EDIT: I combined both chapters to increase length. I hope this makes it better. Don't forget to write what you like and don't like about this chapter. Have fun.
"What are you doing...?" Yukari asked again. We both froze in one spot. Mitsuru-senpai looked a bit nervous for the first time, and I tried to think of a way to get past her, and I did.
"I was only helping Mitsuru-senpai ge through her problem. Nothing big." I said comfortably with a smile towards Mitsuru-senpai. Mitsuru-senpai jerked a bit, but then played along with my trick. "Yes, I was only getting some help from Ren-"
"You were back hugging Mitsuru-senpai...care to explain how that happened?" Yukari asked with a annoyed face. "w-Wait. Can I ask you a question first?" I said. Yukari looked away. "...Fine."
"Do you follow me everyday...?" I asked her as I neared close to Yukari. I looked back, and Mitsuru-senpai raised her eyebrows. Then I looked in front, and of course, Yukari was red as a beet. I smirked, and made my next move.
"I've recently realized that someone was following me alot...after class when I get back to the dorm I always had this weird feeling that something or someone was following me...And I realized who it was from this." I said as I got a ripped piece of pink cloth from my pockets. Yukari flinced in shock. "w-Wha-"
"I knew this was from your pink cardigan because the day before I saw that your cardigan had a ripped part on the edge of it. It was probably from last time when I was running away from the supposed 'stalker' at the subway station, and the 'stalker's part of clothing was ripped on the way out of the subway lane." I said as I shook the pink cloth in front of her. Yukari was shaking at this point. And I was thinking about pulling back, but Yukari grabbed my entire head and moved it straight towards her face.
"FINE! YOU WANT TO KNOW THE TRUTH? I DID IT BECAUSE I LIKE YOU!" Yukari screamed in front of my face, and my glasses were fogged up because of the heat that came out of her mouth. Yukari then let go of me, and started talking again, without letting me even have a proper reaction.
"Ever since the day you saved me from that shadow, I always looked at you because you were basically my hero, and I fell for you. I didn't know how to approach you, so the only way I knew of was to follow you around and observe what you do and don't do." Yukari said, as Mitsuru-senpai watched from the back with her head down a bit.
"And then in Tartarus...you were with Mitsuru-senpai..." Yukari said as she gritted her teeth. "...And you were touching her..." Yukari looked extremely shook now, and I had to do something.
I thought of one, but it might be a bit risky, but the bell just rang so I had to go to class somehow.
"Yukari...How about this?" I said as I cupped my hand on her cheeks. Somehow, Yukari turned more red then just now.
I took off my glasses, and I kissed her cheeks.
She then made a bunch of mumbling sounds, and like that, she fainted as her nose started bleeding. I looked down on her, and bowed with apology.
"I'm so sorry Yukari...But that might be your first and your last from me..." I said as I picked her up with both of my arms and looked at Mitsuru-senpai. "Can you please excuse me from this period if possible? I have some...business to take care of." I said as I looked at Mitsuru-senpai. She nodded, and we both went our way.
It took me a while to do this, but I made her piggy back on my back. Because if I carried her like this all the way there, the people passing by are going to look at me weird (although the fact that she's with me like this is already weird).
We arrived at the nurses office but the nurse wasn't there, so I opened up a free spot at one of the beds, and laid Yukari on it as gently as possible. I put her head down first, then her torso, and then her legs. I brought a blanket to Yukari so she doesn't catch a cold, and grabbed a few wet tissues to clean her face that was covered in her nose bleed. But she still had this expression of being pretty happy, so I was a bit pleased that I did make her smile.
But seeing how I was excused from this period, and no one is in the nurse's office except for Yukari and I, I grabbed a chair and sat down next to her bed. I had to think about this, because I just knocked out another girl so I can get out of a bad situation. And this time, Mitsuru-senpai was even watching.
I sighed, and told myself that next time I would try to get out of a situation without knocking out another girl.
I then looked out the window outside, and it was so bright it felt like my eyes were burning through the lens. I looked away in order to protect my vision. I looked around, and realized there still was no sign of the nurse. One can only wonder what the nurse is doing at a time like this...
I then resorted to using my phone because there was absolutely nothing to do at a place like a nurse's office, where you're surrounded by something that can kill you if you use it wrong. I opened my flip phone, and seeing how I was only starting to get used to this, I was actually starting to have fun on this ancient piece of technology. In fact, it brought back a lot of nostalgia looking at old stuff that was popular during this time.
Speaking of nostalgia, I started to wonder what myself during this time was doing... According to the documents Mitsuru-senpai supposedly got, I was still a elementary school student, and I was living in the same place as I always was. If I ever get a holiday I feel like visiting it someday, but I somehow feel like that's going to be a bit risky.
I put my phone back into my pocket and groaned in boredom. This was so boring, I wish timed flied all the way to the Dark Hour so I can slash and hack those shadows again. Unable to withstand from this boredom I had, stood up, and laid next to the bed that was next to the one Yukari was knocked out on, took off my glasses, and slept.
