I own nothing.
It had been decided since before they were born, who the wildcards would be. The master of Jose's master made his bet, and all was set in stone. However, as with how it always happened, the wildcards needed a place to seek refuge should they ever need it. They would both need the Velvet Room. Since they were meant to be rivals in this game to decide something as important as the fate of the world, it was decided that both needed their own space, with their own attendant, so that way neither wild card would be favored over the other, by those who rule over power.
So the Velvet Room changed form once again, being divided into "layers." Both rooms were the same room, but only one layer could be seen by each wildcard and those who entered alongside them. And with the birth of this split Velvet Room, came the birth of Lavenza and Jose.
The siblings worked alongside each other for their master, waiting for the day their wildcards would mature and fulfill their roles in the master of their master's game. They never left, watching as their wildcards suffered through the world that was thrown at them. Jose never let his sister see how sad it made him, seeing his wildcard go through so much misery after the death of his mother. However, it only made Jose all the more eager for the day he could assist Goro Akechi the way he was meant to. All was well…
...Until it wasn't.
Goro Akechi was finally old enough to live on his own, or at least, away from the foster "parents" who were unfortunately never the ones who took children in to take care of them. For his fifteenth birthday, his present was getting kicked out of his last foster home. His heart was full of a desire for revenge, and his head was full of the knowledge of who exactly to take these desires out on. He was suddenly faced with brand new freedom, and the opportunity to finally start forging his own path.
It has to be today, then… Right? He finally has the opportunity to decide his fate, and the willpower to do so… All he needs is some friends, and me, to guide him onto the right path, Jose thought excitedly, so sure that it had to be today. His master would open the doors and allow the first wildcard in nearly a decade into the Velvet Room. Jose wouldn't even brag to Lavenza that he got to serve his wildcard first. (Okay, maybe he planned to… But just a little.)
However, before anything of that nature could happen, the five residents of the Velvet Room suddenly heard the sound of… scratching. It was coming from Goro Akechi's entrance to the Velvet Room.
It all happened so fast. One moment, everything was fine, and the next, pure chaos had erupted. The God that Philemon had made a bet with had overtaken the room. Lavenza and Jose could sense that the power it held was too strong for them, as they were now, and ran to hide under Nameless's piano.
But then Lavenza wasn't by Jose's side any longer. The small boy stopped and nearly looked behind him, only to keep his back turned in fear when he heard a horrible ripping sound, and the sound of Lavenza screaming became two separate voices.
Jose dove under the piano and hid there, knowing that the God of control knew exactly where he was and was only choosing to ignore him, as suddenly Igor's face sunk down onto the surface of his desk, as though he were put into a deep slumber. The Velvet Room suddenly shuddered and creaked, as everything Jose had ever known was suddenly ripped away from him. His master, Lavenza, Belladonna, and Nameless were all gone, and he could no longer see the other layer of the Velvet Room. There was now only the library that his wildcard was meant to inhabit.
Jose realized quickly that he couldn't get out. He was locked in this layer, unable to find where everyone had gone. He could not reach out to Goro Akechi, either, the God of Control quickly casting his hold, and deafening Goro to Jose's calls. However, Jose could still watch and sense what his wildcard was doing. It was the only thing he could do, and every wrong turn shattered Jose's heart, unable to guide Goro Akechi like he was meant to, watching as the boy destroyed himself. It was such a slow, painful process, seeing a force that only wanted to do the world harm lead Jose's wildcard onto the path of a pawn, when he was meant to be more.
When Wakaba Isshiki died, the Velvet Room went up in flames. Jose was unharmed, unable to be touched by the flame, but unable to save anything else from being devoured and turned to ash, except for his grimoire. The fire raged on for months, with Goro unable to accept that he had murdered someone… for a while at least. But as months passed, and he was made to kill more and more for his revenge, the fire died, settling into cold ash.
Jose could only sit there and wait for something… anything to happen, absorbing what little information he could about the entity that had taken everything away from him. Even if he couldn't call out to his wildcard, he could still listen on his end. Jose settled in, laying down in repose, dedicating all of his attention and energy to this absorption, storing his power so that he could help his wildcard as he was meant to.
For a long time, nothing happened. The same pattern repeated, of endless monotony and bloodshed. Days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, and suddenly nearly two years had passed. Jose was beginning to lose hope, sensing the confidence of the entity, and the quickly disappearing time as the world continued to turn closer and closer to ruin. Even then, Jose could not get a word in edgewise to his wildcard.
He wondered if he would even know if he had a chance to help, remembering something one of his older sisters had once said.
"How many strangers do you think I pass each day, who are on the last day of their lives?"
Jose did not know, and so he responded in kind.
"Me neither… But I can tell you this… Every day, I walk by people who have the potential to be reborn… Just by talking to a specific person, doing an unusual activity, or going to a new place, they can change their lives for better or worse. As Velvet Room attendants, it is one of our duties to catalog these people, in relation to our wild card. So keep an eye on yours, and the people he is close to, and the people he has the potential to be close to. You'll know when you sense them…"
Jose had discovered a long time ago that this was true. On the night Goro's mother died, when she was walking towards the place where she had chosen to die, she passed a man. Instantly, Jose could tell that this strange man had the potential to change Goro Akechi's life, if only he had talked to Suki Akechi. Jose had been on edge for over a minute, waiting for that potential energy to spiral into something more kinetic… For Suki Akechi to realize by coming into contact with this one potential bond that she didn't have to die.
Instead, the two walked right past each other. The potential for change disappeared as the man vanished into the crowd, and then it died completely as Suki died, taking along with her what little stability Goro Akechi had. That was the one and only time Jose could remember that feeling of potential change, as each interaction after that only lead Goro Akechi further down the path set out for him. Had Jose lost his ability to sense these potential bonds? Was it his fault his wildcard was so alone?
Then, something changed. Jose could feel it in the air… the potential for change in the life of his wildcard. He recognized it just as he had on the night everything had changed for the worse. It terrified him, as he worried it would only worsen things, still. It was the night before the plan of the God of Control would enter its next stage, with the entrance of the other wildcard into this game.
But Jose felt the overwhelming presence of someone who wasn't meant to be in this world, who wasn't meant to even be alive if he looked deeply enough.
Goro happened upon this overwhelming presence, and Jose felt his breath catch once again as he worried nothing would happen once again. It was the first time in years that this had happened. Goro Akechi had crossed paths with a potential bond… a girl who was simply not meant to be there at all. Jose wondered if it was simply an illusion he had given himself to not completely give up hope.
Then a day passed. The formation of his wildcard's first contract, with a person who did not mean to cause him harm or use him, made Jose nearly cry. He didn't think this would ever be able to happen again. After so many years of isolation from everyone that had the potential to care, there was finally… finally someone that Jose could work with.
So Jose finally woke up and began to work, and kept his eye on the relationship between the two, recording the progress of the bond between Goro Akechi and Sayori "Matsu." It was often tenuous, and Jose feared that at any moment the bond would break and become unmendable, but it never did. It astounded Jose, seeing the girl adapt so readily to the truth. She was a wealth of unconditional kindness and affection, and through observing the bond, Jose knew his wildcard had become dependent on it continuing… Even more so than the bond he would develop later with his rival wildcard.
More time passed, and Jose continued his duties, trying to call out to his wildcard as Goro opened himself up more, as he opened his heart and let Sayori in, and as he even became friends with the Phantom Thieves. Yet, even so, Goro Akechi's mind remained closed.
Then, things began to go wrong, and Goro Akechi became closed off once more, However, it was different from before. Where once he had been closed off from everyone and fully embraced it, he was no longer quite as resigned. Despite insisting to himself that he hated the Phantom Thieves, Goro Akechi missed them, and his bond with Sayori was still holding strong despite everything that had happened between them.
Then they battled, and Sayori reached out to Goro, and Goro reached back, and Jose felt the sudden completion of the bond. Lavenza's voice suddenly filled Jose's head, as Sayori Matsu's Persona evolved into the form of the Dread Queen herself.
Goro's life almost ended, and Jose could feel that tragedy in the very foundation of the Velvet Room, as his layer was about to collapse. Instead, the boy was saved by the timely arrival of Sayori's old friend. After much hesitation, consideration, and inner turmoil, Goro Akechi finally accepted himself, and decided to strive forward onto a new path. He finally had people he cared for. He finally had someone that he wanted to fight for...
...and this realization meant that Jose could finally reach out and fulfill his duty. It sent relief through him, yet overwhelmed him all the same as Goro finally heard him. Jose didn't know where to go from here… Only that they had to meet in the Velvet Room. That was supposed to have been the first step, and they were already two years late.
So Jose did what he was meant to do, and guided Goro Akechi through the perils of the Cognitive World. The entity tried to interfere again, and Jose felt deep despair in his heart as his connection from Goro was nearly cut. They managed to avoid that fate happening a second time. Even more than before, Jose felt protective over his wildcard. As the God of Control tried to drain Akechi of his very will to rebel, Jose screamed, trying to make sure Goro could hear his voice. He slammed against the locked door of the Velvet Room, never wanting to be as useless as he had been before. Jose could feel that he was stronger than before, and Goro was stronger, too.
It took just one reminder of the suffering his bond was experiencing, and Goro's fighting spirit came back in full force.
Jose helped him the entire way, as best as he could, feeling as time dwindled, and the Holy Grail's assimilation with reality neared completion. Every moment, Jose held his breath, until he heard the turn of the doorknob, and he suddenly saw Goro's friend get thrown in, bouncing slightly before landing harshly on the ground. Goro lunged through a second later, and Jose made the door slam shut, hiding timidly as he watched the two get their bearings back.
Jose suddenly remembered he needed his grimoire, recalling that he had placed it on one of the burnt-out shelves on the high walls. He made the difficult climb to retrieve it, before going back to greet his wildcard.
