Author Note: Hello. This is my first stab at a Persona fanfiction. This particular one is meant to be a sort of alternate future after the events of Persona 3, where S.E.E.S. is, for the most part, still intact. I went this route for two reasons, really. One, because it was the idea I had in my head, and two, I hadn't seen the ending of The Answer prior to writing the vast majority of this and it was too late to turn back. So here we are in the wonderful world of alternate timelines. The story will mostly be told from the PoV of my OC Akiko, but it will sometimes switch to other characters. Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

"Are you sure you want to go to Iwatodai, Akiko?" my mother asked for the final time as I packed my last bag. "It just won't be the same without you."

I sighed as I latched the suitcase together. I really didn't want to leave mom and dad, but I needed to get out of Tokyo. All the times I'd been to Iwatodai to visit relatives, I was in awe of how much more calm it was than the busy streets of my hometown. I wanted quiet, peace. Tokyo didn't offer that. "I'm sure, mom," I said, turning around to hug her. "I'll be fine and call you every day. And I'll come home during my breaks."

"If you're sure about this," she said, returning the hug. "I want you to be happy." A tear fell from her eye onto her burn-scarred cheek. She promptly wiped it away. "You'd better be going or you'll miss your train."

"See you on Summer vacation," I said, holding back tears of my own. "Love you."

"I love you too, Aki," she said. Mom released me and I picked up my bags. Most of my belongings had already been shipped to the dorm, but I was carrying a few outfits, my laptop, drawing tablet, and sketchbook with me on the train. One said outfit was my new Gekkoukan High School uniform. It consisted of a black jacket and matching black skirt that came to my knees. I had a white shirt with a collar to wear under the jacket, black shoes with short heels, and black thigh-high socks. It was simple and cute enough.

Our apartment was right next to the train station, so it was just a matter of walking out the front door to catch my train. I waved one last goodbye to my family and boarded the train to Iwatodai. Taking my seat, I stared out the window as Tokyo disappeared behind us. I took my sketchbook out of my bag and began to doodle on one of the few remaining blank pages. I began to draw a woman with long hair falling down her back and over her shoulders. She wore a simple Greek chiton and was barefoot. The expression in her eyes was a stern one. I didn't know why I chose to draw someone who looked like that, but it was the way my hands moved as I drew. I closed the book when I was finished sketching her. I intended to scan the drawing later and finish it digitally. I stuffed the sketchbook back into my bag.

A few hours later, the train finally pulled into the Iwatodai station. I exited the train and walked down the street, a map in hand to make my way to the dorm building I would be staying in. It was only a short walk from the station, but it was awkward since I didn't know the town very well. It had been a few years since my last trip to Iwatodai and a few things had slipped my memory. But I did well enough to find the dorm with my map.

I took a deep breath as I knocked on the door of the dorm. I waited a moment before the door opened. I was greeted by a woman who obviously looked too old to be a student. She had teal hair that was tied into a short braid and slung over her shoulder and big, gray eyes. She had a sweet smile on her face and I immediately knew I'd get along with her. "Hello," she said. "You must be Akiko Watanabe. I'm Fuuka Yamagishi, one of the residents of this dorm."

"Nice to meet you, Fuuka," I said, bowing slightly. "So you go to Gekkoukan High too?"

"Oh no, not anymore. I graduated a few years ago," she said. "Actually, none of us here are in high school anymore. You're the only one."

"Really?" I asked. I was surprised to say the least.

"Yes," she said. "You see, we're all close friends and felt it would be best to continue living here while we pursue our college careers. Though, some of us did leave due to other responsibilities."

"I see," I said. "Thanks for having me here, though."

Fuuka smiled. "It's not a problem. New people are always welcome."

Fuuka stepped to the side and I walked into the dorm. The commons area was fairly large with a circle of couches and chairs to the right, a hall to the left that led to a staircase, and a dining area in the back. It felt a lot more like the lobby of a hotel than a high school dorm. I took a deep breath as Fuuka led me to the stairs. "I'll show you to your room," she said. I walked up two flights of stairs with her and she took me to a room fairly close to the staircase. "This is your room. Your belongings are on your bed, so you can arrange them however you want. There aren't any real rules to living here, nor do we enforce our own curfew. Just as long as you stay out of trouble, things will be alright."

