Player Choices
By psychored1911
Disclaimer: I don't own Persona 4 or Persona 4 Golden
4/15- Afternoon
For a small –whatever he was- he's strong; it's been several hours and I still feel his viced grip. I wonder how much he lifts… Meh, it's not important right now.
For now, I need to focus on the assembly right now.
"I wonder why they're holding a school assembly all of a sudden." Chie whispered in my ear.
An incident.
Probably just some regulations or something…
-Spirit Week, maybe?
Chie shook her head "Nah, that's not till near the end of the school year."
What? Aw, that sucks.
Chie then looks at Yosuke, who was looking nervous for some reason. Probably because of what happened yesterday. "…Hey, what's wrong, Yosuke?"
Yosuke glances at her "Oh, it's nothing."
The principal gets up on stage behind the podium. He doesn't look too happy…
"I… regret to say that I have a terrible announcement for all of you. One of our third-year students, Ms. Saki Konishi of class 3… has passed away."
I zone out. The girl I just met a while ago?
"Ms. Konishi was found deceased early this morning… The reasons behind her passing are currently under investigation by the police. If they ask you for your cooperation, I urge you, as students of this school, to provide only the facts"
I wonder how Yosuke's handling all of this.
The crowd suddenly gets louder.
"All right, please quiet down… I have been assured by the faculty that there's no evidence that bullying was involved in the incident. So mind what you say, not only to the police but to anyone who asks…"
Chie, who was next to me, says: "Found dead…? How could this happen…?""
Later
Chie and I walk in the hallway together. We can overhear people talking about this girl. I'm not sure what's fact or fiction. It does bother me that they're talking about a dead person so easily. I guess it's bothering her too.
We see two girls making up some stuff about what they heard.
Chie doesn't look too happy with them. "Sheesh, it's easy to toss around theories if you're not personally involved…"
We turn around. Apparently Yosuke was behind us.
"Hey… did you guys check out the TV last night?" he asked.
Chie began to get pissed. "Yosuke! Not you too!"
Yosuke looks upset. Just listen for a sec! Something kept bothering me, so… I watched it again, and… I think the girl on the screen… was Saki-senpai. There's no mistaking it… Senpai looked like… she was writhing in pain… And then… she disappeared from the screen."
Both Chie and I are surprised about this.
Yosuke continues "You heard Senpai's body was found in a similar situation as that announcer's right…? Well remember that guy you told us about? How he was all excited that his soulmate was the announcer? Maybe… just maybe, but… Ms. Yamano might've been on that Midnight Channel before she died, too."
It's a fairly good theory… but thinking about it like that makes me feel uneasy.
Chie looks uncomfortable "What's that supposed to mean…? Hold on… Are you saying…? People who appear on that TV… die…?"
Yosuke answers her "I can't say for sure. But something tells me… I can't dismiss it as coincidence. Plus, remember what that bear thing said? That people were getting thrown in there. And that room with the posters on the wall… it has to have something to do with the announcer's death. I mean… don't you think there's some kind of connection here? Couldn't that world in the TV have something to do with senpai and the announcer's death!? Well? What do you think?"
He looks right at me. What should I say?
"You might be right."
"That's preposterous."
-"The bear may know more."
"Yeah, you may be onto something." Yosuke agrees with me "There's something the bear's not telling us. I'm thinking about going in again; I want to see what he knows."
Chie looks… genuinely scared for him. I'm surprised by this "Don't do this… You should just let the police handle this and—"
Yosuke snaps "You think we can rely on the police!? They haven't made any progress on the announcer's case. Besides if we told them about the bear and the world inside the TV, there's no way they're gonna believe us! If I'm complexly off-base with this, that's fine… It's just… I need to know why senpai had to die like this. After what I've seen and what I put together, there's no way I can ignore it now…" he turns to me "Sorry… but you're the only person who can help me." He steels his resolve "I'm gonna go get ready. I'll be waiting for you at Junes." He runs off.
Huh… Yosuke... he was really planning on going by himself? Great, now I have to go in after him. Ugh, this is gonna suck…
After School
Junes department store.
We found him in front of the same TV as yesterday. He kinda looks excited… weird.
"You guys came…!" he says excitedly.
…Why are you smiling?
Chie, on the other hand, looks understandably upset "We came to stop you, idiot! C'mon… you really shouldn't do this. It's too dangerous."
Yosuke looks confident. Too confident for my comfort… "I know… But we were able to come back once, right? If we go in from the same location, maybe we'll meet that bear again."
He seems way too eager to explore that place. It's starting to scare me a bit.
Chie, still justifiably mad, says "'Maybe' isn't good enough!"
"Look, I can't just act like everyone else and pretend this has nothing to do with me. What about you? Could you just walk away?" he turns to me.
