Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

🎵If you wanted me dead

You should’ve just said 🎵

October 4th, 2009

Fuuka Yamagishi's heart was racing, pounding in her ears—she told the Arisato twins that she knew where Shinjiro and Ken was. And, on top of sensing those two, she shivered and felt Takaya was nearby as well. She didn’t have the heart to tell anyone because if all of her friends were holding her back, then this attempt to save their lives will be futile. And that was the last thing she wanted.

Fuuka held her evoker closer to her chest, knowing that if she couldn’t run faster, something horrible could happen. She knew deep down that Takaya was filled with malice over wanting her down and out of his way—they did still have Chidori to this day. It ached her heart knowing that what she was going to do may be the dumbest, stupidest, and idiotic thing she ever did. It would top anything Junpei ever did.

Even if it was for someone she loved and that love was unrequited. People do stupid shit when they are in love.

Feeling beads of sweat running down her back, she carefully maneuvered the train tracks back to Iwatodai. She cursed softly, wishing that Lucia’s power was so much stronger—she could barely sense Ken and Shinjiro. Even if they were as far as they could be from the whole group, it didn't help they were on the cusp on how far Fuuka's sensing could go. She assumed Akihiko and Mitsuru had a reasoning as to why they were together, but Fuuka had no time to listen to them.

As she made it carefully off of the tracks and towards Port Island Station, she heard a gunshot ringing throughout the surrounding area. Her heart dropped into the ground as she shook her head—this was becoming more serious that she thought. She had to stop her legs from shaking. Fuuka knew this was best for her allies and for her.

Lucia urges Fuuka toward the boys—she didn’t really need her help since the smell of gunpowder was enough to draw anyone awake from their coffin-like status. Once she was within meters of them, she took a couple deep breaths and listened in on the conversation around a corner—she had to be careful on how to walk into the situation. 

Her eyes darted to Shinjiro clinching his stomach in pain and crouched on the ground—the smell of copper led to her seeing blood oozing from his side. She almost gagged—Fuuka’s hand moved from her mouth and back to her heart. Her fingers touched against the item around her neck as she closed her eyes. Fuuka forgot to give back Shinjiro’s pocket-watch to him—she found it when Minako was having trouble fixing it up. Minako claimed the pocket-watch was very old, and hoped Fuuka would fix it, which she did. However, the only way to deduce it was Shinjiro’s was by the birthday and his initials. But, she never got around to asking Shinjiro nor Minako if it was his. It took her a good few days to get the clockwork fixed and all shiny. But she never could never find the right time to give it back to Shinjiro.

And she feared she would never be able to at this rate.

Fuuka’s heart strings tugged at her. She gulped and could see Takaya playing with his revolver. “Now,” Takaya moves a little closer to the SEES members, his voice getting rough and annoyed, “there is one among you that has the power just like Chidori does. Where are they?” He uttered, pointing the gun towards the injured Shinjiro. Ken was the last person on his mind.

She could sense the turmoil inside of Ken and Shinjiro’s hearts—they knew it was her; they knew if they told Takaya, she’d be targeted. All because they have Chidori and Strega did not have Fuuka. Before Ken could speak, Fuuka took a leap of faith and walked towards them, under the shadows, as her knees were buckling under the pressure.

“It’s me!”

Shinjiro and Ken’s eyes darted quickly towards the petite female.

“Fuuka—! No!” Shinjiro cried out as he winced in pain, even though he moved a millimeter—the bullet was doing more damage if he even moved a bit.

Takaya let out a laugh that echoed all around them but then frowned. “Is this a joke? …why have you appeared now?” He made sure to keep the revolver aimed at the member of SEES, especially on Fuuka this time around.

Fuuka gripped her evoker and made sure to put it away in her holster while throwing her hands up, as if she was trying to protect those who were trying to protect her. And to show that she had nothing else to hide. Outwardly, and internally, she was freaking out. “Because I sensed them from where we battled the full moon shadows.” She slowly spoke. Fuuka was speaking the truth—she then saw Ken cowered behind Shinjiro, knowing he was the most vulnerable at the moment.  Fuuka put her right hand up to her chest, only to try to calm her rapid heartbeat. Closing her eyes, she felt how heavy and tense the situation was now.

Takaya considered the few words that Fuuka spoke. He considered that she looked weakly, that she could sense them from a considerable amount of distance, and within seconds he pointed the loaded gun towards Fuuka. She put her evoker down to her leg and into its holder. She threw her hands outward, wanting to do what she could to protect her friends.

"Please. Take me instead."

She could sense the others would be here in a couple minutes—Lucia was unknowingly sending a distress signal to the others. If she didn’t do anything to save Shinjiro and Ken—but then, a thought came to her mind. If only I could stall Takaya, everyone would get here and then everyone would be fine until the Dark Hour ends. Would he even—?

“She…will do.”

Fuuka’s eyes darted upward and opened the moment she heard the gun go off. She could hear Shinjiro and Ken’s screams mellow out of existence as she felt the bullet grazing her chest. She gasped as she felt her body being pelted by the bullet. A small ding could be heard, but it was drowned out by the boy’s cries and screams for her. It took Fuuka a moment to realize what really happened. Her hands dropped to her sides as she noticed blood flowing off and down her chest. She moved her right hand towards her chest and winced in pain.

This is how it should be, right? …an eye for an eye? A navigator…for …another?

Her fingers dripped with blood as Takaya let out a boisterous laugh as it echoed in the alleyway, as if the Reaper was laughing along with him. She fell to her knees as Ken darted to her side—she saw that her vision was fading. She could feel the others coming around the corner—she could barely see Akihiko screaming out his Persona’s name, trying to attack Takaya who was already long gone; Minako immediately went to Shinjiro, so did Mitsuru, too.

Fuuka felt ridiculous. She was literally bleeding for a boy she cared so much for, and yet he still drew the eyes of their leader to her. And even after all they have done in the last month, knowing full well that their fate was sealed, Fuuka wondered if fate had it out for her in particular. Minato and Junpei went towards her as she lowered her head, hiding the tears that were falling from her eyes as Minato checked her horrid wound. They didn’t care about what happened in the past month--she was more important now.

“The…the idiot—!” Shinjiro cried out, taking a heavy deep breath, trying his hardest to not have a panic attack. “—she offered herself in f-front of Takaya—!” He coughed, spitting up some blood as Minako tried to heal his wounds with some bandages. Shinjiro got up slowly, darting his eyes at Fuuka and feeling his heart twinge in pain and worry.

Fuuka leaned towards Junpei, the one closest to her, as her blood began to stain her clothes and his as well. “Why…? Why Fuuka? Wh-what was the point!?” He whispered softly to her as he saw Minato taking her pulse. His worried eyes said it all—Minato had an idea, but magic wouldn’t work since something of this magnitude couldn’t be healed by something this bad.

Ken was shaking with fear and anxiety—his friends got injured and yet, he was unscathed. Akihiko noticed this and pulled him closer to him in a side hug. Fuuka lifted her head slowly, seeing everyone’s eyes on her, especially Shinjiro’s. They eyes linked for but a moment, as she closed her eyes. She remembered the first time they cooked something and she blinked--another memory popped up and she could remember how warm he was when he protected her. “T-tell Shinjiro…senpai…” she whispered as she watched Minato coming closer to her. “…I am sorry…a-about his pocket watch. …I-I think the bullet…” Fuuka gripped Junpei and Minato’s arms as she let out a heartfelt cry of pain, sorrow, and heartache.

Yukari felt anxiety crawling up her spine, beginning to voice her concerns. “Isn’t the Dark Hour almost over?” Fear began to shine in her eyes as Junpei began to pick Fuuka up and nodded along with Minato. It seemed they have the right idea and thought at the same time. Her head was bobbing up and down while Junpei moved the young girl in his arms.

“…we should get going. By the time we get to the hospital, the Dark Hour should end…” Junpei murmured softly, feeling as if this was going to be pointless. He turned towards his allies and Minato began to list commands out to SEES. “Sanada-senpai, Kirijo-senpai, sister… we need to get them both to the hospital—it’s only a stone’s throw away. Junpei and I will take Fuuka—you guys should take Aragaki-senpai. Yukari, Aigis, Koromaru,” the dog barked as he heard his name, “take Ken-kun back to the dorm. He needs some support and...to keep him distracted.” He mentioned to them quietly as Junpei could feel the cold blood hitting his shoes. He didn't care--everything could be replaced, except for a life.

As Junpei watched his senpais and Minako take off with Shinjiro, Junpei began to take a mad dash with Minato at their side. He had to shake his head to remove the negative thoughts. She will make it—she is strong. She is strong. She lasted 10 hours in Tartarus! She is—

Junpei kept pounding those words into his head as he felt his blood run cold the moment Fuuka’s body went limp. Panic showed up on his eyes as he panted and tried to stay focus. Just how much blood…has she lost!? Junpei pulled at Minato’s arm, his head shaking as they tried to pick up the pace even more. His heart ached as sweat rolled down his face and his back—Junpei saying that once they got to the hospital the Dark Hour would end. For once, he was right.

However, it wasn’t saying much as Fuuka was slowly fading in Junpei’s arms, the color already drained from her face. In a blink of an eye, Fuuka was whisked off by the emergency room staff, leaving Minato with Junpei covered in her blood--unable to say or do anything as they both felt numb to everything that had happened.

Chapter Text

🎵 She's never gonna love you like I want to
And you just see right through me
But if you only knew me
We could be a beautiful miracle, unbelievable
Instead of just invisible🎵

Flashback

September 2nd

Fuuka was beyond excited, and it was all thanks to Natsuki. A few days ago, Natsuki won a free ramen lunch at a raffle place just down the street from the dorms. Natsuki was gonna to invite Fuuka, but realized that she had family plans and gave it to Fuuka. She stated that she could go with “that someone she adores” and Fuuka protested.

I don’t have a special someone. …okay, maybe I do have someone I envy.

She had her sights on the one guy who complimented her at the beach over a couple months ago: Junpei Iori. Fuuka enjoyed his jokes, albeit perverted sometimes, and loved his laugh. It was the little things she liked about him, but she never knew how to get close to him. Until today.

As she walked down the stairs, she was slightly relieved to see only a few people: Yukari, who was deeply emerged in a novel, Shinjiro, who was in the kitchen preparing food for Koromaru; Minako, who was doing some homework, and Junpei, who was reading a new comic book. It seemed as if the circumstances couldn’t be any more perfect.

Fuuka reached into her pocket, pulling out a brand new shiny ticket for ramen—buy one, get one free—and they could go together and have fun. Just the two of them—the thought made Fuuka smile and hopeful. Being able to find time for her and Junpei--her crush--was difficult. THIS was the best time. She almost began to skip down the stairs, trying her hardest to hide her happiness. It was almost impossible to never see her in a bad mood. Fuuka let out a force cough, making Junpei, Minako, and Yukari turn towards her.

“Hmm? What is it Fuuka-tan?” Junpei asked, putting down his comic book as Fuuka was trying to hide her shit eating grin on her lips. “What are you so happy about?”

That was obvious, wasn’t it?

“Well, I thought you would like this.” Fuuka handed him the coupon to the ramen place as Junpei read it and let the gears in his head turn. “…Natsuki-chan couldn’t go, s-so I thought that maybe you’d like this and could take someone with you…”

“W-whoa! Fuuka, this is amazing!” Junpei jumped up, throwing his comic book to the coffee table in front of him as he walked over to Minako. She spung her pencil in her fingers, trying to figure out quadratic formulas. “Heyyyy, Mina-tan—wanna go with me? It looks like it is only good for today!” Fuuka could only stare at Junpei, surprised he had the guts to ask someone else that wasn't her!

…wait. …what? But… I offered it for us--!

“…Sure. I can take a break from studying. But--” Minako stated as she noticed her eyes trained onto Fuuka’s face. She could tell that Fuuka was defeated, that this was supposed to be for them both. Minako got the idea, but before she could say anything, Fuuka pipped up.

“N-no, no. You both go ahead—I got some studying to do, anyway.” Fuuka waved her hand at them, trying to not let Minako know that she wasn’t okay with this, but she was used to it. Even if she felt like a doormat still, this was nothing compare to what she felt before joining SEES.

Junpei grinned as he ran up to his room. This gave Minako a chance to be with Fuuka. “Fuuka, are you sure? I don’t want to take this away from you. I’m sure you wanted this to be a da—”

“No. I…I think he’ll enjoy it more with you around rather than me. I-I’ll just try again later. Just have a great time. For me?” Fuuka smiled as she could feel Junpei rushing pass her, as if she was invisible, as Minako nodded slowly.

“If you say so—I’ll at least tell you how it goes, if Junpei doesn’t eat it all.” Minako promised, holding up her pinkie finger, in which Fuuka locked her pinkie with hers, as she left the dorm with Junpei in tow. Fuuka felt as if more weight was just added to her back—it made her feel heavy, depressed, and a bit on the sad side.

Fuuka sighed as she moved towards the kitchen to see what Shinjiro was cooking. She knew he would be able to distract her. Hmmm…sushi. That won’t be too bad tonight. Haven’t had Aragaki-senpai’s sushi yet. She was deep in thought as she sat on the bar stool, trying to get her mind away from Junpei, which wasn’t working. Yukari slightly frowned—she wished Fuuka was more determined to go after him. There was no one on Junpei’s radar, that she could of know, so why didn’t he try to talk her into going? Unless...

Shinjiro could see Fuuka staring at his food, but didn’t know that she was just staring and not paying attention. He waved his hand a few times in her face as she blushed lightly, shaking her head to bring her attention back to the real world. "I'm sorry--I was a bit out of it."

“Tch. He’s a dumbass.” He mentioned as he carefully rolled the sushi together with the seaweed. “Wouldn’t even know if someone’s hitting on him unless they were hitting him with something.”

Fuuka bit her lip. “…I’m an idiot, right?” Shinjiro blinked, surprised to hear something like that come out of her lips. “…he has someone else, I just know it. Lucia has been keeping small tabs on everyone—Minato’s worn out from track meets, Ken-kun is trying to drink more milk (and hates it), and Junpei-kun has been even more distracted, in school and in battle. Now… now it makes sense…” Fuuka crossed her arms and laid them on the counter, her head on top of them.

Shinjiro put a couple sushi rolls on a plate and handed them to Fuuka. “So? Fuck him—there are many other people to talk to. Iori is just…stupid.”

Yukari walked over and nodded, carrying her novel in her hand. “He is called Stupei for a reason, Fuuka. Don’t forget that.” She put her hand on her shoulder. “Besides, senpai is right—and if he doesn’t reciprocate the feelings, then that’s on him.”

“…Yeah, I guess you are right, Yukari-chan.” She giggled as she turned to offer her some of Shinjiro’s sushi. “Want to try one with me? Smells like…” Fuuka sniffed it and looked at it more. “Is that crab…with cucumber and avocado?” Fuuka took a bite, a smile forming on her lips. “Ahhh! Delicious! The avocado makes the sushi sweeter—is it really that simple, Aragaki-senpai?”

Shinjiro was slightly surprised that Fuuka could tell ingredients were in it before even tasting it. He was amused to say the least. “Most of the time—fresh avocado makes the sushi sweeter or tangy, depending on how ripe the avocado is.” He crossed his arms as both girls finished the taste testing of his new sushi. “I’ll make some more for your lunches.”

Fuuka nodded as Yukari licked her fingers, responding with “I’d like to have some—don’t leave any for Junpei.” Yukari added, giggling as Fuuka smiled softly, finishing up her sushi roll. Yukari made it upstairs and Koromaru took her warm seat. Fuuka looked up at Shinjiro, a small smile on her lips.

“I…I appreciate this. I hope I could cook with you and learn your techniques.”

“Yeah, I’ll think about it. For now,” he took her plate and put it into the sink, “don’t let Iori get in your head. If he is sorry, he’ll apologize and make it up to you. Don’t let a guy like that get you down.”

Fuuka nodded and got off of her chair. “Thank you, senpai. I’ll do my best—I promise.” She held up her pinkie finger, knowing that her brain and her heart were two separate beings who had different plans in mind for her.

October 6th

Shinjiro finally opened up his eyes, feeling as if Death took his body through Hell, and Heaven, Purgatory, and back to the living an infinite amount of times. He saw Minako and Ken sleeping in chairs by his bed.

So, I’m alive. …!

He sat up slowly, seeing the nasty stitches and staples he had down by his waist, as he instantly thought of Fuuka. He looked around the room, noticing that no one else was in the room—must have been Mitsuru who gave him his own room that was big enough for two people to stay. Either that, or Fuuka was in worse shape than he was.

Shinjiro winced in pain, grunting loudly, as it woke up Minako from her light sleep. Her eyes grew as she felt her heart skipping a beat. “Shinjiro…!” She whispered as she moved towards his bed, scooting her chair closer. “…are you okay? Are you in pain?” She asked as Shinjiro nodded after pondering if he was in pain for a few seconds. “Should I…?”

He shook his head. “I’ll be fine—just want to know about Fuuka. Is she…?”

Minako bit her lip as she reached for his hand, rubbing the top of his hand with her fingers. “She is alive. Barely, but the machines are helping her breathe, currently. The bullet was luckily intact, so it didn’t do any more damage. The bullet nicked her aorta and superior vena cava, meaning that she had to go into surgery immediately.” Minako slowly said as Shinjiro watched her lips and could barely pay attention. “Like, the bullet went in between the aorta and superior vena cava—" She even tried her hardest to show what she meant.

She moved her hand into a fist, to help represent the heart, and moved a finger between her thumb and index finger to show that it was the bullet. "Hopefully that helped? Also, we believed it was because of this—” Minako pulled out the pocket watch that was Shinjiro’s in the first place.

Shinjiro felt his hand shake as he reached for it—the bullet left a nasty mark on the outer shell of the watch, but surprisingly, it was still ticking. “…shit—where did you find this?” He asked, showing that he was really not paying any attention at all.

“…Fuuka had it. She was wearing it around her neck. She… …I think she was going to give this to you, but never had the time to.”

Shinjiro carefully took the pocket watch out of her hand, his hands trembling with fear, relief, but heartache came in quickly as he felt tears escaping his eyes and stinging his eyes. He was silent, and so was Minako, as they just watch the tears fall. A small sob escaped his lips as Minako tilted her head to the side, showing sadness and waited until Shinjiro calmed himself down.

“…would you like to see her? I'll…have to wheel you into her room—she’s in the ICU.” Minako suggested as Shinjiro gripped the pocket watch and swung his legs around, ready to walk to her room. “H-hey! Shinjiro-senpai!” Minako cried out as she could see him suffering a bit. After a couple minutes of telling him to hold his horses, she got him a wheelchair, sat him down in it, and took his morphine bag with him—after convincing the doctor that he’ll be back in a moment. That seem to worn down Minako herself, but was determined to get Shinjiro to Fuuka.

“Now, before you see her, Fuuka… …you might get overwhelmed and surprised by how she looks. Her surgery took half a day as she lost a lot of blood.” Minako wasn’t trying to sugar coat everything, but the way Fuuka truly looked, it was a sight that would scare anyone, maybe Shinjiro would be terrified, if not sick to his stomach. “If you want to leave, you let me know, okay? I’ll take you back down to your room.”

Shinjiro nodded slowly, knowing that he wasn’t probably going to be prepared for this. Minako stopped in front of her room, noting that Yukari and Junpei were outside—they didn’t say much as Yukari held a tissue in her hand. Junpei lowered his hat over his eyes, trying to hide any emotions that appeared from his eyes—on top of Fuuka and Chidori in the same hospital, and for two different reasons, he was a bit of a mess.

Minako lightly tapped on the door. Within seconds, Akihiko came to the door, looking down to see Shinjiro, as he nodded slowly and let them both in. The moment he heard the monitors and saw the tubes, he wasn’t surprised at how much attention she was getting, but how much room was taken up simply by the machines was a surprise. Shinjiro almost leaped out of his chair the moment he saw Fuuka’s body—it made her look so much smaller, and weaker than before. Her face was slightly pale from all the blood loss, but at least there was some color returning to her body slowly.

Mitsuru was observing Shinjiro carefully, to make sure he wasn’t hurting himself either, as she turned to Minako. “If you would like, you may leave. Akihiko and I will stay and take care of them both, leader.” Mitsuru suggested as Minako rubbed her arm.

“Y-yeah. I’ll go get Ken-kun and head back to the dorm—I think he’s exhausted.” She murmured as she kissed the top of Shinjiro’s head and left the room, sliding the door back in place. Once she left, the tension in the room seem to grow even more.

Shinjiro carefully reached for Fuuka’s hand—he couldn’t believe that just one little bullet could so much damage. He turned towards Mitsuru once he grabbed Fuuka's hand and carefully held it. “…is she going to make it?” Shinjiro whispered as Mitsuru got up from her seat and sighed heavily.

“…I am hoping so. As for now, you two are out with your injuries. The best of the best operated on her—she made it through but now it’ll only be a waiting game. They put her in a medically induced coma so her body can heal.” Mitsuru explained as she looked at her chart. She flipped through the pages, letting the beeping of the monitors fill the silence while she caught up with Fuuka's condition. “She’s steady in all departments—BP, pulse, oxygen levels, you name it. But–”

“…we are out a navigator, correct?” Shinjiro finished what she might be thinking. Mitsuru lowered her chart and stared at Shinjiro, even if he did take the words out of her mouth. “So, what? What the hell are we going to do?! We can’t let Takaya get away with this-!”

Akihiko put his hand on Shinjiro’s shoulder. “Shinji…”

“Sh-…shit…” He lowered his head and rubbed the top of her hand in small circles with his thumb. The IV in his hand caused him pain, but he pushed that away. “…my pocket watch saved her life—and I can’t do shit for her!” Shinjiro cried out in pain as he felt the pocket watch gain some weight on his hospital gown pocket. He winced as Mitsuru crossed the room slowly and sat down on Fuuka’s bed. She rubbed his back as he felt a tear escape the corner of his eye.

“Shinjiro. We won’t let that happen—we will make sure that Takaya faces consequences. But, for now, you need rest. We all need rest. Baby steps, Shinjiro. That is what we will do.” Mitsuru wasn’t sure how to comfort someone like Shinjiro—it was odd, knowing that this was happening to someone whom they all counted on to help, no matter the situation.

Shinjiro nodded slowly, letting the words get absorbed into his brain. He laid his head on her bed, watching her chest move up and down slowly, as he closed his eyes. “Sorry. I seem to fuck things up, huh, Fuuka?” He whispered as Akihiko and Mitsuru moved away from them and sat in the corner, giving him some space.

…senpai… do you hear me... ...?

Shinjiro opened his eyes, quickly, thinking that Fuuka was calling out to him, but thought he was just hallucinating. He knew the medicine was ready to lull him to sleep. He closed his eyes once again, letting sleep pull him back into the depths.

…I'm...here...with you... ...just wait for me...

He opened his eyes again, wondering if the others could hear it too. “Hey—” He turned around and saw Akihiko asleep on Mitsuru’s shoulder as Mitsuru fell asleep on a pillow. “…so, that’s a no…” Shinjiro whispered as he turned back to Fuuka, nothing changed except her oxygen levels getting higher, as he went back to sleep, making sure that nothing would wake him up this time. Next time, he’ll sleep in his own bed. For now, being by Fuuka’s side was the most important thing to him and the only way he could sleep while knowing she was still alive and breathing.

Chapter Text

🎵 And he keeps a picture of you in his office downtown
And you understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars
And why I've spent my whole life trying to put it into words 🎵

Flashback

 September 4th

Fuuka knew today would be a better day. Junpei almost never did anything the day before a full moon battle. So, she knew his day had to be open. Right?

She walked out of her room, noticing that it was eerily quiet—Koromaru was sleeping on the floor near the stairs and yet, nothing. Fuuka carefully ran down the stairs as she felt her heart sank even more. Only people downstairs were Shinjiro, Mitsuru, and Akihiko.

She looked around for Junpei, as if he was a lost dog and she was the owner. She began by looking in every corner she could think of—behind the counter in the kitchen, the desk by the entrance, but nothing. Mitsuru noticed that Fuuka looked slightly worried and tilted her head as she closed her folder filled with paperwork for her father.

“Yamagishi, you look as if you lost something. Could I be of help?” Mitsuru asked slowly as Fuuka stood straight, a little startled, but shook her head. “Are you looking for someone?”

“Yes—well, I thought Junpei-kun was down here, but maybe I was wrong.”

Akihiko was fixing his boxing gloves as he turned to face Fuuka from the couch. “Oh yeah—! He told me he was going out and won’t be back until later today. Didn’t say why, though.”

Fuuka crestfallen—this was the second time in just a couple days that she couldn’t get any time alone with him. She began to wonder if this was even beginning to be worth it in the end. She sat down and leaned back in the lounge chair.

Now I look like an idiot. Again.

Shinjiro could sense that Fuuka was beating herself up again. “You should have listen to me, Yamagishi.” He mentioned as he turned on the TV, trying to find something that caught his attention. “Iori is an idiot, remember?”

Fuuka sat up in her chair and pouted. “Yes, I remember fondly of what we spoke up, senpai. Just thought he would stay in—he did the last two times.” Fuuka sighed, wondering what else she could do. “I just don’t want to admit it, yet.”

Akihiko and Mitsuru looked at each other, wondering what in the world they were talking about. Though, they did agree that Junpei was an idiot in his own way. “Shinjiro—” Mitsuru grinned as she knew what was happening. It happened to her a few times in her middle school years. Being duped by a guy who didn’t like her back, though she was the one rejecting them most of the time. “—do you remember that dessert you made for me, a few years back?”

“Mitsuru, I made you a lot of desserts. Be a bit more specific.”

“I was a small, sweet you made. You said that milk chocolate was too sweet so you make dark chocolate.”

Shinjiro took but a moment to think of what Mitsuru enjoyed. “Eclairs. Is that it?”

“But of course! You made them better than the cooks at my family home, Shinjiro. You know, I would—”

“Not going to happen.”

Shinjiro was quick to silence that offer. He hated the idea of charity for himself—couldn’t fantom the idea of working for Mitsuru, someone who helped him so much that returning the favor didn’t seem so favorable to him. Fuuka thought of eclairs, wondering what they would taste like and smiled.

“Senpai, could we, I don’t know, try to make some?” Fuuka asked, beginning to pull her phone out to look for recipes. “I am sure we can work together and bring about the same sweetness Kirijo-senpai mentioned.”

Shinjiro turned towards Fuuka, his hand putting down the remote and frowning. “…you want to try cooking? I thought you were still a beginner. At least, that’s what Minako kept saying.”

“Well, yes, but I made onigiri the other day without burning the rice.” She held up her finger and pointed towards Shinjiro. “…but that’s all I have been able to make.” She lowered her hand, her finger curling back inward.

Shinjiro crossed his arms, wondering if they even had the ingredients to make said eclairs. He had to close his eyes and think for a while.

We have the simple ingredients, but everything else might have to be bought.

Fuuka didn’t realize how deep in thought Shinjiro was. It made her a bit happy to have someone other than Minako cook with her. “…senpai?” Fuuka called out to him, wondering how deep in thought he really was. Opening his eyes, he turned to Fuuka and got up.

“I will have to go buy the ingredients. Also, we won’t be able to get them done tonight. You’d want the cream to sit overnight. It’ll taste better that way.” Shinjiro explained slowly. “Also, while I’m gone, can you go and check to see if we have a baking sheet and parchment paper?”

Fuuka began to pull a pen and piece of paper from the desk near by, after she dashed over when Shinjiro decided to list off what they needed “Oooookay.” She finished writing that down and turned back towards Shinjiro as he had his fist holding up his chin. “Anything else?”

Shinjiro shook his head. He moved towards Fuuka, grabbing a piece of paper and looking for a pen. Fuuka gave him hers and she couldn’t believe how fast he was writing down the ingredients. A couple blinks and he was done. I am impressed—he knows more than he lets on. She thought as he read what he wrote. “Yamagishi—”

“Yes?”

“Make sure to keep everyone out of the kitchen when I come back.” He shoved the list in his pocket as Fuuka watched him leave through the door.

“D-do you need help? Or an extra set of hands?”

Shinjiro stopped as Fuuka asked if he’d need some help. It was odd—no one usually asked him for help, it was the other way around usually when no one even asked for help, he’d help anyone who needed it. “…” he let out a sigh. “Sure, but I’ll carry the bags, before you even ask. And check the kitchen first, before we leave.” Fuuka nodded and made it to the kitchen, double checking everything she was told to find.

Mitsuru got up from her seat and forked Shinjiro about 5,000 yen. “For this, and for yourself. And no buts.” She stated as she held up her finger to him before he could open his mouth. He grinned and shook his head before pocketing the money.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say, Mitsuru.”

After several hours passed and many batches of horrible eclairs later, and almost close to midnight, Fuuka was happy to have at least 10 or so eclairs that were passable. Out of the 50 Shinjiro helped her made. “Well, I guess I’m good only 20% of the time.” Fuuka remarked, but still felt proud of herself. “And everyone can have one—except Aigis, and Koromaru-don’t want to make him sick.”

Shinjiro shook his head. “I don’t get it—how can you be so happy about failing 80% of the time? That’s not good, Yamagishi.” He pointed out as he did the dishes. Shinjiro couldn’t understand how she saw the good in the bad.

"I know, but this is something good to look forward to. I couldn’t make anything this great—Minako-chan will be thrilled to try these out.” She smiled. “Maybe she could join us next time.” Fuuka looked up at the clock, noticing how close to midnight it was. At least everyone was safe and back in their rooms. Fuuka put the good eclairs in a container and put them in a place so that Junpei wouldn’t eat them all.

After crossing paths with Shinjiro to put the food away, she felt her heart skip a beat once everything turned dark—the Dark Hour was upon them and Fuuka forgot how dark it really gets. It was eerie, but something she still had to get used to. “…this still scares me after all this time.” She murmured as she had to reach for the flashlight that was next to the fridge. “Perhaps we should head to bed? It’s an early morning for me.”

Shinjiro nodded, but added a small grunt as he could feel his Persona raging inside of him. Fuuka thought it was a sign of confirmation. Shinjiro didn’t want to let go of his shirt, clenching it tightly at his heart. He couldn’t let Fuuka know about this, not her, not yet. He could not let Castor get out and go and rampage their found home. However, Fuuka felt something was off, but wasn’t sure what it was. Lucia instantly pushed her towards Shinjiro, Fuuka’s hand reaching out to his freed arm, and something within her made her freeze. Their eyes seemed to glaze over as their minds were filled with a vision.

It was as if they were in a warm, open meadow-Fuuka’s hair blowing in the breeze, long, loose, and smooth. Shinjiro right in front of her-the air warm and the meadow filled with flowers. Their eyes gazing upon each other, as if they’ve known each other for a long, long time. Fuuka and Shinjiro looked older-more mature and happier, as if something came along and whisked them here, away from reality. As if it was a look into the future yet to be seen.

She didn’t know if it was Lucia doing it to her or Castor doing it to Shinjiro, but it was a warm sensation going through their bodies. It was as if Lucia was trying to calm the beast within Shinjiro. Fuuka could feel something cold rolling down her face as she could tell if it was her crying or Shinjiro crying.

Somehow, someway, it worked as Shinjiro began to release his shirt slowly, his fist hurting from how hard he was squeezing his shirt. Fuuka felt as if she was in a trance—her heart pounding in sync with Shinjiro's—as she stared deeply into Shinjiro’s eyes. It was, as if, an invisible string connected them.

Fuuka had to almost force herself to break the connection. She was in such a deep trance that the Dark Hour was already over. Fuuka didn’t see anything, but Lucia made her feel many things—especially the pain that Castor was giving to Shinjiro. And the softness of Lucia trying to calm someone so untamed.

They both sat in silence—Fuuka didn’t even realize that she was staring at Shinjiro until they broke off from each other. Fuuka removed her hand from his arm, her cheeks flushed red for…embarrassment? Happiness? She couldn’t even distinguish what she felt. “Senpai… …I… did you see…felt what I felt?” She whispered softly as Shinjiro looked at his hand—not clammy like it usually is after a flare up.

The suppressants…didn’t do half the work of whatever Yamagishi did to me. What the hell…just happened? Maybe the suppressants are making me hallucinate?

Shinjiro was bewildered at the fact. He just nodded silently, his beanie being pulled downward as he felt uncomfortably…at peace. “…you should go to bed. It’ll be the best.” He somehow let the words fall out of his mouth. Fuuka turned the flashlight off, laid it on the counter, and walked carefully out of the kitchen. Once she got to the stairs, she made a mad dash to her room, as quietly as she could.

Shinjiro put his hand on his chest—his heart pounding normally. It irked him. He reached for the pills inside of his peacoat and looked at them for a moment. For just a nanosecond, he was going to throw them away, down the sink. But he knew it was a fluke. Nothing this good could ever happen to him. Right?

October 10th

“Why the hell isn’t anyone doing anything!?” Shinjiro yelled as he had to be pushed back into his wheelchair by Akihiko.

"Shinji, chill. They are doing all they could for her.” He mentioned, trying to rub his shoulders to release tension. Shinjiro was yelling at Mitsuru, since her family owns the hospital, and not happy that Fuuka seemed to be in the same state she was at the beginning of the week. He turned towards Fuuka and frowned.

“Shinjiro.” Mitsuru sat on the same side Shinjiro was on and leaned towards him. “They are doing the best they can. Yamagishi had a weak constitution before she was even here. You’ve read her files—she never fought off illnesses easily.” Mitsuru slowly explained to him, hoping that would calm him down. She hated to resort to the bitter truth. “Yamagishi might not recover—you need to understand that, Shinjiro.”

Shinjiro shook his head violently. “No! Fuck that! She…” Shinjiro pulled his beanie off of his head, relieved that he only has morphine on him now and that he’ll leave the hospital soon, and gripped it tightly. “…no, I’m staying until she’s awake!”

Akihiko sighed as he almost wanted to slap his best friend in the face. “Shinji, if you were here, would Fuuka do this? No—she’d probably be out there fighting. Now,” he turned to crouch down to his height, “Minako had to stay at the dorm, but she knows she is waiting for you. She hates to see you filled with anguish.”

She does? I thought she… is she even with Aki? Then again, she wouldn’t tell anyone but Aki her feelings.

“…tch.” He lowered his eyes towards Fuuka again—her teal hair slightly messy, as if she had tossed and turned in her sleep. “…!” Shinjiro felt his heart beating fast, his lungs taking away his breath. Mitsuru’s eyes grew in worry as Akihiko knew what this was—he saw it all too well in the past.

“Where is your—” Akihiko began to ask as Shinjiro gripped Akihiko’s arm and shook his head. “But—!”

“Give me…Yamagishi’s hand…!” He cried out, feeling the despair of Castor wrangling him in to reality. “T-trust me!” Akihiko nodded as their hands made contact as Mitsuru and Akihiko observed what was happening.

His mind travelled back to the first time it happened within the Dark Hour. The big open meadow with flowers around them, it made his eyes grew that Fuuka wasn’t there in front of him. But, he could smell the lavender that was on Fuuka’s hair, and the chocolate aroma of the eclairs again. Lucia reached out, mentally and in Shinjiro’s mind, to Castor, pulling the creature into her warm arms. Fuuka’s heart monitor went off—escalating pass a pulse of 100 and her heart rate in the 140s as Shinjiro shook his head. “D-don't…do anything…”

The seniors looked at each other, the alarms going off loudly and annoying—Mitsuru was about to yell at Shinjiro, but then it was over in the blink of an eye. Shinjiro squeezed her hand tightly as his breathing went back to normal—Fuuka’s own heart rate and pulse back to regular ranges. Subconsciously, her thumb brushed across his own hand, making Shinjiro jump slightly.

Senpai…you should fight for me. Please.

His eyes grew—he turned to Mitsuru and Akihiko, their eyes as wide as his was. “I am…surprised. Did Yamagishi tell you about this?”

Shinjiro shook his head. “We found out about a month ago—something about her Persona…keeps my Persona relaxed when it’s riled up. I…Hell, I can’t explain it either.” He murmured as he turned his eyes back to Fuuka—her voice seemingly gone, leaving him feel a bit lonely. "It's like Castor is a wild horse and Lucia is a princess who is calming the wild horse down, or something." He suggested, just going with something his friends could understand without it sounded odd.

“…Shinji.” Akihiko softly uttered. He was taken aback. “…is that why you don’t want to leave her side?” He asked slowly. Shinjiro nodded.

“If this will get me off my damn suppressants, then why not?” He seemed to have some hope in his voice. “Besides,” he wanted to add more, but nothing seemed to came to his mind but one thing, “…I feel her calling out to me.”

“…could be that she is communicating with her Persona.” Mitsuru suggested. Shinjiro didn’t move an inch—he was focused on Fuuka. Mitsuru looked at her watch on her hand and turned back to her allies. “Listen. I don’t have time—my father wants an update on Yamagishi in the next hour. I…” She almost didn’t want to break his heart.

Mitsuru realized that Shinjiro had fallen for her, so hard that if she never woke, he would be a mess and irreconcilable. “…did not know you and Yamagishi were close. But, stay as long as you feel the need to. Akihiko,” she turned towards him and nodded, “stay if you must, but I’ll arrange for a group meeting in a few days. We need to talk about what to do about Tartarus and the shadows.”

Akihiko nodded slowly, stating to Shinjiro that he’ll be back-his stomach was roaring loudly as he quickly made his exit, along with Mitsuru. For the first time this week, Shinjiro was finally alone with Fuuka. He rubbed her hand with his thumb. “Come on, Fuuka. Say something more, please.” He whispered softly. Mitsuru was standing outside of the doorway, not fully leaving just yet. She wondered what in the world could calm Shinjiro’s Persona so easily, without negative effects. It made her curious and she looked inside the room as she could see Shinjiro’s heart ache.

If she doesn’t wake up, what will he do then? Mitsuru pondered in her mind. She is our only navigator–and I cannot force my Persona to navigate again. It’ll be harder on me– She stopped as she watched Shinjiro stand up, but then he sat back down, laying his head on Fuuka’s bed once more.

Mitsuru-senpai…

She jolted from her spot, wondering who was calling out to her suddenly.

Do not worry. I’ll be sure to lend my help anyway possible.

Yamagishi…!

Now she knew Shinjiro wasn’t crazy–-Fuuka could do more than she ever thought she could. It made her wish she asked more about Fuuka and her Persona when she was alive and awake.

I’ll get Shinjiro back to you-just give me a few more days. …I promise.

If you say so.

Mitsuru walked away, her arms crossed, as she felt a smile appear on her face. For now, she would have to keep this to herself. She wouldn’t let her father know about the power that Fuuka holds deep within her soul, within her heart. “If you say so, Yamagishi.” She whispered outloud, as she walked outside. A warm breeze passed through her hair as she felt a bit more confident about Fuuka getting better and the promise she intended to keep.

Chapter Text

🎵 And when you find everything you looked for 
I hope your life will lead you back to my door
Oh, but if it don't
Stay beautiful🎵

September 6th

Fuuka was a bit surprised to see Shinjiro having a magazine over his face—did he fall asleep? She ever really had time to question if Shinjiro was always tired, or just never seemed to sleep. "We should be quiet. I wouldn't want to wake up Shinjiro-senpai." Fuuka pointed to Shinjiro as she turned to Aigis and Koromaru. Koromaru let out a bark of confirmation, but Aigis began to decipher his bark.

"Koromaru says that he isn't asleep." Aigis slowly said, Koromaru barking to confirm what he said, as Shinjiro felt his body tense up in shock. " 'He just recently put the magazine on his face' is what Koromaru says."

Fuuka turned her head over and tilted her head. "Huh. That's the magazine used to guide people with the family cooking show… I didn't know the new issue was out." Fuuka mentioned as she began to think to herself.

Does senpai…like cooking shows?

Fuuka felt her cheeks heat up as Aigis asked how did she know about the magazine. "Oh, I recently got into learning how to cook." Koromaru knew that Shinjiro was lying—which wasn't odd, but interesting as Fuuka felt he had nothing to hide, right? Koromaru kept barking at Shinjiro as the girls headed up towards the stairs, leaving both Koromaru and Shinjiro in the lobby.

"Dammit. I forgot she understood dog talk." He uttered as he pulled the magazine off, once the coast was clear, and saw that Koromaru was whining. Shinjiro sighed and pet his head softly. "Don't worry about it—I'll make something next time, Koro-chan." He grinned as he placed the magazine on the table and turned the TV back on, this time a bit quieter.

Fuuka was on the second floor, relieved that Aigis was itching to get back to her room as she could hear Shinjiro talking to Koromaru. She wanted to ask, but knew that if she bothered him, she might feel a bit bad—it was nice to keep stuff you like to yourself. Fuuka began to pace back and forth, her mind conflicted.

It would be great to have someone like senpai to teach me how to cook—then again, I might need Minako-chan's help. She seems to get him to easily talk to. Then again—

Fuuka didn't realize that there was a piece of carpet coming off from the stairs from constant use. Her tights were getting caught on the nail—she stopped and focused her attention on trying to not rip her favorite pair.

"Oh, no… I better tell Mitsuru-senpai about this—" Fuuka crouched as she knew this was going to be a hazard—and it would happen to her now, as she was conflicted. Shinjiro started coming up the stairs, Koromaru coming upstairs right behind him, but then went back down as soon as the door downstairs opened up.

Shinjiro could see that Fuuka was struggling with a nail—of course, he didn't realize why she was crouching. He was just about to ask as Fuuka pulled a bit harder than normal, feeling her clothing being removed from the nail...and felt her body shifting towards the stairs—her breath was catching in her throat as she was too scared to let out a scream or cry.

Fuuka closed her eyes as Shinjiro shifted his body quickly up the stairs and caught Fuuka a few steps away from the second floor. He let out a grunt—not realizing how light she was, but realizing how much someone so light gave him a bit of pain. Fuuka opened her eyes slowly, one by one, as she could see Shinjiro looking down at her.

"…you okay?" He asked softly as she nodded slowly. Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up—maybe this was way too convenient for him to be here at the exact moment. "Did you hurt your foot or something?"

Fuuka blinked and looked down at her tights and sighed softly. "…I might need to buy a new pair. There is a nail hanging off—it needs to b-be fixed." She whispered as she pointed to the nail coming out of the board. "C-could you fix it?"

Shinjiro noticed Fuuka was a bit warm—the cheeks being red was a clear sign. "If you're okay, then yeah, I can do it." He let her down carefully, his sternum aching—he didn't want to tell her that at all. "I'll see if there's a toolbox or something here. Go on, I'll take care of it." He looked at Fuuka, noticing she seemed a bit concerned.

"Well, okay. …I, er…thank you, Shinjiro-senpai—f-for the rescue, that is." Fuuka felt flustered as she played with the ends of her skirt. She watched Shinjiro walking down the stairs as she quickly made her way up the stairs and straight into her room. She locked the door and put her hand to her chest—yes, her heart was beating quickly, but not because she just ran up the stairs like a crazed maniac.

Fuuka carefully walked to her bed and reached for her phone. She knew that if she wanted an unbiased opinion that she should go to the one person who wasn't in SEES or dealing with SEES at all.

Natsuki.

"Natsuki-chan…do you have a few minutes?" Fuuka called Natsuki, knowing that texting might be slow between the two of them. Natsuki seemed to be awfully busy in the afternoons, leading into the early evenings.

"Yeah, of course!"  Natsuki moved herself to the stoop from her family home and sat down, wondering what could be on Fuuka's mind. "So, what's up?"

Fuuka played with her skirt as she could hear banging down below on the stairs—perhaps Shinjiro was fixing the stairs? "I, er, got a question about… …boys." She slowly said as Natsuki felt like this might be a breeze! Natsuki urged Fuuka on, not realizing this might be a big mistake.

"Oh, well…okay. I think, think is a big word here, that I like this guy, but I think the universe is trying to get us together, and I think I am losing my mind." She slowly explained, wondering if she did sound a bit crazy. "Am I crazy?"

Natsuki began to hear the sign of slight panic in Fuuka's voice. Man, she is kinda losing it. Natsuki thought before asking her a question.

"Fuuka, let me ask you this: is the feeling mutual?"

Fuuka put her elbows on her knees and sighed heavily. "I don't think so. He's…so mysterious—he doesn't speak much—"

"Wait. I thought we were talking about… oh, what's his name...?"

Fuuka shook her head, even though Natsuki couldn't see it through her phone. "We aren't talking about…Junpei this time." Natsuki blinked a few times, showing some confusion on her face.

"But, you have always talked about him like he was good or something. What happened?"  And before Fuuka could say anything, Natsuki snapped her finger. "He fell for someone else, huh?"

Fuuka sighed heavily. "Was it that obvious? I waited too long."

"Fuuka, dear, he was impatient."  She had to tread carefully with Fuuka. Natsuki might not know the SEES members that well, but had to make sure to speak from an unbiased mindset. She felt hurt for Fuuka—she was truly surprised that she wasn't speaking on happier terms to her. "Now, if he did fall for some other girl, oh well. I am sure you will someone to replace that pain."

"Annnnd that is what leads me to calling out you out of the blue." Fuuka mentioned as she felt her cheeks heating up. She was trying to figure out the right way to say, to ask, about Shinjiro. "So, ummm… …how do you know if someone likes you or maybe… okay, let me try to explain what's happened so far."

"Fuuka…? Is there another guy—Now if he breaks your heart—!"

"I-I think it's just the cosmos aligning us up or something else. It's not going to happen, I know. But let me explain:" Fuuka got up from her bed and began to pace. "So, this guy, whenever I wanted to do stuff with Junpei, per se, he would tell me to stop chasing him. That it isn't worth it. Like, that ramen lunch thing you gave me? That was something I knew he would like—but he gave it to Minako-chan instead!"

"Well alright. He is already sounding like shit now, Fuuka. You should have lead with that!"

She nodded slowly. "Yes, well when that happened, this other guy stated that Junpei wouldn't know what hit him unless it actually did—"

"Ahhh this guy is smart. He already knows Junpei is scum."

"I am not trying to bad mouth him, Natsuki! But," she stopped in her spot and closed her eyes, "the next time I tried to at least go out with him, he was already out and had plans."

Natsuki sighed. "That's the universal sign of I got plans with the guys or I am going to see a girl. And I think it's seeing a girl."

"Which led to me actually seeing the girl just today. She's from a bad group of people, but she doesn't seem inherently evil. Just that some people accepted her and welcomed her before anyone else could." Fuuka explained as she opened her eyes and slid down to her table where her laptop sat. Fuuka played with her computer mouse's wheel and sighed heavily. "He is head over heels for her."

Natsuki listened—she didn't know Strega either, but knew about the bad people in the alleyway. She didn't tell Fuuka this as it could make her worry even more over her. And Natsuki couldn't risk her doing that for her.

"And did you tell this other guy?"

"I think he knew from the beginning and didn't want to tell me. I…I don't know. But," Fuuka sat up straighter and put her hand flat on the table, "there was this time, that we were making desserts, just a couple days ago… and when our hands just brushed by each other…" Fuuka wasn't sure how else to explain it—Natsuki might just freak out about Lucia doing her thing with Castor. Or just the idea of Personas might freak her out.

"…did something happen? Like sparks? Or maybe it was like…shit what is it called? …like electricity went through you both and left you speechless?"

"You took the words out of my mouth—it was odd. I never felt something like that before. But, the moment it happened, I just… we split and didn't talk about it. Haven't talked about it." Fuuka moved her fingers onto her skirt, playing with the hem and drawing different shapes onto the skirt. "Does that mean something? Oh—and there was a loose nail on the stairs at the dorm and I almost fell down the stairs as my tights got stuck in it—and this sounds silly, but he was there to catch me." She let out a small giggle, knowing it sounded ridiculous.

"Huh. That sounds like something out of a romantic novel."  Natsuki mentioned as Fuuka agreed. "Now, are you feeling something for him? I mean, you both cooked something, he gave you advice, AND you both felt something when just your hands were brushing each other? That isn't just something. It sounds like fate, Fuuka."

Fuuka shook her head vehemently. "It can't be. I mean, he's a silent guy who looks like he can beat up someone just looking at him in the wrong way—"

"Fuuka! You into bad guys!?"  Natsuki gasped as Fuuka felt herself gasping for words. "Well well well—it makes sense now!"

"Excuse me, but it does not!"

Natsuki let out a heartfelt laugh, one she hasn't done in such a while. "Fuuka, it is fine! But you know what they say about the quiet ones—You know the people I did hang out with. So, now I want to know his name!"

Fuuka shook her head. If I tell her, she might even know! Nope! Can't let anyone else know!

"I will tell you once we actually get into a friendship, even if we ever get to a relationship." Fuuka held up her pinkie finger, even though Natsuki couldn't see it. "I promise."

"Just acquaintances!? Oh, Fuuka, you are killing me! Fine, fine. But,"  Natsuki started to stand as she let out a soft sigh, "if you don't tell me by the end of this month, I will find out."

Fuuka frowned, albeit pouting, as she wondered if she could even get Shinjiro's affection to friendship within a month. Can I even do that?

She sat on the idea for a few seconds—I mean, not like people would make fun of her even more than before. So why not?

"Deal."

October 12th

It took her a moment to catch her breath, and for what Mitsuru said to her to actually settle in. Natsuki was a bit dumbfounded, but her face showed a hint of terror. Her eyes followed around the room—the monitors on Fuuka, which had been reduced from five to four, Mitsuru and Akihiko nearby whereas Shinjiro was asleep on the pullout couch nearby, and Minato with his arms crossed and sitting in a chair across from Natsuki.

"It's been a week." Natsuki began to say, after a long silence, and looked up at Mitsuru and Akihiko. "Why hasn't anyone done a damn thing!? How come the one who sh-shot Fuuka is still running around!?" She cried out as her eyes, beginning to fill with tears again, closed tightly.

"Moriyama-san," Mitsuru began to speak, but lost her thoughts as she saw Minato standing up and taking over for her.

"…listen, we feel the same anguish and pain you do. Trust me." He slowly stated as Natsuki reached for Fuuka's hand and caressed it tenderly. "This man who hurt her—he is dangerous. And we have to formulate a plan. If we charge in head first, we could get hurt, too." He sat next to her, his body on Fuuka's soft bed, and nodded slowly. "She saved Shinjiro-san…and we will avenge her by making sure we go in with our thoughts collected."

Natsuki wiped a stray tear and nodded. She knew that if he could injure two people without anyone finding Takaya, then of course she couldn't ask for anything else. "Fuuka's alive. That's all I could ever ask for." She whispered softly as her head lowered. Her eyes turned towards Mitsuru again. "But, i-if she doesn't wake up, will she be behind a term?"

Mitsuru blinked—she almost forgot that the new term will begin, and then reality came back and whooshed her away from the past again. "She might. But, we will play it by ear. Our main concern is her and…" She turned her head towards Shinjiro, lightly snoring and somewhat at peace. "…school for Yamagishi will be placed on the back burner. She's smart—she will catch up."

"I…can I come back in a week? I have family issues and…I want to see her, again." Natsuki sighed softly after she whispered the last few words. Mitsuru nodded.

"I do not see why not. Anyway, I need to update my father about Yamagishi's progress. If you need anything—"

Akihiko interrupted her by putting his hand on her shoulder. "We will call you. We got it." Mitsuru nodded, excusing herself as she left the room. Akihiko turned towards Shinjiro and then turned back towards the group of people around Fuuka.

"Maybe I should go. Oh, by the way," Akihiko mentioned as he pointed behind him, "Shinji will be able to leave tomorrow. If you don't mind, Minato, help me get him back to the dorm. He's going to probably put up a fight since…" Akihiko looked down at Fuuka and his shoulder sank inward. "…she won't be there. If he needs anything, at least try to compromise with him if I'm not there."

Minato nodded as Akihiko stood erect and walked outside and shutting the door quietly. After the coast was clear, Natsuki looked back at Shinjiro herself. His hair was a bit in disarray, his beanie off to the side, and his boots untied by his feet. She turned towards Minato as she had to confirm something.

"Can I ask you something?" Natsuki stated as Minato simple nodded. "Well, I don't know how much you know, but…Fuuka told me a month ago she had a thing for this guy. And she couldn't specify who it was. …" Natsuki bit her lip before continuing on. "…was he the guy she was mentioning? B-because she did have a thing for Junpei, but apparently he started to fall for someone and she never really tells me much—"

Minato smiled softly and held a finger up. "Yes and yes. Junpei fell for…someone like Fuuka." He couldn't dive into the details with their Personas being somewhat similar. "But, why he didn't go for Fuuka is beyond my comprehension—I would happily go for her myself, to be honest. She's sweet, loyal, and a little hard on herself, but she means the best." Minato explained as he moved a piece of her hair out of her face. "But, Minako, figured something was up once she hung out with Shinjiro. He would be more soften, less aggressive and less stoic, and for a couple weeks, we couldn't figure it out. Then, we connected the pieces together once the typhoon hit.

"To be honest, only a few of us know—Yukari, Junpei, Ken, and Aigis have no clue on what's going on between them. But I am sure they will connect the dots quickly. And besides," he sat back down and looked at Natsuki, "I think you helped her quell her fears into talking to someone like him."

Natsuki felt her cheeks heat up at the compliment. "I just told her to not take any shit from anyone. She always seemed to take my word to heart, be it bad or good." She smiled as she stood up, and let go of a heavy breath she was holding in. "Do you think it would last?"

"Those two?" Minato asked, with Natsuki nodding in confirmation, as he closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "You know, if Fuuka can tame Shinjiro's anger and frustration, who knows what else she could do? I think it's possible, no matter who you are with, so long as they both love each other." He opened his eyes and stared at Shinjiro. "I don't even think they have said those words to each other yet. But, he hasn't left her side if only to use the bathroom, get checked out from the doctors, and to sleep in his bed—only that led to him sleeping near her. So," he turned back to Natsuki with a small smile on his lips, "if that isn't love, then I don't know what it is then."

Natsuki put her hand to her chest and smiled. "Good. Because I… I am doubtful that Fuuka will hear, but I have to leave later this month. My mom got a better job and my family can live and breathe better in our new place. I haven't told Fuuka yet. And I feel awful. So, that's why I wanted to ask. I feel at peace but…I still will come whenever I can." Natsuki moves towards the door and stopped as he put her hand on the handle. "Will she wake soon?" She asked softly.

Minato got up and walked over towards her, not showing any true emotions as he wasn't so sure himself. "I want her to. She was the icing on the cake—she was the best thing in our group. I am hoping she wakes soon." He mentioned softly. That was enough for Natsuki to nod and leave slowly, her pace slow as she moved to the exit of the hospital.

Minato sunk his shoulders in as he sat next to Fuuka. It was finally a bit more quiet than he bargained for. But, he could almost feel at peace—everyone was busy and had plans, but still wishing that Yukari would come, as well as Ken. Minato knew he couldn't rush them—especially Ken. He feels still at fault. He sighed heavily as he leaned back in his chair and saw Shinjiro turning in his sleep.

I'm a bit surprised he slept through all of our conversations. Has he been a heavy sleeper? Minato thought wordlessly as he turned towards Fuuka and felt his eyes soften at her. I wish I noticed your pain sooner; then perhaps we could've been together. But, I ruined that because of my jealously...

He shook his head. If she didn't get hurt, then Shinjiro would've been dead, possibly. And he couldn't wish that on anyone, an ally especially. Minato felt a bit jealous, but sorrow overwhelmed him at the moment. But, he was happy and would be happy for anyone in his close group of friends. Especially with Fuuka.

Slowly, he moved his hand towards her—suddenly, he felt anxious. As if Shinjiro would know and give him an evil glare, maybe yell at him. After what happened a few weeks ago, Minato knew he was in the wrong and apologized. It was menacing but he had to try it at least. He heard last month, while not trying to snoop through the fourth floor command room, that Fuuka talked to Mitsuru about her powers and how the moment she touched Shinjiro, something happened.

Would he get the same thing?

He placed his hand gently on top of hers, and frowned. Nothing. Nothing at all. He wondered if it was a compatibility thing. He was about to take his hand away as Fuuka gripped it tightly and then released, all happening in a blink of an eye. Minato's eyes grew as he felt his heart skip a beat and then ache all over again. His eyes shot towards Shinjiro and knowing what he had to do, he carefully tip-toed and rubbed Shinjiro's shoulders. A grunt and a turn towards Minato's small smile on his lips made Shinjiro sit up abruptly.

"Hey—thought you should know that Fuuka squeezed my hand. It was quick, but I think she wanted yours."

...instead of mine...

Minato stated as he watched Shinjiro slowly stand, regaining his composure, and grabbed the nearest chair and pulled it up to her bed. Minato looked over at him, hoping that perhaps Fuuka was just wanting Shinjiro—for once, he hoped he was wrong. He watched them while he was at the exit, waiting, and waiting for Fuuka's hand to squeeze his.

What seemed like an eternity, she grasped his hand tightly, for a few more seconds longer than she did with Minato's hand, and then it went limp again. Shinjiro's gasp was what made Minato leave the room quickly and quietly. He couldn't handle how she chose him, but he had to man up and get over it. Being there for her, as a friend, an ally, someone he admired was what would make her get better quickly. Minato leaned his back against the wall, his head joining suit, as he felt frustrated. He wondered if maybe going to Tartarus tomorrow would help get his frustrations out. Maybe…maybe it might help him in the end. And it might help him get over how stupid he was for ruining a good friendship.

Chapter Text

🎵You had a speech, you're speechless
Love slipped beyond your reaches
And I couldn't give a reason
Champagne problems 🎵

September 8th

Fuuka could sense the tension in the hospital room—with Chidori not even trying to talk or say anything to move things along, she was wondering who would snap first. Mitsuru had her arms crossed, gazing at Chidori while she's drawing, and Akihiko was just standing, trying to read Mitsuru's body language. And Fuuka was just sitting in a chair, trying to focus, trying to see if she could understand Chidori's powers.

"Yamagishi, could you sense anything?" Mitsuru asked, turning her head to the teal-headed girl as she shook her head. More silence filled the air. It was just only a few days ago that Chidori was caught, thanks to Junpei—albeit unknowingly. "By you refusing to speak, you are only hurting yourself."

Mitsuru moved towards Akihiko and sighed heavily. "We are not keeping you here because we want to, or hate you. It's to avoid unnecessary confrontation."

The door opened up as Junpei came walking in, moving towards Fuuka first. "H-how is she doing?" He asked slowly—Fuuka's eyes moved up towards him as Akihiko put his arms down to his sides.

"What's the obsession, Junpei?" Akihiko asked before Fuuka could say anything, wondering why someone would be interesting in a member like Strega.

Junpei ignored Akihiko and turned towards Mitsuru. "Did she say anything?" Mitsuru shook her head as Fuuka observed Junpei feeling a bit defeated. "I see. Can I try talking to her?"

Mitsuru turned her body towards him, her arms still crossed with a frown on her lips. "Iori, you seem to be getting your emotions involved, which isn't wise." She explained. "Is everything alright, though?"

Junpei's head lowered as he kicked the ground weakly with his foot. "Well, no. I mean, I know she attacked me and all…" He looked up at Chidori again. "But, I can't stop thinking about her."

Fuuka thought she was hit by a mach truck—for once, she wished Shinjiro was wrong. Oh, it ached her heart so much—this, this girl was the one who had Junpei's heart before she could even try. Fuuka bit her lip, her hand going to her chest and gripped her shirt. She turned up towards him, releasing her shirt, as she looked at him with honest, sad eyes. "…Junpei-kun…" She whispered as she saw him taking off his hat and bowing towards Mitsuru—quickly, but conveying the message he wanted.

She coughed, to gain Junpei's attention, and got up from her seat. "Take my seat—give it a shot." She stated as Junpei nodded and they traded spots. Fuuka watched Junpei doing most of the talking—Fuuka stared a bit angrily at Chidori, with all the evil malice she felt (which wasn't a lot—this is Fuuka we are talking about) as she suddenly put down her sketchbook. Fuuka removed all evil malice from her face as she turned to Junpei and sighed.

"It doesn't matter."

Fuuka gasped, her heart pained even more, as she and the others looked at one another. "S-she spoke…!"

"No one can understand me, or my drawings." She uttered softly, staring at the wall, as if she was trying to see what was beyond it. She lowered her head as Fuuka watched Junpei jump up, as if he saw a bug or something, and called out to Chidori.

"Chidori!"

There was blood dripping from her wrist—Fuuka covered her mouth as Akihiko turned to look around and saw the pot of sunflowers next to her. Akihiko gritted his teeth, looking for the newest weapon she made. "Tch. Not again!"

"H-hey! Why are you bleeding?" Junpei called out as Fuuka ached at his pain—someone he cared for was in pain and she couldn't do anything to help, neither could he though.

Akihiko pulled out a small razor blade from underneath the flowerpot and frowned. He turned towards Junpei and the others, holding the evidence he found. "She does this to herself. I swore I got rid of all the sharp objects."

Junpei seemed to be startled by this turn of events. "Apparently," Mitsuru spoke as she moved closer to the bed, "we cannot even leave her by herself for even a moment. But, fortunately, she is able to heal up at an astounding rate." She explained as Junpei felt Chidori's hand leave his own.

"Let go of me!" Chidori cried out as she kept her hand down at the side, blood still seeping out little by little.

"Wait. So at the station—!" Junpei connected the lines together from one of the previous engagements and tilted his head. "—you did this to yourself?"

Chidori's head turn from Junpei, simply confirmed it. "I never asked for your help." She spat with anger. "You were the one who misunderstood."

"Well, I want you to stop it!" Junpei stated, lower his head and eyes away from Chidori. "You can't be doing that. I-…it isn't right. I won't let you."

Chidori turned her head back towards Junpei and before she could say anything, Mitsuru stepped forward and turned towards Junpei and Fuuka. "You both should go. The doctor will be here soon."

Fuuka began walking towards the door, nodding, as she saw Junpei still standing by Chidori. "Let's go, Junpei-kun." Fuuka stated softly as Junpei followed behind, but stopped to look at Chidori one more time, and then walked out while Fuuka turned on her heel and followed behind him, to make sure he wouldn't come back. Fuuka closed the door and made sure Junpei was okay before they continued their separate paths.

But, she wasn't so sure on how to…talk to someone like Junpei—he changed for the good, but now that Chidori was in the picture, she was stumped on how to break the ice with him.

"Junpei-kun." Fuuka called out to him as she stopped in front of him, a small smile on her lips. "…I know this is probably a bad time—"

"You think?" He sharply said as Fuuka's smile disappeared quickly. "I mean, I got someone who hurts herself, and she won't talk to anyone but me!" He began to rant to her as she held her arm, gripping it tightly. "A-and whatever this could be, Fuuka, it is a bad time."

"I-I…I just…"

Junpei turned his ear towards her, knowing he didn't mean what he was saying—he was just angry and frustrated, and Fuuka was the only one there to take the fall. "Yes? What?"

Fuuka stared at Junpei, her heart aching so badly as she realized Shinjiro was absolutely right. He…was right. She shook her head, unable to respond, as a tear escaped her eye—Fuuka quickly lowered her head as Junpei saw the tear. Now, he wanted to kick himself in the ass so hard. He rubbed the back of his head, not realizing how stressed out he had become. "F-fuuka..."

She pushed passed him, going to the other side of the hospital to leave, knowing that if she were to walk with him home, this was going to be painful for her to bear. "…j-just, go away." Fuuka could sense, and hear, Junpei following her. "Y-you don't want me to help you—" She felt herself getting heated up, too.

If he can, why can't I?

"I-I never knew this…I-I never knew Ch-chidori was who you were with—someone who…" Fuuka turned a corner, Junpei still calling out to her and trying to reason with her. "…we are th-the same, right? The same powers and what not... Then why won't you—" Fuuka stopped herself from saying the rest of her sentence. Fuuka turned to see Junpei, a bit out of breath, as she felt her lip trembling in fear and sadness—fear because she was now FINALLY confronting Junpei, but sadness because he would never love her.

"…Fuuka?" He noticed she stopped as she covered her lips, stifling back a sob she suddenly felt come out of her. "…" For once, Junpei was speechless. He didn't know what to say, what to do, hell he already fucked this up, so what more could he do?

