Breaking the Chains
...Death's Fool by Night
.
Despite the bright and ever-changing path
The past's shadows and nightmares appear in the night
Coming to haunt you forever,
and ever,
and ever...
.
? ? ?
They opened their eyes to find themselves standing next to each other and seemingly in another empty empty void.
Just as they were about to question their surroundings, a small, glowing, blue light appeared before them. It floated around them slowly for a few times, flitting between them back and forth, before it decided to fly away.
They followed it, until they reached a double door at the end of their path.
"Ah, I remember." Minato spoke softly, "...Isn't this, where we find the Velvet Room and meet Igor?"
"It looks like it." Hamuko replied, "But it's quite different from our old dreams."
Minato nodded, "Well, come on, Hamuko. Let us open the door."
Without hesitation, the twins twisted on the door's two knobs, and opened it.
.
Once they entered, they didn't expect that the Velvet Room had changed.
Everything looked much, much different than the Velvet Room they once knew. For once, their Velvet Room was no longer bore the appearance of an elevator. Instead, they found themselves to be standing in a space of nothingness. The only thing that seemed to have occupy a portion of the space, were the three figures who stood before them. The twins quickly recognized them as Igor, Elizabeth, and Theodore.
Igor sat down on a indigo-colored, velvety sofa at the center, with a small, circular table set up in front of him. Standing on his left was Elizabeth, who was holding a big, brown book while sitting on Igor's right was Theodore, who remained still and was smiling at the twins.
Igor opened his eyes and smiled, "Good evening, welcome to the Velvet Room. My name is Igor.
"But of course, you probably know that already."
"...Eh?!" Minato and Hamuko exclaimed simultaneously. Their eyes widened and mouths were left agape. They didn't expect Elizabeth and Theodore to be here, only Igor!
Elizabeth only giggled at their reaction, "You two must be confused by why we are here, right?"
The twins quickly nodded in response.
Igor raised up his hand again to catch the attention of all currently in the room and all eyes were directed to him.
"Well, allow me to explain," Igor began, "You see, when the both of you made your decision, it had caused a great disruption and occurred many changes in your abilities, especially in your Personas and Social Links."
"What...changes do you mean?" Minato asked sternly.
"Ah, I was about to elaborate on that!" Igor piped up, "Well, you see, since you both are now binded by the contract, your powers have been partly split or would be shared. A great example would be your Social Links. Because of your presence, there are three different types of Social Links that will happen."
"...Types? But aren't all Social Links different? Each one is for an arcana, right?" Hamuko inquired.
"Well, what you say is true. But that is not what I meant." Igor replied, "You see, I sensed three different auras on the Social Link cards I have. One aura gives off a rather calming vibe, another gives off a vibrant vibe, and lastly, one gives a very...neutral vibe. Those three different auras I sensed, are these three types of Social Links. "
"Unfortunately, we could not determine what exactly do these three Social Link types mean or would do." Theodore spoke up and the twins turned to face him, "Perhaps, when you unlock your first Social Link, only then, can we understand what it's purpose would be."
"...I see..." Hamuko spoke softly, silently pondering over their words.
"Well, is there anything else that changed? Would we both summon Orpheus?" Minato asked curiously.
"While you both still retain the Wild Card Ability," Elizabeth piped into the conversation, "There are some Personae which you could no longer access unlike before. How this occurred is unknown, but for now, the two of you are only compatible with certain Arcana. As for Orpheus, well, I cannot say for sure if he remains to be both of your initial Personae."
"Oh...thank you for that information, Elizabeth." Minato responded.
"I wonder what this change could bring about." Igor spoke suddenly, "But whatever the conclusion will be, you must bear the responsibilities of it. You have chosen this path, after all." He talked and recalled the contract to the twins.
The twins nodded.
"Excellent!" Igor smiled, "Now, you both must get going. I will see you soon. Until then, farewell."
The twins watched as their surroundings slowly start to be engulfed into black. The Velvet Room residents looked at the two with smiles in their faces. And then, they were gone.
.
April 9, 2009
Thursday
Morning
-
Full Moon
Minato woke up with a jolt. His body was sweating and he felt an uncomfortable heat rise up in his body. His eyes looked from his left to right, checking his surroundings to make sure that there was nothing odd or out of place in his room.
