Persona 4 Arena is region locked? BLASPHEMY! Oh and have you all seen the new ending picture of Persona 4 Golden. My God do they looked good! Especially the ladies.

Disclaimer: Persona 4 belongs to ATLUS

P4: Trouble Chocolate

Kanji gulped and held his breath as he looked at the sight of his own respectable and fearless leader backed into a corner by the beautiful and fearsome Ai Ebihara. Just a few minutes ago, while Kanji and Rise were enjoying their little alone time, interruption came at the form of the Fool and Moon Arcana representative. Though most of their conversation was ignored, with great difficulty when a certain "index" was mentioned, another topic peak their interest. Especially to the still love struck Rise Kujikawa, who's in turn wanted to pry on her friend's love trouble too.

"It's true isn't it?" Ai continued closing in to Souji. "Satonaka has a crush on someone."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Souji denied and looked away from her eyes. He wouldn't want Ai to read his eyes, she's more perceptive then she appeared so, and Souji knew that she'll catch on quick if he lied to her face. But as it turned out, his disregard turn to the topic answered her question instead.

"Oh my God! So it is true!" Rise commented silently as she peeked through the corner of the Practice Building. "Chie-senpai has a crush on someone!"

"Y-you know, maybe we should leave," Kanji turned towards the other corner and grabbed Rise's hand. "I got a feeling that senpai wouldn't want us to eavesdrop."

"No! I wanna know what happens next! So hold still and shut up!" Rise yanked her hand out from Kanji's grip. She then dramatically held her breath and exasperatedly slapping Kanji's chest. "Oh! Oh! Oh! Do you think it's Yosuke-senpai? It could be him! I can't think of anybody else but him!" Her eyes glowed excitedly.

"Yosuke?" Souji tried his best to sound shocked to Ai's claim. "No…" he shook his head, though Ai still remained unconvinced. "No," Souji repeated again to support more of his claim. "No. No. No. No." He kept repeating in different tone hoping for Ai to change her face expression, much to his dismay it didn't.

"You're a terrible liar," Ai rolled her eyes at Souji's attempt.

"Or maybe you're just too nosy!" Souji defended his right. But that did not help his case, nor did it convince Ai of his answer. In fact, it only supported her hypothesis and well… answered her question instead. She smiled triumphantly and flicked her hair away. "Please don't tell anyone," Souji said left with no choice but to beg for her silence. "Chie would kill me. Literally."

"On one condition," Ai stuck her index finger out.

Souji could see that this won't end well.

"Blackmail!" Rise turned from her corner away and grabbed Kanji's hand again, this time leading him to the other side of the Practice Building. "We need to report this to Yukiko-senpai. ASAP!"

"We didn't even hear what it was!" Kanji tried to argue back. He never felt like such a hypocrite for eavesdropping along with Rise, despite for claiming his desire to not doing so.

"I don't need to know what that devil is thinking! I can see it in her eyes, Kanji," Rise pointed at her eyes to make her point clearer. "They're up to no good."

At the school roof

"This sucks, Yukiko!" Chie sniffled as she helped herself to another serve of chocolate from the big heart-shaped chocolate box that she planned to give away for Yosuke. "This sucks! Sucks! Sucks so much!"

"Oh, Chie," Yukiko could only offer her friend a comforting shoulder hug. "I know, I know. There, there. It's going to be okay."

"Why now!" Chie picked another chocolate from the box. "Of all the time, it had to be now! Just right I was about to confess! God, I hate Valentine's Day!" She wiped a tear away from her cheeks and sniffle an incoming snort away. "At least the chocolate's good." Chie took the last chocolate from the first level of the box, and ready to devour the second level. Only for it to be taken away from Yukiko before she can even pick one.

"Okay, I think that's enough," Yukiko closed the lid on the large sized heart box. "You had too much already as it is."

"It's comforting, don't be a Naoto," Chie referred to her killjoy underclassman. "Give it to me, Yukiko."

"May I say something, Chie," Yukiko pushed the chocolate box further away from Chie's hands. Chie sighed in response and signalled her friend to continue. "I don't think Yosuke-kun rejected you per-se. He only mistook your Valentine's Chocolate as an idea of an obligatory chocolate."

