AN: I own absolutely nothing by ATLUS or Criware, and most definitely do not own any of the characters, plotlines, or lines spoken and described except for anything that was not written down or performed originally. This is merely a one shot between two characters created by the said companies above. This is also an apology to those who may have read my one Zelda Fan Fiction, "Love on a Moonlit Night"… I deeply apologize for not being able to update it in so long, for I just can't find myself to finish it. I hope that I will soon, though, considering how many have interest in me to continue; this is actually part one of a two part one-shot series revolving around the pairing of "FeMC and Aigis. I hope anyone who reads this enjoys it as well.
The Feeling We Share
A P3P One Shot
As I looked across the lobby of the inside of the building known to us as Tartarus, a manifestation of our school that occurs in the Dark Hour, I think about who I should bring with me. Granted, there was very few of us who actually wanted to come tonight. More accurately, just six wanted to come; the others didn't feel too well, and that much I could understand. Mitsuru, Akihiko, Koromaru, Aigis, Yukari and Fuuka; the few Persona users who wished to make some more progress tonight through the tower. And there was no doubt we'll probably encounter some powerful shadows here, due to how far up we are currently.
I made sure I had my weapon of choice prepped for combat; a naginata, as well as seeing the others were well equipped as well. Mitsuru had her rapier at the ready, looking at the blade every once in a while. Yukari had her bow on her shoulder, a bundle of arrows prepared for her in reaching distance. Akihiko, well, he used his fists as weapons, so technically he didn't need to be checked. Koromaru was carrying his dagger around in his mouth, expected for the dog for a Persona-User. Aigis was looking at her hands, which would spin and the tips would open up, basically saying her hands were also her weapons, but were sub-machine guns rather.
Tartarus, if one would ask the question, is a labyrinth that houses a large surplus of shadows within its walls, all of them being a danger to the people who were not like us yet were active at this time. Around this time, normally, any normal person will be transmogrified, transformed into a coffin to hide from the Dark Hour's effects in a sense. If they are caught outside a coffin by a shadow, they will be preyed off of by them, putting them into a state where they're practically zombie-like, only they don't harm us. But it's both a sad and scary thing to see happen, and so we of S.E.E.S, the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad, have to keep the Shadows in check at any moment we have. The only thing we can really do in hopes to find some answers is basically climbing up Tartarus, while defeating any shadows that we come across if possible.
The reason why we weren't transmogrified like the normal people is because all of S.E.E.S, as well a small few who consider themselves Strega, are Persona-users. A Persona is a manifestation of one's psyche, and are mainly formed based on an individual's personality. Though everyone has their own Persona to control, my power as a Persona-user is quite different; where everyone uses only the single Persona they had grown to developed, I am capable of summoning many Personas into battle. However, my power to be able to summon Personas is based on my own strength, which was fairly moderate, but had plenty ways to go yet to summon some of the stronger entities.
I turned to look at Fuuka when she spoke in my direction, "Have you come up with a team to climb further up Tartarus, at all?" Her voice was a little shy, but regardless, she sounded a little serious about the situation; there wasn't very much time to joke about inside Tartarus with the shadows crawling around. I did nod a little, before gazing about the lobby.
"Aigis, Mitsuru-senpai, and Akihiko-senpai… I'm sure it's fine for you all, right?" I explained, before turning to face each of them as I asked the question.
"Hah, I'll try to meet your expectations." I listened as Mitsuru said this, nodding a little with a bit of a graceful bow. Typical Mitsuru-senai, that was for sure; she was the leader of S.E.E.S, though she had appointed me as field leader, hence I lead the group into battle inside Tartarus and on the town should shadows wander outside Tartarus, which wasn't too often. She had a fair auburn-color to her hair, and like all of us, she typically wore what we all did to our school, though the only difference was that we had an armband with "S.E.E.S" printed on it.
"I'll show you what I'm made of." I listened as Aigis said this, while her hands span slightly, the tips of her fingers sealing each of the barrels to release her ammunition, at least for now. I knew she wouldn't hesitate to unseal them when wandering through the highest block we've reached thus far. The blonde woman wasn't really human, but was actually an anti-shadow weapon designed to fight and exterminate shadows. It was our mistake to consider her as a tank when we first heard about her, and my first meeting with her was actually rather awkward, if I could put it like that. At first, I thought she was interested in me in that way when she explained I was her highest priority. Honestly, I was a little flattered and inwardly flustered, yet it was an odd feeling as she hugged me that time.
