Chapter 8: Lovers with a Little Doubt
7/7/2009
Dark Hour
A faint, constant buzz in his consciousness stirred the blue-haired young man, his head rolling to the side as if being disturbed by a troubling dream or a nightmare. Sprawled out on the heart-shaped bed in an unrefined manner Minato sluggishly began to move, his movements feeling as if they were taking place underwater. Everything his nerves detected Minato's mind could barely register and opening his eyes only resulted in everything in sight to be colored blurs, reminding him of the one time he had to use glasses and took them off.
Minato raised his left arm in front of him, his hand physically appearing before him but feeling detached from his body, as if it were someone else's hand instead of his own. He sat up and the world began to spin around him, Minato only succeeding from falling by placing his hands on the bed and stabilizing himself. Everything was a blur, dream-like, and nothing had clarity. Minato closed his eyes as he tried to think, focusing on piecing together thoughts bit by bit. The buzz that he was constantly hearing clarified into the sound of running shower. The sensation between his fingers was the soft blanket covering the bed. The pressure in his shoulders was from the majority of his weight being distributed on them.
Minato slowly opened his blue eyes, everything still a blur but quickly coming into focus as he shifted his eyes back and forth across the room. A fancy mirror adorned the wall to his left, two doors in front of him, one presumably the bathrooms judging from the sound of the shower and the other most likely the entrance to this strange room. Everything was pink or purple, the lighting was dim, and there was an odd aroma in the room that Minato couldn't quite recognize. Where am-
Minato's thought was cut off as an intense stabbing pain erupted from inside his head, Minato reflexively grabbed his head with both hands as he failed to breathe, falling back onto the surface of the bed gasping for air. Minato had never experience this degree of pain in his life, forcing himself to take short, quick breaths unless he wanted to risk passing out due to lack of oxygen. He writhed on the bed arcing his back, his eyes shut tightly as the pain escalated, his mind only registering sheer agony. But Minato refused to scream despite the torment he was enduring. He only had screamed once in his entire life and Minato wasn't about to do it a second time.
After what seemed like an eternity later Minato lay motionless on the bed, his chest rising and falling heavily as he took labored breaths, sweat breaking out on his entire body. Embrace your desire… Minato's eyes shot open as an alien voice spoke in his head, instantly on both his feet and alert.
My… desire? The thought this time was his. I… Don't desire anything… A flash of his parents appeared in his mind, both of them smiling joyously as they held their arms out welcomingly to him, the image disappearing as quickly as it came.
Of course you desire something. The voice spoke again, sweetly seductive. Everyone desires… Something. Lovely brown eyes and the image of a heart-shaped choker burned into his mind's eye.
No! You're wrong! Minato refused to give in to this… thing that was invading his subconscious.
Oh, you can't fight me. The voice laughed, a sound that threatened to lower Minato's guard. I am, after all, the voice of your inner self. Come now, embrace the moment. That which cannot be felt is merely a dream… The present is all we have.
Minato gritted his teeth as the pain he had undergone moments ago began to come back. The present wasn't all people had. People had memories, both the sad and the joyful. The only way they could be who they really were was because of the past. A person was made by learning, growing, hating, loving, all the experiences that should be cherished in the present gave way to the future. That's what Minato truly believed in.
The voice chuckled at his resistance. The future is but a fantasy, my boy, and you know that to be true. A memory is nothing but a fabrication. Stop being stubborn and indulge on your desire, thus freeing yourself from the shackles of selflessness.
The pain increased and Minato held his head once more, the voice whispering him, flooding his mind as he was barely able to form a thought that was his own. Memories… Memories! The image of his parents came back, appearing so real that for a moment Minato believed they had never disappeared. "Don't you dare tell me memories are a lie!" Minato shouted as the pain began to subside.
The presence of whatever occupied Minato's mind disappeared and everything was clear. Minato looked around, breathing just as raggedly as he was before. He sighed in relief at the absence of whatever it was that mentally assaulted him. A click brought Minato attention to the bathroom door as it opened, steam rolling out into the room and a figure stepped out wrapped in only a towel. It was Yukari. Minato's mouth opened and closed several times, and despite the absence of whatever it was, failed to make a complete thought. Anything I say will just result in me becoming a bloodstain.
PLEASURE IS WHAT YOU TRULY WANT. The voice came back and presence came back twice, no, three times more prominent than before, Minato almost collapsing at the knees from the sudden attack. YOU STAND BEFORE THE DOORWAY TO BLISS.
Strength that wasn't Minato's made his body straighten and step towards Yukari, who was standing there looking dimly into his eyes. Yukari… what're you doing? Minato thought as he tried to stop his movements, but couldn't. His hand reached out and brushed her cheek with the outside of his fingers, the sensation of the soft, smooth skin threatening to take away what little self-control he had left.
YOU CANNOT DENY YOUR INSTINCTS. EMBRACE YOUR DESIRE. The voice screamed in Minato's head, drowning out everything else in the process.
Yukari reached out with both hands and took off his jacket, quickly unbuttoning his shirt. To Minato's horror he found himself assisting her as the compulsion that controlled his body shrugged out of the clothing. No… Not like this… Minato fought desperately to keep his hand from moving towards the defenseless girl, but they moved no matter how much he struggled.
The mental pain from fighting the compulsion intensified the more he did so, soon his vision blurring and his body began to shake. The intensity of the pain he felt now made the past two almost seem painless. The darkness in his head threatened him to pass out, and Minato didn't want to think about what would happen if he did. Minato did the only thing he could to keep himself from blacking out. He screamed. What air he had left in his lungs he expelled from his body in a scream that only partially captured the agony, pain, and suffering that he was experiencing. Minato felt his legs give in and he collapsed onto the floor, clutching his head as he drew in another breath and screamed for the second time in recent memory. Looking back on this all Minato could recall from this time was the torture that he had to endure.
Yukari felt her skin crawl as she heard a blood-curdling scream, instinctively taking a few steps back away from the source before she realized that it sounded strangely familiar. "Minato-kun?!" Yukari shouted as she knelt beside him. Minato was still screaming and clutching his head, face contorting as it gave a small shred of light as to what he was experiencing. "Everything's going to be okay Minato," Yukari spoke in a soothing voice and stroked his hair, not sure what else she could do to help alleviate the pain. "Everything's going to be okay."
