This story is a work of fiction. Any similarities to events or persons living or dead in your world is purely coincidental.

5/13 Monday

After School

Mirambela astounded her by volunteering to skip a day of classes in order to look after Pelagio after they had found him lying on the beach the previous night. They'd rushed him to the Tosashimizu's veterinarian animal hospital and secured a promise that they would do their very best to look after him.

And that was just about only thing that allowed Aiko to focus at all on the new post-midterm material in class, if only just. Mr. Takao in particular seemed disappointed not to see his homeroom's highest-scoring student back for the next stage of their education, and Aiko decided in the end to tell him something close to the truth.

"W-we found a bird injured on the shore yesterday, brought it to the vet's. Mira-chan wants to make sure it's alright."

"She's a very compassionate girl", their homeroom teacher remarked, cheery to the point that it clashed with the current situation. "Much like you. Still, I wouldn't advise taking it as a pet, even if it recovers. Those things poop more than you'd believe possible. Just let the vets take care of it. They're the professionals, after all."

But his words didn't stop her from going through the rest of the day in a near trance state, eyes open but seeing nothing except the limp falcon's body sprawled on the shore like a discarded children's toy.

I shouldn't have left him alone. That was the thought that kept creeping back into her. I knew that Faraway Lands was dangerous, yet I let him watch the gate all alone. If I'd left him with Mira, gone to visit the Rosea house myself, none of this would have happened.

She'd taken him for granted, she decided. While Mira had been a highly visible presence in the past week with her pressure on studying and willingness to help her roommate, Pelagio had faded into the background of her consideration, viewed as nothing but the blindly loyal servant he'd first professed himself to be. She simply assumed that he could take care of himself when left to his own devices, flying freely to anywhere in Koichi that he wanted to go while his human friends were stuck in school. All this time he tried to play the gallant protector, but who protects him?

Never again.

To her relief, Pelagio had recovered enough after class to inform them of the true nature of his injury when they visited him in the large glass pen that was used to secure animals that were no longer undergoing operations, but not yet cleared to leave. "It was a cognitive bullet", he explained in a pained voice from a small woven pillow that had been brought in for him to nestle on. "I did not realize until now that it came out of the gate when I tried to stop sir Rosea from entering."

"Someone shot you from in there? From inside of Faraway Lands?" She'd been incredulous, though careful not to alarm the nurses too much. "A Shadow?"

"Most likely. I heard the Shadow speaking to me before the gate shut." His feathers ruffles themselves on instinct, and he winced horribly from the pain shooting through his wing bones. "Taunting me. For my failure."

The meager silver lining to everything that had happened was that a 'cognitive' bullet from the other world didn't permanently lodge itself in the body, merely inflicting the kind of damage a normal bullet would have to the left wing muscle it had pierced, but without any lingering sign of what had caused it. Of course, the stern-jawed head veterinarian tasked with looking after Pelagio hadn't known that. He merely acknowledged optimistically that the wound was nowhere near as bad as a true bullet wound should have been on a bird of his size, and it didn't get lodged in him like it should have.

"They said it was just a grazing shot", Mirambela said, equally as dour as Aiko about what had happened. "They say that sometimes, awful people decide to hunt or torment animals for fun."

Aiko veiled her eyes with her hand, arranging her thoughts carefully. No. Don't cry. Don't cry. She couldn't cry. Not now. Not when both Pelagio and Julian were counting on her not to fall apart in a crisis.

"Well, they're not wrong." Sadness transmuted into fury much easier than she thought possible, and even Mirambela looked like she was scared at what she saw in those normally pleasant eyes, all too aware of the spirit of her friend's Persona.

"When I get through with the Shadow who did that to him... He'll beg me to take him as a mask. And I'll say no. I'll let him suffer."

"You might have to wait on that", Mira shuddered. "We can't even go there until Pela-tori recovers. We'd just fall into the water, and according to him, that would be very bad for us even if we can swim well."