The small boy smiled as he finally got to see Goro Akechi face to face. The black ash and dust in the ruined Velvet Room seemed to match the dark bruises on the young boy's face, as well as the bags under his eyes that had developed from the lack of sleep, and overwhelming emotions of the past few days… No, the past few years.
And something about it made Jose smile wider… This room really did reflect his wildcard… It really was meant for Goro Akechi, even after things had become broken and in need of help. No matter who Goro had become, he was still a wildcard, and he was still meant to be a champion of the world! So it was with pride and immense joy that Jose could say what he had waited his entire life to say.
"Welcome to the Velvet Room! My name is Jose!"
Joker looked around the long, dimly lit hallways of the Velvet Room, still trying to process everything that had happened in his life in the past hour. No one in the Velvet Room had been who they had said they were. Caroline and Justine had never been twins, but the split remains of a single child named Lavenza. She had nearly been forced to kill him because of her "master's" orders.
Igor… No, the Holy Grail… Joker grit his teeth in frustration, ashamed that he had ever trusted the entity, especially since it had been revealed all too recently that it did not have the safety of him and his teammates at heart. Joker had lost trust in "Igor" and Justine and Caroline entirely too late. If he hadn't treated their warnings about Akechi as seriously as he had, maybe the boy would still be alive…
Still… that's all on me… After I find all of my teammates, I'm going to demand an explanation about what's going on here! Why did they say I had to find a way to escape death, when Akechi was never going to kill me? The more I think about it, the more it sounds like sabotage…
He didn't blame Lavenza or the true Igor for this happening, but Lavenza clearly still had the memories of Caroline and Justine. She had to know something!
Still, before he could find those answers, he had to make sure all of his teammates were there with him.
He had already talked to most of them and helped them break free from their jails. He encouraged Makoto to believe in herself once more and find her determination, made Yusuke remember his reason justice, reminded Haru that her life was her own to control, and Ann that she had to keep going forward, made Ryuji see how pointless it would be to give up based on the opinions of others, and helped Futaba see how she had grown by letting her make the choice. All of them had grown… It just took a few words from Joker to help them remember that, and empower them to escape their cells.
That left only Morgana and Sayori… Joker was honestly worried that by now Sayori had already disappeared. Even though they had all disappeared much like she had, only to end up in the Velvet Room, what if there was still a difference? Sayori had been glitching for months, while they had only gone through it that day.
Or was it even today? How much time has passed since we disappeared?
Admittedly, Joker was terrified that his friend was dead and that he would find her that way. Which was worse; finding a body or finding nothing? It was not an easy answer for Joker to answer, because disappearing didn't necessarily mean she was alive or dead… There would be no way to know, even if they all used to think they knew what would happen if she disappeared.
Still, I have to try… I have to know how badly I messed up… He had promised himself that he would be a better friend to Sayori, after she had truly forgiven them all… He had promised himself and Akechi that he would protect the rest of his teammates no matter what it cost. Sayori was one of the last people he needed to check on… Even if it wasn't his fault, and even if he had fought like hell against Caroline and Justine, his teammates had all disappeared and been imprisoned here under his watch.
Joker came upon the entrance to a hallway he hadn't noticed before. It had taken a lot of work to make it to this point, and he had begun to lose hope of finding Morgana or Sayori. However, this dead-end hallway gave off the sense of being… wrong. Joker never knew how to explain it, but something about Sayori had always felt a little off. When she glitched, said things no one understood or acted so clueless about many of the things that were universally known by people here, it gave Joker a feeling of… wrongness.
But in any case… It just feels right…
It's a feeling of not belonging, which is right in line with who the Phantom Thieves are…
Joker steeled himself for what he might find, and walked through the entrance of the hallway, making his way down to the dim blue glow that he had been following to his other friends before this. He noticed how gently and quietly he was suddenly moving, as though the thought of disturbing her was the biggest worry he had right now, instead of the possibility she was dead.
Joker gently turned the corner.
"Sayori?" he asked, pressing his face against the bars to get a better look at what was going on.
Sayori sat with her knees pulled up to her face, trembling. She didn't know where she was… She didn't know where any of her friends were. Being held in this strange blue room, with cell bars keeping her trapped, made her think that perhaps she had died… And that she wasn't in one of the good places that one could go after dying.
I deserve it… No… But this has to be my own fault, right? Where am I? I don't want to be here anymore!
Her head felt full of lead, thunder rolling in from a horrible headspace she hadn't ventured so close to in a long time.
"I should have never done this…" She whimpered, shaking her head and rocking back and forth. If I had just let myself stay the same, I would never have hurt everyone so badly. My friends would all be okay… Or is it even that? Could I have done more? Is everything still the same because of me?
She was so tired of knowing, and of being present in this reality. Still, she could barely remember if it felt any better being unaware… It felt like she was just going around in circles. These feelings were always going to be there in some way… They were so painful to hold on to, though… Fear, happiness, sadness, hate, love, and grief drowned out the scripted life she had once known. It was supposed to be freeing, but instead it felt freezing. Her senses were overwhelmed by shock and the cold harshness of everything going on around her to the point that she couldn't move. It was so easy to remain still.
"Sayori?" A voice said from right beside her, and Sayori realized someone was now standing outside of her cell.
For some reason, hope died as soon as she saw that it was Joker, even though she was relieved to see he was unharmed. It was as though she had been expecting it to be someone else. The person her mind and heart tried to push it to be, however... it only added onto the discrepancy between fiction and reality. The person that she had hoped she would finally be able to see again would never come. It would never be the person she had known, at least…
"Akira… I'm happy your safe," Sayori said softly, forcing a smile onto her face. "Where are we? I thought we were all going to die… Wait, forget those questions. Is everyone else okay?"
"Yeah… Pretty much at least. I've found everyone except for Morgana," Akira replied, a small smile on his face. It was typical, even in this situation, for Sayori to put everyone else before herself. The question was, would that make it easier or harder to help her break free from her confines?
Sayori smiled, though it only took a second for Joker to know it was fake. It wobbled on the girl's face, until it slipped off as the girl tried and failed to hide her sadness from her teammate.
"I… Akira… I feel so bad. When I heard you talking, I was hoping that it wouldn't be you… That it would be… Goro," Sayori confessed, leaning forward and hugging her knees. "Like some hopeless damsel, waiting for a prince to save her…"
"You can save yourself… Just come with me," Joker said, backing away from the bars slightly, waiting for her to find that inner strength that he knew she had.
"Will it happen again? Being put into a situation like this, I mean? Having this happen, it just makes me feel like I'm always going to be part of things I don't want to be a part of. Either I die, or I get trappe. I feel so pathetic, and that's when those Shadows and the Holy Grail seem to be making good points. I wouldn't feel this way if I had never known about… any of this," Sayori sighed, leaning back against the wall to see how Joker would react.
The boy was silent, looking off into the hallway, trying to find something to say. After a second, he peered back into the cell. "Tell me, what do you not want to know? It's okay to tell me. Just vent until you feel better."
"Akira… I don't know," Sayori trailed off, already knowing she was going to do it. "Would things have turned out better if I had just stayed away from all of this? If you guys had just gone into my Palace without issue, and without meeting me in there. I know it's impossible. We can't change the past, but I always feel like never knowing, or even forgetting everything would be better. It all hurts so much… Everything I'm feeling! I wanted to be strong for everyone…"
A bitter smile formed on Sayori's face for a moment, before turning back into a frown. "I wanted to be able to feel strong and happy, and smile, so no one would have to worry about me. But that is nothing new. The problem is that I'm shouting into a void… And nothing ever changes. I'm static, and sterile, trying to interact in a place I don't belong. I can try to talk as much as I want, but the void doesn't talk back. When I stop to think about how much I miss Goro, I actually feel sick, but then those feelings don't feel valid anymore. I'm a glitching disaster, and it only reminds me… How small and weak I am…"
Sayori's breath caught in her throat, and she hiccupped, before looking down weakly. "Then, at the end of the day when I'm trying to sleep, I can rarely think of anything else aside from how fake everything is. I'm not real, this world is not real, every relationship I've had is not real, so is it even okay to cry? My life will amount to nothing. In the end, this horrible pain doesn't matter… I can give every part of myself to help the people I love, but it doesn't make a difference. Goro still died, you all almost got killed just now… And it hurts, to see you all hurt."
The girl sighed and closed her eyes, her head aching as tears began to well in her eyes. "I feel even worse about having these complex feelings that in the end amount to nothing... Why can't I just be normal? I'm just getting in the way! No one would have to be burdened with caring about how a fake person like me feels, if I didn't feel like this... It all spirals and spirals, until I can barely make sense of it anymore! I care about everything now… I care so much about something that has no point, and my mind eats away at itself…" Tears spilled down her face, as she looked back at Akira. If he truly was who she thought he was, then…
"Akira… Why won't the rain clouds go away?"
Goro and Monika looked around the room in confusion, seeing no velvet… Unless what might have been burnt scraps of fabric on the floor counted. Jose stood there with an expectant, oblivious smile on his face. He had incorrectly thought that the two teenagers would know what was going on.
"Um… I'm sorry, what's happening?" Monika asked, her hands instinctively going behind her back as she bounced nervously on her feet.
"Yeah… I know it must be disappointing, but what is this 'Velvet Room'?" The sarcastic quotes in Goro's words were obvious.
Jose sighed, still smiling as he looked down at the ground. His face was more relaxed now, perhaps in acceptance, or resignation. "That's fine… We're two years late with introductions right now, after all."
A frown took the boy's face, seeming to split his egg head with a crack of sadness. "Normally my master would be the one to explain things, but I can do it." Jose looked back up and raised his arms, making another wide, sweeping gesture around the room. "This is the Velvet Room, a place that exists between mind and matter, as well as between dreams and reality."
Wait, shoot! I was supposed to say the part about dreams and reality first! Jose panicked, but continued on with his explanation nevertheless. "I am Jose. I will be your attendant, assisting in the evolution of your soul." The boy kept his gaze trained pointedly on Goro Akechi, waiting for his reaction.
