Author's Note:

I know it's hard to stay with a story that isn't updated regularly (aka mine ahaha), but I truly do love and appreciate those of you who stick with me and continue to give me support. :) I see this story as yours just as much as I see it as mine, so hearing your words of encouragement is really wonderful!

Wow a lot of you (aka all of you) really prefer Inaba over Tatsumi Port Island. Personally, I prefer Persona 3 over Persona 4 (I like the darker themes more, maybe?), but what the crowd wants, the crowd gets. XD That being said, thank you to all who reviewed the last chapter! The one hundredth review is coming up soon, and I usually like to give prizes for these major achievements; whoever gets it will get a chapter dedicated to their character, focusing on whatever they'd like (relationships with others, romantic, history, etc.).

Glass Houses
a Persona 3/Portable (© ATLUS) fanfiction

Chapter Nine
All for One, One for All

Opening Song: "Sons & Daughters" - The Decemberists

May 4, 2013, Namikaze, Kirijo Coed Dormitory

It's late Saturday night, and most residents of the dorm have either retired to bed or gone out to celebrate the coming of the weekend early. Alexandra likes to think of herself as a participator of the latter group, even if she is sitting in the lounge with just her earphones and iPod for company. She isn't doing anything else — sketching, reading, watching TV — just listening to the music and enjoying being. It's been a while since she's had time like this to herself; things have been pretty hectic lately, what with Seichi's awakening and the sudden activeness of T.E.C. She's not sure if all of this is a good thing or not, but it's certainly much more lively than it used to be.

Erik Albrecht stumbles in around ten o'clock, which is early considering his usual weekend extravagances. His typically tidy uniform is unbuttoned and his tie hangs loosely around his neck; still attached to the upper left arm of his blazer is a yellow band. Alexandra's eyes are focused on the kanji printed on the band as he leans against the head of the couch she's sitting on. "Hallo, liebe," he greets, his words slurred with alcohol.

"Good evening," she says. Alexandra isn't fond of them, but she doesn't bear any real resentment against the other division in the dorm — not the way the others do, anyway. Erik in particular is disliked because of his personality, but she finds him polite enough, even if his breath reeks of poor brand vodka.

"What a boring night." He sighs hopelessly and leans further into the couch, closing the distance between them; she awkwardly shuffles to the side. "Mm? You're not doing anything tonight? I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised… You don't look like the night life kind of girl."

"I don't know what that means."

He raises a dark brow, then lowers it as he smiles. There isn't anything friendly in the quirk of his lips. "Ah, I just mean that you're a nice girl, Alexandra."

"I feel like that isn't much a compliment from you," she says. Erik shrugs, neither affirming nor denying it.

Steven and Kyle walk in then, and as soon as they realize that Erik is present the laughter dies on their faces. "What the hell are you doing here, Albrecht?" Steven asks, marching towards him in long strides. Erik stumbles back, not as elegant on his feet as he usually is, but holds his hands up in defense. Steven turns to Alexandra, who blinks in confusion. "Was he bothering you?"

She shakes her head. "No. He just came in." She knows that Steven means well (and that he really hates Erik), but part of her thinks that he just wants a reason to fight. When she says so, he flushes bright red and shrinks away, and part of her almost feels bad because she can sense the simmering anger underneath his embarrassment. Alexandra sighs; all she wanted was a peaceful night. "I shouldn't have said that."

Erik certainly looks amused but she can hardly claim the same for her dorm mate. Kyle, choosing to play the mediator, steps in and wraps an arm around Steven's shoulders. "Ah, I feel like we've all had a really long day. Sometimes we say things we don't mean when we're tired." Alexandra almost says that she isn't tired and that she actually did mean it, but her conscience finally kicks in and she chooses to keep quiet. She glances at Erik, who's been watching her quietly, and she inwardly notes that his eyes don't look quite as drunk as the rest of his body does. "Do you need help getting back to your room, Erik?"

"Danke, but no. I can manage on my own." The dark-haired male raises an eyebrow at Kyle and Steven, then winks flirtatiously in Alexandra's direction before wandering up the steps. "Gute Nacht, lieben."

Kyle's chuckle sounds strained and forced. "Ah… That one's always causing problems."

"It was fine," Alexandra says. "He really wasn't bugging me or anything."

"There are more things to worry about him than just being 'annoyed,'" Steven grumbles.