After calming down, he stood up from his bed and walked to the front of the mirror in his room. His blue eyes stared back at his own reflection and observed his own appearance. His hair was frizzed in all directions and he swore that there were eyebags that have formed under his eyes. Minato couldn't tell, as he was too tired to put more effort in his observation. He let out a loud yawn before proceeding to his closet to take his school uniform. Afterwards, Minato headed for the bathroom in slow and sluggish steps to shower and freshen up for the day.
When he finished showering and changing to his school uniform, Minato returned to his room so he would fix himself up a little more, combing his hair and all. Afterwards, he picked up his school bag and headed for the flight of stairs to go down.
He only reached for the second flight of stairs when he heard two familiar voices coming from the dorm lounge. Minato slowed his steps and crouched to the ground, eavesdropping on the conversation being made between the two voices.
"...How are you liking Gekkoukan High so far?" The first voice asked.
"Oh, it's pretty great so far! Although, everyone seems to like gossiping...I hate gossip." The second voice replied, which followed with a exasperated sigh.
"I see. Don't worry about it though, you'll get used to them." The first voice reassured.
"I hope so." The second voice let out another exasperated sigh.
Minato swore he heard a chuckle from the first voice, "Well, I better get going. I have boxing practice. Take care of yourself and I'll see you around, Hamuko."
"I'll see you around too, Sanada-senpai!" The second voice, which belonged to Hamuko, bid farewell to her senior. Though her voice was overlapped by the sounds of "Sanada-senpai's" footsteps, and then he heard the door open and close.
"...Huh." Minato thought, "So she has acquainted herself with Akihiko-senpai already. First Yukari, then Junpei, now it's Akihiko-senpai. That was fast."
Shrugging his shoulders, he stood up straight from his position and walked down the last flight of stairs. He reached the dorm lounge and his eyes first directed to where Hamuko was: the kitchen.
She was sitting down on one of the available seats on the dining table. In front of her, was her usual bowl of chocolate cereal with milk and a glass of water. Hamuko shifted her focus from her bowl of cereal to Minato, who was heading for the kitchen. She watched as he prepared a bowl of cereal for himself, and when he finished, he sat next to her.
"Good morning, Hamuko." Minato greeted her. His eyes shifted to her gaze and he smiled.
Hamuko grinned, "Good morning, Minato-nii! Had a nice sleep?"
"Not really. Especially with that dream..." Minato groaned, scooping up some of his cereal and ate it.
"Ah, you are right about that." Hamuko spoke, nodding in confirmation that she dreamt the same thing, "But don't worry about that, Minato-nii! We'll know more about it tonight, right?"
Minato nodded, "True."
"Now, come on, we have to eat our breakfast quickly. Otherwise, we'll be late!" Hamuko exclaimed. She gave Minato a light punch on the shoulder, before proceeding to scarf down her cereal. Minato ate his cereal quickly as well.
When the twins finished, they picked up their school bags which was on the floor and walked out of the dorm, greeted the sunny and breezy day with a smile, and headed for the train station that would take them to school.
.
April 9, 2009
Thursday
After School
-
Full Moon
"Classes are finally over!" Junpei shouted out enthusiastically as soon as the dismissal bell had rung. Their classmates started to pack up their school supplies, while others remained for their after school activities. Yukari rolled her eyes at Junpei, while Hamuko giggled as she saw that her brother had once again fallen asleep in class.
She poked her brother from behind, "Hey, Minato-nii! Classes just ended!"
Minato raised up his head and stared at Hamuko with sleepy eyes. Junpei watched the twins gleefully, unable to hide his snickers and chuckles.
"Huh...? Classes ended?" Minato asked, and his words followed up with a yawn.
"Yeah!" Hamuko exclaimed, punching her first in the air.
"Oh, alright." Minato replied, "I'll be going home then."
Minato had started packing up his school books, notebooks, and pens into his school bag. He didn't notice that Junpei had gasped upon hearing his words and stood by his side to provoke him not to leave yet and stay by his side so they would have another afternoon hang out.
"Hey! Hey! Minato! Don't go home yet, I'll be taking you to Paulownia Mall! We'll be going to the arcade!" Junpei exclaimed excitedly, shaking Minato's arm a little. He's hoping that his pleas would convince Minato not leave yet.
