Disclaimer

Persona 4 is owned by Atlus

Bloodborne is owned by FromSoftware

His eyes snapped open, and he shot up in his seat. His eyes darted around, and after realizing he was still on the train he slumped down and rubbed at his eyes. There were flashes of a dream, something… blue? He shook his head, this was why he didn't want to take sleeping pills. He would rather get a restless, dark sleep than a restless, dream-filled sleep that he wouldn't remember. He looked out the window and watched the landscape pass: fields of green, rivers, little houses, all very picturesque.

He could almost guarantee there was something horribly wrong with it.

It was something of a pattern that the more beautiful the place, the more likely he would find it in ruins or desecrated at some point. Eventually the train reached his stop, and he got off to see… a rather simple looking town. He supposed they wanted him to be 'relaxed', someplace-

"Hey." He turned around to see a girl in strange clothes holding a piece of paper, "You dropped this."

He looked at the paper, and he realized it was the instructions for when he arrived, "Oh, thank-"

As he reached out for it their fingers touched, and for a brief moment he saw an iron mask instead of a face. He pulled his hand back, and the girl looked at him like he was insane. He realized how rude he was, and he took the paper before bowing a bit, "I'm sorry, thank you."

"…Uh-huh." She walked off, and he sighed. Not a good start. He looked over the paper: 'Ryotaro Dojima, Yaso-Inaba station, 3:30'. He looked at a nearby clock, and he saw it was 3:30 on the dot. So where…

"Hey!" He jolted and turned at the call, and he saw a grizzled looking man with a young girl approaching. He walked towards them as the girl hid behind the man, who seemed to measure him for a moment before holding out his hand, "I'm Ryotaro Dojima. I'll be looking after you while you're here in Inaba."

He took the hand and awkwardly shook it, "I'm… you can call me Myre."

"…Mayuri?" The girl peeked out, but she let out a little 'eep' and ducked back behind Dojima when he looked at her.

"That… sounds nice, actually." He crouched down, "And what's your name?"

"…Nanako." The girl was blushing as she peeked at him with her big brown eyes, and he nodded before standing up.

"Thank you for looking after me." He bowed, and Dojima just nodded before leading him to a grey carriage- car, he reminded himself. They rode for a short time, and he could see Dojima looking at him in the car's mirror.

"I have to stop at the gas station to top off." He seemed to think, "Er… you know what a gas station is right?"

"It's… where you get gas?" He offered weakly.

Dojima sighed, "Yeah. You can stretch your legs a bit when we stop."

He simply nodded, not sure how else to respond. Gods, has it really been so long that he's forgotten how to speak to people? He stared out the window, watching the homes and shops roll past. This town… they said it was small, but it still seemed so crowded. He yawned through his nose and closed his eyes-

"We're here."

He blinked at Dojima's proclamation, and he got out with the rest them. He was almost immediately assaulted by the smell of gas, and he quickly pulled his scarf up. Dojima looked at him warily, but Nanako quickly caught the older man's attention, "I have to go to the bathroom."

A silver-haired… boy? A silver-haired boy quickly approached, "Welcome to Moel! The bathroom is in the back, to the left." His smile grew a bit as he looked at Nanako, "Do you know which way is left? It's the side you don't hold your chopsticks in."

Myre blinked and looked down at his hands as Nanako grumbled and walked off. Was that some etiquette he wasn't made aware of?

"Fill her up, regular's fine." Dojima fumbled for something in his pockets, "I'm going to have a smoke. Mayuri, stay with the car."

"…Where else would I go?" Myre watched Dojima walk off, leaving him with the attendant who looked… sympathetic?

"I'm guessing it was a rough ride for everyone?"

He hesitantly nodded, "That… yes."

The attendant nodded as they started to fill Dojima's car, "Well, I'm sure everything will get better once you all had a chance to settle down. So, coming back from a family trip?"

The attendant's friendliness caught him off-guard and he found himself answering without meaning to, "Ah, no. That's my uncle. I'm staying with him for… some time."

"Ah, I see. So, where are you from?"

"…The city." Not technically a lie, "I had to come here for… medical reasons. My… parents wanted me to be someplace calm."

