Persona Zero: The First Journey

Chapter 4: Revelations

*BlueDestiny danced crazy!*

…Anyway, yet another chapter is done! So far, I see that I'm getting a decent amount of views! Although not much by standards, it really makes me happy that some of you took the time to read this story. For that, I give my unrequited thanks.

Well, author drama aside, let's get to business. I do not own Persona or its characters in any way at all. That honor solely belongs to Atlus.

Okay! Now that the disclaimer's done, let's jump into the chapter!

Unknown Area

A familiar sounding melody causes Souji to slowly open his eyes. His vision was still blurry and distorted. What happened just now, he thought. Was that all just a dream? As his vision cleared, he found himself seated in a very fancy and comfortable armchair. As he looked around, he saw that he was in a room which was tinted blue in every corner; the walls, the floor, even the furniture was blue. Okay, he thought. This is getting really bizarre. What sort of weird dream are you dreaming now, Souji? What kind of unreal experience is this? Besides, he was tired as hell, for some reason. Maybe if he could-

"This is not unreal."

Souji turned to the source of that unexpected voice, and saw that it came from a man dressed all in white with long brown hair. He was playing a piano, creating the soothing melody that had awakened Souji just now. But what catches Souji's attention the most is the man's face. Half of his face, from forehead to nose, was concealed behind a mask that vaguely resembles a white butterfly. He turned to Souji and gave a warm smile. "It is very nice to meet you formally at last, Souji Narukami." Souji was surprised, as he finally found the strength to speak. "You know me?" The man's smile grew a little wider. "I know everything about you."

He stood up from the piano, but weirdly, the melody was still playing. "I am Philemon, a dweller in the rift between consciousness and unconsciousness of all souls…" the masked man introduced himself as he sat down on a chair in front of Souji which is similar to the one he is occupying. "…and I am here to welcome you to my dwelling place." He gestured his hand around the room. "This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. Only the chosen ones are allowed to enter this realm." Souji was attempting to digest what he had heard. "The chosen ones?" Philemon nodded. "Yes, you are chosen to wield an amazing power. A power that, in the right hands, will greatly empower you, or utterly destroy you." Souji then remembered what he did; he was raising his hand high up, before saying…

"…Persona…"

Philemon nodded again. "Correct. You are a quick learner, my dear guest." He chuckled softly before continuing. "A Persona is a manifestation of a person's personality, which defers with every individual. It is a form of 'mask' that one uses to face hardship in their lives." He held out his palm, and the card that Souji saw materializes on it, floating and spinning around over his hand. "I see that Power was the one who answered your call. Intriguing." Souji stared at the card, and asked, "What does that card mean?" "Ah, yes…" Philemon replied, seemingly just remembered to tell him just that. He held out the card to Souji, who took it and examined it. "That, my dear guest, is a tarot card. The one you humans usually use in fortune telling. The picture engraved on the card represents its Arcana, where there are 22 in all, not counting the minor Arcanas." Souji examined at the picture. "In your hands now is the seventh Arcana, Justice. It symbolizes objectivity, rationality, analysis, and of course, a strict allegory of justice." Philemon chuckled again "It suits you, isn't it?" The card then disappeared again, and Souji looked back at Philemon. "Why am I bestowed this power?"

Philemon then sighed, and then smiled again, although it showed a hint of sadness. "I wish I could tell you the full story, but alas, I should not keep you here for too long." Souji was puzzled. "Why?" "Because time here is non-existent, and has little meaning, but back in your realm, you have been slumbering for a long period of time." Souji became alarmed. Does this mean I am in a coma right now? Philemon noted his guest's anxiety, and reassured him. "Fret not, you are about to return to your world soon. Now, regarding that question of yours, all I can say is something very terrible is about to occur in your world, and that's where you come in." "Something terrible?" Souji repeated. Just what does he mean? Philemon then stood up, and bowed. "I look forward to meeting you again, Souji Narukami." He straightens himself again, and snapped his fingers. "Till then, farewell…" As soon as he said that, Souji's vision was blinded by a bright light, and suddenly, everything went dark.