I was awakened by a hand that was probably the nurse's, and I didn't exactly know who it was because I didn't have my glasses on. I put it on and it was actually not the nurse, but Mitsuru-senpai. "Oh…Morning." I said. Mitsuru-senpai sighed. "It would be a good 'afternoon'." She said as she looked at her phone and I quickly looked at mine. Wait…did I just-
"You slept through the entire school day." Mitsuru-senpai said. I gulped in nervousness of what she's going to do next. "I'll have to punish you for this." She sat next to me on the bed, and brought her hand up to my face, and I prepared for the worst.
But she instead neared her face more closer to mine, and I was confused at this point. "w-What is the punishment?" I asked, blushing. Mitsuru-senpai smiled, grabbed my glasses, and stood back up.
"I'll be talking this for the rest of the day." She said as she started to walk out of the classroom. I flinched and jumped towards her. "w-Wait! I can't see anything without that!" I said as I tried to go towards her, but I crashed into a wall instead. I heard Mitsuru-senpai giggle, and I saw my vision disappear in the distance. "See you back in the dorm, Amamiya-kun." She said as she faded into the distance of my vision.
Well, crap. First, I need to find my way back to the bed, and grab my belongings, and possibly call for help. Since no one said anything during what happened just now, I presume that no one else is here. And the time was probably around the early afternoon (maybe 3 or 4), so I might have enough time. I crawled towards the nearest bed to me, and I tried to climb it at first, but failed to do so, which resulted me falling straight on my ass. "Ow…" I said as I scratched my butt. I sat there in defeat, and just just stared at the top of the room for a good amount time, until I decided I have to escape this place somehow.
I first thought of calling someone. Although I might not be able to see things from far away, I could slightly see my phone screen if I squint a little. I searched through my pocket, and instead of my phone, I find a piece of paper. I squint to look at the text written, and it read: "I have also taken you phone. I want to see you by 8:00 today. Good luck."
Okay, I didn't know Mitsuru-senpai was the kind of person to play tricks like this, but this is going a bit overboard right now. But since she's not here, I said all the bad words I could think of from the top of my head, banged the floor with my fists in anger, and sat back at the wall of the nurse's office. I stood up and sighed, and tried to think of another way.
Maybe ask for help in the hallway? No, that's just ridiculous. What if they bring me somewhere weird like the back alleyway? Perhaps try to…wait, there's no one in here, right? I checked the beds to make sure, and no one was here, in fact, I think Yukari left also. I walked around in thought what to do, then banged my head against the wall, then sat back against the wall again. I sighed in defeat, and closed my eyes as I tried to sleep in for the day.
"Um…hello?" A muffled voice from outside the door said as I also heard a knock. I opened my eyes and lifted my head in hope. I immediately stood up and ran towards the door, only to lose balance and losing the control of my entire body.
Then at that moment, the door just slid open, only for me to collide with the person in front of the door. As I obviously lost my balance, I fell towards the person, and the person, supposedly a girl, yelped and I braced for impact.
But I managed to hold myself by stretching out both of my arms towards the floor, which gave a lot of pain to the joints on my arm, but I managed to not crash into the person completely.
But then I realized the position that we were in was a bit…Awkward. Between both of my arms was the head of the girl who was blushing with no doubt, and our faces were no more closer than probably a few inches. I stood up as smoothly I can, and the girl still lay there, unable to move from the embarrassment.
"So um…Nice weather, right?" I said as I scratched my cheeks. The girl stood back up, still blushing. "h-Here!" The girl said as she gave both her hands towards me, with what it seems like to be…my glasses. I really wanted to hug her if I could, but this didn't seem like to be the proper situation. "Um…Thanks. Sorry, what's your name again?" The girl winced, and then opened her mouth.
"Fuuka. Fuuka Yamagishi." The girl said. She had short teal hair which was a bit unusual, and she still wore the school uniform, but it looks a bit different compare to the normal ones the girls wear. She acted all embarrassed and stuff, which made her look extra cute. I'm starting to think at least half the people I know doesn't even wear their uniform correctly. Then the girl looked around and checked her time on the phone, and realized she was a bit late. "u-Um, sorry! I have to go now!" She waved back at me, still blushing, and I waved back, and put on my glasses. I have to buy her lunch someday. Maybe even tomorrow. Mitsuru-senpai on the other hand…God, I can't even do anything to her cause she's the goddamn Student Council President! I violently scratched my head in annoyance, and walked outside of school.
The next day went like a breeze. I did my classes as usual, and went back to the dorm. As I stepped into the dorm, I remembered something. I opened the hand book, and realized that today was a special day, because today is the first day where the full-moon rises. At least when I paid attention to it.
I told Mitsuru-senpai about it, and she nodded and gathered the group members to the control room. "We're here!" Yukari said as she crashed into the door. "Where's that thing? I'll rip it a new one!" Junpei cheerfully said as he walked into the control room.
"We found another one, and it seems like this one is pretty big also." Akihiko-senpai said. "Ren here first detected it." He said as he put his hands on my shoulders. I actually felt pleased because it felt good being complimented like this. "The shadow is in the monorail station, and it has the ability to control machines. So therefore, if we enter the monorail, it will attempt to kill us by making the monorail run into another monorail in the opposite direction." I explained.
"So here's the plan. The shadow is going to wait for us in the monorail, but we will hold our positions until the shadow itself will come out to fight us, so we don't get killed by any incoming monorails." I said as I pointed my finger upwards. "Also, another important thing. Do. Not. Kill. The. Shadows." I said. Everyone looked extremely dumbfounded, and I shook my head. "The shadows will eventually fade away into this, the device that's in my hands right now." I said as I held up a medium sized circular object.