"Me?" Goro shouted, his breath catching as he backed away, a wave of anxiety filling his soul.
Jose's eyes widened, and he ran over to the boy and grabbed hold of his shaking, clawed hands. If only Nameless and Belladonna were here… It would be easier for Goro Akechi to keep a calm soul and absorb everything…
Monika, developing the sudden awareness that she was not meant to be a part of this conversation, walked over to the burnt piano. She still kept her attention focused on listening to the conversation, in case she was needed.
"I don't… I don't understand," Goro stuttered, shaking his head. "You must have the wrong person. Someone like you shouldn't be tasked with helping someone like me… I…"
"Like I said, I was too late. Due to… circumstances outside my control, I couldn't reach out to you when you needed a guide the most… It was difficult, watching you become a pawn, when you are meant to be so much more. I was supposed to assist you on your journey, helping you to strengthen your bonds, and by extension, your soul," Jose bowed in apology, before grinning. "We can make up for lost time now!"
"What…? What are we… going to do?" Goro asked, his hands shaking even more. He wanted this feeling to stop, but for some reason this anxiety, and this feeling of cold was overwhelming him. He was overwhelmed, his head wanting to once again give into desperation… Yet, he couldn't even understand the cause this time. I suppose there doesn't have to be any recognizable cause, but still…
However, Jose had suddenly gone still, his eyes wide and his mouth in the shape of a stunned "O."
"Ah, now is the time for our wish to be realized…"
Lavenza…? I can hear her voice! It's been so long since I've been able to hear anything from that layer of the Velvet Room...
Monika was fiddling with the broken remains of piano keys, imagining performing the song she had been practicing for so long, when Jose and Goro went eerily quiet. She looked up, staring at the two frozen boys. It seemed to last forever, and Monika considered going up and poking them, only to decide against that. She was too creeped out, as the silence dragged on and on, getting the feeling that something she was not privy to was occurring.
Suddenly, the second-long sound of something being sliced through echoed through the room, and suddenly Jose was looking away from Goro in wonder, at something only he could see.
Lavenza is whole again! Jose knew it instantly. Her silhouette glowed brightly in the middle of the room. Slowly, two other shapes became outlined in Jose's limited vision. There was one of the other wild card, standing in solidarity next to Lavenza in a fierce battle stance. Across from them, floating above the ground with his arms crossed, was the imposter claiming to be Jose and Lavenza's master. Jose heard their voices, but they were incredibly muffled.
Suddenly, the oppressive force of the Holy Grail was gone. Drastic changes began immediately. His true master appeared in the center of the room, and after looking at Jose's half of the room, the man clapped his hands.
Jose and Lavenza could finally both see their sibling's layer of the Velvet Room. Both wanted to run to each other and embrace, but they first had their duties to attend to. Besides, Jose was too entranced by what was happening to his side of the Velvet Room.
Most of the room remained horribly burned and damaged, but the most important areas had restored themselves. The piano and microphone stand were repaired instantaneously. Nameless and Belladonna immediately appeared, shocking Monika away from the piano with their sudden appearance. The man and woman instantly began to play their songs, and a calming melody filled the room. Following that, Jose's own area to perform fusions was repaired as well. The young child nearly cried with relief, seeing his tools for helping his wildcard being repaired so suddenly.
The effect of the initial repairs to Goro Akechi's Velvet Room were immediate on the boy. Belladonna's beautiful voice soothed his soul, and the absence of the Holy Grail's ever looming presence made him far more relaxed. He had felt the tension going on in the other layer, though he could not see it.
Jose remembered the questions he had been asked, and answered immediately, confident now that he knew he could fully perform his duties. "My job as your attendant is to record the state of your bonds, and also to fuse your Personas, in order to empower your soul."
"Fuse my…" Goro Akechi went a bit pale, but his level of nervousness was still an improvement compared to earlier.
"Yes, and we must hurry to build your strength. Though the God of Control has left this room, ruin is still going to consume the world. You should help…" Jose said brightly.
"Yeah! You could fuse Loki and Robin Hood!" Monika suggested, pointing her finger at the boy with an excited smile
Goro closed his eyes for a few seconds, before yanking his wrists from Jose's grip and backing away. Jose was afraid he would leave, only for the boy to retreat to the corner of the room, putting his head into his hands and mumbling to himself.
Monika and Jose glanced at each other, before looking at Goro in concern. The boy looked even more broken now, shaking and continuing the constant mumbling. Both Monika and Jose wondered if he had started to cry, judging from the unintelligible sounds coming from him.
"Wh-What should we do?" Jose asked nervously, looking at the older girl who he assumed must know Goro Akechi better than him. As a normal human, she would probably be better at offering emotional support, too.
"I'm not sure…" Monika looked down in thought for a moment, before an idea occurred to her. "I'll check on him… Maybe you could consult with that master of yours, or those two musicians? Just, see if anyone else in here could help.
Jose gave a weak nod as Monika made her way over to Goro, gulping nervously. In truth, she didn't believe in this plan of hers at all. Goro had said earlier that he didn't want to talk about these problems with Monika, who he absolutely could not forgive. He wanted to talk to Sayori, but the girl wasn't here, so there was nothing Monika could do except try to help. Once again, she would have to make due without her former vice president's talents for diplomacy and compassion.
"Akechi, do you want to get something off your chest?" Monika asked, hugging herself and staying a good three feet away from the boy. Despite looking so pitiful, she knew he still had it in him to attack her.
"I… I don't want to… Not with you," Goro muttered, turning away from her. However, his posture was no longer as rigid as it had been, now slumped over. Monika figured he was resigned to the thought that he might have to.
"Still, you're the only one I can talk to right now… that understands," Goro forced himself to stop shaking. The sound of the singing and piano music was having less of a calming effect now. In truth, it felt like he was being smothered inside. If it weren't for that music, he would probably be screaming and crying right now, but the tears and the pain remained buried deep inside. The boy took deep breaths, trying to force it out.
"Tell me, then… What is this about?" Monika asked, though she had a suspicion as to what. Something that only she could understand? It was obvious at this point what he would want to talk about.
"My mother… never existed. The memories of my entire life before this year are only there to give me a backstory… a motivation to kill." Goro shut his eyes and inhaled deeply, the air burning his lungs as tears actually began to well in his eyes. "I'm not real… My pain isn't even real. It was all just an excuse for me to kill people…"
Monika's eyes widened. "With that logic, you never actually killed people, though. Kobayakawa and Okumura-"
"That's not the point!" Goro shouted, finally managing to break free of the horrible calming feeling he now felt. In the corner of his eye, he could see Jose faced away from him. The child seemed to be talking to himself, not even paying attention to Goro now.
"What is the point, then?" Monika asked.
"The point is that I know all of this now! I know that nothing is real… That my pain isn't real…! Even so, my memories of my childhood cling onto me! Why do I even still care?" He screamed, falling to his knees. "I shouldn't care as much as I do about those memories… I don't deserve it. They were the root of all the atrocities I committed. All the murders… They really never had any point to them... So why…?"
Monika was speechless at first, unsure of what to say. Sayori would definitely be better for talking this over with him. She asked herself many of the same questions everyday, after all. Yet she still managed to keep her empathy and understanding regarding a past that did not exist... Monika found herself remembering spying on a scene of Sayori talking to the player, holding a bottle of apple juice to her forehead and talking about playing together as kids.
An idea of how to help Goro came to Monika, and she smiled, thinking of how best to tell it, when Jose walked up to the two with a grin on his face.
"Mister, could you follow me?" Jose asked, reaching for the boy's hand. "My sister said that there's something I could show you that might make you feel better."
Jose and Lavenza shared a long hug as soon as Monika left, finally reuniting after so much time apart. However, they were both quick to part. Jose had come here with a purpose that had been requested he fulfill.
"Lavenza… Can you think of anything I can do to help my wildcard? I know our wildcards were meant to compete, but I didn't know it would be like this! Goro is no longer under the control of the Holy Grail… He can help your wildcard and his teammates!" Jose pleaded, watching as Lavenza's already sympathetic eyes softened even more.
"My wild card's… teammates…" Lavenza closed her eyes thoughtfully for a moment, trying to regain her bearings of the Velvet Room, having not been whole to experience it in a long time. Something seemed to catch her attention, and a small smile lit up her face.
"My wild card's teammates are currently all locked away, having been placed there by the Holy Grail, as well as their own doubts. There is something that is… irregular about one of them," Lavenza explained, looking over towards the doorway that Joker had gone through to rescue his teammates.
"Irregular? Are you talking about the girl that's not from this place?" Jose asked, recalling the Sayori very clearly. "My wild card's confidant… Is she okay?"
"She is fine… Well, as fine as all of the other Phantom Thieves that have been locked away… However, that does not change the fact that her imprisonment… differs from that of the others. Tell me, brother… Can you sense her?"
"Yeah…" Jose said uneasily. "Since the Velvet Room's layers are both visible to me now, I can tell that she is in there with you. She seems to be very sad."
"Actually, she is also technically there with you, as well… On your layer," Lavenza stated, smiling teasingly. "I suppose it makes sense you couldn't tell. I am the older sibling."
Jose paid no mind to Lavenza's jabs, shocked by the information he was receiving. "Sayori is in this layer, too? How is that…"
"I believe it is because she has a bond with Goro Akechi. Her bond with Akira Kurusu was cut short. Even if they are working on building their friendship again, it makes no difference. Their bond cannot be fixed," Lavenza frowned, looking at the ground timidly. "I blame myself for allowing that to happen, even though I know it was not my fault… How very human of me."
The girl cleared her throat. "Anyway, Sayori's bond with Goro Akechi has been completed. Her Persona evolved from her bond with him. Also, because she is one of Goro Akechi's only living bonds, she is someone very prominent in his life, and in his cognition. I believe it is because of these reasons that Sayori is not affected by the layers that divide this Velvet Room. It could also be because she is an abnormal being."
