A/N Incoming quality drop! Younger me did NOT like the way this chapter turned out originally, and even now, I STILL hate it. We did what we could with this chapter, but… yeah.
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Yosuke and Yu spend the entirety of the castle's first floor teaching Chie the basics of using her Persona. It's through this process that Yu and Yosuke become aware of just who Tomoe is.
Tomoe is not like Jiraiya and Izanagi.
Tomoe isn't the type to listen wordlessly to any command - far from it. That would be too easy. Instead, she bowls over Chie's will with suggestions that she unintentionally acts upon. Even if it goes against Yu's orders.
It's obvious that Chie is having trouble with her Persona - mainly, that they don't get along. Tomoe likes being the one in charge and that clashes with Chie's attempts to follow Yu's orders. It annoys the hell out of Chie, but she rolls with it...for the first few battles. Afterwards, her annoyance is replaced with rage and what soon follows is an altercation between her and Tomoe.
Yu, Yosuke, Teddie, Izanagi, and Jiraiya just stand there, watching. Completely mesmerized - stupefied, even. The sight alone is amusing, though also concerning. And then Chie and Tomoe are moments away from actually lashing out at each other.
"Alright, that's it." Yu decides to intervene, and as a result, is almost struck by Tomoe in response - almost, if not for Izanagi.
Izanagi takes matters into his own hands by this point, and nearly zaps everyone with Zio - even Teddie. Electricity crackles from his body as he looks down at Tomoe, in a state of barely withheld fury. Nobody moves or says anything. Nothing needs to be said in order to convince her to back down. Under the watchful eye of his intimidating gaze, she reluctantly returns to Chie's side.
"What is it now?" Chie looks sternly at Tomoe. "Are you done being annoying?"
Tomoe narrows her eyes at Chie, but doesn't do more than pat her on the head.
The action baffles Chie, but she slowly gets the message when Tomoe pushes her towards Yu. "Fine, I'll come clean."
Izanagi relaxes and moves aside to allow the two to talk. Electricity no longer crackles from his body as he reverts back to his previously calm and stoic demeanor. Despite this change, Tomoe still keeps her distance from…as do Teddie, Yosuke, and Jiraiya—especially Jiraiya. Yosuke would voice his discomfort with Jiraiya's arms wrapped around himself, had he not been so intimidated by Izanagi to do so.
A confession comes out of Chie, admitting the insecurities she feels about putting her complete trust in a person that she only met a week ago. She's been trying to ignore it to avoid any conflict, but Tomoe refuses to be cooperative. And even now, still refuses to bend to Chie's will.
"Just do what you can," Yu says.
They won't be making any progress if they keep fighting Tomoe. Chie can work out her trust issues some other time, under better circumstances. Until then, she and Tomoe are allowed to act freely, as long as it doesn't end up jeopardizing anyone's lives.
It takes half an hour for Chie to feel comfortable working alongside Tomoe. During that time frame, Teddie explained that physical attacks require one's Persona to use up stamina. It is useful information for Tomoe, who has been only using physical attacks.
Needless to say, Yosuke was finally getting decent practice with Dia.
All in all, progress is being made and experience is being gained from each battle. Unlike Yu and Yosuke, Chie didn't appear to feel the effects of the burst of energy that would come and go. Yu almost thinks Chie is immune to it.
And then Chie uses an ice attack to finish off a Lying Hablerie.
"Whoa…" She stares wide-eyed at the small ice-shards scattered across the floor where the enemy once was.
"What was that?" Yosuke nearly drops his wrenches in awe.
Yu turns to Teddie. "What have you got to say?"
"That was Bufu!" Teddie explains. "Lying Hableries are also weak to Bufu Skills."
Yu adjusts her glasses. "Okay, Chie…out of curiosity, when exactly did you learn that?"
"Just now, why—urk…" Chie covers her mouth. "Oh god, why…"
She falls to her knees, retching.
Yosuke grimaces and looks away. "It'll be over soon, Satonaka…"
"I don't like this…" Chie is somewhat surprised to find Tomoe patting her gently on the back. It seems like it would have been out of character for her, but Chie appreciates the gesture nonetheless.
Yu sighs. "If it makes you feel any better, this only happens once…hopefully."
"Narukami, I would rather not even have the idea that this could happen to us more than once." Once is enough for Yosuke. "I'm guessing now's a good time to move on, right?"
"Right," Yu replies and looks to Chie, who is now spitting on the floor. "You okay?"
"I feel horrible…" Chie murmurs. "Ugh…"
"Do you wanna go back?" Yu suggests.
Chie wipes her mouth on her sleeve. "Hell no!" Her eyes, when they glare at Yu, shine with determination.
Yu smiles. "Okay, then let's go. Lead the way, Teddie."
"Aye aye, Sensei~!" Teddie chirps.
…
…
It turns out the group was standing nearby the door leading to the stairs. It was rather convenient and, up to this point, Chie had stayed close to the group. However, upon reaching the second floor and hearing Teddie's comment about sensing someone behind the door, Chie rushes ahead. Yu and Yosuke didn't bother trying to stop Chie at this point. Instead, they follow after her.
Immediately seconds after kicking open the door, Chie calls out, "Yukiko!"
Standing still on the far side of the red carpet was the very person Chie, Yu, and Yosuke had seen on the Midnight Channel a few nights ago. It was Yukiko, still dressed up in a pink, flowing ball gown. She keeps her back to the group as they walk up to her. She didn't respond, even after Chie called out to her once more.
Yosuke can't help but feel concerned. Yukiko never ignores Chie. "Are you all right, Amagi-san?"
Silence…
Slightly hesitant, Chie steps forward. "Yukiko…what's wrong?"
Suddenly, the lights flicker and a spotlight shines over Yukiko. The spotlight highlights the dark aura emanating from Yukiko's body. All attention is completely on her now as she begins to laugh. Chie freezes when she hears the telltale distortion in Yukiko's voice.
