You didn't think I'd end the chapter before on a cliffhanger and leave you all to hang for months on end, did you? Make you all wait with bated breath to see what happens next while I struggle to get the next one out? C'mon, even I'm not that cruel.
Thanks as always to Firion for his help on the chapter. Just one more to go.
EmD23: I class Igor and Philemon as entities whose nature is beyond human knowledge or morality. The scope of their mission and the stakes they play for would melt the human mind is we could see all of it. In the face of annihilation from Nyx, what is the minor detail of one person's free will? If that makes them villains, then so be it – at least the world is saved.
I-KL-I: Thanks for the review. If my work is such that it garners this sort of attention, I'll take it. I hope that this chapter lives up to the same standards. Let me know, and enjoy!
Tunes for this one include Consecration by Perturbator and Reminiscence by Garoad from the VA-11 Hall-A soundtrack.
Chapter 28 - Erholung
Akihiko moved through the halls of the Kirijo Group's hospital, each step echoing off the white sterile walls. The staff knew him, mostly as an unruly patient, and they would greet him or nod as he passed, a gesture he always returned even if, right now, he just wanted to punch something.
No matter his mood, he knew better than to screw with the people who patched him up after his fights. Even if he was on edge, even if he'd been on edge for more than a week, that wasn't their fault.
He took note of the other people in the hospital, visitors caring for loved ones and happy families celebrating a negative diagnosis or a successful surgery, and right now it left him with a twisted sense of pride, gratitude and anger. He was glad that the lives of these people were getting better, that he was still alive to see it and that he'd played a role in getting them here, but the price had been altogether too high.
Not that the ordinary person had any idea who had paid the bill for their continued existence. As though nothing had happened on December 31st, life moved forward with its steady march, and to anyone else, New Year's Day was the start of the next year, bright with the possibilities of the future. Almost nobody knew how close they had come to annihilation if they were lucky, or Hell on earth if they weren't. They never would know, and most people wouldn't want to. Among those joyous many were the family members of the Lost, who had, one and all, come back to themselves on January 1st as if by a miracle. That was how the news was playing it, lacking any clear answer to offer on such short notice. No one had time for details and putting pieces together when they'd just gotten their father or brother or favourite aunt back.
That wasn't what stung, though. As Akihiko went to the room he was looking for, he could accept that he would never be able to take credit for the role he played in fixing so many lives, in protecting a nation's people who would never know he existed. It also didn't bother him that people were celebrating this spontaneous windfall and gave no thought to who had brought it about; he would have done the same thing in their shoes.
He stopped at the room with 'Arisato' on the nameplate, then went in.
No, what hurt most was watching Mitsuru since Minato had collapsed. As the goddess had descended and they were all rendered helpless – utterly powerless, and that memory still ground Akihiko's gears – there had been a brilliant light, a blast of something that chased Nyx away completely, and then it was over. The night had cleared, the Dark Hour was over for good, they found themselves on the school grounds, and their leader was unconscious and unresponsive.
It hurt knowing that fighting at their best had still gotten their asses kicked, that it had come down to him to save them all. It hurt seeing him like this, asleep and beyond their reach no matter what they tried or how many tests they ran. But as much as it rankled Akihiko, it was worse for Mitsuru, yet not as bad as he feared, and that was even more concerning. He knew that her room at the dorm was going unused. When she went there, it was to conduct some business or grab some textbooks for school. Otherwise, she had moved her clothes to a spare room here at the hospital and had pushed a second bed into Minato's room so she could be near him. There it sat, neatly made and set right up against where their comatose comrade lay. Akihiko had caught her here in the morning once, sleeping next to her boyfriend, hand outstretched to him even as she slumbered. No matter the hour or the circumstances, he'd become part of her, and she could as easily be parted from him as she could cut that very arm off.
On one hand, there seemed to be little worry of a relapse into her depression like before. She was still working with the team and the Kirijo Group, and with everything that needed to be fixed, she couldn't leave things as they were. She was active and engaging and showed no sign of closing herself off and falling into her prior malaise. But on the other hand, Akihiko had no idea how long she would be able to keep this up. They would run out of tests to conduct and avenues to experiment with eventually, and he dreaded the day that the last one came back negative. Worse than the looming fear was the painfully familiar helplessness, the need to do something and knowing he couldn't help because he had no idea who could help with this. It was bad enough for him, so he couldn't imagine what she was going through. Just the thought made his fists itch.
He looked at Minato, resting there alone, and the questions came up as they always did. They had some idea of what happened, but the specifics were lost to them, and so too was lost any understanding of what had happened to their friend. Much as the others wanted to stay optimistic, Akihiko knew in his heart that they were missing something important, and he had no idea where to start looking for answers. Best as he knew, they were stuck waiting for the answers to come to them.
He'd go crazy if he waited like that, so he and the others took on a rotating shift to keep Minato company and explore as many angles as they could until that day came. Keeping busy and regular rounds with his punching bag were enough to mostly keep in check his need to vent, and otherwise, he was helping where he could.
"What happened that you'd check out like this?" Akihiko asked his friend, pulling up a chair and resisting the urge – for now – to hit him just to see what happened. "Where the hell are you?"
Nothing. More nothing. So much nothing. It was amazing how much nothing there was up here… wherever 'here' was. Minato had to wonder if that vast sense of nothing was partly to do with his new position as the figurehead of the Great Seal. It was certainly a new perspective. After all, under normal circumstances, one would have no reason to contemplate the trials and feelings of a wall, because most walls were inanimate. They weren't built from emotions and bonds with people. They weren't empowered by a cavalcade of Personas. They usually didn't have a person at the centre of them.
Though to be fair, Minato recalled Junpei talking about some manga where the walls around a city were made of sleeping giants. What an odd idea that had been back then, how strange and foreign. How very relevant that felt right now.
What he would give to have remained ignorant of this feeling. How simple his life had been back then.
As it was, he was still learning just where he was. When he looked around, all he saw was darkness and stars. It was like being in a planetarium, except he couldn't move, there was no one narrating the scenery for him, and the seating was terrible. Seeing nebulae and galaxies on a projector did nothing to show just how much black, empty space there was between each of those stars, and that space was what he was looking at right now. But was outer space really where he was? He could still breathe and he was as warm as ever, so was this space? Or was it all in his head? Was this the Dark Hour now and he was stuck here with Nyx? The more he tried to make sense of things, the less sense any of those things made.
It didn't help that he was also as helpless as a normal human, despite being inside the
Seal. Whatever Igor had done to create this thing, it hadn't just utilized the power of his bonds with everyone. It had also drawn his Personas – every last one – into the wall to make it impervious. Minato could feel the thing humming around him, alive with all the power he'd ever used and might have ever wielded, and it was beyond his ability to utilize. He could feel his Personas but he couldn't reach them. He couldn't use them no matter how hard he tried, and he had tried his hardest when he first woke up here. He felt blatantly vulnerable, encased in this indestructible wall.
Another paradox to ponder, courtesy of the old guy in the chair.
A rustling hiss whispered across the distance, and he braced himself. It was like the sound the monster made in that American sci-fi horror movie Junpei brought home once, where an alien creature infected humans, burst out of their chests or ate them, and grew into a walking killing machine. Minato had watched the movie with Mitsuru, just the two of them on a date when she assured him she could handle horror. He had been impressed by the effects and the tension, but she'd spent half the movie trying to work out the biological precursors of the alien, going through variations of serpent and amphibian and lizard to make sense of the movie. Instead of her not being able to sleep out of fear, she'd spent half the night trying to figure that puzzle out. She never had, and she'd been quite put out by that.
Memories of her stung, but they kept Minato focused. Much as they hurt, they helped a lot more, and as Nyx approached, he needed every shred of help he could get.
