I am enjoying writing this despite missing my two week deadline every time now c:

"My, it has been a while since we've seen you."

I came to my senses. I was sitting on the chair across from the glass orb. The voice was a familiar one… I clutched at my head.

"Am I… Dead?" I asked. The man chuckled and shook his head.

"You are perfectly fine in your world. You're fast asleep, although you are not in the best shape," the man, Igor, said. I tried to stand up but my legs wouldn't move. I took a breath and continued.

"Is Camille okay?" I asked. He nodded and I stared towards the ground. My hands moved into my view. "What did I do… Was that all a bad dream?"

"You awakened to a power that dwells inside all people. Your determination to keep your friend safe awoke your own power," the man began. His fingers tapped his desk. "You willingly formed a contract with no hesitation. Was that truly a wise decision?"

"I don't know. I had no other choice," I said, looking forward. He nodded.

"My assistant would agree with you. However, she has not yet returned. Continue on this path, child. Your Persona will help you reach that which you are set to do. However, ultimately it is up to you," he said. I nodded and spoke out the word he said. "Next time you come here will be of your own will. I will show you my true purpose for your journey."

"Per...sona?"

My eyes opened quickly. I didn't recognize where I was. I reached around for my phone or keys. When I couldn't find either, I slowly sat up.

It was a bedroom just not my bedroom. It was organized and filled with more furniture than mine. I stood up slowly and looked around. My body felt a thousand pounds heavier as I headed for the door. I reached out for the handle before it flew open, smacking my hand.

"Ouch," I said. Camille stared at me for a second before running over to hug me. She held my phone in her hand; I stood in confusion. "Are you alright?"

"Idiot. You were the one who passed out," she said, slowly letting go. "How are you feeling?"

"Exhausted. I'm just glad I don't work today," I said, moving my head around. "Where are we?"

"My… House? Where else would I take you?" she asked, handing me my phone. "Your sister called a few minutes ago, I just got done talking to her. She was worried when you didn't come home. Follow me."

"What did you tell her?" I asked. She led me to the kitchen. She told me to sit down on the counter.

"Anything I said would've been weird. I told her you came over to hang out with my brother and stayed over when it got too late," she said. She grabbed some cereal. "I don't have much. I didn't get a chance to go shopping."

"Where are your parents?" I asked. Most mothers wouldn't be okay with a random guy sleeping over. She shrugged.

"My mom's probably working. I mostly stay alone here but she trusts my judgement," she said, with a smirk. "Not a good call during high school but good now."

She sat beside me and poured me a bowl of cereal. I wasn't really hungry but I thought that I should be. Once I took a few spoonfuls, she spoke up again.

"So… Do you remember what happened last night?" she asked. Part of me wanted to say a joke but she seemed more serious than I had usually seen her. I nodded slowly. "What was that thing with you?"

"My… Persona?" I spoke slowly. She looked at me in confusion. "I don't really know. I just wanted to protect you over myself… towards the end, I was terrified and wanted to save myself and a voice spoke to me."

"Were you really about to risk your life for me like that?" she asked. I nodded. "I… don't really know what to say."

"It's how I am. I don't show a ton of emotion but I care for my friends," I said, smiling. I changed the subject. "What did it look like?"

"It was beautiful, it was a woman in golden armor and crimson wings," she said, trying to remember. Her smile slowly faded. "What was that place though… It looked just like a regular street."

"I have no idea. It looked like a crime scene," I said, checking my phone. There were a few messages from Steph but the call seemed to calm her frenzy. I texted back a white lie. "I think I need to go back there."

"What? Are you insane?" she asked me. She turned to me. "You barely made it out last time!"

"A long nosed man…" I began, holding my head. She stared at me in confusion. "Someone said something that confused me. What am I supposed to do?"

"Let the cops handle it or something. What would've happened if I had passed out too?" she said, angrily. Her fist was clenched. "Sorry, you don't get to risk your life for me and then walk into death."

"Come with me then. You followed that figure for some reason right?" I said, staring at me. She fidgeted slightly. "I can fight back."