"No…you're not Yukiko…" Chie tightens her fists. 'Yukiko' turns around to face the group. Her solid yellow eyes look over Yu, Yosuke, and Chie. Smiling, she brings the pink microphone she holds in her hands close to her mouth.
"Oh my! Special guests? I wonder how they'll play into all this!" She chuckles. "Things are really heating up!"
Yu is growing increasingly uncomfortable with every look Shadow Yukiko gives her. It's almost as though Yu is being judged on her appearance. She almost sighs in relief when Shadow Yukiko focuses her attention on Chie, but not before winking at Yu. At this point, Yu feels undeniably flustered as certain memories involving "lacy unmentionables" rush to the front of her mind.
"Dude, are you okay?" Yosuke notices that Yu is looking a bit flushed.
Yu shakes her head. "Y-yeah, I'm fine…just…I don't. Want to talk about it."
"Okie-dokie! I'm going back to hunt for my Prince Charming! Ohhh, where could he be…?" Shadow Yukiko surveys her surroundings and pouts. "This place is huge! It's sooo exciting, but it makes it so hard to find him! Ooh! Maybe he's playing hide-and-seek in the fog! Ready or not, here I come!"
Yu is beginning to notice a peculiar habit with Shadow Yukiko. There is something strange about the look in Shadow Yukiko's eyes and the ambiguous implication in her tone. She only does it towards Chie…
"Let's go further in then, shall we?!" Shadow Yukiko bats her eyelashes as a colorful title card appears over her.
Princess Yukiko's Hunt For Her Prince Charming
A round of applause and cheering follows after.
"Wh-What the hell is this?!" Yosuke exclaims.
Chie scowls at Shadow Yukiko. "Who are you?"
Shadow Yukiko giggles. "What're you talking about? I'm Yukiko…and Yukiko is me."
"Where's the real Yukiko?!" Chie demands.
Disembodied voices suddenly start mumbling incoherently, almost sounding agitated.
"What's with these voices…?" Yosuke looks around for a source.
Teddie goes pale with dread. "The Shadows are getting agitated!"
"Well, I'm off again!" Shadow Yukiko exclaims. "Heehee! You'd better be waiting with bells on, my dear Prince!"
Without so much as a farewell, Shadow Yukiko turns and hurries off to the next floor.
"Hey, wait!" Chie almost goes after her, but Tomoe stops her. "But… Yukiko…"
"We'll find her, Chie," Yu states reassuringly. "Just don't wander off on your own. We have no idea what might be up ahead."
"Yeah, especially with Amagi-san's Shadow on the loose," Yosuke adds.
Chie looks down. "I can't believe that's the other part of Yukiko…"
"I don't think she was excited for nothing," Teddie finally speaks. Yu, Chie, and Yosuke look questioningly at Teddie as he continues. "The real Yukiko wants to show us something. I can feel it. It's hard to explain… It seems like she has a strong connection to this castle. This is a lot more dangerous than I thought!"
After somehow managing to get by Tomoe, Chie runs towards the stairs. "I'm coming for you, Yukiko!"
Yosuke scowls. "God dammit, Satonaka, not again… We told her not to run off on her own…"
Yu sighs and shakes her head. "It can't be helped. C'mon, let's go."
Fortunately, for them, unlike last time, they are able to catch up to Chie. She's waiting for them at the top of the stairs. Before Yosuke could even scold Chie for potentially endangering her life, she stops him.
"Shh…listen…" Chie whispers.
"Teeheehee… My Prince will soon come for me. I'll always be waiting… Forever and ever…"
It is Yukiko, or rather, her Shadow. Though, what is strange was that she is nowhere to be seen. It is just her voice.
"Teddie, can you sense anything?" Yu asks Teddie.
Teddie furrows his brow. "All I can sense are Shadows…we should keep going! Just be careful!"
"Anything else you'd like to add?" Yu doesn't want another surprise like last time in which he left out crucial information that could have gotten Chie killed.
"There are more Shadows on this floor…" Teddie replies. "New ones with different weaknesses and attacks…"
And Yu finds what she is looking for. "Okay, you heard the bear… Watch out for each other's backs and feel free to experiment on new Shadows. We need to figure out new weaknesses to exploit."
"Narukami, that Shadow is red…" Yosuke points at a blob of red slime crawling on the floor. "Should we be concerned?"
Yu stares at the red Shadow. "Uh…Teddie, why is that Shadow red?"
"Red Shadows are stronger than regular Shadows…" Teddie explains. "I think you should avoid them for now."
"Guys, I think it spotted us!" Chie exclaims.
Gurgle.
"Shit," Yu swears.
…
…
Elsewhere inside the castle, Yukiko is sprawled across the floor. She's asleep, dreaming peacefully, blissfully unaware of the events occurring outside this room. She would have remained asleep, but then a voice wakes her.
"Chie is nice… Chie can do anything."
Slowly, Yukiko begins to open her eyes. Everything is hazy to her, but she could hear just fine.
"Chie is always by my side. Chie will always be there to protect me."
At this point, Yukiko is fully conscious. She scans her surroundings to try and figure out her location, but thick, red fog obscures her vision. She can only make out the plush carpet she sits on and the flight of stairs behind her.
"Chie will always save me."
"Who's there?"
A loud noise from behind makes Yukiko turn her head. A birdcage rolls down the flight of stairs. It moves towards her, stilling once it reaches her side. It's empty and doesn't look valuable from a glance, but for Yukiko, it holds memories…fond memories.
"This was my bird's cage…"
It had only been a couple of months after entering her first year in high school. On one particular day after school, Yukiko had walked home alone. Along the way, she had come across an abandoned baby bird. It had looked so pitiful, being too young to do anything but cry.
Yukiko became the owner of a baby bird that day. It was a decision that made the following days much more difficult for her, but she didn't mind. After all, she finally had someone she could relate to, even if it was just a bird.
