Ello! Get ready for a loooong chapter with CD and some truths. Also, I see some people want to see a love triangle and well... let me tell you why that can't/won't happen.
1) It completely shits on Minato's and Pharos' relationship which is even stronger than Minato and Hamuko. Yes, I shit you not. Pharos loves Minato to death (snrk, HAHAHAHA!) and I really don't think he'll fight Minato over Hamuko. Small trivia, if Ryoji did end up getting in Hamuko's pants, he'd regret that for the rest of his life. Hell, he'd suicide. Don't see Ryoji fighting Minato for Hamuko, if anything... just wait and see.
2) If Hamuko ends up falling for Ryoji, after 82 chapters of fluff and build up with Minato... then she'll turn into what I dislike, rather an interpenetration and version that I dislike. It would be so freaking weird to see her falling for someone else when she's so close to Minato, it shits on her character and kinda lowers her morality. I dunno about you guys, but Hamuko sleeping around with other guys is nothing new. :T People forget that Hamuko is a freaking wild card herself, she deserves good character development and moments just like Minato. I really, really wish to go back and fix what I did wrong but... Nope, out of writing juice now. I handled her character badly because I just followed the others, well, not anymore.
3) TBH, I ain't that good of a writer to pull a love triangle off. :T sorry for that, but I struggle with regular fluff and writing a trinagle... yyeah, out of my element, sorry for the disappointment.
Bloodlust was always supposed to be more action driven, that's always what I wanted, that's what I'm decent at writing, battles and action but I ended up screwing the story due to the precedent set by others. I actually planned a love triangle, hell, a love rectangle between Minato, Hamuko. Yukari, Shinjiro/Akihiko but... like I said, BL isn't about that. This is about demons, death and rebirth, bonds and friendship. Reason why Yukari got some sense after this returned from hiatus. So yeah guys, I'm sorry to disappoint you again. I try to go with what you say but... I can't fulfill every request. If you wanna drop then I understand and thank you for reading so far. o/
Godddamn I ramble, but I wanted to get that off. Also Guest, thank you but this is the end, after these two stories, I'm gone, thank you everyone for the support you've shown so far, no more boring rambling, hopefully you enjoy!
Mitsuru pushed the door to the dorm open and Aigis stepped inside slowly, remorse evident on her normally stoic face. She stood at the doorway and scanned the lounge to locate Hamuko but to her dismay, she wasn't there.
"Hey, it's Ai-chan!" Junpei cried, alerting everyone present in the lounge.
"Thank God!" Fuuka sighed, giving the android a smile.
"Hey," Akihiko came out from the kitchen, giving her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about the battle-"
"No, it was my fault," Aigis cut in, bowing deep. "I am sorry for attacking you all, I just could not find the strength to defy his order… He used me like the machine I am."
"Hey, don't talk like that!" Yukari scolded. "I'm just glad you are up again."
"Besides Aigis," Mitsuru slammed the door shut and massaged her temples, letting out a tired sigh which made Akihiko look at her in worry. "Now is not the time for that, we have much bigger issues at hand."
"Is Hamuko-san, alright?" Aigis asked in a split second, and Mitsuru shook her head.
"Physically, she's alright but mentally, she is not there," the redhead replied. "She barely comes out of her room ever since the last battle…" she turned to Yukari. "Where is she right now?"
"She's with Minato," Yukari replied.
"Oh, that's a little nice to hear, as long as she isn't begging him to get up," Mitsuru scowled.
"What went wrong, Mitsuru-san?" Aigis sat down on the couch. "I am aware we won the battle and Minato defeated Takaya, I cannot remember what happened after that."
"We don't know either," Akihiko said. "There is one thing you need to know, there is another enemy roaming around us and he's hell-bent on making Minato's life a living hell."
"Does he still breathe?" Aigis blinked, making everyone cringe, she was referring to the old Minato who used to maim anybody who did him wrong, if only she knew. "Has Minato finished him off yet or is he playing with him?"
"The Minato you are referring to is no more," Mitsuru said with a grimace, making Aigis blink again.
"We can't explain it," Yukari continued. "He won the battle against Takaya but when he came out, he just…. Collapsed…"
"He just cried and cried and begged us to forgive him," Junpei winced upon remembering the scene; he had never seen someone cry like that, so hollow yet so full of remorse. "He just broke down and fell at the gate."
"Ever since then, a shadow like creature has been after him," Mitsuru said. "We do not know who he is…"
"Or what he is," Fuuka added. "I cannot sense whether he is a shadow or a human, call I sense is grief and rage."
"That shadow, calls himself Makoto and he has damaged Minato beyond repair," Mitsuru said, widening the eyes of the mechanical female.
"What do you mean-"
"He's half blind for life," Junpei bit his lip. "That bastard stabbed his eye…."
"Not just that, he has beaten Minato to near death so many times…." Mitsuru pursed her lips. "I cannot go into details but what he put Minato through was inhumane…."
Aigis stood up immediately, her processors still trying to process the information relayed to her. Was there something wrong inside of her? Usually, it was Minato who maimed and brutalized but according to them, he was the victim this time.
"Am I fully optimized?" Aigis turned to the heiress. "Am I mixing up the names?"
"No, you heard it right," Mitsuru grimaced. "Minato is the victim and he's half-dead right now."
"I wish to see him," Aigis said. "Where is he?"
"Don't try anything…." Mitsuru warned. Aigis had gotten into a few brawls with Minato whenever he interacted with Hamuko and currently, he was completely defenseless and a single bullet could very likely kill him.
