I've been toying with this idea in my head for a while now, so I just decided to hell with it and wrote this.
Disclaimer: I do not own Persona and RWBY.
Humankind since its conception has always questioned its reason for creation. Some believe that humanity was birthed from a singular greater purpose that no one would understand. Others have no such ideas and live their lives day by day. However, two souls, twins, have found their answer and understand their purpose in the grand scheme of the universe.
A boy and girl of seventeen years were standing inside the moon, confronting a large, golden, spherical object, Nyx, the personification of death itself.
The boy and girl were both clad in a black uniform with an armband sporting the word SEES. However, while the boy, Minato, had dark blue hair and dull gray eyes, the girl, Hamuko, had bright auburn hair and striking red eyes. Two seemingly polar opposites with the same destiny.
Nyx sent wave after wave of energy, hoping to kill the two humans that dared to defy the personification of death itself.
However, regardless of how battered, how tired, and how weary their bodies were, they clung on. They would not, could not, disappoint their friends and the rest of humanity. Their faces are steeled in grim determination to accomplish what is thought to be impossible.
The two could hear Ken, Akihiko, Mitsuru, Yukari, Fuuka, Junpei, Koromaru, Aigis, and even Shinjiro speaking words of encouragement through their bonds.
Deciding to throw everything they had at Nyx, Minato and Hamuko sent out the strongest Persona in their arsenal. Minato sent out the ultimate Emperor Persona while Hamuko evoked the ultimate Magician Persona.
"Odin. Mind Charge. Thunder Reign."
"Surt use Mind Charge then hit her with your strongest Ragnarok"
The Norse All-Father and Jötunn that would destroy the world both concentrated and unleashed their strongest elemental attacks.
Pure white flames that would incinerate anything and everything in its path and lightning the size of skyscrapers engulfed Nyx.
Without checking the damage inflicted, Minato and Hamuko continued their assault.
They quickly summoned different Persona without the use of their evoker, a power obtained after realizing the Universe Arcana.
"Siegfried. Power Charge. Vorpal Blade."
"Mara, Power Charge then Primal Force!"
Minato stared incredulously at Hamuko's use of that Persona and of that particular attack. Even Siegfried paused in his attack once he heard Hamuko's commands. Spotting the bloodthirsty and taunting gleam in her eyes, Minato cringed. As Hamuko's brother, he knew better than to interrupt her thoughts lest he volunteer himself to the same fate as Nyx.
Though they could not see her through the fire and electricity, Minato believed Nyx seemed offended by the insult if the growing pressure of death were to be considered.
When the German dragon-slayer and the Buddhist demon finished their attacks, hundreds of slashes, each strong enough to bifurcate a dragon, and a large blast of energy crashed into Nyx, forming a large dust cloud.
After the debris settled, Nyx was shown in all her glory, unharmed. She seemed to gloat at the futility of their efforts.
A large sphere of concentrated energy was shot out of Nyx's golden egg-shaped body, decimating the summoned Persona and blowing the twins away.
Minato gnashed his teeth in frustration after seeing some of their strongest attacks useless.
Hamuko settled with growling in annoyance.
They now knew that only the best of the best would work, and they would deliver.
Stumbling back onto their feet, the two called upon two of their strongest Persona, "Helel." "Satan!"
Hamuko and Minato shouted, "ARMAGEDDON!"
Energy erupted from beneath Nyx, enough power to completely eradicate several cities, and hopefully enough to damage Nyx.
Locating the small crack in Nyx's spherical body after the light subsided, Minato and Hamuko shared a small cheer of success.
Though that hope quickly dissipated after they realized how much that Armageddon had taken out of them.
Seeing only one solution, Minato closed his eyes in acceptance and Hamuko let out a melancholic smile before regaining her positive countenance.
The Universe Arcana. The power to bring about a new beginning or the ultimate end.
Knowing they needed time to draw out enough power from the universe, Minato and Hamuko summoned their strongest Persona: Orpheus Telos and Eurydice Telos.
By realizing their true potential and developing their social bonds, the two holders of the Universe were able to evolve their original Persona into their final form. Orpheus Telos and Eurydice Telos were the symbols that their journey was at its end, the sign that they had matured from the fools who bumbled through truths and deceit into people who understood their place in the universe.
