Diclaimer: Devil Survivor 2 belongs to Atlus... man, I want to help make a video game for them someday lol.

She sees him at the subway station. She's had her eye on him for months now. She wants to go over there and just start a conversation… but the nervousness within her always stops her.

Io took a calming breath.

'It's just a conversation,' Io thought rationally, 'I'm just going to go over to say hello and to… to… oh God, I'm going to screw this up!'

'No, no, no! I can't be nervous! I've been telling myself excuses… I'll just… uh… the exams! Yeah, I'll ask about that and go from there!'

She forced herself to walk over there with quick and hasty strides.

The three have a short conversation about the exams. Daichi introduces Hiro Kageyama to her. She stutters but proceeds to calm herself so that she can properly ask Hiro out on a date. Unfortunately, it's never meant to go on further than that. Nicea interrupts through all their phones.

The world's plummet to destruction and demon summoning is now their main focus.

Io had hoped that the world crisis would be temporary. She hoped that her parents were safe. She had been so wishful in her line of thinking.

Seeing her mother literally die before her eyes grounded her perspective back to reality.

Hiro came along and asked for help with something. She didn't know or care about what it was. She politely asked to be left alone and proceeded to cry her eyes out over her parents' untimely and cruel deaths.

'What's the point of anything now? My parents are gone, the world's gone to hell, and there is no future anymore besides trying to survive…' She thought, 'I should… just end it. My life is over anyway. It's not like it mat-'

'Fool!' A strong feminine voice spoke inside her mind, 'You would betray everyone on a self-centered whim?'

Io was startled when she heard the voice. She looked around but only saw the busy nurses and doctors trying to coordinate an effort in saving many patients. They all ignored her. The voice was coming from inside her own head…

'Nobody needs me…' She replied to the voice miserably,'I'm just useless to everyone. Hiro and Daichi have been best friends for a long time. With me gone, JPs can get a more efficient recruit to fight the Septentrions. I'm just… there. Makoto and Hiro are the real fighters.'

'How stupid can you be!' the voice snarled back in reply, Io was surprised by the voice's pointed insult, 'Hiro just came for your help! Why? Because he does need you! Everyone does. Have any of them ever given an indication that you were unworthy of their presence?'

'Well, no… but… but it's pointless! My parents are dead! Why should I live?'

'You're an intelligent girl, Io. You know for a fact why that's the wrong course of action to take. If you kill yourself, you'll have betrayed your new-found friends Hiro and Daichi. You'll have caused low morale in JPs to remind them all of the hopelessness of the situation.' Io thought over what the voice was saying, 'Most importantly, Io, you will have betrayed your parents. Do you think they would want their daughter to kill herself in grief over their deaths? Your mother never got to say it but you knew from the look on her face that she was overcome with relief to see you perfectly fine and healthy.'

'Don't waste your life so needlessly. You've lost the world that once was… but endless opportunities await you now. People need you. Hiro just came for your help because he trusts you and your ability to help in a serious fight.'

'You're right…' Io finally replied, 'You're absolutely right! I can't just betray them all like that! They all need me, Hiro needs me, and he gave me the space I requested because he understood. Oh God, is he going to be fighting a life and death situation alone? I need to go and help Hiro!'

Io rushed off to the JPs HQ building.

Hathor, the Goddess manifested into Io's subconscious, smiled to herself at Io's decision. Now, if only someone could help boost the girl's self-confidence outside of battle.

Battles had become routine. The more that she and Hiro went through, the better they became. Daichi hardly fought compared to them. Hiro and Io acted as an effective and deadly team. Usually they were supported by Makoto. Makoto would usually handle herself in battle alone and gradually became adept enough to handle themselves without each other's help.

Io was cautious but confident, Daichi was weak and full of complaints, and Hiro efficiently take down the opposition whenever he could. People outright avoided engaging him directly most times because he was so efficient in battle. They would all allow the opposition to go once their demons were defeated. It was routine for them. Nobody wanted to kill or make JPs look bad by killing innocent civilians.

That all changed during the hostage situation.

They had already saved Airi, Keita, and Fumi from demons or rioters. They had unfortunately arrived late when attempting to save Jungo… and the consequences irrevocably changed the relationship of Daichi, Io, and Hiro.