Comprehending just how badly they'd fouled up and stymied at every chance to fix it, she could only settle for punching the room door hard and dropping a few more words she'd promised her mother not to use. "I know. I know. We have to go save Julian-kun from there... but we can't even get started on that until he recovers. How long?"

Mira shrugged helplessly. "The doctor wasn't specific. A few days, maybe more."

She nodded back sadly. "Alright. I don't want to rush him or anything, but as soon as he's back, we need to get going. The waves are strong right now, but they won't stay that way forever."

Mira's eyes widened in confusion. "What do you mean?"

She blinked. "Oh, right. I guess we never told you." Going to the window, she pointed to the wild waves crashing against the shore near the hill with the peach tree. "See how that suddenly kicked up yesterday?"

"Uh-huh. All the fishing boats around here pulled in to avoid it."

"Well, that's actually because Julian-kun is in the other world now. It's kind like a... time limit."

Mira started out at the dark waters spread before them, beginning to comprehend what she meant. After the early rain yesterday it would only be natural, but it was true that the tide had remained in the same placid state for over a week until now. "S-so, after a certain number of days...?"

"After a certain amount of time, the waves will start to settle down, and become completely calm. Then, the tide will go out. When that happens, if Julian-kun is still in there... then he can't ever leave. His body will wash up on that shore without its soul, just like Furusato-san. Another dead student..."

Mira's jaw fell. "No wonder you were so desperate to get me out of there! I'm sorry for giving you such a hard time about that!"

"It's alright", she waved her off. Water under the bridge. "As we talked about earlier, you weren't thinking clearly then." Leaning against the window, she sighed. "Julian-kun's probably going through something like that over there right now. He's in a dream world where whatever problems drove him there don't exist, and the Shadows gathered there serve him in whatever he wants."

Neither of them could comprehend what exactly such a Land would be like. There had been some signs after talking with his parents and visiting his room, but only signs. The only way to find out for sure would be to actually travel there and see it for themselves.

"Which is another problem", Mira realized out loud. "We know where my Land is. It's not too far from the gate, but... where is Julian-kun's Land? We have no idea what it'll even look like, and that's a big ocean to search through."

She spoke the truth, Aiko knew... but saying that they would have to rely entirely on exploration and guesswork seemed like too much of an abandonment. "It'll be big", she guessed hopefully. "Bigger than the usual islands, at least the size of yours if not more. Maybe Pela-tori will be able to do something to find it. You can speed us up, right?"

"With pleasure", Mira remembered. "Oya's power is at your command, 'Saber'."

"No", Aiko forced a grim smile. "It's at yours. You're Dancer. I'm Saber. I've got multiple Personas on call, but none of them can do what yours does. I didn't want to ask you this... I know you don't like us risking our lives in that place..."

Mira grabbed her hand. "That's right. I don't. But, if we're really the only ones who can save Julian-kun... then that's exactly what we'll do once Pelagio is back to normal. Wee die skaduees."

Woe be to the Shadows.

5/13 Monday

Evening

The unexpected bump of the deck of the 'Velvet ship' brought Aiko back to consciousness. Though she now knew that this place was, as Igor had told her, a space between dreams and reality, it seemed to be just as affected by the tumult of Faraway Lands as anywhere in it.

Another thing which drew her eye before Igor began to speak from his table was that she was in her favorite dress, the checkered black and white one with the bow despite going to bed in pajamas.

"So, the process has started anew", the strange, long-nosed man remarked. Time away from this place had dulled her memory to just how bizarre an appearance he put on, though the blue-garbed attendant standing at his side was more familiar. "Another lost soul has sought their salvation in the sea of human subconsciousness, and may lend to its strength if not saved from their despair."

Aiko gave Bartholomew a friendly smile before setting her hands down on Igor's table. "That won't happen. I won't let it. No matter what, I'll save him just like I saved Mira-chan."

"Your confidence is encouraging, Dream Voyager", Bartholomew remarked. "However, you must take the utmost caution in this. Knowledge among the Shadows is widespread. Some of them may well be aware of your existence already, and seek to deny your victory by other means."

