In a position that Noriko found surprisingly familiar, she woke face first laying against the ground. Pushing herself back up to a sitting position, she looked about her and breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing her surroundings were the ladies bathroom once more and all the sinks and mirrors seemed to be in proper proportions and dimensions. This temporary relief was short-lived however, as her eyes fell on the motionless body that lay a few feet away from her. Crawling over, she turned it over to reveal a pale Yoshi, eyes closed and seemingly not breathing.
"No no, come on, I ain't gonna let you," Noriko muttered, placing her hands on his chest and pressing down with her full weight.
"Whooof," Yoshi gasped out as the breath he'd been holding was forced out of his body. "Dammit... I was hoping for mouth to mouth," he wheezed out as Noriko sat back in surprise and relief.
"Mouth to... I thought you were dead, idiot!" Noriko exclaimed, highlighting her aggravation by hitting him on the side of his head.
"Ow, jeez, I thought you'd appreciate the joke," he said chuckling. Looking him up and down, Noriko could see some light and color returning to his face, but there was a deep tiredness behind his smile that suggested he was far from fully recovered.
"Come on," she said with a grin whilst standing and offering a hand to help him up. "Let's find out if we're really back."
"Alri- Hey..." Yoshi paused, looking over Noriko after finding his feet. "You're back in your uniform. When'd that happen?"
Looking down at herself, Noriko noticed that indeed, the eclectic mix of clothing and armour she'd been wearing earlier had disappeared, the regular uniform of the school it had replaced having returned.
"Well I uh... I guess that's a good sign if nothing else," she replied. "Come on, let's see if there's anyone in the corridor."
Noriko carefully eased the door open, glancing through the barest cracks to look out. Seeing no one, she slowly opened it far enough to allow her to peek out her head. Through a stroke of luck it seemed as though no one was around. Quietly, she and Yoshi slipped out onto the corridor and glanced around themselves, wincing and holding hands over their eyes as the bright sunlight began to shine through windows providing far more illumination then they'd had for... Well, they had no idea how long it'd been. Turning to question Yoshi as to whether he had a watch to check the time, the corridor was filled with a cacophony of noise that made them both jump for cover against the walls. After the initial few seconds of terror wore off, Noriko realised that the noise was the school bell. And at the same instant, the doors to all the classrooms flew open and students began to file out into the corridors, bags on their backs, chatting as they made their way to the exit.
"I guess school's out for the day," Yoshi said, his tone clearly suggesting he was trying not to freak out. "Should we go try and pick up our stuff from our classroom?"
"Yeah... lets do that," Noriko muttered half to herself.
Moving back against the flow of bodies towards the stairs, the pair were stopped by the sight of a familiar girl making her way down them carrying an extra bag in each hand. Looking up, an annoyed expression descended on her face.
"How did I know you two weren't gonna show up to class, huh?" Kitami grumbled darkly, handing both of them their bags and turning them both back towards the doors. "Don't worry, as far as the teachers know you were just not feeling well. I expected these sorta antics from you Yoshiki, but really? Dragging the new girl into your mischief. Lemme guess, you were doing some sorta exorcism in the... You don't look so good, are you alright?"
"Oh, you're too kind to ask," Yoshi chuckled. "Nothing I don't think a good night's sleep can't fix, right Noriko?"
"Yeah," she sighed. "Honestly, a nice long rest in a comfy bed is all I want right now."
"Are you going to be alright cycling home?" Kitami continued. "I can take your bike so you can get a lift off Daisuke if you want. You don't mind, right Noriko?"
"No, if it's alright with you, I'm sure Daisuke would love to help out," Noriko replied.
"I wanna say no, but then again, I'm sure you'd probably kill me if I crashed on the way home wouldn't you Kita?" Yoshi grinned, trying to put a brave face on.
"Come on mate," Noriko said in reply, pushing Yoshi out the door. Shaking her head as she watched them go, Kitami split off from them and made for the bike shed at the side of the building.
Making their way outside, Daisuke was found waiting as usual in his car outside.
"Oh, hello there..." he said upon opening his window and seeing Yoshi beside Noriko. "You're... little Yoshi-chan yes?"
"Hey there Mr Daisuke," Yoshi replied, giving a bright smile. "Been a while. Is it alright if I bum a ride off you?"
"Certainly lad, hop in," Daisuke said, returning the smile and indicating the back seat. Collapsing into their respective seats, Yoshi and Noriko both took deep and long sighs of relief after finally being able to relax and get off their feet.
"You two seem exhausted, was there some sorta gym class today or something?" Daisuke questioned as he started the car and began the drive back to town.