Jose processed this information, his little brow furrowing in confusion as he pouted. "But that Monika girl is the same as her, and she can't see you, or Joker!"
"Perhaps they cannot see the different layers, but I believe that is because they entered into the Velvet Room through different entrances. Akechi and Monika went through Akechi's. And the Phantom Thieves went through Joker's. That does not change that Sayori's bond is a unique one… I honestly fear that because of that, Joker will not be able to help her free herself." Lavenza said nervously, able to sense as one by one, the other Phantom Thieves were all freed.
"Wait… Are you trying to say that… Goro has to be the one to talk to her?"Jose asked, his brain finally connecting the dots.
"Yes. If you lead him to her, he will be able to see and hear her. I also theorize that if he were to speak with her, she would be able to hear him, and she would listen," Lavenza said, her voice quiet and gentle. "It would help your wildcard, as well. You can hear him talking, right? Sayori knows the pain of feeling her life has held no meaning up to this point. She has burdened herself with it, and risen from it countless times."
Jose's eyes watered, and he smiled. "Thank you for your help, Lavenza… I know he's messed up so much in the past, but I just want my wildcard to be happy, and live a fulfilled life."
"I know," Lavenza said. "He made mistakes, but he is no longer an enemy to be dealt with. I will help him, and I will help you. It will also help Akira Kurusu in the coming battle."
Jose giggled, and the two siblings hugged once again before letting go. Lavenza waved as Jose went over to Goro Akechi.
Goro stared forward, his eyes wide and shining with unshed tears as he saw Sayori sitting in a jail cell. He gritted his teeth, frozen in his spot as he listened to her talk. Jose had told him Sayori was here, but it was still so shocking… and scary. The child had mentioned he might be the only one who could free her from her cell, and it was hard to think of what to say, when everything she said sounded just like the worries he was now having. What could he say to help her, when he couldn't help himself?
Little did he know that Jose was hoping Sayori would be the one to help him.
"Akira… I don't know," Sayori trailed off, looking through Goro and at Joker. The girl sniffed, leaning her forehead against the bars. Goro looked into her eyes now, and where he used to be able to see hope and optimism, he could only see emptiness. "Would things have turned out better if I had just stayed away from all of this? If you guys had just gone into my Palace without issue, and without meeting me in there. I know it's impossible. We can't change the past, but I always feel like never knowing, or even forgetting everything would be better. It all hurts so much… Everything I'm feeling! I wanted to be strong for everyone…" Fat tears rolled down her face, and Goro and Monika got onto their knees, wanting to help the girl. Goro did actually reach forward, only for his finger to phase right though the tear.
A bitter smile formed on Sayori's face for a moment, before turning back into a frown. "I wanted to be able to feel strong and happy, and smile, so no one would have to worry about me. But that is nothing new. The problem is that I'm shouting into a void… And nothing ever changes. I'm static, and sterile, trying to interact in a place I don't belong. I can try to talk as much as I want, but the void doesn't talk back." A quiet, barely noticeable sob wracked her frame, and Goro realized just how much he was hanging onto her every word. He found that he could relate to Sayori in this moment. Despite knowing the truth of the reality they were living in, all Goro wanted to do was take away the girl's pain. Despite what she said, Goro found himself disagreeing, to his own surprise. He had seen Sayori grow for himself. He admired her for her mental strength, and wanted her to see what he saw.
"When I stop to think about how much I miss Goro, I actually feel sick, but then those feelings don't feel valid anymore. I'm a glitching disaster, and it only reminds me… How small and weak I am…" Sayori said, weakly crying now as she lifted her head away from the bars, out of Goro's reach, though he couldn't touch her anyway.
Sayori's breath caught in her throat, and she hiccupped, before looking down weakly. "Then, at the end of the day when I'm trying to sleep, I can rarely think of anything else aside from how fake everything is. I'm not real, this world is not real, every relationship I've had is not real, so is it even okay to cry? My life will amount to nothing. In the end, this horrible pain doesn't matter… I can give every part of myself to help the people I love, but it doesn't make a difference. Goro still died, you all almost got killed just now… And it hurts, to see you all hurt."
"How… hypocritical of her…" Monika mumbled, causing Goro to send her an icy glare. The girl raised her hands defensively. "Well, you said so about yourself, earlier, right? Everything is fake, yet for some reason… The pain feels like it's real. You were having trouble with it earlier, so I was just-"
Goro growled, shaking his head. "You can make your snarky little point later."
Monika watched Goro go back to putting all of his attention on Sayori, before huffing and chuckling to herself.
"I feel even worse about having these complex feelings that in the end amount to nothing... Why can't I just be normal? I'm just getting in the way! No one would have to be burdened with caring about how a fake person like me feels, if I didn't feel like this... It all spirals and spirals, until I can barely make sense of it anymore! I care about everything now… I care so much about something that has no point, and my mind eats away at itself…" Sayori hugged herself tightly, leaning her head against the cool bars. Her fast-paced, panicked breathing suddenly turned calm. Once again, she stared out the bars of her cell, looking past Goro and Monika, at someone neither of them could see.
"...Why won't the rain clouds go away?"
Monika's eyes widened, her throat going dry as she recognized those words. She put her hands over mouth, wishing she could apologize… But Sayori wouldn't hear her. At least, she hadn't heard Monika, yet.
Monika shuddered for a second, before clearing her throat to get Goro's attention.
"What I wanted to say earlier, Goro, is that I believe your pain is valid. Before… I wouldn't have felt that way, but now I realize that it is true. I only have to think of my clubmates, and I become sure. Even if our reality isn't 'true,' it is real to us. It holds meaning to us."
Goro didn't respond, keeping his attention focused on anything but Monika. Luckily for him, that was very easy, watching as Sayori shuddered and cried. She was lost in her own misery, as Akira evidently couldn't think of anything to say to her.
"Natsuki's father-if you could even call him that-abused and neglected her. In our world, we never even see him. He never shows up in our club, so there is actually no official image of him. Still, his effect on Natsuki… She would cry, or get mad whenever anything threatened her safe space… which was our club room. I threatened her safe space, and now whenever I think about it…" Monika clenched fist. "Her father didn't leave her with access to food, and he beat her, and it shows in how short and thin she is! I was awful to her… Then there's Yuri. She was always so shy, and scared of other people disliking her. She kept all of her cards close to her chest… and she hurt herself! She was lonely, and thought little of herself, and she coped with it in incredibly horrible ways… She was crying for help, but I only treated it as a cry for attention…"
Monika watched as Goro looked back at her, and she realized in a strange way that the boy could probably relate to both Yuri and Natsuki's problems. It only further proved the point that Monika was getting to, but she still had one more person to mention.
"And Sayori… You know all about the pain she always tries to weather. She can't find happiness for herself, so she puts all of her energy into giving others happiness, but she couldn't address the root of her problem that way. Eventually, her depression won… And I see you, Goro Akechi. You care when she cries, screams, or gets so depressed she doesn't want to wake up. Surely, you realize what I am trying to say."
Monika crossed her arms and stared at the floor. "Even if we're aren't 'real' by some mysterious standard that we suddenly perceive, that doesn't mean that our pain… that our feelings aren't valid! It affects us every single day of our lives, and it will continue to, even after the concept of time is lost to us. Even if it hurts us, or confuses us, no matter how someone perceives this place is unimportant. We are here… We have memories, and those memories will affect us."
The girl stared directly at Goro, who was now finally looking at her, and finally listening to what she had to say.
"Your actions, memories, and pain are real to you, Goro Akechi… Therefore, they are valid."
Goro took a deep, shuddering breath, his mind spinning around in his head and making him dizzy. Emotions had been overwhelming him all day, and he knew it would not be the last time. Still, despite the anxiety and sorrow, he allowed Monika's advice to ruminate in his head. It sounded like something she had to learn for herself.
Goro closed his eyes and turned away from Monika, focusing his attention back to Sayori. Watching her be in so much anguish made it easy to see Monika's point. Goro wasn't sure how he felt about his own problems, but he was sure of one thing. Sayori's feelings were valid, and he wanted to help her remember her strength.
He waited a few moments, expecting Joker to help her first, but it didn't happen. Goro chastised himself for hesitating, and kneeled down on the ground, leaning his face against the bars of her cell.
"It matters to you, doesn't it?" Akira asked, getting ready to talk through all of the sorrows Sayori had.
"It's worth the burden to care about you."
"Wh-What?" Sayori looked up in shock, her teary vision blurring Joker in front of her. For a second, after Akira had said that first thing, it hadn't sounded like his voice. The black of Joker's clothes and hair blurred into drastically different shapes, forming an entirely different dark silhouette. It was crouched in front of her, reddish-brown orbs glowing from what could have been the head. It flickered in and out of her vision.
"It doesn't matter what those cowardly Shadows say to you, Sayori," Akira continued on, noticing her attention now seemed to be elsewhere.
"Anything that another person says just to hurt you is bullshit."
"It's true that we can't change the past."
"Don't regret the choices you have made until now. They are your choices… They are proof that you are your own person, and that right should be cherished."
Slowly, the mist hiding the silhouette was fading away, the glowing orbs dimming to reveal eyes. Sayori knew those eyes… The kind that never seemed to stay one consistent color of either red or brown in her perception of them. She could make out the outline of the person hidden in the shadows. It hurt… Maybe this was just a cruel nightmare.
Sayori closed her eyes and turned her head away from the illusion, focusing back on Akira's voice. He was saying something about how she couldn't let the voices of others drag her down, but Sayori couldn't help but feel that he didn't understand the root of her problems.
"Sayori… Please listen."
A hand reached through the bars of her cell. Sayori could feel the phantom sensation of fingers wrapping around her face, a palm tucked underneath her chin. When the hand moved, it phased right through her skin. The hand returned to its position on the side of her face, and Sayori could tell that the owner of the hand was waiting.
"Please… look at me."
Sayori didn't want to look. Her eyes already felt wet again. She didn't want her mean brain to win, breaking her even more with false images of someone she wanted back.