…
…
"Did we lose it?" Yosuke asks between pants.
Yu huffs and carefully peers out from behind a corner. "I think we…crap, it's still there."
"It's so persistent…" Chie's struggling to catch her breath. "Teddie, are we anywhere near the stairs?"
Teddie frowns as he shakes his head. "No…"
For the past twenty minutes, the group had been running away from a red Shadow. It just. Kept. Following them, never once losing interest. They lost it a few times, but it always managed to find them again.
"This is ridiculous…" Yosuke sighs.
"It could be worse…" Yu remarks.
Yosuke is perplexed. "How?"
"Chie could have opened another chest with a Positive King inside," Yu replies.
"Don't remind me…" Chie frowns.
A single fight alone lasts ten minutes, as the Shadow loves nothing more than to summon help. Needless to say, Chie is no longer opening any treasure chests on her own again.
"At least I got another Persona out of that." Yu looks over the new card she had obtained from that battle. "Say, are you guys willing to take your chances against that Shadow now that I have a new Persona in my possession?"
"If it means getting rid of it, I'm in…" Yosuke is tired of running…literally. He's also quite annoyed with the red Shadow.
Chie nods. "It's better than getting cornered by it—Tomoe, what are you doing?! STOP!"
Tomoe ignores Chie as she moves in to attack the red Shadow. Much to everyone's surprise, it's a successful preemptive attack. The stunned Shadow splits, transmogrifying to its true form, allowing them to attack first.
In this case, the red Shadow takes on the form of two pairs of what seemed to be humanoid twins. They were joined together by three poles, one by their necks, and another by their wrists, and the last by their ankles. They just wobble in place, almost like mindless zombies.
"Trance Twins!" Teddie suddenly exclaims. "Be careful, Sensei!"
Yu just nods her head as she crushes a card in her hand. Izanagi disappears and, in his place, is a beautiful woman with feline characteristics. She had white skin and a long tail. She was clad in spotted white fur and wore a conical hat. Her yellow eyes were focused on Yu.
"I am thou and thou art I," she remarks, sounding rather amused. "I am Senri. What is it that you need?"
Yu turns to face the Trance Twins. Senri takes one look at the Shadows and smiles. At that moment, a name pops into mind.
"Agi?" Yu furrows her brow.
Senri grins and tips her hat in the direction of one of the Shadows. Almost instantly, a small ball of fire sets the Shadow ablaze. It isn't that big of a fire, but it stuns the Shadows. At that moment, Teddie speaks.
"Trance Twins are weak to Agi Skills!"
Yu blinks as she hears a pleased purr from Senri.
"Ready when you are," Senri says with a toothy grin.
…
…
"Narukami…why is your Persona looking at me like that?" Yosuke looks nervously at Senri. He had been rather wary of Yu's Personas ever since Pixie attacked him. Angel never paid much attention to him, and he was still on bad terms with Pixie. Senri, on the other hand, just kept staring at him with those eyes of hers. It was rather unnerving.
"Senri, what are you doing?" Yu looks questioningly at her Persona.
Senri smiles playfully. "I'm just enjoying the view."
It takes Yu a few seconds to put two and two together, which, by then, Yosuke figures it out. His face turns a brilliant shade of red as he covers his backside.
"H-Hey!" Yosuke exclaims. "Switch her out, now! I don't feel comfortable with this!"
"Wow, Hanamura." What an odd sight for Chie. "How the tables have turned…"
"S-Shut up, stupid!" Yosuke snaps. "This isn't funny!"
Teddie is confused. "Just what did she mean by 'enjoying the view'?"
"T-That's enough!" Yu sputters. She can't believe the behavior of her current Persona. Angel is always polite, even motherly at times. Pixie is energetic and bubbly, but Senri…
"You shouldn't let this one get away," Senri's voice practically purrs within Yu's mind. "Such vitality…and he's quite easy on the eyes."
Yu's face burns red. "Okay, that's enough! I'm switching you out, Senri!"
Senri frowns. "Killjoy…"
Smash!
Yu doesn't bother checking whose card she crushed. All she really cares about is that Senri wasn't her current Persona. It was Angel who took Senri's place.
Angel sighs and shakes her head. "I apologize for Senri's lewd behavior. Don't hold it against her - she's a being who sustains herself on the vitality of men."
Though, that doesn't completely excuse her behavior.
"Great...another Persona who has it out for me!" Yosuke couldn't believe it.
Yu looks blankly at Yosuke. "Pixie doesn't hate you."
"She struck me with Zio!" Yosuke exclaims.
…
…
"Narukami, what are you doing?" Yosuke's eyes widen as he noticed a blue card in Yu's hand. "No, don't—Narukami, stop!"
"Too late." Yu crushes the card in her hand.
"Hello~!" a very familiar, bubbly high-pitched voice chirps.
"Oh good, she's here…" Yosuke deadpans.
Yu says nothing as she forcefully grabs Yosuke by the collar of his shirt and pulls him closer to Pixie. "You two are going to make up and get along. I won't rush you two, but I better see you two at least trying…got it?!"
Pixie and Yosuke look at each other and just nod, albeit reluctantly. Yu releases Yosuke and walks past him and Pixie. Now that that's out of the way, they can get back to looking for Yukiko. Yu is aware how sidetracked they had gotten since Senri was switched out for Angel.
…
…
Yukiko recalls her memories of her first-year of high school. Her family's inn had become an even bigger part of her life and it showed. It had been the cause for every reason that Yukiko gave to Chie when she turned down her offers to do something after school. The baby bird had given Yukiko a reason to bear with everything that came with helping out at the inn. Never before had she found smiling to be something so simple and easy. It was almost as if all her problems had vanished.
"You're just like me, aren't you? You can only live in your cage…" It was a sad thing to say, but it made Yukiko smile each time she thought that as she cared for her bird. She had raised it from a baby and seen it grow into a beautiful adult with a plumage that reminded her of fire. It was almost as if she was looking into a mirror every time she watched that bird sing within its cage.