I could say "I can't leave it alone", "This doesn't involve me," or "I'm worried about Chie."
Nah, none of those sound like me. I'd rather say:
"I wasn't gonna let you go in there by yourself."
If he goes in by himself, we have no idea what's gonna happen in there.
"Wow, you're a really dependable guy, Naukami." Yosuke grins "Glad I got you backing me up."
His enthusiasm disturbs me…
He turns to Chie "Don't worry, I'm not going in without a plan. Chie, I'm leaving you in charge of this."
He hands her… rope? "Huh, what's that? A rope…?"
He begins to explain his plan "We'll go in with this tied to me, so I want you to hold on to this and wait here."
Chie looks nervous. "What? Then, this is a lifeline? C'mon, wait a sec…"
He then turns to me. "Here, Yu… This is for you."
He hands me a golf club from… where the hell was he hiding that?
"I took it from the sports section."
Okay, he stole it… better than him hiding it in pants or something. Okay, not that much better, but much less gross…
He also hands me medicine. what the hell am i gonna do with this? These are generic painkillers, not even one of the good ones.
"I thought it might be better than going in empty-handed. Alright… Let's go. There's no use wasting any more time. Chie, whatever you do, don't let go of the rope!"
Yosuke and I went inside the TV.
TV World
*THUD*
And he sticks the landing a second time! The crowd goes wild!- No still not the time for that!
I turn to my right and I find Yosuke. He looks like he hurt his butt again but seems fine otherwise. The rope… oh crap. It's cut.
"Look this is the same place as last time! So they are connected from place to place!" he says excitedly.
Should I ruin his excitement with our rope situation? Nah, I'll let him have his moment.
"You guys… why'd you come back?"
We turn around to find Teddie and all his… angry bear face? Yeah, he looks pissed "I get it, you're the ones behind this!" he accuses.
Wait… What? Where did he get that from?
He continues "Lately, I can tell someone's been throwing people in here. It's making this world more and more messed up. This is the second time you guys came here. And I don't think anyone forced you in. That means you're the most suspicious. You guys must be the ones throwing people in here, Rawr!"
He growled, seriously? Well I'm currently resisting the urge to smack him upside the head with the stolen golf club. So I'm pissed. How should I respond to that?
"Hell no!"
"Don't label us like."
"Shut up."
-Accuse him
In the most improvised way possible I accuse him of the most ridiculous thing I could possibly think of: "What if you were the one who started pulling people in here so you can steal their honey!"
They both look at me in confusion. Especially Yosuke "Dude, what are you talking about?" he asks.
Now I'm confused. How does he not know one of the awesomest bears in history?
Ok, I admit it's weird but…
An awkward silence fills the area. It's mainly my fault.
We should get back on topic… Yosuke is way ahead of me on this one "What do you mean throwing people in? If someone was thrown in here and they couldn't get out…"
…They'll be trapped in here until they either A) find a way out, or B) Die.
Yosuke continues, "Could it be that someone's throwing people here, intending to kill them?"
Sounds like the perfect crime if you ask me.
"What're you guys mumbling about? Why'd you come here, anyways!? It's a one way door! You can't get out once you're in! Remember? How I had to let you guys out?" he barks, or whatever the bear equivalent of "bark" is.
Well that explains yesterday… and now…
"Yeah, whatever. We don't need your help this time! See, this time we have a lifeli-"
Yosuke stops midsentence. Oh, now he notices the broken rope. A bit late, but better late than never I guess.
"H-Hey! You better let us out once we're done investigating here!" Yosuke says angrily.
Dude, just… don't… you already lost… so just… don't…
Teddie growls in a not-really-that-intimidating fashion "Grrrrr! I'm the one who wants to investigate! I've lived here for a long time. But it's never been noisy like this till now. Do you have proof!? Prove to me you're not throwing people in here!"
How would we have proof!? We only know that we weren't doing anything bad.
"Proof?"
"It doesn't work that way…"
"Shut up."
-"Why the hell would we want to throw ourselves in here if we could never get out?"
This halts Teddie to a standstill, the gears in his head turning around.
"Look, if it was as bad as you said it was, then any rational human being would never return here without a proper reason. And yet, here we are." I explain to him matter-of-factly. "Look, all we know is that a corpse appears once the fog comes and passes. We're here for the truth, not to play superhero."
Yosuke frowns at that last comment. Why are you frowning? I'm helping our case here!
Teddie looks at me worriedly "A dead body? Whenever the fog appears…?" he shifts his attention to Yosuke "I know that if it's foggy on your side, the fog lifts here."
So what, it's cyclical? That's interesting to note, but-
"It's really dangerous when the fog lifts. That's when the Shadows get violent."
Wait, what?
"If it's foggy on our side, it isn't in here…? Shadows get violent…?"
Repeating it doesn't help it make sense.
