When Minako regained consciousness, she found herself in the Velvet Room and stuck in her seat again.
"It's so nice to see you again," Igor welcomed her. "You became unconscious after awakening to your 'power'. That power is called a Persona. It is a manifestation of your psyche," he provided details for something she had no recollection of.
"Awaken what? A Persona? What are you talking about? I blacked out the second I pulled the trigger of the summoning gun. I didn't awaken anything," Minako told him, resigning to the fact she would not be able to budge from her seat.
"A Persona is a facet of your personality that surfaces as you react to external stimuli. You can think of it as a mask that protects you as you brave many hardships. When you use your Persona ability, you must channel your inner strength."
"Listen, Mr. Igor. I can believe you when you say I have the ability to use Persona. Since I've seen my seniors summon those... things... that act as their Persona, what you said is possibly true," she said while visibly cringing at the emphasized word. "But even if I did summon anything, which I did not, I certainly did not channel it considering I blacked out and you brought me here against my will again. Something doesn't add up with what you've just told me." She did not believe him when he said she awakened to her power. What she remembered was a botched attempt at summoning a Persona since she immediately blacked out after pulling the trigger and hearing the gunshot.
"You most definitely summoned a Persona," Igor insisted. "However, it appears your mental state at the time of your awakening has affected that power in an unforeseen manner and has turned it into something that even I cannot begin to explain. I'm afraid I won't be able to lend much assistance as you learn about your unique ability," he informed with slight regret. "What I can tell you is your ability to wield Persona evolves as you develop your Social Links: Your emotional ties to others. The stronger your Social Links, the more powerful your Persona ability. Please remember that."
"Are you implying I take advantage of the people around me for my own benefit?" she frowned angrily at him.
"Most certainly not. Your Social Links can only develop through genuine bonds. You will find it most difficult to improve your Persona ability if you attempt to make ties with others if your goal is to solely strengthen them," he placated her.
"So I should let these Social Links grow naturally? At least I won't be falsifying any bonds with any friends I make," she grumbled but otherwise accepted his words.
"Now, then... Time marches on in your world. I shouldn't keep you here any longer. Next time we meet, you will come here of your own accord," Igor told her. "Until then. Farewell..."
Just like before, Minako had no chance to put a word in before her vision whitened out again. She had wanted to retort that she would never want to come to the Velvet Room willingly. She had been deceived into a contract with it, after all.
***Break Line***
Minako's vision eventually grew clearer and the first thing she saw after opening her surprisingly heavy eyelids was a white ceiling. She groaned audibly, her voice sounding hoarse. She was back in a hospital again.
"You're awake!" she heard a familiar voice coming from the bedside. She turned her head slowly and saw Yukari come into her vision.
"Yukari..." Minako groaned out.
"Um, how do you feel?" Yukari asked. Minako answered with a nod, still feeling the heavy fatigue in her body. "Thank goodness. You finally came to... I was so worried about you." She told her the doctor found nothing wrong with her. She was only suffering from a case of severe exhaustion that had her comatose for ten days. That was shocking news for Minako. Yukari then apologized for being unable to do anything that night before praising Minako's amazing power.
"What did I do?" Minako asked. "I don't remember anything I did that night..."
Yukari explained that she had used the power of Persona, except hers seemed to function very differently than how Mitsuru and Akihiko's Persona abilities worked. She unknowingly repeated what Igor had told Minako using her own words. She did learn that those monsters were known as Shadows, the enemy they had faced that night. When she had recovered enough to be discharged, they would explain everything to her.
"I, uh... I wanted to tell you that... I'm sort of like you," Yukari changed the subject.
"What do you mean?" Minako asked. Did she mean her Persona ability was like hers?
"My dad died in an accident when I was little... And my mom and I aren't exactly on good terms... You're all alone too, right? To be honest, I already know about your past..."
"How do you know about my past?" Minako hissed angrily. That was a very touchy subject for her that should never have been public knowledge to regular people. "Who told you that?"
