A/N: Oh well. No plot as usual. Also not finished. Characters are from my other stories. My Minako can be a little different, I guess. Sorry for the language but I want to keep what I had written. It's... really bad.


"Fuck this. Fuck this!" The auburn haired girl repeatedly kicked one of the doors with four locks. "Fuck you all!"

Theodore panicked. "M-Minako-sama… please calm down."

"How could I? The elevator dropped. Black. White. And poof. I am here, alone. No friend. No one!"

"Aren't I-"

"Fuck butterfly! Fuck Velvet Room!" Minako was using all the kicking technique Shinjiro had taught her. "I. Was. About. To. Make a party. With him… but now I'm here, with no way to go home. And you told me to be calm?!"

"Uhh…" This was one of those rare occasions. Theodore wished Elizabeth were here. Women always understand each other.


"Let's go to Tartarus tonight."

Yukari looked at her leader. "... Why today? You were sick. Maybe you should rest a bit more."

"You appear to be a little tired, Minato-san," Aigis said.

"Maybe."

The robot moved closer to him. "... You look a little pale. Maybe you're still tired from yesterday."

"Hm…"

Junpei nodded. "Yeah, dude. Are you really goin'? Why today?"

"I don't know," Minato said. "I just feel like I should go… to Tartarus."


"Hey." Minako blocked the way of a group of students in the hallway. "What is this school called?"

"Yasogami High," one boy said.

"Sounds familiar." She glanced out the window. Clear sky. No cloud. Definitely no typhoon. "What day is it?"

The students stared at her, so she stared back.

"You know, the exact date," she added.

"The Culture Festival is so much fun!" The other boy shouted.

"... Oh, yeah?"

The only girl said, "That takoyaki store always open."

"And?"

"Yasogami High!" The same one who said that said it again.

"Yeah, yeah."

"Let's go eat ramen!" The second boy said.

Minako nodded. "Sure."


"Welcome to the Velvet room." Elizabeth bowed. "This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter… This is unusual. How unexpected for you to grace us with your presence while the master is away..."

"Tick… tock…" Minato murmured.

"Now I am the master of this room!" Elizabeth shouted childishly, raising both of her palms up high. "The tables have been turned!"

Minato thought he saw a butterfly, but when he blinked it disappeared.

"On the other hand," Elizabeth grinned. "... What a large party you've brought with you today."

"Huh?"


"Who's there? What's going on here? It's so blue! Is this an elevator!?" Yukari asked in one breathing.

Mitsuru looked around. "Wh-What is this place…?"

SEES were all in here. Minato was sure this never happened. "Why is this happening?"

"There is a storm raging in the outside world right now," Elizabeth said.

He nodded. "I know."

Elizabeth walked forward. "Storms shake things up. Not only the body, but the heart, too. One's resolve, one's internal strife, one's hidden though...

"Everyone closes their eyes during a storm, for that is when one's world within begins to encroach...

"One will have no choice but to face what has gone hidden while their eyes were averted...

"There are storms that can shake up fate, and even time itself."

Minato nodded. "Like a fog that obstructs one's sight, everyone covers their eyes from the truth they do not wish to see...

"... Like death. Death is not a hunter unbeknownst to its prey. One is always aware that it lies in wait. Everyone chooses to live their lives in a moment, but time never waits. It delivers us all to the same end. You cannot plug your ears or cover your eyes."

Elizabeth grinned. "Exactly."

"... Do you have any idea what they have just said?" Junpei looked at Yukari. She shrugged.

"Tick…?" Minato blinked by the lack of clock ticking sound. "Something's not right-"

The Velvet room suddenly shrieked and came to a halted.

"It… It stopped?" Junpei slowly grinned as he turned to look at Yukari. "Heh, it reminds me of a roller coaster… The way it keeps climbing and climbing until it stops all of a sudden… And..."

Yukari gasped. "Sh-Shut up! If that were true, we're gonna fall-"

And then it did.

The sound of wind hit their ears. Adrenaline pumping like when you are jumping from a tower.