"That's why I said to hurry back! It's dangerous when that happens! Okay, no more questions. I know you guys did it! You better stop right now!"
And we're back to this again.
Yosuke got pissed. "I've told you, we're not the ones doing it! I've had it with you… Why the hell won't you listen to what we're saying!?"
"I-I'm just saying… you might be the culprits. I'm just making sure…"
Yosuke looks exhausted. "What…? Man, this bear's driving me nuts… What is this place, anyways? It looks like a TV studio… Is something being filmed here…?"
It does look like a TV studio. Maybe a bad gameshow or something. It kind of reminds me of the midnight channel…
Yosuke looks up. "H-Hey, don't tell me… is that weird show being filmed here!?"
Teddie looks confused, "Weird show? Filmed? What does that mean?"
It seems that he doesn't know anything.
I start to ignore the two of them and take a better look around. There are spotlights around, they're lit up but they don't make it easier to see though. They also don't look like they're plugged in… They're not plugged in… there are no plugs… anywhere… How on earth are they on? There are ladders and stairs… I don't know where they lead. There don't seem to be any cameras here either. What kind of a film studio is this?
Don't get me wrong, I'm still paying attention to their conversation, I don't get their conversation though. If the fog isn't here, it's in our world? That doesn't make any sense and what's he talking about shadows?
"You keep telling us to prove our innocence, but you're the most suspicious thing here!" Yosuke snaps at him.
Things look like they're getting interesting again. I should listen to them again.
"Maybe you're the real culprit!" he points at Teddie accusingly "And what's with that stupid costume!? I'd say it's time you showed your face!"
He then tackles Teddie and tries to wrestle the bear head off of him, like he clearly does not see the zipper along the neck of the costume.
*PLOP!*
Yosuke finally rips off the head, only to find… nothing inside…
…
…
…
Screw Old Pinocchio's playing cards! THIS is the coolest magic trick I've ever seen!
"Wh-What the hell are you…? It's empty inside…" Yosuke backs away slowly as Teddie's body starts flailing for his head.
I take the head from Yosuke's hands and place it back on Teddie's body, securing it with the zipper.
He starts to talk. "Me? The culprit? I wouldn't do such a thing… I just live here… I just want to live here peacefully." He says with a smile "Okay. I'll believe that you guys aren't the culprits."
We weren't guilty in the first place, so yeah.
"But I want you to find the real guy who did all this. You have to stop him." Teddie requests "Promise me, or else…" he grins evilly "I'm not gonna let you guys outta here."
Yosuke flinches, before yelling "Y-You little…!"
"This can't keep going on! My home here will be a complete mess! And then… and then… I… Waaah…" he starts crying out of the blue for some reason.
"Wh-What're you crying for all of a sudden...?" Yosuke retorts.
Jeez, harsh much?.
"Geez, this thing's weirding me out…" he mutters under his breath
You and me both.
He seems to be asking for help, he wants to find the culprit as much as I do. Someone is throwing people in here…
If that Pinocchio guy was real, then man do I have some trouble now. I'm gonna have to do a lot of work, aren't I?
"You're the only ones I can ask. Will you promise me?"
"I promise."
"We've got no choice…"
No wait, I got a better idea.
-"We'll help you, don't cry on me."
His tears stop. He looks pretty grateful. "Thank you!"
"Damn bear… Practically holding a gun to our heads…"
You're just angry that your rope idea didn't work.
He continues. "But, it's true that we came here to figure things out. So far, we're completely in the dark. Look for the culprit, huh…? Bring it on! You got my word, too. Might as well introduce ourselves. I'm Yosuke Hanamura and this is Yu Narukami."
That's the spirit, Yosuke.
"But how are we supposed to find the culprit in the first place?"
That does seem like a problem.
"I dunno. But know where the last person came in."
Yosuke looks up. Obviously, it took his interest.
"The Last person? You mean Saki-senpai!?"
How would he know her name?
"I mean the last person who came in and disappeared last time. I dunno the name. I'll take you there. You might find clues. Oh, one thing first. You should put these on."
He hands us glasses.
Well I don't see what the big deal is, they're just- WOW! Everything's so clear! The fog is invisible!
"They'll help you walk through the fog. Well, I've been here a long time. So you can rely on me!"
You should have given these to us sooner.
"But I can only show you where the place is. You guys will have to defend yourselves.
I guess my golf club will be of good use. But what are we defending ourselves from. Yosuke is understandably panicking because of teddie's remark.
"I've got no muscles. Oh! Oh! I'll give you guys moral support from a safe distance. How's that sound?"
That doesn't sound that reliable. Can he really not fight?
Try touching teddie
Try pushin teddie
Try hitting teddie
-Offer Teddie fist bump
Teddie tries to accept the fist bump. My question is, how did he get pushed back? He's flailing around on the ground, unable to get back up.
