Sho's heart flutters as he turns back to face his other self, but now...that face is another he once knew. "Ts- Tsukiyomi?" For a second, he wants to know more. Why'd she show up now? After all this time, Yu had been right. He had summoned her once before. Shaking his head, Sho decides to figure that out later and instead rushes over to Marie. Without wasting a second, he starts to pull at the chains. As he once did, Sho can feel Tsukiyomi following behind him. Together, they can save Marie, surely.
"Sho, you have to leave." Marie begs quietly as she watches him struggle with the chains. Her body is clearly weak but she has seen this ominous Shadow wandering about the floor for days. It didn't seem like an entity that should be messed with.
"Like hell!" Sho barks as he pulls off one of her chains. "I'm taking you back. Inaba needs you!" He grinds his teeth a little. What he'd wanted to say was I need you but it just didn't feel right. If she really was the goddess of Inaba...did he even have the place to say that? All he is... was the wannabe god of nothingness. He has no right to be at her side, right? With the shake of his head, Sho clears his thoughts and continues to free Marie. As he does, the large shadow starts to shift about. It's heavy chains clash together and it groans as it wakes from what could best be described as sleep.
"Sho, get out of here. You can't beat this thing alone." Marie is afraid for the redhead she'd come to care for. Even if it felt like it had been so long since seeing him, Marie couldn't forget those feelings.
"I'm not alone." Sho nods towards Tsukiyomi then looks back to Marie. "And I'm not friggin' leaving you here by yourself." He rips another chain down and looks to the tired eyes of the Inaba Goddess. "I didn't come all this way just to go back."
"But I let you down."
"The Reaper?" Says Yosuke with a shaky voice. "Th-That doesn't sound good at all."
"It isn't." Mitsuru agrees. "He use to show up as a threat that we had stuck around too long in Tartarus. That thing is huge and taking it down was no easy task. Honestly, I didn't know it could come back let alone manage to end up in your world." She walks up to the invisible wall and touches it again, hoping there might be a break in the force field now. Her hand won't pass however, so she just clears her throat and shakes her head. "If he is fast enough, he can get away. That was the reaper's biggest weakness. It wasn't very fast."
"Well he's certainly fast." Complains Chie, who can still feel the sore spot on her bottom from his quick moving legs toppling him over.
"But he has to get Marie-chan too." Teddie looks over to Chie and hugs himself. "I'm beary worried!"
"Let's be positive, guys." Starts Yu with a punch to his fist. "Sho was able to make it to the tenth floor by himself. I'm sure he can do this."
"I like your confidence, partner, but… a boss? By himself?" Yosuke rubs the back of his head. "And without a persona?"
"You what?" Sho shouts a little too loudly and has to turn to face the monstrous shadow coming their way. It wasn't moving fast, but Sho didn't like the feel of it much. "How in the hell do you think you let me down?"
"In your poem. You said...you would be okay with me. And… you weren't." Marie has told herself the same story over and over. She couldn't help but blame herself. If he hadn't been with her, Sho would have been safe. Looking at him now, Marie couldn't do anything besides see that he'd been far from safe. His eyes are tired and he has dark circles under them. His skin is even more pale than it had been before he was taken and he has the red blush of a fever on his face.
"It's not like that was your fault, stupid." Sho pulls one of the last two chains off of her and shakes her head. "With you I was okay. And I will be. But if you stay here…" He looks to see that ominous shadow is dangerously close to them. "Well, neither of us will be okay then!"
"But what if you get caught again because of me?!" Marie makes two angry fists. "I won't let that happen!" The last chain tightens around her.
"Fine! Whatever." Sho grabs at the chain and pulls back at it tight. "I won't get caught again because of you. But we have to get out of here and now. So help me out!" He uses as much strength as he can attempting to pull the final chain away.
"I can't help you though!" Marie is stubborn. She's been in this dungeon long enough to be comfortable. "So just get out of here so you can be safe."
"I don't want to be safe if I can't save you!" Sho growls. He looks back to Tsukiyomi as the chains of the reaper are almost so close Sho can feel it. "Tsukiyomi, help me out… please. I can't leave her yet." As his hands rip at the chain, Sho watches Tsukiyomi nod. She moves in between he and the reaper then uses the Wings of Purgatory. The move knocks the reaper back just enough that Sho is able to more fully pull at the chains. With one final tug, he rips it out of the wall.
Marie is frozen and her eyes are watering. After everything he's been through, Sho still cares about her? Why? It has to be her fault he was taken, right? But, as the chain falls and her legs give out, he's there catching her. She looks up and can see determination in his eyes. One way or another, he was going to get her out of there.
"Let's go." He looks down to Marie and holds her close.
"What about the reaper?" She looks forward to see it blocking the stairway, having been knocked back by Tsukiyomi. Standing defiantly before it, Sho looks down to Marie.
"Can you walk?" He questions and Marie quickly nods in response. Sitting her down carefully, Sho looks down to her then back at the reaper already moving back toward them. "Well then, you get out of here. Find the others, quickly, and I'll take care of the reaper."
"I don't want to-"
"I can't protect you and go all out!" Sho makes a fist and looks down to her almost painfully. He hands her a couple of items he had gathered from the previous floor. "Go. I'll be back for you." He then charges the reaper, Tsukiyomi following close behind. Nervously, Marie takes off, running to the side of the reaper and avoiding its snaring chains. Her eyes start to water, afraid of leaving Sho to battle this monster of a shadow. When she reaches the stairway, Marie looks backwards to see Sho jump in the air and slam down with his swords while Tsukiyomi uses some move that seems to drain the reaper of its own life force.
After carefully avoiding the couple of shadows that linger on the 9th floor, Marie darts down the stairs and is thrilled to see everyone waiting for her. She is instantly hugged by Teddie and everyone else gathers to hug her too. They all say their words, making certain she is alright. Quickly, they use Diarama to ensure she's at her best. Marie smiles then shakes them all off to look back at the stairs.
After celebrating her arrival, they all turn back to thank Sho when they realize he isn't there. One by one, they look back to Marie for answers. But she is speechless. Instead, it is Mitsuru who speaks up. The oldest of the group stands at the stairway, gripping her jacket with a tight hand.
"He's fighting it."
Everyone looks back to Marie and can see that she's fully aware of what Sho is doing. She hugs herself tight and kneels at the bottom of the stairs. Placing a hand on her shoulder, Yu suspiciously touches the open doorway once more. They still weren't able to get past. It must have something to do with the creation of the dungeon itself. Or this reaper.
"Do ya think…" Chie starts then looks over to Marie and holds her tongue. Yu looks back at her and nods. "Yeah." She makes a confident fist. He'll be fine… right?