Guiding Star
Written by Aiyumi
Disclaimer: Persona and all related characters are property of Atlus. Any trademarks that may be referenced in this fan fiction are properties of their respective owners. I am just a fan and do not have any relations to said people/companies.
Chapter 5: Trust
Exams' results were posted. Minako was greatly relieved to know that her studies had paid off. She was able to get the top grades in her class, just like it had happened in the other timeline. Back then, though, it had been mostly luck because the others hadn't performed so well, and the tests from May had been the only ones she had been able to get the highest score in her class. The exams that came later gradually became more difficult, and luck was no longer enough to bump her scores to the top of the list. It didn't help that Minako's performance in Physics wasn't so good. It got a bit better in this timeline, but it was still nothing to be proud of. Minako wished to be able to improve in this second chance, but she wouldn't get her hopes up too much. Physics simply weren't her cup of tea.
If anything, at least Junpei's results were outside the danger zone, which proved that Minako succeeded in helping him, even if only a little.
... ... ... ... ...
Minako ran into Akihiko at school. When she mentioned that training her body in tennis club also improved her abilities to fight in Tartarus, he was eager to teach physical training exercises to her, and caused the Star Social Link to start.
After school, Minako went to Naganaki Shrine and found Maiko playing all by herself. Minako offered to play a bit with her, then they went to Octopia eat takoyaki together. They talked a bit more, Minako walked Maiko home, and the Hanged Man Social Link was reestablished.
The next day, Minako spent too much time at the arcade with Junpei, and found herself wandering through Paulownia Mall very late at night. She wanted something to drink, but Chagall Cafe wasn't open for some reason. All stores were already closed, and the only open place was Club Escapade. Minako went inside and asked for something non-alcoholic to drink. The club was packed, and the only tables available were on the upper floor. It was there that Minako ran into the drinking old monk known as Mutatsu, and the Tower Social Link started. She was surprised because this hadn't happened in the other timeline since she had never had the need to enter Club Escapade back then. Well, except during the September full moon operation...
... ... ... ... ...
Minako was in the command room on the dorm's 4th floor, because Mitsuru had asked her to take a look at the monitoring equipment. The same thing had often happened in the previous timeline as well, and she had never understood why Mitsuru would always ask her to take a look at the equipment, since Minako didn't know anything about machines and couldn't do anything to fix it if it were broken. Usually, it only happened that the equipment had turned off, and Minako only had to turn it back on,. However, there was another problem as well. Sometimes the security feed recordings of the dorm at the Dark Hour somehow got corrupted. Mitsuru had attributed it to a hard disk malfunction or some limitation related to making machines work during the Dark Hour, but no one was ever able to find out the true cause. Honestly, Minako didn't really care. The main reason she was there this time was to answer a nagging question: did the equipment record her interactions with Pharos? She checked the recordings and, thankfully, it didn't. In fact, the Dark Hours when Pharos had visited her were exactly the ones where the recordings got corrupted. Either he did something to fool the cameras when he came to visit, or his presence affected the cameras in some way. In other words, Minako had just found the cause! She wouldn't tell Mitsuru, though.
... ... ... ... ...
Despite Pharos' declaration that he would come more often, he didn't visit her that week. Maybe it was because Minako had been too tired at the Dark Hours she didn't go to Tartarus, and collapsed on her bed the moment she touched it. Pharos might have thought it wasn't a good idea to pay her a visit. Minako felt bad that she still hadn't been able to wait for him like she had said she would. But the "one week before the full moon" mark was approaching, and Minako was confident he would show up. She would be sure to wait for him that night.
On June 1st, the "one week" mark arrived. The rumors about girls found unconscious in front of the school started, were twisted into a "ghost story," and that night, Minako and her dormmates had to put up with "Junpei's believe it, or don't," which ended with a very frightened Yukari.
"For sure, there are many mysteries in this world..." Junpei said creepily as he finished telling the ghost story. Oddly enough, Mitsuru and Akihiko showed interest in the rumors, and added to the number of mysteries in the world.
"I can't believe this," Yukari said in exasperation once Akihiko and Mitsuru had left them to their own devices. "Why are our senpai so interested? These rumors are false... aren't they?" She asked shakily. "They have to be, right?! What do you think, Minako-chan?"
