Disclaimer: I do not own the Persona series. And with a New Year... I still don't own it, coz Atlus does.

Author notes:
1. Be advised that words that are italicized are the character POV's thoughts, or a voice in the POV's head, or music. The horizontal line denotes either a change in scenario, or a change in POV.

2. Enjoy!


"The Right Tool for the Job"

???
Time unknown

"I welcome you again, Shinichi Nanjou."

Shin realized that he was once again sitting on the familiar sofa in the place that was called the Velvet Room. The intensely bright spotlights focused on him and the speaker before him, dimming the rest of the environment, though he could still make out the blind piano player and the singer, not to mention the hot lady in the blue dress whom he remembered was known as Margaret.

Igor smiled. "It would seem that it was Icarus who heeded your call. He is now your Persona to command, as you see fit. In addition, as I said before you and your two friends are… special. All three of you are Wild Cards, and have the ability to dive into the sea of your unconscious and retrieve different Personas for you to command. I am certain that you will be needing this for the future that is to come."

"Future… that is to come? What do you mean? Do you mean to tell me that there'll be more of those things?" Shin asked, puzzled.

Igor frowned, and interlaced his fingertips. "The chaos is encapsulating your world, it seems."

"It seems? You're not sure?"

"We who reside in this Velvet Room have existed for a long time, and have seen a countless number souls and a countless number of destinies play out, both good and ill. However, something differs now. Something… interferes with our ability to see and judge the threat… and that is a threat in and of itself."

"What the hell is this guy talking about?"

Igor then shook his head, and smiled once again. "But that is a telling for another day. I have called you here again to offer you my services, should you require them. Some Personas may not respond to you as Icarus has if you call; however, that is what I am here for."

Igor then gestured at the table in front of them, and Shin noticed the innumerable blank cards that were laid out.

Shin stared at Igor. "And what are we supposed to do here? Play the card game Memory?"

"These are the countless possibilities that exist in the sea of your soul. In time, each of these will fill out as you gain more control over the power of the Persona. My job is help you awaken the rest of the possible Personas that you may wield in battle, either by experience or through the method of fusion."

Igor then cocked his head, as if hearing a sound from a far-off place. "Ah, it seems that our time is at an end. I pray that you make use of my services, just as Souji Seta did. It will be an invaluable tool. Until then, good-bye."


"Still nothing?"

"No, I checked, and the doctor said that Rei woke up and was released yesterday. The others though…"

Shin opened his eyes and started stretching his arms.

"Wait… I was injured. Why no pain?"

He looked around the room and saw both Faust and Souji standing near the doorway, talking among themselves. The two hadn't seen him wake, and he took the opportunity to wriggle his toes and stretch his muscles a bit. His body still felt weak, but that could be remedied with some food.

"Hey." Souji had finally noticed him, and was grinning. "Nice to see you finally up again. How are you feeling?"

Shin smiled. "Meh, same old, same old. Feels like I've been sleeping for so long though. Did I at least get a good-looking nurse or doctor to take care of me?"

Faust chuckled. "You wish, pal."

Shin laughed. "Everything's back to normal! Yes! I guess that Igor guy was wrong then."

"The doctor says that you were just under a lot of fatigue. Apparently, you just needed a lot of rest," Souji noted.

"Though sleeping for a week might be a bit too much rest, if you ask me, you lazy bum," joked Faust.

"W-w-wait, a week? Oh shit, I'm screwed! This week was supposed to have those small quizzes plus the assignments and projects…"

Souji shook his head. "Well, this past week wasn't exactly… normal."

He looked at Souji, stunned. "Had Igor been right all along?"

Souji continued. "You see, apart from you, me, Rei, and Faust, every single student that watched that video that night have been experiencing… I guess a sickness, for a lack of a better term."

Faust nodded. "Yeah, a few that are still asleep are apparently in some sort of coma, while those that woke up have been just drooling and staring out into whatever all day. But the weird thing is, there have been reports all over Japan of people developing these exact conditions. The media's starting to call it a national epidemic, though they don't really know what caused it.

Just so you know, the hospital here in Meguro is also packed with patients experiencing the same thing. In fact, the only reason why you got your own room was because of the influence of the Nanjou Group. The others have to share a room with one or two others."

Shin stopped for a moment to take in all the information. "A national epidemic? Is this the threat? How the hell are we supposed to stop a fucking disease, if we don't even know the cause… or do we?

Shin looked up. "Is this because of the appearance of those Shadows?"

"Most probably. I have no experience in this sort of stuff, but Souji thinks that the case too," Faust answered.

Souji nodded. "Yes, it's a big possibility. You remember me saying that I recently came from Inaba? That was the first place that I encountered these Shadows. But from my experience, contact with them usually leads to death, and not this… whatever condition this is."

"Apathy Syndrome."

They all turned as Rei came inside the room, again with that stealthy, thief-like movement of his.