"What is that?" Junpei asked as he pointed to it.
I snickered. "Clueless as usual, Junpei." Junpei cringed after I said that. "Come on, dude! Give me a break!" He exclaimed. I smiled, and started to explain what this is. "Well, this is…"
"…a substitute to killing those shadows." Igor explained. I titled my head in confusion. "What? You can keep shadows?" I asked Igor. Elizabeth then took over, and began explaining what it does. "The shadows, when they turn weak, will have a will to submit to the strongest one that has attacked them." Elizabeth explained. "And possibly, that is you, the Wild-card." She said as she grabbed the device from Igor's desk, and handed it to me.
"And the power gathered from this will get you to great lengths." Elizabeth said. I grabbed it, and Elizabeth smiled. That sounded like this power was going to be gathered up to defeat a huge god at the end.
So this means…I'm saving the world again, huh….
"So that's how it works…" Junpei said as he fidgeted around with it. I sighed. "But only I can capture the shadows, because the shadows don't just come in cheap. They'll recognize that I'm in possession of this equipment, and it'll get extra hard to weaken them at first." I explained. "So…this is like pokemon but with shadows?" Junpei asked. I shook my head a little at first, but I nodded in agreement at the end.
"Alright, I think it's time now. Let's go." Akihiko-senpai said. Mitsuru-senpai grabbed his arm. "Where do you think you're going?" She asked. "You haven't fully healed yet. You're not going to the field until you're cleared by the doctor." Akihiko-senpai sighed, and sat back at the chair in front of the control room screens. "…I'll try to give you guys support if I can also."
"So this is it huh..." I said as we were waiting for the shadow in front of the station, and it finally appeared in front of us when black liquid started to form around the front entrance of the station. As a test, I used cleave once. It received damage, but just like what I thought, it realized that I had that device on me, so it instinctively got more stronger in all aspects. But this was just bread and butter for me...
"Arsene...Black Viper!" I said as I grabbed onto my mask and a bunch of black viper heads broke through the floor and mauled the shadow, and the shadow screamed pain, which I popped a can of coke to. "Dude...Are you seriously drinking coke during combat?" Junpei asked. I let go of my drink and burped lightly. "URP. Yeah, of course. A man's got to drink. Arsene!" Arsene continued to hack and slash the shadow, until I noticed that the shadow was getting drained of its life pretty fast. I made Arsene halt. It stopped slashing the shadow, and I threw the can of coke away, and got that device out. As soon as I got it out, it started glowing yellow, and the shadow also glowed yellow light everywhere on its body, and it soon turned into a human form. It was now lying down on the floor, and I went over to observe it, and so did Yukari and Junpei.
Upon close inspection, it was a Shadow version of Fuuka. It was sitting there, just shaking and panicking. "Um...Uh..." So this is what a Shadow self is...something that the actual self wants to deny but can't because it's a part of them they don't want others to know...
It's a good thing I read up on Fuuka's profile the day I got help from her. If getting her approval will let me run things smoothly, then I'll do anything for it.
"I-I'm a shadow...t-t-The true self...a-And anyone that says anything about me is always right and I'll never be able to refute it!" Shadow Fuuka said. Her appearance was all similar, with her special school uniform still on, but her eyes were glowing golden yellow. She looked more shy and embarrassed than the normal Fuuka, and I only sighed and began my work.
"So, how're your parents?" I asked. Shadow Fuuka flinched. "t-They're-"
"Jerks? Pricks? Adults who don't listen to anything you say and only expect academic success from you? Isn't that what you think?" I confronted her. She shook her head violently. "n-NO! THAT IS NOT WHAT I THINK OF MY PARENTS!" I know she's a shadow, but this one just pisses me off...
I slapped her in the face hard and Shadow Fuuka got on the floor. "You know who I hate the most? The ones that try to trick themselves to trick others! That's what you're doing right now!" Yukari tried to help her up, but Junpei stopped her. "Let him finish. I don't know, but I've got a good feelin' about this one." Yukari slightly nodded, with no choice but to only watch.
"s-See! This is what happens when I try to say something! It always turns out wrong, and nothing works out for me in the end! I'm just a puppet to my parent's happiness!" Okay, this bitch of a Shadow is starting to piss me off. I kicked Shadow Fuuka straight in the stomach with my foot, and she got on the floor with both her hands on the ground, and starting gasping for breath. She looked up with at me with a half closed eye. I went down, and picked up her chin. Her eyes were facing the sides, she looked like she was about to cry, and I sighed.
"But really, do you think your parents are doing this only for their happiness?" Shadow Fuuka suddenly stopped forcing her tears, and looked me straight in the eye. "Look, I know how you feel. Parents that make you feel down and stuff..." I said as I recalled back to time when they put me with Sojiro and never contacted me once.