"Never thought you'd change my life like this, you idiot," she said, smiling. She tilted her head down. "If it gets dangerous, promise me we'll leave."

"We?..." I asked her. She crossed her arms. "You don't have to come if you're not comfortable."

"You need someone to protect you."

We decided to go again tonight. I had to call Justin to switch shifts so I would close with Camille again tomorrow instead of working in the morning just in case. As we had the morning off together, she insisted on staying with me in case anything happened. Once I promised to take her to work at 5, we headed back to my home.

She looked around the living room as I closed the door behind us. I stared at my keys. There was a new, blue key that was bigger than most of my keys. I remembered what Igor said.

"Sorry it's a little empty. Most of my parent's crap got moved to storage," I said, taking my shoes off. "My room's this way. Don't expect more."

I led her towards my small bedroom. She walked in when I held the door open for her. I turned my TV for idle noise as she sat on my small bed. She looked around again as I leaned against my wall.

"Suits you. Am I the first girl you brought here?" she said, jokingly. I shrugged.

"Maybe. You don't know me," I joked back. "Why did you want to come here? You know I don't really have much."

"I was hoping to meet your sister. She wanted to thank me in person, she said," Camille said, grinning. "You said she's a teacher?"

"Yeah, she teaches 8th grade English," I said, as she knelt on the floor. She pulled out a plastic bib where I kept the cases to my games. I stared at her for a second. She was cute but a little blunt. "What does your mom do?"

"She's a fortune teller," she began. "You're probably staring at me like I'm crazy but she has a gift for it. I don't let her ready my fortune for that reason."

"I didn't say anything. Whatever pays the bills, right?" I said, leaning back. She leaned forward and put a CD in the console, grabbed a controller, and leaned against the side of the bed where my legs were resting.

"She doesn't really see it that way. She never mentions that stuff to me. We've never been rich but money has never been an issue," she began. "I didn't have to do anything… I just wanted to."

"What do you mean?" I asked, watching the screen. She was playing a shooter game I rarely played anymore and was doing pretty well.

"I wasn't forced to go to school or work," she said, shrugging. "I didn't want to waste my life away though. I don't have any talents like my mom so I got a job and took a bus to college every day."

"That's good. Most people don't care enough to do better for themselves," I said. She nodded.

"Why are you so mature for your age?" She asked me. "Everyone at work frustrates me… except you."

"My life went to shit in the past few years. I don't show it; I bottle it up and put on a fake smile," I began. She didn't look towards me but I could tell she was listening. "My parents were deported. My sister got married to a friend of hers to eventually bring them back. I'm only able to work and drive because of a work permit that could get taken away when the government wants."

She left the game lobby. She nodded.

"I'm sorry. My problems don't seem like shit anymore, huh?" she said, giggling. "Us meeting couldn't be a coincidence… I don't believe in randomness."

"Maybe. I like having a friend. My situation will sort itself out in a year or two. I don't know if I'll stay here or go back south," I said. She moved up to the bed and sat beside me. She started texting someone before talking again.

"Everything eventually works itself out right?" She said, with a small smile. She put her phone on my nightstand. "Man, I don't wanna work now."

"Why?" I asked. She jumped up and grabbed my hand, lifting me forward.

"I'd rather be here. Let's go, I bet your sister won't mind coming home to lunch instead of having to make it."

After letting my sister know of what we were doing, Camille and I spent almost an hour preparing whatever she ended up deciding on. She put her hair up in a lazy bun and began working on a pasta dish. I looked at her across the counter.

"You know… I know you have some sort of food certificate but you're really useless in the kitchen," She said, as I smirked.

"I'm alright with just eating cereal and there's not too many issues with cereal and food safety," I said. I turned on the TV and Camille stopped me before I could switch the channel.

"Look!..."

It was a news channel that was reporting local news. It was speaking about the mayor candidate that was found with a gun on his person. The woman began speaking about how his home was sealed off as police investigated a suicide attempt after multiple gunshots were heard at night. The images that they showed were familiar…

"That's…" I stared at the screen to make sure. My headache came back. "That looks like the house last night."

