.
"Of course!" The woman replied amicably. "Take care on your way home!"
Yu responded with gratitude before motioning toward Chie to rise. The two bowed respectfully toward their host and mad their way toward the inns exit. Once they were outside and had walked a fair distance, Yu exhaled heavily.
"What's that about?" Chie asked. Yu wasn't exactly what she would call happy-go-lucky but he was far from gloomy.
Yu smiled thinly before closing his eyes and rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "It's not always easy to keep a straight face you know? Especially since…" He trailed off, allowing her to fill the blanks.
Chie felt her cheeks warm slightly. "Oh... yeah…" Chie replied awkwardly. Fighting off the will to simply stay silent, she went on, "I'm glad you were though, haha, I bet I would have said something stupid if I'd kept going."
"It wasn't easy," Yu laughed, reaching for her hand and intertwining his fingers with hers. "You can be pretty distracting…"
"Idiot," Chie muttered, averting her gaze to the side and blushing madly. Summoning her courage she stopped suddenly and tightened her grip on Yu's hand. Yu made an inquisitive noise at her, yet Chie's gaze was planted firmly to the ground. Swallowing, she began, "You know… I don't like it when people don't finish what they start." After a few moments of silence, Chie looked at Yu, finding him looking at her incredulously. Then he gave her that same smile that he had before, lighting Chie's nerves on fire.
He brought himself before her, taking her other hand and drawing her towards him. Chie felt her pulse quicken once more as his face inched towards her. "Happy birthday, Chie…" He said softly, his lips nearly ghosting hers. And he kissed her.
Hello all! It's been quite some time hasn't it (My god, has it really been over a year?), and this chapter doesn't even advance the plot! What a cop-out! In all seriousness sorry for the long wait and I hope you enjoyed this fluff chapter, hopefully it wasn't too cheesy. Sorry if the ending seemed abrupt, it seemed like a good spot to leave it at for now. Anyways, I had a ton of ideas floating around in my head but it took me forever to get them all on here. Anyways sorry if the first some of the paragraphs seemed superfluous, I was trying to place myself mentally back into Inaba, and sort of hint at the underlying effects of the forces at work in the background. Hopefully you found them to be of some benefit, I know for some of you it's been even longer since you played Persona 4 than me. Anyways drop a review and leave me some feedback! And before I forget, shout out to ericestrella for the birthday idea, this one's for you! Hopefully you read this!
A question, for those who will indulge me: How do you all envision Chie's father? I'm kind of torn myself. My initial gut reaction is maybe he is a sensei at a dojo in Okinawa or something. Just something that could explain Chie's interest in martial arts. Then again, Chie's 'style' doesn't quite seem formal enough for someone who has a legitimate martial artist for a family member. Maybe she picked it up from watching Featherman when she was younger? No clue. See? This is the random stuff I think about instead of writing. Thankfully imagining Chie's mom is a little easier, I think Chie gets her spunkiness from her. Anyway feel free to share your thoughts with me!
Some additional notes for the sporadic Japanese. For those that don't know, oji-san is a generic honorific for an elder man. Gyudon is a beef bowl. Kasutera is Castella Cake, a Portuguese desert that made its way to Japan a long time ago and is immensely popular. Itadakimasu is a phrase that Japanese people say before eating, and I think that covers everything. Just trying to make the fic feel a little more authentic. And last but not least, here's a short little tidbit that I hope at least gets a chuckle out of you! Thank you all for reading!
"Oh, Yukiko-chan, it's so wonderful to see you!"
"It's good to see you too, Tatsumi-san!" Yukiko replied brightly.
"And as polite as always," Kanji's mother noted, smiling a little wider. "Do you need something for the inn? Your next order should be ready by next week."
"Not really, I just wanted to make sure that the order would be ready on time," Yukiko explained.
"Ah, of course dear. Well, as I said before, everything is progressing well, so Kanji-chan and I will be ready!"
"Hey don't call me-" Kanji began protesting. "Hey wait a sec- senpai I thought you said-"
"I'll see you soon Kanji-kun." Yukiko replied, smiling sweetly. "Goodbye Tatsumi-san!"
Kanji could only stare agape as the raven-haired girl left.
"Kanji dear, is something the matter? Did something happen?"
"I have no freakin' clue," Kanji replied, completely dumbfounded.
Kanji's mother smiled and nodded in understanding. "Ah, I understand. Yukiko-chan has gotten very pretty, hasn't she?"
"Wha- ma! What are you goin' on about?!"