A/N: I decided to, as I previously stated, shake up the converstaion flow, after a suggestion of Ari Moriarty's That being said. I am going to next chapter, because of how I want the conversations to go, go back to the old way. But that may just be its swan song...

Also, Please keep reading and reviewing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Persona. I own Reiko Setsuka.

Chapter 27
April 30, 2011

Amagi Inn

After the session in the springs was over, Minako said good night to Yukiko and Chie. I like them. I don't think those two have the capability to become a "Strega." So they're crossed off. I need to get a better bearing from Hanamura and Narukami, before I can cross them off. But Charles-kun? He has the potential, but I believe ultimately, only if he is severely traumatized, would he devastate the world.

"So, enjoy yourself?" Minako recognized the voice. She even recognized the tone. It same sort of impatient tone she had fell in love with. Behind her was Shinjiro. He appeared to be wearing an evening Yukata.

"Tch, Shinji. You never call; you never write…you never even do this 'texting' thing that all the kids are doing these days."

Despite the situation between them. Shinjiro smirked at that. "You know why I don't do that?"

Minako sighed, "Shinji, how many times do I have to say it? I didn't mean to fall in love with Aki while you were in your coma."

"As many times as it takes until you believe that… which is probably never," Shinjiro replied.

"So you still think I had a crush on him the entire time, but you were a detour?" Minako sighed, holding her head while shaking it.

Shinji bitterly said, "You said it, I didn't." He started to walk off. He tired of this conversation, because it was a variation of what had happened after he came his coma but she entered hers. Him dredging up the love triangle, her apologizing for it and him refusing it. The fact was, he was just tired of it. He still loved Minako, but he couldn't trust her beyond the level of comrade. It just hurt him too much.

"Did you have something serious to say, or you just wanted to pick at old scabs?" Minako said with actual venom for once.

"I'm sorry. This time. I wanted to know if you get anything off of those two."

"They're nice, Shinji. They don't seem to be a threat." Minako looked concerned for her new friends.

"Tch, it's what I figured, but a second opinion helps, and I usually don't believe in that shit," he said, a little less tense. "But What about Waldo?"

Minako sighed, "Which part? That he loves Amagi-san and she now knows it and feels the same way or about his Persona?"

Shinji was surprised. "She loves him back? Shit!"

Minako didn't appear to be happy with that response. "You have a problem with them being in love?"

"No, I have a problem with the possibility that a guy like that is only interested in her for her body."

"You don't really believe he's the type. He hasn't even tried for the Amagi Challenge."

"That's the only reason I'm not kicking the shit out of him," Shinji said.

"Shinji, he seems like a nice guy. I think you don't like him because he won't take shit from you," Minako said with a smirk.

"Tch, He may seem nice, and MAYBE I'm dumping shit he MAY not deserve, but he better not hurt Amagi. Because if he hurts her, then I wouldn't have been properly repaying her family for taking me on despite my 'reputation.'

"Shinji, look…" Minako was angry now. "I think you're letting Castor's fright of Waldo's Persona get to you. You want to believe so badly that he's Takaya or Jin from Strega that you would condemn him just as others use to look down or condemn you. And I know for a fact… A FACT… that you don't like being dismissed as a punk anymore."

Shinjiro just looked at her with a smirk, "You have a thing for him."

"Weren't you listening? And no I do not! He's not my type." Minako was getting annoyed, but as long as Shinji was willing to talk to her about ANYTHING, she would not walk away.

"Oh, and what type is he then?" He replied, still smirking.

"The type where his heart's already taken."

"Too bad you apply that standard to others and not to yourself," Shinjiro said with a scowl.

Minako's eyes flashed an anger Shinjiro rarely saw. He was used to it when it happened. It was her brother who had been the scarier one. When HE showed anger… Figuratively speaking, it was a miracle that trees were still standing.

"Let me tell you something, Shinjiro. I NEVER meant for what happened between Aki and me to happen while you were comatose. But guess what, I'm tired of you just being an ass and so I'm giving you a dose of truth and if you don't like it you can walk away AFTER I've finished."

"After school, EVERY DAY I would visit you for an hour or two, depending on what my schedule was. On Sundays and School Holidays, If I had no plans and none of my friends outside the dorm didn't call me so we could hang out, I was there ALL DAY. From shortly after Dawn to LONG after dusk. I would read to you your favorite poems and stories, I told you secrets about the others. I would SAY 'I LOVE YOU' and MEAN IT."

"Then Itkutski betrayed us. Killed Mitsuru's father. Revealed he played us all for fools and that he was going to invoke Nyx since the Twelfth Arcana Shadow had died. Even though Mitsuru's Dad's final act was to kill the bastard… it wasn't over."

"Do you think, Shinji, that a betrayal like that is one where I would just go to sleep, and then wake up the next day and be 'happy, bubbly, cheerful' Minako? Hell, no! I was angry, surly, BITCHY. And do you know why? Because, even being with you at the hospital wasn't a comfort. I was completely embracing darkness and despair and I. DIDN'T. CARE."