"That scandal was crazy. The guy seemed so passionate and came out of nowhere against the long time mayor in the election," she said.

"My sister's husband works with some politician. He mentioned it was a strange thing to do considering he was so clear to win," I began, finally changing the channel. "So many people just seem to snap lately, it starts to scare you. That's kind of a reason why I break the driving employees to work rule when I'm closing."

"This area was always known for being really boring but safe. It's probably your fault, don't you think?" she asked, jokingly. "You move in and things start to get weird?"

"Maybe I'm a dangerous guy?"

"You found your partner in crime then."

About a half hour passed before the door opened. My sister walked in normally before noticing the two of us across the room. She smiled devilishly as I sat up from my slouched position.

"Hope I didn't interrupt," she said. I sighed. "You know I'm joking. Hello, nice to meet you. I'm his sister, Stephanie."

"I'm Camille, we spoke on the phone this morning. Sorry about all that. You know boys and their video games," she said, shrugging and staring towards me. What a flawless fib.

"It is nice that you already met some friends," Steph said, putting her bag down on the couch. "It smells wonderful, I never thought guests in my house would be cooking for me."

"Yeah, I know I wouldn't cook for you," I said, as she smacked her. She leaned over the granite counter. "Everything went good today?"

"Yeah, not too much you can do to get middle schoolers excited about summer school," she began. "Nate said he would be late today so we should eat without him."

"Kissing ass professionally really must be draining," I said, sarcastically. She sighed.

"Stop that. I don't get why you two can't just get along," she said. She turned to Camille. "Sorry. They're both stubborn as hell."

"Yeah but that can be a good thing," Camille said. She handed her a plate. "It's simple but we are burger specialists."

"I have to drop her off at 5 so I can pick up what we used and anything else you need," I said, yawning. "Need gas too, anyway."

"You always need gas. Wish Dad would've gotten something more economic," she said, sitting beside me. Camille joined us, handing me a plate.

"C'mon, that car got you your license. How could you want to get rid of a classic?" I said, smiling. "All I gotta do is not destroy it for when he gets back."

"Sounds like you got a tough job. Can't really tell the car is older than we are," she said, folding her work apron on the counter.

We spent almost an hour eating but mostly I spent it listening to the girls make small talk. I tuned in whenever I heard my name followed by immediate sarcasm. After a bit, the both of us had to go. My sister gave Camille a hug.

"Stop by anytime, it's nice to have people around. I can't recall a girl ever coming over," Steph began. I grabbed Camille's arm. "We used to think tha-"

"I'll be back," I said, dragging the girl out.

The confused girl got into the car and we began to head towards our work place. She stared at me; I sighed.

"My family thought I was gay for so long," I said, as she giggled. "S-Shut up."

"So you're ruining my fantasy of having a gay best friend?" she said, laughing. "That's funny."

"I knew exactly where she was going with that," I said. "Now I'm ready for her to constantly call you my girlfriend to my parents and the non-stop bother from my mom about details."

"Really?" she asked, raising a hand to her chin. "You never had a girlfriend before or something?"

"Uhm… no," I said. She shook her head and grabbed my phone. "What are you doing?"

"Don't crash."

She held my phone against the window and took a picture of the two of us. I smiled.

It had only been a few days but I felt our friendship became closer.

I walked inside the restaurant with Camille in tow. She split off to go change in the bathroom while I walked up the counter. Bob, my boss, spoke up when he saw me.

"Mister Riley, how are you?" he asked. I responded neutrally. "Rachel said you're not a terrible teacher. You guys did a good job."

"Thanks. I told you I could do it," I said, smirking. He shrugged with his own grin.

"We'll see if you feel that way after working a Saturday afternoon," he said. I nodded.

"Easy peasy," I said, grabbing a small stack of papers. I scanned a sheet for a few seconds and saw Justin and I's names switched in pen. "I was in the area and thought I'd make sure he wrote it down. Something came up and it'd be easier for me to close.'