"I think they're false. Either that, or Shadows are involved."
"Shadows?!" Junpei exclaimed. "Where did that even come from?!"
"The girls were found unconscious in front of the school gates, weren't they? And they were said to have come to school at night." Minako gave her reasoning.
"... And?" Junpei still didn't get it.
"M-Minako-chan, you don't mean..."
"Yeah, probably what you're thinking."
Yukari's eyes widened. "Oh. Our two senpai probably thought the same thing, then. Maybe that's why they...!"
"I still don't get it!" Junpei slammed his hand on the table. "What's this deal about what Yuka-tan and our senpai are thinking? I can't read others' thoughts to figure out what you two are talking about, Mina-tan!"
"It's so obvious, Stupei!" Yukari snapped. "Put 'school' and 'night' in the same sentence. If they stay there for too long, 'night' becomes 'midnight.' What's the first thing that comes to mind?! You get what this means now, don't you?!"
"This is...!" Junpei looked at Minako. "Mina-tan, maybe you're exaggerating..." He seemed to realize he had spoken a bit too soon. "Or maybe not..."
"If Minako-chan's right, this isn't a stupid ghost story. This is serious trouble!" Yukari nodded firmly. "Yeah, we need to do something about it!"
Minako smiled. It was impressive how Yukari could be so scared of ghosts, yet be so brave when it came to Shadows.
... ... ... ... ...
That Dark Hour, Minako was set on waiting for Pharos. She turned the lamp on, sat on the edge of the bed, and closed her eyes to avoid being startled too much at his sudden appearance. This time, Pharos took the hint that she had been waiting for him and came to visit her. Shortly after Dark Hour struck, Minako felt she wasn't alone in the room anymore. Pharos had arrived.
Pharos was in a good mood. He kept thinking back on his last meeting with Minako. It had been great. Every time he replayed it in his mind, it made him more eager to visit her again. However, she had been too tired the last few days, and he had to control himself not to go there and bother her. So, he simply waited. But today, he became very excited when he noticed Minako had remembered to wait for him. He regulated his temperature, put on the clothes she had given him, and made sure his hair was tidy before he materialized in Minako's room.
"Hi!" Pharos greeted her. "You really remembered to wait for me!"
"Of course I did." She beckoned him to sit down beside her. "I'm sorry for not having waited for you the last few days. I've been meaning to see you for a while, but I've been a bit busy lately."
"It's okay. You have a lot of things to do... unlike me." Pharos approached the bed and sat down. Since he had regulated his temperature, he hoped it would be okay to stay a bit closer to Minako. He decided to take the risk and slowly moved closer to her. He was afraid she would move away from him, but was relieved that she didn't react. So, he proceeded to tell her what he had come to tell her. "In exactly one week, the moon will be full again. I'm pretty sure this is no news to you, but actually there's something important I need to tell you about." His tone was serious.
"What is it?"
"This time, things will be a bit different. You'll have two ordeals to face instead of one."
"Two? Do you mean I'll have to face two Shadows at once, or is it one after the other?" Minako had known that it would be Empress and Emperor together, but she was curious to hear what Pharos would say.
"Hmm." He closed his eyes in thought for a few seconds, then reopened them and answered, "I'm not sure. What I can feel is that there are two of them, and they're indicating they'll manifest during the same full moon. I'm sorry that I can't be more specific."
So, not even Pharos was exactly sure. Most of his warnings had been mysterious and vague in the past timeline as well, and Minako had never been able to muster up the courage to ask for clarification. Now she was coming to think that he wouldn't have been able to clarify his messages even if he had wanted to. "Okay. It's fine. Thanks for the heads-up. I'll be careful. Better to prepare for two at once just in case then, isn't it?"
"Probably." He agreed. "Those two are very strong. You and your friends will have to train hard, or you might not be able to win. You should prepare as best as you can."
"Alright. I'll do that." She changed the subject. "By the way, you've heard the 'ghost story' rumors from my school, haven't you?"
"Huh? ... Uh-huh." He nodded.
"What do you think?"
"I think you're right," he simply said.
"You mean about Shadows being involved?"