But Minato shook his head, slung his school bag on his shoulder, and gave his most convincing tired smile at Junpei, "Sorry Junpei, but I really want to rest right now. Maybe another time."
Junpei frowned at his response, but decided to let Minato do what he wished. He nodded to confirm that he understood Minato's wish, and he watched as Minato left the classroom in slow steps. Junpei was left with Hamuko, who had watched the entire scene quietly, and Yukari, who had just finished packing her things.
"...Hey, Hamuko, is your brother okay?" Junpei inquired the brown-haired girl.
Hamuko shrugged her shoulder, "I'm not sure. He's probably tired."
"Oh...alright then." was all Junpei could respond with, and then he turned to the two females, "Say, would you two lovely ladies love to go with me to Paulownia Mall?"
Before Hamuko could respond to Junpei's invitation with a enthusiastic "Yes!," Yukari scoffed and grabbed ahold of her hand. She glared at Junpei, who froze on the spot as soon as his eyes met hers, "No! I'm not letting her be around someone like you, Stupei! Come on, Hamuko, we're going there ourselves!"
Yukari proceeded to drag Hamuko out of the classroom, leaving Junpei all alone in the classroom. He slumped a bit from where he stood, frowning and sighing, before regaining his enthusiasm upon spotting Kenji and Kazushi on the hallway and inviting them to the arcade.
Meanwhile, Minato was already in Iwatodai and was steps away from home. He opened the front door, only to be greeted by a familiar loneliness that haunted him many, many times. He headed for his room, where upon reaching it, had dropped his bag on the spot and laid down on his bed, still wearing his school uniform.
Tonight is the night, the thought repeated on his head, Tonight...I...will..."
Before Minato could finish his thoughts, he fell asleep into a deep slumber.
.
After hanging out with Yukari for the day, Hamuko bid a "Good night!" to Yukari and headed straight for her room to sleep. Before reaching her room though, she decided to eavesdrop on Minato's room to find out what he was doing.
Hamuko already knew why Minato had wanted to leave early. He had wished to take an early slumber before the Dark Hour had come and it would happen. He had told her that she wouldn't do the same though, as it might arouse suspicion to Yukari.
When she had leaned her ear on Minato's door, she only heard loud snores coming from the other side.
She couldn't help but giggle at him, and she proceeded once again to her room, to prepare her energy for tonight by sleeping.
.
April 9, 2009
Thursday
Dark Hour
-
Full Moon
The Dark Hour has come and like usual, Ikutsuki, Mitsuru, and Yukari were in the command room. On the screen of the command room's main computer, was live footage of what was currently happening in the twins' bedrooms.
On one screen, Minato was lying down with his back facing up, and his arms and legs were spread out everywhere. His bedsheets were in a mess and they could hear his snores. On the other screen, Hamuko was already asleep soundly in her pajamas and she wrapped herself up in her blankets.
Yukari paced around the command room, still bothered by how wrong it was for them to be watching the twins in their sleep. Spying on people didn't feel right for her, but the chairman and Mitsuru didn't seem unfazed by it.
"Interesting. They haven't experienced any of the common symptoms yet." Ikutsuki spoke happily, browsing through his notes on the clipboard, "Now, we just need to find out if they have the potential."
"But we're treating them like guinea pigs..." Yukari spoke up to Ikutsuki.
"I understand your concern, but it is imperative that we recruit new members." Ikutsuki responded to Yukari, "Besides, wouldn't it be more comfortable if you have two classmates working alongside you?"
"Well, I guess, but-"
Before Yukari could finish her sentence, she was cut off by a loud ring coming from the command room's computer. Mitsuru knew that the ring was coming from someone who would be calling them, and the only person who would do that would be...
"Command room," Mitsuru pressed the button and called out to the other line, "Is that you, Akihiko?"
"You're not gonna believe this! This thing is huge!" Akihiko exclaimed excitedly, "Unfortunately, I don't have time to talk! It's chasing me! Also, I'm almost at the dorm!"
"What?!" Yukari exclaimed, and her whole body froze in fear as to what might be chasing after her senior, "Does that mean he's bringing that THING here?!"