She could easily replace the bird with herself and the cage with her family inn. She could see her family caring for her, just as she did with the bird. It was a depressing thought, but it only made Yukiko sympathizes with her caged friend even more. They were both afraid of going out of their cages alone.
"Or so I thought…" Yukiko frowns as she opens the cage. There were a few times she had accidentally forgotten to lock the cage's door. She was always relieved to see that her bird was still inside, despite the opened door and the opened window. It had every opportunity to spread its wings and take off, but it never did. It was probably because it had never learned to fly. Maybe that's why she had grown too comfortable with the thought that it would never leave its cage.
In the end, she had underestimated her caged friend.
The empty cage was all that Yukiko had in her head during the last remaining weeks of her first year of high school. She had cared for that bird so painstakingly. There were times she had wanted to cry because of the difficulties that came with caring for such a young bird. Kasai had been there for her when she needed the help. Kasai was also there when Yukiko discovered the empty cage.
Chie had noticed the sudden change in Yukiko's expression. When asked about it, Yukiko lied. Chie didn't need to know about something so petty. The last thing Yukiko wanted was sympathy, because all she had ever done while raising that bird was sympathize.
…
…
Going through the fourth floor is a surprisingly easy feat, ignoring the fact that Yu has to keep Pixie and Yosuke in line every few minutes or so and a few encounters with Shadows. In some way, Yu considers it progress since Pixie refrained from using Zio on Yosuke. Chie and Tomoe are also working together much better than before. There are still some difficulties, but Yu is just glad for some progress.
Though, there is one thing everyone could agree on and that is that Last Resort sucked. Several times, some of the Shadows have turned into Dice-like enemies called Bronze Dice. After whittling down their stamina or whatever it was that kept them alive, one of the Bronze Dice Shadows pulled a kamikaze attack, appropriately named Last Resort, and exploded. Had Yu not defended herself, she would have been unconscious and unable to use the Revival Beads Teddie had given her to wake up Chie and Yosuke.
Pixie is extremely quick to heal Yu before she could even give the command to do so. Yu doesn't really mind since she was going to heal herself, Pixie just sped up the process. Now the way Revival Beads worked…they had to be eaten by a Persona. How this worked, Yu had no actual clue, but guessed the whole "Thou art I and I art Thou" motif probably had something to do with it.
"Just so we're clear…we run like hell if we come across Bronze Dice," Yu said as she and the group stood in front of a door leading into the fifth floor. "Right?"
"Right," Yosuke and Chie say.
Pixie flutters about, looking over Yosuke.
"The hell do you want?" Yosuke resists the urge he has to swat her away
Pixie looks thoughtfully at Yosuke. "Can you use Trafuri?"
"What the hell is Trafuri?" That is so not a word!
"It's a move that helps anyone escape from the Shadows," Pixie explains. "I'm not experienced enough to learn it yet, but something tells me you might know it…"
Yosuke blinks and turns to his Persona. "Hold on…are you telling me we know that move? If so, why didn't you tell me?"
Jiraiya just shrugs in a manner that almost resembles a, "You never asked."
Tomoe is quick to bash Jiraiya over the head with the blunt area of her staff. Both Yosuke and Jiraiya yelp and clutch their heads.
"Dammit, Satonaka!"
"That wasn't me!"
Yu could already tell that Yosuke and Chie are about ready to start a heated argument. She's not amused and is about to yell at them to stop, but something else came out of her mouth that sounded much deeper than her usual voice. "BEHAVE CHILDREN."
Yosuke, Chie, Jiraiya, and Tomoe look wide-eyed at Yu. "…"
Teddie is shocked. "Wow, Sensei…"
Yu is quite shocked, herself. She has no idea what just happened. She looks questioningly at Pixie. "Did you…or was that…"
Pixie laughs awkwardly. "Izanagi wanted me to send a message. Didn't mean to make you say it…"
Yu blinks. "Wait, you can do that?"
Pixie nods. "How else did you think Tomoe would get Chie to do all that?"
Yu is learning more and more with each floor. "Ahem, back to what Pixie was saying…Hanamura can use Trafuri, right?"
"Y-Yeah…" Yosuke stutters a bit.
"Okay, if we come across Bronze Dice, feel free to use it…" Yu isn't taking any chances with Last Resort.
Yosuke nods his head. "Got it…"
"Okay, let's get moving." Yu kicks open the door and quickly readies her katana in case there were any nearby Shadows. There are none and the hallway is empty. Red mist begins to tinge the air as haughty laughter echoes throughout the empty hallway.
"Ohohoho~! By any chance, are you… My Princes? I'm locked up here… Please save me! Hmhmhm… I'm sure my Princes can do it… I'm sure they'll brave any danger to release me from this place… I'll be waiting for you… Ohoho…"
There is a moment of silence within the group after that. No one wanted to talk or rather, no one knew what to say. For once, Chie is quite glad that Teddie started talking.
"That was strange," Teddie remarks. "Speaking of which…something's off about this floor."
"Is it the red mist in the air or is that just me?" Yosuke is tempted to take off his glasses to clean the lenses.
"No, that's not it…" Teddie furrows his brow. "Don't take off your glasses…We might want to be extra careful now…"
"Is she on this floor?" Chie asks.
Teddie nods. "Yeah, but she's not alone…"
"Okay, remember the plan, Hanamura." Yu looks around. "If we get caught in an unwanted battle…"
"I'll get Jiraiya to bail us out with Trafuri," Yosuke continues for Yu. "I'm still not sure how it works."
"We'll get into that later!" Chie interjects. "Let's just keep moving!"
After walking a good distance, Teddie's comment about the floor comes into play when the group suddenly find themselves teleported to a random location. At first, it was just strange, but after the third time it happened, it became an annoyance. Yu literally couldn't take a step closer to a door without activating whatever it was that was teleporting them. It didn't help that laughter echoed throughout the halls each time it happened.
