I use this line a lot, but I was bored and this idea popped into my head. Have you ever noticed how lucky all the Persona protagonist are? That they appear in the place they're sent to live just when shit started to happen?

What if... They were still sent there, but the circumstances were different?

What if... Akira never encountered Ryuji to learn about Kamoshida in P5?

What if... Yu never told anyone about his TV experience and tried to solve everything himself?

Or rather, in the case of this... What if... Minato was overlooked by SEES and never went to the dorm in Iwatodai? And what if... During his lonely childhood, Death was the only friend he had?

This is my second attempt at a full-fledged story, so I'm not the most experienced author, but how else am I going to learn, eh?

No promises on how often this'll be updated. It'll happen when it happens.

?

"Now approaching, Iwatodai.." The announcer repeated on the intercom

Sitting alone on a train, is a young 16 year old boy know to most as Makoto Yuki. He wasn't doing anything, rather, he was just sitting quietly while listening to his earphones that were connected to the mp3 player he wore around his neck.

Makoto's most noticeable features were that he had messy dark blue hair with a large fringe that covered almost an entire half of his face and blue-gray eyes that seemed to lack any emotion whatsoever.

Everyone kept their distance from Makoto. Something about the boy seemed... off. It was hard for people to describe, but whenever they were close to the boy they could've sworn they felt a chill in the air. Not that the boy did anything creepy, but rather it felt like they were in the presence of something else... something very wrong.

He didn't mind this, however, he actually preferred it. Even when he was in grade school, Makoto was always the one that stayed by himself. Even when kids his age had started to waste their time on relationships that would likely never last, Makoto was always the one that preferred to stay by himself, all alone.

Actually, this wasn't entirely correct either. No human being can survive without some form of social interaction if they wished to stay sane, but it was a friend that only he could see, that only he could hear... A friend that was special to him, and him alone.

"I don't think you'll make it before it happens..." The boy glanced to his right, the one speaking was a very young boy in what looked like an old-school prison getup.

"I don't care." He quietly responded to his old friend who was now looking around "What're you doing, Pharos?"

Makoto followed Pharos' gaze and saw a auburn-haired girl with crimson eyes who was listening to her own earphones and mp3 player.

"She's pretty." Pharos said which caused Makoto to roll his eyes. Unlike him, Pharos had a certain 'enamorment' when it came to people, particularly girls.

"Whatever..." The bluenette mumbled before the train finally stopped.

Makoto kept silent as he exited the train while looking at his watch as it kept ticking, just a few more seconds...

"3..." he whispered as he started the count down

"2..." he continued to walk a few more steps

"1..."

All of a sudden, all electronics ceased to function and the entire world gain a dark green-ish tint.

Everyone around Makoto ceased to move before they completely changed from their human form into a red coffin.

From seemingly nowhere, red blood-like liquid began to seep from the floor, pour from the walls, and replace most sources of water in the general area.

Finally, above in the sky, the moon's color changed from white to a twisted form of green.

"Home sweet home." Makoto said dryly before noticing the sound of foot steps that weren't his.

He looked towards the sound and saw the same girl from earlier still her normal self and moving despite the fact that everyone else in currently a coffin.

"Huh..." Makoto said slightly surprised "Wonder how long you'll last." he wondered before leaving the station

Streets

Just like everywhere else, the entirety of Iwatodai was dead-silent. None of the streetlights worked, the only source of illumination was the green light emanating from the moon.

It wasn't just the appearance, but the very atmosphere of the area felt completely different. It was very dark both in visual and tone, almost as if there were other things lurking in the darkness that engulfed the entire area.

None of this bothered Makoto, though, not even slightly. Quite the contrary, just as he said before, this time of day was almost like a sort of home for him. There was no one around to bother him, no one around to judge him, and best of all... No one around to pity him.

Pity... He even hated the sound of the word, much less the meaning.

