She's A Girl (A Kanji X Naoto fanfic) Persona 4 (ON HOLD)

(2) Partners

1 hour earlier

Naoto's POV

     Everything was set in place. I had planned to arrive at the Junes store at least 30 minutes early, though I usually plan to arrive earlier than that to meetings like this.
     I still couldn't believe it. Personas, a giant walking mascot, shadows, and a secret world inside the TV? Not possible. Though yet it was. I was still baffled on the subject. I took a deep breath and decided to go over the details of my speech one more time.
     After doing so, I carefully laid my supplies out on what I was told was the "usual table." The food court was mostly empty, save for a few pedestrians having a meal and some workers. I took my seat and waited for the others to arrive.
     The first to show up were Teddie and Yosuke. This was to be expected, considering Yosuke's father owns the establishment. Teddie was...over-enthusiastic about seeing me. He ran up and practically tackled me with a big hug. With his costume on, of course.
     "Teddie! Stop running too far off, you dumb bear!"
     Yosuke came trailing in behind him, listening to music through the headphones he always wears around his neck. I have always been curious about what exactly he listens to in his own little world. Perhaps I may never know. Teddie and Yosuke both take their seat, and wait with me calmly for the others to arrive.
     Next up were Chie and Yukiko. They walked in to the food court, having an apparently humorous conversation. Yukiko was laughing, more like snorting, all the way to the table, as Chie continued talking, with the biggest smile on her face.
      "-and so then I said: 'Hey, watch the hands, pal!'" Chie exclaimed. Yukiko busted out laughing."Oh, hey you guys. Are we late?".
     It was true, it had taken a while for them to get here compared to how long it took the others. It was now less than ten minutes before the time everyone agreed to arrive. Yu-senpai hadn't arrived yet, which is rather unusual considering early he usually is.
     Granted, he actually ends up arriving a mere five to ten minutes after Chie and Yukiko, which was basically on the dot. Yu walked in silently, without saying a word, as he usually would. He gives a small wave to everyone at the table and manages a slight "Hello".
     Surprisingly, Rise came at the last possible moment, barely making it in time. She lightly jogged over to the table, claiming her reason for being late being taking a long time applying her makeup. This I could understand, due to her large history is "showbiz". She must have been used to making sure she was more than presentable. Then again, most girls would have the desire to do that...
     As to be expected, Kanji was late. I barely knew him at the time, yet I could tell he was the kind of person that arrives "fashionably" late. We-more like they-were having a small debate on whether or not we should start without him.
     "We all agreed to meet at 16:00 on the dot. Can he not follow something as simple as that?", asked Yosuke.
     "Well, we should still give him a fair chance, right? He's as much as a part of this group as we are.", replied Yukiko.
     "Calm down," I said to them. "Arguing isn't going to get us anywhere. If we're going to be an Investigation Team, then we need to start agreeing on things more. I think we should all be treated fairly, and besides, the things I have to say need to be addressed to all of you."
     That seemed to stop the conversation. I didn't mean to interrupt, but I couldn't take their bickering any longer. I turned to Yu-senpai.
     "Of course, it is all up to you, leader. What do you think we should do?"
     Yu just silently nodded his head, before giving a thumbs up. I couldn't really tell if he was agreeing with me or not, but it didn't matter in the end, because soon after doing so, Kanji actually arrived. However, he did not look very presentable.
     His hair was fluffed over, and looked as if he had just gotten out of bed. He was wearing a wrinkled undershirt and torn up jeans, and he had large bags under his eyes, as if he had not gotten enough sleep.
     "I'm not late, I'm not late!", he ran in, screaming at the top of his lungs. He ran towards the table at full speed, managing to knock over multiple chairs in doing so. If anything else, I suppose he is persistent? He stops, frantically looking around, and after seeing that he was the last one to arrive, he crossed his arms and cursed under his breath. I guess he was fine with standing. With everyone there, it was time for me to begin.
     "Alright, I have called you all here today to first discuss the TV world you speak so fondly of. Being the newest addition to the team, it is necessary for me to know anything you all know about it."
     Yosuke speaks first. "Well, its basically the place where the killer attempts to 'dispose' of his victims. The kidnapped people are put into any regular TV, and are then in their own area that is based around themselves and their feelings. From there, they are then tortured by their shadow, a mirrored version of themselves."
     Chie begins to speak, as if to pick up where Yosuke left off, however Teddie rudely interrupts.
     "And those places are filled with these beary scary monsters called shadows! But then, Sensei and the others call forth their personas and kick some serious butt!"
     Chie then kicks Teddie under the table. She clearly doesn't like being interrupted. "Anyway, that's pretty much it. Anytime someone gets kidnapped, we find out where they are in the TV world and try to save them."
     Interesting. I think. "You've mentioned before that personas allow us to fight shadows." I say. "What do each of you specify in?"
     "I can do a lot of things, but I mainly use wind attacks", Yosuke says.
     "I use physical moves!", Chie says. "All those martial arts movies really do pay off!" Upon saying so, Chie karate chops the table, scattering all the notes I've been taking. Some fall to the floor, and Kanji-kun picks them up and sets them back on the table.
     "Me next!", Rise exclaims. "I'm not like the others. Instead off fighting, I have backup abilities like analyzing the enemies or-".
    Rise is cut off by Teddie, who explains his abilities in a very exclamatory manner. "I use ice attacks! But I can also keep you safe by healing! Especially you ladies!" Teddie gave off a very perverted smile, and all the women of the group rolled their eyes, especially Chie.
     "Oh, I guess I'm next...", Yukiko said quietly. "I also can use healing abilities, as well as use powerful fire attacks."
     Yu had explained to me before about the Velvet Room, and how he could wield multiple personas at once, so he had no need to explain himself.
     That just left Kanji. However he had somehow fallen asleep while standing up, snoring very loudly. Yu, who was the closest to him, waved a hand in front of his face. Kanji-kun immediately woke up. "Eh? What were we talking about?".
   "We were merely explaining our abilities in battle. It was your turn." I explained to him.
     "Oh, I use electric and support stuff, I guess. I can also be pretty strong"
    "Impressive." I say. "You must be a very valuable asset in battle."
     Yukiko jumps in. "Hey Naoto, you said you deal with light and dark attacks, right? In that case, you and Kanji could make a pretty good team!"
     "Yeah!" Chie exclaimed. "You could be like partners!"
     "P-Partners?". For some reason, Kanji started mildly blushing.
    True, while we could make a very good combination in battle, I can really take care of myself.
    "I would rather work alone.", I replied.
    "Oh...", Kanji says, sounding slightly disappointed. Why would that be? Is there something that I'm missing?

A/N
Long chapter is loooooong.

Stay cool guys!