"Exactly!" Chie threw her hands up frustratingly. "That means he can only see me as nothing more than a friend, and a freeloading carnivore who discarded her womanhood! Now gimme my chocolate!" Chie forcefully reached out for her comfort food next to Yukiko.

"I wouldn't say about that," Yukiko argued back, and pushed the chocolate even further away from Chie. "I think Yosuke-kun likes you too."

Chie stopped her attempt to rob her chocolates back and paid closer attention to her friend. It was odd how her friend's opinion mattered so much to her compared to her own, Chie felt as if Yukiko's words meant much more sense and preferred to listen to it instead. Although she could be just denying the truth itself and seek comfort from others.

"Oh get real, Yukiko!" Chie faced the truth on. "I heard what he said myself from his own stupid mouth! You just don't get it!"

"I think you don't get it, Chie!" Yukiko started to feel offended it even shocked Chie that she raised her voice at her. "Haven't you been paying attention at all today? What about those stares the two of you shared? Didn't you notice anything?"

Yukiko's words definitely made much more sense now towards the heartbroken teen. It's not like Chie didn't notice of the stares the two shared so many times today, it helped towards her end of the favour to confess towards Yosuke. It was one of those moments where she lost herself towards his charm, which many failed to notice at first impression of the clumsy oaf.

"Where are you getting at, Yukiko?" Nevertheless Chie still had no idea how that matter is related.

"Chie…" Yukiko held her forehead in defeat. "Nobody stares each other like that unless something is going on."

"You're saying that he likes me too just because he stared at me just like how I stared at him?" Chie asked placing the puzzles together. Yukiko nodded vigorously as a form of response. While Chie wanted to retaliate back, she stopped to think for a second. It would made sense if the fact fits accordingly, but Chie had this lingering feeling that it might not be the case.

Yukiko saw the hesitant look on her friend's face, either Chie's too stubborn to admit it or she's returning back to her denial-self a few hours ago. "Chie," Yukiko tried a different approach. "Don't think. Feel."

Chie sighed. Again, her own words used against her. "Then why did he say that?" she asked. "If he likes me too, then why did he have to say that I mean nothing more to him than just friends?" Yukiko smiled and held her friend's shoulder comfortingly.

"That's where we're going to find out," she narrowed her eyes maliciously at the thought of her boyfriend's best friend.

Back to Souji

"That's it?" Souji asked Ai as they walked through the first years' hallway.

"What? Did you actually expect me to ask you the impossible?" Ai offensively asked. "Like asking you to be my pretend boyfriend again?"

"No! No! It's just that…" Souji stammered. Knowing Ai, Souji was actually prepared for some sort of similar gesture to the previous multiple favours she asked for. Though he felt somewhat guilty for doubting his friend who have now changed a little for the better.

"God, you're terrible," Ai rolled her eyes away from him. Souji can only held his head down in embarrassment as Ai casually walked away from him with her head held high. "Just do as we agreed on."

"Yes milady," Souji sarcastically bowed, which earned him a few stares from the first years students. He ignored it anyhow and climbed up the staircase a few seconds after his dear friend left, turning towards the where he last saw his two athletic friends. As luck would put it, they're still there chatting up, though the basketball captain looked a little limp.

"Hey, look whose back," Daisuke noticed the silverette boy. "Everything went well?"

"You can say that," Souji shrugged taking interest at Kou's limp. "What's wrong with you?"

"Satonaka kicked me," Kou's voice carried a tone of whimper. "That girl had a kick like Captain Falcon."

"Punch, actually," Souji corrected him. "Captain Falcon is known for his Punch, not his kick."

"Whatever!" Kou snapped. "It hurts, okay!" Souji snickered a little from watching his friend struggle from another wrath of the kung-fu maniac.

"What did you do to her?" he asked wondering why Chie would mercilessly kick the always friendly basketball captain.

"Amagi was spouting to Satonaka about giving some Valentine's Chocolate and well, this guy kindda pushed her a little too far," Daisuke answered for Kou patting his poor friend's shoulder.

The inner desire of curiosity and knowledge within Souji kicked back in as the following words that relate to his friends, valentines and chocolate were mentioned. His head kicked back in an exciting overdrive as if it's on full throttle. He pieced the given circumstances back together and came with the exciting conclusion he could hoped for. It's time for round two on the love fest of his friends.