"Aaaaaaah!" Fuuka shrieked.

"We are currently descending in an uncontrolled free fall," Aigis said.

Elizabeth nodded. "We're indeed falling."

"Are we going to crash…?!" Ken asked.

Minato spoke, mainly to himself. "At this rate... We're going to crash."

"Into what!?" Yukari shouted back to the kid.

"Um, uh… I don't know, the bottom?!"

Then, it's all black, and white. An iron gate...

And the hallway of a school with a buzzing sound.


"… And as the finale… All the students dance around a blazing inferno!" Elizabeth shouted to the hallway.

Yukari facepalmed. "Should I say something?"

"Nah." The capped teen looked around. It was a school in a festival. He would make sure to have some fun.

"In any case…" Elizabeth said. "It was not by my will, but by the Velvet Room's that you were all invited here… The Velvet Room is inseparable from its guest's fate." She grinned. "Nothing meaningless happens there. Your arrival here was inevitable… One could even say it was your destiny."

"I don't care," Minato said.

Elizabeth decided to check the Velvet Room while others went scouting.

Minato aimlessly walked around.

Students here talked like broken records. They didn't listen to Junpei and Yukari. People didn't notice Koromaru and Aigis.

Shinjiro couldn't get out of the school. A cell phone wouldn't work.

Fuuka could sense Shadows. This place was like Tartarus.

They couldn't go back the way they came.

"The Velvet Room no longer functions as an elevator," Elizabeth said. "There were two mysterious doors, but there are four sturdy locks sealing them. Confident though I am in my physical strength, even I cannot budge them."

"Uhh…" Junpei looked at Yukari.

"Are you saying…?" Yukari looked at Junpei.

"We cannot go back."

Junpei and Yukari turned pale. "Ohh…"

"We cannot go back."

"Ohhh..."

"Yet," Minato said. "We are trapped in this place called Yasogami High. I don't care why we are here or how. I will go back."

"The Velvet Room is a place where nothing meaningless happens for our guests," Elizabeth said. "It was the Velvet Room that guided you all here… That means there is something which must be done. I suspect you will remain here until you have accomplished it. As for what that might be, I suggest you ascertain it for yourself."

The group began chatting again.

"Again, I don't care." Minato sighed.

"You are the Velvet Room's guest…" Elizabeth said. "Thus, this situation is tied to your fate."

"I know…"

"I will continue to lend you my assistance… But nothing more."

"So we're in a place like that," Akihiko said. "And you said before we have something to accomplish here. That can mean only one thing!"

"Akihiko!" Mitsuru snapped. "Why are you always like that? This isn't a game. How many time do I have to remind you?"

"Well, is there another way?" Akihiko asked. "For the moment, we can't leave the school. We can't use our phones. And we can't call for help. On top of that, there are Shadows around somewhere. Is there any other way to handle the situation?"

"You're right…" Mitsuru said. "For now, that's all we can do."

The boxer snapped his finger. "That's all we can do!"

"Akihiko!" The redhead sighed. "Don't get excited. Honestly, you're not normal…"


You in wonderland

SEES were wondering if they had to go in there.

"Wait. Don't go. It's dangerous in there."

"Don't go inside…"

Two people stood in the hallway. One was a tall man in black wearing a collar, and the other was a small blonde haired girl.

Yukari quickly asked, "First things first, where is this place?"

Junpei shouted, "They're talking to us!"

Ken said, "They look more like people than the students."

Akihiko asked, "Does that mean there's something strong in there?"

Shinjiro raised his hand and everyone shut up.

"H-Here." The blonde girl handed them a box of takoyaki.

Minato raised his eyebrows. "Hm?"

"Rei thought you might be hungry," the collared boy said.

Minato grabbed the box. "You give this to me?"

"Y-Yes," said the blond girl.

"Thank you." He took a bite. "I'm Minato Arisato. Second year. It's nice to meet you."

The collared boy narrowed his eyes.