Tatsumi Memorial Hospital, Downtown Iwatodai, April 12, 1990

*Beep, beep, beep*

..That was the sound Souji heard next when he slowly opened his eyes again. The first thing he sees a pure white ceiling. The smell of hand sanitizers filled the air, as Souji realized he was in a hospital ward. The beeping noises came from various machines beside his bed, showing his steady heartbeat and pulse rates. Souji sighed as he recalled what just happened. He was definitely dreaming, he thought to himself, but it all seemed so real. The encounter with that creature, the voice inside his head as it began to hurt hard, summoning that armored being; Power was its name, if he remembered correctly, and meeting Philemon. Everything was so clear in his mind. That couldn't be a dream, could it?

Just then, his ward's door opened and a doctor came inside. "Ah, you're awake." The doctor smiled as he checked his charts. "H-How long have I been out?" Souji asked with a weak voice. Whoa, I sound like a ghost or something. "About three days. You gave us quite the scare, Souji-kun." The doctor sat on a chair next to his bed. "From our examination, your body had undergo an alarmingly high amount of pressure; much higher than an office worker doing overtime." The doctor chuckled. "I can tell, because I've been doing shifts since yesterday and I'm nowhere near your level of exhaustion." Souji's blood froze. Three days? "Now tell me, Souji-kun…" the doctor asked him sternly. "…what did you do before you before you passed out?" This is bad, he thought. He certainly can't tell him that he blacked out due to him summoning a being from inside his soul and fought a violent, possessing monster that had been responsible for the recent brutal suicides that had been occurring on the news lately, can he? If he did, he might, no, he will be labeled 'mentally ill' and spend who knows how long in an asylum. But what other excuse that he can come up with?

Luckily, he was spared from answering when the door opened, and his mom barged into the room. "Souji-chan!" she cried out. Before the doctor could say anything, she immediately took her only beloved son into her arms. "Are you alright? What happened? Did you get hurt? Please tell me you're alright, Souji!" It took awhile to calm her. Suddenly, a thought came to his mind. This was not the first time he was hospitalized. The first time, it was six years ago. He couldn't remember all the details, but he recalled getting involved in an accident on his way home from school. He thought his arm broke or something, but it wasn't too bad. But it was a huge deal for Shizune Narukami. He never thought he seen the day when his mom was so depressed. It was thanks to Dad she snapped out of it. He didn't know where he got his skills, but Kouji Narukami always had a knack for assuring others, and will do anything to make sure everything will be alright for them. He convinced her that none of this would happen again, and from that day on, he drove Souji to school and back. He was always by Souji's side, and always tells him to never make his mother worry like before.

"But Dad," Souji remembered asking him one day, "Why did Mom was so upset, even though I only broke my arm? I can even move them around again!" He then sat down next to his son, before sighing. "Well, Souji, it's a long story, you see…"

Yasogami High School, Yasoinaba, 1970

"Will you please leave me alone?!" yelled the long, silver haired girl to the boy who was following her around since lunch break started. "Not unless you tell me why, Haruno!" replied Kouji, panting while trying to keep up with her. "Oh look," a student nearby said. "Narukami's doing it again. "Man, when will he ever learn?" another said. "The guy's been hounding Haruno ever since he got rejected. He should just give up." While some students sounded their disapproval of the whole act, some actually supported Kouji's quest for her acceptance. "Go, Kouji!" "Score yourself a good one!"

"Oh, shut up, guys!" Kouji said, not amused by the whole thing. But he wondered though. Him aside, why is she completely refusing anyone's company? She had always been by herself when she first arrived at school, whether it was lunch break, P.E class, or even walking home from school. Everyone ignored her for some reason. He thought she had no friends, and that was the reason he offered to become one. But to his bewilderment…

"No, and I won't ever, so stop talking to me again."