After the sixth time, Yu is extremely close to yelling out in anger. She manages to restrain herself and instead, decides to take a different approach. Her current one wasn't getting anyone anywhere, just into an endless loop of teleportation.
"Anything yet, Teddie?" Yu asks as she watches Teddie sniff the air.
Teddie pauses for a moment. "Hmm…that girl's scent is getting stronger, but what are the chances we'll get moved again?"
Yu adjusts her glasses. "We'll take those chances. We haven't run into any Shadows yet, so I'd say we're doing pretty well."
Pixie's expression says otherwise. "The teleportation is making me dizzy, euugh… If this is what I have to do with Trafuri, I don't think I want to learn it…Why isn't Patra working on me, but working on Yu?"
Yosuke snickers and quickly earns a death glare from Pixie. Her body starts crackling with electricity, but Yu quickly intervenes.
"Pixie… Behave."
Pixie pouts. "Fine."
…
"You too, Hanamura," Yu adds a second later.
"What?!" This time, it's Pixie's turn to snicker as Yosuke looks wide-eyed at Yu.
Chie looks blankly at her teammates and turns to Tomoe. "You want to just go ahead and check if we activate whatever it is that's teleporting?"
Tomoe nods her head and follows after Chie as she walks forward. Within a few steps, the group find themselves teleported to another random location on the fifth floor. Yu has lost count by now as to how many times it had happened. Chie just looks irritated and Pixie is having trouble staying in the air.
Yosuke decides to stop screwing around and actually catches Pixie when she couldn't stay in the air. Pixie doesn't really care that Yosuke catches her. She is too busy clutching her head as she sits in the palm of Yosuke's hand.
"Wow, you're really small," Yosuke remarks.
"No…sh…I'm not gonna bother… Why do I sense satisfaction?"
That would be Yu finding something worth smiling for as she sees Yosuke and Pixie not arguing for once. Though, something does feel off and it takes Yu a few seconds to realize what it was. Since Pixie was sitting in the palm of Yosuke's hand, Yu could feel something on her…
"Hanamura, give me Pixie…now…" Yu manages not to blush as she holds out her hand to Yosuke.
Yosuke blinks and carefully hands the dazed Pixie to Yu. He's unaware of what he unintentionally did and Yu would like to keep it that way.
"I'm starting to hate this 'thou art I' crap…" Yu thinks to herself as she helps Pixie get a hold of herself. "Wow, you are really small."
"The same could go for you and I don't mean height…" Pixie snaps back.
Yu stares wide-eyed at Pixie. Pixie rubbed her eyes, unaware of the attention she had just drawn towards Yu. It takes the tiny Persona a minute to realize what she had done. By then, Chie asks about it.
"What did she mean?"
Yu narrows her eyes. "Way to go, Pixie…"
"Oops…" Pixie looks nervously at Yu.
Yosuke looks over Yu. "Well, if there's one thing I know about Narukami, it's that he is small. I mean, look at him. He's barely taller than you, Satonaka."
Yu stares blankly at Yosuke. "What."
Chie crosses her arms. "Pixie wasn't talking about height, stupid!"
Teddie blinks. "So then what did she mean?"
"I wasn't finished…just watch." Yosuke sighs and drops his wrenches on the floor. He then makes his way over to Yu and stands right in front of her. She looks questioningly at him as he looks down at her.
"What the hell are you doing?" Yu makes a face as Yosuke gets closer to her. "Hanamura, you are invading my personal—Hanamura, what are you doing? Hanamura—Hanamura, don't you even dare—"
"Payback time for Pixie…" Yosuke smirks as he lifts Yu off the floor. He catches her off guard, causing her to drop both Pixie and her katana in order to grab onto Yosuke's arms. Pixie barely avoids the floor by flapping her wings at the last second. She hovers in place for a few moments before moving upwards.
"Don't drop me…" Yu did not enjoy her shared experience with Pixie, as the sensation of falling is a terrible one. She tenses up so noticeably, that Yosuke almost makes a comment.
Almost.
"Are you watching, guys?" Instead, Yosuke turns to Chie and Teddie. He has a point to make to them.
"Wow, Yosuke is strong…" Teddie's eyes are especially wide.
"Ah, y-yes…" Chie is almost speechless. "Holy crap…how can you - isn't he heavy?"
Chie had a hard time carrying Yu on her back when she and Yosuke were sneaking the silver-haired teen into the liquor aisle of Junes. How Yosuke managed to carry Yu on his back without any problems, Chie will likely never know.
"Nope…" Yosuke replies. "What are you, like 45 kg?"
"47.6, actually—put me down!" Yu tightens her grip on Yosuke's arms. "Why are you even doing this?!"
Yosuke smiles. "I'm just showing Satonaka and Teddie what Pixie meant…and getting some payback for Pixie."
"Are you aware how close my legs are to your crotch, Hanamura?" Yu stares blankly at Yosuke.
And with that, Yosuke places Yu down and avoids a swift critical hit to the nads. Once in a week is enough for Yosuke, especially since the most recent one was from a dominatrix. He was still recovering from that.
Yu nods her head and, after adjusting her shirt, kneels down to pick up her katana. She looks at Pixie, who appears to be relatively okay, if somewhat disheveled.
"Sorry about that…" Pixie looks sheepishly at Yu. "I slipped up…"
"Don't worry about it…" Yu sighs. "Just…lay off the comments about my body. I've had enough of those and I just realized how much more awkward this could have been…"
"What are you—oh…oh my…" Pixie's face reddens. "I didn't need that mental image, Senri."
Yu slaps her hand onto her forehead. "God dammit, Senri…"
Meanwhile within the realms of Yu's subconscious or wherever her Personas took residence, Senri is laughing to herself, as Angel and Izanagi look at her in disappointment.