"Thank you, Fuuka," I said. I started to open the door to my room, but noticed someone approaching us out of the corner of my eye. I turned to see a woman around Fuuka's age. Her brown hair reached a little past her shoulders and she had chocolate eyes not unlike mine. She wore a pink tank top and light blue jeans.

"Hey, you must be the new girl," she said. "I'm Yukari Takeba."

"Akiko Watanabe," I said, smiling at her. "Yeah, I'm the city girl from Tokyo."

"Make yourself at home," Yukari said. "Dinner is in two hours, and you can meet everyone else there." She looked as if she thought of something else. "Oh, and just...ignore Junpei. You'll know him when you see him, trust me."

I raised an eyebrow and tilted my head. "Okay," I said, drawing the word out in my confusion.

"Anyway, I'll see you later, Akiko," she said as she turned to go down the hallway. For the first time, I noticed she had a small vase with two flowers in it. I started to ask her what they were for, but she was already walking down the stairs before I could say anything.

I turned to Fuuka. "Hey, do you know what those flowers were about?" I asked. "The ones Yukari had."

Fuuka looked down and to the side, her hands behind her back. "They're for someone who was very special to Yukari," she said. "A dear friend of ours named Minato. He passed away four years ago." Fuuka looked back up to me and wiped a stray tear from her eye. "Yukari leaves a small vase of flowers in front of the door to his old room every Sunday. And on his birthday, she takes a larger memorial to his grave."

"I'm sorry, Fuuka," I said, my right hand on my chest.

"It's fine," she said. "I'm going to my room to study. I have an exam tomorrow that I need to study for. See you later, Akiko-chan."

"Ok, bye," I said. Fuuka entered the room next to mine and closed to door. I opened the door to my own room and set my bags on the bed with the others. I left the room and headed for the staircase to look for a bathroom somewhere.

When I reached the second floor, I looked over to see Yukari in front of the room at the end of the hallway on her hands and knees. She was obviously crying. I walked closer to the hallway, hoping she wouldn't notice me. I could barely hear her as she spoke to her deceased friend. "You know, this gets a bit easier every time, Minato-kun," she said. "It's taken me four years to get to this point, but...I think I'm ready to let go and move on. I'll always love you, but now I'm ready to finally start living." She chuckled a bit. "I'll still visit you every Sunday. That will never change. Goodbye, Minato." She stood up and wiped her eyes. I took that as my cue to leave.

Upon finding the bathroom and relieving myself, I returned to my room to unpack. I neatly organized my clothes in my dresser, folding my shirts and pants as small as possible. I collapsed on my bed and looked at my calender. It was April 5th. School started the next day, my first day at Gekkoukan. After such a long day, I really needed a nap. I set the alarm on my phone to wake me up for dinner and dozed off into a light sleep.

The alarm buzzed in my ear, causing me to wake up. I sat up and yawned, running my fingers through my hair. I forgot I had left it in a braid and nearly ripped the hair from my scalp. I yelped in pain, but brushed it off as I stood to my feet. I decided to just pull the braid out and let my hair fall down my shoulders and back. I brushed my hair to get the knots out. When I was satisfied with my hair, I left my room. I walked down the stairs to the dining room and took a seat at the table. At the head of the table, there was an older woman with long, red hair and dark eyes. Beautiful was the first thing to come to my mind, and the second was wealthy. She had an elegant air about her and sat with a refined posture. Sitting next to her was a man around her age. He had short, white hair and his eyes were the same gray as steel. Across from him and next to me was a younger man, though still older than me, in a black muscle shirt. His short hair was tucked in a hat and he had a soul patch on his chin.