"I-I'm Rei. Nice to see you too." She flicked her wrist. Another box of takoyaki appeared. She gave it to the collared boy. "And this is Zen."

"That's what we call each other." Zen ate the takoyaki. "And who are you? Where did you come from?"

"We came from Iwatodai," Minato said. "What is this place?"

"Hm? It is what it is," Zen said.

"... Minato: the new version," Junpei whispered.

"We have to leave this place," Minato said.

Rei tilted her head. "Leave?"

Minato nodded. "Yes. We want to go back."

"Go back? You can go back from here...?" Rei asked. "... I want to go back too." She looked at the collared boy. "I want to go back too, Zen."

"Go back where, though?" Zen asked.

"Where…?" Rei frowned. "I don't know. Where should we go back?"

"We're going home," Shinjiro spoke up. "What about you?"

"Hmmm…" Rei pondered. "Where is home?"

"Huh." Yukari looked at them. "You don't know where you're supposed to go back to?"

"We were here when we gained consciousness," Zen explained. "We don't remember anything before that."

"Our memories were taken," the blond girl added.


"I… sense something from her. From Rei-san…" Aigis clenched her fists. "And Zen-san."

"How do you feel about them?" Minato asked.

"I want to always be by their sides," Aigis said.

"... W-W-What?" Junpei, who was eavesdropping, turned to look at them. "S-Say it again, Ai-chan."

She pointed at Zen. "My highest priority is to be with him!"

"Nooo Aigis," Yukari said. "You already have Minato-kun. Isn't that enough?"

"I don't care." Aigis grabbed Minato's hand then walked to Zen and Rei. "I want them all."

Zen and Rei looked at each other.


SEES came back to the entrance. They healed and chatted.

Two people approached them. One of them wore blue clothes, and the other wore a Gekkoukan uniform.

The Gekkoukan girl had auburn hair. She raised her eyebrows, then grinned.

"Uhh… Who is she?" Yukari asked

"Arf!" Koromaru dashed to her.

"Wait, Koro-chan," Fuuka said. "Maybe it's dangerous."

The white dog sat in front of the new girl. "Arf!"

"Aww, Koromaru." She petted him. "Good boy."

"Woof."

"... Maybe you should introduce yourself," Zen said.

"Oh… Right." The auburn haired girl looked at SEES with a smile. "I'm Minako. Minako Arisato... I was in a Velvet room, there's only Theodore there. I heard a bell, saw a spider, then the whole elevator fell down, fast!" Minako said. "There's total bright white light, then I was in the school hall with him." She pointed at her attendant.

"I don't really understand much… Such thing never happened before," Theodore said. "After we arrive here, we walked around and gather some information. Then we met them." Zen and Rei nodded. "We talked, and then enjoyed the festival…"

Mitsuru folded her arms. "You didn't go to the labyrinth?"

Minako shrugged. "They say 'don't go,' and I think I alone can't handle whatever is inside that, so we kind of… prepare ourselves."

"What did you do?"

"As he said, we walked around. Theodore and I could craft some armor and weapon. Hm… We found some medicine, too. And a lot of food!"

"That is not the important part. Minako-same…"

"Try some ramen, and you'll be amazed," Minako said. "We just have fun, and walk around, and talk, and play, then we find Elizabeth at the nurse office. She had told me to wait. We walked around, and find you."


"A table should act as a table, dammit," Shinjiro said.

"Would destroying this table be considered property damage?" Aigis asked.

Ken sighed. "Drawing a map is not fun at all…"

"How about I help you?"

"Mi-Minako-san?" Ken flushed. "Um, that's fine. It's my job, after all."

"Nah that's boring! Doing something that's not your job is way more interesting." Minako smiled. "I'll do it. Give me that."

"Oh… Okay. Here, Minako-san."


Minako smiled a lot. That's the first thing Minato noticed.

She was bright and cheerful and was surrounded by people.

Minato looked at her, and he felt sick.

What good is it to live like that?


[Time Skip]


"One: Does a difference in age or sex not matter as long as there is love?"