"Yeah. And I feel it has something to do with those two I was talking about."
"So, all leads to the full moon Shadows, doesn't it? At least everything will get solved on the same day. Less problems to worry about."
"No, not really." He stared at her in the eye, and his intense gaze reflected his intention of warning her of a serious danger. "Remember! You'll have to fight two of them this time! There's more than enough to worry about!"
Minako nearly flinched at his gaze, but she stood her ground. "Y-yeah, I know, I know. I'll make sure to prepare thinking about facing two, like I already said."
Pharos' gaze softened a little, but he still seemed worried. "Minako, I can't stress this enough. Be very careful, please. I want you to be safe."
"I'll be careful, don't worry. Everything will be fine," Minako said comfortingly.
"I hope so." Pharos broke his stare. He stood up and turned around to face her fully. "I wish you didn't have to push yourself too hard, but this time you'll have to give your all to be able to survive. There's still more than half of the Dark Hour left. I'd like to stay more, but I'll leave and let you rest. Since you'll have to train hard, you need to have a good rest whenever time allows. So, good night."
... ... ... ... ...
It was Tuesday, June 2nd. Minako had left work a bit earlier than usual. She was wandering Paulownia Mall when she ran into President Tanaka from the Sunday shopping show! Strangely, he kept insisting that she had a lot of charm, and that he wanted her to become a model and help him advertise his products. Minako wondered if he said this to almost every random person that passed by, because to her, her looks weren't anything special. She tried to refuse, but he insisted that he would tutor her and teach her marketing tactics. Then, the Devil Social Link started. Minako hadn't expected to run into President Tanaka, much less to start a Social Link with him. It was a Social Link she didn't have before.
That night, Minako took the SEES members to Tartarus. She didn't usually go to Tartarus on the days she worked at her part-time job, but Pharos seemed so worried about her safety and insisted so much on the importance of getting well-prepared. Besides, the fact that she had some experience from the other timeline didn't guarantee that they would win. The other team members didn't remember the other timeline, and they also needed physical preparation. So, Minako decided to also squeeze in some training on days she had work, with the excuse that she was worried they hadn't been going to Tartarus enough since the last operation.
The next day, Minako ran into President Tanaka again on the way back from work. Despite seeming busy, he was adamant about stopping and forcing her into his "marketing lessons." He said his products only had a placebo effect and had no special properties whatsoever, and he blamed the general public for being so naive to keep buying his items. Even though his tactics were quite questionable, hearing him talk was oddly amusing, and Minako wondered whether his charisma was this powerful.
Coincidentally, when Minako arrived back at the dorm, she found out that her order from Tanaka's shopping program had arrived. It was a pair of Health Sandals. Despite what she had just heard from Tanaka himself, the other products she had bought from his show proved to be quite useful in her Tartarus explorations, and Minako was set on continuing to use them, placebo or otherwise. Speaking of which, Tartarus...
... ... ... ... ...
The key events happened mostly the same way as in the previous timeline, from Minako, Yukari and Junpei asking around the school about the rumors, to going to the back alley where the group of bullies usually hung out, to Junpei being punched, to hearing from Shinjiro about Fuuka's disappearance, to deciding to infiltrate the school at night and rescue Fuuka in Tartarus, to having Natsuki Moriyama - the classmate that regretted bullying Fuuka - stay in the dorm for safety.
It was the day of the full moon. SEES had managed to infiltrate the school at night.
"Aaaaand we're in!" Junpei grinned proudly. "This wasn't that hard, was it?"
"You had left the door unlocked... tres bien, Iori!" Mitsuru complimented him.
Junpei was confused. "Huh? Tres what? Would you speak in Japanese, please?"
"It's French. She meant, 'good job.'" Minako told him.
Junpei got all full of himself. "Ah. Yeah, because I'm da man! You can always count on me!"
"Seriously, I advise against that." Yukari quipped.
"Yuka-tan, come on! Why won't you give me some credit for once?!"
Yukari looked at him in annoyance. "You only left the door unlocked. Is it really something worth bragging about?"
"We're inside, aren't we? I wonder what you all would have done if I hadn't left the door unlocked. Argh, whatever!" Junpei shrugged and decided to ignore Yukari. "By the way, Mina-tan, I didn't know you could understand French."
