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 9: Yakushima
It was Monday night. Exams would start the next day. Minako finished studying and went to bed early.
She awoke in the middle of the night. In fact, she could tell it was Dark Hour. Minako nearly gasped when she noticed she wasn't alone on the bed. Someone was there beside her... and she didn't take long to understand what had happened. "Ph-Pharos-kun...?"
Pharos lay next to her, tucked under the covers. "Hmm..." He mumbled and shifted at the sound of her voice, but this was his only response.
Minako's first impulse was to reprimand Pharos for having snuck into her bed like that, but he seemed to be fast asleep, and Minako felt she shouldn't wake him up. "Okay, good night." She whispered, closed her eyes, and went back to sleep.
... ... ... ... ...
The first day of exams was over, but Minako felt she still had to study for the other tests to come the following days. After she arrived back from her part-time job, she studied for an hour or so. Just as she yawned and decided to take a break, the lights went out, and the sky outside changed to a familiar tone of green. This time already? Minako thought.
"... Good evening."
"Oh, Pharos-kun..." Minako jumped slightly, but quickly recomposed herself. "Um, would you turn the lamp on, please?" She chose to ask him since he was closer to the bedside table.
"Sure!" Pharos quickly located the switch and turned the lamp on. He hopped over to the desk with accomplishment written on his face, but then he became hesitant. "Um, I know you're busy, but..." He trailed off.
"It's fine. I was going to take a break anyway. We can talk for a bit."
"Okay!" Pharos smiled, then looked at Minako curiously. "I was wondering. When you sleep, what do you usually dream about?"
"Huh? Hmm..." Minako thought for a few seconds. "Well... I don't remember my dreams much, and the ones I remember usually don't make sense. Why?"
"Oh. Then, is it normal not to remember much...?" Pharos furrowed his brows in thought. "I'm curious because sometimes I 'sleep' during the day, while it's not Dark Hour. But all it does is make me not see or hear anything that's going on nearby, and give me the impression that time's passing faster. I don't feel better nor worse after 'waking up,' either. And I had never had a dream by 'sleeping' like this. Not a single one. But yesterday, during the Dark Hour, I had nothing to do, and was watching you sleep. I got curious to know how it was like to lie on a bed. Since there was a large empty space on your bed, I decided to give it a try. I thought about staying there just for a minute or two only to feel what it was like, but your bed was so comfortable that I was asleep even before I knew it. And guess what? I had a dream! In it, I saw the sky, in its natural color, not this green color from the Dark Hour. It was blue, full of white clouds. Even though I don't remember much about the dream, it was my first one ever! And when I woke up, I felt great, too! It was so interesting. I know the things from the dream weren't real, and that not all dreams are good, but this one was nice. I wish I could see the real blue sky for myself, not as a dream or as an image. But this'll only happen once I'm free from the Dark Hour. Until then, dreams will have to do, I guess. I wish I could at least dream more..."
Seeing Pharos so happy dissolved all Minako's thoughts about reprimanding him for sneaking into her bed. So, he had never dreamed before... she had never thought about this kind of details.
Pharos glanced behind at her bed, then turned to her again with a smile on his face. "Minako, would you let me sleep on your bed again? Um, like... right now? I promise I'll be quiet and won't get in the way of your studies."
"Okay, no problem." In the end, Minako found herself agreeing to let him sleep on her bed. What was the harm in it? He was just a kid. Well, he was a Shadow, but his mindset was that of a kid. Besides, he deserved to have his own dreams.
"Thank you!" Pharos beamed, with imaginary music notes popping out of his head. He hopped backwards towards the bed. "Then, good night." He quickly took his tennis shoes off without so much as untying them, and climbed onto the bed.
"Good night." Minako answered and went back to her studies.
Minako studied for a few more minutes. Once she had finished studying, she placed her textbooks and notebooks in their proper places, then sat back at her desk. She turned her head in the direction of her bed, where Pharos was currently sleeping. The special lamp allowed her to see his features clearly. Pharos had a calm expression and a peaceful smile. This hopefully meant he was having good dreams. He lay near the bed's edge, the same spot he had occupied the previous night. This meant Minako could take her usual position at the far end of the bed if she wanted to, but she chose to just keep watching him.
A minute or so later, Pharos' blue eyes fluttered open. He smiled when he noticed Minako was watching him. "Good morning," he said as he got into a sitting position. Then, he chuckled. "Hee hee hee. I know it isn't morning yet. It's still Dark Hour. But I just felt like saying that."
Minako chuckled as well. "I see what you mean. Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah!" Pharos answered while he shoved his tennis shoes on. "This time, I dreamed that you and I were running near the shrine. I don't remember much else, but it was fun! Minako, thank you for letting me sleep here. It was a new experience to me."