"We swore to find the culprit and this is the backup we get?"
He's right, we're in trouble.
Later
We walk into… the shopping district?
How on earth did we end up here?
"Some weird places have appeared recently. Things are getting so tangled, I dunno what to do…"
We turn around to see teddie… Far from us… I have a feeling that he knows something and isn't telling us.
"Uh… by the way, why are you standing so far from us? You better not be planning to high tail it if something does come up." Yosuke is understandably scared.
"Of course not! I mean. Uh. I can't stand too close, you know. I'd get in your way…"
Does not standing too close mean 20 feet away?
Yosuke ignores the obvious subtext. "Man, they really went all out on this. But out of all the place in town, why'd they replicate this one."
I don't think this was here yesterday. But I do know that a town can't be recreated this easily. There's always the minute details that are easily missed.
"How should I know? This is reality for the one who's here." Teddie replies.
"As usual, nothing you say makes any sense… But if this is our shopping district, we're not far from Saki- senpai's…" He rushes towards a store, running much faster than I thought he would. Why the hell is he much faster on his two feet than on a bike?
He stops right in front of a liquor store. "I knew it!" he exclaims "This is the liquor store that Senpai's parent's run. Does this mean, she disappeared here? What could've happened?"
I dunno dude, we have to go in there to find out. This door is making me reluctant to go in though. It sort of looks more of a portal than a door.
Teddie jumps up, looking more panicked than normal… than normal "Wait a second. They're here!"
Wait, what do you mean by they!?
"Shadows. I had a feeling they were going to attack!"
… Did he say attack?
Two blue, oval shaped masks, each with damp, slimy bodies, emerge from the doorway, staring at us with their blank, nondescript faces. Well I don't think things can get worse.
*gurgle… gurgle…*
The two blobs slowly morph into a ball-shaped form, each streaking with pinkish stripes and these giant, disgusting, almost cartoony mouths with oversized tongues. Ugh, just looking at these things make my skin crawl. Great, worse…
I am thou
Oh come on! Why now of all times!? I'm kinda staring down my horrible, mouth based end right now! Oh god, this is so not how I pictured meeting my maker! I was picturing old age with my wife who is still as hot as when i first met her right by my side not with a headache and being swallowed by the slime monster
Thou art I
The time has come
Open thine eyes and call forth what is within
Wait a second… what's this rush I'm feeling? Yeah, it actually feels pretty good. I've never felt this greatin my life!
"Per… so… na…"
I crush the card in my hand.
Blue mist surrounds me, calling forth a figure from the deepest depths of my soul.
A tall figure in a giant, black trenchcoat, with a pure white mask, only revealing its glowing yellow eyes. In its hands was a naginata type weapon, wrapped in bandages for a makeshift grip. It had wickedly sharp blades on its feet and… an athletic cup. Why does it have an athletic cup? Why am I staring at the athletic cup? What'd he do, piss off his wife or something?
Okay, that's another thing… First things first, I need to get these disembodied mouths out of my face.
"Stay calm and listen. Some shadows have weaknesses. If you can pinpoint that weakness and take advantage of it, the battle will be a lot easier! I can tell this one has a weakness too! Try stuff out and see what works!"
Thanks for the info Teddie. I think I can take these things down.
Now, how do I get that guy to come out?
The card from earlier appears in front of me. I think I'm starting to get how it works. I crush the card like earlier and he appears. What's he doing?
*ZAP!*
He can control lightning, good to know.
The ball thing is on the ground because of lightning, good to know.
Let's try that again on the other one.
*ZAP!*
Now they're both on the ground.
Ball shaped thing on the ground.
…
Golf club.
...
Ball shaped thing on the ground.
…
Golf club.
I know what I must do.
Years of Wii golf, you're about to come in handy!
I ready up the golf club to the side of the ball thing. If this doesn't hurt them, I don't know what will.
"FORE!"
I'm not good with sports, I got no clue if that's even right.
I swing with all of my might, turning it into a puff of smoke.
The other gumball-with-a-tongue floats back into the air, clearly injured.
Beat them like they owe me money
-Push it back on the ground and play golf again
"FORE!"
*SMACK!* *POOF!*
I really gotta check later if that's correct.
This one drops into a puff of smoke as well. Hey, it dropped money! Nothing more than pocket change, though. Eh, better than nothing.
The… figure I summoned comes forth, turning to me, staring at me with its glowing, unflinching eyes, before vanishing into blue mist.
"Whoa, what was that?" Yosuke said as he… reappeared... the hell did you go!? At least Teddie stuck by my side!
"Did I hear you say 'persona'? What was it? I mean, what did you do!?"
How would I know?
"Hey, you think I can do it too?"
Whoa, whoa, whoa! Quit playing 20 questions with someone who doesn't know!