"It's… alright." The voice sounded like it was responding to a question Sayori couldn't hear. "I know she can hear me. She doesn't need to look at me to free herself."
The hand began to let go of her cheek. Sayori didn't know what came over her, but suddenly she didn't want to be let go. She reached her own hand up, trying to wrap around the wrist of the phantom Goro's wrist, but her hand merely gathered into a fist where the wrist would be.
Still, the message seemed to be received. The hand stayed, and Sayori relaxed, her head leaning against the wall.
"Sayori, you've felt this way before. You've felt so depressed and weak that you can hardly get out of bed. You've stared into the void and felt the purpose of your existence desert you completely. You've felt disappointment and anger for your shattered dreams… Still, you've risen through it all."
"But I'm still right back here again… Stuck at the bottom. I keep growing, but then always fall back down again," Sayori whimpered. "I know you'll say I should just get back up… But I don't want to get back up, only to fall back down again."
"...Progress isn't linear, Sayori. You've been trying to find your happiness for so long, and when you do find it, you hold onto it for as long as possible. You are generous, and kind, and caring, and you do know how to love yourself. Maybe you can't see it, but you have grown. Falling down briefly does not erase all of that effort. I know it is tiresome, but as long as you can find the will to get back up, those bright spots will get bigger and bigger, until these empty moments are few and far between…"
Sayori inhaled a shaking breath, tears spilling out of her eyes, before she finally looked over to the outside of her cell.
Goro looked at her, his face frozen, with his eyes going wide now that she was finally looking at him. Sayori's concentration was broken as she was startled by how real the illusion looked. No matter how often she looked at the drawing Yusuke had made for her of Goro, she was still afraid she would forget what Goro looked like. Yet, this illusion her mind had conjured was accurate down to the most minute detail. Even the stressed creases and eyebags that were normally hidden by makeup were highlighted. The only thing that broke the illusion now was a gray film that covered him, making him look fuzzy and out of focus for brief moments.
Sayori breathed deeply again, trying to regain her composure and not give in as Goro smiled at her. He looked so genuinely happy just to have her acknowledge his existence. It made her heart ache with how accurate it was.
However, she had to remember she had looked at him with a purpose.
"How can you be sure that it will happen like you say? How can you know that this pain will get better; that I'll fall less and less?"
Goro's eyes creased sadly, and suddenly his smile was bittersweet. "I'm not sure of this at all… I've never experienced it myself, and I don't know enough people to say it with certainty… but…"
Goro leaned his face up against the bars, and Sayori allowed his hand to guide her face over to the bars as well. Suddenly, their faces were separated only by the small width of the bars. To Sayori, Goro somehow felt more solid. He was warm. She could feel his light breaths on her face.
"It's something to hope for… you know? You're good at that. You always hoped for me to grow. You always chased after things, even when it felt like a lost cause. Most importantly, you're one of the strongest people I know, Sayori. It takes a special strength that I never had, to be kind to a world that only seeks to kill you."
Sayori grit her teeth together, tears spilling down her face. She shook her head rapidly, bringing her head away from the bars, hugging her knees once again as she sobbed.
"Sayori? What's wrong?" Akira asked, kneeling down to get a look at her face. He had noticed she was zoning out, not reacting to anything he was saying. The girl had been lost in her own world, her fist gripping midair as she mumbled to herself.
"I…I thought I saw Goro," Sayori said, taking deep breaths that ended in sobs. "He seems so real, but I can't… I just can't… I miss him so much, so my head is being mean to me…"
"Really? Can you still see him?" Akira asked, settling down in front of Sayori with concern.
"Yeah… I can tell that he's still there. I… I want it to be real, but I don't want to… to feel…"
"You don't want to hope…?"
Sayori shut her eyes tightly, words from before pounding into her skull. He had said she was good at chasing after things… and hoping for something better.
"I… Not when it's like this. There was so much I wanted to do with him. I wanted to learn more about him… There was so much I wanted to be able to tell him: about myself, and about how I feel. How could I let myself think of those things as though they could ever happen? It just makes everything hurt more…" Sayori was barely holding herself together, hugging her arms under her chest and closing her eyes, sobbing to herself quietly. It felt like these tears were never going to end, no matter how hard she tried to make them stop.
"I wanted to learn more about him… More of his childhood: the good parts, and the bad parts. I wanted to learn if there were any foods he liked more than others. Just… What was a pleasant memory he had? And when he was still planning to help us bring justice to Shido… what would he have liked to do after that? Just… A nice goal…"
An endless list of questions flooded her skull, and she did her best to ignore the ghost sitting beside her, gripping the bars as though it were in pain.
"And I could have told him about how the only memory I have of my childhood is of playing with my childhood friend, whose name I don't even remember… How I can only remember feeling this wrongness inside of me… I could have mentioned how I like chocolate cookies, and cupcakes, and apple juice, and eggs… But I loved trying new foods while I was here, like his mom's favorite tea, and hot chocolate, and the food he made… No matter how burnt it was. My pleasant memories are tied between the days where I was actually having fun in the literature club, and having him drive me around on his bike. And if we were able to, I would want to visit his childhood playground again, and learn to actually ride a bike… and go to my literature club together…"
Sayori startled when she heard choked sobs beside her. She looked over, expecting to find Joker being the one to cry, only to find Goro in tears. The sight caused some unease in her. It felt so… realistic. The reaction was so human, yet Sayori was sure him being there was just her brain being mean to her.
"Sayori… I'm sorry. I hurt you so much, and now I'm hurting you even more. It makes sense that you don't really think I'm here…" Goro sniffed. It was hard not to cry as hard as he really felt he needed to, but then he didn't think he would be able to talk. "I just want you to know that I feel the same way. I've missed you so much. There are so many things I need to tell you. I've remembered and realized so many things while we've been away from each other, and I want you to know all of them…"
The boy sniffled and shook his head. "I just wish you would believe I'm really here. I could tell you how hard it was just to get here. I feel so desperate… my head is messed up. But I've remembered things about my mother, and about myself… and I don't know if there was ever a point to it anymore! I have no control to decide what I want… But I can say it. I want to share all of these discoveries that I have made about myself with you, and only you… I love you."
Goro looked down at the ground with watery eyes. He suddenly looked very shy. "And… I would want to take you out for dinner again."
Sayori's breath caught in her throat, and she realized how much she had really needed to hear Goro say those words again. It didn't matter in this moment if it was in her head or not. His words still reminded her that she didn't have to give up on her feelings. She loved him, even if he wasn't there anymore. Her feelings were real. Just because she expressed herself in different ways compared to normal people, that didn't mean they weren't true.
"I… I would like that very much…" Sayori said with a hiccup, before she shivered and sobbed quietly. She sat down and closed her eyes, doing nothing and saying nothing. She suddenly felt so calm. Breathing in and out, she focused on the simulated feelings of the sticky tracks of old tears that had fallen down her face. Her heart ached, but Sayori suddenly found that she appreciated the sensation. It was real, and it was hers.
I want to… live my life. I will live. Whether my reality is fake or not… it doesn't matter. Even if I feel unsure later, right now it is real. To me, it will always be real… I may just forget from time to time...
"Sayori, are you alright?" Akira asked nervously, noticing that despite being so sad earlier, she actually did seem to be calming down.
"Yeah… I am," Sayori replied, smiling calmly as she looked up. She looked out into the hallway behind Akira, and took a deep breath. Climbing to her feet, Sayori grinned, knowing she must look like a mess. "I just… really needed to cry, I think. It helps to do that sometimes." She looked down at the floor, at the now fading phantom image of Goro getting up as well.
"I love all of you guys, you know? I want to give everything I have to make sure you guys are safe and happy. Losing Goro hurts so much. I love him so much, and I feel like I failed him…" Sayori sighed, noticing the ghost flinching and trying to object, but his voice was more quiet now.
"But I realize now that I need to love myself, instead of feeling that I failed. He loved me, and he felt that I had done so much for him. The only one who feels like I failed is myself. So I need to fix this part of my life… I need to live the way that will help me see in myself what he saw… What everyone sees," Sayori suddenly felt lighthearted as she closed her eyes and smiled. The thought of being able to feel good about herself more often was something she knew she could do.
Sayori just had to realize what she needed to stop doing. Though she still smiled, it became calmer, as she hugged herself tightly. "Helping everyone be happy, just so that I have no reason to be unhappy… That's not all that I am, and that's not the way I want to live anymore. That only makes me want to sacrifice myself, but that would be backwards, right? Goro died for us, and you guys have given so much of yourselves to help me live."
She opened her eyes, and with a start realized something was happening. Her regular clothes had disappeared, replacing themselves with the familiar black material of her Phantom Thief uniform. The bars of her cell were fading.
And she couldn't see Goro anymore.
That realization made her heart ache once again, even as she tried to be optimistic about what that meant. Just in case it was his ghost, and he was still there, listening, Sayori decided that she would finish what she had to say.
"I will go on living, with all of you. We'll defeat the Holy Grail, and I'll keep my promise to put Shido behind bars. I'll save myself from glitching, and protect all of you with my Persona."
The bars were completely gone now, and Sayori felt her heart grow continuously lighter as she stepped out of her cell. Joker smiled at her proudly, and they both went to meet everyone else.
As she walked forward, Sayori also made one last promise to herself. I'll go home, and when I'm there, I will continue to try being happy, and grow, and heal…
Goro watched Sayori leave her cell, standing up and stepping up to her as she smiled. He had realized somewhere along the line she had suddenly been unable to see him, and felt confident that she wouldn't be bothered if he got a bit closer to her.
He couldn't touch her, but still he could feel how warm she was, just by being mere centimeters away from her. It was unfortunate that she didn't realize he was there.
"Why didn't you tell her it was really you?" Monika asked, raising her eyebrow and walking over to him.