Minato wasn't sure how he ended up in this. At least his counterpart was in this, too.

"It depends." Minato shrugged. "No, I don't even care. Male, female, both, none… I don't mind at all. I probably won't have any lovers, anyway."

"It kind of matter, but... maybe not?" Minako pondered. "I read yaoi manga sometimes, so…" She paused again. After a while, Minako said with a determined face, "... Well, if there's love, there's love. Nothing could ever stop the genuine love!"

"... You should have gone, Yu." Yosuke said.

"Nah," Yu said.

"Two: What's your idea of a good time together ...?"

"Depends," Minato said. "If that person is not annoying, I'm fine."

"Outdoors...! No, indoors! Um… both?" Minako nodded to herself. "Yeah, both!"

"Three: How do you want the person you like to act towards you?"

"Depends," Minato said.

"Dude," Junpei said. "If you answer like that you'll never get a girl." He shook his head. "Or anyone at all."

The auburn haired girl thought with a serious face. "Make a bold move… Maybe modest move… No, it's both!"

"Four: What do you most seek comfort in?"

"Squishy dog pads. Soft paws," the blue-haired boy said.

Koromaru wagged his tail. "Arf!"

"Someone who could listen and don't judge," Minako said. "I don't mind listening to them, though."

"Five: Tomorrow is your crush's birthday. What will you give her?"

"Cake."

Minato and Minako looked at each other.

The girl grinned. "We say the same thing!"

The boy shrugged.

"Six: Are you more of a Sadist or a Masochist?"

"..."

They exchanged glances.

"... How did something like that come up?" Junpei asked.

"We don't know," Yu said. "One thing I know is that I'm glad I was not in the spotlight."

Minato sighed and Minako rubbed her chin.

"Do I have to answer this...?" Minako gave a weary smile. "Then sadist, of course."

Minato sighed. "Masochist… next question?"

"Seven: Is it okay to lie if you'll never be caught?"

Akihiko stepped back. "Is it just me, or is this start to feel more like confessionals?"

"Kinda like getting a persona," Chie said. "I wouldn't wanna stand there, though."

"No problem there," Minako said.

She's honest… Minato thought. To admit that she doesn't mind lying, that is.

"I don't know why I would wanna lie," Minato said.

"Eight: Are you able to physically punish someone, if you believed it was the right thing to do?"

"I would do that!" Minako said.

"What a sadist," Minato said.

She returned it with a grin. "Yep."

"I wouldn't do that."

"Nine: Could you marry the perfect robot?"

"Yes," Minato said.

"Woah." Minako raised her eyebrows.

Aigis nodded. "I am glad. I will always remain by your side."

Minako thought for a moment. "Umm, they didn't say I can't have affairs, so I'm okay."

"Ten: You must kiss one of these. A cephalopod-like alien, or a beautiful corpse?"

They looked at each other.

"You mean, octopus-faced aliens…?" She asked.

"Yeah," he said.

"... You first," Minako said.

"Er…" Minato was put into the spotlight. "I hope your opinions on me wouldn't be soured… a beautiful corpse."

"Err…" The spotlight was directed at Minako. "Both are bad!"

"You have to choose," the mechanical voice said.

She sighed. "Fine. The same as Minato's."


The awkward questions were finally over.

Then they dropped down through the floor.

"We got each other, or in another word, we got ourselves," Minako said. "How sweet… Haha…"

"You're... the other me," Minato said. "Theme that handled things differently. Me that walked a different path."

"Um, yeah?"

"I don't really like your approach."

Minako grinned. "Uuw, direct."

"I don't like it, but I can understand."

"I'm not really into you too. I mean, it seems boring!" She said. "You just let everyone ignore and left you?"

"Yeah." He said. "Better than being fake."

"You!" She said. "At least it's not empty!"

Minato looked away. "Whatever."

He walked ahead of her.

"Hey, you!" Minako catches up to him.

"I bet you like knives," Minato said as a joke but also expected the girl to be the opposite of him.

