What He Left Behind Chapter 11-New crush…and death again…
(Takeharu dies in this chapter)
11/5/2009 Early Morning
Hamuko's PoV
Holy shit, the new student next to Souji-kun looks just like Pharos! "How is this even possible?! There's no way he'd be able to grow up that quickly!" I fumbled to think of a plausible theory, but nothing came up. Eurydice soon piped up in my head, saying that that teen could very well be Pharos.
"He did just regain his memories. Maybe he changed? He's most likely not human if that's true. Keep your guard up." she said, vanishing and going back into my mind. What she said had to be at least partly true; Pharos had slowly been remembering things about the End ever since he started showing up and had finally remembered everything, though he wouldn't divulge any info. Gee, thanks…jerk…
Soon, I remembered that Mitsuru's father, Takeharu would be coming by the dorm to celebrate the end of the Dark Hour…and yet, I could not shake this feeling of dread that was growing. "I thought I got rid of that feeling after the final battle…" I muttered.
I glanced over at my twin, who seemed to be staring at the new guy. I wonder what he is thinking right now? He seems to be staring at the new guy…
Minato's PoV
It has to be him, it has to be Pharos! There's no one else with that beauty mark under the left eye except for Saori, Hamuko-chan's friend who had left oversees due to the scandal at school lately. Souji was nervous as hell; he had never been to school in a while. I hope he does well…
But that new guy…he's rather…attractive…really attractive…. I haven't felt this way about anyone expect Shinjiro. Had my broken heart finally begun to heal? As if they agreed with my mind, the twins kicked me at the same time, both right in my ribs where they just loved to kick me. "Maybe…he is Pharos somehow…" I muttered. Soon, the new guy spoke up after Ms. Toriumi told him to.
"Hello, my name is Ryoji Mochizuki. It's nice to meet you!" he said with his hand on his chest and a grin on his face. He seemed to be staring at me and I did the only logical thing to do: Blush like a school kid with a crush. Does he have interest in me? Soon, Ryoji said hello to Aigis. And that's when shit got weird…
"Hello, what's-!" he was interrupted when Aigis glared at him, "You…are dangerous…" she said, angry and she looked like she was about to punch him. But Ms. Toriumi stopped her,
"Aigis, I know you haven't had the spotlight of being the new kid for very long, but you need to let the new kid have a chance here, okay? And that goes for Souji as well…" she said curtly, grabbing the papers tightly in her hands. Come to think of it, Maya-san on the Internet said she was a teacher.
"…" Aigis stopped talking and sat back down, still glaring at Ryoji. I wonder why she hates him so much? He just came here…soon, Ryoji was told to sit next to me and he sat down, smiling at me with a smile that made me blush. The rest of class went rather slowly like time had been slowed down or something. After class was let out, Ms. Toriumi stopped me and told me to talk with her.
"Minato, I know this question might be rather invasive, but I need to know…will you stay in school after your child is born?" she asked in a professional manner. I smiled, and that confused her.
"Actually, I'm having twins…and I'm getting another ultrasound to see what genders they are…" I said rather warmly. The ultrasound was scheduled right after school got out today.
"I will most likely stay in school until they are born, then I might take a break…but I do want an education…" I answered her question with a small smile. She smiled back at me, "That's great to hear that you are taking your education so seriously! Now…" she trailed off and soon asked nervously,
"I know this…might seem like I'm being nosy, but…do you know you the father is?" she asked slowly. I nodded and told her about Shinjiro. Her expression soon turned sad,
"How horrible…Minato, I'm sorry…to lose your lover like that must still take its toll on you…" she said, "You may go now…" she said, going back to her desk. She began shuffling papers and muttering to herself.
