Thank you very much to: Skarrow, Meow Factory, Tsuki Rae, XxXTwilight-SinXxX, perfectly weird, Gilderich von Edelweiss, TheArcanaQuotes, arkee, Shini'chi Raine for the reviews!

Thank you, too, to those who put this in their favorites and alert list! Lyrics used doesn't really have much of a significance.

Warning: Unbeta'd. I also don't do fast development. ;A;

Disclaimer: All rights belong to Atlus.

Hello world, hope you're listening.

Forgive me if I'm young, for speaking out of turn.

There's someone I've been missing.

I think that they could be the better half of me.

Loading...

TRACK 2

4/25 – Sa

Evening

Iwatodai Dormitory

Akihiko was the only one in the lounge that night. His gloves' maintenance was the only thing he could let himself be absorbed in.

Nothing good was on TV, not like he ever bothered. It wasn't like he would willingly eat anything Junpei had stashed in the kitchen either. He wasn't going to take the risk of ruining his diet because it could affect his training. There was no club meeting today. No homework or even anything at all to research on either. Instead of feeling relief over the fact that he had nothing to do, like how it normally was, he felt utterly frustrated.

He double checked each of his notebooks, as if assignments would magically appear on them if he was stubborn enough. He was itching to do something, anything at all, but he eventually gave up on making a fool out of himself once he had convinced himself that there was, indeed—absolutely nothing to do in the dormitory.

Of course, that meant that he really had the rest of the day after dismissal with the company of this so-called 'boredom'.

"Agghn..." A frustrated sigh escaped his lips again, and he languidly dragged his gaze around the lounge.

Mitsuru wouldn't let him do anything that could hinder his arm's recovery, and it made Akihiko Sanada irritated. He silently pleaded to Kami to give him at least something else to look at, aside from the grandfather clock across him.

Moments later, as if his prayers had been heard, the door opened and he saw the blob of auburn that was Arisato Minako poke through the door. His gaze casually followed the girl with impossibly red eyes as she entered the lounge. Once the junior had instantly noticed the lone figure that was seated on the couch, she immediately turned her heels and paid attention to the sign-in sheet.

Akihiko noticed, since he was pouring all his attention to the newcomer, and he winced because he just didn't understand why she avoided him. Beneath his seemingly cool headed-appearance, he was feeling incredulous.

"Uh, hey..." Or at least, it appeared like that to him. Sighing, he felt like he needed to treat her like a bird, so careful that she would not fly away. "You, there.."

With the SEES leader's attention now uncomfortably all on him, Akihiko suddenly had the urge to scratch the back of his head and rip off his gaze from the one that was now fixed on him. He started to brace himself for that funny feeling in the pit of his stomach, the one he felt before when the junior ran away from him—in case he'd find himself abandoned yet again.

"No one else is here." The boxer brought up his gaze to meet hers.

"Oh," Minako blinked. "I see..."

Akihiko gave her a small (and partly uncomfortable) nod. "Anyway, welcome back."

He instantly wondered whether or not it was okay for him to say that to her. Was it going to weird her out more? Was 'weird' the image that he projected to her? The others always greeted her, and she didn't seem to have a problem whenever they did. But then again, that was them, and Akihiko could only ever be Akihiko.

As if to answer him, instead of making up an excuse and disappearing to the next floor, Minako awkwardly gave him a small smile. It was the first smile he got from her. It was a little unsettled, but it was still a smile—and at the same time, an improvement for Akihiko.

"Thank you." She bowed lightly to the pugilist before she made her way up to her room.

She probably didn't hear his shuffling 'W-Wait!' because she was already gone within the blink of an eye. She was very agile, the boy couldn't help but notice. He thought that maybe she wasn't actually leaving in a hurry this time, and that felt well. The girl merely moved fast.

The relief he'd long been searching for swept over Akihiko as he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He felt triumphant, and he was soon busy with praising himself for not scaring her away this time.

Once it all settled in him, he glanced down on his lap and realized that he was alone again. He only had his boxing gloves and vile boredom to keep him company. The slow ticking of the damned clock continued to taunt him in a way he never thought of it capable.

4/26 – Su

Daytime

Iwatodai Dormitory

"Hey Akihiko-senpai."

"Hey."

There was just silence that followed the creaking sound of a chair being pulled. Junpei made a mental note to closely watch his senior, in an attempt to discover the source of the young man's charm. Or, at least, unlock a few secrets that his fangirls wouldlike to know.

The junior continued to slurp his ramen, just as how Akihiko seemed oblivious to the rest of the world.

"Hey?"

"What is it?"

While it was obvious that the still-recovering senior was perfectly comfortable with the lack of conversation, Junpei entirely wasn't.

Deep in Junpei's mind, he thought that he probably shouldn't have been up so late power leveling his character in that online game he just started on last Friday. He thought of showing it to Minako, but he was too absorbed that he totally forgot. Minako had already gone out before he could jump out of the comfort of his bed, so he had to wait for her to come back before he could tell her.