The boy nodded, "Well, they chose the right place. Inaba is pretty boring. I'm sure you'll either be hanging out with your friends or…" They seemed to think for a moment, "Hey, are you in high school?"

"Yes, why?"

The boy smiled, "Well, if you ever need some extra spending money, we'd be happy to hire you once you're feeling better."

He found himself smiling behind his scarf, "I'll think about it. I'm afraid my sense of smell is a bit more sensitive than most people's, and the smell of fuel here is rather… potent."

"Hmm, maybe we can get you a mask?"

Myre felt himself relaxing, "…Thank you for this. I will admit my nerves have been frayed for some time."

The boy practically beamed as he held out his hand, "My pleasure."

Myre took the hand and shook it, "No, really. It's nice to have another boy who doesn't judge me off the bat to talk to."

"…Uh, sorry to say this, but I'm a girl."

Myre could feel his face heat up, "O-Oh, I am so sorry. It's just, your voice was very… ah, neutral? Is that the word?"

He- She waved it off, "Don't worry about it." There was a beep from the machine, and she moved to pull the tube connecting it to the car, "Well, I better get back to work."

Myre quietly sighed in relief as she moved to help another car, thankful to have been saved from embarrassing himself further. He could feel the embarrassment so hard that it hurt his head.

Oh, no, that was a normal migraine.

Myre closed his eyes and put a hand to his face, the pain sharp and pounding into his brain. It passed quickly enough, but he felt a bit lightheaded.

"…Are you okay?"

He looked over at Nanako, who was peeking at him from over the car, "…I'm fine, Nanako, just a bit lightheaded."

"Well, let's get on our way then." Dojima walked up behind him, and he caught the attendant's attention. The girl came over and Dojima handed them some money.

"Thank you, come again!" The girl caught his eyes, and she smiled softly at him.

…Did it suddenly get warmer?

"I-I'll keep your offer in mind." He blurted out, and the girl nodded before going to attend to another customer.

"…Are you sure you're alright?" Nanako asked, the concern clear in her voice, "Your face is all red."

He could see the hint of a smirk on Dojima's face, "Tell you what, how about you take a quick walk to clear your head? Don't go too far though… you could get lost."

Myre wasn't dull enough to miss that pause, it gave away what Dojima really meant. He sighed before heading down the street. Aside from a suit of armor, there really wasn't anything to see. A boy and girl arguing, women gossiping, some strange red arch…

He paused as he caught site of a familiar girl standing next to a glowing blue butterfly. He walked up to her, and she stared at him with a frown.

"…Have we met?"

"Yes, at the train station." He bowed slightly, "I wanted to thank you for picking up my paper, and to apologize for acting strange."

"…Whatever."

The girl said nothing else, and he excused himself as the awkward silence stretched on. He climbed into the car with Nanako and Dojima, the latter still smirking slightly. They quietly drove to Dojima's house, and he carried his bag of belongings in. He recalled some of the etiquette lessons and undid his boots, setting them aside as Dojima and Nanako did the same.

"Your room's upstairs, come on." Dojima led him upstairs to a fairly small room, leaving him to unpack. It didn't take him long to stow away his meager possessions, but that left him with another conundrum…

Myre tapped his fingers on his knees as he tried to figure out how to spend the next hour or so until dinner. He really had no hobbies or distractions…

He sighed and relaxed back on his couch, and after a moment he caught the smell of fuel on his clothes. He grumbled as he tossed off the simple black shirt, and he was grateful that the smell didn't stick to the black… tanktop? Was that it?

"Myre?" Dojima called as he came up the stairs, "I wanted to ask if you wanted something special… for…"

Dojima stared at him as he stood in the doorway, and Myre looked at himself. He was certainly a sight. Scars from wound too long untreated, bandages, patches of gauze, so many needle marks…

"…I'm a right sight, aren't I?"

The saying may not have translated well, but Dojima seemed to get the meaning if the pained look on his face was any indication, "Myre-"

"Mayuri." Dojima stopped at his words, "I noticed you have trouble saying 'Myre', so… Mayuri is fine."

Dojima nodded, and the silence stretched before the older man decided he was too uncomfortable, "Is there… anything special you want for dinner?"

