Yukari and I were standing beside each other in the train, holding on to the overhead handles because all the seats were filled. I only really noticed it now, but the girl dresses with style. Still… I guess I don't like pink too much. I'm more of a blue person. That choker, though… If only I could get it to be a little tighter on that neck of hers…
"We have to take the monorail to get there." Yukari snaps me out of my train of thought. "Bet your last school wasn't like that, huh?"
I shake my head. "Where I studied last year, we also needed to use a train, but to get to the places in the school we needed to be in, we had to climb story upon story of stairs."
"Ouch. No wonder you look so fit." Yukari's eyes looked me over. Getting Lovers to the highest rank might be easier now… "Look, look!" Out of the window, the shore had ended and all I could see was sea.
"This is my favorite part… when it feels like you're gliding over the sea." She had her eyes closed, with a small smile on her face as she was probably imagining herself actually gliding over the sea. She looked at me in the eye and said "Our stop is Port Island Station at the end of the line. We walk from there. Ever heard of Tatsumi Port Island? It's an artificial island. They built our school right in the middle." Well going back on that detail it's pretty obvious why Tartarus would replace our school during the Dark Hour. "Oh look, you can see it now!"
I can't say I missed this place. Ugh, people. I'd really rather be studying, or improving my looks. I can't stand it when they force their company on me. What is a man? A miserable little pile of secrets.
"Well, here we are… Welcome to Gekkoukan High! You're gonna love it here!" Oh I sincerely doubted that. We entered the main building and took off our shoes, replacing them with the regular indoor shoes. I straightened out my coat, took out my MP3 player, and set it on shuffle as I put my headphones on.
By falling in love and learning pain
We become human
Hm. Maybe I should buy an iPhone. This isn't money that SEES got from Tartarus, it's "mine" technically, so I can spend it on what I want. Also, a deck of tarot cards. For fun.
Yukari was mouthing something at me, so I took off the right side of my headphones for a while. "You're okay from here, right? You should go see your homeroom teacher first. The Faculty Office is right there to the left. That concludes the tour. Do you have any questions before I go?"
"No, not really," I reply, and take my headphones off for a while.
"Hey…" Yukari said. Her eyes shifted to the side and she placed her hands in front of her. "About last night. Don't tell anyone what you saw or what you already know, okay?"
"Got it. See ya." I put my headphones back on. She mouthed "See you later" and walked off.
In the sea of tears we were born in
how many times do people scream?
I think I'm starting to like Kalafina. In any case, I skipped the bulletin board. I already know I'm in Class F anyway, and I headed directly to Ms. Toriumi.
"You must be the new student," Ms. Toriumi said. "Yuuki Makoto…"
"Sensei, I believe there's been a mistake," I said, brushing my hair away and looking her in the eye. "My name is not Yuuki Makoto, it's Arisato Minato."
"Well then, if you're not Yuuki Makoto, who would you be then?" She narrows her eyes at me. It's as if she's about to send me out of the office.
"Oh, my apologies. That was my pen name I just said." Technically true again, I just said both after all. "As a writer, I get confused sometimes with what name I use online."
"Oh, you're a writer! I'll be sure to search you up later." Her eyes widened and she looked at me with pride.
"Oh, please don't, I don't have much in the way of proper literature written just yet, Sensei." I shifted my eyes to the side and slouched a little bit more.
"Hm, well if that's what you want. Anyway… Wow, you've lived in a lot of different places. Let's see… In 1999…" I stopped paying attention. She still hasn't read my file yet. "I've been so busy, I didn't have time to read this beforehand." Well she looks sincere… "I'm Ms. Toriumi," she continues. "I teach Composition. Welcome to our school."
"Thanks," I said, in a flat voice. Perhaps she picked up that I was still apparently hurt by her bringing up my parents like that, because she continued in a more falsely cheerful tone: "Have you seen the classroom assignments? You're in 2-F; that's my class. But first, we need to go to the auditorium. The Welcoming Ceremony will be starting soon."
Yay, more time for me to get lost in this music. "Follow me," she said.
It took about half of Burn My Dread to walk to the auditorium. Principal is boring and I hope no teacher sees me listening to my music collection here…
A student poked me in the back. I jolt, before seeing that everything doesn't have a green tint and remembering that this isn't the Dark Hour and I'm not getting attacked by Shadows. I take off my headphones and pay slight attention.
"You came to school with Yukari this morning, right? I saw you two walking together." And so? "Hey, I have a question. Do you know if she has a boyfriend?"
With the chance at a do-over like this, I made some new plans, so I said that she does.
"Man, I knew it… I mean, why wouldn't she? Wait, how well do you know her?"
"I hear talking." Oh crap, it's Ekoda. "I believe it's someone in Ms. Toriumi's class."
"Shhh! Be quiet! You're going to get me in trouble!" she said. I shrugged and put my headphones back on. The principal looks and sounds like a pig. Maybe it's because he sounds like Takaya. Note to self: Don't go in the same room with the Principal alone. One of us is going to die.
