Work Text:
The last memories Kotone remembered was the vast blue sky above her as she slowly drifts back to sleep on Aigis’s lap. It was peaceful. Like being enveloped into a big warm embrace.
Kotone saw a glimmer of light at the corner of her eyes as if someone was stretching their hand to her. When she accepted the person’s hand, she finally closed her eyes.
Expecting eternal slumber, Kotone however was awoken once again. She was standing at the front gates of Gekkoukan High School like all those times before. As if she was waiting for midnight, waiting for Dark Hour to commence and Tartarus to reveal itself.
Kotone looked at her hands, not believing what was happening. She was alive and something felt off about it. She accepted her fate long ago but somehow she was back to the living once again.
That’s not the only thing that felt off for her too. The school, the environment around her certainly has undergone so many changes. Kotone realized that some time had passed but she didn't know how long it was.
Before she could gather more of her thoughts, a blue door from the corner of her eyes appeared. She saw Theodore on its side, bowing as if he was urging her to come inside.
Wordlessly, Kotone went to the blue door and entered the never ending elevator ride once again.
“Welcome back,” Theodore bowed once more and greeted Kotone, “I assume you have questions, yes?”
Kotone nodded and saw two more figures appeared in the Velvet Room. There were two female attendants this time, one young and one older than Theodore.
“These are my sisters. Margaret my oldest sister and Lavenza my youngest,” Theodore gestured his hands and pointed at his sisters one by one.
“Where’s Elizabeth?”
There was an awkward silence and the three siblings seemed like they were having trouble finding the right words to answer Kotone’s question.
Margaret coughed and broke the silence, “She…she went on a journey to find a way to free you from The Great Seal.”
Kotone was surprised. She didn’t realize that her passing greatly affected Elizabeth like that. She doesn’t know what to feel about it. Should she feel happy or sad?
Sensing the awkward atmosphere will go on for much longer, Lavenza broke the ice and started briefing Kotone on the current situation.
“We actually summoned you here to tell you what is currently happening. I assume you are confused why you are currently alive again.”
Kotone shook her head and asked, “Actually, I’m more worried if it is okay for me to be here. Would the world be in danger? If Elizabeth is not here, it means I was not properly retrieved from The Great Seal right?”
“Yes…” Lavenza replied, “You are here because your friends simply wished so.” Lavenza paused and waited for Kotone to ask questions if she wanted to. “There is currently a powerful persona user called Maruki that managed to rewrite the whole reality to everyone’s ideal one. It just so happens that your friends want you to be in it.”
Kotone was taken aback. After all these years, they still want her to be back? They still believe she was alive?
“How many years has it been?”
“Seven,” Theodore answered, “It’s 2016.”
Kotone bit her lip. She wanted to say so many things but clearly the Velvet Room attendants were not the recipients of it. She decided to change the topic instead. “Do you need help defeating this Maruki guy?”
“No!” Lavenza huffed and pouted. “My trickster and his friends can handle this, thank you very much!”
Kotone was surprised. This was the first time the young attendant acted her age. She clearly loved that “trickster” of hers. Margaret was grinning and Theodore had a complicated look on his face about the statement.
“Your friends have given you a new lease in life. Just enjoy it,” Margaret said sweetly.
“We…” Theodore nervously joined in and continued, “We have very limited powers in this reality as of the moment so the next time we will be able to contact you is when the Phantom Thieves are planning to strike Maruki’s palace.”
“Phantom Thieves? Palace?”
Lavenza put her hands on the sides of her waist and explained proudly, “ My trickster and his friends are called the Phantom Thieves. They steal the hearts of corrupt evil individuals.”
“Palaces are manifestations of someone’s evil desire. They are dungeon-like places like the Tartarus that are specific to one person,“ Theodore added.
“I see.” Kotone doesn’t really quite get it but forced a smile nonetheless. “I guess the situation is under the capable hands of the Phantom Thieves then.”
Lavenza nodded proudly while Margaret and Theodore gave a reassuring smile.
“I don’t think we can hold this place any much longer. We will see you once again,” Margaret said as the elevator started to slow to its stop. “Since everyone is living their desired life, we don’t think humanity will try to summon Erebus for the time being.”
“That is why…” Theodore slowly motioned towards the elevator’s doors and gestured for Kotone to exit the elevator. “Please enjoy yourself. No matter how little the time might be.”
The two exchange smiles and the blue door slowly vanishes in front of Kotone’s eyes. She was once again back at the gates of Gekkoukan High School. But this time she wasn’t alone. On the corner of her eyes, Kotone spotted a striking yellow scarf that she has seen countless times before.
Ryoji Mochizuki slowly emerged from the shadows with a smile on his face. Kotone's eyes began to tear up as she slowly ran up to him. The ring he once gave her swaying back and forth from her necklace.