Yukari wasn't around, and he was not going to try and look for her. As much fun as it would bring him to annoy her, being shooed away like a poor dog for every single time he would try to talk to her hurt his manly ego. She hurt him too much on a daily basis so he'd rather steer clear of her for as much as he could, no matter how much he tries to convince himself thathe was used to her. Her irritated gestures openly jabbed towards him still made him feel... not-so-warm inside.

Circumstances led him to where he was now, so Junpei really didn't have much of a choice, even if it sounded unquestionably unromantic at best, and gay at worst. He was stuck with the boy that almost every girl—yes even those nice, but old ladies, as long as they were biologically female, it seemed—would get the 'hots' for.

The self-proclaimed ladies' man, Iori Junpei, had the whole Iwatodai Dormitory and Akihiko Sanada all to himself.

...

Ugh.

...

Just...

"Urgh..." Junpei winced.

He promised to himself that he would never swing that way, and he planned to keep it until the day of his last breath.

Suddenly—DING!

A nonexistent light bulb lit above Junpei's head.

Maybe if he spent more time hanging out with Gekkoukan's heartthrob, half of the suave charm would rub on him? And maybe, just maybe, it would work better than Chagall's Pheromone Coffee—not that he ever thought of trying that out though! Oh no, Junpei Iori did not, do not, will not cheat.

"Iori?"

It took Junpei a few more moments before he registered that Akihiko called his attention. The junior blinked. Somehow, he felt like opening up his start menu and save his game, but he knew that wouldn't work. Life didn't have a menu, and it definitely didn't have any dramatic dialogue or warning before you'd come to encounter a possibly awkward or difficult situation.

"Yeah senpai?" Besides, life wasn't a game.

"Well..." Akihiko paused, seemingly in thought of what to say and how he was supposed to say it. "How is Arisato?"

Since he was going to live with Prince Charming, Junpei initially viewed it as an opportunity to learn the... other way(s) of being suave—repeat, other way(s)—because he totally had his own and effective way! He merely thought that it would be awesome to know something he didn't, and that was all there was to it.

He even prepared a list of things that he was going to ask the senior before he moved into the dorm—of which was mainly about girls—but to his amazement, Akihiko just stared at him with a look that clearly said 'what are you talking about?', as if the cap-wearing joker was some alien popping out of nowhere.

'Of course!' Junpei thought. 'A trick to distract him!'

Because maybe the captain of the boxing club didn't want other guys to find out how he was able to lure out such a number of girls, and thus, acted like he knew nothing regarding the matter in order to eliminate any future competition.

'A formidable foe indeed,' Junpei stared at Akihiko from head to toe, his eyes filled with suspicion.

"Minako-chan is doing great."

"You two are already that close, huh?"

Junpei merely let out a half-snicker, half-laugh. "She's manly, senpai, and I mean really manly."

Akihiko's expression scrunched up into a quizzical look. "Arisato seems feminine to me."

'Seriously...?' Junpei paused shortly, a blank look slapped across his face. "I didn't mean it that way, senpai."

Junpei slowly shifted more of his attention from his ramen to the guy seated across him. Where was the senior trying to steer the conversation towards? He had to be careful. Akihiko-senpai was much craftier than he appeared to be. Well, no matter. Junpei could work his way around the heart-breaker's man-trap.

"Huh? Oh, of course, then—"

With a slurp, Junpei gobbled up his noodles before he started to move to the more crucial details.

"Oh, right! You haven't seen her fight yet, have ya? Boy, she can kick ass!"

"Up close, yeah." Akihiko nodded in agreement. "Also, she's doesn't seem to have any trouble being leader."

Junpei just shrugged.

"Oh, by the way senpai, how many girlfriends have you got already?"

Akihiko choked on air.

"...What?" Akihiko's features creased as a wide, stupid grin replaced the worry-ridden frown across Junpei's.

"No need to be shy about it, Junpei's no loose-y lips!"

"Huh, what are you saying—?"

At that point, Akihiko probably should've noticed the small difference in the junior's eyes. Maybe if he did, he wouldn't have had to spend half of the day groaning and rubbing his temples because of a 'man-to-man' conversation he was unwillingly dragged into by Iori Junpei.

Evening

Naganaki Shrine

A moment ago, Minako was in the pharmacy stocking on supplies for the dormitory. The next she found herself already wandering towards the shrine. She had no actual business to do in the shrine, she thought.

Her gaze swept over the cement steps that lead up. No one stayed around the area at night, and it was unfathomable that anyone with ill will would intentionally hang around the shrine. Finding no reason to stay, she continued to wander. She stopped on her third step forward before turning and throwing questioning looks at the stone cold pathway.

It wouldn't entirely hurt to spend a little more time there. Besides, she didn't feel like going back to the dorm just yet. She gave in to the idea of making a short visit, and dragged her unwilling feet to climb the gravel steps. With each, she was reminded of the walks she had with Koromaru.