…and left off after she said those words. Does she really does not want a friend? No, Kouji thought. Nobody wants being alone. There must be something that happened to her that caused her to be like this, and he won't stop till he found out what, and if he can, resolve that problem, so that cold, stoic and stern girl could be happy again. He followed her around the courtyard when she took a turn and entered the area forbidden for students to enter, as it was a construction site of expanding the school by building a second block to be joined to the main building. "What the heck is she thinking?" he thought aloud to himself and chased after her.

Kouji saw her standing in the open space at the construction site, looking for a place to hide till she spotted Kouji. "Phew, you made me break out a lot of sweat!" he said. "You must be a good runner!" Clearly, she was not amused. "What is wrong with you? Don't you understand? I don't need any company!" Kouji sighed. "Look, we need to get out of here. This place is off limits!" he tried reasoning with her. They are going to be in big trouble if anyone sees them here. "No!" she shouted at him. "W-Why?" Kouji was taken by surprise. "Listen…"

"No, YOU listen!" Shizune barked at him, cutting him off. "I'm not going anywhere till you leave me alone and never go near me again!" What?! Kouji's patience was beginning to run out, but he tried to keep his cool. "It's dangerous here! You have to leave or you'll get hurt!" "So what?" Shizune shouted back, surprising him. "I don't care if I get hurt! I should've died right now!" Kouji then noticed her eyes. Wait, is she crying? He was about to convince her again when he saw a crane with its arm filled with iron bars moving directly towards where Shizune was standing. Oh crap, he thought. Is it gonna…

"Haruno, get out of there!" he yelled, pointing above her. "Eh?" she said and looked up. By the time she does, however, the crane's arm released the load it was carrying and the iron bars dropped down towards her. Her eyes widen, fear petrified her, halting her thinking process. As she saw the iron bars nearly dropping down on her, all she could mumble was "Nii-sa-"

But before she could finish, something suddenly pushed her, lifting her off the ground before falling backwards and hitting her head on the wall behind her. She slid down the wall before landing on her butt. Then, as she looked back to where she stood, her conscious slowly fading, she saw Kouji on the ground, with his body from his waist until his legs crushed by the iron bars. Then she blacked out.

Shizune slowly opened her eyes to an unfamiliar sight, a pure white ceiling and realized she was on a bed, covered by sheets. "W-Where…?" she said with a weak voice. "The school infirmary." A voice answered, as she turned her head around to see the school nurse. "My goodness, you should be thankful you're still alive." Shizune then remembered what happened, and her eyes widen. "That boy!" She tried to get up but felt her head hurt. "Calm down, Haruno-san." The nurse gently pushed her down back to her bed. "Narukami-kun's fine." She gestured to the bed beside her and saw Kouji, still sleeping, lying on the bed. Shizune flung her hand to her mouth when he saw that both of his legs were heavily bandaged, dried blood still visible on his sheets. "I'm afraid he's not going to be able to walk for awhile." Then, her phone rang. "Oh, excuse me. I need to take this one," and left the infirmary, leaving the two inside.

Shizune sat up, her eyes never leaving Kouji's crippled body. "Why?" Her eyes began to tear up again. "Why did you save me? Even though I told you to leave me alone…" She started sobbing. "Why do I have to go through all of this? Why couldn't it be me when that car crashed into us?" Her tears began to flow, as she covered her face with her hands. "Why did you protected me, Nii-san?"

"So that's why…"

"Kya!" Shizune was surprised, as she saw Kouji fully awake and looking at her with a concerned look. Has he been awake all this time? "So your brother once died protecting you from an accident…" Kouji said, finally understanding the cause of her problem. But he couldn't understand one thing. "But what does that have to do with you shutting yourself from everyone around you?" Shizune turned away from him. Kouji thought she wasn't going to talk, and tried to ask again when she spoke, with a surprisingly soft voice. "I'm scared…" "Huh?" Kouji said. She was scared? Of what? "Nii-san and I were very close," she began to explain herself. "Ever since our parents passed away, he was always around when I need him. He always plays with me, and kept me company at night until I fell asleep. He would always know how to make me happy when I'm sad, and always gets me my favorite candy." She then turned to look at Kouji, who is listening attentively. 'I love my Nii-san. I love him more than anything else in this world. And he loves me too. He always said he does." Then, tears begin to flow over her cheeks again; her eyes were reddening from the crying. Kouji felt guilty "Haruno, you don't have to tell me-"