Kyle's worried eyes shift to the brunet. "Steven…"

Steven shrugs and waves him off. "Whatever. I'm tired. I'm gonna go to bed. See you, Kyle." He barely spares Alexandra's a glance before he heads up to the second floor.

Once he's gone, Alexandra turns to the only other one in the room. "I really shouldn't have said that, huh?" she asks, though she already knows the answer.

Kyle smiles sympathetically. "You're just very honest, Alexandra." That's just his ver polite way to say, 'Yes, you probably should have kept that to yourself.' "And Steven's been a little on edge lately, which is understandable considering everything that's happened…" He pats her on the shoulder reassuringly. "Don't let it worry you too much. He'll probably forget about it in the morning; just give him some time to sleep."

She doesn't fully believe him, but she appreciates the attempt. "Alright."

"Good night."

"G'night, Kyle." She watches his back until he too disappears up the stairs. With a small sigh of resignation, she falls back against the cushions of the couch and picks up her iPod to sort through. Her mind keeps wandering away, never focusing on the song tracks on the artists. In the end, she even loses comfort music so often gives her, and she decides to retire early for the night.

May 5, 2013, Namikaze, Kaihin Plaza

Seichi was absolutely ready to decline Tohru's offer for a tough morning workout, when Jaye threw in a free lunch at Korean barbecue. After running around the entire city with both of them, with his legs aching and his chest burning, he wonders if endless plates and pots of Korean barbecue is worth it. As Jaye throws an arm around his shoulders and congratulates him on his first workout with Tohru, he notices that the honey blonde looks only slightly flushed. "I don't know how you do it, Tohru," he says, still trying to catch his breath.

"Do what?" she asks, blinking innocently.

He looks at Jaye with incredulity, wondering if she really is this oblivious, but the Brit just chuckles and shakes his head. "In case you haven't caught on, little Akaike is our work out and health nut in the dorm," Jaye says with a grin.

"I'm really not," she protests, though it's weak. Seichi has received a number of her lunches, with their green grass shakes and tofu sandwiches and broccoli sushi, so he knows that Jaye's words have merit. Most of the girls in the dorm are athletic, or at least fairly so because of what they have to do in the mirror world, but Tohru easily outran both him and Jaye. Seichi isn't really a muscle head, but he does like to think of himself as in shape, and he knows for a fact that Jaye used to play rugby, so to have someone as delicate and frail-looking as Tohru beat them is impressive. Inwardly he wonders if that's a sexist thought, so he keeps it to himself.

Jaye nudges her teasingly. "You don't need to be modest. Staying in shape is something all of us need to do." The smell of freshly-cooked Korean food fills their nostrils the moment they step inside; Seichi feels like he's died and gone to heaven. "We've tried to get the others to come with us, but they're all lazy sacks."

Tohru laughs. "That's not true. A lot of them work out on their own — like Avery and Alexandra. They're both in boxing club, so they get in extensive cardio and strength work outs, which is very important." Seichi pretends that he's actually taking in everything she's saying about proper routines to exercise, but as soon as they sit down all he can think about is how delicious all the food around him looks and smells.

"I think you lost him," Jaye says.

She blushes. "Oh no, I'm so sorry, Hakurata-kun."

His cheeks turn as red as hers. "What? No, my bad! I'm just really hungry." As if on cue, his stomach growls loudly, which results in his flush deepening. "I can really only think about food right now," he admits.

Jaye pats him on the back. "That just means that you've earned your food, mate. No shame in that!" He thanks the waitress who stops by to bring them water and menus. "I think I'll just have my usual," he mumbles as he flips through the menu without really looking at it.

"Do you come here often?" Seichi asks.

"Not that much, but it's one of my favorites." He leans over the table that's separating the two males from Tohru, trying to get a look at what Tohru has her gaze on. "What are you getting, Akaike?"

She swiftly pulls the menu to her chest, putting distance between them. "I'm not sure," she says, shooing him with her free hand. "I'm not too hungry, but it's also lunch time, so it'd be bad if I just got a salad or something…"

Jaye groans. "We come to a Korean barbecue place and you think about getting a salad?"

"I'm not actually going to!"

Seichi's mismatched gaze wanders from his indignant classmate to the light-hearted upperclassman. He's observed all of his dorm mates since moving in, so he's able to tell who's close with who, who are friends, and who prefers to keep their distance. He can tell that there are small cliques even within the first division, which isn't necessarily a bad thing; it's natural to break off into pairs and threes, to find those who you have most in common with. From what he's seen, Jaye gets along best with those in his year, especially Steven, Kaito, and Kyle, whereas Tohru spends most of her free time with Alexandra. Of course, that doesn't mean they can't intermingle, but…

"You're awfully deep in thought for someone so famished," Jaye says, drawing him back.