"You know…" He moved towards her as he felt himself hesitating. "…Minako told me about the ramen bowl thing," Fuuka kept her head down, knowing if she looked at him, she might just let the waterworks flow. "A-and I was a dumbass—didn't realize you wanted to go out, with me. I-I just thought you were too cute and too smart for someone like me." He explained slowly, moving closer to Fuuka little by little, without her unaware of his motions.

"…and Minako whacked me on the head for it, after she found out from Shinjiro-san. And then, like a few days ago?, you wanted to find me and talk to me—Akihiko-san told me you were looking for me. And, well, didn't know until yesterday. All this time you were trying to talk to me, to hang out with me…" He put his hand on top of the wall above her head and looked down at her. Fuuka sniffed softly as she felt her tears ready to fall at a moment's notice. Junpei got a good look at her, in her weekend outfit with the cute little yellow cardigan, and her face—her face was a pure mess, just as much of a mess that Junpei's mind was in.

"…I fucked up, okay? A-and I know I can't make it up, not now, not for a while." He admitted slowly, not knowing how long Chidori would be in the hospital and if she'll ever leave, that is. "A-and…dammit I'm not good with this."

Fuuka noticed how close they were—it made her cheeks heat up as she was unaware of what to say to this—she just let him say what he wanted, to make him feel better. She could smell the slight aroma of a ramen bowl he had before coming over here to see Chidori.

That was how close they were.

"Listen, maybe…we could do something together? I don't know—Yukari said we were Capricorns or something like that? So, uhh…" Junpei sighed heavily. "…maybe we could celebrate our birthdays together? At least, let me pay you back for the ramen bowl you would've had with me."

Fuuka sniffed her nose, she felt like her whole face was covered in tears and snot—not a pleasant sight of Fuuka currently. Junpei, thankful, pulled out his handkerchief, and handed it to her. "Take this at least." He almost said Chidori wouldn't want it, but knew this wasn't about her—okay, it was, but he wanted to focus on Fuuka at least. "A-and give it back when you can. No rush." Fuuka took the handkerchief, wiping some tears from her face, as she looked up at Junpei.

Their eyes connected—oh, THIS was a horrible idea. She couldn't do this now, but…

Junpei noticed her cheeks were slightly red, and puffy, from all the crying, he assumed, as he reached down to cup her cheek and began to wipe some of her tears. "I hate to see a girl crying, especially you."

No no. I can't do this. H-he has Chidori-! I-I do not need to fall for his…gestures…! I wouldn't want to be that girl.

She felt her breath hitch up in her throat as she heard someone coughing from nearby—she blinked her eyes as she saw Shinjiro looking at them, with a somewhat disappointed look on his face.

Oh great. What else could go wrong?

Fuuka thought to herself as Shinjiro digested the scene a little bit—a crying Fuuka, Junpei's hand above her head and his other hand upon her cheek—he knew he didn't like this one bit. "Iori—what are you doing there with Yamagishi?"

Junpei felt his blood turn cold as he didn't even try to move from his position, though he probably should've once Shinjiro moved towards them. "I-I was just trying to comfort Fuuka—sh-she looked pretty sad—"

Shinjiro glared at Junpei, which made him jump a little and moved away from Fuuka. Shinjiro took a good look at Fuuka—relieved that she wasn't hurt, physically, but emotionally perhaps. "Is that true?"

Fuuka looked at Junpei, for a brief moment, as she could see fear in his eyes. "…I-I was upset, yes. …h-he gave me his handkerchief—" she lifted it up, to prove her first point, "—a-and, I said the wrong thing t-to him. I… …I was in the wrong." She lowered her head, not wanting to see Shinjiro or Junpei's eyes.

junpei's eyes grew. He wasn't expecting Fuuka to take the fall for what he said to her—now, he felt even worst. Before Shinjiro could say anything, Junpei coughed and spoke up. "Senpai, sh-she's lying. I…I got mad at her, over Chidori. I didn't meant what I said," He turned to Fuuka, his eyes filled with some sorrow, "and I apologize for everything—with the plans she made with me and I ignored—just," he bowed towards Shinjiro and stood erect quickly, "don't get mad at her."

Shinjiro raised an eyebrow—he wondered if he was probably dreaming this shit up right now. He turned towards Fuuka, she nodded to confirm, and he let out a sigh. "Good. Because you probably deserved it." Shinjiro spatted out at Junpei as he reached for Fuuka's hand and held it. "Now, you stay here until I leave. I'm taking Yamagishi with me—and," he held up a finger and pointed at the Magician, "don't follow us."

Junpei nodded swiftly, knowing not to cross someone like Shinjiro. Fuuka felt herself being pulled away quickly, her eyes turning towards Junpei as he removed his hat, turning his back towards them as Fuuka was ushered down a hallway and into a spare room. She could see Shinjiro turning around and closing the door and looking at her once again. Her heart pounded in her chest as she couldn't find the words to say anything.

"Don't fall for him." Shinjiro stated, having to repeat what he said earlier in the month, as she blinked at him, pulling up chairs for them both to sit down on. "For fuck's sake Fuuka, he lied to me in front of you!" He didn't want to raise his voice—he could already see Fuuka ready to cry again. Shinjiro took a deep breath, listening to what Minako told him about his anger, and sighed heavily.

Minako did not train me on how to do this shit with girls. Dammit.

Shinjiro thought silently as he brought his chair closer and looked at Fuuka. There was a bit of awkward silence—Fuuka didn't even know how to defuse the bomb ready to explode on them. "…I know." She whispered softly. "…I know and I still fall for it…" Fuuka covered her lips as she felt herself hyperventilating. Fuuka began to take deep breaths, trying to slow herself down, and felt a tear escaped her eye. "…I'm sorry."

Shinjiro was a bit speechless—he was all ready to apologize, but was thankful for Fuuka for speaking up first. "Don't be. Shit happens when people fall in love or something." He mentioned, but then his thoughts traveled to somewhere else. "…listen, this might sound crazy, maybe stupid, but, could we try…that stuff you did, with your Persona?"

Fuuka felt her tears drying up, surprised that they were actually bringing it up now, all of a sudden. "But…why? I thought…you were creeped out by it." She mentioned softly as she wiped the rest of her tears on the handkerchief and put it away in her pocket.

"Not really—just startled that someone with your power could…do something like that." He almost wanted to explain the whole situation with his pills. But, he pushed that aside. Unless Fuuka brought it up, then he might tell her—then again, not many people know, at least Strega for one. "Just want to see if it was true, if it was going to happen again."

She wondered, too, and wondered why it didn't happen just then when he grabbed her hand. She didn't understand it, but maybe they could try it again? "Well, let's make the room a bit dark—if it didn't work when it was bright out, then maybe that's a stipulation?" Fuuka mentioned, wondering if that was really the only reason why it would work.

Shinjiro moved from his seat and turned to all the blinds, closing them off until he got to the one by the door, locking the door so Fuuka wouldn't get disrupted, and closed the window's blinds on the door and carefully made his way towards Fuuka.

"Now, relax yourself, okay?" Fuuka wiped her stray tears away in the dark as she could hear Shinjiro shifting in his seat.

"How can someone relax Yamagishi? Iori was—"

Fuuka coughed. "L-let's not talk about him. This is about you."

And I.

Fuuka didn't speak the last part, only thinking it, as she began to reach for his hands and held one of them in the palms of both of her own. Fuuka looked at Shinjiro, unsure if she was really looking at him. She closed her eyes as she took a deep breath. "Now, take a deep breath with me—maybe we need to be on the—"

She gasped as she felt herself being whisked away into the open meadow again.

Fuuka began to turn around as she saw Shinjiro nearby—what made her be so drawn to someone like him? Fuuka shook her head as she saw rain clouds coming in from a distance. Shinjiro turned towards her as she was being pulled into his arms.

"This is the calm before the storm." He whispered softly as she could sense him becoming more protective of her. She felt her heart pounding in her ears as she bit her lip and looked up at him.

"I am sure we can handle this—" Fuuka gasped as she felt the rain coming down in sheets, as if hail was coming down and beating them senseless. Fuuka wrapped her arms around Shinjiro as he opened up his peacoat and pulled her into it—he didn't care if he was hurt.

She felt protected—warm, even, but…Hold on.

Fuuka thought as she looked up at him and turned to see what he was looking at.

A figure riding a horse, galloping towards them. It took her breath away as she saw Shinjiro froze up, paralyzed, as the figure grew closer.

The figure made Fuuka gasp softly, not realizing it was Castor the man was riding, but the figure on the horse couldn't be distinguished. Fuuka began to try to push at Shinjiro, trying to push him to safety.

"S-shinjiro-senpai?" She called out to him as she could see him sweating up a storm.

F uuka turned to face the figure—but Fuuka was scared that she couldn't protect him, however it seemed that Shinjiro was trying to protect her out of this mess. Shinjiro had his arms around her and wouldn't let go.

The moment the rider came up to them, he pulled out a sword—Fuuka quickly held out her hand, screaming as she knocked Shinjiro out of his trance like state and saw Fuuka react and began to push the horse and rider away from the both as Fuuka felt herself ready to collapse from exhaustion.

Shinjiro watched Fuuka slip out of his arms as she closed her eyes, her heart pounding.

Back in reality, Fuuka could feel her hands tightening around Shinjiro's own, Shinjiro moving closer to her, standing up and leaning over her.

"… Fuuka-!" He called out to her as he looked up to see the rider and Castor disappearing as the clouds began to slowly dissipate.

Shinjiro reached down to Fuuka, unsure of what to really say to her—what could you say to someone who saved your life. He pulled her back into a hug as she just wanted to sleep in his arms.

"…I…I am exhausted." She murmured into his chest as she just grabbed at his chest and felt herself sighing heavily.

Fuuka opened her eyes as she could sense Shinjiro opened his eyes as well—the contact was severed, but she could still see Shinjiro in the darkness. Fuuka sniffed her nose slightly and smelt a small aroma of …a type of musk he must have been using recently. She didn't smell it on him last time. Now, she was sort of convinced that Minako was really trying to get them together. In some sort of strange way.

She could smell how close he was to her—it excited her, but it also scared her. Could he smell her, too? Shinjiro didn't mean to get so close to her—the vision brought him to reality quickly as he could smell her—freshly plucked lavender and a hint of a forest after a rainfall, especially of an oak tree. Shinjiro gulped as he could barely see in the darkness, but as he moved his hand towards Fuuka's face, as if it was instinct, he knew her cheek was mere inches away from his hand. He felt her cheeks heating up and that heat hit his palm dead center.

"…Fuuka…" He whispered softly, trying to get his mind back to reality. The silence hung around them as Fuuka's eyes began to slightly adjust to the darkness. She could see his figure, but nothing too defining. Fuuka could feel the tension, sexual maybe?, as she wanted to see what this…kiss and tell thing Yukari mentions over in her novels were really like.

Even the way he said her voice made her heart skip a beat. "…Shinjiro…" She whispered as she could feel his hand hovering over her cheek. No one told her how to do this—luckily, Shinjiro was in the same boat as she was. The moment she said her name, he cupped her cheek. Being in the dark had its benefits—no one could see what you were emoting, and no one could see how many sweat bullets were pouring down your face. Shinjiro gulped as he knew he was taking this too far. He didn't even know if he loved her, so he couldn't continue on. If he did—

"Fuuka, I can't…" He whispered as he still kept his hand on her cheek. "…n-not now, that is." He could feel her head lowered, unsure of how bad or good that was. "This isn't the place. You know that."

Fuuka nodded as she put her hand on his own, removing it carefully as she smiled, though he couldn't see it. "…r-right, of course." Fuuka let out a small laugh, a weak one however, as she began to get up, and looking for the light switch. "I-I mean, a hospital? That's…that's silly!" She felt herself saying random stuff as she was frantically searching for the light. Her feet scuffling as Shinjiro moved straight towards the light switch, flickering it on the moment Fuuka's hand reached for it, grabbing Shinjiro's in the process.

Their hands were cupped in each other's as Fuuka finally got a good look at Shinjiro, and vice versa. Their eyes locked onto one another as their cheeks heated up to a darker shade of red. Whatever Shinjiro had in mind, to help Fuuka relax, and to bring her back to a better place mentally, worked. Fuuka removed her hand first, as she began to rub her arm, to shake off her nerves.

"I-I, er…" Speaking didn't help her situation either. "…thank you, a-again."

Shinjiro raised an eyebrow. "I think I am supposed to say that." He mentioned, his hands going straight to his peacoat pockets. He began to move out of her way as Fuuka didn't quite move just yet. "Listen:" He made sure he got Fuuka's attention before continuing onward, "what ever Lucia does actually helps Castor calm down. I have…" He gritted his teeth—should he even mention the pills now of all times? "…my Persona isn't like yours or anyone else's. It's, somewhat, berserk. And does this weekly, but now, it's a couple times a week."

Fuuka nodded slowly. She wondered if Shinjiro was being treated here—it is a Kirijo owned hospital. They would have to know more, right? Then the idea dawned on her—hacking into the system.

"Whatever she does, Fuuka, is helping me more than I could ever dream of." He put his hands on her shoulders, bringing her mind back to reality as she was already thinking of codes and what not to infiltrate the hospital's records. "…I know we don't normally talk much, a-and I understand if you think this is weird—"

Fuuka shook her head. "I-it isn't!"

"—but, in order for me to feel better," Shinjiro looked her dead in the eyes, "please, do not get hurt for my sake, okay?"

Fuuka nodded slowly. "…of course—I can get a lot of rest and—"

Shinjiro shook his head. "I don't mean like that, idiot." He knew that Strega was talking about Fuuka while in his presence, whenever he got his pills from them. He knew deep down that they wanted her dead to eliminate the possible chance of SEES actually saving the world. And he knew he had to jump on the idea of saving Fuuka without Fuuka realizing it—unless she already did. "Just…don't get yourself killed over me, or anyone in our group? Do you promise?"

Fuuka stared at him, surprised that he actually said something like that to her. It made her wonder if someone really was trying to hurt her or the group. She put her hand to her chest. "…Shinjiro…" Fuuka hesitated as she forgo the suffix. "…you have to make me promise something, too." Fuuka stated as she knew this could play the same way back to him. "Whatever you do, don't get yourself killed over me, too. …don't play the hero for us. Okay?"

Shinjiro nodded—he had to lie, of course! He didn't want anyone to touch their navigator, especially Strega—and he feared that if she got hurt, just because of him, he might not be able to handle it. As if it would be Miki dying all over again. "Fine. Now," He unlocked the door and turned towards the priestess, "you should go. I'll follow after you—and I'll make dinner tonight, so don't eat any sweets." Shinjiro mentioned as Fuuka walked out of the room, but turned to face him.

Fuuka opened her mouth, but then closed it again. But then, after collecting her thought, she spoke to him, "We should talk, again, senpai." She bowed to him and quickly left the hospital, her heart pounding in her ears again. Shinjiro closed the door to the room and locked it, removing his beanie and feeling at ease, but felt himself becoming worried over someone he barely knew, and yet was ready to give her the world and everything.

He hit the wall with the side of his fist and then laid his head on the wall, feeling frustrated over saving Fuuka and conflicted over telling her about Strega wanting her dead and his suppressant pills.

"…she's going to find out before I tell her. I just know it." He ran his hand through his hair and gritted his teeth in frustration. He let out a strong curse as he left the room, swinging the door close and made sure that Akihiko and Mitsuru didn't seem him like he was at this moment.

October 15th

"For fucks sake—let me go Arisato!"

Shinjiro's voice echoed the hallway leading to the 2nd floor as Minako winced at how loud he was. Minato was doing his best at holding Shinjiro back. "Shinjiro-san—you have to stay here! You just got out of the hospital a few days ago!"

Shinjiro gritted his teeth as he saw Junpei at the stairs watching this all unfold. Junpei knew that Shinjiro's death glares were enough to scare him away, but stayed where he was—at least to help Minato out.

"So?!"

"Akihiko-senpai—"

"Oh, fuck Aki. Just let me go see her—!" Minato even tried to shove Shinjiro back. He only moved him an inch as Shinjiro gave him a 'what in the living hell are you trying to do' look and crossed his arms. "Seriously?"

"Just let him go, Minato."

Minato and Shinjiro looked over at Junpei, his arms crossed as he was leaning against the stairs. Shinjiro was a bit surprised that Junpei, of all people, was on his side—for maybe a few seconds.

"I mean, why not? Probably wants alone time with her—couldn't even get that shit from her when she was awake."

And there it is. Shinjiro thought as he felt his cheeks heating up in anger as he pushed Minato to the side, almost into the wall, and walked towards Junpei. "Don't call the kettle black, Iori. You tried to flirt with her when she was upset over you and Yoshino!"

Junpei gulped, his eyes shooting up towards Shinjiro—if death glares could kill—Minato made sure to keep an eye on them, making sure no one threw a punch or pushed the other down the stairs. Minako and Yukari were watching from nearby on the first floor. This made Minako's anxiety rise a bit. She hated to see her friends, especially those two, fight over a girl. Especially someone whom she helped out with a month ago.

Junpei felt his lip trembling with anger. "Oh? I was at least trying to fix my mistakes by talking to her!" He stated as Minato sensed a punch coming soon, which made him move closer to the two assholes bickering on the stairs. "You just wanted to hold her hand and try to woo her but you were stuck on Minako for the longest time!" His right hand shot outward towards Minako on the first floor.

"Could we not bring me into this?!" Minako called out as she felt herself putting her hand to her forehead and rubbing it. Boys always caused her the occasional headache.

Shinjiro felt his heart squeeze at how much that ached. "Listen, Iori. YOU of all people know what I had to do in order to save Yoshino from her Persona attacking her." Now, he was going to lay it out, in front of everyone, his issue—might as well. "Fuuka's Persona, I have no damn clue what it does, but it calmed me down! If you even tried to get Fuuka near Chidori, then maybe she wouldn't have to rely on something that could possibly kill her." Shinjiro blurted out as Minako moved closer to the stairs, connecting the dots. Minato did as well—he moved to the railing and looked over at Shinjiro.

"Senpai…are you…dying?" He whispered softly as Minako rubbed her arms, wanting to hear the answer from Shinjiro himself.

Shinjiro felt the eyes of everyone on him and closed his eyes tightly. He felt himself getting embarrassed and a bit terrified. "I…I don't know. The suppressant pills have made my body unable to regulate normal body temperature." He explained as Minako turned her head as Minato's eyes grew. "Those in Strega cannot stop taking them—their Persona could kill them, as you saw last month, Iori."

Junpei swallowed, feeling his palms getting wet from the tension in the room—and from Shinjiro spatting his name with malice.

"These pills…" He lowered his beanie over his eyes. "…are killing me slowly. I don't know when I will die, but," Shinjiro looked around at everyone, unable to say the next few words as he feared it might send him over the edge.

"…don't tell Fuuka." Junpei connected the dots as he lowered his arms at his side, the truth hitting him faster than Shinjiro punching someone. "…shit." He whispered as he held onto the railing, his eyes darting around as he thought he would get sick.

Minako walked up the stairs, Yukari quickly behind, as she came up towards Shinjiro—his cheeks a light pink, as if she was hallucinating it. "Shinjiro…is that why you wanted my help with…" Minako could see Shinjiro nod his head once. "And…Fuuka's Persona, you said earlier, helped calm down Castor?" Another nod from Shinjiro as Minako crossed her arms. "Have you mentioned this to Mitsuru—let me take a guess: no?"

Shinjiro did another nod as Minako was at an impasse—Fuuka needs to be alive, and awake, to keep Shinjiro alive, for now. The suppressants can only work so far-and wouldn't he ever run out? She felt herself cover her lips, trying to think of something, anything.

"Senpai," Yukari peeped up after the silence was deafening, as she crossed her hands behind her back, "are you trying to wing yourself off of those pills?" Shinjiro nodded. Yukari turned towards Minako, Minato, and then Junpei. "…I see." She whispered as Shinjiro turned his head towards Minato, his eyes somewhat pleading to let him go see her.

"That's why you want to leave—if she's awake, you can relax and get better." Minato stated as it came full circle to him.

Dammit. And who knows when Fuuka would even wake up?

Minato thought as he let out a heavy sigh. "Go. I'll cover for you—but," Minato held up two fingers, "only for two hours. You need your rest as she does, too." He mentioned as he could see Shinjiro smile in the corner of his lip as he zipped down the stairs, carefully moving around the juniors, as Junpei reached out to grab his arm.

"H-hey… I just… …sorry. But, tell us how she is, okay?" Junpei stated as he let go of Shinjiro's arm. "A-and…just treat her right, for us. She's special to all of us." Everyone nodded slowly, not in sync though, as Shinjiro turned to face them all.

"…yeah, yeah. I like her, alright?" He stated—Minako was then positive she saw a blush on his cheeks. "Just…" He scratched the back of his head. "…leave her to me." Shinjiro mentioned as he only had a few hours before the trains would stop running, so he quickly moved down the stairs and towards the entrance to the outside world.

Maybe…she is helping him. One step at a time, okay, Shinjiro?

Minako thought as she felt a smile forming on her lips. "About time he admitted it, right? Now, if only he could say it to her…" She mused outloud as she walked up the stairs and straight past Minato. "…it's always the quiet ones you have to watch out for, right, brother?"

Minato felt his cheeks heating up, feeling a bit spiteful that he should be in Shinjiro's spot; he thought as he began to wave the others away as he walked towards his room. "…don't bring me into this."

Chapter Text

🎵Oh, I can't
Stop you putting roots in my dreamland
My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you 🎵

September 12th

As if there already wasn't tension enough in the dorm, Fuuka can feel the sparks of frustration between Akihiko and Shinjiro. She didn't know what caused both boys to have bruised cheeks (she assumed they punched each other because they act like brothers), but knew it had to be a touchy subject. That was two days ago and although the tension was diffused, she could sense some frustration between them. Then again, when isn't someone frustrated inside the dorm? With all these people living together, heads were bound to collide eventually.

So, in order to make herself feel better, she decided to cook something for the few SEES members that were actually here. Junpei and Koromaru was out, as well as Aigis, and Minato. She crossed her arms and remembered a recipe her mother told her that is super easy: beef stroganoff. She walked into the kitchen and began to pull out the ingredients she picked up a week ago as she hoped no one would notice.

Half an hour later, Shinjiro came downstairs as he almost felt like gagging. He thought something was burning—Shinjiro moved to the kitchen and saw Fuuka admiring her poorly looking beef stroganoff. Shinjiro's eyes were as big as dinner plates as he wanted to scold Fuuka for using the dorm's decent pots and pans. He just stared at her until Fuuka looked at him, a smile as big as her face on her lips.

Shinjiro blinked as he started to move carefully towards Fuuka. He looked down at the food and looked at her again. "What in the hell did you make?"

Fuuka gulped, knowing that wasn't a good sign if Shinjiro couldn't distinguish what she made. "B-beef stroganoff…?"

"Is that a question, Yamagishi?" Fuuka shook her head as Shinjiro rubbed his forehead, knowing this had to be remade.

"Senpai?"

Both turned to the opened door that as Minako was there, calling out to Shinjiro. "I was trying to catch up to you… Wh…what is that smell?" She asked as she couldn't distinguish if that was a good or bad smell. Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up in embarrassment.

"It smells?" She asked softly.

"It seems Yamagishi wanted to try cooking herself." Shinjiro stated as he took off his pea coat and reached for a nearby apron. "And yes, your nostrils are going to be irritated as I will fix this."

Fuuka's face lit up, but then quickly dimmed as Shinjiro threw her food away. "Oh? Can I watch?" Minako asked as she moved her body onto a bar stool, getting a bit comfortable. "So what was she trying to make?"

"Beef stroganoff—but it looks like she messed up a bit of the ingredients." Shinjiro pulled his beanie off and began to tie his hair back, into a small ponytail, as he wiped his forehead of a small bead of sweat on his face. "So," he turned to Fuuka, his arms crossed, "what did you do about the roux?"

Fuuka smiles again, contagious as Minako began to smile and wonder if Shinjiro could fix her disastrous mess. "I didn't use any—I made it from scratch with flour."

"Yamagishi, don't start acting proud. You burned the hell outta this."

Fuuka noticed the pan had some burnt crumbs all over the pan. It was hard to prove the pan was silver unless you looked on the outside of it. "You are right. I did burn it…"

Shinjiro sighed heavily, trying to keep calm around Fuuka's calm and carefree demeanor. He looked around and turned his eyes towards the teal-headed girl. "Did you have any left over ingredients?"

She quickly nodded her head. "Of course—I always buy extra of everything!"

Shinjiro felt a small smile creep up on his lips. "Pay attention—I'll make it the way you are suppose to make it." Minako raised an eyebrow, not aware that Shinjiro could cook—Akihiko wasn't kidding when they talked a couple weeks ago. "…Arisato," Minako blinked as Shinjiro brought her mind back to reality, "is this okay for dinner?"

"Why not? I can't wait to try it out and see how it's done myself." Minako grinned as Shinjiro tied the apron around him and then fixed Fuuka's apron up again. "Just don't get your hopes up just yet." Shinjiro let out a chuckle as Fuuka walked over to Minako, a small frown on her face.

"But, Minako-chan? Weren't you going out with Shinjiro-senpai? I don't want to just ruin your plans like this—!"

Before Minako could say anything, Shinjiro called out to Fuuka. "Hey. Let's get started." Fuuka nodded quickly as she made her way back over to Shinjiro.

Minako began to watch the two work in sync, albeit some clumsy moments from Fuuka, as she was surprised that Fuuka didn't give up even after Shinjiro threw the devilish food away.

"So, how much oil did you use?" Shinjiro began as he put about a few teaspoons into the pan, capping it up as he put it away.

"Oh I didn't use any. I thought it would be healthier that way." Fuuka explained, a smile on her lips, as Shinjiro felt his stomach churn at the idea of her not putting oil in.

For fucks sake that is what helps give the food flavor—

"And what about the red wine? How much did you put in?"

"Oh I don't know. I put in as much as I thought looked good enough."

"So, how long did you pour it in for?"

"About…two to three seconds."

Shinjiro looked down at the meat, trying to cut it into smaller pieces as he felt his face crestfallen. Dear god, Yamagishi.

"Why is the meat so fatty?"

Fuuka smiled again, quickly to respond, as Minako put her chin on her hands with her elbows on the table. "I told the butcher to give me the best meat he had!"

Shinjiro stopped trying to cut the meat as he felt like shaking the stupidity out of Fuuka when it came to cooking. "Everything about this is all wrong." He grew silent as Minako could see Fuuka play with the end of her apron, feeling a bit defeated. "Listen: don't start messing around with advance recipes until you've improved your basic cooking skills." He explained. "Do you feel bad about charring all this food?"

Fuuka nodded slowly, keeping her head down. "Of course—this is expensive food, too. I'm sorry." She whispered as Minako wanted to speak up from her feeling sad, but Shinjiro just put his hand on her head and messed up her hair a bit.

"That's part one of a punishment from me. Now, part two is listening to me and watching me do this. First off," he held up a finger and made Fuuka look up at him, "prepare everything beforehand. Trust me, it will save a lot of time. Measure out all the seasonings and chop everything out that needs to be chopped out. That way, you can focus your attention on the cooking part and not panic."

Fuuka nodded as she began to look around for a memo pad. "Y-Yes, of course! Memo…memo…"

Within a few minutes, Shinjiro began to get everything under control—he washed the vegetables and began cutting them, showing Fuuka how to cut with a sharp knife correctly. Fuuka nodded and watch, writing down everything she saw as quickly as she could. "Now," Shinjiro began to toss onions into the pan, once it got warmer by heating the sizzling from the pan, "gotta cook the onions on low heat. Cooked onions are the best part of the dish—you don't want to burn them."

She nodded slowly and wrote while she spoke, "Cook onions on low heat—"

"Put that notepad down and watch me. It'll be better to do that." Shinjiro stated as Fuuka placed the notepad off onto the table, along with her pen, and watched Shinjiro picking up the meat in a bowl. "Here's the meat—" he showed Fuuka to emphasis it, "—when you put it in…"

Slowly and delicately, Shinjiro explained how food should be properly cooked. His hands moved swiftly and surely as he showed Fuuka the proper way with basic steps.

After an hour of hellish pain, at least that's what Shinjiro thought, the dish was finally prepared—correctly. It looked as if it could be one of those featured meals from a magazine or cooking network. The aroma was to die for—it was ready to take you to heaven and back home without realizing it.

Fuuka was in awe as she couldn't even touch it, scared she might mess it up. "Oh wow! It looks so good!"

"Shut up and eat it before it gets cold." Shinjiro uttered as he put the dirty dishes into the sink. Fuuka and Minako both looked at it, not really wanting to ruin his masterpiece.

Minako took out her chopsticks and grinned. "Well, if you say so! Time to chow down!" She didn't know where to stick her chopsticks in—so, with it being Minako, she dug right into the center, with an exasperated sigh coming from Shinjiro's lips.

Damn. Not like you could take it from the sides like a normal person.

Case in point, Fuuka took a small portion of noodle and meat as she opened her mouth to let the juices fill her mouth—she let out a happy moan, not realizing something like this could be made if she paid more attention.

Minako let out the same sigh of happiness as she could see Shinjiro joining in on the fun. "Thank you for the food!" Minako chimed in, making Fuuka nod her head in agreement.

Shinjiro gulped some food down as his cheeks turned a hint of pink in the corners of his cheeks. "…yeah, it's nothing…"

"But," Fuuka looked up at Shinjiro once she finished off swallowing the food in her mouth, "you're amazing, Shinjiro-senpai."

"Anyone can do something like this."

"No way." She shook her head as she held up her pinkie finger. "Please, could you teach me again? I promise to do much better." She smiled softly, hoping that she could convey her determination while still being convincing.

Shinjiro let out a sigh and shrugged. "Not like I have anything else to do. But, you will do it by yourself next time." He looked at her pinkie and just put her hand down, not confirming or denying that promise to make.

After a few more minutes of eating and chatting between each other, Fuuka insisted that she cleaned—it was the least she could do today after all Shinjiro did. He moved over to the loveseat and Minako sat adjacent to him. Shinjiro looked up at the ceiling, his thoughts somewhere else currently.

" '…teach me again'. Huh." He repeated Fuuka's words as he looked back at Minako. "She was so itching to make me promise that I couldn't say no to her." He crosses his arms and closed his eyes, deep in thought.

Maybe…maybe that nature of her lured me in.

"Well, I guess I better be prepared to do more cooking again."

Minako scooted up in her seat and smiled at an idea that crossed her mind. "Why not make a meal for all of us? Like a little party or something?"

Shinjiro opened his eyes and slightly glared at her. "Here? That's pushing it a bit, Arisato." He mentioned but then he sat on the idea for a moment. Recipes pouring in his head of what could accommodate 10 or so people and what would blend well together. "Well, you got a point—maybe we could do something like that, once in a while."

Minako gasped as she clapped her hands together, thrilled that his answer wasn't a no as she felt this was a personal victory for her. She was somewhat happy to see this side of Shinjiro that not many people get to see. Then again, maybe Akihiko and Mitsuru have seen this side at least once or twice.

"I think I'm gonna go check up on Fuuka—" It was as if he had a sixth sense when it came to her; he heard a crash and then Fuuka yelling as he sighed. "—too late." He moves a bit quickly, knowing how much of a clumsy person Fuuka was as Minako followed behind.

Shinjiro opened the door carefully as he saw some glass on the floor, from one of the cups they were drinking from, as Fuuka's shoulders were curled in towards her as he could see her slightly trembling. This put Minako on edge and made Shinjiro go protective as he went to check up on her. "Fuuka?" He asked as he noticed that the step stool that she and other people use was flipped on its side. Shinjiro also noticed that there was more glass near Fuuka.

He moved carefully around, asking Minako to clean up the glass near the stove, as he stepped in front of Fuuka. "…Fuuka…?" He whispered and noticed that she had tears stinging her eyes and noticed that her hand had a decently sized cut, at least a good inch and a few millimeters deep. Even Shinjiro winced at the pain she must be feeling. She was trying her best to hold back her sobs as she could barely see Shinjiro through her tears.

Fuuka took a shaky breath and tried to explained what happened. "I-I was washing dishes…a-and I was putting up the d-dried glasses…" Shinjiro nodded as he began to pull the first aid kit from underneath the sink and looked for gauze, not noticing the water gathered at the front of the sink. "…a-and I mis-calculated my step—th-thought my foot would be closer t-to the ground…w-water from the sink—" she pulled her hand closer as Shinjiro noticed some blood dripping onto the floor between them and around the area near the sink.

"It's okay—" Shinjiro calmly said, a quick nod from Fuuka and Shinjiro knew this wasn't going to be pretty. He began to translate what she said through her sobs, trying to fully understand what occurred. "You were trying to put up cleaned dishes, after you washed and dried them," Fuuka nodded, "and as you were coming down the step stool, you slip and fell because of, I'm assuming, the water from the sink," which made Fuuka nod again, "and…" he removed the paper towel from her hand, already soaked in some blood, as he saw some tiny shards in her hand. "Fuck…" he whispered as he turned to Minako. "Hey, you're a girl—"

"...that explains why I have breasts. Why?"

Minako joked as she could see the seriousness in Shinjiro's eyes. "Do you have pliers or something? That thing you use for eyebrows that Takeba claims is a lifesaver."

Minako nodded. "Yeah, let me go get it." She put the broom and dustpan down as it was just the two of them in the kitchen. Shinjiro turned his attention to Fuuka, noticing that Fuuka couldn't have made a mess of the water that quickly. "Listen, hold on—" he stated as he picked her up slowly and placed her on the counter so he could get a better look at her hand and to make sure the glass was all cleaned up.

He opened the door to the sink, not realizing it at first because of Fuuka's injury, but that there was a small leak coming from a pipe towards the front of the cabinet doors—he saw the wood was damped and saw the foot size puddle near where the blood droplets begin. He began to turn the water supply off. "W-will it leave a scar?"

Fuuka speaking out of the blue, her cheeks stained with tears, made Shinjiro turn back towards her and his face turned softer, as if he was taking care of Koromaru. "…honestly, it might." He stated as Fuuka's eyes showed worry as he had to quickly back pedal. "B-but, it doesn't look too deep."

Nice save, dumb ass.

He chided to himself internally as he put a hand on Fuuka's head. "Why were you holding two glasses?"

She sniffed her nose, feeling her snot was drying up after all the crying she did in less than a few minutes. "T-the one over by the fridge…that's the one I fell into…" Fuuka nudged her elbow to show which one fell into it—Shinjiro checked for any cuts, and relieved there wasn't any. "…a-and I had the second one i-in my hand. I was coming down the stool because there wasn't enough room—and th-then…"

Ahhhh. Mitsuru might have just bought too many glasses and it got overcrowded… Shinjiro nodded as he realizing that perhaps some of the dishes were new ones, and hoping those two glasses weren't. "…you fell and the glass shattered in your hand," Fuuka nodded as Shinjiro felt his shoulders shrink, "damn Fuuka. You might be a bit bruised and sore tomorrow—I'll find some medicine to ease the pain." He rubbed the top of her head gently as Minako came back holding two types of pliers—a small one and a slightly bigger one.

"I-I didn't know which one." She stated as she walked towards Shinjiro as he grabbed both of them. "I can buy some new ones—" she made sure to say that before Fuuka could apologize for ruining hers.

Shinjiro nodded as Fuuka winced the moment he pulled the paper towel back. "Minako," getting onto a more personal level than before, which Minako didn't flinch at her own name being said, "could you look for…gauze, antibiotic cream…" he looked at Fuuka's wound, almost reminding him of an injury he had long, long ago when he was a kid in the orphanage, "…some dressings, gloves…and look for some acetaminophen, for pain."

Minako nodded as she pulled out the supplies from the first aid kit while Shinjiro looked at Fuuka's hand again. "I was going to say look for some peroxide, but I don't want to subject Fuuka to more pain." He mentioned to Minako as he held her hand in his, her hand cold because of some blood loss, and reached for the smallest pliers first. Shinjiro shot his eyes up towards Fuuka, their hearts skipping a beat and they stared at each other for a moment. "You always seem to get my hands on you—remind me to make sure Mitsuru actually fixes the damn dorm up."

Fuuka nodded. "O-of course." She whispered as Minako came by, accidentally slamming the supplies next to Fuuka and breaking their connection. Fuuka lowered her head as Shinjiro thanked Minako and turned his eyes back to Fuuka's small hand. He felt a bit nervous—this was her dominant hand and didn't want to make the situation worse. He put on the gloves, surprised they were a bit bigger than his own hands, and got focused as he let out a deep breath, carefully removed the few tiny shards that were embedded in her hand. Her fingers were twitching every time he removed one shard at a time. Shinjiro sighed heavily, knowing Fuuka had no control in what pain she was feeling.

Minako kept her hands in front of her lap, watching how delicate Shinjiro was when it came to something like this. She really hasn't seen this side of him at all—she was admiring how striking he was when it came to friends. Even those he met this month. Shinjiro put the shards out beside Fuuka's hip, on a napkin, and pulled the last one out, relieved that they weren't bigger than he thought they could be. He looked at her hand, double checking for everything, as he put the pliers down. "Now, this will hurt, a lot." Shinjiro started as he released her hand and reached for the antibiotic cream. "Grin and bear it, okay?"

Fuuka nodded as she saw him putting a small dab on his fingertip as she could sense the small hesitation of hurting her again. Shinjiro carefully, and delicately, put the cream on one end of the laceration and Fuuka let out an aching cry. She laid her forehead on Shinjiro's shoulder, her teeth gritting in pain as Minako began to unwrap the gauze and the dressing. "Shhhh. Shhh. It's okay." He whispered back into her ear as Minako thought she was intruding on this tender moment. Her eyes still showed worry as she might have dealt with some battle scars, but Fuuka never has gotten injured in battle so she wasn't used to the pain that everyone else got used to.

Shinjiro applies a little more ointment as Fuuka began to feel more tears stinging her eyes. "We are almost done." He whispered as he put a tiny bit on the other corner of the laceration and waited for the ointment to dry for a moment. Shinjiro reached for the dressing and opened it—he was glad it was the perfect size for her hand. "Just gotta place this on here…" He noticed her hand slowly starting to let less blood come out as he told her to hold the dressing. He reached for the gauze and began to wrap her hand as Fuuka removed her fingers little by little.

Minako, almost in a daze at watching those two, began to sweep around and picking up all the glass shards the best she could. She made a mental note to get the vacuum sweeper in here to make sure she didn't miss any pieces. Their body language conveyed they trusted each other, and she wondered if Fuuka was falling in love. She truly thought that her brother and Fuuka would've been the one he chose, but maybe she's not decided?

"There." Shinjiro double checked his work as Fuuka's hand was wrapped up very neatly. Fuuka looked at her own hand, feeling exhausted after noticing how quickly he took care of her.

"…thank you, Shinjiro…" she whispered as she removed her head from his shoulder blade as she saw Minako finishing her small task of cleaning up the glass. She didn't realize how much blood she did lost, maybe a couple teaspoons worth, as she felt herself turn a bit white. Shinjiro noticed her looking around.

"I'll take care of it. As for you," Shinjiro made sure to draw her attention back to him, "every morning before you go to school, let me check your wound. That way we can make sure it'll be safe throughout the day." He began to say as he took off his gloves and threw them in the trash bin. "Also, keep your hand elevated for the next few minutes to keep blood flow minimal to your hand. And take acetaminophen—" he held up a bottle that was inside of the first aid kit, "—follow the directions and you should be fine." He gave those to her as he began to reach for a paper towel and water to clean up her blood.

Fuuka nodded as she began to push herself off of the counter but found herself too exhausted to do so. She let out a breathless sigh, as if she was holding it in for too long, and pulled the old "puppy dog eyes" trick. Shinjiro could hear her struggling as he came eye to eye with her as he felt his cheeks heated up. "Sorry…I can't… can you help me?"

Shinjiro sighed and let out a good chuckle as he shook his head. "You've got me wrapped around your finger, huh? Do you have a particular way of how to be helped upstairs?"

She was a bit flabbergasted, wanting to be a bit greedy, but felt they haven't grown that much just yet. "J-just help me off the counter for now." Shinjiro obeyed and helped her off as she took a few seconds to get the blood back to her head and feet. Fuuka seemed okay, steady at first, as she saw Minako's worried eyes. Minako turned towards Shinjiro, a small smile on her lips.

"Senpai, why don't you get her upstairs? I'll take of the mess—but at least come back to see if I did cleaned it correctly?" She suggested as Shinjiro nodded and waited until Fuuka was distracted.

"Oh? But I couldn't—"

Fuuka felt her breath leaving her lips as she felt Shinjiro swooping her into his arms, all bridal style like, as Minako covered her lips and tried to stifle her chuckle. "Sh-Shinjiro—"

"No complaints. You need rest." He walked towards the door and kicked the door and used his back to prop it open so he could leave. "Now, keep that hand elevated." He was as cool as a cucumber as Fuuka nodded and kept her hand hovered above her head. "N-not that high…"

They walked up the stairs carefully as Minako popped her head out to see how far they were up the stairs as she felt her chest cave inward as she kicked the ground a bit with her foot. "He could have told me he liked her. I would've helped sooner…" she bemused outloud as she closed the door and went back to cleaning up Fuuka's blood, knowing that this might be a 'no' on going to Tartarus tonight and possibly tomorrow. She admired how Fuuka's confidence has grown over the last few months. And she wanted to keep it growing as she found someone she enjoyed—now, she was conflicted on letting Minato know about them or Shinjiro knowing about them.

"Oh boy. This is going to be a doozy." She mentioned as she put a hand to her forehead, knowing this is going to get ugly.

Fuuka felt herself being whisked to her room—she could swear up and down that she was hallucinating, but Shinjiro was carrying her up to her room. She blinked and realized she was not dreaming at all. Her heart pounded quickly as she watched him expertly opening up her room with his arms still holding her close to him.

"Is there any clothes or something you need?" Shinjiro asked, noting that her room totally screamed 'I AM A GIRL AND I LOVE FLOWERS' but the aroma from her flowers made him a bit confused. "Also, what is that smell?" He laid her down on her bed, noticing she would need some clothes to change into—there was some blood on her school uniform.

"Lavender—I use some to help me relax and get some sleep…" She mentioned as Shinjiro began to look for some night clothes for her. He looked absolutely confused as he picked up a t-shirt and some shorts—it made Fuuka laugh weakly as she laid down on her bed. "Those will work, senpai—it's workout clothes Sanada-senpai gave me."

"Wait. What?"

"He thought I should get buffed and what not. Too bad the clothes are a size too big on me—so he thinks I've…a-already worked out and that I looked good. To be honest, he doesn't have a good memory."

"I think I've hit him a few too many times in the head. That might be the reason why." Shinjiro stated as he watched her sit up and hold her clothes in her lap. "…is there something wrong?"

"…a-are you sure you want to see me change?" Fuuka pointed out as Shinjiro felt his cheeks tint pink, her head tilting a bit as she fell to the side and she caught herself with her good hand. "…ahhh…mmmm…"

Shinjiro sat on the bed with her, noticing she was a bit warm. "Take the medicine first, for me." He reached for the acetaminophen and one of her water bottles nearby. "Here." Fuuka took the medicine and the water as he wondered how he could help her with her clothes. Mitsuru would not be pleased if he was in the room with their navigator, but would she understand the situation?

Dammit. Maybe I should ask Minako for help. She's—

"Senpai? …Shinjiro?" She had to call for his name as Shinjiro blinked himself back into reality. "…I don't care, to be honest, if you have to see me. This is probably a dream, or a hallucination." Fuuka laughed weakly, noticing her wound was slightly bleeding again. Shinjiro let out a low curse and rubbed his temple.

"Fine, fine. Besides, you have blood on your clothes—I'll have to see if anyone could help me clean it out." Shinjiro stated as he wondered how tired and how out of it Fuuka really was. He watched her undress, a little camisole underneath her turtleneck, and he could see the white bra straps—he felt a bit aroused, but shook the feeling away. "Now, your skirt, too." He helped her up, slowly, as she could barely get the skirt off as she reached for the water next to her again, sipping it again.

Fuuka gave the skirt to Shinjiro as he saw her clad in her panties—a baby blue bra and panties, with white lace around her legs and her waist, and wait-was that a matching set? Now, Shinjiro was a bit aroused. He didn't even know she had a small hourglass figure—why hide something like that? He coughed softly as he put her clothes on her desk and helped her slowly into her shorts and her one size too big shirt.

Shinjiro began to slightly fantasize about what she would look like in his own turtlenecks—and he made sure Fuuka was sitting down, safely on her bed, as he took off his beanie and ran his fingers through his hair.

Hey, brain? Could you lay off the sexual thoughts FOR FIVE MINUTES?!

He took a minute to compose himself as he noticed Fuuka was dozing off while sitting up—he was a bit impressed, but knew she needed rest. "H-Hey, get into the bed before you sleep sitting up, Fuuka." He uttered as he helped her move into the sheets, a small sigh escaping his lips as Shinjiro was relieved she was doing better this time around.

Shinjiro focused as he saw the cut in her hand stop bleeding—but, he still wanted to get it fixed before she made it worst. "I'm going downstairs—want anything?" He asked her as she shook her head. Shinjiro could see that she was getting sleepier by the minute. He put on his beanie and went to go get the first aid kit. He couldn't believe that no one was helping him out—granted, Minako was friendly and helping her with her wound, but now they were alone, he was hoping she'd jump in and help.

Unfortunately, she was already gone and he was cursed (or perhaps blessed?) to deal with Fuuka and her hand. Shinjiro grabbed the first aid kit on the counter and moved back up to Fuuka's room. Entering it slowly and quietly, he could hear a light sigh coming from her bed and noticed that she was already asleep. Shinjiro could sigh 20 pounds off his shoulders as he moved the first aid kit to her table in the middle of the room and began to treat her hand while she was sleeping.

He looked at her sleeping face, not realizing how peaceful it was after she cried and sobbed everywhere. Is this what Minako meant as gross sobbing? He shook his head as he was able to clean up her wound faster with her being still and quiet. Shinjiro threw away her dirty bandages in the little bin near her desk and turned to face her again. He bit his lip, wondering why it was so quiet in her room—just then, the A/C unit kicked on and some white noise filled the room.

Shinjiro scratched the back of his head as he carefully moved Fuuka's hand back underneath her comforter and watched as she grabbed a nearby stuffed animal—he didn't realize she would still sleep with something like that. He didn't judge, just knew it might help her sleep better. Shinjiro shook his head as he stared at her too long, remembering what she looked like minutes ago and felt himself getting aroused again—he began to think of sad things, or ugly things.

Aki in drag. Aki in drag.

That barely worked as he kept chanting the words over and over in his head. After a few seconds, he realized that he had been in her room for too long—he cleaned up her hand and should've left minutes ago. So, why did he stay?

Shinjiro made sure Fuuka was okay, for at least a few more minutes and began to lean over her—he stopped himself. He couldn't do this, right?

She's just a friend. …someone who helps me with my Persona issues. He thought silently as he sat down on her bed as Fuuka turned towards him. Dammit. Girls are going to be the death of me.

He reached down, ruffled her hair up a bit, and kissed the top of her head. Granted, he thought that was the least he could do—he was told that as a kid, while in the orphanage, that a kiss on the head meant you admire them and wish them the best of luck. Oh, and that it brought them good dreams while they slept. So, Shinjiro was being less selfish tonight and thought of Fuuka before him. He reached for the first aid kit, after he got up from her bed, and walked to the door as quietly as he could.

Shinjiro couldn't bother her with his feelings—he knew that Minako might be right on the dot about him, but knew that Fuuka wouldn't like him back. He had too many demons inside of him, and couldn't tell her all about them. Not now. Maybe, not ever.

He opened and closed the door as quiet as he could as he was finally outside of her room. Shinjiro took the first aid kit back to the kitchen and then turned off the lights—he sat downstairs in the living room, wondering if would be able to sleep with the teal-hair girl in his mind. For once, he wouldn't care if that was the case. It was simply one more reason to lose sleep over for.

Chapter Text

🎵And that's the thing about illicit affairs
And clandestine meetings and stolen stares
They show their truth one single time
But they lie, and they lie, and they lie
A million little times 🎵

September 14th

After a couple hours of watching food being cooked by Shinjiro, and enjoying the delicious food he made, Fuuka, and the others, were as happy as they could be. Minako must have convinced him to do a little get together with everyone—even Mitsuru and Ken were pleased with the results. She looked down at the hand, still a bit sad that it hasn't started healing yet, but knew that it took patience—it was a bit difficult to write up notes or do homework. She laid her hand in her lap as she saw Minato coming her way. She tilted her head sideways as she could see him stopping behind her chair and a smiled appeared in his lips.

Fuuka felt herself being a bit more closer to Minato any day she had free—she even had something to give him, so now it'll be the best time as everyone was full and tired. "What is it?" She asked as she watched him reach for her good hand and held her close as Koromaru began laying down and Ken gaging with his finger pointing to his tongue off at the side.

"I want to talk to you—could we go to your room?" He asked as Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up. A quick nod and within minutes they were heading to her room. Minako, after washing her face and heading downstairs to use the shower, watched as Fuuka unlocked her door to her room and saw her twin brother heading in with her. She let out a small gasp as she heard the door shut quietly and the lock clicking in place. Minako walked back into her room, unable to believe she was with Minato. She swore that she was admiring Shinjiro more than her brother—Minato wasn't a bad brother at all, just that he got possessive, even though he was able to keep his emotions in checked.

Minako bit her lip as she didn't see them come out for another minute or two. She was trying her hardest to get them together—Shinjiro and Fuuka that is—and frowned as she worried that Shinjiro would find out. She knew she had to go to someone whom she believed might be able to help her out. She grabbed her bath stuff and new clothes as she tipped toed passed Fuuka's bedroom and flew down the stairs towards the boy's floor and the door she wanted to knock on. "Akihiko? Could I come in and talk to you?"

Fuuka felt the tension slowly diffuse around them as she explained she had a gift for him. Minato raised an eyebrow as he saw a Fuuka with a pair of headphones—silver mixed in with a tint of baby blue. They looked sharp and Fuuka smiled at him.

"I made these—I knew your current pair was…probably worn from wear and tear. And thought you might like these." She stated as Minato began to put them to his ear while he unplugged the old ones from his MP3 player and plugged the new ones in. His eyes grew in amazement. Never had he heard sound so crisp and loud in his ears at a volume so low!

"Fuuka…the sound on these is amazing!" He could hear every little instrument, as if they were made to be the most expensive pair, and yet they were free. Minato threw his old pair into her trash can and saw her cheeks heating up.

"I know I'm not really feminine, aren't I?" She whispered as she played with the end of her skirt, feeling nervous all of a sudden. "And this is just something I like to do on my spare time—I thought of you and knew you'd like them."

Minato walked over to her and put his arms around her and pulled her into a tight embrace. "So? This is who you are. I hope you keeping doing what you love." He whispered as he put his hands on the top of her head, watching as she looked up at him. "I hope you could teach me everything you know."

Fuuka felt her heart picking up as she saw their eyes locked onto each other. Her breath seemed to be caught in her throat—she wondered if she could convey what she felt before it was too late. In a blink of an eye, she felt Minato's lips on hers—soft and small plump lips on her own made her barrier come down as she didn't worry about anything or anyone.

But, deep in her mind, her thoughts did come across Shinjiro, and even Junpei a bit—she was the first to remove her lips as she looked at how determined Minato was at wanting to take this further. "Minato…"

"I don't care if you like Junpei—"

"He doesn't like me."

Fuuka quickly inserted before Minato continued onward. Minato was a bit startled at how quick Fuuka responded to that rumor in a heartbeat. "Chidori?"

"Chidori."

"Ah." He nodded as he cupped her cheek tenderly, being as suave as he could. Minato never wanted to play the second man—he felt more like a man to lead. It seemed to be something that was thrusted upon himself most of the time. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She thought for a moment. "I do, but I would rather think of you at a time like this. Junpei is with Chidori, he likes her, and I have stopped chasing him." She explained as she wrapped her arms around his neck, which made Minato wrap his arms around her waist and waited for her move. She began to think briefly about Shinjiro and the dream of him kissing her forehead—she didn't realize it happened in reality. Losing blood makes you a bit loopy and exhausted. But, Minato gave her attention. Minato gave her affection. Shinjiro... Fuuka shook her head of the brooding teen and smiled warmly at blue-haired teen. "I have no qualms with you."

Minato took that as his cue and carefully maneuvered Fuuka towards her bed and laid her down gently. "Fuuka, I promise, that I won't hurt you in any way. You have been so precious to me that I cannot see you in such a negative light." He removed his uniform jacket and tossed it aside. "I'll be sure to love you like no one has."

Fuuka was speechless—she heard rumors of him sweet talking his way with Yukari and Chihiro, then again they were just rumors. He loved her, right? This was love. Fuuka was smitten over Minato and just fell further in. Her cheeks were stained a bright, maroon color. She could see Minato move toward her lips, one leg in between her own pair of legs, as he slithered up towards her as Fuuka wrapped her arms around his neck. Their lips touched and Fuuka was in bliss.

Akihiko opened the door to his room, seeing a nervous Minako waiting for him. "Minako? Is everything okay?" She shook her head as she barged in and closed the door, locking it herself as she turned to put her stuff on Akihiko's desk and turned to face him. Her face covered in worry, a couple beads of sweat running down her neck, and she felt like she was having a panic attack.

"Listen, wh-whatever I say to you, right now, in this room, cannot leave this room." Minako pulled his desk chair out from said desk and sat down on it. She looked as if she was writ with anxiety. Akihiko nodded slowly, reaching for one of his protein shakes and sat down on the bed. "And you cannot tell Shinjiro. I don't want him to be angry and start a fight."

Akihiko's eyes grew, not knowing what she could be meaning. "Well? What is it?"

Minako let out a big heavy sigh. "Okay, first off: have you noticed that Shinjiro is more… what's the word… relaxed and a bit happier? Maybe not happier but as if some weight has been lifted off his shoulders?"

"Has he? He seems too busy to hang out with me but once a week, if I'm lucky." He sipped his shake and put it down afterwards on his side table by his bed. "I thought that was because of you. Not that I am hating the idea of him being friendly."

Minako smiled. "Well, yes I might be like…20% of the reason why, but Fuuka-chan is the other 80%." She stayed as he could see Akihiko's eyebrows raise in surprise. "N-now, they are both very friendly to one another—he did help her how to fix her beef stroganoff the other day. And I don't know what Fuuka is saying or doing—doubtful of her doing anything, she seems so shy—but have you noticed how stronger Shinjiro has been in battle?"

Akihiko nodded as he started to get up and moved towards Minako, his hand placed firmly on his desk. "No kidding—critical attacks, more outgoing and confident and more control with his Persona—so Yamagishi is the cause? …" he paused for a moment to let the gears in his head start to turn. "In battle, she does well in keeping our energy going. Just, maybe Shinji is actually listening?"

Minako shook her head as she looked up at Akihiko. "Yes and no. She's got more confident in her skills, too. Have you notice Oracle hasn't been failing us? Like we are getting more energy back quicker and faster. I think it's ten-fold." She mentioned as she held up her finger before Akihiko could speak. "That's in battle though. I think there is something going on between those two. But I cannot pinpoint what it is. The way they talk to each other, seemed more than acquaintances. And…" she looked up at Akihiko and lowered her finger, "…when she hurt her hand, Shinjiro was quick to her aid and it was amazing, like he knew what to do and how to handle everything so calmly!"

Minako felt herself getting worked up—she had to take a breath and put her elbow on his desk and her chin in her hand. "So, why is that a problem?" Akihiko asked as Minako sighed and lowered her eyes to her feet.

"Because I just saw my brother walking into Fuuka's room, alone, and I heard the locked click. …" she whispered as Akihiko leaned against his desk. "…I don't know what to say or do—what if Shinjiro finds out? I just thought that those two were a thing, but neither one said anything. Annnnnnd I never asked."

Akihiko crossed his arms, unsure of what to say. He just started a relationship with Minako a month ago, around after the full moon battle in August. Akihiko was just trying to get used to the idea of love much less anything else.

"Why don't you keep an eye on him? I mean, I already try that, but he seems more warmed up to you." He stated as he kept his back to Minako. "You can keep him cool if he does find out. Then again," he turned to face Minako, a small smile on his lips, "wouldn't expect Shinji to be so fond of Yamagishi."

Then again, she reminds me... ...of Miki. ...just a little bit... Akihiko thought silently, wondering if that was the main reason they were always by each other's side. It made him wonder what would've happen if Miki really was alive and saw this happening.

"I know, right? I'm all for Fuuka finding someone after Junpei basically denied all of her outings—"

"Ohhhhh, so that's why Yamagishi was asking for Junpei so much in the beginning of the month." A lightbulb went off in Akihiko's head, his brain connecting the neurons. "…but, she's with Arisato in her room."

"Yeeeeeep. Now you see why I am worried?"

Akihiko nodded and reached for his boxing gloves. "I'm not worried because he is in her room." Minako blinked, wondering what he could ever mean. "I'm worried because it sounds like Yamagishi invited your brother to her room. Not the other way around. If you think those two have something in common, Shinji and Yamagishi, then it would probably be a kick in the chest if he saw those two leaving at the same time." He frowned as he began to lace up his gloves and kept his body from facing Minako. "And Shinji usually keeps his anger to himself--hopefully, he still does."

If one would look at the monitors on the fourth floor, and peered into Fuuka's bedroom, they would see that their arms and limbs were a tangled mess, just like their clothes on the floor. Minato's hair stuck to his face as he had to catch his breath—he was only clad in his pants as Fuuka was laying there in only her bra and panties. Fuuka laid her arm on her forehead, wondering how something so sinful could feel so good.

"Are you okay?" Fuuka asked Minato as she sat up slowly reaching in to kiss his neck. "It would be a shame to end it just now." She whispered as she nibbled on his neck, determined to have her way with him, if he didn't mind.

He nodded as he wiped his forehead of sweat. "Yeah—guess I needed this as badly as you did, Fuuka." Minato stated as he let out a moan with his head slightly leaning back, letting out a chuckle. "You don't get to have all the fun!" Fuuka gasped as she was grabbed by her hands, a giggle escaping her lips, as Minato laid her back down and let his eyes roam up and down her petite frame.

Minato began to lean forward as his eyes caught a glimpse of her right hand where the laceration a few days ago appeared. He then become concerned as Fuuka turned her head and Minato sat back up again. "What happened to your hand?" He asked as his eyes filled with worry. "Did you get hurt when we went to Tartarus?"

She shook her head. "No no." She sat up with him, her cheeks pink with warmth. "I was putting up some glasses and I fell and got a decent sized cut." She mentioned as Minato showed concern in his eyes. "But don't worry! Minako-chan helped clean up the glass and Shinjiro-senpai fixed me up—"

Minato's eyes turned slightly dark once she brought up Shinjiro. And with that smile on her face, it seemed like it wasn't a big deal to her. "Shinjiro-senpai? Is that what you are calling him now?" He uttered with a taste of anger on his lips. "What happened with calling him by his last name?" Minato felt his heart was already overcome by jealously and aching in anger. 

Fuuka could sense the hostility in Minato's voice. She looked at him as if she just got slapped in the face. "M-Minato…?" Fuuka felt herself move quickly away. His eyebrows were lowered and small winkles appeared between his eyebrows. "H-he is just…"

"Just what, Fuuka?" He spat at her, her heart breaking as she sat there speechless. She couldn't understand why all the boys she cared for seemed to get angry over the name "Shinjiro". A long silence passed as Minato lowered his head and let out a laughter filled with frustration. "…I wanted to make love to you and what—you've fallen for him!" Minato got off the bed and began searching for his clothes off the floor. He even mumbled under his breath about 'never used Sanada or Kirijo's first name' and Fuuka covered her chest and frowned.

"What makes you think I have?!" Fuuka exclaimed as she felt his cold eyes back on her. 

"Because I can feel it when you were kissing me!"

Fuuka winced as she wasn't as experienced as she hoped for, but those words stun her into more silence. He almost yelled those words for everyone in the dorm to hear them. Minato found his dress shirt, putting it on haphazardly, and shook his head. "What the hell am I doing? Should've known that you'd be…" he spoke to himself, stopping before he called her something he shouldn't. He kept his back to her and went to the door. Fuuka got up off the bed, still clad in panties and her bra, as she felt tears stinging her eyes. 

I should've stayed with Yukari--what an idiot I am!

"M-Minato—"

"Don't. Don't 'Minato' me. Don't suck face with me when you are thinking of Aragaki!" He opened the door, after yelling that last statement a bit loudly, and slammed the door harshly. Fuuka covered her lips, her body trembling as she slumped to her knees and reached for her clothes, tears blurring her vision.

Minako and Akihiko moved towards the door and heard Minato yelling out to Fuuka and then the door was slammed hard; they flinched in sync. Minako covered her lips as she put a hand on Akihiko's shoulder and shook her head. Quietly, Akihiko opened the door first, hearing Minato letting out a heavy sigh as they could hear his footsteps coming towards the stairs. Minako moved her index finger to her lips as they both turned to look around the floor and saw Shinjiro coming up the stairs from the first floor.

Minako froze, along with Akihiko at her side, as Shinjiro blinked a few times and climbed to the second floor as he crossed his arms. "Just what are you two do—?"

Minato stopped as he was a few steps away from the second floor as he saw Shinjiro coincidentally on the same floor as him. Minako and Akihiko moved carefully towards Shinjiro as he looked a bit confused. The silence was deafening as Minato button up his shirt, keeping his eyes trained on Shinjiro. Minako reached for Akihiko's sleeve as she didn't know who was going to respond first.

"What are you looking at?" Minato spat at Shinjiro as he pulled up his zipper on his pants. Shinjiro's eyes squinting as he saw Minato was getting dressed right in front of him. Literally. He buttoned up his shirt only two buttons before Shinjiro spoke to him.

"Why are you giving me attitude?"

Minato huffed, letting out a "tch" as he fixed his hair and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "I don't know. Why don't you ask your little girlfriend upstairs?"

Shinjiro turned to Minako, as she looked back at him, noticing that only Akihiko was with her—Mitsuru and Yukari were busy, he assumed, and Aigis must have been in her room anyway, so he thought of Fuuka instantly. Shinjiro's eyes looked back at Minato. They darkened slightly as his eyebrows squinted together in worry and anger. "What did you do?" He carefully said, venom leaking from his words as he moved carefully towards the male twin. Akihiko moved quickly between them, Minako right behind, as he put his hand on Shinjiro's chest.

"Shinji, not now."

"Oh, I didn't do nothing to her. She's just two-faced—" he turned towards Minako and glared at her, "—better watch out sis: she might take Sanada-senpai, too." Shinjiro felt some anger in the pit of his stomach—he didn't know what it was, but it made him sick to hear how he spoke so badly about Fuuka.

Akihiko still kept his hand on Shinjiro's chest as Minato walked by cooly. "Oh," Minato turned towards Shinjiro, a devilish grin upon his lips, "while she was making out with me, she only wanted you. Can't fuck Junpei, doesn't want to fuck me—she wants someone who kisses her boo-boos and make her feel better. Guess she needs a father figure in her life to screw some sense into her."

"MINATO! That's low, even for you!" Minako exclaimed, surprised to hear her brother talking bad about Fuuka.

Minato gritted his teeth while bringing up his fists to the corner of his eyes and turned them towards his face to resemble tears; Shinjiro felt his ears turning red from embarrassment, anger, and albeit a bit happy, but didn't want to explain that feeling out-loud. He wondered if he was a bit chaotic thinking like that. "Don't stay with her—she can't be happy with anyone." Minato moved to his bedroom door, opened and closed it loudly as Akihiko carefully removed his hand from Shinjiro's chest.

Shinjiro took a deep breath, knowing that Minato had to be lying, right? Minako and Akihiko watched Shinjiro walked up the stairs, to create less of a nuisance and saw Fuuka's door was still shut. Minako and Akihiko stayed behind, standing on the stairs as Shinjiro stood at the doorway. He turned back around and Minako waved him to keep going. He sighed and turned back to the door, knocking softly on her door.