"I will not," Aigis promised, hanging her head low. "I dislike him greatly but I understand his relationship with Hamuko-san. If I wanted him dead, I would have done so long ago…"
"Hamuko is already there so maybe she can handle it," Fuuka said. "Also, I highly doubt Aigis will do anything to hurt Hamuko…"
"Very well," Mitsuru allowed. "You might be in for a surprise, do not panic too much, I'm sure that's the last thing the two need…"
Aigis nodded and went up the steps. She glanced at the far end of the hall and frowned. Blood, gallons of it, she could get the stench all the way from there. She quickly ran over to the door to Minato's room, trying to push back her dislike for the demented blunet.
"I hope Hamuko-san is okay…" she whispered and quietly opened the door before taking a step aside. She looked ahead and froze on the spot, her hand crushing the doorknob as the shock of the scene rattled her system badly.
"…" if she wasn't equipped with heart-beat and pulse scanners, Aigis would have surely thought that the male on the bed was dead. She doubled checked her scanners and confirmed, there was a heart-beat in Minato, by some insane miracle because his condition was worse than a car crash victim. "I did not expect this…" she wobbled forward, her blue eyes carefully studying the battered persona user.
For once, she didn't pay too much attention to Hamuko who was sleeping on the edge of his bed and just kept her stare on Minato and for the first time ever, Aigis flinched at the wounds. She never paid attention to the pain Minato got, not even during his darkest days but this time she felt it, she felt for Minato.
"Minato-san?" she mumbled, speeding over to the blunet who didn't notice her arrival. Minato was still drugged out of his mind, forced into a deep sleep and tied to the bed so that he wouldn't escape. "What happened to you…?"
The evil and malicious energy that she felt from him was long. It had left him, left him a helpless victim. Aigis heated up again and a foreign feeling flooded into her, the feeling of remorse and regret, which was new, especially in regards to Minato whom she absolutely detested before.
"I am not malfunctioning…." she said inwardly, this was real, the remorse she felt was real; it was too strong to be an error. She felt the exact same thing for Hamuko and now, for Minato. She glanced at the side table to see a number of pills and shots that were surely used to put Minato to sleep.
"This torture…." she muttered, slowly lifting up his t-shirt to see numerous wounds and injections marks. "I-I never wanted this to happen…."
"Minato-san," Aigis squeezed his hand softly, lowering her head. "I apologize for all I've done to you…."
"I never wanted this to happen to you…." she said slowly. Aigis was shaking with regret as she thought back to all the fights she had against Minato, kept him away from Hamuko and never cared for her, no matter how loudly he cried in pain. "Why am I like this?" she wondered. "Why now?" she never felt this way to Minato before but now, she held a desire.
A burning desire to protect him at all costs, just like she wanted to protect Hamuko….
Aigis glanced at his purple wrists and slowly loosened the ropes around his hands, freeing him a little. She then crouched down and pulled the battered teenager close to her, hugging him carefully to avoid more pain to him. "Minato-san…" she cringed at the cold frame of his, it was like he was dead and devoid of life but she could feel his heart beating against her and it gave her some comfort.
"Aigis?" the low voice made the android look at the side but she didn't release the hug around Minato.
Hamuko rubbed her eyes and faced the android. "You came back…" she smiled slightly, Aigis was hugging Minato and he needed that. "Aigis, look what that bastard did to my Minato…"
"Where were you?" Aigis questioned.
Hamuko widened her eyes and looked away. It was an innocent question but yet another slap to her face. She wasn't wrong to ask that.
"I…."
"How could you allow this to happen to YOUR Minato?" she questioned again and Hamuko remained silent, refusing to meet her gaze like she usually did to others.
Mitsuru opened the door and finally smiled at the sight. Aigis was hugging Minato, clutching onto him like she was holding onto dear life and despite being a robot, regret was evident in her features, regret and retribution.
"He needs that, Aigis," Mitsuru said, stepping inside the room.
"Mitsuru-san," Aigis said. "I have been malfunctioning the entire time…" she admitted with a shaky voice, laced with regret.
"It's alright, Aigis," Mitsuru assured. "Just protect him now, he needs you."
"I will," Aigis swore, gently caressing the prominent wound on Minato's cheek. "With all that I have."
Mitsuru then turned to Hamuko who was slow to getting up to her feet. "He needs you too… Please understand that."
Hamuko opened her mouth to argue but Elizabeth's words rang inside her head, making her slump her shoulder and give out a defeated sigh. "I-I know…"
"You guys were right," Hamuko admitted. "I've always been a gutless weakling who hid behind him when times got tough…"
"That's not what I meant,"
"But that is the truth," Hamuko said. "It's alright to depend on your loved ones but not this much…. I've been able to battle because I knew Minato was around, when he's not…. I'm nothing but a child."
Hamuko wiped her eyes and stumbled her way out. "My eyes are opened, he needs me but…. I'm still too afraid and powerless…"
"Tch," Mitsuru clicked her tongue.
Hamuko looked back at her with defeat written all over her face. "I'm the worst friend, girlfriend, human being ever. You were right, I'm not Minato and I never will be…" with that, she left for her room.
Mitsuru turned around. "You can let go of him now, Aigis."
"Not yet…" Aigis said, resting her chin on top of his head.