Absent even the facsimile of a caring facade, the Thing that came toward him was furious, malevolent, and predatory. That was the most Minato wanted to know, because coming even this close to the mind of a deity warped reality and scrambled his thoughts. Impulses he had no name for, thoughts that had no human equivalent, they rang in his ears and raced by his eyes faster and faster the closer She came. He knew better now than to try to make sense of what She showed him. He'd made the attempt at first, thinking there was a code that he could decipher or a weakness he could exploit. Instead, the experience broiled his senses and left him desperately trying to get away but not getting an inch. The Seal at his back and Nyx at the front, all he'd been able to do was endure it.
Here it came again.
There was no coaxing from Nyx this time, no words or warped comforts. What ran the circuit around the Seal was a deity that was very unhappy with him. The Seal had come up at the very last second, apparently, robbing Nyx of the ultimate victory and fulfilling the purpose She'd had in mind from the start. Being snubbed by a mortal, especially one that had no business being as powerful as he'd been, had gotten them off on the wrong foot, so Nyx, like the alien in that movie, snapped her fangs inches from his face, breathed fetid fury and acidic spit into his face, and tested the Seal again and again, looking for a weakness each time. And each time, the Seal held, not giving so much as an inch.
Her fury struck, tearing at him like he was tied to the ship's mast in a tempest. Gale-force screams tore at him, deafened him, demanded his subservience and submission.
Immense pressure crashed against the Seal, hitting like the weight of an ocean, searching for cracks or weaknesses or, if there weren't any, making him the weak link in the chain. Would the Seal fall if he did? Minato doubted it, given how sturdy the thing was, but he wasn't going to risk it. After all, Nyx would shred him if he gave in.
He was submerged in Her rage, hammered again and again until he couldn't feel anything else, and the concept of time drifted away. Eventually - he had no idea after how long - Nyx grew bored with him, or had found another place in the Seal to attack, and drifted away, leaving lingering traces of Her mind-warping influence to scramble his brain long after She was gone.
He'd managed again. He wondered if he could actually fail. Igor's spells and the bonds that constituted the Seal were strong enough to stop Nyx when nothing else could have, and if Igor was so certain that it would work, then it was likely to work forever.
When the stark reality presented itself, that such a strong wall also meant that he had to be part of it for as long as it stood, the only thing that held despair at bay was focusing on the thing that he'd fought for. He felt the currents of life through his bonds. He knew that the rest of the world had survived, that the nightmare that had begun ten years ago with the Shadows and the Dark Hour and the Lost was finally over for good. By any definition, that was a victory.
If only he'd been able to stay there with his friends, to feel the sun and the wind again, to go with them to the shrine and partake in that victory lap. The backhanded irony of succeeding only by losing what he most wanted to win for wasn't lost on him.
Such thoughts were dangerous, however. Nyx knew what he'd expected, what he'd lost and how he felt about being here. She used that to taunt him, fabricated illusions – Minato deeply hoped they were just illusions – of the deaths of his friends, of their demise as a result of their exposure in that last fight and the rigors of the Dark Hour. Images he couldn't unsee, voices that cut right to his heart, and he couldn't fight back or shut it out.
Sure enough, the slithering rustle sounded again, and Nyx approached, cackling in purest malice and sending his senses into a spin cycle. With all he was, he held on and waited for it all to stop.
It felt like it went on for even longer this time.
A month. It had been the longest and shortest month of her life, it felt like, but a month had already passed since that fight. January passed in a blur of school tests and meetings, obligations at the office to help the Kirijo Group recover, and constant medical exams to find out what could be done for Minato.
That last was especially important to Mitsuru. It was what consumed her thoughts before she slept and it was what greeted her consciousness as she awoke. She needed answers, needed to know the how and why of it all, and so far the truth eluded her with infuriating guile. But she persisted. She and Abe-san focused their energies into the medical angle, looking for any reason that Minato had collapsed as the Dark Hour faded and Nyx disappeared. She had even worked together with Fuuka, brought their Personas out in real-space and tried looking for him on a wild shot in the dark.
That had given them the most concrete answer so far, and it had also been the most heart-wrenching: Minato's body was there in the hospital, but his mind was somewhere else. "It's very far away," Fuuka had said after she concluded her scans, dripping sweat and needing to hold herself up. "Far away and muffled, like something's around him or stopping me from getting a clear read. There's a lot of interference there, too."
"What would cause something like that?" Mitsuru had asked.
"I wish I knew. It feels a little bit like the Dark Hour, but it's so different that I can't make any conclusions, and even what I am feeling is too strange to call accurate."
They had tried other times, and they'd come up with similar results. Sometimes the interference was so strong that they had to stop, and the forces pushing back against them sounded like shrieking static and friction of metal on rocks. Other times it was placid, calm and dead quiet. Either way, though, they got no closer to their answers.
Mitsuru went into Minato's room at the hospital – better to call it their room now, for how often she was there – and brought up a chair. She'd checked his charts already, had become intimately familiar with the tests they were running and what they were looking for. It had taken a few all-nighters to crunch through the jargon and really understand the medical lingo that was just noise to other people, but she'd stopped at nothing to get this far. She took his hand and spoke to him, told him about the progress they were making, mentioned how her day had been, and asked him when he was coming back.
She wanted to believe that he could hear her, that he would pop his eyes open at some point and say, "Sorry, just needed a nap. How're things?" She might never forgive him for putting her through this, but she would be too busy welcoming him back to worry about that.
Minutes and hours passed, and soon she was out of things to talk about. She held his hand, felt his steady pulse – same count as always, like his heart has become a metronome – and prayed. When despair and anguish clawed at the corners of her sanity, she focused on him and stabilized. She was safe with him, always had been, and she just needed to keep going. He was with her still, and that meant there was hope.
At no point did she allow the question, "You'll keep going, but for how long?" in. She refused to, dared not even entertain it. She couldn't, not until she found a way to help him.
The door opened softly, and faintly familiar boots clicked as someone walked in. Mitsuru looked up, about to insist on solitude, but she stopped when she saw who it was.
"Hello, Mitsuru-san," the woman in blue greeted. "I hope you're doing well."
"Elizabeth-san… What are you doing here? Where have you been?"
Elizabeth stopped and looked at Minato, her face awash with emotions that flashed by too fast to name. It was the first time the woman had looked so conflicted. "I have been to many places, but the details… they aren't why I'm here."
"You're here to see Minato?"
"I am here for a number of reasons. One is to apologize to you. To both of you."
"Apologize for what?"
Elizabeth was quiet, seeming to look for the right words. "For a… to call it a lie is the wrong word. It might be better to call it a necessary omission by the Master that was abetted by myself."
"What do you mean?"
"The Master and I gave you the impression that we were not available to help Arisato-sama before his final battle. We left him and the rest of you to your devices, to suffer your trials alone and hurt in our absence. The Master believed that this would strengthen you and would also best facilitate Arisato-sama's potential. Without us there to help you, you would be forced to find the answers and become stronger on your own. In doing so, Arisato-sama would see that he had to rely on all of you to accomplish his purpose, and he would be determined enough to do so for his own reasons."
"Considering how he is now, would you say that his purpose has been accomplished? Was this actually supposed to happen?"
"Yes, and that was the other omission. The best-case scenario you all fought and hoped for was never an option. Nyx was always beyond what mortals, even ones as strong as you, could defeat. It wasn't possible for you to prevent the Fall without paying the price. This, with him as he is here and everyone alive, was the victory you fought for, and we withheld that from you."
Mitsuru slowly rose from her chair, eyes narrowing in growing fury. "That… that was your omission? You knew all that and you didn't tell him or me that he was going to disappear?!"
"He didn't exactly disappear. Your own powers should have told you that he is alive, but separate from his body."
"I know that. No thanks to you or Igor-san. You both knew this and you kept it from us?! From him when he was the one who wound up suffering for it, and from us when it was what we were fighting for?!"