Teddie walks up to us. "Calm down, Yosuke. You're troubling sensei!"
Sensei, he's calling me Sensei... I like the sound of that!
"Gosh almighty! You're amazing, sensei! I am one impressed bear! I can't believe you were hiding such an amazing power! No wonder the shadows were scared of you! *gasp* are you the one who's able to bring people into this world?" He stares at me with beary-wide eyes.
I nod.
"Hah! That's what I thought! This is really something. Don't you think so, Yosuke?"
"Dude, you call him sensei and then don't show me any respect?" Yosuke pouts.
You tried to rip his head off. And succeeded.
"Sorry…"
"Well, your support wasn't bad, though. I gotta give you some credit for that."
"Huh? Really? Heehee."
Yosuke smiles, seeming a little bit better than earlier. "All right, you two keep it up, and I think we'll be fine from here on out. Now let's get back to the investigation!"
We suddenly start to hear voices from… somewhere… I dunno, it's really freaking me out…
"I wish Junes would go under…"
"It's all because of that store…"
"Oh, I heard that Konishi san's daughter is working there."
"Oh my… How could she, with her family's business suffering like it is?"
Wow, they sound like bitchy housewives with way too much time on their hands.
"I heard their sales have gone downhill because of Junes."
Yosuke looks like he's pretty troubled. "Stop it…."
"That poor father, to have his own daughter working for the enemy."
Yosuke now seems angry "Hey, hey Ted!" he barks "You said that that this place is reality for those that are here, right? So does that mean this is senpai's reality when she wandered in here?"
Teddie looks confused "I only know about what's over here." he tells him
Yosuke did not like her style "Fine. Whatever's going on here… we'll find out for ourselves!"
We all rush into the store. Why is it bigger on the inside? With no roof?
As we enter, we hear a middle aged, masculine voice filled with anger and disappointment "Saki, how many times do I have to tell you?" You know what the neighbors say about you, right!? Aren't you ashamed of yourself? You're the eldest daughter of a family who's owned this store for generations! Is it the money? Or did you meet some guy there? Just tell me why you have to work THERE, of all places!"
The color seemed to fade from Yosuke's face "I can't believe this… She seemed like she had fun at work… She never said anything like this to me… You're telling me THIS was how senpai really saw things!?"
He rushes over to a cashier counter and stares at a pile of ripped up pictures and… ticket stubs?
"I… never had a chance to say it…" Saki's voice eerily echoed throughout the room "I always wanted to tell Hana-chan… that he was a real pain in the ass."
…
…
...
DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYUM, that was harsh. As for Yosuke… yeah, he… he looked like his heart was crushed… poor guy...
"I was nice to him because he was the manager's son, that's all. But he takes it the wrong way and gets all enthusiastic…"
*Wow… this bitch is brutal...
Yosuke is on the brink of tears. "It's a lie… This can't be… Senpai's not like that…!"
"It's *sniff* so sad… I feel so sorry for myself… Boo hoo…"
...Really? After all that, what's with that sarcastic tone? And why does it sound like you're behind... me...
…
You're standing right next to me…
Then… who the hell's standing behind me?
What the heck?! Since when does he have a Twin?
"Actually, I'm the one who thinks everything's a pain in the ass. Hahaha…" his lookalike says.
"Huh, two Yosukes?" Teddie came in and he's as confused as the rest of us.
"Who are you!? I wouldn't think that!"
"Hahaha… Yeah, right. How long are you going to keep deluding yourself? Screw the shopping district, and Junes too! You're sick of everything, especially living in the sticks!
This lookalike is freaking me out.
Yosuke is sweating through his shirt. "What're you saying? That's not true, I-"
"You put on a good show of being carefree and happy-go-lucky 'cause you're so terrified of being a*lone. The more the merrier, right? You've gotta be surrounded by people to block out the pain of isolation. And what's this about checking out this world for Saki senpai's sake? Hah! I know the real reason you came snooping!"
"Stop it!"
"Hahaha! Why so panicked? I thought i was just spouting bullshit! Or maybe… I DO know everything you're thinking! Why's that? Because I AM you! You just came because you thought it sounded like a good time! What else is there to do in this shithole? A world inside the TV- now that's exciting! You didn't have a single other reason for coming here, did you?"
"That's not true… Stop… Stop it…"
Yosuke weakly muttered, on the verge of tears.
"You're just acting like a big shot… If all went well, hey, maybe you could be the hero! And that senpai you were so sweet on? Her death was the perfect the excuse!"
The lookalike is being more brutal than the voices.
"That's not true! What are you!? Who are you!?"
"I already told ya. I'm you... your shadow… There's nothing I don't know about you!" The fake Yosuke taunts, clearly sending real Yosuke over the edge.
"Screw that! I don't know you! You can't be me you son of a bitch!" Yosuke screams in rage and denial.