Orpheus Telos and Eurydice Telos' white and golden bodies glowed in defiance of Nyx. Without the need to be prompted, they rushed towards Nyx and bashed their lyres on her hard shell in tandem.
Nyx released several pulses of energy to rid herself of the two Persona but started to change tactics after Orpheus Telos and Eurydice Telos managed to dodge her attacks through superior agility. They were able to weave around the energy and every once in a while, one would dart in to use God's Hand, Pralaya, or Brave Blade, while the other used Ragnarok, Thunder Reign, Niflheim, Panta Rei, or Black Viper.
Deciding for a more active approach, Nyx formed tendrils of energy and sent them out to capture and destroy Orpheus Telos and Eurydice Telos. Each whip was avoided by the smallest of margins and served to buy the twins their much-needed time.
When Nyx finally managed to capture and dissipate the Persona, Hamuko and Minato were completely prepared, both mentally and physically.
Finally accumulating the power of the universe, Hamuko and Minato shared a brief smile. Words were unneeded. They simply grasped each other's hands and raised their pointer fingers towards Nyx. Power that transcended space and time itself sprung forth from their bodies, and all became enveloped in a blinding white light.
Beyond the farthest reaches of the universe, deep within the collective unconscious, lies the Great Seal, the only barrier between Erebus, the manifestation of humankind's negative emotions, and Nyx. The Great Seal, being comprised of the power from the Universe arcana, is nigh indestructible and will last for all eternity.
However, the Great Seal was currently at risk of becoming undone.
"Come on Mina-chan! I'm so bored. Couldn't you just take care of the Great Seal by yourself for a while? I'm pretty sure the Great Seal will be fine with only one of us. I'll make it up to you. I promise. I'll do anything to be freed from this place for a bit!"
"No."
"Come on, just for a little while. We have all eternity after all."
"No."
"If you take over for me, I promise that I'll be quiet for let's say… about a few days."
As he was opening his mouth to reply in the negative, Minato shut his mouth, closed his eyes, tilted his head, crossed his arms, and pondered whether a few days of peace was worth possibly killing all of humanity. He spent the next few minutes thinking. It was a hard decision. Hamuko was tapping her foot in impatience, praying for a favorable answer. In the end, Minato once again replied: "No."
Hamuko sighed after hearing Minato's constant rejections. Rather than continue her fruitless endeavor, Hamuko decided to change the topic.
"Hey Mina-chan, how do you think the others are doing?"
"It's already been years. They should have moved on by now. I'm sure Ken has grown up and matured. Koromaru will be just fine with the others. Junpei has Chidori to whip him into shape. Yukari and Mitsuru will help each other no matter what happens. Akihiko is strong enough to weather through anything. And though Aigis will be in the most pain, she has the rest of SEES to help her."
"You're right. They'll all be fine." Hamuko couldn't help but smile. Although she was undoubtedly the more outspoken of the two, Minato had certainly improved by leaps and bounds from the simple answers of "yes", "no", or "whatever". She could still remember how annoyed the others would get when Minato seemed to completely disregard them. Of course, they eventually understood that was just how Minato was, but it was funny while it lasted.
The two of them enjoyed the lull in their conversation before Hamuko spoke again.
"You know what? I'm still bored."
Just as Minato was about to sigh at his sister's antics, Elizabeth appeared in a bright light. Her platinum blonde hair was in the same hairstyle and she was still wearing the same elevator attendant uniform.
Hamuko squealed at the thought that Elizabeth would bring some sort of entertainment (Hamuko was a fan of the Velvet Song about Igor's nose), while Minato was concerned about Elizabeth's presence. It wasn't to say that he didn't enjoy her company. Rather, Elizabeth was a busy person, so she usually visited to destroy Erebus. Seeing as how Erebus was not present because he was destroyed just last week, Minato was silently contemplating what could have been so important to bring Elizabeth to the seal. The last time she had done something remotely similar was when she had announced that she would undertake a journey.
"Hello my old guests. I'd like for you two to accompany me." Her words went straight to the point and her golden eyes conveyed her apprehension.
Minato and Hamuko shared a concerned look. It seemed that whatever was on Elizabeth's mind was serious enough that she did not display any of her usual enthusiasm. They both nodded, deciding to hear what she had to say.