"But still, I loved them, you know why?" Shadow Fuuka shook her head in denial. I sighed more. "Cause they're my parents, stupid. There's no damn reason why you should hate you parents as long as they don't try to kill you physically." I said. Yukari and Junpei seemed to have their heads down after I said that, probably because they weren't in a anymore of a different situation. I held out my device now, and Shadow Fuuka flinched, but I grabbed her shoulders to comfort her. "It's for your own good. Trust me on this. Please." I said. Shadow Fuuka took a bit of time to think, as she put her head down for a good amount for 30 seconds, until she picked herself up. "I-I'm r-ready." She said as she had a brave look on her face, and her golden eye was looking as determined as ever. I patted her head in compliment. "Atta girl." I said, as Shadow Fuuka blushed.
I grabbed the device and flipped it open, only for Shadow Fuuka to start turning into golden dust and the golden dust started to get attracted inside my device. As her body was fading away, she waved and said one more thing: "Remember to talk to me at school tomorrow!" I nodded, smiled, and waved back. And as soon as she said that, her form disappeared completely into golden dust, and as the device finished gathering the dust, it closed by itself. I looked down, and clenched the device. "This is only the beginning." I said to myself as I got back to Yukari and Junpei.
"Dude, you killed it out there man! You could totally replace our school's current counselor!" Junpei said as he got his arms over my back. I slightly nodded, then a motorbike came over the entrance of the Monorail. I got into my battle stance, and so did Yukari and Junpei. The biker took off its helmet, and it was Mitsuru-senpai. "You did well out there Ren. You seemed to talk pretty well too." Mitsuru-senpai said as she flew her hair across her face. "m-Mitsuru-senpai?!" Yukari gasped. "Woah...cool!" Junpei said as he neared the motorbike. I was just shocked, nothing big.
"So...Um...What brings you and your motorbike here?" I asked. She smiled. "Well, as you know, I have two extra seats here. I was thinking I could give you guys a free ride as a rewards from beating this Shadow." Mitsuru-senpai said as she threw two helmets at me and Yukari. "h-Hey! How about me?!" Junpei said as we put on our helmets. "You'll just have to walk back home, Iori. I'm pretty sure a big bossy man like you can easily beat one or two shadows, can't you?" Mitsuru-senpai said as she turned on the motorbike again. Yukari and I both hopped on, Yukari on the attached passenger side, and I was behind Mitsuru-senpai. "You two ready?" She said. We both nodded in excitement. Junpei was already gone. "He's probably going to get lost anyway. Let's go!" Mitsuru-senpai said as we accelerated forward.
The next day, it was all pretty good. The school breakfast was actually nice for once, and I didn't have to go to the bathroom for more than one time. The classes were actually pretty good too, because Ekoda didn't spew weird crap at us, and I actually answered question asked.
After class, I told Junpei and Yukari to go back to the dorm early, and Junpei nodded, while Yukari looked like she knew what I was going to do, and looked a bit annoyed. "You're going to pick up another girl again, aren't you?" Yukari said as she pointed a finger at me. I shook my head. "No, have to talk to someone I need to. Remember yesterday?" I said as I raised one finger. Junpei brought up his head. "Oh! That Shadow right? Yeah, since she told you to talk to her, I guess you should talk to her, even if that was just her Shadow." Junpei said as he sipped on his can of orange juice. I had a bit of time to think about what kind of manufacturer puts orange juice in aluminium cans, but I let it go eventually.
"Well, we'll be going then. Hey Yuka-tan! Let's go get some burgers!" Junpei said as he tried to cross arms with Yukari, and Yukari elbowed him in the sides. "Fine. But you're paying." Yukari said. Junpei groaned and in pain, and both of them left a minute later. I turned around, and no one was in the classroom now, as it was afterschool on a friday. I sat on one of the chairs, and put my head up. This is something that I'm probably going to do everyday now, but the fact that I need to save the world again...It's just mind-boggling. Once wasn't enough, and I'm doing it again. I think to myself, and I just had to read up on the handbook about this shit...this is probably the longest I've ever held on to a book.
"Um...Is Ren-kun here?" A voice said from outside. I stood up. "No one's here, Fuuka. You can come in." I said, as the doors then slid open, and Fuuka stepped in to the classroom, and looked around. She checked if there were anyone around, and she jumped towards me and hugged me right away, with her head on my chest. She was sobbing and tears were dropping from her eyes, and I was shocked to see this. "d-Did something happen?" I asked her hesitantly. She looked up, and she was smiling while tears dropped from her face.
"I-I'm just so happy..." Fuuka said under her breath. I shook. "I had a dream where you saved me, and made me happy...And when I woke up my parents finally accepted me...I-I'm just so..overwhelmed! This is a miracle! Thank you!" Fuuka said. Wait, so killing her shadow also triggered a change of heart in her parents also? How did this even work? Fuuka then shoved her head into my chest with a bit of force, and she did it a bit to hard and I coughed a little. She flinched back and checked me. "a-Are you okay?!" Fuuka said as she gasped. I continued coughing, and I had a thumbs up on her. She giggled a little, and when I finally stopped coughing, I started talking again.
"Oh, and uh...I wanted to thank you for the other day. You know, for the glasses?" I said as I crossed my arms. She nodded. "It's no big deal. It was lying around the front of the nurse's office, so I expected it to belong to someone in the room." Fuuka said as she giggled. "But you know...you did look a bit funny when you were blind." She said as she giggled and laughed. I groaned. "Oh come on..." I said as I fixed my glasses.