"That's what they call this condition. I don't remember the specifics, but it apparently reduces a person into a vegetative state," Rei continued, oblivious to the surprised stares and raised eyebrows.

Faust tilted his head questioningly. "And how the hell do you know about this?"

Rei gave him a blank stare. "I just know. I have my sources. Anyways, there was a case like this in the Tatsumi Port Island region a few years back that gradually grew into a nationwide predicament just like it is now, but the Kirijo Group successfully stamped out the rumors and reports before it could become something big…"

Shin shook his head. "Wait, wait, wait, stop with all of this. All I wanted to know was how exactly these Shadows cause this?"

Rei shifted his gaze to Shin. "If I remember correctly, it's mainly due to individuals being attacked by Shadows."

"But that's not possible. You saw what those Shadows tried to do to us. They were attempting to kill us, not turn us into some sort of zombie," Faust interjected.

Souji nodded once again. "I agree. From what I gathered from the previous encounter with our Shadow Selves, the Shadows were attempting to replace us by killing off the originals and setting themselves up as the real thing. Where does Apathy Syndrome come in?"

Rei shook his head. "I don't know, Souji-senpai. Anyway… not to go to an entirely different subject, but if what you say is true, then how can we be so sure that the students currently here from the dormitory are real people, and not Shadows?"

Shin shuddered. At least eight more of those… things, in human form. That was a disturbing thought.

Shin could feel the seconds tick away as everyone was left to brooding amongst themselves. A few moments later Rei turned to leave, but Souji stopped him.

"Wait, there's one more thing I want to tell you two."

Shin looked towards Souji quizzically, while Rei turned around and leaned on the door, crossing his arms.

"There's one other thing… it's about that scene that both of you saw. It repeats itself everyday, without fail, around midnight to one in the morning."

"What scene?" Shin asked.

"The red sky, the dull green atmosphere, the bloody streets… it all appears at exactly the same time. I've never seen the like," Souji explains.

Shin scratched his head. "Uhhh, so what?"

"So what? So what!? That's when everything goes to hell, that's what!" Faust replied angrily.

Souji crossed his arms. "That's when even more Shadows come out, but not like the ones you've seen. They're more like monsters, or demons, or things that you only see in your nightmares. Those were the same Shadows that I faced at Inaba, though how they can exist outside the realm me and my friends called the Midnight Channel is beyond me."

"The Dark Hour, then."

Everyone looked at Rei in surprise once again.

"It's supposed to be a hidden hour after midnight, or so I recall. The description does fit, after all," Rei continued indifferently.

Faust glared at Rei. "You sound like this situation's all fine and dandy. Well, it's not. Souji and I have been fighting throughout the week during this Dark Hour or whatever you call it, killing off Shadows, protecting civilians…"

Rei betrayed a look of surprise, one that Shin wasn't accustomed to seeing. "Civilians? But the Dark Hour can't be experienced by normal people. They get Transmogrified... basically they get turned into coffins. And electronics aren't supposed to function…"

Faust scowled. "Well, genius, they don't get Transmo-whatever-that was. Civilians can also see and experience this Dark Hour. The police are on high alert now at around midnight mainly because of all the attacks going on."

"You're right about the electronics not functioning. But this Dark Hour can't be hidden though, as time doesn't exactly stand still as this goes on. It usually ends maybe fifteen minutes after one in the morning, though I can't really say for sure," explained Souji.

Without saying a word, Rei immediately turned and exited the room.

"What the heck is his problem," Faust mumbled.

"I'll talk to him later," Souji replied as he turned towards Shin. "I just wanted to ask both of you if you guys would like to help us out. You have a Persona now too, and only those with our power can actually defeat these Shadows. Faust and I just plan on going out around midnight when we can to hunt down some Shadows, maybe saving some people along the way."

Shin looked at Souji, and felt the sincerity of his words in his eyes.

"Wow, now I've seen it all… you're really a saint, aren't you, Souji? Help some random stranger on the street? Without compensation at all? What the hell? Why would I even want to do that? Besides, I was scared as fuck when I fought back then. I was hoping that I could just use this Persona power for other 'stuff'."

Faust looked at him, eyes gleaming. "You know, we saved this really hot girl the other day… I even got her number, so we could hang out. If everything goes well I'm actually thinking of dumping Ami for her. I'm sure this sort of thing happens often too."

"What? Faust, that damned playboy, he already has Ami! But then again, maybe I could be a hero to some really beautiful chick… maybe get my own girlfriend in process? Awesome! Besides, I'll have Souji, a veteran Shadow hunter and if all goes well, Rei as well, so those two will probably make short work of the enemies, and then I can just deal the killing blow and look cool and…"

Shin grinned. "I'll do it."