Seichi grins sheepishly. "I was just thinking," he says.

"What about?" asks Tohru.

His cheeks redden again because, now that he thinks about it, it's kind of embarrassing. Tohru and Jaye continue to nudge him (teasingly, of course) until he finally gives in. "You two seem pretty close, though you don't hang out a lot." Saying it out loud just confirms how silly he sounds, but it's too late to stop now. "I was just… kind of wondering… if…"

Jaye raises a dark eyebrow. "If…?"

Seichi swallows thickly and thinks that Jaye could easily snap him in half if he wanted to. "If… the two of you…"

There's a ghost of a smile on Tohru's lips, but it's more out of confusion than anything else. "If the two of us…?"

He scratches his head, wishing that he hadn't brought up the matter at all. "I mean, I know that's none of my business, so you really don't have to say anything. It's just that, I don't know, it seems like it… I haven't asked anyone, so it's not their fault or anything—"

"Woah, woah, woah, slow down, mate," Jaye interrupts, laughing. "We can't even hear what you're saying." Before he can prod anymore, his cell phone goes off. "Dang it, hold on." He pulls it out of his pocket and gets up to dismiss himself to a quieter part of the restaurant. "All right?"

Once Jaye is gone, Seichi breathes a sigh of relief, even if Tohru is still watching him expectantly. "Jaye's a very social person, though I'm sure you've figured that out by now," Tohru says. "I don't think he gets how overpowering he can be, though." She hides a laugh behind her hand when Seichi nods in agreement. "No, he just likes to make sure you get the attention you need and deserve, which can be too much… Anyway, what were you saying?"

Seichi hesitates, but he feels a lot less pressured now that it's just the two of them. Aside from that, he's closest to Tohru and she's been nothing but kind and thoughtful towards him since his move here. "I was just curious if… I mean, like I said, you really don't have to tell me if you don't want to but it just seems to me like you and Jaye-senpai—"

She blinks back him innocently "Me and Jaye-senpai?" He sighs hopelessly; she really is making him spell it all out.

"Are you two…" He struggles to find the right word. "… together?"

"What do you me— …!?" Tohru gasps out loud when it clicks in her head and she slaps her hands to her mouth. She begins to adamantly shake her head, but the blush is too prominent and her insistence is far too strong. "No, no we're not!" she says firmly when he starts to chuckle. There's a sort of manic look in her hazel eyes as they dart around the restaurant, making sure that Jaye isn't within hearing distance. All of a sudden, she leans across the table and grasps Seichi firmly by the hands. "Please, please, please don't tell him, Hakurata-kun. I— Oh my gosh, this is just too embarrassing. Please don't say anything."

If it weren't for the fact that she looks so serious, he might have laughed. He can tell that she's teetering on the edge of an absolute social break down, so he just smiles and nods. "Of course. I wouldn't do that to you."

Tohru sighs in relief as she sits back down. "Thanks, Hakurata-kun. I know it sounds really silly to get all freaked out over something like that but I wouldn't ever be able to live it down." She scratches the back of her neck, then lowers her voice as she asks, "Is it that obvious?"

To be honest, he isn't sure how obvious it actually is — to the average person. As someone who's always been pretty good with watching people and making initial observations, Seichi can say that it is, to him. To others, it could be the complete opposite. "Nah. I've just spent half the day with both of you, and I always notice really small things," he says, easing her worries. "Seriously, it's not a big deal. Don't worry!"

Her shoulders relax. "You're the best. Steven-senpai would never let me hear the end of it if he knew…" She nervously runs her fingers through her ponytail, then sends a thankful smile in his direction. "I'm really glad you're here, Hakurata-kun."

A familiar warm sensation spreads through his body, centering in his chest.

Thou art I… And I am thou…

Thou hast established a new bond…

It brings thee closer to the truth…

Thou shalt be blessed when creating Personas of the Star Arcana.

He grins in reply. "Me too. Let me know if you ever need me to help you out, Tohru." Before she can ask him what he means, Jaye returns, which has her burying her red face in the menu and Seichi trying to keep his cool. Fortunately, the brunet seems to have forgotten the answer he had been grilling Seichi about before his phone call and is now more concerned about the choice of beef or pork for his meal. For the remainder of their afternoon together, as Tohru eases back into comfort and things pick up, he wonders if Jaye catches the increasing number of glances she steals in his direction.