"I don't have a problem with that. Just watch your hours and leave someone that can do what you can, it's not fun to get screwed," he said. Camille came around the corner.

"Sup, old man," she said, waving. She put one hand on my shoulder. "If you wanna trade Deivon for another one of these, I won't say no."

"I'll think about that," Bob said. He walked away somewhere when someone called his name. Camille went around the corner and grabbed my phone again. She extended it back out and I drew my unlock pattern before she went back to it.

"So… I'll see you tonight?" she said, sliding my phone back to me. I nodded. Another crew member stared as they walked by.

After grabbing a cup of soda, I headed back to the car. I noticed something shining near the emergency door to the store. I maneuvered around two cars and stood behind the drive thru menu, staring at a glowing, blue door.

I stepped forward, as the weird key I found seemed to find its way to my hand and into the keyhole. My vision went white for a second before I pulled out the chair and sat across from the glass ball.

This time, a woman stared at me through the glass. Her mouth was covered with a blue cloth and I could only see her yellow eyes and dark hair. Her hands hovered over the glass ball as it began to darken like it always had.

"You've found your way back to the Velvet room. Just as my master said, by your own will you sought our guidance," she said, crossing her hands on her lap.

"What guidance can you give me? I just get more and more questions when I come here," I said. She nodded slowly.

"You lack the potential most of our former guests possessed. Your journey will be difficult but the success is entirely up to you and the relationships you form," she began. "Why would a person with such limited power be a guest of ours? I suppose time will tell."

"What do you mean I lack potential?" I said. She stared at me.

"Your Persona is weak. It will strengthen with you but it's potential has an end. Your chances of success are fairly low," she said.

"I did what I had to do. Tell me what that place was," I said. She nodded.

"Time moves forward in your world; I will keep it brisk," she said. She closed her eyes. "You ventured into a world parallel to our own. When something goes wrong in there, it affects your world negatively. I'm sorry, my master would surely have more answers for you. I mostly foresee troubles for you to overcome."

"What troubles?" I asked. She bowed and stood up. She began walking away into the darkness. I clenched my fist as my vision went white again.

My phone lit up with a text from Camille, saying they were almost done. The clock read 1:35, which meant they were on track for a regular day. Camille continued to stare at me from the screen of my phone.

My foot tapped to the beat of my music. After a few more minutes, the four closers began to walk out. They were led by a short, hispanic woman in a manager's shirt. Once Camille headed towards my car, the woman also veered towards us. She waved at me with a smile.

"Hey, I don't think we met yet. My schedule is a little wonky, I'm Diana," she said, as Camille got in.

"Yeah and the reason we don't get out till almost 2 am every night," she said, sarcastically. "My fingers look like they're from a 90 year old woman."

"Hey, nice to finally meet you," I said, waving back.

"Don't get involved with this girl, she's nothing but trouble," Diana said. "I'll see you tomorrow, I'll be with you till 10."

"Alright, see you then," I said. She seemed nice. Camille took off her wet apron and threw it into the back seat. She took a tired breath and closed her eyes. "You alright?"

"Yeah… She's just really into cleaning. Are you ready?" she asked me. I nodded.

"Ready as I'll ever be," I said, beginning to drive. I held my phone with a map of the area open. "All I remember was missing a turn."

"We'll find it eventually then," she said. Her hands tugged at her pants. She held the knife I had given her in silence. "You can summon that… Thing, right?"

"Yeah. At least, I think I can… Igor mentioned it was a part of me…" I said. She looked at me blankly. "I'm not sure myself about the details but I think I can."

"Well… you missed my turn," she said. I made the next left I could. My headlights went out and the speedometer rose by itself. Camille went to grab my hand but I raised my arm in front of her.

This time was different; I didn't lose consciousness and saw a dull light at the end of this 'tunnel'. Once we slowed to a halt, I shook Camille.

"Hey, wake up."