It was here... Here in this very place that he lost his family 10 years ago. For 10 years, he was shuffled between biological and then adoptive family members, all of whom shunned him. They never mistreated him per se, to them he just... existed. He wanted nothing to do with them and after the first year or two, his adoptive family made no more attempts to include him in their lives outside of sharing a roof and providing him with what he needed.

Of course, none of them knew about this time of the day. That was reserved for him and only him. This, this was the only time he was truly free from everyone and everything.

As for other people, they were forced to remain in coffins for the entirety of this period. If they weren't in those, then, well...

"Huh?" Makoto stopped as soon as he heard the confused sound of someone other than himself "Wh-What the hell is this?!"

The boy glanced to his right and saw a confused man out of his coffin.

He merely shook his head as he watched the fate of what awaited everyone who wasn't lucky enough to be in their coffin.

Whoever the man was, he didn't get to wonder what was going on for too long. Suddenly, the same red liquid that decorated the area began to pour from the top of his head.

The man screamed in either fear or pain as he clutched his head that kept pouring the strange liquid before falling over and having his entire body become nothing more than a completely black puddle.

After a few moments, out of the puddle came a mask that was immediately followed by multiple arms sprouting.

With the mask seemingly acting as a head and face for the new creature, it looked around until it spotted Makoto who was still looking, seemingly not worried in the slightest.

The creature suddenly used its new arms to to sprint towards him, but Makoto didn't move a muscle.

Makoto took a deep breath and exhaled, still seeming like he was completely disinterested. And why should he have any? He already knew how this was going to end...

Suddenly, Makoto's eyes glowed a dim blue with a dark silhouette forming above him.

The moment he did this, the creature stopped in its tracks. But it didn't stop there, the creature let out an almost adorable squeak as it turned around and ran away in fear.

Makoto's eyes went back to normal and the silhouette disappeared as a smirk formed on the boy's face as he walked away. It was a little amusing to see those things run away in fear.

After a bit more walking, Makoto finally reached his destination. While him and his relatives didn't have the best relationship, they were at least able to provide him with his own apartment to live in for the year.

The bluenette went into the building and went to what would be his home for the rest of the year.

Makoto's Apartment

Makoto stepped inside as he felt the presence of the mysterious hour fade. It had a name, of course, Pharos said that it was called the 'Dark Hour' and creatures that come from it, such as the thing from earlier, are known as 'Shadows'.

Honestly, if he hadn't heard it from Pharos, it would've sounded a ridiculous to him.

"Is this our new home?" Pharos asked as he looked around. There wasn't a lot to the place; There was a basic kitchen, a sofa, a TV, a table with 2 chairs, a bathroom with all the essentials, and a bedroom. It was all small, but functional.

"For now." The bluenette answered as he put the bag he had been carrying down on the floor

"Does it bother you?" Pharos asked, a tidbit concerned about his friend "I imagine being here isn't entirely pleasant."

"Don't worry about it." The boy assured as he went to his bedroom and collapsed onto his bed. Pharos had asked for him to come back here, and Makoto didn't even ask why. If that was what his friend wanted, then that's what he'd get.

"Sweet dreams, Minato." Pharos wished, using the name that only he was allowed to use.

"You... Too..." He barely managed to whisper before his conciousness faded away

Next Day ; Station

With tired eyes, Makoto forced himself up in the morning (which may have been assisted by Pharos' insistence as well) and went back the station to take one of the monorails.

Unfortunately for Makoto, he was still a student. It was that very excuse he used on his 'family' to convince him to move here because he was able to get into some high prestige school.

Just like last night, he put his earphones on and listened as the world around him continued.

Pharos, only being visable by Makoto and Makoto alone, did his usual habit of viewing their surrondings. Then, something caught his attention.

"It's her again." He said which made Makoto look in the same direction. Unlike regular people, Pharos' voice always reached Makoto, almost as if the voice came from his own head rather than someone else's.

True to what the little boy said, the same redhead from last night managed to make it through the night and was riding the train while talking to some brunette in pink.

"So she made it through the night..." Makoto murmured slightly surprised. Usually, people died from 30 seconds to around 7 minutes.