She loved the walks, even if they only went to the shrine. Sometimes, someone would join them, and it was the conversations they had, both the sad ones and the happy ones, that she kept in her heart. Thinking of how she spent her time made her wonder how everything could've been different (she dare not say 'better') if she knew then what she knew now.

"Ah.." Minako huffed, reminding her that her body had not yet caught up with her mind.

She hadn't had any decent sleep, and it was a surprise that she hadn't passed out yet. Despite having grown used to fighting against Shadows, the body she had now wasn't the body with her battle tactics and knowledge, and it made the slightest movement for her something so painful.

Indeed, the shrine was empty and comfortably tranquil when she finally reached the top. Only the soothing rustling of the leaves in the cool gentle breeze was there to listen to, to be felt, and she finally realized that it was cold. It nipped at her skin, not quite as harsh as the bites that winter gave her. She immediately regretted the fact that she did not bring a scarf along.

Freezing to death or not, it didn't hinder Minako from taking the scenery of the quiet place of worship as beautiful. It had its own elegant charm even if it wasn't as refreshing as the view at the school rooftop, or as lively as the fulgurant lights that covered Paulownia Mall.

Minako used the opportunity to offer her silent prayers. One for the safety of the SEES members and the other, for her family.

"Mom, dad, I'm okay."

She hadn't visited them yet, and the first time she did was five years after the incident. Those had been five years of being passed around relatives who didn't want her. She didn't want to face her parents with a crying face, because they always cried with her. A grown pair of adults, crying like children, it would've been a funny sight.

"I'm... I still live in the dorm. With my friends." She had the smile they taught her to always wear. "They're all very kind people."

"They're all special, they don't kn—I...I love them. I love them a lot." She let out a weak, raspy laugh. "I am very lucky to have them."

Talking about the people in SEES came so naturally to her, much like her honed fighting reflexes, that it was almost scary. It had been so long since forgetting her homework and failing her subjects were the greatest of her worries.

Back then, she could stay up all night on a Friday and she wouldn't have to worry about creatures lurking around the streets after midnight. She only worried about her aunt's mood swings in her father's empty ancestral house. Back then, she only had to sit in the classroom and wait until it was time for dismissal. She didn't have to worry about anyone else but herself. She used to not have a weapon easily accessible in her room, and once upon a time, she was anything but the outgoing spirit everyone now knew.

Minako took a deep breath, almost forgetting but not really minding that she was almost shivering. That night was the only night she has had to herself, and that night was the night that she finally had the time to actually let everything settle in her mind.

An entire year, a lifetime's worth of memories was what the 'rewind' gave her. She could now look the overwhelming worry straight in the eyes. She had ignored it long enough, had tried to deny its existence since she had woken up in the hospital. It nibbled the back of her mind, every single day.

Being alive with full knowledge of what she was supposed to be—the Great Seal, forever, made her feel like falling apart. The lives of important people—the people she and her friends cared about were at stake, they were in her hands. She had no choice but to live with that in mind, with the intangible weight of all their futures crushing her shoulders.

She told Igor that she was going to change the future, but how? How could she even ensure that this time, she could really save all of them? How can anyone possibly fight against destiny? Was she even supposed to fight against it?

No.

Minako shook her head and fought the crystal beads that were starting to form in the corner of her eyes. She wasn't going to let fear get the best of her. She had to be firm.

She had countless reasons to smile, to look forward to the finite tomorrows she had. She was going to take the fact that being able to breathe at that very moment as a big miracle—a magnanimous second chance.

Shinjiro, Chidori, Mr. Kirijo—everyone else that she failed to save before were alive again. They're all somewhere out there, alive. No one was going to cry. She wasn't going to let anyone die.

Finally beating the negativity off, Minako looked up. She stared at the stars that looked like little precious diamonds, lighting up the elegant, dark carpet that was called the night sky. Inwardly, she smiled when she caught sight of the Gemini constellation.

It had always been the easiest for her to recognize.

"Keep smiling. Yeah... just like that."

Later, she realized that the moon was dangling in a way that it looked like it had a smile of its own.

"Don't ever cry, got it?"

"Yeah," She chuckled to herself and the moon. "Got it."

4/28 – Tu

After School

Chagall Cafe

Yesterday was the day that Minako was invited into the Student Council by Mitsuru, making heads turn, and a few pair of eyes to narrow.

Of course, Minako had accepted.

Everyone was in the lounge when she got back, with Yukari's presence being most noticeable with her frown.

'Kirijo-senpai,' Minako thought. 'Right.'

Minako knew how the littlest of things would persist to nag Yukari's mind, and how she would most often times just refuse to voice it all out.

"Minacchan!" Junpei immediately clung to her, wailing about guys and her number and awkward questions that he swore he'd rather not hear again, ever.

After ranting about the male population's unfair treatment towards him, Junpei dragged Minako to a corner to voice out his worries about joining the Student Council. Yukari finally approached her after Junpei left (he was grinning while saying he had someone to 'report' to, Minako thought that he was talking about his guild mates).