The copycat laughs maniacally. "THAT'S RIGHT, SAY IT AGAIN!"
"You're not me! You're nothing like me!"
Fake Yosuke grins evilly "Yeah, that's right. I AM ME NOW! I'M NOT YOU ANYMORE SEE!"
A dark miasma surrounds the fake Yosuke before erupting into a blinding light.
As the light faded, what appeared in Fake Yosuke's place… is a fugly freak of nature with whiny Yosuke's voice. And how could this get worse… Oh great, he fainted! Of course he fainted. He just had to leave his problems for me to solve. Great. Just nice.
Fine, me and the swag-filled piece of circus taxidermy will take on the giant frog with the ninja sticking out of its nose all by ourselves- Okay, strike that; I'll fight the giant frog with the ninja sticking out of its nose myself since Teddie clearly can't protect himself, but if the twisted piece of Japanese Pop-Art starts spouting daddy issues, I'm leaving!
"I am a shadow… The true self… I'll crush everything that bores me… Starting with you!"
Who are you calling Boring?! "Come at me, you Centaur reject! We all know a horse was too good for your lower half and you had to settle a frog!" I taunt back, brandishing my golf club of doom like the mighty sword it probably is not.
It spews green- augh, geez what the hell is this?!
"How long can you survive this?" Centaur Reject sneers as I stagger around, holding my breath.
"This one's much stronger than the last type! Be careful! Whenever you feel threatened, just defend yourself!"
Good to know, Teddie.
Okay, fine you big weirdo, say hello to my little friend who is technically bigger than me.
"Izanagi!"
He appears before me. Now, what can I make him do again?
"You pain in the ass!" Centaur Reject tries to smack me with its 40's cartoon gloves, only for Izanagi's bancho naginata to pierce right through it before giving him a mighty slash across the face.
He then disappeared.
…
Wait, that's it?!
My bancho powerhouse comes in and out after one move?!
...
Good to know. I'll keep that in mind from now on… it's not like I overreact to everything that's going on?
the giant frog part of him raises its hand looks like it's about to attack. what should i do?
Stand still and take the hit
Guard and take the hit
...Those both sound stupid; like hell if I'm just gonna stand there
-MOVE!
It glares angrily as I evade its attack "You're so annoying!" it screams.
Better let the big guy come out.
"Izanagi."
Card comes out, crush the card, he appears. Now for the hard part, how to get the lightning out.
umm thinking of something. t's on the tip of my tongue…
"Zio?""
Okay, now there's lightning.
And now he's on the floor.
What to do next…
Hit him while he's down
-Hit him while he's down and don't let him get back up
Take that!
*SMACK!*
And that!
*THWACK!*
You know what i'm gonna do next!?
Don't climb up on
-Climb up
I climb up to his top human half, bracing myself as he thrashes around wildly, trying to throw me into the air.
"I'm gonna go Shadow of the Colossus on your ass!"
I scream as I shove the golf club into its mouth (the ninja's, not the giant frog's; that'd be weird) and leap off it, screaming "ZIO!"
*BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZT!*
The lightning, attracted to the golf club like a lightning rod, nails the Centaur Wannabe right in the face. Direct attack!
"Damn you to hell!" It cries as it collapses to the ground, burnt completely to a crisp.
*BOOM!*
And then it exploded.
...
Hey, wait a minute…
It exploded… and I didn't have my back turned to it to look cool for no reason.
Aw man! I missed my chance- Oh, hey look it dropped money- nope, it's just pocket change...
"I… I…" Oh, now he wakes up. Right after I did everything.
"Yosuke, are you okay?!" Teddie asks, concerned.
"Yeah." he groans as he gets back to his feet "What happened?"
We turn around.
Shadow Yosuke is still there standing there.
Staring at us.
Creepily.
"You… You're not me…"
Really?
Teddie speaks up. "That thing came from you Yosuke. You have to admit it or else it'll go berserk again."
That thing came from you... And it started to me… I don't know what it is but i'm somewhat offended.
Yosuke looks reluctant.
Three things come to mind:
"You're still yourself."
"You have to be brave."
"Everyone's the same inside."
From what i heard that thing spewing out, he's insecure about loneliness and boredom he also made a big deal about Saki...
I think I know what to say.
"It's you, but it isn't all of you."
He looks up at me,understandably confused.
"Look, you obviously thought that stuff at one point, but you did want to see Saki again." I tell him,
Yosuke looks down at his shadow, and then at me "You're right… I wanted to go in for some thrill but I did like Saki senpai… Man this hurts to admit." He takes a deep breath as he walks over to his shadow. "You're me… and I'm you… when you get down to it, all of this is me.
It disappears and turns into this really weird smaller version of shadow Yosuke.
"This is my Persona" It disappears.