"In other words, they might know we're coming?"

"Yes." The one-eyed attendant looked even more concerned now, tugging on the rope of one of the cages he had installed for Persona fusion. "While many Shadows have already fallen at your hands, to the stronger of their ilk, news of a dangerous Persona-user disturbing their illusions is merely a challenge for them to prove their strength by destroying your own dreams and wishes."

"Indeed", Igor seconded, the same eerie grin never leaving his face. "Your situation grows dire as you pursue your goal further. The wild cards of the past faced similar escalations of power in their own journeys, and so shall you."

"Which is why you wanted me to learn Persona fusion", she deduced, glancing at the cages. "Because you knew something like this would happen again, and I would need better masks to beat the Shadows."

Arms clasped to her sides to block out the sudden cold of the room, she gave a wistful smile. "You know, despite how serious this mission is, I have to say I'm kind of looking forward to trying out Lilim and Jack Frost on some Shadows. And not just because Jack is really cute."

Bartholomew snickered, though not entirely in jest. "You should not choose your masks based on appearance, but rather their capability. You are welcome to fuse additional Personas whenever you should visit this room."

"I will", she promised. "If the Shadows get tougher, then so will I." Turning from the cages, her thoughts wandered back to Igor's greeting. "Mr. Igor, what is causing all of this, anyway? This 'world regression'? Mira-chan said that she heard a voice calling to her from the gate when it opened. Her own voice, telling her that the world of her dreams was waiting on the other side."

Igor's massive eyes pored over the oak table as if searching it for answers to her question. "The voice your friend heard was her other self, the suppressed portion of her consciousness which sought an escape from her despair in illusion."

"The boy who has now entered Faraway Lands was no doubt beckoned by a similar voice", Bartholomew offered. "Only they would be able to hear those voices, as it was their own minds which spoke to them."

Her eyes widened and her hands clenched. If she'd been holding something, it would have been broken. "Then... then that was the one. That's the who hurt Pelagio. Julian-kun's Shadow."

"A reasonable assumption. That will be the absolute strongest Shadow in your friend's Land, and one that cannot be persuaded to surrender by anyone except for his true self."

"I wasn't planning on taking that one as a mask", she said darkly, remembering her fury from before. "But this can't have been happening as often as it has now for very long. People would notice. They couldn't just ignore it forever."

"Very perceptive", the attendant said. "The sea of souls has changed a great deal in the past several months. While it has remained a sanctuary of sorts for souls fully lost to despair for quite some time, it acted in that capacity only in extreme cases up until now. Furthermore, the gate which you employ to travel there did not exist until recently."

"I heard a voice", Aiko confessed, suddenly feeling as nervous as she had on her first trip to the Velvet room. "When I first went into the gate to chase after Mira-chan. It said... 'Welcome to my home, where time stands still and humanity shall become as Gods'."

Though nothing could pierce Igor's disturbing veneer, Bartholomew looked troubled by her words. "The sea of souls is no one's home, dream voyager. Or rather, it is the home of all of humanity's hidden thoughts and aspirations. No single being, not even my master, has been so audacious as to lay claim to it."

"This one did", she said thoughtfully. "He sounded like an adult... but not old. Definitely a male, and he didn't sound like he was a native. Do you think he's the one behind the changes in Faraway Lands?"

"A reasonable assumption", Igor spoke up, grinning rigidly. "In the past, the sea of human consciousness has fallen victim to various deities formed from the thoughts which reside there, whenever the time comes that they grow numerous enough to exert true power."

"Nyx", Bartholomew told her by way of explanation, doffing his uniform's cap. "The God of Death was originally born from that sea, out of humanity's collective desire to die. Eventually, it harnessed enough power to cross over into your world and grant that wish from the top of Tartarus."

"But... that was so many years ago!", she argued, staring into the floorboards. It hurt to think about these things too much. "I was like, three years old, and I don't remember any of this happening. People really wanted to die that badly?"