When I got out of the classroom, literally everyone was standing there. It seems they overheard everything I told the teacher. "I'm so sorry to hear about that, Senpai. Is there anything we can to make it better?" one girl asked. I shook my head and smiled,
"I'm okay. Thanks anyway." I said, walking through the crowd and down the stairs. When I got to the school store, I bumped into Ryoji again, and it seems like he had been talking to Yuko and Kazushi. He smiled at me,
"Minato is your name, right?" he asked and I nodded dumbly, still blushing from bumping into him. Soon he began talking about taking me out to dinner at Paulownia Mall, saying something about a great restaurant with good coffee. I agreed,
"Oh that's great! I wanted to talk to you anyway!" he smiled and walked off and I stared at him with my mouth open. He just asked me out? Already? Me and Shinjiro didn't start going out on dates until after the first time we had sex…
' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '
Flashback
9/21
Minato sat down next to his boyfriend Shinjiro as they found a place to sit. It was in the Iwotodai Strip Mall and Minato had expressed interest in going there. As Minato ordered his food, Shinjiro asked a question.
"Is everyone eating alright, Mina-kun?" he asked as Minato took his first bite of udon noodles. His bluenette lover swallowed his food and replied,
"You mean eating healthy?" Shinjiro nodded, "Mitsuru is eating right and so is everyone else expect for Junpei and Akihiko. Akihiko keep eating noting but meat and Junpei eats almost nothing but junk food.
Shinjiro rubbed the bridge of his nose in dismay; he'd have to get back to Aki on this. He sighed and began eating his food.
Minato smiled at him and he blushed. Damnit, didn't he know that he couldn't resist that stare he gave him?!
And now he was eating the noodles in a manner that should have been illegal! "Oh god, don't get a hard-on now!" he wished in his head. His lover slowly licked the soup off his lips, asking his lover in an innocent manner what was wrong.
"You do realize we're in a public place, Mina-chan, don't you!?" hissed the brunette in half-frustration and half-arousal. Part of him admitted to wanting to have public sex, but this was just too much for him to handle. He got up, grabbed Minato's hand, and dragged him into the restroom…
He made sure to lock the bathroom door and pinned his lover to the wall, kissing him roughly and smirked as his lover moaned. "Didn't take you long to do that, now, did you?" teased Minato in a singsong voice as he got to work on undoing his senpai's pants and belt.
Before Shinjiro knew, Minato had undone his pants and belt and kneeled down and began to lick his cock. "F-fuck! Damnit, do ya wanna get caught!?" he growled, trying his hardest not to moan out loud. He stared down at his lover, who had his dick in his mouth and was sucking on the tip.
"Hmmm, Senpai tastes good…" said Minato as he licked to the base and back again, "Very good…" he finished. He kept this pace until Shinjiro stopped him. His face was red and flushed.
"Damnit, if you keep that up…." he said, pulling his lover up and turning him around to face the wall. Minato moaned as Shinjiro pushed a finger inside him, "I won't be able to hold back." he finished as he pushed another finger inside.
Soon, he pushed inside him and the two started having sex…
' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '
I shook my head; no, Ryoji had just met me…but now that I thought back on it, the way the passion between my dead lover and me had started in this very manner. I soon began walking towards the train and got on to head towards Paulownia Mall. My mind wandered to thoughts of Ryoji.
"D-damnit, n-no, I'm not-!" I stuttered and shook my head of the growing sexual thoughts I was getting. I soon forgot about them and began wondered about how Souji's first day at Gekkokan High was. He seemed to be awful shy, too. I just hoped he was okay…
The train stopped and I got off and headed towards the mall and soon saw Ryoji sitting on the bench and he waved at me. "Hey Minato! There you are!" he got up and ran towards me and chuckled. He smiled at me…
"There goes that weird feeling again…his smile reminds me of Pharos…" I thought as we headed into Café Chagall and sat down in the nearest table. Just as we sat down, I heard the voice of my sister Hamuko. She smiled at us both and sat down. Ryoji turned to me and said,
"I wanted Hamuko here as well…" his voice turned serious for a moment and I swore that he had been replaced by a clone! I tilted my head in confusion and my sister explained it to me. Apparently, he had asked both of us to come here to talk to us about something.
Ryoji soon spoke; "You must be wondering why I am here in this form…" he began. I asked what he meant by that and Hamuko added her own question. She asked if he knew anyone by the name of Pharos.