"The Chairman did. But it didn't seem fair, so I wanted you to know about mine," Yukari defended herself. She told her her father lost his life in a big explosion that took place in the area but nobody knew what really happened except that he was working in a lab run by the Kirijo Group. The reason she was still sticking around Mitsuru and Akihiko despite the clear danger they had been in that night was the hope she would find something out in regards to what happened to her father. She apologized again for her helplessness that night but it was her first time fighting the Shadows too.
"I was scared, too," Minako admitted, but it was not only because of the Shadows.
"Really...? But still..." Yukari seemed to slightly regret spilling this much information on Minako the minute she woke up but resolved herself to tell the truth as soon as she was able to. She thanked Minako for listening to her since she had wanted to share her story with someone she felt she could trust for a long time. She checked her watch and her time was up. She promised to let the others know she had regained consciousness by the time she was discharged.
***Break Line***
Minako was back in school the very next day. She bumped into Junpei at the gates and he excitedly went up to her the moment he saw her. He appeared pumped up and seemed to want to tell her something. When she asked, he paused and remembered that he was not supposed to talk about it. She pouted at the tease but he only chuckled at her. Yukari arrived with a disgruntled look and approached them, chastising Junpei for being so loud she could hear him from some distance away. He did not let that dampen his mood and joked that even though the two girls lived in the same dorm, they arrived separately today supposedly because Yukari wanted to avoid rumors about them again. She retorted that she just left a little later than Minako and told him she had to talk privately with her, pulling her away from him.
Once they were away from listening ears, Yukari asked if she was well enough to attend school so quickly. Minako brushed off her concern, stating she had enough rest already. Yukari smiled in relief and informed her that the Chairman wanted the dorm residents to gather at the fourth floor of the dorm immediately after school ended for a meeting. It was the explanation she had promised Minako would get after her discharge from the hospital.
School could not end faster and Minako rushed straight back to the dorm. Despite her haste, she found herself the last resident to arrive at the room on the fourth floor. The Chairman greeted her amicably, glad that nothing serious had happened to her. The reason he held this meeting was to talk to her. Once she took a seat, he formally introduced Akihiko to her. They exchanged short greetings before Ikutsuki got to the topic of interest.
"Would you believe me if I said that a day consists of more than 24 hours?" Ikutsuki asked.
"No," Minako answered.
"I'm not surprised by your reaction," Mitsuru chuckled. "You've already experienced the truth firsthand. Do you remember the night you came here? You had to have noticed the signs."
"No electronics are working, the world turns green and people get trapped inside coffins, right?" she filled in the missing pieces for Mitsuru. "The whole world changes right after midnight. I know. But I have never known that time stayed still when this happens."
"You already know about the Dark Hour, Minako?" Yukari asked, just as surprised at the revelation as everyone else in the room.
"The Dark Hour? Is that what it's called when the world changes?" This was new information for Minako.
"This makes things faster if you already understand the Dark Hour," Ikutsuki was impressed by her knowledge. "When did you learn of this?"
"Ten years ago," she answered. "Please don't ask about it." Everybody agreed easily enough, respecting her request to not bring it up. If Yukari, a new-comer like her, already knew about her past, there was no doubt the seniors and the chairman did too.
"Don't you find the Dark Hour interesting?" Akihiko asked. "You saw those creatures. We call them Shadows. They only appear during the Dark Hour, and attack anyone not in a coffin. It's our job to defeat them. Sounds exciting, huh?"
"Akihiko! Why are you always like that? You just got hurt the other day!" Mitsuru admonished his excitement in fighting the Shadows.
"Now, now. He does his work well," Ikutsuki stopped her angry tirade and turned his attention back to Minako. "Long story short... We're the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad. SEES, for short. On paper, we're classified as a school club. But in reality, this group is dedicated to defeating the Shadows. Mitsuru is the leader. I'm the club adviser."