Yukari ignored the fact that she was only clad in a pink towel and that Minato was shirtless. How this came to be Yukari couldn't remember, but the only thing that concerned her now was how the unphasable leader of S.E.E.S. lay screaming in her lap. Yukari didn't know how long she sat there stroking his hair in an attempt to calm him down, but soon Minato had ceased the agonized screaming and was breathing slowly and evenly. "Minato-kun?" Yukari ventured.
"Y-Yeah… I'm… I'm okay." Minato took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."
Yukari didn't say anything in regards to that, knowing that Minato wouldn't appreciate her continued questioning of his condition. "Okay. I'm going to get dressed. Okay?"
"Yeah," Minato muttered absentmindedly as he sat up, his back to her. "Go do what you gotta do."
Minato waited for the bathroom door clicked shut before he let his body become devoid of strength, slumping like a ragdoll as he shook uncontrollably. Mentally Minato was exhausted to the point where he could barely think. He attempted to remember how he had gotten in this situation but his mind was a mess. The presence was finally gone, hopefully for good this time. Minato knew he didn't have it in him to go through something like that again any time soon.
"Can you stand?"
Minato hadn't even heard the door open but slowly nodded and shakily rose to his feet only to stumble. He would have fallen if Yukari hadn't caught him. "Sorry about this." Minato smiled weakly at his pitiful state.
"Don't mention it. Come on, sit on the bed." Yukari assisted Minato as he sat on the bed, placing his elbows on his knees and supporting his head with both hands. He was sweating and very pale, signs that made Yukari worry that he wouldn't be able to continue the operation.
"Yukari-san… If you remember tell me what happened." Minato managed to say, his voice disturbingly weak.
That simple request told Yukari that Minato was in no shape to continue on, but nonetheless she granted his inquiry. "Tonight is a full moon and we set out to destroy the Shadow that Fuuka detected at Shirakawa Boulevard, which is where we are now. We fought a large Shadow and managed to win but for some reason the door we were in refused to open. Fuuka reported that she suddenly detected another Shadow's presence in the room with us so we began to take a look around. I remember seeing a strange mirror and when I looked at it-" Yukari stopped as she failed to recall what happened next. "And that's it. I don't remember what happened afterword. The next thing I knew you were screaming in pain in front of me."
Minato slowly nodded as the night's events came back to him. The departure for the hotel, the Hierophant battle, the mirror, everything.
Minato-san? Is that you? Can you hear me? A voice spoke in Minato's head, this time it was gentle and comforting.
"Yeah I hear you, Fuuka-san," Minato said as steadily as he could, not wanting to concern the girl with his condition. He couldn't even begin to express how glad he was not to have an unwelcomed intruder in his head.
I tried to contact you sooner but the Shadow was interfering. Akihiko-senpai and Mitsuru-senpai got separated from you and are on the second floor. The enemy Shadow I'm detecting is in the same room you fought the previous one in.
Yukari pulled Minato to his feet, holding him steady. "Got it. Thanks Fuuka-chan. We'll meet up with them shortly." Yukari sensed the mental connection with Fuuka cut off. She turned to Minato, a worried look in her eyes. "You sure you can continue?"
Minato knelt down and picked up his shirt and jacket. "I can still fight. If I become a liability I'll step off to the side and offer support."
Yukari didn't understand where Minato's drive came from. She figured he had something to fight so hard for but she never could come up with a reason. "Hey Minato-kun…"
Minato turned his back to her as he slipped his right arm into his shirt. "Yeah?"
"When did you get that?" Yukari stared at his back, curious as to how long the black wings that stretched from his left shoulder blade down to his mid-back had been there.
"The tattoo?" Minato peaked over his shoulder before sliding his left arm into the sleeve. "Stupid idea I had in my last year of middle school. I was… quite the rebellious child back then." Minato gave a bitter, pained smile.
He's very pale. "I see. I was just curious." Yukari averted her gaze as Minato turned to face her, buttoning his shirt as he did so. Yukari felt her face grow slightly hotter.
"Ready to go?" Minato asked as he donned his jacket and strapped his Evoker around his waist, picking up his hand and a half sword that had been leaning against the wall.
Yukari slung her quiver over her shoulder and picked up her bow, quickly knocking an arrow as Minato grabbed the door handle. She nodded at him and the door swung open, Yukari stepping out facing the left, Minato facing the right. They relaxed fractionally at the lack of Shadows but they couldn't exactly let their guard down completely.
"Fuuka-san mentioned the senpai's were on the second floor. We're on the first. I'll take the lead." Minato said as he cautiously creeped towards the stairs, Yukari right behind him.
As they ascended the stairs a voice called out to them from the top, "Minato, Yukari! You guys were on the first floor, huh? You feeling alright?"
Minato brushed off the question and asked his own. "How about you guys?"
"W-We're fine! Nothing happened!" Mitsuru jumped to answer the question, the rate and manner in how she reacted lead Minato and Yukari to wonder what had transpired between their seniors. But, seeing that they themselves were in no position to share the events they had undergone, decided to keep their theories to themselves.
I'm sorry, Fuuka spoke to all of them as soon as their reunion concluded. I didn't expect there to be a second Shadow. I detect a barrier shielding the door of the room it's in, but I get the feeling there are seals that you can break to shut down the barrier.
"Is it the mirrors?" Akihiko was always a fast thinker in these kinds of situations.
The mirrors? Fuuka paused as she concentrated on the mirrors. Yes, that's it! I can sense the Shadow in some of the mirrors. I think the barrier will deactivate if you break all the mirrors.
"Teams of two. I don't want to spread ourselves too thin in here. Let's keep our original pairings," Minato immediately taking control as was expected of him, "Senpai's, you take the third floor. Yukari-san and I will handle this one. We'll regroup in front of the door where the Hierophant was at, understood?"
"Got it, Minato."
"We'll meet you there. Takeba, Arisato, be careful."
The two seniors jogged off to the staircase disappearing from their view.
"Alright let's get this done." Minato opened up the nearest door and Yukari scanned the room, bow drawn as Minato watched their backs.
"Nothing here," Yukari reported as she relaxed and closed the door behind her.