And then, Aki was concerned about me, because in Tartarus, I stopped even being an effective leader. I tried pushing even him away. Minato was already avoiding me, because he tried to snap me out of it, but he failed. Aki, though, would not give up."

"He never knew you and I had been in a romance. He just knew we were close friends. I guess you and I were more successful at being secretive than you had been worried about," She said with a smirk.

"Tch," he replied. However, he was listening to her.

She continued, "Aki, as a last ditch effort, took me to the roof of the school and told me how he really felt about me, and then. We kissed. And it felt as wonderful as when I kissed you. I remember the teardrops falling from my face during that kiss, from all he said and the kiss itself."

"So, one kiss from him and I'm all forgotten?" Shinjiro said, his previous mood on the subject returning.

Minako took a deep breath, "What I said was just the setup, here's the blow that's the possible knockout. Two days before, the doctors said you 'had almost NO HOPE of coming out of that coma. If you did, it would have been several years, AT BEST.'"

"So, do you think after hearing that any reasonable girl, despite her deepest and total love for her first guy, IN EVERY SENSE of the term 'first', would want to wait, forsaking possible happiness down the road,? Or do you think she would want to move on, REASONABLY CONCLUDING her 'first' would want her to be with, despite the tension between her 'first' and her potential 'second', his best friend?"

Shinjiro said nothing, his jaw clenched. But he said nothing.

"So there's the big punchline to the joke," Minako said, exhausted. "Only the joke was on me, you woke up just in time to help me and Onii-chan to prevent The Fall…And that you apparently WOULDN'T have wanted me to have moved on."

Shinjiro looked as if his eyes were softening with wetness, but before Minako could confirm that, he turned and walked away.

"Tch," was all Minako said or could say.

Dojima Residence

Chie: Narukami? Are Yu there?
Souji: Yes, I'm here.
Souji: And I can't believe you're doing the pun too.
Chie: I had to test for the worm and it appears it's here still.
Souji: Dammit! One moment.

Yu adjusted something on his phone that took a few minutes.

Yu: There. Now what's up, Chie?
Chie: Yukiko knows now. About Charles feels about her.
Yu: …
Chie: Yu?
Chie: If you're thinking it was me, I blurted it out AFTER she already found out.

Yu was confused

Yu: o_O
Chie: He asked her what she thought about Minako 2 years later
Chie: She got jealous, especially when he referred to Minako as "Mina"
Chie: He tried to placate her and then under his breath he said he only had "eyes for you, Yuki-chan"
Yu: But he was still heard?
Chie: Yes.
Yu: *Sigh* Great.
Yu: We keep it a secret so they can explore each other, we even get the added benefit of them "starting over"…
Yu: And we end up with one of them slipping up and the other knowing. It's bad.
Yu: He's doomed himself, because now she'll want to avoid…
Chie: It's not bad. She said she's still willing to follow in the spirit you intended.
Yu: She does?
Chie: :)
Yu: Then he has a shot.
Chie: Why are you helping him, though? I thought you would want to chase after Yukiko.
Yu: You can't tell ANYONE, not even Yukiko.
Yu: He's had romantic dreams of her. One particular one for 9 years.
Yu: I can't go after a girl who has been loved by another man for years.
Yu: Even if he wasn't aware of it.
Chie: Because it would be wrong?
Yu: Yes.
Chie: Yukiko…has had the same dreams about him…
Chie: Including "one particular one for 9 years."
Yu: …
Yu: All the more reason for them to be a couple.
Yu: Chie, I won't deny Yukiko's beauty, brains, and femininity are qualities I look for in a woman…
Yu: Uhh, no offense to you, of course.
Chie: …
Yu: Chie?
Chie…
Chie: If I kicked you in the shins, would you say I wasn't offended?
Yu: *sweat drop*
Chie: Kidding! :)
Yu… but especially after what he's been through… I couldn't do that to him.
Yu: He has a shot at real happiness… And I'm not going to take that away from him.
Yu: Because if I do…
Yu: I'm afraid he'll harm himself.
Chie: He seems stronger than he looks.
Yu: But what if he was disappointed THIS MAJOR again?
Chie: …
Chie: I think he needs to eat more meat. It usually makes me feel better.
Yu: *sweat drop*
Chie: I don't like darkness and despair.
Yu: Then don't read the first part of this Chapter.
Chie: What?
Yu: Damn. ANOTHER WORM.
Chie: What do you mean?
Chie: Then don't read the first part of this Chapter.
Chie: Ahhh, I have it too.
Yu: Then don't read the first part of this Chapter.
Chie: Then don't read the first part of this Chapter.
Yu and Chie: Then don't read the first part of this Chapter.
Yu and Chie: Then don't read the first part of this Chapter.
Yu and Chie: Then don't read the first part of this Chapter.

