Ugh, I did not like how this chapter began. I must have had serious writer's block, cause I couldn't think of any way to start off this chapter. So, I apologize ahead of time if the beginning is a little...dry. I hope that you all like the rest of the chapter, though. I thank everyone who is reading and reviewing my story, I really appreciate it! I give special thanks to Xoraan, who gave me awesome tips and ideas for writing my story, so thank you very much! I hope you like this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Persona or its characters

~Paulownia Mall, Afternoon~

Near the back of Paulownia Mall, there was an alley way. Aigis and the others, including Shinjiro, were walking in the direction of the Velvet Room.

"Why the hell are we going to a dead end alley way?" Shinjiro asked.

Aigis looked at him. "This is the alternate way to the Velvet Room. We've all been there before, right?"

Shinjiro stared at her. "You mean that weird elevator that we were transported to before we left the dorm?"

Aigis nodded. Once they got to the end, Aigis took out a glowing key from her dress pocket. She opened the door, and a bright light enveloped them all. Next thing they knew, they were in the Velvet Room.

~Velvet Room~

When they entered, there was a table with two chairs in front of it. A sofa was on the opposite side of the table. Sitting on the sofa, was an old man with a long nose. His assistants were nowhere in sight.

"Ah, welcome to the Velvet Room! I see that we have all of our guests present! I believe you all already know me, but my name is Igor. I am delighted to see you all again!" Igor smirked. Aigis and Souji each took a seat in a chair, the others stood around them.

"Now that everyone is present, I will gladly answer any questions that you may have!" Igor stated.

Aigis looked at him. "How will we go about finding Minako-san's memories? And why do I need Shinjiro-san and Souji-san in order to do so?"

Igor began laughing. "Minako Arisato's memories are being kept in a place that even I am aware of! The path to reaching her memories can only be done with the help of the wild card, which is why you needed Souji Seta's help! Of course, even if that path is shown to you, you will need a guide through this journey, or else you might just be lost for all eternity! And we certainly do not want that!"

"Well, who's going to be our guide, then?" Junpei asked.

"Patience! That will be revealed once you find the place you are looking for!" Igor said. "Her memories are like a labyrinth...intertwined with one another, until they finally connect at one common point! I hope you will keep that in mind!"

Everyone began looking at each other.

"What do you mean by that?" Souji asked.

"In due time. Now then...once you find the place you are searching for, let me warn you that whoever enters the place will in turn remember past events involving themselves! It might be a happy moment, a sad moment, a joyful moment, or even a heartbreaking/traumatizing moment! And that goes for everyone, not just for Arisato's friends!" Igor stated.

Aigis nodded. "How long will we have to complete this task?"

Igor smiled. "The Great Seal, I predict, will be released in one year. As the days go on, the seal will get weaker and weaker. You must bring her memories back to her body before the seal is fully broken! And that's where this young man comes into the picture!" Igor stared at Shinjiro. Shinjiro stared at Igor with an unreadable expression on his face.

Igor continued. "I'm pretty sure most of you were aware of his relationship to Arisato? Therefore, he's the only one that can transfer the memories to her!"

Everyone's eyes widened.

"Why him?" Akihiko yelled.

Igor raised an eyebrow. "From my sources, it's true that this man shared the most memories with Arisato...even some memories that the rest of you were unaware of! Once you meet your guide, he will tell you the rest of the details!" Igor began laughing again.

"...Tch." Shinjiro looked away from the rest of the group, who were now staring intently at him. Souji looked at Igor.

"I have one more question: Where's Margaret?"

Igor looked at him. "Margaret has a mission of her own at the moment! Most recently, my assistant, Theodore, has left without a word. Therefore, Margaret and her younger sister Elizabeth are currently looking for him as we speak! They are siblings, afterall!"

Souji nodded. Aigis nodded as well.

"Very well, then until we meet again, I bid you all a fond farewell! I hope that you succeed in time..." Igor said. Then, the walls of the Velvet Room became blurry, and the door disappeared. Everyone appeared in the middle of Paulownia Mall.

"Well, that was the most confusing shit I've ever heard." Kanji stated, scratching his head.

"At least now, we know what we must do." Aigis told everyone. "But, we still have to find the place where Minako-san's memories are kept. Do you have an idea to where it is, Souji-san...?"

Souji pulled out a wild card from his pocket. "I'm getting a faint sense as to where it is...but it's still unclear. Was there a place that was special to Minako-san? Like a place she always went?"

The members of SEES began thinking.

"The only place I can think of is the dorm, but it's closed down. And that's where the Abyss of Time was..." Yukari frowned.