Mitsuru explained that Shadows feed on the mind of their prey, turning any human capable of functioning during the Dark Hour into living corpses. The Shadows were responsible for most, if not all, the incidents that happened on Tatsumi Port Island reported on the news. Minako asked how they were supposed to fight off the Shadows and Ikutsuki answered that among the already few people that could function during the Dark Hour were some that may even awaken to a power to enable them to fight the Shadows called Persona, a power she had displayed that night. Only Persona-users had the ability to defeat the Shadows, which meant only their group was capable of doing so. Mitsuru put a silver case that had been by her side on the table and opened it, revealing the fake gun inside. Now that Minako had a closer look, the group's initials were engraved on the side of the gun. It was called an Evoker, and they wanted her to join their group. Everything Yukari, and Igor by extension, had told her in the hospital was true except...
"I'm not sure I'm ready to join your group," Minako refused the invitation politely. "I don't know why you think I'm a Persona-user. I don't remember doing anything like what the seniors did." She did not miss the uneasy look Mitsuru and Akihiko gave one another. Did something happen when she supposedly summoned a Persona? "I mean, Mitsuru-senpai and Akihiko-senpai could summon those..." Her heart started racing the second she remembered their Personas and sweat broke out on her forehead. "...constructs..." she forced herself to continue. "...and control them in some way. The last thing I remember from that night was me trying to imitate them and hopefully summon something to help. Since I blacked out the second I shot the Evoker, I must have failed at summoning a Persona." She did not believe a single word Igor had said when he told her she had definitely summoned a Persona that night. She thought he was bluffing because what he claimed had happened and what she remembered did not match. But now, after seeing the disbelieving looks on the three schoolmates, doubt began to creep into her mind. "...Didn't I?" she whispered, completely uncertain of what exactly happened on that night.
"You were being influenced by your Persona the moment you summoned it," Akihiko told her. "If the last thing you remembered was firing the Evoker before losing your consciousness, that means your Persona was in possession of your body."
"It was a fortunate thing it chose to destroy the giant Shadow and leave the rest of us in peace," Mitsuru added. "If it had gone berserk and went on a rampage..." Pain flashed across both the seniors' faces.
"We'll definitely help you control your Persona to avoid an incident like that from happening! Lend us your strength!" Akihiko declared with conviction and a fierce expression.
"...Alright,"Minako reluctantly agreed, feeling like she had no real choice in the matter. If she did not join them and Shadows attacked her, she would be near defenseless without an Evoker to summon her Persona. But if she did and her Persona refused to cooperate while in possession of her body, then innocent people as well as the other members of SEES could be potential casualties of its rampage. If she wanted to at least save her own life, she had to join them.
"I was afraid you'd say no..." Yukari sighed in relief and smiled at her. "Welcome aboard!"
"Thank you so much. I'm really glad," Ikutsuki shared the same sentiments. "Oh, I almost forgot," he took out a small envelope from inside his coat and passed it to Minako. "Here's a small compensation from me for your previous travel fees," he said. "Speaking of which, about your dorm assignment... Why don't you just stay here, in your current room? I don't know what the holdup is, but I guess it worked out in the end."
Time suddenly froze when Minako heard a voice from inside her head whisper to her that she had created a bond with the SEES group, empowering the Fool Arcana. A tarot card with the Fool Arcana as its image filled her vision before it vanished in a sparkle of light. Time then resumed with the others none the wiser about what happened. Minako quietly noted this pause in time and the whisper in her head was what Igor referred to as the Social Link. When she heard the dismissal from the chairman, she rushed off to bed.
***Break Line***
Minako was getting really annoyed when she was disturbed for a third time, this time just as she was about to doze off while inside the Dark Hour. She had sensed someone's presence at her bedside. She snapped her eyelids opened and saw the boy in prison pajamas standing there.
"Hi, how are you?" the boy asked amicably.
"You! How did you get in here?" Minako snapped at him rudely, ignoring his greeting.
"I'm always with you..." he chuckled, taking her rudeness gracefully. "Soon, the end will come... I remembered, so I thought I should tell you."
"Uh... Thanks?" she did not know how to respond to his sudden generosity.
"I wasn't expecting you to thank me," he laughed softly. "But you're welcome. That... is what I'm supposed to say, right? I don't really know what this 'end' is about, either." He paused to stare at her for a few seconds before mentioning that she had awakened to her power. It was unusual as it could take many forms yet bound by none of them.