"Next one then."
They began to clear rooms like this, growing more and more efficient with every room they swept.
"This mirror's different." Yukari called out a little after they had searched half of the rooms.
Minato glanced left and right down the hall, double checking that it was clear before he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. The room was identical to the one the two of them had been in downstairs, except the mirror gave off a strange vibe. Yukari stood in front of it, frowning as the mirror failed to reflect her image.
"There's definitely something atypical about this one," Minato said as he smashed his sword hilt into the glass, shattering it.
That's it! Fuuka spoke to them the moment the mirror broke. The barrier weakened so there's at least one- Nevermind Akihiko-senpai and Mitsuru-senpai just took care of it. The barrier's gone now so you can fight the Shadow.
"We're heading there now," Minato reported as he and Yukari were already making their way up to the third floor.
The two of them quickly navigated their way to the VIP room where Mitsuru and Akihiko were already waiting for them.
"What took you guys so long?" Akihiko verbally jabbed at his two kouhai's as they jogged up to him.
"Oh please senpai, we smashed the mirror first," Yukari pointed out, not about to let her senior get the better of her.
"Fair enough." Akihiko dropped the argument he didn't have the time to continue as he turned towards Minato, frowning. "You okay, Minato? I didn't notice before but you look kinda pale."
Minato did his best not to express his discomfort, merely nodding as he placed his hand on the door handle to the VIP room. "Ready?"
"Whenever you are," Mitsuru answered, drawing her rapier and pointing it at the door.
"Go!" Minato swung the door open, Mitsuru, Akihiko, and Yukari bursting into the room and spreading out, surrounding the Shadow that was occupied the center of the room. Minato entered after Yukari and closed the door behind them and flipped the locking mechanism, trapping the Shadow in with them. Only one party is going to be leaving this place alive. Minato turned his attention to the center of the room, observing his opponent.
Like all of the other Shadows S.E.E.S. had encountered on a Full Moon this Shadow was unlike any they had encountered in Tartarus before. This Shadow took on the shape of a large flying heart, spikes protruding from either end along with two wings that seemed to be comprised of a gel hovering on the ends. Its body was a clear pink; Minato was able to see straight through it. The Shadow also had a small black neck with a pink mask at the top, the Roman Numeral VI on its forehead. Minato took a guess based on appearance alone that the Shadows belonged to the Lover's Arcana.
And like all the other Shadows S.E.E.S. encountered on a Full Moon this Shadow was to be taken out. No exception.
I'm beginning a scan of the enemy. Fuuka announced as soon as they had all entered the room.
While that was all fine and dandy the field team couldn't afford to wait for Fuuka to finish the scan before they started their attack. If they did they would all probably be dead from whatever it was the Shadow would do. Not that standing around and doing nothing while Fuuka scanned was even an option to the field team as they all began to move. Yukari took a few steps to her right to get a better shooting angle, arrow already knocked and ready to be released. Mitsuru pressed her Evoker against her temple as Akihiko stood ready to rush in the moment Mitsuru's Persona activated its magic. Minato's eyes flicked back and forth across the Shadow, analyzing and memorizing all of its movements, judging what each small gesture meant and flagged anything that seemed dangerous.
"Penthesilea!" Mitsuru pulled the trigger on her Evoker, the familiar blue glass shards appearing as her Persona materialized before her. Appearing as an iron-masked queen holding a dagger in one hand and a rapier in the other Mitsuru's Persona had an affinity for ice-type attacks. A reason that made Minato not even hesitate when selecting her for the field team; variety was a good thing to have when expecting to be thrown into unexpected predicaments.
Penthesilea crossed its blades in front of its chest, its figure outlined in blue as the Shadow was enveloped by a block of solid ice.
The moment Mitsuru had pulled the trigger Akihiko was already rushing in, fists clenched and his eyes bright from the adrenaline. Yukari steadied her aim as the senpai brought his fist into the ice block, shattering it and the Shadow slightly stunned from the sudden change in environment, something that wouldn't stun it again. Yukari wasn't about to let this chance go as she released her arrow which flew and impaled itself into the Shadows gel-like body. Despite the negligible effect Yukari reflexively drew another arrow and quickly began a steady rain of arrows.
The Shadows eyes flashed red and Minato pulled the Evoker from his holster. Without any knowledge as to what the Shadow was going to do Minato could only attempt to lessen the damage dealt by it as his pool of Persona's floated in front of him in the form of cards. Minato made a snatching gesture at the card belonging to the Devil Arcana knowing that the Succubus Persona had the skill he was looking for. "Rakukaja!" Minato directed the spell which increased his target's fortitude at Mitsuru purely on intuition alone.
A small fire orb appeared in front of all of them, condensing and becoming smaller but pulsing rapidly as it did so, giving the impression that it was barely containing itself. Minato leapt backwards as the orb exploded with concussive force, blanketing the area in fire. Although Minato attempted to reduce the effects by jumping backwards he only succeeded in propelling himself more as his back slammed against the wall, knocking the air out of his lungs. Maragion? Minato gasped for air as he recognized the attack the Shadow used and took a mental note of how the Shadow activated it for future reference.
"Zionga!" A bolt of lightning struck from above the Shadow, electrocuting it with millions of volts. It seemed that Akihiko had already recovered from Maragion and restarted his assault.
Yukari pulled the trigger of her Evoker, playing her part in assisting the rest of the team recover from the attack as she activated her party-wide healing spell Media. Minato felt a warm, comforting sensation along with sharp stings of pain as his scrapes and minor burns from the blast fast forwarded to a state of full recovery.
I got it! The enemy is strong against light and dark but I can't detect any weaknesses. It's also capable of using psychological attacks, so keep an eye on each other. Fuuka stated as Minato rose to his feet. No weakness wasn't a good sign and psychological didn't sound very fun either.
Minato swiped at another card, feeling the need to go on the offensive this time. "Titan." Minato fired his Evoker and a larger than life human clad in ancient golden armor rushed forward, tackling the Shadow into the ground striking at it once, twice, three times with a massive sword before dissipating.
In response the wings of the Shadow stretched out, slashing against the air in a frenzy as it attempted to hit any of them. Minato and Mitsuru parried the attack with their swords and rushed in as two arrows flew over their shoulders and into the Shadow.