"…I'm not familiar with the local food. I'll eat whatever you pick out, though the doctors said I should 'put on weight', so..." Myre shrugged.

Dojima nodded, and then uncomfortably rubbed the back of his neck, "So, you'll be starting school tomorrow. You got everything you need for that?"

"Yes sir." Myre went through his bag and pulled out a simple blue shirt, quickly putting it on, "…Sir, you really don't have to pretend."

"Pretend?"

"I'm aware I was dropped into your lives, yours and Nanako's. I'll endeavor not to be a burden."

"Hey, you're not a burden." He paused at Dojima's… surprisingly earnest tone, "You're just… sick."

Myre stared up at Dojima, clenching fists being the only sign of his anger. He knew Dojima wasn't talking about the infections from surgery. The older man seemed to pick up on the shift, the sudden tenseness of the air, and Dojima squared his shoulders like he was readying for a fight.

"…So that's why they sent me here."

Dojima looked confused, but his response was cut off by Nanako coming up and into view.

"Dad, did you ask Mayuri… what…" She seemed to pick up on the atmosphere, "Are you two fighting?"

Dojima was caught off guard, "Ah, no, Nanako, we were just-"

"You shouldn't pick on him! You said he was sick!"

Myre had never seen a grown man be cowed by his daughter before then, "…I-It's alright, Nanako. We weren't fighting, just… having a loud discussion."

Her brown pigtails bobbed as she looked at him, "…Are you sure?"

"I'm sure, Nanako." She studied Myre's face before nodding and going back downstairs, and he looked back to Dojima, "For one so small, she certainly stands like a giant."

A slight chuckle from Dojima, "Yeah… I'll let you know when the food's here." He retreated down the stairs, and Myre leaned back into the couch. Well… he didn't have anything else to do… with a stretch of his arms, Myre shut his eyes and tried to nap.

Fog, deep, but he could see the path, red bricked. Walking, a voice, taunting… no, curious? He followed, a figure in the fog, the familiar weight in his hand. Blade raking across… something.

"I hope I'll see you again soon."

Myre's eyes snapped open, and he quickly looked around… yes, yes, he was still in Dojima's residence. He sighed and relaxed once more… and promptly jumped out of his skin when he Nanako called him down for dinner. He quickly pulled his clothes on, and rushed downstairs. They had… fish on rice... sushi! That was it! Apparently Japan was famous for it. He said the prayer he was taught along with the Dojima's, and started on his meal. It was… very strange, but he couldn't entirely complain. He did enjoy fish quite a bit, after all. Dojima largely just spoke to Nanako, asking how school was and such until the man was called away by the ringing of the phone.

Dojima… did not sound pleased as he shouted at whoever was calling, returning to him and Nanako with a sigh, "I'm sorry… work called in and I have to go. Feel free to keep eating." Nanako simply nodded, and as Dojima quickly left the house Myre was left in the awkward silence. Thankfully, Nanako swiftly turned on the television, and while he didn't want to admit it, he was mesmerized. All this technology was still so new to him… it wasn't hard to say but the bells and whistles drew him in like a moth to the flames. Eventually their meal was concluded, him helping to clean up a bit before heading to bed. More sleeping pills, more blurry dreams, and soon it was time for him to wake up… ah yes, this would also be his first day at school. Pulling on his uniform he went downstairs to- oh by Kos' life there was bacon and eggs.

"Good morning." Nanako chimed, setting down a plate toasted bread as more popped out of the toaster.

"Good morning… hm? Where's your father?"

"Oh, he's already at work."

He nodded, thanking her for the meal before the two started to eat, and he followed her instruction of simply leaving the plates in the sink for later before he moved for the door.

"Oh, wait, do you know where your school is?" Nanako interrupted, and he blinked. He had to think for a moment before realizing the outstanding lack of knowledge of the school's whereabouts. He blushed brightly.

"Ah, no, no I do not…"

Nanako smiled, "Okay. You can follow me, your school is close to mine."