In another flash, the trio suddenly found themselves in the Velvet Room. The piano's melody and mysterious woman's voice instantly putting Minato and Hamuko at ease. Igor, as usual, was sitting in his seat, hands folded, long nose jutting out, and wide bloodshot eyes boring holes into Minato and Hamuko. His black suit was in a pristine state. Igor gestured for them to take a seat, so Hamuko and Minato sat themselves on the chairs across from Igor.
"Welcome to the Velvet Room. You two have completed your contracts so you would normally not be allowed back. However, I have summoned you here for a different purpose. Elizabeth, please explain."
Elizabeth started, "During my journey, I have discovered a method that would free your souls from the seal while maintaining its integrity. In essence, you two would be able to live once again."
"Does that mean we could see all our friends again? We could finally graduate high school and start a new life?" Hamuko was visibly excited. She seemed to be bouncing up and down on her seat.
Though he did not show it, Minato was also surprised. He too wished to see his friends once again. But, when he saw a flash of guilt on Elizabeth's face, he understood that something was wrong.
"What's the catch?"
"Very astute, Minato-sama. We are unable to return you to your world. Rather, you two would be reborn in a different dimension. Think of the wonders that such an experience would present!"
Minato and Hamuko sweatdropped. No matter how much time passed, it seemed that Elizabeth would always act like herself.
Regaining a more serious demeanor, Elizabeth continued, "This world is known as Remnant, quite fitting considering its condition. The creatures of Grimm, what they term Shadows, run rampant and have cornered humanity. However, as you know, the potential of humans is unlimited and humans were able to fight back. It seems that some humans are able to fuse their Persona with their bodies, granting them superhuman strength through Aura, the power of one's soul, and unique abilities known as Semblances."
Living in a world where people had the fighting capabilities of a Persona was a concern. While the twins were able to call upon the power of countless Persona, their bodies had physical limits and would struggle to keep up. Despite the passive boosts of the Persona, they would be hard pressed to defeat someone with the capabilities of a god. While it was definitely possible, that was not a fight the two would enjoy.
"My question is this. Understanding that you will not meet your old friends and that you will live in a world filled with Shadows, do you still desire for me to release you from the seal?"
"Of course," the two answered simultaneously. Though they were saddened hearing they would be unable to reunite with their friends, their bonds transcend space and time. They had come to terms with their fate years ago and would never forget the SEES and everyone else. However, what the two could not accept was that a world would fall prey to Shadows. They would do everything in their power to change the fate of Remnant.
Elizabeth allowed a small smile to grace her face.
Igor was the one to speak this time. "As you have completed your journey, there will be no new contract. You will be unable to return to the Velvet Room. This shall be our last meeting. However, never forget these words. 'I chooseth this fate out of my own will.' I'm sure you understand. Now, for allowing me to see the Universe Arcana with my own eyes, I will bestow you one last gift."
As Igor waved his hand, Minato and Hamuko felt a part of their Sea of Souls inexplicably change.
"That change should be of use during your stay in Remnant. There will also be another who will join you on your journey to become beacons in this world filled with darkness. Finally, do not forget that the Universe Arcana is still with you two. It's power will prove most useful in the future."
Igor stared thoughtfully at his two guests before he cryptically smiled when he saw the two nod at his words.
At this point Minato and Hamuko were thinking the same thing: "Igor wouldn't be Igor unless he gave us mysterious parting words."
"Are the two of you prepared?" questioned Elizabeth.
Hamuko and Minato nodded.
Elizabeth flipped open her compendium and power quickly gathered around her. "I have one last request, Minato-sama, Hamuko-sama. Please live your lives to their fullest."
A swirl of energy started to gather at Minato and Hamuko's feet.
Elizabeth suddenly looked somber. "I truly am sorry that I was unable to do any more for you two."
Igor closed his eyes, "You two were truly remarkable guests."
"Farewell my friends." One tear fell from Elizabeth's eye just as the twins' vision was obscured by the vortex of light.
The energy engulfed the twins, and the two disappeared from the Velvet Room.
When Hamuko regained consciousness, she instantly felt warmth, a sensation she had not felt for what seemed like an eternity, flood her body. This sort of peaceful warmth was the kind that she often felt with the rest of SEES and as a child before her parents had died.
Hamuko attempted to shift her body into a more comfortable position but found her entire body constricted in what felt like cloth. Opening her eyes to see what was constraining her limbs, she found herself blinded by bright lights and a white expanse.