The two embraced for a very long time with silence as their comfort. It felt like eternity had passed when they were in each others’ embrace yet for some reason it only felt like seconds at the same time. The two only broke apart when they heard the clock chimed midnight.
Kotone was nervous. She looked at the school waiting for it to turn to Tartarus. She only managed to breathe normally again once a few minutes had passed.
Ryoji gently squeezed her hands and touched her cold cheeks. “I think we need to go somewhere warm before we continue this touching reunion.” Ryoji said the last line in a flirty manner but it was only to lighten up the mood.
“Are we…Are we staying here?” Ryoji pointed at the old Iwatodai dorm. He was both shocked and impressed that it was still there despite clearly everything else around it had changed.
Kotone confidently walked up to the door and used her old key from back then. She went in and looked back at Ryoji as if asking him to come inside. The place was the same as ever. There were new appliances here and there but it still felt like the old dorm from before.
“It seems like someone is living here,” Ryoji pointed at the kitchen sink and saw some plates and cups that were just washed that day. “Are you okay with that?”
Sensing the real intent of Ryoji's question, Kotone hesitated to answer. Did she want to meet them? Should she say thank you? What are her real thoughts of being back alive?
Ryoji gave her some space to think things through and went and checked the dorms by himself. Fortunately, it seems like only one person was living at the dorms as of the moment. And it doesn’t seem like they live at the place on a regular basis. The person was just doing some routine cleaning at the dorms.
The only thing Ryoji left unexplored was Kotone’s room. He wanted her to see it first before himself. Once Kotone sorted her feelings out, the two went to her room and saw it being the same as before.
Kotone clearly had mixed feelings about the situation in her room.
No, Ryoji actually thought she had some mixed feelings about being alive at all. Kotone closed the door without sparing any more glances at the room.
“Should we share a room?” Kotone gave a scrutinizing look at Ryoji’s question and playfully shoved him to the sides. “Okay, okay separate bedroom it is. But… my room is unlocked if you wanna sneak in or something.”
The next morning, Ryoji woke up with Kotone not by his side anymore. She was already cooking breakfast and there were bags under her eyes.
“I’m surprised the place even had some food in stock,” Ryoji went to the table and sat down for breakfast.
“No. I went down to the nearest convenience store and bought some food we can cook for the time being.”
Ryoji’s mouth hung open and put his hands to his chest dramatically, “You mean to tell me you went and bought groceries without me. You wound me.”
Kotone smiled and put down the rest of the breakfast, “Relax. I only bought some stuff for breakfast. Who wouldn‘t want to miss some domestic grocery shopping with the popular Ryoji Mochizuki.”
Although their initial plan was to buy some groceries, the pair explored Iwatodai Station instead. There were new things everywhere and the two couldn’t help but check it out. They were sad that the Wild Duck Burger was nowhere in sight but they managed to eat at a new restaurant called Big Bang Burger instead.
After an exhausting day, the two went to the shrine to unwind. The two offered their prayers to the shrine and put their groceries by the playground.
The silence didn’t last long, however. Although it was faint, Kotone heard weak barks from a distance. She stood up and tried to find the source. Before she could do so, however, one passerby noticed and chatted to her.
“My, it seems the old Shiba Inu is still alive,” Kotone perked up and knew exactly who the passerby was talking about. Sensing her curiosity the passerby continued, “I heard the dog was owned by a monk once but when the monk died a couple of students took the dog in. I heard from one of the kids that the dog was nearing its old age and wanted to die here with his old master.”
“I see…”
Koromaru then slowly emerged from the shrine’s stairs and wagged his tail at Kotone.
“Koromaru, it’s me. Do you still remember me?” Kotone crouched to Koromaru’s eye level and extended her hands so he could get a little sniff. After a couple of sniffs, Koromaru’s tail and ears perked up and he started barking excitedly. Koromaru slowly went to Kotone’s side and waited for her to give him some hug.
“Oh, my! Are you one of the kids that took him in? He looks like he missed you a lot.”
After a couple of minutes, the passerby left, satisfied to see Kotone and Koromaru’s reunion.
“We should head back,” Ryoji interrupted the two’s touching reunion, “We need to make dinner.”
Kotone was reluctant but agreed. Before the two could leave however, Koromaru blocked their way and barked. The two were confused at first but slowly realized what Koromaru wanted.
“Do you want to spend your last days with us?” Kotone asked which Koromaru happily barked back.
The next couple of hours were a blur for the two. They couldn’t carry back Koromaru with them so they had to make two trips to drop off their groceries and pick Koromaru back again from the shrine.
Kotone took Koromaru with her while Ryoji, on the other hand, went to the nearest pet store to gather some supplies for Koromaru.