"I see," Souji calmly answered as if he was on a trance. His two friends looked at him oddly at his change of emotions. "Excuse me," he turned away from the two and walked back to the direction of where he once was, only to run into Yukiko who just arrived at the second floor from the staircase.

"Oh, Souji," Yukiko said surprised at the arrival of her beloved. "Hello."

"Where's Chie?" he immediately asked.

"Roof, you heard?" she returned.

"Somewhat," he shrugged.

"I'll see you later," she ended their conversation with smile, and the two left their separate ways. Souji climbed the staircase, and Yukiko snuck her head in through her classroom. "Hanamura! Downstairs! Now!" she half-shouted that made the two sport boys jumped. The two then watched as Yukiko headed down the staircase with Yosuke following at tow, looking rather terrified for odd reason.

"Okay… that was weird," Kou commented on the events that have transpired to Souji and his circle of friends.

"FYI Kou, milady wants to see you at the corner of the Practice Building," Souji yelled out from what Kou and Daisuke can assume from the third years' floor.

"Who?" Kou confusedly yelled back.

Souji didn't reply immediately, he paused to get his genius mind back in shape before yelling back a little later. "Uhh… I mean, it's a surprise. Ju-Just… just go!"

Yukiko and Yosuke

"Speak! Now!" Yukiko pushed Yosuke as they were out by the connecting archway of the Main school building and Practice building.

"About what?" Yosuke asked fearful of Yukiko's glare. He almost forgot that despite her beauty and timidness, she can be fearsome when angered. "I don't know what you're talking about. Did I do something wrong?"

"Chie!" Yukiko simply replied. "Do you like her or not?" Yukiko wasted no time upon interrogating the supposedly prince of Junes. It could be the fact that she hung around Souji too long that his habit picked up by her, or the fact that it concerned her BFF she had to act full throttle.

"Wait? What?" Yosuke asked taken back by Yukiko's forwardness and topic of Chie.

"Answer the question!" she stomped her foot down aggressively.

"Yes! Yes, I do! She's one of my best female friends," Yosuke immediately answered. "No offense," Yosuke added hoping that this was the reason of Yukiko's crazy gesture. He definitely hoped that this was the reason, Yosuke wasn't exactly ready to share of his conflicted feelings he felt when he and Chie had that awkward Valentines talk a few minutes ago.

"Not that, Yosuke-kun!" Yukiko shouted again. "Do you like, like, her or not?"

Yukiko didn't realize it herself, but her voice was so loud and threatening that some of the first years who were around the two moved away. She then blinked and held her mouth tenderly, realizing that had let her temper flare out. Again.

"I…I…" she looked at the fear in Yosuke's eyes. "I'm so sorry, Yosuke-kun!" she bowed her head down as if she's used to doing it on a regular basis.

Yosuke relaxed his stature; looking at Yukiko relaxing herself had made him loosened up too. He then leaned himself at the rail turning his back away from her, looking deep in thoughts. The Inn heiress watched the boy looking as if he's gathering his feelings. Yukiko had to admit that it was harsh of her to suddenly lash out on his face as so, not to mention that she asked one of those intimate and private questions.

"Where did that come from?" Yosuke suddenly asked.

"I think it's from my father," Yukiko answered. "My mother had always told me to be patient with him. She said it was not in his intention to get angry whenever he raised his voice."

"No! Not that," Yosuke turned back to Yukiko with a little scowl. He already knew that Yukiko had a bit of problem with lashing her voice out in rare times; his best friend well informed him of it. "I'm talking about the Chie question."

"Oh that, right," Yukiko scratched her cheek embarrassingly. "Well, you see, I was just wondering. Cuz you know," she shrugged aimlessly trying to make it sound casual, which made Yosuke wondered quizzically. "I saw you two making googly eyes when we were out at the hallway. So I thought that maybe… you like her or something…"

"And you had to yell at me for that?" Yosuke sarcastically asked.

"Can we just not go there, please?" Yukiko asked a little too harsh for Yosuke's taste. "I told you it's my dad's fault, okay?"