"Of course I do!" Minako grinned and took out a knife. She raised it up so it can reflect light from the artificial sun. "A silver knife, my favorite." She calmed down soon after that. "You don't like it?"

"I don't."

"Aw," Minako said.

She started talking. Minato didn't expect his other self to be talkative.

"It was amazing! The first time I see the Dark Hour…" Minako said. "It was raining, and the red blood trickled down the window. The moon was really nice."

Minato nodded.

"It's like a personal playground. You can do anything. Anything!" She smiled. "You can do anything without people looking. And Pharos is so happy."

He nodded again.

She frowned. "Hey, at least say something."

"I don't have anything to say."

They walked to the painting of them.

Minako scowled. "Why am I held by you?"

"I don't know?" Minato said.

"Are you really me?"

"I am. Or maybe I'm not."

"Our names are not the same."

"Yeah. Maybe we are in parallel worlds."

"Maybe."

They reached the building.

"You know," Minako began. "I think, we probably will forget everything that happens here."

"And why is that?"

"Because this place isn't the time and space that we should be in," Minako said. "Coffins don't remember me. People, too. No one."


What the…

A robot?

What?

"Hello, Yu Narukami."

"Don't call me like that," Yu said. He was sure he didn't participate in that twisted game.

"I am sorry, Yu-san." The android looked down. Cute.

"Ehh that's too formal, Aigis."

She looked up. "Do you prefer to be called Yu?"

Yu quickly nodded. "Yeah?"

Aigis nodded to herself. "I shall call you Yu from now on."

They walked hand in hand. Yu looked at the android. She was so perfect, like her face...

"You are a lot more interesting than I thought," Aigis said.

Yu raised his eyebrows. "At first, you thought I was bland?"

"I thought you are a pimp."

"Huh?"

"Or is a 'Casanova' more appropriate?"

"L-Let's just forget that."

"I shall begin the system of deleting my memories."

"Not that far!"

Aigis nodded. "… You are a lot more unique than I thought."

"Huh?"

"I thought you are a copycat."

"What?"

"But you two are different. You are not the same person," Aigis said. "You really are a 'fine young man'."

Yu smiled. "Then I guess you are a 'fine young maiden'."

"Thank you for the compliment." Aigis bowed. "Is this an awkward situation?"

Yu didn't know how to answer, and then he thought of an easy reply. "It depends…"


"A…" Minato began.

"Shadow?" Minako finished.

They looked at their connected hands. How would they fight this thing?

"Want me to cut your hand?" Minako asked and took her knife out.

"No."

"Wanna borrow my knife?"

"No!" Minato shouted. "... No. Anything but knives."

"What's wrong with knives…" Minako asked. "They're so lovely." She brought the knife closer to Minato's face. "Do you have knife phobia or something?"

Minato tried to back away but he couldn't. "Get that thing away from me. Please."


"No, Aigis," Minato said.

"DEL C:\ROOT\LANGUAGE\WORDPLAY\PUNS\PUNS_FOR_EVERY_OCCASION\*.*"

"No, Aigis. NO." Minako shouted.

"Puns are lame anyway," Shinjiro mumbled. "Just like Ikutsuki, puns are lame."

Mitsuru and Akihiko looked at him. They both respected the chairman but Shinjiro didn't give a shit.

"Yep. Puns are lame... So lame." Despite saying that, Minako seemed sad. "Shinjiro hates it. It must be lame. Yes…"

"Don't worry Minato-san," Aigis said. "I erase the folder because I had transferred it to basic conversation. You could say puns are my habit now. It wouldn't be erased easily anymore.'

"Yes!" Minako shouted.

Minato looked at her.

"I'm glad to hear that," Minako said. "No one appreciates puns anymore, even myself."

Shinjiro groaned.


Junpei raised his hands. "Deliver us from evil, deliver us from evil…"

Rei raised her hands. "Deliver us some pizzas, deliver us some pizzas..."


A/N: Yeah, that's all I have. The End. Congratulations.