"No problem." Minako stood up from her chair. "I guess now it's my turn to go to sleep, then."
"I'll leave." Pharos mimicked her and stood up from the bed. "Then, good night... again."
"Good night." Without much warning, Minako gave him a quick and light hug, which both surprised and pleased him a lot.
... ... ... ... ...
The week went by, and exams were finally over. On the way back from school after the last day of exams, the SEES members ran into Ikutsuki, who introduced them to Ken Amada. The boy acted a bit differently than he had in the other timeline. He seemed a bit more at ease around the group. Minako was expectant, but soon her hopes fell as their short encounter ended and the boy made no mention of spring mornings.
A few days later, the group was on vacation and went to Yakushima, where Mitsuru's father had a mansion. They ran around at the beach, with the girls chasing Junpei, intent on throwing him in the water after he had made some inappropriate comments about their swimsuits.
Night arrived and everyone assembled in a room at the Kirijo Mansion.
"I have heard from Mitsuru that she told you everything," Takeharu Kirijo, Mitsuru's father, said once they had finished dinner. "The Shadows, Tartarus, the Dark Hour. It's all the Kirijo Group's fault. Initially, my father wanted to harness the power of Shadows to be able to control time. Just imagine, being able to know the solution to future problems even before they could happen."
"Very ambitious..." Junpei commented.
"Yes." Takeharu continued. "And ambition went over his head. His project gave birth to Tartarus, the Dark Hour, and a lot of Shadows that pose great danger not only to Iwatodai, but to the whole world." He pressed a button on a remote control and a huge screen descended from the wall in front of them. "What I am about to show you is the only remaining recording from the incident ten years ago, by the scientist who was appointed as the head of the project."
The recording started to play on the big screen. The image was horrible. A lot of static and explosion noises filled the speakers.
"I pray that this recording falls into safe hands..." A man's voice said.
"This voice...!" Yukari perked up.
The recorded voice continued. "At first, I thought the project's concept was something revolutionary, and I was very excited to be part of it... however, things are not as they seemed. My employer is obsessed with a loathsome idea, and the project's objectives are totally different from what we had been told... but I found out about this too late. I should have never gotten involved in that project!" The video flickered a few times as though the file had been corrupted, and one part of the scientist's speech was lost. "... but if I hadn't, it might have caused the entire world's destruction! The Shadows dispersed as a result of the explosion. This is important. The Shadows must be destroyed at all cost! I shouldn't have agreed to take part in this project. Now, humanity is in danger, and it's my fault...!" A huge explosion sounded, static filled the screen, and the recording cut out abruptly.
The living room was silent.
"... Dad..." Yukari murmured.
"Yukari-chan! You mean...?" Fuuka was surprised.
Yukari silently nodded.
"That was Eiichiro Takeba, one of our top scientists." Takeharu said. "He was very intelligent, and a great person. I do not know which kind of empty success promises my father made to deceive him. However, I cannot deny that the Kirijo Group... our group... is to blame for his death." Guilt dripped from the man's voice. "I am very well aware that no amount of apologies will undo the damage caused by the project, or bring your father back... but I am terribly sorry, Miss Takeba." Takeharu Kirijo bowed in front of Yukari, and suddenly his presence didn't seem so intimidating anymore.
"Uh..." Yukari shuffled awkwardly. "You d-don't need to apologize, Kirijo-san. Mitsuru-senpai told us you were against the project too. Um, sorry to put it like this, but... the ones that are to blame aren't even... alive anymore, are they?"
The man relaxed, but only a little. "No, they are not. Perhaps we can say they have tasted their own poison." He walked away and sat down on the couch.
After a few more seconds of silence, Yukari began to talk. "After the explosion ten years ago, all sorts of rumors quickly spread about how my father worked for the Kirijo Group, and people began blaming him for the incident. My mother and I were looked down on, and even the neighbors did horrible things to us. Because of this, we had to move a few times. This year, just before I moved to the dorm, I got a letter written by my father ten years ago. This was what made me decide to go to Iwatodai. I thought that if I got near the Kirijo Group, I'd find out the truth about what happened ten years ago. So, it looks like I was right, huh? I hadn't imagined it'd be like this, though." Yukari forced a smile. "I still believe in my father. He was a very kind person. I know he wouldn't have done anything to harm anyone on purpose. I'm sure he wouldn't have agreed to join the project if he had known it was something so dangerous." She nodded with determination. "Since now we know we can fix everything, then it's what we'll do."