The two girls raised their brows at him as he scooted off with much energy, then the archer sighed softly. Yukari worried that Student Council might be too much for Minako. How would she juggle fighting Shadows, and living like a normal high school student?

Minako recalled how Yukari earned her nickname, 'Yukamama'.

"I'm glad that you joined us," Yukari smiled, and the 'Lovers' arcana flash in Minako's mind. "I'm glad I've got someone to talk to now."

"I'd go crazy if I had to spend another month just Mitsuru-senpai and Sanada-senpai. Oh god, I was better off talking to the walls than Sanada-senpai, but don't tell okay?" The redhead felt tempted to chuckle at the last part of the comment, but decided that it was unfair for the person who was not there.

"But never mind that," Minako just blinked as the archer's smile appeared to change into something... well, different. "I heard that a guy from class 2-E has his eyes on you."

"Huh...?"

"The one Junpei was talking about! Wait, don't tell me you haven't seen him yet. Come on, he always sits near you during the ceremonies!"

Minako struggled with her expressions, she honestly hadn't noticed the said guy. She lifted her cup of coffee to her lips, only half-minding Yukari as she continued to bombard her with unfamiliar names of male students.

"Shin-senpai from 3-A has quite a face." The mention of 'Shin' caught the naginata wielder off-guard, almost making her breath the same time she took a sip of her drink.

It wasn't wise to flat-out-right tell Yukari that she really didn't have any interest in the guys from Gekkoukan. She didn't feel like telling anyone at the moment, that and the fact that Yukari and Junpei were her parents reincarnated when they first learned about Shinji.

"He totally has that tall, dark, and handsome thing going. Totally in contrast to Sanada-senpai's—" Yukari abruptly stopped.

The SEES leader blinked. "What is it?"

The archer tilted her head to the side and squinted at something behind Minako, who had a big question mark on her face. Curious, she decided to follow where Yukari's chocolate brown gaze lead to and looked through the glass behind her to catch a glimpse of the all-too-familiar snowy hair of Akihiko standing by the fountain.

Akihiko was scanning around the area speedily, as if he just got away from his very affectionate(ly obnoxious) fan girls.

"He does that often." Yukari shrugged. "He'd stand there and head off somewhere after a while. I don't know if it's a routine of his, but he practically does the same thing every time."

True enough, Akihiko had already disappeared in the five-minute span of Minako finishing her drink. She didn't notice him at all.

"I followed him once, and I ended up in the station." Yukari added, putting down her now empty cup. "I honestly don't know what he does there."

"The station huh..." Minako nodded absent-mindedly.

'There's nothing to see around the station,'She thought. 'The Strip Mall...?'

"But seriously, I still manage to come back earlier than him." Yukari added with a sort-of 'mehh' tone.

"I bet he's got a secret girlfriend, but they can't go on dates because of his fanclub." The archer smirked a lady smirk. "What do you think?"

"What do I think...?" Minako blinked. "About him having a girlfriend?"

Yukari nodded.

"Well, he's..." Minako started but soon closed her mouth. What was she going to say, anyway? She could not think of Akihiko now without thinking of Sh—

"Minako?" Yukari broke off the silence that Minako dragged in, but it appeared that attempts of drawing the naginata-wielder's attention only drowned out.

Takeba Yukari's arrows weren't the only things that were sharp.

She noticed things that most people didn't, but merely chose to pay them no mind. Those little gestures that people subconsciously made, their tiny habits when conversing, they always gave her an idea of how other people's minds worked, and how she could possibly respond. She had to, if she wanted to keep people at a safe distance.

That used to be her case, anyway.

"Oh!" The transfer student blinked.

"Aha, sorry. Ready to go?" Even if Minako smiled, her eyes didn't.

Arisato Minako had the brightest smile, but despite that, it also seemed that she had the loneliest.

Dark Hour

Tartarus

Thebel

"Watch it, Junpei!" Yukari had barely dodged as the mentioned jock swung his blade with comparably less grace and killed one of the two Muttering Tiaras that spawned not too long ago.

Junpei on the other hand, seemed not to hear Yukari, and was triumphantly grinning from ear to ear. "Did ya see that? Did ya, did ya?"

"Behind you—!"

Now, both girls would have had a say at that if only one of them wasn't so busy shooting arrows at the Cowardly Mayas making an attempt to lunge at the currently gloating swordsman.

"Nice, Yuka-tan!" Junpei gave her a thumbs-up and a toothy grin, absolutely oblivious to the fact that he was the source of her anxiety.

Yukari just shot him a poisonous glare in return.

"Can't he pick a better time to get his ego stroked?"

"There, there!" Minako let out a heartfelt giggle.

Yukari had killed off all the shadows just by merely watching Junpei's back.

"Good job, guys!"

The field leader smiled as Yukari only sighed. Junpei had gone off again on his own, away from their group of three.