The Shadows eyes flashed red once more and an arrow completely made of light appeared next to it and shot towards the advancing sword wielders. Minato and Mitsuru sidestepped, aiming to make the shot a complete miss. Just as the arrow passed between them harmlessly it turned about at an impossible angle, Minato, seeing it from the corner of his eyes, twisted his body awkwardly as he attempted to evade the arrow once more.
The arrow struck his abdomen and dissipated, Minato doubling over and tasting copper as he coughed. Slightly angered Minato summoned Orthrus, a twin headed chimera. "Agilao."
To Minato's shock Mitsuru was flung to the side as a red orb identical to the last exploded next to her. The Shadow's eyes hadn't flashed red, meaning it hadn't invoked magic. It was his doing.
"Polydeuces!" Akihiko's Persona punched the Shadow knocking it off to the side. "Minato what the hell are you doing?!" Akihiko shouted as he picked up the still Mitsuru and ran back to relative safety.
Minato found himself turning his back to the Shadow to face a dumbfounded Yukari and Akihiko as he pressed the Evoker to his head. Minato fought to lower his hand knowing that this was the psychological attack Fuuka had mentioned before. His hand slowly moved away from his head but constantly threatening to press back against it. It was a like a mental tug of war and Minato was pulling as hard as he possibly could. He didn't want to hurt his friends like he just had. The idea of him hurting them without his control frightened him to the core.
Seeing that he was struggling Yukari activated her healing magic once more, Mitsuru still lying on the floor immobile. Akihiko was sprinting towards him.
Having a brilliantly stupid idea Minato suddenly stopped resisting the Shadow's control over his body, his Evoker rushing towards his head and effectively stabbing himself in the temple with the barrel, hard. The sudden jolt and throbs of pain made Minato stumble back and forth, and finding that he was in complete control of his body once more grinned slightly at the gamble he just took. He faced the Shadow once more and swiped at another card. "Koumokuten." A red armored warrior materialized and drew back its arm, pummeling the Shadow with a gigantic glowing fist that formed in front of his Persona's upon impact.
Minato immediately followed up his Persona's attack by running forward, ignoring the pain in his side as he brought his sword down on one of the Shadow's wings, cutting it off with a single stroke. Swinging around Minato's sword left a deep gash in the Shadow's side before he leapt out of its range, the fire in his abdomen becoming unbearable as he slumped to his knees.
Two debilitating punches from Akihiko separated large chunks of its gelatin-like body from the force of the blows. Akihiko rolled next to Minato, pulling the trigger of his Evoker. "Zionga!"
Yukari and Mitsuru sprinted up next to them, also invoking their Persona's magic. "Garula!" "Bufula!"
The Shadow was tossed around between a gale of violent wind, lightning, and ice, the remaining wing flapping about sporadically from the conflicting forces.
Minato wasn't about to give the Shadow a chance to recover and switched to his first and favorite Persona, Orpheus. With a shaking hand Minato brought the Evoker to his head. "Agidyne!"
Blanketed in fire the Shadow wailed as it was burned in an unforgiving inferno, the gel like body melting away from the intense heat of the white-hot flames. S.E.E.S. watched as the flames slowly died out, what remained of the Shadow was a puddle of its liquefied body and the mask.
"So uh…" Akihiko ventured as they stood around the puddle, "Is it dead?"
Minato staggered forward, his sword held in a reverse grip, and stabbed the mask in the center, the object cracking in half. The puddle evaporated into black smoke the moment he did so, heralding their adversary's demise. Minato sat down heavily before Yukari cast Dia on him, the burning in his side fading. He nodded his thanks and stood up once more.
"Okay I'll take that as a yes then," Akihiko scratched his head as he laughed whole heartedly. "That was a pretty awesome fight though."
Mitsuru sighed, not understanding Akihiko's enthusiasm about getting into and winning fights. She, for one, wasn't too fond of the action. "Yamagishi, do you detect anything else?"
There was a slight pause before Fuuka answered. I can't detect anything. Hopefully that's it. I'll let you know immediately if I sense something out of place.
"That will have to do. Mission accomplished. Good work tonight," Mitsuru praised as she unlocked the door and began to lead the team out.
Yukari walked beside Minato and gave his face a curious look.
Minato stole a glanced at her, slightly uncomfortable at the focus she was giving his face. Minato unconsciously brushed his cheek, wondering if there was something on it. "What?"
Yukari giggled. "You have a huge bruise where you hit yourself with your Evoker."
"Wha-" Minato touched his temple where his Evoker had struck him and sure enough there was a large bump. "You've gotta be kidding me." Minato sighed, not wanting to know how massive it was even when Yukari had already healed him. There was no way he'd be able to play off this injury at school. Luckily for me… Minato smiled as charmingly as he could at the girl beside him. "If you would be so kind could you get rid of this nuisance on my face?"
Yukari laughed, nodding as she unholstered her Evoker once more and activated her healing magic. She suddenly stopped and gave Minato a death glare.
Minato's smile quickly died and he was more scared than anything else. Oh no… Tsundere Yukari is back…
Yukari whispered in a low, threatening voice, "If you dare say anything about what happened in that room between us you're a dead man. Seeing what happened to the Shadow was an inspiration. Understood?"
"Yes ma'am!" Minato straightened his back and saluted to the girl undeterred by the fact he was the one in command of the field team.
"Good," Yukari gave a charming smile of her own and Minato felt the gentle, comforting sensation once more along with a bit, Minato corrected himself, a lot of fear.
Fuuka greeted them in person the moment they exited the hotel, Junpei standing off to the side. "Thank goodness you're all safe."
Mitsuru smiled as she placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Thanks for your assistance. Although the second Shadow caught us all off-guard you did well. Don't blame yourself for what happened after the first battle. We all made it out alive somehow." Mitsuru turned her attention to Minato, who was now devoid of the massive bump at his temple. "And you did well too. I won't hold that attack on me against you, for it was the enemies act, not yours. Although I will admit your method of… combating the enemy's compulsion was rather… crude."
Minato laughed dryly as it seemed like everyone was hounding him about it. He was going to hear about this for weeks from them, he just knew it.