Everyone agreed. Minako was very proud of Yukari. It was great to see her so level-headed during this event. This definitely proved that Yukari's maturity had indeed carried over to this timeline.
"Uh, hey, Mina-tan. I've heard some rumors at school saying you also lost your parents ten years ago. It isn't true, is it?" Junpei asked nonchalantly. He completely disregarded the fact it could be a touchy subject for Minako if it were true.
"Junpei!" Yukari knew it was true, and promptly reprimanded Junpei.
"It's okay." Minako waved it off. Thankfully, she had gotten over the tragedy a long time ago. "Yeah, it's true. I actually lived in Iwatodai when I was little. We'd been in my dad's car on our way back from a party when the car crashed and went up in flames. I don't remember much of what happened, though. I only remember I was thrown out of the car, my parents told me to run, and I ran, sure that they'd make it too, but they didn't."
Only then, Junpei realized he had touched on a delicate subject. "Ah! I didn't know. I'd heard the rumors and... you know. I didn't think they were actually true. Sorry, Mina-tan. I shouldn't have asked..."
"No problem." Minako smiled assuringly at him. "I already got over it."
"... Did you relate it to the incident, too?" Yukari asked, even though she was still a bit hesitant to talk about the subject.
"No. I didn't think much of it. To me, it was just an accident, nothing more."
"Arisato." Mitsuru spoke up. "Sorry to bring this up, but before you were assigned to our dorm, we did a background check on you. The day when your parents died... was exactly the same day the explosion happened and let Shadows loose on the streets. It is very likely that the incident is the cause. The facts add up too perfectly to be only a mere coincidence."
Minako's expression darkened momentarily. "Was this the main factor that made you decide to accept my transfer?"
Mitsuru's eye twitched. "... You could say that."
Minako only giggled, and this dissolved the tense atmosphere that had started to build up. "Even so, I'm glad you did, Senpai. You know, after the accident, I had to move a lot too. Nothing too dramatic like in Yukari-chan's case, thankfully. I usually had to move over to another relative's house because the relatives I was staying with were broke and were in no condition to take care of one more family member. My uncle was the one I've stayed with for more time. He's very irresponsible. I didn't think he'd agree to take me in, but my aunt, his sister, basically forced him to, because I didn't have anywhere else to go. I think he only didn't send me away because it was convenient to him that I was around to help with his daily chores. He couldn't cook, or do the laundry, or do pretty much anything... yeah." Minako chuckled. "Compared to all the places I've stayed at, it's really nice to be with everyone in the dorm. It's so lively, and somehow feels more like a family than my true family. Mitsuru-senpai, I'm very grateful that you accepted me in the dorm, even though the main reason was Personas and stuff, and that what made you decide to take me in was my background."
Mitsuru smiled faintly at Minako's words. "This was the reason in the beginning. I won't deny it. But now, it is different. We are glad to have you with us as well, Arisato."
"Yeah, you bet!" Junpei pumped his fists and grinned at Minako. "I agree with you, Mina-tan. Our dorm's the best!"
Akihiko nodded, while Fuuka and Yukari quietly chuckled. The atmosphere was more pleasant now. They talked for a few more minutes and bid their good nights.
Takeharu looked at all of them approvingly. "You have gotten really good friends, Mitsuru."
"Yes." Mitsuru nodded. "Even though I only met them a few months ago, it feels as though we have known each other for a long time." This was the last thing Minako heard as she left the living room.
... ... ... ... ...
Each one of the SEES members were assigned to a separate bedroom. The rooms were too big for just one person, were impeccably clean, and had expensive furniture adorned with equally expensive-looking objects such as porcelain vases and exotic stones. It was the same room Minako had stayed the other timeline, but she couldn't help but gawk at the luxurious decorations. Minako took some pictures using her cellphone, then decided to go to bed. She turned the lights off, and lay on the bed. A soothing fragrance emanated from the bedsheets and covers, presumably from the softeners used to wash them. Minako closed her eyes, and allowed both the bed's aroma and the faint sound of the waves outside to lull her to sleep.
When she woke up next, the sound of the waves was no longer present, and the atmosphere wasn't as soothing as it had been before. It felt a bit eerie, to tell the truth. Minako tried not to pay any mind to it and go back to sleep, but then she heard a shuffling sound which gave her the impression that someone else was in her room. "... Huh?" Sleep faded away immediately and Minako opened her eyes on high alert.
"You're awake?" It was Pharos' voice, and the situation finally sank in. It was Dark Hour.
"Pharos-kun!" Minako sprang to a sitting position, half relieved it was only him, half surprised to see him there.
He chuckled. "Why the surprise? Wherever you go, I follow you. No matter what happens, I'm always near you. I already told you this, didn't I?"