They witnessed the rioters kill Jungo in cold-blood by using Daichi as a hostage. Io could see from her box on the opposite side of the hall that Hiro grow pale when he saw the man literally killed before his very eyes. Airi shouted in rage, Io cried upon seeing such horrible violence, and Daichi was left in a state of shock.

Hiro's eyes took on a hardened look. When one of the rioters nearest him came towards him with open threats he took action. He ruthlessly attacked the man with his demons, he broke the cellphone, and this time he didn't stop there. Hiro was no longer letting the enemy go free after they horrendously murdered one of the JPs.

Hiro had his demon kill the man in cold-blood. He easily used his demons powers to teleport toward the man nearest Daichi who had pointed the knife at Daichi's throat and killed that man too. Airi, just as emotionally distraught over the events, followed Hiro's example and killed the many rioters near her. There would be no mercy today.

Hiro killed a man who had a gun as back-up. Daichi was released from his ropes by Io and followed her to the exit hastily. Two of the remaining rioters blocked their path and one pointed a gun in their direction.

Hiro suddenly teleported in front of them with the gun he had taken from the rioter he had just killed. He didn't bother summoning demons, he just pointed the gun and headshot both the rioters in rapid succession. They fell over dead. Hiro promptly broke their cellphones to make sure that demons didn't come out of them.

"H-Hiro, those are people!" shouted Daichi horrified, "Do you know what you're doing? We can't stoop to their-"

"Shut the fuck up and get going you useless piece of shit!" said Hiro rounding on Daichi for complaining about his methods, "What? You got a better idea? You want to just let them go so they can come back to kidnap someone else and kill them too?"

"It's your fucking fault that guy is dead! Don't you dare lecture me or spit on that man's memory by letting his murderers get away free! Get out of my sight! I'm not in the mood for your whining bullshit right now!"

Daichi was shocked speechless. He averted Hiro's gaze. Both Io and Daichi left the area without another word. Daichi and Hiro would stop talking to each other unless at JP meetings.

"Hey you, what're you doing!"

"Huh…?" said Io, turning to face the woman, "Me…?"

"You're gonna get attacked by a monster if you stay there!"

"Oh… I know that." answered Io hesitantly, "I have the summoning app and-"

"You have to get to an evacuation center!" shouted the woman, "Were you turned away from a full one?"

"N-no, I'm-" Io's hesitant responses were ignored.

"You can stay at my house!" said the woman making a grab for her, "One more girl isn't going to hurt!"

"B-but…"

The woman began dragging her away. Io was anxious. She looked around and…

"….Hiro! Hey!"

Hiro came up to them. Io still hadn't talked to him since the Jungo incident. She hoped that he had cooled off. Right now, he was the best bet that she had to get out of this situation. Io didn't like the fact that Hiro looked so amused…

"She's my girlfriend," said Hiro to the woman, Io's cheeks flushed at that statement. "She was here waiting for me."

"W-wait, um, Hiro…" stuttered Io flushing, "Th-that's…. um…"

"What? Why didn't you say so in the first place?" said the woman turning to Io.

"…uh, sorry?" said Io lamely, "I… um.."

"You there, boy!" said the woman, "How can you leave your girl alone where demons could be rampaging about? Take better care of her next time!"

"Of course," replied Hiro smiling slightly, Io was relieved to see that some of the light-hearted air had returned to him. "Sorry for the confusion."

"Well, take care. If you need any help then just stop by my place, okay?"

The woman walked away.

"Hiro, I uh…" Io racked her brain to think of something to say, she wanted the awkwardness gone. "Thanks for helping me. I didn't expect Osaka people to be so nice… um… how are you?"

Io cringed when she realized what she just said. Instead of his scowling face, like she expected, he just smiled at her. He looked relieved to see her.

"I'm fine now," said Hiro, "I know I lost it back there… I'm sorry. It's just… I guess I was just so sure that we would save him like everybody else so far. When I saw him die… I realized that there would be no reasoning with these people. And… I couldn't let them go. They all conspired together and murdered someone who was only there to save someone he didn't even know."

"What if they had killed Daichi too? Or gone to kill Makoto, Airi, or even you? I couldn't let that happen."