Akihiko started walking ahead, stretching his arms into the air and groaning slightly from the action. "Alright guys, let's call it a night. I'm beat."
Mitsuru took off after him, leaving the juniors behind.
Fuuka began to follow, but after taking a few steps called over her shoulder to Yukari, "About that thing you mentioned the other day. I found something concerning the matter."
Yukari quickly caught up to the girl, speaking quietly to her, "Really? That's great news. You can tell me later." Yukari turned back to the two boys who were still standing in front of the entrance. "Come on guys, we should head back, too. The Dark Hour's almost over. Junpei? What's wrong?"
Junpei was leaning against a wall, his eyes hidden be the rim of his baseball cap. "So," Junpei directed his words to Minato, "You're the hero again, huh?"
Minato was surprised at the malice behind Junpei's words; his friend wasn't making any effort to hide those feelings in his tone either. At the same time Minato became slightly angry at being called a hero. A hero? I'm no hero. I was close to killing my friends and team in there.
"Hey," Yukari called out in a sharp voice upon hearing Junpei's words. "What's your problem? Why're you so upset about this?"
Junpei's head shot up, his expression obviously pissed. "Shut up! You don't know nothin'!"
Yukari and Fuuka both flinched at the volume and emotion behind the shout, Junpei storming ahead of the three of them after their senpai's.
"Geez what's up his butt?" Yukari asked rhetorically as the three followed, noticeably slower than their tall friend.
If any of S.E.E.S. had been paying close attention they would have caught the sound of someone clapping slowly. "That was much faster than I had originally anticipated. That was quite entertaining."
"You're finding too much enjoyment in this, Takaya," Jin pointed out as he looked at the moon.
"Perhaps you're right. But I can't help but be curious as to how busy they've become in these recent months. And their fighting style…" Takaya's mind wandered to the blue-haired boy whose eyes glowed most brilliantly. "Is so… alluring. What do you think, Jin? Are we to consider them our enemies?"
Jin shrugged at the question, more interested in what they were going to do now than that group of kids playing their games. "Why don't we ask our 'friend.' He would know. We're seeing him soon anyways."
Takaya nodded slowly in concurrence. "That is indeed true… He holds a similar fate to ours so it would be wise to consider his input. Very well. We shall do that. After all…" Takaya's voice grew eerily quiet, "We don't have much time left."
Minato closed his room door behind him and slumped against it, exhausted. It had taken everything he had to act as if nothing were wrong after the conflict with the Shadow; it was a miracle he had even managed to make it through that. By willpower alone Minato had been able to make it back to the dorm without stumbling or showing signs of weakness. Minato slowly slid down to the ground until he was seated on the floor, his head tilted back against the cool wood door. Despite the cold sweat dripped down his forehead, his breathing was light and shallow. He shivered and curled into a ball, haunted by his thoughts.
Minato had hurt one of his teammates tonight. The Shadow had control over him and he'd almost done it again. No… That's wrong. The Persona he felt at the time had a skill that, while the chances were slim, instantly killed Shadows. If he had used that on his friends and it worked on one of them… Minato didn't think he'd ever recover from the action. To be aware that he killed a friend yet not be in control of himself… The thought frightened him, scared him more than anything else. Death, isolation, nor disease unnerved him as much as this.
Minato desperately hoped that this was the last of the psychological-oriented Shadow's they'd have to confront. If they had to fight another Minato wasn't sure he'd be able to handle it, especially if the battles were only going to get more and more challenging. That and he had no wish for any of the others to experience what he did. Minato wasn't exactly sure as to how Akihiko and Mitsuru broke out of the Shadow's mental influence but judging from their appearance they were either absurdly talented actors or the mental control wasn't as powerful on them.
As far as Junpei went Minato could slightly understand why he had acted in such a manner. Before the operation began Minato had hand-picked the field team save for Yukari, who had demanded she went on the operation. He chose Mitsuru and Akihiko based on the fact that they each added diversity to the team's magical abilities, allowing Minato to specialize in the Persona's he summoned. Junpei had no such magic and is only capable of physical attacks, leading Minato to leave him behind to accompany Fuuka just in case a Shadow attacked her. While still an important job Junpei undoubtedly felt that he was being left out, but there was nothing Minato could do about it if he wanted the greatest chance of success for the operations. The greatest amount of success for an operation went hand in hand with the survivability of the team.
Minato pushed these troubling thoughts to the back of his mind as he only wore himself out from thinking too much. I have tomorrow to think about these issues and how to address them. He wasn't in a condition to place any more mental or physical strain on himself at the moment. I have school tomorrow to boot… Minato glanced out the window; the disturbing yellow-green tint of the Dark Hour was gone. Make that later today. Minato inwardly sighed and put on his earphones willing for his troubles to disappear. He closed his eyes and quickly fell into a dreamless slumber.
7/8/2009
Evening
A shrill alarm woke Minato from his nap and he smacked his alarm clock until the annoying sound came to a stop. School had passed uneventfully with the exception that Junpei gave him the cold shoulder all day, which had been within Minato's expectations. Even though there was a mountain of Student Council work he had to take care of Minato settled with finishing it all tomorrow; he was that exhausted from last night's events.
Minato sat up and yawned, stretching his back in the process and hearing the familiar sound of popping joints. He ran his hand through his hair sighing, feeling just as groggy as he did before his afternoon nap. It was a dreadful sensation.
Well no use sitting here wasting time. Minato, in spite of the lazy impression he usually gave off, was not one to lie in bed after he woke up. Getting out of bed and flattening the bedding to remove the wrinkles Minato gave his room a cursory glance, making sure everything was how it was when he fell asleep, or in other words, clean. After determining it was satisfactory Minato left his room and headed for the command room, putting his earphones on along the way.
Minato opened the command room door without knocking and was surprised to see it occupied, usually it was empty unless they had a meeting planned beforehand. Yukari and Fuuka were seated next to each other on the couch speaking in hushed voices, pausing at his unannounced arrival.
"Oh, sorry," Minato apologized, fairly certain that was intruding on their conversation, "I didn't expect anyone to be here. I'll come back later."
"Ah no it's okay. I should have known you'd come here after last night's operation," Yukari inadvertently welcomed him to stay. If anything she and Fuuka were intruding on him since Minato always made it a point to come to the command room after an operation or a Tartarus excursion to maintain their equipment. "Besides we just finished talking."