As creepy as it sounded, it was true. Since Pharos was inside her, it meant that she took him wherever she went. But he had never talked to her on Yakushima in the other timeline, and she wasn't expecting him to appear now.
"Yeah, you did say that. I guess I'm just not used to seeing you somewhere that isn't my room in the dorm..."
"It's nice to be somewhere other than the dorm or the big tower for once." Pharos looked around. "Wow, this room is so big!" He began running laps around the empty space.
"Um, Pharos-kun, I know you don't have many opportunities to run around. Sorry to ruin your fun, but I don't think you should run around the room like that. What if you bump into the furniture? You might knock and break the decorations. It's all expensive stuff on there..."
"Oh... yeah, I guess you're right, hee hee hee..." Pharos balked and laughed sheepishly.
Minako sighed, relieved that he complied. "Alright. Come here." She moved to sit on the bed's edge, and beckoned for Pharos to sit beside her.
Pharos gladly took his place to her right. "Today was an interesting day." He commented. "Everyone was kind of different for some reason. Your baseball cap friend was acting weird, your red-wearing senpai wasn't actually wearing red, and the girls looked angry most of the time. Despite all this, everyone seemed to have had fun. And that swimsuit you wore. You looked... cute in it. This is how we're supposed to phrase it, right?"
"Uh...! Um..." Minako felt very self conscious. She could tell that her face was flushing red.
"What? Did I phrase it wrong?" Pharos asked obliviously.
"N-no." Minako shook her head in an attempt to dispel the embarrassment, but it was no use.
"Why are you embarrassed? I just stated a fact. I'm pretty sure you'd already known you'd look good in it. I mean, this was the reason you chose that clothing, wasn't it?"
"Uh, well, y-yeah." Minako had to agree. It was pure, innocent logic, and made perfect sense. She felt more at ease, and her blush weakened. "Yeah, you're right about all this. I chose that bikini because I was sure it'd look good on me. But... when someone else points it out, it's kind of embarrassing."
"Hmm. Embarrassment is a weird thing." Pharos said contemplatively. "Anyway. I'm happy that I was able to come to a different place. Not that I don't like the dorm. I like it. It seems to be nice and lively. But being somewhere else feels different. Even though I couldn't join in the fun today, the simple fact that I'm here in this bedroom in a house by the beach gives me a good feeling. I feel closer to your friends by being here. Strange, isn't it? Everyone is in the dorm every day, yet I had to come to a place so far away from the dorm to feel more connected to them. I guess the fact that I was also able to leave the dorm and come to a different place with the others made me realize I can be in the same environment as other people. Well, it's obvious I can, but you know. The Dark Hour is a time when most people are inactive. Since I'm only active during this hour, I can't meet most other people. We're also avoiding your friends, the only others that are awake, so... I guess I felt a bit distant from everyone else. It was as though I were living in a separate world from them. Do you get what I mean?"
"Hmm... ... uh... somewhat?" Minako answered uncertainly. She was still trying to process everything Pharos said. His explanation had been profound, and his choice of vocabulary momentarily ruined the "little kid" impression he had been giving until a few moments ago.
Pharos laughed. "It's fine if you don't understand. It's very hard to explain. I can't even tell if I'm making sense myself!"
"Don't worry." Minako assured him. "I think you made sense. I was the one who couldn't process it quickly enough. Let's see... the bottom line is that you felt detached from the others before, as though you were left out. And now, not so much. What is a bit complicated is the way you came to the realization that made you feel better. Did I get it right?"
"Yeah, it's very close to that!" Pharos nodded enthusiastically. But then, he became serious all of a sudden. "Speaking of feeling closer to others... the talk this night... the talk about ten years ago. Your friend... Yukari. She lost her father too. I had never felt sad for anyone before... well, aside from you, that is. But after they played that video, I felt sad for her."
It was the first time Minako heard Pharos say one of her friends' names. Maybe this change was indeed a proof that he felt closer to them now.
He was still talking. "The man in the video, her father... I felt he was a nice person. I think he deserved to have lived more. Why do you think he had to die?"
"Hmm. I don't know how it happened, but maybe it could have been avoided, who knows?"
"Don't you think it was his fate?"
"Fate?" Minako repeated.
"Yeah, fate. There are things that were decided beforehand by greater forces and can't be changed. Um, how can I put this? There are things that can't be changed, like the fact that all living beings will die one day. But this is not what I'm talking about. The way I view it, there's another kind of thing that can't change. Like the most important events in someone's life, because they were already decided beforehand. For example, you became a Persona user and got involved in all this probably because it was your fate. Don't you think so, too?"