Mitsuru chuckled. "Very well, watch over him…"
…
Aigis saw Hamuko weeping on the third floor lounge and walked over to her, sitting on the chair beside her. Hamuko noticed her presence and looked at the android. "Aigis…." she mumbled.
"Hamuko-san…." Aigis said slowly, giving her a hanky to clean her tears.
Hamuko took it and wiped her eyes and face clean. "Aigis, he'll come again…"
"…"
"He'll come back to torture Minato," Hamuko sniffed. "He'll mock me and abuse Minato right in front of me."
"Hamuko-san…"
"And like always, I'll be lost," Hamuko admitted. "This isn't fair!"
"This isn't fair to Minato!" Hamuko cried. "But yet, I'm shaking at the thought of him coming here, I'm terrified Aigis and I know I'll do nothing…"
"Hamuko-san, fear is normal," Aigis said, squeezing her shoulder. Minato-san was always scared when he fought, I could sense it."
Hamuko looked at her. "He was scared for me…."
"…"
"He was never afraid of his own well-being," Hamuko said, the battle against Theodore proved that he never gave a crap about his own health, or about the pain coming to him, but yet….
"I'm afraid, petrified for myself," Hamuko said. "It's so selfish but no matter how hard I try, Makoto breaks me down…"
The redhead focused her attention on Aigis again. "H-He tried to rape me…."
Aigis opened her mouth in shock.
"I barely summoned enough confidence to face him and it only took a few minutes and he crushed me," Hamuko said. "I'm just scared of him, he terrifies me, and he's like the childhood monster you never seem to overcome…."
It was the cold, hard truth. Makoto reeked off the same aura that she experienced at the bridge ten years ago, that deathly feeling always haunted her, it gave her nightmares and a nasty scar on her psyche which never seemed to heal. He lacked the warmth of Minato, he was so similar to the blunet but he lacked the most important thing that Minato had.
Why was he calling Minato a monster? That bastard didn't have a single redeeming quality, unlike Minato.
"I pray that someone comes in and beats him for good, because it won't be me," Hamuko started sobbing again. "And yet, I know I'll end up hurting myself further, I'll never forgive myself and I'll never be able to look Minato in the eye if I am not the one to beat Makoto, if I don't save Minato…. I'm dead…."
Aigis patted her head. "Cry, Hamuko-san…"
Hamuko did just that, wailing and sobbing at the top of her lungs, uncontrollably, not caring for the exhaustion, not caring about how ugly she looked; she just sat and cried as Aigis tried her best to console her.
"Hopefully, it will feel a little bit better," Aigis whispered.
"It never will," Hamuko hiccupped, pulling on her hair and screaming out in agony. "I cost him everything, he'll never be the same again!"
"…" Aigis winced.
"All because of me!"
…
Mitsuru gathered up the team on the lounge when the Dark Hour struck the world, they had Aigis and for the first time in a while, they were healed and ready for the arrival of the damn shadow.
But yet, he never came.
Fuuka started searching the entire city for his presence which was so easy to locate but he wasn't there. Nowhere, to be in fact….
"Minato!" Hamuko's cry came from upstairs.
"Not again," Akihiko hissed but before he could even turn, Aigis raced up the steps and the others quickly followed.
Hamuko grabbed onto Minato's waist and cringed upon feeling the wounds. "Hold up!" she pulled him back from the window and held him in place. Minato started thrashing and eventually pushed her away.
Hamuko lunged at him again, putting him back-first against the wall and putting her weight on him to slow him down. "I won't let this happen!"
"Minato!" she called out. He was there; she just had to reach him….
There was no response, only a struggle.
"Minato, it's me!" Hamuko pulled back and pinned his hand against the wall, finally looking him deep in his working eye. "Hamuko! I'm here for you."
Minato screamed and thrashed again, hitting the redhead a bunch of times. Hamuko swallowed the pain and tightly hugged him against the wall. "It's alright…"
For once, Minato calmed down in her embrace, he stopped moving and collapsed on top of her due to all the pain and fatigue.
"That's right…" she stroked his head softly and smiled as the blunet got warmer somewhat, like the dread inside him was getting washed away. "I'm here for you, Minato…"
Aigis and the others came into his room and saw Hamuko embracing Minato who for first in a long while stood there, slightly hunched over.
"She calmed him down…" Yukari smiled. "Told you guys…"
Hamuko pulled away from the hug and stroked his cheek softly, smiling at him. The gnarly wounds sickened her but she had to remain strong for him, she was the only one who could calm him down.
"Excellent," Mitsuru smiled. "I knew she could do it…."
Hamuko widened her smile, looking Minato deep in his eye. He still looked horror struck and depressed but there was definitely a little bit of fire now. He was not thrashing and looking to hurt himself and that was a major improvement.
"It'll be okay, Minato," Hamuko assured, leaning her head closer and standing on her toes. "Everything will be fine."
Minato stared at her with his vacant eye. Hamuko flinched a tad bit but never shied away, she cleaned the blood from his cheek and face, still forcing a smile at him.
"I'm here for you," Hamuko said softly. "They're here for you…"
Minato calmed down some more as Hamuko squeezed his hand and shoulder to comfort him. "Remember the time we spent together…."
Minato blinked rapidly.
"Let me take care of you," Hamuko urged. "Please, let me help you Minato, let me heal you…."
"Don't listen to her!"
Hamuko finally blinked as the coldness and grief returned to Minato. He saw the flinch, the blink and fear from the redhead and crumbled again.
"You don't deserve to live, you piece of trash!"