That's when she heard the voices.
"Mr. Arisato and Mrs. Arisato, congratulations, you have two healthy children."
Feeling her body being lifted, Hamuko found herself face-to-face with a smiling man in what seemed to be his late twenties or early thirties. His grey eyes had dark circles underneath them as if he had not slept, but his smile was dazzling. His auburn hair somehow seemed to be arranged in an orderly chaos.
From his mouth came a gruff but gentle voice, "She has your beautiful red eyes Minako."
A melodic voice came from Hamuko's left and she swerved her head to take a look, "She's inherited your auburn hair though Souji."
The woman Hamuko saw was stunning. She had glowing red eyes and her dark blue hair gracefully pooled around her. Her elegant face showed signs of weariness but she wore a small smile. If that was their mother, Hamuko certainly knew where Minato would got his looks from. Speaking of Minato, Hamuko spotted a baby with a tuft of blue hair and wide opened eyes that conveyed confusion. She would have laughed at how he looked if she herself was not in the same situation. The last time she had seen him so bewildered was when he learned that he had been dubbed Pimpnato due to inadvertently wooing most girls at Gekkoukan High School.
Minako asked, "What should their names be?"
"How about Hamuko and Makoto?" their father suggested.
"No." Hamuko found it uncanny how similar Minato and Minako were. Not only did Minako look like a female Minato, but she also answered in same succinct manner as Minato.
"Eh? But why? Those are great names!"
"We had a promise. If our child was a boy then I'd get to name him, and she was a girl then you would, so our boy will be named Minato."
"Oh? Naming our son after you? Someone's awfully egotistical," Souji teased.
"Whatever," Minako turned away with a huff but everyone could see a slight blush on her face.
Souji shifted his gaze downwards and smiled, "Well, it looks like your names will be Hamuko and Minato."
Though she was inwardly celebrating the fact that she would not have to get used to a new name, Hamuko was somewhat suspicious about the fact that their names were the exact same as the ones they had in their previous life. Perhaps Elizabeth had influenced the world to fit their presence.
Putting that aside, Hamuko started to panic at the thought of having to grow up once again. Puberty. She would have to go through puberty again. Hamuko started to curse to every mythological god that she knew of, letting out garbled nonsense due to her undeveloped vocal cords.
Minato was worried about far more serious matters. He remembered Elizabeth's description of Remnant and how Shadows were spread all over the world waiting to eradicate humanity. Keeping those thoughts in mind, he believed that people would be filled with despair, but he found none of that. Rather, everyone was relaxed and full of life and joy. Perhaps this could be attributed to those who had fused with their Persona and fought against the Shadows. While the world seemed peaceful enough at first glance, he would not drop his guard.
Thinking of his own situation, Minato considered his body and had none of the same reservations as his sister. Rather, he was pleased with his current body. He thought to himself, "At least I have an excuse for sleeping all the time now."
Hamuko was asleep as she had used quite a lot of her energy in her outburst. Minato spotted the loving gazes of his parents and closed his eyes to sleep as well. Just before he entered the realm of dreams, he prayed that Hamuko and his lives would be peaceful as long as possible.
Years had passed and a four-year-old Minato was ready to start preparing for his eventual fight against the Shadows. During his short time in Remnant, he had learned much about the world and finally acclimated himself to English, which was known as Common. While he still had some difficulties due to the vastly different grammatical structures between Japanese and English, he was confident in being able to hold rudimentary conversations.
Minato's intense focus on the language of Remnant was fueled by his hunger for information. Knowledge is the power that wins conflicts and wars, and it was no different here on Remnant.
Because the bluenette treasured knowledge above all else, it should be no surprise that he was currently in his house's library, surrounded by stacks of books nearly as tall as him.
Minato would have preferred to use other methods to search for information, but he had no access to his parents' study, which was under lock and key, and he had yet to receive his Scroll.
That was something else he was concerned about. The technology in Remnant seemed far more advanced than what he was used to, with Scrolls, which were essentially pocket-sized laptops, commonplace and robots replacing humans in Atlas' army. He was aware there would be differences between the two worlds but living and experiencing it was quite jarring at first, which is why he was currently studying the differences between Personas and Aura and Semblances.