Pharos was touching on an important point. He clearly believed fate couldn't be changed. It was one of the main points Minako needed to change his mind about, but no suitable responses were coming to her mind. "Uh... I don't know."
"Why do you fight during the Dark Hour, then? It's dangerous, but you still insist on fighting and risking your life."
"Well, yeah, fighting is a bit scary. Before coming to Iwatodai, I had never thought I'd get involved in something like this." She admitted. "But from the moment I learned I had this power, I knew I could use it to help others. So, it's what I decided to do."
"Don't you think your parents died because it was their fate, or that only you survived because it was your fate to be left behind?"
"It's like I said before. To me, it was just an accident. We just happened to be there right at the time things went downhill, and we got involved. I never blamed anyone for it. I still think things could have happened a lot of different ways, though. The three of us might have survived. Or only them, or only one of them, or none of us... but what actually happened was that they didn't survive, but I did, and now, I'm here."
"Your senpai said it might be related to the incident ten years ago. If it turns out to be true, what are you going to do?"
"Huh, what do you mean? It already happened. It's in the past. There's nothing to be done about it now."
"What I mean is... won't this change your reason to fight? you have the power now. Shouldn't you fight to avenge them or something?"
Minako was taken aback. Pharos was suggesting her to focus on avenging her parents' deaths. She recalled how Ken had tried to kill Shinjiro in the other timeline, blinded by his desire for revenge. That course of action could only result in regret. Minako hadn't expected Pharos to suggest something like that. But on further thought, it shouldn't be so unusual. He was a Shadow, and those should be the predominant kind of emotions inside him. There was no way Minako would follow that suggestion, though. Especially since she knew that the attack that exploded her father's car had come from Pharos himself. He had been a violent Shadow, and Minako had no idea what had been on his mind back then, but she was sure he was a very kind soul right now. Minako suddenly felt very sorry for him. What would his reaction be if he found out the truth?
"No." Minako shook her head. "What's the use in doing that? It won't bring them back."
"It won't. But wouldn't you be satisfied if you took justice into your own hands?"
"No, I wouldn't. Revenge usually blinds us and makes us do rash things we'll regret later. I see nothing good that can come out of it. I'll just keep fighting to put an end to the Dark Hour like planned. This is what matters to me now."
Pharos chuckled amusedly. "You're really kind. Like I said before, kindness is a quality that I admire very much. Contrary to what it may seem, it's not a sign of frailty and weakness. You're a proof of this. You're both very kind and very strong at the same time," he said in admiration. Even in the darkness, Minako could tell that he was smiling. "I don't see what you might regret if you were to seek revenge in this case, but if this is your decision..." Pharos shrugged. "Back to the previous subject. You don't believe in fate, then?"
"I don't know. But I don't like the idea that most things are already decided for us from the start. If it were to be that way, then we'd have no motivation to try to do anything. If the outcome is the same no matter what we choose to do, then what's the point of even trying? I believe that the moment we surrender to what seems was already predetermined, we throw away all chances of different outcomes we might have had."
"Hmm..." Pharos considered her words. "Then, you're saying you don't accept your fate? Wait, but you signed the contract. You remember what it said, right?"
Minako gulped. She hadn't expected him to bring up the contract ever again. "Y-yeah, I remember."
"Then, you agreed to accept it."
Apparently, she wouldn't be able to avoid the subject, after all. "Uh, well, not really..."
Minako flinched as Pharos flicked his hand and made the contract appear, and began to scrutinize the paper. Minako held her breath. He was going to see what she had done! Would he get angry at her?
"... What? I c-can't believe this." Pharos sounded perplexed. "You... edited it...?"
Minako felt Pharos' penetrating gaze shoot straight at her. She did her best to resist the urge to recoil. He kept staring at her in an eerie silence for a few seconds that seemed to last an eternity to her, until...
Pharos began laughing amusedly, and took Minako completely by surprise. "Now I see how serious you were about checking the contract's terms! It looks like you put a lot of thought into handling this contract... you checked it so carefully, and even went as far as to change the terms! You must really dislike the idea that things are predetermined, huh? Minako, you... you're amazing!"
"... Huh?" It was Minako's turn to be perplexed. "Uh, um, thanks...?"
Pharos made the contract disappear and continued laughing for a while.
"Um, that contract was actually related to my Personas, wasn't it?" Minako spoke up once Pharos' laughing fit had stopped.
"It was." Pharos answered. "I'm sorry for making it look like it was for the dorm, but I wasn't sure how else to go about it. I didn't even remember much about Personas to begin with! I had only known there's a place where you can improve your powers, but you can't enter it unless you have signed some sort of contract."