"Mr. Chairman!" Mitsuru called out to Ikutsuki, "We will suspend our observation and prepare for battle!"
"R-Right! Be careful!" Ikutsuki nodded.
Mitsuru and Yukari grabbed their Evokers that they had set down on the command room's table and started to run downstairs to the dorm lounge. Ikutsuki was trailing behind the two girls. At the same time that they reached the ground floor, Akihiko had barged into the dorm lounge and locked the door behind him. He slumped into the ground afterwards, leaning on the door and using his hand to cover the bloody injury he sustained on his ribs.
"Akihiko!" Mitsuru reached to his side, "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." Akihiko responded, "Get ready to be surprised. It'll be here any minute."
Mitsuru furrowed her eyebrows at him, "This is no time to joke around!"
"Is it one of them, Akihiko?" Ikutsuki asked worriedly.
"Yes, but it's not an ordinary one." Akihiko spoke.
When the senior had finished his words, the four felt the ground shake and rumble. Yukari yelped in surprise and fear, Ikutsuki felt himself sweating, and Mitsuru and Akihiko had shocked expressions on their faces. They knew that something bad was happening and they needed to act.
Now.
"Mr. Chairman, please head for the command room!" Mitsuru instructed Ikutsuki, to which he nodded and started to run for the stairs, "And Takeba, go upstairs and wake up the twins. Then, escape out the back."
"B-But, what about you two?!" Yukari asked worriedly.
"We'll fight it and stop it here." Mitsuru spoke firmly, "Akihiko, you led it to us, so I'm afraid you'll have to fight."
"Like I had a choice!" Akihiko responded and turned his attention to Yukari, "What are you waiting for Yukari?! Go! Now!"
"I-I'm on it!" Yukari exclaimed, and she turned on her heels and started to run frantically up the stairs.
She could feel the sweat trickling down her forehead and her heart started to race much faster than before. There was a Shadow that was coming for them, and she was scared as hell as to what might happen to them. Would Mitsuru and Akihiko defeat it? Would Ikutsuki be safe? Will she be able to save the Arisato twins?
Eventually, she reached for Minato's room first, and was about to bang on the door when Minato had opened the door. Her eyes widened to see that Minato had already opened the door. Did he feel the ground shake or hear the noise?
"I don't have time to talk! Please, follow me!" Yukari shouted. Minato didn't even bother to complain or inquire about her actions, and simply followed the girl.
Yukari started to run to the third floor with Minato trailing behind her. Eventually, she reached for Hamuko's room, only to get the same outcome of Hamuko opening the door before even bothering to knock.
"Y-Yukari! What was that noise?!" Hamuko asked worriedly, and Yukari noticed that she was sweating and she held a fearful expression on her face.
"I'm sorry, but I can't explain it right now! Please, follow me!" Yukari exclaimed
The three started to run downstairs and they made it to the dorm lounge. Just as Yukari was about to head for the back door, she heard a voice calling out to her inside her head. It was Mitsuru's!
"Takeba, do you read me?" Mitsuru asked her.
"Y-Yes, I can hear you!" Yukari responded.
"Be careful! There's more than one enemy!" Mitsuru warned, "The one we're fighting isn't the one Akihiko saw!"
"What?!" Yukari exclaimed frantically.
At the same time Yukari spoke her words, she felt the ground shake once again. Yukari jolted in surprise, while Minato and Hamuko were frozen on the spot.
"What's that?!" Hamuko asked after recovering from her brief shock.
Yukari took hold of her and Minato's hand, "I'm sorry I can't explain it all right now! Let's pull back!"
They turned heels for the stairs and started to run up. As the three continued to run up the stairs, they heard glass breaking and felt the ground shaking. Yukari didn't know if what she was doing was right, but what was important right now was to bring these two to safety. After more running, they reached the dorm's rooftop. Yukari locked the door behind her and let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness." Yukari spoke, "The door's locked. I think we're safe for now..."
She heard a roar.
All heads turned to face to where could possibly be the source of the sound. They watched in horror, as black hands slowly raised themselves up with one holding a blue mask with an "I" engraved on it. Some hands held nothing, while others held sword-looking objects. It somehow managed to climb up to the roof and Yukari was scared shitless.