A nod, and the two set off for a good 15 minutes before the road split, and Nanako guided him down one street while she took the other. He waved off the younger girl and continued on towards school. Bar some unfortunate boy crashing his bicycle and injuring his crotch, things were fine. He went to the teacher's lounge and was guided towards his class by a man (admittedly, the teacher looked more beaver than man), and he was led in front of the class.

"Alright, listen up ya little ingrates! For those of you having me for the first time, I'm your homeroom teacher, Morooka Kinshiro! Now first things first: just because it's Spring, that's no excuse to act like a bunch of horny baboons!" What the hell was a baboon? "Second, I'm here to introduce this sad sack!" He gestured to Myre, "This transfer student spent most of his time in the hospital, from what I heard! This is the problem with you kids today: you eat shit, and you end up as shit! Stuffing your faces with junk food all day-"

"That… isn't why I was sick…" Myre spoke up, but the teacher whirled around on him.

"Oh yeah? Then what happened, punk?"

"Did… did the principal not tell you?" Myre blinked, and the teacher frowned… well, more than he did before.

"Oh, a wiseguy, huh? Think the prin-" There was a chime, and a voice came over the speakers in the classroom.

"Mr. Morooka, please come to the teacher's lounge."

The message repeated, and the teacher grumbled as he headed towards the door, "Tell the class your name then sit down!"

The door slammed and Mayuri awkwardly turned to the class and waved, "H-Hello… I am Mayuri."

The moment stretched on, and he was saved by a girl in a green jacket waving him over, "Hey, over here!" He spotted the empty seat next to her and quickly took it, smiling apologetically at him, "Sorry about King Moron. You must have the worst luck if he's your homeroom teacher."

"You… have no idea." He gave an actual chuckle.

"Ah, my name's Chie! And hey, at least we only have to last a year!"

He nodded, and Mr. Morooka came back in, simply heading for his desk as he grumbled, "Alright, roll call! Pay attention!"

The students called 'here' when their names were called, and Myre was subjected to Morooka's… unique style of lecture. Thankfully, he went through the day without incident, or at least until class was supposed to be let out.

"Attention students: There has been an incident in the school district, and police have been dispatched to the School Zone. Please contact your guardians or parents, and quickly head home. Do not disturb the officers."

Myre went wide eyed as the class immediately began whispering, and he began packing his things. He bloody well called it, didn't he? As he stood up he blinked at the sudden colors in front of him, Chie and a girl in a deep red outfit standing there, "Oh, hello?"

"Hey there. Noticed you didn't really look like you were heading out with anyone, wanna come with us?" Chie smiled, "Oh, wait! Before that, I'm Chie Satonaka. I waved you over, remember?"

Mayuri chuckled quietly, "Yes, I do, and this is…?" He looked to the girl in red, who seemed a bit surprised before she bowed slightly.

"Oh, I'm Yukiko Amagi, I'm sorry we just came up so suddenly."

"Geez, don't do that Yukiko. Makes me look I have no manners. I just wanted to ask him a few questions." Chie rubbed the back of her head, and they started towards the door before the boy Myre saw crash earlier approached Chie, looking downright scared as he held something

"A-Ah, Miss Satonaka, thanks again for lending me your DVD." He chuckled nervously, Chie getting a suspicious look on her face as he held it out to her and bowed deeply, "And I'm really sorrypleasehavemercyuntilpayday!" The boy said the words quickly and tried to sprint off as soon as she took it, but she easily caught up to him.

"Stop right there!" She kicked out, and once again the poor boy took a blow straight between the legs, and Myre winced in sympathy as the boy fell to the ground, clutching his.. bits. Myre approached Chie to see her opening a case of some sort, a horrendously cracked disk inside it. From the yell Chie let out, you'd think her firstborn had died, "My 'Trial of the Dragon!'"

"I-It's okay, Chie… Are you alright?" The question was sent towards the boy on the ground as Yukiko pat Chie's shoulder.

"O-Oh, w-w-worried about me, Yukiko-san?" The boy awkwardly smiled, but Chie grabbed Yukiko's hand and stormed off, leaving the boy to tremble on the ground. Myre reached out towards him before awkwardly withdrawing his hand and shuffling on the spot until Chie called out to him.

"Are you coming or what?"