Minako had given her homeroom classmates their equipment before venturing into the abyss. She had supplied them information sufficient enough to fulfill their curiosity, and to keep unwanted questions out of the window. Personally, how the equipment magically ended up in her closet, she didn't know, but the fact that they were there gave her a great feeling of relief and assurance.

"Let's split up from here."

Yukari looked apprehensive by the order, but still nodded. "Alright."

Minako had already taken into consideration the kinds of shadows they could encounter for Tartarus' first block, and with their current pace, tonight's expedition was bound to go smoothly. The worst that could possibly happen was an encounter with The Reaper if things somehow go terribly wrong.

Minako briefly stopped in her tracks, before speeding off.

"Hey, guys! I found the stairs! Whaddaya wanna do?"

"Wait for us, Junpei!"

The order for them to re-group came and Minako was earlier to arrive at the destination. Looking around to find no shadows that may be hiding stealthily by the crooks or corners of the area, the field leader assumed that Junpei had already disposed of them and calmly waited beside the team clown. They took a post by the foot of the staircase until Yukari had caught up with them.

"You didn't have to run," Minako said to an out-of-breath Yukari. "We would've definitely waited for you."

"Yeah Yuka-tan," Junpei added. "Or we could've just fetched you if you happened to run into some nasties—I know I would!"

"I'm—" The archer gasped as she stomped forward, with a determined glint in her eyes that intimidated weaker shadows away. "—absolutely fine!"

"Let's go!" She almost roared (in the most effeminate of ways), taking hold of the video-gamer's collar and dragging him with her as she climbed her way up to the next floor.

Junpei's protests of mistreatment were all drowned out. Minako turned on her heels to follow and whipped her head when she thought that she had heard the rattling of chains close by. She didn't stay long enough and immediately headed up to join her party members.

"This is the tenth floor, right?" Junpei inquired, fixing his cap for it not to get in the way of his eyes.

Minako nodded. There was the familiar, re-occurring floor structure, affirming it.

I detect three shadows from this floor's central area, stay alert.

"Wait!"

"What is it this time, Yuka-tan?"

Yukari shot the only male member of the party a glare. "Can you stop calling me that?"

She hastened to catch up to Minako, who was leading the way. "You... If you start feeling anything—tired or whatever, just let me know, okay?"

The girl with the soft, auburn locks looked at her quizzically before nodding.

"Okay." Was the plain response she received, and the archer reluctantly settled with only that.

"Oh girls, girls! The drama, please! Let's not turn this adventure into a soap, okay?" Minako pretended to roll her eyes at her best friend while the archer and healer of the team sharply jabbed an elbow to his ribs.

"Are we going to do this or not?"

"We are!"

"You go lead the way then, Stupei."

"Well, don't mind if I do!" Junpei piped up and positioned himself into a 'ready!' stance, and there, Masakado's Katana gleamed proudly in his grasp.

He walked ahead to claim his place up front as seriously as he could, with such a determined look that sent funny, restrained giggles down his female classmates.

"Get ready to see just how awesome Junpei Iori is!"

"Yeah, right." Yukari scoffed, but didn't stop herself from running to catch up to the baseball-cap wearing idiot, just in case he stumbled across some shadows before a fight even commenced and only for that reason that she was doing so.

The silhouette of the previously mentioned shadows caught their attentions entirely. Although the knowledge that these aforementioned ones didn't completely pose a big threat, they were still wary. The SEES members exchanged glances among them.

"Ready, guys?" Junpei asked in a whisper, earning himself a look courtesy of Yukari Takeba once again.

He absent-mindedly scratched the back of his head. "Oh! Uh... I mean, girls."

Brief pause.

"Bah, ruined the moment."

Minako let out a tiny giggle.

"Whatever," Yukari once again rolled her eyes. "Let's just get this over with."

"Roger that," The field leader nodded.

"Okay, after go then..." Junpei gave Yukari a blank look, only for the other to return it with a more aggressive one.

The one with the rufescent-hued eyes let out a soft sigh. "Come on now, everyone get ready."

"In 3..."

The form of immense, gloved hands came clearer into view with each cautious step that they took. They heard someone take in a generous gulp of air.

"2..."

Junpei mentally winced, mouthing 'what the hell, those things are pink...' to the two girls with an incredulous look sprawled across his face.

Minako shrugged, not really minding if a shadow turned out to be rainbow-colored or something that looked like Ikutsuki-in-a-maid-suit monstrosity. Yukari merely stared at him blankly for once that night, despite having the urge to snap back.

'Shut up, please?' the archer mouthed back at the heavy swordsman, who put up a playful pout. Minako held up a finger to her lips, requesting for silence. The other juniors need not to be told what to do after that and readied themselves to commence in combat.

"1..."

The shadows watched them with empty gazes. The Magician masks embedded on them bobbed and curiously stared. They were waiting for the trio to make the first move, observing. Knowing, expecting, and as if daring that any of them step forward.

I know you can do this.

Good luck, stay focused.