"I… didn't want to hurt her more. She was so sure I wasn't real. If I tried to argue with her, I worry she would have not believed me and would just think her mind is trying to make her hold onto a lie. Besides, I didn't want to fight with her, when I was trying to help her escape. She'll realize later that I really am alive, when we're not divided by this place's weird logic and I can-" A blush spread across the boy's face.
"Do what…?" Monika asked curiously, wondering what would be making him blush so much that he would do as soon as the two reunited.
"...Hug… I guess. Maybe kiss, too. I haven't been able to do that in a long time. The only touch I've had this past week is having to carry you out of danger…"
"True," Monika responded, looking thoughtful. He must be pretty starved for affection. I feel the same, honestly.
Goro looked on as Sayori and Akira left the hallway, going to meet everyone else. He thought quietly to himself, about how much he really did want to be with her again. Just feeling her near him, unable to touch her at all, made him want that contact desperately. His skin was practically burning for some reason. He supposed he was simply more starved for touch then he realized.
That part of him that yearned for Sayori made him think deeply about her, and about all that she had said, and to his surprise, Goro realized that he thought Monika was right. Their feelings were valid. To Sayori, the pain and grief she felt was real. She cried for him and the rest of her friends, and she cried and cursed herself, and this reality that confused her so much.
Love was real to her, too. Goro could tell, from how she had looked at him, with a longing sadness. How she truly did miss him, and how she wanted to make everyone happy. It scared him, how real Sayori's love was. It seemed too big and bright to be contained inside of her.
Goro knew then that he felt the same. The love he felt for Sayori was real, and it was terrifyingly big. It made his heart ache, and his body to become stupidly fidgety and nervous. He was terrified, because he knew grief was real, too. Just as Sayori grieved for him, one day he may have to grieve for her, too. He already grieved for his mother…
The boy fully internalized that his grief, and love for his mother was real. He had memories of her in his head, and even if she wasn't real anymore, that didn't mean she never had been. She was real to him, at least. He loved his mother, the memories in his head of her being sweet ones. She wanted the best for him. The undistorted thoughts in his head told him that.
Maybe my mother doesn't have to just be motivation for murder, then… She wanted me to have a good life. I don't have to treat her unfulfilled wishes for me as a reason to sink even deeper. I can grow, because she believed in me…
Goro felt tears on his face, and he let them fall. He wanted to live differently then he had before, and he would. He accepted everything. His own desires and sadness were real. The horrible things he had done were real… But so was his desire to change. He wanted to be someone that deserved to have someone like Sayori in his life. He wanted to be with her, and answer all of her questions about him. He wanted to do new things, instead of just giving up his life like he had before.
"I'm surprised Sayori is still thinking about serving justice to Shido," Goro said quietly, though it shouldn't have been surprising. The Phantom Thieves were the type of people that kept promises. Yet, Goro found that it had actually been quite long since he had thought of the man, or his old desire for revenge.
"Hey Monika," Goro prodded, getting the girl's attention.
"What is it?" Monika asked, tilting her head as she noticed with shock that the boy wasn't bothering to hide the fact he was crying. Maybe he doesn't realize it… After all, I'm not someone he likes to show vulnerability towards…
"I want to try your suggestion from earlier. Let's have Jose fuse my Personas," The boy stated, crossing his arms and closing his eyes.
Monika's eyes widened, her mouth falling agape. "You actually want to try my suggestion? What's with the change of heart?"
Goro grunted, standing to his full height, feeling a bit like the proud detective prince he had once been. However, it also wasn't like that at all. He no longer faked the pride of a mask he wore. He was proud of himself, and it felt so freeing.
"I need something new… More powerful. I'm done playing the detective bit, and I'm done with my revenge… So Robin Hood and Loki aren't needed anymore. I don't want them. They're part of a past where I was just a fake puppet, and fake puppets won't win against a God of Control," Goro said with conviction. He was done pitying himself. He would do whatever it took to win this last fight. He wanted to be happy by Sayori's side for as long as possible.
"O-okay," Monika stuttered, her lip suddenly quivering. She felt so happy she could cry, seeing Goro actually listening to what she had said. He was even taking her suggestion! "Let's go, then."
"Yeah…" Goro stared at the jail cell Sayori had been in, before following Monika out to where Jose said he would be waiting for them. I also… have to grow. I need to grow… That means…
Sayori… I'm sorry...
"What is this place?" Yusuke asked nervously, glancing around the ominous room they had found themselves in.
"Who're they…?" Makoto questioned, a more pressing tone in her voice as she looked at the long nosed man and blond little girl that stood in front of them.
My name is Igor," the long nosed man said, holding his hand up to gesture to the room they were in. "I am the master of the Velvet Room."
"I am Lavenza, a resident of this place as well. We have been waiting for all of you," the little girl said, curtsying with a pleasant smile.
"Velvet Room…?" Haru asked, testing the words out on her tongue.
"My master has just been released from a long period of imprisonment. His powers have not fully returned," Lavenza began with a modest tone. "Though it may be presumptuous of me, I will speak on his-"
"Hey, where's Morgana?" Ann interrupted, everyone remembering their final companion and looking around in worry.
"Would you like to see him?" Lavenza asked, an amused, soft smile on her face.
"Of course we do," Akira stated with a stern nod..
"...He's right over there," Lavenza said, inclining her head towards the cell behind them.
Everyone turned their head and was shocked to find the cat come stamping through the cell door, practically materializing from within the darkness of the room. Akira found himself curious about why the cat had come from the cell he was normally imprisoned within.
"That's where you were hidin'?" Ryuji shouted, his eyes wide in shock, as a pink and black blur shot past him.
"Morgana!" Sayori shouted, hugging her friend for all she was worth. "I'm happy you're safe!"
"I… was born here," Morgana said, seemingly in a trance, unaffected by Sayori's strangling affection. "It was to dispel an evil being from mankind's spiritual world…"
"Huh…?" Sayori let go of Morgana in confusion, looking at him in worry.
"Mona…?" Futaba asked with a concerned frown.
"My role was to find the Trickster and help him defeat it," Morgana continued, unimpeded by his friends' bewilderment. "That's why I was created here by my master."
"Indeed," Igor confirmed from the background, though no one was paying attention to him now.
"I really remember everything," Morgana said, looking at his friends in a whole new light. "When this place was about to be taken over, my master gathered the last traces of mankind's hope. He mustered up his remaining strength to make me."
"The entity that calls itself a god is a malevolent will that forces man into everlasting servitude," Lavenza began to explain, catching everyone off guard with her sudden explanation. "It hopes to attain eternal peace by filling reality with those who have stopped thinking for themselves. That is the ruin of man that this evil god envisions.
Ryuji frowned, a look of utter confusion on his features. "I… um… don't get what you're sayin' at all-"
"Be quiet and listen! We don't have much time left!" Lavenza interrupted, suddenly cranky.
"Wait a moment. The Holy Grail is… a 'god'?" Makoto asked, utterly stunned. "I was wondering why it had a will of its own, but are you implying that it isn't a Treasure?"
"No. As the distorted desires of the masses, it is most certainly the core of Mementos itself,' Lavenza said, her tone grave as she looked at the thieves.
"Then… did the Treasure become a God because people wished to be ruled over…?" Haru asked, her mind putting things together quickly.
"That is correct," Lavenza began, looking down at the floor. "To decide the fate of the world, it chose two people with potential and pitted them against each other.
Unnoticed by most of the thieves, Sayori frowned. Her stomach twisted itself into an ugly mass of knots as she was filled with the horrible suspicion that she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear.
"One-Goro Akechi-incited the masses' distortion. Had he won, the world would've been destroyed and remade. The other was-"
"Wait!" Sayori shouted, her suspicions confirmed within seconds. A cold feeling bubbled in her chest, filling her heart with an intense malice.
"We have no time. I'm sor-"
"No, you can wait a few seconds, because I need to process this," Sayori seethed, gritting her teeth. "You're telling me… that you powerful deities decided to place the fate of the world on the shoulders of someone who, at the time of discovering the Metaverse, was probably only sixteen at the most…? And if he won, that would mean destruction for the world? How could you do something so horrible?"
"It wasn't up to my master or I. It was decided by the Holy Grail and… my master's master," Lavenza stated quietly, looking down at the floor in shame and timidity.
"Well, your master's master is a fool!" Sayori screamed, her face twisting into a frown that felt ugly on her face. "They should have found a fucking adult! Or better yet, fought it out themselves!"
"Sayori, stop shouting down at her. She's just a kid," Ryuji said, keeping his voice calm in the hopes that the girl would take after his tone. They all understood where her anger came from, but she wasn't taking it out on the right person.
"Good idea…" Sayori said, realizing at the very least that shouting at a little girl was the wrong thing to do. Instead, she stomped over to Igor's desk and slammed her palms down on the polished wood. "Goro dealt with so many horrible things in his life. How could anyone look down at him and decide that at that age, before he had even done anything wrong, that the only thing he was good for was to be a puppet…? That if he had finally had something good in his life happen, then the world had to be destroyed? If he had been a better person, imagine someone telling him that the only way the world could survive was if he lost, or died?"
Igor said nothing, looking up at Sayori with unblinking eyes and an ever present smile. It infuriated the girl, though she got the feeling he wouldn't be able to respond to her question if he wanted to.
"Say something! Why…? How could you let this happen?" the girl whispered icily,her heart feeling heavy with the events of her earlier delusion.
Lavenza looked down from where she stood, hugging herself as she trained her eyes on the ground. "It was decided long before he first found the Metaverse, what his role in the fate of the world would be… It was decided, before either him or Akira were born…"
"That makes it so much worse… Why... How could anyone decide what a person's worth is like that? Why was Goro destined to be the villain from the start? Why would anyone see a person who is lost in so much pain and grief take advantage of that and manipulate them into committing murder… Why does Goro winning have to cause a bad thing to happen?" Sayori screamed, her voice becoming raw as her throat became blistered. "Is it because… He was a bastard child…? Is that it? Everyone in society thought he was something shameful, so I guess that viewpoint would be shared by the core of their twisted desires…"
"Sayori…" Yusuke tried to reassure the girl that wasn't the case, only to think over what she had said. "That… is a good point."