"Many humans did", Bartholomew reminded her firmly. "But others still possessed the ability to cherish life. Their desire to go on living was enough to counter the collective wish to end it, and banish the God of Death... though as we have discussed, the price of that victory was high."

She nodded back. "And you said that there was more than one... then I need to know, no matter how scary it is. I want to know everything about the other incidents, Bart-kun. Maybe... maybe if I learn how they handled this, I'll be better prepared for next time."

The attendant and his hook-nosed master looked as though they had expected nothing else from her.

5/14 Tuesday

After School

"Pela-tori's still recovering", Aiko told the attendant who had once again traveled to join her in the human world. "The doctor says they want to make sure he can move without pain, and we can't really tell him that we need him soon."

Fishing at the shore had done nothing to calm her mood. Lacking anything else particularly novel that could be done with her current budget, they had settled on visiting a shrine different from the one that Noel and Kotone went to. This one boasted traditional shinto architecture, dedicated not to the Christian God, but to a native Japanese one- Okuninushi.

"If anyone wants to leave early, it's Pela-tori", she continued, observing the rituals and leaving a small donation before they entered. "He's still beating himself up over not stopping Julian-kun."

"It is most unfortunate", Bartholomew mused once they had entered the shrine, "that so much of our duties must be accomplished in secret. While the few humans who are able to break the chains upon their hearts and accept their other selves can perceive of all things connected to the other world, the majority remain ignorant. They are unable to accept that any reality exists beyond their masks. With a few small exceptions, the veil between the worlds remains unbreakable as ever."

Surveying the red candles arranged around them as though each flame was the fragile soul of another human, she reluctantly nodded. "Mira-chan told the police the full story, and they refused to believe any of it. If I went to them now and asked for help, they would yell at me for wasting their time with 'nonsense'." Maybe detective Nijima would believe, she considered silently. But that wouldn't be enough.

"Collective ignorance", the attendant repeated, "is in fact, the driving factor of the next Shadow-related incident to befall humanity after the Kirijo group incident. It begin not unlike your own situation- with a seemingly unsolvable murder in a small, out of the way country town called Inaba. Two of them, in fact."

That idea made her very still, the waving candlelight silhouetting her features. "Two people dead. How?"

"Because a human devoid of morals gained the power of Persona", Bartholomew said, his voice betraying not even a hint of the burning anger she was feeling. "That human took great amusement in watching the world's panicked reaction to such incidents on television, all the while hiding himself behind a mask of innocence. To him, all that resulted from those deaths was the entertainment he felt he was owed in such a stagnant environment as a small country town."

"Entertainment?", Aiko spat furiously as her shoe ground into the floor. "That's horrible!"

"At that time", he continued without further opinion, "the subconscious world manifested itself as a special, hidden TV channel. Those who were destined for the same fate as the initial victims would appear first on the local news programs, and then their Shadow would begin to appear upon the 'Midnight Channel', declaring to its viewers their suppressed desires at the same time as the victim would disappear. If the victim was not rescued from the Midnight Channel in time... the Shadows would devour them."

"I've suddenly lost the desire to watch TV tonight", she remarked, trying to stay at least partly glib. "I wonder why."

"However", the attendant said with an edge of impatience creeping into his voice. "That murderer was not the only one entrusted with the power. Another wild card of the same age as you sought to uncover the real truth of the murders regardless of the myriad obstacles, both Shadow and human, arrayed in his way. In fact, the majority of his recruits were the potential murder victims themselves, who were secretly taken by a third individual, a human who mistakenly believed that to bring the targets to the other world was to save them. With the wild card's aid, the targets found the inner strength to accept their suppressed feelings, and transform their Shadows into Personas, escaping their fate."

"Just like with Mira-chan", Aiko remembered, aghast. "Sure, we were the ones who beat up her Shadow... but it didn't actually disappear until she accepted that those feelings were a part of her too. Then, Oya appeared."

"Yes. That is the innate danger of facing oneself with honesty", Bartholomew noted. "The face that we present to the outside world is always required to be very different from our true selves. Sometimes, the mental difference is so vast that if the two should encounter one another in separate bodies, as they so often did on the Midnight Channel, then the violent clash of beliefs between them ignites into an internal conflict, a battle between two portions of one's own consciousness- the mask, and the face beneath it."