Minato lost the calmness and warmth and screeched in Hamuko's face, before pushing her away to the opposite end of the room. She crashed head-first into the wall and collapsed to the ground.
"Catch him!" Mitsuru shouted.
Akihiko, Aigis and Junpei lunged at Minato, pulling him away from the window, until Minato started struggling, pushing all three of them away.
Aigis came back first and held him away from the window. "Please Minato-san…" she whispered, literally picking him up and forcing him to the other side with ease.
"I do not wish further pain on you," Aigis said, until Minato smashed the back of his head into her face. Aigis took the blow pretty well until the wound on the back of his head opened up, showering the android with his blood, making her reel back in shock and horror.
Akihiko forced Minato to the ground and Junpei pinned his hands against the ground. "What the heck!? Makoto isn't there so why is Minato still struggling!?"
"I'm not going to knock him out again," Akihiko spat. "Get the damn pills!"
Yukari brought them over and Akihiko shoved the pills inside his throat. He placed his weight on Minato for a while until the fool fell to the effect of the tranquilizers and slipped to sleep once again.
Mitsuru helped Hamuko up and smiled at her. "I'm proud of you…."
"What for?" Hamuko said. "He's still in pain…"
"You tried," Mitsuru patted her shoulder. "He's still there Hamuko, he listened to you, and you're the only one who can reach him…"
Hamuko blinked, a little more confident after hearing that.
Aigis picked Minato up and rested him on the bed.
"Well, time to change his clothes now," Akihiko said. "Junpei?" he turned to the capped teen.
"I shall take care of that," Aigis said, standing up and walking over to his closet.
"Well, okay, if of course Yuka-tan has no objections," Junpei snickered, looking over to the brunette.
"Of course not!" Yukari spat.
"Yukari-san, can you get me a cloth, bowl of water and the first aid-kid?" Aigis said, casually stripping Minato's shirt. She looked away briefly due to the deep wounds but pulled the fresh shirt on him before resting him back to bed.
"Yes…" Yukari said and left for the kitchen.
Junpei walked over to Minato and leaned down. "See that Minato? We're all here for you man."
Yukari brought Aigis the supplies that she had requested. "Thank you. All of you can rest now, I will watch over him."
"I'll stay here too," Hamuko said, standing by the bed.
Mitsuru smiled again. "Good night."
"I'm proud of you Hamuko," Yukari grinned. "Sweet dreams!" and the rest left for their rooms. Hamuko grabbed the cloth and dipped it in water, before she started cleaning his face from the blood.
"You should sleep soon," Aigis said.
"Not anytime soon," Hamuko shook her head, a little more confident than before. She was finally able to look at Minato at his wounds without blanching or vomiting. She squeezed his hand again and sighed. At least Makoto wasn't coming, God knows where he was but at least they got a day of respite.
….
The team waited for the shadow on the next day, and the day after that and so on but he never came, neither could Fuuka or Mitsuru sense him. It was puzzling, he was so hell-bent on torturing Minato so why wasn't he attacking the dorm?
"This is weird…" Junpei said. "Did someone beat him?"
"Who could?" Akihiko replied. "I seriously don't see anyone beating him."
Minato's scream came from upstairs and they all ran towards his room. This was a nightly occurrence, Minato came alive during the Dark Hour and went wild and desperately trying to get out of the dorm but Aigis was able to restrain him always.
"Hmmm…" Mitsuru mused. Clock was ticking, Minato wasn't getting any better and Makoto wasn't coming to them. There was no improvement in the situation so on the 7th day, Mitsuru ordered Aigis to stand aside and allow Minato to move.
"Are you sure?" Akihiko asked as Minato brushed past him like a man possessed.
"Follow him," Mitsuru said.
"But-" Hamuko opened her mouth.
"You can't win if you don't take risks," Mitsuru said, pulling out her evoker. "I think I may have the answer to Makoto, I'm sorry to use Minato like this but we may finally get the answer tonight."
"Minato," Hamuko bit her lip.
"Are you coming?" Yukari asked.
"Y-Yeah," Hamuko grabbed a hold of Minato's trademark sword and followed the rest. She needed an answer too and hopefully, the answer would provide a clue to the solution.
Everyone followed Minato who limped his way towards the tower of demise. He tripped and collapsed several times but never stopped moving. "I think…." Mitsuru bit her lip. "Yes…."
"Poor Minato…" the redhead winced. This was only a theory but it was so sad and depressing.
Minato finally made his way into Tartarus, eyes still glazed over. He stepped into the lobby and looked around the place.
"Minato!" Hamuko shouted at him but he didn't seem to listen. The redhead took a step forward but another bloodcurdling scream akin to one he released after the last battle exploded from his vocal cords, rattling Hamuko who stepped backwards.
Minato was screaming on the top of his lungs just like he did before, hollow yet so full of grief.
"Forgive me!"
The team watched on as the dark mist spiraled and evaporated from his body, just like it did that night.
Mitsuru stepped forward. Maybe she was right.
"No Minato," the heiress yelled at him. "Don't do it!"
Minato collapsed to his knees and kept screaming his soul out in horror and sorrow. The mist around his got thicker and starting evaporating furiously from his frame.
"Fight it!" Mitsuru kept screaming. "You have us here, we want you to live!"
He didn't stop but Mitsuru kept on encouraging him. "Let it go!"
"You don't deserve this!"
"We forgive you!"
"Too late," the cold voice alerted the members of SEES and Hamuko quickly hid behind Aigis.