He smiled at those words and answered, "Yes, I do…what I am about to say may shock you both…" both of us stayed quiet as he hesitated to speak, "…I was Pharos…once." Those words shocked us both; he used to be Pharos, my dear friend? How could something like that even be possible?
"Unless…Pharos was never human to begin with, that might explain this…" I thought, my mouth wide open from shock. Ryoji looked at Hamuko, and then at me. He must have remembered his memories from the time he was Pharos and asked us to come here.
"So you…are or were Pharos, Ryoji-kun?" asked Hamuko as she took a sip of coffee. He nodded. She stayed quiet for a moment until Ryoji spoke up again, this time asking if anyone at the dorm knew who I was. We both shook our heads no and he didn't ask anymore about the matter.
"So I wanted to ask you both something…do you remember anything of what happened 10 years ago on the Moonlight Bridge?" We nodded in unison, "Yes, our parents died and our sister Naoto was taken by Social Services to live with our grandfather, but what do you mean by this question? Is there something else you remember, Ryoji?" asked Hamuko as she finished her coffee and asked the waitress to take the cup away.
Ryoji suddenly looked very sad, "I know…that I am not human, but a Shadow born from the union of the 12 Shadows that you and your friends have defeated on each Full Moon."
That caught our full attention.
"Wait…so you mean you're a fusion of all of them and you regained your memories the night after we defeated the Hanged Man? If so…then, do you know anything about the Fall you've talked about so much?" I asked, worry filling my heart. I rubbed my stomach and both of my twins kicked like mad, as if they sensed I was getting scared.
"Being pregnant must be hard on you, huh Minato?" asked Ryoji as he leaned over to rub my stomach. I nodded, "Yeah, it is…my lover died before he even knew he was to become a father. But I have my friends with me as support, so it isn't all that hard."
The twins soon calmed down and Ryoji sat back in his chair, "Yes I know we don't have a lot of time before it happens. We have until January 31st before she comes and ends life as we know it…" he said shaking in fear.
"Wait, who's 'she'?" asked my sister as she began eating a slice of cake. Ryoji responded in a very grave voice, "Nyx…that is who will bring about the Fall…"
Nyx? I've never heard of anything with that name…
"…And I'm the Appraiser, the one who will summon her to the top of Tartarus. My existence will bring this world to ruin if Nyx isn't stopped."
The Appraiser? The one who will summon her?
"So, you're our enemy then? Why tell us all this?" I shook in fear as I said that…Ryoji shook his head no, and said that he didn't want the world to end. He, despite his creation, wanted to save the world and was now defying his role as the Appraiser.
I held Ryoji's hand gently and stared him in the eyes, "Don't worry, we'll tell everyone about this and get this solved. We've defeated all twelve of those Shadows, so we can defeat this Nyx and save the world!" I said with confidence.
"We'll solve this, Ryoji." My hand tingled with warmth as I let go of his hand.
He smiled at me and the conversation ended there. Hamuko checked her cellphone and told the time, "It's almost the Dark Hour…and we're so far away from the others, too…this ain't good." she said as she put her phone in her pocket. Under her jacket pocket, I saw her Evoker and mine as well. She must have brought mine just in case we got separated.
Soon, the world changed and all electronics stopped working. But why, I thought we'd gotten rid of the Dark Hour? Why was it arriving like it had done before?
Ryoji frowned, "This world…it feels like everything has died…and yet, it feels at peace." he said as he looked at both of us. He asked how far it was to our dorm. The dorm was on the other side of Tatsumi Port Island; it would take us a while to get there.
He shuddered, "I'm sensing a lot of bad energy there…we need to hurry…" Bad energy? What did he mean by that? I decided not to ask him.
We took off on Hamuko's Persona, Kohryu and began to fly towards the dorm as fast as Kohryu could manage. "I'll try and head there as fast as I can, but I can only fly so fast, Hamuko…" he said in a deep voice. Hamuko thanked him for helping us out and rubbed his scales
"Minato, we'd better get ready." said Orpheus as he appeared next to me. I nodded and began to check our item supply.