"Y-You've got to be kidding me! How did that Shadow climb up the wall?!" Yukari exclaimed. She could feel her body trembling, the sweat trickling down her body, and she could feel her heartbeat racing.
"...I...I have to fight!" She exclaimed, picking up the Evoker from her holster, "I-I can summon mine...no problem...!"
Still trembling, she placed the Evoker on her forehead and placed her finger near the trigger. Yukari closed her eyes. All she had to do was pull the trigger and summon it...
...Right...?
She can't.
The images of blood appeared in her mind...
Yukari can't do it.
...Blood gushing out of her forehead...
No!
...Her limp body laid still on the floor...
NO!
"Yukari!"
Suddenly, she felt something push her to the side.
Yukari opened her eyes to see that Hamuko had pushed her to the side, and at the same time, the Shadow had unleashed fire that was meant to attack Yukari. It didn't attack them, gratefully, and Yukari felt thankful to Hamuko for saving her.
But then, she realized that she had lost hold of her Evoker. Yukari looked around to try to find out where it was, until she spotted it. It was on Minato's feet, and she saw that the Shadow had started to head for Minato's direction.
"Minato, run!" Yukari screamed at him.
But Minato didn't budge at all from his spot, instead, he gave Yukari his most tender smile.
.
This was all part of the plan.
Hamuko had saved Yukari from the Shadow's attack, but her Evoker had slipped out of her fingers and landed (coincidentally) on Minato's feet. He watched as the Shadow had started to head towards him, and Yukari screamed for him to get away.
But instead of moving, he smiled at her. Hopefully, she would get the message. The message was that Minato will be fine. Hamuko will be fine. Yukari will be fine.
Everything is going to be fine.
He picked up the Evoker from the ground and stared at it intently. All those horrendous memories of his first Persona summoning started to bubble up inside him, but he continued to smile. He knows that it's going to be a bit painful, and that he would faint afterwards.
But, everything is going to be fine.
And then, he felt a searing pain rising up in his head.
"Ah...Agh!" He exclaimed, clutching his hair tightly and his eyes were tightly shut.
He didn't understand what was causing the pain. His head hurts so badly.
It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. It hurts. IT HURTS. IT HURTS. IT HURTS. IT HURTS. IT HURTS. IT HURTS. IT HURTS. IT HURTS.
Minato needed to do something!
DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT.DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT.DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT. DO IT.
He...He needs to...!
PULL THE TRIGGER. PULL THE TRIGGER. PULL THE TRIGGER. PULL THE TRIGGER. PULL THE TRIGGER. PULL THE TRIGGER. PULL THE TRIGGER. PULL THE TRIGGER.
"P-Per..."
He coughed out the first syllable, as the pain on his head continued to bother him to no end. He felt so tired, and he just wanted to let out all the pain building up inside him.
"So..."
An image of Pharos appeared in his mind, and it slowly morphed into Ryoji, and then to-
"NA!"
Minato pulled the trigger.
The pain had built up to an infinite ton, but at the same time, he felt a thrilling sensation soar in his body. He didn't realize that a smirk had formed on his lips and his eyes had glowed a sky blue. From the depths of the fiery blue behind him, his Persona rose before him.
But, it wasn't the one they had expected.
"W-What...wait...wha...?!" Hamuko spoke up, her eyes widened in horror as she saw the Persona that Minato had summoned.
Thanatos.
"Thou art I...and I...am thou...
"I...am Thanatos...I was born of thee, and I shall walk by thy side..."
When it had finished speaking it's words, Thanatos suddenly crouched to the ground and clutched onto it's head. Then, it screeched out inaudible words and jerked upwards. At that same moment, Minato felt the pain in his body reach at it's maximum point and he screamed out his loudest.
"AAAAAAHHH! ! ! ! ! !" Minato screeched, and he knelt to the ground while clutching his head. He mumbled various words and sentences that didn't make sense, praying that they would help subside the pain away.
It couldn't.
In rage, Thanatos raced for the Shadow and started to attack it with all it's might. It tore apart the limbs, smashed it multiple times to the ground, and even started to feed onto it. Hamuko and Yukari watched it all in horror, while Minato remained on the ground, kneeling and screaming and gasping for air.