"Fuuka?" He asked softly as he heard a sob and then a click on the door. Shinjiro hesitated, but moved his hand to the door, his palms sweating, as he tried to open the door but nothing. She locked it on him and to everyone else. Shinjiro turned around and walked towards the two SEES members. "What the hell happened?"

Minako closed her eyes and rubbed her eyelids over and over. "I just saw him going into her room, and half an hour later or so, he yells out… Er…" Minako knew this was going to make her feel even worse for Fuuka. "He said, and I quote," she lowered her voice to a whisper as Shinjiro moved closer, " 'Don't suck face with me when you are thinking of Shinjiro.' And then he slammed the door on her."

"Yeah. Heard that door slamming from all the way on the ground floor…" Shinjiro uttered as he felt like an idiot. He should have been taking more care of her as he felt hopeless currently. Shinjiro moved to a nearby armchair and sat down, his fingers hiding his face, as he seemed a bit defeated. No one told him how to react in a situation like this.

Minako sat across from him, sitting on the coffee table, and put her hand on his knee. "Listen: Minato gets really jealous and possessive easily. Teenage boys are like that, sometimes. But, for our sake, and possibly Fuuka's, be there for her. She might not want to see anyone for a little bit." Minako stated, wondering, and hoping that she was right about Minato.

I have never seen him act like this—besides, doesn't he have a thing for Yukari anyway? Much of a player, isn't he? Why did he even attempt going after Fuuka in the first place?

Minako thought silently as she felt a bit worrisome about the two people she wanted to be together. It annoyed her a bit and thought of something. "Shinjiro, why don't you sit next to Fuuka's door? If she opens it up, maybe she'll let you in and you both could talk?" Minako suggested. "I mean, it doesn't hurt to try. And maybe I'll go talk to Minato. Maybe I'll take Akihiko with me, and we could beat him up?"

"No." Akihiko stated flatly. "We are not beating up a member of SEES, as much as I'd want to."

Minako was just kidding around, so that was another thing to work on with Akihiko at least. Minako got up from her spot, almost face palming, as she could see Shinjiro wrought with anger, fear, and heartache. "Shinjiro, just trust me. Us girls are complicated, but I know she'd be happy to know you were there for her, even if it wasn't the best situation currently."

"...Minako, she was making out with your brother." Shinjiro stated, his teeth slightly gritting together in anger. "Maybe she doesn't need me." He dejectedly stated as he began to get up and walk away from Minako.

"Shinjiro..." Minako got up slowly and tried to reach out for him but Akihiko stopped her and shook his head. "...Don't be like Minato, okay?" Minako called out as she saw him stopping on the staircase. "Because Fuuka thought of you-don't forget that, alright? She thought of you and probably feared you would hate her." She lowered her head and her arm slowly in sync—she wondered if she was even getting through his head. "Please-"

"...just leave me alone, leader." He stated harshly, darting down the stairs and towards his room and Minako slithered into the empty seat Shinjiro sat in. She barely heard the door slam down below—maybe he was going out for some fresh air?

Minako covered her face and ran her fingers through her hair, untying it and closing her eyes tightly. "...this isn't the way it was supposed to happen." She stated softly as she could see Akihiko sitting on the coffee table this time around. "Should we leave him alone?"

"Shinji? … …" Akihiko took a moment to think and nodded after he thought about all that has happened in the last month alone. "Give him half an hour—he might need to walk and let the steam leave his big, inflated head. Go talk to your brother—see if he needs a good punch in the face or not." He stated, holding his fist close to his chest. Akihiko smiled weakly as Minako nodded and began to talk down towards his room.

"I feel like this is my fault, but it isn't... is it?" She whispered to herself as she took the stairs one step at a time and began to look at her brother's door, wondering if this was the best way to solve everything. She could hear him pacing the room over and over—Minako knew this was going to get worse before it got better for everyone.

Chapter Text

🎵I like the way I can't keep my focus
I watch you talk, you didn't notice
I hear the words but all I can think is
We should be together 🎵

September 18th

It had been four days since Fuuka and Minato’s rendezvous and Fuuka has been depressed ever since. Minako and Junpei giving her free food and seeing her at lunch didn’t help one bit. Yukari itching to get Fuuka to BookWorms so she could pick a new romance novel out didn’t even make Fuuka budge either. And even Shinjiro tried to cook a meal with her—she just said she was constantly busy and had to work on something for school. Minako confirmed her lies through Natsuki, since she confronted her about Fuuka’s odd behavior.  

Today, however, was no different. Except everyone was at the dorm minus Minato. Fuuka sat with the others in the living room as they talked about the typhoon coming through. “Now, there won’t be school until the 24th.” Mitsuru explained.  

Good. I can just stay in my bed and rest.  

Shinjiro shot an eye at Fuuka, noticing she wasn’t reacting like the others were. Who wouldn’t enjoy missing school tomorrow whereas the rest of the days were a holiday? He turned towards the door, just like everyone else did, as they saw Minato dripped with water. Junpei let out a chuckle and commented, “Looks like you got caught in the storm.”

Yukari grabbed him a towel from the bathroom downstairs and handed it to him. He gave her a smile and a small “thanks” as Minako crossed her arms. She wasn’t thrilled if her brother was playing around with Yukari. “Thought you should know,” Minako mentioned as she felt Akihiko’s hand on her shoulder to calm her down, “no school tomorrow and the day after. They want to make sure we are all safe.”

Minato nodded as he sat over on the floor next to Koromaru as he tried to lick him clean. Fuuka stood as she turned to everyone. “I am heading up to bed—I think the storm worn me down.” She lied about the storm but began her trek to her room, using the railing to guide her upwards.  

“Fuuka—“ Minako called out as she didn’t hear her or just chose not to. She frowned as she showed some worry to Akihiko and Shinjiro.  

Mitsuru caught on as she eyed the three of them. “Is Yamagishi okay? It sounds like she’s depressed…or sick?” Mitsuru didn’t know how else to distinguish someone who is normally so bubbly now so down and out of it.  

"I think we should go check up on her—“ Minako started as she pulled on Akihiko’s arm. She began to tell Shinjiro to get up, but he already saw her trying to reach for him. “You’ll come too?” She asked as he nodded slowly.  

“I think… I know I should go.” Shinjiro stayed as he rubbed his temple and made his way up the stairs with Minako and Akihiko right behind him. He knew that Minato was the real reason behind this—then again, he felt he was to blame, too. If Fuuka hadn’t harbor a crush on him, then none of this would’ve happened. Shinjiro had no idea if that was a good or bad thing. Falling in love was not a good thing in his book, thinking it was pointless and stupid and a waste. But, Fuuka made sure he saw the humor, the good in life.  

Shinjiro, along with Minako and Akihiko, heard a bloodcurdling scream as he felt his blood run cold. They collectively ran up to Fuuka’s room, knowing everyone was downstairs and wondered if they even heard the scream, too. Shinjiro pushed himself hard as he reach the third floor hallway, found Fuuka’s door and swung it open as his eyes, along with Akihiko and Minako’s, saw Fuuka gasping for air as she was trying to reach for something.  

Minako began to reach towards Fuuka as Shinjiro pushed her back, carefully, and maneuvered his way through the dark room as the light from the hallway illuminated some of her room. “Fuuka…!” He cried out as he saw tears running down her eyes. He wondered if her Persona was attacking her, but how? She seemed to have a strong enough mentality to fight off any advances, but then, he wondered if Minato shutting her down like that was really what caused this. And if she craved for death...

He turned to Akihiko. “Get Mitsuru. Now!” Shinjiro yelled as he saw Akihiko blur out of the room as Fuuka began to reach out to Lucia again, tears stinging her eyes.  

“L-Lucia…! Why!?”

Shinjiro didn’t know what to do—his solution for something like this would be a suppressant, but was this a hallucination? He put his hands carefully on her shoulders, and began to sit down on the edge of her bed. He was a bit speechless—seeing someone he cared for in this predicament made him worry even more.  

He heard a light gasp as Mitsuru was standing in the doorway. “Akihiko was right…” she whispered as she moved into the room—she hadn’t experience something like this before, but she started to think hard and long as she reached for Fuuka. Before Mitsuru could reach them, Fuuka reached for Shinjiro and grabbed his sleeve and felt Lucia’s grip loosen and then in a blink of an eye, dropped Fuuka back on the bed. Mitsuru and Shinjiro could see the beads of sweat pouring down Fuuka’s face as she was hyperventilating.  

Mitsuru gulped, waiting to see if it would happen again. She turned to Shinjiro and leaned down to his ear, “I’m going to call my father. I’ll see if he knows anything about this,” she whispered in his ear as he shook his head. “No?”

He held Fuuka’s hand tightly. “Do that, but let me try to help her, Mitsuru. I can relate.” He stated softly as Fuuka shook and felt her breathing shaking too. “I might have an idea why her Persona attacked her, but let me talk to her.” Mitsuru nodded, surprised that he wanted to lead and try to let her follow behind.  

He’s grown. …what did Yamagishi do that I couldn’t?

By this point, everyone was peeking into the room—terrified looks on Yukari and Junpei’s faces, Ken holding Koromaru in his arms, as he let out a small whine, Aigis didn’t move as she probably didn’t know what was going on—as Minato stared as if he saw a ghost. He didn’t mean to do what he did, but if something like that cause her Persona to attack her—Minato’s eyes grew as he felt Aigis’ eyes upon him.  

Shinjiro leaned over, removing his pea coat and looked down at Fuuka. “Hey, hey. It’s okay. You are safe. You are fine.” He whispered as he knew that had to be a terrifying experience for them. For once, he was glad Minako urged them to go to Tartarus the night previous. They probably won’t have to go for a while now. The rain poured down on Fuuka’s window as her eyes went from the ceiling towards Shinjiro. Her eyes were red and puffy.  

“Sh-Shinjiro…” She whispered as she felt even weaker than before. He tried to not show any emotions on his face—at least he was good with that. He carefully maneuvered Fuuka into his coat and button it up slowly. “…wh-what are you doing?”

Shinjiro pulled Fuuka into his arms, and turned towards everyone staring at him. “Either move it or lose it.” He glared as everyone created a path for him. He turned back to Mitsuru. “Let me take care of her. At least for a couple days. She’s terrified and if it happens again, I’ll be right there with her.” He stated as he began to walk out of Fuuka’s room, not realizing how sweaty and wet she was. His eyes glared at Minato for but a moment and then moved her down the stairs; he only stopped and turned towards everyone, but his eyes went to Minako. “No Tartarus for the next week. We need to see if she can summon her Persona after this. If not, then we are screwed. And, if you got to talk to her, you can talk to me first.”

And with that, Shinjiro walked down the stairs and towards his room, knowing it would be much cooler since he only had the bare necessities, plus a TV and an alarm clock. Everyone looked at one another as they were a bit silent.  

“Guys…” Junpei’s voice creeped out of his throat as he rubbed his arm. “What do we do now?”

Mitsuru crossed her arms and directed everyone’s attention to her. “Everyone: we will help them out. If they need food, then we will get them what they need.” She stated as she gripped her arms a bit tighter than normal. “And, I know I don’t say this much, but if someone isn’t acting like that should, please check on them. Yamagishi will need all of us to help her.”

She left to go to her room as everyone slowly disappeared and departed separately. Minato, Aigis, and Minako stayed upstairs on the third floor. Minako went over and closed Fuuka’s door as she turned to her brother. “…for all that is good, Minato, you were better when you didn’t show any emotions. Just hope that Fuuka gets better, for your own good.”

She left him with Aigis as she walked to her bedroom door and closed it, trying her hardest to not show any emotions in front of him. She was devastated that their strongest but weakest member was going to be out—and that means everyone else would be too. Can’t navigate if you don’t have someone to guide you. Minako flopped on her bed as she felt herself become exhausted just looking at Fuuka today.  

Shinjiro began to wonder if he took on one of the hardest tasks so far in his life. Once he got to his room, he made two mental notes: get a comforter for them both, and to wash his pea coat since Fuuka had her sweat covered in it. He made sure she was comfortable—then again, her face showed pure fear as her eyes seemed to bug out a bit. Shinjiro sat down on his bed as Fuuka felt herself pull the coat closer to her. He began to pull out some tissues from his coat pocket, as it seemed everyone wanted him to carry all sorts of things, as he began to clean the sweat and tears off her face. He noticed Fuuka felt warm, just the heat emanating off of her forehead was enough to make him worry, as he just tried to keep her calm and cool.  

Her breathing slowed down as she closed her eyes tightly, as she opened them slowly—she saw Shinjiro in front of her rather than Lucia trying to hurt her. She blinked again, making sure she wasn’t dreaming. Fuuka held her hand out and Shinjiro gripped it tightly. “If it hurts, squeeze my hand. I know you must be fucking terrified.” She nodded at his words as she opened her mouth, a big breath coming into her lungs before she spoke.  

“…is this…what death feels like?”  

Shinjiro gulped. He didn’t know she felt like that—Shinjiro normally felt fear and anxiety but afterwards, when he took the pills, he felt all of it washed away—but he couldn’t let her know about his own Persona issues. Not now.  

“Feeling as if another moment more, you’d be dead?” He slowly whispered as Fuuka nodded. It took her a few minutes to realize where she was. She didn’t raise a complaint; she was not getting a break this month. “…I don’t want to feel like that, again.” Her words were calm and more relaxed compared to how high her emotions were a bit ago.  

“Just rest, okay? You have to be exhausted.” Shinjiro stated as he put her hand down, to go grab blankets for tonight, as she reached for his arm quickly—she somehow had the energy to pull him back to him. “Hmm? What is it?”

"…d-don’t leave me.”

Shinjiro felt his cheeks heating up as he was somewhat thankful that the light post near his bedroom was slightly illuminating the room. He sighed and rubbed his temple with his free hand. “What are we going to do without sheets, Fuuka? I’ll be over there.” He pointed to his small closet. She watched him point and she nodded slowly. Shinjiro nodded back and moved his way towards the closet, once Fuuka let him go, relieved to see that they had a couple comforters and an extra pillow.  

He carried them over to the edge of the bed and dropped them carefully, making sure not to hit Fuuka’s feet. She quickly moved her feet, however, and kept them drawn into her chest. Her eyes have calmed down a bit, but she felt her anxiety hitting the roof so many times. Shinjiro could see her breathing in and letting it out slowly, noting that this wasn’t like her. Then again, it was her first time something like this has happened. When it happened to him, he was lucky to just have Strega nearby—and for once, he was relieved Fuuka didn’t have strangers near her when this happened.  

He sat down at her feet, not wanting to interrupt her deep breathing as he began to search for some clothes for Fuuka. Granted, they would all be his and be all too big, but she couldn’t be comfortable in those clothes that looked like she was drenched from some rain. “Fuuka,” he pulled some clothes out—slightly disappointed in himself that he only has tank tops and turtlenecks—and realized that he needs to pick out more types of shirts.  

No wonder everyone thought I was sweating my damn ass off.  

He straighten up and pulled out at least a turtleneck for her. He sniffed it, double checking to see if his clothing was cleaned, smelt like lavender, and had a small smile on his lips. “I, er, know you might be drenched in your clothes.” He stated as he turned around and moved back to Fuuka, realized that she has begun to breathe normally. “And I thought maybe you’d like to change into something more…drier.” He suggested as he gave her his turtle neck, wondering if even black would look good on her.  

Fuuka felt the shirt, not realizing how soft and comfortable it looked, as she turned her eyes to smell the shirt and then back to Shinjiro. “A-are you sure?” She asked softly, becoming meek again like she was months ago. “What if I ruin it?”

“I have a handful of those. It doesn’t matter. And besides, Mitsuru could help get me more.”  

“…” she looked back at the shirt, a bit tired and defeated as she felt herself becoming more worried again. Her hands rubbed the fabric and lowered her eyes. “What if Lucia…”

“I’ll be here to help you.”  

“But what if—“

Shinjiro put a hand on her hand and gripped it tightly. Fuuka's eyes shot up and looked softly at Shinjiro. “I’ll be here. You have nothing to worry about. Just take a couple days off and I’ll help you. Besides, you’ve helped me so it’s my turn to at least return the favor.” He mentioned as he saw her cheeks heating up a little. After a moment of reconsidering everything, she nodded as Shinjiro helped her off the bed slowly, reaching for his pea coat and tossed it to the floor.

I need to wash everything after tonight.  

He thought to himself as he held her arms and made sure she was stable for a few minutes. “I know you want privacy, so I’ll turn my body around as you put that on.”  

Fuuka nodded as she began to leisurely strip—she could feel herself panting in pure exhaustion. Shinjiro could hear her getting worn down. He’d be happy to help, but knew he had to give her some privacy. They were just friends, right? The next few days might be rough on them, especially for her. After what seemed like an eternity, Fuuka was clad in her panties and her bra. She still felt icky, as if a cold shower couldn’t help her relax and cool down. Fuuka pulled the turtleneck over, not realizing how bit of a height difference there was between her and Shinjiro.  

She sat down on the bed and let out a sigh, her hand moving to her chest as she got used to the idea of a turtleneck keeping her somewhat clad from halfway down to her knee and up. “I-I’m done.” She stated softly as she watched Shinjiro turn to face her, their eyes staring at each other for a moment.  

Shinjiro felt himself swallow unintentionally as he was slightly amused at how cute, beautiful, and wonderful she looked in his turtleneck. He shook his head and tried to downplay her look as he reached for her clothes. “H-hopefully it will keep you warm tonight.”

Shit. Fuck. Dammit! I cannot play it cool around her!

Fuuka let out a small giggle as he just haphazardly tossed her clothes to the side, and he turned to face her. “It’s fine. I feel even tinier though.” Shinjiro nodded as he felt himself getting some beads of sweat running down his neck.  

Stay cool. Don’t let her know about how attractive she looks right now.  

“I…I need to get undressed—“

“Say no more.” She turned her body to the side and laid down, her back towards Shinjiro as he snuck a quick peek at her butt—relieved to see his clothes covered up her butt perfectly. Just barely, though.

Shinjiro knew he himself didn’t have a lot of night clothes. He remembered telling himself he needed to and yet he only has shorts and his tank tops for himself. He sighed and stripped himself down to one of his few and favorite pairs of boxers. He threw on a tank top, one of two pairs of shorts, tossed his beanie onto his desk, and turned back to see Fuuka pulling a pillow inward. He leaned over her and saw her staring at the wall. “Are you ready to sleep?” Shinjiro asked slowly as she looked up at him and nodded. “Do you want me to sleep on—“

“Can you sleep with me?”

Her words threw him for a whirl. He wasn’t expecting her to actually say what he wasn’t trying to think while mildly aroused. He gulped and sat down on his bed, staring at her intently. “Are you sure?” A quick nod from Fuuka was enough. So, he made sure to get a comforter for her and him separately—granted the bed was small and two comforters could barely fit on it anyway. “I’ll sleep on one end—“

Fuuka shook her head. “Can’t you just sleep next to me?” She gripped her comforter a little tighter as she didn’t care who she was with. She just wanted to feel more protected tonight than any other night so far while being a member of SEES. “Please?”

Shinjiro felt a bit flustered as nothing could prepare him for this. But he was levelheaded, unlike some other guys he knew, and nodded slowly. “Would you like me to stay in my own sheets?” He knew about boundaries and how he didn’t want to trespass on them unless she was okay with it.  

“No.” She softly said as she sat up and looked at him with soft, puffy eyes. “We can just use one.” Fuuka said as she sounded exhausted even more than she looked. Shinjiro nodded slowly as she pushed his small comforter off the bed and made sure Fuuka was tucked in first and foremost. He could deal with getting little or no sheets tonight—she was more important.  

As he slid into the comforter with Fuuka, he felt something click in his mind. Mitsuru nor Akihiko told him much about falling in love or what to do with a girl much less a teammate. He felt his protective nature click on. “Should I turn off the desk lamp?” He asked her as she nodded—luckily, he had long enough limbs to reach for said lamp. “Do you want the TV on?” She shook her head as they were finally alone, in the dark. He didn’t know why, but once he settled down with her, he wrapped his arm around her stomach, pulling her inward, as if she needed his protection. Which was the case just for tonight at least.  

Fuuka felt herself being moved by Shinjiro’s one arm as she felt her breath getting caught in her throat. She moved her hand, instinctively, towards his and laid it on top. Fuuka didn’t know how to react to someone who was this caring, so strong in her eyes. Junpei gave off a playful nature, Minato gave off a silent and cool nature, and Shinjiro gave off a protective nature. Akihiko was someone whom she wasn’t so sure about, but this was something she was new to. And she didn’t mind at all.  

After the silence filled the air for an eternity, Fuuka turned to face Shinjiro, barely able to see his features on his face, and they both stared at each other. She didn’t know how to break the silence and neither did he.  

“…I take it Minato hates us.” Fuuka stated softly as Shinjiro moved her head down and blinked a few times. “He hates me so much—I could feel anger being channeled in his thoughts.”

Shinjiro was surprised to know that Fuuka could sense emotions—perhaps thanks to Lucia—and he got worried if she was doing it the whole time while they were together. But, like he said to himself, he was going to play it cool.  

“If he does, oh well. You can’t just let one person ruin everything.” Shinjiro retorted. “What he said to you wasn’t very friendly. He will get his own karma coming back to him.”

Fuuka frowned, though he couldn’t see it, and looked at him. “You heard everything?”

“He yelled it in the dorm, Fuuka. Besides, it involved me. He’s a guy who said the wrong thing to you. And he’s going to realize he’s an ass for treating you like that. I know I’d treat someone, like you, better than he could.”

Shinjiro froze up as he just let the words come out of his mouth, like word vomit. His eyes shifted left and right as he did speak the truth, but he didn’t know if that was being said too early while they had already developed small crushes on one another.  

Fuck. Okay, play it cool. Just try not to let her see you freaking out internally.  

Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up. She was very appreciative of Shinjiro being honest. And she was surprised he said what he said—it made her fall a bit harder for him now. Hell, she was wearing his clothes so why not? And then the room filled with silence for a moment.  

“…really, Shinjiro-senpai?” She asked softly, her voice barely above a whisper, as she couldn’t see him nodding his head.  

“Yeah, I mean… listen, you aren’t gonna be some rebound girl or anything. And maybe he’ll realize what he lost out on. Even though I am to blame.”

Fuuka gulped and shook her head. “No, no. It’s my fault. I can’t let you take the fall for my stupidity.” She stated as she held a finger up to his lips, instead it was by his cheek since she couldn’t see in the dark. It took another try to find his lips. “Before you say anything, don’t. …” She didn’t know what to say—she was worried she might come off saying something she shouldn’t say. Fuuka had to think of something, anything, to say.  “I enjoy your company—you actually listen to me and you being protective is very nice. It’s different compared to the others. And... ...given what our Personas have put us through the last couple weeks, I haven’t regretted any moment or time I’ve spent with you, Shinjiro-senpai.”

Shinjiro nodded slowly, unsure of what to really say now--if he said something wrong, he might ruin his chances and then Minako would probably kick his ass. Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up, relieved on how dark it was in the room. “B-because you are so quiet and never spoke up about anything. A-and I know you have your…demons and what not, but I’d still want to know you. Better.”

A small smile appeared on her lips as she felt herself relaxing more while being around Shinjiro. She didn’t know if the darkness was giving her more courage but she took what she could get. Slowly, she turned her body towards his and nuzzled her head into his chest. Fuuka didn’t know how to react while being in someone’s grasp, especially with a boy she liked. She thought she knew, but with Minato shunning her away like he did, she was a bit apprehensive on trying to get close to someone again. She then began to stop herself and pulled away from Shinjiro, noticing he wasn’t letting her get away easily. She looked up at him as she felt his warm hand landing on top of her head.  

“Just relax. No one will hurt you. It’s just us.”

It’s just us.  

Fuuka heard his words repeat in her head, over and over, as if it was a lullaby. She lowered her head back down onto his chest and felt herself relaxing slowly in his arms.  

He is warm. And protective.  

Within a few minutes, Fuuka fell into a deep sleep as Shinjiro could feel his eyes getting heavier as well. He kept his hand on top of her head, just for a little longer than normal, and felt a heavy sigh escape his lips. His chest exhaling towards him and just stared at Fuuka’s face for a moment. The idea of kissing her without her knowing made him feel mischievous, somewhat devilish, as it was something only he would know. His heart beat began to escalate as he was halfway to her face and began to move back—his feelings were conflicting him.  

Shinjiro’s breath caught in his throat as he felt Fuuka turning in his arms—he wondered if he was crazy enough to try something so bold in the first place. He waited a few more minutes and began to try again. He placed a small kiss on the top of her forehead—he moved instantly back, as if she was going to explode or wake up… …and nothing.  

She must be one hell of a sound sleeper.  

That only made him feel even bolder. If he could go away with a forehead kiss—another thought plagued his mind: I’m not getting her consent for this.

He knew, since he was little and more emphasized by Mitsuru when they were in middle school and the one year of high school, that you should always ask for a girl’s permission for anything. He cursed Mitsuru in his mind and began to pull away, keeping Fuuka close. He reached for the comforter more and made sure they were both covered up—he knew he would have to try again, if he had the courage to try again that is. Shinjiro let out another sigh and laid his head back on the pillow, petting Fuuka’s head and his fingers going through her hair until he fell asleep.  

Chapter Text

🎵 The more that you say, the less I know
Wherever you stray, I follow
I'm begging for you to take my hand
Wreck my plans, that’s my man🎵

September 21st

After a few days of Shinjiro being on her every day and night, which Fuuka didn't mind, she was a bit relieved when Shinjiro gave her the okay and she could sleep in her own room for once. Being in his arms was the easiest way for Fuuka to sleep—the idea of Lucia still hurting her terrified her a bit, but the memory felt like a dream. It plagued her mind once or twice a day, but nothing compared to the days before hand.

For now, she decided to get some fresh air and move herself towards the movie theater—only a hop, skip, and a jump away from the dorm and there was a sci-fi movie showing for free for students. After sitting through the movie and enjoying herself, she bumped into someone, on accident.

"I-I'm sorry-!" She gulped as she put her hands up and didn't realize she bumped into Minato and Junpei, her heart skipping a beat. "M-minato...Junpei...!"

Minato and Fuuka's eyes darted quickly from one another, as the tension between them grew once more. Junpei coughed as he laughed weakly, his arms moving around Fuuka and Minato's shoulders. "H-hey! What a coincidence, Fuuka! Did you see that awful sci-fi movie?"

Junpei tried to break the ice the best he could as Fuuka looked at Minato again—she noticed he looked a bit better, compared to the last few days. "...Minato..." Fuuka ignored Junpei for a moment and turned her attention back to Minato. "How are you feeling? I... ...you've been sick, right?"

Minato blinked as he didn't know that Fuuka knew he was sick. "Er, yeah. I didn't know you knew." Fuuka's eyes shot down, in worry, as he put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm better—I promise. Can't let Minako lead all the time."

Junpei sighed, knowing this might've been a bad time to interrupt. "Sooooo, I'm just gonna...go to the bathroom..." He stated as he darted away from them both, leaving both of the blue-haired teenagers together as Fuuka and Minato tried to reach for him, but failed as the silence was deafening between them both again.

Minato gulped as he walked with Fuuka to another part of the theater where it was quiet—he wanted to make sure no one was nearby to interrupt him. "...Fuuka, listen:" He began as Fuuka turned her attention towards him, her eyes soften up on him, "I am sorry. For everything. I know I was an ass—I didn't mean to take it out on you." He mentioned as he held a finger up as Fuuka began to protest. "Let me finish, okay? … ...I fell hard for you—you saved us and you were shy, and I wanted to be able to save you to return the favor. And, well, I had a horrible attitude with being intimate with you. I didn't mean to lash out at you." He felt himself choking up on the last few words. "Especially after..." Minato shook his head as Fuuka put a hand to his shoulder and watched his eyes trail up to her eyes.

"...You are a teenager—you reacted correctly, though. ...I did love you, a lot. I was ready to give my whole body, my soul, to you, but my mind changed. ...and I messed up a perfectly normal relationship with you." Fuuka slowly said, her words aching as she poured her heart out to Minato. "...I'm sorry that I misused our relationship."

"Can I ask something?"

"...what is it?"

Minato took a deep breath and sighed deeply. "How long... ...how quickly did Aragaki-senpai win you over? He's been here for just a few weeks and it took me months to be so intimate and close with you... he's accomplished so much in so little..."

Fuuka didn't realize it until Minato brought it up—it made her really think and realize how quickly Shinjiro won her heart. It took her a moment to respond as she closed her eyes. "I...I know this might sound silly and ridiculous, but I felt this...connection with him. Maybe it was because we were both outcasts—we didn't belong but maybe because..." She opened her eyes slowly and her eyes turned soft and her lips formed a small smile. "...he didn't have his attention on much of anyone but me. I feel as if Lucia is to blame—the connection between her and Castor is scary, but amusing."

Minato knew a little about how Lucia has been able to keep Castor at bay, turning Shinjiro into a wrecking ball in Tartarus. "He has gotten stronger—you have amazing powers, Fuuka, if you are able to keep everyone focused...and calm."

She felt her cheeks heating up. "I'm sorry, but I do... ...very much like Shinjiro—Aragaki-san, that is." Fuuka didn't want to use the word love just yet. "...but, I am terrified to know if he cares for me as much as I do for him." She explained, her eyes tilting to the ground as Junpei came out of the bathroom and his eyes darting to the entrance and peering through the doors. "I am scared to know his true feelings—if he hates me, loves me—he hasn't told me much. But," Fuuka turned her eyes towards Minato, a smile still on her lips, "I hope we are better, now? I can't let you get hurt, and I really care for you, as I do for Junpei, Yukari, Minako—everyone."

Minato smiled and nodded slowly. "I cared for you, hence why I lashed out at you." He cupped her hands and lowered his head. "As long as you have my back, I'll take care of you in return." He raised his head slowly and smiled weakly. "Truce?"

"Truce." Fuuka grinned as Junpei came dashing back as he began to pull Fuuka to the doors. "Huh? What is it Junpei?"

"Y-you might want to see this, Fuu-tan."

"The last time you did this, you said the clouds look like Koromaru-" Fuuka stopped suddenly as she saw Minako and Shinjiro outside, over by the flower shop. Her heart dropped as she bit her lip—she stared at them as Minato caught up with the Capricorns and tilted his head. Minato turned his eyes towards Fuuka as she gripped the handles and bit his lip.

If Aragaki-senpai hurts you, Fuuka, I'll be sure he regrets it. I'll protect you if he cannot.

Minako's arm was wrapped around Shinjiro's, playfully, as they looked at the flowers and felt her lips forming a small smile. "Finally, we got some time together—it seems like Mitsuru-senpai and Akihiko-senpai always want your attention." She stated as she sniffed her nose, smelling the aroma of the flowers surrounding her.

"I brought you here to help me, you know." Shinjiro pointed out as he leaned over lilacs and roses.

"Yes, yes, I know. And to help you get flowers for Fuuuuuuka~"

Shinjiro felt his cheeks heating up as he grabbed Minako's arm and placed it at her side. "Don't push your free lunch with me, Minako."

Minako grinned. "No promises—besides, you were going to make some ramen for all of us tonight—so I win no matter what. Can Fuuka help out? I know she's gotten better, so maybe she has the energy?"

Shinjiro turned back to face her as he crossed his arms. "I'm going to focus on the dinner tonight. She may look better, but she hasn't spoken much to me today. Maybe I said something wrong?" He leaned over and looked at gladiolus and lilies.

"Is that why you asked me to come along and find you flowers? You know, chocolate is also a great way to a girl's heart."

He shot her a small glare. "That's for White Day, Minako."

"Ahhh. Gotcha." She nodded slowly. "...have you told Fuuka?"

"Told her...what?" He asked as he reached for some lilacs and gladiolus, checking the stems and leaves and what not. "They don't sell lavender?" He murmured softly as he went towards the owner to pay for them and decorate them.

"...you haven't told her you liked her or even love her?" Minako asked as Shinjiro almost dropped his money to pay for said flowers. He began to become flustered as Fuuka looked on from far away, her heart pounding in her ears. She could see him getting flustered and saw him yelling, or getting frustrated, at Minako.

"Sh-she hasn't said the same thing to me! Besides," he pocketed the money and turned back to Minako, his cheeks a brighter red than before, "she probably hates me-"

"Oh, Shinjiro—you both are such idiots."

"Excuse me?"

Minako laughed as she watched him holding the vase close to his chest—glass vase with a beautiful purple ribbon that was formed into a bow. "You both love each other so much that neither one of you will profess your feelings!" She put her hands on her hips. "Why don't you tell her with these flowers? You know how much she loves flowers-"

"Because I brought her to her room and smelt the damn flowers, Minako-"

"-but, you could have been generic and got her chocolates, or tea. You, senpai, chose flowers, because it appealed to her easier. Why don't you tell her how you feel?"

Shinjiro placed the vase down on a nearby table, next to some empty vases and pulled Minako close to whisper into her ear something Fuuka couldn't see or hear. From her view point, with Shinjiro's back to her, it looked as if they hugged, or worse...kissed.

Fuuka felt her heart breaking as Junpei could see Minato's fists turning white at the knuckles. Fuuka reached for Minato's hand as she stared at him. "...don't. It might be a misunderstanding..." She whispered weakly as she closed her eyes, trying to blink away her tears.

Shinjiro closed his eyes and whispered into Minako's ear: "If she finds out that I am taking suppressants, and she knows that I'll be dead in the future, it will crush her. I don't want that personal connection..."

Minako's eyes grew as she covered her lips, moving away from Shinjiro. She didn't know what exactly his demons were, and if she was the first to know—

"You have to tell her, Shinjiro!" Minako exclaimed as he shook his head, reaching for the flower vase and held it close to his chest. "Why not? Fuuka has the right to know, if she's helping you out!"

He sighed as he felt his eyes roll into his head. "You heard me, Minako-you cannot tell her. I... ...I'll have to tell her, eventually." He felt his chest sink as he didn't know what to say, what to do. Shinjiro truly thought the flowers would be simply okay—Fuuka seemed like a simple girl with simple tastes—anyone can get behind a girl like her.

Junpei turned to Minato and Fuuka as she lowered her hand to her side. "Umm, Minato? I think we should go..." He suggested as he pulled Minato with him. "Are you going to be okay?" He turned to Fuuka as she felt herself leaving the theater—Minato began to reach for her as she walked outside and felt herself moving towards Minako and Shinjiro. "Oh, this can't be good." Junpei stated as he kept his hand on Minato's shoulder.

"Let me go-"

"Let's wait—if it gets bad, we'll go and get her, okay?"

Fuuka felt herself dashing towards Shinjiro and Minako as she turned her attention to Fuuka and gasped. "Fuuka-chan...!"

Shinjiro turned quickly as he saw Fuuka's eyes shooting up and down at him—the flowers smelling amazingly and slightly deter her thoughts for a moment, as she felt her lips quiver. "...d-d...did..." She didn't know what to say—she felt her legs moving and now that she was in front of him, she was speechless.

"Fuuka-...I, er, got these, for you!" Shinjiro blurted, his cheeks heating up again as he thrusted the flowers carefully into her hands—she gripped them tightly as she looked down at the flowers. "I-it's for everything you've done for me."

Why the fuck am I stuttering?!

"Shinjiro..." She felt her own cheeks heating up as Minako began to back away slowly from them as she thought she might be over extending her welcome.

"I think I'll just leave you two here-"

"Don't go!"

Fuuka and Shinjiro blurted out as they looked up at each other, their eyes locked on one another as Fuuka used one of her free hands to cover her lips as Shinjiro rubbed the back of his head. Minako moved back towards them and nodded. "Oh...okay..." Minako slowly said as she wasn't sure what to do. "We can't stay here forever—also, I do have a life to get back to."

"Th-then I'll go-"

"-no, I'll go..."

Fuuka and Shinjiro eyed each other again as Minako face palmed and grabbed Fuuka's vase and looked at them both. "Listen--everyone and their mother and brother know how much you guys like each other—" Minako mentioned as she saw Minato and Junpei leaving the theater (she wondered if they knew?) as she kept her eyes on the two love birds in front of her. "—and I do not want to hear any complaints."

Shinjiro began to open his mouth and then closed it as he moved his beanie to cover some of his cheeks.

"Now, I'll take these lovely flowers back to the dorm and I'll leave you two alone." Minako grinned as Fuuka felt her breath getting caught in her throat. "And you guys better go out and get some time together—"

"But, we spent three days together, Minako-chan—" Fuuka protested as Shinjiro shook his head furiously.

"-and you both still didn't say anything to each other! How?!" Minako exclaimed as they both looked down at their feet as Shinjiro kicked a pebble away from their area. "You both cannot leave until you say you like each other—and I'll be sure to tell Mitsuru-senpai why we are late and why dinner wasn't cooked!"

Fuuka opened her mouth as Shinjiro began to protest. "Hey-that's not fair!"

"Oh? It's not?" Minako stated as she put the vase down, hoping she didn't drop any water outside of the vase, and turned to Shinjiro and Fuuka with her feet angled towards Shinjiro. "I can do one thing that will expedite this—and I do not mean any evil will towards it."

Within a few seconds, Minako wrapped her arms around Shinjiro's waist and leaned up towards him. Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up as Shinjiro's were already as red as a tomato. Fuuka felt her lips trembling with anger as she was anxious and could see Minako leaning towards Shinjiro's lips. Shinjiro was speechless—he didn't know how to react since no one was ballsy enough to try something like this.

Shinjiro… SAY something! Fuuka thought as she felt her hand shaking with anger, sadness, possibly frustration. Why isn't he saying anything!?

"D-don't-!"

"Don't what?"

"Get off of him!" Fuuka cried out as she felt her fists trembling and reaching for Shinjiro's arm. The little energy she put out made Minako remove herself as Fuuka had the strength to pull Shinjiro towards her as she felt her cheeks heating up. She covered her lips with one of her hands as Minako and Shinjiro stared at Fuuka in awe, and a bit surprised. After the anger swept over her quickly, Fuuka felt herself getting overwhelmed as she began to apologize to Minako and Shinjiro as Minako felt a small smile appear on her lips.

"...and we can now head on home."

Minako picked up the vase and began her trek back to the dorm. Fuuka still had her arm around Shinjiro's own as Shinjiro stared at Fuuka in a stunned silence.

...holy shit. I was not expecting that.

Fuuka felt her hand shooting up to her chest to calm her heart and anxiety down. "I-I... I don't know what came over me..." She whispered as she wondered if Lucia jumped in—was she truly jealous? Or was Fuuka herself jealous?

Shinjiro noticed that Fuuka didn't remove her arm from his—he didn't know if he should say something, but something deep inside of him pulled him closer to Fuuka. A small noise left Fuuka's lips as she looked up at him. "Are you... ...did you... …?" Shinjiro was a bit speechless as he didn't even know what to say or how to say it.

That was slightly amusing, and yet... oddly ...heart-warming?

"Shinjiro-"

"Do you like me?" Shinjiro asked as Fuuka looked up at him as she felt her lip trembling a little in fear of what to say. Fuuka's anxiety went through the roof as she took a couple deep breaths and gulped.

"...do you want my honest answer?"

Shinjiro nodded as she removed herself from him and stood in front of him, her heart pounding in her ears and her heart in her throat. "I...I do." She whispered softly as she lowered her head, hiding her red cheeks. "...i-it's weird, you know, how I feel as if I have fallen...for you."

Her words were slow and short, but to the point as Shinjiro stared at her. He didn't know what to say to her as he was a bit speechless.

"What about you? D-do you ...like me?"

Of course, she would ask.

Shinjiro began to move his hand towards her face, cupping her cheek and moving her face upwards and lowered his eyes gentle on hers. "After what you've done for me, how could I not? I'm not sure why, but I like you as well, Fuuka. So, the answer is yes." He concluded, wondering how long he was going to babble for. Fuuka could feel her brain ready to implode—she felt that she might be getting ahead of herself.

For some reason, Fuuka took Shinjiro's hand on her cheek and removed it, holding it in her hands. "I... I am glad that you like me as well, but..." She never realized how small her fingers were in his hand-it made her feel a bit small and tinier than before. "...are you just saying that to make me feel better?"

He blinked his eyes a few times, surprised those words left her mouth. Shinjiro thought that it would make Fuuka feel better—did it make her feel worse? He shook his head. "Of course not! Just being near you calms me down—and before you say anything, it isn't just your Persona that's helping." He quickly stated before Fuuka would interrupt. "You aren't loud, and you make mistakes and own up to them. You are calm and it's relaxing, compared to Aki and Minako. There is so much I want to say to you-"

"...but?"

Shinjiro hesitated—what Minako was speaking to him earlier rung in his ears and shook his brain up. "-but I cannot. Not now. I know what I want to tell you, but it's too soon."

Fuuka gulped, feeling herself get a bit hurt over the fact that Minako knows something she doesn't know. But, she knew that she couldn't rush him or this relationship of theirs. It terrified her to know that he might have a hidden secret, so she had to earn his trust—much easier said than done.

"I understand. I want to tell you something as well, but maybe another time, too." Fuuka smiled weakly as she didn't want to tell him about her parents—at least not yet. She knew his parents were long gone—bringing up hers would be possibly gloating, or worse. "But, promise we can get some alone time, again? Soon that is."

"I don't see why we can't. I'm sure Koromaru would need a walk or some food—I'll take you along next time?" He suggested, wondering if this was okay, to simply ask a girl out on a date—wait.

Is THAT a date? We would be alone, but Koromaru would be there, so technically no? What the fuck would we talk about?  We are Persona users and our Personas crave each other's attentions?  ...that didn't sound right at all.

Shinjiro thought to himself as Fuuka began to wave her hand in front of his face, wondering if he was off in la-la land. "Senpai?" She called out as Shinjiro blinked, making Fuuka release his hand as he felt himself getting flustered. "Don't think too hard, okay? We already have Junpei-kun doing all the work with thinking right?"

"...Don't get me started on Iori, Fuuka."

October 25 th

Mitsuru felt her body collapse onto the couch near Fuuka's bed as the doctor explained to her that Fuuka had a couple irregular heartbeats—which she didn't tell anyone, especially Shinjiro—and a small chest infection. All in just a few days from each other, and it made Mitsuru a wreck. On top of all of this, she was becoming a navigator all over again. Everyone had to go on the lower floors and could never explore much at one time. Losing Mitsuru as a fighter wasn't as bad as losing Fuuka as a navigator. Shinjiro brought his all, as well as the others, as the leaders would switch every half an hour.

She looked over the clipboard, seeing that Fuuka's ventilator was taken away yesterday and her catheter now gone—only things showing that she was a patient was IV fluids hung beside her, a blood pack, and nothing else. Mitsuru was relieved that Fuuka wasn't giving up her fight, but now she was just waiting for Fuuka to simply wake up—her eyes darted back to the fragile girl in the bed, but she still wasn't awake.

The door opened slowly as Yukari and Junpei entered quietly. The music from the TV was low and drowned the noise of the monitors. "Takeba, Iori—good to see you both." Mitsuru stated as Junpei nodded and turned his attention to Fuuka.

"H-hey—she's lost the ventilator and that heart monitor machine!" Junpei spoke up as a smile appeared on his cheeks—Yukari reached for something in her purse—and turned to Mitsuru. "Will she wake up soon?"

Mitsuru got up from her spot on the make shift bed on the couch and shook her head. "She is ready to wake up—it's just...the waiting that is bothering me. She's ready to leave once she awakes. The doctors aren't sure why she's not waking up—Yamagishi did have a minor infection a couple days ago, but she's been given blood and antibiotics. As well as irregular heartbeats, but that is normal for when you undergo heart surgery."

Yukari pulled her hair brush out and began to brush Fuuka's hair, noticing it had grown a little bit, as she tried to make her look presentable. "I see. But, maybe she's scared? I-I don't know if the mind would know if she is scared." She pointed out as she kept her eyes on Fuuka's face. "It's been almost a month and the Full Moon is coming up. Maybe it's a sign?"

Mitsuru raised an eyebrow. "A sign?"

Yukari felt her eyes drop to Fuuka's chest, wondering how big of a scar she would have and if she'd be scared to even see it herself. "Maybe we shouldn't go after the next Full Moon shadow? If Fuuka isn't back, then we aren't able to take the shadow down efficently." She whispered as she put her hands up quickly. "N-Not that you are bad, Mitsuru-senpai. But, I can see the stress in your face from pulling double duty here, at school, and in Tartarus."

"It's that obvious?"

"A bit."

"Junpei!" Yukari cried out as she wacked his head with her brush. "Don't be so obvious about the obvious!"

"But she was asking!" He exclaimed as he sat down on the chair next to Fuuka's bed. "...I hate this waiting..." He whispered as Mitsuru nodded and saw Yukari sitting next to him as she put her brush away.

"I know. We all do."

They turned their attention to the person in the doorway who knocked, as Mitsuru rubbed her forehead. "Shinjiro, you could just walk in. No need to knock."

He shrugged as he looked over Fuuka's body—noticing some machines were gone and monitors were being replaced with open space—he turned his attention quickly to Mitsuru. "So, no idea when she'll wake up?" Mitsuru shook her head as Shinjiro felt his shoulders sink a little inwards.

Carefully, he walked to the make shift couch bed and ran his fingers through his hair, removing his beanie and gripping it tightly. Shinjiro felt defeated, unsure of what to do anymore. He began to shut the others off from his mind and began to focus on Fuuka.

If she doesn't wake up soon, we can't fight the next Full Moon Shadow. But, if we don't, won't chaos or hell or something happen to us? I wish I could just get a damn sign from her knowing that she'll wake—the machines are gone, she has blood and fluids transfusing to her, so why-

He felt his face getting wet, suddenly, as he shook his head and lowered his head. Shinjiro couldn't cry—not now, until Fuuka was awake and those tears would be happy ones, not sad ones. Suddenly, he stood up and turned to Mitsuru. He had an idea, but it was a stretch. He knew once he mentioned this idea, he might be treated like he had two heads with how ridiculous it will sound.

"Mitsuru, could I suggest something?"

Junpei, Yukari, and Mitsuru turned towards Shinjiro, a bit surprised that he spoke up out of the blue after he was silent. Mitsuru was still calm and collected as she crossed her arms. "What is it?"

"This is a stretch, but could it be possible we get Fuuka's outfit and evoker ready by the full moon coming up?" Shinjiro suggested, knowing it sounded impossible and undoable.

Yukari raised an eyebrow as Mitsuru walked towards Shinjiro. "...You think she's going to wake up when the final shadow appears?" Shinjiro nodded slowly. "It is a stretch, but I am sure we can give it a shot. However, we have an issue—how would she be able to get to our position from here? She would also need to be given the okay to leave. Everyone will be transmogrified and it could cause some problems after the Dark Hour is over." Mitsuru explained as she sat with the idea for a moment, the gears in her head turning slowly and surely.

"So," Junpei crossed his arms and leaned back into his chair, "someone would bring her clothes and her evoker, wait for her to wake up, and then she'll walk all the way to where the shadow is?"

Mitsuru turned her head towards Junpei. "She'd be too weak—even if she does wake up, then she would need someone to be with her."

"I'll do it." Shinjiro stated as he got up and moved towards the end of Fuuka's bed. "...I've seen her weak and vulnerable—I know you might want a female here with her, Mitsuru, but I know she'll trust me." He explained as his mind was running full gear. "I can easily carry her—I'll stay with her from the beginning to the end of the Dark Hour," he turned his head towards Mitsuru, determination in his eyes, "and she'll be able to support us."

Junpei snapped his fingers. "You'll guard her while we battle—"

"For once, Iori is right—" Shinjiro quickly mentioned as Junpei retorted.

"HEY!"

"Shinjiro," Mitsuru placed a hand on his shoulder, "that is very courageous and bold of you, but we would be down a fighter and we will lose time to take down the shadow. …" She stopped speaking and held up a finger to her lips as she blinked and her eyes grew. "You want us to get a head start." Shinjiro nodded slowly.

"At least attempt to take down the shadow until I get Fuuka there." Shinjiro added as Mitsuru removed her hand from his shoulder and began to pace around, thinking about this. Shinjiro feared he might be thinking too much about the situation—what if Fuuka didn't wake up? After a few minutes of silence, Mitsuru turned back to Shinjiro and nodded.

"This is a good, solid plan. We will be losing you as a fighter, but if it gets Yamagishi back to us and you as well, then we will be sure to take down this shadow definitely." Mitsuru assured as she turned to the other second years in the room. "You two will need to tell our leaders this plan—Aragaki and I will fill in the gaps if they are lost." She turned to Shinjiro and gave him a weak smile. "You will have to fight minor shadows on your way to us—will that be okay?"

Shinjiro nodded. "Well, duh. I'm fine with that. Fuuka will guide me to you guys, so we will be good." He stated surely, his eyes trailed back to Fuuka as he felt his eyes stop at her face. A bit pale from no sunlight, but she still looked the same most of the time—simply beautiful.

Mitsuru kept an eye trained on Shinjiro as she looked back at Yukari and Junpei. "When you both leave, please relay the message to our leaders and tell them to talk to me in a couple days."

"What about Aigis?" Yukari threw her name out of the blue as everyone turned towards her. "I mean, she's faster than all of us, and she could possibly be a better option to get Fuuka?" Yukari knew Shinjiro would be throwing eye daggers at her when she brought this up.

Mitsuru let the idea run through her head for a minute. "I can see why you think Aigis would be better—Shinjiro would give us more power and, as much as I know you'd like to see Yamagishi wake up," she placed a hand on Shinjiro's shoulder slowly, "getting her to us will be quicker with Aigis. Besides, we might be meeting with Strega again."

Shinjiro felt his eyes soften as he felt a bit defeated. He knew he wouldn't be able to win if Mitsuru was given a better idea. But, he sighed heavily and nodded in agreement. "I owe them a good punch or two in the face." He uttered as he turned towards Fuuka, his attention going towards her for a moment. Shinjiro knew he had to get back at Takaya for what he did to Fuuka. He was angry and pissed, but kept his cool and turned his attention back to the others.

"I'll be sure to get her stuff here for her." Mitsuru mentioned. "I'll let Aigis know as soon as I see her." After waving away the juniors, Mitsuru slowly turned back to Shinjiro. For once, they were alone and the tension felt heavy between them. The idea of Shinjiro actually determined to protect others compared to where he was years ago had changed him to be a better person.

She began to say something, but stopped herself. Mitsuru carried her heavy body towards Shinjiro and sighed heavily. They looked out the window for a few seconds together as she turned herself clockwise towards Shinjiro. "You do know once she wakes up, she will have to come back to the hospital. Just for check ups." She stated slowly as Shinjiro kept his eyes towards the window. "I hope you will stay with her until the end."

Mitsuru began to walk past Fuuka's bed as Shinjiro turned his head slightly towards the red-head and nodded. "I hope she does the same for me."

Chapter Text

🎵 Said, "I'm fine," but it wasn't true
I don’t wanna keep secrets just to keep you 🎵

September 24th

*bark bark* *bark bark*

"It sounds like Koromaru needs to go to the bathroom." Aigis turned her eyes towards the dog who was waggling his tail and spinning in circles. Everyone, minus Mitsuru and Akihiko, was downstairs watching some new TV special and to check up on the weather for the upcoming week. And to check in with the daily apathy syndrome cases since the number changes regularly.

"Or he is just hungry—wasn't senpai suppose to get him some food made?" Junpei pipped up with a response as Shinjiro walked through the kitchen, holding a food bowl. "See? I guess I was right."

Koromaru whined as he noticed his food bowl was empty. He seemed a bit disheartened as he sat in front of Shinjiro, wondering if he was going to make him some food. Shinjiro frowned and shook his head. "I'm sorry, but you're out of food. I got to go out and get some. Any volunteers?" Shinjiro turned his attention to the juniors, and Ken, in the room as no one seemed to want to help him. He crossed his arms as Minako looked around the room and felt a devilish grin on her lips. She, luckily, was sitting next to Fuuka and began to reach for her arm quietly.

Fuuka turned her eyes towards her right and began to close her book as Minako reached for her arm. Fuuka knew what Minako was trying to do, which she has been trying to get her and Shinjiro together to do some tasks. She did admire her determination, but it was starting to get a bit annoying. Fuuka felt she was smart enough to attempt to try going on a date, or an outing as friends, but she didn't have the courage to ask him out. So maybe Minako was doing her a favor? Then again, she was so rambunctious. With the air between her and Minato was cleared, Fuuka felt as if everything was going to be good. Except, Minako wanted to make sure everyone was happy, especially Shinjiro.

Fuuka felt Minako's hand not moving towards her arm, but towards her side. She gasped as she couldn't whack away Minako's hand quick enough as she felt herself let out a loud wheeze and then a small laugh soon after escaping her lips. Everyone watched her contour the upper half of her body frontwards as Minako's hand was tickling her right side. She stood straight up as she felt her laughter trickle down into a sigh as Minako turned her attention towards Shinjiro. "She volunteers as tribute, senpai!"

"Th-that's not fair! You tickled me!" Fuuka cried out as Minato and Junpei tried to stifle a laugh as she turned swiftly on them and their smiles diminished in a blink of an eye. She felt her cheeks heating up with embarrassment as she eyed Shinjiro. "Since no one else wants to go, I'll go with you."

"Are you sure? I know someone—" he glared at Minako as she just waved happily at him, showing she wasn't fazed by him, "—forced you to go but the stuff is heavy."

"Then, how about I take Koro-chan with us?" Fuuka suggested as Koromaru yipped happily as she flashed a small smile at him. "See? Koro-chan likes that. And it'll kill two birds with one stone."

Fuuka knows how efficient Shinjiro likes to be, so maybe this would show him how she thinks on her toes? Shinjiro knew he wouldn't say no to Koromaru or Fuuka, so he simply nodded. "At least get his leash and I'll meet you outside." Shinjiro walked towards the door as Fuuka began to reach for Koromaru's leash. She felt her heart jump as Minako move towards her and sat down with Koromaru on the ground.

"I knew it would work!"

"Minako-chan, how has Shinjiro-senpai not gotten back at you? You are immune to everything he says or does to you." Fuuka stated as she latched the leash on the calm and collected Koromaru as Minako grinned.

"Because he knows that I'm dating Akihiko and he has to treat me good. Er, well sort of. He knows I'm strong willed and won't be able to stop me easily."

Fuuka gave her a look of "you have GOT to be kidding me" and shook her head. "I don't know why you have it in for Shinjiro-senpai and I. He sounds like a loner and doesn't feel like bothering with…" Fuuka got up from her spot and her thoughts crossed her mind. The times where Lucia calmed Castor down, and the time her persona went berserk—she wondered if it was because of their Personas that they united quickly. No one else's Persona called out for Fuuka and/or Lucia. Only Castor and she began to wonder if maybe there was some history?

Like, maybe she knew Castor and Polydeuces because Castor was mortal and Polydeuces was immortal?

She shook her head, knowing she was over thinking this. She stood up slowly and walked towards the door with Koromaru in tow. "At least a walk will be good for us." Fuuka pointed out to Koromaru as he barked happily and they left the dorm, relieved to see that Shinjiro had not left them behind.

Fortunately for Koromaru, and Shinjiro, they only had one bag of dog food left. But, since it was enough for a couple weeks, Shinjiro would have to go back after the full moon boss and get some more for Koromaru. To end their night, Fuuka suggested that they go to the shrine and let Koromaru loose. Then again, it was the one place Koromaru loved to go to besides the dorm. Surprised to see the shrine empty before the sunset, Fuuka took a seat on the bench near the sandbox. She let out a heavy sigh as Shinjiro unleashed Koromaru and joined her at the bench.

Gosh, you can cut the silence with a knife. Fuuka thought to herself as she kept her eyes to her hands in her lap, not knowing Shinjiro was itching closer to her. He had no clue why he was moving towards the smallest girl in SEES; suddenly, he moved away and felt his cheeks heating up. Fuuka sensed his weight change on the bench as she turned towards him, her head tilting.

"Too cold to sit?"

"Not really—er, just thought you wanted some room. Away from me or something." Shinjiro retorted as Fuuka felt her a small smile appear on her lips and turned to face straight ahead.

"If you are sure, Shinjiro."

He began to protest, but then grumbled some words and moved back next to Fuuka. She chuckled softly as she crossed her ankles and looked down at her crossed legs. "I know we haven't talk much, outside the dorm and out of Tartarus, but…" Fuuka closed her eyes, trying to organize her thoughts. "…Minako-chan is itching to get us…"

To talk? To date? To kiss? She wants us to do everything it seems.

"…to convey our feelings to each other?" Her words out like vomit, knowing that might make things a bit more awkward than before. "I-I know you have your secrets and I feel I shouldn't pry. But, could I at least let you know about me? The only people who know about my past is Mitsuru-senpai and Ikutsuki-San."

Shinjiro raised an eyebrow, wondering how secretive Fuuka really could be. "Minako has her reasons as to why she'd want us…to, uhh, 'hang out' but I'd like to know more about you. If you don't mind telling me. I feel privileged to be the third person to know about your past."

Fuuka wondered if he was mocking her, but decided to play devils advocate with him and humor him. She watched Koromaru lay next to her feet as she felt herself sigh softly. "Then again, it's a snore fest. But, I'll condense my life down for you in a few minutes." She moved herself a bit closer to Shinjiro so that Koromaru was more comfortable on the ground than on her feet.

"I am an only child of parents who are alive, and are both in the medical profession. I have been in and out of hospitals since I was little. We lived in a beautiful town about 2 hours from here that was near a lake. My parents couldn't figure out what would make me sick every other month. So, they decided to move to Iwatodai and see if I would get better." Fuuka sighed as she leaned her head back on the bench. "It took me until moving here that I'll be sick, no matter what. That it wasn't the atmosphere poisoning me, but my parents. They made sure I studied until I passed out."

Shinjiro turned his body towards Fuuka, a bit intrigued. "I was always top 5 in my classes, but it never seemed to be good enough for them unless I was top 3 or the top of my class. And I was so stressed out I didn't realize how bad I was losing my focus on the world. When Natsuki-chan and her friends bullied me, it was weird, but it made me realize how tiny I felt. I know they were jealous of me—but," she turned her attention towards Shinjiro, and flashed him a small smile, "if you wasn't there when Yukari, Junpei, or Minako was trying to find information about me, then I probably wouldn't awake to Lucia or I could be dead—I-I wouldn't know what would happen, to be honest." She felt herself getting flustered over Shinjiro saving her, again, unknowingly. Fuuka bit her lip and shook her head, lowering her head and scratching her cheek.

"And when Mitsuru-senpai offered me a place in the dorm, I jumped on it. Yukari-chan has no clue why I jumped on it, but to be freed from my mother and father—to be able to think and feel for myself—was a blessing in disguise."

"I've never known what it was like to have a mother or father." Shinjiro's words cut the air like a knife as Fuuka stared at him, surprised something like that came out of his mouth. "I don't think you or many others know, but Aki and I were friends in a nearby orphanage. I can barely recall my parents and what they look like." He began with as he felt himself leaning back into the bench.

"We were there for a couple years—Aki and Miki, Aki’s sister, were never easy to split from another. Granted, I was the same with them. But, one spring day, there was a fire. I found out from Mitsuru, years later, it was an electrical fire—the damn orphanage was perfect and yet, it caused Akihiko to lose a sister."

Fuuka covered her lips, her eyes grew as she felt her heart drop. "Did they find…"

"Her body? I…" Shinjiro looked up at the sky and had a sullen look on his face. "We assumed she was ashes. After that, I think we were ushered off to another orphanage—Aki barely spoke a word for months. He eventually moved out of the orphanage and into the middle school dorms once he could. I know that's how he met Mitsuru. Me, on the other hand, left as soon I could and been living on the streets since."

Fuuka rubbed her arm and felt a bit embarrassed about the topic of bring up her parents. She felt herself feeling bad for Shinjiro. But knew he probably didn't want to feel bad for himself. It's Shinjiro anyway.

"So, how did you get into SEES?" Fuuka cautiously asked and lowered her eyes, and then watched as Shinjiro got up and he put his hands in his pockets.

"…I remember Aki coming up to me, and he said that this Mitsuru Kirijo person pulled him off to the side before practice and he had the potential. He said he wouldn't join unless I lived in the dorm." He looked up at the sky, his shoulders sinking inward, and shook his head. "I didn't want to join. I didn't want any pity. Until that night:"

Shinjiro turned towards Fuuka, their eyes interlocking as she felt her heart pounding in her ears. "I awoke to my Persona. I wasn't sure why or how it happened—just that I remembered Castor made me shiver with cold chills running down my arms. I thought I was cursed. But, I joined the next day, enrolled in middle school, and that was that." His gazes shot off to the side. "…I left in my first year of high school. I had to. I hurt someone in the process. And I couldn't live with the guilt." He partially lied. There was no way she needed to know. Not yet. Maybe never.

"I see." Fuuka stated softly, as she stood up in front of him. "I wish I met you sooner, then."

He raised an eyebrow. "Why? It could have been you who was injured."

"Because then we would not have been alone." Shinjiro stared at her, blinking a few times. "Think about it: Kirijo-senpai and Sanada-senpai have each other, as well as Ken-kun and Koromaru, the twins and Aigis, and Yukari and Junpei. And that leaves us, you know? So, maybe that's why I feel connected to you." Fuuka mentioned out loud, her cheeks stained pink. "If I moved here sooner, then maybe I could have joined SEES quicker and I could have saved—"

"Don't finish that sentence."

Fuuka felt Shinjiro's hands on her shoulders as he closed his eyes and opened them slowly. He didn't meant to frighten her. "You could not have saved me from my doom."

Fuck. If I tell her about Ken's mother, then it leads to the suppressants, and then everything would go downhill and she wouldn't look at me the same.

"Shinjiro…" Fuuka's voice becoming more softer. She gripped his arm carefully and tenderly. Koromaru whined softly as he began to stand beside the two figures as he looked upward. The gears in Fuuka's head turning as she asked carefully, "why does your Persona go berserk? And…how have you been able to control him until—?"

Shinjiro felt himself sweating bullets mentally and physically. He was starting to wonder why the girl who envied him had to be smart and cunning. So, he did one of the things that Minako told him to do if you wanted to silence a female in the nicest way possible: compliment her, which is what Shinjiro did not do. He simply raised his voice at her.

"You don't need to know that, Fuuka! Why are you so damn curious about my life?"

Fuuka's eyes grew as Shinjiro never raised her voice at her—he almost coddled her a little. So, she felt as if she had to be defensive herself and began to raise her voice too.

"Excuse me!? Because it seems that everything that happens to you, you never tell me! And why am I always the last to know?"

"Why do you want to know about my Persona?"

"Because I am the navigator of the group and I need to know how everyone is!"

"If you want," he used his height to lean over Fuuka, towering over her, "I could just show you the power of Castor going truly berserk." His height loomed over her and his voice was as low as a lion's roar—Fuuka felt herself cowering in fear as she could feel tears ready to sting her eyes. Fuuka cared so much about everyone, including Shinjiro, and yet he was putting up a huge wall over himself. "You know, I never ask about what you are up to on a daily basis. So why should I give a damn what you do!? I'm never curious about it!" Shinjiro's yelling got a bit louder with anger crawling into his words.

She felt herself biting her bottom lip as she tried not to show how she felt weak again. It took Shinjiro a few seconds to process what he said to her and just how nasty it sounded. Her eyes began widening, her lips trembling as her tears fell to the ground and harshly clashed against her cheeks.

"F-Fuuka, wait—I didn't—"

Fuuka barely mustered enough strength to put all of her weight into her foot to slam it down on Shinjiro's foot. He never experienced a pain quite like that—and he wasn't expecting that type of pain to hurt him so much. But Fuuka's pained face was something that tore at his heart.

"F-fine. Keep your secrets." Her voice squeaking as she felt her voice leaving her body, as she kept her head down and her hands gripping her shirt around her chest. "Just take Koromaru…a-and the dog food and leave. I'll b-be fine."