"Yes. The Master kept all that and more from you in order to achieve this end. I knew this would be the outcome and I was complicit in it. Try to understand that this was always our purpose, and we could not go against it. The Master did not and as a result he has moved on, but my participation in the omission and the facilitation of Arisato-sama's current state is why I came to apologize. The Master told me that this was always the price of such a great deed, that to seal Nyx away without a cost could never happen. His rationale was correct, his reasoning was sound, but I was there when everything came together. I saw Arisato-sama's last moment before the Seal was made. I… I began to doubt what we had been striving for, what we did and how we accomplished our goals. It wasn't supposed to be wrong, but I felt that it was. I could not sleep after Arisato-sama was separated from you, and I have never had that problem before – that might seem like a cursory discomfort compared to what you have gone through, but it is much more than that for me, I promise. I decided that I had to tell you. No matter the justification, I could not condone the decision that had these consequences, so I left the Master's services. That meant leaving my brother and sisters, leaving my purpose and what I was meant to accomplish from birth. I might be the only one of my kind to do so, but I could not do otherwise."
"Minato sealed Nyx away? She's not dead?"
Elizabeth explained, in detail, how the last fight had concluded. Minato's latent potential, the strength of the bonds he'd forged, and the last ritual that had put him at its centre. She was clear and thorough, but near the end her voice was cracking with regret.
"He's truly gone, then," Mitsuru whispered, bending to the full weight of their destiny and the price they'd paid. "Without him, Nyx comes back, but…" She let the tears fall, didn't bother to hide her pain from Elizabeth or anyone else. She was allowed this. When Elizabeth offered a handkerchief, Mitsuru grabbed it and crushed it, unused. She would dry her eyes when it stopped hurting, but now… for now, she was allowed to grieve for the future she had lost. Several minutes passed before she regained enough composure to wipe at her eyes and blow her nose with her own tissue.
Then, hesitantly, as though the words might hurt her even more, Elizabeth asked, "May I ask a personal question?"
Mitsuru laughed raggedly. "You're asking? You have the power to do these things, so much you're probably not even human, and you're standing on courtesy?"
"Yes."
"I don't care. Maybe I'll answer, maybe I'll just throw you out."
"That would be deserved. I know that our actions hurt you both, and I helped in that. I did not come here for forgiveness."
Mitsuru continued cleaning herself.
"But I would like to know…" Elizabeth looked at Minato. "You loved Arisato-sama, didn't you?"
"That's none of your business."
"I agree, but I must ask anyway."
"You must? Because something or someone else is telling you to? Some higher being that's pulling the strings of other people with Personas, that uses us and then throws us away?"
"No." Elizabeth looked lost, seeming to search for her words. "I… that is, we were not meant to feel things the way you do. Our purpose must come first, always, so even if we express emotions and have our own personalities, there are some parts of those personalities that are missing. This ensures that we are not conflicted when we are called on to do our duty. I do not know for certain, but I believe that love would be one of those things; after all, it's the one thing that could drive one to defy fate, and we are not meant to do such a thing."
"You're designed down to that level? Who would have that kind of power?"
"That is a very long story, and it isn't relevant. I know I have no right to ask you this, but, please, I would like to know what your love is like."
Mitsuru was lost for words. She choked down her anger and indignation, much as she wanted to rail against Elizabeth for the role she'd played in Minato's condition. The fury was still there, but so was the simple reality that the woman had come here of her own volition while Igor and whatever other powers at play had not. Slowly, the ice took hold of the negativity, and she could focus. She looked at her comatose beloved, smiling naturally while she watched him. Her fingers itched to tousle his hair, and she wanted to hear him whine and fuss about it in that voice that gave her goose bumps, or see that dry smile of his that made her feel like she could take on the world with just him at her side.
Unbidden, the words came out. How she'd liked him as a team member and had grown to rely on him as a friend, how the emotions went deeper than just him being handsome and funny and a great fighter. The fluttering in her stomach that his nascent, clumsy overtures inspired, how he was the only boy she could remember caring for this much. All this and more came out, minus the deeply personal stuff like how his touch both calmed her down and sparked fire in her blood, how he made her heart race with just a few words. But even that which she felt like sharing was so varied and so disjointed that she finally stopped. "I doubt I'm making any sense."
Elizabeth looked at her, then at him. "On the contrary. Your words aren't saying what you want them to, but how you say them, the way you look when you do… I understand. I do. If it's any consolation, you've made it hurt even more now that I know what his absence must be like for you. It was the same with him; he called for you when the Seal was activated. You were what he fought for and sought when he was alone. Truly, I can't apologize enough for this."
Mitsuru looked away.
Elizabeth approached, stopping two strides away. "I didn't know how this would conclude. I wasn't sure you'd be amenable to my presence or strong enough to handle knowing the truth."
"Strong enough to handle this?" Mitsuru laughed humourlessly. "Why? Do you have something worse for me? Is there anything worse?"
"There's… more to it. Could you turn so I can speak to you?"
Mitsuru did so. Just barely. "What is it?"
"I don't want to add to your burden, and I know that hope for what might not come is a cruelty all itself, but there might be a way to bring him back without disrupting the Seal."
Mitsuru turned so fast she almost lost her balance. "You're… you're lying. You just said that the ritual was strong, that it was what he was meant for."
"I did, and it was. I also hesitated to tell you because I might not be able to do it. The details are complex, more than I could ever describe. However, for his sake and for yours and because of how far I have already come, I might have a way to do it."
"How? Tell me and I'll make sure you have the resources you need and–"
Elizabeth held up a hand. "This isn't something that can be done by human technology. Not even your Kirijo Group has the means to do what I am considering, and even if it did, these are powers that Man should never touch. Please understand."
"You think we would misuse it? You don't trust me?"
"I hold Arisato-sama in the highest esteem, higher than any other mortal. I know he would use any power he possesses with the proper consideration for its use, but I would not tell even him the specifics of what I intend to do. You are the same. I trust that your intentions are good, and perhaps that would be enough for one generation. But what of another? Suppose a beloved friend of yours, or one of your children when you have them, could be saved by the use of what I am intending, would you truly not use it? And if you did, what would the consequences be? What if someone else used it and didn't have your restraint? I respect you and believe you, but understand that there are risks even I cannot take. Not after seeing and learning what I have of human behaviour. Also, please understand that I prefer to keep this as uncomplicated as possible for other reasons. Even contemplating doing this on my own is enough to frighten me."
The hope Mitsuru felt was a guttering, fluttering little thing, flapping unsteadily enough that even the smallest breeze would blow it away. But she held onto it, dared to believe that bringing Minato back was possible. "Do you think you can succeed?"
"I would not have come here if I did not think so. I cannot calculate my odds of success, but so long as there is a chance to bring him back without compromising the Seal, I will keep trying."
"How long could this take?"
"I do not know. Time is a fickle thing when dealing with matters like this, and you understand it in a very different manner from how I do. I will begin once I am finished here, however."
"Do you need anything that I can provide?"
"Possibly from you, and your comrade – Yamagishi, isn't it? I need to speak to her. She can help me get started. I need to find some things, and you two might be the best chance I have of getting them as soon as possible."
Mitsuru nodded. "I'll do it. Whatever you need, you'll have. Is there anything else I can do?"
"Be with him, and believe in him. As much as you want him to be here, he wants to return to you. Even if there are risks with this, he will fight it all to come back."
"Are there risks?"
"Yes. As there are in everything."
"Will you be all right? In whatever you're doing, or after?"
Elizabeth nodded. "Thank you for your concern, but I can look after myself. We were not made to be helpless. If I succeed? I don't know. No one I know of has ever tried something like this before, so I do not know what will happen. Even if everything goes perfectly, I will have to find a new purpose in my life, and that will be a challenge all its own. But if there are repercussions, I will bear them gladly. This is my path now."
"You're serious about this."
"Very. To consider what you and your allies fought for only to come to this conclusion… fate is cruel enough on its own. If I can help, then I will do whatever I can."
Mitsuru cleared her throat. "If you need a place to stay, you'd be welcome with us. It's the least I can do."