"Hey, what about Naganaki Shrine? I always saw her pray there, or hang out with a few of her friends there. That's also where she's buried." Junpei said.

Souji shook his head. "That's in Iwatodai, correct? I don't sense anything on that end. I sense something pretty close...like on Tatsumi Port Island..."

"What about the Moonlight Bridge? That's where "Death" got sealed within Minako-chan, and where her parents were killed..." Fuuka said.

Souji shook his head. "I don't think that's it, either...it's closer."

"But, that only leaves Gekkoukan High School...and I highly doubt Minako had any good memories there..." Akihiko frowned.

"But, that's the only place left...so it has to be there, right?" Yukari looked at everyone, then stopping her eyes at Shinjiro.

"Shinjiro-senpai, is there any place you can think of at the school where Minako might have been that was memorable?"

Shinjiro glared at her. "How the hell should I know?"

Akihiko looked at him. "...You love her...am I right? So, quit acting like you want nothing part of this, and start thinking!"

After a brief pause, Shinjiro looked at Souji.

"...Try the school's roof..."

Everyone gasped.

"The school's roof! How could we have missed that?" Junpei smiled.

"Come on, everyone, let's go!" Aigis yelled. They all ran to Gekkoukan High School...

~School Roof~

When they got to the school's roof, they were shocked: At the front of the roof, where it overlooked all of Iwatodai, there was a huge door, chains intertwined within it. On the front of the door, were three angelic-looking figures: A girl with butterfly wings was looking into the eyes of a young man with one white angel wing. And another young man with four black angel wings was reaching out to the girl. Everyone thought that the picture was too ominous to be a coincidence.

"...Doesn't the girl look an awful lot like Minako...?" Yukari questioned. As everyone took a closer look, they did think that there was a huge resemblance.

"Then...that must mean that the young man she's looking at is..." Ken looked in Shinjiro's direction. Shinjiro averted Ken's stare, and continued looking at the door.

"But...who's the one reaching out to Minako? He has four black angel wings...so does that mean he's a fallen angel...?" Akihiko asked. Naoto took a closer look at the figure.

"Well, judging by the wings, I'm assuming that he is indeed a fallen angel...and by his facial expression, I can only assume that he is, or at least, was, very close to Minako-san. Maybe a friend of hers who died, perhaps?" Naoto said.

As Aigis began inspecting the figure as well, her eyes widened. "W-wait...this person is...!"

Just then, the huge door opened. Everyone immediately went into a battle stance, not knowing who, or what, would come out of the door. Then, they caught sight of someone they hadn't expected to see.

"Long time no see." A young man stepped out of the door. He was pale-faced, his black hair was sleeked back (with the exception of one lone strand sticking up), and he wore a yellow scarf around his neck. He put his hand over his heart, and smiled.

"R-Ryoji-kun!" Yukari was shocked. Fuuka and Junpei just stared at him.

"Wh-what are you doing here...?" Aigis was on edge.

"Aww, is that anyway to speak to a friend?" Ryoji looked downwards.

"Who is this person...?" Souji asked.

Akihiko looked at him. "He was a shadow who was sealed inside of Minako for ten years. When he awoke, he brought the Fall along with him."

"Seriously?" Yosuke's eyes widened.

"So, he's like me, then? Cause I'm a shadow, too..." Teddie said.

"Well, actually...I'm the embodiment of all shadows." Ryoji corrected them.

"But...back to the matter at hand...what are you doing here?" Aigis asked. Ryoji looked at her.

"Minako gave me the mission of leading you through the Labyrinth of Memories. That's what this giant door leads to, and where all of Minako's memories are being kept." Ryoji explained.

"Right...we have the current Wild Card, Souji-san, here with us. We also have Shinjiro-san here...do those meet the requirements to enter...?" Aigis asked.

Ryoji nodded. "...However, I'm afraid that you can only enter this place at night, since a lot of her memories took place during the Dark Hour. Don't worry, the Dark Hour won't return."

"But then, how will we get into the school? It's locked at night!" Yukari yelled.

"Well, Mitsuru is the head of the Kirijo Group, who runs the school. I'll give her a call whenever we decide to go to this place." Akihiko said.

"...Well, I say that we call it a day, and come back here tomorrow night...I'm tired." Yosuke frowned. Everyone stared at him.

"Why would we wait till tomorrow? It's right here, let's just get this over with so we can see Minako-tan again!" Junpei yelled.

Ryoji shook his head. "No, the young man is right. You guys should preserve your strength. How bout we hang out somewhere? I'm starving!" And with that, Ryoji took off, the door closing behind him.