"If you say so." Minato walked over to the sword rack and picked up his hand and a half sword, unsheathing and checking its edge. After a few seconds Minato sheathed the sword once more and picked up the whet stone with the coarseness he deemed appropriate. After setting a towel on the table and rubbing a small amount of water over the stone Minato ran the blade along the rough surface, shaving off small amounts of metal and promptly finding a comfortable pace.
"So is that all you've managed to find out? Not to sound unappreciative or anything but I'm just making sure," Yukari continued the conversation that she and Fuuka had apparently 'finished' prior to Minato's arrival. Minato realized that it was impolite of him to eavesdrop on their discussion but even if he wanted to he was incapable of tuning them out. Sure he could increase the volume of his music but the one thing Minato was careful about when it came to listening to his MP3 was his hearing. He didn't want to wind up as one of those people who could barely hear a meteor crashing into the planet when he got older.
"It's quite okay Yukari-chan. I didn't take it that way," Fuuka waved her hand back and forth, "But that's all I've been able to find out recently. I'll let you know if I discover anything else. Although I can't promise anything since we have finals starting next Monday."
"Ugh…" Yukari made a face as she was reminded once more about finals. "That's the last thing I want to think about."
Fuuka laughed as she would have resented someone reminding her too. "It's okay I feel the same way. On the bright side we have a post-finals break right after."
"That's true. I can't wait for a break from school and the Dark Hour," Yukari seemed optimistic about the post-exam break.
Minato took a mental note that he should ease off on Tartarus excursions during that time. Although now that he thought about it the atmosphere in the dorm was beginning to grow tense. Minato couldn't quite place his finger on what the source was but he needed to figure it out soon if he wanted S.E.E.S. to continue operating smoothly as a team.
7/11/2009
After School
"Junpei still hasn't apologized for his unnecessary attitude from that night, huh?" Yukari was seated at her desk, her legs placed in the walkway so she could easily have a face to face conversation with Minato. Her legs were obstructing the pathway but at this time most of their classmates had gone home or to club activities already so it wasn't an issue.
"No, he hasn't," Minato confirmed Yukari's suspicions, "It's kind of annoying really. I can tell that he wants to apologize and mend our friendship back to what it was before but he's just not coming out and saying it."
Yukari raised an eyebrow, crossing her legs as she did so. "What makes you think that?"
"For the past couple days he's tried casually talking to me and hasn't been very successful. Just from his expression I could tell he regretted what he had said on the night of the Full Moon operation," Minato explained his reasoning as his text message ring tone went off. He flicked his phone open and read Akihiko's message. "Ikutsuki-san wants to talk to us… I assume it's about the last mission. We should start heading back."
"Sounds good." Yukari spun around and was properly sitting in her chair, gathering her belongings and placing them into her school bag. "If Junpei wants to apologize why doesn't he just do it? It's not that hard. Is it?"
Minato felt his eyebrows knit together, although the action was hidden by his long fringe of hair. "I believe it has something to do with his interpretation of what being a 'man' is. He's too stubborn to apologize even though he really wants to." Minato stood up after packing his back, Yukari standing up soon after him.
"His interpretation? I can see that. Junpei considers himself a man so I bet he's stuck in that 'real men don't dwell on the past' statement he told me one time." Yukari shook her head at Junpei's lack of honesty.
"He really said that?" Minato asked thoughtfully more to himself than Yukari.
"He really said that," Yukari confirmed. "So what is your interpretation of being a man?" She was merely curious to Minato's perception of the definition since Junpei's was sort of… fractured.
Minato was silent for a moment as he recalled words he'd heard years ago. "A man is someone who's willing to accept the responsibility and consequences bestowed upon him. He doesn't make excuses, he acknowledges his own mistakes, and he recognizes when he's in the wrong and strives to improve himself. He's aware of his abilities and limitations and that he's not the best but regardless of that he continues to move forward. He gets the job done no matter what and he's able to make the hard decisions. He protects those he loves to the best of his ability even if it means sacrificing his own life."
Yukari was slightly taken aback at the response Minato gave, the response being a lot more than what she had anticipated. "Who told you that?" Yukari didn't doubt that Minato was capable of coming up with this on his own but she figured someone had influenced him to say those words.
"My dad," Minato whispered quietly as they left the school yard. "That was his answer to me whenever I asked him what being a man entailed. And knowing he's gone and that I'm still here proves to me that my dad was a man in his own belief." Minato smiled at Yukari's somber expression. "I'm not depressed by this conversation, Yukari-san. So don't make that kind of face. Remembering my parents is bitter sweet but I try my best to just think of the good times."
"I see. So at this point in time, Minato-san, do you consider yourself a man?" Yukari wondered if the more mature Minato considered himself a man compared to the not so mature Junpei who did. Just for a greater sense of her blue-haired friend's character.
"No, I don't," Minato said with no hesitation. "Reason being the same in how I consider my dad a man. He's not here but I am. Even though I was in grade school at the time I didn't protect those I loved. With that I fail to realize my abilities and limitations since I was so young but I still hate that I was incapable of doing anything at the time of the accident. I'm not saying I won't ever consider myself a man unless I die protecting those I love but… until I feel that I have the right to do so then I won't see myself as one."
"Eeeehhh? Is that so?" Yukari wondered at that. She herself thought Minato was one of the most mature guys she knew. Everyone else in their grade with a handful of exceptions didn't hold a candle to his demeanor. But if it weren't for S.E.E.S. Yukari would have probably thought Minato was an uncaring youth with no ambition. The sad truth was that as long as someone didn't make the effort to know or understand another they would never discover that person's true self. Unfortunately that was the case for everyone. "I'm glad I got to know you, Minato-kun."
"Huh? Where'd that come from?" Minato demanded, slightly taken aback by the unforeseen assertion.
"Nowhere in particular. Just thinking out loud," Yukari walked somewhat further ahead, concealing the slight smile playing across her lips.
Evening
"-and that concludes what transpired during the Full Moon operation on the 7th," Mitsuru finished giving her report to the Chairman, the rest of S.E.E.S. filling in the meager details she forgot to mention. "It was challenging but we managed to get through it."