Elizabeth smiled, looking like her old self. "I would welcome such an opportunity. The chance to indulge in your fashion sense and selection, to see this world as you mortals do, I doubt I would ever be bored. I would be honoured to take you up on that."
"How soon can you start?"
"As soon as I speak to your comrade. Come with me and help her. Being there might put your mind at ease."
Mitsuru's anger fully banked at those words, and she smiled. "Thank you. I hated you when you told me the truth, but if you can bring him back– no, even if you can't, thank you for telling me the truth, and thank you for trying."
"You have every reason to feel that way, and I thank you for giving me the opportunity. Let us get started, if you can. The sooner, the better for all of us."
"I'll call Fuuka."
There was the sound again. Minato smiled as best he could. It was the gentle, insistent reverberation of Juno's scanners, coming from so far away that when he saw the flickering light of her beacon, it was already gone when the sound hit. The warped nature of this place contrasting with the consistent physics of light and sound, particularly with the times that the sound didn't arrive at all, left him clinging to a hope being made threadbare by this reality. He wanted to reply to her, but he couldn't generate anything like a signal without his Personas. He'd struggled against the Seal, tried to do something that could be heard, but that was like grabbing onto the wind. He was left with the assurance that she was still looking, that she perhaps knew where he was and hadn't given up yet.
But without a means of getting here, what could they do? What could any of them, himself included, do? Would that just condemn some of them to stay here with him if there wasn't a way back? Or would it leave them at Nyx's tender mercies?
The sound finally ended, leaving him in the quiet dark again, and that threadbare hope felt tattered now. His thoughts turned dark, welcomed the negativity he was failing to keep at bay, and those thoughts were like an anchor, dragging him down, down to drown him in the worst elements of himself.
Then another sound came, the familiar hissing rustle of Nyx. Minato groaned, not even bothering to hide his dismay. She always knew when to stop by, and this time She hummed joyfully. She knew what that signal had been and what it meant to him. She had probably let him enjoy it as much as he could so that She could yank that hope from him.
Her mind-bending approach was bad enough, but if She was actually happy, that was really bad news.
"What do you want this time?" he asked. Not that he was expecting an answer he could understand, but perhaps he could get something out of Her.
Her approach stopped. She perked up, eyes – or whatever organs She used to see – on him. Patient, waiting.
"Did you come to talk? What about? Baseball? How about that game last night, could you believe they walked Matsui in the bottom of the 6th? Not your thing? Then how about vacation spots? Been anywhere nice lately, like Greece?"
A low chuckle sounded from Her, a rumbling echo that rattled in the smallest spaces of the Seal.
"Not big on talking now? That's strange, it seemed to be your thing on Tartarus. Maybe you don't have anything to say when there isn't a world to destroy."
Nyx felt more and more amused as he talked.
"Is it a joke you're laughing at? How about we give the comedic duo thing a whirl? That's usually not my thing, but I'll give it a try if you want."
A low murmur sounded, gentle susurrations that brushed the skin like a caress. It felt like the kiss before the teeth that ripped someone's throat out. The sound shifted, becoming like distant conversation, distinctly human speech. Darkness gathered and twisted into three shapes, three people being constituted from the feet up and shrouded in gloom.
When they stepped forward and came into focus, all Minato's sass vanished. "No…"
Dad. Mom. Minako.
Nyx giggled behind them, inky appendages caressing them like a child might with precious dolls.
"Why, Minato?" Dad asked, his voice spot-on to when he'd been alive. "You left us. Forgot about us. Lived your life like we we'd never existed. Why?"
"Dad, I didn't. I…"
"Was it that girl?" Minako demanded, sounding just like he'd heard her exactly twice in her life, both when she'd been incurably jealous. "That makes sense, you know. I would get it if she meant that much to you, if you loved her more than us. It would have been nice to meet her, maybe if you'd cared about us. Or if we hadn't died."
"It wasn't like that! Mitsuru had nothing to do with–"
"Or was it the Personas?" Mom inquire softly. Even when angry or happy, she had always been soft-spoken, and that was what made her disappointment hurt even more. "The power you received when we died? That was the power of Death, of the thing that killed us, and you were given so much power from it. You were set free by it. You were free of us."
"No! It wasn't–"
"The power went to your head, didn't it?" Minako continued. "One of a kind even compared to other Persona Users. That must have been a great feeling. Tell me, was that power always there and you didn't tell us? Were you unique even then? If we had survived, would you have left us behind because we're normal?"
Dad noted, "All your friends can use Personas. What use would you have for normal people?"
A terrible anger grew in him. Seeing his family used by Nyx in this twisted facsimile of authenticity, he wanted to break the image before him and scatter the shards to the ether. He instinctively reached for his Personas, prepared to call on the most destructive forces he'd ever commanded to wipe the smile off of Nyx's face once and for all. Even when nothing responded, when only the Seal remained, he drew hard in fury and saw red until he realized that his targets were the only ones he loved more than Mitsuru herself. Maybe they were just projections by Nyx, but the very thought of harming his own family made him physically sick.
Naturally, that created an opening that someone could hit him hard through, and Minako knew, as she always did, how to jam that knife in and twist it hard. "What now? Will you destroy us? Kill us again because you can't handle the truth?"
"You would do it, wouldn't you?" asked Mom. "You could bury us for good that way."
"Even now," Dad muttered, "you can't help yourself, can you? This is what you are, what you've become: Someone who would attack his own parents and sister."
"None of this is real," Minato mumbled. "It's all a lie."
"Will you run from this? Same as you ran from us before?"
He didn't know who said that. He didn't care. All he could do was retreat into the stonework of the seal. Stone didn't hear or see things. It didn't feel or hurt. It wouldn't suffer whatever new torment Nyx had come up with.
And that was why he was here, wasn't it? To become the Seal.
He sank back into the rock, felt his nerves harden over. He could stop listening to Nyx, could stop yearning for the others or regret or feel pain.
He could let it all, finally, end.
…
..
.
"That's not a good look for you, you know," Yukari groused when she saw her unconscious comrade. "People will think you've given up or something, and then how does that make us look?"
There was no answer. There never was. Whether she kidded or cajoled or criticized, Minato remained as he was, and she had to work to keep her spirits up and stay optimistic. It was hard, and uncomfortably familiar. This was like where she'd been when Dad died and she and Mom were left without any answers on how or why. Emotions ran rampant, ideas flew in whatever direction they wanted, and in the absence of facts the mind would make up its own. That was an open invitation to tumble down a rabbit hole of half-ideas and endless doubt, and she knew better than to entertain that for any reason.
Still, old habits were hard to put down, and she had to focus on what she could do in these situations to stay busy. Ironically enough, that had led to a burst from her Persona, breaking into real-time and following a subconscious desire born from habit. Yukari had gone to Minato's side, touched his shoulder and, from a reflex born from repeated months of trying to save his life, sent a surge of healing energy through him. She felt the power race through him, seeking wounds to heal or imperfections to set right, but she felt nothing in return other than the pervasive atrophy his muscles were undergoing. What was strange was that the healing went to the same far-off nowhere that Fuuka mentioned, the somewhere she couldn't describe that Minato was still at.
That was encouraging on one hand; at least he was still there. On the other, though, it suggested that Elizabeth-san hadn't worked her magic yet.
The door opened and Aigis and Ken came in. "Have you been here long?" Aigis asked.
"A while."
"We can look after him, if you want a break," Ken offered, trying hard to sound like an adult.
Yukari looked at their youngest member. "I'll do that, but you can take a break too, you know."
"It is my understanding that you have a fondness for a girl at the shrine," Aigis added in an apparent attempt to be helpful. "It would be disadvantageous to you to neglect her."
It was the newest poorly kept secret at the dorm. Ken had encountered a girl his own age before the battle with Nyx and had started talking to her. SEES had encouraged him, some (Junpei) with more gusto than a kid would have been comfortable with, and Yukari hoped that this was a way for Ken to get back something in his life after he'd lost so much. It was a chance for him to be normal, something that felt much more pertinent for him than for any of the others, Yukari herself included.