"I-I see…" said Io sullenly looking at the ground, she understood that completely. "Listen, I don't blame you for what you did. I tried talking to Daichi but he just wouldn't listen. He thinks that this whole thing has changed you too much."

"It has," confirmed Hiro making Io look up at him, "I have to consider peoples' lives now because I'm regarded as the 'leader' when we fight out there. It's tough to do. I can't just let people get away with murdering one of us JPs. I couldn't save Jungo but I swear I'll do my best to save anyone else I can."

"I'm sorry I lost it but… this isn't a game anymore. Shit just got serious. Daichi's too stuck on what we can't ever get back. When I fight… I'm going to kill. It's the only way to ensure that people don't try to hurt us more. If we just let them go then they'll try again. That may seem contradictory but it's not. These people are just trying to blame JPs because we can't spare supplies. They aren't fighting the Septentrions', we are. If we don't have those supplies then we really are doomed."

"Anyway, I'll see you later."

He left leaving Io lost in thought. The world's calamity was taking its toll on everyone.

"Come on babe, I'll protect you."

"P-please stop, I… uh.." Io didn't know what to say, "S-stop I…"

"No worries, I'll stop any monsters from hurting ya."

The man made a grab for her but his hand was quickly smacked away by the sudden appearance of Hiro.

"Back off from my girlfriend," snarled Hiro at the offending man.

Io's eyes widened at that.

"Wh-what! H-Hiro!" shouted Io blushing uncontrollably, "I…"

'Why does he have to make such a joke at times like this too?' thought Io painfully, 'Hasn't he realized that I actually do like him? I had a crush on him since school. It hurts to hear him talk so lightly about my feelings…'

"Wh-what? Aw, damnit!" bemoaned the man, "Why didn't you say you were waiting for your boyfriend? I'm outta here."

The man promptly left.

Hiro turned to Io smiling.

"Hiro… do you really have to joke about that so often?" said Io sadly, "It really… hurts when you say that to people. I mean… um, maybe I should just go. I'm just embarrassing myself even more."

Hiro raised an eyebrow at her.

"When did I ever say it was a joke?" posed Hiro cocking his head to the side, "I don't say things that I don't mean. You know that."

"Whw-ha…. WHAT?" screeched Io and then promptly covered her mouth, she looked to see that there were no onlookers and breathed a sigh of relief before looking at Hiro again, "But… w-we didn't even discuss it! When did we become boyfriend and girlfriend?"

"Who says we need to discuss anything?" said Hiro shrugging, "I like you, you like me. I thought it was pretty much implied from then on. I'd take you out on dates if I wasn't so focused on helping JPs and strategizing over the Septentrione fights."

"O-oh…" Io didn't know what to say to that, "D-do you have time to go somewhere with me now? Or… maybe, I could help you with strategizing plans. I've been researching all I can during my spare time."

Hiro smiled serenely at that question. Io's eagerness to be helpful was really heartwarming. He was glad that she was such a dependable person.

"Sure," He replied. "Let's go do all we can."

Hiro took Io's hand and began walking back to JPs HQ.

"Look at yourself, you're misunderstood constantly by a society dredged in foolishness," said Yamato in defense of his ideal, "Just look at the conversation you had with Airi and Hinako recently."

"Do you think such a thing would happen in a merit-based system, Io? Your knowledge and talents as a member of society would be appreciated. You are neither weak nor stupid. You should acknowledge your value as others have. Even Fumi is impressed with the information you've amassed and helped her categorize."

"…I have to go," said Io sorely wanting to deny the facts presented to her, "Excuse me."

Hiro walked towards a smirking Yamato as Io left abruptly.

"So, what do you think of my philosophy, Hiro?" asked Yamato, "I wish to know where you stand. You are, after all, the de facto leader of the group and its strongest member."

"I agree with you," said Hiro bluntly, "I want to help achieve that dream. To be honest, I've seen how terrible the failures of the previous society were. Too much whining and hoarding from the government teat. People didn't try helping themselves and the government became more about selfish political corruption that hurt society instead of trying to benefit the society anyway. A meritocracy of self-worth instead of capitalist selfishness would be better."

"Hahahaha! Well, I'm glad you agree," replied Yamato pleased, "When the time comes we shall work together to bring our dream into reality."