"Hey, how about I treat you to a cup of coffee, you know, as a sign of thanks?" I asked her as I put out my hand. She thought about it, and then she grabbed my hand (a bit too forcefully), and we both walked out of the classroom.
As we walked out of the classroom, some passing students started to murmur as passed by them. "Wow, so Fuuka's going out with that new guy?" "So Fuuka-chan finally has a boyfriend..." "How did someone like Fuuka go out with a boy like Ren? She's so out of his league!" The murmurs continued, and Fuuka clasped onto my hand suddenly and grabbed it hard as the girls began glaring at her. I looked at Fuuka and put my hand on her face. "Don't worry. Just go with the flow." I said as she nodded, and we continued out of the door through the unpleasant stares of the students.
We walked into the mall and I looked for a nearby cafe. "Hm...Chagall Cafe...Is that place any good, Fuuka?" I asked her. She tilted her head slightly. "I'm not sure...Sorry, I don't drink coffee as often so I'm very inexperienced with things like Cafes."
"It's alright. I guess trying just one cup of coffee wouldn't exactly hurt either." I said put my arm around her. "Well, shall we get going?" Fuuka nodded cheerfully, and we both stepped in to the cafe.
"Would you like a seat?" One of the maids in the cafe asked. I nodded. "2 people please. And two cups of coffee. Espresso." I said as I put two fingers up. The maid nodded, and went to the counter.
We both took our seats and Fuuka looked around. She looked a bit confused and unsure of what to do, and I started up a conversation. "So, what do you like to do?" I asked. Fuuka looked a bit hesitant. "I-I'm not good at normal girl stuff...But I'm really good in engineering!" Fuuka said as she looked down. I rubbed my chin in surprise. Wow, engineering huh? So that's why her parents were so pushy...
"That's pretty cool, actually. Electrical I suppose?" I asked. Fuuka nodded. "I followed what my father did back when I was young, and now I'm here. I do get decent grades, but I was never able to figure out what they wanted. Until today." Fuuka said as she smiled. "I felt different this morning. I felt like I could do anything. I went up to my parents and told them how I felt, and they actually listened." Oh. So it wasn't a change of heart, it was just that Fuuka was brave enough to persuade them. You go girl.
"And now, they told me to follow my heart and go my way. They said they won't care if I do anything else. But since I've been set on engineering for so long, I don't think I can really change to anything else. So I'm still pursuing Electrical Engineering for my uni major." Fuuka said as she suddenly looked at the side of the window. "Is that...?" I looked at the same direction as Fuuka. There was a slight sign of pink behind the fountain, and when it's pink attire on a school uniform, there's only one person I have in mind.
I sighed, and sipped on my coffee. "d-Do you know who that is?" Fuuka asked. I put my coffee down and put my head on my hand, which was being supported by the table. "She's a...weird type. I'm pretty sure you'll get used to it." As I said that, I looked towards the fountain, and found Yukari's head popping out, and she noticed me. She immediately put her head back in, and disappeared somehow. I sipped on my coffee once again, and smiled. "This is some good coffee." I said. Fuuka nodded in response. "But probably won't be as good tasting as you." As soon as I said that, Fuuka turned extremely red and I shook my hand. "I-I'm just kidding!" I then started to fake laugh, and she soon turned back to her normal self and started laughing with me.
On second thought, maybe this wasn't going to be too bad.
"Senpai! I heard you're fully healed!" Yukari said cheerfully. We were all sitting on a 8 person table in the dorm and Junpei was sitting next to me, while Yukari stood, and Akihiko-senpai sat across from us. "I need to catch up on my training. I've slacked off for a whole month." Akihiko-senpai said as he twisted his arms. "Shouldn't you take it easy? You've just recovered so you don't want to injure your arm..." Yukari said, worried.
"No, I've wasted too much time already. Besides, we've already found another Persona user." Akihiko-senpai said. Junpei and Yukari looked surprised, as Junpei stood up from his seat, and Yukari slammed the table in surprise, while I was busy cleaning the lens of my glasses with my shirt.
"You're not at all surprise, dude...?" Junpei asked. I blew steam on my lens and wiped it clean. "Um...Is that girl Fuuka by any chance?" I said. Akihiko-senpai raised a eyebrow. "...How do you know this?" I shook my head. "Cause last time when we were fighting that Priestess shadow, it later turned into a shadow form of Fuuka. So I can only guess that she has to do something with a persona." I said as I bluffed a bit there, but they all took it. "Huh...never realized that." Junpei said as he rubbed the sides of his cap. Yukari sighed. "Of course you don't. You never realize anything, Stupei." She said, and Junpei groaned in the damage she inflicted on him. Akihiko-senpai laughed, but then got silent fast.
"Just like what Ren said, the new persona user is a girl. A junior, in fact. I also met her because she was in the same hospital as me." Akihiko-senpai said. "She seems to get sick really often, from what I heard." I said as I put my arms across the back of the chairs and stretched. "In fact, the only time I saw her in school was this week. I didn't see no teal haired girl before that." I said, as Akihiko-senpai stared at me weirdly. "...Anyways, she doesn't seem that cut for battle though. I even had a evoker made for her but..." Akihiko-senpai looked down in regret. "What?! Were just going to give up on her like that?" Junpei said, with a sheer amount of emphasis on his tone. "...I was going to give her some private lessons..." Junpei said, as his voice got more husky when he said that. Yukari and I both sighed, and jabbed him at his sides simultaneously. "OW! WHAT THE HELL!"