"Huh?" Minako jumped a little. "Uh... not really. Just some very basic stuff..."
"Would you stop chit chatting?" Mitsuru called the group to attention. "We have no time to lose. We must find the key to the gym. Let's split up into two groups and search."
"Okay. So, Leader, who's going with who?" Yukari asked Minako.
"I'm going with Junpei." Minako declared.
"With... m-me?" Junpei's head shot up. For some reason, he seemed uncomfortable.
"Yeah. Why? Would you prefer going with someone else?" Minako inquired.
"Uh, no, that's not it..."
"Then, Arisato and Iori, you two go to the faculty office. Takeba, Akihiko and I will go to the janitor room." Mitsuru commanded. "We will meet back in the main hallway in fifteen minutes."
"Alright. Let's go." Minako said, and they split up.
Minako and Junpei began their search. A security guard on patrol passed nearby and they hid behind a pillar. Much to his credit, Junpei remained perfectly still. Once the guard had left, the two teenagers came out of their hiding spot and made their way to the faculty office.
"I found a key." Junpei announced. "What does it say? Let me see..." He looked at the label in the darkness. "Uh, Mina-tan, this is the key to the morgue!"
That got Minako horrified for a second. She nearly gasped, but she thought twice and tried to keep her composure. The mischievous way in which Junpei had made that statement seemed fishy. "... You're joking... right?"
"I am. You got me." Junpei confessed. "It's the key to the gym! We found it on the first try. How awesome is that?" He chuckled lightly. "And Mina-tan, you took my joke better than I had thought you would. Yuka-tan would have yelled at me for sure."
"I'm not Yukari-chan."
Junpei laughed. "Ha ha ha, yeah, you two are quite different." Then, he became serious. "Um, Mina-tan, you could've picked any of the others to help you look for the key. Why did you decide to pick me?"
"Why shouldn't I? I trust you as much as I trust any of the others."
"Huh? But you see... I screwed up on the last big mission, for one..."
"From the way you talk about it, it looks like you've learned your lesson." Minako smiled proudly. "Sure, you have your quirks, but I know I can count on you."
"... Whoa, thanks." Junpei seemed to have been touched by her words, and a bit more at ease. "Anyway, what are we still doing here? We've found what we were looking for. Let's go to the first floor and meet up with the others."
With the key in hand, Minako and Junpei met up with the other SEES members in the main hall on the first floor. They split into two groups again. Minako, Akihiko and Junpei would enter Tartarus through the gym while Mitsuru would support them from outside with Yukari. With everything set, all they needed to do now was wait for the Dark Hour to begin.
Throughout the week, Pharos had observed Minako and her group train in the tower, and got more worried each day. Minako had her friends train even on the days she had work, something that didn't usually happen. The group got stronger, but what if all that training still weren't enough? Pharos didn't like Minako's lighthearted response when he had said there was more than enough to worry about. She seemed to be underestimating the potential danger. How could she act so calm? The battle would be very dangerous! They might not win if they don't give their best. He had told her that. Wasn't she scared of dying? Of course he didn't want her to push herself too much, but he didn't want to lose her! He didn't want her to die! That situation frustrated him. It was almost as though Minako hadn't believed his warning at all. No, maybe that was because she couldn't feel what he felt, and didn't have any reference to know how dangerous the threats in question were. Pharos wanted to believe she was trusting him, and sincerely hoped it was the latter.
The full moon came. It was Dark Hour. Minako's group had already been inside the school the moment it transformed into the big tower. Unfortunately, everyone got separated. Each person ended up on a different floor. The impact of the school's transformation threw Minako violently to the ground, and she passed out.
Three minutes had already passed since Dark Hour struck. Pharos could feel that the others had begun moving from their initial positions, but Minako was still unconscious. Pharos was having a bad feeling about Minako's current situation. She wasn't showing any sign of waking up, and no one came to help her. The others were on higher floors, and only got farther from her as time went by.
Two more minutes passed and brought the total to five...
Pharos couldn't take it anymore and came out. He stood by Minako's side and waited. The air seemed to grow heavier each second. If Minako didn't wake up soon, something really bad might happen.
