A/N: This chapter's pretty mini... but the next one should be more fun. But we got more interaction with Yosuke this time!

Mr Giraffe (Guest) - Yui's got a sad life, pretty much. Hell, if she was in P5 she'd be a perfect phantom thief... haha. Also, Saki's bro's social link might come pretty late according to the guide I'm using, so it might take longer? Idk. Camp time is gonna be a bit weird all around when the next chapter rolls around, so stay tuned.

After yesterday's events, Yu didn't feel fairly energetic to do anything strenuous… but when he saw the look on Yosuke's face, he knew that he had to set aside his own thoughts for now. So, he asked him if he wanted to talk.

The brunet merely nodded in response… so here they were, down at the flood plains after having wandered there.

Yosuke was holding onto something, seemingly pensive. "…I found this. It's a Print Club sticker I took with Saki-senpai… when I first got here, she insisted on taking it…" He shut his eyes tightly. "Back then… somewhere inside me, I thought I was above this place… a lot of people saw me as the enemy, because Junes was going to ruin the shopping district…"

Then, he looked at Yu. "But… when I met her, she told me, 'Parents are parents. You're you…'. Even if she didn't really mean it… it made me happy. Because of her… I started to think maybe this town wasn't all that bad." He grit his teeth. "But then…"

"…She died?" Yu finished his sentence in a quiet voice.

Yosuke's breath hitched as he started to cry. "Why…? Why did she… have to… die…? It pisses me off… it makes me mad! I wanted to talk with her more! I wanted to get to know her better! But…" His shoulders slumped, his body wracked with sobs. "She's… not here anymore."

Despite saying all that, he still managed to straighten himself with tears streaming down his face. "Yu… I get it now… I wanted to forget about Saki-senpai. How she's not here anymore… I wanted to forget that… I was living a boring life in the middle of nowhere. When the murders started, I got excited. I thought there was finally a point to me being in Inaba… I thought I could forget Senpai was gone, and the fact that I was such a loser… I jumped at the murders and never once thought about what I was doing…"

He lowered his head, his face grief-stricken. "I… didn't even take the first step… I'm sorry… Saki-senpai. I'm sorry… Yu."

Yu shook his head at that. "Don't apologize."

Yosuke then looked at him, his eyes red. "But… I got you involved with the case, and all I did was run away from myself… but I think I'm awake now… I need to get over the fact that Saki-senpai isn't coming back… that when this case ends… I'll have nowhere to run… and I won't have changed…" He fell quiet for a moment. "…You made me realise that."

"Yosuke…" Yu stared at him with sadness, seeing just how badly Saki's death had affected him in these very moments. But now he could understand that pain… and so as a bond formed between them both, the Magician Social Link grew stronger too.

The brunet broke his gaze to look at the ground again. "Yu… I think I'm all cried out…" he murmured.

Yu didn't hesitate at all as he approached his best friend and just hugged him. Yosuke merely stood there as he spoke quietly. "You dumbass… that's for girls… it hurts, dammit…" He began to cry again… and the silver-haired boy just held him there in his arms until he stopped crying.

Then, Yu walked Yosuke home for the day…

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

At night, Yu wanted to talk to his uncle about something else other than what happened the other night. He wanted that night to remain… as a night that they wouldn't speak about. So, when Dojima accepted his offer to talk, he asked him about the newspaper article he recalled the detective had been searching for.

"The newspaper article…? Oh… yeah, I found it. Were you worried about it?" Dojima looked away from his nephew for a moment in silence. "It's about Chisato… my wife. When she was killed by a hit-and-run…" He became quiet again.

Now it made sense… why he was looking for that article…

"…I told you before, right? About the case where we never had a suspect? Get it now…? There's nothing more I can say about it in this house. Let's stop there."

"Then let's go outside if you can't say it here," Yu told his uncle. He has taken up the mantle of trying to heal the father-daughter relationship between his uncle and Nanako – even if it means digging into a past his uncle seems reluctant to talk about.