"Fuck!" Akihiko cursed. He was here, Makoto was back. What the hell did this mean?
Makoto emerged from the vortex of dark mist that Minato had expelled. He kicked the blunet to the ground and smirked devilishly at the teenagers. "Thank you for allowing him to come here…"
"It is just as I feared," Mitsuru spat. "You wonder you appeared out of nowhere that night."
Aigis stepped forward with a frown. "I will kill you…." she promised, the coldness behind her voice managed to surprise the others. She was brewing with hate and rage inside and they had never seen Aigis like that.
"Disappointing," Makoto spat. "You were the only one who could see through his bullshit but now, here you are, devoted to a demon like him."
"The only demon here is you," Aigis spat. "I WILL kill you."
"Fucking disgraceful!" Makoto shook his head. "What happened to you all? Everyone, except that rotten bitch was able to see through him at first, what made you befriend a piece of shit like him?"
"Bonds," Junpei hissed. "The hell do you know?"
Makoto, for the first time ever, didn't answer back and kicked Minato in his wounds, seemingly out of wit.
Aigis bolted towards him. He wasn't going to torture Minato any longer, not on her watch. Makoto smirked and waited for her charge. He dodged her fist at the last second and fired back.
Aigis weaved through the strike and slammed her fist into Makoto's gut.
"Hahaha," the shadow laughed eerily, not bothered by the hit.
"Hm," Aigis backed off and looked around the place. Like Mitsuru had said, she wasn't able to hurt him, but…
Makoto edged her to try some more. "Come on robo-bitch," he mocked, using the insult that Minato came up with. "Does this remind you of someone?"
"That will not work on me," Aigis said. "Does that make you angry?"
Makoto howled and ran for her.
"Stay back," Aigis warned the others and pointed her fingers towards the incoming shadow, firing dozens of bullet towards Makoto who as usual didn't feel the pain but he did hesitate in his steps, something that Mitsuru and Aigis caught.
Aigis stopped firing and allowed Makoto to punch her on the chest. It hurt but she endured the pain and grabbed a hold of his wrist, stopping him in his tracks.
"You are exceedingly light," Aigis noted with a small smile. "I may not be able to hurt you…"
"Filthy bitch!" Makoto cursed in her face.
"But I can force you and I will," she said and launched the shadow towards the pillars. Makoto crashed into a couple and Aigis fired bullets soon after, crumbling the pillars and forcing the debris on top of the darkened teenager.
"He's weaker than before," Mitsuru noted. Aigis was easily able to throw him around and for some reason; he was taking a while to get up from the fall. "Hmmm…"
Makoto powered out of the debris and scowled at the android. "How dare you!?" he rushed forward, fists clenched at either side.
Aigis couldn't react in time and the punch sent her flying, crashing into the pillar that shattered partially on impact. She immediately stood up and saw the shadow running for her.
Aigis grabbed the large pillar and lifted it up with no problem. "This is for Minato-san," she looked over to the blunet and chucked the giant sculpture for Makoto who wasn't able to control it like Aigis did, and so he was forced backwards, until he was smashed into another pillar, sandwiched between the two.
"Go on Aigis…" Hamuko muttered. She was cheering her on but at the same time, she felt horrible. Aigis was the one avenging Minato and not her.
Makoto broke through the pillar and punched Aigis hard in the face.
Aigis caught his next strike and overpowered the shadow, continually smashing him against the ground without remorse.
"He's definitely weaker…" Mitsuru said and looked back at Minato, smiling at the wild card. "I'm proud of you Minato, you are truly someone special…"
Aigis launched the shadow towards the ceiling and Makoto's back collided into the structure above. He soon came crashing down and cursed the android. Aigis panted, those moves were taking a toll on her but she had a plan.
"That's right Aigis," Mitsuru commented. "Make it happen."
Aigis dashed forward after a brief nod, grabbing a hold of Makoto's throat.
"Ugh!" Makoto pulled it down and kneed her in the gut, dropping her to a knee. "I'm weakened?" he said slowly as the reality dawned on him. Yes, he was weakened which meant….
Makoto screeched out loud, making the lobby rumble. How dare them!? Minato was his to torture, he didn't deserve anything else. He punched and smashed Aigis into the ground and took off running towards Minato.
Aigis dove at his legs from behind. She couldn't beat him but in the lobby, she had a solution. Makoto tripped down and Aigis grabbed a hold of his ankle. She fixed her eyes on the access point and launched the shadow towards it.
Makoto caught himself in mid-air and ran for her again.
"Protect Minato!" Mitsuru ordered as the others formed a shield around the defenseless teenager.
"This is so annoying," Makoto spat as Aigis launched him to the other side of the room. Minato had struggled with her brute strength before and she was even stronger than before which was a pain in the ass. He caught the others forming a circle around Minato and lost it. "Get away from him!"
"You don't deserve happiness, you piece of shit!" Makoto yelled at Minato. "You have sinned ever since you were born!"
"Mmm…." Minato whimpered.
"Remember what you did to them!" Makoto kept screaming and his words reached Minato easily, adding to grief and…..
"No Minato, we forgive you!" Mitsuru shouted. "You need to let go!"
Aigis was sent soaring to the other side by a hook to her body. It was a lot harder than before for some reason, she was able to endure the punches before but he suddenly got a massive increase in power and speed, she didn't see the punch coming.
Makoto grinned, the power was returning to him. "Yes, you realize it don't you, Minato?"
"Senpai what is going on here?" Junpei asked.