Akihiko was just a bit slower to react, cracking his knuckles slightly, before saying, "Heh, let's get going." He wanted in on the action, that much was obvious, and I smiled a little. He had a greyish, almost silver in color short hair, with his eyes being rather dark, but all the same held a strong kindness within, as tough a boxer as he was. Regardless, with the three of them, we wandered over to the teleporter, and I was the first to step on it; the reaction, however, didn't go as plan. I was surprised to have would up somewhere else than what I wanted. I gasped as I held my Naginata closely, prepared for any shadows that could attack, before listening to Fuuka through her Persona.
"Are you alright? Somehow, the teleporter is malfunctioning, and when everyone stepped on it, you were taken somewhere else intended. Everyone has just returned and they're trying to use the teleporter to try and find you." I listened to Fuuka explain through her Persona's connection with sensing life, nodding as I stepped away, allowing anyone who would show up to do so.
In almost an instant, I watched as Aigis had appeared into view, and stepped off herself, but from there, I watched as the light emanating from the teleporter faded to nonexistent. I tried stepping on it to tried and make it back down, yet it didn't seem to work. I tried deactivating it and reactivating the machine, but the light didn't turn on; what the hell just happened here?!
"I-I don't understand… They were acting fine last night, but… why did they suddenly decide not to work well tonight? I'll try to figure it out; Mitsuru and Akihiko are forced to climb up from their current position to try and reach you and Aigis. I mean, it's up to you if you wish to wait for them, or if you wish to progress further in hopes of reaching the highest possible sealed floor thus far; which would be better?" I listened to Fuuka on the other end, and I didn't have to think for too long.
"I think Aigis and I can handle ourselves for a small while, at least until we reach a guardian, anyways. She and I will progress from our current location to the next guardian, and wait for Akihiko and Mitsuru there before challenging it." I explained to Fuuka, and it seemed like she understood.
"I'll be sure to inform them of what's going on, but I have to watch and ensure both the teams are going to be okay; anything can happen to them due to being on the changing lower floors of Tartarus. But try not to spend too much time on a floor if you can; I sensed Death once last night, or at least, a very powerful shadow that was of the Death Arcana, and I want you to be careful, is all. I'll get back to you if I find out that guardian's location." I listened as Fuuka explained the situation, nodding accordingly before I heard static.
I turned to face Aigis, who appeared ready for combat if she had to go through it. I could somehow tell she was thinking about something, placing a hand to one of her hearing sensors that allow her to hear Fuuka speaking to us through her Persona, and pulled it off. She needed that though if she wanted Fuuka to let us know of what's going on! What was she doing?
"Only one of us is necessary to hear Fuuka-san's information she receives and sends us. It only seems right that I keep my focus on the shadows and ensure victory for the both of us until we reach the guardian. I… want to ensure your safety, Minako-san." I listened to Aigis explain, and she did have a point I figured, and I nodded accordingly. From there, I lead her through the empty hallway to the stairs, and climbed them to reach the next floor. Here, I was ready for any shadows we may come across, and as was Aigis. No response from Fuuka, which could only mean she was watching Mitsuru and Akihiko currently. I tapped it just to be sure, but it could just me; something was interfering with the signal. Aigis… why would she do that, she had no reason to. Perhaps it was a certain Shadow on this floor, or a floor nearby, causing the interference.
With Aigis following behind, I held the naginata I had grown accustomed to using in combat while running through the corridors, slicing my pole arm through any of the weaker shadows who didn't have an immunity to the slashing motion, while I heard Aigis's was releasing fire at any of the remaining shadows I did simply avoid or were just about to attack me while my guard was down. Cleaving clean through them wasn't a problem, considering how high up we both were even to keep in mind.
Further down the hall just three floors above, since we could not find the interference shadow just yet, but whatever it was, it was tricky. Eventually, seeing a strange shadow down it caught my attention, and I was about to charge, but before I was even partway to it, it was mowed down by Aigis' assault upon it, and it melted to nothing. I stopped and stood there for a moment, and I turned to see the anti-shadow weapon I had grown accustomed to fighting alongside with was right there. That shadow was gone, so I tried to tap in and tried to communicate with Fuuka.