After the welcoming ceremony, I went to my classes. They haven't taught me anything I don't know already. The last time I was here, I paid attention to all my classes, so cut me some slack on that because I zoned out on this. It's all the same old introduction to everything. An introduction to the teacher, getting asked to introduce ourselves in homeroom, an introduction to math, physics, biology, et cetera. Boring when you have to go through it the second time. Though after homeroom, Junpei introduced himself. The guy can get annoying, but even I could sympathize with him when Chidori died saving his life. Yukari rolled her eyes at him as usual. She did put up with that dunce for much longer than I did. Hm, maybe I killed Ryoji just to get away from Junpei? Nah, even I found him sympathetic post-Chidori. And he got a powerful Persona after that.
Though I have to agree with Yukari. He can be a bother sometimes. After class she went to do something for her Archery club. I went home with Junpei. No, I stand corrected. Junpei dragged me off after school.
"Look at the jocks on their run. Say, you thinking about joining a club? You'd be joining as a new member, so you won't be able to apply for a little while." We were walking away from the front gate and I saw a bench a few blocks away. We started walking toward the bench, carrying our conversation there.
"Actually, I want to join the Kendo team this time around," I said. I wanted to get away from Kazushi, and last time he was on Track. I reversed and broke my Social Link with him before… Seriously, it's like that guy doesn't know when to quit! I kept telling him to just get some rest and take time off to heal his knee like any perfectly functional human being would do to care for his friends but no, he got mad at me and went off in a huff! There's also the fact that I am already good at fighting Shadows. I'm sure there are some differences in fighting Shadows and humans (mostly technical) but it can't hurt to learn, right? Besides, some of the experience might carry over.
"Nice! Well, I prefer baseball myself. I have a pretty good arm for batting, though my pitching could use some work."
"I know you do," I reply, remembering how powerful he could get when he was smacking Shadows with.
"Wait, how can you know how good I am at baseball if you've never even seen me hit a ball?" Junpei said, eyebrows furrowed.
Oh crap… have I slipped up any hints that I'm from the future to anyone? "Uh, it's the way you walk. Your right hand tends to swing a little bit more than your left, an indication that you swing it more and it has a little more strength than your left." I'm lying through my teeth and I hope he doesn't pick up on it. Must maintain facial control and passive, casual mask…
"Oh," he replied. "Never noticed that. You must be pretty smart, uh…" Before I could introduce myself, he yanked my ID out of my breast pocket and looked at my name there. "Yuuki Makoto, huh? Nice name!"
"It's not," I said.
"Not a nice name?" Junpei said, with a grin on his face. We've already arrived at the bench, and he sat down on it. "Well then, what would be a nice name?" Not good. Being seated while others are standing up implies power.
"My real name is Arisato Minato," I said. I take my seat beside him. "I'm serious. Apparently, since birth, my name on all official documents has been changed to Yuuki Makoto." I was looking him dead in the eye right there. For a few moments, Junpei just stares back at me. Hopefully he gets it. Then he started laughing.
"Oh my god! That's hilarious, Makoto! That is one serious case of chuunibyou you have there!" I resist the temptation to put my head to my hands. "I like you already. Tell you what, you joker. Let's go to Hagakure. My treat."
I'm not saying no to free food, so I go there with him. After I finished up the bowl he treated me to, I was still feeling a bit hungry so I ordered Dan Dan Noodles with my own money. Shame I couldn't eat Dan Dan Dan noodles, but I couldn't risk knowing about something I shouldn't know about yet. The difference between the two is like the difference in performing brain surgery with a kitchen knife and a scalpel.
Wait a minute… have I slipped up before? I retraced what I did and where I went yesterday. I got into the dorm… The memories are a little too hazy for me to remember the specifics. I hope I didn't slip up.
It was getting dark out, and the dormitory supposedly has a curfew of 7 PM, but they abolished that when everyone in the dorm was aware of the Dark Hour and shadows anyway. We just told Ken that he was too young to be allowed out late at night, and that people could mug him. Haha.
"Oh, welcome back," Mitsuru said as she sat on the couch. She was reading a magazine of sorts. When I tried to get a closer look she subtly adjusted so that I couldn't see the title, and when I sat down across her she said "By the way, the Chairman would like to talk to you tomorrow evening, so make sure you're here at that time, okay?"
"Sure," I say. Ikutsuki… he would be a problem to deal with. No way out of this one, I think. If I tell them that destroying the 12 Arcana Shadows are going to bring about the end of the world, then they won't, but the number of the Lost will increase. If we do destroy it, then Nyx will show up and the world will end. Easy enough choice, but… How will I persuade my lackeys?
I'll main, burn, and kill that bridge when I get there. Besides, fighting Shadows is fun in itself. Though before that…
"Hey Mitsuru-senpai," I said. "Can I go out to Paulownia to buy something?"