Dojima stared at him in surprise, then he let out a weak chuckle. "Hah… you win…" He sighed, looking away. "She… Nanako's mother was run over on her way to pick up Nanako from nursery school. It was a cold day, and there were no witnesses, so they didn't find her until much later. Until they got word to me, Nanako was waiting all that time at the nursery… all alone. Waiting for a mother who would never come…" He glanced at where Nanako was but couldn't bring himself to look at her. "…I couldn't tell Nanako that her mother was killed. That her father, whose job is to catch criminals… couldn't find a single lead…"

He then looked back at his nephew. "But I haven't given up. I'll catch the guy." Shutting his eyes, he nodded to himself. "I don't need a private life to do that… Nanako will understand."

"That's just an excuse."

The man's eyes widened in shock at his nephew's words. Yet somehow… he can't seem to say anything about it as he bit his lip. He soon broke his gaze to stare at somewhere. "Sorry… leave me alone for now."

"Alright… uncle." Yu got up from his seat to go to his room.

"…Yu."

The silver-haired boy looked at his uncle who stared back at him.

"Thanks."

Yu wordlessly nodded, sensing the pain Dojima bore in his heart… because he can now understand the reason for his uncle's actions, the Hierophant Social Link grew stronger. Then he quietly left the living room and went to his room.

The next day, Yu was almost surprised to see Chie greeting him at the school gates. "Hey! Yo!"

"Oh, Chie. Hi." He got closer to her so they could talk. "Who do you think'll show up on the Midnight Channel next? I heard it's going to rain this evening, but it's not going to last all night," she told him. Yu shrugged. "Well, we'll just have to check it when it does rain through the night."

"I guess… hey, have you been trying to solve the case on your own in your spare time? I know, I should be thinking about it, too. But that kind of stuff just isn't my specialty. How about you?" Chie then asked. Yu smiled. "I'm good at reasoning." Mostly because of his training.

"I'm jealous." Chie pouted. "Well, everyone has strengths and weaknesses. I'll stick to kicking things. So let's prepare ourselves! Times like this are perfect for working out!"

"Heh, you do you, then." Yu chuckled and soon entered with her, chatting as they did.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

They got together to eat some lunch when lunchtime played, and their lunch just so happened to be instant noodles. Although Yu was used to food that was… well, much better than just instant noodles, he was starting to actually develop a taste for them.

"You know, the rainy season's just about here," Yukiko said as she looked out the window, which was a bit fogged due to the rain outside. "Isn't it a little early?" Yosuke asked, pausing on his eating to do so.

"Once it starts, it'll be raining every night. We'll have to keep a constant eye on the Midnight Channel."

"Crap, I didn't even think of that… well, so it goes. Hehe, I thought you were worried about the rain 'cause of the school campout."

Chie looked at the brunet weirdly. "Why are you so excited about that?"

Yukiko then realised why. "That's right, it's the first time for you two…"

"You realize the only purpose of the school campout is to 'develop a love for one's hometown in young people', right?" Chie then informed him. "Yeah, they tell us that up front. So?" Yosuke replied, still not getting her point.

"Well you see, the way we supposedly develop that love is by picking up trash on the mountain."

Yosuke got up in horror. "P-Picking up trash? 'Develop a love' my ass! That's slave labour!"

Well, now that's a downer… yet Yu felt like he's not even surprised to know that. His experience with city schools gave him experiences that are even worse – picking up trash is like vanilla flavour compared to the rate of troublemakers there.

Which… he did become one at one point in his life.

"Well, the night's kinda fun. We cook our own meals with mess kits and sleep in tents," Chie told him. "The four of us are in the same group," Yukiko added. At those words, Yosuke tried to hold on to what hope he had left for the campout. "The same group, huh…? Does that mean we sleep together at night, too!?"

Chie shook her head. "You wish! Guys and girls sleep in different tents! I'm warning ya… if you leave your tent at night, you'll be expelled on the spot."

There goes Yosuke's hopes and dreams.