Seven minutes...
Pharos was nervous and pacing to and fro. "Minako, wake up, please..." He whispered.
Around twenty seconds later, Minako finally opened her eyes, and Pharos breathed out a sigh of relief.
Minako slowly came to her senses. "Here is...? We had entered the gym, and... Dark hour..." She mumbled. "Tartarus..."
"You're finally awake!" The familiar voice made her become fully alert.
"... Pharos-kun!"
He reached his hand out and helped her up.
"Uh, thanks..." Minako accepted the help. Considering who he was, it was to be expected, but Minako noted that he was much stronger than his size indicated.
Minako looked around and quickly assessed her situation. Like the other time, she got separated from her friends. Come to think of it, Pharos had shown up the other time as well. The difference was that now he was wearing the clothes she had given him. And... well, the other time, he hadn't helped her up.
"It's the first time we meet outside of your room, isn't it?" He asked.
"Huh?" If Minako remembered right, he had asked the same question the other time as well. "Actually, no. When we first met, it had been in the lounge. That day when you gave me the contract, remember?"
"Uh, err..." Pharos seemed a bit embarrassed. He laughed sheepishly. "Oops, maybe I should have said, 'outside of the dorm,' instead, shouldn't I? Anyway, you got separated from your friends. They're many floors above us, and climbing even higher."
"Many floors...?" Strange. From what Minako remembered, they should be only three floors or so apart. Did everyone end up on different floors from last time?
"You've been out for a while. You've been on this floor for too long. Something tells me that it isn't a good idea to linger on the same floor for too much time."
Minako nodded. She was well aware of what Pharos was referring to. The Reaper, a very powerful Shadow of the Death Arcana which preyed on intruders that lingered on one floor for too long. It could appear in any floor, even the lowest level one. It could be said to be the strongest guardian of Tartarus and, despite what it may seem, the Reaper didn't have much relation to Pharos aside from being of the same Arcana.
Minako quickly checked if her equipment was intact, took her naginata, and prepared to start her search for the stairs up.
"Ar-sato! Wher... you? A-hiko and Iori bzzzzzz!" It was Mitsuru trying to contact her by radio. The signal was horrible. Minako was hearing more static than anything else.
"Senpai! Kirijo-senpai!" Minako shouted into her radio. "We got sepa- Argh!" The communication broke up and she grunted in frustration.
"The stairs are a bit far from here. Come on."
"Ah!" Minako gasped in surprise when Pharos made a hand gesture, turned around and began running. " W-wait!" She almost tripped as she scrambled after him.
Pharos stopped and waited for her to catch up to him. "There isn't much time. Let's go." He urged and began walking at a brisk pace rather than running, and made it easier for Minako to keep up with him.
Still surprised, Minako quickened her pace and followed him. Pharos had a look of concentration on his face as he walked protectively in front of her. They successfully managed to avoid a lot of Shadows. Minako didn't recall seeing so many Shadows on her way last time. Her theory was that she might have taken longer to wake up this time around, and a lot of Shadows might have spawned because they had sensed a human - namely, her - on the floor.
They arrived at the stairs, but Pharos didn't stop. He guided her up the stairs and onto the next floor.
"You need to hurry," he said as they crossed an empty corridor. "The big creatures are coming to the tower. I can sense their presences clearly now. There are really two of them, and they're almost getting to your friends at the entrance! You need to save the girl and go back to the entrance as fast as possible. If you get lost here, you might not get there in time."
Minako nodded determinedly and just let him lead the way. Interestingly, the insecurity Pharos had shown during their talks in her room was absent. He seemed to know the enemies' general movement patterns, as well as exactly how much distance they needed to keep to avoid being noticed by the Shadows. He really seemed to know what he was doing.
They went up three more floors in silence. Minako had to swallow her disappointment as she was forced to ignore the occasional item she spotted on the ground. They reached another set of stairs, and Pharos finally stopped walking.
"This is it." Pharos turned around to face her. He seemed a bit sad. "Your other friends are on the next floor. The girl is there too. I sense a great potential in her. You and your friends will need her."
"Alright. Thanks for the help, Pharos-kun. You did great." Minako wondered what he would have done if the Shadows had managed to engage them in battle, though.