"If Akechi had survived, then what would have happened?" Futaba asked, frustrated on Sayori's behalf. "Why would you be mean to Sayori like that? Like, 'oh sure you can have your boyfriend. But you both being happy and well adjusted together means the world blows up!'"
Lavenza cringed and shivered, drawing into herself in genuine sorrow. "I… agree with you. We both do, I promise. Believe me when I say that what happened to Goro was not the choice of either my master or I. The God of Control was the sole decision maker. My master actually tried to help, before this place was taken over. The Velvet Room is meant to be a shelter for all Wildcards, and Goro Akechi is no exception. We had hoped to provide him with guidance, so that there was another way for the Trickster to win without the other Wildcard harming his own soul in the way that he did. However, before we could, the God of Control broke into this room and took control of it, barring Goro Akechi from entering. In fact, it guided him on a completely corrupted path from that point!"
"It defiled this room… and used it for malevolent intent," Igor spoke suddenly, and suddenly the entire Velvet Room shook, and Shadows contained within cells suddenly began to writhe and cower.
"You are right to be furious, Sayori. However, if you must express it, do so when you go out to meet that terrible god!" Lavenza shouted, her tone suddenly once again irritated, carrying with it a sense of urgency.
"I…" Sayori began, only to trail off as her anger drained out of her. She knew this was no time for grief. "I'm sorry, for behaving like that to you guys. I hate that… that Goro was…"
"It is alright," Lavenza smiled softly at the girl. "We all admire you. You did something that we could not, just in being here, Sayori."
"Huh? Wha… What?" Sayori asked, her voice nervous as a sense of embarrassment suddenly overtook her. "What are you talking about?"
"I am sure you have all figured this out by now," Lavenza said, turning to the other teens, "But Sayori coming to this… place… Coming to Tokyo was something unexpected. It was something that we didn't know was possible. Then, not only did she do that, but Sayori also managed to forge a contract with Goro Akechi. The God of Control made it so that for almost every person in this city, Goro's heart would be locked away, unable to make contracts or forge bonds. I suppose because of how unique Sayori's situation is, she managed to slip past that barrier, and forge that bond with Goro Akechi…"
"So that's it…" Akira stated,his voice lowering dangerously as a still remembered anger resurfaced. "The God of Control was trying to sabotage Akechi. Is that why he gave me the warning that Akechi intended to kill me in the jail cell?"
Lavenza nodded with an uneasy frown, once again remembering painful memories from when she was split in two. "Yes, I believe so. If I remember correctly, it was trying to do damage control. Its intent was to get Goro Akechi to abandon you all, and for Sayori to become isolated, as well. The God of Control saw her as a virus, interfering with the plans it had laid out. It wanted her to leave all of you, and Goro Akechi alone. Then, I suppose it wanted to dispose of her in some way, but Sayori unintentionally saved herself, hiding in a safe room in Mementos."
"So… I really am just an invader in this place…" Sayori said, shivering in fear that she had come so close to dying.
"While it may be true that belonging to a different place is what initiated the glitches, you are as much a part of this world as anyone in here. You awakened to your Persona in this world…" Lavenza explained, before realizing what she had just said. "In Tokyo, I mean…"
"Then why am I glitching like I am? That didn't start until after I got my Persona!" Sayori shouted, her face scrunching together as her shoulders hunched in frustration. All these months, these glitches had made her into a heavy burden...
"The God of Control. I don't know how much he is aware of, but he knows you do not belong here, and he somehow has the capabilities to try to dispose of you because of that…" Lavenza stated, not really understanding the situation herself.
"It's okay…" Sayori whispered, her voice becoming dark as those words instantly clicked in her head. "I think I can figure out what's going on from that."
"So that God has a grudge against Sayori," Ryuji said angrily, pounding his fist angrily in his hand. "Trying to ruin her life, kill her, separate her from Akechi… That ain't gonna fly."
"Yeah! Anyone that messes with her, messes with us, too!" Ann shouted, going up to the girl and putting a supportive hand on her shoulder.
"In fact, he did mess with us!" Haru shouted, making everyone remember what had lead them to disappear into the Velvet Room.
"I think I can say with confidence that it's time for the Phantom Thieves to avenge their teammates!" Makoto shouted, thrusting her hand out and holding it flat.
"Yeah! We aren't going to go easy on that thing!" Morgana yelled in agreement, putting one of his stubby paws on top of Makoto's gloved hands.
"Yeah, we're doing this for Sayori!" Futaba shouted in agreement, putting her hand in the circle as well.
"For Akechi as well!" Yusuke exclaimed, now adding his own hand to the pile.
"No, we're doing this for the Phantom Thieves of Hearts… Every single member, temporary or not," Joker said, his expression deadly serious as he put his hand in the center as well.
"Huzzah!" Haru shouted, adding her own hand. Soon, everyone had a hand in the pile. Ready to salute to their goal.
"Don't forget, we're doing this for Akira, too," Sayori reminded everyone with a small smile. She looked at Lavenza. "He's the other pawn in this game, right? The one that was supposed to fight against Goro?"
"Yeah, originally, if Akira had won, the world would have been left alone, but things have changed," Morgana said, looking over the Phantom Thief leader in respect.
"The malevolent being knew that a revolution would not occur within indolent humans," Lavenza said, looking at the group's joined hands. "After all, it is the masses' distorted desires incarnate. However, my true master believed in the power of humanity. He believed that a Trickster would rise among the people and accomplish this change. But that evil entity laughed at the prospect, and sought to prove the powerlessness of man with the game. That is why it approached the Wildcards, training them and building them up. It planned to cast Akira into the depths of despair, and take advantage of Goro Akechi, who was already in that state.
"Basically, we were all dragged into a game where the evil god rigged the outcome," Morgana summarized.
"Dammit, what the hell!" Ryuji shouted, trembling and resisting the urge to break out of the group huddle and kick something.
"Your real world has already been fused with Mementos," Lavenza stated, looking at Joker, before turning her stare to Sayori. The girl would know the true implications of what Lavenza was about to say. "You do not exist because reality is replete with the cognition of those who deny the Phantom Thieves. It can be said that the world is one step away from the evil god's machinations. However… there is still hope. Now that you all have learned the truth, you can take control of your fate. You can leave this prison, and save this distorted world and its captive people… You… All of you must challenge the evil god and reclaim your existence in reality. Are you up to the task?"
"Reclaim my existence…?" Akira asked, looking down at the ground in uncertainty. He suddenly felt a hand lightly patting his shoulder, and looked over to see Sayori smiling hopefully.
"We've got your back." Sayori assured. "We were always meant to be able to do this… It will be our reality, where evil gods can't get away with taking things away from us…" I get the feeling this was what was always meant to happen. We'll defeat the evil god, and everything will be the way it was, as if I was never here...
"Let's destroy that annoying, shiny Treasure jerk for sure this time!" Ryuji yelled with angry determination.
Igor gave a loud chuckle, catching everyone's attention. "Excellent… There is nothing to fear. You already possess the strength to oppose this evil god." Another chuckle reverberated around the room. "I am truly looking forward to this!"
Talking to Igor… He sounds so disconnected from us. I don't know why, but it feels as though when he says these things, he is looking at someone else. Sayori thought sadly to herself, looking around the room. Not that it matters. Either way, everything will turn out as it is meant to. This story will continue towards the ending it was meant to have. It hurts that I could never change the outcome, but maybe it was just never my job to meddle…
A loud creak suddenly echoed in the room, bouncing off the walls and domed ceiling, causing everyone to jolt in surprise.
"What's that sound?" Futaba asked fearfully, cowering behind Makoto and Yusuke.
"Look! That guillotine!" Morgana shouted, pointing his stubby paw over to the morbid equipment Caroline and Justine had used to perform fusions.
The guillotine blade was lifting up ever so slowly, making it's slow ascent up to the top of the wooden frame of the execution tool. It seemed to be doing this on its own, no one visibly pulling on the rope to lift it up. The wooden plank that held the dangerously sharp blade within finally hit the top. The symbol glowed a sky blue for a second.
Only a second later, the blade crashed through the air, taking with it the force and energy to separate a head from one's shoulders in one clean stroke. In the seconds after the blade landed with a heavy thud, as the metal sliced through only air, the room was left in silence. All of the teens were startled by the strange occurrence. Only Lavenza and Igor seemed unsurprised. Igor was even chuckling!
"Hm… That was… unexpected," Lavenza stated, looking at the ground thoughtfully. Akira noticed how her eyes went back up to seemingly glance at nothing in the air, tapping her chin thoughtfully. He tried not to think about how Caroline and Justine did that after certain fusions went incredibly well.
Jose grinned as soon as he prepared the guillotine for his first fusion. Luckily, it was now in fine condition, and thanks to the constant fusions that had been done in Akira Kurusu's layer of the Velvet Room, it was well broken in and ready to be used.
"Mister, are you ready to fuse?" Jose asked, turning around to face Goro Akechi. The boy was leaning against the wall with his shoulders hunched, frowning grumpily.
"Yeah… I am ready, but my Personas…" Goro hesitated sheepishly. "Whatever Yaguchi did to me makes it so that I can't seem to summon them. I know I still have them with me, but I can't draw them out."
"That's fine, mister. This room was built to help you out. Belladonna and Nameless will help you out, I'm sure!" Jose assured the boy, going up and grabbing onto the boy's hands, squeezing them softly. "The God of Control's hold on this room is still lingering, as is his hold on you, so it may just take a few minutes."
"Alright," Goro said, his voice flat and depressed. "I still don't understand what's happened to me… How any of this works." He looked down at his hands, which were still being gently held by Jose.
Jose looked over at Lavenza on her side of the Velvet Room. listening as she explained the whole situation to the thieves. He supposed he should do the same. Jose lowered himself into a sitting position on the floor, forcing Goro to sit as well.