I walked down one of the hallways outside, and I found a girl that was bombed with makeup all over her face, and I realized who she was. She was that girl that apparently bullied Fuuka and took weird photos of her. I clench my hands into my fist, and gritted my teeth, but I had to let it go because I didn't want to create a time paradox where she dies.
As I walked past them, "Huh, that voice..." The girl said in front of her said. Voices? I didn't even say a word? "...Maki? Maki? Maki!" The brunette girl screamed. Maki was just standing there in silence, and didn't respond to a single thing. "MAKI! ARE YOU OKAY?!" The brunette was in hold of her now, and Maki finally woke up and flinched. "h-Huh? Yeah. What were we talking about?" The brunette sighed. "Geez, don't get me worked up like that, you know...Anyways..." I walked away from them now, seeing how Maki's going to be the next one. I sighed and turned back to look at her one last time. Then I turned back and walked into the indoor canteen.
"Yo! Over here!" Junpei waved as Yukari sighed. "Geez, keep it down! I know it's the canteen but this isn't your room either!" Yukari said as she jabbed Junpei at his sides again, and Junpei yelped. "Why's it always have to be me!" Junpei cried out, and I laughed as I took my seat. "Well, maybe it's your destiny. To get jabbed by Yukari for the eternity of your life." I said. Junpei flinched in the thought of that. "Dude...if that happens everyday, I'm not even going to make it to my thirties..." Junpei said. I nodded, and stood up. "Well, I'll go grab something. You guys can eat first." I said. "Already way ahead of ya, boss!" Junpei said as he laughed. I smiled, and went to the dispenser.
"Did you hear about that girl in 2-E?" "Yeah, they haven't got a single clue..." "It's bizarre, don't you think?" The girls next to me in the corner were talking about that Apathy Syndrome again. Last night, a girl went missing, and they found her this morning lying in front of the school gates. But obviously, she wasn't the same state as before. Apparently Yukari said she saw her yesterday on the way to practice, and she said she was fine until then. She's still unconscious, from what I heard. In fact, I'd hate to admit it, but there's a chance she might not even wake up...
I woke up at the sound of the dispenser bringing down my snack. I hastily crouched down, and grabbed it. The girls looked at me weird when I was doing that, but I ignored their sights and went back to the table.
"So, uh...You called me?" I said as I was standing in the student council room with Mitsuru-senpai. No one was here except for the two of us. The student council room was definitely something here at Gekkoukan High. They had more trophies, bigger space, and 3 more blackboards than the one at Shujin. This is nuts. This made me more curious of why she invited me here.
"Yes, sorry for the sudden call. But I am here to request something." Mitsuru-senpai said. I nodded. "Shoot." I said. Mitsuru-senpai opened her mouth, then stopped, then did the same thing, then started to repeat the things above. I'm starting to get worried about what she was going to say. Then she realized what she was doing, and she reddened. "u-Uhm...! c-Can you please explore the city with me?!" Mitsuru-senpai exclaimed in the room. Suddenly, awkward air filled the room, and for a solid 20 seconds, only wind coming from the open windows were heard from this room.
"Yeah, sure." I said. I don't see any reason why I shouldn't do this. Plus, I could know more about her, and maybe even get to know her secrets and stuff for my social link...And maybe even make friends with her.
Friends...haven't said that for a while. I wonder how my friends over there would be doing right now...
"I-I'm sorry for this outrageous request, it's just..!" My thought process was interrupted by Mitsuru-senpai's exclamation. Okay, now that I realized, Mitsuru-senpai was freaking out a bit now, and I need to make her calm down. "It's alright. Plus, you know I've only arrived here a few weeks ago, right? So it'll be a good learning experience for both of us." I said, as I flipped out my phone and put it on silent, so no one else bothers me during this (especially Junpei, when he calls me just to tell weird stories. He calls me so much, it got me wondering, does that guy even look at his phone bill?!)
"Alright, let's get going then, shall we?" I said, and Mitsuru-senpai nodded. We both headed out the door, and as we walked through the hallways, students started murmuring a bunch of stuff. "Last time he was with that girl from 2-E...And now he's with the Student Council President?" "He's got some moves..." "Shh! If she hears you you might get one of her executions!" The murmurs continued until we reached the front gates of the school. Mitsuru-senpai only snickered at the murmurs, and she had the full right to because these guys wouldn't even be able to put a single scratch on her even if they wanted.
As we got to the Ramen shop called Hagakure at the Iwatodai strip mall, and I sat on one side of the table and Mitsuru-senpai sat on the other side. We both ordered normal Shoyu ramen, mine with extra noodles, and as we waited, we began to talk about a bunch of stuff. How I lived, who my friends are at school, and how the teachers are.
"You know, that Ekoda guy is really weird..." I said as I cringed in thought of Ekoda's face in my head. "Did he cause any trouble for the school as of recent?" I asked. Mitsuru-senpai shook her head. "Not that I know of. He's a very weird teacher, but he hasn't done anything weird to anything or anyone." Mitsuru-senpai said. "Yeah...I guess I'll have to deal with him for the rest of the school year then..." I said as I looked down in fear of what weird shit he might throw at us next class. He always claims that the Japanese teens have lost love for their homeland because we wanted to go overseas for the school field trip, and that bitch seems to be full of himself, rather than caring about the students.