"I would be pleased if you were my right-han… no, we are equals. I would be pleased if we worked together as friends to bring the merit system into reality."

"I'll support you for sure," said Hiro looking behind him, "There is just one person left who I want to join us when that day comes. I know Io believes in it but she's skittish about taking the steps necessary to succeed in this goal."

"The only one who is compatible to use the Dragon Stream is Io Nitta," said Yamato plainly, "We will need to use her in order to summon Lugh to effectively destroy Mizar."

Everyone looked shocked except Hiro. Hiro looked positively livid.

"…There's no possible way that anybody else can do it instead?" bit out Hiro trying to reign in his anger, "Such as myself?"

"No, only Io fits the genetic build required to hold such power." replied Yamato smirking, "If anybody else did it, myself included, they would die an immediate death and the power would break free for demons to consume."

"…I see," said Hiro turning to Io.

"I-it's fine!" said Io looking around the room at all the gloomy faces, "I… I'm glad that I can be useful in this situation. I'll be sure to do my best."

'Even if I die… it'll be worth it. We have to defeat Mizar and protect all we can,' She thought, 'If I can save hundreds more by dying then I... No. I don't want to die… There is so much I want to do! Even in this doomed world, there is so much that I can still do! I want to live my life to the fullest…'

'But… there's no better way. I have to do this! I will do this!'

"You'll survive," said Hiro pointedly at her, "I'm not letting you die. I won't allow it."

If not for the deathly seriousness of his voice, the line would have seemed corny. Io couldn't help but blushing. Diachi grumbled about how Hiro was trying too hard to act tough while Hinako applauded him for his confidence.

Io felt instilled with confidence even though the death clip had shown her untimely demise.

When the operation of channeling the stream began, everyone had to fight absurdly strong demons that were getting in the way.

Fumi stayed nearby to ensure she was properly healed after every torturous session where the power would force itself into her body. Hiro acted hastily trying to take on more than his usual amount of demons. He was soundly defeated by three groups acting together. He yelled in frustration before being knocked unconscious.

'Damn it… how could I screw up in this situation!' thought Hiro in self-loathing, 'Fuck! Io, please don't die…'

Fumi took over for his share of the demons and soundly defeated them with proper strategy. She made sure to remind Io not to move an inch.

'Is he safe, is he alright?' thought Io worriedly, 'He has to be! He didn't have a death clip. Only I did so… so only I'm likely to die today. Hiro will be fine…! He can't die on me too…'

Io forced herself not to move when she heard that Hiro was knocked unconscious nearby the stairs.

Finally the dragon stream was ready and the demons fled in fear. Io flew into the air and hit Mizar with the lightning spear. The spear turned into a dragon which viciously attacked Mizar.

Io fell to the floor unconscious. Hiro was quickly at her side. To his utter relief, Io woke-up tiredly. Everyone expressed their happiness. Slowly everyone parted ways. Hiro and Io were the only ones left there.

"Hiro, I… I want to talk to you about something…" began Io, getting Hiro's undivided attention, "Today… was one of the scariest days of my life. I was afraid but when I heard your cry when you fell in battle… I became afraid that I had missed out on so much. Not just for myself, but with you…"

"I've had this constant fear since it all began. We could all end-up dead tomorrow, in the next hour, in the next minute… the danger is just always there. What if a Septentrione suddenly attacked us all when we're sleeping? Would we be able to beat it in time? It honestly could happen. It got me thinking… I want to enjoy my life as much as possible. I want to enjoy it while I still have a life to live… I want to enjoy it with you. I want to live in the moment while we still can… s-so, please, could we…?"

Io grasped his left hand gently and held it to her chest. She began rubbing the back of his hand with one of her thumbs. She gave him a shy smile and blushed.

Hiro couldn't help but blush at what she was proposing.

That was a big step but they were eighteen and there weren't any rules against such acts anymore. Social stigma by society went out the window when societal perception of right and wrong was forced to concede to reality.

They walked hand in hand toward JPs.

"Io!" yelled Daichi, knocking on Io's door harshly, "I, uh, wanted to see how you were doing! I didn't get to say how happy I was that you were alright. And um, I managed to get some interesting stuff for you to read! I know you liked the Claymore and Card Captor Sakura manga and I managed to find some at a book store!"