We didn't have much to use, but it would have to be enough. We had no time to waste. Just as I put my bag away, I heard someone trying to contact my mind. It was the panicked voice of Chidori, and she seemed rather starled,
"Oh thank goodness I could contact you both…" she said and she began to relay what had happened at the dorm. "The Chairman's gone crazy!" she yelled.
"What!?" both me and Hamuko yelled in unison. "But the Dark Hour should have been gone by now after what we all did!" yelled my sister as she began to panic.
"I know, but he's taken me and Souji up to the top the school's observation deck along with Mitsuru's father! He's planning something bad! St-" she was cut off and we couldn't hear anything else.
She must have realized that
' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '
Normal PoV
Dark Hour, Entrance of Tartarus
Ikutsuki stood at the entrance, a brainwashed Aigis by his side, ready to receive his orders. The Chairman had been waiting for this moment for so long it hurt. But soon, he would bring about the Fall and the world would fall. It would be free from the race of humanity…
Soon, the bell inside Tartarus rang and SEES came.
He greeted them with a smile.
"Ikutsuki-san!" yelled Akihiko as the rest of his friends came up behind him. Yukari soon noticed that Aigis was standing next to him and was alarmed,
"Aigis? Why are you here…?" she slowly asked. Aigis didn't respond.
Ikutsuki stepped forward a bit, "She is merely here to fufill her role—as a weapon." he replied, rather calmly. Yukari was confused by this answer, "Huh?"
Junpei growled, "Ikutsuki-san, what's this all about?!"
Akihiko calmed down and spoke, "You said the Dark Hour and Tartarus would disappear if we defeated the 12 Shadows. That's why we fought so hard! But, now…"
"What is your intention?" asked Mitsuru. Her friends were confused by this question. Mitsuru added, "It was all a lie, wasn't it?" she said.
"You knew from the beginning that the Dark Hour wouldn't disappear."
"Excellent deduction, Mitsuru." replied Ikutsuki in a condescending manner. "Unfortunately, your realization has come too late."
"No…" said Yukari as she and the others began to realize that they had been tricked.
"You tricked us?!" asked Ken.
"Everything is as I planned…" said Ikutsuki as he glanced to the side for a moment. "It is not unexpected that the Dark Hour and Tartarus remain. In fact, I never intended for you to rid the world of them. Quite the opposite, acutally."
"What do you mean?" asked Fuuka. Ikutsuki soon had a twisted smile on his face, "The 12 Shadows were parts of a whole. They were destined to be reunited…and that was accomplished in no small part, thanks to your efforts." he chuckled. "Soon, Death, the almighty, shall arise and bring forth the Fall…"
"…Death?" asked Ken.
Akihiko grew angry again, "What are you talking about!?"
Ikutsuki extended his hands in an odd gesture, "The end of all shall come and free this world from despair…the death of everything…but also the beginning."
"Wh-what is he saying…? Is he out of his mind…?" asked Yukari.
"Ten years ago…I, too, was a scientist for the project we've spoken of. The experiment went awry, but that is not why the Dark Hour and Tartarus were born. They manifested as a result of harvesting the Shadows' power—just as the experiment was designed to do…" he looked at Mitsuru,
"That is why your grandfather gathered so many Shadows…to bring about the Fall." he finished.
"That can't be…" gasped Mitsuru in complete horror.
"People have filled the world, yet turned it into a void!" added Ikutsuki, "The only hope for salvation lies in ruin!" he said, putting his hands and arms back down.
"According to the prophecy…The Fall will be orchestrated by "the Prince." And once the Prince has delivered us all, he shall rule the new world as King! The man who tried it ten years ago failed. But I will not; I shall succeed!" he finished.
"Man, he's totally lost it…" said Junpei.
"I apologize for deceiving you, but this was for your own sake as well…" said the Chairman, his face returning to normal. "If you follow me for just a little while longer, you, too, will find salvation."
"You call that salvation!?" said Fuuka in dismay. Yukari snapped, "…I have a question for you."
"Yes?" groaned the Chairman.
"In the video from my father…he said to defeat the Shadows…was that a lie, too?" she asked.
"Ah…he did record that himself…of course, I had to make some modifications." said Ikutsuki as he smiled in response to Yukari's question.