Mitsuru watched as Akihiko fumbled with the jacket that was thrown over his shoulder not for the first time. That much could be assured. It was unusual for him to look so anxious. To try to even hide that he was anxious, despite it being written all over his face.

The Kirijo heiress had already got him memorized, like a mother to her newly adolescent son. He was amusing to observe, because there were not much that could get this undisputed boxing champ to feel like so. When he thought that she was paying him no mind, Akihiko sighed.

Of course, Mitsuru knew that Akihiko Sanada was also a man of pride, so she never interfered or pressed him about his issues. He was not foolish, and she knew he would ask if he needed the help. She let him keep things to himself, because that was for the best.

"Akihiko," He looked at her passively, but she did not fail to see through it to find a gaze full of uncertainty now directed at her. "You're not in the ring for you to be so uptight."

"No one is being uptight here, Mitsuru."

As if in an attempt to prove her wrong, that he was anything but uptight, Akihiko appeared to brush off what she had just mentioned coolly. He was the first to break of their locked gazes to secure the gloves that wrapped tightly around his hands. Seriously, he didn't even know what he was feeling weird for.

Mitsuru found the gesture too common, making her assume that the boxer himself probably was not aware that he was rather perplexed. She was already aware of most of his habits.

Perhaps it was the absence of the thrill he always felt when midnight struck. The pugilist had already been too used to combat, and by making him sit in the sidelines, she had taken a part of him away even if it was only temporary. Mitsuru could understand that, for someone like him, who found the rush of adrenaline and the motivation to keep getting stronger his top priority, it was not the easiest thing to do.

That couldn't be entirely the case, though, because since the number of their members had gone up to five, Akihiko had found a new way to keep him entertained.

"Only twenty eight minutes left before the Dark Hour ends." Mitsuru swept her rufescent gaze up to the only clock that worked during the Dark Hour.

No, she was not in the slightest bit anxious. She knew well enough that the exploration team could be left alone, and be fine. She had faith that Arisato would do a rather good job as the field leader of the now improved SEES, but she would not dare leave them alone, if she could.

"They sure are taking their time, aren't they?"

Mitsuru could tell that the girl have had her fair share of fights, probably even more than she had anticipated. Arisato seemed to know which commands to give out in order to fully make use of the strengths and weaknesses of her teammates. Possibly, she have had received naginata training and combat experience too while she was younger, for her movements flowed so well and her expertise in using her Personas melded beautifully together.

"Yes."

Minako Arisato was versatile. She had so much potential because of her unique ability; one that Mitsuru had never thought that it was possible to wield multiple Personas at once. It enabled this new transfer student to make up for the things the team lacked, or rather, had to greatly improve. Arisato could either focus on support or go on offensive, possibly even both. Even brilliantly at the same time.

"Yo, guess who's back!"

Mitsuru dismissed her thoughts for some other time as the terminal emitted a bright emerald light before everything drowned in white.

"You've all done well." She said to them. Words of appreciation, she had come to know, performed many wonders.

"It was a piece of cake!" Junpei greeted with a wide, gleeful grin, followed by a shrug and a look directed at the archer who stood beside their leader.

"Yuka-tan was all naggy, but she'd always been like that, so I gue—"

Yukari stomped her foot and grunted in disbelief and disapproval.

"I wouldn't be so naggy if you stop giving me reasons to be so naggy, Stupei."

Junpei's eyes narrowed slightly. "Stop calling me that!"

"Guys.." Akihiko sighed softly.

He had the feeling that he had to get used to the two's bickering now than after he would come back to the front line. They were rejuvenating, their lot, except for the times that they behaved so obnoxiously. Things could turn out comparably worse than those rabid fangirls' deafening screeches of his name, and to think that he had to actually live with these two, he already had no idea about how he'd handle it all.

"Now, now, all we need is a good night's sleep!" He watched as Arisato emerged from his side with that soothing smile of hers.

She stepped in between her two friends, trying to maintain the fine line of 'being okay' as long as they were concerned.

Mitsuru nodded in agreement.

"Arisato is right, we should all head back now for some sleep. After all, we should be prepared for our respective classes for tomorrow."

"WHAT?" Junpei couldn't help but automatically cut in.

"Woah, woah, you've got to be kidding me!" The dread was clearly evident on his face.

"I'm practically dying! It'd already be a humongous miracle if I can wake up for class tomorrow!"

"For one who is on the verge of 'dying', your mouth is quite lively, is it not, Iori?" The Student Council President sent him a look that delivered a clear message.

Minako ran her hand down her hair, avoiding catching eye contact with either the Empress or the Magician. No, she was not going to leave Junpei behind in his time of need, but everyone knew that nobody would be able to help him at that point.

This was Mitsuru Kirijo, after all.

"Tardiness shall not be tolerated. If you wish, you may take a break from any Tartarus explorations, starting tomorrow." The fencer uttered sternly, with that wine-red gaze that bore holes through incompetent fools' souls.