Ken went red. "You don't need to tease me about her."
"It was not my intention to tease," Aigis assured him.
"It's really sweet," Yukari added. "It's just that you might want to spend time with her, get out of the middle of things for a–"
"I don't want to!" Ken snapped, then flinched. "Sorry," he mumbled. "I can't think of anything else right now. If Minato-senpai needed something and I wasn't here to help him…"
Yukari patted him on the shoulder. "We all feel that way. He wouldn't want you to pass up on opportunities to be happy, though. We all fought so that we could have normal lives again, and if there was anything we could do to help, I promise you that we would tell you right away."
Ken looked up, haggard and exhausted. "I think Satomi-san would understand if she knew. Hopefully Minato-senpai will wake up soon, but… but for now, I want to be here."
He was holding his crucifix in a clenched fist, grasping it like it was the only thing keeping him together. Given everything he'd lost in life so far, he must be on a very familiar precipice right now, and helplessness was the worst feeling in the world. That was another emotion that Yukari knew all too well.
She nodded and stepped back. "Okay. I'll take a little while to rest. Look after him for me, would you?"
Ken nodded and went to their comatose companion, pale and trembling as he tried to talk past the lump in his throat.
Yukari pulled Aigis to the side. "It's almost been a month since Elizabeth-san was here. How long is something like this supposed to take?"
"I have no prior experience with the rituals that could put Minato-san into this state, or anything that could bring him back," Aigis admitted. "But if I understand the metaphysical premise and environment correctly, then a delay of this duration is not unexpected."
"You mean you understand some of that stuff?"
"Just some, yes. The technical science. If Minato-san's surroundings are where I suspect, then time moves very differently there. Even a few simple things might take much longer as we feel it here."
"So you know where he is?"
"Only somewhat. It is a place inaccessible to us through any means at our disposal. This is why I have not spoken of it yet, otherwise I would have gone and retrieved him myself." Aigis said this with such certainty that the fact that she hadn't done it yet clearly meant that it could not be done at all.
"There's still hope, then."
"There is always hope. I trust Elizabeth-san to accomplish her goals, even if her means of doing so are beyond my understanding."
"Then I hope you're right. Mitsuru is putting on a strong front, but this is hurting her a lot the longer it goes on."
"I agree. If there is a way to mitigate her pain, I will do so."
"Thanks, Aigis. I'll go take that break." She headed to the door, then turned back to Minato. "I wasn't kidding, you know. Mitsuru really needs you. We all do, so wake up already and come back to us."
.
..
…
Minato slowly came to, blessed silence all around him. He didn't know if that meant Nyx had gone away for a while, or if he'd integrated so much with the Seal that he couldn't hear things anymore. When he blinked blearily, wondering what had drawn him back to consciousness, a familiar surge rushed along his nerves, looking for damage to repair and spiking his vitals for a few seconds. In that moment, he remembered what consciousness felt like, what it meant to have a heartbeat, if only for a few minutes. The rush was accompanied by the smell of fruit trees carried on a clean, brisk Kyoto wind, and he chuckled. He could smell and feel again, and that was definitely something. "Thanks, Yukari." Who knew when she'd tried to heal him or how long it took for her powers to reach him, but his head was clear now. If he could move his limbs, they would be limber now.
What was odd, he thought a moment later, was the sense of someone approaching. Not Nyx this time, and it was two sensations instead of just one.
That was impossible. How could anyone get here when he didn't know where here even was?
"...-sato-sama?"
The words were faint, but close, and he thought he knew that voice.
"Arisato-sama?" The speaker tried again. "Can you hear me?"
Hope flared in Minato, a feeling that was painfully foreign now. Only one person spoke to him like that. "Elizabeth? Is that you? Where are you?"
"It is I, yes. I am here, Arisato-sama."
He looked at where the voice was coming from, but there was nothing there. "Where? I can't see you."
He prayed like he had never prayed before that this wasn't a plot by Nyx. It didn't feel like it, had none of Her malicious aura, and how likely was it that Nyx would mimic Elizabeth of all people?
"Right here, Arisato-sama. I'm in front of you."
"I wonder," someone else, male and also vaguely familiar, said, "if he's left everything the way he found it. If he hasn't changed anything yet. I would go crazy if that was me, but he's not familiar with this place, so maybe..."
"Who is that, Elizabeth?"
"Just a minute," the male stated. A few long seconds passed and suddenly Minato was in the foyer of the dorm, complete with the warm lighting, plush furniture, and coffee table covered in paperwork. He staggered forward, body free and absent any tingling nerves or muscle pain. Being so suddenly free gave him vertigo, but it was pushed aside from the immediate familiarity of being back here. Minato looked at the stairs, about to call for the others, but there was a strong sense that he couldn't go up them, and when he looked out the window, all that empty space greeted him.
"How…" His vocal cords felt rusty. "What's going on? Are you here, Elizabeth?"
"I am," she answered, appearing next to the TV. She was dressed in her usual blue uniform, she had the same feeling of distance and eccentricity, but there was also a current of power in her. It ran through her body like living circuitry, and Minato felt, for the first time, like he could see how different from a normal person she was. "I'm very glad to see you again, Arisato-sama."
"The feeling's mutual. How did you get here? Actually, why are you here? To let me go? Did Igor get the wrong guy or something?"
The male chuckled. "Wouldn't that be the day. Imagine the paperwork if he made a mistake like that."
Minato knew that voice, and it had none of the echoing overlap or threads of power running through it. He turned, and there, leaning against the foyer counter, as relaxed a smile as ever on that mirror-image face, was Ryoji.
Minato's hands clenched and he reflexively reached for his Personas that weren't there, but then he paused. What also wasn't there was the intense animosity and hate. Looking at Ryoji now was like looking at a normal person he happened to resemble, and it was so jarring that it was almost like he was looking at a stranger.
"I'm glad I could get that reaction," Ryoji continued, pushing off the counter. "It's certainly better than getting into a fight, especially in this place. I'm probably the last person you expected to see again, right?"
"You're pretty close," Minato admitted. "How are you here? And why?"
"I sought him out," Elizabeth began. "I needed to speak to him about something important, and he was uniquely able to answer my questions."
"Questions regarding what?"
"Sending you home," Ryoji stated, this time without a trace of humour.
Minato stared at him. "That's not funny. When I said Igor made a mistake, I meant it as a joke."
"People might not take me seriously, Onii-chan, but believe me, I wouldn't lie about this."
"Elizabeth, can you explain? And why are you sure you can trust him?"
"I will answer as best I can, Arisato-sama. Mochizuki-san was created as your own alter-ego to guide you toward the Shadows. This was done mostly by Death and partly by your subconscious mind as a defense mechanism against what happened on the bridge that night, and the consequence is that you have a trace of Death in you even now. That, along with the power of the Wild Card, is what granted you all your potential. However, the inverse happened as well, so while Mochizuki-san was created as a reflection of Death to facilitate the purpose of the Appriser, he also gained a genuine core of humanity from you. When Death came to Tartarus, the Shadow aspect of Mochizuki-san was largely absorbed by Death itself. However, his human side was strong enough to exist in your world even after you sealed Nyx away."
"Like I told you when I was here," Ryoji put in, indicating the room around them, "what you fought up there wouldn't be all of me. And it was a pretty rough ride when Death came down. I felt it suck me in, I was there during the fight, but then I woke up on January 1st like it had all been a dream or something."
"You do feel different," Minato admitted. "Before, it was like we were natural enemies. I think that was what Aigis felt toward you, and it was there right from the start."
"That was part of the plan," Ryoji explained. "What better way to get you to kill me or spurn Aigis's help than to make you predisposed against us? You were supposed to follow those instincts, but you went against them. Human will and the freedom of choice saved you and the others."