"That monster…." Mitsuru said. "Minato has summoned it himself, by his own free will…. He wants this to happen."
"What!?" Fuuka cried.
"He wants to get beaten?" Yukari asked with wide-eyes. "What are you saying!?"
"I'm afraid this is the truth, Takeba," Mitsuru said. "That shadow is the personification of his grief, it was so strong that it was actually given a form, Makoto is the same as Minato, no wonder he fights and talks like him."
"He wants to get punished," Mitsuru said.
"Minato," Hamuko sobbed, looking over to the broken teenager. "Why….?"
"He wants himself to suffer because of all that he did," Mitsuru explained. "That's why he has mutilated himself; he wants to suffer for his sins…"
"He's doing this to himself," Mitsuru growled. "That shadow is his grief given form, his desire given form; he's Minato's own creation."
"He's doing that…." Junpei looked towards Makoto who was easily able to hammer Aigis, unlike before. Aigis wasn't able to keep up with his speed and power but just kept enduring the blows, determined to keep him away from Minato.
"Minato is doing that to himself…. For what he did to us….?" Junpei shook his head. That was so fucked up. He hated Minato at one point but he never wanted this to happen to him, despite all the bad-blood and hate between them, he had always respected Minato. He never wanted this to happen!
Akihiko shook his head furiously. "No, no, no!" he locked his gray eyes on the shadow. Minato had wronged him in the past but he never deserved this, he was not going to stand by and let Minato harm himself, they had battled before but that was in the past.
Junpei and Akihiko charged at the shadow, joining Aigis into pushing him backwards.
Makoto returned fire but they endured the pain, shrugged off the blows and kept punching and punching with all their might, despite knowing they couldn't hurt him, they kept raining blows on him, determined to show that Minato was forgiven.
"I will not allow this to happen," Mitsuru swore. "I will not allow Minato to punish himself like that…" the heiress said and ran over to join the three in pushing the shadow back.
"You fools!" Makoto growled, punching them back at full force but they were still refusing to stop. Mitsuru kept slashing and the other three kept punching, keeping him away from Minato and the other three females.
Soon, Ken joined and Makoto was crowded by the five persona-users.
Hamuko crawled over to Minato. It all made sense now, his constant attempt to hurt himself, him following Makoto blindly, Minato wanted all of this to happen, he intended to pay for his sins but this was too much.
His sins were not that great. He was not the one at fault.
"Minato…" Hamuko whispered into his ear.
Yukari crouched at his side. "Minato, you need to forgive yourself."
"You need to let it go," Hamuko squeezed his hand. "Minato, it was never you…"
Yukari looked up at the redhead. What was she talking about?
"Come on," Hamuko begged. "Please, let it go, you don't deserve this."
Minato gave out a small whimper and squeezed her hand back.
Makoto froze in place after pushing the four away. Aigis quickly closed the distance and ducked underneath his labored punch to smash her metallic fist into his jaw. The punch connected on the button, visibly rocking and wobbling Makoto who briefly collapsed to his knees. That punch hurt, he felt the pain which meant…..
Minato was slipping.
"NO!" Makoto yelled out, determined to fulfill his objective. He reached into his soul and summoned a darkened version of Helel that pushed Aigis away.
Aigis rolled away and quickly embraced Minato, turning her back on the attack. "Duck now!"
"Morning Star!" Makoto called out and the darkened being summoned a ray of bright light from the heavens. The attack quickly grew denser and hotter, making the teenagers cringe. Hell was coming.
Aigis clutched the wounded persona-user to herself as the holy light exploded seconds later, overtaking the teenagers and burning them badly. A unisons of screams echoed in the lobby of Tartarus but they were quickly washed away by the cruel laugh of Makoto. He was getting stronger again, the strength was returning to him which meant Minato was sinking in despair again.
Hamuko opened her eyes and cursed. Her friends were sprawled across the ground, groaning and hissing in pain. The new attack was horrible, a mixture of light and heat, they never saw it coming.
Makoto kicked Aigis to the side and stood over Minato.
Hamuko stood up, despite all the fear and pain.
Makoto caught her standing and laughed. "Give it up, you now know who I am."
"…"
"Minato himself wants this, be a good girlfriend and leave him alone,"
Hamuko widened her eyes at his words and lunged in with a sloppy punch that Makoto countered over the top, sending the redhead crashing to the ground. "Get up!" he ordered, lifting her up her ponytail before he started hammering her body with hook and elbows, making her scream out loud.
"Hamuko-san…" Aigis tried getting up ended up collapsing. She took the brunt of the attack on her back, she managed to save Minato from death but wasn't able to move anymore.
Makoto kicked Hamuko back to the ground and towered over her. "Aww Hamuko, you are failing him again."
"You are nothing but a gutless coward,"
"You are spitting on everything he did for you,"
"You worthless failure of a friend,"
Hamuko remained quiet at the insults which led Makoto to believe she was done. "Pathetic, fuck off now, I have work to do-" she stopped midway during his sentence when he heard a dark chuckle.
"Hehehe," Hamuko got on her knees with her head down. She clenched her fists and started giggling.
"Hahaha," Hamuko started laughing, much to Makoto's surprise. The shadow took a step back in fear upon hearing the demented laughter.
"What am I doing?" Makoto said to himself. "I shouldn't be afraid-"
Hamuko lifted her head up to stare at his soul, forcing him to take another step back.