"Can I come in?"

Daichi stepped back with the manga's in his hands and finally paid attention to the noises inside Io's room.

He could hear a thumping sound on springs.

'That's weird…' thought Daichi listening intently, he put his ear to the door. 'Is she jumping on her bed?'

"Ahhh…! Hiro, it won't reach!" He heard Io's muffled voice from the door say, "Oh God! Oh God! This is it!"

'Hiro's with her? What are they doing?' thought Daichi in confusion, 'Hmm… 'won't reach', he must be helping her with something. What wouldn't reach? Oh, it must be a curtain… I think? Maybe he's helping her put something new in her room.'

"Yes, Hiro! YES!"

Daichi flinched at that sound. He backed away from the door.

'What was that about? Why is she screaming?' thought Daichi puzzled, 'He has to be helping her put something in her room… and… no, holy crap, are they having sex?'

'Nah, I'm just being perverted. This is like those dumb sitcoms. You think something perverted and when you open the door, it's just them doing something stupid like playing a board game together. I'll just put this stuff by her door and see her later when she's not so busy.'

When he was leaving, he passed by Makoto and gave her a hello. Makoto replied a greeting back and stood outside Io's door.

Makoto was hoping to speak to Io so that she could help console the girl after such a draining experience. Perhaps ease her mind by taking her on some leisure activity that Io might like. She opened the door to Io's room by unlocking it and stepped inside. Once she looked inside to find Io her face went blank with shock. Makoto opened her mouth to apologize but the words died at her throat. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

There was a nude Hiro fucking a nude Io on Io's bed. They were right in the middle of full blown intercourse. Io's legs were wrapped around Hiro's waist. Hiro turned to face her and said the only thing that came to his mind.

"PERVERT!"

Makoto quickly shut the door and made sure to lock it behind her. She went back to her usual work in order to forget the moment of private intimacy that she just saw. Although she would try to deny it, Makoto was secretly jealous that it was Io and not her that Hiro was fucking.

Io had just forcefully given the boy her opinion and told him to keep living.

Hiro smiled when she did it. Io didn't blush anymore or stutter when the boy had presumed, correctly, that they were a couple.

Later, once the entire group was split into factions. Io parted ways with Hiro. Hiro and Yamato both decided to crush Daichi's group first. Shiva had been a bit of a challenge but Hiro had easily managed to pull a tie in several fights with him while Yamato defeated Hinako's group.

Io had brilliantly decided to use Lugh's power. The small respect Hiro had gained for Daichi was gone when he realized that Io had done all the strategizing. Of course Io had done all the strategizing! Daichi just whined and pissed others off. That's all he was capable of doing even though people faced the same tasks he did. It was worse for Io more so than anybody, really.

Yamato soundly defeated Daichi. Io managed to defeat Fumi with Lugh's power. However, when facing Hiro, she was defeated in two separate fights and gave up. The resistance group ran for it after that. They gave-up on trying to defeat Yamato Hotsuin's Merit group.

Hiro promptly left after the battle to see Io. He needed her to understand why he chose Yamato's side and not Daichi's.

"It's just… why do we have to say unpleasant things to each other? It's better if we don't say anything so that we all get along!"

"That's getting along?"

"Well… I… No, it's not… " admitted Io looking downcast, "I'm sorry, it's just… I don't want people to hate me! That's why I never speak my own opinion…"

"You're just running away." replied Hiro pointedly, "That's never a good thing."

"I… that is… um.." She took a deep breath and sighed sadly, "You're right… Of course you're right, I was the one who convinced a kid not to kill himself by forcing my opinion on him. It's not always a bad thing."

She regarded him with a very serious look.

"Hiro… why did you agree with Yamato's Merit-system?"

"Because of all the stu-" Hiro suddenly stopped himself from that near shout. Io looked hurt by what he was about to say. "…I believe in it. I really do. Look at the school system we were in as an example. Laziness abounded, lower credentials of learning enacted so everybody can 'pass', and schools being ill-equipped to give us the learning tools necessary for college all hurt us."