"Fuuka, I'm so—"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Fuuka cried out as she turned her body away from Shinjiro and buried her face in her hands. Shinjiro didn't realize how dark he could have gotten, and yet, he felt like an ass. He felt his hand try to reach out to her—he didn't want to leave her alone, literally, at the shrine. With Takaya and Jin still running around, who knows where they could pop up. He knew that thinking of trouble landed to trouble appearing.

Shinjiro felt himself getting exhausted and frustrated. After a few seconds of no one speaking, leaving Fuuka's last words echo through the air, he grabbed the leash that Koromaru came with and hooked him up. "Let's go, Koromaru." He spoke softly as Koromaru looked up at Fuuka. Fuuka turned her body down and towards Koromaru, her eyes flickering up strongly at Shinjiro.

"Actually, I'll take Koromaru." She spat at Shinjiro as he quickly gave her the leash, noticing a tear staining her cheek, as she began her fast paced walk towards the dorm. Shinjiro followed behind, with a considerable distance between them, as he began to kick himself in the butt.

Minako is going to fucking kill me. She even did what she could to give me this chance. And I fucked it up, again.

Shinjiro's thoughts went a bit darkly, wishing deep down he could stop messing things up whenever anything is given to him. He kicked a pebble, watching it skid away from him, and knew he should be able to fix this. Granted, he just told Fuuka he didn't want to know about her life as much as she wanted to learn about his.

Shit. She really likes me. Really REALLY likes me. Oh, I am screwed.

He shook his head, watching Fuuka entering the dorm as he had to readjust the dog food on his shoulder. He gulped as he could barely make out a feminine voice—as the door slammed behind her, Shinjiro knew he was doomed the moment he entered the dorm and saw Minako's back as she unhooked Koromaru from his leash. Hearing the door click, Minako turned on her heel as she threw the leash off to the couch and got up on her feet, her foot tapping as Shinjiro prepared to get yelled at.

"Shinjiro… I do everything I could to get you both together. So, why is it that I see Fuuka coming in and her cheeks wet with tears?" Minako slowly said, her frustration building up inside of her, as she tried to stay calm. The glare was enough to make anyone quiver in their feet. "What happened?"

Shinjiro's head lowered as he dropped the bag of dog food right by the couch. "I just said the wrong thing. She wanted to know about the orphanage and my life and I snapped at her because she kept pushing!" He exclaimed as he pulled his beanie off, running his fingers through his hair. "I tried to apologize, but she didn't want to hear any of it."

Minako whacked the back of his head. Shinjiro winced as she felt herself rubbing her temple. "Listen, I knew Akihiko was really bad at establishing relationships, but I thought you would be a bit better. Please tell me you want, no, will fix it."

He nodded slowly as he kept his hand in his hair. "I do, but I'm not sure how. What if I fuck up again?"

Minako gave him a small smile and put her hand on his shoulder. "Well, hopefully third time's the charm—let's go to my room and we will write down ideas and talk about it. I'll make sure you don't mess up this time."

Fuuka has a hard time unlocking her door with her bedroom key. She had to wipe away the tears from her eyes as Yukari exited Mitsuru's room, talking about something related to school, as she noticed Fuuka having a hard time opening her door.

"Fuuka?" She called out as she turned her face towards Yukari, as she wiped her face again. "Let me help, okay?"

Fuuka nodded as she held up her key and backed away from her door as Yukari opened the door and turned back to Fuuka. "Thank you, Yukari." Fuuka's voice was calm as she entered the room and had Yukari stand in the entrance way.

"Fuuka, do you want to talk about it?" Yukari asked as Fuuka nodded her head, realizing that she wouldn't mind a listening ear, even if it's from the one person she wasn't expecting to help her.

After sitting down on her bed and taking a moment to try to calm herself down and relax, and blowing her nose a few times, Fuuka took a deep breath and composed herself long enough to talk to Yukari. "So, Shinjiro and I went to the shrine, to walk Koromaru because he loves the place." Yukari nodded, knowing Koromaru would go live there if he could. "We sat down and let Koromaru roam around as we talked. I mentioned my past and how I moved to the city. Shinjiro mentioned about how Akihiko-senpai and him met up, and we talked about his family as well." Fuuka stopped as she wondered if she should divulge Yukari in his past. "And then when I told him if I moved here sooner, perhaps I could have saved him from his doom that his past brought him. I then asked him why his Persona went berserk and how did he control it before I came around and—"

Yukari picked up the cue and nodded slowly. "And he got mad and basically shut you off immediately?" Fuuka nodded. "Well, Shinjiro-senpai always seemed to be the quiet looming one. You were trying to change that, and perhaps it was too much for him. Granted, I don't know him as well as our other senpais, but I could only assume. Maybe he has some demons that he doesn't want no one to know."

"But, how come I can open up and tell him about me when he won't even tell me the simplest of things, like his favorite color or food." Fuuka retorted as Yukari shook her head.

"Boys are complicated. From what I've gathered, I think you BOTH need to apologize. Him, because he should listen and not shut you down. And you, Fuuka, because you should have dropped the subject when he didn't want to answer. Then again, he tried to apologize and you wouldn't let him have a word out." Yukari crossed her arms and felt herself feeling conflicted. Should she really speak the truth? "I think you have a higher reason to apologize. Yes," she held a finger up before Fuuka could protest, "he was in the wrong. But, you didn't stop and think of the consequences, did you? And that isn't like you."

Fuuka didn't like when Yukari spoke the truth. Because most of the time, she was right. Fuuka laid back in her bed and closed her eyes, her arm draped over her eyes. "Oh no. You ARE right. I think and then speak. And yet, I spoke and didn't think about his feelings at all. Everything was so heated I just wanted to know more about him."

"Because you love him?"

"Because I lo—" Fuuka sat up quickly and felt her cheeks heating up. "I-I don't want to say those words out loud just yet. He hasn't said it to me, s-so I don't want to jinx myself." She stated matter-of-factly and turned towards Yukari. "I do, but I know he won't say it verbally. It's Shinjiro after all."

Yukari did a small nod and pulled Fuuka up to her feet and joined her. "Correct—and the only way to fix this and win his heart is by letting him know you are sorry." She walked her to the door and began to open it. "Besides, I'm sure he feels the same way."

"Really?" Fuuka asked, a small smile on her lips appeared as her heart beat a little quickly. She walked towards the door as she nodded slowly. "I should be the bigger person and apologize first." Fuuka popped her head and body out together as she saw out of the corner of her left eye Shinjiro and Minako leaving her room, smiles on their face, and a disfigured Shinjiro putting on and buttoning his pea coat.

Yukari poked her head out of Fuuka's room as she saw Fuuka standing still and looking at her left. She was about to ask until she saw Shinjiro and Fuuka's eyes locked in a heated gaze. Yukari knew this was going to be another ruined chance for Fuuka to attain happiness. Fuuka felt her hands moving together in front of her, trying her hardest to think and not act, over and over in her head. The silence was heavy and the tension was dense—Minako began to speak but Shinjiro put a hand in front of her, shaking his head and knowing he would have to explain.

"It's not—"

"—what it looks like?" Fuuka finished Shinjiro's sentence as he felt as if Fuuka's aura was becoming heated and yet, felt like a Mitsuru execution with the icy glare she gave him that was full of pain. She felt her bottom lip trembling as she felt her heart drop and her eyes swelling up with tears again. Once again, she felt weak and defenseless, all over a boy she fell for and has broken her heart.

Chapter Text

🎵 And when I felt like I was an old cardigan
Under someone's bed
You put me on and said I was your favorite 🎵

September 24th 

“It’s not—“ 

“—what it looks like?” Fuuka finished Shinjiro’s sentence as he felt as if Fuuka’s aura was becoming heated and yet, felt like a Mitsuru execution with the icy glare she gave him that was full of pain. She felt her bottom lip trembling as she felt her heart drop and her eyes swelling up with tears again. Once again, she felt weak and defenseless, all over a boy she fell for and has broken her heart. 

“Wh-why don’t you humor me? I would love to hear this joke.” Fuuka spoke, her lips trembling as Shinjiro saw the tears trying so hard to escape. “B-because, I don’t think I owe you an apology anymore!” 

Shinjiro’s eyebrows rose and glared at her as Minako tried to pull him back towards her to re-focus. Shinjiro pushed Minako back gently and crossed his arms. “Oh? I think you owe me one! I mean, who doesn’t take no for an answer? Didn’t you inherit your parents inferiority complex and always has to be a yes person?” 

Oh, my god he went there.   

Yukari thought as she got behind Fuuka as she felt that was a shot in the heart. She drew a hand up to her chest as Minako chastised him. “SHINJIRO!” 

Fuuka knew she did—maybe not inherit it, but she did develop some form of it from her parents. And man, that stung hard in her chest. She turned her head slightly away and looked up at him. “At least I have parents!” 

Minako’s eyes grew, wondering if they inherited stupidity from each other. Shinjiro’s eyes grew as he was a bit speechless—words being spatted across the third floor dorm wasn’t getting any prettier. He clenched his fist and moved towards Fuuka—Minako was trying her hardest to stop him from being a bitter man, even if he was. She even tried to pull him back with her strength on his peacoat.

“You know, Yamagishi,” him calling Fuuka by her last name  made her hurt more—she enjoyed it whenever he called her by her first name as it felt more real and more personal, even though she wouldn’t vocalize it, “last I heard, you were still unsure of if you liked me or Iori more—oh, wait, add Arisato to that, too.” 

Fuuka gulped as she felt her eyes close tightly. Minako whacked the back of his head with the palm of her hand. “Shinjiro! That is uncalled for!” She turned her eyes towards Fuuka as Shinjiro rubbed the back of his head. “Fuuka, dear—“ 

She opened her eyes and glared ominously towards Shinjiro. “Yeah, I guess it’s kind of hard to pick one guy to fall for someone like me. You know, someone with an inferiority complex and craves attention because I never got that at home.” Fuuka explained herself, harshly, as Yukari could feel herself getting anxious from being around those two. “Minako, are we heading to Tartarus tonight, per chance?” 

Minako blinked, not realizing that she would be brought up so soon in the conversation. “Err, I don’t believe so. But, if you feel as if we should go—“ 

"We do have a full moon battle coming up, so maybe we should.” Fuuka was trying to weasel their way into Tartarus—Shinjiro had a bad, BAD feeling about this. You know to never fuck with the navigator. Period. It was as if he had an intuition, or perhaps it was his fight or flight senses going off.

“Let’s not go tonight—half the team probably wouldn’t be ready to go on a whim, right?” Shinjiro protested as Fuuka crossed her arms. Minako nodded and turned towards Fuuka, noticing she was frowning and felt like saying no wouldn’t be the best thing to say to her. And she didn't want to get on Fuuka's bad side.

“Let me message the group—if we have a few people free, I am sure we can still go. Mitsuru-senpai would have to come with us, just in case.” Minako stated, relieved to see Fuuka didn’t mind that answer one bit. “Give me about half an hour at least?” She turned towards Fuuka as she nodded. 

Yukari eyed Shinjiro as she could see him sweating a couple bullets of sweat. She began to think what Fuuka had in mind going in short notice. Then again, this was not like her to do something like this. But, knowing Fuuka, she knew she wouldn’t really try to get back at Shinjiro… …would she? 

“Yamagishi, can you tell us how many floors are possibly left?” Mitsuru called out to Fuuka as she looked at the stairs and climbed it slowly with Shinjiro, Minako, and Akihiko right behind her. Yukari and Junpei were with Fuuka, waiting for someone to trade out if they needed to for the night. Ken, Minato, and Koromaru decided to stay at the dorm.  

It took a few moments for Fuuka to respond as she had to concentrate. “About 5-6 floors—there is  another strong presence on the next floor.” She stated, knowing that they were so close to finishing the next part of Tartarus.  

“That’s a relief.” Minako mentioned, a smile appearing on her lip as she held her weapon towards her shoulder. "I am a bit tired of climbing stairs all night."

After getting to the next floor, they all could see the teleporter to the first floor—Minako turned it on carefully and, peeking out of the corner next to her, she could see the shadow down the hall as she turned her attention towards the senpais in her group. “There’s only one this time, unlike the three from before.” She explained as she noticed Fuuka didn’t comment on the shadows. Minako took a deep breath and nodded. “Are we ready to go?” 

They all nodded in agreement. Minako and the others charged towards the shadow, getting into battle by surrounding it. Before she could ask Fuuka about weaknesses, Shinjiro was one step ahead of her. 

“Hey—is there a weakness, pattern, or something with them?” 

“Oh? Hmm…” Fuuka took a moment to reply as Minako began to strengthen everyone’s defenses. “A pattern? Like, how up close and personal you get with someone and then suddenly you blow up at them when they try to get you to open up?” 

“I meant about the enemy’s weakness!” 

“…I don’t know if I should share that with you.” 

Minako face palmed as Akihiko punched the shadow as Mitsuru casted Bufala on it next. Shinjiro could feel the anger boiling up inside as he raised his fist at Fuuka, into the air of course. “FOR FUCK’S SAKE FUUKA—!” He called out as he noticed the shadow jumping towards him, making him barely able to avoid the damage. 

Mitsuru could sense the tension between both of them, even though she did not know how bad it was between them two in just one night alone. She moved over towards their leader as Akihiko and Shinjiro focused their energy on the shadow. “Arisato, I thought those two were perfectly fine—did something happen?” 

Minako could feel herself sweating a bit from having to explain this quickly, if at all. “Perhaps we could talk about that AFTER the fight? I know that she’s furious at Shinjiro, so we need to be careful—who knows what could happen with her. Let’s hope nothing goes wrong.”  

Mitsuru nodded as she could see that Akihiko and Shinjiro needed a moment to rest as Minako took over and began to battle the shadow, flinging her weapon gracefully. Mitsuru began healing up Akihiko first as Shinjiro began to try to find some medicine. Fuuka sensed that her allies were worn down, and began to think of an idea to help them and possibly hurt Shinjiro, without a second thought. “Do I need to bring out Oracle?” She asked telepathically as Minako dodged an attack and casted Agilao at the shadow like beetle.  

Minako wiped her brow as she saw Akihiko casting some buffing spells on everyone as she tossed him a look as he nodded. “Yeah, she should—I need to cast more Zio spells at him. I'm running out of SP.” He mentioned as he threw another punch at the shadow, sweat rolling down his cheeks. 

Fuuka nodded as she called out Oracle and Lucia made the surrounding area shine bright as Minako, Mitsuru, and Akihiko felt so rejuvenated, unlike Shinjiro who was wincing in pain and fell back onto the floor, his legs quivering in fear? or perhaps pain. Mitsuru turned her eyes towards Shinjiro, wondering if Fuuka could knowingly cause him pain through Oracle. Fuuka felt her fingers shaking slightly with anger, pain, and sadness around her evoker—they could see the pain Shinjiro was in. Minako gasped as she saw Shinjiro’s axe a few feet from his body as she turned towards Mitsuru. “Akihiko and I will finish the shadow—could you take care of him?” 

“Of course.” Mitsuru stated as she confidently looked through Shinjiro’s pea coat for medicine that he stocks up with for battles. She felt herself getting frustrated as she turned to the ceiling as Shinjiro mumbled a few cursed words softly. “Yamagishi—you and Aragaki need to fix your attitude with each other. You could have gotten more of us hurt!” 

Fuuka felt herself getting flustered, not realizing how badly her emotions played into how Oracle would react. She felt a bit ashamed as she could sense Mitsuru talking to everyone else once the shadow was defeated. Fuuka felt her words getting caught up in her throat, unsure of what to say. Mitsuru broke the silence with simply saying: “Let’s head back to the first floor. We made good progress today.” 

Minako nodded as she could see her senpais helping Shinjiro up carefully. She felt her cheeks heating up as she couldn’t imagine what would happen next—she turned the teleporter on and within seconds, they were back on the first floor. Yukari covered her lips as she could see what Fuuka did, without knowing?, as she used a Patra gem on Shinjiro. He blinked a few times, a bit relieved to see Yukari, as Fuuka released Lucia and could feel Mitsuru’s eyes on her. The icy glare could freeze up anyone.  

But it was Shinjiro who came to her first as Mitsuru looked on carefully. “What. The Fuck. Was THAT!? You could have killed me up there Fuuka!” He yelled as Fuuka winced a bit, wishing Mitsuru did her icy execution right about now. A execution was better than being burned in hell by words. Shinjiro held his head and stopped short in front of Fuuka. “And why does Takeba have the Patra gems? Was THAT your plan too?” Fuuka began to open her mouth as Shinjiro continued his rampage as he pulled his beanie off his head, gripping it in his hand. “Oh, and another thing: if you wanted me dead, just serve me your food—it will do the job easily!” He reaches for Fuuka’s right shoulder blade, gripping it a bit tightly, and pushed her as he felt anger pulsating out of him.

I-I...I forgot the Patra gems--...oh no. Oh I am such an idiot! 

Fuuka thought silently; seeing Junpei and Yukari eyeing each other as Minako reached her hand out towards Shinjiro. “Hey, senpai, I think you got the point across—no need to get aggressive…” Minako spoke as she didn't know who to try to calm down first--Shinjiro, or Fuuka?

Fuuka tried to stand her ground as she felt tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She gulped silently and looked up at Shinjiro. “I-If you were going to be committed to Minako-chan, you should have told ME! I mean, you are pretty shady wh-when it comes to not telling me anything!” 

Shinjiro crossed his arms as he felt Fuuka trying to shove him. He didn’t even move an inch. She gritted her teeth and stomped her foot on the ground as she stopped trying to push him. 

“Last I checked, you couldn’t even decide if you wanted to even bother with me. I believe you are shadier than me, Fuuka.” 

“Well takes one to know one! And Ken-kun can tell more convincing lies, Shinjiro.” 

Mitsuru could feel a vein pulsating in her forehead. Akihiko sensed he should get between them before Mitsuru does. He pushed Fuuka carefully to the side as he stood in front of Shinjiro. “Stop it—both of you.” 

“Seems like Aki wants to help you out, Fuuka.” 

“ENOUGH!” Mitsuru’s voice rang through and echoed off the walls as everyone turned to her. Shinjiro felt a chill running down his neck as she moved towards them. “I do not care if you are having a lover’s spat—“ 

“As if he would care—“ 

“—Yamagishi, it would be wise to not talk right now.” 

Fuuka covered her lips as she felt her head lower in submission. Mitsuru turned to Yukari, Junpei, and Minako as she crossed her arms. “I will be implementing a punishment for Aragaki and Yamagishi, starting tomorrow night. For one week. Now, I need one of you to give me an idea for their punishment—it has to include both of them. Yamagishi endangered Aragaki’s life as well as forgetting to equip our crew with items for battle. Whereas Aragaki tried to take matters into his own hands and didn’t try to resolve any problems before tonight’s adventure.” 

The three of them sat on the idea for a moment as Shinjiro began to complain. “I am NOT doing the girl’s laundry for a week!” 

Mitsuru glared at Shinjiro as she held two fingers up. “I can make it two weeks.” Shinjiro felt his head lower and kept himself quiet down quickly.  

“How about cleaning and uptake with the whole dorm?” Yukari suggested. “I know we have some cobwebs.” 

Mitsuru turned back to Yukari and nodded. “The height differences would help each other. What about you Iori?” 

He put his hands on his hips and sighed heavily. “I really don’t have a clue. I’m not good with this shit. Besides, I don't wanna get on their bad sides, senpai. Sorry.” 

Minako nodded and held up a finger. “How about working on the fourth floor with the monitors? I’ve been mentioning to Fuuka that when I’ve gone up there, the monitors short-circuit and won’t record stuff. Maybe it needs to be updated?” She turned towards Mitsuru. “Fuuka can fix the stuff, and Shinjiro-san can observe her for her safety. It sounds silly though.” 

Mitsuru smiled and turned towards Fuuka and Shinjiro. For some reason, she was satisfied with that response. “That is a brilliant idea. Aragaki doesn’t have to go to school, so he can stay up a couple nights to make sure the cameras and monitors are still working—Yamagishi will stay with him a couple nights, if it’s not a school night. If the monitors do go down, Yamagishi will be there to fix it. No matter the time. And each night will require less attention from the first.” She walked towards them both as they could hear her heels clicking with the floor below. Slowly, they lift their heads and got prepared for the worst. “Since it’s a Friday night into a Saturday morning, this will be implemented tonight. It will start at 11pm until 2am, with a half an hour cut off each day until after the Dark Hour ends. Do I make myself clear?” 

They quickly nodded as Fuuka held her hand up carefully, not wanting to interrupt her. “I-If I need parts…?” 

“Then take what you need from the shed or other spare parts. Or let me know. I’ll supply you with them.” Mitsuru answered quickly, making Fuuka nod and lower her hand to her side. She rubbed her arm as Mitsuru turned to the other well-behaved members of SEES. “Let’s leave for tonight. Also, we will have no Tartarus exploration until a week from now. If Yamagishi is unable to come, we cannot come either.” 

Akihiko groaned as Junpei came from behind and walked with him, patting his back. “It’s just one week—you will live, senpai.” Junpei stated, letting out a small laugh as Yukari rolled her eyes and followed behind them.  

Fuuka followed behind as she held her arm down at her side and felt Mitsuru following her. She could feel the ice creeping up her neck as she bit her lip—Fuuka never knew what it felt like to be on her bad side. And now, she wished she wasn’t. Minako and Shinjiro trailed behind as he put his beanie back on and grunted. Minako walked a bit faster and was a few paces ahead of him, looking up at Shinjiro’s face as she began to walk backwards.  

“You better tell her about everything, Shinjiro. Because you have at least one night where you both will be alone and I swear you better not mess this up.” Minako uttered softly as Shinjiro rolled his eyes and put his hands in his pocket. “She likes you, a lot. Her emotions got to her. So, she’s taking the blunt of this. Especially from Mitsuru.” 

“No shit, Sherlock.” Shinjiro frowned as he rubbed his eyebrows and tilted his head back, letting out a heavy sigh. “I don’t want her to fall for me. I can’t let her.” 

Minako slowed down as she put her hand on his arm. “Shinjiro… if you got to let her down, do it tonight. In front of her. Without anyone knowing—“ 

“But…” 

“But what?” 

He sighed and tilted his head to the side. “…but what if I enjoy her presence? And enjoy—“ 

“Her liking you back?”

Shinjiro sighed, as if he was being read like a book to Minako. “Is it that obvious?” 

She let out a small chuckle and touched his forehead. “It was once you started to treat her hand and when she was vulnerable with Lucia attacking her. You grounded her back to reality when you don’t realize it.” 

Shinjiro never thought of it like that.  

I just thought that was me saving her life. Never realized I brought her back to reality. And maybe she grounded me back to reality, too.  

He was deep in thought as he tried to catch up to Minako and looked down at her as he caught his breath. “…was she trying to flirt with me and I was too oblivious?” 

“Well, her flirting isn’t all that strong compared to yours. Actually you both need help there, but I’m sure when you guys actually try to get somewhere, maybe it will become more natural.” 

“You think so?” 

“I think if Akihiko can do it, you can do it too, Shinjiro.” 

September 25th 

After a grueling day just expecting the worse, Fuuka and Shinjiro finally met up on the fourth floor at 11pm, on the dot, to see a somewhat pleased Mitsuru. “Glad to see you both made it—now, I am hoping that you both will reconcile in a timely manner.” She eyed Shinjiro, making him tense up a bit, and then back at Fuuka as she felt herself tensing up subconsciously. “If Yamagishi needs help, help her Aragaki—and vice versa.” She unlocked the door and handed the key to Shinjiro. “Have a good evening.” 

She walked out behind them and closed the door. The moment the door closed, Fuuka turned towards the monitor and noticed Mitsuru left them some items. “She gave us snacks, and some wires and tools for me.” She stated softly as she reached down for a finger sandwich and felt herself tensing up while near Shinjiro. Fuuka could smell Shinjiro moving closer to her as she closed her eyes and quickly swallowed the finger food. 

“Huh. Ham and swiss. Not like Mitsuru—thought she’d do sushi or something more elegant-like.” He reached for a small sandwich and looked up at the monitor with Fuuka. He noticed a couple cameras seemed a bit static or the video quality wasn’t all that good. “So, can you fix this?” 

“Only if you will help.” Fuuka uttered as she didn’t specify for the current situation or just their relationship in general. She knew that the wiring might’ve been fried, but then again she bit her lip and turned towards him. She knew she had to ask. “Shinjiro, will you explain what your relationship is with Minako? I... ...I don’t want...” 

“She was actually helping me fix up our relationship, or whatever we have going on between us.” He stated quickly as he pulled his pea coat off and threw it onto the couch nearby. Fuuka was clothed with some pink pajama bottoms, long enough to cover her legs, and a t-shirt that Yukari gave her since she didn’t like it—even if it was a white top and a little big on her. “And, well, you saw me coming out—you didn’t even let me explain, Fuuka--!” 

“It looked kind of bad, Shinjiro.” Fuuka spatted as she reached for some tools and began to look for wire strippers and wire cutters. She also grabbed a flashlight and lowered her head. “I was emotionally in a bad place, to be honest.” She stated as she moved around to the back of the monitor, getting on her knees, and climbing behind the machine. “I am still a bit mad at you, Shinjiro.” 

Shinjiro crossed his arms as he moved the tools down to Fuuka and sat down, messing with the monitor. “Why? I thought we were good.” He explained as Fuuka wished her legs were long enough to kick him. He felt the small breeze as he knew he had to be careful. 

I need to shut the fuck up and listen to her.  

“B-but, I know we aren’t. I... I don’t even know where the hell we are now.” Shinjiro quickly added, trying to work his way around not blowing Fuuka up anymore. He began to press a couple buttons and looked at the monitors, wondering what he was seeing. “Anyway, it looks like your camera in your room, and my room... ...wait, why don’t I have a camera in my room?” 

Fuuka began stripping a wire and seeing how badly fried it was. “Huh? You don’t have one? That’s odd. Maybe too many cameras are overwhelming the system. I think Aigis-san doesn’t have one either...” She pointed out as she sighed. ”The wires are burned—I can try to fix the connection for now, but Mitsuru-senpai needs to get more wires.” 

Shinjiro leaned up towards the video and could faintly see flowers in the video and someone moving in the middle. He covered his lips as he tried to stifle a laugh. “Hey, uh, Fuuka...” He snickered and tried to turn up the volume. “So, is the sound busted as well?” 

Fuuka moved more into the back of the monitor as her feet could barely be seen from behind. “It shouldn’t be. Mitsuru-senpai mentioned the cameras are not doing so well and the recording equipment might be broken--...why? Wait—why are you--” 

Shinjiro turned the volume up as Fuuka gasped as she could hear the sound of the machine that was wrapped around her stomach a couple months ago. “NO!” She cried out as she tried to get out of the monitor fast as Shinjiro could feel his lips forming an evil smile and felt his stomach hurting from trying to not laugh. Fuuka actually fixed her camera in her room while fixing the monitor that was viewing her recording. 

“Wh-wh-why won’t it come off...? Hahaha... noooo!”  

“Shinjiro, you BETTER turn that off right now!” She cried out as she could feel her knees leaving the machine and beginning her way out of the monitor’s wires. 

“Mitsuru came and knocked on the door!? I have to ask her about this!” He cried out, tears coming out of his eyes as he couldn’t stop laughing.  

“Is this... what it means... to t-train... your ABS?”  

Fuuka finally pushed herself out as she had carpet burn on her knee as she reached over to Shinjiro and leaned over the monitor, pausing the video as she harshly glared at Shinjiro. “Do. Not. TALK to Mitsuru-senpai about this.” 

Shinjiro grinned as Fuuka looked over at him, not realizing he had never heard him laugh so loudly—his smile was something that threw her for a whirl. Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up as she wondered if he even knew he was so vulnerable like this. But that smile of his just made her heart melt.

“Do you still have the belt?” 

And there it is.  

“Yes, I washed it and put it in storage. Might be good for a gag gift—OF COURSE I threw it away!” She groaned as she turned around, her back towards Shinjiro as she looked up at the monitors. “Even though, it looks a bit better—I need to get more wires or tell senpai to upgrade her equipment. Might just fry the wires again.” Fuuka uttered softly as she began to tap some buttons on the keyboard in front of her. 

Shinjiro took a few more seconds to calm down as he realized how happy he was to see her in such a position—then, and now. He felt himself getting choked up with her behind in his general area and got to really admire her body. Shinjiro noticed the belt might not have done a lot, but he noticed she was more petite than before. Maybe some muscles were forming because of stuff she had to carry to and from when going to Tartarus? On top of it, she seemed to take good care of her body and he admired her dedication. And yet, before he knew it, he saw his hands ready to wrap around her tiny waist. Shinjiro caught himself before he continued onward—he wondered if it would be appropriate. 

Hell, why should it matter? We like each other, right? Should I even take the first step?  

In a blink of an eye, the lights shut off and the Dark Hour began. It took both of them by surprise—not realize how fast an hour happened while they were together. Fuuka felt her heart pitter-patter in her chest as she sighed. “I forgot about the Dark Hour, just for a while.” She mentioned as the room was dimly lit from the moon outside and from the monitor that still worked while in the Dark Hour. Fuuka let down her guard as she felt Shinjiro’s arms latch around her waist, her breath leaving her chest as she felt goosebumps going up and down her arms. 

“You don’t need any machine or something to make you slimmer. You are... perfect  the way you are.” Shinjiro whispered into her ear as Fuuka felt her body falling into his lap. She felt her cheeks heating up as she kept forgetting how warm Shinjiro was—she never knew the reason why. 

“Sh... ...shinjiro?” She whispered as she felt herself getting warmer all around her body. Fuuka felt herself getting a bit flustered as Fuuka felt Shinjiro’s lips near her earlobe.  

His arms wrapped tighter around her waist as he laid his head on her shoulder. Shinjiro felt himself exploding inside as he began to wear his heart on his sleeve. Carefully, he whispered into her ear little nothings. “Fuuka, you don’t need to change yourself for anyone. Especially me.” He murmured as she felt herself melting into his arms. She touched his hands with her own as she watched his legs spread apart so she could be more comfortable in his lap.  

Carefully, Shinjiro moved down towards Fuuka’s neck and began to suck on it gently. His left hand moved up towards her chest as one of her own hands followed and placed it on top of his. She let out a light gasp as she could feel his lips on her neck—it was a unique feeling, and was surprised how bold Shinjiro was to let down his guard. Fuuka craved to have the courage he had. Her body’s instincts made her move her neck a little to expose herself more as Shinjiro felt his cheeks heating up and changing colors. He gulped as he never got this far with anyone; no one even told him what to do with a girl. And he was excited and thrilled and wanted to shower Fuuka with love. 

He carefully began to suck and nibble on her neck, letting the soft noises leave Fuuka’s mouth without a care in the world. Fuuka closed her eyes, never realizing that her neck was so sensitive, and yet so perfect for Shinjiro’s lips. His hand grabbed her breast tenderly, realizing that she was bigger than she showed--did she do that on purpose?, he thought. She felt her hand trailing down his arm and gripping it a little once he used some of his teeth on her. But, when the little moan escaped her lips, Shinjiro stopped and realized he was getting aroused as quickly as he was making Fuuka aroused. 

Oh, shit. ...shit shit shit shit—my boner is not going down—!  

His face was as cool as a cucumber as Shinjiro carefully turned Fuuka around in his lap—her legs separating into the cushion of the chair as he never noticed how odd it was to see Fuuka’s cheeks tainted with the color red. It took him a moment to respond, to form coherent words in front of her. And watching her legs wrap around his waist--it was starting to become too much for him to handle. “Fuuka,” he rested his hand on her cheek as he saw her staring in his eyes, “can I continue?”  

I... ...I’ve never gotten this far with him. He’s serious. I can tell.  

She gulped and nodded slowly. Shinjiro was not expecting her to go on with this—then again, she was different from the others. Quiet, subdue, brilliant, and yet he loved her. A lot.  

“Fuuka...” He whispered as he carefully leaned towards her lips, “I care so much about you.” He hovered above her lips, just for a moment, as Shinjiro’s eyes wandered towards the other side of her neck and began to nibble on it gently. Fuuka felt herself becoming overpowered by Shinjiro until she felt his hands going underneath her shirt, itching to have their skin make contact more and more. 

What if Mitsuru-senpai comes thru that door? What if someone interrupts us now? What if a shadow appears and we can’t find it? What if—what if—what if—!  

Fuuka gasped as she pushed her hands towards Shinjiro’s hand, leading up to her chest as she gripped it tightly and her eyes grew in worry. She felt herself getting choked up with tears as she knew she ruined this moment for them both. Shinjiro broke out of his trance and didn’t realize that Fuuka was crying as his eyes darted over her body in fear that he did something wrong. 

“Shit--Fuuka, are you okay? D-did I hurt you?” He asked, worry in his voice as she shook her head and let her tears silently fall.  

“I-it’s not you, it’s m-me...” She whispered as she began to wipe her tears away but Shinjiro, becoming more suave by the minute, wiped her tears away for her with his thumb. Shinjiro let her take a moment to catch her breath, as he could see the worry in her eyes. “I’m sorry...” 

He knew he had to help her with grounding herself back to reality. “Hey, hold my hand.” He whispered as she felt another tear coming out of her eye and held his hand tenderly. “Now, remember what we did when we had to deal with Lucia?” Fuuka nodded slowly, but then shook her head. “Just...lay your head on my chest—use my heartbeat to calm yours down.” 

Fuuka blinked a few times as she leaned herself down onto his chest, sniffing her nose, as she could faintly hear his heart beating. It took her a moment to calm down, but her sobbing went into a sniffles, and then slowly into nothing. Fuuka felt her tears slowly going away as she wrapped her arms quickly around Shinjiro’s chest. He slowly moved his hand down her head and petting her forehead, hushing her quietly as the slight hum from the machines kept quiet and low. She felt herself calming down more as she knew what he was doing--she was surprised to see he knew HOW to do it in the first place. 

Fuuka bit her lip and looked up at Shinjiro. “I... ...you do care for me, Shinjiro...” 

“I am sorry I pushed you. I guess I craved you more than I thought.” He uttered, his cheeks still red as he knew his boner was still slightly erect—he would hope it was unnoticeable by Fuuka of all people. “If I do that again, you have all the right to punch me.” 

Fuuka let out a small giggle and shook her head. “I...I just want to take it slow—” She looked up at him as she would just love to stay in his arms for another minute or two. “...I care for you Shinjiro, a lot. A-and I am so so sorry for hurting you. I was so upset that Minako and you were coming out of her room and I thought we were building up into something nice and I wanted to cry and punch you and--” 

Shinjiro put a finger to her lips. “I could feel your frustrations in your Oracle. No need to tell me twice, Fuuka. I just don’t want anything or anyone to come between us, okay?” He asked as Fuuka nodded quickly, holding up her pinkie finger. “...this again?” 

“Yes, this again. Because I like doing pinkie promises.” She softly glared at him as she could feel his pinkie wrapping around hers. Fuuka felt her heart skipping a beat as she wondered where they could even go from here. “Shinjiro, will you watch my back if I watch yours?” 

“I pinkie swear that I won’t let anything happen to you. You are very important to us, especially to me.” 

Shinjiro saw something in the corner of his eye—he saw something moving on the monitor quickly. He almost had to do a double take as he thought it was a bug or something. Before he could question Fuuka, the door opened up and Junpei was panting as if something had chased him all the way up stairs. 

“FUUUUUUUUUUUKA! I need your help!!” He yelled as Shinjiro and Fuuka jumped and Shinjiro instinctively pushed Fuuka off of him and she landed almost face first into the floor—her knees caught the blow and she leaned down with a sweat drop forming down her face.  

Junpei. I will be sure to get you back one day.   

Fuuka thought as Junpei felt his cheeks heating up as he had no clue he was interrupting something important. He gulped as he saw Shinjiro’s eyes glare harshly at him. Fuuka took a moment to catch her breath and turned her head towards him, glare at him carefully as well. “What do you need HELP with, Junpei?” 

“I, er—“ 

“I didn’t sense shadows, sooooo…?” 

“I woke up, and uhhh, I split some water on some of my keyboard… a-and well, I thought you might h-have a spare keyboard laying around.” 

Shinjiro stared a bit more at Junpei as he wanted to facepalm him into the ground. Fuuka took a deep breath and soften her eyes a bit. “Mind if I look tomorrow? It’s still the Dark Hour for another few more minutes and I’m up here for another hour.” 

“Y-yeah,” he gulped as he reached for the doorknob, “I’ll be sure to text ya first.” 

“That…would be wise.” Fuuka kept her eyes to the ground as Junpei carefully backed out of the room and closed the door.  

Shinjiro turned his eyes back to the monitor and his hand went towards his pocket as he felt something cold in his hand. He pulled out a set of keys as he realized he could have locked the door and made everything a bit more private.  

Annnnnnnnd I fucked up again. Fuck.   

He hid the keys back in his pocket, hoping Fuuka didn’t hear them. She got up, grunting a bit as Shinjiro remembered he yeeted Fuuka to the ground in such a haste. He got up from his chair and began to reach over to her. “Shit—I didn’t mean to throw you like that. I’m sorry, Fuuka.” 

She shook her head and got up slowly, waving her hand at him. “It’s fine. I don’t think Junpei would say anything anyway—not if he values his keyboard’s life. Then again, he did damage it.” Fuuka mentioned as she rubbed the temples of her forehead as the Dark Hour came to an end and the room brighten up once more.  

Feeling the awkwardness around the room, she stared up at Shinjiro, knowing the tension in the room was still there. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but she could feel there was something more she wanted—she didn’t feel pleased, which was odd for her. She didn’t realize how badly she wanted this moment alone with Shinjiro and that she might not ever get this alone with him again.  

Then again, we are on punishment duty for the next week.   

Fuuka bit her lip and looked away. “I feel as if we have resolved our differences.” 

“Yeah.” Shinjiro murmured as he reached for his pea coat and turned back to face Fuuka as he saw her put her hand to her chest. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?” 

She shook her head. “I just forgot how strong you were.” Fuuka wasn’t in any pain—she just couldn’t get her heart to stop beating quickly. In the rush of it all, he touched her chest and she didn’t know how to react—aroused and startled. Being both right about now didn’t help Fuuka focus.  

This is one night you guys will be alone. You have to tell her everything.   

Shinjiro remembered Minako’s words and wondered if he should tell her everything.  

If I do, would it changed everything? Would she be on me and never let me go? But, I’d like that. The attention I would crave because it would be serene and sincere. I’m fucked, aren’t I?  

“Hey, Fuuka?”  

She blinked and woke out of her stupor and turned towards Shinjiro. “Sorry, I was in a bit of a daze—what is it?” 

“Listen,” Shinjiro began as he felt himself ready to trip over his own words, “do you…know why I wear this long pea coat that I only seem to have one of?” 

“I’m sure it’s related to your health, right?” 

“You can say that. Not many people know why—Mitsuru and maybe Akihiko knows. And,” he moved closer to her and placed a hand on her shoulder gently, “I feel as if you should know.” 

Fuuka’s eyes soften up a bit. So many things were racing thru her mind, knowing her parents were doctors that maybe something they said would pop out at her and could help Shinjiro. But, his eyes filled with worry. He felt his words getting lost, escaping his lips, as he just instinctively pulled Fuuka into a tight hug. She felt a breath of air escape her lungs as she felt her arms move up towards his back and rubbed his back in small circles. 

“Shinjiro?” She whispered as he hushed her.  

“…the reason as to why I wear that pea coat is because I cannot regulate my body’s temperature. I’m consistently cold and I don’t sweat as much as I used to.” Shinjiro slowly began to explain, trying his hardest to keep it simple and to the point. “Mitsuru has had doctors examine me bi weekly, to try to find why my body is, in laymen’s terms, going out of control.” 

Fuuka listened carefully, waiting for the inevitable bad news. “They haven’t found out why, right?” She asked as Shinjiro huffed and shook his head. Fuuka looked up at him with her arms down at her sides. “So that’s why you were there the one day where Junpei—“ 

“That was a coincidence. But, besides that, I just thought you’d wanted to know. You…you wanted to know more about my health and how I was and I shut you down. Harshly. And I’m sorry for that.” He apologized and lowered his head. Fuuka was a bit startled that he was going to apologize for that—and only after a day or two.  

Yukari was right. Maybe he needed to let some steam out.   

Fuuka carefully reaches up to his face, cupping his cheek, and smiled earnestly at him. “Thank you, Shinjiro. If you need me to do anything to help you—“ 

Shinjiro lowered her hand from his cheek and cupped her cheek back in return. “All I can ask you to do for me, is to just be by my side.” He leaned down, removing his hand from her cheek, and before Fuuka could say anything, he kissed her lips, chastely, and once more since he wanted to experience the taste of her lips again.  

He carefully pulled away as Fuuka’s cheeks were brightly pink—she touched her lips as she almost forgot what the kiss tasted like. Her heart was pounding quickly as she didn’t know how to react. She didn’t show disgust, but leaning more towards happiness and giddiness. Shinjiro let the silence in the air hang for a moment more as he noticed it was only a little after 1 in the morning.  

“Go on and head to bed.” He calmly said, his cheeks a bit red at how bold he was. “I’ll keep an eye on the monitors—I’ll cover for you.” 

Fuuka nodded as she felt herself unable to move. Only because she kept thinking about the kiss—how his lips tasted soft and smooth, and it was over before she knew it. “…thank you…” she whispered as she moved around Shinjiro to clean up her mess, knowing she’ll be back at it tomorrow night. Fuuka almost felt herself tripping over anything as she tried to maintain her focus. Getting on her knees, she tried to clean up her mess the best she could. Turning around and standing back on her feet, Fuuka saw that Shinjiro was focused on the monitors as he was sitting back in his chair.  

She put her hand to her chest, took a deep breath, and walked over to Shinjiro once more. “Please get some sleep, for me.” She leaned down towards him and kissed his cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.” She smiled as she walked towards the door, opening and closing it slowly as she walked out towards the staircase.  

Fuuka leaned against the wall near her as she felt herself ready to expose their kiss to Minako, but she knew she couldn’t.  

We haven’t even said I love you yet! God, we are doomed. But, what if he doesn’t like me like that? But that kiss was a twofer—he didn’t kiss me once but TWICE!  

She covered her cheeks with her hands as she walked down the stairs and towards her room on the next floor. She stopped for a moment as saw Minako sitting at her door. “Minako-chan? Are you okay? Why are you up?” Fuuka questioned as Minako rubbed her eyes and looked at her watch.  

“I thought you had another half an hour left?” 

“Shinjiro told me to head on back—he will cover for me. What is that?” Fuuka saw something shiny in her hands as Minako nodded, giving it to Fuuka.  

“I was given this from Officer Kurosawa. He said he found it in the lost and found about a week ago. I kept it for this last few days because I thought I knew someone who could fix it. Unfortunately, the old lady I gave it to didn’t have the parts and couldn’t fix it.” Minako explained as she covered Fuuka’s hands with the watch. She smiled softly. “I then tried to fix it myself and then I realized that you might be able to.” 

“It might take me a couple days, but I am sure I can do it. Unless you need it back sooner?” 

Minako shook her head and grinned. “No, I think you should keep it. Also,” Minako removed her hands from Fuuka’s and backed away, “it’s kinda neat to have something so beat up. Don’t you think? Maybe save it for a gift for someone if you don’t want it.” 

Fuuka opened the watch, noticing the worn down look of it. Her fingers traced over the smooth surface, surprised it still looks so good. She felt her lips forming a small smile and looked back to Minako. “I appreciate this, but why wait until now to give it to me?” 

“Well, I didn’t mean for that to happen. I thought it would be something to pass time with while with Shinjiro.” She mentioned, noticing Fuuka’s cheeks tinting pink with his name. A smirk appeared on her lips as she continued. “And I thought you’d know more. I just wanted to give it a shot and see if I could fix it. I should have given this to you sooner.” 

“I’ll appreciate this. Hopefully I can fix this quick—I’d like to keep this around as a keepsake.” 

“Good. As for now, I’m heading back to bed. My head aches from trying to figure out how to read how to fit it online. Good luck, Fuuka-chan.” Minako rubbed her temples and gave her a small wave goodbye as they departed to each other’s rooms.  

Entering her room quietly with the aroma of lavender keeping her relaxed, she placed the watch next to her bed and sat down on her bed. She looked at it again, wondering how someone could lose something so valuable and yet so heavy.  

With all the clock work inside of it, it’s an old piece of history. I’ll be lucky to find the pieces for it. Maybe dad would have some? Then again, he hasn’t talked to me since I joined SEES and lived in the dorm.  I am sure I can ask around and see if I can find some wise, older gentleman to fix this for me or at least find me the parts.   

Fuuka began to lay down in her sheets, turning the lights off next to her and looked up at the ceiling. Every time she closed her eyes, she kept tasting Shinjiro’s lips on top of hers. Her fingers shot up to her lips and her cheeks became ablaze with embarrassment and yet, and odd feeling in her chest. She never felt it—perhaps it was arousal?—and was a bit scared to asked Minako. Only because she KNEW she would blab to Akihiko and Akihiko will freak out. Maybe a little.  

And then her eyes open up and she could remember what it felt like when he touched—and then she moved her hands to the left side of her neck. She forgot that he might have given her a a decent size hickey they way he was going at her neck. Fuuka gulped as she was going to have to wear turtlenecks for the next few days. She put her hands over her cheeks as she tried to go to sleep, knowing this might keep her up for the rest of the night.  

November ~ Full Moon ~ Final Shadow

It had grown quiet inside of Fuuka’s hospital room. The only things attached to her was an IV, heart monitor, and a blood pressure cuff. Aigis looked out the window, barely able to see the Moonlight Bridge from Fuuka’s hospital window, as she began to pace around the room. Mitsuru left her a note to follow the instructions for Fuuka waking up, IF she woke up tonight. They knew they needed her tonight as it was massively crucial for SEES to eliminate the next and final shadow.  

Aigis turned her eyes back to Fuuka, and then to the clock above her head. “Another minute until midnight.” She also eyed Fuuka’s school uniform, shoes, socks, and SEES armband, as well as her evoker ready for her. “I do hope Shinjiro-san is correct about her.” She murmured softly, hoping that he was right about something good happening to them. Hearing the ticks from the clock made Aigis a bit worried—once she looked up again and realized it was 10 seconds until midnight, the ticks seemed to have gotten louder and louder until— 

Fuuka’s eyes darted open, shooting up quickly from her bed as she looked panicked and worried. “S-Strega…! I-I sense—“ she gasped as she looked over at Aigis. “Aigis…!” 

"It’s good to see you awake, Fuuka-san.” A bright smile appeared on her lips as Fuuka blinked a few times, looking down at the IV in her hand and back at Aigis. “I know this is quite sudden, but are you able to fight with us?” 

Fuuka turned her head towards the window and noticed it was the Dark Hour. “It’s a Full Moon. I… I’ve been down for a month?” She stated rhetorically, and Aigis nodded her head without needing to. Fuuka turned her head back to Aigis. “Where is everyone?” 

“I assume at Moonlight Bridge. Mitsuru-san could barely sense a strong force over there an hour ago, so they decided to head over there.” 

“…is everyone okay? S-since I’ve been gone...?” 

“We could only traverse a few floors and stayed closer to the previous block in Tartarus. Everyone had to rely on Mitsuru-san being the navigator. It’s been rough, but we’ve even coping.” 

Fuuka put her hand to her chest, feeling some scars and stitches on her chest. Her heart pounded as she felt a smile appear on her lips. “Thank goodness.” 

Aigis touched Fuuka’s hand slowly, relieved to feel a pulse, and beginning to emoved the blood pressure cuff and heart monitor—she left the stickers to Fuuka. “Are you able to get dressed and head to battle? I’m going to take you on my back and get there quicker.” 

She looked at her hand, knowing removing the needle is going to sting as she touched Aigis’ hand tenderly and nodded quickly. “The faster I get there, the better.” She pulled the tape off of her hand and in one swift motion, pulled the needle out, clicked the needle into the flexible tube with blue butterfly wings, winced and reached for a tissue to stop the minor bleeding. “Let’s go.” 

Chapter Text

🎵And it's like snow at the beach
Weird, but fuckin' beautiful
Flying in a dream
Stars by the pocketful
You wanting me
Tonight feels impossible
But it's comin' down, no sound, it's all around 🎵

November 3rd 

The final Dark Hour was upon the members of SEES—their backs turned towards the humans transmogrified and walked towards the Moonlight Bridge with their heads…low. Minako and Minato looked at one another, knowing they had to bring up the excitement and optimism, even if that was more of a Minako idea than Minato one. This was their final fight—and yet, the word final sat heavy on their mind.  

“This is the final battle—we have nothing left to worry about!” Minato stated, noticing Ken shrugging and Junpei ignoring him by just walking ahead, his sword dragging behind him. Minako frowned and turned to the others, hoping that she might have a chance this time around.  

“We know Aigis can do this. Fuuka wouldn’t do this to us and leave us on this important date!” Minako added as Akihiko and Mitsuru nodded, where as Shinjiro stopped and crossed his arms. “What’s wrong with you, sour puss?” 

Shinjiro turned to Minako and looked at her with worried eyes. It didn’t help that he was tapping his foot impatiently. “Wasn’t Aigis suppose to get back to us when she has Fuuka? What is taking her so damn long?” Then his eyes went to Mitsuru. She was still cool and collected whenever Shinjiro wasn’t. It seemed to be in her nature to do so. Or perhaps it was Penthesilia’s weak sensing power that she knew Fuuka would be back. Maybe her motherly instinct played a small part, too.  

“Aigis is not backed up with a communication device compatible with mine on my motorbike. I, er, was going to let Yamagishi fix that for me. If this is our final battle, perhaps that won’t be needed anymore.” Mitsuru explained, wishing she thought of it sooner. Then again, Fuuka had the ideas, and brain power to think like a scientist or a tech guru. “Yamagishi stated the idea the same month Aigis joined. I just didn’t get the parts until last week.” 

Shinjiro tried to rub his temples and not let anything get to him. Even though he knew everything would be fine—perhaps a lover’s instinct?—but the fact that nothing was confirming his suspicions worried him a bit. They still continued to climb up towards the apex of the bridge until something was thrown towards them. Minato eyed it carefully as he gasped and turned towards everyone.  

“Watch out! It’s a grenade!” 

He yelled as everyone moved accordingly out of the way as they knew only one type of person who made and created those. Out of the smoke, Takaya and Jin emerged as Shinjiro gripped his axe tighter and gritted his teeth. Minako and Akihiko, as well as Mitsuru, kept close to Shinjiro as the others moved towards Minato for safety reasons. Everyone already knew who to expect tonight, even if no one was in the mood to deal with them.

“Ahh. You are still alive, Shinjiro.” Takaya uttered as he flipped his gun with his finger and frowned. “I guess I didn’t damage you too much.” 

“You still talk too much. I’m here to get revenge!” Shinjiro called out as Takaya was doing a head count of everyone. Jin pushed his glasses up—he already knew the answer he was looking for. 

“There are two heads missing—the robot and the navigator.” Jin mentioned as Takaya devilishly grinned and a laugh escaped his lips. Shinjiro could feel the anger seeping out of him. He knew that with Jin’s extensive knowledge, he knew Fuuka, and Aigis, possibly wasn't going to be there. But where were they--it seemed he had no clue at all.

That's good. 

Shinjiro thought to himself as Takaya eyed the group carefully. “I guess she bit the dust. Too bad—I would have liked her to be alive so I could make sure she can taste death again.” 

Takaya’s words made Ken and Yukari flinch as the others tried to stay calm and collected. Minato put a hand up in front of Yukari as Junpei clenched his weapon. “Shut up! Shut up !” Junpei cried out as Minako moved towards Junpei, putting a hand up on his chest. She leaned towards him and whispered in his ear, “We cannot let him know she’s alive. I know you want to tell him, but be strong, okay? She’s our ace.” 

Minako backed away carefully as Junpei nodded and still showed some anger in his face. Takaya huffed it off as he rolled his eyes. “You know today’s significance, correct? That you all claim to hunt shadows to prevent any disaster they bring. And yet, many lives are lost, each and every day withOUT intervention.” He stated as he eyed up Shinjiro and Akihiko. He cross his arms and continued on with his speal. “You cannot deny that our power is evil. Why not just admit you don’t want the Dark Hour to end? You are just simply deceiving yourselves.” 

Minako gripped her nigatama and lowered her eyes. She shook her head in disagreement. “That is not true!” 

“But look deep inside of yourselves. You are pitiful children who are foolish. To eliminate the Dark Hour means eliminating yourselves. Can you even comprehend that!?” Takaya spat at the group as he rolled the revolver’s barrel and pointed it towards the group, especially at Shinjiro. Everyone felt themselves moving into their battle positions as Takaya grinned. “Fate shall decide who should prevail. Come.” 

Fuuka gasped as she wrapped her arms around Aigis’ neck. Passing by everyone’s coffins, being transmogrified, she could sense how close Strega was to her and how much stronger they have gotten. The anger Shinjiro was feeling, the frustration that Ken felt, as well as everyone’s apprehensive nature towards those two were enough to send Fuuka off the deep end.  

“A-Aigis… how much longer?” She asked, nervously, in between breaths as Aigis turned a corner swiftly, shooting shadows away in the process. She could have sworn she was going to get ill from all the twists and turns.  

“Only another minute. We are making good time—I will be sure to get you there with no issues.” Aigis stated, knowing that Fuuka might not be able to get Aigis to talk more about anything else.  

They are battling them. Th-they don’t know how much stronger they have gotten. A-and Shinjiro is frustrated, and attacking without a care in the world. If he keeps letting his anger get the best of him, will I be able to help him?  

Fuuka could see the bridge as she tried to get the others to focus, but she’s been out of battle for a month. She was having some problems doing stuff without Lucia protecting her. She gulped as Aigis jumped over shadows and landed on the bridge. She could smell the gunpowder from Takaya’s gun and Jin’s grenades—it wasn’t a pleasant smell. It brought back bad memories--Fuuka shook her head, knowing she had to rid herself of those thoughts tonight. Aigis continued to bring Fuuka towards the top of the bridge as she suddenly stopped her. “Wait—drop me here.” She suggested as Aigis nodded as Fuuka pulled herself off of Aigis’ back. “I need you to create a distraction so I can get to Shinjiro and the others. You will have more energy and I can try to heal everyone.” Fuuka explained slowly while Aigis nodded.  

“This sounds like I will be coming in guns ablazing.” 

Fuuka wondered what new words Junpei taught her while she was out. She nodded as she gulped, pulling her evoker out. Putting it to her head made her nervous—she had to get use to the feeling again. “Go now—!” She called out as Aigis jumped into the fray as everyone’s eyes focused on her, especially Jin and Takaya.  

Fuuka sent out an Oracle, healing everyone up as she could feel the happiness pouring out of everyone’s minds. It was like a breath of fresh air to her lungs. Everyone gasping in relief and turned towards Fuuka, encased inside of Lucia. Fuuka took a deep breath in and out as she kept her eyes shut tightly, and then opened them slowly and watched as everyone looked at her.

I apologize for being late, everyone. I have to make a grand entrance, don’t I?  

“Yamagishi!” 

“Fuuka-chan!” 

“Fuuka!” 

“Fuu-tan!” 

Takaya gritted his teeth and spoke under his breath, “It seems I get to give her a chance to die again after all.” Fuuka watched as Shinjiro started to walk towards her, but then he stopped himself. She knew they had work to do. Even so, it brought a small smile to her face—it was written all over his face as his expression was soften. As if all the pain and anguish on his face washed away. And it pained Fuuka that they would have to wait, but she knew they could do this.  

Everyone’s moods turned straight into strength as they were rejuvenated. Minato turned to Fuuka, their eyes eyeing the other side of the bridge. The Hanged Man shadow was awaiting them, as if a dark and heavy rain cloud looming over the whole group. “Fuuka, could we split the group up? That way we can get started on the Hanged Man shadow?” He communicated telepathically to their navigator. The full moon shadow was roaring over in the background. "I know you just came back and giving you a lot of work, but...can you do it?"

It took her less than a second to respond.  

But of course—I’ll be here to help!  

Minato nodded, turning towards Junpei, Yukari, and Ken. “You three come with me. We are going to take the shadow down!” The three nodded and began to run towards the shadow as Jin threw a grenade at them, attempting to stop them.  

“No you don’t!” Jin yelled as Aigis got in front of the grenade and shot it in the air so as no one got hurt. Jin frowned and began to summon his Persona, Moros, attacking the others, knowing Aigis wasn’t going to be in a battle she would lose. Koromaru stayed near Fuuka, which she didn’t know if it was just maternal instinct or just Koromaru missing Fuuka entirely. Fuuka didn’t object as she hoped she can split her attention evenly between the two groups.  

Takaya evaded Shinjiro’s axe attack as he let out a bellowing laugh. “To think our powers are not so different from one another. Perhaps I misjudged your strengths.” He stated as Fuuka put her hands to her chest, knowing Minato would be fine—it was Minako’s group she was worried more about. With two stubborn knuckleheads, she knew she had to keep an eye on Akihiko and Shinjiro. If Mitsuru and Minako didn’t beat her to the punch, that is.  

“Erasing the Dark Hour is the same as erasing yourselves.” Takaya called out as Jin took another Bufula to the body as he gritted his own teeth in pain. “Tch—is that even beyond your comprehension?” 

Akihiko threw a right hook punch at Takaya’s face, which missed, but the left hook aimed for his chest. It made Takaya stumble back as a loud “oof” left his lips. “No, but we know the difference between right and wrong. And we don’t want to put any more people through this hell.” 

Fuuka bit her lip, as she could see the sparks flying with bullets clashing off their weapons and Ziodynes and Agidynes being thrown everywhere. She turned her attention towards Minato’s group. She closed her eyes and focused. Yukari was healing up Ken and Junpei, Minato was debuffing the shadow, and Ken used some Zionga spells on the boss as well.  

Junpei? Are you okay?  

Junpei wiped the sweat from his forehead as he nodded. It took him a moment to collect his thoughts and breath. “Y-yeah, just exhausted. Is there anyway to get those statues down?” He asked Fuuka as she already had an answer ready for him.  

Each statue is weak to a certain spell—garu, agi, and zio—but the shadow is putting up a fight with my sensing. It’s as if it won’t show its weaknesses. But, she took a deep breath and looked up at the shadow hanging up from above, once those statues are down, you will get the shadow down and vulnerable for an all out attack!  

Junpei nodded as he called out Hermes and casted an Agilo spell at the statue as the others, Yukari and Ken casted Garula and Zionga, respectively, at the other statues. Fuuka made sure they were fine before turning back towards Minako’s group. She let out a gasp as she saw a grenade heading towards her.  

Before she could call out for help, Shinjiro ran quickly to her side, took his axe, and began to swing the grenade back towards Jin, as if it was a baseball.  

“Not so fast!” He grunted as he saw the grenade making contact with the axe and it began to be thrusted up in the air, exploding high above the air. For a brief moment, she could see a small grin in the corner of Shinjiro’s lips.  

Okay, that was cool.  

Jin frowned as his plans to hurt their navigator was becoming moot. He wondered if it was just futile knowing that Shinjiro and the others would defend her. Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up as she focused, noticing that Jin got a nasty uppercut by Akihiko, which knocked him out. 

“Good job distracting him, Shinji!” Akihiko called out, as Fuuka noticing Takaya trying to pick up Jin, even trying to wake him up. Fuuka released Lucia as she made her way towards the small group. She knew they were weak, their spirits and health were lower compared to the others.  

She could easily sense that Takaya could barely handle another attack, and with his ally down, there was no way for them to defeat SEES as of now. Fuuka put a hand to her chest and kept an eye on those two for now. Takaya laughed as he and Jin moved closer to the barrier of the bridge. They were clenching their stomaches as Jin cursed underneath his breath.  

“Is their powers THAT different from ours?” Jin spat at the group as Mitsuru raised an eyebrow. To say she was curious, as well as the others, was obvious.  

“Different?” 

“Our Personas have to be forced out. Didn’t Shinjiro tell you that?” 

All eyes went up to Shinjiro the moment he was brought into the conversation. Shinjiro crossed his arms, his head turned as Akihiko was able to connect the dots to one another. “You were the ones giving him the suppressants.” He turned towards the members of Strega, his fist clenched tightly in anger and frustration.  

Fuuka bit her lip, not knowing all of the details and yet, it felt like a punch to the stomach.

Suppressants? ...wait. The medicine I was given a while back... ...was that his?

She thought and wondered how long this has happened to him. She wondered why she didn't connect the dots herself. There could be a couple years of damage, but…what would be the long term effects? She showed worried in her eyes as she looked at Shinjiro, up and down, as his shoulders went slack. This was something he wasn’t looking forward to talking about at all. Especially with Fuuka.  

“You guys really don’t know what’ll happen if you get rid of the Dark Hour. Normal people won’t have the slightest clue, but for us—!” 

“That’s enough.” 

Everyone’s eyes went towards Takaya as he took a deep breath in, removing his arm from his stomach and glaring at SEES with anger. “Ordinarily we would withdraw, but not tonight.” He reaches for his gun, flicked it towards the ground as the barrel turned inside. Shinjiro instinctively went in front of Fuuka as she subconsciously grabbed his arm. Jin looked at Takaya with wide eyes as everyone kept their eyes on Takaya. He drew in his attention, since he was the one with the weapon that could actually kill someone. “This body, as superb that it is, is useless without my power.” Takaya brought the gun to his head, cocking it. “Therefore, only one choice is left for me. To prove that I exist, here and now !” 

Jin reached for his arm, pulling it down and away from him as his head was low. Takaya’s eyes grew with anger. “What are you doing!?” Takaya growled as Jin shook his head in disagreement.  

“Don’t be such a reckless dumbass!” 

“Jin!” 

“…sorry.” The two went back and forth, knowing that if the other dies before the other, would their mission have been futile? “You win…looks like you will get your wish.” He looked up at half of the members of SEES, as he walked away from them, Takaya following his footsteps as they backed up towards the edge of the bridge. “Go and do what you want.” 

Minako gasped as she could see what they were going to do. “Wait!” She cried out as Jin shook his head and gritted his teeth.  

“I would rather DIE than surrender to you.” He spoke to them, looking more at Shinjiro than the rest of the group, as he yelled: “Take a good look! This is how WE live!” 

And with their final breath, they fell over the barrier as Minako and Akihiko looked over, unable to distinguish their bodies from the bright red pool of water underneath. Fuuka gulped as she gripped Shinjiro’s arm a little tighter. “Th…they jumped…!” 

“What in the hell were they thinking!?” Akihiko gripped the barrier tightly. He wasn’t mad, perhaps more frustrated that they cheated out on their death.  

Shinjiro shook his head and ‘tch’ while closing his eyes. “They decided on their own fate. Don’t let it faze you, Aki.” 

Akihiko let out a heavy sigh as Minako rubbed his back, trying to soothe him. Fuuka turned her attention to the other half of the bridge. She could sense that the others needed help. She turned on her heels towards the couple at the bridge. “Minako-chan, Sanada-senpai? Can you go help the others? They need healing and are hurt badly, especially Junpei with him being reckless.” 

Both of them nodded as Mitsuru and Aigis turned to face Fuuka. “What about us, Yamagishi?” Mitsuru asked.  

Even if Fuuka was their navigator, she wasn’t their leader. After mentally communicating with Minato, she replied to them what he had to say. “Go substitute with Ken-kun and Yukari. Please, that is per Minato’s words.” 

“You got it, Fuuka-san!” Aigis called out as they ran towards the full moon shadow on the other side of the bridge. Fuuka removed her hand from Shinjiro’s arm as she began to walk towards the shadow, but felt something pulling her back. She was a bit surprised that Shinjiro pulled her back towards him, his eyes locked onto her own, and felt their hearts pounding quickly. Shinjiro was at a lost for words, unsure of what to say. He didn’t mean to grab her, but he loosened his grip on her a bit.  

“Fuuka.” 