Kotone was the first person to arrive at the dorms with Koromaru in tow. She set him down on the floor and went to the storage room to look for Koromaru’s old stuff when he lived with them.
Fortunately, Koromaru’s old bed and the toys Fuuka bought for him were still there. Kotone tried tossing one of the toys for Koromaru to fetch but all she got was a look of contempt from the dog. When everything was situated with Koromaru, Kotone went and started cooking for dinner.
Ryoji came back a few hours later. He had a couple of plastic bags full of dog food and supplies that he can’t even open the door of the dorms on his own anymore.
“What took you so long?”
“I told the owner that we got a dog nearing the end of its lifespan so,” Ryoji trailed off and pointed at the surplus amount of supplies he got from the store. Ryoji sat down on the sofa and watched as Kotone rummaged through the bags one by one.
“What do you want for dinner Koromaru?” Kotone raised two cans and put them near Koromaru. “They are not as good as Shinjiro-san’s but I think they are far better than my cooking.”
Koromaru looked at both of the cans and was contemplating hard on what to pick. After a few minutes, one of Koromaru’s paws slowly tapped the meat one and let out a lowly gruff as if he was taking an order. Kotone happily took the can away and started putting the food in a dog bowl.
It took a couple of tries before Koromaru managed to get up but he happily licked the bowl clean. Kotone’s hands were on the air waiting to catch Koromaru if anything happened but the gesture seemed to annoy Koromaru more than what Kotone intended.
“What are you thinking?” Ryoji asked as he watched Kotone clean up Koromaru’s surroundings and spaced out in the middle of her action.
Kotone gave a wry smile and laughed nervously. “I was thinking maybe we should stay on the first floor. Just in case something happens to Koromaru…” Before she could continue further, Koromaru growled and slammed the bowl Kotone was holding as a retaliation.
Ryoji laughed and went by her side to help with the mess. “He’s just like you. He has long accepted his fate and babying him won’t really lessen the blow.”
“That is true…” Kotone agreed and switched gears instead. She pumped her chests and gave Koromaru a wide smile. “Then you don’t have to worry about us and go when you feel is the right time. You don’t have to worry about finishing all the stuff we bought. Just do it when you are ready.”
The two started eating their dinner after cleaning up the mess Koromaru made. At first it was filled with silence. The two never really had anything to talk about. But Kotone felt that Ryoji had been staring at her the whole meal. She shot back a quizzical look at him that Ryoji couldn’t help but chuckle at.
“You are really special.”
“Did you spend way too much at the pet store or something? What’s with the sudden compliment?”
“Hey, I never miss the chance to compliment you. Are you saying that they are not enough?” Ryoji tried to waggle his brows in a flirty manner but decided to go back to the original topic instead.
“The way you view life and death just fascinates me. Most humans are scared to face death yet here you are being grumpy that you were brought back here without your consent. I honestly don’t know if you have led a full life before this so you had no regrets or you had grown cynical and stopped caring altogether.”
“ I think they are part of the same coin really.”
“Oh?”
“To me, we just felt so overwhelmed with everything that thinking that tomorrow might be the end of the world is so comforting. We have lost our sight to look forward to the future and have lost our will to live.”
“Yet, you are still here.”
Kotone smiled and agreed, “Yet, I’m still here.”
It was true that Kotone was upset that her friends wanted her to live. It was as if they had ignored Kotone’s choice for them to be happy. For the world to be safe again.
Life and death come and go, so why should Kotone be different? The fact that she managed to choose the way she passes on was a miracle by itself. Kotone really cannot comprehend why they still clung to her like that.
Yet, at the same time, she hasn’t really had the nerve to end it all. Even in her second lease of life, her will to continue on was still almost nonexistent. If she really hated what had happened she could just end it all and go back by herself to be The Great Seal.
But she was still here. Waiting for the inevitable end to come yet again because she herself was not willing to make a move. Like before, all she could do was face everything head on and make the most out of it despite wanting everything to end at the same time.
Kotone clutched the door knob and had one final look at the dorm’s entrance. It has been an uneventful week. Kotone and Ryoji just passed by their first week of being alive again just watching stuff from the tv and hanging out with Koromaru.
Kotone contemplated if they should throw away the things they have used during their stay there but Ryoji talked her out of it. When Ryoji said he wanted to leave something behind of their marital bliss, Kotone couldn’t object any further.
Kotone closed the doors and finally headed to meet her friends one by one.
Akihiko got off the train like clockwork and went straight to his favorite beef bowl shop. Like tradition, he sat on the same table and ordered the same food. The cooks didn’t even spare a glance at him and just went straight to cooking his meal.