"No uh," Noriko quickly answered. "One of the teachers quizzed us pretty hard, and Yoshi had to step out at lunch cause he wasn't feeling well, hence asking for the lift."
"Well, I'm happy to hear you're already making friends," the old man said, a hint of pride in his voice. "And I know this fellow, he's a nice young man. You're a good judge of character to hang out with him."
"Thank you Mister Daisuke," Yoshi murmured. "You can drop me off at Nakahoma Street, my house is right there basically."
"Of course," came the reply. "You just relax there now, you'll be home before you know it."
After dropping off Yoshi and a brief nap, Noriko stretched and yawned as she climbed out of the car and onto the gravel of the front drive. "Come on, let's get you inside before you collapse," Daisuke said, giving a light chuckle.
Not having the energy to argue, Noriko just grumbled a little as he helped her over to the door. Entering the house and trudging up the stairs, Noriko flopped onto her bed with a deep sigh. Finally allowing herself to relax and think, everything that had happened to her in the past few hours. Monsters, ghosts, toilets, almost dying. As though they had been kept away solely by her moving, Noriko felt her mind be sent reeling and spiraling as the… the impossible occurrences she'd just lived through washed over it. Turning over onto her back and staring up at the ceiling, she squeezed her eyes shut tight enough for her to see colours in her eyelids, then opened them up again, almost expecting to find herself back in that strange place.
Giving yet another heavy sigh, she placed her arm up over her eyes, slowing her breathing and trying to get her thoughts together into something that she could make some sense out of.
'Okay… first things first, my name is Noriko. I'm living with my grandfather. I am not insane. Well, I think I'm not… NO, I am not insane. That must mean that the supernatural does actually exist. So, let's just go forward with that assumption, and reexamine everything that's happened since I got here.'
'First, creepy dude with the baby face and the clipboard. Possibilities; he's just a weirdo who works for a company or the local government or something. Then again, I did see him twice at the ladies and he just disappeared, so that means I'm seeing things, or he might have something to do with all this… stuff.'
'Secondly, Bellboy and Big-Nose. They're definitely weirder than that dude, but thinking back, I didn't get that feeling of wrong from them. Maybe Big-Nose is telling the truth, that the two of them are here to help. I saw that door and Bellboy in that other place, so they definitely are related to it in some way.'
'Which brings me onto that place. It looked just like the school… actually, that's not accurate, it was different. Almost like a really bad drawing of the school, all crooked and weird dimensions. And it certainly wasn't laid out the same way. I don't know how many times I ended up going in circles there. And, last I checked, there weren't any weird blob monsters that casually assault students in the school. Well, I guess bullies might… count…'
As a sudden bolt of realisation struck her, Noriko shot upright. "Oh my god," she exclaimed, before quickly freezing to listen to hear if Daisuke had heard her. Settling back down as no sign of reaction was heard, Noriko returned to her thoughts, which were once again rushing over her.
'Sugure! Sugure was in the room when we got flung into that room. Was she dragged in too? That face she had on seemed like she knew something was going to happen. Yoshi almost died before I got him out. Does that mean… No, she couldn't be… Could she?'
Noriko could feel a deep, dark clump of unease caught in the depths of her stomach, but, unable to resist the tiredness that had been gnawing at her since her return to reality, she felt her eyes drag themselves closed and the sweet, uncompromising oblivion of sleep bear down on her.
[line break]
Noriko could tell almost as soon as her eyes closed that this was going to be another increasingly familiar dream. As she opened her eyes, there was the desk, the alarm clock, the ticking Newton's Pendulum and other assorted desk accessories. And sitting there, hands folded and legs crossed, massive nose extending from his face, was the high pitched Igor, accompanied by the small boy William, complete with the book that made him seem even smaller by comparison. However, there was one new thing Noriko found surprising. The bonds on her chairs arms and legs laid open, leaving her free to move her arms and legs as she wished.
"Welcome back Trickster," Igor said. "I see you have finally awoken to your powers."
"I guess so, if you mean that weird ghost thing that came out of me," Noriko replied, cautiously shifting her arms, expecting them to be caught and bound at any moment.
"Indeed. What you have awoken is the power of your Persona. A Persona is the manifestation of one's true self, it acts as both a shield against the illusions of others, and a weapon against self-deceit as well. We are here to render our aid in nurturing and developing that power. This room reflects the state of your heart, and hence your new power is reflected in your newfound freedom from that chair."