Saturday, April 21, 2012
Shoji Memorial Hospital

-1:00 p.m.-

Reinhardt hurried down the hallway, dodging the various doctors and nurses, and some patients, that got in his way. This hospital had been packed full of all the victims of suffering Apathy Syndrome, and the doctors and nurses were moving to and fro, trying desperately to organize the massive exodus of patients coming in. Everyone glared at him as he pushed his way through the hallways and corridors of the floor towards the elevator, but he didn't care. He was used to those stares, used to people disliking him or even hating him. But he knew that that was the length to which they would actually go. No one ever confronted him, mainly because of his height and his foreign looks. No one had the guts.

But if someone did, he would just be run down, just like all those that wouldn't budge as he made his way through the crowds, pondering the current situation.

"So this isn't the Dark Hour, then? This is even more trouble than I realized."

He immediately turned into the elevator, where people were packed shoulder to shoulder, and instinctively made more room for himself.

"If Souji-senpai is correct, then those students admitted into this hospital are all threats. If not direct threats, then an indirect danger to the hospital itself. Who knows if they're actually Shadows in disguise. Something has to be done about them. Maybe killed? I say it's better to be safe than sorry."

Upon reaching the 8th floor, he made his way through the familiar corridors and went directly to the room that he always visited.

The room of his sister.

Upon entering, however, he was confronted by a lovely woman with long, red locks the same shade as his own, seated at his sister's bedside with her back turned to him. However, he didn't need to see her face to know who it was.

It was her.

The woman turned towards him, her familiar eyes projecting poise and confidence. "Reinhardt."

He stared at her coldly as he shut the door. "It's you. Why are you here?"

"I just came to chat with Lia. I was planning on visiting you at your dormitory as well, but seeing that you're here now as well, that makes things easier."

"What do you want from me?" he asked sharply.

The girl sighed and shook her head. "You've always been like this, even back then Rei. The Kirijo Group isn't your enemy. I'm not your enemy."

He crossed his arms and glared. "Is that all? Another lecture for me?"

The woman regarded him sternly. "You broke into our system early this morning. It was one of the restricted files again. Why? Regarding the contents of that file, you know full well that I would have given you all the information if you had just asked."

"I did not break into your system. That's all I have to say."

"Reinhardt, it doesn't matter if you did it or you had one of your 'agents' do it, it amounts to the same thing. Besides, there are only a few individuals who know about those files, and more importantly, only a select few who would even care to remind themselves of its contents."

"I'm so sorry for my brother's behavior, Mitsuru-chan."

They both turned towards the speaker, his sister, Lia. Her long black hair framed a pale face that had gained a bit of meat the past week, though the bags under her eyes did betray a few sleepless nights. For the hundredth time he tried to ignore the scars on her neck and hands, but could not. He had caused those scars. He was the reason she was here.

"Don't talk to Mitsuru like that, Rei. I'm sure that she's already stressed at work; she doesn't need another headache coming from you," his sister continued.

Mitsuru sighed. "It's alright, Lia, you know that your brother and I always argue."

She turned to him again, and for the first time in his life he saw her uncertain. "It's Apathy Syndrome again. I had thought that this would all be over when Nyx was defeated. What happened?"

He shook his head, and took a seat on one of the other chairs in the room. "And then there's also the Dark Hour. Why is it back? I remember you telling me that you and your S.E.E.S. stopped it too. Are you telling me that Nyx is coming again?"

Mitsuru looked away from him, clearly uncomfortable. "We fought, but ultimately a man named Minato Arisato was the one who ended everything: Nyx, the Dark Hour, and the Apathy Syndrome."

He grunted sharply. "That's what you get for trusting the wrong tool, Mitsuru. This Minato Arisato person did a half-assed job, and now we have to pay for it."

Mitsuru immediately stood, face red and eyes flashing in anger. "How dare you! You weren't there when…"

He looked at her coldly. "Everything that's happening is caused by his failure. If you look at the circumstances now, it's pretty much a fact, and facts are all that matter. Now what we have to figure out is how to fix what he couldn't fix."

Mitsuru turned away from him, trembling. "I have to go now, Lia, but I'll come back again."

Lia smiled. "You're welcome to come and chat again, Mitsuru-chan. I'm very sorry about Rei. He can be very… insensitive."

Mitsuru only nodded, and left the room.

"That was very hurtful to Mitsuru, Rei. Couldn't you tell that Minato was close to her heart? She was smiling when she talked about him," she said, rebuking him with that no-nonsense tone that she always used when she lectured him.

He shrugged. "I only reiterated the facts as I see it. If she can't take it, then that's her problem. Her crying about it won't help us with this crisis we have."

He felt the warmth of her hands enclosing one of his, and furrowed his brows. "Is something wrong, big sis?"

"No… I just wanted to see if you're still made of flesh. You've grown harder, Rei. Less trusting. It hurts to see you like this," she replied, concern clearly etched on her face.

He took both her hands and put them inside his. "Don't ever worry about me, sis, just worry about yourself. I'll do what I have to and fulfill my promise, no matter what."

He hugged her tightly, but heard a small mumble from her.

"By then, Rei, what would you have become?"