"Hold it right there!" she interrupted him. "Speaking of that power, why did you trick me into signing a contract with Igor?"
"Igor? I don't know anybody by that name. You are the only person I know," he replied, clearly confused.
"So Igor was right... This boy isn't involved with him," she muttered under her breath as she clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Answer my question. Why did you trick me?"
"I... didn't know how to ask for your help any other way. I needed you to awaken your power to do so..." he answered guiltily as he looked at the floor. "I needed the contract so you would honor your commitment." He peeked up for a moment, seeing a surprised look on Minako's face. "I'll be watching you, even if you forget about me. Well then, see you later," he waved his hand a little and slicked back into the shadows of the wall and disappearing within them.
Minako stayed frozen in place for a few more seconds before she buried her face into her pillow, complaining with a muffled voice why nobody seemed to allow her to speak her piece before leaving or making her leave.
***Break Line***
The next day in school, Mitsuru came to Minako's and Yukari's classroom, informing them of a SEES meeting later at the dorm. She took less than a minute before she left. Seeing the surprise on Minako's face, Yukari explained that Mitsuru was probably busy with student council duties unlike regular students like them. Junpei had overheard by accident and commented that Yukari seemed to hold some hostility for the senior. She retorted that she did not dislike her in particular but could not find the words to properly explain why. Frustrated, she forced Minako to walk home together. She vented her frustrations about Junpei to her along the way, going so far as to even refer to him as a poster boy for sexual harassment.
When they arrived, both seniors and the chairman were waiting for them. After a quick customary greeting, Akihiko revealed he had someone to introduce and looked out the door, telling said person to hurry up. A familiar face then appeared with a large travel bag behind him.
"What's up?" Junpei said with the biggest grin on his face.
"J-Junpei? Why are you here?" Yukari was shocked at his appearance at their dorm.
Akihiko explained that Junpei would be staying with them from now on. Apparently, he had found Junpei crying at a convenience story surrounded by coffins during one of his patrols during the Dark Hour a few days ago. Junpei added sheepishly that it was embarrassing to be found like that even though he did not really remember that event. Akihiko had told him it was normal for people who just awakened to the potential to be confused and having slight memory problems. When he asked if they knew that, Yukari nodded while Minako shook her head. He was surprised Minako was not informed about that since she was a Persona-user. Regardless, he was shocked to find out about SEES. He was glad he was not the only one to be able to function during the Dark Hour because it could get really lonely.
"So anyway, glad to join the team, Minako-tan," Junpei said.
"Let's do our best, Junpei-kun!" Minako welcomed him very happily. She was very relieved to have the one person she was most comfortable with being in their little group.
"You can count on me!"
"Well, enough with the introductions," Akihiko cut them off because Ikutsuki wanted their undivided attention. He started by saying that Mitsuru and Akihiko were their only Persona-users. With the addition of Junpei that number rose to five, making it safe for SEES to begin exploration in a place called Tartarus. Akihiko referred to it as a perfect place for them to train in because it was like the nest of Shadows. They would be venturing there at exactly midnight when the Dark Hour arrived. Mitsuru would go on ahead first as she needed to prepare some equipment at their location. Meanwhile, the rest of them would follow Akihiko's lead.
The three juniors followed him quietly as he led them to the monorail station, taking the second-to-last ride to Tatsumi Port Island. Minako and Junpei were similarly confused when their stop happened to be outside their school as well as why they were told to wear their school uniforms. Akihiko told them to wait until midnight struck and the Dark Hour arrived. Right before their eyes, the world turned... as well as the school turning into a grotesque-looking tower. He did explain that because the chairman had registered SEES as a school club, any battle damage they might receive to their uniforms could be easily explained away as club activities gone wrong. Every member of SEES had fresh uniforms freely given to them if it was too damaged to simply send to their private tailor to fix, free of charge as well. Anything else, such as Yukari's pink sweater, were not liable for compensation.