A few minutes later, Teddie manages to successfully lead the group to a door that doesn't teleport them to a random location…that also isn't locked.
"I sense someone beyond this door…" Teddie says after sniffing the air a few times. "It's that girl's scent!"
Yu tightens her grip on her katana and looks back at Yosuke and Chie. "Are you guys ready?"
Before Yosuke could say anything, Chie went ahead and kicked open the door, exclaiming, "READY!"
Yosuke scowls. "Dammit, Satonaka - stop doing that!"
An amused chuckle catches everyone's attention. Shadow Yukiko stands in the center of the room, accompanied by a gigantic Shadow. The Shadow is enormous in both size and height, and resembles an armored knight riding a horse. It wields a lance and wears a purple mask over its face.
"My Prince wouldn't lose to guards such as these, correct?" Shadow Yukiko laughs.
Pixie is horrified. "That's…big."
"Gyaaaaaah!" Teddie shrieks. "I've never seen such a strong one before! I-It's attacking us!"
Almost immediately, Yu shoves Teddie to the side and jumps out of the way from the Shadow's incoming lance.
"Princes are considerate. Princes are strong… The Avenger Knight shouldn't prove to be a problem if this is true. I shall be watching from afar and just so nobody gets any ideas…"
The doors suddenly slam shut, trapping the group with what's apparently known as the Avenger Knight. Shadow Yukiko is nowhere in sight, but her voice still lingers.
"Good luck my Princes-in-training!"
"Everyone, scatter!" Yu shouts as she avoids yet another attack from the Avenger Knight. It just keeps targeting her. "Pixie!"
"Taste my lightning, jerk!" Pixie strikes the Avenger Knight with a bolt of lightning, though it doesn't seem to do much.
"It's not weak to Zio skills!" Teddie remarks.
"What about Garu?!" Yosuke directs Jiraiya towards the Shadow. Jiraiya attacks the Shadow with a gust of green wind, but it does the same amount of damage as Zio.
Teddie confirms this. "Nothing!"
"All right, Tomoe, we're up!" Chie dashes towards the Avenger Knight and manages to land a solid kick on the Shadow before having Tomoe use Bufu on it. "Anything yet, Teddie?"
Teddie shakes his head. "No, Bufu Skills and physical attacks aren't doing much damage—watch out! You've made it angry!"
The Avenger Knight makes an inhuman noise and holds up its lance in the air. The Shadow's body began to glow.
"Uh-oh!" Teddie flees towards a pillar and hides behind it. "Tarukaja raises strength! Get out of there, Chie!"
Tomoe is quick to respond to Teddie's outburst and yanks Chie away from the Avenger Knight, barely avoiding its lance.
"Holy shit…" Chie didn't know her heart could beat so fast and so hard…
Pixie flits about over Yu's head. "What are you gonna do?"
Yu is trying to think of a plan. "We need to slow it down…"
"I don't think anyone knows Sukunda." Pixie looks thoughtfully at Yosuke and Chie. "The girl does know Tarukaja, but I think you should focus on agility before anything."
"Right, so what can we do about it?" Yu needs to know fast before the Avenger Knight decides to make her its target again.
"We need Sukukaja and…" Pixie suddenly gasps. "Angel knows it and so does that touchy-feely guy over there! Quick, get him to use it on you so you can change to Angel and do the same—never mind, I'll do it for you! I can get the message to him faster!"
Yu doesn't really say much, but just nods and watches Pixie as she swiftly makes her way across the room to Yosuke. Yosuke is currently the Avenger Knight's target. Jiraiya is having a difficult time blocking the Shadow's attack. He's trying to buy Yosuke some time to get away, but the Avenger Knight is too fast for Yosuke to get anywhere without it attacking him. Something needs to be done - fast.
Luckily, Pixie is there to help for once, even though she still dislikes Yosuke. Truth be told, she just likes messing around with Yosuke. It's in her nature to be mischievous and also reward consideration and punish neglect. So far, she's doing her job.
Now Pixie just hopes that Yosuke will listen to her. "Hey, you—the boy with the weird orange things on his head!"
"I have a name!" Yosuke snaps as he resists the urge to swat Pixie away.
Pixie pouts. "If I called you by your name, I might put you in a trance or something, I dunno, it's supposed to lead anyone astray—Oh heads up, if that somehow manages to happen, turn your coat inside out…"
"What the fuck are you talking about?" Yosuke has no idea what to make of this information.
Pixie shakes her head. "Anyways, you know Sukukaja…use it on your Leader."
"What's Sukukaja—what's going on?" Yosuke stares at himself as his body begins to glow. He quickly glances at Jiraiya, whose body is also glowing.
"Okay, using it on yourself is okay—you might want to run, now." Pixie realizes the current problem that Yosuke has with the Avenger Knight. "Go to your Leader!"
Yosuke would rather tell her to fuck off, but he keeps that to himself. Instead, he decides to listen to Pixie. He has no idea what happened, but Pixie seems to have a clue. If anything, Yu probably sent Pixie to his aid. With that in mind, Yosuke starts running, and is quickly surprised by how fast he's moving. It takes him seconds to arrive at Yu's side.
"Whoa, how did you—?" Yu is baffled.
"That was Sukukaja!" Pixie pipes in. "It raises your agility and makes it easier for you to land and avoid hits! It's only for a bit, though, so be careful."
Yosuke stares at Pixie for a second before turning to Teddie, who's still hiding behind a pillar. "She's more useful than you!"
"Hey!" Teddie can't help but resent that.
Yu crosses her arms and sighs. "Behave…we need him to still scope out for any weaknesses…also, you mind using Sukukaja on me?"
Yosuke doesn't answer and lets the glowing light emanating from Yu and Pixie's bodies speak for himself. Pixie is now flitting about at a much faster speed.
"Thank you!" she chirps. "And you're not so bad yourself, boy! Now what about her?"