Noriko froze for a moment, feeling almost as if she had been found out, before laying both hands on the arms of the chair and pushing herself up and standing. After a brief moment of light-headedness as all her blood suddenly entered her legs, she shifted into a more confident stance, shaking each leg to improve the circulation.
"You have entered an alternate world, a world where the dark thoughts and illusions which humanity traps itself within is reflected. It was because of this property that your inner strength was able to make itself manifest, and aid you in your time of ordeal. Without it however, the world sapped your strength, as it did to your friend," Igor continued, adjusting himself in his chair, Noriko snapping to attention at the mention of Yoshi. "Do not worry, he shall have recovered completely by tomorrow. However, there is another."
Noriko nodded, already knowing the answer. "You mean Sugure. She's still in there, isn't she."
"Indeed. However, what the result of this would be is unclear," Igor answered. "Dwelling in that world without the protection of a Persona is to leave your very soul open to the illusions and thoughts of all humanity. This is extremely draining on a person's very life, as their heart is filled with the corrupt and illusory debris of humanity's thoughts."
"What do you mean?" Noriko asked, worry entering her mind. "Do you mean she's… dead?"
"No," William surprisingly was the one who answered. "However, she certainly would not be unchanged by the experience."
"Indeed, but the true question now is," Igor followed. "Do you intend to save her?"
At that, Noriko paused for a moment, the thought taking her by surprise. She hadn't had the time before to think over things clearly yet, but as she worked through the question in her head, she realised that it was in fact up to her. The police weren't going to believe some new girl from the city talking about 'worlds behind mirrors'. The principal would probably think she had done something to his niece if she went to him. Noriko was the only one who knew about that world. She had her Persona. She would have to go in and…
Her thoughts were interrupted then however, by the familiar beeping of the alarm clock on Igor's desk. Already anticipating what was about to happen, Noriko returned to her seat as William quickly exchanged his book for the gas cylinder. Pausing a moment when Igor raises a hand, the two turn their attention to him.
"The decision is yours of course, but do not believe you are alone in this task," Igor said. "Allies unexpected and obvious shall make themselves available, including ourselves."
With that, Igor motioned to William, who turned the crank on the bottle and sent Noriko into a hazy darkness.
4/11
Noriko groaned loudly as she opened her eyes to the sight of her sunlit bedroom. Covering her eyes with her hands as she levered herself up to a sitting position, her school uniform still on. Sighing to herself, she got up and made her way to the shower, peeling her uniform away.
Refreshed and rejuvenated, Noriko looked at herself in the mirror. Her uniform had been exchanged for a pair of jeans that were torn at the knees and a loose red t-shirt with FIRST-MAID-KIT blazoned on its front. She'd swapped into a new pair of white sneakers with pink stripes down both sides. Looking herself up and down, she nodded with satisfaction. Making her way out to the stairs, she heard the phone start to ring and Daisuke answering it.
"Hello, Orio residence? Oh, Yoshi-chan, did you get some good sleep yesterday? Oh, I'm happy to hear that… Noriko? Yes of course, one moment. Noriko! It's Yoshi on the phone for you."
"Thanks Daisuke," Noriko said, quickly skipping down the steps and taking the receiver. "Hey Yoshi, how're you doing?"
"I'm feeling a heck of a lot better than yesterday, I'll tell you that," came the familiar voice from the other end. Noriko sighed with relief, recalling Igor's assurance and giving silent thanks that he was right before focusing on the phone once more. "Listen, we've got a lot to talk about, and I don't think over the phone is the way to do it. Listen, make your way to Tachino Street, I'll meet you there. We can grab some chow and chat then."
"Sure, see you soon," Noriko replied, putting down the receiver before turning to see Daisuke eyeing her with a look of suspicion. "What is it?" she asked, nerves starting to creep up on her.
"Noriko Orio," he replied, a smirk spreading over his elderly face. "Here only a week, and you're already going out with a local boy. Ah ah, don't say anything, I won't pry. Enjoy your date." He finished with a chuckle, turning and entering the kitchen.
Making a noise that was a mixture of groan at his mistake and sigh of relief that he wasn't suspicious, Noriko quickly headed out the door and off along the road.
A/N SURPRISE, it's back. So yup, we're starting to approach the point where things will open up. Maybe soon we'll even have chapters that skip days. :scream_cat:
Yes, you people have made me start typing discord emotes into not-discord. You know who you are.
I wanted to make a surprise shout-out her, to the darling Suyika, who always wishes people a goodnight. I look forward to any reviews or theories, how about... What do you think is happening to Sugure? There's something to distract you from #WhatHappenedToNoriko2021.
