Hi everyone, it's been...wow, six months. Yeesh, I did NOT mean to take that long to update this chapter. Sorry about that folks, things just kind of got busy and I was putting this chapter off cause I hate boss fights, but we're here now!
Thanks to RosyMiranto18 (Thank you, as always!) for reviewing, all 27 followers, 21 favorites and 2,028 readers!
Alright, so this time we tackle the first temple, Aquarius. I hate the boss fight, as always, but I made sure to grab all the random dialogue in the dungeon! I hope you all enjoy!
The morning of August 7th found Tatsuya making his way out of the house bright and early, successfully avoiding his family, and making his way to the Alaya Shrine without any issues.
"Tatsuya!"
Unable to help a small smile, Tatsuya turned towards the voice calling his name and, sure enough, there was Jun running towards him.
"Good morning." Jun greeted, looking almost shy as he shifted from foot to foot at Tatsuya's side.
"Morning." Tatsuya nodded back. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yes, I…I'm sorry." Jun lowered his head, gripping the bag that no doubt held his many flowers, and to keep up the illusion that they were all going to school, of course. "This…this is all my fault."
"Stop that. It's nobody's fault, but your father's. And we're going to fix it, together." Tatsuya shook his head, nudging his childhood friend with his arm. It was so strange, how easy it was to fall back into this companionship with Jun, as if he had never left at all.
"But still, I-" Jun started to protest only to cry out in surprise as he ran into a woman. "Oh, my apologies, I didn't see you there."
"Don't worry about it, I wasn't watching where I was going either." The woman, her hair cut into a black bob and her smile kind, reassured them as she held up what looked like a thick stack of papers she had been reading. "Have a nice day, both of you."
"Thank you, you too, ma'am." Jun smiled before he grabbed Tatsuya's sleeve and practically dragged him towards the shrine.
"None of us blame you, okay? We'll fix everything and then we'll stay together afterwards, like old times." Tatsuya whispered as they walked.
Jun froze at those words, turning to Tatsuya with his visible eye wide as it could be.
"Do you mean that…?" Jun whispered.
Before Tatsuya could answer, arms suddenly pulled Jun into a headlock, while Tatsuya found his free arm being yanked hard enough that he stumbled.
"Ya didn't think we'd let you get away that easily, did you?" Eikichi grinned as he used his height to his advantage.
"M-Michel!" Jun stuttered.
"Come on, we're not splitting up that easily." Ginko, who had grabbed Tatsuya's arm, tsked. "What would've been the point of all this, anyway?" Tatsuya smiled down at her, reaching up to squeeze her shoulder, causing her to smile brightly.
Jun stared at the three of them in shock for a moment before a peaceful smile formed on his face.
"Very well." He agreed.
And then proceeded to dig his elbow into Eikichi's stomach hard enough to force the blue haired boy to release him with a gasp, using the opening provided to stomp on his foot and grab one of his flailing arms to twist behind his back.
Eikichi, Ginko and Tatsuya stared at Jun in shock. Jun's expression didn't even crack.
"Did you forget? I do go to Kasugayama High, after all." Jun smiled. Suddenly, Tatsuya understood why people thought Jun as Joker was scary. Even without the mask, he was terrifying when he wanted to be.
Tatsuya's heart raced under his skin.
Eikichi recovered the fastest and grinned as he kicked at Jun's shin and spun out of his range as soon as his arm was free.
"And you better not forget who the Boss of Kasugayama was, Jun!" Eikichi declared, looking ready for a brawl. Jun's smile was cold as ice.
"How could I ever, Michel?" He smiled.
"Whoa…Jun's cool!" Ginko whispered, looking ready for a fight herself if the spark in her eyes meant anything.
"Hey, hey, no fighting each other until we deal with our current problems!" Maya's voice cut in as she ran up to them. Instantly, all four relaxed and smiled at her.
"Yes, Big Maya." They chorused, as if they were still children playing at that very shrine. Maya simply rolled her eyes at them all.
"Alright. Which temple should we go to first?" The reporter asked them, causing them all to turn serious.
"It should be the Aquarius Temple, in Hirasaka." Jun spoke up, his voice assured. "That's the only temple I didn't assign anyone to, because…Queen Aquarius died, and I could not take the skull."
"Meaning that the Last Battalion is going to retrieve it." Tatsuya surmised.
"That is correct. At the very least, the three remaining skulls will have the protection of Tatsuya, Lisa, and Michel's Shadows, meaning they will be safe for a little while longer." Jun confirmed.
"Sounds good to me, I'm in." Eikichi nodded.
"Yeah, let's go kick some German butt!" Ginko grinned, pumping a fist in the air.
"Alright, then Hirasaka it is." Maya grinned before she led the way proudly.
Tatsuya simply followed behind her, following into step with Jun and letting their arms brush together as they walked.
As they made their way through the green tinted walls of the Aquarius Temple, Tatsuya wasn't surprised how often they ran across Masked Circle and Last Battalion members, fighting each other and then the winner turning to fight Tatsuya and his friends.
They made their way through easily enough, though Maya paused when they reached a hallway.