Mitsuru introduced their newly-transformed school as Tartarus: The labyrinth that only revealed itself during the Dark Hour. As for the school, she told them not to worry as everything would return to normal once the Dark Hour passed. Akihiko told them rather enthusiastically that there had to be a clue of some sort about the Dark Hour inside the tower. Mitsuru withdrew a key acquired from the chairman and unlocked the front gate. When they entered the tower, the interior was just as cool as the tower according to Junpei. Yukari noted the inside of the tower still had the same creepy atmosphere as the outside despite having proper color. There was a staircase in the middle of the entrance room which led to a door in the middle of a huge clock face design. The labyrinth laid beyond that. There was also a weird green mechanical device to the side of the room that seemed to be inactive at the moment. Akihiko suggested they enter and look around the place to get a feel for it. Yukari was shocked by the implication that the juniors would explore the labyrinth on their own. Mitsuru reassured them she would be in contact with them and feeding them information as needed from where they were currently at. They were also going to appoint a leader among the juniors for any necessary decisions. Junpei excitedly voted for himself as leader but Akihiko did not agree.
"Minako, you're in charge," Akihiko decided, looking squarely at the girl.
"What?" both Minako and Junpei exclaimed. "B-But she's a girl!" he added.
"Hey!" she shot him a mock glare to which he sheepishly apologized.
"Well, she has fought them before..." Yukari supported Akihiko's decision.
"Seriously?" Junpei was surprised by that.
"That's true, but there's another reason," Akihiko said. "You two..." he looked at Yukari and Junpei. "Can you summon your Persona without any difficulties?" Both of them replied in the affirmative. Akihiko did not look convinced and warned them they were going up against Shadows. Without their Persona, they were screwed.
"No. No way," Minako shook her head, disagreeing with Akihiko's decision. "I can't even control my Persona, Akihiko-senpai. I don't think it really matters if I can summon it easily."
"She does bring up a good point," Mitsuru spoke up. "I would like to appoint her as field leader because of the strength of her Persona but I believe we should hold off on appointing a leader just yet."
"What do you suggest we do?" Akihiko asked.
"Akihiko, you will show them the ropes. However, since you are injured, I want you to leave all the fighting to them. Understood?"
"...Alright, I understand," he agreed though clearly displeased he would not be allowed to fight. "Everybody ready?" he asked, only to find Minako walking towards a corner of the empty floor and stood there staring at the wall. After a minute of her making no movements, Yukari and Junpei went to check on her. They shook her shoulders, snapping her out of her daze.
"Hey, are you alright?" Yukari asked when Minako finally responded by turning to look at her.
"Yeah, what's up? You look like a zombie," Junpei joked albeit a little uncomfortably.
"There was a door here and it hypnotized me into opening and entering it..." Minako grouched. Stupid Igor and him claiming that she would enter the Velvet Room of her own free will. She was hypnotized by the door! That was not free will! She blanked out the second she saw the door and the next thing she knew, she was stuck in the seat in the room and forced to listen to Igor's confusing speech again!
"Huh? What door...?" Yukari asked, looking around them.
"...Uh, I don't see any door," Junpei agreed with her. Yukari suggested that maybe Minako was still affected by her long sleep and was still a little out of it.
"Get your head in the game, dude! Don't worry, though! I got you covered whenever you need it!" Junpei offered his support.
"Thanks," Minako nodded in gratitude. Now that she was out of her daze, they climbed the staircase and entered the door to the labyrinth. The moment they took their first step into the labyrinth, they head Mitsuru's voice ringing in their head, establishing a connection with them. She explained that the inside of the labyrinth changed each night so outside guidance was imperative. She told them they were in an area where they could encounter Shadows at any minute so they should proceed with caution. Practice did make perfect, after all. After the mental connection was dropped, Yukari mumbled under her breath, wondering why Mitsuru was always 'like that'.