"…You doctored it!?" yelled Mitsuru, even more appalled than before.
"I CORRECTED it." snapped the Chairman. He soon had that creepy smile again, "Your father was a superb scientist…he may not have known it, but I truly respected him. While others focused on the Shadows' abilities, he explored much more important things…but unfortunately, he could not comprehend the magnificent potential of the Fall."
"What?" that was all Yukari could get out. Her voice could not say another word.
"He left that recording at the expense of his own life." said Mitsuru, her voice rising.
"It would seem so…but, it did prove rather useful, so I'm sure he's happy." said the Chairman.
"So you were behind it all!? You used both me and my father!" yelled Yukari, finding her courage. She was angry that the adult in front of her had betrayed her and her friends in such a manner.
"Used is such an ugly word…it was for the sake of the world, so how could it be wrong?" asked Ikutsuki in an annoyed voice.
"Our role is to correct the mistakes of the past…" said Mitsuru as she grabbed her Evoker. "…And we intend to do just that."
"H-hey, w-wait…" said Junpei, hesitating to draw his Evoker like the rest of his friends.
*Sigh* "…How disappointing, I was hoping that you would see the light." said Ikutsuki sighing with disappointment, shaking his head. "But, you are just children, after all. I suppose it can't be helped."
"Aigis!" he commanded in a firm voice. "The time has come for you to fufill your role. Capture them, and prepare them to be sacrificed!" He pulled out a remote and pressed a button.
"…Understood." said Aigis in a monotone voice. She jumped towards her friends…
' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '
Souji's PoV
"…I knew the Chairman was bad, but never did I think it would be this horrible…" I thought as I tried yet again to break free from the restraints on the cross I was being hung up on. Chidori was next to me and she looked rather exhausted. Takeharu was being held by Aigis, who seemed to be under some sort of spell. No matter how hard me or Chidori yelled, she didn't hear us.
Soon, the others were hung up on each one of the crosses…wait a moment…"Where is Hamuko-san and Minato-san? And Koromaru for that matter?" I muttered out loud by accident. Ikutsuki-san overheard me and grinned.
"They will come for you and the others soon enough…" he said as he dug into his pocket and began to pull out a large wad of paper, starting to look at it. It seemed rather large, just how did he manage to fit it in his pocket?
"Ah, Souji Seta, you have quite the backstory it seems." he began to talk about my past, some of which seemed to be rather…impossible. Some of the stuff he was talking about made no sense: Strega, the Dark Hour, all of which seemed like something from a novel. But the one thing he said that scared me was…
"You're awake during this time and yet…you haven't been eaten by the Shadows…" Shadows, is that what those monsters are called?
"…You must have the potential then, tell me, do you have a Persona?" he asked rather calmly considering I was his hostage. "Why do you want to know, anyway?" asked Chidori next to me. We both looked to see her waking up from her knocked out state. She stared Ikutsuki right in his eyes and asked in a calm voice, her eyes filled with anger.
"Why are you doing this? And for what reasons have you taken most of us here? You must have some reason for deceiving us." she stated rather calmly. Before the Chairman could respond, the others began to wake up.
"What is going on here!?" asked Mitsuru's father in a rather angry voice.
"What the hell!?" came Junpei's voice. Everyone else woke up not a second later, each with their own reactions of shock.
"You guys are awake…thank goodness…" I said with relief, but it quickly left me as worry came over me. What if Ikutsuki already killed the others?
"What is this!?" yelled Yukari. Mitsuru looked around and soon laid eyes on her father being held by Aigis.
"Father!" she yelled, trying to break free. "Aigis!?"
"It's no use, Aigis is under his control somehow. I've tried to get her to listen, but nothing me or Chidori did could wake her up…" I said sadly. She looked at me with shock, "What?"
Mitsuru's father decided to speak again, "Ikutsuki…what is the meaning of this!?" he stared up at me, "…and why have you dragged Souji into this mess? He doesn't have a Persona…" he asked again.
Ikutsuki decided to answer, "Why, you ask?" he shook his head as if Mitsuru's father was stupid to ask that question.