Namikaze, Faruha Shrine

The Faruha Shrine in Namikaze really isn't anything special. There's a small offering box with simple decorations, as well as some poster board for people to post up pictures of loved ones and those who have passed on. Bushes decorate the stairs leading up to the shrine and there are some flower beds held in manmade boxes, which gives the overall atmosphere a very quaint feel. Benches line the cobblestone path, but otherwise the appearance is very plain.

It's not one of the more popular spots of Namikaze, because of its size and lack of grandeur, and usually it's just frequented by the elderly folk and couples who want a blessing, but Suyin really loves it. Granted, she's fond of peaceful places like this to begin with, but she's particularly attached to the shrine. For once, she's without camera or notebook, choosing to take in the art of her surroundings with her own senses, rather than through a lens or pen.

Sure enough, her time alone doesn't last for long. The heavy footsteps running up to the shrine break her quiet appreciation, and she's already on her own feet to leave when she steals a glance at the intruder.

Seichi grins brightly at her, looking pleasantly surprised. "Hey there!"

"You," is all she says.

He chuckles as he carefully approaches her, like he's afraid of scaring her off. "C'mon, I thought we were on friendly terms. Unless you forgot my name." Her expression is not one of amusement, but this doesn't deter him. "I was joking. I mean… Unless you really forgot, then this is really awkward."

"I know you were joking," she grumbles, but he doesn't hear.

"You look nice," he says.

Suyin flushes as she looks down at the oversized sweater and the white pants, just her usual weekend clothing, and is at a loss for words. The natural response would be to say, "Thank you," but her mind starts reeling too quickly and being so suddenly thrust into socializing has her muttering, "Whatever." She realizes the harshness of her tone as soon as the accursed word escapes her lips, which results her cheeks darkening even more.

She's surprised that he's still standing there, let alone still smiling and trying to talk to her. He's the type of person that Suyin would normally dismiss as annoying (granted, there are a lot of people she'd lob into that category), but something about him is almost… endearing? During her time in this country, she's seldom met anyone so insistent in trying to talk to her, and with such genuine intent. Well, she thinks it's genuine, anyway; Suyin knows never to take things at face value.

"It's really nice to see everyone out of their uniforms," Seichi continues. "It's a lot less formal, you know?" She barely bobs her head in acknowledgement, which draws another cheery laugh from him. "C'mon, loosen up. I'm not here to drill you or anything!"

Her shoulders drop but they're still tense. "S-sorry." She absent-mindedly brings her fingers up to the braid that hangs over her shoulder, playing with the strands. "I'm not…" Suyin closes her eyes, as though doing so will ease her out of embarrassment. "I'm not very good with people," she admits, her voice quiet and breathy.

He doesn't laugh at her like she expects him to. "I'm really not trying to make you uncomfortable," he says. His tone is softer than before. "I just wanna get to know you. Well, I mean, I wanna get to know everyone I'm living with— Technically we're not living together, but still."

Seichi catches the slight upward turn of her lips. "Right…"

"Seriously!" he insists. "I still don't get why you guys hate each other so much, but you all seem really cool. Most of you do, I think. I don't really know most of the others…" He rubs the back of his head as he trails off, catching himself going far off topic. "What I'm trying to say is that I just wanna get to know you."

His roundabout answers are awkward and overly complicated, but there's something refreshingly honest about them, Suyin thinks. She also thinks that he probably is one of those really annoying people, but maybe she can make an exception. She sits back down on her bench and inconspicuously motions for him to join her. "It's a nice day today," she says casually, "but it's probably going to get cold soon. The chill hits pretty hard since this area's a little higher than the rest of the city."

The feeling he experienced earlier — one that he's grown accustomed to and has actually come to enjoy — warms his chest and spreads down throe his fingers and toes. A mysterious voice rings in his head: Thou art I, and I am thou. Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosiest to create a Persona of the Moon Arcana. This sensation is different from the others, however; he also feels much stronger.

He blinks, obviously confused. When she raises an eyebrow at him, he finally catches on and cheerfully joins her on the bench. "So you spend a lot of time here, huh?"

"Mmm. It's pretty quiet up here… Usually." She shoots him an almost accusatory glare.