The SEES leader thought that Mitsuru reacting largely to him was similar to the way guardians did, but admittedly, she still wondered why she kept on noticing every little thing that the guy made. The SEES President could be meticulous, especially about academically-related issues, and she knew that.

Minako herself was a witness to how the Empress always made sure that everything was in order during an operation. Junpei, on the other hand, was nowhere near the word 'organized' at all, and his seemingly carefree facade always, at one point, made the rest worry.

Minako lowered her own gaze to admire the floor's elegant pattern. She was starting to think of how she could possibly respond to her best friend later when they get home, or tomorrow at school, without stirring up the wrong ideas about the senior.

"Hey."

A tap fell on the field leader's shoulder.

"I think they would still take a while, you think we can go ahead of them?" Yukari piped, directing a glance at the team's joker and president.

"I'm not so sure," Minako innocently shrugged, she had no idea if a lecture about the importance of education from Mitsuru could end so soon.

She sent a look towards Junpei. "He'd be complaining later if we suddenly disappear and leave him with Mitsuru-senpai, you know."

"Who, Junpei?" The archer raised a fine brow, her arms already crossed.

She breathed heavily before letting out a groan. "Oh come on, he'll be fine."

Yukari had always been irritable of Junpei, but Minako understood that the girl was dead tired, fatigued, and simply sleepy. Her eyes were trying too hard to maintain a glare. And it was not only her, actually. The break was essential. Before they could even reach the dorm, the three of them would definitely already be asleep.

Minako decided that it would indeed be best that they postpone the explorations for next week, whether Mitsuru pulled Junpei out temporarily or not.

"No! No, no, it's okay." The mentioned junior raised his hands up, as if surrendering. "I just remembered that I have to... uh, see Ekoda for... some... educational... thing."

"I see. Then I hope it goes well, Iori. Now everyone, let us all go."

Junpei sighed in defeat.

Minako nodded, double-checking all of their stuff to see if nothing was going to be left behind. The corner of her eye caught sight of the blue glow that was the door to the Velvet Room, striking her that she had not yet retrieved the rest of her Personas. She had brought along those with the greater capabilities to heal, figuring that she wouldn't need to focus much on offensive, not as of late anyway. Besides, she could do it tomorrow and use the path at the back alley of Paulownia Mall, but that meant that she'd have to go to and fro Gekkoukan.

Sighing, Minako decided that getting her Personas now would decrease the running she would have to do tomorrow. Mitsuru didn't mind her staying behind, it seemed, so the field leader took it as a sign of permission before she bid her two classmates goodnight.

Yukari didn't ask any unnecessary questions, and Minako could see that the archer was just too tired, although she did have that look whenever Junpei uttered an innuendo, the one she had whenever she found someone or something suspicious. The archer eventually sighed and returned the goodnight before she followed the Kirijo princess out of the abyss.

Junpei, who was asked to carry the other stuff the girls couldn't, was sober enough to wonder why, and inquired if Minako had any plans of sticking around Tartarus longer for whatever reason, only to have Mitsuru once again call his attention and thus, was forced to go ahead without hearing the answer to his inquiry.

"What are you still doing he—?"

A gloved hand landed on Minako's shoulder, jolting the SEES leader's reflexes awake. Minako, whose current sanity and system didn't quite work as well as it should have at the time, drew a sharp breath.

Without hesitation, she took hold of the hand and grabbed the slender arm. Her reaction came so fast that by the time she had realized that what she had laid her hands on was anything but a Shadow, she had already pulled and thrown whoever the owner of the arm was across the floor.

"O-oh Kami—!"

Minako closed her eyes shut and covered her eyes with her hands as a short string of incomprehensible words dangled the air. She gulped nervously and cracked one of her eyes open, peeking through her hands to have her suspicions of her poor victim's identity confirmed.

"I—really, s-senpai—!"

Instantly she dashed her way to the other side of the entrance where Akihiko coughed and grumbled pained groans.

"What...what was that...just now?" Akihiko's voice was hoarse as he huffed.

His back had just been slammed flat, and there was numbness in his arms. For how long, it didn't matter, because his ears were ringing and his vision was blurring. He wasn't even sure what did. He felt like he had just been used as a cannonball.

"Ugh..."

"I-I, no, no what do I—please, oh Kami please be okay—"

The boxer would have considered the sight before him comforting, at least that gave him an idea why he felt he had just been literally swept off the ground, and just who proved it to even be possible.

"I'm-I'm sorry, I didn't—"

The amazing Minako Arisato was now practically fumbling through all of her Personas and switching among them to use each and every curative spell they all had, as if she was desperately tossing and catching daggers while juggling balls.

"How...?"

After several glimpses of elegant deities and persistent stuttering of apologies scattered here and there, Akihiko found himself already feeling better, like nothing ever happened at all.

"I used stronger spells than Dia, if...that's what you mean..."

An awkward silence hugged the air for a few moments, and the pugilist helped himself to at least a comfortable position on the cold floor.