He had already gone through several books on Aura and Semblances, learning quite a lot about the capabilities of Huntsmen, and subsequently learned about Dust. Minato was fascinated. Not only was Dust a useful source of clean energy, but it also greatly empowered humankind in its fight against the Grimm. However, despite its great deal of uses, Dust was one of the least understood properties, and even experts and researchers had trouble dealing with such a volatile substance at times. Even so, he desired to experiment with Dust and find out how to properly wield this weapon in battle.
Fortunately for Minato, both Souji and Minako were Dust researchers and quite renown ones at that. While he would have liked to pester the two until all his questions were answered, he resolved himself not to stoop to Hamuko's level and study by himself for the moment.
Just as he made to grab another book from his pile, Minato heard the door to the library open with a bang. Before he could look over his shoulder to see who had entered, something directly crashed into the bluenette's back, causing him to expel all the air from his lungs. He was thrown forward right into the mountain of books along with whatever was attached around his waist.
Shaking his head to clear off the dizziness and opening his eyes to see just who had the audacity to assault him, Minato was unsurprised to find Hamuko sitting on his abdomen, wearing a face-splitting grin. "Today's the day, just like we planned! So come on, Mi-Na-To!"
While he had an urge to lecture Hamuko of the dangers of tackling others from behind, Minato knew his sister would completely disregard everything that would come out of his mouth. Rather than argue with a four-year-old in body, and probably in mind as well, Minato decided to save his breath and go along with Hamuko's idea.
Brushing off the books and dust that accumulated on his blue shirt and grey shorts, Minato was quickly pulled up and dragged out of the house by Hamuko. He barely had time to plan out how to blame Hamuko for the mess back in the library before she shouted at him again.
"Hurry up! We don't have all day!"
Actually, they did. Souji and Minako were called out earlier in the afternoon due to some sort of emergency at the lab, leaving Minato and Hamuko alone at home. While most parents would never leave their children at home alone, especially when they were so young, both Souji and Minako trusted Minato to be mature enough to handle himself and his sister. This offered Hamuko and Minato the perfect opportunity to learn of the limits of their Persona abilities. More importantly, they would try to discover what Igor had done to their Sea of Souls.
Minato decided to start out slow since they did not know how much strain their young bodies could manage. "We should start out with a weaker Persona like Aspar-"
Shifting her imaginary cap, Hamuko thrust out her arm forward and shouted, "Stand Power!", and of course he was ignored. Just as a hazy outline of the demon Satan appeared to coalesce, it shattered and Hamuko fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes. Hearing Hamuko groaning into the dirt reassured Minato that his sister was just fine and that his hypothesis was probably correct. A Persona as powerful as Satan would put too much strain on their undeveloped bodies, meaning they would have to wait several years before summoning the likes of Orpheus Telos and Eurydice Telos. Nodding to himself, the more mentally sound of the twins started to work his way up from Pixie to as high as he could manage. This would both serve to find where his body's breaking point lied and to observe any changes to his Sea of Souls.
With the power granted by achieving the Universe Arcana, Minato and Hamuko were both able to summon their Persona without the use of an evoker. Of course, there were other abilities that stemmed from the Universe Arcana. After all, why else would it have the power to do the impossible? Minato also recalled Igor's parting words and couldn't help but believe that mastering the Universe Arcana would be necessary to combat the Grimm. However, exploring the potential of that would have to be for another day.
Ignoring the moaning lump that was Hamuko, Minato began invoking the lower level Persona and took a quick examination of each one to check for any abnormalities that may have stemmed from the transformation Igor had caused. As each Persona disappeared into motes of blue light, Minato couldn't help but start to frown. It didn't take that long for him to uncover that his abilities had regressed so for that the extent of his abilities only went so far as allowing him to reliably summon Take-Mikazuchi and perhaps stronger Persona if he pushed himself, which was not terrible considering the current state of his body. However, his powers had not been visibly tampered with, so Igor's gift would remain an enigma for now.
Of course, he could improve his capabilities by training, but Minato knew that stressing his physical body at such a young age would only lead to injuries and would hamper his future potential. However, he was nothing if not patient and could wait until his teenage years to fully unlock his full power. In the meantime, he would pray that there would be no use for his Persona and that Hamuko didn't do anything too dangerous.