“Shinjiro—I-I know you probably want to talk to me, hug me, and—“ 

Without warning, he leaned down, cupped her cheeks gently, and just felt tears rolling down his face. He had no idea what made the tears fall—perhaps it was the relief and seeing Fuuka alive that just made his body collapse with overflowing emotions.

She didn't DIE. She didn't DIE. She's alive. Alive. It's not like Miki--!

Fuuka felt her heart breaking in two as she truly was not prepared for this. She was ready to finish the Dark Hour, and wanted to focus on that—and yet, here is the person she adores, crying right in front of her. Her breath was taken away—Shinjiro even tried to wipe the tears away, albeit sloppily done.  

Shinjiro…   

Fuuka was beyond speechless as she carefully reached up and wiped the tears away from his eyes. It was as if her touch on his lashes made the tears magically disappear. “I’m here. No one will take me away again. I promise .” It was odd seeing Shinjiro so vulnerable. She always believed he was the stoic one, someone who would have a brick wall put up around him that needed to be taken down by dynamite or like a wrecking ball. And yet, she was the first to see this in her group of friends—minus Akihiko, she thought. Coming from a lover’s perspective, and not from a friend’s.  

“I just thought—and don’t think it’s silly before I say it—but,” it took Shinjiro a moment to think of what he wanted to say to Fuuka, “I felt something, deep inside of me— here —“ and he reached for her hand and placed it where his heart was, “—that told me that you would wake up and come back to us. Like, I don’t know if it was your Persona talking to me, or just an instinct, but when I saw you here, out of the blue, I didn’t think it would come true. But it did .” Shinjiro explained, his eyes roaming the whole place, as he finished his last sentence with his eyes on Fuuka. He knew he was rambling—unsure if that was something he started to do only because Fuuka did it sometimes. “I still feel like this is a dream. Could you pinch me or something?” 

“I think I could do you one better.” 

Fuuka leaned up towards Shinjiro, which she gripped his pea coat’s collar to pull him down and have him meet her half way, as she used her other hand to cup his cheek and kissed his lips chastely. A soft, quick kiss. But, then as she was backing away, Shinjiro brought her back towards her and simply whispered to her: “I never thought dreams would come true. Today, you showed me that they did, Fuuka.” And then he cupped her cheek as they began to kiss again, with a bit more passion.  

Minako jumped up in the air, relieved that after all the crap they both put her through, that everything was working out. She had to wipe the sweat out of her eyes to double check what she was seeing was happening. She even hugged Akihiko out of happiness, hoping it was contagious. “See? I knew they would be together! It’s so beautiful!” 

“I see it. Do,” Akihiko turned to Minako and frowned, “do we look like that when we kiss?” 

“Well, if you get rid of the 10 inches of a height difference, then more or less, that is accurate.” 

“Oh. Okay.” Akihiko uttered. He crossed his arms and titled his head back and forth. “He looks so weird kissing like her. Then again, never thought I’d see Shinji kissing someone other than his teddy bear when he was little.” 

Fuuka frowned slightly as Shinjiro removed his lips from hers first. Shinjiro could hear Akihiko's snide remark as he reached for his evoker and began to hold it above his head, ready to chuck it at Akihiko. “You know I can hit you with this, Aki! My aim isn’t that bad!” 

Akihiko chuckled as Minako and him went into the fray, after watching Shinjiro and Fuuka hugging and kissing. Fuuka stifled a laugh, relieved that everything seemed to be back in order. She took a deep breath in and out, as she laid her head on his chest. Shinjiro’s eyes darted down to Fuuka as worry clouded his eyes.  

“I’m fine.” Fuuka looked up at him, a small smile on her lips. “I promise, Shinjiro. I think the adrenaline just wore off after everything and I feel a bit exhausted and sore.” 

“Will you be able to assist in battling?” She nodded her head. “Do you need me to help you?” It took her a moment to respond, but she nodded. “Will I fit inside of Lucia?” 

Fuuka almost had another laugh escape her lips. “I think a couple more people could fit inside of her. She’s small, but can expand if need be. Let’s just hope I don’t have to summon. I can just sense she’s gotten stronger, maybe I will, too.” 

Shinjiro led Fuuka to where the others were. They eyes were filled with determination, their smiles were filled with warmth—Fuuka being back renewed and refreshed them, as if nothing could stop them from anything.  

Once the Dark Hour was over and everyone was back at the dorm, the members of SEES all went back to their rooms, filled with excitement over Fuuka being back and that this whole Dark Hour bull was finally over. The relief flood Fuuka’s senses as she collapsed onto her bed—a small smile creeping up on her lips.  

They…kept my bedroom clean and organized… I couldn’t ask for a better set of friends.   

She took off her shoes haphazardly, not caring if they hit the floor loudly, and turned to lay her head on her cool pillow until she felt something on said pillow. Fuuka reached for her desk light and saw a letter on her pillow. “Who…?” 

Carefully, she began to open it, only with her name on the envelope, and began to read it slowly.  

Fuuka,  

I was told to write my feelings out, and well, I blame Mitsuru for this stupid shit. She said it would help me communicate to you or something.   

God this is ridiculous—  

   Every day that you were in a medically induced coma, I saw you. From 30 minutes to half a day, hell sometimes a whole day, I came to see you. Not because you risked your ass to save Amada and I, but you actually opened my eyes. I felt it was my fault that I let another girl, in my life, die. If you never woke up, I don’t think that I would not be able to move on—I’d probably still be attached to your hip.  

   Even if you do awake, I probably will be attached to your hip still, ridden with fear and anxiety of losing you. I don’t know why, but ever since we really talked and had our Personas interact with one another, everything seemed a little bit… brighter and I don’t know how or why.   

Fuuka never knew that her Persona really did that much for him. She never really put herself in anyone else’s shoes—there really wasn’t a need to do so. Whatever anyone was going thru, she didn’t want to evade their privacy. And yet, everything changed once Shinjiro became a member of SEES again.  

She bit her lower lip and put a hand to her chest as she continued to read the letter.  

   I will promise to stay alive. I have so much to look forward to--going back to finish my last year of high school, per Mitsuru's request and nagging, seeing Aki gradute (I HAVE to see that), and well...a future with you.

Fuuka covered her lips as she was a bit speechless. To read something so sweet, honest, and real from Shinjiro was a bit heartwarming to her.

   I really can't wait to see what next year holds for us. I promise to do more for me and for you.

   I love you.

Her eyes grew as she got up from her bed, exhaustion pushed far from her mind, and still had a hold of the letter as she had to make sure Shinjiro meant what he wrote. She dashed down the stairs, jumping off the last step, and almost running into his door as she caught herself on his door frame. She took a second to catch her breath and began to knock on his door gently. Even if her hands were shaking from anticpiation and apprehensiveness.

Shinjiro's messy head peeked out of his door as Fuuka was about to say something, but seeing him without his beanie did throw her off. It had been a month since she saw him and she felt like a bashful child again. "I... ...I got your letter."

"Well, yeah, I left it on the bed for you to read."

"...how long has it been there waiting for me to read it?"

Shinjiro closed his eyes, thinking for a couple seconds. "About a week. Why?"

Fuuka waved the letter in front of him, her cheeks a bright red as she pointed to the last sentence he wrote and used the letter to cover up her face. "You wrote I love you so casually--...you have loved me for that long?"

He opened his eyes slowly, opening the door to his room a bit more, as he smiled softly towards her. 

"Fuuka, I think...ever since you sacrificed your life for me and Amada, I think... ...no. I think it was the moment when we were upstairs working on the computers for Mitsuru. I think we both felt the sexual tension for a while." Shinjiro pointed out, making Fuuka's cheeks heat up more at the memory--she wouldn't lie she wanted more to happen up there.

"We are teenagers, Shinjiro. I blame our hormones for that moment."

A soft chuckle left his lips as he ran his fingers thru her hair gently, using the other hand to lower the letter that was covering her face, and looked at her with soft eyes. The moment she came back, it was as if Shinjiro was born anew. "I mean what I wrote. Every word." Fuuka locked eyes with Shinjiro's, gulping softly. "And if you don't believe what I wrote, then let me say them back to you outloud: I love you, Fuuka. And even if it takes you months to say it back--"

"I-I love you, too, Shinjiro!"

Shinjiro's mouth stopped moving the moment Fuuka interrupted him as he was not expecting her to say the words back so quickly. So, he felt his cheeks changing to a light pink in embarrassment and while loosing his cool.

"I...I know this might be so soon and so out of the blue, but you've been the one who has picked me up when I've fallen. A-and, well, they do say third time's the charm, so maybe..."

"You think that nothing will go wrong with me? I didn't realize I was your third choice." Fuuka gasped as she whacked her free hand at his arm, smacking it gently, as Shinjiro let out a hearty laugh. "I kid, Fuuka! I kid! Don't waste any more energy on me tonight--I know you are tired, right?"

She frowned for a moment, but then pulled her hand back to her side and nodded. "I am so easy to read, aren't I?"

A chuckle escaped his lips as he pulled her into a tight hug with his arms around her back. Fuuka lowered her arms to her side, but then moved her arms around his back and hugged him back. "Of course, but that's not a bad thing." He stated matter-of-factly as he leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

Fuuka's cheeks were still a bright pink color as she closed her eyes and laid her head on his chest. The exhaustion of tonight, as well as their small confessions of love to one another, was enough for Fuuka.

"...I still love you."

"I know, Fuuka. I know."

"...could I stay with you tonight? I don't think I have the energy to walk back up the stairs to my room."

"If Mitsuru found out--"

"--right. Forgot about her for a moment. Could you carry me up to my room? For a compromise?"

"As long as you let me come to your next appointment for your heart, then... ...yes."

"Good. Because I don't feel like arguing anymore tonight."

Chapter Text

🎵But lord, you made me feel important

And then you tried to erase us 🎵

November 4th

Pushing her glasses forward, the female doctor, one of the finest that Mitsuru's family could offer, double checked her work and gave Fuuka a warm smile. “Everything is looking good, Yamagishi-san. Come back next week and then we should be able to see you monthly. Your scar is healing very nicely.” Fuuka, Mitsuru, and Shinjiro were looking at her scar—Fuuka thought the scar would be much longer but judging by her eyesight, it was only half a foot long. “Since you’ve been in a coma for a good month, your body has recovered well enough. I’d give it another couple weeks to a month to just be barely noticeable as a scar.”  

Mitsuru was impressed on how well the scar was healing—granted she never had any worries about her family and their choice of doctors, but to see the work is another thing. Even if she was in awe, she had to keep her hands to herself. A small part of her mind was wondering if Fuuka's Persona was helping her heal the scar? Personas are part of the human psyche, in a way. Mitsuru turned to Fuuka while the doctor began to rub some ointment cream on her chest. “Yamagishi, you don’t feel any pain? It doesn’t hurt?” She questioned, her eyebrow raised in wonder.

Fuuka shook her head. “Well it does, but it’s only a 2 or 3 on the pain scale. It sometimes hurts to wear my bra, but the scar is high enough that it doesn’t aggravate it. Somehow.” She mentioned, surprised at how mature Shinjiro was with seeing half of her chest exposed. Of course, her cheeks were a bright red color as she was relieved the gown that they gave her could easily button up the front of her chest. After the doctor finished her work and bowed towards the three of them, Mitsuru took Fuuka's paperwork and re-read the instructions. She spoke up while she had her eyes glued on the papers. 

"Now, I know we are thrilled to have you back, but we are going to wait just one more week until we explore Tartarus. We want to make sure that there isn't much more to explore, even though we defeated all the full moon shadows. We are going to look for more clues--I hope you will be able to join us?"  

Fuuka nodded curtly as Shinjiro was about to reach over to help button up her gown, but then felt embarrassed and turned around, keeping his hands to himself. He rubbed the back of his head, wondering what was giving him cold feet all of a sudden. They sucked face twice last night and now, he can't even stand to look at her half naked. Perhaps it was having Mitsuru in the room? Mitsuru closed the folder and turned to Fuuka. "I'll see you both back at the dorm--there will be sushi to celebrate the hard work we've done this year." 

"Of course--thank you again, Kirijo-senpai, for everything." She smiled softly towards her senpai, surprised to see a smile upon Mitsuru's lips. Also, a bit of relief appeared on her face, too. "I promise I'll make up all my work in school--" 

"Yama--...Fuuka." Mitsuru turned on her heels and softly stared at her. "You have all the time in the world to catch up. Do not worry about making that promise--you are a wonderful student and you never break your promises. You take care of you first." And with that, Mitsuru left the room, leaving the two love birds alone. 

Shinjiro sighed heavily, not realizing he had a big breath in to let out, and turned to Fuuka exposing his red cheeks. Fuuka looked over at him, not realizing her own cheeks were a light shade of pink. "Listen, I'll stay with you every time we go to Tartarus. I'll even stay on the first floor with you. And before you can say anything--" Fuuka was about to open her mouth, but then closed it. "--I have a recovering wound, too. Wouldn't be wise to have both of us fight at full power, idiot." 

Fuuka nodded quickly, knowing she shouldn’t argue with someone like him. She moved her body over to the wheelchair, knowing full well if she chose to walk, and knowing she should take the wheelchair, that would definitely be another argument she’ll lose. But, there was something she wanted to do—to get off her chest, per se. And Fuuka knew she had to diverge Shinjiro away from her idea.

“Shinjiro?” 

He was about to move behind her chair and then looked down at her. “Yeah?” 

“Could you go to the cafeteria and get some lunch for us?” 

“I could just push you to the cafeteria--” 

“I...” Fuuka reached for his hand gently and smiled. Her smile was one of his weaknesses. “I don’t want to stay in the hospital for a moment more. We could head back to the dorm and have some peace and quiet before everyone comes back from their after-school clubs?” 

He eyed her carefully. But decided to play devil’s advocate. “That’s fair—what would you like?” 

“Anything that isn’t soup. Please .” Fuuka clapped her hands together, knowing full well she was sick of hot liquids.

A small chuckle left Shinjiro’s lips. “Fine, but you better be right here waiting for me.” He poked her nose and Fuuka scrunched her nose up.  

“I promise.” 

Shinjiro nodded and let Fuuka be. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she knew she hated to break promises like that. Even when Mitsuru said she never broke promises. Especially with Shinjiro, someone who trusted her and vice versa. But, this was bugging her while she was in a coma. As if it was a sign to see her . So, Fuuka casually moved to the second floor of the hospital, taking the elevator, and began to look for a certain room. It didn’t help her tiny arms were getting tired of pushing herself around this huge hospital. Of course, she briefly got information from the others while she was in and out of consciousness—being in a coma, you hear things you do and don’t want to hear. 

Especially if you know where Chidori Yoshino’s room is.  

So, she found her room, at the end of the hallway. Fuuka froze, unsure of how to talk to someone like her. She even double checked the name plate three times. Granted, they did have the same type of power, and yet...it’s like she was talking to a stranger. And somehow charmed Junpei.

Carefully, she knocked on the door. “Yoshino-san? It’s me, Fuuka.” She waited a moment, knocked again, and knew she wasn’t coming to the door. A sigh left her lips as she just stayed in the wheelchair and stared at the door in front of her. “I would like you to listen to me. You don’t have to respond.” 

More silence. Fuuka bit her lip and put her hands in her lap. “You are so very important to Strega. And I understand that. But, they only see you as important because of your power. Junpei-kun sees you for you. So, please don’t forget that. He might be clumsy and his jokes may be lousy, but he’s a good guy. Take care of him for me?” 

Still more silence as she hoped Chidori heard her. A heavy sigh left her lips as she turned her wheelchair back towards the elevator and pushed herself. Fuuka knew Junpei was good for anyone—just his character and demeanor really helps put someone in a good mood. A smile appeared on her lips as she hit the down button on the elevator. She felt a bit accomplished and relieved to get those words off of her chest and mind. Once the elevator opened up, Shinjiro was right there in the elevator. He had crossed his arms, carrying the bag of food in one of his hands and tapped his foot in dissatisfaction.

“I see that you take after Aki when it comes to following rules.” 

Fuuka’s eyes grew as she smiled, closing her eyes, and began to push herself from the elevator. “Wrong floor—my bad!” 

Before she could get too far, Shinjiro grabbed the handles on the back of the wheelchair and stopped Fuuka. “Hey. I’m not mad at you.” 

Fuuka blinked and let go of her hands on the wheelchair. She turned her head back to Shinjiro, a look of shock on her face. “Y-you aren’t? But your face—“ 

“Just wished you would have told me. Fuuka,” Shinjiro crouched in front of her and held her wheelchair firmly so he wouldn’t land head first onto her, “I know we just established our relationship to everyone last night. But, I don’t want you to lie to me.”  

Fuuka lowered her eyes in shame, knowing she should be more trusting. But it still worried her because of her past. And it was more difficult to trust anyone who seemed to give her the time of day. “I’m sorry. I…I blame myself because of my parents. That is something I will tell you about in due time.” 

A small nod from Shinjiro and a quick ruffle of his hand messing up her hair. “Fair. Perhaps we can talk about each other’s dark past some time soon. But, now your punishment is to let me push you like this all the way to the exit.” 

Fuuka chuckled and watched Shinjiro moving around her wheelchair and pushing her back to the elevator. She closed her eyes and put her hands in her lap. “Deal.” 

Back at the dorm later that evening, once Fuuka was able to get some rest, she could see everyone surrounding the table in the middle of the living room. Of course, everyone was taller than her and blocking most of the room. "Hey! Make room for the short one, too!" She called out as she tried to push her way between Junpei and Akihiko. Fuuka looked at the huge tray full of sushi with everyone getting ready to grab any and all sushi that they can grab. 

"This is one hell of a nice spread! Mitsuru-san knows how to do this right!" Junpei rubbed his hands together as Akihiko was ready to slap his hands away. 

"These slices are huge! I hope there is enough for all of us." Yukari pointed out, reaching for a small plate and a pair of chopsticks. Junpei could hear his stomach rumbling as Ken took another look around, re-counting heads. Under her breath, she murmured, "Junpei could eat this and more..."

"Wait, where are Aigis-san and Ikutsuki-san?" Ken asked, his head turning to the left and right, double checking to see if they were here.

Akihiko smacked Junpei's hands away as he groaned loudly. Akihiko quickly answered Ken. "They went to his lab for a tune-up I believe? He mentioned they will join later." 

"Aigis doesn't eat anyway, so does it matter?" Shinjiro questioned, knowing he was drooling himself, then suddenly feeling Fuuka's elbow jabbing into his side. He winced a little and looked down at her. "What?!" 

"The chairman still needs to eat too--he is just motivated to stay around his lab, right?" Fuuka suggested, hearing Shinjiro sighing as he turned down to face her. 

"Does Ikutsuki even eat? I've never seen him eat anything, including my food. He's not normal, that's all." 

The group quieted down the moment they heard a car stopping outside, the horn honking, as Mitsuru crossed her arms and walked towards the entrance. A subtle cue that made her straighten up immediately. "That must be my father--he's a bit early, but that's fine." She could hear the car doors opening, keeping her cool composure. In a matter of seconds, Takeharu Kirijo, along with two of his closest bodyguards, entered the door with Mitsuru right by his side. The tension in the room grew for a moment. "We've been waiting for you." 

Takeharu looked at everyone, taking a deep breath in and slowly letting it out. "So, it's finally over at last, huh? Never thought I'd see the day." He moved closer to SEES as Fuuka moved her hand instinctively towards Shinjiro's arm, lightly brushing up against it. Shinjiro eyed her cautiously. It wasn't that she was scared of him, but knowing Kirijos, she was expecting more than what meets the eye. Takeharu cleared his throat and put his hands back down at his sides. "Congratulations, everyone. You have done well. I have no words to express my gratitude, and yet, this is undoubtedly a special and monumental achievement. It's unfortunate that you will never receive any recognition, however." 

Slowly, Takeharu moved towards Yukari, taking her hand gently into both of his, and bowing towards her. "And to you, Yukari Takeba, I owe a special thanks... For lending us your aid until the very end." 

Yukari gave him a soft smile, her cheeks blushing a bright pink color, as she used her other hand and waved it at him. "Oh, it's...it's no big deal. Thank you, though." 

Mitsuru's father moved back to where his daughter was and crossed his arms, just like Mitsuru was. 

"The twelve shadows that were the cause of all our troubles for years have finally been destroyed, thanks to your hard work and effort. You will never have to bear this burden any more. You all deserve a chance to experience the joys of your youth before it passes you by. As of midnight tonight, the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad will be dissolved." 

Everyone looked at each other with different range of emotions--sadness, happiness, shock, relief--as Fuuka eyed Shinjiro, unsure of what was going to happen next. Of course, Fuuka had plans to finish high school and get out of Japan, as far as she could from her family. And yet, now that Shinjiro was here, she was tied down in a way. She was glad he wasn't looking at her, but looking towards the Kirijos in front of them. 

"No longer must you put your lives on the line in battle." Takeharu eyed Shinjiro and Fuuka, his eyes soften at them, knowing what they both went through thanks to the medical reports. Shinjiro gulped silently, wondering why Kirijos made him nervous as hell all the time. He blamed Mitsuru and cursed her in his mind. "Tomorrow, you can return to a normal school life." 

"Shinjiro--" Mitsuru jumped into the conversation before her father could say more. "--it is your choice if you want to finish going to school with the others. Granted, you'd be a second year, only a semester behind Yamagishi and the others, but you are smart. I am sure you could join them for their third year, if you so wish." 

His eyebrow rose as he rubbed his arm, forgetting that Fuuka's hand was on his arm. Their eyes met for a few seconds as he bit his lip and turned back to Mitsuru. "Do I have to give you an answer tonight?" 

A small chuckle left Mitsuru's lips. "Of course not. But, within a week at least? Getting a start on your paperwork to get you re-enrolled might take a couple weeks to finish." She explained, noticing that everyone seemed to be getting rowdy as Mitsuru moved towards the group and nodded. "Alright, everyone--it's time to celebrate. Go ahead and eat as much as you'd like. We can get more if push comes to shove." 

"Hell yes! My two stomachs are ready to chow down on this delicious sushi!" 

"It's like you have never ate before Junpei." Minato pointed out as he quickly reached for some California Roll, wanting to try out cucumber, as Junpei reached for Spicy Tuna rolls. "Then again, I bet I can eat more than you." 

"...I bet you can't." 

"Want to bet on it?" 

"Loser buys the winner manga?" 

"Deal." 

After half of the sushi was gone, thanks to Junpei and Minato devouring all they could eat, making Minato the winner in the end, Junpei burped and looked around at everyone rubbing their stomachs happily. "Hey guys? Could we take a picture of this?" Junpei pulls out a digital camera as everyone looked up at him. "I tried to take one last night, but then my dumbass realized it was the Dark Hour and that wouldn't work at all." 

Akihiko chuckled and shook his head. "You brought a camera with you into battle? You are lucky you didn't get that damaged!" 

"Well, that was one reason I wanted to bring it. The second reason was to take a picture of Fuuka with us, again. All of us together." 

Fuuka felt her cheeks turning red and smiled towards Junpei. The small gesture he had was thoughtful, albeit a bit under planned.  "That's so sweet, Junpei--but, Sanada-senpai is right." 

"Hey! It was the LAST battle! I thought it was the least I could for us!" He pointed out, walking over to one of the Kirijo bodyguards and showed him how to take a picture. 

"Iori, I think he's smart enough to work a camera." Shinjiro pointed out as everyone moaned and got up, knowing they had to force themselves out of a comfortable spot. 

Junpei turned to Shinjiro and glared at him, pouting his lips. "It's an older model--we can't get all the new and high tech stuff, senpai." 

Yukari rubbed her temples with her fingers and sighed. "Now I feel like a tourist. Then again, it would be great for all of us to have copies--the best time to get us all together!" 

"Oh wait." Fuuka looked around, moving herself to the front while Akihiko, Junpei, and Shinjiro moved towards the back of the group. "Aigis-san and Ikutsuki-san aren't here with us. Should we wait to take it?" 

"We can take another one later tonight. Come on guys--get together. Ken, you should hold onto Koromaru..." Junpei suggested, watching as Yukari and Mitsuru took up the side next to Junpei and Akihiko. Minato and Minako was in front of Akihiko and Shinjiro; Fuuka and Ken, along with Koromaru, stood in front of the second row and tried to get comfortable. Takeharu moved a bit closer to his daughter, standing stoic next to her, as they were gathered in front of the door leading outside of the dorm. 

"Okay, on the count of three...everyone ready?" The man in the black suit began to focus the camera as Junpei began to show bunny ears behind Yukari. 

Akihiko turned to Junpei and rolled his eyes. "Knock it off--this is a serious photo!" 

"Awww. You should have more fun Akihiko-san!" Junpei closed his eyes, his bottom lip pouting as Fuuka sighed and rubbed her temples now. 

"You should listen to Akihiko-senpai. You can fool around in the other picture with Aigis-san and the chairman." Fuuka mentioned as Shinjiro began to fight Junpei by reaching for his hands and trying to keep them down and away from Yukari's head. One thing led to another and Shinjiro pushed Junpei forwards and then backwards, everyone turning and gasping as they all saw him tumble to the ground. 

The flash and click of the camera went off during Junpei falling as Fuuka face-palmed and Shinjiro crossed his arms. "You should listen to Aki next time." 

After everyone decided to go back to their spots on the couch and loveseats, Junpei began to grab another piece of sushi and eyed everyone. "H-hey, how come no one else is eating? I know Minato kicked my ass, but you all can't be full now!" 

"Seriously? I am so stuffed." Minako pointed out, rubbing her belly as she moaned in pain. She ate a little too much, not realizing she did in the process. “And I usually don’t eat this much.” 

A nod from Fuuka as she had to put her hand to her chest. "If I eat another bite, I think Shinjiro will have to drag me upstairs to my bed." 

"What about you, senpai?" Junpei turned to ask Akihiko, hovering the piece of sushi around his face. Even Akihiko put his hand up and shook his head. 

"I'm good for now." 

Junpei shrugged as he tossed the whole piece of salmon into his mouth as he eyed the clock. It had only been an hour, and yet something was nagging at him, in the back of his head. "What is taking those two so long? It's been at least hours since they left..." He mentioned, looking at the clock again and standing up slowly. "It's almost midnight." Everyone turned to the clock above the doorway, watching the second hand going around the clock. 10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1... 

The lights go out and everything turns green and dark. The two bodyguards that came with Takeharu were suddenly in coffins. Fuuka stood up quickly as her hands gripped her uniform. "N-no...!" 

"The hell?!" Shinjiro cursed as Koromaru started barking, beginning to protest for the first time this evening. Shinjiro turned to Mitsuru as panic and fear grew on her face. "Mitsuru--what the hell is going on?" He didn't mean to raise his voice like he did. Fuuka watched as everyone was getting up, showing worry in their eyes as Mitsuru shook her head. 

"I-I don't know." 

Akihiko gritted his teeth and clenched his fist angerly. "I was right to have my doubts, apparently. Dammit."  

Koromaru whined as Ken reached down and patted his forehead and rubbed his belly. "Yeah...something didn't feel right." 

In the distance, a bell began to ring and chime. Junpei looked around and noticed everyone else hearing the sound, too. Minako gulped and began to focus on the sound more. "That's a bell, right? Where is it coming from though?" Minako asked softly. Takeharu's eyes grew, the dots connecting in his mind as he turned to his daughter. 

"Where is Ikutsuki, Mitsuru? ...why is he late? And he's got Aigis with him, doesn't he?" He asked her, Mitsuru's back turned to the group as there was a small hint of her hands shaking. 

"...Mitsuru..." Akihiko called out as Mitsuru lifted her head up slowly and gripped her fists, hiding any signs of weakness in front of the group. Turning on her heels, she stared at them with confidence and a hint of sorrow. 

"Everyone, prepare for battle. We are heading for Tartarus."  

The member of SEES looked at one another while Akihiko went upstairs to grab their evokers--Minato joined him to grab their armbands, knowing it would be a two person job. No one looked pleased and yet, Fuuka spoke up. "...what are we going to do?" 

"I..." Mitsuru moved towards them slowly and glared down to the side. "I do not know. But, that is where the bell is coming from. We need to find out what in the world is going on." 

Akihiko and Minato joined the group as they opened up the cases, grabbed their evokers and armbands, as they knew that this was far from over. The sushi in their stomachs didn't sit well in any of their stomachs tonight. Fuuka gripped her uniform top once more, panic rising in the pit of her stomach as she closed her eyes--her heart started to beat quickly, unsure if it was her anxiety setting her off or not. Shinjiro turned to face her, noticing Fuuka was lagging behind, and gripped her hand. 

"Come on--I'm right here with you." Shinjiro affirmed for her and waited until she nodded and quickly followed the rest of SEES towards Tartarus, afraid of what they were going to find there. 

After the long and treacherous trip to the school, everyone froze once they saw Aigis and Ikutsuki there, as if they haven’t been waiting too long. Akihiko called out to Ikutsuki first, but no response. Fuuka put her hand to her chest, sensing something was wrong with Aigis...but she couldn’t put her finger on it. 

“Aigis...? What are you doing here?” Yukari asked. Aigis looked at her, with a cold dead look in her eyes, as Yukari turned to Mitsuru and then back to Ikutsuki when he replied for her. 

“She is here only to fulfill her role. As a weapon.” 

Yukari raised an eyebrow. “...huh?”  

Junpei shot his hands down and away from his body, his face full of frustration and anger. “Ikutsuki-san—what the fuck is this all about?!” 

“You told us that the Dark Hour and Tartarus would disappear if we defeated the twelve shadows.” Akihiko mentioned, his fists being clenched tightly. “That’s why we fought so hard! But, now--” 

Mitsuru shook her head and moved a couple feet closer to Ikutsuki. “...what was your intention? It was all a lie, right? You knew from the beginning that the Dark Hour would not disappear.” She calmly said, as Shinjiro cursed lightly. 

A laugh escaped Ikutsuki’s lips and he nodded. “Fantastic deduction, Mitsuru. Sadly, your realization was too late.” 

Everyone’s eyes grew as Minako shook her head and kept it low. “N-no...” She whispered as she felt Minato’s hand on her shoulder, knowing to keep her calm, but he wasn’t happy either. Ken gritted his teeth and stomped his foot into the ground. 

“...You tricked us?! After everything?!” 

Ikutsuki smiled cunningly, his eyes big and wide with excitement, as he paced back and forth around Aigis. “Everything is as I planned from the beginning. It is not unexpected that the Dark Hour and Tartarus remain. In fact, I never intended for you to actually rid the world of them. Quite the opposite, actually.” 

Fuuka looked at him and felt anger seeping out. “What do you mean?” 

“The twelve shadows were parts of a whole... They were destined to be reunited. And that was all accomplished in no small part, thanks to your efforts.” He explained, looking towards Shinjiro and Fuuka, pointing at them. “Those two almost ruined my plans! But,” Ikutsuki chuckled and raised his arms to the sky, “soon, Death, the almighty, shall arise and bring forth the Fall!” 

“...Death?” Shinjiro repeated, gulping silently as he crossed his arms. “What the hell are you talking about?” 

“The end of all shall come...and free this world from despair! The death of everything, but also the beginning!” 

Minato turned to face the others, watching as Yukari rubbed her arms. “What is he even saying?" Minato questioned. "...is he that out of his mind?” 

Ikutsuki lowered his arms, looking back at the member of SEES, and began monologuing. “Ten years ago... I, too, was a scientist for the project we’ve spoken of. The experiment went awry, but that is not the exact reason why Tartarus and the Dark Hour was born. They manifested as a result of harvesting the Shadows’ power—just as the experiment was designed to do.” Mitsuru lowered her head, knowing full well that this was going to end badly. “That is why your grandfather gathered so many Shadows! To bring about the Fall.” 

“Th-that can’t be.” Mitsuru’s words were shaky, slightly losing her calm and collected demeanor. 

“People have filled the world, yet turned it into a damn void! The only hope of salvation lies in ruin! According to the prophecy, the Fall will be orchestrated by ‘the Prince’. And once the Prince has delivered us all, the shall rule the new world as King! The man who tried it ten years ago failed, but I will not—I shall succeed!” 

Junpei moved his head back and looked wistfully at Ikutsuki. “The fuck—he's totally lost it...!” 

Ikutsuki laughed once more and tilted his head. His eyes were full of desperation and a hint of crazy, too. “I apologize for deceiving you, but this was for your sake as well. If you follow me for just a little while longer, you, too, will find salvation.” 

Fuuka shook her head and leaned forward. “You call that salvation!? That’s ridiculous.” 

Yukari put her hands to her side, closing her eyes, and remembering something from earlier this summer break. And she gripped her skirt in fear of the answer. “I have a question. In the video from my father... ...He said to defeat the shadows. Was that a lie, too?” 

Another laugh left Ikutsuki’s lips as Fuuka gripped Shinjiro’s hand. Who would’ve known they were playing in the hands of a mad man? “Ah... He did record that himself. Of course, I had to make some... modifications.” 

Mitsuru gasped. “You doctored it?!” 

Ikutsuki held a finger up and tsked. “I corrected it. Your father was a superb scientist, Yukari. He may not have known it, but I truly respected him. While others focused on the Shadows’ abilities, he explored much more important things. But, unfortunately, he could not comprehend the magnificent potential of the Fall.” 

“He left that recording at the expense of his life!” Mitsuru exclaimed, anger seething out of her teeth.  

“It would seem so. ...but, it did prove rather useful, so I’m sure he’s happy.” 

Yukari lowered her head. “So, you were behind it all? You used both me and my father!” 

“Oh, used is such an ugly word. It was for the sake of the world, so how could it be wrong?” 

Shinjiro huffed and looked at Ikutsuki. He didn’t have much of a connection with him. He left before he could really get to know him, but this was beyond insane. “Let’s just kick his ass and ask questions later. Who knows what else he’s keeping from us?” 

Mitsuru shook her head and moved her hand to her side, as she glared harshly at the person she called a friend, an ally even. And she felt sick to her stomach. “Our role...is to correct the mistake of the past. And we intend to do just that.” 

Junpei watched as Yukari pulled her Evoker out and he turned to look at Ikutsuki and then Yukari. “H-hey...wait...!” 

A soft sigh left Ikutsuki’s lips as he crossed his arms and shrugged. “...how disappointing. I had hoped you would see the light. But you are just children, after all. I suppose it can’t be helped. Aigis!”  

The moment her name was mentioned, her eyes shot opened wide. They were once blue and full of life, but now...they were full of emptiness, as if the sky had rained for days on end. There was no light reflecting in her eyes to capture how empty she looked.

“The time has come for you to fulfill your role. Capture them--” Everyone gasped; a few reached for their Evokers and the others choking on fear of a teammate attacking them. “--and prepare them to be sacrificed!” 

Ikutsuki pulls a remote out of his back pocket, pressing a button, and Aigis held up her arms towards the members of SEES. 

“... ...understood.” 

Fuuka gasped as she watched Aigis quickly move and began to knock everyone out—jabs to stomachs, the back of their necks—she turned her attention to Shinjiro as she tried to dash towards him. She reached her hand out to him as she could sense Aigis coming after her next. 

“Shinjiro!”  

Before Shinjiro could say anything, Fuuka felt Aigis’ hand on the back of her neck. Her eyes rolled into the back of her skull as she began to fell. Though, he was surprised that Aigis still caught her and laid her down on the ground. Orgia mode was activated and her swift actions knocked everyone down to the ground.  

For someone under control, Ikutsuki fucking sucks at this.  

In the blink of an eye, Shinjiro felt Aigis attacked the back of his neck with her strong arm. He winced in pain, but felt his eyesight go blurry and dark. He collapsed to the ground. Ikutsuki called out to her, noticing she went behind him to grab for Mitsuru’s father. He grimaced and closed his eyes. Aigis turned her attention back to Ikutsuki, getting herself ready for part two of his plan to offer of the members of SEES as a sacrifice. 

On top of the Observatory rooftop, the members of SEES were all bounded to steel girder crosses, all of different sizes and various lengths. After a few moments of silence and the wind blowing around, Takeharu Kirijo gritted his teeth and tried to escape the binds he was in. 

“What is going on here!?” Takeharu called out as everyone started to wake up slowly. The binds on their wrists and ankles were holding them upright. 

Junpei turned to his left and right and gritted his teeth. “Wh-what the hell is this?!” 

Fuuka’s eyes opened up, letting out a gasp, as she was trying to catch her breath. She looked around, noticing everyone was on make shift steel crosses as she, and the others, turned to see Aigis holding Takeharu captured and Ikutsuki in front of them.  

“Father!” Mitsuru screamed, grunting as she tried to loosen herself from the bindings. After a few seconds of failure, she lowered her head in disgust and gritted her teeth.  

“Ikutsuki…what is the meaning of all this!?” Takeharu questioned.  

Ikutsuki grinned as he shot his hands outwards, trying his hardest to contain his laughter and excitement. “It is just as it appears! They are to be sacrifices—the harbingers of the Fall!” He turned towards the members of SEES in awe. “The arrangements are finally complete; the prophecy shall be fulfilled!” 

Akihiko’s eyes grew in fear. “What?!” He murmured, flashing back to the day he joined Mitsuru and her cause.  

“You son of a bitch!” Shinjiro yelled, trying his best to escape but winced in pain. Fuuka’s eyes shot over to him in worry, biting her lip to hide her own pain from trying to escape. “Get me out of here! I’ll rip your head off—!” 

Aigis raised her arm at Shinjiro, per Ikutsuki controlling her, as he stopped mid sentence. His breath was caught in his chest, knowing full well he should be calmer, like Minako and Minato. And yet—Shinjiro turned to face Fuuka and realized he had a reason to continue living. He gulped and watched Aigis lowering her arm from him and straight to Takeharu’s head, cocking it right by his ear. Mitsuru’s head shot up and her eyes grew with panic.  

“Damned traitor! You are insane!” Takeharu spat at Ikutsuki, watching the madman turn on his heels to face Mitsuru’s father once more.  

A tsk escaped Ikutsuki’s lips and shook his head. “Of course not. You know, your father was one hell of an unlucky man. Even you, his own son, do not understand his vision. After all this time—such a disappointment.” 

“My father was wrong. Death as a deliverance… that is not an ideology anyone should ever embrace!”  

“Fool! You are but a nuisance! Aigis!” 

Aigis recocked her gun again. Everyone’s eyes stared as Mitsuru began to struggle against the straps on her wrist and arms. “Wait! Aigis, please! Nooo!” She begged, feeling exhaustion hitting her like a semi truck. Aigis did not respond or move. For a moment, it felt like the silence could be cut with a knife. Then, suddenly, her arm dropped down to her side.  

“Aigis!” Minako cried out, a small hint of happiness and relief in her voice. "Fight him! Resist him!"

“What the hell are you doing, Aigis?” Ikutsuki asked. Malice and hate behind his voice as Aigis’ bottom lip trembled.  

“I…I am…” She uttered, her voice soft but filled the confidence and personality she had before being controlled. Ikutsuki’s eyes were filled with rage and knew he had to resort to his back up plan. He whipped a gun out from behind his back and aimed for Takeharu Kirijo.  

He huffed and let out a grunt of frustration. “Ten years… I have waited for ten fucking long years! I am not like your father—I will NOT make any exceptions!” 

With his gun still trained onto Takeharu, he manages to break out of Aigis’ grasp and pulls a gun out from behind his back too. Aigis was shoved to the side and with quick aim, both of them fired. Once the dust cleared, Takeharu slumped to the ground, his knees hitting the ground hard. Mitsuru’s eyes grow with fear as tears threatened to fall.  

“F-father… Father!!” Mitsuru sobbed as Ikustuki grunted and held his side in pain. Takeharu shot him well but turned to face Aigis while he felt sweat pouring down his face.  

“A-aigis—! We will end this! Execute the sacrifices! Now! ” Ikustuki commanded.  

Aigis turned to face her allies and shot her arms up at them. Everyone stared at Aigis and began to call out to her.  

“Aigis!” Minato called out. “Wake up! This isn’t you!” 

“Snap out of it!” Yukari yelled at her.  

“Goddammit!” Shinjiro gritted his teeth, his eyes shooting around at his allies. He was still surprised Ikutsuki was still standing after a clean shot from Mitsuru’s father.  

“Finish them, Aigis!” Ikutsuki begged, pleading as Aigis began to aim at her friends. Screams and cries filled the air as she began to fire. But, she expertly began to shoot at the bonds holding everyone up. One by one, moving left to right, everyone fell to the group and began to outnumber Ikutsuki quickly.  

Shinjiro began to move towards Fuuka, but she quickly gave him a small thumbs up and he turned his attention to Mitsuru who ran to her father. Akihiko joined him, making sure that Mitsuru was safe firstly.  

“Nice try.” Akihiko spoke, his hands up in a fighting stance, as Ikutsuki groaned in pain, glaring at SEES. Minato and Minako checked up on Aigis while she was calm and somewhat deactivated.  

“Dammit! You…you defective machine!!” He suddenly pulls a remote out of his pant’s pocket and aimed it at Aigis. “I’ll do it all by myself!” 

Out of nowhere, Koromaru dashes between the members of SEES and yanks the remote out of Ikutsuki’s hand in one go. “Koromaru!” Ken cheered, his voice full of surprise. Ikutsuki started to weakly laugh, backing himself away from the group. He shook his head while trying to hold it with one hand.  

“Hahaha… You still don’t get it, do you? This useless, pathetic world will gradually… fester over time!” His laugh was still low and growing. “Only it’s destruction can bring about its salvation!” He pointed his gun at the group. No one showed fear or was scared of the weapon with adrenaline running through their blood. “Hehehe, and then, at long last… I will rule over the new world!”  

His arm grew heavy as his arm fell to the side and the gun dropped to the ground. Ikutsuki cursed underneath his breath. “I was so close…” He backed away slowly, beginning to lose his footing and began to tumble off the edge. Ken and Junpei ran to the edge, no longer seeing the body in the dead of night.  

Yukari shook her head and lowered her head. “…how did it come to this?” She whispered. Slowly, everyone turned to a sobbing Mitsuru, cradling her father in her arms. Akihiko sat down next to her, whereas Shinjiro stood nearby, noticing that her father wasn’t going to make it through the night. The stench of death, and the copper smell of blood, somehow didn’t upset anyone’s stomach.  

“Mitsuru.” Shinjiro murmured to her, as she nodded slowly but kept still.  

“One time…my father made a promise.” Her voice was shaking. Fuuka moved closer to Shinjiro, almost pushing him to go help her. They were friends before allies. She needed the support. “He swore that he would stone for endangering our generation, even if it cost him his life! But… but, I… I wanted him to live. I…I became a Persona-user to protect …him…!” She sobbed as she couldn’t finish her sentence. Shinjiro reached down and whispered into her ear softly that he will help her with her father.  

Akihiko got up slowly, helping Mitsuru move away from her father’s lifeless body as Minato and Minako helped Aigis get upright. In the end, Aigis was carried onto Minato’s back. Shinjiro got down on his knees and tried to get Takeharu into his arms. Akihiko saw him struggling and turned to Fuuka.  

“Help Mitsuru out. I’m going to help Shinji.” 

Fuuka quickly nodded and wrapped her arm around Mitsuru’s own arm, watching tears trickling down her face. It was so odd and devastating to see their senpai become a crippling mess. And Fuuka knew deep down if Shinjiro died for her, she would be in the same shoes as Mitsuru was. Carefully, everyone walked down the stairs in silence—everyone was at a loss for words.  

Akihiko and Shinjiro was able to get Mitsuru’s father to a hospital while she eventually collapsed in her bed from exhaustion. The twins got Aigis to a nearby Kirijo lab to be worked on with her being malfunctioning. Everyone else in the dorm went back to their beds—no one talked and no one decided to do anything else. Fuuka slithered into her bed, wanting to text Shinjiro and ask if he was doing fine. The idea of confronting death, again, even after a month, was still fresh on her mind. But Shinjiro? 

A jingle broke the silence in the night as Fuuka’s eyes shot over to check it. Somehow, someway, Shinjiro seemed to be on it tonight.  

I am fine. Go to bed, Fuuka.   

She reached for her phone, ready to reply and ask how he knew, until the second reply came in.  

Blame our Personas. Or intuition or whatever Takeba calls it. Get some rest, please.   

Fuuka felt her cheeks light up, knowing that someone was thinking about her. A total 180° change from her own family that is. She nodded and sent a quick message. After it was sent, she put her phone on silent, closed her eyes, and tried her hardest to go back to sleep. She truly hoped that Death would stop lurking around her and her friends.  

If I get rest, you better, too.   

Chapter Text

🎵Maybe you ran with the wolves and refused to settle down
Maybe I've stormed out of every single room in this town
Threw out our cloaks and our daggers because it's morning now
It's brighter now, now 🎵

November 5th

“Did you hear about Kirijo-senpai?”

“No! Tell me the juicy details!”

“Her father died last night. I heard it was sudden.”

“Oh. That explains why she isn’t here. Can’t imagine losing a parent.”

Junpei, Yukari, and Minako were silently listening to the students chatting about Mitsuru. Minako even tried her hardest to death glare at them, to get them stop gossiping. Of course, some of the students stopped immediately and lowered their heads in shame. 

“They wouldn’t talk so much if it was their own parent.” Junpei snarled, his arms crossed as he leaned against the doorframe to his class. “How does word get around so fast here at school?”

Yukari shrugged and put her hands on her hips. “It’s school. Any news travels so fast—hence the gossiping. I bet someone’s parent was a doctor and saw Mitsuru’s father.”

“Could be. But, I’d wish they would talk about something else.”

“I wished they were talking more about Fuuka being back at school today.” Minato pointed out, leaning next to Junpei, none of them realizing he was right next to them. 

“Yeah, that would—“ Junpei spoke but then jumped as he didn’t even feel Minato’s presence. Yukari turned to Minato, her eyes wide from hearing about Fuuka returning. “—whoa! You have got to stop doing that shit, Minato!”

Minako stopped snearing at students and turned back to the group and looked at Minato with soft eyes. “She is? I thought she was going to wait another week!”

“She was, but then after last night, she decided then that she would come back. For once, if people had to talk about her she was going to handle it herself.” Minato explained, turning to point to Fuuka in her class room. “I helped her carry her books and made sure she got here safe. That is…until we got to her class and noticed him.”

Everyone turned their attention to a boy, dressed differently and most definitely not in the Gekkoukan uniform, as he was talking to Fuuka. His yellow scarf pushed around his neck and had his hands on his hips, full of confidence. None of them could hear what they were talking about, but Fuuka put her hand on her chest and smiled at the occasional comment the other boy said. 

Junpei chuckled and crossed his arms. “So, who is going to tell Shinjiro-san that he is going to have competition?”

Yukari flicked the side of his head, causing the Magician to reel back in pain. “After that kiss a couple days ago, I think she’s attached to him. She will tell Shinjiro-senpai probably before you do.”

Minako and Minato eyed the boy carefully—something about him looked familiar but they couldn’t figure it out. Their eyes squinted, trying to think if they knew him from their past. However, nothing clicked. Which lead to Minako going into her class, pulling Yukari with her and noticing Aigis was sitting at her  desk, glaring intensively at Fuuka and the boy across the hall. 

Minato and Junpei heard the warning bell and began to walk into their classroom, noticing the yellow scarf boy walking out of Fuuka’s class and down the hall. Junpei slithered to his seat, watching as Minato sat next to Aigis and both saw Aigis’ eyes still following the boy. 

“He is dangerous.” Aigis spoke, watching as Minato tried to turn her head back to the front of the class room with his own hands. It failed horribly but did make Aigis look at Minato. “Why was he talking to Fuuka-san?”

Junpei snickered and grinned sheepishly. “See? At least Ai-chan sides with me!”

After a rough first day of returning to school, for once, Fuuka was relieved it was over. A few students had come up to her, to check up on her, and had to explain that she got shot and was in a coma. The gist of it without getting into much detail. The attention she received was warm and affectionate, but she wasn’t sure if it was because of Minako and everyone else watching her back or because of Ryoji—the boy with the yellow scarf—talking to her and hearing her story. Maybe that was why people were more friendly to her. And only hoped that would take some pressure off of Mitsuru. Sort of one of the reasons why she came back to school earlier than she should have. 

Noticing that her friends (mainly Junpei, Minato, and Aigis) were busy talking to Ryoji, and realizing Minako and Yukari were probably at their sports club today, she didn’t want to bother any of them. She was sure she could handle her bag full of school work. Quietly and quickly, she skirted away and down the stairs towards the back of the school and moved carefully down them. Fuuka felt a bit of relief, knowing that her friends were more focused on someone other than her. Fuuka knew she was going to be watched carefully, but the freedom she barely got was few and far between. Especially when she saw a maroon coat covered body leaning against the back of a tree near the entrance of the school. A heavy and frustrated sigh escaped her lips—she calmly marched towards Shinjiro and watched him meeting her halfway. 

“Please tell me that the others didn’t rope you into coming to school to check on me.” 

Shinjiro smirked. “No, but I wanted to come see you. That is—“ He felt his cheeks heating up as he heard Minako’s nagging voice in the back of his mind. “—I heard through Minako that the new kid—“

“Ryoji Mochizuki."

“—Yeah, him, was trying to talk to you and was particularly close to you to the point where Aigis had to push him away from you.”

Fuuka blinked. She faintly remembered that happening, but she didn’t think that Ryoji was flirting with her. …was he? Of course, Fuuka wanted to toy with Shinjiro for a little bit longer.

“Oh, so you got jealous.”

Shinjiro opened his mouth and closed it tightly and glared at Fuuka. “Don’t you put words in my mouth!”

“Ahhh. You didn’t say no, though. So you are jealous!” She grinned, nudging his side playfully. “That’s very precious of you, Shinjiro.”

He could feel his cheeks heating up and wished that Fuuka would not tell Minako any of this. It also doesn’t help that those two are close because of the people they were dating. Shinjiro cautiously grabbed for Fuuka’s hand bag and held it down by his side. Though, he did enjoy seeing Fuuka smile and it felt like thousands of pounds lifted off his shoulders. He hasn’t fucked this up and doesn’t want to. But then, the idea of the suppressants eating away at his life also distracted him. 

“How about we head on back to the dorm? I’ve got some food thawing out and I’d love to have an extra hand.” Shinjiro suggested, knowing full well Fuuka would never say no to him. 

“With alllll of this homework I have to do, I think I can squeeze in some time to help you.” Fuuka grinned, winking at him, as she interlocked her arm around with his. 

From the top of the second floor, Ryoji eyed the couple with his arms crossed. He knew who he, himself, was and yet, everyone was none the wiser. And he wasn’t surprised that Aigis was the only one suspicious of him. The twins noticed that Ryoji was distracted, leading to Minako looking out of the window and noticed Shinjiro and Fuuka walking together and engaged in idle chit-chat. 

“Minako-chan, who is that boy with Fuuka-san?”

“That’s Shinjiro.” Minako turned to face Ryoji. “Do you remember when I told you that Fuuka was in the hospital? He was as well—for the same reason and by the same person.” She explained slowly. As much as she wanted to pour her heart out and gladly explain how they got closer and closer within a month, Minako kept it short and sweet for now. “I think they were official the day after she woke up from her coma. But, I think we all assumed they would be within the first week or two of them meeting.”

Ryoji nodded slowly. He could faintly sense how close to Death they both were. And wondering for hours why he felt a connection to Fuuka was now clicking in his mind. He looked a bit sad—his lips curled downward and his eyebrows sank. Deep down, and something he just realized at this moment, he could sense himself being pulled more towards Shinjiro than Fuuka. Someone whom he just saw for the first time…and knowing that Death would come sooner to him than to Fuuka. 

And to know that Fuuka would be heartbroken, torn up, devastated at the fact of the one whom she could see a future with slowly dying clenched at Ryoji’s heart. Death knows all without knowing. 

“…she’s nice and a good listener.” Ryoji raised his eyebrows slowly, a small smile appearing on his lips, as he kept this information to himself. A part of him wants to know more—wanting to know the secrets that Shinjiro kept that could ruin Fuuka’s future with him. “Too bad she is taken—I would have enjoyed having her as my girlfriend.”

Minato glared at him and pokes his cheek. “Don’t let Aragaki-senpai hear that. He’s protective of her as she is with him. Then again, who wouldn’t be with someone they love?”

Minako nodded and turned away once she saw Shinjiro kissing Fuuka’s lips and could barely see how red their cheeks were. She giggled and wrapped her arm around her brother’s neck. “I can say the same with you and Yukari—you’ve become more of a gentleman with her, you know?”

“And you’ve taken pointers from Sanada-san about how to choke out enemies—ease up on me!” Minato gasped, not realizing how hard Minako’s elbow was on his neck. She gasped and pulled her arm away, apologizing profusely, as they began to walk away from Ryoji. 

Ryoji shook his head and began to walk behind the twins. He wondered if Fuuka knew anything more about Shinjiro. He might have been inside of the twins for the longest time, seeing what they saw, and he knew so much about Fuuka but never knew what she sounded like or what she was like. But, seeing moments of vulnerability with Minato and Minako, Ryoji wasn’t sure if he should help protect or hurt Fuuka. 

It doesn’t help he is the Harbinger of Death. As if he ready to take what Death herself couldn’t do the first time around.

After getting everything prepped and ready for dinner tonight, thanks to Fuuka's help, Shinjiro was just about to sit down on the couch and catch a quick nap. Until the door opened up and Akihiko entered the living room. He looked as if he was out of breath, running for fun or not, Shinjiro was not sure and didn't want to know. He eyed the boy until Akihiko began to walk towards him.

"I'm not going to exercise, Aki."

"No--wasn't going to ask." Akihiko quickly replied, putting his hand to his chest, taking a few seconds to calm himself down and catch his breath. Akihiko let out one more heavy deep breath and sighed heavily. "I wanted to ask you to come to the roof with me."

Shinjiro's eyebrow rose with his eyelids still closed over his eyes. "Why?"

"Because this is the first time I finally get to talk to you since you've been awake and...it's important."

Shinjiro opened his eyes, not realizing how much emphasis he put on the word important. He gulped and pushed himself off the couch. Shinjiro could count on his right hand how many times he has seen Akihiko serious since they met. And this was number three.

Shinjiro nodded, following behind the athlete the best he could--doesn't help he is doing two stairs at a time instead of a normal human being who would do one stair at a time. Shinjiro quietly mumbled under his breath but stopped once Akihiko stopped at the door leading outside to the roof. "Is the door locked?"

Akihiko shook his head, shoving the door a little harder than normal, and the fresh, cold breeze of the sunset rushed passed them both. Shinjiro shivered for a moment as he still continued to follow Akihiko and whatever he had planned tonight.

Once they were both outside, Shinjiro closed the door and turned to see Akihiko staring at the sunset. Shinjiro noticed he seemed a bit composed from behind, his shoulders were stiff like cardboard, but he assumed it was because how he was built. This was the first time he was looking more at Akihiko and noticing all the small details on him.

"Aki--"

"Wait." Akihiko answered, taking a deep breath in and out, and waved Shinjiro over. Quietly, the other senior followed and stood next to Akihiko. "You don't have to speak. Just listen." Shinjiro nodded slowly, wondering if he should be looking at Akihiko or the sunset. For now, he focused on the sunset and tried to let his mind go numb or empty.

"...when you and Yamagishi almost died a month ago, no one talked about it for weeks. No one spoke to each other and everyone felt defeated. I thought of the many what ifs for weeks." Akihiko closed his eyes, taking another deep breath in and out. "What if Yamagishi didn't find you and Amada in time? What if she did find you both and she was killed? What if you were--" He stopped himself short, his hands turning into fists and clenching them tighter than normal. "--and that's when I realized something: would I be okay if you died?"

Shinjiro closed his eyes, lowering his head in shame--he didn't know why he felt so sad and shameful. He knew he should have told someone where he and Ken was going, but he didn't. Maybe a part of him, the smallest part of him, hoped someone would find them. ...and hoped it wouldn't be Fuuka. That would be impossible with her being the navigator of their group.

"I thought about that for weeks. Until Mitsuru's father died. She was able to compose herself, pick herself up and became focus on what she had to do. I know her family's name is huge and important, but... ...I think I would be able to move on." He turned to face Shinjiro, his eyes soften up but still had a flame behind them. Shinjiro looked down at him with a hint of surprise in his eyes. "You have been with me since I was young--attached at the hip, you know? I have friends that would grieve with me and help me get back up on my feet. At least, Miki wouldn't want me to sob for days and nights."

Shinjiro huffed in agreement. "Yeah, I agree there. You are an ugly crier."

Akihiko's mouth dropped and shook his head, quickly to disagree. "I am not! And you cannot prove that, Shinji."

"Oh, I am sure that Minako would love to see you cry."

Akihiko closed his mouth quickly, making sure that Shinjiro couldn't use his words against him. He did, however, slightly punched him on the arm and crossed his arms. "Honestly, though, I'm sure I'd be okay if you had died. I...always thought death couldn't touch us. And when it almost did, I had to come to the realization that I am not that invincible. And I know those suppressants of yours are slowly making you sicker and--"

"Fuuka got me to stop taking them."

"--they helped keep your Persona--...wait. What?" Akihiko's eyes widen in surprise. "How long--?"

"...Hmm." Shinjiro crossed his arms and tilted his head to the side. "Well, she indirectly stopped me from taking them. She didn't know about them until just a few days ago. We've been trying something with Lucia and Castor and trying to calm a wild horse down, literally." Shinjiro explained, not realizing he didn't answer Akihiko's question until the silence set in for a few seconds. "Er, at least since mid September? I only bought from Strega to keep them from unknowing. And well, if what we are doing doesn't work, then at least I'm set for a while."

Akihiko kept his arms crossed, not realizing how much Fuuka had tried to helped Shinjiro. And maybe also Akihiko himself. He knew he would have to pay the favor back to Shinjiro's girlfriend. "At least someone got through to you. Because I want you at my side, Shinji."

"Aki, not to be rude, but you do know the women in our lives already have us at their beck and call, right?"

"I meant, dumbass, until the shadows and this shit is over and done with, I want to keep fighting with you--to make this world a better place to live. With Minako, Fuuka, Mitsuru--everyone. And neither of us can't see Miki until we are old and gray." Akihiko stated, walking around in front of Shinjiro. His face towards the sunset as the sun seemed to shine and illuminate his body before it started to disappear around the horizon. It looked as if he was on fire, in a way. Akihiko took his hand, balled it up into a fist, and held it out in front of Shinjiro.

Shinjiro looked down at it, knowing what he should do--make the promise and make Akihiko happy. But, deep down, even if Fuuka's Persona was trying to tame the beast inside of him, how badly did he ruin the far off future with her and Akihiko? Taking suppressants because he was desperate and couldn't handle Castor killing another person. He gulped, feared that Akihiko would find out the truth. But, for now, he wanted to stop disappointing people.

Especially himself.

He took his right hand, balled it up into a fist, and lightly tapped Akihiko's slightly smaller fist.

"Deal. But only because I want to see Minako bother you until the end."

Akihiko huffed and then let out a small chuckle. "Fine, fine. But you better protect Yamagishi--she's made you into a better person, you know?"

"Thou art I... And I am thou...

The bond thou hast nurtured hath finally matured.

Thou hast turned a vow into a blood oath.

In breaking free of doubt, the chain that impedes thee, is thy strength of heart made manifest.

With the rebirth of the Emperor Arcana

Thou hast obtained the winds of blessing that shall guide thee to the furthest depths."

Chapter Text

🎵 Late in the night, the city's asleep
Your love is a secret I'm hoping, dreaming, dying to keep
Change my priorities
The taste of your lips is my idea of luxury 🎵

It was cold. The breeze suddenly picked up and cut through the silence between the members of SEES and the members of Strega. Fuuka was listening attentively to what Jin and Takaya were saying, and yet—her eyes moved to Shinjiro the moment Jin mentioned their Personas having to be forced out of them. 

And she felt sick all of a sudden. The idea of a Persona lurching out from your chest to save you, or in the one case she had of Lucia trying to kill her, could have negative consequences. Her thoughts ran rampant in her mind, wishing she noticed the signs and connected the dots with Shinjiro. 

“That’s enough.”

Takaya’s words brought Fuuka back to reality as she moved closer to him, wanting to know more . Her throat felt dry as she shook her head and moved to be in front of the group. Fuuka didn’t even hear Shinjiro calling out to her. 

“What do you mean that’s enough ? What’ll happen to Shinjiro? To you all?” It hurt to talk, to be able to speak up and confront the one who almost took her life away. Her voice was raspy, as if she had been yelling all night. 

Takaya’s eyes shifted from Shinjiro to Fuuka. She gulped as he chuckled and narrowed him eyes at the navigator. 

“Who would have thought the brick wall that Shinjiro put up would be crumbled by a meek, mousy girl like yourself?” 

“Answer the question!”

Takaya’s laugh bounced off everyone as he shook his head. “So demanding—perhaps, if you do want to find the answer so badly—”

In the blink of an eye, Takaya reached over for Fuuka’s arm, grabbing it tightly and pulling her into his grasp. Her body was turned towards the group as she could see her friends calling out to her as Shinjiro carefully pushed away Minako and Ken to get to Fuuka. 

“—then you will come with me until we get Chidori back!”

A gasp left her lips as she felt her body leaning backwards and away from the group. Her fingertips brushed against Shinjiro’s own as Fuuka saw the river and her heart falling up into her stomach. 

“Shinjiro—!”

“Fuuka—!”

November 15th

As sweat drenched down her back and heart was racing madly in her chest, Fuuka gripped her shirt and tried to calm her breathing down. Her panting was loud and blocked out any other noise in her room. Her knuckles were turning white, knowing she had to calm down or she’d rip one of her shirts. 

Deep breath in. 

Slow breath out. 

Deep breath in. 

Slow breath out. 

After a solid minute of trying to relax, Fuuka released her shirt and let her hand sit in her lap. This was the second time she had a dream like this—either Takaya taking her away from them, and/or Shinjiro being unable to save her. It's been a couple weeks since the members of Strega jumped off the Moonlight Bridge. And the nightmare plagued her mind once or twice a week. 

Even though they haven’t shown up dead or alive, Fuuka had this horrible nagging feeling in the back of her mind. Call it an instinct of sorts. She eyed her cellphone, wanting to text Shinjiro and tell him about her nightmare. She could go for some strong and warm cuddles. But, he listened to her woes so much that she didn’t want to overwhelm him. Or bore him—both were still bad in Fuuka’s eyes. 

She let out a heavy sigh and noticed it was only 4 o’clock. Too early to do much of anything. Unless she wanted to go jogging with Akihiko and train her body—though, that’s not going to happen. Laying back onto her pillow, Fuuka wondered if she even going to go on the trip to Kyoto this year. It was only a few days away and while she was excited to go earlier in the Fall, dread nawed at the back of her mind. 

For one, she was scared to go somewhere new and for two, her scar. While Yukari and Minako talked about the hot springs that were free for the students to use, Fuuka wasn’t comfortable with showing it off. Even if the doctor cleared her for everything. And maybe she just wanted to stay to be near Shinjiro, Ken, and Koromaru. 

For her sake and for Shinjiro and Ken, she knows that she has to have a heart to heart with them. Ken, for the trauma he just went through with seeing his friends almost dying in front of him, and Shinjiro, because they are dating and are exclusive, at least deserved something from her. 

And she knows it would take more than a day to talk to them because of her still being meek around Ken. She groaned and rubbed her eyes as she tried to fall back asleep. 

“I wished I could make up my own mind.”

November 16th

The night before the trip, Fuuka knocked on Mitsuru’s door, lightly, wondering if she would even be in there. She made sure to let Akihiko and Minako know of her not coming on the trip. As well as letting her teacher, Ekoda-sensei, know, Fuuka thought this was the least she could do. After all that Mitsuru has done for her.

Carefully, the door opened up and revealed an exhausted looking Mitsuru who had slightly disheveled hair. Fuuka almost spoke up before Mitsuru put her hand up to stop her. 

“It’s unlike you to come see me out of the blue, Yamagishi. Is everything okay?” Mitsuru asked softly, exhaustion in her voice evident as she lowered her hand back to her side. 