He gave a sad smile. "It's a serious situation. I know I shouldn't be saying this, but... it was fun to walk around with you. I'd walk with you the rest of the way if I could, but like you said the other day, it might be troublesome if they see me. So... this is where we say goodbye..." Suddenly, his confidence was gone, and he looked like he was about to cry.
"Hey, stop talking as if we wouldn't see each other anymore."
"I didn't want to say this... but I'll be honest. I'm worried. I feel the two creatures' presences down below. Something about them is very different from the ones you've faced before. I'm worried that you might not be strong enough to defeat them. If this happens and you don't come back... I... I'll be alone again. I don't want to be alone..." Fear reflected in Pharos' big, blue eyes. That moment, he looked like a small kid that was scared of getting separated from his parents.
"Pharos-kun..." The guilt of not having noticed his presence sooner hit Minako again. She placed her free hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "Calm down. Everything will be okay. Trust me."
"B-but..."
She cut him off. "I believe my friends and I are ready to face the two Shadows. You warned me about the danger and asked me to prepare, and it's what I did. I trusted you completely while you guided me up the floors, too. Now, it's your turn to trust me."
"... ..." Pharos nodded reluctantly.
"Then, see you later." Minako gently patted his head, flashed a reassuring smile, and ran past him.
Pharos had felt relieved when Minako woke up. He was grateful that she had taught him the importance of warmth. If he hadn't regulated his temperature, he wouldn't have been able to hold her hand to help her stand up. She seemed to have appreciated his help, and he wanted to help her more. He led Minako safely up the floors and avoided the tower's dangers on the way, and he felt very proud of what he did. As soon as they had stopped walking near the stairs, though, his relief was gone. His worry returned. The thought that she might not win and might not get out of the tower alive that night made a horrible feeling bubble up inside him. It scared him, because in the course of ten years, he hadn't felt anything like it. The thought that he might lose her forever greatly scared him. He didn't want that to happen, not only because he was depending on her to regain his freedom, but because he wanted to spend more time with her. He had waited ten years to be able to finally interact with her, and he didn't want to have her taken away already.
Pharos only watched until Minako had disappeared up the stairs. She had trusted him. Or at least, so she had said. Maybe he was right to think that she was simply unaware of how much danger his "dangerous" measured to. Pharos wished he could do something more for her, but he remembered that when he had tried to help her during the other full moon, he had accidentally made her Persona go berserk and caused her to pass out for one whole week. So, he was relieved that, this time, he had managed to successfully guide her up the floors without incident. He wished he could do something to help her with the upcoming fight, but he didn't want to run the risk of harming her again. All he could do now was return inside her and watch like he had always done.
Pharos was about to dematerialize and leave when something on the ground caught his attention. Then, he had an idea. It turned out that Minako's disappointed looks toward the fallen items hadn't gone unnoticed. He might not be able to help her with the fight, but those items might prove useful to her later! ... Well, provided that she came back, of course. No. Pharos tried to shake the thought of her failure away. She had to come back.
"Now, it's your turn to trust me." Minako's words replayed in his head. "Then, see you later." Her voice had been gentle, but she had also sounded confident, and Pharos was compelled to give in to her words.
He eyed the nearest item on the ground again, and determination came back to his face. He would trust her. Minako would come back, and he should do something to celebrate. She had given him a present. Now, it would be his turn to give her something! Pharos had a wide grin on his face while he walked back the way he had come and retrieved whatever items he could find on the ground.
When Pharos dematerialized and returned to his prison, Minako's group was already fighting the two strong creatures. Minako and the two boys from the group were facing the creatures head on, while the two girls were badly hurt and sat on the ground outside of combat range. The new girl had her Persona activated, and had created a barrier around herself and the classmate girl that was supposed to have stayed at the dorm but had somehow wandered into the tower.
"Wait, senpai!" The new girl warned before Akihiko Sanada, Minako's boxer friend, had a chance to punch the enemy. "Their weaknesses have switched! Now, the one you're fighting is weak to slash attacks, and the other one is weak to wind! Nothing else will work on them!"