As I continued my rage against Ekoda, a bowl of Shoyu ramen was in front of me in no time. I stared at the steam that was coming out of the bowl, and gulped. My appetite was hitting a all-time high, and I grabbed the chopsticks from the side, and dug in. As I was eating, Mitsuru-senpai looked around aimlessly, not knowing what to do. "Psst...Ren." She said as she nudged me slightly. I stopped eating midway and looked at her, with noodles still in my mouth.
"Please tell me what the customs here are. Are there any customs that I have to follow here...?" Mitsuru-senpai asked, looking a bit uneasy. I thought about it for a bit. Customs? What kind of customs would a Ramen shop have? I thought about what everyone does in a Ramen shop, and I think I do have one in mind...
"Make a lot of noise." I said. People slurped noodles like mad all the time, so why not? Mitsuru-senpai looked a bit hesitant. "Make a lot of noise?!" She said in disbelief. She thought about it for a bit, and decided to trust me. God, I hope this doesn't turn out bad in any way. "Bon appetit!" She said as she began to dig in. She continued to slurp and it looked like she was really enjoying her ramen. I smiled, as she was taking it in pretty well.
"Hm...This taste is quite interesting..." Mitsuru-senpai said as she stopped eating for a bit. I stopped eating to listen to her. "I thought it tasted strange at first, but as I continued to eat, I realized it had a subtle charm to it." She said, as she stared at the bowl of ramen in wonder. "...It's quite delicious." She said, with a smile on her face. "Pardon me, chef..." Mitsuru-senpai said as she stood up from her chair. The chef noticed and walked over to our table. "...Chef? You talking to me?" THe man said. "The ramen tastes wonderful. It's been awhile since I complimented a chef." Mitsuru-senpai said. The chef looked a bit embarrassed. "w-Well, thank you...I've never actually had a person say that to me before..." The chef said. As we looked at the chef acting all awkward and stuff, and we both laughed. "Well, you guys just became my favorite customers. I might give you a bit of service next time you come. But only if you say that again!" The chef said.
"We sure will." I said, with a smile. Mitsuru-senpai put down some cash into the table, and we left. "Let's see...20,000 YEN!? WHAT THE HELL?!" The chef said in disbelief.
We both returned to the dorms, as Junpei, Yukari, and Akihiko-senpai was waiting for us. Akihiko-senpai realized I was with Mitsuru-senpai half the day, and he began glaring at me. I looked away, trying to avoid his vicious gaze.
"Hey Yuka-tan, have you seen the student message board?" Junpei asked. Messege boards? This really is 2009, isn't it? Oh right, those were still relevant back then when Facebook or Twitter were still irrelevant in Japan...
"You know how last week, that girl was found by the front gate?" Junpei continued. Mitsuru-senpai and I sat at one of the chairs, as I sat next to Yukari, and she flinched a bit in shock, and Mitsuru-senpai sat next to Junpei. "Well, there's a rumor that it was an angry spirit from this one ghost story." Junpei said. Yukari looked a bit scared. "c-Come on! Nobody believes those stuff-" She was cut off as I blew air into her ear, and she yelped in shock. "h-HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" She said as she covered both her ears. I laughed. "You seem to be pretty scared of ghosts. So I thought I might just play a bit of a trick, you know." I said, as I also her Junpei giggle. "...Gah! You idiots!"
"So, what is this ghost story about?" Mitsuru-senpai said as she crossed both her arms. Yukari turned back in shock. "Wha- It's probably all made up! So why bother?" Yukari said as she slammed both her hands onto the table. I also rubbed my chin in interest. According to the handbook-
Wait, where is my handbook?
I dug into my school bag as deep as I can, and there weren't any signs of the book. I looked around in worry, and the members of SEES were starting to look at me. "Uhm...Are you alright, Ren?" Yukari said. I was starting to sweat now. "Uh...I think I'll take a break for today. You guys cool with that, right?" I said as I pointed not to my room, but the door outside. "Um...Sure. Take it easy for a bit." Akihiko-senpai said. "Right. Thanks!" I said as I rushed outside the door of the dorm.
I first ran to the mall, where the entrance to the velvet room is. I grabbed my key and opened it, and I broke through the door and huffed. Igor looked a bit surprised, and Elizabeth was looking down for some reason. "...Elizabeth, did you take my handbook?" I asked her, still huffing. She continued to deny me. I walked towards her and confronted her. "DID YOU TAKE MY GODDAMN HANDBOOK!" Right after I screamed in front of her, she shoved me straight to the floor and pinned me down with one of her persona's spells. "My dear guest, I would like to inform you about something..." She said. I tried to break free from the hold, but it was no use.
"...Fine. You win. Tell me why you took away one of the most important things that I have right now." I said as I looked away. She dug through the bag she had on her side, and took out the book.
"...The handbook!" I said as I tried to grab it, but the holds were getting me on the floor tight. "No, my dear guest. This is not the kind of book you think it is." She said as she flipped through the pages. "I see...so this is a book that tells about the future." She said, intrigued. "...And also kills you internally as you read through each page." She said. I flinched. "What?!"