"To put it in a more open perspective, the capitalist world became too ingrained on appearances instead of actual merit. Ethnicity, religion, and gender discrimination all became too extreme in favor of some unbalanced and hypocritical belief in 'equality' in the global market place. It's just legalized corruption when you really think about it. Appearances mattered more than self-worth. The society we grew-up in existed on the basis of who you knew and not what you knew. People like you were never appreciated for their intellectual talents because you weren't being challenged and were forced into the same category of your school year because of your age."

"What's more, society tolerated the most retarded of arguments in public and most of these stupid ass people blatantly said their bullshit in open public as if they were facts. Every western oriented society had such crap. We all experienced it in different ways. We saw it on television, through people we regrettably knew, or heard it from the radio. Popstars personal lives were usually the hot subject of debate instead of changes worth actual news. Crises happening in another country, our economic system being near collapse, or censorship of historical truths in favor of nationalism were all ignored as less important than some rich person boning someone else. Our society was bound to fail at some point. The Septentrions just made the inevitable faster."

"…I see, so you really believe in it," replied Io closing her eyes with a small smile, she re-opened them to fix Hiro with an intent stare, "What you're saying is true… and it would help to better society. I just didn't want to follow because I wanted everyone to be together. That was me being naïve. Ronaldo and Yamato were at each other's throats from the start. They would probably only agree with setting the world back the way it was to back stab us and try to change society some other way."

"I knew that would happen if we ever succeeded… I just knew it. But… I guess I wanted to believe in a naïve dream. I do agree with the merit-system though. I just didn't want people to hate me for saying what I believe in. My parents tried to teach me to be more assertive about my opinions but I just never could because I thought it was a mean thing to do… but I helped that boy decide to keep living by being assertive. I've learned that… it's not always wrong to have an assertive opinion. Thank you for helping me learn that, Hiro."

"Let's change the world together, Io." said Hiro smiling, "I'd be happy if you joined our cause. I want to see the merit-based system come to fruition and I want to be with you when it does."

"I want to join you," replied Io smiling back sincerely, "Not for Yamato or the merit-system though… but because I choose to believe in you, Hiro. You're the only one I can put my absolute trust and faith in."

"I'm glad to have you back," said Hiro closing his eyes to smile, "Alright, you can head back to the Osaka branch once you get your things. I'll help."

"Um… uh… one more thing…" said Io blushing, Hiro open his eyes and waited patiently for her to speak. "Um, after the world is changed, we'll have to think of the future and…um… well, er. Never mind! I'll talk to you about it once we've changed everything!"

"Io, do you want to… live together?" asked Hiro a bit hesitantly, even he was nervous about this.

"I..I.. n-never mind! I'm just over-thinking things!" said Io blushing uncontrollably, "It… um… ugh! I-I'll just go get my things and-"

"Io, it's fine." Said Hiro shaking his head ruefully, "I like the idea of living with you. Um… if you want, we could even get married. I know it seems fast since we've only really got to know each other for a week but with all that's happened…"

"N-no, it… it wasn't just that. I'm glad you're okay with us living together but…" Io bit her lip in nervousness, "I want us… um, actually, let's just leave it at that."

"Wait, what could-?" He stopped mid-speech upon figuring it out. Hiro's eyes widened as a slow smile crept up on his face. "I think I get it now…"

"Um…um…ummm…. L-let's just forget this conversation came-up, please?" begged Io looking downcast, "It's awkward and I'd rather not force this issue on you before we've even started the whole 'living together' phase."

"No, I don't mind at all," responded Hiro, easing Io's nervousness, "I was actually concerned that I was being pushy about you living with me. I'm happy you want us to raise a family together after everything we've gone through. I don't see it as taking things too far or too fast."

"R-really?" said Io in a hopeful voice, "Hiro, I… I don't even know what to say! I feel so relieved..."

Hiro walked over to her and hugged her. Io hugged him back and buried her head on the crook of his neck.

"I love you, Io."

For the first time in her life, Io stopped regretting the apocalypse that changed the world. She had learned of her own self-worth and to be assertive of her opinion. She didn't want to ever forget that despite what had happened. Most importantly, she never wanted to chance living a life without Hiro by her side. The experiences she had endured and the struggles she had overcome were too worth it.

Life experience, knowledge, and confidence. That was what best determined self-worth in Io's mind.

"I love you too, Hiro."