"I don't want to. I've been cleaning dishes for 3 hours," she groaned, sitting up. She rubbed her eyes as we exited the car together. She looked around. "Still creepy."

"Do you feel anything?" I asked. She shook her head. She put her arm around mine as we began walking.

The place looked the same. Yellow, dull lights lit the houses, shadows seemed to shift constantly in our peripherals. Her hold seemed to tighten each time something happened. We reached the sealed off house and I kneeled down near the chalk outline.

"If this is related to the incident going on, who's chalk outline is this? They said it was a failed suicide attempt, right?" I asked her. She nodded.

"That's what the news said," she began. She looked behind her shoulder. "Did you hear that? Someone called me."

"I didn't hear anything," I said, standing back up. She grabbed my hand.

"It's that person. The one from yesterday?" she said. My head went to the image of Camille on the ground with a gun pointed at me. I shuddered but retained my composure. I nodded as we took off towards the end of the street.

The end was a bunch of thick trees and darkness. Camille looked around but we didn't see anything. She sighed.

"It went away again. I want some damn answers already," she said, angrily. I pushed her behind me.

"Look out, it's the monsters," I said, as two creatures leaped towards us from the trees. They were smaller than the minotaur looking one from yesterday but they looked more like piles of slime. I remembered Igor's words. "Per...Persona, lend me your aid!"

I heard a womanly voice speak to me while a light surrounded me.

"I will be your guiding light."

"Kouha," The words came to me. My arm pointed at one of the creatures and a ball of light flew towards it. It disappeared into a pile of black. The second one leaped forward and tackled me onto the ground.

I jumped back onto my feet and repeated the word. The orb flew and missed, flying towards the trees. Camille grabbed my arm.

"Let's go," she said, pulling me away. The monster seemed distracted. I followed her lead. We passed the house and saw a familiar figure by the car. "Y-You…"

"You kids are a real pain. It's a shame," he said. He pulled out a handgun and extended his arm again. It was pointed at me. "You know this won't kill you, right? You have that power. As long as you're here, you're a damn super hero. She, however…"

"Don't you fucking dare," I said, stepping in front of her. He raised his hand and put the gun away.

"I'm no murderer. I wouldn't want to stain this suit," he said. He laughed and snapped his fingers. The minotaur appeared again and he waved. "Have fun."

"This thing again, stay behind me," I said, touching my face. I smirked as the light came back. "Nemhain, come!"

The creature moved towards me holding what looked like a large axe. I moved away from Camille and launched another spell. It hit the monster but didn't stun it like before. It swung its axe and it hit me in the arm. A red wing covered my arm, making the deathblow into a sharp pain. This was what the man mean?

My fist flew forward and pushed the creature back. I breathed heavily. This power was draining me. The monster mouthed a word and a black spirit came around, knocking me down to my knee.

"W-What was that?" I said. It hurt all over. I heard a voice.

"That's the limit I spoke of. Your Persona has weaknesses and you posses no way to overcome them," said a woman in a dark hood. Her yellow eyes stared me as I stood up, slowly. "Running is advised. Your fate here does not look good."

The monster moved to swing its axe again. I felt a body shaking blow as I covered my eyes.

"Let's… go," Camille said, trying to lift me up. She had tackled me to the side. I stood up slowly and attempted to use another spell. It was no good. Both my Persona and I were drained.

"All our former guests could manifest multiple Personas while you lack the gift," she said. She crossed her arms. "Why would you be a guest of ours? It is truly a bizarre question."

"Shut up!" Camille shouted, putting my arm around her. I stood up and sighed.

"We aren't limited to one attack. Follow my lead."

"I won't… Lose," I said to myself. I ran forward and my arm formed a pointed spear of light. I impacted against the minotaur. He struggled for a second before throwing me against the ground. The attack did damage but my body was exhausted again. "I'm sorry. I'm too weak."

"Hey, you. Do something," Camille said angrily. The woman turned to her.

"Your fate lies elsewhere. You shouldn't be involved with this place," she said, turning away. She began to walk away. Camille ran towards me and stood between the monster and I.