"This relief…it's showing the four temples, right? But what is it? Order? Balance…?" Maya questioned, gesturing at the relief, which showed a circle of the constellations, with Aquarius, Scorpio, Taurus, and Leo each glowing their color.
"The four constellations of the Grand Cross are each associated with one of the elements of earth, water, fire, and wind." Jun explained. "Those four elements maintain the balance of the world, and each has strengths and weaknesses. It's a brand of mysticism Father told me about. Xibalba is, in other words, a model for the new world…the balance of the temples symbolizing the world might be important…"
"And your father used Joker and the Masked Circle, so that Xibalba would form through the rumors…" Tatsuya muttered.
"Joker died at the Caracol…it was everyone's rumors that gave Joker the power to grant dreams…and Xibalba took flight because of rumors too, right?" Ginko added. "Philemon said 'someone' is making rumors come true…but did he mean Jun's father?"
"The reason the people of this city clung to Jun was because they wanted a cheap, easy way to achieve their dreams…" Eikichi mused. "Not everyone thinks it's a good thing. But once the option is out there, it's too tempting to pass up…man's karma really is deep-rooted…"
On that rather philosophical note, they kept moving.
Further into the temple, Jun began to speak up.
"Aquarius…it's associated with the element of wind, symbolizing upheaval and destruction, as well as evolution and philanthropy…" He said, staring at the Aquarius symbol on the wall. "But those are only words…in reality, I symbolize an arrogant fool. There's no way I can lead people to their ideals…"
"There you go again. Moping like that has been a bad habit of yours ever since you were a kid, Jun." Ginko shook her head, reaching out a hand to squeeze Jun's shoulder. "C'mon, houhou! See, you gotta cheer up! Houhou! Houhou!"
"Ahaha…if it's a 'hou' you want, watch and learn from the great Michel!" Eikichi grinned as he threw an arm over Jun's shoulders. "Alright, both sides now! On the count of three…leeeeeeeeeeet's…HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUU!"
Ginko, Maya and Tatsuya all winced at how loud Eikichi had been, but Jun almost looked like he was going to smile.
"That's not true, Jun-kun! You said when you were little that you wanted to be a teacher, didn't you? Well, what's a teacher's job, but to lead his students to their ideals? You should make your lessons about the importance of dreams!" Maya grinned, smoothly segueing the topic.
"Yeah. I'm sure you'll be amazing once you start. You're more than your mistakes, Jun, we all are." Tatsuya smiled in agreement, patting Jun's shoulder over Eikichi's arm. In the position they were in, it almost looked as if the four of them were trying to form a puppy pile while standing. Tatsuya found he didn't mind the comparison, it certainly felt as if Eikichi and Ginko were waiting for the right opportunity to cause one and…it'd be fun. He'd missed having them all so close, after all these years.
And Jun…certainly looked as if he needed every touch they were giving him.
Slowly, he smiled, just a little and relaxed into their hold, as if he belonged there and nowhere else in the world.
They began walking again, soon after that.
Finally, they reached the center of the temple, where three Longinus waited for them.
"Pathetic…the marionette that danced in ignorance has arrived." One Longinus, Seven if the number on its chest was an indication, spat.
"Flowers inevitably wilt…can something so transient be compared to the stars?" Longinus Five asked.
"A flower it may be, but it's still a very precious blossom…" Jun said as he took out a yellow poppy and took a fighting stance similar to Ginko. "Time for you to give back the wind crystal skull!"
The three Longinus flew down and surrounded the five, spears extended in a clear threat.
Tatsuya shifted so he could feel Jun at his back.
"Hahaha! Do you think your full memories have returned to you, marionette?" Five laughed mockingly.
"What do you mean by that!? I remember it all now! How I made everyone suffer…the things I did…!" Jun said. Tatsuya could feel him subconsciously tense at his back. Somewhere, deep down, Jun knew something was missing.
"Such rank foolishness…wither and die alongside your precious flowers!" Five ordered.
The three Longinus attacked.
Number Five struck out first, preparing to cut into Jun's side with the spear it held in its grasp.
"Hold on!" Tatsuya cried out in warning as he grasped Jun's arm and pulled. Within a second, the two had switched places and Tatsuya caught the spear with his katana easily.
"We'll see about trying that again! Hades! Malaques!" Eikichi shouted as his Persona appeared. Hades raised his arm and water rained down on the three robots.
Five seemed to short circuit for a moment, freezing, but neither Seven nor the third one, Six, seemed to react as horribly.
"Eikichi-kun, duck!" Maya shouted and the blue haired boy reacted just fast enough to avoid the bullets she fired at Six.
"Fanna! You've really pissed me off now!" Ginko spat as she punched at Seven before raising her arm to summon Venus. "Venus! Foamy Lover!" Venus appeared and did as her summoner bid, causing a bright light to shine as rocks fell down upon all of the robots. This time, Seven fell down while only Six remained standing.