Pharos, however, was a bit to busy ogling both of the girls to respond to what Makoto had said "She's pretty, too!"

Makoto sighed as he shook his head "We have to do something about that perverted mind of yours."

"They're in the same uniform too!" Pharos pointed out the redhead's blazer and the school shirt hidden within the brunette's pink jacket

"Neat." He replied, not entirely caring. She may have lived another day, but in the end, no one escapes death's grasp.

School

"Good morning class..." The teacher called Ms. Toriumi said as Makoto and that same girl from earlier stood in front of everyone "I'd like to introduce 2 new transfer students."

The redhead took a step forward and politely bowed "Hello, everyone. My name is Kotone Shiomi."

The class was in a slight uproar over the new girl in school. The boys did the typical ogling over a new girl to try their futile attempts on.

The girls didn't pay as much attention as they did to Makoto, but the ones that did seemed friendly enough.

Next up, was Makoto's turn.

The boy walked up and simply said "Makoto Yuki." and then there was another uproar.

The girls, of course, were captivated by Makoto's unique but attractive features ; His pale skin, lean body, decent enough height, and he had a certain draw that they just found endearing.

Meanwhile, the guys were actually a little creeped out. Just the way he silently stood there with a blank face and how a icy-cold aura just seemed to emanate from the guy.

Uninterested, Makoto just looked at his teacher "Where do you want us to sit?"

"I had a row made for the two of you, right..." Toriumi pointed at a row of two empty seats "... There!"

Without saying another word, the two did as asked. Makoto sat on the right side while Kotone sat on the left.

Now that he had a decent look at her, he could also she that she had an mp3 player and earphones of her own, albeit red instead of silver like his. She also seemed to like keeping her hair in a high-ponytail with silver barrettes that formed the Roman numeral for '22'.

She was also a bit on the short side, being maybe 3 - 4 inches smaller than him. Her skin was also pale, but not enough that she almost looked like a ghost. Unlike most girls nowadays, she didn't have any of her ears pierced at all. She was definitely a pretty one, just like Pharos said, but appearances meant little to Makoto.

And then she noticed him looking right at her.

"Hey..." She whispered as to not catch their teacher's attention

Seeing how he was the one who caused this, he decided to respond "Yes..?"

"Well, if we're going to be here for the year, why not get to-"

"No." Makoto objected before she could even finish her sentence

"Oh come-"

"No."

"Please-"

"No." He said for the 3rd time, this time trading his flat tone for one with annoyance.

Kotone looked a bit disheartened as she looked forward and sighed. This did make Makoto feel a little bit bad seeing how it was his looking at her that caused this, rather than her not minding her own business like most people.

Makoto sighed "Sorry..." he apologized "I'm not a people person, so please, just leave me alone."

"Hmm..." Kotone thought for a moment "I'll accept..." she smirked as she leaned forward "If you agree to buy me dinner."

Makoto returned the suggestion with a blank face "Why would I do that and why would you even want that?"

"I want it because I'm a growing girl..." She answered with a giggle. Makoto had wondered for years what his antithesis would look like, and it appears that he had finally found her "As to why you should other than spending time with the girl of your dreams, is that someone has to teach you some manners." That had just met, and he already knew that this girl was going to be the death of him.

"I'll think about it." He said, not outright agreeing, but not outright refusing either. Such a statement was seemingly enough to satisfy Kotone.

Later

After barely managing to keep his eyes open, Makoto could finally leave as the school ended.

Unexpectedly, as soon as everyone could walk around, a capped boy with a goatee approached both him and Kotone.

"Hey..." The boy greeted, much to Makoto's confusion.

"Hiya!" Kotone returned the greeting while her fellow transfer student just stared blankly.

"I'm Junpei Iori, nice to meet ya!" The boy identified himself

"What do you want?" Makoto asked bluntly, instantly killing whatever mood Junpei was trying to build.