"I won't let you die," she said, as I stood up again. I nodded. Her eyes closed for a second and light began to surround her. "I will accept my fate alongside you, no matter what anyone says."

The woman turned back and looked towards us angrily.

"I'll form a contract with you. It's my choice to stand by my friend no matter what," she said, as a woman appeared over her in a bright light. She wore white clothing and a strange black material hovered around her waist. She held a bolt of cloth as Camille looked towards me. "Stay on guard, we can handle this."

"Right, take the lead," I nodded. The monster cast his dark spell towards me and I raised my arms. My Persona's wings covered me for the blow. It still hurt but I retained my footing. "Maybe you can hit its weakness."

"Clotho, help me," she said, as her Persona moved her arms forward. "Garu!"

A gust of wind hit the monster, knocking him down. Instead of running, Camille tilted her head towards the monster.

"Now's our chance to finish it," she said. I nodded as I formed the spear around my hand again. I jabbed the monster through the chest, turning it into a shadowy stain on the ground. "Yes! We did it."

"Holy crap," I said, catching my breath. I moved over to my friend who, while smiling, fell forward into my arms. "You okay?"

"Just so tired, this is worse than work," she joked. I wrapped a hand under her legs and picked her up.

"I'll take you home, just rest for now," I said, heading back towards the car. The woman stared at me as we passed. "I don't think fate matters with this one."

"Yes. I know that very well. Please come to the room when she comes to. I believe you know where a nearby entrance will be," she said before heading off into obscurity. "I will reveal more of your journey."

I carried Camille to the car and drove us back. It was just a dark stretch that seemed to go for a mile until we returned to our own world. After a bit of hesitation, I touched her pockets and only felt her phone and a wallet. Thinking maybe they hid a key somewhere, I took her back to my house.

I opened the door and went back to the car to get her sleeping body. I closed the door with my foot and locked it with the hand by her legs and moved through the darkness to my room. I lowered her down onto my bed and sighed.

"Figures I get rid of my big bed when I actually need it," I thought. I took off my work shirt and laid it down on my desk. I began thinking of different scenarios for tomorrow as I went into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water. A door opened and I nearly dropped the bottle. My sister's husband, Nate, came around the corner. "Hey."

"Hey. Weren't you off today?" he asked. I nodded.

"A friend needed a ride. I don't want her walking home at 2 in the morning," I said. He nodded and grabbed a glass, filling it with water from the fridge.

"It's almost four in the morning," he said, drinking his own drink. "And you look like shit."

"We went to eat and talk. I told Steph I'd be gone, you guys didn't wait for me, right?" I asked. He nodded.

"Yeah, we left you a plate if you got hungry. Just heard a noise," he said, putting the glass in the sink. "Do you work Sunday?"

"I don't think so," I said. He nodded.

"Want to go to an aquarium with us? Steph mentioned it awhile ago," he said. I nodded. "Invite that friend of yours if you want."

"Yeah, sure. That'd be nice," I said, yawning. "Imma get some sleep. I need to be up at 5 pm tomorrow."

"Heh, what a life," he chuckled. "Night."

Closing the door behind me, I stared at my poor options of where I'd sleep. I had two pillows and a twin sized bed that were being used along with its respective blanket. I laid on the cold, tile floor and crossed my arms behind my head.

"I've slept in worse places… Probably."

Waking up, I felt worse than the night my Persona awakened. I sat up and checked my phone; a text from my sister and a text from our boss about next month's schedule requests.

No one was home at this hour so I left the door open as I went into the kitchen. The clock said it was 12:30 so we had a while before work. I went into autopilot, working on making scrambled eggs. My thoughts shifted to last night.

"I was supposed to protect her. Why was I so weak?" I said to no one. "Why can't I protect anyone? Fuck."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," she said. I sighed. "Sorry if I came in at a bad time."

"I'm just glad you're okay. I couldn't find a key so I brought you here," I said. She sat at the counter and nodded.