"Oh, you mean the Velvet Room." Minako nodded in understanding.
"Velvet Room? Is this the place's name?"
"Huh? Don't you know?"
"No." Pharos shook his head. "I only know that such a place exists, nothing more."
"So, you're saying you only gave me the contract for me to be able to enter the Velvet Room?"
"Uh-huh. Since you seemed about to awaken to your power, I thought having access to the place would be useful."
Minako was puzzled. Was that really all? Of course, the Velvet Room residents would only assist her if she abided by the contract, but she had thought the terms had more significance to Pharos. "Just curious, but what would have happened if I hadn't signed it?" Minako risked asking.
"Hm?" Pharos stopped to think, as though he had never considered that possibility before. "I don't know. Things would probably have been a lot harder. You wouldn't have access to that place where you get extra help to handle your Personas, and I don't know if you'd have been able to come this far."
Yes, things would have been much harder without the Velvet Room, Persona Fusions, and her compendium. Minako was also not sure whether she would have been able to defeat all those full moon Shadows without the "extra help," as Pharos put it. Since he was depending on her to get his freedom, maybe this was enough significance for the contract to him.
"Yeah, access to the Velvet Room is quite useful. Thank you, Pharos-kun."
"You're welcome!" Pharos answered cheerfully, then chuckled to himself. "Minako, your views about fate are very interesting. You say that fate can change. I was pretty sure it couldn't, but for some reason, I'm beginning to think you may be right. There's something about you. You give me... hope, and it kind of makes me want to believe you."
Minako was relieved that Pharos had accepted her arguments. Hopefully they would make him change his mind in the long run. "I'm sure that a lot can change. Situations, places, people... You know? Since the day we first met, you've changed a lot." And she added as a thought, And you give me hope, too, Pharos-kun.
"M-me?" Pharos was taken aback. "Hmm... yeah, now that I think about it, since I spent so much time alone with nothing to do, it looked like that would be my routine forever. But you gave me the opportunity to do things I'd never done before, and yeah, I admit I feel a bit different now. Minako, thank you."
Minako wordlessly wrapped an arm around his shoulder, and they shared a few minutes of silence, in which Pharos seemed lost in thought.
"Minako." Pharos shifted a bit. "I really wanted to stay more, but I have to go. The Dark Hour will end in a few minutes."
"Okay." Minako let go of him. "See you tomorrow, then?"
"Sure!" Pharos seemed very happy that Minako wanted him to visit her the following day as well. "Good night, and see you tomorrow!"
... ... ... ... ...
The following morning, the girls from SEES were talking as they walked through the trails in the forest. Fuuka told them about how her parents and siblings didn't pay much mind to her, which prompted Yukari to say she didn't have siblings... and prompted Minako to start laughing.
"Minako-chan?" Fuuka turned her head in Minako's direction.
"This talk reminded me of something my parents told me when I was little. Before I was born, they thought they'd have a boy, not a girl. They had bought boy's clothes, and decided their son's name would be 'Minato.' But then, they got me instead. It must've been quite the surprise to them. For a few months, I had to wear boy's clothes until my parents managed to buy girl's clothes. When they told me about this, I said that maybe Minato wasn't in the mood to come, and I offered to come in his place. Too bad for him, because he ended up missing a lot of fun stuff. But I was thankful that he let me wear his clothes while I didn't have mine."
She laughed. Yukari and Fuuka laughed with her. Even Mitsuru, who had been present but hadn't joined the conversation, let out a few chuckles.
Minako wondered what might have happened if "Minato" had come instead of her. Would he have become a Persona user as well? Or, what if both of them had come together? Would they have gotten along? Would both of them have become Persona users? So many possibilities. So many things that could have happened differently. Had her "fate" been changing even before she was born?
"Oh, excuse me." Mitsuru walked away from the laughing girls to answer her ringing phone.
The three girls began taking pictures of the scenery while they waited for Mitsuru to come back.
"Ah!" Minako gasped when her cellphone slipped from her hand and tumbled down a small hill. "Oh no! I'll go get it."
"Be careful!" Fuuka advised.
Minako nodded and began walking down the hill, slowly and carefully. She had been halfway down when she noticed Mitsuru was back. Minako stopped and tried to hear what Mitsuru was saying.
"Everyone, we have a problem," Mitsuru said to Yukari and Fuuka. "I have just gotten a call from the chairman. He informed me that a dangerous anti-Shadow weapon went out of control and escaped the laboratory. He told us to prepare for battle and capture it as soon as possible."
"A weapon? Do you mean a machine?" Fuuka asked. "What are we looking for, exactly?"
