[AN: I wrote this as a birthday gift for my best friend, Soma.
It takes place an indefinite time after the events of Persona 3, but shouldn't have any spoilers.]
Ken Amada didn't really have any plans. To him, it was just another day. He would take Koromaru for a walk, and then, he didn't know, maybe get some coffee at the cafe at the mall. There was going to be a soccer game on TV this afternoon, so maybe he'd stay at the dorm and watch that.
But he wasn't far from his dorm when a muscular, light-haired, shirtless man sauntered into his path.
"Hey, Ken!" the strange man said. The man altered his path to intercept him.
It took several moments for Ken to recognize the stranger. "...Akihiko-san?" What was he wearing? Or, better yet, what wasn't he wearing? He was walking around without a shirt like it was the most natural thing, like he'd just left the gym after a workout. He wore a red cape. Was he cosplaying as a superhero or something? Ken wondered how he got those claw-like scars across his chest...
Koromaru barked curiously at the man.
"Ken, come on, we have somewhere to be!" Akihiko suddenly picked Ken up and sat the boy atop his shoulder. He hefted up the white dog under his other arm. Koromaru whined in protest and waggled his legs to no avail.
"A-Akihiko-san! Put me down!" Ken demanded. He tried to climb down but the bare-chested man held him in place.
Akihiko grinned into the morning sun. "This'll be great for my training."
A half an hour later Akihiko finally set the boy down onto the sidewalk. Ken had been covering his face in sheer embarrassment the entire time, and Koromaru had kept whimpering.
"Here we are!" Akihiko said.
Ken looked up. Oh, the Kirijo office building. "And we are here why? ...We could have taken a taxi."
Akihiko ignored him and pushed him into the office. Inside, the bare-chested man flashed a smile at the secretary, who seemed unfazed by his appearance, and passed into the back area. He took Ken and Koromaru to the elevator and right up to the penthouse suite where they met Aigis. The blond-haired robot was wearing a suave black suit with a red tie.
"At least you're dressed normally," Ken muttered under his breath.
"Greetings, Ken-kun," Aigis said with a warm smile. "And Akihiko."
The dog woofed.
"And Koromaru too," she added.
Ken inclined his head. "Aigis-san."
"All right, I'm out." Akihiko grinned at Ken. "Have fun!"
"...Goodbye, Akihiko-san," Ken mumbled. He was still miffed about being carried all the way here in broad daylight. Someone could have thought Akihiko was a pervert or kidnapper or something...
Akihiko paused at the door. "Wait, is Kikuno around? I could use a protein drink before I head out."
Aigis shook her head. Akihiko left, disappointed.
"So... Why was I brought here so unceremoniously?" Ken asked.
"Please follow me," Aigis said.
Ken followed the robot through a couple of rooms and up a stairwell that led to the building's roof. Waiting for them was a sleek black helicopter with red landing sticks. Ken blinked into the sunlight. "Umm, Aigis-san?"
Aigis opened the door and took the pilot's seat. She motioned for him to join her, and Koromaru hopped in, too. Ken wasn't surprised that Aigis could fly a helicopter, but he couldn't figure out why they needed to use it. Aigis handed him a headset to wear and settled some earmuffs over the dog's ears to shield him from the noise.
Upon takeoff, Ken felt somewhat sick to his stomach, like he'd gone down a roller coaster. "Where are we going?" he shouted over the sound of the blades. "Is it... something to do with Shadows?"
"It is not," Aigis replied. Concentrating on flying the machine, she didn't explain further.
Ken decided to stop worrying about where they were going and just enjoy the ride.
This was the first time Ken saw Tatsumi Port Island from above. He could see that it really was an island. Two islands, in fact. They were connected to the mainland by a few bridges. He saw the Moonlight Bridge and the train going to Iwatodai Station. Everything looked like a toy set from this height: cars stopping and going as they obeyed traffic laws, and when he looked out the other window, he saw little white sailboats out in the ocean. Soon he couldn't distinguish the Kirrijo office building from those around it.
Some time later, the helicopter touched down on a flat building's roof. No one seemed to be waiting for them. Aigis turned off the helicopter and opened the door and Ken got out and stretched his legs from the ride. Koromaru rocked his body, arching his back, and then yawned. 'What a fun ride,' the dog seemed to be saying.
"Aigis-san," Ken began, but the robot woman was already moving down the stairwell and Ken had to run to keep up. The building was some sort of dark warehouse. Black cloth banners hung over the walls. Peering up into the blackness, Ken saw metal catwalks far above. There was actually someone up there adjusting a spotlight.
Aigis led Ken to a large room with a high ceiling. The walls were covered in facades designed to make it look like a forest with strangely realistic-looking fake trees. A group of people were gathered around a man sitting in a director's chair. A woman in a simple white blouse and pink skirt who Ken recognized as Yukari Takeba noticed them and stepped forward to greet them.