"Their weaknesses... changed?" Mitsuru Kirijo, the red-headed dorm administrator, said from her position outside of combat range.
"So, this is why none of our attacks worked," Yukari Takeba, Minako's pink-wearing friend who was also out of the fight, concluded. "The Shadows were changing weaknesses!"
And now, Pharos understood what was so different and frightening about those two creatures. They could change weaknesses at will, and unless Minako had a way to find out their ever-changing weak points, she wouldn't be able to win no matter how strong she got, since the opponents could only be hit by attacks they were weak against, and would block everything else she threw at them. Thankfully, that new girl, Fuuka Yamagishi, seemed to be good at identifying opponents' weaknesses. Despite just having awakened to her power, she was doing a good job. Yes, there was hope.
"Slash attacks, you say?" It was Minako's cap-wearing, katana-wielding friend, Junpei Iori. "Sounds like music to my ears!"
"Fortuna, Garu!" Minako commanded. her Persona's wind spell dragged her opponent a few feet back and knocked it down.
That creature wasn't the only one weak to wind, though. The feminine opponent released a Garu spell of her own. It was Junpei's weakness, and hit him in full. It knocked him down and he was unable to attack. "Aaagh!"
"Junpei! Are you okay?" Minako asked in concern. "I'll switch Personas and heal you-"
"I'm fine!" His sluggish movements said otherwise, though. "Ugh... Mina-tan, don't worry about me and just attack! You're the one with an attack that the other Shadow is weak to!"
"It's a good point, Junpei," Akihiko said. "You aren't fine, though. Attack, Arisato. I'll heal him."
"Thanks, senpai." Minako nodded and proceeded to cast another Garu spell.
By the point Akihiko managed to cast Dia and heal Junpei, the enemies' weaknesses had changed again. Now, the masculine one was weak to electricity, while the feminine one was weak to strike. Akihiko had the advantage against both, but since Minako didn't have any Persona with strike attacks, they decided that he would strike and she would cast Zio. So they did. Both enemies were hit by their weak elements and were knocked down. Minako's team went in for an All-Out Attack, which caused quite the damage to the two creatures.
The group ran around and dodged a few of the creatures' attacks, and there was another weakness change. The masculine one became weak to ice and the other one became weak to slash attacks once again. Intent on getting his revenge, Junpei charged at the feminine creature. One thrust of the All-Purpose Katana gotten from the Sunday shopping show made the opponent dissolve into the shadows. Only the masculine creature remained. While it theoretically meant that they had won half the battle, in practice, the result actually wasn't so good...
"The enemy's life energy is almost gone." Fuuka's voice was shaking. "But... he's weak to ice. Only to ice..."
A short moment of silence followed.
"Arisato... do you have any Persona with ice?" Akihiko posed the dreaded question that had certainly been in all group members' minds.
"... No," Minako answered. "But-"
"Then, we're screwed!" Akihiko didn't let Minako finish. He seemed about to panic. "Nothing else works on him! Nothing else!"
Pharos' fear was coming back. It had been too early to celebrate. It was too good to be true...
They dodged a few more attacks and waited in the hope of having the enemy change his weakness again, but it didn't happen.
"It's your fault, Junpei!" Akihiko shouted.
"Wh-what?! What did I do...?!" Junpei gasped, nearly being choked by his boxer senpai.
"Senpai! Junpei!" Minako tried to get their attention, but they didn't listen.
"You should've waited to finish the other Shadow off! At least their weaknesses kept switching while the other one was around!" Akihiko heaved a sigh. "Waiting for his weakness to change again seems to be no use. Either that move only worked while the other Shadow was still here, or he doesn't change his weakness because he's smart enough to notice we have nothing we can hit him with! Since it might be the former, you should've waited to finish the other one until both their weaknesses were in our favor!"
Realization finally hit Junpei, and he had an expression of shock on his face. "... H-how did you expect me to guess something like that?! It's hard enough, even for an ace detective like me!" Junpei joked, but no one laughed. At least, now Pharos realized he had another nickname for the guy besides "Minako's cap-wearing friend." But that was beside the point. He had more important things to worry about at the moment.
"... Hey, guys!" Minako's call once again fell into deaf ears.
They were forced to stop talking and focus on avoiding more attacks.