"Let's begin. Keep in mind, these are real battles you'll be engaging in," Akihiko told them. "I'll lead the way and you guys eliminate any Shadows we come across, got it?" All the juniors gave an affirmative and Akihiko lead the way. As they walked in relative but guarded silence, Junpei started to make small talk with Minako but was quickly told to keep his voice down when Akihiko spotted a Shadow. "Well? Go for it. Take that Shadow out," he stepped aside, showing them the Shadow which seemed unaware of their presence. It was a blob of black goo with a mask attached, same as the ones from the night the dorm was attacked. "Show me how you handle yourselves. Hey, Shadow! Over here!" Akihiko shouted, attracting the attention of the Shadow who rushed towards them with its claws.
Yukari quickly nocked an arrow onto her bow and fired but due to her panicked haste, she only grazed the Shadow who shrieked in rage and continued its charge. Minako jumped in front of Yukari to guard her and swung her naginata diagonally downwards, scoring a clean hit on it and pushing it back but not killing it.
"You're mine!" Junpei jumped towards it and slashed downwards with his large two-handed sword, breaking its mask and causing it to disintegrate into black smoke and disappear.
"That's amazing, Junpei-kun! You took that Shadow out in one hit!" Minako was awed and impressed at Junpei's strength. Akihiko was standing behind the trio as they made small cheer at their first success, so they did not see his frown. He could understand they were just beginners, but Junpei was the most unimpressive to him despite Minako's praise for him. He could respect the strength behind Junpei's attack but the way he attacked put him off tremendously.
"Good job, taking that Shadow out without the aid of your Persona," Akihiko gave them their due praise. "Let's keep going." As they explored, they spotted a staircase leading upstairs. Akihiko explained that it was the only way to proceed upwards but they would not be doing that today. Their goal was to explore the entirety of the first floor so the juniors could get live battle experience under the most controlled settings. They came across two Shadows that were the same as the one they defeated before.
"There's two of them. It won't be easy trying to defeat them without your Persona. You're welcome to try, but don't get cocky," Akihiko warned them before stepping back.
"This'll be a piece of cake!" Junpei rushed forward.
"Wait, Junpei! We should stick together!" Yukari shouted at him before giving chase with a nocked bow together with Minako. The Shadows were alerted by Yukari's shout and started waving their claws in the air. Just as Junpei jumped towards them, a small explosion of fire erupted in front of his face, throwing him back and crashing into the two girls who did not expect him to be send flying backwards. Minako was the first to recover her senses after Junpei sent all of them to the floor in a heap and saw the Shadows clawing their way towards them.
"Stay back!" she screamed as she pulled her Evoker from its holster. Running on sheer instinct, she immediately pointed it at the Shadows and pulled the trigger. The sound of a gunshot rang out and her hope rose, believing she had shot it down. It was immediately proven false when one of the Shadows managed to snag her leg before she could move. She screamed in pain as three large ugly claw marks made their mark on her leg, blood pouring from them.
"Minako!" both Yukari and Junpei cried out. "Why you!" Junpei scrambled to his feet and swung his sword like a bat, destroying the offending Shadow in a single hit. The remaining Shadow started waving its claws in the air again, trying to conjure another fire again. "No, you don't!" He pulled out his Evoker and placed the nozzle next to his temple. In his anger, he ignored the normal fear of having a gun pointed right at his head and fired. "Hermes!" he instinctively knew the name of his Persona as it appeared. With a mental command, Hermes dived towards the Shadow as if it were performing a dropkick. The Shadow was destroyed in an instant as its mask shattered under the force of the Persona's attack.
Minako ceased her screams the moment she saw Hermes appear. It was yet another robot-looking Persona. Her pupils dilated, her heart started racing and she was letting out panicked breaths. Her eyes stayed locked on it, paralyzed at the sight of it.
"Stay with me, Minako!" Yukari pleaded with Minako, mistaking her frozen state for a wrong reason. "What do I do? What do I do!" Yukari started panicking as she futilely tried to stop the bleeding with a handkerchief.
"What are you doing, Yukari? Summon your Persona!" Akihiko shouted at her sternly. "Find out if it has a healing spell!"