“Ah, yes. Except I wanted to let you know that I’m not going to Kyoto tomorrow with everyone.” 

“I see. Are you sure about that?”

Fuuka bit her bottom lip and nodded after a second of silence. “I know my doctor cleared me for everything, but I guess I’m too cautious after what’s happened so far. And…”

Mitsuru crossed her arms and tilted her head. She eyed Fuuka with soft eyes and smiled towards her. “Let me guess: your gut is saying you should stay here.”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Well,” Mitsuru closed her eyes and sensed Penthesila inside of her soul, “my Persona may not be as strong as yours when it comes to sensing stuff, but I know the feeling. I experienced it so many times before you joined our group.”

She looked up at Mitsuru and nodded. “I am sorry this is such short notice. You already have so much on your plate that I didn’t want to overwhelm you.” She felt her palms getting sweaty and began to close her hands together and bowed to Mitsuru. “And you’ve done so much for Shinjiro and I—I don’t know if I could ever repay the favor.”

Mitsuru’s eyebrows rose slightly, surprised to see Fuuka being apologetic over something she had no control over. She moved one of her hands to her heart and put the other on Fuuka’s shoulder. 

“Yamagishi, as long as you stay with us until the end, that’s all I can ask for.” Fuuka looked up slowly at Mitsuru, her back straightening up. “Honestly, I am so thankful to have you as an ally, a friend , because you make this possible. You help us navigate an always changing Tartarus and always make sure we are safe and sound. And, since I’m being honest, you are the only one who brought us together.”

“I have?”

“Yes! There was a lot of animosity when Aragaki joined our group and I feared he would leave knowing that Amada was with us. And yet, you were able to keep him with us and because of your selfless heart,” Mitsuru moved her hand from her chest to Fuuka’s other free shoulder and smiled at her, tears threatening to fall at this point, “I didn’t lose another person in my life. And Aragaki has been able to open up and show a side of him I’ve never seen since before Amada’s mom died.”

Fuuka’s cheeks were red at this point. She didn’t expect to get Shinjiro to fall for her or vice versa. It was something that happened and she just had an innocent crush. Of course, Fuuka wasn’t sure if everyone saw how bad she was falling for the Hierophant. 

“Yama—Fuuka, if there is anything you need from me, I will do my best to help make it happen. For now, just stay at the dorm and enjoy the peace and quiet. You deserve it.”

Never would Fuuka think that Mitsuru would call her by her first name. Then again, it must have been very difficult for Mitsuru to get used to changing honorifics. With someone who grew up in a strict lifestyle, Fuuka was perfectly fine with being called by her surname. And yet, being called by her first name made her heart warm up. 

“Senpai, I promise to do my best. For you, for Shinjiro, for everyone. And please enjoy the trip to Kyoto. Because you need this trip badly.” Fuuka promised once Mitsuru withdrew her hands from her shoulders. She felt her own shoulders feel much lighter, so relieved that Mitsuru was perfectly fine with her staying here. “Just bring back some photos for me to see?”

A chuckle escaped Mitsuru’s lips as she tried her hardest to hide her grin. “If Takeba doesn’t beat me to the punch, that is.”

November 17th

The evening after everyone left to go on the trip, Fuuka sat in the living room, along with Ken and Koromaru, watching a rom-com about a couple learning how to ice skate and laughing obnoxiously at each other failing and falling made Fuuka absolutely sleepy. She even saw Ken yawning a few times herself. 

“Should I change it, Ken-kun? This story isn’t good anymore.” Fuuka held up the tv remote, waiting for a response from the boy. 

Quietly, he shook his head and turned to face Fuuka. “It’s fine. At least it will help me fall asleep.”

Come on Fuuka. You have to talk to Ken. Has Shinjiro talked to him about everything from last month? I’m sure he has—then again, maybe not. He was very avoidant for a while. 

Fuuka was very apprehensive when it came to bringing up past stuff—especially anything dealing with October fourth. She knew she at least owed the boy an apology; for being reckless and careless, even if she saved two lives that night. Ken could even see Fuuka in deep thought while her eyes lowered from his face. 

Thankfully, Shinjiro walked into the entrance way of the dorm with some takeout and noticed the silence between Fuuka and Ken that had the rom-com breaking the tight mood. He opened and then closed his mouth, unable to form anything as he moved to the couches and placed the food on the coffee table. He carefully sat between Fuuka and Ken and crossed his arms. 

“I got us all dinner to celebrate the loudest people of the dorm for leaving us for a few days. But, I think the food could wait…” Shinjiro slowly said, wondering if he had missed something and turned to look at Fuuka. She looked like she was going to cry—Shinjiro reached for her hand and gently caressed it, slowly moving his thumb up and down the backside of her hand. “Fuuka?”

Ken could notice something was wrong with Fuuka, too, and began to move from his spot on the love seat until Fuuka shook her head. 

“I’m sorry—I just feel s-so overwhelmed even though it’s just us!” She blurted out, louder than she thought. Fuuka returned the grip softly to Shinjiro’s hand and carefully wiped her eyes away. “This is the fi-first time we are alone and I can finally talk to you and Ken-kun.” She took a moment to catch her breath and looked softly at Ken. “I am so, so sorry for all the pain I caused you. I was scared and I wanted to protect everyone. And when I-I noticed that you and Shinjiro weren't with us, I knew something was up. But, it wasn’t until Sanada-senpai mentioned the significance of October fourth. So, I ran as fast as I could but not fast enough to stop Shinjiro from getting shot.”

Fuuka closed her eyes, her mind already rushing with the many ways to say sorry. It wasn’t until Ken spoke up that her mind slowly started to settle down. 

“Fuuka-san.” Ken moved from his seat and sat on the coffee table and prayed Mitsuru wouldn’t know he committed a cardinal sin. “Please don’t apologize. I…I was so stupid to never talk about my feelings and if I got everything out, no one would have been hurt. But, I was overcome with anger at Shinjiro-san and it took control of my life.” 

Fuuka sniffed her nose, reaching for one of Ken’s smaller hands and gripped it gently while still holding Shinjiro’s hand with her other hand. Ken continued to speak as he had a lot on his mind. 

“I am grateful for you both for waking me up and realizing that anger, filled with rage and revenge, will never be the answer. I was naive.”

Shinjiro chuckled, moving his free hand to Ken’s head and ruffled up his hair. “We both were. I was afraid to confront the past. And even if Fuuka was helping me confront it slowly, I should have confronted you first, Ken.” Shinjiro explained, feeling a bit lighter himself and stopped ruffling Ken’s hair up and just laid his hand there. “I want all of us to focus on the now, since now seems to be the best place for all of us—”

A bark from Koromaru made Shinjiro slightly jump, unaware of his presence. He grinned and moved his hand from Ken’s head to pet Koromaru playfully. 

“—and yes, that goes for you, Koromaru.”

A happy bark from Koromaru was enough to make the others smile. Ken reached down to pet Koromaru and turned his attention to the dog for a moment. 

“I promise on my life that I will have both of your backs. Mom would want that. And I promise that I won’t let either of you down.”

Fuuka rubbed her eyes again and nodded to Ken’s words. Her heart didn’t start to ache so much and luckily she didn’t start crying again. She could sense something had changed inside of Ken’s heart, wondering if it was him, his Persona, or both. The resolve was strong with him. Ken got up from his spot as he stopped petting Koromaru. 

“I’m going to head to bed. Just getting my emotions out and watching the most boring romcom exhausted me more than I thought. Perhaps we could have breakfast together tomorrow?” Ken suggested, a sense of hope in the back of his mind trying to escape as Fuuka nodded before Shinjiro could interject. 

“Of course! That sounds lovely!” Fuuka turned to Shinjiro, gripping his hand once more playfully. “Right?”

He chuckled and nodded. “Fine fine. Breakfast in the morning. And no complaining about what I’m making.”

Ken nodded, a smile on his lips. “I promise I won’t!”

"Thou art I... And I am thou...

The bond thou hast nurtured hath finally matured.

Thou hast turned a vow into a blood oath.

In breaking free of doubt, the chain that impedes thee, is thy strength of heart made manifest.

With the rebirth of the Justice Arcana

Thou hast obtained the winds of blessing that shall guide thee to the furthest depths."

“Hey hey hey! Don’t forget your dinner!” Shinjiro barked at the boy, watching as Ken reached for the food with his name on it and turned back to Shinjiro. “Don’t share with Koro-chan. He had dinner before I left.”

“I know, I know. He doesn’t like Thai food anyway!” He chuckled and in the blink of an eye, Ken and Koromaru ran up the stairs, knowing full well Koromaru was going to sleep with Ken tonight. And neither of them didn’t mind just as long as they were happy. Which it seemed like everyone was. 

Once the coast was clear, Fuuka let out a heavy sigh and slouched against the couch. Her hands moved to her chest to calm her heart. “I didn’t think it would go that well.”

“If it makes you feel better, we did talk a while back. It was brief, and Aki was with me. Ken did cry a bit out of relief that we were both alive and okay, but he kept to himself until a week before you woke.” Shinjiro pointed out, explaining something that he should have mentioned to Fuuka earlier. “I knew you had to say something to him, but I wasn’t sure when you were going to.” Then his eyebrow rose. “Wait—did you stay here with us because of that reason?”

Fuuka’s eyes shot up to look at Shinjiro’s eyes, their eyes locked in position as she shook her head. “It’s not the main reason. I was scared to show off my scar to my friends. I know I shouldn’t be, but I’m scared to even get it wet sometimes, even if it’s okay.” Fuuka closed her eyes, lowering her head and sighing again. “I feel like I’m too cautious now and I hate it. I wasn’t like that with you around.”

“That’s true. Though, I’m surprised I’ve kept myself calm around you. And well, other things…”

Fuuka raised an eyebrow, wondering what he meant but didn’t want to ask. She wanted to know, but she felt like she would have stepped on too many toes this week. 

“Anyway, how is your scar and stitches healing?”

“Oh, uhh…” Fuuka knew what her scar looked like, but she still had to pull her shirt out and peek inside, making sure it was still there. “The stitches and scarring itches a little, but the medicine I got helps. What about yours?” She dropped her shirt and looked at Shinjiro as he just casually pulled his shirt up from his stomach and checked the scar and stitches he had. 

That definitely didn’t help Fuuka’s cheeks from turning a bright red. 

“The stitches finally dissolved so it isn’t that itchy. But it sort of hurts if I over extend my torso so I still have to be careful in Tartarus and stuff.” Shinjiro explained. He even touched the light scar where the stitches were. He was surprised that it healed within a month and that the scarring was minimum. He still held his shirt up and eyed Fuuka, not realizing she was looking at his scar with him. “I see that you are still crazy over me even with this scar.”

She blinked and tried to hide her blush with her hand covering her mouth and some of cheeks. It didn’t also help that red pops out easily with her teal hair and semi-pale complexion. Shinjiro lowered his shirt and a thought came to his mind—a devilish one. 

“Why don’t I put some medicine on your scar and stitches? Let me see yours since you saw mine.” Shinjiro grinned as Fuuka shook her head. “Pleeeeease? I’m not a guy who likes to beg.”

Fuuka gulped, not realizing that Shinjiro extended the word “please” longer than he needed to. She lowered her hand knowing that Shinjiro would even do a pout and she would never say no to that face of his. The dream of hers came reeling back to her mind suddenly and maybe…maybe she could talk to him about it. 

“O-okay. But just this once.” She stated as she grabbed his hand gently and moved to her bedroom. The last time Fuuka could remember being in here with Shinjiro was when her Persona went berserk and had to be suppressed. 

Quickly shaking her head of the negative and scary thoughts, she opened the door to her room as Shinjiro walked in with her and closed the door behind them. Fuuka removed her hand from his as she looked for the medicine. 

“You can sit on my bed until I find it. It’s in one of these boxes…” she murmured loud enough for Shinjiro to get the clue to move to her bed. Shinjiro eyed the room and noticed how comfortable it felt in here. He only saw darkness and a little bit of light from last time. Now, he sees that Fuuka has plants all around her room but not enough to make it look like a greenhouse. Her sheets were a bright green color and her laptop was closed on her desk. He even saw some fake plants hanging from the wall with lights on them. Shinjiro was too curious and turned the lights on, giving the room a relaxing and sleepy vibe.

No wonder she never wanted to leave this place—her bedroom was her safe spot. And Shinjiro will make sure it stayed that way. 

Fuuka found the box with the medicine inside, showing it was halfway used already, and made her way back to the bed. Sitting down next to her boyfriend, Fuuka handed him the cream and put her hands on her lap. 

Shinjiro coughed. “Fuuka, you have to take your shirt off if you want me to put the medicine on.”

“I know. Just…give me a minute.”

Shinjiro nodded, unsure of why she was feeling nervous since they both have seen each other at their low points. They kissed and doted on one another. But then, it clicked with him. 

Oh fuck me. I have never seen Fuuka with just her bra on. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck—

It’s just medicine, Fuuka. It’s just Shinjiro. Nothing won’t happen. He won’t be scared. It’ll be less than 30 seconds. 

Both of them were trying to not panic and it took Fuuka the first one to do something. She carefully took her top off, realizing that she had a camisole underneath, covering her bra, and blushed madly. Shinjiro still had his hands on the medicine, even though one hand could easily hold it. Fuuka removed the camisole and placed it behind her, just like her top, and turned her body towards Shinjiro. 

Shinjiro only had two thoughts running through his mind. The first was that the scar was smaller than he thought. That he thought the scar was going to be longer than a foot. But this was only 6 or so inches. But the second one he had to vocalize while he touched the scar with the tips of his fingers. 

“Fuuka, you are still beautiful and perfect to me.”

Fuuka’s lips parted, a small gasp escaped her lips, as she watched Shinjiro be so cool and chill that he put the cream on his fingers and dabbed carefully around Fuuka’s scar and a couple of stitches. And trying his hardest not to touch her breasts. Fuuka watched as Shinjiro was being as delicate as he could be—as if Fuuka would break the moment he touched her. 

To say that Fuuka had fallen even harder for Shinjiro would be an understatement. She was head over heels for the Hierophant and wondered if Shinjiro could feel her heart ready to pound out of her chest and hit his fingers. Once Shinjiro was done, he reached for a nearby tissue to clean his fingers and left it off to the side as he turned to face Fuuka and eyed the scar again. 

“I think—”

“—would you make love to me?”

Shinjiro stopped mid-sentence as Fuuka declared her love for him. Her hands were in her lap as he looked at her wonderstruck. He felt warm underneath his shirt and wasn't expecting Fuuka to say that she wants to make love to him. No one, not even Minako, could prepare him for this. 

“Fuuka,” Shinjiro spoked softly, as if Fuuka blurted out her question for everyone to hear, “I-I…we just…wait.” He chuckled, unsure if it was because he was scared, excited, or worried. He cupped Fuuka’s hands gently and looked at her. “Now, what brought this up all of sudden? And please tell me that putting this cream on your chest was not an ulterior motive.”

“I don’t want to forget your touch.”

Goddamn it Fuuka. Why do you make it so hard to not want you every second?

Shinjiro felt himself getting hotter and hotter and realized how cool Fuuka felt. Granted, being without a shirt does cool one person down. Carefully, he cupped her cheek and looked at her with careful, sharp eyes.

“Dammit, Fuuka. I love you so much. I just…don’t want to hurt you anymore.” His thumb brushed against the side of her cheek, caressing her tenderly. He knew that she was strong. Took a bullet for him and Ken, survived open heart surgery—she could do anything. And she would not break that easily. “Are you sure about this? Right now?”

Fuuka did not hesitate with her answer. “As sure as I am in love with you.”

And that made Shinjiro fold in two. 

“Let me compromise with you. No sex. That is for another time.”

“I just want you to make me yours. I don’t care about the sex. Leave kisses all over me and glare at those who try to hit on me. That’s all I want.”

And that was that. Shinjiro reached for his beanie, dropping it off to the side instead of throwing it somewhere in her room, and stood up, stripping his pea coat off and dropped it on the ground. Before Fuuka could protest, she was being picked up by Shinjiro’s arms and held close to his chest. 

He chuckled. “I could have sworn you were much lighter than this.”

Fuuka pouted and glared at him. “Are you trying to ruin the mood?”

“No. Just I wished I knew how light you were so I could have done this sooner.”

He turned her around, sitting her down closer to her pillows and laid her down on the bed. Shinjiro looked down at Fuuka, wishing she would stop looking so innocent. Her soft eyes, her breasts that fit so perfectly in his hands, and good God if he didn’t do anything in the next minute, he may explode. 

Physically and mentally. 

Shinjiro didn’t want to show how bad he was going to be at this. He wanted to wait and do his research to show how good he was at pleasing Fuuka. Granted, he had an idea of what to do but felt his nerves hit him in the stomach. It made him nauseous, but Shinjiro swallowed and let out a deep breath. He closed his eyes, straddling Fuuka carefully, and opened his eyes. 

“The moment I go too far, you tell me to stop, Fuuka.”

The way he said Fuuka’s name, low, deep, and full of pent up sexual frustration made something inside of Fuuka awaken. As if she was ready to take the climb to anything imaginable. Her eyes widened and she quickly nodded, words unable to form in her brain as she felt so aroused simply by the way he said her name. Those gray hues of hers, full of wanting and desperation, made Shinjiro cave and fall for her even harder. 

At least he didn’t push her up against the wall and make out with her. Yet. 

Shinjiro nodded back at her, unable to say anything else as his mind shifted over to “pleasing my girlfriend” time. His eyes closed slightly as he leaned his body over Fuuka’s chest and his lips claimed hers first. He was going to take this slow and it was going to be painful for them both seeing as how Fuuka was ready to go all the way and the painful erection Shinjiro was trying to hide. 

Their tongues danced quietly together, wondering when the last time it was since they kissed. Shinjiro wanted to be focused but was so unpolished at this that he was getting distracted with little things. It took Fuuka deepening the kiss that brought his mind back to her—and with her small hand traveling south towards his pants, he knew he had to up the ante. 

“Fuuka,” Shinjiro lowly said her name again but this time whispering into her ear, making goosebumps appear on Fuuka’s arms, “are you misbehaving?”

Oh, my god. 

She was not expecting to feel his breath on the nape of her neck and her ear. His voice was sultry and she wished was on top of him now.

“M-maybe…”

Shinjiro tsked at her as Fuuka was swooning and losing her mind at the same time. 

HE TSKED AT ME—OH GOD!

“Now, if you want me to play by your rules, you have to behave. Or I going to have to resort to leaving you here: aroused and alone.”

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

If Shinjiro would hear Fuuka’s mind screaming, she might die of embarrassment. Never had she thought Shinjiro would be a power top—maybe a switch—and she knew that Shinjiro was turned on and ready. Fuuka felt her cheeks turning bright red as she nodded to Shinjiro and drew her hand back to her side. “Y-yes, Shinjiro—I-I’ll behave!”

He grinned, knowing that Fuuka wasn’t going to see that devilish smile of his, as he chuckled lowly in her ear. “Good.”

When Shinjiro moved his lips back to Fuuka’s own, he noticed how warm and soft they were. For someone who claims she didn’t take care of her face, her lips were smooth and addicting to kiss over and over. Fuuka opened her lips, wanting Shinjiro’s tongue, as he quickly dived in. Their breaths were being shared as one as Shinjiro moved his body closer to Fuuka’s smaller frame. Only to claim her as his. He only wanted to know how she was able to lure a being like him back to her every time. 

Warmth exploded inside of their chests, realizing that they were more comfortable with each other than they thought. As if they have been making out for years rather than months. Shinjiro could smell the lavender of the flowers that hung around Fuuka’s room—while it helped them relax, Shinjiro was ready to fall asleep while spooning Fuuka. While Shinjiro was making out with Fuuka, the smaller of the two moved her fingers into his messy hair that was finally uncovered from the beanie he wore day in and day out. 

Chestnut hair that was soft but looked rough. A hint of curls at the ends that slightly curled outward—perhaps it was the sweat he produced that made it happen. Fuuka was in heaven, as if she was being protected by a God and floating on a cloud bed—safe from everything. A moan left her lips as she wanted to pull his hair but couldn’t. Not yet, anyway. Fuuka never felt so passionate about a person or thing. Her tech skills were top notch but Shinjiro was someone she loved and cared for. And she would fight for him until her dying breath. 

Shinjiro moved his lips off of Fuuka’s to catch his breath. She has taken his breath away before, but not for this long. He could kiss as if his life depended on it but he wasn’t really sure what to do afterwards. Touching someone else was new territory to him and just thinking how badly he would fail made his erection shrink. Fuuka, being the angel she is, noticed Shinjiro hesitating and while she was in the same boat as him, Fuuka researched the living hell out of make out sessions. She sat up slowly and used her arms to prop herself up. 

“Shinji…” She stated, giving his nickname a try and see if it would spark something in him, and grabbed his hand. “…you can take off my bra. Or, better yet…” Fuuka wondered if Shinjiro ever saw the back of a bra. She grinned and knew she was the first. She would be his firsts for many things and that made her feel giddy inside. 

Before Shinjiro could say anything, Fuuka dropped the bra off to the side of the bed, on top of Shinjiro’s clothes, and pushed her hair out of her face and laid back down carefully. Her breasts were small and her nipples were erect. Shinjiro felt his cheeks warming up and his whole body heating up. 

“Fucking hell, Fuuka.”

Hormones were rushing through both of their minds and bodies, unable to make heads and tails of what was real or not. And yet, Shinjiro continued to keep his mind focused on trying to not have sex with Fuuka. Even though he wanted to and show how much he loved her, this wasn’t right. 

Carefully, he leaned down to kiss Fuuka’s neck, and felt his breath hitch up in his throat when she moaned. Fuuka had read romance novels that mentioned how the good girl falls for the bad guy or the girl gets her first kiss with her crush—something she never thought would happen with her. And yet…it was . 

He moved his way down from her neck to her chest—his eyes looking up at her to make sure this was perfectly fine. Shinjiro could have sworn he heard Fuuka’s heart pounding quickly. Or was it his? Hell, he didn’t know nor care. Moving his lips down between her breasts and kissing her down to her navel, he stopped as he swore he heard a weird sound. 

A loud, obnoxious stomach gurgling noise erupted from Fuuka’s belly, leaving Fuuka red in the face and Shinjiro groaning and face palming. 

“Fuuka…”

“I ate! I swear I did! Ask Ken-kun!”

And then the thought of the take out food downstairs, still in the bag and wrapped up came to Shinjiro’s forefront of his mind and another groan escaped his lips. “I forgot the takeout downstairs. Fuck.”

Fuuka propped herself up and chuckled. “How is it that every time we try to do something intimate, something or someone ruins it?”

“No kidding. First, Iori. Next, your stomach. What’s next?”

“I don’t want to find out.”

Shinjiro groaned as he laid next to Fuuka and grabbed her hand. “That’s one way to kill a boner.”

“Ohhh! So that is what was pushing me on my thigh. Thought it was your hand.” Fuuka admitted, watching Shinjiro’s eyes shoot down towards the teal haired female as she grinned. “I was kidding, Shinjiro.”

He squeezed her hand and shook his head. “What am I going to do about you?”

“Well, you could go downstairs, get our dinner, and show me what a good girl I am by eating what you got me.” She grinned sheepishly, showing her teeth and trying her best to be playful. Shinjiro chuckled and poked her cheek. “What?”

“I’ll go get the food.” Shinjiro stated, reaching for his shirt after he turned on her desk lamp. He pulled the long sleeved shirt over his head and turned to face Fuuka. “And you get comfortable. Put on a movie for us?”

Fuuka nodded, but stayed in her bed, half naked, after Shinjiro left. If she was really thinking about this, THIS would be a date . Their first one since they admitted their feelings for one another. Her heart began to beat quickly and her nerves started to feel frayed at the end. And that, suddenly, made her wonder what type of movies Shinjiro and she would like. Fuuka was this close to texting Akihiko what Shinjiro would like, but Shinjiro would be back soon. Finding a shirt to wear from her drawers, Fuuka put on a plain white shirt and pulled her laptop near her to find something—anything!—that screams Shinjiro Aragaki. 

The moment the door opened to her room, Fuuka found something that might interest Shinjiro but wasn’t too sure if he would like it. She gulped as she turned to the food that sat next to her on her table. 

“So, I found a movie, but I wasn’t sure if you were into horror films but I heard from Junpei-kun that it was THE horror film back in the 80s—”

Shinjiro leaned down to Fuuka’s height and put a finger on her lips. He knew when she was nervous she would rant and try to fill the void with rambling. “As long as I’m with you, I don’t care what we watched.”

“Oh. Well I…did not put that into perspective. Now that I know that, maybe I should have picked the movie about the cat and the two dogs.”

“No. I’m not watching the sad movie where the cat almost dies.”

“But Minako-chan says it’s a good movie. I’ve never seen it.”

Shinjiro huffed and puffed and ran his fingers down his face. “As long as you don’t tell anyone that I am going to cry, then we will watch it together.”

“Deal!”

Chapter Text

🎵 The world moves on, another day another drama, drama
But not for me, not for me, all I think about is karma
And then the world moves on, but one thing's for sure
Maybe I got mine, but you'll all get yours🎵

November 21st

Junpei was sitting next to Chidori, chatting about how great the trip to Kyoto was. He even gave her a small present of snacks, brand new flowers, and a hair pin for her. Mitsuru was checking her phone for recent messages, looking up to see the door opening to the room and surprised to see Shinjiro coming into the room. He closed the door and turned to face the lovey dovey couple. His eyes were soft, gazing at the couple, until Shinjiro was called out by Mitsuru. 

“Aragaki? What brings you here?” Mitsuru questioned, confusion weaved into her question as Shinjiro shrugged. 

“Wanted to make sure her Persona wasn’t trying to kill her again.” He eyed the redhead in the bed who gave Shinjiro a returning glance. But instead of a death glare, it looked like she had a hint of worry and concern in her eyes. Shinjiro kept that thought to himself and turned back to face Mitsuru. “We can swap if you want. I heard that Odagiri is being a real dick again.”

Mitsuru sighed and pushed some stray hair out of her face. “I thought having Minato-san would help cool his temper, but ever since the incident in the boy’s bathroom with the cigarette butt found randomly, I’ve been bouncing back here and there after school.” She closed her phone and put it back in her skirt’s pocket. Mitsuru looked back at Junpei and Chidori, noticing they stopped taking and looked back at them. 

God was it awkward. 

“Hey, is everything okay, senpai?” Junpei cautiously asked, his hand gripping the railing separating him and Chidori. 

Mitsuru nodded and got up from her chair. “Yes. I need to head back to school and deal with a small issue. Aragaki will be here to take my position until you leave, Iori.” She explained, her mind easily pushing Chidori and Junpei away and school issues popping back in her mind. “I am sure you will have no problems with this?”

Shinjiro sat down in Mitsuru’s seat and crossed his arms. A small huff and a nod. “Yeah yeah.”

Mitsuru grinned and left the room once she grabbed her school bag. Once the door was shut, Junpei looked over at Shinjiro. Shinjiro looked back at Junpei and carefully glared at him. 

“Can I help you, Iori?”

“I, uh, am surprised Fuuka didn’t tag along.”

Shinjiro sighed and slightly rolled his eyes. “Just because we are dating doesn’t mean she’s a leech on me. We have our own separate lives.”

“Right right. Don’t shoot the messenger.” Junpei put his hands up, enticing a small laugh from Chidori. Shinjiro raised an eyebrow, noticing how easy it was for her to laugh at something Junpei said. Then again, Junpei was sort of humorous to the right people. And Chidori was one of those people. 

“Chidori—” Shinjiro looked at the redhead and she stopped laughing immediately. “—how are you doing?”

Chidori was a bit surprised to see how human-like Shinjiro was acting. It took her a moment to reply as she put her hands in her lap and lowered her head. “I am well. Junpei brought more flowers for me—though, I think the vase is running out of water. Could you go fill the vase up, Junpei?” She looked up at him, batting her eyes at him. Shinjiro knew something was up immediately. 

For someone who likes a guy, you don’t usher him out of the room unless it’s important. Something important to me. Fuck. 

“Huh? They are?! I could have sworn I filled it up days ago…” Junpei stated, getting up and checking the vase and noting that she was right. “Well, I’ll be right back Chidorita.” He flashed a smile at her and was out of the room. 

Chidori turned to face Shinjiro and deadpanned at him. “When Junpei leaves for tonight, get rid of those flowers.”

An eyebrow rose in confusion. “Why? Won’t he get suspicious of them disappearing? Iori isn’t that stupid.”

“I am going to die soon and so are you. You and I both know that.”

“I don’t need a constant reminder, you know.”

“Have you told Fuuka?”

Shinjiro felt his heart sank and turned his head. He was hiding his face and bit his lip. A sore spot. 

“I see.” Chidori closed her eyes, taking a moment to catch her breath, and sighed. “Could you keep the flowers? Don’t throw them away.”

“Why?”

“Do you want to deal with the wrath of Fuuka and her love for flowers?”

“And how do you know she likes flowers?”

Chidori chuckled and touched her nose while she opened her eyes. “You smell like lavender.”

“In all my years of knowing you, which is like two or so, I’ve never seen you chuckle or smile. Damn, seems like Iori is doing the same thing to you as Fuuka is with me.”

Chidori’s lips went straight, erasing the trace of a smile on her face, and carefully looked at Shinjiro with delicate eyes. Those eyes were filled with anxiety. 

“She’s made you feel alive. And that you don’t want to die, not yet. Or ever. You are attached.”

“…we are fucked, aren’t we?”

“Very much so. Are you going to be able to handle it?”

Shinjiro put his hands in his pocket, trying to hide how sweaty his hands felt all of a sudden. Fuuka made Shinjiro feel things he has never felt before—as if they had a hidden language between each other that no one can understand. And he couldn’t explain it to anyone except maybe Junpei. And Shinjiro damn well wasn’t going to talk about romance and couples shit to him. 

He opened and closed his mouth, unable to produce a sentence. 

Am I going to handle this? Fuck it. If Chidori can, so can I. Right?

“When you tell Iori that you aren’t going to live longer, then I’ll tell Fuuka. Deal?” 

“…Shinjiro, I promise.”

November 22nd

Shinjiro just stared at the flowers in a makeshift mason jar on his desk. Like it was a constant reminder from Chidori to make sure he kept his promise. He groaned and wished he could choke the flowers or break the stems but couldn’t. God, he could see Fuuka looking at the flowers and sobbing at them. Shinjiro shook his head and walked out of his room. He felt like he was suffocating. 

The moment he closed his door, the Dark Hour occurred and it made him jump a little. He had no idea he was in his room for so long, contemplating killing flowers and the many ways he could break Fuuka’s heart. He felt sick having to hurt the one he loved. Of course, thinking of Fuuka lead to said person appearing. 

“I apologize for waking you up, everyone, but please head to the command room. And hurry.”

Fuck. That’s not good. 

Everyone grabbed their equipment and made their way to the fourth floor. Akihiko, Mitsuru, and Fuuka were already there. And Lucia was already called for. 

“What’s going on?” Minato asked, his hands in his pockets to hide his emotions. 

Mitsuru crossed her arms and turned to the group. “Yamagishi sensed Persona users. Outside of Tartarus.”

“Wait. Other Persona users…you don’t mean—?” Ken gulped as Akihiko nodded to confirm his suspicions. 

“Strega. Alive and well.” Akihiko put his hand on his hip and looked at Fuuka. It was odd seeing her focus so hard on something she was familiar with sensing. 

“Shit.” Shinjiro gritted his teeth and leaned on his ax. “The Dark Hour is still here and those bastards are still alive. This is not good, Aki.”

Minako bit her bottom lip and tugged on the stray rope string on her naginata. Now she felt her nerves hitting her stomach and all at once. “Why does nothing ever go right with us?” She whispered softly. 

Akihiko asked Fuuka if she could sense who was there. She gulped and looked up at Akihiko and the others. “Well, I only sensed one, which is good. But…” Fuuka turned her torso and face towards Junpei carefully. “…I thought she was in the hospital.”

Everyone turned on a dime to face Junpei as he felt his face turning red, including his ears. “Huh—? What?”

“No…” Fuuka gasped, panting as she felt her face grimacing in pain “…she’s… she’s inside—!” Fuuka screamed as she gripped the sides of her head. It felt like her head was being squished all around. Shinjiro’s eyes widen as he pushed past Minako and Akihiko, his hands on Lucia’s protective shell. 

“Fuuka! What’s going on?” Shinjiro asked, pleading and hoping it wasn’t who he thought it was. 

“Long time no see.”

Goddamn it Chidori!

“Chidori!?” Junpei cried out as he panicked and walked towards her voice, as if he was trying to find her. Shinjiro wasn’t even sure if he said his thought out loud or not, but he gritted his teeth and kept his eyes on Fuuka. 

Mitsuru’s eyes grew and turned to look back at Fuuka and then back to the ceiling. “She can hijack the transmission!?”

“I can’t stand the sight of you all anymore. So, I’ve decided to get rid of you. Come to me…”

Fuuka gasped as she put her hands to her chest to calm her beating heart. “Ngh…”

“Fuuka-chan!” Yukari called out, gripping her bow in anger and watching Junpei look so conflicted. His feelings were all over his face. 

“I’m…okay…” Fuuka assured, turning her eyes to Shinjiro and the others—relief flooded their faces as Yukari turned to face Junpei. She confirmed she was as she looked at Shinjiro. “I promise.”

“I don’t get this—wasn’t she in the hospital? Do you know what’s going on, Junpei?” Yukari asked while Junpei’s eyebrows were furrowed. He had to grit his teeth in frustration. He wasn’t happy that Chidori hijacked Fuuka’s transmission, but this was confusing to him. That something didn’t felt right. “Junpei?”

“Shut up! I don’t know what the hell is going on!” He retorted, his arms shooting outward and his frustration was unleashed. “Goddammit!” Junpei yelled and darted out of the room faster than anyone can stop him. 

“Hey—! Junpei!” Yukari called out and turned to face him but the door was left ajar and she almost wanted to chase him. “Come back!”

Minato turned to put a hand on Yukari and his head swiveled to face the others. “We can’t let him go alone. It’s dangerous.”

“I agree. However,” Mitsuru raised a finger, “this is most certainly a trap. We have to be cautious since it’s Strega we are dealing with. We can’t simply ignore them. We might be able to gain some insight of the ongoing situation.”

Everyone nodded as Mitsuru commanded everyone to head out. Fuuka released Lucia and sighed heavily. It felt like an elephant was sitting on her chest—making it hard to breathe and hard to think straight. All she could feel was the pain in her chest and Chidori’s love for Junpei. Chidori wasn't sure if she did this on purpose or not—and gods above, Fuuka’s heart ached. 

It makes sense as to why Junpei-kun never wanted to do anything with me. Chidori-san commanded all of his attention. Did Shinjiro know that and that’s why he was trying to push me away from Junpei-kun?

Fuuka shook her head, knowing she didn’t have the time to over think. Especially with Strega in the front of their minds. “Be careful everyone. I only sensed one of them, but the other two could be nearby!” Fuuka called out as she followed behind Shinjiro with Koromaru following behind her for safety. 

“Chidori! Talk to me! What the hell is going on?!” Junpei gasped, trying to catch his breath as he finally made it to Tartarus with Chidori right in front of the entrance. Her back was to him, keeping a protective wall up. She turned on her heels slowly while giving Junpei a harsh glare. 

“Listen—I know I’m not the brightest bulb, and I know there is so many things I’ve done wrong. But, this is wrong! We should never fight each other!” Junpei exclaimed, his hands shooting out past his sides, his palms opened wide. He took a step forward. 

Fuuka gasped as the others reached Junpei seconds later. “Junpei-kun—! Watch out!”

Junpei moved a couple feet backwards as he saw Chidori’s ax slashing past the front of his face, barely avoiding him. He panted, his eyes wide with surprise and fear. 

“Whoa! Hey!” Junpei kept his eyes trained on Chidori, making sure she wasn’t going to pull the same trick on him again. “You could have killed someone!”

Chidori tsked, grabbing her ax and shifting the weight in her hand. Junpei looked at her with soft, worried eyes. “Chidori… why?” Junpei asked, his voice aching with pain and frustration, wanting to know the reasoning behind her attack. 

Shinjiro reached for his ax, knowing that this wasn’t going to be good. “I have a feeling she isn’t going down without a fight.” Ken looked up at him and slightly frowned. 

“Why do you say that, Aragaki-san?”

“She wants to eliminate the one person who has caused her pain. …she wants to get rid of Iori because she is feeling something she never wants to feel. And it’s bringing her back to the harsh truth of reality.”

“Love.” Fuuka answered, even though Shinjiro never brought up a question. Shinjiro tsked lowly and shook his head. Fuuka looked up from Chidori and Junpei to Shinjiro. She opened her mouth and closed it quickly. 

Does Shinjiro…regret feeling like this with me, too? Does he have so much hatred inside him too? Will he attack me to get rid of me—?

Akihiko began to run forward which ushered everyone else to follow him. Fuuka pushed her thoughts down again, definitely not ready to confront them, and follow swiftly. Because speaking them out loud might reveal the truth. 

“Junpei, you got to back down. Chidori isn’t going to listen to anyone, including you.” Akihiko put his fists up, which made Junpei turn to face him and the other members of SEES. His lips were trembling, as he turned to face Fuuka, her eyes soft and full of worry. Junpei looked as if he was going to cry and panic. And Fuuka knew she had to jump in and be a doting friend. 

“I know how you feel, Junpei-kun. I do. But your safety is of utmost importance! Please, stand down!” Fuuka clasped her hands together, her voice begging for him to back away, to not get involved. Even if it was already too late. 

In the blink of an eye, Chidori yanked her evoker from behind her back and held it out for everyone to see. Shinjiro cursed as he hated that he was right, again. “Minako—” He turned to the crimson hair fool and eyed her. “Get Iori out of here!”

“Right!” She quickly nodded as Yukari and Minako tried to pull Junpei away as Chidori brought the evoker to her chin. 

“Medea…” Chidori spoke, her voice raspy as she was trying to keep up her appearance—not wanting to cry and get upset. 

Shinjiro, along with Akihiko and Minato, took the forefront of the group. Mitsuru joined hesitantly, with Aigis, Ken, and Koromaru behind them for back up. Chidori was strong, but knowing what she was capable of this was going to be difficult. Fuuka called Lucia out in the background while she began to sense what Chidori was weak to, if anything. 

“This isn’t where I belong. I’ve known that from the very beginning!” Chidori called out, moving her ax from her right hand to her left, and then shifting it back. It didn’t feel comfortable and she started to sway slowly. 

“Chidori!” Junpei cried out as he gripped his fists, trying to fight back Minako and Yukari’s grip on him. “What in the hell has gotten into you!?” 

Chidori began to cast maragidyne on the members of SEES that stand before her. Mitsuru was barely able to dodge it, sweating rolling down her face as she didn’t realize that Chidori was quick to find weaknesses. Mitsuru bit her bottom lip and knew she would have to be careful. 

“You okay, Mitsuru?” Akihiko called out after he threw a punch at Chidori that her Persona blocked, even if she did move back a few feet. 

“Y-yes—she seems to be regenerating her energy quicker than I thought.” Mitsuru replied, pushing herself up from the ground and back on her feet. Chidori caught this moment of weakness to send an Agidyne towards Junpei, Yukari, and Minako. 

Junpei stared at the fire, his lips trembling as Yukari called out Isis to block the attack. Once the smoke cleared, she quickly used a Mediarama on everyone as she turned her attention to the Magician. 

“Junpei, are you okay?” Yukari asked, noting that Junpei was just staring at Chidori and he nodded, but then shook his head after letting Yukari’s question repeat in his head over and over. His eyes were wide and staring in pure disbelief. 

Chidori huffed as she swung her ax towards Shinjiro as he took his own two handed ax and swung to hit it back towards her. Shinjiro watched as she pulled it back into her hand with the chain in the other free hand. It looked like she was barely breaking a sweat. “Fucking hell—what’s going on in her head!?”

“Ha. Takaya was right. You all are a nusiance.” Chidori reached for her evoker again, attempting to call Medea out once more. 

“Artemisia!” Mitsuru cried out, using her evoker to call her own Persona out to do a Bufudyne on Chidori. It was one of the spells that were going through but barely making a dent on her. Chidori winced as she almost dropped her evoker. “Ice spells are going through, but it isn’t strong enough.”

Minato pushed some hair out of his face, trying to sense if there was anything he could see as a weakness. The ax wasn’t heavy or strong—just fast like a dagger. “If we take out the ax, we can handle her Persona. Or, we could just attack her…”

“Then we brute strength the common sense back into her!” Shinjiro pointed out, taking his ax and running up towards her, swinging his ax at her and doing a good amount of damage to her. 

“Hermes!”

Shinjiro turned on his heels to see Junpei’s Persona coming after Shinjiro as he had to leap to the side and slide out of the way. He gritted his teeth and glared at Junpei. “What the fuck man?!”

“Don’t hurt her!”

“What the hell do you want me to do, Iori? Stop babying her and let her fight—!”

“I don’t know…” Chidori put her hands to her ears and dropped her evoker. Her hands shaking and her eyes wide as tears began to drop down her cheeks. “I don’t know what to do anymore…! Junpei…!” Everyone stopped and stared at Chidori for a brief moment while keeping their guard up. 

“Chidori…” Junpei whispered her name as Minako looked back at Chidori, noticing she was barely able to land attacks on anyone. Agidynes being absorbed by Minato, her ax barely going far enough to hit anyone, as if she just lost the will to fight. Minako pulled Yukari’s hands down from Junpei as he just stood there. Chidori was breaking down and losing her mind. 

“Th-this hurts…! I can’t breathe—I’m scared…!” She cried out, watching as everyone was putting down their weapons as she fell to her knees. “Jun…pei…!” Chidori’s Persona disappeared as she dropped her evoker. 

Junpei pushed past Minako and Yukari as he ran up to Chidori and landed on his knees. Junpei carefully put his hands on her shoulders and gripped them gently.  Fuuka recalled Lucia and moved up to the group and watched as Chidori was doting on her. Her heart ached badly—Fuuka closed her eyes, flashes of the memories those two spoke, as if a silent film was playing in her mind. She moved her hand to her chest and gripped it tightly. 

“Don’t touch me…” Chidori’s words were soft and breathless. 

“Chidori…please tell me why you are doing this.” Junpei asked tenderly, trying his best to stay calm even though he was feeling anger and disappointment. Like he was chiding his child for doing something bad. 

“What I fear most…isn’t death. What I fear most…” Chidori looked up at him, panting and desperation in her eyes. “…is attachment . When I do, I become horrified by the thought of loss. My life, possessions, everything! That is why we lived in the moment. Junpei…” She reached for his hands and gripped them tightly. “…you have brought me pain I NEVER wanted to feel.”

“Wh-what…?”

Chidori looked around at the members of SEES watching them. She didn’t care as she only wanted to see and be with Junpei. Attachment was her one weakness. She eyed Shinjiro and Fuuka. A hint of remorse and a hint of jealously. 

“Junpei, when I’m with you, I fear everything. I fear loss, I fear death…I fear that my time with you will end! That’s why I—!”

Fuuka gasped as she turned to look at the entrance of Tartarus. “Oh no. I sense—!”

Shinjiro knew what that meant. He gripped his ax as Mitsuru turned to look at Fuuka, asking her: “What is it?”

“It’s the other members of Strega!”

They appeared out of the entrance of Tartarus, which made everyone become more aware of them as Junpei focused on Chidori at the moment. Takaya began clapping his hands and stopped the moment his eyes made contact with Chidori and Junpei. 

“Fucking bastards! You can’t get the hint to give up!” Shinjiro called out, shaking his head. Everyone knows of those two being eyesores and a thorn in their sides. 

Takaya crossed his arms and shook his head. “You know, I refrained from interfering, as you requested.” He pointed at Chidori as if he was punishing her for her behavior. “And now look at the mess it’s cause.” He tsked and rolled his eyes. He moved one of his hands to his gun. “It is too late now, Chidori. You have been poisoned by them.”

Junpei gritted his teeth and pushed herself up from the ground. “What the fuck is that suppose to mean, you damned ghost!?”

Takaya laughed as his other free hand moved to his forehead, gripping the sides of it like he was trying to squeeze a headache away. 

“I’m not a ghost. Despite my detachment to life, fate has decided to let me live. You can say I was… chosen .”

“You bastard… I am not letting you do this to her anymore!” Junpei screamed and put his gloved hand on his chest. “I will protect Chidori with my life!”

Chidori gasped and tilted her head slightly to look at her lover at an angle. “J-Junpei…”

“Chidori, come with me—come with us ! You don’t need them anymore. I am scared to be alone, too. We have to care for each other and keep that from happening!” Junpei turned his attention to Chidori and smiled. All anger and frustration left his face immediately. 

“Hmph.” Takaya huffed and reached for his pistol, drawing it out and angling it towards the members of SEES. 

Akihiko heard the noise of the revolver and that quick intake of his breath made Shinjiro look over at Takaya. “Junpei, look out!” Akihiko called out as everything started to blur together. 

Shinjiro dashed in front of Fuuka, instantly protecting her, and her eyes widening as the pistol went off. Fuuka turned her back as she felt Shinjiro’s arms tightly wrapping them around her torso. She covered her ears and felt her breath becoming lost in the same moment the pistol was shot. Her eyes squeezed shut as she breathed loudly and tried to block the noise of the pistol. Fuuka began to hyperventilate, panicking and awaited to be shot dead again. A moment passed as she didn’t feel no pain, no blood on her, and she dropped her hands from her ears. She turned to face Shinjiro as his eyes were wide. 

“Are you—!”

Shinjiro shook his head to respond to Fuuka’s question. And while they were both relieved, it clicked with them at the same time as they realized who Takaya aimed for. A body hit the ground as Shinjiro moved his body to reveal Junpei was the one who got shot. Fuuka’s lips trembled as Chidori was frozen to ground while she looked at Junpei. The blood was seeping through his shirt as Fuuka’s eyes grew as she screamed and began to go after Junpei as Mitsuru, Yukari, Minako, and Akihiko were already surrounding his body. 

“No! NOOOOOO!!! ”

“Fuuka!” Shinjiro called out as he reached for Fuuka’s body and tried to hold her back. “You need to stay by me! Takaya can shoot you or me again!”

“I can’t! H-he needs help! Someone heal him!” Fuuka cried out as she felt her body fighting her back and exhaustion hitting her. “Junpei—! Don’t—!” She sobbed as she fell to the ground and Shinjiro pulled her closer to him. Fuuka gripped her fists as they laid on her tights. “I can’t… do this again!”

Chidori watched as the others around her tried to check Junpei’s pulse as Minako began to order Yukari to try to heal him. Chidori gulped, something clicking inside of her, and knowing what she has to do. Her Persona gave her this power…and she will use it to save Junpei’s life. 

“Give him here.” Chidori moved Yukari and Mitsuru out of the way, reaching for her lover and holding him in his arms. The way Chidori’s were at peace, noting Junpei’s face was getting bluer by the moment, she shook her head and got rid of her doubts right then and there. Grabbing her evoker, she shoots it under her chin and smiles. “Medea…”

The click of the evoker went off as she dropped the evoker next to her and put her hand up to his wound. She closes her eyes and focuses her energy onto repairing his wound. Fuuka looked up to see the small light emitting from Chidori’s hand. Wiping tears from her face, Fuuka reached for Shinjiro’s arm and gripped it tightly. At this moment, she was surprised Takaya had not bothered attacking them. Maybe he was awaiting this—wanting to see what Chidori was going to do. 

The light grew brighter and bigger as everyone that was surrounding Junpei gave him space. Chidori was focusing on reviving Junpei—Fuuka gasped as she knew what Chidori was doing. Everyone just watched with cautious eyes. After a few more seconds of silence, Junpei’s eyes open up and gasping for any breath. 

“What…the hell…?” He whispered, as he turned to face everyone and then looked at Chidori. 

Fuuka gasped as she smiled and wiped away more tears. “Junpei-kun!”

“Junpei!”

“Junpei-san!”

“Junpei-kun!”

Everyone felt a lot of weight shifting off of their chests as Chidori moved Junpei off of her body, looking a bit proud of herself and her job well done. 

“It’s her Persona…” Fuuka stated as she looked at Chidori and Junpei looking lovingly into each other's eyes. “Does it have the power to bestow life?”

“I can’t believe it. She brought him back from the dead…” Shinjiro whispered, not knowing Chidori had a power like that. “No wonder she kept that power to herself.” 

“W-wait… if she goes as far as resurrecting someone, the cost for that means she would—”

And before Fuuka could finish her statement, Chidori’s eyelids closed and her eyes began to roll into the back of her head. Junpei gasped, calling out to Chidori and catching her before she fell to the ground. Gasps escape some of the members of SEES as they carefully surround the couple. 

“It worked. Thank goodness…” Chidori softly spoke, one of her hands on his chest and Junpei cupping Chidori’s cheek, brushing stray hair away from her face. “So it worked…” Her hand delicately gripped Junpei’s sleeve, a soft smile appearing on her lips.

Fuuka subconsciously gripped Shinjiro’s sleeve, knowing that Chidori was going to die. She could easily sense it with Lucia and she couldn’t speak up to tell anyone–would it even be appropriate to do so?

“I can hear… …the sound of…your beating heart. Badump. Badump.” Chidori whispered, relief flooding her face and her eyes closing tightly once again. As if every time Junpei’s heart beat, hers ached in return. “That is all I needed to know. …so that I can live on in you, forever. I’ll… …always be with you, Junpei.” 

Junpei smiled weakly, nodding slowly, but then a hint of confusion appeared on in his eyes. “Huh? Wh-what do you mean? Hey–Chidori–!” He could feel her slipping out of his hands, lightly shaking her to wake her up. “Stay with me. The hell’re you even talking about?!”

Chidori closed her eyes, as if trying to rest once more, and she opened them slowly to look at Junpei. Koromaru quietly whined in the background as the members of SEES were slowly connecting the dots. Yukari silently reaching for Minato’s hand, gripping it tightly; Akihiko reaching for Minako’s hand and felt a heavy sigh leaving his own lips; Shinjiro looking at Chidori and feeling absolutely nauseous. He knew he had to tell Fuuka about his own issues–Chidori was dying right in front of him, someone whom he made a promise with and yet…couldn’t even look Fuuka in the eye, even as she was gripping his sleeve tightly in fear.

“This is how it has to be, Junpei. …But, I promise that… …I will always protect you. Always…” Chidori looked up at Shinjiro, watching silently as their eyes linked up. A slight breeze pushed past Shinjiro's face, as if it was a gentle reminder to not forget his promise. He looked away, his eyes shooting down to the ground and biting his lip from saying anything. 

Junpei quickly nodded and felt tears stinging his eyes. “Ye-yeah, same! I’ll always have your back! I’ll do everything in my power to protect you! So–”

A small chuckle left Chidori’s lips as she closed her eyes again. Even looking up at her lover was exhausting her. “Hehe… …this might be all I will ever need. This is nice… …being in each other’s arms.”

Tears swelled up in Junpei’s eyes, calling out to Chidori softly. His voice going soft and high pitched, as if he was trying to withhold the crying. “Chidori…!”

“I…love you, Junpei. …thank you…” Chidori murmured, her hand reaching up to cup his cheek and flashing him a small smile. Delicately, she wiped the tear in his left eye away before it fell down his cheek. “...for everything.”

Her hand fell down to the ground, going limp, as Junpei watched her hand fall. He froze, unable to say anything, as if speaking would hurt his throat.

“Chi… …dori…?” He whispered, trying to find his voice that seemed lost to him. “Y-you…have to be joking, right? … …Chidori…!” Junpei pulled Chidori’s limp body up to his chest, holding her tightly and cradling her head in one of his open hands. “S-say something–! Please!!” He begged, shaking her gently as tears began to fall down his face.

Shinjiro’s eyes grew as he froze in his spot next to Fuuka. Fuuka covered her lips with her free hand, hearing Junpei screaming out in pain and sadness, losing his beloved. It brought back the memories of October once again. The pain of the gunshot, trying her hardest to hold onto life, and wanting to see Shinjiro again–she felt tears threatening to fall from her face, too. 

We…this could have been us. I could have been the one to die and Shinjiro would have to be in a world of grief. I… …oh, Junpei… Fuuka silently thought until Takaya spoke up to break the mood.

“Pitiful. What a meaningless way to end one’s life.”

Junpei gritted his teeth and turned his attention to Fuuka. “Fuuka. Protect Chidori for me.” Fuuka turned her attention back to Junpei as she nodded and raised an eyebrow. 

“Junpei?” Fuuka pulled Chidori into her lap as she could see Junpei trying to hold his anger back and failing horribly. Pushing himself up from the ground, Junpei glared at Takaya and gripped his fists.

“Meaningless?!” He reached for his evoker and screamed. “AHHHHH!” He brought the evoker to his head and pulled the trigger. “Aaaaarrrrgggghhhh!”

In front of everyone, the fusion of Medea and Hermes created a new Persona, something that no one had ever seen or heard of before. And before anyone could even respond to the new Persona, even though Takaya’s eyes grew in surprise and he backed away in fear, Junpei screamed as loud as he could to let out all of his frustration.

“BURN IN HELL!”

“Medea?!” Jin stated as he saw an Agilo heading towards Takaya. He quickly jumped in front of him, to take majority of the fire damage, and gritted his teeth. “Gah!” He fell to his knees as everyone watched Junpei falling to his knees. The combined power of two Personas merging into one exhausted him as he panted, trying to find his breath.

“Y-you won’t get away with–! Gah!” Junpei screamed as he lost grip of his evoker as Akihiko and Ken moved towards Junpei. Ken thrusted his spear out towards Takaya and Jin.

“Junpei!” Akihiko called out, making sure to keep out for Strega and any shady moves they were going to try.

Takaya chuckled and shook his head. HIs hand shot down to his revolver and grinned. “My my my. What a spectacle! Now, watch as I respond to you kindly.”

“Takaya, wait!” Jin cut through Takaya’s thoughts and words. The leader looked down at his friend and frowned. “Do not forget your mission. Don’t waste your time on them!”

Takaya let those words stir in his mind as he nodded slowly. Junpei gasped as he could watch them slowly retreating away. “I have a much greater purpose to fulfill. Since the Dark Hour is not going anywhere for a while, there is no point dealing with you all any longer. Enjoy what ever time you have left.” Takaya glared at everyone as Jin nodded and pulled something out of his pocket. Before anyone could blink, he reached for a smoke bomb in his pocket and threw it out in front of them. The smoke blocked everyone’s vision of each other as Ken coughed and withdrew his weapon.

“Get back here!!” Junpei yelled as he was still on his knees, catching his breath once again as the smoke cleared. 

“Junpei!”

Akihiko called out as he watched the momentum that Junpei got and watched as he tried his hardest to go after Strega.

“GET BACK HERE!!”

Akihiko reached for Junpei, slipping into his arms as Akihiko was holding on tightly as he could to Junpei. He definitely didn’t want to let him go, even if he could feel Junpei fighting him for an inch.

“Let me go, Akihiko-senpai–!”

“No! She entrusted this life to you! Do NOT waste this second chance she gave you!” Akihiko shook him, hearing a heartfelt whine leaving Junpei’s mouth as he gasped, choking back a sob and felt Akihiko loosening his grip on him as he sat on his knees and sobbed. 

Slowly, he turned his attention back to his friends, especially to Fuuka holding Chidori, and the arrow that struck Fuuka’s heart to see Junpei crying–she had to try her hardest to not cry in front of him. It was like yawning–once someone does it, everyone does it. But, Fuuka had to be strong.

“Chidori…!” He murmured as he crawled to Fuuka. Carefully, she transferred Chidori to Junpei’s arms, making sure she was safe and sound, and her shoulders sank twenty feet into the ground. “Chidori…I… I… …dammit, this is…this is so hard . But, this is NOT my life anymore.” He whispered as he pulled her closer to his chest and laid his face into her hair. A hint of flowers in her hair made Junpei sniff his nose into her hair, wanting to not let anyone see his face full of tears. 

“...Junpei…” Minako whispered as she saw Akihiko had his back turned towards everyone. As if he was hiding his face from everyone, too. She turned her attention to Minato and bit her bottom lip. “...let’s head back to the dorm. Mitsuru-senpai–”

She was already at Junpei’s eye level and nodded. “Let’s go, Iori.” Mitsuru helped Junpei up, even while he was holding onto a lifeless Chidori, and Akihiko ran his hand through his short hair. Akihiko slowly turned to face Minako as everyone began to walk back to the dorm. “Arisato-kun, mind coming with me?” Mitsuru placed a hand on Minato’s shoulder, watching as Junpei seemed to be so far away in his mind, as if he wasn’t able to focus on the path in front of him. As if he was zoned out. “I think Iori needs a friend.”

A quick nod from Minato and turned his attention to Yukari. “I’ll be back later. I promise.” He kissed the top of his girlfriend’s head and she nodded, waving him away.

Fuuka and Shinjiro were the ones staying in the back of the group, watching as Junpei, Minato, and Mitsuru walked towards the opposite direction of the and towards the hospital. Fuuka turned aroundto look at the school, surprised that the blood that shot out of Junpei was non-existent. Was Chidori the reason? She turned her eyes forward and lowered her head. No one could say anything to Junpei before they split up–Fuuka wouldn’t know what to say to him, knowing that this could have been her and Shinjiro.

She reached for his hand and gripped it tightly. Fuuka looked up at Shinjiro carefully, noticing he was looking down and away from Fuuka. She wondered if he was thinking the same thing she was at that moment. However, Fuuka could only say, “I love you, Shinjiro,” to him, wondering what was on his mind.

Shinjiro looked down at Fuuka, flashing her a small smile and whispering “I love you, too” back to her as she smiled and gripped his hand a little tighter. Deep down, Shinjiro was trying his hardest to not get sick. The thought of telling Fuuka that the suppressants he took for years is now killing him would break her heart. But, the thought of breaking Chidori’s promise made him feel sicker.

Being stuck between a rock and a hard place and unsure if he was able to talk to anyone about this issue except maybe Koromaru and Miki.

…a part of him wishes he was dead as confronting this part about him to Fuuka might be worse than being alive. Shinjiro hated how he could already see the look of disappointment in her face with not confiding in her about this deadly secret. And disappointing Fuuka was going to tear him apart.

Chapter Text

🎵 And I was catchin' my breath
Barefoot in the wildest winter, catchin' my death
And I couldn't be sure
I had a feeling so peculiar
That this pain would be for
Evermore 🎵

November 28th

Never had she ever thought Fuuka would ever hear and see Junpei sob twice within a week. Junpei never really cried—this was new for her and the others. Even if it wasn’t a gut wrenching sob days before, it still tore at her heart. Being truly in love with someone and then watching them die in your arms—Fuuka never wanted to experience that, even though that basically happened to her and Shinjiro. 

She watched as Junpei went up the stairs with Chidori’s sketchbook, holding it close to his chest, and felt someone at her side. Turning her head slowly, Fuuka was surprised to see Mitsuru at her side. “Senpai? Is everything okay?”

The red head’s arms were crossed as she let out a small sigh. “I know my family has ruined a lot of people’s lives. And… I fear there is more that hasn’t been unearthed yet.”

Fuuka could hear the exhaustion in Mitsuru’s sigh. For once, she was relieved her family wasn’t in this sort of mess. Then again, her parents were so busy with their own ordeals that being here with SEES was the best case scenario. Just being able to come home and escape the controlled chaos for a day did help take the loads off of her mind. 

“Do you need me to—?”

Mitsuru shook her head, letting out a chuckle and turning to face Fuuka. “No no. You’ve done so much already. Besides,” she turned on her heels and faced the few SEES members left in the kitchen that were talking among themselves, “I’m sure you have your own hands full with Aragaki.”

Fuuka rose an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“I…may have lied a tiny bit. There is one thing I’d love for you to attempt to do. However, it’s a selfish request from me.”

“I’m sure that whatever it is, I’m confident I can help you!”

“…” Mitsuru kept silent, knowing full well that this might be one thing Fuuka can’t fix. It didn’t help that Fuuka had this determined nature inside of her. And the nagging feeling of conflict rising between Shinjiro and Fuuka with her request made Mitsuru swallow her fear and nodded. “I put the details in your room—it’s a folder I thrusted underneath your door. I know you can’t work miracles all the time, but just humor me and check it out?”

With a quick turn, and before Fuuka could reply, Mitsuru moved up the stairs quickly and left Fuuka alone. Fuuka blinked, turning to go after Mitsuru but stopped short. There were many scenarios going through Fuuka’s mind, but none of them made sense. Of course, the thought of this being something dealing with her made her even more nervous.

In a matter of seconds, Fuuka dashed up to her bedroom, unlocking the door, and noticing the red folder on the ground, right by the entrance. Closing the door and leaning down to pick it up, Fuuka sat at her table and looked at the folder. It wasn’t heavy but very light, but she feared it held a lot of secrets inside of here. 

Opening the folder carefully, Fuuka saw paperwork stapled together, on the side, and a sticky note to the left. She pulled the sticky note off and had to read the title twice to make sure she read it right. 

Yamagishi,

What you hold in your hands should probably go to Aragaki first but I knew he would be tired of me bothering him over this. But, with how intimate you both have been, I wanted to see if you could give this a shot. 

This is paperwork for a school reinstatement. For Shinjiro to come back to Gekkoukan. He would probably have to redo his third year, but he would be with you, Iori, Aigis, Takeba, and the Arisato twins. 

Just talk to him. See what he says. I wish you the best. 

Mitsuru Kirijo

Her eyes went wide, her heart skipping a beat, and gulping. She took the paperwork out and skimmed over stuff she had never seen before. The thought of having Shinjiro finishing his last year of high school with her and being closer to him made her heart flutter. 

But, he was going to butt heads with her. And she laid her hands and head down on the table and groaned. The idea sounded immaculate—but trying to talk to Shinjiro period about this made Fuuka’s hands sweat. She absolutely hated confrontation, especially with those she loves. And with his temper, she knew she was going to have her hands full. 

And so she did the one thing she knew she could do that could help her out: get advice from someone who isn’t in SEES. 

Natsuki? I know you are probably busy,
but could we txt a little? I need your help
with something important.  

Fuuka saw that Natsuki was about to reply, but then the text bubble disappeared and reappeared. 

Maybe this was a bad time. I should have probably called her since—

I’ve got time 2 spare—what’s up fuuka?

The sigh that left Fuuka’s lips could have been heard from outside her bedroom door, even with the door closed. 

I’ll get straight to the point. So, you know
OF Shinjiro, right? How well do you know
him? Like, is his temper really bad, 
like people have said? Because I have 
paperwork from Kirijo-senpai that will
get him back into school. And she only
wants ME to handle it, since we are dating
and I am terrified because I love him but 
I don’t want to argue with him and I have
no clue how to go about this.

So uhhhh… halp?

Wow. That IS a lot Fuuka. lol
Well, he does have a temper,
but it takes A LOT for him 2 get
mad. He only got mad one time
when one of my friends asked
why he talks to no one. He only
‘Tsked’ and shoved ‘im.

Uhhh…tbh? Just straight up ask
him. The worse he’ll say is NO.
And then you can cry and it’ll 
make him feel worse! No. Wait.
That’s worse. Fuck. 

Gosh, just thinking about trying to talk to 
him about coming back to school is
making my hands sweat. Maybe he 
will not put up a fight. …wait. Yeah he will.
He is so stubborn. orn 

No kidding. Listen, Fuuka, I
know this is scary, but you got
this! Who knows? Maybe Shinjiro
will think it’s hott that you are
confrontational or something
and see that you are passionate
about this! I’m still waiting for
selfies from you two! Tick tock
Fuuka! lol <3

I promise I will send you one or two 
before the year ends.  But, I’ll keep 
you updated on what the brooding 
boyfriend says. I’ll try talking to him 
tomorrow. Thnks for the quick txts. 
Just needed some…fresh eyes
on the matter. 