Yosuke groaned and sat back in his seat. "Ugh… this gets worse and worse. I thought it was gonna be fun…"

Yukiko giggled at his antics. "It's only for one night and we disband before noon the next day. It doesn't last very long."

"Oh… we did have some fun at the river before going home last year," Chie then said, remembering last year's campout. Yosuke perked up at that. "Do they let you go swimming?"

"I think so? There's always someone who takes a dip, although we didn't."

"I see… so you can swim in the river…" Yosuke looked very thoughtful at that. God only knows what he's up to at this point… Yu hoped it wasn't something related to swimming – otherwise, he really can't join them.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Yu had decided that they'll go to the TV world today as Kanji had told him that he wanted to try out his abilities, so they all met up at Junes and soon entered the TV.

Teddie greeted them happily. "Welcome back! I've been so bored…" He looked at Yu. "Oh, by the way…! I sense a powerful Shadow at the steamy area where you found Kanji. I think this world is getting more and more unstable… I just want to live here in peace… Sensei, could you defeat the Shadow at the steamy place?"

"Another Shadow, huh…? Sure." Yu smiled at the bear, giving him a quick rub on the head. "S-Sensei…!" Teddie couldn't help but purr at the touch – somehow, the silver-haired boy's hand was so soft like Yukiko's…

Yu laughed a bit and went to go ask Kanji if he knows where the sauna is. He knows that the blond boy would be hesitant to go there, but they need to go there… and he still has no idea why a warm feeling grows within his chest whenever he looked at him.

Is it nervousness?

…He doesn't know.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

They all went to the sauna, but Teddie stopped them before they entered. Apparently, something bad might happen if they all went in at once, so they shouldn't go in as groups larger than four. Yu had to make a choice on who to bring with him… so he picked Kanji, Yosuke and Yukiko to go along with him.

Once they were ready, they entered the sauna and began the journey up the floors to defeat the Shadow that now resided at the top.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

They struggled to defeat the Shadow at the top floor, but with Yu's guidance and everyone's determination to hold through the battle, they won.

"Great job, guys." Yu smiled at the others after they won their victory over the strong Shadow. He approached the slightly elevated part of the floor and soon noticed a thick iron plate on the ground. Then he glanced at Kanji who was using a holding chair as a weapon… maybe this iron plate would be better than that. "Hey, Kanji."

"Huh? Yeah, Senpai?" Kanji looked over at him. Yu approached him and gave him the iron plate. "Here, this should be much better than the folding chair you're using. It's pretty thick." He knocked on the plate, letting the sound tell them both just how thick it was.

"Oh, cool!" Kanji grinned excitedly as he checked out the iron plate. "Thanks, Senpai!"

"Don't mention it." Yu chuckled, feeling quite happy to see how thrilled the blond boy was at the new weapon. Plus, they just defeated another big Shadow, so it's probably time they went back home…

Saturday started with a rainy morning but ended on a cloudy afternoon.

Yu was about to leave when he noticed a female student looking troubled. "Is there something bothering you?" he asked her. She sighed. "I'm tired of coming to school. I can't believe they let that Tatsumi in here. I hear he started his own gang and goes around bullying people. How did I get to be in the same class as him…? He's out snooping around the Practice Building right now. How scary is that?"

The silver-haired boy stared at her in silence. That can't be true… but he still had to check on Kanji, just to make sure the rumours weren't true.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Entering the Practice Building, Yu looked around for Kanji and soon spotted him looking in on some club. "Kanji!" he called out to him as he approached the blond boy. Kanji flinched and quickly broke his staring. "Whoa, Yu-senpai! I-I wasn't peeping inside! It's not like that!"

The silver-haired boy just stared at him with a look that more or less said he's not falling for that excuse.

Kanji cleared his throat. "…So, why are you making that scary face at me? Do you have something to tell me?"

"I do, actually."

"…I see. Let's go somewhere else, then."

Yu nodded. "Come to the flood plains with me." He began to walk ahead, letting Kanji follow him from behind…

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

The two then headed down to the flood plains so they could talk.