But something was different this time, the cook added another topping on his beef bowl before he could even begin eating. Akihiko looked up and raised his brow.
“Someone asked me to give you another topping,” The cook pointed at a woman who was on her way out of the store.
“Hey,” Akihiko tried calling her out but the woman didn’t even look back at him as she left the shop. He tried to continue eating and be grateful for the unexpected topping that was given to him but Akihiko can’t help but find the woman familiar somehow.
The silhouette of the woman lingered on his mind up until he went to the Iwatodai dorm. He took the old key from his wallet but before Akihiko could even put it on the door knob, Shinjiro opened the door completely lost and confused.
“Uh hey,” Akihiko put back his key on his wallet and looked back at Shinjiro, “Did something happen?”
“Someone was here.”
“What?”
“I said someone was here,” Shinjiro said a bit more forcefully this time. He opened the door and pointed at the kitchen sink. There were new orange and yellow plates and utensils that both of them hadn't seen before.
“I also went and asked some of my pals to feed Koromaru while I was out but according to them a young couple took Koromaru in.”
The two went in and sat in the living room to discuss the topic further. They both have someone on their mind but they didn’t really wanna voice it out. Half of their mind wants to believe it’s true but half of their minds know it was impossible.
“How long were you out?,” Akihiko asked.
“A week? Maybe even more?”
“Have you checked her room?”
Before Shinjiro could answer, a huge slam was heard from the entrance door. Ken opened the door in a hurry and was clearly in tears. Ken looked left and right and tried opening his mouth but words won't come out.
Shinjiro sighed and ushered the boy inside. He wanted to put the lunch box Ken was holding on the table but the boy wouldn’t let go of it one bit. Akihiko then went and gave a cup of water for Ken and the pair waited for him to calm down.
“Is she here?” Ken murmured. “Is Shiomi-san here?”
Akihiko and Shinjiro were taken aback. They took a sharp intake of air and were speechless. By saying her name, Ken opened the floodgates both of them were carefully maneuvering.
“She…” Ken, seeing the surprised reaction of the two gripped the lunch box tighter and felt the urge to explain himself further. “She visited Gekkoukan High and asked one of the students to deliver the lunch box to me.”
Ken stood up from his seat and slowly opened the lunchbox in front of the two. He was a bit clumsy, he kept shaking and losing the grip of the lunch box’s cloth. Akihiko tried to say ‘calm down’ but Ken’s mind was going haywire; he can't even hear Akihiko anymore.
After a couple of tries, Ken managed to remove the knot of the cloth and laid his lunchbox at the table. “I didn’t manage to see her…” Ken looked at the lunch box dejectedly but quickly looked up at the two and tried to fight his claim. “BUT! But I remember Shiomi-san’s cooking so well. I asked her to cook for me from time to time and I have never forgotten it.”
Ken raised the lunch box in the air and retrieved a small paper beneath it. It was a small note that said “You’ve grown up well!”. Ken traced the writings on the note and started sniffling once again.
“She was here,” Shinjiro said and patted Ken as a show of comfort, “ Well her and another one.”
“Another one?”
“I’m guessing it’s Ryoji Mochizuki,” Akihiko answered and offered Ken a handkerchief, “I saw a glimpse of them before I went here. She went and gave me a free topping.”
Akihiko touched his nose and laughed fondly, “Even all these years, she still looks out for me.”
The three went silent and reminisced on their own. The how part of her being alive has flown out of their brains and they were just happy she was doing well.
After a long stretch of silence, Ken asked, “Are we telling the others?”
Both Akihiko and Shinjiro closed their eyes and thought things through. They were happy for sure but it also felt sad that they weren’t part of her new life. It was unfair to say that when SEES could hardly even count as a team anymore. Not to mention the emotional damage it will inflict to them. Clearly, the lesser evil was leaving them in the dark.
“I say we let her reveal herself to the others. Judging by her pattern, she will visit us all one by one,” Akihiko answered, to which the two both nodded in agreement.
Junpei sighed for the eighth time today. He knew the outcome would be like this but it doesn’t really lessen the pain nonetheless.
Junpei’s little league team was given a chance to have a friendly match at one of the nearest covered baseball stadiums in the area. It has been off season for months now so he was hesitant to accept the offer.
Unlike other little league teams with in house training areas to practice with, his humble little league team can only play when it's baseball season on their open baseball field.
Chidori managed to convince him to at least let his team decide if they want to play. There were some who refused of course, not wanting to be humiliated. But miraculously he managed to form a 9 member team of enthusiastic children who wanted to play. They were all so in love with playing baseball that any chance they could get was a welcome one.
Junpei was happy and was willing to support his team after they showed their enthusiasm like that. But they have been struggling hitting the opponent’s ball for a while now. He has been giving moral support to his team every time a batter went back to the dugout. He sincerely hoped it was working because that’s the only thing he can do at the moment.