Yu and Yosuke turn to look at Chie and Tomoe. The two are currently helping out Jiraiya with the Avenger Knight. Chie and Tomoe have some difficulty considering they aren't as fast as Jiraiya to keep up with the Avenger Knight.
"Just so you know," Pixie begins, "Sukukaja does pass itself on when you switch Personas. So I think you should go with Angel…"
Yu can't help but agree. "You and Hanamura have made some good progress…but I'll still bring you out, just later."
"Well, see you around!" Pixie says with a smile.
Smash!
Pixie disappears almost immediately after Yu crushes a blue card. Angel appears behind Yu, as usual. She never appears in front of Yu, always in back of her. Something about Angel saying it's her job to protect Yu.
"I deeply apologize for what Senri did to you and Pixie…" Angel says apologetically.
Yosuke arches his brow. "What did she do?"
"Nothing!" Yu is quick to reply. "Just don't ask…remember, this is Senri…"
"Riiight…" Yosuke never wants to see Senri…ever. Pixie is tolerable and he's slowly growing to accept her since she doesn't act like Senri.
"I suppose you want me to use Sukukaja." Angel places her hands on Yu's shoulders. "Am I correct?"
Yu blinks. "Yeah…"
"What's going on?!" Chie exclaims.
That's all that Yu needs to hear to know that Angel used Sukukaja on Chie. With everyone now up to speed with the Avenger Knight, Yu thinks it'd be a good idea to start attacking. Sukukaja is eventually going to wear off and it's best to take advantage of it now while it's still in effect.
"Hope you like Skull Cracker!" Chie exclaims. "Take this!"
Tomoe slams her double-bladed staff onto the Avenger Knight's head. There is a loud, sickening crack resulting from the impact. The Avenger Knight's mask cracks, its body turning a shade of purple for some odd reason. It's also throwing money onto the floor, which Yosuke quickly pockets.
"I thought that only happened when we kill them…" Chie is as confused as the knight.
The thing about killing Shadows is that they drop money. Nobody knew about that fact until Teddie made a comment about the "paper and coins" he had been picking up after every battle. It was because of Teddie that Yu became the owner of ten thousand yen. That discovery happened sometime during the teleportation shenanigans that had occurred on this floor. Since then, Yu's made it a rule that the person who landed the last hit on a Shadow earned the money dropped from its demise. As for the current moment, it's most definitely first-come, first-served.
"Just what did you do to it?" Yu's taking note of the Shadow's current state. It is definitely out of it.
"It's confused!" Teddie shouts. "Chie-chan confused it!"
Chie blinks. "I did? Holy crap, Tomoe, you hit hard…"
Tomoe looks pleased with the outcome of her attack.
"All right, everyone!" Yu has an idea in mind now that the Avenger Knight is incapacitated in some way. "Take advantage of the current situation! Alternate between spells and physical attacks—Chie, you continue doing what you're currently doing! Just keep an eye out for yourself and make sure to tell us if you need any healing. Are we clear?"
"Tomoe's already attacking for me," Chie remarks. "But I heard you clearly."
"Same!" Yosuke says before rushing towards the Shadow with Jiraiya by his side.
Yu sighs and looks over her shoulder at Teddie, who's still in the same place behind the pillar. "Have you got anything about this Shadow's weakness yet?!"
"Try Agi!" Teddie yells back.
Yu blinks a few times and physically cringes when she realizes the only Persona she has on hand that is capable of using Agi was Senri. Angel senses Yu's discomfort and squeezes her shoulders reassuringly.
"I'll try to have Izanagi keep her from controlling you…" That's all Angel can really promise. "Good luck…"
Yu hesitantly takes out Senri's card. She really doesn't want to summon Senri… "Okay, take a deep breath…it's only for one move…"
Smash!
"Hello…" Yu stiffens as Senri whispers into her ear. "You're in need of my assistance, huh?"
Yu swallows hard. "Uh…can you use Agi?"
Senri chuckles. "As you wish…"
…
…
Yu sighs in relief when Senri leaves her side. She is really growing uncomfortable with using the Persona. Senri's just so…touchy-feely.
"Hey, do me a favor…say my name…" Senri's voice echoes within Yu's mind.
A small bead of sweat rolls down the side of Yu's face. "S-Senri."
"Louder."
"Senri!" Yu exclaims.
Senri laughs and tosses a ball of fire at the Avenger Knight. Her sudden appearance near the Shadow catches Yosuke off guard.
"Oh god, not you again!" Yosuke backs away from Senri. Jiraiya senses Yosuke's distress and is quick to pull Yosuke away from Senri.
Senri finds this amusing and almost follows Yosuke, but a voice inside her head tells her otherwise. "Hmph, killjoy…"
Yu is not going to let Senri harass her friend. She's quite glad to see that Senri was at least being obedient. Sighing, Yu focuses her attention on the Avenger Knight and is surprised to see it crumpled onto the floor into a pile.
"It's down!" Teddie exclaims. "It's weak to Agi skills!"
As relieving as it should have been to know this Shadow's weakness, it isn't, seeing as only Senri knew Agi and that means she'll have to be kept out longer in order to exploit the Shadow's weakness. Three words can be used to appropriately describe Yu's current thoughts.
"Fuck my life." Yu sighs as Senri starts to cackle.
Chie, being the only one unaffected by Senri's unwanted attention, decides to bring attention to their current advantage. "Alright guys, pile on! Ready?"
Yu and Yosuke look at Chie, who's currently waiting for them by the Shadow's side. She wants everyone to attack at the same time. It seems like a reasonable idea and it guarantees that everyone's attack would hit. Chie grins widely as she watches Yu and Yosuke run towards her.
"Let's do it!" she exclaims.
Many blows are dealt as a result of the group attack. Teddie watches from his spot in deep amusement when a white cloud obscures the Shadow as Chie, Yu, and Yosuke attack it. After a minute or so, the group pauses to check the damage they've done. The white cloud quickly dissipates and reveals that the Shadow pulling itself up off the floor. However, within the minute, it just suddenly collapses into a puddle of black slime.