Yu then turned to face Kanji once they reached there, managing to stay calm. The blond boy was pretty direct with his way of talking. "Whaddaya want, dragging me out here? Oh, you here to tell me off or somethin'?" he asked him. The smaller boy shook his head. "No, I'm just here to talk."

"How come you're soundin' like a cop?" Kanji looked at him with some suspicion. "So, what is it?"

For a moment, Yu wondered if he should soften the blow a little… but sometimes, it's just better to be direct with it. "I heard some rumours that said you started a gang of bullies and were bullying people… I just wanted to ask you to make sure."

At those words, the blond boy got tense. "Eh? Bullies? M-Me!? Senpai, you suspecting me!?"

"Of course not! I want to believe in you…" Yu told him, his gaze softening. Kanji sighed and shook his head. "Senpai… I didn't do it. I mean… maybe it ain't that easy to trust me, since they say that I was in a gang… but you gotta believe me…" He averted his gaze away from the older boy, seeming guilty. "…'s my own fault rumours like that go around, huh…? At this rate, I'll be causing trouble for you guys…"

"Don't worry about it, Kanji."

"Senpai…" Kanji lifted his head to notice that Yu was giving him a reassuring smile. "…Uhh…" He felt a bit awkward to ask, but something about the boy in front of him was… making him feel like he could trust him. "Whenever you got time… could you maybe hear what I have to say? I feel all cramped inside… and I'm too dumb to know what it's about…"

As clumsy as he is, it seemed that Kanji was looking for an opportunity to change… Yu nodded, still smiling. "Sure, I'll see when I have the time." Even now, he could feel a faint bond forming between himself and the younger boy… and as a result, the Emperor Social Link of the Emperor Arcana was established.

"To make sure I don't cause you any trouble… huh…" Kanji scratched the back of his head in silence for a moment. "Well, I guess I should smack that gang of bullies around?" he suggested, to which Yu nervously laughed. "I think you better just let it be…"

Eventually, they both just talked with each other for a while before finally parting ways for the day.

It took Yu a while to notice, but… he felt quite relaxed around Kanji for some reason. Whatever that is, he didn't know… but who cares? It just meant that he feels alright around the blond boy…

…Right?

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

When Yu arrived home, the first thing he noticed was that Nanako looked troubled about something. Second was that Dojima wasn't home. "Something the matter, Nanako?"

"Oh, big bro…" The little girl was quiet for a moment. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure… what is it?" Yu approached his cousin and sat opposite of her at the small table in the living room. Nanako looked down for a moment, before getting up and going over to her cousin to whisper her question into his ear. The silver-haired boy blinked when he heard it. "Oh…"

This… could be hard to explain.

"…Well, Nanako…" Yu slowly spoke, trying to think of a way to explain it. "It's like this…"

So he told her about what she had asked him – life and death. He tried to make it simpler so she could understand, but it's tough for a girl of Nanako's age to comprehend most of its concepts. Even he didn't understand why his grandmother was gone until two years after her passing.

By the time he finished explaining, Nanako was trying to understand his words. "I see... this is hard... but I get it! Thank you, big bro!" She nodded her head cheerfully. Yu was curious as to why she was asking, but he decided to let it be. "Is there anything else…?"

"Well, ummm... oh, there is!" Nanako's eyes were gleaming as she then asked her second question. "What happens to a person... when they die?"

Yu wistfully smiled. "…They go to heaven."

His answer made Nanako smile happily. "So, it is true. Mommy went to heaven." She giggled at the thought of her mother being happy and at rest in heaven... then remembered something she just saw on the news. "Oh, yeah, I saw this on the news: 'Robbery at the post office'." She was quiet for a few seconds. "Why do bad people do bad things?"

At that question, Yu thought carefully on how to answer. There were many reasons… but Nanako couldn't possibly understand them all. He decided that she was better off not knowing for now. "I don't know, Nanako…"

Nanako nodded in understanding. "I see... you're not a bad person, so I guess you wouldn't know." She looked relieved, in fact. Her expression soon fell, though. "But if there were no bad people, Dad would be home more... last year, there weren't many crimes, so Dad was here a lot. He used to pick me up from kindergarten..." She fell quiet again. "…Are bad people more important to Dad than I am?"