"Then, that day…" she carried on. "…Nii-san took me to the field near our grandparents' home. We played tag, and I was it. We were running around, with Nii-san chasing me. B-But then…" Her voice started to tremble, and Kouji knew what was going to happen. "I was running too fast, and I didn't see where I was going. T-Then…I heard Nii-san yelled something at me, and then I hear the engine of a car. T-Then….then…"

*CRASH*

Shizune looked to Kouji's bed and saw him sprawled beside his bed, wincing at the pain he had caused himself. He had apparently tried to move from his bed. "A-Are you alright?" she said, clambering out of her bed and kneeling beside him. "You shouldn't be moving around! Nu...HMPH!" Kouji covered her mouth with his hand, and shook his head at the girl. She was surprised, but understood the message. She helped him get up and sat on his bed after he was back on it. "You didn't answer my question," Kouji said. "Why did you isolate yourself from everyone after your brother died?" Shizune then faced the other way and lowered her head before replying, "After Nii-san died, it wasn't the same. My grandparents died a couple of weeks later. I was adopted by a distant relative, but they were too busy to look after me. Since then, I was always alone in the house. No one was there when I needed them anymore. Nobody to take care of me, or make me happy. That's why I began to live alone. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I was afraid, that if I became too attached to someone, then I won't be able to handle it if something happened to them. I cried the entire day and the next when Nii-san died, and I never felt happy when he was gone. I don't want to feel that pain ever again…' "Haruno..," was the only thing Kouji was able to say. At last, all the pieces of the puzzle have been placed, and he finally understood the whole situation. He couldn't even begin to comprehend how she feels right now. But one thing is for sure. She can't live on like this.

"That's why..." she suddenly faced him, surprising him, "…I told you to leave me alone. You don't need to bother yourself talking to me. Look at you now!" she said with her voice raised, looking at his legs before returning to his face. "You got hurt because of me!" "Haruno, I…"

"Why didn't you listen to me? You could've gotten yourself killed!"

"But, Haruno, you-"

"You could've just left me there! And I could finally be with-"

"SHIZUNE!"

She was stunned as she looked at him. He called her by her name. Kouji was getting angry at her, but refused to start hitting her, so he yelled at her instead. "You can't live on like this! Is this what you think your brother wanted you to become when he decided to give up his life for yours? What were you thinking, going on trying to kill yourself? What do you think he would feel if he sees you like this?!" Shizune then began tearing up again. "B-But…" She was shaking with grief. "…without him…I..."

Kouji then pulled her arm towards him. "Kyaah!" she yelped as he suddenly embraced her in his arm. "E-Eh?" "He isn't the only one worried about you," Kouji said softly into her ear, his hot breath hitting it with every word he spoke. "I worry about you when I saw everybody else ignoring you. I've always wondered why, and now I know. That's why…" he pulled back a little, his silver eyes looking directly to her black ones. "I want to help you out. I want to make you feel less alone, and I want to see you smile…" He then looked away slightly, his face becoming slightly red. "…because…I thought you would look cute if you smiled more often."

"E-Eh?" was all Shizune could manage to utter. Her eyes had widened, her cheeks were furiously flushing, and her mouth was slightly opened with surprise. "Y-Y-You…thought….I was…c-c-cute?" she stuttered. "I don't lie," Souji said. "My mom forbids me from lying. She said that every time I lied, my nose would grow longer." Shizune stared at him in stunned silence, as Kouji continued. "I believed that all the way till this day, and I'm glad I listened to…" Kouji stopped talking, because he saw something he never thought he would see.