"Same with you, isn't it? You were human enough to choose not to die when you were supposed to, and that gave us a chance."
"Exactly. The one thing Nyx and the Shadows didn't understand." Ryoji looked out a window. "Being from here, that makes sense."
"Where is here?"
"The Sea of Souls. Mankind's collective unconscious. We're both right behind the world you know and as far away as we can be without leaving it entirely. Force of will is everything and physical form is temporary at best. Those who ride the line between the two, like us and Elizabeth, are the exception."
"Strong enough to exist here, but still human. I think I get it now. I assume all of that is why you're here now. It can't be for the scenery or the souvenirs."
"You don't understand. Not entirely. This place can be whatever you want it to be, whether you're part of the Seal or not," Ryoji noted. The foyer wavered and then winked out of existence, replaced with the school's front gates, complete with students moving about in a perfect reflection of life. Chatter about the weekend and excitement for the upcoming sports match, footsteps that sounded around them like rain, the smell of cherry blossoms on a wind that ruffled the hair and teased skirts up. Everything was as Minato remembered. Then it wavered again and they were at a university swim meet where all the competitors were gorgeous girls in figure-hugging speed suits, dripping wet or going through their stretches. Ryoji grinned. "See?
It isn't that bad at all."
"Point taken," Minato noted. "Let's go back to the school."
"Already? C'mon, you don't like the view? What guy wouldn't?"
"None of them are Mitsuru. Simple as that." Minato smiled, both cordial and cold. "Before you even think of fabricating her, don't. Whether you're to help me or not, it won't be her, and if you even try it, I'll beat you to a pulp."
"Fiiiine." Everything went dark, then they were back in front of the school again, this time with much less background chatter and noise. "If you wanted to change things yourself, you could. Same as me. It isn't that hard."
"Maybe not for you."
"Actually, that point leads us to why we're here."
Elizabeth stepped forward, and the students moved perfectly to accommodate her. "I have come to propose a switch, Arisato-sama. Because Mochizuki-san is so similar to you, and because of his intimate familiarity with this place, it is possible for him to take your place in the Great Seal. Nyx would remain here and you would have the chance to return to your body and live your life."
Minato could barely believe his ears. "You… you can do this?"
"I believe so, yes."
"Why? Igor put me here. Aren't you supposed to help him and go along with what he wants?"
"I was. Not any longer. I believed that the end the Master sought was the best answer for the circumstances, but seeing you fight against it made me understand just what you were being asked to relinquish. You had your own life and were put in this position through the actions of others, not from your own volition. I cannot agree with you being subjected to this if you didn't wish it, not when your contract so clearly stated that it was your own actions you would be taking responsibility for."
"You were there when Igor did this. You didn't help me then."
"And I regretted it from that moment on. I saw what your friends went through in your absence. I spoke to Mitsuru-san. I do not, can not, believe that this is the optimal choice."
"So you found an alternative? Just like that?"
"Your words suggest that this was easy or trite, Arisato-sama. I assure you, it was anything but. Even with Mitsuru-san and Yamagishi-san aiding me, I still had difficulty finding Mochizuki-san. Then the ritual needed to switch you two, that took a personal visit to one of my sisters, and she would not help me at first – our nature is such that we cannot go against the Master's wishes. I was forced to duel her for what she knew."
That caught Minato's attention. "You fought your own sister for this? Are you all right? Is she?"
"We both are, and I appreciate your concern. Margaret understood, eventually. She gave me what I needed and advised me on how to complete the ritual. I trust her, and she understands the implications if I fail. My other siblings… I can only say that I would not have been as confident in their assistance had I procured it through the same means. Or at all. Let us leave it at that."
"So you want to put Ryoji, who was created by Nyx and Death, into the very thing that's keeping Her away from Earth? You have some assurances that this isn't going to blow up in our faces?"
"You sound like you don't trust me," Ryoji murmured. The background shifted again, this time to the shrine, shaded by the great tree. Ken was there with Koromaru, talking to a girl his own age, of all things. "I'm hurt."
Minato bit back a sharp retort. This wasn't the same person he'd fought, after all, and his input was essential. "You understand my concern," he said instead. "Especially given the circumstances that put me here."
"The Seal binds the host's will," Elizabeth explained. "This ritual will do the same. You could not undermine it even if you wanted to, and neither can Mochizuki-san. I have accounted for those possibilities, and I would not risk Nyx getting free. Because you two are so compatible, the Seal won't be negatively affected once he takes your place. If anything, it might grow stronger because he is more accustomed to this place."
"That is comforting. I'm sure there are other details, right? Things that I have to give up or other ways I can help? What are they?"
"You are correct. First, I must strip you of your nature as the Appriser and the Wild Card. Those bear the potential that made you the prime candidate to empower the Seal. This means that you will have one Persona and all the others will go to Mochizuki-san, but this won't affect your everyday life otherwise. Second, the ritual will take some time, and once you are free, you must return to your body as quickly as possible. You might have perceived this place as emptiness, but there is much more out there, and the Seal is attuned to you. It will attempt to reclaim you once you are free. If it succeeds, I cannot guarantee your safety, and Mochizuki-san and I will not be able to help you."
"So I'll need to run. Anything else?"
"Only that this is the only way I could find to accomplish this. I understand your reservations, but no other person would be able to do this. That was why I spent as much time as I did ensuring that Mochizuki-san would serve as a suitable candidate, both for compatibility and for practicality."
Minato nodded, feeling better than he had since the fight with Nyx. He tried not to get too giddy, but it felt like he was getting his chance to go home. "And you're okay with this?" he asked Ryoji. "Being stuck up here with Nyx for company, won't that drive you crazy?"
Ryoji smiled. "I'm used to this place. I was born here and made of it, so I can make it into whatever I want. And the bonds you made that created this place, they'll keep everything fresh. Their hopes and dreams – and yours, too – give the Seal its power. So long as you and the others grow and live, then things will be all right."
"You're serious? You had a chance to live apart of Nyx, to be human like the rest of us. Why are you giving that up?"
"You were human before you were the Appriser, so the human world is where you belong. Your body and psyche know this, both consciously and unconsciously. I'm the opposite, or maybe I'm the same on the inverse. This place makes sense to me. Your world with its hypocrisies and shifts, with the chaos that people embody and the paradox of free will, it was always strange and only got worse after you fought Nyx. I don't know where to start there, same as you don't here. Honestly, I was glad when Elizabeth-san made the offer for this. It meant I could do something helpful and come back here."
"So you wanted to help even back then?"
"Yes. Maybe I started as a Shadow, but I didn't stay that way. Even if your world was strange, there was a lot there I never would have imagined on my own. I owe that to you and I want to pay you back somehow."
"I appreciate it. I hope you don't get bored, because once I'm home, I'm not coming back."
"I will be here to attend to Mochizuki-san," Elizabeth put in, "at least in the beginning. I need to make sure the Seal adjusts to him properly, so I can make sure that he has what he needs to be comfortable."
Ryoji smiled. "And with such lovely company, how could any man not be happy?"
That was that, it seemed. There was no way that Nyx could create an illusion this elaborate, not with the two most unlikely of people and one of whom She probably didn't know existed. "I accept your offer, Elizabeth. Let's do this."
"Once I do this, you will have to move fast, Arisato-sama."
"Then I'll say this now. Thank you both. It means my life to me."
Elizabeth bowed in deep respect. "I am glad that I could repay you for your lessons and sacrifices, Arisato-sama. I look forward to seeing you when you are whole again."
"Likewise. You'll always be welcome with us." Then Minato turned to Ryoji, dismissing the memories of what he used to be in favour of what he had grown into. A Shadow that became human, able to exert his will and make his own choices in life, who then became so much more. Who had become something like a friend. The two men had spent so much time together in their different aspects, circling each other for their own purposes, and yet only now did it feel like he really knew this guy as a person. He liked what he saw, put the past aside, and held a hand out. "Thank you for everything, Ryoji. For this chance and the one before and everything else. I wouldn't be what I am and around the others without you, and that's everything to me. I'm glad I got to know you."
