Sakura Amagi, Part 1: A New Beginning

Aprill 12, 2011, Early Morning, Sakura's POV

As the cherry blossoms that were my namesake bloomed again, I left my family's inn and walked to school at Yasogami High School, ready to start my first day of class at my new high school. Having heard from a reliable source- a long-time friend and senpai- that the dress code was not vigorously enforced, I wore a light pink cardigan in lieu of the standard dark top for my sailor fuku, one that matched the cherry blossom trees.

"Morning, Sakura," my best friend, Chie Satonaka said as we crossed paths on the Samegawa flood plain near our school.

"Good morning, Chie-senpai," I said, bowing to her, "or should I call you 'Satonaka-senpai'?"

"Nah, Chie-senpai's still fine," Chie-senpai said. "I might be your senpai, but you don't have to be super-formal than me... well, more formal than usual."

"You'll always be a year older than me," I said, "and one step ahead of me in life, so you'll always be my senpai."

The time of my birth was key to determining many aspects of my life, starting with my name, since my parents had a few choices of names lined up for when in the year I was born. If I'd been born in the summer, i would have received a name like Hinata that evoked the sun. If I'd been born in the autumn, I would have been given a name with a leaf meaning, like Kaede. If I'd been born in the winter, I would have been named Yukiko, or "snow girl," a name I wasn't fond of. Because I was born in the spring, I was named in honor of the cherry blossoms, and was rather fond of my name.

The timing of my birth was also important. My mother went into labor on April 10, 1995, and I was born shortly after midnight on April 11. Chie-senpai and I were only born eight months apart, but she was old enough to begin first grade in the spring of 2001, while I had to wait until the spring of 2002. As a result, Chie-senpai was a year older than me and a grade ahead of me and deserving of all the respect associated with that. She was always a step ahead of me in most regards, so I felt as though I could rely on her.

As we approached the gate, I saw a male student waiting for me. He wore a dark gyakuran that was the boys' uniform for our school, and the Roman numeral II on the collar indicated he was a second-year, like Chie-senpai.

"Excuse me... Amagi-san?" a boy said. "I was wondering if you'd go out with me after school today."

"You sure don't waste any time, do you, Takeshi?" Chie-senpai said.

"Pardon me, Senpai," I said, "but do you know him?"

"Yeah," Chie-senpai said. "He's my classmate, Takeshi Konno. He's been asking about you, so he kinda knows you already."

"Nice to meet you, Konno-senpai," I said with a bow, "but I can't go out with you. I've got to get straight home to help out at my family inn."

"Oh," Konno-senpai said. "Then maybe sometime later?"

"Sorry, Takeshi, Sakura said no," Chie-senpai said. "She's got to get to class."

Chie-senpai took me by the hand and led me inside.

"Thank you very much, Senpai," I said. "I have a hard time saying no to my elders."

"That's what I'm here for," Chie-senpai said. "You can count on me."

Many social relationships- between parents and children, teachers and students, bosses and employees, and others- were fundamentally unequal, and my relationship with Chie-senpai was no exception. Still, we each fulfilled our responsibilities- she looked out for me and guided me while I showed her respect- so I was glad to have her as my schoolmate once again.


After School

After class let out, I waited at the base of the stairs that connected the three stories in the main building. It was easy to pick out Chie-senpai's green tracksuit top among the crowd, but this time, I saw a girl with silver hair walking alongside her. I wondered if the other girl was a classmate she'd met last year, but I didn't know for sure. Chie-senpai had a lot of friends and acquaintances at school, so many that I didn't know them all.

"Oh, hello, Chie-senpai," I said. "Is this a friend of yours?"

"We just met today," Chie-senpai said. "Sakura, this is Shizuka Yagami-san, my classmate and a transfer student who just arrived. Yagami-san, this is Sakura Amagi, my long-time best friend and the heiress to the Amagi Inn."

"It's nice to meet you, Yagami-senpai," I said, bowing.

"Likewise, Amagi-san," Yagami-senpai said. "May I join you and Satonaka-san today?"

"Please do, Senpai," I said.

"Thank you," Yagami-senpai said. "I might be a year ahead of you, but I'm as new to the school as you are, so it's nice to meet new people."