Myre jumped a bit before quickly following after the two girls. However, things got stranger when the trio was leaving the school gates and a boy with fish eyes approached Yukiko. He... well, he'd call what the boy made an attempt at flirting. He heard a few people who had stopped by to watch mention something called the 'Amagi Challenge,' which only made him more and more confused until the boy stormed off at Yukiko's rejection, "What is happening...?"

Chie opened her mouth, but seeing the gathered crowd she winced, "Come on, let's get out of here first." She led the two off away from the school, and when they couldn't see it anymore Chie looked to him, "Sorry you got caught up in that, but lots of people have the hots for Yukiko. I guess that even applies to people from other schools."

He wasn't sure how she could tell he was from another school, but he wasn't exactly studying the boy very hard. He hummed as he remembered something, "Does it involve that 'Amagi Challenge' I heard one boy mention?" He saw Yukiko make a face, and he quickly tried to backpedal, "I, I did not mean to insult or dredge up bad memories..."

"Oh, no, it's alright." Yukiko quickly shook her head, and Chie chimed in.

"Yeah, it's just what jerks call it when people try to date Yukiko, but man that guy was creepy. The way he got mad and stormed off like that, then there were his eyes..."

"Aniridia." They looked to him and he clarified, "It's a condition where someone's born without their iris, the colored part of your eye."

"How the heck did you know that?" Chie stared at him with wide eyes and he shrugged.

"I... had to learn a lot when I was younger."

"Oh! Where did you grow up?"

"It was a small town, it didn't really have a name."

Chie's eyes went wide, nearly popping out of her head, "Whoa, it didn't even have a name!?"

He shook his head, "I... eventually moved to a place called Yharnam until I came here."

"Yharnam? Oh, so you're half-Japanese?"

"Well... no." Chie's confusion was plain on her face.

"Wait, but Mayuri is a-"

"My name isn't Mayuri. It's Myre, but I figured that was easier for people to say."

"Huh. Weird... Wait, no, I don't mean you're weird, just-"

"No, calling me weird is fairly accurate." He giggled, and Chie smiled in relief that she hadn't offended him.

"So, why did you come here?"

He recited the lie he was given by the doctors, "I've been ill for a while, and the doctors think it best I find someplace to rest and recuperate. Before you ask, I'd rather not get into it."

The girls looked at him with sympathy, and he was surprised as she took on an almost motherly tone, "Oh, I'm so sorry. Did you just want to head home to rest?"

"...Ah, no, no. I'm quite enjoying having someone to talk to. Why don't you tell me about Inaba?" Thankfully she took the bait, and started talking eagerly.

"Oh yeah! Well, there's not a lot to say, honestly. I think we're kinda famous for our textiles or pottery? Oh, and the Amagi Inn!"

"Going to toss the dice here and say Yukiko's family runs the inn?" He glanced over to a now fidgeting Yukiko, Chie practically beaming as she started praising the inn.

"Yeah yeah! It's in all sort of magazines as a hidden treasure. It pretty much keeps the town going."

"I-It's just an old inn, it's not that special."

"Geez, have a little pride why don'tcha?" He saw Yukiko flinch slightly as Chie spoke up, "You're going to be running it eventually, right? Besides, the busy season usually starts right around now, doesn't it? Sometimes you miss school because of it." While Yukiko looked bothered on the outside, he could see something in her eyes, like she was more upset than she let on. He also hadn't realized he was staring very intently at her, since Chie suddenly got a sly look on her face. "Soooooo, tell me..."

"Hm?" He looked over to her.

"You think Yukiko's super cute, right?"

If he had been drinking something he would've spat it out, and from Yukiko's face she would've done the same. Her face was bright red, and she waved her hand towards Chie, "Ch-Chie come on, don't start this again!"

"Yeah, she's super popular and gets people asking her out all the time, but she always turns them down. Doesn't help that some of them are like that creepy guy from earlier."

"Chie!" Yukiko looked to him, "D-Don't listen to her okay? It's not true that I'm popular or that I've never had a boyfriend!" Her blush grew brighter, and she shook her head. "Th-Th-That's not what I meant! I meant I don't need a boyfriend!"