"Okay! Okay! Just chill," Yosuke held his hands out. "Look, did Souji put you up to this?" He had to ask, Yukiko's intention and sudden approach to him and Chie subject acted similarly to his best friend's forward action.

"No," Yukiko replied with no sound of hesitation. "But I need to know your honest answer, Yosuke-kun. Do you feel something for Chie or not?"

Yosuke stayed silent, hesitant at how should he answer to Yukiko's question. Should he tell of his conflicted feelings with Chie, or should he tell her that same answer he said to Chie earlier? The one that he regretted said to her. "Well…" he started. "I'm… not sure."

That was the best answer he could muster for her. He knew that he could trust Yukiko; after all she's not the gossiping kind of girl like Rise is. But he's not sure himself if she should be the first person who should know of his dilemma, usually he confronted to Souji whenever he had problems like this.

"What do you mean you're not sure?" Yukiko asked. "It's a simple yes or no question, Yosuke-kun."

"Yukiko, look," Yosuke said feeling fed up with all this interrogation. "It's… complicated, okay. You wouldn't understand."

Yukiko looked at Yosuke's eyes; it held some form of uncertainness within them. Yukiko can only deduce of the boy's conflicted feelings for her best friend, whom already made her decision. She sighed, having no choice but to accept his words in the meantime.

"Fine," she answered. "I'm sorry to bother you then." She turned her body away from the Magician Arcana representative and walked away from him, towards the main building once more.

"Wait! That's it?" Yosuke replied surprised at Yukiko's concede.

"Make up your mind, Yosuke-kun. That's all I'm going to say." Yukiko answered behind her back with a closed expression. If Yosuke had to anything to say of the way Yukiko answered to him, it would be cool and distant.

It would be the case, if only Rise didn't appear all the sudden and dragged Yukiko away, giving the Inn heiress a look of confusion and reluctance.

At the roof

"Hey," Souji simply said when he sat next to the sulking Chie.

"S'up," Chie shrugged when he noticed Souji's presence. "Did you hear?"

"That you were about to confess to Yosuke and hand him your Valentine's Chocolate?" Souji asked when he picked up the nearby Valentines box that's half-eaten. "Why is it half-empty?" he looked over at the first level wrapping sprawling next to the box.

"I ate half of it," Chie rolled her eyes. "Then I felt sick."

Souji chuckled lightly at Chie's action. "What happened?"

"He turned me down," Chie muttered hugging her own knees in the process.

Souji's chuckle immediately stopped, following it with a look of concern and shock at the sudden news that he least would expect. "What?" he asked.

"Well, he technically turned me down," Chie expressed her thoughts. "Not exactly like the way Naoto did to Kanji."

"What happened?" he abruptly asked looking as concern for his friend, whom he knew must've taken a lot of courage to muster and came with such conclusion.

"We were talking about Valentines and chocolates at class, and when I asked him what if I give him a chocolate, he just said that he accept it since I'm one of his closest friend," Chie briefed up the event that transpired, refusing to explain in full details as she did to Yukiko.

"Oh," Souji relaxed his momentum. "Well in that case he didn't turn you down per-se…"

"Then why did he say that?" Chie raised her voice feeling sick of the technicality of the situation. One from Yukiko was enough already as it was, she didn't need to hear the same damn thing from another person.

"Because you didn't ask him right!" Souji forcefully confirmed with a gentler tone in comparison to Chie's. "If you asked him like that, of course he'll think it's an obligatory chocolate."

"It doesn't matter how I asked him," Chie retaliate back. "The fact that when I said it and he immediately think of it as an obligatory is enough for me to know that he only sees me as a friend!"

"No! No, it doesn't!" Souji objected. "He probably thought that you're giving it to him as a friend. And he said that because he's afraid that if he misread it as a sign of love, you'll kick his ass."

"Then why the hell didn't he read between the damn line?" Chie snapped giving up and out of counter argument to Souji. She knew that she can't win in any argument against their team leader.

"Maybe you recently said something to him along the line where we cannot be more than friends or something," Souji thought of the only possible outcome there is, thought it would be seem very unlikely in his accordance.