"Gahhh!" Yu said, throwing down his phone.

Charles, who was studying, looked surprised that Yu actually yelled in anger. As in the concept. Yu usually never did more than a small smile or an angry lecture. "Yu, problems with your phone?"

"I'm taking your advice and getting a new phone with a new number." Yu looked absolutely pissed. His phone was ruined.

Charles picked it up and looked at it. He whistled softly. "The 'Fourth Wall Virus'. Nasty bugger. I heard about it. It piggybacks onto harmless worms and comes out when you take out only the file or program it was riding on, rather than virus scanning and rebooting your whole phone. It takes about 15 minutes but it is a nasty one, as I said. Unfortunately, once both you and whoever you were texting are texting at the same time… your phone is dead."

"I'm going to sue Makoto Yuki." Yu looked very dark.

"If it's any consolation, Yu. His phone is most likely dead too. And once you get a new phone, you'll be able to be free of his bad joke." Charles looked sympathetic to Yu.

"I'm more worried about Chie. I was texting her and she's now lost her phone to that virus." Yu looked dismayed at what that meant.

"I won't pry on what you two were texting about, but if she wants meat, I'll pay for it." Charles smiled. "I've gotten pretty good at it."

"You have money?"

"I will, the first of the month is when my stipend is released into my account. It's from the settlement after my …near-death that disabled me." Charles looked vulnerable and sad, but wasn't crying.

"Can you front me a new phone?" Yu asked.

"Only if you pay me back from your next job session making envelopes."

"Tough, but fair." Yu smiled slightly.

"I'm not paying for Chie's, however. It was an accident that it happened to her phone. She'll have to be content with meat."

Fly me to the moon
And let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like
On Jupiter and Mars

In other words
Hold my hand
In other words
Darling, kiss me

Charles phone had been ringing. It said "Yuki" Charles blushed at Yu. Yu just snickered at Charles's face. "Hello, Yuki"

"WHERE THE HELL IS NARUKAMI?! HE OWES ME A PHONE AND FORTY STEAKS! FORTY! STEAKS!"

"Yuki, are you okay? You're sounding like Chie. I hope you're not working too hard at the Inn." Charles was smiling devilishly.

Yu facepalmed at Charles's audacity.

"YOU KNOW WHO I AM! NOW GET HIM ON THE PHONE SO I CAN PRONOUNCE SENTENCE ON HIM!" Chie was still screaming.

"I'm doing no such thing, Chie. First it was an accident, it wasn't Yu's fault."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S NOT HIS FAULT?! IF HE HAD LISTENED TO YOU MY PHONE WOULD BE FINE!"

"True, but Chie, please understand, we can't keep affording make-up steaks for you especially if you get pissed. IF you want us to make things up to you, fine. But don't 'expect' it, please? Because that's just taking advantage of a person's friendship."

"Grrrr…" Chie said angrily.

"Domo. Now that being said, Yu and I have agreed to a fair, reasonable compromise. I'll buy you a Filet Mignon. But you can buy your new phone yourself. Because I'm lending him money for him to get a new phone."

"HOW IS THAT FAIR AND REASONABLE?!" Chie said, screaming again.

"It is…because otherwise I would have to hate to tell your parents you were thinking of tossing your phone into Samegawa last Sunday so you could get a new one," Charles said mirthlessly.

"Heh-Heh, oh did I say that out loud on front of you?" Chie said with embarrassed innocence.

"You did." Charles rolled his eyes at the whole situation, but decided to plug on.

"Fine," Chie said with a sigh. "But make sure you deliver on that Filet."

"I'm not Yosuke. I try to keep my promises in the format I made them."

"That's what makes you a decent guy, Chuck. You would make a great boyfriend for Yukiko," Chie said, sounding cheerful again.

"Domo… But only if she were interested in me, could I be her boyfriend."

"Chuck, I think you're selling yourself short," Chie said sadly.

"…"

"Give it time, she'll find something about you she likes, something that no other guy has, and then she'll "be your girlfriend. Don't push her away just because you think she wouldn't like you. It'll happen. Hell, maybe she's found something about you she likes, and is just waiting for the right moment to proceed." Chie sounded encouraging to Charles.

"You really think so?" Charles said with hope.

"Believe me, Charles. You're not an 'Amagi Challenger'. She would give you a chance. Just give HER one. Good Night" The call then ended.

Charles just held his phone, looking at Yu.

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah, I think for the first time, I'm gonna be okay." Charles smiled.

"What makes you say that?" Yu wondered.

"I think she's waiting for me. That right now may not be the same as what I'm feeling for her..."

"But…" Yu said.

"She WANTS a boyfriend now. And she'd like that boyfriend…to be me."

Song- Fly Me to the Moon (Infinity Climax Mix) - Bayonetta - Words by Bart Howard