"I... don't know." Mitsuru sounded embarrassed to admit it. "I didn't have the chance to ask the chairman. He spat out one of his nonsensical jokes and began laughing uncontrollably. When he gets like that, no one can get anything out of him."
"Keeping an eye for anything unusual is our best bet, then..." Fuuka concluded.
"But senpai!" Yukari was alarmed. "How are we supposed to prepare for battle? We can't use our Personas outside the Dark Hour!"
"We should go back to the mansion and retrieve our equipment... wait, where is Arisato?"
"Her phone fell down that hill and she went there to retrieve it." Fuuka informed.
Minako concluded she had to solve her problem soon and tried to move quicker. "Aaaaah!" She yelped. The rocks she was on gave way and she slipped.
Minako desperately tried to find something to hold on to, but couldn't find anything. To her relief, someone came and saved her. Someone very familiar...
"I've finally found you." Her savior lifted her and put her safely on the ground.
It was Aigis. Minako's heart raced, both due to the shock of the sudden fall, and the fact that she had met another one of her friends. Then came the nagging question. Did Aigis remember? Minako hoped so. Aigis had been a wild card by the end of the other timeline, and had been the one to suggest the use of a passphrase just before their lives rewinded.
"... Do you know who I am?" Minako asked anxiously.
"Not exactly, but I know it's my priority to protect you."
Minako deflated. Aigis didn't remember. But Minako noticed that Aigis didn't sound as robotic as she did when they met in the other timeline. At least, it was something.
"Is this yours?" Aigis showed a small device in her hands and interrupted Minako's thoughts.
"Ah! My cellphone!" Minako remembered what she had come there for in the first place. "Thanks for finding it. I was taking pictures of the flowers nearby, and it fell from my hand."
However, Aigis didn't hand the phone back to Minako. "Pictures...?" Her gaze drifted over to a patch of flowers. Then, she opened Minako's cellphone and looked at it studiously. "It is a matter of focusing the camera's lens on the target and pressing this button, is it not?"
"Huh? Yeah..." Minako nodded.
Aigis calmly walked over to the patch of flowers and took a picture using Minako's cellphone. She returned to Minako's side and wordlessly handed her the phone with the taken picture visible on the screen.
Minako was amazed. "Wow, this picture is perfect! Thanks!"
To Minako's surprise, Aigis smiled. In the other timeline, it had taken several months until Aigis had finally become able to smile like that.
"Arisato!" Mitsuru called from up the hill.
"Minako-chan!" Fuuka followed. "We heard you scream. Is everything okay there?"
"Yeah! I got some help, and everything's fine!" Minako shouted. "I'll climb back up now!"
Minako made her way back up with Aigis' help. Aigis' dress got dirty with earth and leaves all over the place, but the robot girl didn't seem to mind.
"Phew! Sorry to have taken so long." Minako apologized to her friends.
Fuuka looked from Minako to Aigis. "Who's she?"
"She's the one who helped me down there." Minako answered casually.
"Argh!" Yukari grunted in frustration. "What's Junpei doing? Why doesn't he answer the phone?!"
"Junpei?" Aigis repeated the name. "I ran into a boy who called himself Junpei at the beach around seven minutes ago. Even though it is not rare to have people with the same name, I believe we are speaking of the same person."
"Was he wearing a baseball cap?" Yukari asked.
"Yes."
"Let's go." Yukari began moving at a brisk pace and prompted the others to follow her.
They made their way back through the forest in search of Junpei and Akihiko, with Aigis keeping close to Minako the whole time. The other girls noticed the worried glances Aigis kept directing at Minako.
"Uh, did you already know each other?" Fuuka asked.
"... I am not sure." Aigis answered. "However, for some reason I feel it's important that I keep an eye on her."
That sounded strange.
"H-hey!" Minako waved nervously and tried to dispel the awkwardness. "It's true you met me when I was falling off a hill, but I'm not that clumsy! You don't need to worry like this the whole time!"
Before Aigis had a chance to answer, the group saw the two boys running in the distance.
"There she is!" Junpei shouted between gasps.
Junpei and Akihiko halted in front of the girls.
"We met again... huh?" Junpei said to Aigis, still trying to recover his breath.
"I had told you I was looking for someone who was not you. This time, though, I was definitely looking for you, Junpei-san."
"Oh, she remembers my name!" Junpei looked at Akihiko and smirked. "I guess it's one point for me, Sanada-san!" He turned to Aigis again, and didn't give anyone time to wonder what that deal of "points" was about. "S-so, uh, to w-what do I owe the honor of being sought by you?"
"Actually, I was merely helping locate you. It appears that your friend here was quite desperate to see you." Aigis pointed at Yukari.