"Alright, but what should we do?" Ken asked.

Ryoji began thinking. "Hmmm...well, I heard from Minako that Shinjiro-san is an excellent cook. Can you make me something? It's felt like years since I last ate a decent meal..."

Shinjiro glared at him. "I'm not your damn personal chef!"

"Well, we can make something for ya, right, Yukiko?" Chie asked. Yukiko nodded.

"Ooh, I wanna help, too!" Rise cheered.

Yosuke grimaced. "We just got here, and we already have to eat Mystery Food X?"

Chie kicked him in between the legs.

"OWWWW!" Yosuke fell to the floor.

"Hah! Serves you right!" Chie, Yukiko, and Rise walked off, not looking back.

"Nngh...If that keeps up, I'm gonna need reconstruction surgery..." Yosuke winced.

Souji helped him up.

"That's what you get for making fun of 'em, Senpai." Kanji grinned.

"Oh, I'll help you, Senpai." Naoto helped Souji carry Yosuke's weight. Souji smiled at her.

"Thanks."

Naoto blushed. The three of them walked off. Kanji sulking right behind them. Teddie ran after them as well.

"Ouch...that looked like it hurt..." Junpei winced.

"Huh...I like Chie-chan's style. Maybe I should try it on you sometime, Junpei." Yukari looked at him.

"...Oh, hell no..." Junpei ran off as fast as he could.

Yukari and Fuuka both giggled and ran after him.

"So, I guess it's decided that Shinji will cook for all of us. Just make sure that it's delicious, alright?" Akihiko said to Shinjiro.

Shinjiro frowned. "...I'm not the one who can't even make a single dish right. I thought that Fuuka was bad, but you..." Shinjiro had a pained look on his face.

Akihiko scratched his head. "Well, I don't watch the Family Cooking Show like you guys do..." He smirked.

Shinjiro gave him a nasty glare. "Shut up..."

"...Hey, where's Koro?" Ken asked.

Shinjiro looked at him. "I left him back at the apartment...he was tired, so I let him rest."

Ken looked worried. "That's not like Koromaru...I hope he's alright."

"He'll be fine. He was basically running around like crazy at the shrine a day before."

Shinjiro put his hand on Ken's shoulder.

"Hey, come on, ya slowpokes! Shinjiro-senpai, our food isn't gonna cook itself!" Junpei yelled.

"...I never agreed to making you all food..." Shinjiro said, a faint smile appearing on his face. Akihiko and Ken laughed.

"Looks like you're making us food, then, Shinjiro-san." Ken smiled.

"...Ugh." Shinjiro frowned and slowly walked back down. Akihiko and Ken followed him.

As Aigis was about to leave, she looked back at the door.

'...Don't worry, Minako-san...we'll make sure that we retrieve all of your memories...so you don't have to worry...'

Aigis left the roof.

~Shinjiro's Apartment, Evening~

The team, including Ryoji, was seated around the TV, waiting for dinner to be ready. Yukiko, Chie, Rise, Fuuka, and Shinjiro were in the kitchen.

"Aragaki-senpai, I made sure to measure all of the ingredients beforehand." Fuuka said proudly. Shinjiro nodded.

"Good...at least you got somewhat better than back then..." Shinjiro smiled sadly.

"Hey, uh...Shinjiro-san..." Chie began. "This doesn't look right..." As she took the plate out of the oven, there was some kind of burnt substance on it, probably the remnants of whatever it was she was cooking. A pained look appeared on Shinjiro's face.

"...This feels like two years ago all over again...Isn't there any girl around here that can cook somewhat good?" Shinjiro frowned. He grabbed the mystery food from Chie and threw it away.

"Start over. And this time, read the instructions. I have a bookshelf of cookbooks over there...just grab one and make something..." Shinjiro said and continued to cook some sweet and sour pork.

Yukiko was busy cooking something as well. "How's this, Aragaki-san?"

Shinjiro looked at her and went over to where she was cooking. He looked down and saw that she made omelet and fried rice. '...This brings back memories...' He thought as he tasted it. It was actually pretty good.

"...Not bad. You can cook better than this one at least." He said as he eyed Chie.

Yukiko smiled. "R-Really? Oh thank goodness...omelet and fried rice is pretty much the only thing I can cook..."

"I'm done, Shinjiro-san!" Rise cheered. "Taste some!"

Shinjiro stared at her. 'This girl...she reminds me of Minako...' He smiled sadly.

"...What did you make?" Shinjiro asked.

"Curry...I like my food spicy, so I hope it's not too spicy for the others..." Rise smiled.