Sweet, he has one too. It's... It sorta looks like the ninja that attacked me before… Okay, I have no qualms about it now, but if it goes after me, then it is so on.
Real Yosuke then turns around before collapsing to his knees-
ABSOLUTELY NOT!
YOU ALREADY PASSED OUT ONCE!
I WILL NOT CARRY YOUR ASS OUT OF HERE AFTER I SAVED YOUR LIFE!
"When I heard senpai's voice…" Oh wait, never mind, he's just contemplating, not fainting again "I wonder if that was something senpai had been keeping down inside… Haha… 'he was a real pain in the ass,' huh? What a way to find out…" he admits as he gives me a lukewarm smile "Geez this so embarrassing… If you weren't here, I don't know what would have happened, thanks Yu. Hey Teddie, could senpai be attacked by her other self here? Like how it just happened to me?"
It attacked me!
Okay maybe it was initially after you but still!
"I think so. The shadows were originally born from humans. Sometimes the fog clears. Then they all go berserk… And you saw what happens next. A strong willed shadow draws others to it. and a big mass of shadows kill the host."
"So that's why people die when it's foggy." Yosuke says.
"Yosuke's pretty worn out. This world isn't made for humans. It's not comfortable here. I don't here any more voices. I think we're done here."
You heard what Teddie said, Yosuke. c'mon let's go.
A/N: Sorry I took so long. I got so preoccupied with high school and plain old graduating with my brother that i didn't have time to update. I feel so bad about not updating for so long that i'm putting in a preview on his favorite scene in the game. this is not in the next chapter and spoiler alert and disclaimer on the very obvious quote that was put there. Here's a story of my brother, because i always have a story about him. He has a weird talent of picking up skills very quickly. When we first went fishing with our dad, we were on a boat and he picked up fishing very easily. not only did he catch the most fish than anyone else on the boat but his hook somehow got connected to a whale. Yeah, I said whale! Not even the captain understood how he did it. what made it even more ridiculous was that he didn't even realize it was a whale and kept reeling it in. What was worse was that he was wearing headphones, so he couldn't hear me (and everyone else on the boat, but I'm putting more emphasis on myself because I was standing right next to him) screaming at him to cut the line. Eventually, someone else on board had enough sense to cut the line while my dad gave him a 30-minute lecture on the obvious differences between fish and whales. True story. Now, before I end it… here's that preview I'm talking about.
9/10- Afternoon
Hagakure Ramen
Everyone seems to be enjoying their Ramen, i wish i can say the same… my head hurts too much…
"This place serves the best ramen in town. When we were filming, a lot of times i came here instead of eating boxed lunches." Rise turns to Yukiko. "Huh? You're not hungry?"
Yukiko looks about as hung over as I was, rubbing her throbbing forehead "Um...what happened last night? I don't remember much about it…"
You and me both. I look up to Kanji in front of me. "What did happen last night?"
He flushes bright red in embarrassment, before turning red in anger "How the hell do you not remember what happened?! Don't cha remember what you blurted out loud about Naoto?! he barked angrily.
As he explains, it all starts rushing back to me… Oh dear god, I was so out of it even my thoughts were messed up...
9/09- Evening
Escapade
"Ahahaha, me next! Me! I'm the king! Actually, the queen!"
AlL hAil tHe qUEEn! HeheHEeheHehEhehe…
"You didn't even Draw a chopstick!"
HEr roYAl hIGHnESs doESn'T NEeD tO DrAW! tHe QUeeN CAn hAVe AnY loVER ShE- WaIT ThaT doESN't soUnD RiGHt...
"Alright, then… Let's have someone talk about something really embarrassing that they'd never wanna tell … Ah! Naoto kun! I choose you!"
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOoooOOOOOOOOHHHHHHhhHHH!
"She's breaking all the rules, just ignore her Naoto." YOSukE YoU KilLJoY!
"No… No, that won't be necessary. One stipulation, though: If I do this, the rest of you must reveal "something" as well.
"Okaaay!" RiSE YoU LOOk sO CuTe!
"No particular embarrassing experiences come to mind…" ReeEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeAAAaaLLLYYyyyyyyyy?
"Would discussing my life be fair game?" NaOTO asKS "It's the rare situation like this that gives me call to speak of such things. The Shirogane family has been detectives for generations now. We lend our powers to the police from time to time. In days gone by, when there were no crime scene investigators, consulting detectives were considered more valuable. Thus, my grandfather still has a strong connection with the police and looks after me, despite my youth and inexperience. But investigators nowadays are well versed in science and medicine, so I must further my studies."
"That sounds tough…" YoSuKe saId, beFOrE hE BLinkED "that's it? No punch line?" YoSuKe'S RiGHt, BoOOoOoooOrINg!
"I fear you may be looking to the wrong person for that." NaOTO RePLIed.