"It's n-nothing like that!" Yukari blushed in embarrassment and shook her head vigorously. "Look, Stupei, now's not the time to be playing around. We have a serious problem!"
Then, Ikutsuki arrived, also running and panting.
"Oh, there you are!" The chairman said as he stopped in front of the group. "You found her. What a relief..."
"She found us, actually..." Minako muttered, but the chairman wasn't paying attention to her.
"Aigis, you shouldn't disappear on us like that." He gently scolded the robot girl.
Aigis didn't respond.
"Um, Mr. Chairman?" Fuuka spoke timidly. "What about the search for the anti-Shadow weapon?"
"Huh?" Ikutsuki seemed confused for a moment, but then he laughed. "Ha ha ha! The search is over. You've just found her, you see." As he got confused stares from the group, he motioned to said anti-Shadow weapon. "Aigis, would you introduce yourself, please?"
Aigis moved from her position and stopped in front of the group. "My name is Aigis. I am an anti-Shadow suppression weapon, a machine designed to destroy Shadows."
Everyone was amazed at the robot girl's expressiveness.
"She's so cute. But she's a... robot?" Junpei looked like he couldn't decide whether to be disheartened or amazed at the revelation.
"Destroy Shadows?" Akihiko said. "Only Personas can defeat Shadows... wait, you don't mean...!"
"Yes, I do." Aigis nodded. "I can control the Persona 'Palladion.'"
"It's hard to believe you're a robot. You seem so alive. So expressive. And you can use a Persona! It's so amazing!" Fuuka looked at Aigis in awe.
"Aigis is the anti-Shadow weapon I spoke of," Ikutsuki said. "She's the last surviving model. She was deactivated after sustaining serious damage in a battle, and had been dormant in the lab on this island for ten years. It's strange that she suddenly reactivated on her own this morning."
"It was yesterday morning, in fact." Aigis uttered in a low voice. No one seemed to take notice, though.
"She seemed very attached to Minako-chan for some reason." Yukari observed. "Any idea why?"
"Hmm... nothing that I can think of. It's strange since they're seeing each other for the first time today. Maybe her identification system is malfunctioning... or maybe she's still half asleep!"
Everyone rolled their eyes.
"Aigis, what is the last thing you remember before your reactivation?" Ikutsuki asked.
"Hmm..." The robot girl closed her eyes. She seemed to be in a daze when she spoke. "I remember I had to perform an emergency shutdown. Then... people. A small-sized group of people..."
"Was this in the battlefield?" Ikutsuki continued his interrogation.
"No. It was... It was in an... elevator...?"
And they concluded that Ikutsuki's theory of Aigis being still half asleep wasn't that far-fetched...
"Hmm. Maybe she remembers when the crew took her to the lab?" Ikutsuki theorized. "We have elevators in the lab."
"No. It was not the lab," Aigis said firmly. "The elevator's interior was all blue. But who were those people...? I cannot recall their faces... but they seemed so familiar..."
Minako was intrigued. It looked like Aigis actually remembered the moment they were in the Velvet Room before traveling back in time! Maybe Aigis would remember more if someone gave her a little push. Minako would try to talk to her later.
"Ah well..." Ikutsuki sighed. "We'll run some tests on her later, and we shall see. I don't know why she suddenly activated, but since she did, I'll have her join SEES. I'm sure her abilities will be a great asset in our fight against the Shadows!"
"Awesome!" Junpei exclaimed. "We're glad to have you with us, Ai-chan!"
Aigis didn't seem to mind not being addressed by her actual name. She responded by smiling and bowing her head slightly. "Likewise. I'm glad to be of help to everyone."
"Now that that's settled, how about some karaoke?" Ikutsuki suggested with a smug expression. "We have a karaoke machine. If no one's brave enough to sing, it's fine, too. I'll gladly show you my repertoire..."
... ... ... ... ...
The group spent their afternoon singing to the karaoke machine. Ikutsuki attempted to sing a few songs with disastrous results. Everyone was already thinking up excuses to leave when, much to their surprise, Aigis snatched the microphone from Ikutsuki's hand with a, "You are completely off-key, Ikutsuki-san," and proceeded to try singing the song herself. Her results were far from perfect, but were much better than Ikutsuki's. Plus, she had a nice singing voice. It didn't take long until everyone was fighting for the microphone and trying to join in, even if only to prove that they could sing better than Ikutsuki.
A/n: while playing the game, did anyone else wondered what Ikutsuki tried to sing, or was I the only one? Even though I wrote in this story that his results were horrible, I think his Japanese voice would be good for singing. I was actually interested to know what he sang, but the game didn't show it...