"MAKE IT STOP! MAKE IT STOP! MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE!" He continued to scream. His body trembled.
Eventually, Thanatos had defeated the Shadow. It had stopped it's movements once the deed had been done and it remained still in the air, floating on the ground. Thanatos faced Minato, and with the little strength he had, Minato looked up to face Thanatos straight in it's supposed eyes.
For some reason, he thought he saw Ryoji.
After a few more moments, Thanatos disappeared from the air, leaving nothing but black dust behind. The two females that had watched everything unfold before them felt like they suddenly remembered how to breathe.
"M-Minato-nii!" Hamuko remembered her brother and called out for him, and raced for her brother with Yukari trailing behind her. When they reached his side, she saw that he was still kneeling on the ground, clutching the hairs of his head and taking in short breaths. Sweat trickled down his body and he could feel an uncomfortable heat rise inside him.
"Ha...Hamu...ko...Yu...kari..." He managed to huff out, and made brief eye contact with the two girls, "It's...okay...it's all...part...of...the..."
He felt himself getting weaker, as he suddenly thought that he had felt lighter than before. Then, his body fell to the ground and his consciousness had lulled away to his dreams.
"Minato-nii?! Minato-nii!" Hamuko called out for her brother, shaking him in hopes that he would awaken. But he had passed out, leaving the two girls left awake in the ungodly hour.
Suddenly, they heard a gurgle.
Yukari turned to her left and saw two black blobs coming to their direction. She shrieked and slowly backed away, all while shouting at the Shadows to go away. Meanwhile, Hamuko widened her eyes as soon as she saw the two Shadows that were coming for them.
It was her turn.
After all, it was all part of the plan...
...Right?
Hamuko reached for the Evoker that Minato dropped after summoning Thanatos. Like what Minato had done, she had positioned it to her temple and waited for a few moments. She needed to do it at the right moment. To save Yukari, to save Minato, to save Akihiko and Mitsuru, and to live.
"Per..."
"So..."
"NA!"
Hamuko pulled the trigger.
Just like Minato, she felt the very same exhilarating sensation rise up in her chest. Hamuko could feel that a grin had formed on her lips. This feeling! This emotion!
Her Persona had risen from the fiery blue depths behind her. Yukari widened her eyes as soon as she had set her eyes on the Persona. It had beautiful, light auburn hair, a red scarf wrapped around it's neck, and it's chest is in the color of gold. A white lyre latched itself on it's back.
"Thou art I...and I am thou..." the Persona spoke, "I am Orpheus, master of the strings..."
With the newborn sensation that risen in her soul, Hamuko pointed her index finger to the two Shadows and murmured a simple command to her Persona.
"Bash."
With swift movements, Orpheus grabbed hold of it's lyre, raised it high up on the air, and bashed it down on one of the Shadows. It repeated the same action on the other Shadow. Yukari watched it all in amazement.
After defeating the two Shadow blobs, Orpheus faced Hamuko with a gentle smile on it's face, before disappearing into the thin air. Along with the disappearance of Orpheus, was the euphoric feeling that Hamuko had felt.
Hamuko smiled, "I...did it..."
And she started to feel it too. Her body started to feel light as well, and before she knew it, she had fallen to the ground and lost consciousness.
A/N: I was supposed to update this weeks ago, but life had come and swooped me up to reality...temporarily. But now, I'm back! With a new chapter!
It was honestly fun writing the latter portion of this fic, especially with the first time Persona summoning and all. Now the question you might be wondering, why is Minato's initial Persona, Thanatos? ...Is it really Thanatos?
You'll all find out soon! For now, you can all guess. Oh, and speaking of guesses, in the next chapter, I would be revealing the official romantic ships for the Protagonists!
Fun tidbit! Here's a small summary preview for next chapter: A dream, a hospital, shenanigans, and welcome to SEES!
Aaaaanyways, that's all for now, I can't say I'll update this soon as I have work (uhuhuhu). But, I'll update it when I do have the time!
Thanks for reviewing/favoriting/following this fic! Reviews are greatly appreciated and see you all in the next chapter!
EDIT: Aaahh, I edited a certain dialogue in the fic that no one was supposed to know till the next or next next chapter. Whoops!;;;;