Seichi feigns a look of surprise. "Did you just make a joke?" He chuckles when she rolls her eyes, probably because she's actually smiling. "Nah, I can see why you'd like it, though… There are a bunch of shrines in the last city I lived in, but they're not really well kept. This one's smaller, but it's nice." He slumps in his seat a bit, trying to get more comfortable, and slips his hands into the pockets of his ripped jeans.

Suyin doesn't say anything, and he doesn't expect her to. When she does speak up, it's minutes later. "Do you do this a lot?"

"What?"

"Just randomly come up to people and talk to them," she says.

"Well, we basically live together, so it's not really random," he mumbles, but she dismisses the excuse. "I dunno. It's not like I stand in a crowd and choose to be someone's friend. Sometimes I just… I dunno, am drawn to someone, I guess." He blushes when she snickers. "No, seriously! It sounds really cheesy, but that's the only way I can describe it. Geeeez. Mmm?" They both look up at the sound of more people heading up the steps.

Kyle and Mari come off the top step and immediately notice the only other inhabitants of the area. It doesn't surprise Seichi too much when Kyle is the only one who acknowledges him in a friendly manner. "'Ello," Kyle says. He heads towards Seichi and Suyin, but when he notices Mari staying back he hesitates. "Ah… I heard you went on a run with Tohru and Jaye earlier. I'm surprised you're still up after that."

Seichi winces at the memory. "Yeah, it was rough… Which means I still need to get in shape, I guess!"

"No, anyone's lucky if they can even keep up with them, especially Tohru. I don't really like spending my days off working out, but kudos to you, Seichi." With some obvious reluctance, Kyle turns his hazy blue gaze to Suyin, who's focusing entirely on the scuffed material of her boots. "Good afternoon, Suyin." Her eyes raise, but only barely and she keeps her head ducked down. Behind him, Mari scoffs. "We just came to pay our respects and hope for a new year."

"Ah, yeah… I was just looking around," Seichi admits.

"I'd say that's a good thing, getting acquainted with your new home."

He pauses, then slowly smiles. Home. "Right."

Mari lightly tugs on the sleeve of Kyle's leather jacket. "Hey, we told Kaito and Avery we'd meet them for coffee in fifteen minutes. We should hurry."

"Sorry, you're right. Well, we'll see you later." Kyle waves to Seichi and politely inclines his head to Suyin, then heads towards the offertory box with Mari, who completely ignores them.

"She doesn't seem to like you very much," Suyin observes once they're out of hearing distance. "I can understand why she'd dislike me, but you two live together."

Seichi sighs and shrugs, not really understanding Mari's animosity towards him either. "Tohru told me that she's just slow to warm up to people and has a hard time trusting people she doesn't know. She isn't making it very easy to get to know her, though." Suyin almost laughs at the irony of his words. "Well, I've only been here for like a month. I can't expect to get along with everyone." He pulls himself up, says goodbye to Kyle as he walks past again, then folds his arms across his chest. "I hope this year'll be fun."

Suyin thinks about everything that's already happened in the span of a month and, more to herself than to him, says, "I'm sure it will be."

May 6, 2013, Namikaze, Kaihin International Boarding School

Kaito closes the door to the Faculty Office behind him with a small sigh. Apparently someone's been stealing from the Tech Club and the computer room, and it's up to him and Jaye to figure out some kind of solution. It's not even a month into school and already he has a lot on his plate. Maybe he shouldn't have taken on Student Council responsibilities for his senior year of high school…

Jaye pats him on the shoulder reassuringly. "It'll be fine, mate. We'll figure it out, and if not, we'll come up with something. Don't let it bother you, alright?" Kaito nods, even if his worries haven't been alleviated at all, and watches as his friend sprints off to meet a friend.

Kaito wearily runs his fingers through his light-colored hair, consumed by his thoughts. He's still stringing together ideas about how to bring this up to the other members of Student Council when he nearly runs over a passerby in the process. "I'm so sorry!" he apologizes quickly, trying to stabilize the smaller girl he nearly knocked over.

"It's okay," she gasps. It takes him a moment to realize that the person he's holding on to is Yumiko Sakura, in which he immediately retracts his hands. The amber-haired girl shrinks back as well, though she looks significantly more terrified than him. (Which in turn makes him nervous and wonder how scary he is for her to react in such a way.) "S-s-sorry. I was playing my game… Sorry." She pockets her gaming console, then tries to scuttle away — only to run into another person. "Gack!"