Pharos was beginning to panic as well. Should he take the risk and try to intervene?
"Now, it's your turn to trust me." Minako's words surfaced again. But what was the point in hanging onto them now? What else could she do!? She didn't have any Persona with ice attacks, and no one of the other people fighting had ice attacks, either.
"Hey, everyone, it's still early to panic!" Minako tried to calm them down.
"Still early!? Mina-tan, how can you be so calm at a time like this!?" Were the self-proclaimed ace detective's words, to which Pharos fully agreed.
"You two, calm down and listen!" Minako commanded. "I believe I have a couple Bufu Gems lying around. If I get a Bufu spell in, we can probably finish him off with an All-Out Attack!"
A Bufu Gem... yes! There was hope! To think that a random gem would save the day...
"Oh, wonderfulness!" Junpei's eyes lit up as he mimicked the host of the Sunday TV shopping show his current weapon had come from. "So, you have a trick up your sleeve, huh, ms. Leader? Why didn't you tell us sooner!?"
Minako rolled her eyes. "I tried to, but you two were too busy bickering!"
"Whatever." Junpei shrugged.
"Let's get this over with," Akihiko added.
"W-wait. Arisato... l-let me do it, p-please..." Mitsuru struggled as she tried to stand up.
"Kirijo-senpai?!" Minako exclaimed in surprise.
"N-no! You can't!" Yukari, who had also been out of the fight, objected. "You're hurt. You shouldn't p-push yourself like this!"
"I still wish to... make up for... my m-mediocre performance on the last mission," Mitsuru insisted. "Arisato, please..."
"I understand," Minako said once the group had avoided another barrage of spells from the enemy.
"What!?" Yukari began to protest, but acquiesced. "... Fine. But at least l-let me heal y-you... urgh!" Yukari also tried to stand up, but she had been hurt as badly as her senpai.
"Junpei and Sanada-senpai, please keep the Shadow distracted while I go heal them!" Minako ran towards the fallen girls, and didn't even wait for an answer from her allies. Such was her trust in them, Pharos noted.
Minako healed Yukari first, then both of them proceeded to heal Mitsuru together.
"Done." Minako accompanied Mitsuru to the battlefield. "Please, do the honors, senpai!"
Then it was Empress against Emperor. "Penthesilea! Bufu!" Mitsuru summoned her Persona with flair and cast the ice spell, which hit the opponent in full. "The enemy is down!"
"Let's go for it!" Minako nodded to the group and went in for the All-Out Attack.
"Yeah! It's now or never!" Junpei joined her, followed by Akihiko and Mitsuru.
A frantic series of sword, punch and hit noises filled the battlefield. The dust settled, and the tower's entrance hall was silent for a short while until Fuuka spoke.
"You did it...! You all are amazing! You really defeated those monsters!"
"... F-Fuuka? Fuuka...!" The classmate that had been unconscious inside the protective barrier created by Fuuka's persona woke up and started to cry copiously.
But none of that mattered to Pharos, and he tuned the group's voices out. What mattered was that Minako had won. The enemies were gone, and Pharos felt a bit more of his power returning. He felt truly relieved. Minako had succeeded once again, and above all, she was fine. Contrary to what he had thought, she had been very well-prepared. Even if Mitsuru hadn't stepped in, Minako would have won by using a Bufu Gem. Yes, perhaps Pharos should trust her more. But one thing was for sure: retrieving items for her was definitely a good idea. The items he had collected for her that day could be of much more help than his attempts to channel his power through her Persona, plus it wouldn't cause her harm. Maybe he should make an habit of scouring the tower to collect items from time to time. However, the Dark Hour was about to end, and Pharos wouldn't be able to talk to Minako again that day. He would eagerly await the next Dark Hour so that he could visit her and give her what he had found. Hopefully, she would like his present.
A/n: like I had said in the notes before the first chapter, there are changes to the Social Link events. In this story, some Social Links had never started in the previous timeline, including Tower, Devil and a couple others. And this time, Tanaka didn't steal 40,000 yen from her! :P
Minako went to get the key in the faculty office with Junpei! This isn't normally possible, is it? o_O
And Pharos is still cute. :3