Ikutsuki laughed, "It is just as it appears…they are sacrifices-harbingers of the Fall." he let out an even bigger laugh. Psycho…
He failed to even notice a furry white shape slowly sneaking by. I was the one to notice the shape and my eyes soon saw Koromaru trying to break me free with his weapon. Sweet, he came to save us! As the Chairman was making his speech, Koromaru broke me free and I landed on the ground as quietly as possible.
"Thanks…now free the others…huh?" In my excitement of being freed, I had failed to notice that Ikutsuki had spotted me, though he couldn't see Koromaru at all. He grabbed a gun out of his coat and aimed it at me.
"Oh no…" was all I could say before he pulled the trigger…
"Hngh!" came the voice of Mitsuru's father. I opened my eyes and saw him standing in front of me, shielding me from the bullet. My eyes widened in shock and I felt unable to move even an inch…
"Father!" yelled Mitsuru in horror as he kneeled to the ground, clutching his stomach in pain. Ikutsuki growled, "Fool…why even try to save that boy…?" he asked, in genuine confusion as he stared at the injured form of Mitsuru's father. He fell to the ground, bleeding…
"You son of a bitch! I'm gonna rip your head off!" yelled Junpei, trying to break free. Ikutsuki tried to command Aigis to aim at him, but Koromaru snatched the remote away and broke it in two.
"The prophecy…it was almost to be fulfilled. You…" he grew angrier with every second that went by.
"Death as a deliverance…that is not a ideology anyone should ever embrace!" yelled a familiar voice from above. It was the voice of Ryoji, the other new guy from school. "Heeey! They came…wait, is that Ryoji from school!?" yelled Junpei as Ryoji and Hamuko came down.
It was then I saw a large dragon in the sky and Minato-senpai was riding it. He must be worried about us to have come all this way despite being pregnant.
"Sorry we're late! Had a long talk with Ryoji!" yelled Hamuko as she got to work snapping Aigis out of her hypnotized state. "Huh?" our friend soon woke up from her brainwashed state.
I sighed with relief; she would be okay. Now to go check up on Mitsuru's father…
Hamuko's PoV
Thank goodness we got here just in time. Just as we freed the others, I laid eyes on Takeharu-san with Souji nearby his side along with Mitsuru. My gut wretched; were we too late to save everyone? Before we could act any further, I heard the voice of the Chairman. I turned to see him aiming a gun at Mitsuru.
"Watch out!" I yelled.
"Ten years…" yelled Ikutsuki as he raised his gun at me again, "I've wasted ten long years for this moment…"
He fired, but missed and stumbled backwards near the edge of the observation deck and fell off, barely uttering a scream as he plummeted to what would most likely be his death. "He was insane…" I said as I walked back over to Mitsuru, now standing over the dead body of her father. Souji was nearby in equal shock.
"How did it come to this?" asked Yukari, finally able to get a word out of her mouth. She couldn't believe what had just happened and neither could I. How could the Chairman we all had trusted go ahead and kill Takeharu, not to mention try and kill all of them?
"…One time, my father made a promise. He swore that he would atone for endangering our generation, even if it cost him his life…" she said staring at Souji who had gone into shock. She sunk lower, "But, I…I wanted him to live…I…I became a Persona user to protect him…"
I kneeled down to her level and gently pulled her closer…
Eventually, we all left for the dorm except for Mitsuru, Akihiko, myself, my brother Minato, Souji, Chidori, and Ryoji as we had gone home separately after we had contacted the police about the body. All of us wanted to help her feel better in any way we could. Us girls were sitting-more like laying on her bed to comfort her with hugs. I knew how she felt; it was awful to lose a father. She also told me once that she had lost her mother too…
She had died protecting someone, she said, but that was all she had been told by her father and now she would likely never know the full story of her mother's death.
(Author's Note: From a few chapters ago, this has changed from staying canon for the most part to an AU(Alternate Universe) fanfic. It will still be mostly canon plot-wise from the game, but after a certain point, it will be fully AU until the second arc of this story. Yes, I do plan on writing through the P3 epilogue and through Persona 4 and Persona 4 Arena.)