"Y-Yes!" She pulled out her Evoker and placed the nozzle right in the middle of her head. Her panic set in again as the fear of death overwhelmed her. She reminded herself that Minako needed her help and with newfound courage, pulled the trigger. "Io!" she called out the name of her Persona as it appeared. As she looked at it, a smile broke out on her face. "Dia!" she ordered Io to use its healing spell on Minako. A healing breeze swept over Minako, cleaning away her blood as well. The claw marks on her leg were gone and it was good as new without any sign of scars. The torn and bloody sock was a lost cause though so Minako had to bear with it until she could replace it when the Dark Hour ended.
"T-Thank you, Yukari..." Minako thanked her shakily as Yukari helped her up.
"I told you not to get cocky, didn't I?" Akihiko said from behind them. He had a huge frown on his face.
"We're sorry..." all the juniors bowed their heads in apology.
"Minako, what were you doing treating your Evoker like a real gun? Have you forgotten you're supposed to use it on yourself to summon your Persona? Yukari, you panic too easily. Stay focused, whether you're attacking or aiding the others. Junpei, you are being too reckless. I don't have to give an example if something happens because of that, do I? No matter how much power you've got, this isn't something you can do solo. Keep the others in mind."
The juniors gave another apology but Akihiko told them to make it up for it by not repeating their mistakes again on the next encounter with Shadows. He pointed towards a large open area where there was a group of four of the same Shadows lounging around. It was an ideal spot to fight in because there was more space to move around.
"You're outnumbered. What do you do?" Akihiko asked. "Show me your answer."
The juniors exchanged looks with one another, now more hesitant in their actions. They did not want to carelessly put each other's lives at risk after that wake-up call from the earlier fight.
"I think we should summon our Persona before we attack them," Yukari suggested. "Any other ideas?"
"Nope," Junpei shrugged, agreeing with her plan. "How about you, Minako?"
"I guess..." Minako said uncertainly. The juniors exchanged anxious looks for a small stretch of time, waiting for someone to summon their Persona first. It took Akihiko's snapping at them to hurry up that Junpei summoned his Persona first followed by Yukari. The two Personas floated in the air, awaiting commands from their summoner. Meanwhile, Junpei and Yukari looked at Minako expectantly. She was fiddling with her Evoker and biting her lower lip in nervousness. When she put the nozzle to her temple, Yukari and Akihiko tensed. Only Junpei was looking forward to what Persona she had.
"Per...so...na..." Minako breathed out heavily, praying that her Persona, whatever it was, would be cooperative with the others. She squeezed her eyes and pulled the trigger. Her head recoiled from the summoning shot before she lost all grip on her Evoker and naginata and they clattered on the floor.
"Minako, talk to me. Is it still you?" Akihiko asked, his hand hovering above his Evoker in preparation.
"What's going on? Why is nothing appearing?" Junpei was confused.
"Hey, Minako...?" Yukari called to her, a little scared. Io responded to her emotions and hovered in front of her protectively.
"I am not too pleased with your choice of company, Anchin-sama. But if that is your wish, I will abide by it," Minako spoke in a completely different manner. She daintily bent down and picked up her Evoker, looking over it as if it was the first time she had laid eyes on it.
"You are..." Akihiko gasped before regaining his composure. "Is Minako there? Let her speak with us."
"What are you talking about, Akihiko-senpai? Isn't she right in front of us?" Junpei was seriously confused by what was happening in front of him. Why were Akihiko and Yukari looking apprehensively at Minako?
"That's not Minako, Junpei. That's her Persona... I think," Yukari told him uncertainly as Minako holstered her Evoker.
"Huh?" he was surprised before leaning in to Minako's face to take a closer look. He was almost hit in the face by a swipe from a shut folding fan that suddenly appeared in Minako's hand.
"You are invading my personal space," Minako said with complete disdain towards Junpei. "Kindly step back or I will burn you."
"Okay, okay! Sorry!" he hastily backpedaled away.
"I'll ask again. Let us speak with Minako," Akihiko requested in a hard voice. He had to roll out of the way of an incoming fireball before he got an answer from Minako. Pain coursed through his body as his injured ribs protested against his evasive maneuver.
"Do not think to make demands of me, boy. I answer only to Anchin-sama," Minako turned her disdain towards Akihiko, her hand holding the now-opened fan held towards him, clearing marking herself as his attacker.