"I transferred here when I was in 8th grade, so I know what it's like to be the new kid." Junpei explained his admittedly noble intentions "Though, your a lot luckier than I was. When I transferred, it was just me."

"I'm not looking for a friend." Makoto said bluntly, not wanting to waste any time or get the boy's hopes up "Just leave me alone and there won't be any problems."

"Gee, you don't waste anytime." Kotone chimed in, realizing he was quite serious when he said that he wasn't looking for a friend nor was he a people person.

"Bothering someone again?" Said an unfamiliar feminine voice

Everyone turned to the voice and saw the same brunette in a pink jacket from the monorail here.

"Honestly, you'll talk to anybody as long as they listen." The girl said to Junpei, which seemed to somewhat offend the boy

"Hey, I was just being friendly." Junpei defended his actions

"Nice to see you again, Yukari-chan!" Kotone greeted and identified the girl.

"Hey..." Suddenly, Yukari's tone changed. It was much quieter, as if there was a secret between them "Hey, you didn't tell anyone about 'you-know-what', right?"

Kotone shook her head "Mm-mm." she denied

"Good." Yukari seemed a little relieved "Seriously, don't tell anyone about last night."

Junpei suddenly recoiled a bit in shock at the implications that she had inadvertently set "L-L-Last night?!"

Last night? Makoto thought to himself. He had seen Kotone easily moving around during the Dark Hour when it first started, so it was unlikely that she and Yukari did what Junpei was no-doubt thinking. But, if Kotone was able to move during the Dark Hour and they had a secret, did that mean Yukari could too?

"W-What?!" Yukari asked with a red face as she realized what she just said.

Makoto sighed, he had better things to do than listen to this.

"Later." he gave a simple farewell before putting on his earphones on and walking away.

As he passed the lockers, he saw Pharos sitting on some while kicking his feet.

"They seemed nice." Pharos gave his opinion on his classmates

"I don't care." Makoto dismissed the idea that Pharos was implying. While he understood Pharos was only interested in his happiness, he also didn't want any friends. After all, he already had the only one he needed in his eyes.

After the bluenette walked out the school's front doors, Pharos seemingly teleported to the school's gates.

"Do you think both of them are also be able to move during the Dark Hour as well?" Pharos asked, his curiosity peaked. Usually, anyone who wasn't in a coffin died soon after, except for Makoto himself.

"I know Kotone can, not sure about the other one." He answered as he trotted to his new home "We might want to look into it at some point."

Pharos chuckled as he walked beside his friend "I think this is going to be a very interesting year for us, Minato."

"Yeah..." Makoto agreed. Something told him that this year was going to be an interesting one, indeed. Who knows what surprises fate had in store for the boy? Only time could tell.

For now, all he could do is retreat home and wait. There wasn't anything, especially in this time of the day, that could interest the boy now.

Alright, some things need to be cleared up *ahem*

Pharos calling Makoto "Minato" wasn't a typo.

Makoto knows the basis of what the Dark Hour is, what shadows are, and what personas are... I mean, he's had Pharos for 10 years.

Makoto did NOT sign a contract with the Velvet Room, but Death screwing with his persona abilities negates the need for it (which means no Elizabeth, sorry). Kotone on the other hand... I think you get the idea.

Makoto didn't go to the dorm, but Kotone did. Basically, she's fulfilling the MC role in SEES without having the "Parents died and Death was sealed inside me at the Moonlight Bridge" Background while simultaneously existing with Makoto.

You can call him Makoto or Minato, I'll probably describe him as Minato a few times too.

My spell checker sucks and don't have a grammar checker, meaning that there'll likely be a decent amount of errors I don't spot while proofreading. You're welcome to point them out, but I still want you to keep it in mind.

I'm a bit of a sadist at times. Meaning, if there's any torture or painful scenes, I won't shy away. That being said, I'm not into creating lemon scenes... Might try anyway to try and get over it, but don't expect anything from me, though.

Any further questions can be asked via the PM's.

Now, I hope all you wonderful people have a wonderful day/night.