Ryoji blinked, then laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck bashfully. "No regrets or hard feelings?"
"Nothing I can't get over. It was a mess for both of us, but that doesn't change anything. I appreciate all that you're doing for me."
Ryoji nodded and took the offered hand in a firm shake. "You're welcome, Onii-chan. I'm glad I could help."
Minato willed his power into the other, and the circuit connected through their hands. To Minato, it felt like being emptied, poured out, and the place where his Personas slept felt much smaller and more confined. XVII flashed in front of his eyes as one aspect of his Personas remained, the six-winged angel of light, and he adjusted to the new normal. More than that, the threads that were his bonds loosened from him and enwrapped Ryoji, feeling just as smooth and natural.
"A perfect transfer, Arisato-sama," Elizabeth said, pulling out a large tome. "I will begin. As I said, return to your body post-haste. You are diminished, and the Seal will not take long to react."
Feeling started to return to Minato's limbs. First his fingers and toes tingled, then his hands and feet, and warmth returned to him slowly until his torso felt nimble and loose. A weightlessness came to him and it was like he was floating in water. He knew he was free then, and moved around like he had when he was normal.
An imminent sense of danger crowded his senses then, the instinct of being sighted by a threat. Minato took one last glance at where Elizabeth and Ryoji stood, nodded in gratitude, then ran for the door. He was out and plummeting like a falling star, his shoulders burning like he'd sprouted wings, and he raced the grasping tendrils of the Seal back to his body.
They were like thorny vines, he noted distantly. When they came close he lashed out with a blade of light made from his will, but whatever he cut grew back immediately and chased him. He put his focus into flying and moved as fast as he could.
Something he wasn't expecting was a flood of memories that hit him. Not memories of the Seal, but of his body. They were short flashes of emotion and sensation that nonetheless buoyed his spirit. He felt Akihiko's frustration at his condition and the punch to his shoulder, "You said you'd be there for her, so what the hell did you do this time?!" ringing in his ears just before the nurses came in. Minato heard Ken's shaking prayers while Koromaru licked his fingers and leaned against his hand. Yukari and Aigis talked to him about the personal progress they were making with soft hope and encouragement, Fuuka fretted and wrung her hands, and Junpei brought food and waved it under his nose. "Come on, this stuff is good. You have to come back if you want it, or I'll just eat it myself.
Minato was going to have to get even with him for that one. Those were his favourite burgers, and he was hungry now that he was free.
Most precious of all those memories was the gentle, loving sensation of Mitsuru the entire time. Her touch on his arm and face, her voice and smell, even the soft presence at his side like when they shared a bed, all suggested that she had indeed been sleeping next to him since he'd left. The feeling that was uniquely her, the bright light that made up his world when she was present, ran through his veins with every heartbeat. The memories fuelled him and guided him, and he got his bearings and accelerated.
Right then, Juno's beacon lit up brighter than ever. It felt farther away than when he'd been part of the Seal, but there it was, like a signal to guide him home exactly when he needed it. He adjusted course and flew fast.
Then a tendril lashed at the sole of his foot, sending sharp ice up the limb. It wasn't just the pain that Minato took notice of, but the ominous threat that accompanied it, the promise of being drawn back into the Seal and becoming mortar instead of an anchor.
Minato grit his teeth and pushed past it, then pushed even harder, the tendrils in close, furious pursuit.
"I'm telling you," Junpei said, "you need to stop fretting. He fought Nyx off on his own, so of course he's going to need a rest."
"I hope you're right," Fuuka admitted, "but something else to go off of would be nice." It had been almost a week since Yukari and Aigis had talked to her, expressing their concerns about Ken and Mitsuru. Fuuka had looked for Minato then, pushed herself so hard she'd blacked out and caught hell from the hospital staff. Still nothing definitive, but at the end it had felt like there was a shift of some kind, as though things were moving somehow. Then she'd fallen into unconsciousness, and she didn't know if she had felt that or imagined it. She wasn't eager to try again, not just yet.
All the same, she told the others. They needed something to give them hope.
Junpei opened the bag of burgers and fries he'd brought with him. There was no sense in them keeping watch while hungry, he'd argued, and had then proceeded to wave one of the burgers under Minato-kun's nose. When nothing changed on the medical monitors, Junpei had frowned, said, "Hm. These are his favourites, too," then shrugged and ate the burger himself. Now as then, he'd brought some of Minato's favourites and said, "C'mon, wake up or I'll eat these too," and sat in the chair.
Fuuka picked up her burger and fries, eating with more restraint than her companion. She wouldn't say it out loud, but she appreciated Junpei's devil-may-care attitude. The others were as serious as any about getting Minato back, but they were exactly that: serious. Junpei was able to smile still, and Aigis held onto hope throughout it all, and that's what Fuuka needed. When surrounded by the stark reality of their situation, one needed a way to step back from it all and regain some perspective. So here she was, eating lunch. It was either be here with him or spend another day hugging Koromaru and having her worries licked away.
No one could deny that their canine companion gave great kisses, and more than one of the team had availed themselves of such services since this had started.
She munched on a fry, ignoring any looks from the nurses given how unhealthy their meal might be, and looked at their slumbering friend. "We miss you. Come back soon."
He was slowing down. Fuuka's beacon had gone out before he could get to it and the tendrils had sent him spiralling off course. By the time he'd adjusted, he'd taken two more hits and lost his momentum, then was reduced to fighting and running. He dodged back and cut and bolted, relying on his senses to guide him. He was close. Past the noise of the tendrils and the angry drone of the Seal was the pervasive sense of himself, pulling like a magnet and drawing him to where he had to get to.
The problem was getting there. Instead of feeling like he was falling and flying, now he had to climb a towering, indistinct hill. He knew where the handholds were, and he moved like he'd been scaling rock his whole life, but the Seal was doing the same thing, snapping at his heels with every move and pushing him hard.
Another hit, more cold, and he barely missed being grabbed. He blasted his way up and climbed with everything he could, even as he felt it all closing in on him.
Two more leaps and a jump, a blast to one side, but then the Seal grabbed at his foot, winding tight. Minato shivered as the heat and even his memories were being drained from him, the insidious lure of the stone welcoming him back. He ground his teeth and pulled, using his Persona's last dregs of power to rip free, minus a foot, and block out the pain. A few minutes later it was the opposite leg below the knee that was snagged, and he cut it away as well. He'd risk crippling himself, risk doing irreparable damage to his psyche, if it meant getting away. The tendrils hung in the air, disintegrating the leg he'd left behind, and he scrabbled up and up, higher and faster. Almost there, almost, almost!
Then the appendages snapped up around his torso, digging into his flesh and pulling back. Minato growled and yanked forward, feeling his body ripping open as he forced himself forward by inches, then bleed and leak as he pulled ahead even further. He could feel it, so close it was like a taste on the end of his tongue. Then the Seal ran up his back, circled his neck, and began to constrict. It grabbed one hand that came back after pulling forward, enveloping him and dragging him into nothingness.
"Not… yet…" he ground out, and reached his free hand, the only limb he had left, out one last time. Maybe this was it, but he wasn't going down without fighting with everything he had.
He pushed to his fullest, hand trembling and fingers shaking, stretching out with all that was left of him as darkness swooped in.
Then, with the tip of his finger, he touched something.
The Seal stopped, frozen fast. The tendrils trembled, the thorns cracked, and the pressure eased.
In front of Minato, sunlight breached the infinite murky dark. The scar on the back of his hand, almost forgotten from the sparring match so long ago and the first mark Mitsuru had ever left on him, flickered, then glowed, and then burned bright with fire and the promise of dawn. It shone into his face, broke down the tendrils and blew them away like so much dust. It ran the length of his body and restored all feeling of his limbs, gave him back what he'd nearly lost for good. It brightened in his eyes until he had to look away, pulling him up into a disorienting tumble that gently closed in around him like a blanket.