The only saving grace was the cheers for their team were a bit louder than the other team. He can hear Chidori just fine but there were some new ones that he didn’t recognize. He tried to remember if there were some child who has enthusiastic parents from his team right now but he really can’t remember at all.
After all the struggling Junpei’s team went through, the game was called in the end. The other team’s coach was very friendly though and gave them the permission to spend more time at the stadium. The children were obviously elated and started practicing or taking glamor shots of themselves in the stadium. Or both.
Junpei went out from the dugout for the first time since the match started. He scoured the area and wanted to thank the people who kept cheering them on despite their loss.
At the corner of his eyes, he saw Kotone and Ryoji on the audience seats. They were decked out of handmade cheering props. They were all shabby and Junpei can clearly see some of them were dome hastily. But the sentiment carried through the same.
Junpei looked up at the ceiling and bit his lips. He was trying his best to not cry on the spot. As if on instinct, Junpei took a deep breath and did his signature pose. He looked at the two and shouted at the bottom of his lungs, “WHO’S DA MAN?!”
The kids were not gonna stop teasing Junpei for weeks but it was the only thing he could do as of the moment. It was a success though because Junpei can hear Kotone laughing even from the fields.
The thing Junpei didn’t expect, however, was Kotone and Ryoji standing up from their seats and shouting back, “JUNPEI IORI, YOU ARE DA MAN!!!”
Junpei was both embarrassed and happy about the gesture. He wanted to run up to them and give them a few earfuls but his team needed him. He knew that there was a high chance that they wouldn't be there once he was done tending the kids but he knew it was for the best.
The children did keep teasing him about the pose for the whole practice but he shrugged it off. It was worth it. As expected, the two were gone with nothing to track them down. Junpei double checked with Chidori to know if he wasn’t seeing things which she gladly corroborated what he saw.
Once every member of his team had been fetched and everyone was taken care of, Junpei finally broke down and cried.
Yukari had another normal signing today. It was mostly targeted for children but there were always stray adults from time to time. Some were parents that wanted to surprise their children while some were…unique individuals.
Yukari was nearing the end of her signing when a weirdly dressed woman was the next in line to get her autograph. The woman was wearing an oversized overcoat, a very familiar yellow scarf and outlandish sunglasses.
“I am a very big fan of yours,” The woman grabbed her hands and shook them. It was very weird but somehow Yukari couldn’t dare shake the woman off. “I have always been fond of seeing you shoot arrows since high school, Yukari!”
Yukari froze on the spot. Her pulse quickly shot up and everything quickly fell together. The hand she was holding was so familiar. It was the same hands that comforted her when she found out about the truth of her dad’s death. It was a bit bigger than what she remembered and there was a ring on it as well. But this hand, this person was the person she was wishing to talk to since forever.
Kotone removed her goofy sunglasses and gave Yukari a smile. As if someone had opened the floodgates, Yukari started sobbing like crazy. Yukari wasted no time hugging Kotone and cried on her arms for hours.
Fuuka: Has anyone seen Yukari-chan?
Fuuka put down her phone as she sent the message on the group chat. It was a futile effort but she has to try nonetheless.
SEES has had their group chat for ages but it was barely used. The main purpose of the group chat was to catch up on things and talk about whatever. But the group hardly did that even when they were living together so it was no surprise that it was not lively.
It has some uses though. Whenever someone has the urge to visit Iwatodai, the group chat becomes lively and there were times that a solo trip became a group one.
After a few minutes, Fuuka decided to open her cell phone back up. As expected Junpei replied first.
Junpei: No?
Junpei: Something’s up?
Fuuka: I just saw that she was taking a break from acting
Fuuka: I’m just worried
Fuuka: I tried texting her but no reply
Junpei: Damn…
Junpei: Wonder if something bad happened
Junpei: OH
Junpei: Oh…
The last couple messages came seconds apart from each other so Fuuka didn’t manage to process Junpei’s texts. The next thing she saw was an incoming call from Junpei.
There was a brief silence but Fuuka can hear Junpei contemplating at the other line.
“Hey…”
“Hi Junpei-kun. Is something the matter?”
“Uh, can you visit Yukari tomorrow? Oh, only if you are free of course! I want to do it myself but I don’t think I’m the one she wants to see right now. I’m not really a good at comforting people anyways.”
“Junpei-kun…” Fuuka was confused. Junpei just kept talking and talking as if they were on a different page, “What are you talking about?”
The other voice on the line went quiet and then followed by umms and ahs. At first it was confusion then shock then followed by nervous laughter.
Junpei took a deep breath and asked in a very whispery way, “Has anything happened to you recently? Anything at all?”