"Yes, my dear guest. As what I can see from the bookmarks, if you continued to read to the section where you go to Yakushima, you would have died in about a week." Elizabeth said as she skimmed through carefully, and closed it, possibly because she didn't want to die from a book either. I looked down in shock. This book was helping me, while it was also killing me from the inside...
"My dear guest...It is now up to you." She said as she handed me a blue lighter and the handbook. "I have tried many spells against it, but nothing will damage it, even megidolaon." She said. I took myself back in shock. Even megidolaon couldn't destroy it? What was this made of, vibranium?
"Here, let me set you free." She said as she swiped her hand over the air, and I was freed from the tight grip. As I stood up and fixed my glasses, she then shoved the lighter and the handbook against my nose. "...Geez, fine, fine! I'll do it." I said as I swiped the lighter and the book from her hands. I clicked the lighter, and the flames roared from it. Literally. This was no ordinary lighter, from what I presume. I then got it closer to the book, and as it touched the edge of the book, the entire book caught on fire and I immediately dropped it in surprise. The book then starting flipping out, and shaking on the floor. The flames then slowly disappeared, and it was only black ashes.
I sat back at the view of the handbook's fate. It was only black ashes, and I shook and sighed at what I was looking at right now. I crawled towards it, and put my hands on the ashes. I put both of my hands on it, and slowly shook my hands around the ashes, as my palms started to turn black from the ashes. I looked up, and Elizabeth was looking away. She bent down to her knees, and put her hands on my shoulders.
"I know how you feel...But this was needed to be done." Elizabeth said. I looked into her golden eye. "...I know. If it's something for this world, then I'll have to do it." I said, as I wiped away my tears and stood up. "Sorry for disturbing you guys for this late. I'll make my leave now." I said as I walked towards the door. I opened it, and I was back at the mall. I stared at the moon, and took a deep sigh. I tried to rethink some of the pages from the book, but nothing came to mind my, except for only one thing:
"If death does not exist in that world, then it will always be with someone else." I said out loud. And my prime object right now was to find this person who has death inside them, while helping SEES along the way.
"Oh wait...Shit, I forgot something at the gym lockers!" I said to myself as I remembered that I forgot my entire gym uniform and deodorant in the lockers. I quickly made my way outside the exit of the mall.
As Ren began to fade away into the distance, a black figure was hiding behind the fountain. "So he's that bitch that's keep getting in my way..." A voice said from behind the fountain. The voice smiled, and giggled. "I'll play along with your game...If you don't die midway, that is." The voice laughed, and screamed.
smack77721: The real question is ren can conquer aegis ? xD Do not worry, take your time in your studies, good luck and have a good day.
A: Well, I haven't got around yo Yakushima yet, but I think Ren will have a bit of trouble trying to communicate with her. And thanks for the worry, I'll do good on my studies, thanks.
Zuskato Zyus: Okay, Ren is NOT blind, the glasses he wears are fake.
A: Oh...Um...well, shit. I beg you to believe for this story at least that he wears real glasses.
Metal Vile: The P5 crew fought Yaldabaoth, not Nyarlathotep... and briefly skimming the rest has me hesitant to continue. Why does he need a book that tells him how to solve every situation? Is this just some kind of weird, character-replacement power-trip/fantasy?
A: First, thanks for pointing out the mistake. Second, I guess you were fond more of the crew as a whole rather than Ren himself only. Don't worry, I'll try to fit some of them in later on (only if it doesn't cause major plot holes). Third, the book is gone now due to popular demand. I guess I stretched it out a bit too much on that. Fourth, Yes, if you read the description of the story.
Greggreg: cool of you to comsider reviews. nice job incorperating p5 mehcanics into p3, very interesting.
A: Thanks my dude. You comment every time I upload a chapter, and I can't thank you enough. Keep it up with your things also. I'll try to add more P5 mechanics into this later.
I hope this chapter didn't dissapoint too much people. Sorry guys, its just that studies have taken over several hours of the days now. But I will still try to update it every week ASAP.
Shiranai Atsune : Oh yes! So he takes his place rather be alongside him, eh? Aww, and he's kinda all alone... I miss the rest of the Phantom Thieves already!
A: Yeah, I kinda feel the same...Plus it's going to be extremely difficult trying to add them in at this point, so one person? I don't know. But more than one is going to be a bit of a trouble for the plot.
Greggreg: was rereading this and something bothered me.. Can we remove the cheat book that Akira has? Its kinda akward when your protagonist knows whats gonna happen in the story. If luke already knew that darth vader was his father it would make it less impactfull. Let Akira be surrpirsed. im fine if you tone it down but dont have him already predict major plot points.
A: Yeah, I kind of realized it also...Maybe I'll try to tone it down a little, or just make something happen to the book later on in the story, I guess.
Greggreg: I really like it! can you consider writing more of it?
Kamen Rider Rogue: I like it. Please continue!
smack77721: I liked your story, I hope this story continues. I wish you luck and thanks for cheering me the day
Guest: OHHHB AUTHER!? How can u make such an excellent chapter
A: Thanks for the words of kindness my dudes. I'll keep it up, and try to write more in the future. While you have the time, check out my other fanfic, Persona: Crossing pathes, where Yu and Minako team up, also with Aigis and Fuuka along the way.
Anyways, this is Edward, and peace out.