"Then", she began, fearing to hear the answer, "what about me? Why didn't I run into my own Shadow when I was there?"

Not that I'm complaining about it. That's one experience I can definitely do without, having to deal with a creepy version of me with those yellow eyes and that awful voice reverb... yuck! I guess maybe Kujou counts for that.

"Because your thoughts were not repressed enough to manifest themselves into a Shadow in the other world." He pinched his fingers together admiring how they used the candlelight to create unique shadow shapes along the walls; shadow with a lowercase, thankfully. "Certainly, there are many times that you have thought or believed things contrary to your own words, but those false words never became your truth. You never lost sight of who you truly are, and so your Persona came to you when you traveled to the other world."

"I can't always act on Anne Bonny's spirit", she admitted helplessly. "I've still got school to go to, grades to maintain. Friends to keep. I hate some of the rules there, but I can't break them. Not yet. I'm just a first year student."

Bartholomew actually smiled back at her words. "Yet, you have sought ways around those rules which you would consider unjust? Such as the power of your student disciplinary committee? Or the revival of the school's defunct fencing club?"

"It's a work in progress", she observed, feeling better about her few accomplishments now. "Maybe I can... no. That can wait. Everything needs to wait until we've saved Julian from the other world."

"As it should be", the attendant noted, though he sounded disappointed that she wouldn't reveal whatever plan she had in mind. "The crisis of the Inaba murders seemed to draw to a close with a showdown between the true culprit and the wild card's varied team of Persona-users. However... the one who had given the power to those two to begin with was revealed to have been Izanami-no-Okami- the Goddess of the Dead- who had sought to learn and carry out humanity's true desire by blessing three individuals with her power."

"Three people", she echoed, wondering if any others had been given the power this time, and were merely keeping it a secret as she was. "The wild card, the murderer, and that third one... the one who was tricked into thinking he was saving the victims."

"Yes. The false savior", Bartholomew elaborated sadly. "Lacking in prior experience with the rules of the other world, he nearly caused the death of a young girl who was very close to the wild card as well. Fortunately, the wild card did not allow his personal feelings to cloud his reasoning, and instead he and his investigation team continued seeking the real truth of the crimes, eventually catching the murderer and seeking out the hidden Goddess who had empowered the three."

Aiko gestured her hands at the symbol-coated walls. "So she chose them. But you said that humanity's ignorance was what started all of this?"

The boy's handsome face became harsh once more, casting its own brief shadows. "It was. The Goddess Izanami observed that it was the culprit's actions who had the greatest affect on the minds of the masses. The people of the town of Yaso-Inaba merely accepted the statement of the murders without making any efforts to uncover the truth of the matter. She prepared to fill the world with an eternal fog that would drown out all reason, turning all humanity into mindless Shadows."

Chuckling either at the absurdity of the plan or something else he was hiding away, he spread his arms. "Obviously, the wild card stopped her, or this world would no longer exist in its present state. The majority of humans continued on with their blissfully ignorant lives, never suspecting how close they had come to losing their much-disused ability to think rationally. And so the veil remained."

"And they all lived happily ever after", she finished half-sarcastically for him. "Until the next time, right?"

"Yes." The attendant had grown very still suddenly, fearing the next tale to come. "But I believe that is quite enough for now. Go and free your friend from the illusions that enchain him. Upon your success, we shall discuss the story that I'm sure you have longed to hear... the tale of the Phantom Thieves."

5/15 Wednesday

After School

Mr. Ishinagi had obviously done this with many students before. Aiko saw that he had rearranged his office from the usual setup, installing a bench and chair outside of his own desk. Beyond that the room was surprisingly spartan, only holding a handful of posters and a short bookshelf. Given the unspoken choice, she selected the chair over the bench, hoping to get this over with quickly.