"Fuuka… can you determine my position? Fuuka?" I spoke through the line, and I was certain she would've responded rather quickly, yet… that wasn't the case. Something was amiss; was that not the right shadow? Or was there something else that was interfering with the signal? I thought for a moment.
"I don't understand, all I hear is static… this isn't right, Aigis. What could be interfering with the signal? At first, I thought maybe that shadow was the culprit, but nothing has changed." I explained the situation to Aigis, in hopes that perhaps she had some similar issues with this kind of shadow in the past. It was said she was used to combat the shadows ten years ago, but an accident left her severely damaged, and hence was stuck in the Yakushima Kirijo Laboratory to be repaired and put into hibernation. Also, she was one of the last models produced to fight the shadows, and no others are known to exist today.
"We will be alright, Minako-san; Fuuka-san could have more matters to deal with Akihiko-san and Mitsuru-san. You should trust her; as she said, she would inform you whether or not we'll be approaching a guardian or not. Let's just keep our focus on moving further up Tartarus; she warned us that lingering around a single for too long may cause an unnecessary shadow to appear." I listened to Aigis explain, in her typical robotic tone, but regardless, I nodded, knowing she had a point. I held the Japanese-style pole arm in both my hands as I ran through the corridors from there, killing most shadows I came across, while trying to avoid some of the stronger ones if possible.
However, one thing was certain; no matter how high I go up or how many shadows I defeat, Fuuka was not responding. It had me a little concerned, and though inside me had me to believe not to think Aigis may know what's going on, I just have a gut feeling she could. No, I don't have to think like that; I mean, Aigis would never do something that would endanger my life; she said so herself that she always wanted to be by my side, and also that I was… her highest priority, so I assume she's referring to my safety. But just six floors up since then, I still have yet to receive a thing from Fuuka; I most certainly would've expected her to have said something by now. I wandered through this floor's hallways, but I was amaze by how few in numbers the shadows were; heck, it was as if the floor was basically abandoned. But, why…?
Soon enough, I did hear something from the earpiece I had, at first sounding like static. "…careful… nothing can… sensed… eyes open… Two floors… guardians…" It was Fuuka's voice, but it wasn't very clear. I tapped the piece of equipment.
"Fuuka, are you there? Fuuka!" I spoke, trying to get back to her again, but the only response I received was static again.
"Nothing but static again for a response… but she said something about the guardians being two floors up, yet something can't be sensed by her, and I wondered just what she meant by that. Regardless, we should keep going Aigi-" I spoke, but I was cut off by a rattling of chains. That was different than usual, but even more so, I felt as the android quickly grabbed me by the wrist and began leading me through the halls.
"A-Aigis?!" I couldn't help but yell in surprise, but when we came to a crossed path, I was looking in each direction, catching a glimpse of what this "super-shadow" that Fuuka talked about earlier, possibly. I couldn't make it out, however, since Aigis had already began to move in the direction opposite of it before we climbed the stairs to the next floor. The rattling chains had ended, yet Aigis didn't stop leading me through this next floor, which was also surprisingly empty like the last one. More rattling chains, and eventually, up some more stairs and then… nothing; absolute calm and silence. I was breathing fairly deeply.
"A-Aigis, why were you doing that? I was just as capable of running on my own two feet." I explained, and she was just looking around the floor, before turning to look at me.
"Allowing you to have run at human speeds would've led to your capture by the supposed "Reaper" of Tartarus. It is my intention to ensure you of your safety, no matter the outcome, and the Reaper is a dangerous shadow not frequently seen, but fighting it now as we are and hoping to achieve victory is with only a 0.001% chance of success. The saying, I believe is "to live and fight another day", is it not?" I listened to Aigis explain her reasons, and I couldn't help but agree with her, but got to thinking.
"This floor is not a place the Reaper is seen at all, being the place where guardians are placed instead with a small fraction of its powers. This is based off of scans I had performed on the few guardians we have challenged since my arrival into S.E.E.S. We are safe here; now all we can do is wait for Akihiko-san and Mitsuru-san will arrive with us soon." Aigis continued, before she walked down a little ways, looking at the teleporter, and made the attempt to activate it; sadly, it didn't function, like the ones below.