Shizune was laughing. Although it was a quiet one and she tried to stifle it with her hand, she was laughing. "Y-You, Snrk….believed that?" Kouji was puzzled, "Uh, what's so funny?" Then she laughed a normal laugh, to his surprise. "You believe in that fairy tale? Hahahaha! Really? Ahahahahaha!" Kouji was confused a little, and then she noticed how good she sounds when she was laughing. It didn't sound forced or a fake laugh, it sounded like she was genuinely happy. And dang, Kouji thought, she does look cute. She composed herself after awhile, before speaking again. "You know, I didn't catch your name." "My name?" Kouji said. "Oh, yeah! My name!" He lowered his head a bit, in a gesture of respect, since he couldn't bow in his current condition. "I'm Kouji Narukami." "Oh, I see…" Shizune said. Then suddenly, she cupped his face with her hands and lifted them close to hers.

"Thank you, Kouji-kun," was what she said before kissing him on the cheek.

"…And that's what happened. Your mom and I started dating after that day, and she was the one who carried me around while I was still in a wheelchair." Souji listened to the story with pure awe at his father. "Whoa, Dad! You're so cool!" His dad laughed at the compliment. "Thanks, son. Just remember now, she loves us very much, so you don't go doing in any weird stuff that can make her worry, okay?

"Yeah, Dad! I promise!"

…Realizing that, Souji felt awful. He failed to keep that promise he made with his father. Slowly, he placed his hand on his mother's shoulder. "Eh? Souji-chan?" "Mom…" He said sadly. "I'm sorry." Shizune's eyes widened a bit, then reverted to its warm gaze, and with a loving smile on her face before placing her hand on his face. "It's alright, Souji-chan. At least you're okay now."

After a quick examination, Souji is deemed fit to leave the hospital, but is advised to check in on his condition once in awhile. As he was putting on his everyday clothes, the doctor came by. "Oh yeah, Narukami-kun," he then took out a letter from his coat. "This came to the reception desk earlier this morning. Were you expecting someone?" Souji, looking puzzled took the letter from the doctor and examined it. It simply said 'To Souji Narukami' on the envelope. He opened it and read the contents inside.

Meet me at the school's rooftop tomorrow after your classes are done. I'll be waiting.

"Is it important?" the doctor asked. "No," he kept the letter inside his shirt pocket, "not really…" It does, actually, Souji thought. And he had an idea of who the sender is…

Outside the hospital gates, a teenager dressed in a black unbuttoned jacket and white shirt, with matching black pants and shoes is walking to his motorcycle. He was walking with a slack posture; his black fringes of hair nearly covered his red eyes. As he reached his motorcycle, he noticed a hooded figure in front of him, where there was nobody there a moment ago. He let out an annoyed sigh before speaking in a cold, emotionless tone. "Didn't I tell you I don't want to be followed?" The hooded man merely chuckled before saying, "Forgive me, but I am merely following Master Philemon's orders. He expresses his gratitude for you saving our guest." "Hmph," the teen said. "Lazy ass." "Oh, don't be so rude," the man said. "Master knows he cannot interfere with the mortal world. Unlike our current concern." The man then smiled. "Is that what you wish to converse with him about?"

"Do yourself a favor and stop following me…" the teen said after finished putting on his helmet, then starting up the motorcycle. Then he glared at the hooded man. "…he hates it." The hooded man noticed his eyes turning yellow for the briefest moment before turning back to its usual red, and sighed. "Very well. I shall speak to Master about your request." The teen stared at him for a bit, and then lowered his helmet visor. Then he sped off with a wail of his Suzuki RG500 Gamma's two stroked engine.

The hooded man watches as the teen took a turn and disappeared from sight and shook his head slowly. "Always the cold one, aren't you, Young Master Yuki?"

Hoo boy, that was a lot of revealing to do. So, now you know who the mysterious senior is, among other things. Next up, I'll be introducing more new characters, so stay tuned!

As always, feel free to rate and review! Helpful suggestions are always welcomed!

Well, seeya on the next chapter!