"Oof!" Yumiko squeaks in surprise as Walker steadies himself. "Sorry! I'm so clumsy…"

She shakes her head adamantly; in all her frantic movement, Kaito swears he can see her blushing. "N-n-no! It was my fault… My fault! Sorry!" She clasps her hands in front of her and bows deeply.

Walker's eyes widen as he tries to stop her. "No, it's okay. Really, it's okay…!" He looks to Kaito for help, but all the upperclassman can do is ogle at the girl in confusion. Clutching her book bag close to her chest, Yumiko bows one last time before scrambling off, muttering something that sounds vaguely like, "What would Cloud do!?" When she's gone, Walker turns to Kaito; both of them are still awestruck by the strange occurrence. "I forgot how funny everyone is…"

Kaito chuckles, but he's not really sure why. "It's good to have you back." He speaks his words slowly and clearly, using signs he learned from books and watching Kyle communicate.

He beams brightly as he plays with the ends of his white scarf. "It's great to be back. I'm very happy." Walker's glad that Jaye and the others covered up for him because his teachers didn't give him any grief when he showed up today. Sure, there were some inquisitive glances from administration and students alike, but it was nice to not have to justify himself in front of everyone. "Thanks for all the hard work."

"Yeah, no problem." Out of the corner of his eye, Kaito spies a familiar figure. "Sorry, Walker, but—"

"You're busy, I understand. See you, Kaito-senpai." With a wide grin, Walker bids farewell to Kaito and goes to meet some friends waiting for him at the end of the hallway. Briefly, Kaito thinks about how much lighter Walker's steps are.

His attention shifts back to the figure, who's standing at his shoe locker. Carefully, Kaito approaches Calin. "Zane," he says. Calin doesn't seem surprised to see him. Instead, he just adjusts the black fedora on his head and remains silent. "Ah, you're in the Tech Club, right?" he asks, feeling grossly uncomfortable. "They just called me in to talk about the stuff that's gone missing in your room. Do you know anything about it?"

Calin shrugs. "Of course. Our president's very upset about it. The rest of us are as well, but there isn't much we can do." He finishes slipping on his outside shoes, then closes the door to his lockers. As he pulls on his backpack, he turns to face Kaito. "Have you found a perpetrator?"

"No," he answers honestly. "I just found out about the ordeal today."

"I see." He hesitates for a moment before saying, "If there's anything I can do to assist, please let me know."

Needless to say, Kaito's shocked. He's never been outright rude to the members of the other division (simply because it isn't in his nature to be rude to people), but he knows that the border between them is very strong. Calin has never come off as crass like Erik or aggressive like Anagi, but Kaito hadn't expected him to be so cooperative. Seeing the expression of incredulity on his face, Calin explains, "I am a member of the club, and it's very important to me."

His lips soften into a smile. "I understand. Thank you. I'll be sure to let you know if we find any leads." That seems good enough for Calin, who nods and silently dismisses himself from the conversation. They aren't any closer to finding an actual solution, but Kaito feels the load lighten slightly. He decides to finally head back to the dorm when a younger student with strange yellow eyes and blue hair approaches him. "Can I help you?" he asks, noting that the boy is dressed in the KI uniform.

"Yeah! I'm a transfer student, so I don't really know my way around…" He scratches his head in embarrassment. "But I was wondering if you knew someone named Seichi Hakurata?"

Kaito's eyebrows raise at the mention of his dorm mate. How does this transfer student know him — who arrived just a month ago? "Yes," he answers carefully. "The two of us live together. Do you know him?"

He nods. "Yeah! I'm an old friend of his. Ah, but listen, I gotta go to try outs, but can you tell him that Shiro Yagashimi wanted to talk to him?"

"S-sure."

"Thanks!" With a curt bow of thanks, he leaves in the direction of the soccer field.

Kaito watches the mysterious boy (Shiro Yagashimi, was it?) until he can no longer see him. What a strange afternoon, he thinks.

Closing Song: "Goodnight and Go" - Imogen Heap

Social Links:
Fool: Level 1
Lovers: Level 1
Moon: Level 2 (+1)
Star: Level 1 (+1)

And that's it for chapter 9! The next chapter will be back to some plot-important stuff, plus some delving back into the mirror world. Thank you again to everyone who's been reviewing and supporting me, and I hope you'll continue to enjoy the story as it goes on (even if it's slowly). :)

xx, der kapitan