"I should say", the guidance counselor began, "that I am glad to see that your brief stay in detention was a one time occurrence, miss Tsuruga. There haven't been any further incidents reported since then."

She looked back at him innocently, deciding what words to use. She had known going in that would be tricky, trying to convince him that nothing was wrong with her while also keeping so much hidden away that could not be said out loud.

"I've learned to stay away from Kujou", she said. "And I've met other people here who aren't like her."

He did look troubled by that statement, but likely as not because of anything to do with her. "Miss Kujou does perform her job in the committee with zeal. A bit too much, in my personal opinion. However, that is not my decision to make. Everyone must decide for themselves what actions they consider appropriate."

Great. In other words, let anyone do whatever they want so long as they don't break school rules. Fantastic. She hoped the anger burning inside her didn't show, but the expression on Mr. Ishinagi's normally relaxed face suggested otherwise. His poise and glasses did remind her a bit of their principal, who had arranged this whole meeting to start with, but he was significantly older-looking, to the point that she began to wonder if Ishinagi was one of the teachers rumored to be resentful of Yumika attaining his position at the seemingly impossible age of 38. Not that I should put any stock in those kinds of rumors, but I would like to know what exactly their relationship is.

"I can sense your anger", he said, pulling her back to hard reality. "Many of our students struggle with similar problems with repressed anger, born from resentment of some figure in their lives that they blame for their troubles."

Huh... that sounded kind of like what Mira-chan said earlier. Maybe he should be giving this speech to a JCAP rally.

"I have read your background as well. You chose to transfer from Akihabara to this school when various others far closer to home in Tokyo would have accepted you." Leaning back to try and lessen the tension between them, he spread both arms. "Is there anything that you'd like to tell me about that?"

Suddenly feeling very tired, she slowly nodded. "I guess. I had... problems with my mom. I wanted to get away from her for a while."

"I see. When you are angry, then... are you thinking about your mother during that time? When you shoved miss Kujou, were you holding an image of her in your head?"

Aiko shook that notion away easily. "Not really. I found other people here I hate more. And I have been talking to her lately. We never talked that much when we were together in one house, at least not since I was a kid."

He gave an understanding nod. "So you find it easier to talk with her at a distance instead of in person. Why do you believe that is?"

She shrugged. "Beats me. I guess I know that she can't toss me out of the house for saying something wrong now."

That drew his attention. "And why do you think she would ever do such a cruel thing?"

Because I'm a bastard child? The thought wandered in before she could quell it, brought back to the fore by her earlier talk with Mira about it.

"Because..." It hurt her head to speak. "Because. She always acted like I was a burden. Like she never wanted me. She was thrilled when she heard I wanted to take room and board here instead of going back home every day. So was I."

"I see", he repeated mechanically. "A single parent certainly faces an undue amount of stress, trying to raise a child alone in today's environment. Yet, here you are, healthy in body and, as near as I can tell, decently fed."

Your mother suffers under a curse of grief, she remembered Bartholomew's words. Yet one day, it may be lifted.

"I'm glad to see that you're already making efforts to rebuild that relationship", Mr. Ishinagi advised her gently. "Not just for your sake, but for hers. It's always a good idea to avoid leaving things on such a note with those who care for you, even if you have grievances with them at the time."

Something in his tone just then smacked of personal experience with the concept, and she was temporarily taken up with interest. It didn't last however- the counselor continued on with more psychobabble about families and how their structures affected a person's character growing up and a million other things she could have easily guessed at herself.

Let's just get this waste of time over with already so I can go save Julian. The brazenness of that statement out of context brought a giddy smile to her lips, and he mistook it for something he had brought on. Look, I get it. I have a temper sometimes. I used to get mad whenever my mom called me. I get mad when I see people suffering and no one helping them. And yes, sometimes, that anger gets me in trouble.

That temper was what had made her try so hard to help Mirambela. What had brought her to Faraway Lands originally. That temper had been the catalyst to awakening her Persona's dark fury, her 'other self'.