He watched her face, and despite his own blush he could help but snicker, then laugh, "Sorry, sorry. I don't mean to laugh, you just look very adorable when flustered."

Yukiko made a noise while Chie giggled, "I knew it!"

He chuckled again but it trailed off as the wind brought a scent to him, and he looked down the street, "...Odd... do you two smell that?"

The girls looked at each other in confusion, Chie sniffing the air, "I don't smell anything."

"Me neither..."

"Huh. I smell... acid and rotted meat." They looked at each other, Chie shrugging before she looked forward and seemed to notice something.

"Police lights?" Chie took off towards the lights before he or Yukiko could say anything, and they quickly caught after her. True to her word there was a police cordon around the street, a few people gathered around. Myre also saw a familiar face tearing into one of the officers.

"Dojima?"

The older man turned around, surprised to see the trio, quickly stepping up to them, "What are you three doing here?"

"We were just passing through, but then Chie saw the lights and I smelled... something." Mayuri gestured to the nearby police cars, and Dojima sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Right... damn principal, I said not to let anyone through here." He pulled his hand away, "Look, you three should just head home."

"Wait, but what happened here? I smelled stomach acid and old meat." Dojima looked at Mayuri again with shock, but before he could speak up the man Dojima was shouting at earlier came up, beating him to the punch.

"Oh, someone called in about a dead body hanging from the TV antenna."

As the children reeled Dojima whirled on the man, "Damn it Adachi! You wanna tell them about how you threw up too!?" 'Adachi' recoiled, raising both hands defensively, before Dojima sighed, looking at the trio, "Look, you kids should head straight on home."

"Y-Yes sir... come on Yukiko, we can head to Junes another time." Chie looked to Mayuri, "Oh, we'll see you at school tomorrow, right? Let's do our best from now on."

Mayuri nodded stiffly, and the girls took off. He was about to do the same but Dojima put a hand on his shoulder, "Hold on. Could you tell Nanako I'm probably going to be home late again?"

He stopped, if mostly out of confusion, "Can you not just call her?"

Dojima sighed - he seemed to do that a lot, "Not while on a case."

"Ah. Wouldn't want anyone to hear about what's going on before you have all the facts?" Dojima nodded, Mayuri doing the same, "Right. I'll tell her right when I get home."

"Thanks." Dojima looked like he wanted to say more but let Myre go. The bluenette quickly returned to the Dojima residence, passing on Dojima's message to Nanako. She seemed oddly accepting of the situation, but figured this was something of a norm for her. Without much to do he sat with Nanako, watching TV for a time before the news came up. Of course on the news was the recent murder, and he sighed. He was absolutely right about his thought when he first came here. He-

"Oh, it's Junes!" Nanako perked up suddenly, a commercial playing and she swung a bit as she sang with its jingle, "Every day's great at your Junes!" She looked at him, and he felt he was suddenly put on the spot. He nervously started spoke up, trying to match her tone.

"Y-Your Junes..."

She gasped like she received a present, practically beaming, "You know the song too!? I can sing it the best in my class!"

"You... really like Junes, huh?"

"Mhm!"

"Seems popular, though I'm not entirely sure what it is..." Nanako gasped, and he got a rundown of the store. She seemed... weirdly excited about it, but if it was the largest store around, it wasn't too surprising people wanted to flock to it. After a bit more conversation he went up to his room, sitting on his bed. He took out and swallowed his various medicines before he came down to the last: his sleeping pill, a small pink tablet in the center of his hand. He technically had to take it, but... he just hated the restless sleep it led to. He sighed, shutting his eyes for a moment.

He wasn't expecting to see a burning card in his hands when he opened them again.

Myre's eyes and mouth shot wide open as he stared at the blue card, wrapped in an equally blue flame. He stared for a long moment, but when he blinked his hand was completely empty. He sat on his bed for a long moment before rifling through his various medicines, counting them out. He, he'd taken everything in the exact amount, he... after a moment he shook himself. Yes, he must've just... had a bad reaction, or a bad day.

With a sigh, Myre grabbed his blanket, slipping off into sleep...

Just an old story I've had sitting in my folders since the early days, figured I'd work on and get the chapters out and try and get back into the swing of things.