I smiled. Chie-senpai had made the effort to reach out to me all those years ago, so it was only fitting that I do the same for a new transfer student in a school full of strangers.


On our way out of the school, a student I'd never met before, from another school, asked me out, whereupon I stammered out a refusal, and he stormed off in a huff.

Realizing that we'd attracted a crowd of spectators, one of whom I recognized as a former classmate, we quickly beat a retreat, but I noticed Chie-senpai seemed more upset about it than I was.

"Is something wrong, Satonaka-san?" Yagami-senpai said.

"It's already begun," Chie-senpai said. "Not only are students asking Sakura out- one at the opening ceremony yesterday, another this morning and a third just now- but students from other schools are getting in on it."

As small as Inaba was, Yasogami wasn't the only high school in the region. There was another school, but it had a poor reputation and tended to take the students who were unable to get into any other school.

"I can usually turn them down on my own," I said. "Considering that people often show up to watch the 'Amagi Challenge,' the people who ask me out are smart enough to do anything they won't try in front of witnesses."

"Look at you, getting all independent," Chie-senpai said. "You might not need me to help you out."

At the time, there were many things I wasn't yet aware of- the jealousy festering inside my best friend's heart, my own secret desire to rid myself of the burden of inheriting the inn, the depraved murderer hidden in our otherwise peaceful town, or the world inside the television.


Tuesday, April 19, 2011, After School

As Chie walked me home, my head was still spinning. I couldn't tell whether it was due to fatigue or everything else I'd experienced.

I'd just faced my Shadow- the repressed feelings that even I wasn't fully aware of- a version of myself in a pink princess dress that changed into a massive bird with a human-like head. That Shadow spoke the truth about me, namely that I had no real desire to inherit the family inn. Chie-senpai, Hanamura-senpai and Yagami-senpai had defeated it with their powers of Persona, and by accepting it, I had acquired a Persona myself.

I didn't know who was responsible for me ending up inside that strange and dangerous world inside the TV, but by logical extension, the others had also faced their Shadows. As such, I realized that even if I didn't want to accept that part of myself, I couldn't deny it, and so followed in their footsteps and gained my Persona.

"So, please tell me if I understand this correctly, Senpai," I said. "Your Shadow told you that you were jealous of me?"

"Yeah, and I should have realized it sooner," Chie-senpai said. "Your grades are so good and mine are so bad that my parents think you should tutor me. You got more confessions in your first week at Yasogami- hell, your first day- than I got in the last year. You've got a good job lined up at the inn, while my only talent is self-taught kung fu."

"Well, you're wrong about a few things," I said. "I can't tutor you because I haven't learned your material yet. I have as much need of these confessions as a vegetarian does for a beef bowl from Aiya. And as for the inn... I'm not so sure I want to inherit it anymore."

"Oh, right, your Shadow," Chie-senpai said. "But my point is, the only thing I could be proud of about myself was that you looked up to me as your senpai. I took advantage of your admiration for my ego, so I don't deserve that title."

I shook my head.

"I think not, Senpai," I said. "You were willing to risk your life to save me. You accepted your weaknesses and gained the power of the Persona. You then used that power to defeat my Shadow, and said what I needed to hear to help convince me to accept it. It's no exaggeration to say that I owe you my life."

"You also owe Yagami-san, Hanamura and Kuma your thanks," Chie-senpai said. "They not only helped save you, but also helped me accept my Shadow."

"Then I'll do what I can for them by fighting alongside them," I said, "but I can make use of any advice you have to offer."

"Thanks," Chie-senpai said, "I'll do what I can."

"As will I," I said. "There's no rule saying a kohai can't help her senpai when necessary."

"Why not think of it another way?" Chie-senpai said. "That's what friends do, right?"

"Absolutely," I said.

Perhaps Chie-senpai and I had allowed ourselves to be led astray, but this was a new beginning for both of us, and the start of a stronger friendship than before. Of course, she wasn't the only upperclassman on my mind, as my thoughts kept drifting back to the transfer student...


Author's Notes

This is the first of an undetermined number of side stories that will show what might happen if Yukiko were born in the spring, rather than the winter. She has a different name, a different favorite color and is a grade lower.

Since King Moron says that "normal classes will start tomorrow," I inferred that April 12th was the first day and that the 11th was the opening ceremony.