The dark fury which had saved her friends numerous times, though it was that same fury which had visibly scared Mirambela a few days ago. Had nearly made Pelagio abandon her, though in hindsight it was a good thing that she'd done that and made him understand things better.

The fury which had gotten her stern words from Mrs. Mattora and occasionally Mr. Noriyama. According to the former, proper Japanese girls weren't supposed to get angry. If they did, they would never find boyfriends, and never get husbands.

Anger, she decided silently, is like fire. It's useful in small qualities, keeps you warm and lets you cook stuff... but too much and you burn everything down around you. Have to keep that in check, for now. Can't get too mad when I see that Shadow who shot Pela-tori, or I might make another stupid mistake and get someone else hurt. No. Have to control it.

"...Beyond that, difficulties with suppressed anger are perfectly normal for people your age. It may be more readily visible in the young males, but it affects us all in different ways. It has to be expressed in some form or another, or worse side effects are inevitable. Whatever is making you so angry, miss Tsuruga, I would be perfectly happy to talk with you about in future sessions. Whatever you choose to talk to me about, I won't repeat outside of this room."

"Very professional, thank you", she remarked cautiously, not wanting to offend him in any way and give him reason to extend the session any longer. Fifteen more minutes of this and there was no way she would catch the bus to the vet's in time.

Mr. Ishinagi humbly pointed upwards with one finger to the various degrees and plaques hung on his wall, too far away to actually read. "There are other guidance counselors of course, but I don't think it arrogant of me to say that I'm the one most qualified to perform in that role. As long as more troubled youth continue to come to this school, I'm glad to help them in whatever way I'm able to."

So that's what you think. That's what the principal thinks. That I'm a 'troubled child', and it's your duty to help turn me back into a happy obedient student. Because there's something 'wrong' with me the way I am. Because of that fury. Because of Anne Bonny, my 'true self'.

Well... maybe.

But she didn't think even the best shrink in all of the Japan, or even the world, would be able to deal with the issues weighing on her mind right now. Not even if she explained every detail of Faraway Lands to them first, and talking about that would probably be grounds for something far more permanent than a few extra sessions with a counselor. More like an institution, like the rumors say.

In a way, she envied Mira. Whatever else might have happened to her, she seemed to have much better self-control than her when it came to anger. Their talk on the bus after the fiasco at Cape Ashizuri came to mind. Mira understood her reasons, and never let it control her after seeing her Land... and her Shadow.

"So can I go now?"

The words were uttered so fast they betrayed her haste, and Mr. Ishinagi merely chuckled warmly. "Always in such a rush, miss Tsuruga. But I still remember being that way too, back when I was your age. Very well then. All that's left for today is a checkup."

"Checkup?" The principal hadn't said anything about that.

Obligingly, he had already begun to rummage through his desk for some equipment. "Yes. Just a minor one. I've been asked to take everyone's blood pressure and body temperature as well. Principal Yumika is very concerned, particularly in the wake of Mr. Rosea's sudden disappearance."

Preparing the patch and pump in short order, he sighed heavily. "Of course, there is the possibility that he left merely to avoid this session with me, and we'll see him return in a few more days, ignorant of the panic he is causing."

"I sure hope so", Aiko said, trying not to feel disgusted by the man's casual attitude. He doesn't know. He doesn't know. He can't know. If I didn't know, I'd entertain that idea myself. He's not being a jerk. He's just being a counselor.

The checkup lasted all of ten minutes, and then she must have broken some kind of record darting out of the main building towards the bus stop, desperate to get to the vet's.

Arriving there, she saw a rainy sky and no students or other passengers. For three whole minutes she believed she'd missed it, and was brewing up an extravagantly crude dissertation of Mr. Ishinagi and the principal and every student that had ever made fun of her temper until that familiar light shone through the mist to answer her prayers.

5/17 Friday

Lunch

KS: five days now... have you seen Jiachi at all?

AT: sorry, no luck. Talked with his parents, they said he's going through some stuff

KS: they shouldn't pull him out of school w/o a reason tho

MS: he'll be back eventually

KS: omg, u think he ran away?