"Oh please," Chie rolled her eyes again. "Why would I be saying that when I'm actually planning to confess…" Chie stopped mid-sentence. A sudden realization had hit her hard, stronger than any power charged Agneyastra she can mustered.

As usual, Souji wasn't wrong at all, it was true as he commented. Yosuke had misread her all along. She had totally forgotten of their little chat yesterday by the Samegawa Riverside.

"Oh my God!" Chie looked ahead blankly, which made Souji wondered. "I did say that."

"Say what?" Souji asked.

"That!" she pointed at Souji's face exasperatedly. "The whole we can't be more than friends thing, I told him that yesterday!"

Chie had thought it would fit the case. Yesterday she hadn't realized of her true feelings towards the boy, and was appalled at his expectancy of more than friends chocolate she planned to give him. It would made sense if Yosuke answered today's question by following up towards the event that had transpired yesterday.

"Why would you say that to him yesterday when you know, this was about to happen," Souji wondered at the highly unlikely situation that actually applied in this case.

"I didn't know, okay!" Chie snapped again. "I didn't actually plan for this to happen. It just… happens." She blushed a little at the concept itself of her fallen head over heels for a boy, to the point that the miscommunication itself was heartbreaking enough to cause her to cry. "Ironic isn't it?"

"That's love for ya," Souji smiled sincerely at Chie. "It works in a mysterious way." True to the content, it did. The whole trouble that started with Rise and now following up with Chie, it only made Souji smiled at this self-proclaimed day of love.

"Whoa! Whoa!" Chie stopped Souji's track. "Who said anything about love? I'm not exactly… there yet."

"It did with Rise," Souji smirked. "So are you going to try again?" he passed the half-eaten Valentine's Chocolate box back to her.

Chie didn't reply back to him. She just took the chocolate box back from Souji's hands, giving him the look of determination he remembered well when she's put on a challenge. The kung-fu girl stood up and headed towards the staircase, looking and as determined as ever. The fire burned within her eyes, giving her the courage to stand back up when she was thrown down in defeat.

Though that moment had to wait for another two hours, for the school bell had rung, indicating that lunch time is over.

A few minutes back

"Rise, that's ridiculous," Yukiko expressed her opinion at Rise's wild claim.

"I'm telling you, it's the truth, senpai," Rise pressed on. "I know blackmail when I see one. Tell her, Kanji," she turned to the seemingly large first year student standing next to her.

"We didn't even know if it's actually blackmail," Kanji shrugged honestly, not at all supporting Rise's ridiculous claim.

"Ugh! Kanji!" she elbowed him in his guts, which send the boy holding his abdomen in pain. "Fine, don't listen to him. But listen to me, senpai. I know we had our ups and downs, but this time, it's serious." Rise can only hope that her plea made it through her fellow teammate, this was one of the case where she act in support of her two upperclassmen's relationship.

"Rise, look," Yukiko sighed. "I appreciate for the support, but I'm sure you're just looking way too much into it." She carried it off with a smile and pat on Rise's shoulder, which looked rather odd and forced in the former teen idol's opinion.

"Uhh… no I'm not," Rise ignored and gently pushed Yukiko's hand away from her shoulder. "You weren't there, but we were. And we know what we saw," she answered with a little attitude that, in all honesty, Yukiko found a little irritating.

"Don't push it, Rise," Kanji noticed the slight irritation look on Yukiko's face expression.

"Quiet you! We're talking," Rise elbowed Kanji at the same spot again. She still felt a little annoyed that Kanji didn't support her claim. "Senpai, please. Trust me on this one. That Ebihara girl is up to something, and it involved Souji-senpai."

"And again, that's ridiculous," Yukiko replied. "Souji and Ebihara-san are friends. She wouldn't do such thing towards him." She boldly claimed of her full trust on the two, though she was aware of Ai's last shenanigans that caused Souji quite of a trouble a few months back.

"But didn't she use to?" Rise asked also aware of Ai's past. "Who were we to know that she might do it again? Or probably even worse?" Rise added the last sentence with a dramatic gasp, which only added the irritation within Yukiko.

"Okay, we're done here," Yukiko turned away from the two and headed towards the staircase.