No probs! Though, if he does
go back to school, I DEF want
pictures of you two in ur
uniforms. Because I might need
blackmail from Shinjiro and/or you
for the future lol ;)

Days came and went, and before anyone knew it, December 2nd was upon them. And another full moon appeared. Mitsuru was pacing back and forth at Aigis’ door, which made Fuuka stop short at her own door and made her anxious and nauseous all of a sudden. She had not talked to Mitsuru in over a week and she still hasn’t talked to Shinjiro about the school reinstatement form. Everytime they were together, either it was so brief that Fuuka could barely ask how he was doing or they were kissing and being intimate. 

As if something was changing—as if the doting and kissing was out of pure desperation. Fuuka couldn’t confirm or deny it, but she couldn’t protest when Shinjiro was loving her. Who can say no to him?

“Senpai?” Her voice was soft, as if not to jump on Mitsuru and scare her. “Is everything okay?”

Mitsuru stopped pacing and turned to see the navigator with a hint of worry in her face. Mitsuru didn’t even realize that her arms were crossed but she still kept them crossed and closed herself to Fuuka. 

“Aigis has not returned back to the dorm after school. I thought she had plans with one of the Arisato twins, but they said they last saw her right after school ended, too.”

“Should I look for her with Lucia?”

“That would be helpful—the Dark Hour is approaching and while I know she can take care of herself, I’d love to have peace of mind.”

Fuuka nodded. “Of course. Let me go get my evoker and I’ll meet you in the command room.”

"Yamagishi—”

Fuuka gripped the doorknob and gulped silently. She knew what she was going to ask. Call it a motherly instinct. 

“—I have not talked to Shinjiro, senpai. I apologize for being so hesitant.”

“I see. I do not blame you for that. But, I just have one quick question.” Fuuka gulped and turned to face Mitsuru. “Has Aragaki look…less pale?”

Fuuka raised an eyebrow, surprised that THAT was the question Mitsuru decided to ask. Then again, Fuuka had to close her eyes and bring back the times she had been with Shinjiro. She always thought he looked pale—he always seemed to be in the shadows and did lack vitamin C. But, she suddenly remembered their last interaction. 

“I mean, I haven’t really noticed. I have noticed he is eating more—he always taste-tested his food, just one or two bites. But now, he’s almost ready to eat all of what he’s made before serving it to me.” Fuuka explained, wondering if he was just getting his energy back from being in the hospital. “Then again, who knows how long he has had hospital food. He’s probably getting his appetite back.” She chuckled, wondering if she really hasn’t paid any attention to Shinjiro like Mitsuru has. Granted, she’s known him for just over 3 months. And they have been to first and almost second base easily. 

Mitsuru nodded and waved her hand in front of her face. “You could be right. No matter, I’ll see you in the command room.” Fuuka nodded and entered her room. Mitsuru waited until the door was closed and sighed softly. Her eyes trailed to the stairs that led downstairs and stared longer than she should have. 

“With that body being transmogrified, is this a connection with Aragaki?”

After waiting for everyone to come down to the ground floor, finding Aigis after searching for a quarter of an hour, Fuuka stayed towards the back of the group while Minato led the second years and Ken along towards the front of the group. Fuuka looked over at Shinjiro, looking at him in the pale green moon light and did notice he looked a bit better. Healthier, technically. 

It didn’t help that Shinjiro was looking at her and staring at her with a look of worry and concern. “Is everything good? Do I…have something on my face?”

Fuuka shook her head and fixed her SEES armband a bit as she turned to look ahead. “You have nothing on your face—just, didn’t realize how you look a bit healthier. Or maybe it’s the moonlight?”

“What brought that up all of sudden?”

Don’t mention Mitsuru. Because it won’t make him happy. Right? 

“Someone in the group mentioned it. And you did have an appetite back. So, I’ve taken a much better look at you.” She explained, knowing that she should have seen the changes. Fuuka shook her head, trying to shake those negative thoughts from her mind. 

Shinjiro blinked in surprise, turning to look at his hands and then pushing them into the pockets of his trench coat. “Tsk. Your food is getting better. Don’t blame me if I eat it all.”

God, that was a pathetic excuse. She isn’t going to believe that at all! It’s Fuuka!

“Well, I have a wonderful senpai, and boyfriend, who is helping me.”

Damn. Her flirting is getting better. Fuck. 

“Whoever this senpai of yours is, I hope he isn’t flirting with my girl.” He laughed, making Fuuka blush as she had to turn her head further from his eyes. “Anyway, back to the point at hand—why the fuck is Aigis on the Moonlight Bridge?”

Fuuka shook her head and looked up at the bridge in the distance. “I…I don’t know. I sensed her there with her Persona and then she suddenly went off the radar. If only Lucia was stronger, I probably could have found her faster.”

Shinjiro could hear Fuuka getting upset. Seeing Mitsuru, Yukari, Ken, Akihiko, and Junpei with brand new Personas that were much more powerful made Shinjiro be on the side lines next to Fuuka. And when he was granted a chance to go into battle, it was only for a couple floors or so. With him having no weaknesses, Shinjiro knew he was a great asset in battle. But, now he was worried that he was going to be Fuuka’s bodyguard until the end of…whatever they were doing in Tartarus. 

In the smallest part of his heart, he hoped that one day him and Fuuka would awaken to stronger Personas. And he’d do anything to protect her and her confidence. 

The barking from Koromaru broke the silence between everyone as they all looked at Aigis, broken up, half destroyed, and sparks coming out from all over her body. Yukari ran faster to Aigis as everyone quickly followed her. 

“Aigis!”

Yukari called out to her as she slowly turned her head a quarter of the way until her eyes landed on Minako and Minato, both on her right side. Fuuka clasped her hands together, knowing full well something much stronger than Aigis did this to her. But what and who exactly?

“I…I am sorry. I…remember everything…” Aigis stated softly, her head low and her voice shaking. “I finally remember who I am… and what he is…and WHO—” Aigis gasped as she reached out to cup Minato’s cheek and her other hand laid gently on Minako’s knee cap. “Mi…nato… Mina…ko… I know why I wanted to be by your sides. I’m sorry. I failed…”

Minako shook her head quickly and laid her hand gently on top of Aigis’. “Save your strength. It’ll be okay, I promise!”

Minato nodded and softly lowered his eyes towards Aigis. He eventually touched her hand and tried to keep the worry out of his eyes. “What happened to you? Who did this to you?”

Aigis just kept apologizing. “I’m sorry…”

“There is no reason for you to apologize.”

Everyone turned their heads to face Ryoji. A few had a look of surprise on their faces, others had worried, and a couple had fear. 

“Huh? You?” Junpei called out, his arms crossed as Ryoji lowered his head and sighed. A sigh of worry and frustration and hurt and…disappointment. 

“Why are you here Ryoji-kun?” Yukari asked softy, standing up next to Aigis as Ryoji said nothing. The sparks that came out of Aigis broke the silence as Fuuka gasped and turned her attention back to the android. 

“Aigis!” Fuuka covered her lips and looked back at everyone. “She’s not moving…she not functioning anymore…” Fuuka didn't need Lucia to tell her that--the exposed wires around her body were either cut in half or hanging on barely by a thread.

Shinjiro gritted his teeth and bit his tongue as Akihiko beat him to questioning Ryoji first. “What is going on…?”

“It’s…this is all my fault.” Ryoji pointed out, his hand on his hip and his eyes unable to face the members of SEES. 

Akihiko’s face full of worry turned into fear for a brief moment. His eyebrows rose as he pointed to Aigis with his hand. “What—what do you mean? Did you do this!?”

Mitsuru put a hand up to Akihiko, keeping him locked into place as she turned to face him while addressing him. “Hold on, Akikiko. He is not showing signs of aggression.” Waiting a moment for Akihiko to calm down, Mitsuru brought her hand back to her own waist and glared at Ryoji. “Tell us… who, or what, are you?”

A heavy sigh left Ryoji’s lips as he placed the hand that was on his hip to his chest. “I…am not so different from those creatures you have called Shadows.”

“The fuck? You’re a shadow?!” Shinjiro asked. 

“I’m more than just an ordinary shadow. I’m the Appriser—born from the union of the twelve arcana.”

Ken looked at him in wonder, back at Aigis, and back to Ryoji. “The Appraiser? What is that?”

“I remember everything. The terrifying truth about the shadows and me.” Ryoji stated, a small laugh, which was full of despair, left his lips. “It’s just…so hard to believe.”

“You know the truth about the shadows?” Mitsuru quipped, her interest piqued. 

“I do.”

Gasps left the mouths of some members of SEES. “What!?” Akihiko called out as Ryoji looked up at the members of SEES, watching as the Arisato twins glared at him with anger. 

“The shadows are here to facilitate the rebirth of the maternal being. As for the Appraiser—it draws the maternal being to it, allowing her to awaken.”

Fuuka covered her lips with her fingers and used her other hand to then her chest. She knew something was off about Ryoji, but never would she have thought of this being the case! “This maternal being you mentioned—what is it?” She asked carefully, unsure if she wanted to know the truth.

“She is on a whole other level. No words in our language can describe her.” He let out the air in his lungs and felt himself deflating. “Ten years ago, a man collected lots of shadows and contained them all in a laboratory. That’s where I was born. However, the unification was interrupted and I awoke before I was fully completed. After that, Aigis took me down and I returned the favor tenfold.”

Junpei looked down at Aigis once more and up to Ryoji. He felt his hands shaking in fear. He didn’t need more drama added to his plate. “With our Aigis?! Is this for real Ryoji?”

He nodded and Ryoji continued. “She knew she couldn’t defeat me. Out of desperation, she sealed me within a child who just happened to be nearby. However,” he turned his eyes to the twins and stared sadly at them, “she sealed me inside of a boy, since his sister was unconscious at the time. He grew up with me inside of him. And by some nasty twist of fate, they both made their way back here later on in life. They both transferred to your school.”

Yukari turned to face the twins and gulped. “You don’t mean…” Yukari watched as the other members slowly turned to face the twins as they were staring at each other. Never did they think everything would be connected back to them. Their gulps were audible for all to hear.

“I have lived inside of Minato for years.” Ryoji stated, making the point more crystal clear.

Minato handed Aigis to Minako and pointed to himself. “You’ve…been inside of me for years? … …it makes sense why I have been so emotionless and uncaring some times. Death was controlling my emotions…”

Fuuka’s eyes widen. Was the reason he acted so cold to her months beforehand was because of Death being inside of him? She covered her lips as Yukari shook her head, asking how this all happened. 

Ryoji bit his lip and looked at Minato still. “When his Persona awakened, the twelve shadows awoke too. …all in order to become one…with me.”

Junpei took off his hat, wringing it with his fingers, and grinding his teeth. He had to stay cool but felt his anger boiling in his chest and head. “So, you’re the Appriser, Ryoji. And you were inside of him this whole damn time? How the hell do you expect us to believe all that bullshit!?”

Ryoji collapsed to his knees, exhausting hitting him all at once, as he frowned and closed his eyes. “I’m sorry. There is more…I need to tell you…all…” In a blink of an eye, Ryoji collapsed in front of everyone as Fuuka gasped and called out to Ryoji. 

Minato ran up to him, checking for a pulse and while relieved to find one, turned his attention back to the others. “He just collapsed. He is completely worn out. They must have fought for a while.”

Mitsuru nodded and turned to face the others. “He needs rest, just like Aigis does. We will pick up later from where Ryoji left off.” Everyone silently nodded while Minato picked up Ryoji and Minako picked up Aigis, albeit getting help from Akihiko. The way back to the dorm was quiet and the silence was deafening to everyone. 

I will see you in a few minutes. 
Fixing Koro-chan dinner. 

Are you doing okay?

Fuuka sighed as she looked through her messages on her phone silently. Everyone was in the fourth floor command room, as Mitsuru told everyone at school in person or via text message. It had been 10 minutes and everyone already found a comfortable spot on the sofa or on the chairs across the sofa. 

As if she was willing Shinjiro to hurry up in her mind, Fuuka heard the door clicking open as Shinjiro appeared and closed the door once Koromaru entered at last. 

“Sorry. Koromaru needed dinner—I wasn’t too late was I?”

Ryoji shook his head as Mitsuru crossed her legs and turned her attention to Ryoji. 

“It looks like we are all here.”

Fuuka placed her hands together, leaning forward towards Ryoji as she had to ask him if he was okay. Being the motherly person she is, Ryoji laughed and placed his hand on his chest. 

“I am okay. Thank you for being concerned. However, I have more to tell you guys.” Ryoji flashed a small smile at Fuuka, but then turned his attention towards everyone as he placed his hands on his knees. He gripped them tightly. “And you may not like what I have to say.”

“Ryoji-kun…” Yukari murmured as Mitsuru crossed her arms and turned to look at Ryoji. 

“Then let me jump straight into the fray. We have many questions that need answers. Firstly, you said the Shadows were here to help facilitate the rebirth of the maternal being.” She recalled for everyone as Shinjiro leaned against the sofa’s armrest where Ken sat. “Tell us more—what happens if she returns?”

Ryoji brings his hands together and speaks softly. “The maternal being is called Nyx.”

Junpei raised an eyebrow and sat up taller while he sat between Ken and Fuuka. “Who the hell is Nyx?”

“Nyx is the mother of Shadows. Back in ancient times, she bestowed Death upon this world. If she does awaken, the world will be swallowed up by darkness…and all life will perish.”

Audible gasps left everyone’s lips as Akihiko glared at Ryoji and shuddered at the thought. “All life?!”

“Fucking hell…” Shinjiro murmured, his eyes shooting down to the ground as Mitsuru broke the awkward silence. 

“A-are you saying…everyone will die?”

Ryoji grimaced and leaned downward. He did have to tell them the truth after all. “It would be more accurate to say that all of us will surrender the will to live.”

“Wait…you don’t mean you are talking about the Lost?” Mitsuru asked cautiously, watching as Ryoji nodded his head in agreement. 

Quietly, everyone looked at each other as they all came to the same conclusion: everyone will turn into the Lost one way or another. Which will lead to the extinction of mankind and the end of the world. All because they took down the arcana shadows.

Mitsuru lowered her head and gripped her skirt in fear. “The Fall…”

Yukari looked back and forth at everyone, trying to help lighten the mood. Her hand on her chest, she turned to Ryoji. “But, there is STILL a way to stop it from happening, right?”

Ryoji lowered his eyes, unable to face Yukari and unable to answer her question. 

“…what? … …don’t tell me there is nothing we can do?”

“I am so sorry.” Ryoji replied, knowing the answer was half hearted. 

Yukari jumped up from her seat and frowned. “Why are you apologizing? Are you really saying there’s no way to stop it?”

Shinjiro gritted his teeth and turned to face Yukari. His fists were balled up and had to pocket them into his peacoat’s pockets. “Didn’t you hear, Takeba? We are dead no matter what! All this shit we have gone through… …it was for NOTHING!”

“Shinjiro!” Fuuka turned to face him, her hand on her chest as she hated to see her friends argue. Even if he was right, Fuuka did not want anyone to say those words outloud.

“He is right, though. You all heard the bell. That’s when it was all decided.” Ryoji crossed his legs and eyed Shinjiro and the others one by one. “I am the Appriser…the Appriser of Death. The fact that I am here at all guarantees the Fall is coming.”

Fuuka gulped and lowered her head. Just hearing those words turned her blood cold. “The Fall…is coming…”

Hearing that Ryoji’s existence confirms the extinction of mankind is inevitable made a couple feel sick, a couple mad, and the rest scared. Everyone was at a loss for words. And everyone lowered their heads, scared to look at each other. Afraid to see what everyone’s faces looked like, full of despair.

Akihiko growled and turned to face Ryoji while no one could look at him. “When!? When will this all happen!?”

“I don’t think you will long enough to see Spring.”

“Spring!? That’s barely three months!” Shinjiro retorted as everyone shot their heads up to look at Ryoji’s defeated face. Eyes wide with surprise as Junpei stood up immediately, his hands shooting out from his sides and spoke up immediately.

“That’s not even enough time at all!”

Heavy sighs left the lips of the eldest members of SEES as Yukari sat back down and felt defeated all of a sudden. She looked down at her hands in her lap as Junpei turned to look at everyone and tried to cheer everyone up. “H-hey—what’re you guys freakin’ out about? All we hafta do is win and we are golden! Am I right?”

Minako sighed softly as she looked at her shoes while sitting on the ground. “Junpei…”

“Dudes, dudettes—we haven’t lost a single fight yet, have we!?”

“Junpei’s right…” Minato stated softly as he turned to look at the Magician. Junpei crossed his arms with satisfaction and a small hint of a smile. “But, it’s not THAT simple anymore, you know?”

“He’s right.” Ryoji pointed out as he sighed softly. “When you are up against Nyx, power doesn’t mean a thing. You can’t win. It’s like trying to fight the inevitable, like death or the flow of time.”

Junpei pointed to Shinjiro and then to Fuuka. “These two fought for their lives, came up against death and now…NOW you are telling me, telling them, it was pointless!?”

“Nyx…can’t be defeated. She just can’t.”

“Wh-what?” Junpei’s voice was barely above a whisper as he stomped his foot on the ground. “This isn’t fair!”

For once, I agree with Iori.

Shinjiro thought silently, his back turned to the group, as he didn’t know what would come out of his mouth at this point in time. He had to ground himself or he may throw a punch or two. Or scream—it might have been cathartic and normal at this point.

“This…is all sudden.” Ken murmured. 

“Ken-kun…” Minako looked towards the elementary school student, a look of distraught on her face, as she knew he had to be taking this hard. Hell, every one was at the moment. 

“I was born from a collection of Shadows. But now? I have a human form that can talk with you, laugh and cry with you.” Ryoji explained as he turned to face Minato. Feeling his eyes being glued to his body, Minato looked up and gazed at Ryoji’s face. “It’s the gift I received for existing inside of him. And because of that, I can give you a choice.”

Shinjiro turned on his heels and crossed his arms, glaring daggers at Ryoji. “That would have been fucking nice to have been told about this choice beforehand.”

“So,” Ryoji turned to face everyone, “Nyx’s arrival is unavoidable now. But you can choose to live in peace until she arrives. The catch is that I have to be killed.” More gasps filled the silence as Ryoji closes his eyes, placing his hands on his chest and taking a big deep breath in. 

“If the Appriser disappears, all recollection of the Dark Hour would go with me. And that would, in turn, erase any and all memories of this hopeless reality. There would be no way for you to remember anything.” He opened his eyes and stares ahead, past the members of SEES. “When the Fall comes, it will happen in an instant. You won’t have to suffer one bit.”

Mitsuru pushed some hair out of her face as she uncrossed her legs. “We will forget everything?”

Ryoji smiled softly and shook his head. “I am saying that you can go back to your normal lives. And by doing that, you might buy a tiny amount of time and delay the Fall, too. Technically, though, I am the same as Nyx, so I can’t be killed. But, thanks to Minato, there is a part of me that’s become human. If it’s done by his hand, then it may be possible.”

“Ryoji-kun…” Fuuka murmured, her hands in her lap as she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her eyes went to look at Shinjiro and noticed he wasn’t looking at her. She couldn’t tell what he was really looking at at that moment.

“If you don’t kill me, everything will just stay the same. With no hope for salvation, you’ll live every day paralyzed by the fear of your impending death! And…I don’t want to put you through something like that.”

Minato ran his fingers through his hair and groaned. This was just getting worse the more he listened. “I could never kill you… it’s like I have this connection with you.”

“This is something only you can do. No one else.”

Yukari placed a hand on her chest and looked at Minato. “I definitely don’t want my memories erased. I mean, forgetting all of this would be like…trying to hide the truth!”

Ryoji shook his head. “Is that such a bad thing? If you don’t do this, then all that awaits you all is despair greater than you can even imagine. You don’t understand the terror of certain death! At least, don’t make your decision without at least thinking more about this.”

Yukari opened her mouth and then closed it, unable to form words to reply to Ryoji. She lowered her head in defeat. Ken grabbed a nearby pillow and gripped it tightly. He would have thrown it out of pure anger but couldn’t. He lost the energy all of a sudden. 

“Why’s this all happening now!?” Ken rhetorically asked. 

Ryoji let out a soft sigh again and closed his eyes. “You do not have to decide at this moment. You have time. December 31st, New Year’s Eve. You have until then to make up your mind. After that, I will dissolve into the darkness and blackness of the Dark Hour and lose my physical form.”

He got up from his spot as he began to walk towards the doorway. Junpei watched Ryoji moving as he stayed glued to his spot. “Ryoji…” Junpei called out as he stopped short in front of the door. 

“When Nyx does arrive, I am going to disappear anyway. You do not have to worry about me. I’ll be back here when the 31st rolls around.” He opened the door and closed it while Junpei reached out towards Ryoji and the door. 

“H-hey! Ryoji—wait—!”

Fuuka grabbed Junpei’s other free arm and shook her head. “No use going after him. Ryoji-kun’s presence just vanished now. There is no point chasing after him. He…he’s gone.”

The room filled with awkward silence and heavy, defeated sighs coming from different parts of the room. Koromaru whined softly as Shinjiro leaned down to pet him. Mitsuru eyed the group for a couple seconds and crossed her arms again, protecting herself with her body language. 

“I…guess we will see him soon…” Mitsuru stated as she watched Akihiko moving from his spot and beginning to pace. Koromaru got up slowly and began to walk back and forth with him. Everyone was feeling dread and hopelessness—either they had to move or stay still. Fight…or flight?

Shinjiro waited until Ken and Junpei left, which wasn’t for a while, as he moved to sit next to Fuuka. The twins eyed the Priestess and Hierophant carefully as Akihiko, Koromaru, and Yukari left the room soon after.

“So…even though I sacrificed myself for you, it was pointless in the end!?” Fuuka murmured, her head and eyes looking at her hands in her lap and tried her best to suppress her emotions. Her small hands balled into tiny fists. “Just what was the point, Shinjiro?”

“Fuck if I know. At this point, I wished I died that night two months ago. If I knew THIS is where my life was going to end up, I wished Takaya killed me.”

Fuuka turned to look up at him, her eyes huge in surprise, as Mitsuru had something to say to him before the navigator could. “So you would have rather ended up like my father? Dead? You think you’d be useful then?”

“Tsk.” The typical thing that came out of Shinjiro’s mouth the moment someone confronted him when it came to stuff he didn’t want to bring up again. Death being one of them. “Just don’t want to almost die, again.”

“But,” Fuuka put one of her hands on Shinjiro’s arms and gripped his sleeve gently, “I wouldn’t want to forget everything we’ve been through. The idea of fighting something that is… unwinnable sounds terrifying.”

Shinjiro closed his eyes, trying to imagine what it would be like to live without a care in the world. Like the Lost. To not have someone relying on you all the time. And to not have a Persona trying to kill you. But, losing his memories…would that include past memories or current memories or both? Forgetting the fire at the orphanage that killed Miki and his Persona killing Ken’s mother—it probably would lift all the stress and burdens off of him. 

“It is.” He opened his eyes and turned to face Fuuka. “But forgetting the most painful memories may be a blessing in disguise.”

Fuuka couldn’t disagree with him. But, she still wanted to know where he stood. Hell, she wasn’t sure where she stood with what she wanted to do. Forgetting the neglect her own parents put her through sounded…delightful.

“Even if it meant forgetting your friends? And me?”

That was an arrow to the heart for Shinjiro. He slightly winced, almost unnoticeable by everyone but Mitsuru and Fuuka, and let out a heavy sigh. “Fuuka, I…I don’t know what I wanna do. I feel that no matter what I choose, you won’t be happy with the outcome.”

She removed her hand from his sleeve and frowned. “What is that supposed to mean? Why do you think you need my approval for your decision making?”

Minako groaned into her brother’s ear and ran her hands down her face. She whispered into her brother’s ear, “These two are about to get heated again.” Minato nodded slowly as Mitsuru kept a watchful eye on them. 

"You know what this all means, right? If we fight this Nyx bitch, we will die . If we don’t fight, we will die . I don’t see anything good coming out of this thanks to the blue-haired emo teen over there!” He shot his thumb towards Minato, which made Minato point to himself and questioned if he really was emo to himself. 

“Minato-kun had no say in harboring Death for the last 10 years or so! You were perfectly fine with trying to damage your body ever since you took suppressants, so why are you up in arms about this? Why are you now scared of dying now instead of back then?”

Shinjiro grabbed Fuuka’s shoulders as the twins and Mitsuru got up from their spots and prepared for the worst. They all knew Shinjiro wouldn’t hurt a fly, but this knowledge put everyone on edge and was sure someone was going to get hurt. When Shinjiro got mad, he gets a bit blinded by rage. Though no one was sure what he would do. 

“Because I have something to fight for for the first time in my life!” His voice rose a little, leaving Fuuka with a shocked expression and her cheeks turning rosy pink. “Listen, when you protected Amada and I, I couldn’t believe that someone would be willing to protect me. I always made sure everyone around me was safe and sound and taken care of. But you—Fuuka, when I saw you turning blue and pale in front of all of us, my heart sank.

“I wanted to make it up to you and I didn’t know how to. Yeah, we are dating and what not, but I wished I could get rid of that memory of you dying in Iori’s arms. The blood that pooled under you—I could never get rid of that memory. I close my eyes for just a minute and I flashback to you dying! I felt helpless!”

She never knew Shinjiro thought about the memory of her dying every so often. The thought of him just staring off into the distance and RELIVING the memory or even looking at her and just seeing blood on her made Fuuka realize that she might have caused him more pain in the end. No peace of mind. Just the idea of saving his life only to extend it when he was perfectly fine with the idea of dying—it made Fuuka ill. 

“…why did you never tell me this?” Her voice was soft and low, barely audible for the others to hear her. 

“How could I? When could I?”

“Would it be better for us…if we broke up?”

Shinjiro’s eyes widened in shock as he shook his head. “No! Fuuka,” he gripped her shoulders gently and tilted his head downward to look at her better, “are you listening to what I’m saying?”

“I caused you unwanted pain. You want your memories erased of me so you can go on with life and not experience any more heartache.”

“No! I think about you every damned day and while the memory of flashing back and seeing—” Shinjiro had to shake his head to rid the memory of blood in his mind away. “—I am constantly reminded how lucky I am to have you with me. That if we didn’t bother each other about our issues, then we wouldn’t be alive and/or dating! I fucking love you, Fuuka, and I’ll be damned if I let Ryoji, Death, or this Nyx bitch take you away from me!”

Mitsuru and Minako both looked at Shinjiro with wide eye wonder. Their jaws dropped, unable to say anything to the couple in front of them. Fuuka kept her eyes down, tears prickling the corners of her eyes. She couldn’t find the right words to say at first. 

“N-no one…” she sniffed her nose, trying her hardest to blink back tears and failing horribly. “…has loved me as m-much as you have, Shinjiro.” Fuuka wiped her eyes with the tips of her fingertips and looked up at Shinjiro, causing him to lower his hands down to her arms. He moved one of his hands to cup her cheek and to wipe away any tears that threatened to ruin her makeup—if she was wearing any. “I-I… I am scared and I don’t want to fight, but I do, then I don’t!”

“Fuuka. It’s okay to be scared. It’s okay to not know what you want.” Minato stated, pushing some of his hair out of his face with his fingers and looked at Fuuka. “We all don’t know what we want to do. We have almost a month to figure it out.”

Fuuka placed her hand on the top of Shinjiro’s hand and nodded slowly. Her eyes closed and her breathing more relaxed. “I’ve always…had a plan when it came to most things. With Nyx, I…I don’t know what the plan is and not being prepared is terrifying.”

Shinjiro felt sweat rolling down his back. The way he was able to avoid Fuuka breaking up with him and avoiding a breakdown with Fuuka in general just made him feel much more exhausted than before. Maybe he could do this dating thing better than he thought. Mitsuru reached over to Fuuka and placed her hand on her free shoulder. 

“It is scary, Yamagishi. For now, let’s sleep on the idea. Let’s come back in a week and see if any feelings have changed. One day at a time, okay?” Mitsuru smiled warmly towards the Priestess, waiting for the navigator to nod and once she did, Mitsuru eventually left the room with her shoulders as high as she could put them. 

The twins joined Mitsuru and closed the door behind them while they talked to one another. This left Shinjiro and Fuuka alone. Fuuka sniffed her nose and looked down at the ground once again. “Do you really, really love me that much, Shinjiro?”

He chuckled and kissed her lips deeply, proving his point. “Duh, idiot. If you only saw the looks Minako and Mitsuru gave us.”

Fuuka gasped. “I missed that?!” A quick nod from Shinjiro as Fuuka pouted her lips for a moment. She did look up at Shinjiro and tilted her head slightly. “Listen: I… I still am unsure of what I want to do. As much as I want to fight, I want to sit on my thoughts for a little bit longer.”

“And I respect that and you.” Shinjiro assured as he lowered his hand from her cheek. “All I ask is that you are one-hundred percent confident with your answer in the end.”

“I will be. I promise.”

“I don’t like how this is not going in our favor.”

“Being down a person and going against them is troublesome.”

“Do you have any ideas on how to take them down? They are strong together.”

“Ah. Then we must separate them.”

“How the fuck do we do that? They are always together in their little group. Going to school together…but they split up afterwards. After school activities and shit.”

“You are finally seeing what I am throwing down, Jin. You are an expert when dealing with the internet and hacking, correct?”

“Uhh yeah—mainly the dark web, though.”

“Then how about we try something. If you can hack like she can, then see if you can get her to meet you. Or perhaps, THINK she’s seeing someone. You’ve already planted the seed. Now we wait for it to bloom.”

Jin pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, calculating what he would have to do in order to hijack a phone and possibly a laptop. “Think you can wait that long, Takaya?”

A chuckle left the half naked man’s lips as his arms were crossed while they were at their hideout. The green light from the Dark Hour and the moon illuminated their faces just enough to see each other. “That’s fine. I want SEES to suffer like we have. And I’ll be damned if I let Shinjiro get his happy ending. You don’t toy with us, take our suppressants, and get out scot-free. Starting first with his lover, Fuuka Yamagishi. Let’s scare her and prove a point.”

Chapter Text

🎵 As long as danger is near
And it’s just around the corner, darling
‘Cause it lives in me
No, I could never give you peace 🎵

December 6th

Fuuka-chan! I am sorry
to have to postpone my visit
to see you!
Dad isn’t doing too well. 🙁

Oh no! You focus
on your father. Family
always comes first, okay?

December 8th

Fuuuuuuka!
Are you free this Saturday?
Mom told me to go see you and
shiiiit–she sees i am stressed
TF out.

Really? I was hoping
to hang out with my bf–
he was going to take me to Chagall,
but I am sure I can move it to Sunday! 😀

December 11

I am still good for the 12th <3
Wanna meet up at Escapade?
Gotta wear something hott!  O.M.G.
Make Aragaki-senpai jelly!!

You sure about that? I
really don’t have anything…
risqué. I am sure I can find something!
What time?

11pm! We gotta live a
little, Fuuka!
That’s when the music gets
loud and it’s only the Club and us!
See ya! ✌️

And Fuuka sits there with her phone in her lap, unsure of what the idea of risqué would look on her in particular. She has maybe one tank top from the summer, her summer dress, and…that’s it. A loud groan escaped her lips as Yukari lowered the magazine from her face and eyed the Priestess.

“What’s wrong, Fuuka? I have not heard you sigh that heavy in a long time.”

Fuuka turned her body and faced Yukari with her foot underneath one of her knees. Minako looked up at the girls and keenly listened to Fuuka’s woes.

“Well, Natsuki-chan has invited me to Club Escapade tomorrow night. I mean, we’ve talked about wanting to hang out for weeks, but she has sort of ghosted me for a month. Until now.” She stated softly, putting her phone face down next to her and bit her lip. “And she wanted me to wear something risqué. I don’t have anything at all.”

“Huh. Club Escapade is a place where a lot of people like to hook up though. She does know you are dating, right?” Yukari closed the magazine and crossed her arms. Fuuka nodded slowly as Yukari tilted her head. “Maybe she wants you around to give her pointers? I mean, if anyone could wrangle Aragaki-senpai, it’d be Minako-chan, Mitsuru, or you, to be honest.”

Minako leaned towards the girls and took her hands and shook them in front of her. “Not that I would take senpai from you, Fuuka-chan! You both are precious together!”

Fuuka chuckled softly and felt her cheeks warming up. Never would she have thought she’d be the one with a boyfriend. Maybe she would be the woman with 10 cats or something else. She always seemed to be the wise one and help guide her friends in and out of Tartarus. But now, it seemed as if everyone else was helping Shinjiro and Fuuka out one way or another.

“So, what would someone wear that would be sexy?” Fuuka questioned the girls, watching as they looked at each other and then back at Fuuka. “W-what? You guys don’t think I can pull off sexy?”

Minako placed a fingertip on her chin and looked up to the ceiling. “It’s not that. I mean, I am sure we can place you in an elegant, beautiful gown but you and ‘sexy’--” Minako used air quotes around the word sexy, “--is hard to define because you have to know what sexy FOR YOU is.”

Yukari quickly nodded in agreement. “That’s true. But I am sure we can get some ideas while we scoured through our closets? If we find something that matches with you, then maybe we could go shopping in the afternoon after class is over?”

“Well, alright. That sounds promising.” Fuuka smiled as Yukari and Minako decided on going to Minako’s room in the moment. Yukari shot up to her room, gathering clothes for Fuuka to try on as Minako casually shot a look at Fuuka. The fool watched as Fuuka was looking through her phone, looking deeply interested in something. Or someone.

“Fuuka?” Minako tapped on her friend’s shoulder and pointed to the stairs. “I’m going up to my room. Is…everything good?”

“I…I know Natsuki-chan has issues with her father and not being able to message me. I get it. But she never messages me emojis or so quickly before. …am I paranoid?” Fuuka asked, looking at Minako, and pocketed her phone as she walked to the stairs with her ally.

Minako crossed her arms and shrugged. “I mean, I don’t know Natsuki as well as you do, Fuuka. Maybe she’s trying to be more outgoing or something? All I know is us girls will get you looking fine for the club! Maybe we should get Mitsuru-senpai to help us!”

Fuuka crestfallen. “Worst case scenario, we will ask her for help.”

December 12

Coming down the stairs and holding her light blue cardigan in her arms and having a small messenger bag on her shoulder, Fuuka froze as she saw the stares of the guys, and Minako, staring at her in her outfit. The very out of character outfit for someone like Fuuka Yamagishi. 

Minako held a thumbs up as she could see the death glare of Shinjiro’s eyes on the back of her head. “You are looking great, Fuuka! The pink clashes so well with your hair!”

Shinjiro turned to face his girlfriend and gulped, feeling the heat on his cheeks radiating brightly. “Where are you going in that?”

“I’m going to see Natsuki.”

“Where at? A club?”

“Yes. Club Escapade, in fact.”

“Uh, no. You are not going to Club Escapade like that!”

Fuuka crossed her arms and huffed. “So? It’s just for an hour. And I will be with Natsuki. I’ll be fine.”

Shinjiro got up from his spot on the couch and looked up and down at Fuuka. The outfit that Yukari and Minako found for her did expose more of her body and it did help build up Fuuka’s confidence. The black skirt coming up midway her thigh and the pink top that exposed her chest in a ‘v’ shape did scream she was ready for clubbing. Was that a push up bra!? And it made Shinjiro flustered. 

“This is the first time I’ve heard of you hanging out with Moriyama in weeks.” Shinjiro eyed her suspiciously. 

“We just made plans last night.” Fuuka looked up at Shinjiro. “Her dad has been sick for weeks and her mother is giving her a night away—she’s staying with family in Iwatodai.”

Akihiko had to turn his eyes away as he shuffled closer to Minako. He had to admit that Minako knew how to doll up Fuuka and make her shine. He leaned over to Minako and whispered in her ear, “Did you and Takeba do that to Yamagishi?” He even nudged his thumb towards the shortest girl in the dorm. 

His girlfriend nodded as she put her hands in her lap and sighed. “Maybe I overdid it?”

Shinjiro put his hands on her shoulders and accidentally looked down at Fuuka’s chest. His cheeks were redder than before as Shinjiro realized her bra was, indeed, a push up bra. He wanted to curse Minako because this was a tease. A test? Hell, he had no idea. 

“…and of course she would choose to go to a club.”

“Are you…jealous, Shinjiro?” Fuuka cunningly smiled, absentmindedly pushing her chest closer to Shinjiro. “If you wanted me to wear stuff like this more often, you should have told me.”

Junpei raised his eyebrows and was close to pausing his game. He only briefly saw Fuuka’s lower half of her outfit and didn’t want to see the top half. Though, he did shift his body away and had his legs casting over the arm of the armchair. His back facing the Hierophant and Priestess. 

“N-no! Fuck, Fuuka.” He uttered softly, trying to hold his hands at his sides and trying so hard not to caress her backside or her ass. The idea of what panties she was wearing underneath did tickle the dirty part of his mind. “Just…why would she want you to go clubbing this close to midnight? It’s dangerous.”

“Because it’s cheaper to go after 11 since the club closes at 1.” Fuuka stated, almost wanting to say it was public knowledge. She patted the side of her bag and looked down at it. “I’ve got my phone, wallet, and I promise to keep myself safe.”

Shinjiro gritted his teeth and sighed. He knew he was going to lose this battle with his girlfriend. He moved out of her way but quickly placed a kiss on her lips before she left. 

“At least message me when you are there. For my sake.”

A soft smile appeared on Fuuka’s lips and she nodded. “Deal. Now, I am off. Don’t stay up too late, Shinji!” She giggled as she walked past her friends and lover and out the door within a few seconds. 

Once the door clicked closed, Shinjiro turned back to the small group and frowned. 

“Something is up.”

“Shinji, Fuuka’s been gone for less than a minute. Can’t you—?”

“Aki.” Shinjiro moved to Akihiko and Minako’s spot on the couch and crossed his arms. “Moriyama has not been to Club Escapade since June. She stopped associating herself with those people. This doesn’t feel right.”

Junpei paused his game and flipped his body right side up, so he was sitting upright. Placing the game on the coffee table, he quickly leaned back in the armchair. “Sometimes people’s bad habits return, senpai.”

Shinjiro shook his head. “But why invite Fuuka there? She’s soft spoken, shy, and clubs are loud. She’ll probably zone out and not realize to message any of us.”

Akihiko groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. “You need to let her be a big girl. She can’t have you constantly at her side. Trust her, Shinji.”

“That’s the problem—Fuuka keeps so many secrets inside that she is unable to speak up when something feels wrong. I know I’m right.”

“Shinjiro…” Minako placed a hand on her chest and looked up at the Hierophant. “She did mention that Natsuki-san was ghosting her for a while. They just started communicating this month—Fuuka didn’t go into much detail afterwards.”

Shinjiro took both his hands, palms up, and shoved them outwards towards Minako. He was trying to emphasize his point to Akihiko. Akihiko sighed heavily and pushed himself off the couch. 

“Okay, okay. Fine. You may be right. But, Fuuka needs to be able to spread her wings. Give her peace of mind.”

“I know. But I just…with it being so close to midnight, I don’t like this. If she gets hurt, she’ll never forgive herself for not telling us.” 

Akihiko rose an eyebrow. “You think it’s a trap.”

“One hundred percent.”

Akihiko quickly got up and turned on his heels to talk to Minako and noticed she was getting up at the same time. “I know you guys need your stuff.”

Both of the guys nodded in agreement. Junpei got up from his spot and looked at his senpais. His eyes darting back and forth between them. 

“I’ll stay here and be prepared?”

“Iori,” Shinjiro began to walk over to his kouhai and nodded slowly, putting his hands on his shoulders, “I don’t think we will need you, but that would be nice.”

Junpei nodded as he grabbed his game, turning it off, and dashing up to his room. Akihiko eyed his friend carefully, with soft and warm eyes, as Minako came down seconds later with two briefcases. Placing them on the coffee table, she quickly leaned over to kiss Akihiko’s cheek and smiled. 

“Everything is in there for you both. This will be between us, okay?” She stated, opening the briefcases for their Evokers and armbands. “Be safe. And Shinjiro?”

Shinjiro raised his eyebrow and looked at Minako while she was still smiling. “Hmm?”

“Thank you for listening to your gut.”

Fuuka, I’m going to be
late. Like a few minutes or
so. Plz don’t be mad! 

It’s okay—I’m already here.
I’ll wait for you inside—it’s so cold!

Wait! Meet me in the back
by the mahjong place. I have a
gift to give you and it’s in
that place. I promise
I’ll be there in a few minutes! <3

Okay, if you say so. I’m
getting goosebumps. See you soon,
Natsuki :)

She rubbed her arms, realizing it was getting much colder tonight and wishing she was much more prepared. She at least wore a cardigan that Yukari helped her find yesterday. It was big on her, but it covered all of her back and her tail end. At least she was able to compromise on being able to wear flats. And with no one else by the mahjong place, at least Fuuka didn’t have to talk with someone for now. She never really liked talking to strangers—it was difficult to keep a conversation going sometimes. 

Fuuka heard footsteps behind her, ready to call out to Natsuki and give her a piece of her mind, until she saw it was Jin. She silently gulped and placed a hand behind her back, touching her evoker in her bag and making sure it was there. Deciding to take the small messenger bag was a blessing at this moment.

Fuuka knew deep down that Natsuki wasn’t going to meet up with her. Of course, she didn’t tell anyone that Jin was playing her. A part of her felt alive when being able to dab into danger like this. And she didn’t want anyone to interfere. (She wondered if Shinjiro was a reason as to why she played dangerously with something like this.) She has his IP address and could follow him back when Jin is on his own laptop. And…perhaps she wanted to see if Jin would really meet her here.  

But this was walking into the lion’s den with meat wrapped around her body. 

“You don’t look surprised.” Jin observed, his eyes narrowed and glared at the navigator. 

“I knew something was up the moment “Natsuki” used double letters for words like hot and omg—she texts them out normally and barely uses emojis. Mostly, she types with one hand cause she’s so busy with her ailing father.” Fuuka explained, knowing she had to look for a way out, even though she sort of planned this to happen. She was by herself. 

Don’t show panic. Stay calm and focus. Confront the enemy. It’s almost the Dark Hour.

Jin huffed and crossed his arms as the briefcase he held hit him on the side. He shook his head and turned to the side. “Then why did you continue to chat with Natsuki? With me?” He moved slowly towards his target.

“...maybe I was stupid and hopeful to be able to see her.” She lied. “And, as much as this pains me to say, I wanted to talk to you.” That statement wasn’t a lie, however. 

I can’t sense anyone else but Jin and the other people in the surrounding area. The club is not as packed as I thought. I wonder if the suppressants also suppress Strega’s presence, too. That would not be good if that’s the case.

Jin moved a few feet closer to Fuuka, pushing her to the nearby chain link fence. She gasped as she felt her back hitting it, not realizing that she was that close to the fence. Fuuka could see Jin’s eyes through his glasses. She gulped and felt his eyes looking up and down at her body. Perhaps a cardigan was not the best way to go about covering herself up. Fuuka felt uncomfortable the moment Jin eyed her scar on her chest—and in a blink of an eye, he eyed the navigator with a harsh glare.

“Why me? You know there are better ways of communicating with me. ‘Specially that group chat you mosey your way in somehow.” Jin murmured, linking his fingers into the chain link fence behind Fuuka. 

“If Chidori was worth saving, then I think—”

“I’ll stop you right there. I don’t need saving. Besides, you have your hands full with Aragaki, right? Even though he has taken suppressants for a couple years, those drugs are draining his life away. Probably won’t be alive next year.”

Poking their heads around the corner, Akihiko and Shinjiro carefully watched as they had their battle gear on and ready to go. Shinjiro left the axe back at the dorm, thinking there was not going to be any fighting. His Persona could and would do damage nonetheless—no weapon necessary. 

Until he saw Fuuka alone with her back literally to the wall. And watching Jin moving closer to her and trapping her with his body made his blood boil. 

“Aki, Jin is trapping her. Let’s get in there and beat his ass up!” Shinjiro whispered, nudging Akihiko towards the action as Akihiko slapped his hand. “The fuck man?! That’s—”

“Shhh. Fuuka is a big girl—she can handle this.” Akihiko retorted softly. “We know when to jump in. We have to trust her.”

Shinjiro gritted his teeth as he felt his phone vibrating. He looked down for a moment, checking that it was a message from Minako (plz tell me u found Fuuka? Because the dark hr is starting—) and looked back up as the Dark Hour began. The aura in the city disappeared as people were in coffins—the moon illuminating them and the blood appearing slowly out of nowhere. The mood definitely shifted tenfold.

Jim’s body shifted forward, mere inches away from Fuuka’s body. Fuuka frowned and glared cautiously at Jin. Fuuka broke the tension between the two of them. “You don’t think I know that? …I’ve come to the realization that I’ll stay with Shinjiro until the end.”

Shinjiro’s lips parted slightly, feeling a hint of warmth on his cheeks. He was relieved that Akihiko was not looking at him. 

I only hope, Fuuka, that the end isn’t as close as we think it is.

Fuuka gulped, her eyes glued on the Strega member in front of her. She felt her heartbeat pounding faster than before in her chest. “You don’t deserve to be with someone like Takaya. He’s deranged and willing to kill because of him having a power trip over something ridiculous!” She retorted, wondering why Jin was staying silent.

Jin lowered his arms to his sides as he replied lowly for only Fuuka to hear. “We have been through it all, Yamagishi. You heard us last month. I have nothing more to say to you.”

Fuuka reached out for his arm and grabbed it tenderly. “You are passionate, I get it. Shinjiro changed, so why can’t you?”

In a blink of an eye, Jin gritted his teeth and pushed Fuuka’s hand back to the fence. She winced as her arm was pushed up and away, extending it in a way she was not used to. 

“…because Takaya is all I have. And I’ll be damned if I have you or Aragaki or your little friends ruin the only family I have left.” He snarled at Fuuka. A gasp left her lips as she turned her head to the echoing of boots clicking on the pavement  

“Well, it seems that you have done your job well, Jin.”

Akihiko and Shinjiro turned their attention back to Fuuka and Jin and saw Takaya appearing out of the back door of Escapade. Fuuka felt her sweat turn cold and Shinjiro shoved at Akihiko. All he did was hold a finger up as Shinjiro gripped at his beanie in frustration. It also didn’t help that Takaya also had his eyes on her, too. She felt icky and disgusting.

“Takaya—you used Jin to find a way to ambush me. Such a dirty trick, even if it’s normal for you.” Fuuka stated softly, knowing she should have been more prepared for this. Jin was nothing—but both of them together was a bit unnerving. It didn’t help that she was basically digging her own grave without asking for help. Now, she was wondering who thought of getting her into a risqué outfit–and for once, she hoped it was Jin over Takaya.

“No, no. We didn’t ambush you. You, Fuuka Yamagishi, decided to be a cat and became curious. And now,” Takaya chuckled and moved closer to Fuuka where Jin backed away to give him room and lowered her arm to her side, “you cost us a navigator.” Fuuka gasped as Takaya reached for her face and gripped her jaw. Fuuka felt her breath being caught in her throat as she darted her hands to his pale and skinny wrist. Shinjiro began to move from his spot as Akihiko gripped his arm. 

“Shinji! Give it a minute. Trust me, please!” Akihiko pleaded softly, knowing he would lose his shit too if Minako was in Fuuka’s place. 

Fuuka winced as Takaya gripped her jaw and pulled her face closer to him. He took his other free hand and touched the revolver on his hip. A gasp left Fuuka’s lips as she stared down at the gun. Her mind was flashbacking to October again. Her eyes were dark and lost. The blood, the gunpowder smell—with her being lost in her memories as Takaya eyed her chest. Jin pulled open the cardigan covering her chest as Fuuka’s scar was being shown off to Takaya. Jin pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose while eyeing the scar, again, and pushing the cardigan off of her shoulders. Fuuka froze there, unable to make a sound, as goosebumps lined up on her arms and legs.

“Jin, you were able to access her medical records, right?”

“Yeah. Duh.”

“…how far off was my bullet from killing her?”

“…3mm.” Jin recalled as he kept his eyes on Fuuka’s scar, realizing how much one bullet could do to one’s body. “Seems as if the healing process is nothing like Chidori’s.”

Shinjiro swore under his breath as he gripped Akihiko’s arm. “Aki… this isn’t good…!”

Takaya reached for his gun and twirled it around magnificently. He brought the barrel up to Fuuka’s chest, noting that the click of the gun brought her back to reality and her eyes went wide. He grinned and chuckled lowly. “Only 3mm…” Takaya repeated Jin’s words slowly as his other hand left her jaw. “Damn. If only I aimed a little to the right…”

Fuuka briefly sensed another person or two nearby but couldn’t even focus on that with a gun to her chest. Her lips trembled as she bit her bottom lip, trying to find the words to say. One of her hands secretively began to unzip her messenger bag. 

“All …all of this because Chidori died!? You are mad!”

“That’s only a small reason. The main reason was to get back at Shinjiro—you took him from us. You did something to him, and he doesn’t need our suppressants anymore. And if I eliminate you, the Fall will come easier as SEES will no longer have someone to be their eyes. And…the LOOK of despair on Shinjiro’s face will be the icing on the cake. Having him crawling back to me for those suppressants–it will be beautiful.”

Her eyes were wide, wondering if this has been planned for months, even before Chidori died. Jin turned to face Fuuka and Takaya, holding up a bottle of medicine. He shook the pills inside, noting it was filled to the brim. 

“Or you can take these suppressants, and we will let you go. Take them for the rest of the month, two a day, and we will leave you and the others alone.”

Fuuka felt her jaw drop. Never would she have thought Takaya would give her a way out. Perhaps this was Jin’s idea? Fuuka was confused but knew what to say—but knew it may piss off the members of Strega.

“Either be…killed by you or take suppressants for the rest of December and lose control of Lucia…but you won’t come after us…after SEES.” Fuuka repeated, watching as Jin nodded to her statement. Days before, she already came to a decision with Nyx and what she wanted to do. Her heartbeat was pounding in her ears—she had to close her eyes and force them open with a look of determination on them. 

Fuuka reached up to the gun on her chest and gripped it tightly. One of her hands on the barrel, her other hand carefully placed on her chest. Now that she was a bit focused, Fuuka sensed two members of SEES nearby. But couldn’t tell who it was specifically. The situation in front of her caused her to be more focused on the situation and the gun in front of her. Tunnel vision, to say the least.

“I…would rather choose my own path. So, kill me if you can, Takaya.” Fuuka gripped the barrel tighter and with all of her strength, pushed it away from her. She stepped on Takaya’s foot as hard as she could, grabbed her evoker from her bag and held it to her temple. “But I will always get up every time you knock me down!”

“Now! Go!” Akihiko cried out as Shinjiro dashed towards the trio and held his evoker out and brought it to his temple. Akihiko was following his friend soon after.

“Castor!”

Turning on their heels, Jin grimaced as he reached for his own Evoker—before he could even reach for it, Castor began to go after Jin firstly. Fuuka watched as Takaya shot his weapon at her, but it recoiled his arm to his chest and the bullet hit the wall behind Fuuka. She dodged another bullet and pushed herself towards Akihiko and Shinjiro. Fuuka couldn’t even call out her Persona as she felt her fingers going weak around the trigger the moment the pistol went off.

For once, she was relieved they followed her. The gun shot going off made her feel numb, but knew she had to keeping going and she can lose her composure later.

“They trapped us, Takaya!” Jin dashed towards Takaya, holding his evoker to his temple, ready to unleash Moros. “We fighting them?”

Takaya watched as Fuuka was closer to Akihiko and Shinjiro and pulled his revolver back to his hip. He had to assess the damage to their plan failing. Castor was hovering nearby as an escape plan seemed inevitable at the point. He looked at the Persona, noting something was off but kept it to himself. After being around Shinjiro for so long, Takaya knew things that the other members of SEES did not. 

“Give it a minute. Castor isn’t stable at the moment, humorously enough.” Takaya stated to Jin softly. 

Fuuka reached over to Shinjiro and grabbed his arm. Her head low and apologizing profusely. “I am so sorry. I-I knew I should have had you come with me or someone—it was suspicious and I just—”

Shinjiro looked down at Fuuka and kissed the top of her head. “We will talk later. For now, stay put—” He gasped and coughed, unable to catch his breath. He grasped his turtleneck and the noises that left his throat sounded as if he was suffocating.

Looking up at Castor, the Persona began to fade and then in a blink of an eye, began to glow red with matching red eyes. Like it did the one time during the Hermit full moon battle. Akihiko began to pull Fuuka out of Shinjiro’s way as he started to grip his chest and realized this wasn’t right. THIS was wrong. 

Takaya laughed as he held his hands outward. “Looks like Castor had other plans. We will see each other again.” He bowed and Jin followed him into Escapade as Castor began to bounce around as Shinjiro collapsed to his knees. 

“No! What’s…is this his Persona attacking him?” Fuuka asked, her voice wavering as she turned to face Akihiko. He grimaced and nodded slowly. Fuuka turned to face Shinjiro and watched as he had to shed his beanie as his head felt like it was going to implode on him. “We have to help him—!” Fuuka cried out as she began to push from Akihiko, but he held onto her tighter. “Akihiko—!”

“We just have to wait! You can get hurt!”

Fuuka yanked on his arm over and over again and shook her head. “Then fine! And yell at me all you want when I go and save Shinji!”

She felt her arm going free as she dashed carelessly towards Shinjiro. Of course, this was something new to her and it scared her. Fuuka had no clear way of getting to Shinjiro and she had to think fast before Castor destroyed too many buildings or people. And she couldn’t let another October 4th scenario occur again.

She waited until Castor had his back turned and Fuuka dashed towards Shinjiro and wrapped her arms around his neck. She pulled him close to her and gripped her evoker. “Hey, it’s okay! Don’t worry about Castor, focus on me, Shinjiro. I am here.”

He looked up at her, gasping for breath, as he tried to speak to her. It didn’t help that he felt like someone was crushing his throat—Shinjiro wasn’t sure if this was his last hurrah before dying. Seeing an angel, Fuuka in this case, almost made him cry as he wasn’t ready to go. Not yet. Not ever. Even Fuuka knew this pain—perhaps not this intense but it was still scary, nonetheless. Shinjiro’s eyes began to water as he had to blink the tears away.

Fuuka watched as Shinjiro’s eyes grew in fear and his face didn’t need to say it: Castor was turning around and facing them. The eyes of the Persona were red with anger—Fuuka stared up at the Persona in front of her and dropped her evoker in shock. 

“Shinji! Fuuka!!” Akihiko called out to them. It sounded like he was miles away, his voice echoing in her ears. Castor looked like he was as tall as a skyscraper. Fuuka removed her arms from Shinjiro, watching as she placed her hands outward and stared potential Death in its eyes. 

“Fu—fuuka—!” Shinjiro’s raspy voice called out to her, panting as that felt like it took him so much energy to even call out to her. He had to lower his head to the ground as he felt his eyesight fading fast.

“Hey!” Fuuka called out, Castor hopping closer to them as she felt her adrenaline running. No time to run and hide. Time to face this head on. And time to prove what she truly felt for days. Her arms were outstretched as she was protecting Shinjiro as if she was a wall. “You are a part of Shinjiro! He is mine and I will protect him until the end! I’ll protect him, and my friends, from you, Nyx, Strega, anyone else!” 

Castor glared down at Fuuka, unsure if her words even got through to the Persona, and then the Persona began to leap once…twice…and—

“Persona!”

Akihiko turned away, Shinjiro flinched and gasped, and Fuuka turned her back the moment Castor began to leap towards her and Shinjiro. Fuuka closed her eyes tightly, her hands visibly shaking, and wrapped her arms around Shinjiro’s body, as she was embracing for her death… …until she didn’t feel anything. Her eyes opened quickly as she watched that Lucia wasn’t protecting her and Shinjiro—it was a new Persona that called out to her. 

"Thou art I... And I am thou...

The bond thou hast nurtured hath finally matured.

Thou hast turned a vow into a blood oath.

In breaking free of doubt, the chain that impedes thee, is thy strength of heart made manifest.

With the rebirth of the Priestess Arcana

Thou hast obtained the winds of blessing that shall guide thee to the furthest depths."

“Juno…” Fuuka whispered, hearing the Persona talking to her in her mind. Castor backed away the moment he noticed he failed trying to kill his user, and girlfriend, and stood down as Shinjiro was able to regain his breath. Fuuka turned on her heels as Akihiko moved to look inside of Juno, seeing that they were both alive. Fuuka was a bit startled that she was able to summon Juno without her evoker. She was brought back to reality as Shinjiro began to sit upright and his eyes shot over to Akihiko and then Fuuka. A happy sigh escaped her lips as she felt Juno’s presence disappearing. “Shinjiro! Oh, you are okay!”

She felt her body being squished against Shinjiro’s own body; his arms wrapped around her waist. He could breathe, he could see, and he knew he had something to do. 

“Fuuka—god, don’t… …” Shinjiro stopped, ready to chastise his girlfriend, and just leaned in to kiss her on the lips passionately. “…you saved us. You saved me, AGAIN.”

Her cheeks tinted pink as she felt her heart still beating quickly. She was on a high and wasn’t sure she’d come down from it. 

“I…I’m sorry about before—”

“Don’t be.” He looked at his Persona, staying calm and docile, and knew he had to confront it once again. This time, he wasn’t alone. “We will talk later. I…I have to do something.”

Fuuka nodded as helped Shinjiro up, with Akihiko’s help, and gulped. Castor seemed to have shrunk a little, but now…he seemed a bit more normal sized now, compared to Isis or Caesar. Shinjiro was mere feet away from Castor as the rider gripped the reins and glared at his user. 

Taking a deep breath in and out, Shinjiro reached for his Persona and gripped the reins on the horse’s headgear. He was finally confronting the past and present right at this moment—and he wanted to run away. Akihiko stood next to Fuuka as she looked up at the Persona who was looking down at her boyfriend. 

“Listen: you have been torturing me for as long as I’ve had you. And now, I am ready to make a change. That woman-–” He points to Fuuka as she felt her cheeks heating up in the cold air. “--is my future. And if I want to keep having a future with her, then I need to stop running away from her and you.”

Castor calmed down immediately, leaving Akihiko and Fuuka slightly stunned. Fuuka was beyond flattered and smitten by Shinjiro’s sincere words. But, before she could say anything, a bright light came from Castor, blinding the Persona users. Once the light dimmed down, there was something new that replaced Castor’s place. 

A new Persona. A new beginning. 

Achilles looked as if he was pulled from the history books that talked about Greek heroes. Well-built but his face was still hidden with the helmet most Greek warriors wore in the past. A dark red cape drifted off of his back that hooked onto his silver chest armor, shining brightly in the moonlight. The white tunic Achilles wore transitioned into his himation, with a maroon waist wrap showing where his waist started and ended. 

As well as having matching silver bracelets on both of his wrists, golden shin guards appeared on his shins as well as hand guards that were gold as well. Fuuka was in awe and Shinjiro was surprised that he received a Persona that looked more human compared to the other members of SEES. Achilles gripped the spear he had in his right hand tightly as he held his shield in his left hand up high as the Persona opened his mouth to say something, but only grunted in response. 

All three of the SEES members could have sworn the hair on Achilles’ head that they could see looked similar to Shinjiro’s own—long, brown, and a hint of curliness. The helmet did cover most of Achilles’ face, but it was easy to see how bony the Persona’s jaw was. 

Once the light that illuminated Achilles disappeared, Shinjiro gripped his shirt and felt lighter. As if everything was going to be perfectly fine. As if he could do whatever he wanted without nothing holding him back. 

And it was liberating. 

"Thou art I... And I am thou...

The bond thou hast nurtured hath finally matured.

Thou hast turned a vow into a blood oath.

In breaking free of doubt, the chain that impedes thee, is thy strength of heart made manifest.

With the rebirth of the Hierophant Arcana

Thou hast obtained the winds of blessing that shall guide thee to the furthest depths."

“Shinji…” Akihiko uttered once Shinjiro’s arm left his chest and turned towards the duo. “…your Persona...”

“I…didn’t know that I had this much power still left inside of me. I thought I was going to be left behind. When I saw you and Amada and Iori getting newer Personas, I thought it wasn’t gonna happen to me.” Shinjiro explained as Fuuka was looking up at him with blushing cheeks and blinking back tears. Shinjiro leaned down to her and laid one of his knees on the ground. “But it did. And I am determined to defeat Nyx with you both at my side. Because I have nothing holding me back.”

Fuuka nodded, quickly wiping away any tears she had, and smiled warmly at her boyfriend. “Me neither! I have you, Shinjiro, and all my friends at the dorm and at school. I want to be sure to protect all of you from harm.”

Shinjiro playfully ruffled up Fuuka’s hair, trying to hide a smirk. Fuuka had to whack at his hands while her cardigan fell off her shoulders. “I know you do.” She shivered as she quickly pulled her cardigan up and rubbed her arms. Adrenaline quickly disappeared from her body as Akihiko moved closer to the two love birds. Eyeing the moon, he wondered how much time was left until the Dark Hour was over. 

Bringing herself back to reality, Fuuka did not realize that this place was the same place where she and Shinjiro got shot months ago. She looked down at her feet, a bit relieved the blood stains from beforehand were actually cleaned up. She gulped and rubbed her arms again. 

Shinjiro eyed Fuuka and noticed that she was staring down, and it clicked with him. He pulled Fuuka into one of his arms and began to walk her away from the scene. She blinked, realizing Shinjiro was pulling her away, and looked up at him. 

“…you know you don’t have to keep everything bottled up, right? I don’t want us to hide any more secrets from each other.”

“I know. It’s just…” Fuuka lowered her head in frustration. “…with parents that seemed to want to know what I was doing or where I was going, I was used to keeping secrets deep inside of me. I’m going to try harder for you, Shinjiro.” She looked up at him and placed her hands on his chest. “I want to do better for you.”

Shinjiro ruffled up Fuuka’s hair and grinned. “Good. Because I think we need to have one on one time with your parents soon.”

That statement made Fuuka’s eye grow in shock and she started to babble incoherently. “What? No you—I mean, I don’t think—that’s ridiculous—! Akihiko-senpai, what do you—?”

“I think we should head back to the dorm. Before we get ambushed by any shadows.” Akihiko pulled his gloves down his wrists and began to walk away from the couple. 

As Shinjiro and Fuuka quickly followed behind Akihiko, Fuuka pulled her cardigan up on her shoulder and kept her senses on high alert. She knew Akihiko made a point, but the idea of Shinjiro meeting her parents made her nervous all of a sudden. She also knew that Shinjiro would have her back, so why was Fuuka anxious?

“Hey, Fuuka?” Shinjiro’s voice was low and she felt goosebumps going up her arms as she felt his breath on the tip of her ear. Her heart skipped a beat. “Keep the clothes for a later date. It looks really good on you.”

Shinjiro walked a bit faster to keep up with Akihiko as Fuuka almost stopped to cover her face. If she knew she had to sacrifice being cold to make Shinjiro say stuff like that, she would have done this ages ago! She kept walking but moved her hand to her lips to try to hide her blushing cheeks. 

It also doesn’t help that Shinjiro is still a minx, even if his friends are still around him. 

Once the three of them come back to the dorm, safe and sound, and after Minako gives Fuuka a tight hug, everyone quietly goes their separate ways. Thankfully, with Junpei and Minako being the only ones downstairs, there wasn’t much confrontation with Mitsuru or Minato. 

For now, Shinjiro closed the door to his room and laid the axe against the wall nearby. He sighed heavily as he began to undress and carefully laid his peacoat on the desk. Before he even got fully undressed, the Dark Hour was over, and the humming of his heater kicked back on. For once, he didn’t feel too cold tonight. He wasn’t sure if it was because of the way Fuuka was dressed or his mind already going haywire and his Persona evolving—he couldn’t make head or tails on this. 

Sitting down on his bed and taking off his boots, Shinjiro gazed softly at the flowers that comfortably sat in the vase on the bookshelf near his bed. Sunflowers, with a couple roses that bloomed a month ago…and were still looking brand new. He pushed himself off his bed and moved towards the flowers and touched the petals. 