"...I'm sorry." His auburn-haired junior sat stiffly with her legs folded the traditional way, her head sunk lower than it usually did. "Really, I...I didn't mean to do that."

"Arisato."

Akihiko actually put a great effort to reach into his mind, possibly for a response, but miserably failed. Yes, of course he could just say 'no it's okay now let's go back' and whatever this uneasy pressure was, it would go away.

"I've—" He winced. "—been hit harder."

He could've been angry right at that moment if he wanted—if he just chose to be. He was hurt, after all, and in front of him was the girl that made him think, hard, if he was actually doing something socially wrong. The one that almost got his other and only un-injured arm broken too.

He could've just blurted out everything that he had been wondering about up until now, poured out every single thing just to get it all out of his chest. He could've upped and flat-out-right tell their new recruit exactly how he felt about being avoided and stared anxiously at (like he wasn't good enough), and all would then be fine and dandy.

But, the decision not to was his as well.

"Still, I did something improper."

He sighed, the owner of the blob of dark, coppery red locks in front of him refused to move at all. Akihiko's lips curved into a little frown. What was he supposed to do for times like this? He was so used to receiving apologies, and having things turn out okay moments later.

"You already said sorry, didn't you?" He watched her give him a small, slow nod.

He rubbed his temple tiredly, he didn't know how to deal with beings—girls, rather, other than Mitsuru.

"Arisato look, I'm fine, aren't I?"

Minako tilted her head up to meet his smoky gaze with hers, wearing what seemed like a frown. To her, anyway, because to him, it appeared more like a childish pout.

"I'll make it up to you."

"Hm..?" Akihiko blinked. "And...how would you do that?"

"I—" It was the field leader's turn to return the gesture. "Well...I'll think of something."

"Well, you don't have to."

The senior stood, extending his hand out to her to help her up. "Come on, you wouldn't want Mitsuru lecturing us tomorrow for tardiness, believe me."

"But I want to," She countered, accepting his hand but refusing to move from her current position. "Make it up to you, I mean."

They suddenly found themselves as participants of a short staring contest. Their gazes locked, one more uncertain than the bold other, but both as stubborn to rip away. Convinced that it was of nonsense and would only delay their arrival, Akihiko admitted defeat, and before he could lay his eyes on the smile that was to brightly grace Minako's features, he lifted her off the ground albeit much, much more gently than how she did with him.

He disregarded her little squeaks that she called protests and proceeded to carry her out like a little kid, thinking that she could do no or least bodily harm that way and they would get to the dorm faster.

"Arisato?"

Silence.

"Iori... He...mentioned something—"

'Something about you being manly. What exactly did he mean by that..?' He mentally slapped himself for even coming up with that ridiculous question.

She had become her usual silent self again. Perhaps the girl had given up and surrendered to him?

"Hey, Arisato?"

It was not until they had finally arrived at the dormitory that he discovered that the girl had fallen asleep on him, with a grinning Junpei and a not-so-amused Mitsuru to welcome them.

4/29 – We

Evening

Port Island Station Outskirts

"So, that's what happened..."

Minako opened a can of Super Cat Food as she spoke, holding out a pet dish she bought last Friday. She emptied the can's contents into it before placing it in front of the black-and-brown-spotted white feline patiently that waited in front of her.

"Really, I'm sorry I couldn't bring you food last night."

"I promise I'll come tomorrow, though! And the next day after."

Minako smiled.

It was late, and she might get a scolding. Probably, but she thought that she could worry about that later. She cocked her head to the side, as if to give assurance to the independent animal that she was as harmless as she appeared to be.

"I'll keep visiting until you get better, okay?"

The cat's pair of incandescent eyes watched her curiously, as if asking her why she was bothering herself. It let out a soft mew and approached the dish, eyes fixed on the weird girl even as it dipped its head to indulge in the offered meal.

As soon as it appeared that her work was done, Minako stood and retrieved her bag, which she placed not really far apart from her and bid her furry friend goodbye. It watched her curiously as she made her leave, probably with a gentle arched brow if cats ever managed to grow a pair. Of eyebrows.

Footsteps shuffled lightly, and a form emerged from the poorly lit part of the alley holding a small, brown paper bag. The cat mewed again, acknowledging the familiar presence it had grown used to seeing out in the streets and swayed her tail languidly.

"Who..?"

The newcomer gruffed, his pair of eyes landing on the half-eaten cat food in the pet dish placed on the ground. He shoved one hand in one of his pockets and stared at the direction the earlier footsteps had disappeared into.

"Huh, again?" He probably didn't have to worry about the possibility of the cat starving to death for a few days.

Glancing back down at the paper bag he was holding with his other hand, he turned to the cat that rubbed against the hem of his pants rather affectionately.

"Hey hey, we don't want you choking on this stuff, now."

End of chapter.

How'd all your Christmas celebrations go? I hope you all had fun!

So with everything else done, let me greet a HAPPPY NEW YEAR to all! Don't forget to leave a review! Hope to see you in the next update.