Without even noticing it, several hours had already passed as Minato sat on the porch of his house. The sunset cast a picturesque golden glow on Hamuko's prone body, making her auburn hair seem to be a blazing fire. The cool autumn breeze caused the tree branches to sway and the red leaves to slowly float to the ground. The red-orange sun let out just enough light to warm Minato up, but not so much as to blind his eyes. Basking in the sun's rays, Minato felt as though he could forget all his worries at the moment. Seeing the perfect chance to obtain blackmail against Hamuko for later, he walked back inside the house and took out a small camera to document the scene. With a click, the scene before him was immortalized, and Minato saw Hamuko twitch, a sure sign she recognized what he had just done.
He hated to ruin the peace and quiet he had obtained, but the twins needed to clean up before their parents came home for dinner, so Minato begrudgingly strolled up to Hamuko and prodded her motionless body with his foot.
"Get up already."
"Urgh."
"I know you've been fine for a while. You just want me to get closer before you jumped on me."
Hamuko flipped her body over and glanced down at her dirt-covered clothes. She started to pout, "Well if you knew, why didn't you say anything earlier? I was waiting over an hour for you. As a punishment, you have to carry me inside since I'm still tired."
Understanding that abiding by Hamuko's wishes would make things far easier, the bluenette squatted in front of his sister and let her jump onto his back with a whoop. She immediately wrapped her arms around Minato's neck and her legs around his waist and dramatically shot out her arm and pointed to the house, "Go, my familiar!"
Though Minato wanted to convince himself that this was just a phase his sister was going through just as his parents had done, the older of the twins knew better, having lived with her for decades.
Minato, hearing a light snoring, looked over his shoulders and was greeted to the sight of Hamuko peacefully sleeping with a relaxed look on her face. Sighing to himself, he took care to slow down his pace so as to not jostle around Hamuko too much. Though she could fool others, Minato saw how much the failed summoning of Satan had drained her, thus he would let Hamuko rest… at least for now. There was no need to mention that he would still implicate Hamuko as the one who had caused the mess in the library.
Before he even noticed it, Minato already reached the entrance to his house. He needed to clean up first and then get Hamuko to do the same; all of that in the span of half an hour. Realizing the need for speed, he quickly opened the door and stepped inside.
As Minato turned to close the door to the house, he looked far into the horizon at the red, blazing sun and thought to himself, "Life here on Remnant isn't so bad," and with that, the door shut closed.
Omake: Babies
Hamuko was completely, immensely, absolutely, utterly bored! Life as a baby was simple, way too simple for her liking. There was nothing to do, nothing to see, nothing to entertain her.
Her parents had bought a batch of toys, but such paltry plastic models could hardly hold her attention for long durations. Hamuko was the energetic type and even a baby's body could not cure her of her borderline ADHD.
Her first and only desire as of that moment was to play. And what better playmate than her own twin?
Part waddling and mostly crawling, Hamuko made her way to Minato, who was conveniently in the same crib as her. Spotting the gentle, rhythmic rising and falling of his chest, Hamuko could easily tell that Minato was in a deep slumber.
She took the time to admire how adorable Minato's baby face was with his chubby cheeks and pouty lips. Then, without the least amount of remorse, she slapped him with all the force she could muster, yelling out, "WAATAA!"
Minato woke up with a sputter and glared at Hamuko with all the intensity that an infant was capable of producing. After all, no one, and he meant no one, interrupts his sleep without a good enough reason.
Hamuko put on a huge grin that threatened to split her face apart upon seeing how annoyed her twin was right when he woke up from his nap. It was the job of the younger sibling to eternally frustrate the older one, so she could proudly proclaim that she was doing her job quite well.
Spotting Minato's look of utter despondency, Hamuko knew that he had accepted his fate and would humor her until she was satisfied.
Letting out an evil cackle, which sounded quite ridiculous coming from a baby, Hamuko started planning activities for the next few hours. Even after forcing Minato to do her bidding 397 times, victory was still as sweet as ever.
AN: Please leave a review to tell me what I did right and what I can improve on. Please, and I mean please, tell me how to improve the fighting scenes, because quite frankly, I suck at writing them.
Also, tell me if you'd like to see more snippets from Minato and Hamuko's childhood. I'm going to be moving this story on ahead, but if you want to read about their time as children, I'll write about it in an omake.