"HAHAHAH!" Hamuko stood up, insanity and bloodlust brewing in her red eyes. "Makoto, HAHAHAHAHA!" she laughed out loud with a bloodthirsty smirk on her features. She reminded Makoto of the old Minato, the deranged demon who had maimed and brutalized countless.
Hamuko clasped her mouth shut, eye still widened in madness. "Keep pushing me, darling…."
"Grrr," Makoto scowled.
"Keep pushing me into a corner," Hamuko urged with another haunting laugh and stare that visibly rattled the shadowy being. The mark of death was still prominent in her psyche and Hamuko was rapidly losing control to the insatiable bloodlust that she had briefly experienced in the past.
"That's it, keep forcing me, keep abusing me, keep beating me," Hamuko bit her lip. "Keep pushing me to the corner…."
"You twisted…" Makoto growled, trying his best to control his shivering. What was going on here?
"You wouldn't like me when I'm pushed into a corner," she said and then started giggling again. "With my b-back against the wall-HAHAHAHAHA!"
Hamuko limped forward with a sick, disgusting smile on her face. "Come on, push me some more."
Makoto pulled away, teeth gritted tightly.
"Punch me some more," Hamuko urged, pointing at her cheek.
"Try to rape me again," Hamuko dared. "I dare you!"
"Shut up!"
"I double dare you, motherfucker!" Hamuko cursed, much to Yukari's surprise. She had never seen her curse like that before but it was clear Hamuko had lost it.
Aigis stood and nodded at Mitsuru. Makoto was distracted and Hamuko was unknowingly pushing him towards the access point and that was exactly what they wanted.
"Get away from me!" Makoto demanded but Hamuko kept bouncing forward with the same smile.
Aigis twisted on her wrist and removed her machine gun like hand, leaving a cannonball hole on her arm. She aimed the barrel for Makoto who was still walking backwards.
Yukari saw this and nodded at Aigis, slowly slithering towards the two.
"Now!" Aigis shouted and Yukari ran towards the two and tackled Hamuko to the ground. Aigis fired the cannon ball for the Makoto who never saw it coming and took it directly on his chest.
"Ugh," the force pushed him backwards, dangerously close to the access point but Makoto held on, taking a step forward.
"Persona!" Mitsuru shouted, summoning her persona in unison with Akihiko, Junpei and Ken. A collective blast of ice, thunder and fire struck the shadow head-on, forcing him on the back-foot again.
"That's it, just a little more," Fuuka said. "Keep at it!"
The three complied and forced out more SP into their personae that kept blasting the shadow with the elemental spells, the force of the combined attack was powerful enough to force him backwards but Makoto was still fighting back, determined to stay in the lobby.
"Palladion!" Aigis activated Orgia Mode and summoned her persona that bolted towards the shadow, endured all the spells and damaged and crashed into Makoto's chest who was finally throw into the access point that forced him into the labyrinth.
Aigis quickly fired another cannon-ball at the access point, damaging the device and locking the bastard inside the tower for the time being.
They didn't get a moment of rest, sadly.
"HAHAHAH!" the haunting laugh caught their attention and they looked towards the source. Hamuko was on top of Yukari, her hands around the neck of the brunette who was rapidly turning blue and purple due to the lack of air.
"H-Hamuko!" Yukari hissed, trying to reason but Hamuko still maintained the slasher smile and kept squeezing her neck, still under the influence.
"Hamuko!" Mitsuru pushed her away from Yukari.
Hamuko lunged at Mitsuru who caught her wrists and held her in place. "Wake up!" she forced her hands to the side and slapped her on the face hard enough that Hamuko fell to the ground.
"Huh….?" Hamuko shook her head and came to her senses. She looked around wildly and saw the rest wary of her, especially Yukari who cowered backwards.
"What…" she could remember it all. She was real close to killing Yukari.
"What happened to you?" Mitsuru asked.
Hamuko got up and ran away from the tower, despite Yukari calling her back but the redhead never listened and kept her place, eventually disappearing into the darkness of the night.
"Are you okay, Yuka-tan?" Junpei asked, helping the brunette.
"I screwed up," Yukari lamented. "I shouldn't have done that, Hamuko took it badly."
"That was Minato-like," Akihiko said, picking up the injured blunet on his shoulder. "He used to smile just like that, remember the time we….. wrongly accused him?"
"Yes," Mitsuru nodded. That laugh and smile was strikingly similar to Minato but what did it mean? Regardless, Hamuko had a hand in dispatching Makoto.
"Should I go after her?" Fuuka asked.
"No," Mitsuru shook her head. "She needs come time alone…." the heiress smiled again. "This might be twisted but she's getting better, as far as I know, she has the best chance at finishing Makoto."
"Hey! I wanna carry him!" Junpei cried. "He's my teacher!"
"You'll end up hurting him, Stupie, let me help senpai instead," Yukari scolded.
"I want to help too!" Ken cried and ran over to the group.
Mitsuru chuckled softly. Minato was to realize sooner or later that he had formed bonds with each of them and those bonds were going to save him, bring him towards the light.
"You were correct, senpai," Fuuka said from the side. "No wonder I felt his aura to be so similar to Minato…"
"Yes, my theory was proven correct," Mitsuru's smile faded. "We have to make him forgive himself; Makoto will keep returning if Minato doesn't let it go."
"But then…. Who beat him the first time?"
Mitsuru had no answer to that. "I do not know…." she admitted. "But I will not hope on that, we have to finish Makoto on our own…. That will fittingly symbolic…"
"Our time to save him now…" Mitsuru said and left the tower along with the rest.