“No?”
Junpei let out a nervous sigh and said, “This is better to talk about with the others.” Without warning, Junpei dropped the call and continued the conversation on the group chat.
Junpei: Has anyone seen Kotone recently
Mitsuru: Shiomi? This is not a very funny joke, Iori.
Aigis: I Have Not Seen Her
Ken: We did
Mitsuru: “We”? Explain Amada.
Ken: Shiomi-san was in Iwatodai a few days ago
Ken: We only manage to see glimpses of her but we know she was here
Ken: Ah, if’s me Sanada-san and Aragaki-san
*a few seconds has passed*
Mitsuru: Iori?
Junpei: She and Ryoji watched my team’s match a few days ago
Junpei: They were in complete cheerleader get-up. So hilarious
Junpei: Didnt manage to talk to them afterwards since I was busy
Junpei: Chidori manage to get a picture of them tho
[Junpei has sent an image]
*a few seconds has passed*
Shinjiro: Thats just so like her to even pose for the shot
Fuuka: Kotone-chan…
Mitsuru: Are you bringing this up because of Yukari?
Junpei: Yeah
Junpei: I was thinking she outta appear soon to you guys too
Aigis: Mitsuru
Mitsuru: I know Aigis but this mission is not something we can abandon right now
Aigis: But!
Akihiko: What are you even planning on doing Aigis? Drag her to us?
Akihiko: SEES disbanded a long time ago. We hardly even talk as a group. Why expect her to be still part of our lives?
Akihiko: Just let her be and let her appear to us when she wants
Aigis: You Can Only Say That Because You Saw Her Already
Aigis: It’s Unfair
Fuuka: Aigis…
Aigis: It Is Not Supposed To Be A One Way Thing
Aigis: If She Can Decide To Not Be Part Of Our Lives, We Can Also Decide To Oppose That
The next day Fuuka decided to visit Yukari. In the end, the group agreed to disagree.The only thing they managed to fully agree upon was someone needs to check on Yukari.
Fuuka reached Yukari’s apartment and tried knocking a couple of times. Fuuka also tried to call and send a message before coming but Yukari never responded. She managed to get the keypad combination of Yukari’s apartment from Mitsuru but Fuuka really doesn’t want to use it if she can.
Fortunately, Yukari opened the door not long after. Fuuka looked around the apartment and saw a couple of beer cans on the floor.
“I honestly thought it was gonna be Kotone,” Yukari said as she lay on the sofa, “Was that all a dream? No, I held her so it wasn’t.”
“So you did see Kotone-chan.”
Yukari realizing Fuuka might have known something, quickly shot back up to her seat but the action only made her nauseated. Fuuka hurriedly tried to find a nearest paper bag or plastic bag but Yukari managed to hold it in.
“Is she really alive?” Yukari asked but it felt like it was a question to herself rather than to Fuuka’s.
“I’m gonna be honest. I don’t know what is happening and she hasn't appeared to me, Mitsuru-senpai and Aigis at all.”
“I see…”
“Can you tell me what happened, Yukari-chan? Of course, if you only want to.”
“Kotone…She went and disguised herself and waited in line for my signature. The moment I saw her, I just started crying like crazy. I honestly don't know what happened next. All I remember was she was there until I cried myself to sleep. Oh Ryoji-kun was there too.”
“I…” Yukari’s eyes started to water. She reached out for a beer can but tossed it out when she saw it was empty. Yukari put her hands on face and started crying, “I honestly thought I had moved on, Fuuka.”
Fuuka sniffled and hugged Yukari. “I really don’t know if I should be happy I saw her at all! I am scared. I am scared to relapse. I don’t want to go on that journey again if the Kotone we saw were fake.”
Yukari had once again cried herself to sleep. Junpei was on standby nearby and managed to put her back to her bed. He didn’t really want to stay too long so he left after helping Fuuka clean the place.
Yukari woke up the day after. It was already noon and she had one massive hangover. She actually didn’t know how long had passed when she met Kotone.
When Yukari went to her kitchen, she saw Fuuka cooking something for the both of them.
“Good morning!”
“…Good morning,” Yukari sat on her kitchen table and her stomach growled. She blushed but Fuuka has seen her in worse condition before so the shyness quickly evaporated. “I’m really sorry for bothering you like this Fuuka.”
“ No worries. Everyone was worried.”
“Everyone… Even Kotone?”
“No…We actually don’t know where she is. The group was still undecided if we should let her come to us or if we should come to her.”
“Huh,” Yukari smiled and reminisced, “Just like before.”
“Yeah… Our group never did get along.”
Mitsuru has been busy ever since the turn of the year. Something has felt off but no one, not even the scientists of the Kirijo company, can pinpoint to her what was wrong.