Yukari sat next to me. Fuuka sat across from me and next to the white haired man. And finally at the end of the table across from the redhead, there was a girl with short blonde hair and the lightest blue eyes I'd ever seen in my life. She looked at me with a curious expression. She started to speak up, but was interrupted by the redhead. "I'd like to formally welcome our new resident, Akiko Watanabe," she said in a smooth voice. "Akiko, I hope you enjoy your stay here. My name is Mitsuru Kirijo." Hearing the name Kirijo made my heart skip a beat. Kirijo was attached to my earliest and most painful memory.

I was three years old and still living on Port Island with mom and dad. Mom took me for a walk down the street near the Kirijo Group building where Gekkoukan High School now stood. Everything was going great. I remember looking up at her and smiling. She smiled back and then everything went wrong. The explosion swept us off our feet, carrying us quite a distance from the blast zone. My hand slipped from mom's and I was tossed away from her. I landed in a pile of burning debris. I screamed in pain, crying out for mom, wanting nothing more than for her to make everything better. But she was nowhere to be found. I didn't even have a grasp on the concept of death at that age, but I was still so afraid. It was the single most horrible event of my life. Eventually, I was rescued with minimal burns. I still had a scar on my left leg. Mom was more severely injured than I was. Her face, arms, neck, and legs were scarred for life from burns. Both of us were lucky to be alive.

I smiled back at Mitsuru. I held no ill will toward her for the accident, but I knew it would be hard to hear her name without being reminded of what happened. "Thank you, Mitsuru," I said.

The man next to me nudged my arm. "Sup? I'm Junpei," he said.

"Oh yeah, Yukari mentioned you," I said, chuckling. I grinned.

"S-she did?" he said, raising an eyebrow. "What exactly did she say?"

"I told her to watch out for you," Yukari said, chiming in. "Just fair warning because you hit on anything with breasts."

"Hey, that's not true," Junpei whined. "I haven't said anything to you, have I?"

"You don't remember anything from our first year of high school, do you?" she sighed.

Junpei folded his arms and sunk into his seat. The white haired man spoke up. "I'm Akihiko," he said.

"I am Aigis," the blonde said. Something was strange about her speech pattern. I couldn't place what it was though.

"Make yourself at home, and if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask one of us," Mitsuru said. "You're part of the family now."

I smiled. I hadn't been so happy in a long time. I didn't expect to feel welcome so quickly. "Thank you, all of you," I said. "You're far too kind."

After dinner, most of the group split up to go to their own rooms. I decided I would go to mine as well and call mom. She was surely worried about me. I walked up the stairs and noticed Fuuka and Aigis sitting at the tables. They didn't notice me, but I could hear every word they said. I paused once I heard my name.

"When were were introducing ourselves, I could sense that Akiko is like us," Aigis said. "Akiko is a Persona-user."

"Are you sure, Aigis?" Fuuka asked. She looked down at her feet. "We haven't found anyone like us in so long. At least, not since that group in Inaba."

"I'm positive," Aigis said. "Akiko can summon at least one Persona. I don't think she's a Wild Card like me, but she definitely has the power."

"Well, what do you think? Should we tell her?" Fuuka asked. "I mean, her power isn't really needed at this time. We haven't seen the Shadows in years."

"We should see what the rest of the group thinks," Aigis said. She stood up and stretched her arms. "In the morning, we can meet in the command room while Akiko is at school to discuss this further. Goodnight, Fuuka."

"Ok," she said. "See you in the morning." Fuuka and Aigis walked to their rooms and closed the doors.

I came out of my hiding place from the stairwell, my brain going a million miles a minute from all that I had heard. I couldn't understand what they were talking about. Shadows? Persona? Did I have some kind of power—albeit apparently unneeded at the time—that I didn't know about? I didn't even know what a Persona was. I walked up to Aigis' room, seriously contemplating knocking on the door and asking her what all of this was about, but then she would have found out I had been eavesdropping on hers and Fuuka's private conversation. I started to turn around, but her door suddenly flew open. I gasped when I saw Aigis staring at me. "Hello, Akiko," she said. "Did you need something?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," I said, forcing a fake chuckle. "I was at the wrong room. Thanks anyway, Aigis." I hoped Aigis bought my story.