Yu stares at the puddle of slime for a few seconds before quickly crushing a blue card in her hand. Senri's quickly replaced with Pixie, much to everyone's relief (especially Yosuke's).
"Are you alright?" Pixie looks concerned.
Yu nods her head. "Yeah…please tell me that Senri didn't try to control me…"
Pixie laughs awkwardly. "Ah, about that…"
"Angel kept her promise, then…" Yu sighs. She really doesn't know what to do with Senri.
Pixie rubs the back of her head. "Say, what's that there?"
Yu blinks and looks at the floor as the slime evaporates into nothingness. There is a key that was left behind. It looks simple enough, but it's made out of glass.
"Why glass?" Yu asks herself as she picks up the key.
Chie overhears Yu and notices the key. "I think that's supposed to be from a fairytale, except…it's a key, not a slipper or whatever the heck it was."
"And the fairytale motif continues," Yosuke remarks as he picks up the money off the floor. He'd gotten the last hit in the group attack. "I guess it's time to find the right door and hope our Princess isn't on another floor."
Yu blinks and smiles. "Your quotes amuse me."
"Thanks, I'll be here all day." Yosuke grins.
Chie makes a face. "Oh god, you two…"
"Hey, guys!" Teddie calls out to them. "The door's opening!"
The once closed door that trapped the group with a Shadow is opening. As this happens, Shadow Yukiko's voice starts speaking.
"If you really are my Prince, then we will surely meet again. I am but a trapped soul… I cannot leave this place even if I wished…" There's a melancholic tone in Shadow Yukiko's voice that is only made more obvious when she chuckles.
Silence…
"I don't sense her anymore…" Teddie frowns before turning to Yu and the others. He notices how tired they seem, especially Yu. "Oh! Are you okay, Sensei?! I'm sure we've got a long ways to go. Don't push yourself too hard! If you're tired, you should head back!"
Normally, Yu would take that advice, but she's made a promise and after hearing the tone in Shadow Yukiko's voice… She can't turn back now. "Let's go, guys."
…
…
A/N Hey y'all, everyone fucking hated this chapter, ESPECIALLY me. I originally wrote this after spending TWO MONTHS of doing jack shit, and it sure as hell shows. Like I apologize greatly for the drop in quality. I PROMISE the next chapter will be better. Also, no more review shout-outs for a while. I need to count them again to know which is which, because holy fucking SHIT, we've got so much.
Anyways, here is the old A/N to this chapter:
I regret nothing…except not updating, but hey! Look! You guys got an update and a bit of a heads up, there's another one coming soon after. I'm halfway into chapter 11, so expect it up by the end of the week…hopefully I don't get distracted, because I am most likely going to get distracted. The only reason I got back into this was because I completed my first Persona 4 Golden run and I am using a New Game +, but boy do I regret going Very Hard Mode.
Let's focus on this chapter. I REALLY hated writing this chapter because it was just…It's been a while since chapter 9 and my writing just…ugh, I just couldn't get into it. I apologize for the low-quality chapter. In other news, the innuendos have begun and the rating is slowly starting to go up! Let's see how many more chapters it'll take until that T changes into an M…because it's gonna happen! I'm making it happen!
More stuff involving the Personas happen and we are introduced to Senri! Yeah, her background pretty much states she disguises herself as a beautiful woman to steal the vitality of men. I decided to play with that and BAM, we got Senri checking out Yosuke's ass. I regret nothing. (EXCEPT I FUCKING DO. WHY DID I DO THIS.) (Jade: ohhhhh you regret this so much)
I looked into Pixie and her mythology. Thing is that Pixies have been known to lead people astray by calling their name. They are never heard from again if that happens and to prevent that, you have to turn your coat inside out. Also, Pixies have a need to be clothed and they love ribbon…and they're usually harmless. As mentioned before, they reward consideration and punish neglect.
Also, creativity/originality punched this story again with how Personas are capable of controlling their users. Tomoe and Chie doing their own thing is basically what I think would represent the AI if you let it control a party member. It's pretty much luck-based. Tomoe is also there to remind everyone that Personas are sentient. Keep that in mind.
Oh and that bit with Yosuke knowing Trafuri was a mistake I made. He shouldn't know that move UNTIL his Social Link ranks 2. However, since he hasn't used it yet, I can give the excuse that he is aware that he knows it, but he can't use it yet like Pixie. He doesn't know that yet, so…yeah.
I really loved how the anime portrayed Yukiko and I'm just gonna say…you're gonna be seeing a lot of her next chapter. It's pretty Yukiko-centric, so get used to it. Also, get used to Personas like Pixie and Angel talking.
That's about it for now and crappy chapter name is crappy (the original name was "Everyone Hates Senri"), but it's all I got and I will be taking suggestions if anyone has a better name for this chapter! Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Wait patiently for the next one! Oh, and before I forget…
This story has 101 favorites, 106 alerts, it's in a community, has 91 reviews (nine more to go guys), and over 14,420 hits. I'm really proud of this story and it really does make all the time I spend writing worth it. It makes it even more worth it because you guys are really considerate in your reviews.
Just…thank you guys for being so patient with me. And a big shout-out for Pooka Spirit for being reviewer #90 and BrightDarkness-2013 for being reviewer #80. A notable mention goes to Paper Crease and LemonySean and I can't forget my social link buddy, UnstableFable! Yeah! You guys are awesome.
Hope you guys stick around for the next chapter! Reviews are always welcomed, especially constructive criticism, but NO FLAMES. Anyways, until next chapter! KD out! XD
Sylanc: Literally none of us could focus on this chapter, take it.
Jade: 7! 7 made faces! Ah ha ha!
Noa: I want to burn this chapter to the ground. Even the me who wrote this just HATED it.