A second later, he felt a numb prick in his arm, heard the regular beeping of medical equipment, and got a nose full of oxygen. He ached all over, and cracked an eye open to look up at a familiar ceiling. He knew this place, knew this room, and he'd woken up in this very condition before. Well, maybe not exactly like this, but pretty close.
He glanced down. An IV was in one arm, feeding him fluids, and he could barely move his body. The sunlight had been from the window, open and allowing a gentle breeze in.
"Gotta say," Junpei was saying from nearby, "this stuff is great. Whoever Minato got the inside track from, all those restaurants I never knew were there? Guy really knows his food."
He was back. He'd made it. Minato chuckled, might have laughed except he breathed at the wrong time and started coughing from the oxygen tubes in his nose. He couldn't cover his mouth, but he could shake the tubes out and test his lungs on his own.
It might have been the best breath he'd ever taken.
Nearby, two chairs crashed into the wall and his bed, respectively.
"Mi… Minato-kun?" a familiar voice asked.
He glanced up and saw Fuuka nearby, eyes wide and one hand to her chest with the other half reached out to him like she was worried he'd disappear if she touched him.
"No way…" Junpei muttered, looking just as astounded.
Minato shuffled on the bed, tried to sit up, but all he accomplished was proving how little he could move; he was as weak as a newborn kitten. But he could still talk, or at least try to. "Hey, Fuuka," he rasped. His voice was even worse here than it had been with Ryoji and Elizabeth, and that was saying something. "Your hair's longer."
She touched it unconsciously, realizing that a mirage wouldn't make such a mundane statement, and tears began to fall. "You're… you're really here?"
"Yeah. Thanks for giving me something to follow."
"What do you mean?"
"When you were looking for me. Juno gave light off, helped me find my way back. I probably wouldn't have made it if you hadn't done that."
Fuuka nodded and wept into her hands, saying, "Thank you," and "I'm so glad," over and over.
Junpei looked just as poleaxed, and Minato glanced over. "That was a dirty trick, you know."
"Wh-what?"
"Bringing my favourite stuff in here. Double burger with onions and extra sauce. Don't tell me you ate it."
"That… that was like three weeks ago, how did-" Junpei grinned. "You felt that? You're really back?"
"Yeah."
Fuuka wept and laughed, holding his hand and squeezing, while Junpei just laughed. "I knew it. I knew it! You little shit, you had us all worried to death, but I knew you just needed a snooze and you'd be fine!"
"There was a bit more to it than that," Minato noted, "but pretty close."
Fuuka brushed her tears away and got her phone out. "I'll tell the others. They'll kill me if I don't say anything."
Minato glanced out the window. "How long was I out?"
"It's March 2nd," Junpei said. "That was one hell of a nap."
Two months. He'd been here for sixty-one solid days even if it only felt like a few weeks on the other side. No wonder his muscles felt terrible.
"But you're back for good, right? Not going back to sleep?"
"Not if I can say something about it."
There was a rumble of footsteps outside. The door flew open and Yukari, Akihiko and Aigis came in, eyes wild and mouths open. No one spoke at first, trying, as Fuuka had, to reconcile the non-responsive guy on the bed they'd seen before with the mostly-responsive guy there now. Aigis was the first one to move forward, a genuine and human-looking smile on her face. "Welcome back, Minato-san. We have missed you."
"Glad to be back, Aigis. Thanks for the visits. You're getting better at talking to people, are you?"
Aigis's smile widened. "That is correct, and I am… experiencing so many emotional runtimes right now that I cannot speak clearly."
"That's probably the most important part of being alive. I'm glad to hear you've gotten this far." Minato looked at Akihiko next. "Punching a cripple should be a crime, you know. I'm pretty sure it is, somewhere in the world."
The boxer snorted, brushing at his eyes. "You had it coming, leaving us like that. Where the hell have you been?"
"That's a long story. I hope Mitsuru didn't chew you out too much."
Akihiko shivered. "The less said about that, the better."
Minato looked at Yukari last. "Thanks for the jolt. It helped."
"The jolt… you mean the healing?"
"Yeah. Right thing at the right time."
"I… I didn't think…" She wept softly and covered her mouth. "You're such a jerk, making us worry like that. Seriously, who the hell do you think you are, dropping out and scaring us?"
"Your best friend, of course."
She wept and smiled. "Jerk."
More footsteps, and accompanied by nails on the floor this time. Ken and Koromaru turned the corner and skidded into Akihiko. Ken came to the bed, crucifix in his hand, while Koro jumped up on one of the chairs.
"And you two," Minato continued like it was nothing, "here almost as often as Aigis? Really? You guys need a life."
Koro barked, tongue lolling out to the side before he stretched out enough to lick Minato's hand. Ken approached, trembling but sporting a watery smile. "I… I really thought…"
Minato strained his muscles, lifting his arm enough to pat Ken's shoulder clumsily. "I made it back thanks to everyone. That means you too. I promised, and I wasn't going to leave you behind."
Ken clasped his hand and nodded, trying to hold back the tears and failing terribly.
"You really had us worried," Junpei said. "Sleeping or not, the least you could have done was left a note or called us or something."
"No kidding," Yukari added. "Do you know how much Mitsuru has–"
The approaching footsteps were ones that they all knew. Seconds later, she turned the corner, red hair glistening in the light like she'd just dried it, clothes clean and pressed. She looked at the crew silently, took in their presence, and then turned to Minato.
She was, he knew then, the most beautiful girl he'd ever laid eyes on. Ryoji could have his university swim team all he wanted – he could even make his own fan club complete with grade-A models and professional hostesses – it didn't hold a spark to red eyes (baggy and tired) and the smile she was trying to hold back.
"You're back?" she asked, all business as she slowly came to his side. Koro and Ken vacated their spaces to let her in.
"Yeah." The hero always had a cool line at a time like this, so Minato murmured, "I came back for you."
The crew either laughed or sighed or rolled their eyes, but Mitsuru just came closer. "There's a problem here," she admitted.
"What's that?"
She leaned down next to him, close enough to whisper. "I've dreamt of this so many times, and this feels like another dream. You're going to move or say something and then vanish when I wake up, aren't you?"
That was a tough problem. He could see her dilemma. "You dreamed of me that often, huh?"
"Every night."
"So I guess if I do anything familiar, that wouldn't change your mind, would it?"
"Correct."
Minato thought for a second, then grinned and gestured her even closer. "You know you snore, Mitsy."
She made an indignant sound of protest in her throat, turned and glared at him.
He struggled to get his hand up, but he did and stroked her arm. "Did I ever say that?"
It took a few seconds, but her anger melted and tears welled up in her eyes. "Elizabeth-san did it, didn't she?"
"Yeah, she did. She said you two talked. It was what persuaded her to help."
"I thought… I wanted…" Mitsuru fell against him and wept, letting loose the pain and agony of the last two months while Minato embraced her as much as his atrophied arms would allow.
"It got me back here," he assured her. "Thanks, Mitsuru."
Her sobs took on a joyful note as she hugged him tight.
Minato looked at his girl, the familiar sense of peace coming over him. He'd pushed through Nyx and the Seal to get here, had shredded his spirit and been put back together, and as he stroked her back and looked at his team where there was nary a dry eye to be found – not even from Akihiko, who turned to the side to wipe the tears away – he knew his fight was, at long last, finally at an end.
"Just don't ever do that again," Yukari told him. "Seriously. We'll have to hurt you if you ever pull this stunt a second time."
"Welcome back, Minato-san," Aigis added.
The words came to mind easily, the only ones that fit with this merry band of rogues who had become his closest friends and new family. The future they'd fought for, that they'd bled and suffered for, finally felt like the promise of tomorrow and every day after. Minato knew he wouldn't want to be anywhere else, and he told them:
"I'm home."