Although it was unfair, Mitsuru has asked Aigis to investigate the situation despite Aigis’ urge to find Kotone. Mitsuru knew that what was happening right now might be related to Kotone’s sudden appearance. Worst case scenario, Mitsuru might need to mobilize the Shadow Operatives to fight Erebus once again.
“Chairman…” Mitsuru’s secretary nervously entered the room and continued, “There was an unidentified person who barged in here a couple of hours ago. I tried to stop her but she was extremely persuasive about knowing you…”
The secretary waited for Mitsuru to scold them but instead they were met by a chuckle from Mitsuru instead.
“Is she still here?”
“No…She said that you seemed busy so she left an hour ago. She did leave a note for you though.”
Mitsuru took the note from her secretary and opened it. The message was short but it was so like Kotone to just leave something like this. Mitsuru took her phone out and snapped a picture of the note and sent it to the group chat.
Mitsuru: We have an order from our leader
[Mitsuru has sent an image]
“Leave all my tomorrow and the day after open,” Mitsuru said as she tucked the note to her person.
“…Yes? I mean Yes! I understood,” The secretary hurriedly went out of the room and started calling on their phone.
When the room went quiet, Mitsuru closed her eyes and recited the lines on the note, “Tomorrow. Tartarus. Midnight.” She stayed there for a couple more minutes before her phone vibrated like crazy.
“What’s the sudden change of heart,” The blue door behind Kotone appeared and revealed Theodore exiting it, “I honestly thought you will not try to meet them until you disappear.”
Korone looked back at Theodore and smiled. She took out Koromaru’s collar and answered, “After spending time with Koromaru, I realized how much of an impact I had with others. I was honestly content just spending time with Ryoji but if I want them to accept my decision I have to make my case. We might argue about it though.”
Before their conversation could continue, Aigis appeared before them. Theodore broke away from the two and gave them some space. Kotone smiled at Aigis and opened her arms.
“Kotone-san…” Aigis was hesitant but slowly walked towards her nonetheless. Before Aigis could have a running start towards Kotone however, Ryoji appeared from behind and waved to Aigis.
“Ryoji-san you are getting in the way of our reunion. Please go away.” Aigis reloaded her guns and pointed towards Ryoji.
Ryoji raised his arms in surrender and said,”Is violence necessary? You never changed Aigis.”
“It’s only been a minute and you guys are already at each other’s throat. Sheesh!”
Yukari and the others started appearing from behind and gathered towards the three. Junpei quickly went to Ryoji and gave him a playful noogie while Kotone went and enveloped Yukari, Fuuka and Mitsuru into a big hug.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t meet you Fuuka,” Kotone said as she held Fuuka’s hands,”You, Mitsuru and Aigis have the means to track me down so I only wanted to meet you guys before I finally disappear.”
The amicable atmosphere that was once present just vanished into thin air. The group knew this was a possibility but they really wished it wasn’t the case.
Ken was the first to break down,”…You’re disappearing?”
Kotone nodded and went to Ken’s side. She patted him on the head and gave him Koromaru’s collar, “I buried Koromaru on the shrine just like he wanted. Come visit him okay?”
Ken nodded and started crying even louder. Both Akihiko and Shinjiro were on his side patting him on the back. The others started getting teary eyed too.
“Can you explain to us why you are here then?” Mitsuru asked.
“At the beginning of the year, a powerful persona user created a reality where everyone’s wish came true. And the wish you guys have is for me to be alive,” Kotone looked towards the Velvet Room entrance and continued, “If you guys have more questions, I asked Theo to explain it once I’m gone.”
“So that’s it? We wished you into existence?,” Yukari asked, “Then why didn’t you just make yourself known? We could have spent all these times together.”
“Yukari… I didn’t want to be alive,” Kotone replied, which made Yukari’s breath hitch. Yukari was doing well of holding back her tears but she’s afraid hearing more of Kotone’s words would do the trick.
“I am very happy you guys cared enough about me to wish for me to be alive. But I want you guys to accept that I cannot come back ever. I chose to be The Great Seal and I have not regretted it.”
Kotone bowed and added, “I want you guys to move on. I don’t want you guys to spend your lives finding a way to get me back,” Kotone stood up and looked at Theodore specifically while saying those last lines. He was shocked but nodded anyway. He wordlessly muttered ‘I’ll deliver the message’.
A long stretch of silence after Kotone’s speech soon followed. There was some sniffling here and there but no one spoke for a while. Kotone got anxious so Ryoji went to her side for comfort.
“No,” Aigis said, “I am afraid I cannot accept it.”