"WoRrY NoT, mY FriEnds! GuESs wHo hERe HaS AN eMBarRAsSInG StoRY AbOUt NaOTO!" I sAy iN DElighT.
"..." NaOtO GlaREs At mE MoRBiDlY.
"Please tell me you're not that drunk!" JuSt StAy CuTe ChiE, You'LL LovE 'diS.
"A LONG TIME AGO IN A GALAXY FAR, FAR AWAY….
EPISODE IV
A NEW HOPE
IT IS A PERIOD OF CIVIL WAR.
REBEL STARSHIPS, STRIKING
FROM A HIDDEN BASE, HAVE WON
THEIR FIRST VICTORY AGAINST
THE EVIL GALACTIC EMPIRE...
-OOpS, WRoNg EpiC sTOrY! SOOORRY! HeRE's WhaT ReALLy hAppEnEd…"
Two months ago
Croco fur
I'm lookin', lookin' for clothes, lookin' for clothes for people to wear, I'm lookin', lookin for clothes, lookin' for clothes to wear…
Haha. I should be a songwriter or something when I grow up. Okay, now back to business, I needed to get myself some new clothes, wearing my uniform all the time gets old after a while...
I go over to the dressing room and walk over to the attendant… the very cute attendant… Hold up brain, clothes first, cute girls later.
"Excuse me, can you help me out of this uniform?" i ask her.
…
Wait a minute…
oops...
She smiles with a blush… crap… this got more complicated. Flirting is not on my agenda right now; maybe later, but not now.
But before she says anything, Naoto emerges from the dressing room… Holding in a large bra in her hands?
"Excuse me, can you help me find a different bra, the cup size for this one isn't big enough-"
She freezes in place as the two of us make eye contact, the color rapidly draining from her face.
…
...
…
We maintained eye contact for 30 seconds… 30 seconds too long for both our sakes…
…
...
…
Oh, I see!
I give Naoto a huge thumbs up "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me!"
9/09-Evening
Escapade
"TrUe StOrY." i lOUdly PrOCLaim.
EvERYoNe lOOKs aT mE WIth disBElIeF, shOCk, aMUSEmeNT oR HoRroR. ExCEpt RiSE, wHO yElleD "I claim copyright for that song!"
I CuP RiSe's cHeEkS WitH mY HaNdS. "I WoULd NeVer dO AnyTHinG to HUrt you, FoRGivE mE, My LoVe!" i sAY SEDucTIvelY BefORE i SloWLy PrESSed mY LipS AgAiNsT HeRS.
wOw, hEr LIps ArE sOooOo SOFt… TAstes LiKE StrAWbErrieS...
oOOOOoOoOooooOhHHHHhhhHhHHhHHh! HeR FaCe WeNt SoOoOo ReD! ;)
AnD EvERyOne ELsE LOokS sOooOOoOOOOo ShOCKed ToO. :)
i IGnorE TheM aS i ThEN tUrN tO NaOTO, wHO LooKED LiKE ShE EIthER wanTED tO rUN aWAy fROm uS or ShoOT mE.
"DoN't WoRRy NaOTO, We StIlL LiKe YoU…" i LEaN iN reAl ClOSe to hEr… SHe's NOt foOlIng anYONe… "yOu AlsO waNNA KiSS-"
*CRASH!*
9/10-Afternoon
Hagakure Ramen
"To be fair," Kanji shrugged in resignation "You totally had the flower vase to the head comin'…"
I stare at him in shock "Did I really say all that?"
Kanji nods.
"Did i really call Rise, 'my love'?"
Kanji nods again.
"And then I…kissed her…?"
"Mhm…"
I briefly glance towards Rise, I'm not sure if she remembers; she looks just as hung over as me and Yukiko.
"And then I… turned my attention to... Naoto?" Then again, I couldn't blame drunk me; Naoto is pretty hot…
"Yeah, an' then he slammed a flower vase to yer face." Kanji frowns "Dude, you don't come onto another dude like that! 'Sides, he told us he was usin' dat bra for a disguise for another case he's workin' at."
Disguise for another case? That's the best excuse she could come up with? Really? Well, half of us were drunk and the other half were too busy handling the drunk half, so I'll give her a pass here. Still can't believe they think she's a girl though…
I'll just leave them be...
Argh, get back on topic, mind! "Did I do anything else?" I plead, hoping I didn't do anything else.
"Well," Kanji scratches his head uneasily "Before all that bullshit…"
Oh dear god...
A/N: Now that all's said and done, please review! I love it when you guys review. If you want to vote or discuss who the love interest should be, I set up a poll in my profile page if you want. I haven't made up my mind yet mostly because my brother can't decide which heroine he likes the most. So far it's an Even Tie to… all of them. so please review i love it when you guys review. (P.S. I do not own that quote from that famous movie.)