"Ken-kun! You're just in time," Yukari said. "Come on, I'll take you for the grand tour."
"Umm... What is going on?" Ken asked.
"Have fun, Amada-kun," Aigis said with a mysterious smile and a slight bow, and then she headed off.
"Come on!" Yukari sounded impatient. "I have to get on set soon, and you want to meet the others, right?"
"Others..." Ken repeated. He blinked as it dawned on him. "This is where they shoot Phoenix Ranger Featherman Victory!?"
Yukari rolled her eyes. "No, it's where they shoot Loveline. Come on, Ken-kun!" She took his hand and led him to a small backstage breakroom, where they found Red Hawk already in costume sitting on a brown couch.
"Yoshiro!" Yukari said. "This is my friend Ken-kun. I told you about him."
Red Hawk nodded, stood up, and held his white-gloved hand out towards Ken. "Ah! I remember. A big fan of Featherman, huh?"
"W-Well," the boy said, staring at the ranger's outstretched hand and beginning to blush in excitement. He tentatively put his hand out and Red Hawk shook it vigorously.
Yukari excused herself to go get changed.
"What's your favorite episode, Ken-kun?" Red Hawk asked after inviting him to sit next to him on the couch.
"Uh, umm," Ken said. "I really liked it when we thought Hawk betrayed the group... It's obvious now that he was tricking them but... At the time, it was rather exciting."
"A fan of Hawk, huh?" Red Hawk grinned. Ken could only see his mouth, anyway. The costume's helmet had a visor that covered his eyes. "I like to hear that, of course! What do you think of the current season...?"
Some time later, the rest of the rangers joined them in the break room—Black Condor, Blue Swan, Yellow Owl, White Swallow, and, of course, Pink Argus. It was funny to see Yukari in her costume. Ken had known that she was Pink Argus, but a part of him really didn't believe it until now, after seeing it in person.
"Okay, everyone get together!" Yukari said in her Pink Argus voice. "Ken-kun, come over here." Curious, the boy obediently walked over to her. She pulled him close and turned him around, and he saw that a camera was on them. Red Hawk put a hand on Ken's shoulder, and the other rangers gathered around, too. The cameraman directed Black Condor to move a little closer to the group and then counted down. "3...2...1...!" The camera flash blinded everyone temporarily. Soon, the camera produced a picture and Yukari took it from the cameraman. With a black felt pen, she signed her name on it, and then handed it and the pen to her fellow Featherman crew and they all signed it, too. Last was Red Hawk, who then knelt down to offer the picture to Ken.
A little overwhelmed, all Ken could do was accept the autographed picture and stare at it. Yukari patted him on the head. "All right," she said. "We gotta get to shooting. Wanna stay and watch, Ken-kun?"
"Umm," he said, dazed.
Red Hawk laughed and steered him back to the set and into a chair that was placed near the director's chair. Ken was worried that the director wouldn't want him there, but maybe Yukari had cleared it ahead of time. The director seemed to be a cool guy, anyway. Ken had seen documentaries in which the directors were high-maintenance, but this man was easy-going. He laughed along with the cast and crew throughout the filming process.
Ken watched as the rangers acted out a scene from an episode that he probably wouldn't see on air for weeks. It was enlightening to see what went on behind the scenes. The rangers worked well together, but sometimes they had too much fun and they started laughing or said the wrong lines. There was a point where White Swallow knocked over a prop telephone line and Ken couldn't hold in his own laughter.
It took over an hour for them to finish the scene, but to Ken it was too soon. He wanted to talk to Red Hawk some more, maybe even with the actor out of his costume, but Aigis came to pick him up and then it was time to leave.
"Did you have fun?" Aigis asked him on the way back to his dormitory. They were riding in the back of a black van driven by someone from the Kirijo Group. Koromaru was curled up on the roomy floor, napping during the ride.
"Umm, yes, Aigis-san," Ken answered.
"I'm glad," she said. "There will be pizza at the dorm."
"Pizza...?" Ken mumbled. Koromaru awoke and lifted up his head in interest at the mention of food. They were both pretty hungry after their adventure, after all.
"You are a teenager... Teenagers enjoy pizza, correct?"
Ken didn't answer. They rode in silence for some time. He looked out the window and watched the world outside pass by.
"Aigis-san... Why..." Ken began.
"It's your birthday, Ken-kun," Aigis said. "I am told birthdays are important."
"I know that, but... You and Yukari didn't have to... And why the helicopter?"
"Did you not like the helicopter?"
"No, it's not that..."
"It was Mitsuru-san's idea."
"The helicopter, or...?"
"Everything."
"O-oh... Then... Tell her I said thanks," Ken said with a shy smile.
Aigis smiled. "I will."
Ken didn't want to admit it to anyone, but this might have been the best birthday he'd ever had.