"…you… alright…? Akihi-… …suru-senpai… thirty… below… Shadows… swarming… Others sent… provide backup… Wait… Aigis." I heard the static from Fuuka once again when she had explained the seniors' situation, and then back to nothing. I knew tonight was a bad night, but to think all of this happening was just coincidence or karma? I just couldn't help but shake my head, as Aigis turned to look at me, sitting on the ground, leaning back against one of the pillars in this section of the floor.
"It'll be a while before Akihiko-senpai and Mitsuru-senpai will be joining us… I have no idea, but they're at least thirty floors below our position, but what Fuuka talked about was partially cut-out, so I have no idea if it's simply thirty floors or one-hundred and thirty floors. She also mentions shadows swarming on their location, and the others were sent with them to ensure their safety. Look, I don't want anything bad happening to them, Aigis, there's something we have to do, but when we can't even use the transporters to get to their location, then… what are we to do…?" I spoke, drawing my Evoker and looked at it carefully. It was designed to look like a silver gun, but the barrel was designed differently.
From what I remember that was told to me, the Evoker's gun-like shape is to draw a bit of the Persona-user's fear, and pulling the trigger awakens enough fear required to summon the Persona we all possess. But in some cases, the Evoker isn't necessary; sometimes even just seeing a shadow for the first time for Persona-users ends up with their Personas being released to defend them. I spent another moment or two looking at it, remembering the night I first held and used this tool. Seeing Yukari do that kind of freaked me, at first my beliefs being that she was going to kill herself, but then that boy, Pharos appeared, urging me to take the item at my feet and use it like Yukari would've against the shadow. And… I'm glad to have done so, or I may not have even been here without the aid of Orpheus. But that other being that emerged from it after tearing Orpheus apart… it alone was plenty to kill the first of many of the special shadows we're hunting down.
"Minako-san?" I snapped out of my thoughts when I heard Aigis speak, and hearing her caused me to stand up, and place the Evoker back in its holster, followed by me picking up my naginata once more. I gave a light nod to the android, before standing rather calmly.
"Look, I know I shouldn't be stressing over it, and that I should keep a clear head on the fact the Mitsuru appointed me as field leader, and to ensure the safety of everyone within our ranks. I think they'll be able to make it… they've been in S.E.E.S a lot longer than I have, so I don't have any doubt that they'll have troubles for long. My only concern is whether or not the transporters will work again, while hoping they all don't come across this "Reaper" as you call this powerful shadow. I mean, it's only mid-August, there's still plenty of those big shadows to fight, as well as these guardians of Tartarus also. Many answers lay in wait for us here and with those large shadows; all we can do is to keep moving forward, right? Maybe when we're reaching the end of fighting these larger shadows, who knows, maybe then we'll be ready to fight and bring down this "Reaper" to ensure it doesn't harm us any more, right?" I spoke, while keeping up some optimism, which actually wasn't like me a few moments ago. Yeah, I had a minor case of mood swings, but what do you expect? But the question remains; would this Reaper be defeated for good should we accomplish this, or will it come back? I might have to bring up this question to Theodore in the Velvet Room when I find the time, but all the same, I shrugged.
"Optimism helps, but in some cases, Minako-san… " I heard Aigis speak, and I looked at her, a little confused. I mean, yeah I can be optimistic if I have to, but Aigis always seems to look at the more logical statistics as she explains them. "I suppose you're right… I'm sorry for questioning you, our leader. Just standing here, with you, kind of, well… It's something I can't exactly explain, like… If I could find the words, I'd describe it as…" I listened to Aigis speak, and almost for the first time, this was the first I heard of her stagger with her words, more than usual anyways if one takes in consideration of her robotic tone.
"You'd describe this time as what, Aigis?" I asked, blinking a few times, wondering just how the android would describe our time here, alone with her when, obviously there were shadow guardians down the nearby hall, but of course, they never seem to move, which is always a good thing. "Is it something good, is it something meant especially for Tartarus, or… is it related to what you desire; being by my side and considering me as your highest priority?" I asked, though the last bit was kind of meant as a joke, but I was serious regardless of what I was asking. She brought her one hand over to grasp her one arm, as I slowly approached and something inside me could begin to wonder what was going on.
"I'm… not certain, but yes, it is important to be with you whenever I can, but it's something else as well… something more… something that a human would feel, almost like it's… very important to experience." I heard Aigis explain, and I was becoming confused as to how she was wording it; something that a human would feel and it was important to experience for them.