…
Hamuko stopped running when she arrived at the mall. She had lost control and ended up nearly killing Yukari. What had gotten into her?
"T-That feeling…" Hamuko thought back to the bloodlust that she felt. "I have felt that before…." When Death that blasted demon was still locked up inside her, she had gone insane a number of times under pressure but now…. What reason was there? The fragment had left her long ago…
Hamuko lurched forward as a sharp pain attacked her skull. "What is going on….?" firs that episode and now a headache?
"Hey," she caught the whisper and looked ahead to see a familiar teenager sitting on the bench, all alone during the Dark Hour.
Hamuko walked over to him. "Um, Ryoji, right?"
"Yeah," Ryoji nodded. "How is he?"
Hamuko blinked. Wow, straight to the question about someone he didn't even know. "Not doing so good-" she leaned in closer and noticed streaks of dry tears on his cheek. "W-Where you crying?"
Ryoji clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Forget it."
Hamuko sat down on the bench next to him. "Um, how are you alive during this?"
"Forget it,"
"Where do you live?"
"Forget it,"
"Really?" Hamuko rolled her eyes.
"Yes, forget it," Ryoji looked at her. "How is your loved one?"
"He's my boyfriend," Hamuko said, rubbing her neck. "Hell, he's more than that to me…"
"Hopefully he ends up feeling better," Ryoji wished, clasping his hands together. The scream still resonated inside of his demented mind from time to time and it always managed to make him cry.
"Why are you so concerned about him?" Hamuko blinked. "You don't even know him…"
Ryoji sat up and spat. "I don't care about him, don't get the wrong idea…."
"Oh really?" Hamuko said sarcastically.
Ryoji's temper flared and he was seconds away from pummeling the redhead to the ground but the next thought halted him. The guy who made his life a hell just by screaming would likely suffer if Hamuko got hurt so he swallowed the rage and sighed in annoyance.
"I'm just being nice and hoping he recovers, nobody deserves pain,"
Hamuko questioned that. He didn't have a problem trying to get in her pants and yet here he was trying to act nice. Just what was the guy's deal?
"Hey,"
"Yeah?"
"Do you know Minato?" Hamuko blurted.
Ryoji was shaken up by the name and a speck of pain crossed his features. "Minato?" he wondered inwardly. Why did the name so familiar and why did the name bring in so much sorrow? He… he had known a person by that name before, long ago…. He just couldn't remember it.
"I remember that name," Ryoji said after a while. "I've heard it before…"
"I see…" Hamuko said. "Well, pray for him alright?"
"I will," Ryoji looked at her and pulled her closer by the forearm. Hamuko winced because his grip was rough but he didn't seem interested in flirting with her again, he was concerned for Minato…. But why? He didn't know him by name.
"If you need help then come to me, alright?" Ryoji said. "I'll be attending Gekkoukan Highschool soon so you can come meet me there?"
"Really?" Hamuko smiled. "I study there too!"
"Does this Minato guy studies there too?" Ryoji demanded to know.
Hamuko closed her eyes briefly. "Yeah, he'll be there soon…"
"H-He sounds interesting," Ryoji shrugged. "Hopefully he's worth my time." His tone betrayed him and Hamuko didn't take offense. She nodded and got up.
"I better go," Hamuko bowed. "I appreciate that you didn't try to hit on me again."
"I…"
"Don't worry, you're a really good looking dude, girls will go crazy over you in the school," Hamuko assured and patted his shoulder. "But sorry, I can't cheat on mine, especially when he needs me the most."
Ryoji stood up and smiled at him, a smile that Hamuko immediately linked to Minato. He looked so, so much like him. "Good…." the black haired male nodded. "I respect that. Farwell…"
"Bye!" Hamuko waved at him as Ryoji stalked off. "He reminds me of Minato for some reason- UGH!"
Hamuko stopped musing and her eyes widened again as the bloodlust again pooled into her psyche. She giggled and started laughing, looking around wildly for things to kill and abuse. "Makoto~" she sang out and hopped her way towards the dorm. Yes, her friends were perfect-
"NO!" Hamuko hissed, regaining control of herself. She pulled back and ran away at full speed, far away from the dorm. She wanted to stay the hell away from them as possible, God knows what she would do.
"What's happening to me!?" Hamuko shouted at the skies.
"This blood…..lust….." Hamuko scowled and tried controlling the hunger but it rapidly took over her, making her release a savage laugh towards the heavens.
"I fucking love it!" Hamuko declared with another haunting laugh.
She collapsed back to the ground and held onto her head. "No…." she curled up, her features rapidly flickering between a bloodthirsty smirk and pain. "Stop it…."
"Ugh… No I'll stay here," Hamuko swore. "I'll end up killing them…."
"Shit…" Hamuko soon passed out under a tree, drifting off to sleep and then into countless nightmares that were another consequence for the touch of Death.
….
"That's it," Makoto panted inside the tower. Those weaklings had managed to push him into the tower where he was locked for the next 24 hours. They had defied him for the last time but no more!
"I'm going to kill him!" Makoto swore. "He'll be in hell anyway so he'll suffer regardless."
"No more games…."
"I fulfill my objective…"
"Just like Minato wanted…."
Fucking Woot! As usual, review/fav/follow if you wanna see more of this. Hell, even a simple 'hi' or 'i love wafflees' will do. :P Just let me know. Cheers and see you guys later!