Ikutsuki leaned back in his chair, folding his arms in front of his chest and dipping his chin to his chest slightly. "So they are indeed getting tougher as we go along. At least it confirms our hypothesis that the larger Shadows appear on the nights of a Full Moon." Ikutsuki looked back up and smiled at them. "It's not really all bad news if we managed to establish a theory. But I digress… The reason why I called for a meeting today is-"
Ikutsuki stopped mid sentence as Yukari abruptly stood up, an obvious edge in her voice when she spoke. "Forgive me for interrupting but I would like to ask Mitsuru-senpai a few things."
Everyone turned to the person in question as Mitsuru pointed to herself. "Me?" Mitsuru asked rather unnecessarily.
"Yes, you," Yukari glared daggers at their red-headed senpai, whose face quickly paled.
Minato watched as everyone in the room was shifting uncomfortably at the malice Yukari currently displayed. He himself didn't like the direction this meeting was going.
Yukari didn't take her eyes off Mitsuru as she continued to speak. "Ever since I joined a great deal of things have occurred. At first I just went with the flow waiting to see where we would end up. But I've run out of patience and I need to know the truth."
Fuuka looked around nervously, almost guiltily and Minato understood what he had walked into the other night. Yukari had requested that Fuuka look into something regarding the Kirijo Group, and if Yukari was interested in it and resorted to seeking assistance it most likely had to do with Tartarus or the Dark Hour in general.
"I'm just going to get to the point," Yukari folded her arms, her piercing gaze not dwindling in the slightest. "Mitsuru-senpai, you're hiding something from us aren't you? You feign ignorance when it comes to the Dark Hour and Tartarus even though you're the one with the most resources. They're related to each other and the accident that occurred ten years ago, right?"
Mitsuru's eyes seemed to narrow as Junpei was the first to speak since this scene began. "Uh… What accident are you talking about, Yukari?"
"I'm talking about the accident where there was an explosion in close proximity to our school ten years ago," Yukari answered pointedly without taking her eyes off Mitsuru. "There were a lot of casualties so it had to have caused an uproar in the media at the time. You know what happened don't you?"
"An explosion? Seriously?" Junpei muttered under his breath in disbelief, no one hearing him.
"Yes, I do," Mitsuru admitted, holding her arm as was her habit whenever she was troubled.
Yukari didn't let up as she continued her interrogation. "Miraculously no students were injured from the incident but for some reason a large number of students were recorded as absent. The timing of the explosion and the students missing school seem to be more than just a coincidence."
Mitsuru's eyebrows knitted together, her eyes confused. "I don't understand what you mean."
Although Yukari probably saw this as Mitsuru feigning ignorance once more Minato saw that Mitsuru was genuinely confused at Yukari's connection between the two events.
"I managed to find some old school records-" Fuuka visibly jumped in her seat and kept her eyes on the floor. "and I found that the students who were recorded as absent suddenly collapsed and had to be hospitalized. Does that ring a bell?"
Minato couldn't believe the animosity Yukari was displaying. Sure, he knew that Yukari had a tendency to undergo sudden mood swings but this was the worst that he'd seen so far. Even he would be hard pressed to maintain his composure if someone approached him with that much hostility.
"There must be an explanation!" Yukari's voice was beginning to rise to a shout. "What happened on the day of the explosion? You have to know something since the Kirijo Group rebuilt our school. I want to know the truth, senpai!"
Yukari's last sentence was carried by emotion. When Minato looked at Yukari's face he couldn't tell if the tears threatening to spill from her eyes were from anger or another emotion.
"I-I…" Mitsuru started in a voice so soft and frail that, for a moment, S.E.E.S. witnessed the small, frightened girl that Mitsuru hid behind that authoritative facade. "I wasn't trying to hide anything from all of you. It just… It just never struck me as being significant to what we're doing."
Ikutsuki spoke in a gentle tone to the young girl who he had known since she was a child. "It's alright, Mitsuru. What happened wasn't your fault. Go ahead and tell them."
Mitsuru slowly nodded, swallowing to prepare herself for recounting the events of the past. "Okay… I'll tell them. You're all risking your lives when we fight the Shadows so you have the right to know everything."
S.E.E.S. leaned closer as Mitsuru began to recall all she knew of the accident.
"As you are all aware the Shadows as well as our Personas hold powers we cannot even begin to understand. There's some research that suggests they can affect time and space. This is proven by the Dark Hour itself, an extra hour that only a handful of people experience. As S.E.E.S. we only think of the Shadows as our enemies, but others think of ways to use the Shadows to our advantage. The Shadows would supply a source of unimaginable power, wouldn't they?" Mitsuru presented the question to all of them.
Just the idea of using Shadows was something S.E.E.S. couldn't begin to comprehend; they were so used to seeing the Shadows as their adversaries. They all fought the Shadows on many occasions and the concept of controlling one seemed unlikely, if not impossible, to accomplish.
"Fourteen years ago a man pursued that idea… the idea of manifesting the Shadows power. He was the former leader of the Kirijo Group, Kirijo Kouetsu. The man happens to be my grandfather." Mitsuru closed her eyes, ashamed of her ancestor's actions that she had to present. "My grandfather was obsessed with Shadows. He sought to harness their power and develop something extraordinary. In order to do so he formed a team of scientist. Over the course of several years they managed to collect a significant amount of Shadows."
"He what?" Junpei astonished, more dumbfounded that anyone would even have the gall to do such a thing. "That's insane."
"However," Mitsuru's voice grew cold. "Ten years ago during the final phases of the experiment they lost control of the Shadow's power and consequently the nature of the world was altered."
Fuuka's eyes widened and she covered her mouth with a hand. "You mean…"
Mitsuru nodded solemnly, knowing the conclusion that Fuuka had reached. "That's correct. Tartarus and the Dark Hour began to exist after that incident. By the scientists account the mass of Shadows they had managed to collect split into numerous large ones that then dispersed after they managed to escape. I predict that these are the Shadows we've been engage with whenever there is a Full Moon."
"Is that the explanation as to why the Shadows tend to appear in different places?" Fuuka asked, quick to apply this newfound knowledge to their situation.