"Feelings, Aigis? Is that what you describe this time; to be your first time experiencing the human "feelings" whenever you're around me? But what kind; there's a lot of feelings a human can experience- no, that we can experience." I explained while correcting myself, emphasizing "we" because I certainly was not going to consider Aigis as something different; even if she's a robot, she was given a personality and the ability to fight alongside us. And if I know anything, if there's a personality, there has to be something more "alive" in her system, especially when it comes to these "feelings" she's having. She turned her head to look to the side, and though her cheeks didn't show it, she seemed just a little flustered.
"Of… of course that's the case, Minako-san. I know more than one kind of "feeling", but this one is…" Aigis trailed off, at a bit of a loss of words, as well as obviously just a little uncomfortable. Something inside of me kind of sparked, and curiously, since she hugged me in Yakushima, I released my naginata, allowing it to fall to the floor with a small *Clang!* before my arms found their way around Aigis. She and I were similar I size; she was an inch or two shorter, due to her not having actual feet like humans, but her size was still respectfully average to someone my age, anyways.
The hug I had applied to the android certainly felt different than the one I had received back on the short break I had; it felt more… well, warm, comfortable, and certainly had a sense of feeling behind it as well. I could feel Aigis practically freeze upon the application of the action.
"M-Minako-san?!" I heard her ask, certainly confused, and almost as if her circuits would fry if we stayed like this for too much longer. I decided just one more thing before I'd pull away, just to test my theory if this "feeling" she had was something… more, as she had described it. I leaned in and pressed my lips against hers softly, certainly taking her off guard. What surprised me, though, was that the feeling of her lips were not only warm, but were just a little moist as well, which I took note of. My theory was correct on that she had something alive inside her, whether it was her consciousness or merely because of her personality, I may never know, but there was something there, to say the least.
"M-Minako-san? What was… that about?" I heard Aigis ask, her tone shifted slightly to something more human, and I quickly thought of something that may work.
"Well, I thought I just saw a shadow running along your lips, and I didn't wish to be rude and press my fingers to try and crush it that way… So I kind of had to use my lips, since there's nothing much else I could've done to kill it." I explained, kind of as a joke really, while scratching the back of my head slightly, and saw that Aigis merely nodded.
"I… understand, though one flaw is in your explanation; it's…" I heard Aigis begin, and I thought about how I may counter this, but she stopped. "No, it's nothing… Thank you for the concern, Minako-san." She corrected herself quickly, more especially as her tone shifted back partway through her sentence. I reached down and took hold of my naginata once more, and looked at her with a bit of a smile.
"It's the least I can do; you aid me all the time, so it's only fair that I return the favor by killing a shadow that may cause inward harm to your circuits if it had slipped inside you, haha." I spoke, though there was never a shadow to begin with, and Aigis at first seemed to know, but she probably caught on that it was something more. It was then I heard a clear patch-in into the head piece I had on, and pressed my ear to it.
"I'm sorry to didn't get through to you this clearly sooner; something was interfering with the broadcast, but it seems to have stopped now. Anyways, I can sense you're on the guardian's floor with Aigis. Akihiko, Mitsuru and the others are almost there at your location; from here it seems the six of you will have to split yourselves up accordingly with who fights alongside whom. They are seven floors below you now, so now just remain where you are until they arrive." I listened to Fuuka explain the situation through the connection we had, certainly much better than before. "I would seem there's some kind of device just a few floors above your position that seems to control the transporters, which I'd assume a shadow or possibly even Stega had done something to mess with it to slow things down for you guys. But I don't sense anything there now except the device; all you have to do is activate it when you come across it to reach the lobby again." I heard Fuuka add this extra information before the communication came to an end, which I nodded and looked to Aigis.
"They're not that far now; at most seven floors below us, and also, Fuuka said something about a device controlling the transporters were being messed with just a few floors up from our current location. But, aside from that… Perhaps we could spend more time together when you find it." I spoke, unsure why I asked the last bit, but she seemed to nod and understood.
"Understood; as long as you feel the need of company, Minako-san, I'll be available to do such." Aigis spoke, and I smiled a bit as the footsteps of my friends could be heard, even from the few floors set below the two of us. I just wonder, however, if Aigis and I have more time kind of like this, but not here in Tartarus, how much deeper and intense would things get? Eh, I'll just worry about it when we get to that point; for now, there are more important things to keep our mind on for now. Those feelings we shared just recently will suffice, at least for now anyways.