A light, familiar glow illuminated Shinjiro’s fingertips as a soft sigh escaped his lips. When he had the downtime to talk to Junpei about Chidori and her healing powers, it made sense why she forced Shinjiro to take them. If only half of them. 

“…you, too, saw the future and potential with me. … …I promise to keep going for Fuuka’s sake and yours, too, Chidori.”

Chapter Text

Look in my eyes, they will tell you the truth
The girl in my story has always been you
I'd go down with the Titanic, it's true, for you, lover
And you'll save all your dirtiest jokes for me
And at every table, I'll save you a seat, lover

December 22 / Tuesday

**ping ping**     **ping ping**     **ping ping**

Fuuka rubbed her eyes, hearing her phone going off while she was in the middle of sleeping, and groaned as she could have sworn she set her alarm for 7am. That is until she saw who was calling her at 6am in the morning. Picking up her phone, she answered the call and rubbed her eyes.

“Shinjiro…it’s 6 in the morning. I’ve got one more hour of sleep…”

“Yeah, I know it’s early, but I wanted to make you breakfast before everyone else wakes up.”

Fuuka sits up immediately and swings her legs off the bed and blinks the sleep out of her eyes the best she could. She reached for her lamp behind her bed and turned it on. “Wait. You made me breakfast? Right now? Aren’t you a night owl?”

“I am. But I feel so wide awake, and a little birdie told me that your birthday was today.”

Minako. That was so obvious. Could have just said her name, Shinjiro…

“Y-you didn’t have to do that for me, Shinjiro. Buuuuuut, if you are willing to make me food, I’ll be down in a couple minutes. I need to find my slippers…”

“Well hurry up–these pancakes won’t stay hot long.”

Fuuka made sure to find her slippers and once she slipped those on, she made sure to fix up her hair, grabbed her phone, and headed down to the kitchen. She was wearing an oversized t-shirt and flannel pants as she poked her head through the doorway of the kitchen. Just seeing Shinjiro cooking stacks of pancakes made Fuuka’s heart flutter–-she knew he was a fantastic cook, but just seeing him in action again did put a smile on her face.

She knew he was in his happy place and would try her hardest to not distract him.

“Shinjiro? How many pancakes have you made?”

He turned on his heel as he was mixing up more batter for more pancakes. “Uhhh…” Shinjiro turned his head and counted as fast as he could. “...15.”

“Th-that’s a lot. We aren’t going to eat them all, you know?”

“Well, everyone else can get the leftovers. Besides, this is our time and wanted to do something special for you since this is the last week of school for the semester, right?” Shinjiro explained, mixing the batter faster so he could get the lumps out of the mix. “Go ahead and grab a few. The hot ones are on top. Only have like…5 or so left to make.”

Fuuka nodded as she reached for a plate and used a fork and knife to grab a few pancakes. Moving out of Shinjiro’s way, she grabbed the syrup and butter on the counter and moved to the table that sat between the kitchen and living room. Before she sat down and ate her pancakes, the thought of just them two being awake and alone made Fuuka’s cheeks turn red. She had to shake her head of the thoughts that appeared in her mind.

She sat down and forced herself to eat so that she could be distracted by something else. It didn’t help that it was Shinjiro’s food, either. Like always, the pancakes were soft and melted in her mouth. It was as if Shinjiro took the clouds from above and mixed them into the pancake batter.

“Mmm! So good!” She called out as she had to put more pancakes into her mouth. A moan left her lips as Shinjiro popped his head out of the kitchen.

“Hey! Any louder and you could wake the rest of the dorm up!” Shinjiro replied, smirking at Fuuka as they locked eyes with one another. 

“Trust me, I can keep myself quiet. I don’t know about you, Shinjiro.”

Shinjiro blinked as he popped back into the kitchen, taking off the final pancake on the pan, and turned the stove off. He walked back out to Fuuka, still with his apron on and leaned down to her neck. He softly whispered in her ear, “I mean, it’s just the two of us down here. Aki will be back from his morning run in about ten or so minutes–”

“Shinji…” Fuuka turned her head so that their noses were touching each other. Her cheeks and Shinjiro’s were both matching the same shade of red. Never would she have thought that Shinjiro would be the blushing type. Then again, she was always learning new things about him daily. “It would be a nice birthday gift…”

Shinjiro grinned. “I'm not hearing a no Fuuka.”

Fuuka pondered for a moment and reached for Shinjiro’s hand. “Move the pancakes that you’ve made here on the table, along with the silverware and plates, and the kitchen will be free.”

Even before Fuuka finished her sentence, Shinjiro quickly and carefully moved the food to the table where everyone eats and sat them on the opposite end where Fuuka was. And before Fuuka could even say another word, Shinjiro swiftly pulled his beloved girlfriend’s hand and whisked her into the kitchen as he turned the lights down low.

She wrapped her arms around her boyfriend’s neck, wondering if this was a dream or not. For the first time this morning, Fuuka focused on what Shinjiro was wearing: black pajama bottoms and his usual black turtleneck. And the apron that was two sizes too small for him. A chuckle escaped the back of her throat as Shinjiro squinted his eyes at Fuuka.

“Your apron is too small.” Fuuka quickly stated as Shinjiro backed away from Fuuka, took the apron off, and threw it on the ground. “Much better.”

“Good.”

He picked her up by her waist, hearing a light gasp escape Fuuka’s lips, and placed her on the semi-clean counter. Fuuka caught Shinjiro’s eyes, full of wanting, as she wondered what he had in store for her this morning.

“I do have a birthday gift to give you, but it’ll have to wait after school. It’ll pale in comparison to this.”

He stroked the edge of her lip with his thumb, then leaned over, and pressed his mouth to hers. Fuuka swore mentally that she had a hot, hungry flame that Shinjiro could stoked with all his tiny smirks and sultry words. And even he could taste the remnants of the pancakes on her lips–-she was not lying on how delicious they tasted. His hands cupped the sides of her hips, making damn well she was safe and secure, their lips dancing with one another and Fuuka quickly slid her tongue into Shinjiro’s mouth. Her small, delicate hand traced the beginning of Shinjiro’s jaw and up into his hair. Their heads tilted in opposite ways and their eyes closed. 

The world around them was silent and calm. This was possibly the first time that they were able to be alone and intimate like this, if only for a few minutes. This private time, this seven minutes of heaven, was the best gift Fuuka could ask for and would be satisfied for months.

Shinjiro’s hungry hands began to slither up Fuuka’s oversized shirt and let out a chuckle once their lips parted. “No bra? Very risky.”

Fuuka felt her cheeks turning pink only because she got caught. “They aren’t like Mitsuru-senpai’s or Yukari’s…” She stated and gasped. 

Her lover’s thumb rubbed one of her nipples gently and their eyes locked onto each other. Shinjiro could feel his erection twitching in his pants. Just the gasp was enough for his mind to switch into thoughts of him and Fuuka doing all sorts of nasty things in the kitchen. His fingers touched Fuuka’s scar across her chest. 

“I don’t care. They are perfect for me.”

Fuuka claimed Shinjiro’s lips again, cupping his cheeks with her hands and ravishingly making out with him. She still didn’t know what she did to deserve someone like Shinjiro. He almost always knew what to say and do to her to make her feel like she was a queen or angel or whatever Shinjiro thinks of her. 

Shinjiro pulled away from Fuuka’s soft and plump lips as he licked his lips. “Don’t make too much noise. Wouldn’t want the guys above us to hear you.”

Before Fuuka could retort, Shinjiro moved Fuuka’s shirt over her head, exposing her breasts to him. The shirt fell off to the side and Fuuka felt herself getting more aroused. He stared at them, unsure of what to do first, as Fuuka forced herself to keep her hands on the countertop. Because she knew that if she touched him, she wasn’t going to be staying on the countertop for more than a minute. 

Fuck it.

Fuuka put her hands on his arms, took a deep breath, and said the two words that turned everything on a dime.

“Try me.”

Shinjiro thought he heard Fuuka wrong. And then the words repeated in his head and he felt his lips curling into a smile. 

“You do know what you are saying, right?” He questioned. “Because any time now, Aki will be walking through that door—”

“Shinji, pick me up and press me against the wall and make out with me before I ask someone else.”

Before either one could say something, Shinjiro obeyed his girlfriend’s wish and picked her up effortlessly. He quickly thought for a moment how much stronger he was getting—or it could have been just the hormones raging through his body—and carefully held Fuuka and placed her against the wall. A soft gasp escaped her lips and her cheeks turned a bright red. 

I need to vocalize my thoughts more often.

Fuuka thought as their eyes locked onto one another. A shiver went down her back, unsure if it was because she was cold or because her nipples were getting a bit harder thanks to Shinjiro.

“You are lucky, Fuuka.” Shinjiro murmured lowly, his forehead resting on top of Fuuka’s own, and rested one of his hands right on her breast. A gasp escaped Fuuka’s lips as his thumb flicked her nipple. “If we were in my room, I’d probably be fucking you right now.”

Fuuka moaned as she was lost in Shinjiro’s grasp. She wrapped her legs around his hips, making sure they were both steady and gripped his arms tightly. Their bodies fit as though created for one another, Fuuka’s soft curves filling all of Shinjiro’s dents—like puzzle pieces. 

“Shinji…”

“Fuuka…”

They looked at each other for a moment before Shinjiro leaned into Fuuka’s face and began to claim her lips in a fervent passion. Shinjiro felt his hair sticking to his face and the hint of maple syrup was still lingering on Fuuka’s lips. She was sweeter than anything he had ever tasted before. And the aroma of flowers overwhelmed his senses. Shinjiro claimed Fuuka’s neck as she tilted her head to the side to give him more room. Moans left her lips as she couldn’t form a coherent thought. 

As she explored his mouth, a new hunger streaked through Fuuka’s body, making her heart contract and thighs tremble. Because she could feel how wet she was getting with Shinjiro’s lips on her neck and how he stripped her top off of her. 

“Sh-shinji… Mmm—not fair…”

Not fair? 

“Not fair?” He removed his lips and began to repeat his thoughts to her out loud. “You have been teasing me for a while. I think it’s very fair for me to claim you as mine and leave a mark saying so.”

Fuuka’s lips parted for a moment, ready to speak up but then felt her throat run dry. Shinjiro smirked and lowered his eyes to his girlfriend. 

“Cat got your tongue?” 

Fuuka simply nodded in response. Fuuka watched as Shinjiro began to lower his lips dangerously close to her neck—her breath getting caught in her throat and unable to say anything. You could hear a pin drop without quiet it was. His breath on her neck gave her goosebumps. 

No one was aware of what they were doing. And that was what made it fun between them. Carefully watching his girl’s cheeks turning pink and then a shade of red resembling cherries, Shinjiro nibbled on her neck, testing the waters first. Not even a second passed before light moans escaped her lips. That turned Shinjiro on even more, but he knew he had to be cautious—getting either one of them very aroused and unable to relieve themselves would cause the other to be angry and horny. 

Fuuka felt her ears prickling upward, wondering if Juno was trying to tell her something in her lust filled mind. She opened her neck a bit more, hearing Shinjiro sucking harshly on her neck. And even looking at him would push her to want to leave one on him. 

Then, once he left her neck and admiring the look of his hickey on her neck, Fuuka placed her hands on his chest and looked him in his eyes. Juno was nudging her over and over and Fuuka knew what it meant, even if she didn't want to acknowledge it.

“Akihiko…he’ll be back with Minako soon. I-I need to head back to my room—need to get ready for school and whatnot.”

“Hmm? Did your Persona say that?”

She quickly nodded. “Th-they are rounding the corner.”

“Damn…wouldn’t it be a shame if they caught us?”

“Shinji. It is taking everything in me to force myself to stop this. So,” Fuuka placed her forehead on top of Shinjiro’s own and closed her eyes, “lower my feet to the ground so I don’t feel your erection pressing into my stomach.” 

“Oh, so you want to get much closer to my dick, huh?”

“Wipe that cocky grin off your face.”

“I love it when you change your attitude just for me.”

He placed Fuuka’s feet back on the ground and began to look for Fuuka’s night shirt. Her eyes shifted to the corner of the room and easily found it in the semi-lit room. Holding it in his arms, he eyed Fuuka’s chest and grinned.

“Do I get a part two later this evening?”

Fuuka huffed and reached for her shirt, only able to reach for the sleeve and looked up at her lover. “Maybe. All I know is that Yukari and Minako want to take me out for my birthday. So, you might have to wait until Christmas.”

Shinjiro let go of the shirt and watched as Fuuka’s chest was covered once again. A small frown appeared on his lips as he crossed his arms. He wished he sucked and played with her breasts for a moment longer.

“Fair. You deserve it after the hellish couple months we’ve had.” He ruffled up her hair and kissed the top of her forehead. “Go and get a little more sleep. I’ll take care of the others.”

She nodded quickly and began to leave the kitchen but stopped suddenly. Shinjiro wrapped his arms around Fuuka’s shoulders and sighed deeply. 

“Shinjiro?”

“...just...one more second. ...this is real. This isn’t a dream…” He whispered softly as Fuuka nodded slowly, confirming his words. Closing her eyes, she placed her hands on top of his arms and grinned.

“It really isn’t.”

December 26th / Saturday

“Thank you all for coming. I was going to give you all these gifts when Aigis came back, but I feel as if this will be more of a benefit for us now rather than later.” Mitsuru had everyone meeting her on the first floor lobby, everyone sitting at a spot at the kitchen table and all of them had briefcases in front of them. “These are yours to keep.”

Junpei grinned as he had his fingers hovering over the locks on the briefcase. “I have no idea what the hell is in this but I am so. Damn. Excited!”

“Should we be worried, senpai?” Yukari asked as she lifted her brief case and realized how light it felt. Definitely thru her for a whirl. “Wow. It’s light.”

Mitsuru nodded as she opened up her own briefcase. “Not at all. Earlier this year, Akihiko tested this equipment and with Ikutsuki working on improving it, it had been done since around the time Yamagishi came. But,” she pulled out the new armband and frowned, “he kept these to himself. Even worked on these when we got Amada and Aragaki.”

Everyone opened their briefcases and a couple of them gasped and a few reached for the evokers—there was small noises from everyone coming from everywhere. 

Fuuka looked up at everyone as the twins began to look at their evokers and Ken attempting to put on Koromaru’s equipment on him. She looked back at her case and tilted her head. 

“A headset…” she touched the headset and a smile appeared on her lips. “That’ll be helpful—hmm?”

Shinjiro looked over at Fuuka as she pulled out her uniform and then pulled out his new peacoat. It looked almost exactly like his current one, and yet it couldn’t be closed. 

“Mitsuru-senpai? Why do I have a poncho?”

“The headset isn’t 100% waterproof. Eventually I will do my best and get you one that is.”

Fuuka placed the headset on her head and turned to face Shinjiro and looked down at his gear. “Huh. Yours looks just the same…mostly.”

Shinjiro grunted and put on his new peacoat and a smile appeared on his lips. It was a little big on him but he felt newer? It was an odd feeling trying on something new. Then again, if Ikutsuki had this made, did he knew Shinjiro would actually live longer? He shook his head and turned his attention back to Fuuka as she tried to put on her poncho. 

Minato pulled a cartridge out and pointed it towards Mitsuru. “What are these for?”

“Those are cartridges for…something new to experiment. The only notes he left for us stated that it will be used in battle to create new moves for us. He called it therugy .”

“Yooo! We get new moves! That sounds so cool!” Junpei grinned and threw a fist bump at Minako who returned easily. “Can we try it out tonight?”

“Hang on—we don’t have Aigis with us. Is it even fair to go to Tartarus without her?” Ken pointed out, closing his briefcase and looking around. “I mean, as much as I am excited to try this out, I… don’t want to leave anyone behind.”

“If you feel like it, we can do it tonight. Aigis is being upgraded with the equipment we currently have as well. She won’t be left out, per se.” Mitsuru explained as she averted her eyes to the stairs. “There are also some newer weapons for everyone in your rooms. Bring those along tonight too.”

In the blink of an eye, Junpei, Ken, and Minato decided to swing up to the second floor to see what awaited them in their rooms. Yukari cautiously followed Minako up to their rooms on the third floor and Fuuka was left with her senpais and Koromaru who decided to take a nap. 

This will be our first time in battle with our new Personas. I wonder what it will be like. Will we be okay? Will Shinjiro handle Achilles? Will Achilles handle Shinjiro? What will this therugy be like for us?

She blushed as she felt someone hitting her on top of her head quietly. She saw Shinjiro’s fist laying on top of her and tilted his head. Fuuka looked back at Akihiko and Mitsuru and then back at Shinjiro. This felt a bit awkward for her. 

“Fuuka, I could see your forehead squinting in frustration.” Shinjiro acknowledged. “You know we have your back right?”

She nodded slowly and put her hands to her chest. “Of course. And I will always have your backs, I promise!”

“We will test the equipment out tomorrow. It’s our first day on winter break and I wanted to make sure everyone’s gear fits them. Wouldn’t want a wardrobe malfunction in battle.” Mitsuru explained as she attempted to pull her vest closer to her chest and realized it was a little too small. 

Fuuka nodded as she turned to face Shinjiro as she remembered something she forgot to give Shinjiro. And thought would be the best time to give it to him. “Shinjiro, I have something to give you—it’s in my bedroom. Can you…wait here for a minute so I can go get it?”

He nodded and raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”

“I…I have been meaning to give this to you for days—weeks, really.” She stated quickly and dashed up to her room, leaving the original SEES trio alone. 

Mitsuru stopped messing with her vest and turned her back to the guys. She knew what Fuuka was grabbing and wondered if it was the best time. Granted, everyone was in a good mood and with winter break starting, everyone would have free time and yet, Mitsuru bit her tongue and waited for Fuuka to come back. 

Shinjiro took off his battle equipment and began to fold it back into the suitcase until he heard light footsteps coming down the stairs. He turned slowly as he saw some papers in Fuuka’s arms. It didn’t look like a lot, but then again, he felt his palms getting sweaty and his pulse racing. 

“Yamagishi…” Mitsuru faced the small group as she felt herself being nervous, too. The only one not nervous was Akihiko and he was just admiring how well the vest and evoker placement sat on his chest snuggly. 

“I have been waiting for weeks to do this. And with all the chaos that has been around us, this was the only time I could ask you, I feel.” Fuuka explained, and kept her head low. “You can do whatever you like. I will not force you into a choice. But, the sooner I get it back the better.”

Fuuka thrusted the papers into Shinjiro’s chest, waiting until he grabbed the papers, and backed away so she was next to Mitsuru. Shinjiro felt confused and worried but once he glanced down at the organized paperwork, he let out a sigh. 

“Damn, Fuuka. You made it sound like I was signing an annulment.” He felt a bit calmer but he kept his eyes glued on the words Gekkoukan Reinstatement Form longer than he should have. Akihiko began to unfocus on himself and his gear once the silence beckoned him to focus on Shinjiro. “I…I don’t know if I wanna go back to school, Fuuka.” He stated, looking through the packet of paperwork and then back at Mitsuru. “I am fully aware that you didn’t come up with this idea alone.”

Mitsuru crossed her arms and stared up at her friend. “No. I suggested the idea and gave her the paperwork.” Mitsuru pointed out. 

“How long ago did you give her this?”

“…around the last week of September, I think.”

Shinjiro gulped, not realizing Fuuka had this secret eating at her for months. He had to give her props for not saying anything to him. But, he remembered once or twice she would stop and stare at the sky and then bring herself back to reality. Was she thinking about the form even then?

Shinjiro placed the paperwork on the table and ran his hand through his hair. “This is something I need to think about. I don’t want to rush into this.”

Fuuka nodded quickly as she felt her cheeks heating up out of embarrassment. Akihiko peered over the table and saw what Shinjiro was talking about. His eyes lit up for a moment until he saw Shinjiro glaring at him. 

“Come on Shinji! Don’t you remember our promise?” Akihiko walked around the table and stood between the girls and Shinjiro. “You should finish high school. At least for us.”

Fuuka looked up at Akihiko and felt her face heating up. She didn’t think he meant her, too. Fuuka was used to not being included into groups. 

Until Akihiko put his hands on Fuuka’s shoulders and pushed her closer to him. 

“Akihiko-senpai—!”

“Aki…” Shinjiro groaned and rolled his eyes. “Just because I am dating Fuuka doesn’t mean she will influence my choice.”

“I know. I just… …don’t let this chance get away from you. You have had so many damn second chances that I can’t see you giving up after all of this!” Akihiko exclaimed, pulling his hands away from Fuuka’s shoulders and down at his sides. He lowered his head, out of shame, and shook his head. “I know you’re right. But, you have all of us here to help you-–” He gestured towards Mitsuru and Fuuka. “--and if Mitsuru and I couldn’t persuade you, I am sure Yamagishi here can.”

Fuuka felt her cheeks heating up, knowing she didn’t mind being grouped into what the second years, and Ken, have called the third years the OGs. The ones who started SEES. Being lost in her own mind for a few seconds, she turned her head upright and looked up at Shinjiro.

“I…want you to know that I will support you with whichever you choose. Because your happiness is what I strive for.” Fuuka placed her hands on her chest, gripping at the collar of her new SEES gear, and smiled warmly at him. “And I will be proud of you.”

Shinjiro felt his ears turning red out of sheer proudness and happiness and other emotions he cannot explain at the moment. Of course he would have said something loving and dearing to Fuuka, but it also did not help that Akihiko and Mitsuru were right behind her.

“I appreciate that, Fuuka. Mitsuru, Aki–” Their eyes shifted to the Hierophant as he nodded slowly. “--just let me think on this. This is a big choice and well, I promise to give you all an answer before the year is over.”

The other two senpais nodded their heads slowly as Akihiko backed away from the situation before calling out to Shinjiro: “You’ll know what to do, Shinji!”

Fuuka nodded to Akihiko’s words and leaned up and kissed his cheek. “I’ll wait. I’ve waited for us to be together so I am sure I can wait five more days. Have a good night and see you tomorrow morning.” Fuuka waved back at Mitsuru and Shinjiro before she whisked herself up the stairs. 

The moment he was finally alone with Mitsuru, Shinjiro flopped into a chair and groaned. Mitsuru walked over to Shinjiro and watched him planting the paperwork on the table next to him. Even Mitsuru knew that having Akihiko and Fuuka on his back was bound to be pure torture on him.

Shinjiro looked up at Mitsuru, with her arms crossed and a small grin on her lips. “You can wipe that smirk off your face, Mitsuru. I knew you had something to do with this.”

She reached for a chair and sat in front of Shinjiro. “I only want what is best for you.”

“Going through Fuuka isn’t the way, you know.”

“Yes, I know. But, Yamagishi has done more for you in the past three months than Akihiko and I did in the two or so years we were together. I just wouldn’t want her hard work going down the drain.”

Shinjiro gritted his teeth and shot his eyes towards the paperwork. Gods above, he would do anything to make Fuuka happy above anything else. And yet, his own happiness had to be considered, too. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

“I am tired of upsetting those I love. I don’t know if I could do this–-the school shit, that is.”

Mitsuru smirked. “You can handle anything. You survived a gunshot; I think you can survive a year with Iori around you at school.”

“Ha. Ha. Ha.” He frowned and glared at Mitsuru. “That was a shitty joke, you know.”

December 30th / Wednesday

“Man, what a relief you are back Aigis! I was nervous about you!” Junpei sighed, leaning back on the sofa with his arms stretched out. Everyone was sitting around the living room and getting comfortable. Aigis looked as if she was rebuilt anew. You would never notice that her whole build was newer this time around. “It has been a whole month.”

Fuuka quickly nodded and put her hands on her chest. “I was so worried about you.”

Aigis looked around at everyone and her voice and face were calm and expressive. “I am a machine. I will always be able to be rebuilt.”

“She’s not wrong.” Shinjiro murmured as Fuuka poked his cheek. 

Aigis continued as if she didn’t hear Shinjiro. “Even if I am completely destroyed, my programming data will still exist.”

Yukari placed her hand on Aigis’s shoulder and shook her head. Minato sat on the opposite side of Aigis and looked at her tenderly. Yukari replied to Aigis softly: “Don’t talk about yourself like that.”

Mitsuru pushed her hair out of her face and crossed her legs. She was sitting on the lone armchair whereas Akihito was leaning against the arm rest. “She did still have one more week to fully recover, but I expedited the work. …tomorrow is New Years Eve.”

The mood shifted quickly as they were reminded how quickly the month flew. Aigis looked around at everyone and their heads lowered. She put a hand to her chest and frowned. 

“I apologize for the trouble I’ve caused you all. Mitsuru-san visited me while I was in the lab. She explained what you all have been through.” She turned her head towards Minato and Minako. “Given the circumstances, I’d assume you both are not handling this information well.”

Minako lowered her eyes. “Minato…has it rougher than I do.”

Minato shook his head. “I was worried about you more than myself. We all have been unsure of what to do about Ryoji and Nyx and the Fall.”

“Ten years ago…” Aigis lowered her eyes and placed her hands back in her lap. A heavy sigh escaped her lips. “What I did to you… I made sure that Minako-chan was safe and I forgot about you, Minato-kun. My negligence is causing trouble for everyone.”

“You did what you had to do. You did the right thing.” Minato assured, placing his hand on her shoulder and giving her a small smile. “I wouldn’t change things you know.” He stood straighter as Aigis shot her eyes back at the blue hair twin. 

“But—! If I didn’t do that, we wouldn’t be in this predicament! You wouldn’t be suffering…” Aigis stated. 

“Aigis…” Ken murmured as he drew his knees in. He knew all about wanting things to be changed, but knew that things happened for a reason. 

She shook her head and locked eyes with Minato. “For what Ryoji-kun said, have you made your decision?” Minato quickly nodded. Aigis bit her lip and kept her eyes on him. “Tomorrow evening, when he does return… Please kill him! I can’t bear to see all of you suffer! I beg of you to surrender your memories! Even if it makes you forget everything and everyone.”

“That isn’t like you Aigis.” Junpei pointed out, leaning forward towards her, shaking his head. 

“Fuck that.” Shinjiro spatted under his tongue, shaking his head and crossing his arms. 

Aigis was calm and quiet, making Akihito raise an eyebrow. “Aigis? What are you thinking about?”

“I… why did I come back here? I had a duty, a role, to protect people from shadows. It’s obvious I couldn’t even do that. So, what’s the point of being here? Even I cannot shed a tear for you.” She stood up slowly and placed her hands on her chest. Koromaru whined softly, making Shinjiro lean over and pet the dog on his head.

Fuuka observed the android standing up and sighed softly. “Oh, Aigis…” She softly spoke, her eyes trained on her ally, leaving her speechless. 

“Why do you try to fight when you know it is going to be hopeless? Why risk everything when it will all lead to suffering? I don’t understand! You are just throwing your lives away!”

Akihito shook his head and crossed his arms. “We are not throwing away our lives.” Everyone turned their heads to the white haired senpai. He had a small smirk on his lips and closed his eyes. “I believe our eyes are set on the future. Am I right?”

Ken nodded. “He's right.”

Aigis shook her head and shot her hands outward. “I don’t get it…it may be because I lack a life inside of my own.”

“This really has nothin’ to do with having a life, Aigis.” Junpei explained, watching as Aigis faced him. 

“Then what is my purpose in life? If I cannot defeat shadows, then what is next for me? No one can give me an answer…”

Shinjiro took a deep breath and let out slowly. Akihiko turned his head to face him. “What’s up?”

“Of course we don’t have the answers. When it comes to life and death, this isn’t something someone else can just teach you.” Shinjiro explained, reaching over to Fuuka and grabbed her hand gently, but gripped it firmly. Fuuka’s cheeks turned a light pink as she looked up at him. “Making your own decisions are difficult and we are sometimes scared of the outcome. No choice is perfect. But, as long as we are alive we have to do something. I hate sitting around and not doing anything. I won’t give up until all my options are exhausted.”

Fuuka returned the firm grip back as Shinjiro showed a rare smile in front of everyone. She nodded and turned to face Aigis. “It’s in our nature as humans to want to help someone out, especially if we are going through the same thing. Uniting together for a great cause. Because when we do this together, that’s how we plan on getting through this.”

Yukari nodded to Fuuka's words, feeling Minato's hand on her knee and cupping it gently.

Fuuka pushed herself up from the sofa, releasing her hand from Shinjiro’s and reached out to Aigis’s hands. She cupped them gently and closed her eyes. “When you collapsed in front of us, I realized something. I wanted to do what ever I could to protect you Aigis. I do not want to forget about you or the relationship I’ve made with Shinjiro and the others.” She opened her eyes slowly, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. “You’ve all changed me and saved me. How could I forget all of that?”

Aigis felt her heart being touched as she stared softly at Fuuka. “Fuuka-san…”

Mitsuru smiled and clasped her hands together. “There are times where you will lose sight of your purpose. And you will have to search for it. Even if you lose sight of it, and you can’t find it, then you need to seek out a new purpose.” Mitsuru explained. “I know I’m not one to talk, but I’ve learned something important this year. To truly live means you are willing to change. And we have to make those choices for ourselves.”

Aigis turned her body to Mitsuru and still kept Fuuka’s hands in her grasp. The warmth made her feel whole…and human like.

“Do you think…I’ll be able to change?” Aigis questioned.

“You have changed in such a short time. Have you not noticed? You’ve started to talk like a human.” Mitsuru stated happily, making Aigis drop Fuuka’s hands and brought her hands to her chest. 

A soft smile appeared on Aigis’ lips as she quickly sat back down and scooped her hands under her dress to make sure it wouldn’t winkle. Something human like. Something normal. 

“I understand my purpose now. I am a machine with the directive to live . And the one issuing this new command…is me .”

Minako giggled and wrapped her arms around Aigis tightly. “And that’s how it should be. You take control of your life now.”

Aigis nodded and touched Minako’s arm gently. “I’ll stare fear in the face and choose to live. This is a promise I have made to myself. I’m not sure how to do this right, but that’s a part of living, too.”

Koromaru howled happily, his tail wagging back and forth as Shinjiro reached over and patted his head. 

“Damn straight.” Shinjiro grinned. 

"Thou art I... And I am thou...

The bond thou hast nurtured hath finally matured.

Thou hast turned a vow into a blood oath.

In breaking free of doubt, the chain that impedes thee, is thy strength of heart made manifest.

With the rebirth of the Aeon Arcana

Thou hast obtained the winds of blessing that shall guide thee to the furthest depths."

Aigis let out a heavy breath she was holding in and looked around at everyone who was looking at her. “Will you let me join the fight?”

Junpei laughed and grinned at Aigis. “Duh! You’ve been one of us, Aigis!”

Aigis returned his grin with one of her own. As if she was full of energy and determination. “Thank you. Until the very end, I will stand with you all. No matter what.”

Minako threw her fist in the air once she removed her arms from Aigis. “Hell yeah! I say we go and celebrate with a run in Tartarus!”

Junpei, Minako, and Akihiko started to move from their spots and got more excited than everyone else did. Throwing fist bumps in the air and talking about how tonight should go, the list goes on. And it led to Fuuka rubbing her temples. 

“I forgot how excited those three got when it came to battling.” Fuuka murmured as she turned her attention to Mitsuru who was chatting with Minato. She only observed a few head nods and Fuuka turned her attention back to Shinjiro. “Hey,” Fuuka reached for his arm before he could get too far away, “I just wanted to make sure you are all in with us going in with Nyx.”

Shinjiro turned to face Fuuka and raised an eyebrow. “Well yeah I am. I am all in with this and with you.”

Fuuka nodded and smiled up at him. “Good. … …”

“What is with the silent treatment?”

“...listen, I understand if you say no , but–”

“ Fuuka .”

She lowered her eyes and felt her shoulders tilt inward. Never would Fuuka want to subject Shinjiro to her family. …and she knew it was bound to happen. Unfortunately, her parents were persistent as fuck.

“...my mom and dad would like to meet you.” Fuuka winced, preparing for the worse. She turned her head to the side and put her hands up to shield herself.

“How did they know we were dating? Wait. How did they know YOU were dating someone?”

“When I went back home last week, I think I left my phone out on the counter. I was helping my dad with putting groceries away and my mom saw a picture of us-–well, not of us , but the picture we took on the night Ikutsuki…” She bit her lip and closed her eyes. God, just saying his name left a nasty taste in her mouth. “...It wasn’t just us in the picture, but my mom was able to put two and two together and knew I was dating someone .”

Shinjiro crossed his arms and sighed heavily. Even the idea of meeting anyone’s parents didn’t sound comfortable and/or safe–for his sake, that is. He could see the worry in Fuuka’s eyebrows. “You know I don’t look good in front of parents, much less yours, Fuuka.”

Fuuka shook her head and placed her hands on her chest. “That’s not true–-they don’t know you and what has happened. …Honestly, they did not know I was in the hospital for a month.”

Shinjiro looked surprised and shocked. And a bit sick in the stomach. “You’ve gotta be kidding me. They didn’t bother checking in on you as to why there was radio silence for a month?! No wonder you moved out as fast as you could.”

“I…” She felt embarrassed over her parents and couldn’t understand why. Fuuka cared about her parents, and they were the closest family she had. But how could she defend them? “I cannot defend them on that-–to be honest, I am surprised they never got ahold of my medical records. But I think Mitsuru-senpai was able to keep mine under wraps.”

“It’s Mitsuru. I’m not surprised.”

“Shinjiro. …You can still say no to this. It’s just a small dinner with them–-less than a couple hours. I will support you in your answer and defend your choice.”

Shinjiro gripped his bicep tightly, a war going on inside of his mind. Going would benefit his relationship with Fuuka and could bring them closer. And yet, meeting the parents that didn’t give two fucks about their own daughter could lead Shinjiro to blowing up and saying something he shouldn’t. And could make Shinjiro drift further from Fuuka.

But, the one thing that was most important to him was supporting Fuuka. No. Matter. What.

Opening his eyes slowly, after taking a deep breath in and out, he nodded slowly. “I’ll go with you. I want to see and talk to your parents. And who knows?” He uncrossed his arms and smiled, letting a hand land on top of Fuuka’s head. “Maybe one day I can show you off to my parents.”

If only she knew they weren’t here. 

Fuuka’s eyebrows rose, surprised that Shinjiro said yes to going and even seeing his parents in the future. She placed one of her hands on top of Shinjiro’s own and nodded at him.

“I’ll give them the news later tonight. It won’t be for a week or so. With their schedules, it’ll be a miracle for them to have one day off together.” Fuuka explained, knowing that she had time to help Shinjiro tone down his attitude and resting bitch face for her parents. Then again, would it be wise to even fix him up?

“So I have a week to find something presentable, right?”

Fuuka shook her head. “Honestly, if you want to do that, be my guest. The all black attire you have is perfectly fine for me. Maybe a haircut might help?” She reached up and pulled his hair gently, letting out a giggle once Shinjiro grumbled under his breath. “They say hair does keep memory–cutting it might make you feel loads better.”

Shinjiro gently pulled Fuuka’s fingers off of his hair and rolled his eyes. “Yeah yeah, I’ll do that at least. But, why don’t you grow out your hair? We could match.” He felt his cheeks heating up briefly at the thought of Fuuka with longer hair.

“...It’s easier to take care of shorter hair. I never got to learn how to braid hair or add cute accessories–mom was never around to be a mom. Maybe,” She reached for her hair and felt her cheeks turning red, “if I grow my hair out, can you help me braid it?” Fuuka murmured softly, only loud enough for Shinjiro to hear her. She looked up at him and saw Shinjiro furiously nodding his head. A soft smile appeared on her lips as she curled her hair with her finger.

“I mean, I’ll ask Minako about the girlie shit, but uhh… I’ll learn for you .”

“Okay. Then, I’ll grow it out, just for you. … …and maybe for me, too.”

Chapter Text

🎶 God save the most judgmental creeps
Who say they want what's best for me
Sanctimoniously performing soliloquies I'll never see
Thinking it can change the beat
Of my heart when he touches me
And counteract the chemistry
And undo the destiny 🎶

January 3rd / Sunday

“Are you sure that this is okay? I feel underdressed.” Shinjiro looked at himself in the mirror that was placed over the sink in his room. Having Akihiko and Minako there to calm him down was supposed to help. Even a little. 

“I mean, I think he looks fine. He’s even taking the beanie off. That means a lot to him.” Akihiko nudged his finger towards the rundown beanie on Shinjiro’s bed. Minako was walking around Shinjiro, trying to figure out what was missing to complete his outfit. “You are just meeting with Fuuka’s parents.”

Shinjiro turned on his heel and crossed his arms. “Exactly. I need to look good to create this image that I’m Fuuka’s boyfriend and they have to deal with it.”

Minako tapped her finger on her chin and stopped short in front of him. “Well, black is professional, technically. It also slims you down, even though you’ve slimmed down and gained some weight back in your extremities. Maybe her mom will love if you show off the muscles?” Minako suggested, showing her own biceps and grinning to keep him calm and relaxed.

He ran his fingers through his messy hair and groaned. Minako rubbed his back and began to look through his closet once more. “Mina,” Akihiko walked over to the closet to help her find something, “maybe we can let him take his peacoat? At least the newer one?”

“I mean, it’ll work. Having a color popping out against the black would look good. And maroon is his color, more or less.” She admitted and pulled the battle peacoat out. Minako turned her attention to Shinjiro as he looked at it. “It IS clean. You’ve only been in a couple battles while wearing it.”

Shinjiro reached for it, took it off the hanger, and began to put it on. He looked at himself in the mirror once more and groaned. “Something is still missing. I think it's the beanie. It compliments the outfit.”

Minako and Akihiko groaned again. Minako flopped on the bed and sighed. “Shinjiro, you are fiiiiiine ! Stop overthinking it.”

“I know Fuuka is going to wear something so beautiful it’s going to pale in comparison to me.”

Akihiko took his hands, grabbed Shinjiro’s shoulders, and lightly shook him to knock some sense into him. “Fuuka will be with you. You are there to show her parents that she has you and you have her.” He stopped shaking him and lightly smiled at his friend. “You have to also think that Fuuka is probably scared to go back to see her parents. But this time she has you . She won't be alone.”

Minako sat up quickly and nodded, pushing herself off the bed and standing next to her boyfriend. “Aki’s right—you know what to do and say. And, well, who knows? Maybe her parents will love you! But, uhh... ...maybe we should do some practice questions? It might be good practice to look and sound prepared."

January 5th / Tuesday

Shinjiro stared at the cozy home that Fuuka called home since he has known her. White house with blue shutters and a doorbell that looked brand new. He had to do a double take only to find a picket fence and she’d be closer to an American home than a Japanese home. He decided to go with an all-black outfit and left the coat and beanie at home. His hair was brushed, and he actually looked a bit professional.

Fuuka squeezed Shinjiro’s hand tightly, assuring him, and her, that everything will be fine. “I’m nervous, too. They haven’t seen me since…I think October. They have no idea about me being almost killed.” She whispered lowly so Shinjiro could hear her. “And before you ask, Mitsuru-senpai kept everything quiet and she paid for everything. As always, my parents are clueless.”

Shinjiro didn’t even look surprised with that information. “Then again, they didn’t bother trying to find you when you got lost in Tartarus.”

She shook her head. “No. But, with them working nights often, I bet they thought I was okay. They never really checked up on me a lot. As long as I was in the top 10 in my year, nothing mattered.” Fuuka walked closer to the door and felt like her heart was gonna leap out of her chest. She stopped short in front of the door and fixed her black skirt and hand-knit green sweater. She wore a brand-new pair of tights--skin colored, with a pair of green suede boots to match with her sweater. DEFINITELY a gift from Yukari and Mitsuru.

“Well, I’m sure they will pay attention to you now that I’m in the picture.” He kissed the top of her head and watched her ringing the doorbell. “Also, I have your back if you have mine.”

Fuuka smiled and looked up at him. “Of course I do. Just hoping this goes smoothly.”

“You and me both.” He uttered before the front door opened and revealed Fuuka’s father. 

Shinjiro was a bit surprised to see that Fuuka inherited maybe her father’s eye color and height and nothing else. His hair was a much darker shade of blue, along the lines of Minato's own hair color, and he even had glasses on. The thought of Fuuka wearing glasses instantly appeared in his mind and he would have thought she would be cute as fuck. 

“Father, it’s good to see you.” She moved a bit closer to the doorway, gripping Shinjiro’s hand tenderly. “This is my boyfriend, Shinjiro. So, please put away the shocked look on your face.”

Shinjiro blinked a few times to bring himself back into reality and realized that her father did look shocked: was that a good or bad thing?

Her father chuckled softly as he leaned in and kissed the top of her head. “That was not my intention. You know you didn’t have to listen to your mother and do this. A video call would suffice in this weather.”

“I know. But I rather this being private and contained in our home rather than in public. I don’t need more people judging me more than I already have in my life.” Fuuka replied softly, about to squeeze Shinjiro’s hand when she realized he was two steps ahead of her. Fuuka turned her head and smiled at her boyfriend. 

Her father looked up at Shinjiro and quickly scanned him up and down, trying to not speak before thinking about what to say. With his trained surgeon eyes, he noticed a few things that maybe no one would ever see on Shinjiro. He still kept a small wall between them. 

“You cook, don’t you?” He questioned him as Shinjiro nodded. 

“How did you know?”

Fuuka’s father pointed to his hands. “I see little nicks on your fingers. You are a very careful and quick person when it comes to cutting up vegetables. Your arms—” His fingers then pointed to his biceps and grinned. “—are gaining muscle to where you can cut stuff expertly, as if you’ve been doing this longer than you’ve been alive. I know a thing or two about cutting.”

Shinjiro grinned and chuckled softly at his little cunning joke. As her father drew his hand back, Shinjiro looked at his fingertips and barely saw the healing cuts. Thin, but they were there. Fuuka sniffed her nose as an aroma was surrounding the three of them. 

“I’m going to go check on mom.” Fuuka stated and tapped Shinjiro’s shoulder gently. “Be good.” And with a small smile, she walked away and left Shinjiro alone with her father. 

To say he was nervous would be the understatement of the year. 

But Shinjiro swallowed his fear and crossed his arms. “Fuuka has told me a lot about you, Yamagishi-san. How you work long hours and on complicated surgeries.”

Hikaru Yamagishi smiled and put his hands behind his back. He acts as if he’s in his 70s, not his late 40s. “I’m surprised she has mentioned me to you. Because she’s never said much about you except that she wanted to introduce you to us.”

“Yeah, well, when people see me, they tend to run away or get scared of me.”

“And my daughter wasn’t scared of you, right?”

Shinjiro chuckled again. “If she was, she never told me. Then again, she was soft spoken the first week I met her.” He closed his eyes, remembering their conversation about Junpei earlier in the year. “She can kinda read me like a book sometimes.”

I mean, she does have a Persona that can hone in with feelings and so much more. 

“I blame myself for being a stoic and unapproachable human being. I never recognized her but her grades. She had to be lonely but never said anything to me.” Hikaru explained. “I focused on my career and not my family. So, when she said she found friends, it took me a while to realize she was happy. And when she mentioned she had a boyfriend , color me surprised. In a good way.” 

Shinjiro opened his eyes and eyed Hikaru carefully. 

“Fuuka…she’s a smart and careful woman. She wouldn’t bring anyone to us unless she was serious and knew the person she was bringing could handle us. From the first 10 minutes I’ve talked to you, you are observant and know when to speak up. But, this looks like it is new to you, isn’t it?”

“Damn—sorry, for cursing.”

Hikaru chuckled lightly. “You can curse. I don’t mind.”

And Shinjiro’s shoulders felt ten pounds lighter. But he felt like he was still walking on eggshells around him. This felt like being around Mitsuru's father. “It is new, being around a family. I think Fuuka is the only one of our friends who actually has both parents in her life. She’s…lucky.”

Before Shinjiro could bring himself back to the past, back to the orphanage where he met Akihiko and his sister Miki, Fuuka popped her head out of the kitchen. She waved at the men and grinned. 

“Dinner will be done in a few minutes. Shinji, would you help me set the table?”

He felt his ears warming up and turning red. He has to think of a nickname for Fuuka—it’s fair, right? 

“Y-yeah, of course. Excuse me.” He stepped around her father and into the kitchen. Shinjiro could see Fuuka’s mom going to town on a couple dishes and mixing something in a pot. The aroma was mouthwatering, and he forced his mouth shut. Quietly, he followed behind Fuuka and held the plates while Fuuka held the glasses and silverware. 

“Follow me.” Fuuka tilted her head to the room in front of them, noticing it was a table ready for six. Four spots were cleared, one was covered with someone’s bag and a coat, whereas the sixth chair had paperwork covered by even more paperwork. 

Shinjiro looked around the room and looking at the photos hanging on the wall while he placed the plates down. Fuuka wearing a school uniform from middle school and a bouquet of flowers in one arm: Shinjiro knew this was before she came to Gekkoukan High. Another one with her parents married and surrounded by a nearby lake or pond. Big, bright smiles, as if the future was nothing that would separate them. 

And the last one he saw made him almost do a double take. He stared at it a bit too long as Fuuka laid her hand on his arm and rubbed it slowly. “You think it is odd, too?”

“I mean, your dad on your left, mom on the right, and you…aren’t really in the center. Closer to your dad, but maybe that’s how they wanted it?” He murmured softly, wondering if the picture frame was off centered. 

“I don’t know. I think I brought it up one time and they shut me down immediately.” 

Quietly watching from the kitchen, Yui Yamagishi turned to find her husband reaching for some fresh tea in the fridge. She walked up to him and sighed softly. 

“We have to tell her. This secret isn't going to last another month.” Yui whispered as she leaned over the open door of the fridge. “Her boyfriend is getting suspicious, so he’s not stupid.”

Hikaru frowned and eyed Yui cautiously. “He’s far from stupid, Yui. You only saw him for a minute—don’t you try to push Fuuka away, again.”

She rolled her eyes, shrugging, and turning her attention back to the food before looking back at her daughter and boyfriend. Instead of looking at the family photo, Shinjiro found the few baby photos of Fuuka on top of the bookshelf and watched her cheeks turning pink. 

Yui wasn’t envious or jealous. More like she was paranoid—living in the fear of knowing what she and her husband did years ago to make sure Fuuka was safe caused her to sleep less every year. Which led to Fuuka pushing away from both of them and staying far away. Narcissism is a cruel thing that breaks families apart. 

With a cough, she reached over the stove and smiled towards everyone. “Dinner is done! Fuuka, dear, come over and help me. Boys, find a spot to sit and us women will handle everything.”

The tension in this room can be cut with a knife.

Fuuka quietly thought as she started to butter a roll. Her mother decided to make a meatloaf dinner, along with mixed vegetables and rolls, with her mother’s infamous mashed potatoes. It’s one of their favorites in the house, but it’s only made for special occasions, like this. 

“So, Shinjiro, was it?” Yui turned her attention to Shinjiro, a cunning smile on her face, as Shinjiro nodded and swallowed his food quickly to speak. 

“Yeah, it is.”

“Are you in the same year as Fuuka?”

Shinjiro did not know how to answer this but knew honesty was the best policy. Even if he knew it would probably bring a frown on her parents' faces. 

“I’m a year above her. I took a year off for… health issues. I’m doing better, thanks to your daughter, and well…” He turned his attention to Fuuka as he noticed her cheeks were a light shade of pink. “…I might graduate with my friends but it’ll depend on everything.”

Yui raised an eyebrow at health issues and with Fuuka helping him. Fuuka cleaned her face up with a nearby napkin and placed it on her lap. 

“Are you sure? I thought you’d be half a year behind.” Fuuka reassured, not knowing about this at all.

“Well, Mitsuru said if I keep at my studies I should be good to graduate. But, I may try to graduate with you and the others. I was stupid and didn’t take care of myself and I have to take ownership in that.” Shinjiro explained to Fuuka. She smiled at the thought of graduating with him, but he wouldn’t be able to graduate with Akihiko to Mitsuru. Though, she will check in with the latter of the two. 

Hikaru sipped some water and turned his attention to Shinjiro. “Is everything okay with you, Shinjiro? You do not look sick.”

The younger couple turned their attention to the oldest man at the table. Fuuka gulped as Shinjiro nodded. He was cool and calm. As if he was prepared for the multiple questions. 

“I am. I actually looked much skinnier than this. Fuuka’s food is helping me gain weight and I look healthier than this.”

“Fuuka cooks?” Yui asked, bewildered, and interlocked her fingers, laying her chin on top. “That’s a first. Now, honey, why haven’t you told us this?”

Fuuka gulped again, as if she was trying to get a hairball out of her throat. “Because it was a disaster. And Shinjiro had to come and help me out. I’m still just a beginner though.”

And you were never home to see me failing. Why would I even do that in front of you?

The thought almost felt like vomit, ready to escape at any moment. Fuuka lowered her head, focusing on the half eaten meatloaf in front of her, and gulping again. As if she would never be able to get her throat moist. 

“No need to be defensive, honey. Anyway,” Yui turned her eyes back to Shinjiro as she was tired of Fuuka not reacting more, “Shinjiro, what made you pick Fuuka as your girlfriend? Was it because she was smart? Or was it because she was so small she needed to be defended from her bullies?”

Fuuka’s eyes grew huge as she felt her throat going dry. Shinjiro glared harshly at Yui, hating how Fuuka’s own mother could talk so coldly about her daughter in front of her. Hikaru seemed to be interested in those questions being answered. As if he only heard “what made you pick Fuuka?” and blocked the rest out of his mind. 

Shinjiro reached for Fuuka’s hand, from under the table, and held it while pulling it out from hiding. He wanted to make both of them aware that they were not going to hide this from anyone. And that he did not give one fuck. 

“Fuuka is a brilliant and bright woman who makes sure her friends are taken care of before she even thinks about herself. She handled her bullying issue far better than anyone I know. Granted, the only bullies I see are the both of you.” Shinjiro stated as he used his other hand to point at her father first. “I know the tactic you used when I entered the home. You couldn’t even look me in the face but only at my fingers—you think I looked disgusting and not worthy of your daughter.”

Hikaru lowered his eyes and head, knowing he had been called out easily. Shinjiro moved his pointer finger to Yui soon after. 

“And you are her mother ! You should be taking care of your daughter by motivating her and showing her that not everyone is shallow-minded. I would do anything to have my parents in my life—I grew up without the guidance I needed to help me make better choices and it led me to make stupid decisions. Fuuka,” he held their hands higher and almost pulled her out of her seat, “has helped me become a much better human being. If you want my honest opinion, here it is: if I never came back to help SEES, I am sure I would have been dead within the next year or two. Because of Fuuka, and my friend’s, intervention, I have a long, healthy life ahead of me!”

Fuuka stared at him with wonder and amazement. She could count on her left hand on the times people stood up for her up until now. All the Yamagishis were stunned at Shinjiro’s truthful and harsh words. It took Shinjiro a couple passing seconds to realize that his thoughts were spoken out loud. He lowered Fuuka’s hand with his and ran his free hand through his hair out of frustration. 

“Fuuka, this is why I can’t do family gatherings. I make things awkward.” He murmured lowly to his girlfriend. 

She gripped his hand tenderly and shook her head. “You’ve said what I’ve wanted to for years. I appreciate you for doing what I couldn’t.” She replied, assuring him that everything was right. And Shinjiro could feel that it was true. Turning her attention to her parents, with them blinking at the young couple and staring at them with a hint of surprise, Fuuka sighed softly and felt the words quickly leaving her lips.

“I’m sorry for not being around as much as before. Kirijo-senpai’s father died and then our club advisor died and then Shinjiro and I are getting over—”

A hint of shock appeared in Hikaru’s eyes. 

“W-wait. Fuuka, slow down. I heard about Takeharu Kirijo dying in the newspaper and around work. But, your club advisor…? They were never mentioned at all.”

“Oh? I’m not sure why, dad.”

“What was their name again? Shoji? Shiki?”

“Shuji Ikutsuki.” Fuuka corrected her father. 

Yui’s hand covered her mouth as she and Hikaru looked at each other with wonder, as if you just told them they won the lottery. Tears escaped her mother’s eyes as Fuuka could have sworn she saw light coming back into their eyes. It was, as if, the universe just suddenly changed in the blink of an eye. 

As if everything was going to be a-okay.

“Hikaru…he’s dead .” Yui acknowledged, repeating it a few times as Hikaru reached for her hand and smiled alongside her. Fuuka turned her attention to Shinjiro, raising an eyebrow, and watched as he shrugged in return.

“I-I’m a bit confused. Why are you both happy he’s dead? I mean, he was not a great person once his motives were revealed and he tried to hurt all of us in the dorm.” Fuuka casually explained, ready to pull her fingers out and start counting.

Yui wiped happy tears from her eyes and nodded her head once towards her husband. “Honey, it is time we explain everything to her.”

Shinjiro lowered his eyes and glared at the parents silently. He knew something was up, but he slightly worried about what it could be. Knowing Shuji Ikutsuki was dead and with Fuuka’s parents being beyond happy… …this isn’t just something .

Hikaru looked at everyone’s food, noticing most of the food was finished by everyone, as he stood from the table. He coughed and placed his hands on the table. “I think we will need some wine to get through what we have to say. Fuuka,” he turned to face his confused daughter and more confused boyfriend, “please meet us in the living room. We will be there in a few minutes.”

Fuuka watched as her mom and dad left the kitchen twenty pounds lighter and smiling. She turned quickly to Shinjiro and back to the seats her parents sat in, and then back to Shinjiro.

“...The only other time my parents ever got wine to drink was when I moved into the dorms, and the other was when I was little. I don’t remember the reason why, though, but I remember it happening. I can’t imagine what this could be.”

Once everyone was sitting down, with Fuuka’s parents in front of her and Shinjiro, she watched as she was handed an envelope from her mother. 

“Before you open it, honey,” Yui sat down in the chair she brought from the kitchen and clasped her hands on top of Fuuka’s own, “we only did this for your good. I… …I was still going through postpartum depression when this all happened. I remembered bits and pieces of it, having to ask your father what was true and lies. So, your father complied all the information between then and now and I’ve read this over and over… …and this is for you to keep.”

Fuuka didn’t realize how heavy the folder was until she lifted it by herself. She was so damn curious to see what was in here that seemed to cause her parents so much grief in the last 10 or so years. And now, she was scared to see what this could be.

“D-dad…mom…is this bad news?” She hesitantly asked, gulping as Shinjiro picked the folder up and gasped at the weight of it.

“I wouldn’t say it is all BAD, per se.” Hikaru explained and ran his fingers through his hair. “It’s something even you don’t know about dear. We have kept this secret from you for the longest time and maybe we can all finally start to heal. This secret was something I thought we would have to keep for the rest of my life–until I had to die with it. Now, I can finally tell you and at least the person whom you have deemed your better half.”

Fuuka turned her head to Shinjiro and reached for his hand. Their eyes locking onto one another, nodding curtly to each other, knowing that this secret had to be so bad that only her parents knew. And that was terrifying to think about. Something that was eating them up for years and could only reveal until now.

Hikaru took a deep breath in and out, sipping more wine, and looking down at his knees while Yui chugged the wine she had in her glass and had to excuse herself for more wine.

Father. Mother. …how BAD was this secret of yours? How did you keep quiet for so long?

“Well, to tell you the truth, you are not an only child. You have an older brother who is your twin by 2 minutes.”

“Wait. WHAT?!” Fuuka screeched as her eyes grew huge. “THAT is a huge secret! How did I not know this?!”

Hikaru put his hands up and looked up at his daughter who looked like she was ready to hit him with the heavy folder of information.

“Because of Shuji Ikutsuki’s influence.”

NOW, Fuuka was more confused as Shinjiro put a hand on her shoulder. “Let him explain, Fuuka. I’m just confused as you are.”

She slowly nodded as her father continued. “When you and your brother were five years old, I was working at a hospital, remember? It was a small one in our old hometown, by the river. Shuji was looking for children to experiment on. Granted, he never told us what his actual plans were. And, well, when I brought you both with me that one day your mother was sick, he was thrilled to see you both and began to reach for you , Fuuka, first. He murmured that she has the potential or something else. But, your brother…he stepped in and asked to take your spot.

“I was stupid and let him go with Shuji. In order to keep our silence, he paid us graciously. 100,000 yen monthly. And we were money hungry. You both were so smart, so brilliant, that we had to put you both in the best schools around. When your brother left with Shuji, he promised me a better position and a better place for you and us to live–Iwatodai. I know you had coughing fits where we first lived and were never at 100 percent on the daily, but I was young and stupid and a fool.”

Fuuka placed the paperwork on the coffee table in front of her as her mother returned with another glass of wine. She nodded her head slowly. “I remember not feeling well a lot. Was it because of where we were living?”

Hikaru shook his head. “Not really. I think you were made to live in nature and with flowers, but the city sort of helped. Moving to Iwatodai and getting you into a new environment helped. But, as you grew up, you were never happy. And we never noticed it was because of your brother being gone. You had a part of yourself missing–makes sense now.” He reached for his wine and sipped more until the glass was empty. “Little by little, the money Shuji was sending us started to trickle down to less and less. It wasn’t until you joined the co-ed dorm, and S.E.E.S., that he sent us another letter, which you will see in that folder.

“...He stated, basically, that he was glad to have another Yamagishi to mind fuck since the other one died.”

Shinjiro gulped as Fuuka’s eyes went wide. He reached for her hands and held them in both of his own. That felt like a sucker punch to the stomach and face at the same time.

“He’s dead?” Fuuka questioned softly, her voice slightly shaking. 

“We assume he is. Apparently, there was a lab explosion from where he was doing the research on the children. Only a few made it out alive.”

“Holy shit.” Shinjiro cursed as he felt his eyes grow in shock, not realizing that everything really was coming back to him and Fuuka meeting, one way or another. “Fuuka, you don’t think those children…”

“...members of Strega?” She murmured softly to Shinjiro, noticing he was nodding and bit her bottom lip. “Makes sense why they had vendetta towards Ikutsuki-san and myself…I wonder if they knew him…”

Hikaru coughed again, trying to clear something out of his throat, and brought the younger couple back into the conversation he was having before. “I don’t know if they are the same people, but who knows? Anyway, with your brother dead, Shuji made sure to get back at us, for some reason. I’ll never know unless he kept his research somewhere. But, that folder goes into all the details–and it also has your correct, undoctored birth certificate. Along with pictures of us, all four of us, as a family.”

Quietly, he turned his head to the family photo that was at the kitchen table. The one that Shinjiro and Fuuka were looking at earlier seemed a bit fake or unrealistic. “I can update all these photos with the real photos that we had to take away. …never would I thought I could tell you about your brother, Yasonobu.”

“Yasonobu…Yamagishi…” Fuuka whispered the name, testing it on her lips, and lowered her head. She could feel tears threatening to fall. “...I have, had, a brother .”

Yui took a deep breath in and let it out slowly. “I am sorry for not being a better mother to you or to Yasonobu. If I wasn’t so greedy, I… … we could have kept both of our children.” She sniffed her nose, trying to not sob herself as she reached for her husband’s hand. “Shuji Ikutsuki found us at our lowest, but took Yasonobu when you were the happiest. You may never forgive us Fuuka, and we can live with that for the rest of our lives. But, I hope this can bring you s-some peace.”

Fuuka got up from her seat quickly, releasing Shinjiro’s hand from her own, and went over to hug both of her parents. Small sobs escaped their lips as they held each other tightly.

“I may hate you both for a little bit, but at least I found out sooner rather than later.”

I don’t like this one bit. Ikutsuki went after the Yamagishis and have been for years. Did her brother have the potential like Fuuka? How the fuck did Ikutsuki knew that about Fuuka? Was Strega born out of the explosion that happened? If that’s the case, then holy fuck–Strega would have reason to go after Ikutsuki. …did Fuuka’s brother cause the explosion? What in God’s name was Shuji Ikutsuki doing to those children he was experimenting on?

Yui ran her fingers through her long bright teal hair and sighed heavily. “I know this isn’t how we wanted this dinner to go tonight. But, I think tonight has been very eventful.” Her eyes dashed to her daughter and then to the snow falling behind them slowly and quietly. “It would be best if you two headed back a little early.”

“Mom, dad? Can we have dinner again? Once spring comes around that is. Everything will be more calm and relaxed. And Shinjiro could cook this time!” She grinned, nudging her boyfriend as he let out a groan.

Shinjiro playfully nudged her back and glared at her with a wink from his eye. “I’ll make ramen that’ll knock off your socks.”

“Shinjiro.” The teen turned his attention to Hikaru, watching as he held out his hand to the boy and nodded slowly. “I do not know what Ikutsuki got my family into, but please keep an eye on my daughter. I… we lost our son years ago. I do not want to lose the only other child I have.” 

Shinjiro looked at his hand, stoic and unwavering–showing how steady his hands are when it comes to his surgeries. He reached for it, not realizing how small his hand looked and nodded. “I can promise that. And we will come back in the spring, together.”

After arriving a little before ten o’clock, with everyone asleep in the dorm rooms, Shinjiro pulled Fuuka into his room and once the door closed, they began to make out. Clothes thrown to the ground–Shinjiro’s beanie and Fuuka’s tights were already off of each other in seconds. Fuuka, however, made sure the paperwork her parents gave her was placed carefully on Shinjiro's desk before they undressed. Their hair was messy but they both didn’t care. They needed this as much as they wanted each other.

Fuuka pulled Shinjiro on top of her, not realizing how animalistic they had become. She felt on top of the world knowing her parents, especially her father, were approving of Shinjiro. 

“Shinjiro…”

He stopped before wanting to claim her neck again in pure ecstasy. “Yes? I was in the middle of making out with you.”

“I love you.”

It was quick and to the point. Fuuka reached up and kissed his lips once, twice, thrice, and slithered her hand down to his boxers. She stopped short of the band of his and felt her heart pounding so loudly she could have sworn Shinjiro could hear it, too. 

“And I love you, Fuuka. Are you sure about this?”

“Shinjiro.” Fuuka reached into his boxers, grabbing his penis, and stroked his semi-hard erection. A heavy gasp escaped her lover’s lips as she stared at him with soft eyes. “I don’t know what’ll come of this battle at the end of the month. My parents love you, our friends love you, and I love you. I want you to make love to me. Because I love you so much that even if we die–emphasis on if –I want to be your one and only lover.”

Something awoke inside of Shinjiro as he leaned away from Fuuka, sitting on his knees while Fuuka’s delicate hand was on his penis. He had a hard time trying to form any words, but he gulped, taking a deep breath in and out, and removed Fuuka’s bra, exposing her erect nipples. A soft gasp escaped her lips as she felt his thumb flicking one of her nipples.

“Babe. You should have told me that so much sooner. I would’ve fucked you if you just asked.”

Shinjiro’s other hand swiftly moved towards Fuuka’s own underwear and he grinned. Blood was rushing to his groin even more and he was getting harder by the second. He slithered his own hand down into her underwear and could feel how wet she was. Fuuka had to stop pumping his erection as she turned her head to the side once Shinjiro’s fingers moved inside of her. 

“S-shinjiro…!” She uttered softly, barely loud enough for Shinjiro to hear her, as she tried to turn her head back to face him with her cheeks warm and pink. “...please fuck me. I don’t think I-I’m going to last with your fingers in me.”

A low growl escaped Shinjiro’s lips as he ditched her underwear and his boxers and leaned over his girlfriend ready to devour her.

“Thought you would never ask.”

In a city far away, downtown, a young man was looking at his home office and at his list of achievements on the nearby wall. Graduating high school at the age of 13, finishing college by 16, and currently working on his medical diploma in the near future. Only 17 years old and quite brilliant for his age, the boy made sure to fix his glasses on his face and sighed softly.

“...it’s too quiet for me to stay here alone. I need to go get something to eat.”

He turns off the light and closes the door. He was able to buy his apartment with his own money and working his way into becoming a doctor, like his father before him, caused him to have less of a social life than before he entered medical school. For now, he knew he had to focus on the future. He had a sister and family waiting for him.

Pulling out his wallet, he made sure his debit card and credit card was in there, along with the picture of him and his sister from when they were five. Before they were separated. Before he had to run away in seclusion miles and miles away from his family. 

“Fuuka. …I promise I will come back and find you. No matter how long it takes.”