Shinjiro put a spoonful of the curry in his mouth. "*cough* It might be a little too spicy..." He tried his best to maintain his calm composure and reached for a glass of water.

Rise sighed. "Darn...ok, I'll try again."

"Hey, is the food ready yet?" Junpei yelled.

"Yeah, come on Shinji, we're starving!" Akihiko yelled.

Shinjiro glared at them. "Don't you guys know the meaning of patience? Damn, even Koro-chan can sit quietly for one hour!"

That must have scared them, cause after that, no one complained.

"Everything looks good..." Souji and Naoto walked over to the kitchen.

"Oooh Senpai! Can you try my new batch of curry? My first one was too spicy..." Rise asked. Souji was hesitant at first, but nodded. He took a bite.

"Hmm...This is actually pretty good!" Souji said and ate some more.

Rise's eyes were sparkling. "Yay! Hearing that from you makes me feel so much better, Senpai!" Rise hugged Souji. Souji had an uncomfortable look on his face, especially when Yukiko was throwing dagger glares at Rise.

"...Senpai, you're a good cook, aren't you? Maybe you should take over for them. I wouldn't want to try this Mystery Food X that Yosuke-senpai keeps going on about." Naoto said, in an effort to get Yukiko and Rise away from Souji.

Yukiko and Rise glared at her. Shinjiro looked at Souji.

"...You can cook?"

Souji nodded. "Somewhat...I'm better than the rest of them, anyway."

Shinjiro handed him an apron. "Then start cooking. With these three cooking, we won't get done till tomorrow night. And don't make a mess...I have too much shit to clean up as it is."

Souji nodded and began cooking.

"Is there anything I can help with, Aragaki-san?" Naoto asked.

Shinjiro stared at her. "...If you ask me, I think you just want to spend time with this guy over here." He said, pointing to Souji. Naoto's eyes widened, and she began blushing from embarrassment. "...Fine, you can take over with whatever Satonaka was making." Chie sighed and handed Naoto her apron. Chie walked to where everyone else was sitting.

"Umm, Senpai...what are you going to make?" Naoto asked.

Souji looked at her. "I'm not sure yet...what do you like to eat, Naoto-kun?"

Naoto averted his gaze. "W-Well, I like pork cutlet..."

He smiled. "Then I'll make that."

Yukiko looked at them. "Umm, Souji-kun...I like teriyaki chicken..."

Souji looked at Yukiko and smiled as well. "I'll make some of that, too."

Yukiko smiled. She then glared at Naoto, who was smirking at her almost mockingly.

Shinjiro was scratching his head as he watched. '...Damn love-struck idiots...' He smiled wistfully.

About 3 hours later...

"Dinner's ready everyone!" Rise yelled.

Everyone walked into the dining room and saw a variety of delicious looking food.

"Mmmm...it smells so good!" Yukari said.

"It's all thanks to Aragaki-san and Souji-kun." Yukiko stated.

Shinjiro had an embarrassed look on his face. He pulled his beanie over his eyes.

"...By the way, weren't you cooking as well, Chie-chan?" Yosuke smirked.

"Ugh, I was kicked out...I guess I'm not that good a chef afterall..." Chie's face saddened.

Yosuke's eyes widened. "And it took you till NOW to realize it?"

Chie glared at him. "Well, sorry if my cooking wasn't good enough back then! I thought I had at least improved!"

As Yosuke and Chie were going at it, Junpei was smiling.

"Soooo, are you two in love?" He asked.

"HELL NO!" Yosuke and Chie both yelled. They continued to yell at each other.

"Pffffft...Hahahahaha!" Yukiko broke out into laughter.

"Uh, is she gonna be alright...?" Ken asked, worried. That caused Yosuke and Chie to stop fighting.

"Yeah, that happens a lot...you'll have to get used to it..." Chie sighed.

They continued to eat.

"This is so good!" Ryoji yelled as he was plowing the food into his mouth. "It's been forever since I had food this good!"

"I'm glad you like it, Ryoji-san." Yukiko said.

"No really, this is some good food...the last time I ate something this good was when Minako would take me out to eat somewhere...any food I ate around her tasted good..." Ryoji smiled sadly.

This caused an uncomfortable silence.

"...You were really close to Minako, weren't you...?" Yukari asked. Junpei and Fuuka frowned.

"...Yeah. She was the only one I loved...the only one I wanted. I told her those exact words, and she smiled. I even asked if she could stay by my side forever, and she touched my hand and nodded, still smiling..." Ryoji said.

At that point, Shinjiro couldn't take anymore. He got up and went down the hall to his bedroom, and closed the door.

"Shinji!" Akihiko yelled. He sighed.