"Hang on a minute," Yukari held up a hand to cease any further questions. "If what you're saying is actually true why does our school turn into Tartarus?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Minato asked as all eyes turned to him. "Gekkoukan High is where the experiments were being conducted."
"What Minato says is true…" Mitsuru admitted as she averted her eyes.
"Then all those students who were hospitalized…" Yukari's voice trailed off as her mind refused to come to terms with this.
"This is just a guess but Port Island must have been the ideal location for the team to work in. It's a highly populated area and the Kirijo Group has an abundance of influence in the area. They could do as they wished and be able to get away with it."
The pieces slowly began to piece together as Yukari clenched her fists, seething. "So what you're telling me… what you're telling us… is that all we've been doing up to now is cleaning up your grandfather's mess? Your family's mess? You lied to us! I joined S.E.E.S. because I thought we were going to discover the truth behind Tartarus and the Dark Hour but it's been in front of us the whole time! You just didn't want us to leave so you hid it from us!"
Mitsuru didn't meet Yukari's eyes and kept her eyes on the ground, saying nothing. For all the diplomacy and negotiation Mitsuru was adept at she was basically throwing fuel into the fire by not speaking.
Yukari looked sharply at Akihiko, who was seated next to Mitsuru. "You knew too didn't you Akihiko-senpai? They've just been using us as… as disposable tools!" Yukari's eyes narrowed. "Or do you not even care as long as you get to fight?"
"I admit I did know about this. But you're wrong in saying that I don't care," Akihiko denied, his voice shaking. "I have my own reasons for joining S.E.E.S. and you of all people should respect that."
"Think what you'd like…" Mitsuru whispered after Akihiko finished, her voice obviously pained. "It was my own decision to withhold that information. I-I'm sorry. I never planned to deceive you it's just that… Convincing you to join S.E.E.S. was my highest priority. After all, you know first-hand that only we and our Personas can fight the Shadows."
"How could you?" Yukari asked as she tried to restrain her emotions.
"Consider yourself lucky. Unlike you some of us were never given a say in this matter. I…" Mitsuru closed her eyes to keep the tears from falling.
"Mitsuru. Don't," Akihiko asserted strongly as his close friend nodded quietly.
"Yukari…" Ikutsuki began, although Minato was disgusted by the fact that the man supposedly advising them waited until now to speak. "It's those in the past who are to blame, and they paid that price with their lives. You, Mitsuru, all of us… We're all in the same boat so to speak. None of us could ever deserve the responsibility and burden that had been thrown into our laps."
"But…" Yukari stopped as she didn't know where she was going with her words. She sighed exasperatedly and hung her head, sitting back down.
Ikutsuki crossed his legs and entwined his fingers. "It's been ten years since that event and no one can say why the fragments of that mass of Shadows have begun to return. But since they have it's the least we can do, and quite frankly all we can do, to find and destroy them. Do you understand what this means? What if I told you that those twelve Shadows were the cause of everything?"
Everyone's heads shot up, eyeing Ikutsuki as if he just presented them with the answer they were looking for. All except Minato. While the rest of S.E.E.S. had hope in their eyes Minato felt his own narrow. The way Ikutsuki had said it seemed… off. "What if?" What do you mean "what if?" And if Ikutsuki was aware of this beforehand why didn't he mention it before?
"You mean… if we defeat them all Tartarus and the Dark Hour will disappear?" Akihiko asked with a growing sense of optimism.
"Exactly! That's what I was going to mention earlier. See… it's good news, right?"
Minato felt his suspicions grow as Ikutsuki spoke. There was no way anyone would forget something that important the last time when they held a meeting discussing how Shadows were categorized and they determined destroying those same twelve Shadows was S.E.E.S. current objective.
"Is that true?" Fuuka didn't want to be disappointed by this hope.
"There's evidence to support it." Ikutsuki answered. "Now our true battle begins."
Minato noticed that Ikutsuki failed to present this so called "evidence" that supported his theory and had glossed over the fact. Minato said nothing, however. If this turned out to be false information S.E.E.S. would fall apart right here and now. Morale was already rock bottom just from this one meeting and it was showing signs of crumbling before. They needed this hope to continue.
"Regardless of what's happened in the past we must continue our duty in protecting the people of Port Island," Ikutsuki declared with a sense of justice. "The Shadows are gaining strength and we can't afford to wait for them. You all need to go stronger so you're prepared when they do appear and you still need to discover the mysteries Tartarus holds. Like why such a tower even exists in the first place? The answer must lie within."
Author's Notes/Musings
Thank you for reading Chapter 8 guys and I hope you liked it. Only another chapter until Ya-Ku-Shi-Maaaaaa! So stay tuned for that. Not sure how I feel about writing that segment of the story lol but we'll see how it goes. Since I felt like I was kinda ignoring Minato and his perspective last chapter I made it a point to share more of his side of the story. Although I will admit last chapter wasn't exactly focused on Minato, but this one is pretty much all him.
The pace is starting to pick up in the story so I'm pretty excited to get into the crazy shenanigans that occurs one after the other in rapid succession. Unfortunately, I have absolutely no idea when the next chapter will be finished and posted so be patient. It could be next week or next month for all I know. If things get a bit too hectic on my end and I have to go on hiatus or something I'll let you know by updating my profile page thing. I don't even know what's it called but I'm sure you know what I mean.
So let me explain my reasoning behind honorifics for everyone and why they attach it for each character. First of all Junpei. If you noticed I didn't add any honorifics to his name when characters refer to him mostly because I find his character to be the kind of guy who doesn't care about honorifics at all. I see him requesting others just to drop them from his name and he would drop the honorifics from theirs. I think Yukari's "-san" by Minato and "-chan" by Fuuka is the obvious way for them to refer to her. I understand that "-kun" when used by a girl means they are emotionally attached to the boy, but "-kun" is the honorific used in the movie so I'm going off that for Yukari's honorific to Minato's name. Mitsuru and Akihiko don't add honorifics except to Ikutsuki in the game. Of course, they refer to each other by their first names with no honorifics since they have known each other for such a long time. I'll go back and edit the honorifics in my previous chapters when I get around to it.
I think that's it... So stay tuned for Chapter 9 where stuff happens. See you guys in (hopefully) a week or two!