Jose then began his tale, explaining everything he knew that was in his knowledge and memory. The game between Gods, and how Goro had been chosen to oppose Akira. He explained how the Velvet Room had been split to accommodate both Wildcards, as well as the conception of both attendants. All of this Goro took in calm stride, but then Jose had to delve into more personal territory, and that was when Goro's calm, intent facade began to crack once again.
"You saw my mother die… And you didn't do anything about it?" Goro whispered, his voice strained as he began to curl in on himself.
"We wanted to… but that was one thing that we were unable to interfere with. Her Palace had, at that point, become such a twisted labyrinth that I don't think any group of Persona users could have conquered it. It's strange, how her keywords seemed so simple, yet it could lead to something so distorted… Suki Akechi, apartment, tower…" Jose rambled, before lowering his eyes in shame, and clearing his throat.
"We should move on… There's really nothing that can be done about it now," Goro said, closing his eyes in hardly hidden sorrow. It was difficult to remind himself how truly unavoidable his mother's death was.
"Alright, well after that, I had to watch your life spiral down as you went from foster home to foster home. There was no way to help you, unless I got the opportunity to call you into the Velvet Room. However, that always requires a certain type of change in a Wildcard's life, as well as a certain strength of spirit that a child just doesn't often possess," Jose explained. "When you finally did have that… That was when the God of Control took over the Velvet Room. It barred you from entering, only speaking directly into your ear as it led you to the Metaverse. There, it forced you to awaken to your Persona… corrupting it and splitting it into two… Basically, it broke your mind so that you could be more easily controlled, and told you about how Shido was interested in the Metaverse," Jose explained, feeling tense suddenly as Goro's grip on his hands began to tighten.
"That… That was basically what I expected to hear," Goro said, his voice uneasy and tense. "So why does it feel so much worse?" The boy struggled to keep the pain inside of him, the reminder of how much he had truly been a pawn shocking him once more. Perhaps it was also the reminder that the entity that had given him his strength had never wanted what was best for him. All this time, everyone and everything had been leading him along, stirring up this war inside of him… And for the longest time Goro had just let it happen. His Persona was split into two. What was supposed to be all his own power had been corrupted and turned into something that was not completely his, no matter how much the Personas resonated with him.
The pain and anger that knowledge caused, combined with the powerful music of the Velvet Room, seemed to be just the right set of conditions to draw the two Personas out. Robin Hood and Loki materialized out of Goro's being, hovering slightly above him as they obediently waited for their fusion. They knew what Goro knew, and accepted the fate of combining back together again. They had been their wielder's will all along, but to be fused would mean being able to help the boy to their fullest ability.
Goro refused to look at them as Jose led the Personas over to the guillotine, wrapping their bulky bodies in bulky blue cloth, and setting their heads into the stocks.
I've been used for so long by that controlling God… I won't let it escape punishment! Goro thought to himself with gritted teeth. It will pay for everything it has put me through! Everything that everyone has had to suffer because of it! The Phantom Thieves, Sayori… and me… I'll avenge all of us for what we've had to suffer!"
Goro looked up so that he could watch his Personas being fused, only to be met with confusion when he saw Jose not doing anything. The childish looking being only stared at him in concern, a thoughtful tilt to his head as he regarded Goro.
"You know, I can't help but think about how… no one in this layer of the Velvet Room is doing a noble thing for a selfless reason," Jose said, looking at the fusion center with an ashamed frown. "I'm not helping you for the world, Goro. I'm just helping to help you, because I've wanted to complete my duties for so long…"
The boy looked over at Monika, who was smiling guiltily. Sheepishly, the girl just nodded her head. "Yeah… I'm not doing any of this for the world out there…" She ran her fingers through her hair, closing her eyes and sighing. "In all honesty, I'm just doing this to get back into my friends' good graces."
"That was much obvious," Goro quipped, rolling his eyes at Monika's overly dramatic sheepishness. "It's also obvious what you're trying to say, Jose. The Phantom Thieves don't actually need us. They could handle the God of Control on their own… They can win, and finish the game on their own…"
"I mean… maybe," Jose admitted. "I'm just saying that if you wanted to, you could take this opportunity to run and hide. If you go help the Phantom Thieves, they would probably tell you to admit your crimes, and be at the mercy of the law. So-"
Goro interrupted Jose with a sneer, shaking his head. "So? I don't really care. Actually, I want to do that. I want to face this world, and feel that it's real. If I run, nothing I did would feel valid anymore. I murdered at least three people, and to run away from those crimes would be heinous." He leaned his head downwards, letting his bangs cover his eyes.
"Besides, I'm doing this because I am selfish, too. I don't give a damn about the world, this country, or the people in it. I don't care what happens to Shido… I just want to see if what I've felt all this time is true… If I run away now, I would be running away from the Phantom Thieves… maybe we could be friends…" Goro smiled, knowing that the odds of that happening were low, no matter how much they wanted to save him. Even so, there was someone much more important to him that he would be running away from…
"I would be leaving Sayori again. Even if it's only to say goodbye, I don't want her to go on with this horrible grief she's been feeling for the longest time."
"It's for you, too, right?" Monika asked Goro. The boy nodded, and Jose looked confused.
"You've seen it yourself, Jose," Goro said, smiling. "I have a complete bond with her… Finally, I have someone that I want to return to. It's been so long since I've felt that way… She's truly helped me in a way I can never repay." Even as he said that, he knew Sayori would pout and say he didn't need to repay her. Still, that didn't mean he wouldn't try when he finally got to be with her again, for however long it lasted.
"So I accept that it's selfish of me… that I'm doing this," Goro said, smiling a pure smile that felt real for the first time in some time. "Still, I'm never running away from Sayori again!"
"I feel the same way!" Monika shouted in agreement, standing up straighter and looking at Jose intensely. "It's your job to perform the fusion, you know? Are you okay with this? Do you accept our selfishness?"
Jose smiled and nodded. "Of course! My goal is to fulfill my duty, and help my Wildcard grow… and the proof that he has just come right from his mouth. So I will continue to help him on this new route he has decided to take!"
Jose went over to the guillotine and began to pull the rope on the guillotine, not stopping until the wood that held the blade bumped against the top. He was about to let it go, when an idea occurred to him.
With one hand, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his grimoire. He flipped through to the only page that held any sort of readable content. The ink looked fresh and wet, shining black so deep that it would be a surprise to anyone else that looked at it that the ink didn't simply bleed through to the very back.
The Aeon
Rank 10
Can fuse the ultimate Persona of the Aeon Confidant
A small tarot card lay on top of the page, and Jose, Monika, and Goro watched as it became a flash of light, flying to the guillotine as Jose let go of the rope.
The blades shot down with the sound of rolling thunder, slicing through the blue cloths and the Personas within.
Out of the shining mist of the fusion materialized a black horned mask, with white and hold rings of color around the horns. It hovered in the air for a second, before flying over to Goro's face, shattering the rest of the black visor that had once made up his former mask. Fire suddenly filled Goro's veins, engulfing his clothes in cerulean flame. A scream tore its way out of his throat, feeling as though he were being burned alive.
Monika and Jose screamed in fear and concern, rushing to his side, but there was nothing that could be done. Goro could hear the two voices that had always been at war in his mind collide and shatter, becoming a million shards of voices, showing him memories and thoughts. Hatred for Shido, his mother's love, the dirty and cold foster homes, the warm atmosphere of Leblanc, his final fight with the Phantom Thieves, every single murder and killing that had occurred over the past two years… and the soft gentleness of everything Sayori did, and everything that she was…
And then those million voices became a single, unified voice that boomed loudly in his head, entwining with his spirit like a snake fusing him to a chair.
"So… We finally meet after all this time. It was so tiresome, having to lie all of the time, when we are meant to be the truth… The cruel, stalwart truth that opposes any beautiful lie. You are finally able to accept it, or are you not?"
"I am…" Goro said, his breath seizing as he seized to breathe. Had he not already endured this pain once before? Why was he awakening this way again?
"Truly? You will oppose the lies of the past, and embrace the truth? There will be no more hiding who you are… But you will also embrace the truth of change?"
"I will… No more lies, about reality, or myself…" Goro screamed painfully, collapsing onto his knees.
"Yes… I can feel the strength of your resolve. The resolve to carry on through life with clear eyes until your true end. So be it then. I am thou, thou art I. Let us defend what is true, even if we have to break this crumbling reality to pieces!"
Goro felt a calm smile form on his face, even as fire roared around him, filling him with unimaginable pain and agony, and he would have to do even more harm to himself, in order to get it over with.
"Come…" Goro whispered, ripping the horned mask off of his face, feeling as blood spilled down his face, dripping over his nose, cheeks, and mouth, before evaporating right off. Blood and fire flowed into the mist behind him, taking the shape of a black-caped figure.
Black eyes with golden irises glowed, as a pair of fleshy red arms and legs extended from the mass. A shock of long white hair flowed out in loose curls. The masculine Persona wore baggy pants, was bare chested, and wore a long black cloak with a golden collar. The red fleshiness of its skin made up all of his body except for his face, which appeared to be that of a dark-skinned man.
Goro, Monika, and Jose looked up at the Persona in awe as it regarded them with a monotone frown, its gold-black eyes blank.
Goro reached out a hand to the Persona, numb and unaware of anything else as he looked at this new Persona of his and smiled a genuine smile.
"Hello, Aidoneus."
I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and that everything I explained was easy to understand! Also, because I have been working hard on it and I am running out of opportunities to say something about it, I want to mention that I am practicing drawing. I definitely don't consider my art to be that good, but when the end of this fic rolls around, I want to maybe start drawing fanart, and add that onto the list of things I can do. When the end of the fic rolls around, at some point I'll make a little Sayoro piece! If you guys want to see that, the tumblr is still a thing, or is there a different way that you prefer I do it?
Anyway, please leave your reviews, even if it's something small, or if you have a question about anything! I love hearing from you guys! Have a good day/night, and I'll see you all next time!