"Oh, I'm sorry...I didn't realize that it would upset him that much..." Ryoji apologized.

Akihiko shook his head. "You don't have to apologize...Shinji just misses her, is all. Even though he refused to admit it, we all knew that he loved Minako..." Akihiko smiled sadly. "But...did she really tell you that she would stay by your side forever...?"

Ryoji nodded. "Yeah...she smiled sadly when I told her, as if she knew that it would be a mistake to be with me. But, when I remembered who I was, and why I felt so attached to her...she still smiled, as if she wasn't hurt by it, or regretted it. And then, on New Year's Eve two years ago, she refused to kill me. Even after I showed her my true form and told her that she would suffer greatly if she didn't kill me...she still refused. I...I wanted her to remember me for who I was as a human, and not who I was as the embodiment of all shadows. So, I asked her to touch me...to make sure I existed." Ryoji looked down. "...She gently caressed my hand, still smiling. As proof that I was human, and that I loved her...I gave her my ring. She was happy when I gave it to her..."

Everyone frowned, looking down.

"...That's why...I want her to be happy with the people she can actually spend time with. I might be in my human form now...but I might just turn into something inhuman once all this is over...just like last time. I-I don't want to hurt her again." Tears rolled down Ryoji's cheeks. "Even if I would like to spend the rest of my time with her, in that dark empty space called the Great Seal...I know that she would be happier here...with all of her friends, old and possibly even new." He said, looking at Souji and the others. "...And I know that she would be especially happy to see Shinjiro-san again...and to live life with him..."

Akihiko looked at him. "...Ryoji..."

Ryoji wiped the tears from his eyes. "No...it's alright. I promised Minako that I would help you guys retrieve her memories. And I would never back down from a promise with her." Ryoji smiled. "Tomorrow evening, at midnight, I will show you all the inside to the Labyrinth of Memories, and to the first ordeal you must face..."

"So, this Labyrinth...it will show us all the memories we've had with Minako?" Yukari asked.

Ryoji nodded. "And after you see those memories, I will transfer them into Shinjiro's memory as well...for he's the only one that can give them back to Minako. But...those aren't the only memories you'll be facing...because this place manifests memories from whoever enters, there's a possibility that memories of the new members will show up as well...memories that meant something to them as a whole."

Everyone looked at each other.

"So, that means that we might relive memories that we've had as well?" Yosuke asked.

Ryoji nodded. "There is a possibility that might happen. Most likely they will be memories back when you all investigated that serial murder case in Inaba."

Yosuke frowned. "Great...we have to live through that again..."

"...Do I...have to go in that place too? I don't want to relive that hell I went through..." Kanji said, frowning.

"Aww come on, if we got through it once, we can do it again!" Teddie cheered.

"Do you really think so?" Yukiko asked.

"Fo'sho!" Teddie smiled. "Now as for me...I hope that we relive the last time we visited this place...when we played King's Game and..." Hearts were literally flying out of Teddie's head. Kanji tackled him.

"Aww no! No way in hell am I reliving that damn event!" Kanji yelled.

Souji started laughing. "I remember that event... Sorry, but I'm gonna have to side with Kanji-kun on that one..."

The others looked confused.

"What happened during that time?" Ken asked. They all looked at him.

"Uh, nothing...!" Kanji yelled, blushing from embarrassment.

They all began laughing more.

Meanwhile, in a certain room at the end of the hall, Shinjiro was listening to that whole conversation.

'...Looks like everyone had good memories while I was unconcious...Even Minako...thanks to that Ryoji...' Shinjiro bit his lip. '...That's good. After all, people can move on and live as long as they have good memories to look back on. That must be why Ryoji is trying so hard to fulfill Minako's promise to him. Tch, I should be able to move on in life as well...yet, here I am...still unable to accept the fact that she gave her life to protect this world...and that she saved me, who should be dead right now...' He reached into his pocket and held Minako's mp3 player firmly in his hand. '...Don't worry, Minako...if what Ryoji says is true...I will help fulfill your wish as well...and I will help you get your memories back...I promise...'

Shinjiro closed his door and went to sleep.

Well, I hoped you liked it! I tried my best to incorporate the implied love triangle of Naoto/Souji/Yukiko, as well as adding the funny cooking scenes. I laughed throughout all the cooking scenes from P3P and P4, so I figured "why not add some to my story!" I also wanted to imply the relationship of RyojixMinako, cause that relationship was so sweet, yet so tragic at the same time...they were Star-Crossed Lovers...destined not to be together. That made me sad, so I wanted Ryoji to have some love as well. I hope you liked this chapter, and please review!