"Senpai, wait," Rise called but show no attempt to restrain her senpai in place. Though Yukiko showed no sign of anger or resentment towards Rise's accusation, Rise had a sense that Yukiko felt agitated towards it. Whether it was because of her claim or the concept itself of Souji being blackmailed, it wouldn't matter. Rise was just glad that she actually made it out without causing the bomb to diffuse.

Yukiko (again)

Yukiko would be lying if she was to say that Rise's claim did not strike her curiosity. Odd as it may sound, Rise's words got to the best of her, and it made her to think otherwise the change within the beautiful and bossy Ai Ebihara. She had trust of Souji and his relationship with other women, but who were she to believe that some may still have ulterior motive, or wouldn't stop to come at him. She's still doubtful of that husky and sultry nurse he worked with at the hospital. And after the way Rise describe of what she saw; now Ai Ebihara had made through the list.

But Yukiko dispersed those thoughts; she had proclaimed of her change, and she wouldn't fall in line between the two words of anger and jealousy. No matter how suspicious or curiously tempting it is for her to go ahead and figure the secrets out herself.

"Oh for goodness sake," Yukiko muttered to herself and slapped her two cheeks lightly. It was no good, she needed a distraction.

She went ahead and entered through her classroom, desperate in search of some sort of distraction to get her mind out of falling into such negative line. Her prayer came answered when she noticed a part of a tiny black box that stuck out from her school bag. She smiled at herself and pulled out the little black box that represent the chocolate cat she had yet to hand over to her beloved. Upon realizing the upcoming act that she could use to disguise her suspicion towards her schoolmate, Yukiko made her way to the last place she last saw of her boyfriend.

However, the black box that held the cat-shaped chocolate inside may also represent bad luck to Yukiko. Just as she walked out of her classroom, she found herself lying on the ground, when none other than Ai Ebihara herself had run into the Inn heiress.

"Oh I'm sorry," Yukiko courteously apologized as she looked towards the other fallen girl. "Are you okay… Ebihara-san?" Yukiko's tone slightly shifted when she saw her.

"I'm fine," Ai quickly muttered as she stood up and pick up her fallen belonging on the ground. With no time to waste, Ai headed down the staircase in a rush, not even bother to apologize back towards the Priestess representative.

"I'm fine too, by the way," Yukiko muttered sarcastically eyeing the stairs Ai disappeared to. She then picked herself up, and her only dropped belonging. But just as Yukiko was to take the first step towards the staircase, the school bell inconveniently rang. "Oh dear," Yukiko sighed feeling a little dejected that Souji would have to wait till school's over to get his chocolate.

Although in this case may not be at all. For what the two girls hadn't realized, that though Yukiko and Ai may placed their chocolate on a same box with exact shape and size, they weren't held or tied with the same colour of ribbons.

And the box that Yukiko just shoved back inside her bag without a single glance at it, let's just say that it didn't match the colour of her headband.

FINALLY FINISHED! WELL, NEW SEMESTER IS COMING ON NEXT WEEK, SO YOU GUYS MIGHT HAVE TO HANG ON TIGHT FOR A LITTLE WHILE LONGER. ANYWHO, THIS CHAPTER SEEMED MORE LIGHTHEARTED, EXPECT MORE IN FUTURE. A LOT OF REFERENCE TO PREVIOUS CHAPTERS, PLEASE RE-READ IF YOU'RE CONFUSED OR LOST.

OH AND FYI, WE'RE ALMOST TO THE FINISH GUYS, I THINK 2 - 3 MORE CHAPTERS SHOULD DO THE TRICK. BUT DON'T WORRY, I ALREADY HAVE ANOTHER IDEA COMING UP IN A WAY, IT'S NOT EXACTLY A SEQUEL BUT MORE LIKE A ONE-SHOT FOLLOW UP THAT HAPPENED SHORTLY AFTER THE END OF THIS FIC. AND IT'S GOING TO BE A SEMI CROSSOVER TO ANOTHER SERIES. CAN YOU GUESS WHAT IT IS? HINT: IT'S AN ANIME. ANYWAY IF YOU GOT IT RIGHT, I'LL PM YOU THE IDEA AND SYNOPSIS OF IT. SO I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR ANSWER.

THANKS AGAIN FOR READING, PLEASE DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW. CATCH YA LATER ^^