"He's protecting you," Yu answered her, although he was stretching the truth a bit. But it still counted as protecting her…

The little girl frowned slightly. "…I don't get it." She started to think about it.

Now, Yu could see that his cousin was bearing her sadness stoically… he can sense the loneliness she felt due to her father's busyness with work. In a sense, she was like him.

…The Justice Social Link grew stronger.

Eventually, Nanako spoke up again. "...Let's talk about something else, big bro."

Yu nodded to her suggestion. "Alright. What do you want to talk about?"

So, they began to talk about something different than their previous topic just moments ago until it began to get late… which then he put his cousin to bed before going to his own room.

That Sunday morning, Yu got a call from Yukiko who asked if he wanted to hang out for the day. Seeing that he had nothing better to do, he decided to agree to the suggestion and met up with her at Junes. She ended up bringing him to the grocery department.

Yukiko was looking over the many types of food with a troubled expression, before turning to face him. "Why are there so many different types of food...? Even eggs come in so many varieties..." she murmured, sighing.

With a small laugh, Yu smiled at her. "It's mostly because of a difference in brand, taste, quality and such. But anyway… are you making dinner at the inn?" he asked her.

Yukiko was surprised to hear his question, shaking her head. "No! I'd never dream of it! I don't think my food's nearly good enough to serve to the guests." Yet despite saying so, she looked happy. "I was just thinking of practicing my cooking... since I've decided to leave town... eating out all the time is bad for you, right? So I'm going to get some practice while I can!"

"Well, good luck on that."

"Thank you!" The black-haired girl nodded happily. Then, she remembered something. "Oh, yes. I was just thinking that maybe you could taste-test my food sometime... I want someone to eat it and let me know how it is. I thought I'd improve quicker that way... and knowing you, I'd get an honest opinion..." She nervously looked at Yu. "W-Will you...?"

Yu blinked a few times. Well… guess it wouldn't hurt to do that, so he just shrugged. "I don't mind."

"Really!? Thank you!" Yukiko smiled happily at him. She averted her gaze from the silver-haired boy for a moment. "When I obtained the power of Persona, I thought, 'I can do it...'. I used to think I couldn't do anything on my own, but maybe I really can... I depended on others up until now, but from this point on, I want others to depend on me..." A determined look soon appeared in her eyes. "I'll do my best!"

She has quite the iron will… even Yu could sense it from that look. He could feel himself grow closer to her, and with it, the Priestess Social Link.

After a few seconds, Yukiko looked around the place. "Now then, um... where do they sell lobsters?"

"Ah… that would be in the seafood section." Yu was starting to think that maybe he should've thought over his choices a bit better. Nonetheless, he helped the black-haired girl with her shopping before going back home for the day.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

"Welcome home, big bro!" Nanako greeted her cousin back as Yu entered the house. "Oh, and I went shopping today, so the fridge is full with food."

"Okay, Nanako." The silver-haired boy smiled at the little girl before looking at the fridge. Maybe he could cook lunch for school tomorrow… so he set his bag down nearby before going over to the fridge, opening it.

He noticed that there was a lot more vegetables this time, and he spotted some potatoes…

…Yu eventually decided to make some potato salad with what he had. Getting the ingredients out, he first peeled the potatoes and boiled them. Once done with that, he went to prepare the rest. After a while, the potatoes grew soft and he took them out while being careful to not burn himself. Grabbing a fork afterwards, he smashed the potatoes while they were still hot before adding some ham, onions and other ingredients to it, resulting in some nice potato salad. Smiling proudly, he put the food in the container he had used last time before cleaning up and going to bed.

He should really cook more often, but he wasn't much of an eater…

The next day was officially the first day of summer, so every student had to change into the uniforms for the season.