"Alright," she said. "Goodnight and see you in the morning." Aigis returned to her room and I dashed to mine, closing the door a little too hard behind me. I threw myself on my bed and looked at my phone. One missed call from mom. I dialed the number back and waited for her to answer.

"Hi Akiko," she said.

"Hey mom," I said. "I'm sorry I missed your call earlier. I was eating dinner with my new roommates. They're so nice."

"I'm glad you've taken up with them so quickly. I miss you already," she said.

"I miss you too mom," I said. "I love you. I'll call you back tomorrow."

"Ok, talk to you tomorrow. Bye, Aki," she said.

"Bye mom," I said, hanging up the phone.

Despite my nap earlier, I was beat. I could barely hold my eyes open. I looked at my phone and it was already ten. My eyes slowly shut and I fell asleep, still dressed, for the rest of the night.

Yukari's PoV:

Akihiko, Mitsuru, Junpei, Aigis, Fuuka, and I sat around the table in the command room. Koromaru was curled up at my feet, fast asleep. I looked around at the group, all the things we had gone through together racing through my mind. I couldn't help feeling a small sense of nostalgia in this place. It had been years since we had to use this room. Even still, the two empty seats that had belonged to Minato and Shinjiro made my heart sting. Their deaths affected us all deeply and the pain would never go away. It would only grow dull.

"So, Akiko has the potential," Mitsuru said, her arms crossed and eyes closed. "Does she know?"

"I don't think so," Aigis said. "And I could only obtain a small glance at her power. Fuuka will have to do a full scan of her to determine her properties."

"I think this would be an appropriate time to say what's on my mind, then," Akihiko said. He stood up and took a deep breath. "Last night, I thought I saw a Shadow when I was coming home from training. It ran away before I could get a good enough look at it, though."

Everyone, myself included, gasped. "A-are you sure, Akihiko?" Mitsuru asked. "A Shadow, in the human world?"

"I've been fighting them long enough to know one when I see it," he said with the most serious expression I'd ever seen Akihiko wear.

The return of the Shadows affected me in ways beyond just surprise. Minato and Shinjiro gave their lives in our previous fight against them. And now that they had returned, did that mean they died for nothing? I shook my head, not allowing myself to believe that. Minato's death wasn't in vain. If it weren't for him, Nyx would have destroyed everything. We would all be dead.

I was apparently digging my nails into the arm of the sofa because Fuuka placed her arm on my shoulder and I relaxed immediately. "Yukari-chan, are you ok?" she asked.

"Oh," I said, snapping out of my trance. "Yeah, I'm alright. But...it's just so much to take in. Who could possibly want the Shadows to return?"

"I don't know," Mitsuru said. "But I feel the only logical course of action is to regroup as S.E.E.S. and ask Akiko to join us. All in favor?" The decision was unanimous. Even Koromaru gave his approval with a loud bark. "Excellent. When Akiko returns from school, I will give her a formal invitation to the group and have an Evoker prepared for her." Mitsuru stood up and walked over to a large closet. She took a silver briefcase out and laid it on the table. She unlatched the locks and spread it across the table, revealing five handguns with S.E.E.S. engraved on the barrels, our old Evokers. Mitsuru opened a hidden compartment on the table and pulled out Koromaru's collar-shaped Evoker. She latched it around his neck as the rest of us picked up our Evokers out of the briefcase. I looked at the gun for the first time in four years. It felt so familiar in my hands. I never thought, though, that I'd ever have to call upon Isis again. I set my Evoker down on the armrest and looked around the group, the most bittersweet of feelings welling up in my heart.

Author Note: Good, bad, awful? lol I really have no idea how long this is going to be, but I like the way the story is going in my head. I've got plenty of storyline in store for this, so it will be one of those that I'll be doing for a long time hopefully. And I finally get to use Akiko, who has been sitting in my head for nearly a year now, unused. She was originally a Kingdom Hearts OC, but I couldn't really do anything with her there. So instead of discarding her, I just re-worked her. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed. See you next chapter.