"Thank you, but I don't need to be protected. Not here." Jun gave a warm smile, before he turned to the last standing Longinus and gave the coldest glare Tatsuya could remember seeing. He held out his yellow poppy for only a moment. The next thing Tatsuya saw, the flower was sticking out of the helmet that covered the user of Longinus No. Six's face. Then Jun raised his right arm. "Hermes, I ask for your aid! Wind Slash!" And Hermes appeared, waving his wand and causing a fierce wind to slash out at Six, causing actual chinks to appear in the robot's armor.
Tatsuya felt as if his breath were caught in his throat, but he had to move quickly. Five was recovering and his spear was aimed right for Ginko. Without thinking, Tatsuya pushed her out of the way, earning a cut on his left arm and a scream from Ginko for his trouble. He didn't even hesitate as he quickly summoned Apollo.
"Apollo! Maragidyne!" He shouted. Apollo was instantly there, and fire blazed in his hands as he stretched the fire out wide, hitting all three robots, leaving the metal a temperature almost too hot for humans to withstand.
"Looks like you need to cool down some!" Eikichi grinned as he summoned Hades once more. As his Persona cast Malaques, the blue haired boy lifted his machine gun and shot at both Six and Seven, trying to keep them down as Five fell again.
"Tatsuya-kun!" Maya cried out as she summoned Artemis to cast Diarahan. "You should be more careful! Lisa, knock that last one down!"
"R-right!" Ginko stuttered as she returned to the fight at hand. Without wasting a second, she summoned Venus once more and cast Mamagmadyne.
At the same instance, Jun threw two more yellow poppies, each aimed for the helmets of the two remaining Longinus, so all three now had Jun's flowers marking them.
"Jun! Finish them!" Tatsuya cried out.
"Yeah, man! This fight's yours! Do it!" Eikichi grinned when Jun turned to them in shock.
"Go for it, Jun-kun!" Maya cheered, raising her twin pink guns cheerfully.
"Come on, Jun, you can do it!" Ginko nodded in bright agreement.
Jun smiled at them. It was a warm, beautiful smile.
"Thank you." He stated. "Hermes! Magarula!"
The gold Persona appeared once more and with a wave of his wand, fierce winds struck the three Longinus until they were unable to move any more, their armor destroyed from winds fiercer than any Jun had ever used as Joker.
And once the winds relented, the three Longinus remained on the ground where they were, utterly defeated.
Six, however, had some final words.
"Hoh hoh…you pitiful fool…you don't even know who was meant to be seated here…" It said before it, and the other two Longinus, exploded, dead.
"What…? Ngh!" Jun gasped as he walked up the steps of the shrine only to fall to his knees, clutching his head. "Ungh…Ma…ma…?"
"Jun?" Tatsuya asked as he raced up the steps, Maya, Ginko and Eikichi at his heels.
"What's wrong? Jun-kun, are you okay!?" Maya asked, worried.
"Y-yes…I'm alright…I just need to hurry and get the skull…" Jun said.
"Hey, man, take it easy if you have to." Eikichi advised.
"Yeah, you don't have to take the whole world on your shoulders." Ginko added.
"We're with you to the end now. We're not going anywhere." Tatsuya promised.
"Thank you, all of you." Jun smiled. He then made his way up the shrine steps and stood before the skull.
"I am the skull of howling winds…if my slumber is disturbed, earth will become conceited, and fire will lose its wrath..."
Jun took the glowing green crystal skull and placed it carefully in his pocket.
"That's one skull down…that leaves three skulls left." Jun stated. Suddenly, he glowed with the light of a Persona and raised his arm in accordance. A new Persona morphed out of Jun and floated above him, speaking in a voice heavily similar to Jun's own.
"I am Chronos…the dark sun that kills its father and wields the scythe of false power…see the karma controlling one's destiny…and overcome it, my other self…"
"We should head home for the day, it's getting late." Maya said as Chronos faded away, though she was smiling proudly.
"Oh…you're right, Big Maya…" Jun said as he checked the time on his watch.
"Wow, didn't think it was that late already." Eikichi said, surprised.
"As long as we make it before the Grand Cross, we're fine." Ginko reminded them.
"So, a temple a day." Tatsuya nodded. "Alright then."
"We'll go to the Scorpio Temple next." Jun said. "Michel, that will be yours."
"Hell yeah, let's do this!" Eikichi grinned.
"Tomorrow." Maya, Ginko, Jun and Tatsuya chorused.
"Yeah, yeah…" Eikichi sighed.
Their walk back home was filled with rather boisterous chatter, as if they were simply four normal high school students and their big sister. There was no talk of temples or the end of the world or their deadline. They simply…existed, stopping for ramen for dinner before Maya dropped them all off one by one.
And the entire time they were together, Jun never left Tatsuya's side, and the warmth in his stomach never abated.
And there we are! I hope that was okay...boss fights are hard with P2's format to write properly. P5R boss fights are a lot more...fun to write, I guess.
Oh yeah, speaking of P5R, there's a cameo in this chapter, see if you can figure it out! I mostly did it to establish timeline stuff, but eh. It was fun!
And I hope the little Tatsuya/Jun moments are appreciated, I like writing them!
I think that's everything...let me know what you think and I'll hopefully be back soon! Bye!