Yu was somewhat uneasy with the outfit as it merely consisted of his black uniform pants and a white short-sleeved school shirt. If he wasn't careful, his smaller frame could be visible through bright light or sweat… so he'll have to be more cautious this time.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

That afternoon, Yu decided to spend his time with Yosuke after he shared his food with the brunet during lunchtime earlier that day. Yosuke looked a lot better since the last time they hung out with each other…

This time, Yosuke brought him to a hill that overlooked the town.

"…I hated this place when I first came to Inaba. You can tell how small the town is from up here. But looking at it now... it's a nice town…" He smiled sadly. "Hey… cheer up," Yu told him, noticing the sadness in his friend's face.

The brunet chuckled, having a self-mocking smirk on his face. "If it were only that easy." He looked out at the town again. "I want to tell Saki-senpai something. That what's important... isn't where you are."

Yu glanced at him with some confusion. What did he mean by that…?

As if sensing the silver-haired boy's puzzlement, Yosuke then looked at him. "This town I hated so much? Now, I love it. There's still nothing here, but I have family and friends... and you. The important things are never far off... they're all around you."

…He looked down in slight embarrassment at his words. "I always wanted to be 'special'. I thought my life'd finally have meaning if I was 'special' to someone. That's why I was really excited when I got my Persona. But I really didn't need it... it's not what you have or what you can do... just being born, living your life... before you know it, you're already special to someone."

"You're right…" Yu smiled at the taller boy. Yosuke smiled back as he gazed at him. "Yeah... like you... you're special to me, you know?"

Through this moment, their relationship grew deeper as Yu could feel the warm truth Yosuke had for him… with it, the Magician Social Link became stronger.

Yosuke then looked out at the view of the town again, grinning. "Alright, let's see if we can find everyone's house from here! There's Junes, and that's the main street, so... my house is there, the one with that funky roof. Meaning yours is..." He pointed at a familiar looking house.

"…Over there." It didn't take long for Yu to see where his uncle's house was, grinning as well when he saw it.

They both spent a long while with each other, talking on the hill until it got dark, to which they walked down the hill back to town together.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

Along the way down, Yu heard his phone ring. "Who's calling at this hour…?" He raised an eyebrow as he took out his phone, still walking with Yosuke. "Excuse me for a moment," he told the brunet who nodded understandingly, then he answered the call. "Hello?"

"Hello Yui, tomorrow's the test. I hope you haven't forgotten?"

"…O-of course not, Mr. Tadashi." Yu tried to reply in a quiet voice, taken aback that his grandfather's secretary would call this early. "Can I call you later? I have a friend here with me…"

"Oh, my apologies. Call me later then, Yui."

"Okay, bye…" Yu ended the call after that. "Who's the guy? A relative?" Yosuke asked, curious as to who this 'Mr. Tadashi' was. The silver-haired boy was a bit hesitant to answer. "Um… he's more to… a friend of my parents."

"A friend, huh? Okay."

Thankfully, Yosuke didn't pry deeper… the two boys eventually said goodbye to each other once they reached town. Yu headed straight home, needing to talk to his grandfather's secretary on when and where to meet him.

~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~

After finishing dinner with Nanako, Yui went upstairs and called her grandfather's secretary again while sitting on her sofa. These tests were normal occurrences to her by now, done either once a year or twice if her performance was lacklustre.

It didn't take long before someone answered the call. "Yui?"

"Mr. Tadashi, we can talk now."

"Alright then… I think you know what to tell me by now."

"Yes, well…" Yui had recalled that tomorrow would be a rainy day from the weather report on the news that she watched with Nanako earlier, so it would be easier for her to not be seen by anyone in town. "Do you know where my school is?"

"Yasogami High School, was it? Yes, I do. It's after the flood plains."

"Well, you can meet me there half an hour after three in the afternoon… I'll change my clothes at school, so we can go to the shopping district immediately. I know a place that sells textiles there."

"In that case, it's settled then. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yes, Mr. Tadashi. See you tomorrow… and goodnight."

"Good night, Yui."

The beeping sound that followed signalled the end of the call. Putting her phone back into her pocket, Yui went to ready her futon to sleep.

She's got a busy day tomorrow.