Mitsuru looked up from her magazine. Somehow I could just imagine her putting on glasses right there. "Sorry, Yuuki, but curfew rules are rules. It's dangerous here at night."
"Is that because of the Dark Hour?" I said, leaning back into my chair. To demonstrate power, always look more relaxed than the other person. Winston Churchill performed some negotiations while he was naked in a bathtub, after all.
"…Actually, you have a valid point. Okay. Just get back here before midnight." I could just imagine her taking off said glasses…
"Okay, thanks!" I said. I stood up and opened the door outside.
When I came back, I had a brand new flip cell phone with a good music player, and better bass-oriented headphones. Much cheaper than an iPhone. This was, in general, a good day.
I headed to my room and went to bed. I wondered when I'd be dreaming of the Velvet Room again… Maybe Igor had some answers regarding getting thrown back in time. In the meantime I lay my head on my pillow and went to sleep.
"Master Yuuki Makoto…" Igor said. I was drifting through nowhere to a blue door. Well, here we go again. It opened of its own accord and I found myself sitting across Igor.
"Welcome to the Velvet Room," Igor said. Damn, that creepy long nose and those bloodshot eyes of his were cool. And pointed ears! I've always wondered what he was. "My name is Igor. I am delighted to make your acquaintance." He gestured at Elizabeth. "This is Elizabeth. She's a resident here, like myself."
"Pleased to meet you," she said. I watched in amusement. I already knew who they were, and in Elizabeth's case I knew her a little too well, so it was strange that her turtleneck vest was actually hugging her neck instead of being loose as I recall it. Other than that, the platinum blonde hair, blue eyes, and perky breasts were still the same.
"This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter," Igor continued. "Only those who have signed the contract can enter this place… But of course you've entered here before, Master Arisato Minato. Or as you are called now, Yuuki Makoto."
I do my best to look relieved, but I was expecting that already. "Alright Igor, if I may ask, why was I sent back in time? I distinctly remember shooting Ryoji in the head, but that's all I do remember…"
Igor somehow gave an even creepier grin. Note to self: learn how to give a creepy grin like Igor does. "Your contract was broken forcefully by the Archduke of Contracts. It allowed you not to face the consequences of your actions, however, do note that we here at the Velvet Room remember your exploits and actions." He leaned in closer to me, still wearing that grin. "The new contract obliges us to professionally treat you as a new being under the name of Yuuki Makoto, so all is forgiven."
"That's another question I have," I said. I could never relax in this room; I was trying to get as far away from the long nose as possible. "Why are people calling me Yuuki Makoto now?"
Igor laughed. "The Archduke of Contracts is far more powerful than anything you may ever see."
"Indeed. She appeared here before March saw the end of humanity and broke the contract. In the process, I and my brethren fought her due to a misunderstanding. This," Elizabeth said, and brought out a glowing orb the size of a pea, "was an on-the-spot creation of hers that absorbed and still currently retains the power of three Megidolaons, cast by myself, Margaret, and Theodore in an attempt to remove the intruder. I sustained injuries during that encounter, and I am still in the process of healing, so I'm sorry, I cannot give you access to the Persona Compendium just yet…" She loosened her turtleneck and I think I saw bright red marks on the side of her throat.
"That doesn't answer my question just yet, Igor. Why are people calling me Yuuki Makoto?" I said, cocking my head to the side.
"As her name implies, the Archduke of Contracts rules over every contract. Perhaps she was playing a prank on you. If you ask me, the contract does state that you chose this fate of your own free will, and perhaps choosing another name was part of the contract." He had a bored look on his face now, and was resting his head on his hand.
I nodded.
"Hold on to this," Igor said, and handed me the Velvet Key. It was shaped like an old-fashioned key, with a ring at the end and two teeth on the other. On the key's edge, written in Roman lettering, was "Makoto Yuuki". Well, I better get used to this new name, I told myself.
"Don't fret," Igor said. "Some of your close friends may actually remember your real name, Master Yuuki Makoto. That is… if you have any friends. If I may, your Social Links from last time were simply in horrible condition."
"I know," I said. "I'm not fool enough to waste a second chance like this."
"Ah! Thank you for reminding me. I have definitely misread you once upon a time, Master Yuuki Makoto." He reached into his inner breast pocket and took out a set of Tarot Cards. Laying them on the table, he bade me to pick one.
I got the Fool. One in seventy-eight chances.
"I believe that you are not really a Fool, so to speak," he said, and plucked the card from my hand. He flipped it over so that it faced him, and said "No, I believe that you are more of this," and handed it back to me.
"The Jester?" I said.
"Until we meet again," Igor replied, ending the conversation and shunting me out of the Velvet Room.
Author's Note. I'm planning on having the Archduke of Contracts be a major character later on, but that really depends on whether I can pull it off or not. She is of the Universe Arcana, and I'm thinking of putting a Social Link for her. What do you guys think? Also, please review. Flames, constructive criticism, or just to say hi, anything. I'm bored out of my wits and I don't want to lose steam here.