"That's fine. Who knows if anyone would've been home anyway. I doubt you'd wanna explain anything anyway," she said. I pulled down the lever on the toaster. "Can I get a drink?"

"Yeah, get whatever you want," I said, moving the eggs into a plate. I grabbed some bacon strips. "They invited us to go to an aquarium this Sunday, if you want to come."

"What? That's pretty out of the blue," she said, grabbing some orange juice. "Sounds fun though."

"We have to go somewhere before work," I said. I explained the Velvet room the best I could. Camille stared at me in confusion but seemed to understand as I explained. "The woman wanted to see us. You'll probably see the weird door now."

"Yeah, someone said you were standing behind the menu boards like a weirdo," she said, sitting back down. I put the three plates on the counter before her. "Is this our 4 day anniversary breakfast date?"

"Huh, that's a short time," I said, chuckling. "I don't think we're dating yet. I can't handle much more of these nightly almost dying dates."

"What's more romantic than a moonlit drive?" she asked, smiling. She took an audible breath. "I wonder who that man is. Check the TV, maybe they'll say something about that guys house."

"Maybe. Let's see," I said. I turned the TV on while grabbing some of everything to make a quick breakfast sandwich.

The local news droned on while we ate until what we were looking for came on. The news reported the case again but added how his trial had begun and how he was saying he was not guilty when everything pointed against him. They mentioned how his wife had been put into protective services after he attempted to take her life. Camille shook her head.

"There's no way!" she exclaimed. She saw my confusion. "It can't be a coincidence. Rumors of our current mayor being corrupt come up and the leading candidate to beat him is on trial? Shit doesn't add up."

"Hmm… Maybe there's a connection with everything… And that other world is definitely involved," I said, as she grabbed my phone.

"You didn't take any pictures of me sleeping, right?" she asked. Huh?

"Random. No?" I said, confused. "I felt scared enough hiding you from Nate last night. Usually Steph come in to say bye but I had good luck today, apparently."

"Well, good. Either way, I was joking but good job not being a perv," she said, handing the phone back. "Let's go soon. I need time to change and shower too."

"Seriously, this is so weird! Anyone who drives by can just see us standing here," she said as we moved through the cars in line at the speaker.

"Time moves slower… I think. We won't be gone long," I said, as the blue door came into view. The menu blocked us from immediate sight but I had a fear a car would say something to the speaker. "This wouldn't look good if we got caught here together."

"Are you ashamed of me?" she said, in a jokingly offended voice. I unlocked the door. As I prepared my sarcastic response, my vision went bright until my feet stopped at the familiar chair and glass orb.

"Not ashamed. I just need my job still," I said. A second chair was alongside mine. I took a seat. Camille sat beside me slowly, eyeing every inch of the room.

"Welcome to the Velvet room. It has been even longer since we've had multiple guests here," Igor said, tapping his fingers rhythmically on his desk. "I believe my assistant would like a word with you."

"Yes, she asked us to come when we could," I said as the woman stepped out from the darkness. She sat across from me.

"That is not what I said. Do not change my words," she said. Her hands moved around the glass orb. "Your journey will only lead to hardships and suffering, both physically and mentally. I witnessed first hand your inability to defend yourself. I offer you a choice."

She snapped her finger; a paper formed in front of me along with a quill and an inkwell.

"You can release your Persona. A chance to void your contract, if you will," she said as the quill came into my hands. "Your Persona has memories of a former host with more capabilities than yourself. You would be lying to both of yourselves if you continue this."

"I… I made my choice. I can't go back on my word," I said, snapping the quill in half. She sighed impatiently.

"While my assistant possesses incredible insight, her predictions are not absolute," Igor said. The woman looked annoyed but nodded. "Elyse, please continue to assist our guests if they choose to continue their journey."

"Of course, master," she said, standing up. She grabbed her hood with both hands. "I never expected that a companion of our newest guest would be…"

Her hood flew back. Her eyes dulled to a steely gray color. Camille grabbed my hand tightly as the woman's plain but beautiful face stared at us with a hint of anger."

"My own daughter."