MS: ...maybe. But his parents love him. I think he'll tealise that

MS: realise*

AT: you think we can go check on him today?

MS: mayb. I'll check

KS: was talking with Rurichiyo-kun and he said he lied about getting on the soccer team?

AT: yep, I checked. guess he didn't want ppl to know

KS: think he'll still want to go to fencing?

AT: no idea

Anon: you are so ugly you should go drink bleach and die

Aiko stared into her phone, seeing nothing but the message that had suddenly popped into what had until that point been a fairly civil, if useless, conversation. What the hell, this is a private chat.

KT: wtf

AT: just a troll. whatever, I'll redo the chat

A minute later they had a fresh chat log, though Kotone and Mira seemed reluctant to say much now. A minute after that...

Anon: slutty whore why dont you go fuk more gaijin

Impossible, was all that she could think. The only way to join a private chat was to have the contact information of one of the participants. But the icon representing the new arrival didn't match any of her friend's phones. It was a fresh login.

Someone with access to my contact information then. But who?

AT: sry, guess my contact info got leaked. I'll change it and share it with you tomorrow in class.

KT: K cya then

MS: see you soon, Ai-chan

There was another message from 'anonymous' too, but Aiko deliberately slid her eyes away from it and closed her phone. Like we don't have enough to deal with already. Shadows hurl fire or ice or lightning at us, but not abusive language... to my knowledge.

Mira's arrival cheered her up though, as the taller girl arrived with Pelagio's body cradled in her arms. They prepared a cloth for him to lie on, but it soon became clear that he was in no mood to be pampered.

"I failed you, my lady", he whispered through a dour beak, or maybe that was his default expression in his falcon form. "I failed you. I await your punishment."

Aiko fought back the urge to face palm. "There's no need for that. I think that you've been punished quite enough already, Pelagio. Did the doctors treat you well?"

Pelagio harumphed loud enough that she worried someone else in the dorm might hear. "Hmph. That barbarian was quite overly fond of sticking cold metal instruments beneath my wings and putting strange pills in my mouth! When I am capable of full flight again, I shall most certainly defecate on his car until he apologizes."

"You can do that later", she promised, trying not to grin. "Even if you can't fly right yet, we need you in Faraway Lands. Are you sure you're okay to go today?"

"I await your order. Eagerly."

Fortunately, there was no one on the beach to spot them carrying swimsuits and a temporarily flightless bird into the cave near Yume Bay. No one else wanted to go out there in the ominous mix of cold air and stronger rain coming.

The rain did nothing to stop the gate from appearing, however. If anything, it seemed to push the drops away, leaving a small area around it nearly dry. Mira stared into its green light, alternately fascinated and repulsed by it.

"When we can", she said calmly, "we need to record this. People have to know."

"If they want to know, they will", Aiko replied, flashing back to her last talk with Bartholomew about the nature of the other world, and the 'veil'. "But most of them don't. Our world's scary enough as it is."

The taller girl nodded, holding Pelagio just a bit too tightly before releasing him onto the sand. "Be careful, alright? I know you want to make up for what happened, but the doctor said you'll still feel that injury for a while yet. Don't push yourself."

Looking odd as his talons lifted him across the sand at a slow clip, Pelagio stared back enigmatically. "Perhaps. But the enemy will not wait for us forever."

"And we won't wait for them either", Aiko agreed ruefully, some of that earlier fury- of Ann Bonny- shining through a normally kind expression. "Time for the three of us to save another life. No matter what it takes."

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, I always take feedback into consideration. Right now I'm growing increasingly worried that giving Aiko Tsuruga a Persona protagonist's qualities may have made her dangerously close to a 'Mary Sue' (they avoid this in the games since the character is personalized enough to considered an avatar of the player), but hopefully this chapter counters that a bit, showing the flaws.

That One Boi: Don't worry, we will get to Noel's Land too. I will try to create more non-protagonist POV parts going forward. We'll get to Julian's Land next time.

Ford 1114: Good breakdown of what's happened so far.