“I honestly don’t know if you are mean, selfish or just dumb,” Yukari said as she put her hands on her head and continued, “No matter how much time passes I will never EVER accept that you sacrficed yourself for us. It is unfair and don’t get me started on how you just left without saying goodbye.”
“But,” Yukari smiled and fondly flicked Kotone’s forehead,”We will try— No we ARE moving forward,” Yukari looked around to the others and everyone nodded. “See? If you have only said a proper goodbye before, we wouldn’t be this hung up about it.”
“…I’m sorry?”
The group huddled together and started crying. Those who were holding back their tears before started shedding tears now. Ryoji tried to distance his way from the group but Junpei dragged him to join the huddle as well.
Truthfully, the group was upset. They had tons of debates for days about the matter. One side wanted to tell Kotone how much they wanted her to live while one side wanted to respect her wishes and let her pass on with no worries.
There were a lot of points being made like telling Kotone how much effort they made to bring her back to life was a sign of love. While some also raised a valid concern that the reason she didn’t show up to them that much was because Kotone was angry they brought her back without consent.
In the end, the group decided that like always they will follow their leader’s command. If Kotone said she was unhappy with their gesture, they will gladly accept it. At the very least, they wanted to talk to her one last time.
After their tearful reunion, the group started walking back to the dorm to spend more time together. Theodore has explained that they don’t really know when exactly the illusion will be undone so they could be waiting for seconds up to hours.
The group didn’t want to waste it just idling by at the front of Gekkoukan High School so they decided to walk around Iwatodai. The entire walk was filled with chatter. Most of the time it was just SEES catching Kotone and Ryoji up on their lives.
The group also joked around asking if Ken was not sleepy yet or if he was okay past his bedtime. Junpei also tried copying Yukari’s Featherman lines but Yukari, Mitsuru and even Ken corrected him.
There was also a tiny kerfuffle when Yukari noticed both Ryoji and Kotone were wearing matching rings. Fuuka asked directly but Ryoji answered coyly. The answer made Aigis so angry to the point she threatened to shoot him. Surprisingly, Mitsuru, Akihiko and Shinjiro approved of it so Ryoji wouldn’t make Kotone cry in the future.
The group also visited Koromaru’s grave and Ken told Kotone that he was keeping one of Koromaru’s children with him. Shinjiro also had one but he doesn’t like to live in one place so Chidori and Junpei were currently taking care of it.
Akihiko also recounted the time he fought a bear to Kotone. At first, she burst into laughter thinking it was a joke. When no one disagreed with Akihiko’s story, her reaction went from disbelief to genuine amazement. Kotone lightly said that she wanted to see it in action and even expressed the willingness to battle one herself. The group unanimously rejected her ridiculous plan. They were once reminded what force of nature Kotone was.
Akihiko laughed and playfully ruffled her hair and said ‘Maybe next time’. Kotone nodded and got some tears in her eyes knowing there won’t be a ‘next time’. It was a clear sign that Kotone too loves them all the same. It just so happens that her way of showing it was sacrificing herself for their future.
The dawn was fast approaching at this point and as they inch closer to the dorms, they can see both Ryoji and Kotone slowly fading away. The group continued talking like before but now they were talking in between their sobs.
When the group reached the door of the dorms, both Ryoji and Kotone were gone. Yukari, Fuuka and Ken cried as the group went to the living room. Shinjiro silently went and prepared breakfast while Junpei and the other loiter around the dorms.
The tranquil moment vanished in an instant when Junpei came down to the first floor while Aigis was running behind him.
“Hand it over, Junpei-san. I must dispose of that at once.”
“Aigis, No! This is the only proof we have!”
The paper flew out of Junpei’s hands amidst the chaos and landed over Mitsuru’s.
“It’s a marriage certificate,” Mitsuru smiled and turned the paper towards the others.
Akihiko laughed and wiped a single tear on his eyes, “Who would have thought they actually went and got married without telling us.”
“They should have told us. We could have celebrated it,” Fuuka added.
“Why are you so against Ryoji anyways Aigis?” Mitsuru asked, “Is it because he was Nyx’s Avatar?”
“No. He is not fit as Kotone’s partner at all.”
“Who would then,” Shinjiro joined in and asked, “You?”
“Yes.”
Before it was the vast blue skies but now it was the glimmering light of dawn that became Kotone’s final moments of being alive. However instead of eternal slumber, she was given consciousness once again.
This time Kotone was outside The Great Seal. She can clearly see herself as the seal but somehow she has retained a metaphysical body that can move around the place.
Ryoji soon followed her. Ryoji descended from above as Nyx’s Avatar. He quickly changed to his human form as he hugged Kotone. They have no idea what was happening but they could only be happy for this tiny miracle.
Before they could fully rejoice, they heard a familiar barking from a distance slowly coming their way.