"What are you doing, Minako? The enemy is the Shadows over there, not Akihiko-senpai!" Junpei exclaimed in shock at seeing her attack their senior. Minako turned back to look at him before her eyes widened in abrupt realization of her actions.
"Oh no! I attacked the very people Anchin-sama wished for me to cooperate with!" she exclaimed in shock. "How could I have done such a thing! Please forgive me, Anchin-sama!" she held her shaking head in her hands.
"Who the heck is this Anchin-sama...? Just who are you talking about?" Junpei asked the panicking Minako exasperatedly. She stopped shaking her head and looked at him with pride replacing her panic.
"Anchin-sama is the great person you refer to as Minako Arisato. She is the reincarnation of him. And I, as her promised betrothed, has henceforth sworn my loyalty to her," Minako answered.
"WHAT!" the other three yelled in shock. They could not believe what Minako, or her Persona to be accurate, was claiming. Their combined yells was loud enough to attract the attention of the Shadows which started making their way towards them, screeching in anger at their presence.
"Be silent. Cease your incessant screeching this instant," Minako gracefully swiped her fan in the Shadows' direction, launching three fireballs. All of them struck their targets perfectly, knocking them back as their screeching turned from anger to pain. Hermes took out the remaining Shadow in one hit just like before and Minako conjured a blue fireball with the help of her flame breath and launched it towards the others who were still writhing. The fireball exploded in a huge blaze and the Shadows disintegrated from the attack. Minako fanned herself in a dismissive manner, seemingly watching the blue flames continue burning. In actuality, tarot cards had suddenly appeared in her mind's eye facing away from her and her focus was on scrutinizing them. The cards flipped over, almost as if it knew when it got her attention. On them were pictures of certain people, something she knew as Anchin-sama's potential Personas.
'Anchin-sama cannot handle the power of these Personas...' Minako thought as her eyes narrowed at the cards. 'As she is now, she is still unable to stay conscious after a summoning. That in itself is a problem, but if these Personas were to unleash their most powerful attacks, I fear the worst may happen to Anchin-sama. But their abilities will be necessary if a situation which I cannot handle arises... I pray my choice does not bring you harm, Anchin-sama.' She reached out mentally to her first choice among the cards. The other cards vanished, leaving only the one she picked left. It vanished into sparkles of light and a presence made itself known in Minako's psyche, identifying itself and was aligned with the Emperor Arcana.
Once the business with the mental cards was over, she returned her focus to the real world and snapped her fan shut, extinguishing any flames that remained. She watched her companions who were giving her cautious and guarded looks except for Junpei who was looking very lost. The three of them were suddenly distracted all at once by something. Minako figured it was the buzzing of static in her head which she fought off with hardly any effort.
"Mitsuru?" Akihiko called out to the air. "No, she's fine. Why do you ask?" He paused for a short while before showing surprise. "You couldn't contact her? It's probably because she summoned her Persona." His face turned solemn after a few seconds. "I'll talk about it later when we've returned to the dorm." He faced the three juniors and called an end to the exploration, telling them their last task was to find a device that looked similar to the one they saw at the ground floor. Akihiko made certain he was only giving out instructions to Yukari and Junpei while Minako simply followed along. Yukari told the others that Minako was walking in a manner like she was trained in the ways of a Yamato Nadeshiko, or the personification of the ideal woman in Japanese culture. When they found and activated the device, they were teleported back to the entrance of the labyrinth where Mitsuru greeted them. None of them missed how she had one hand discreetly placed near her Evoker as her eyes shifted to Minako.
"You are the head of this group, aren't you, young lady?" Minako asked as she gracefully descended down the stairs, locking gazes with Mitsuru. The others followed behind her, feeling the sudden tenseness in the air.
"Yes, I am," Mitsuru replied with a curt nod. From the way Akihiko had reported to her earlier, something had occurred which involved Minako's Persona. When she tried to contact them, she was cut off from Minako the moment she connected with her. Akihiko hinted that her Persona was the one who received her call and cut it off.
"You and the silver-haired boy seem to know more than you're telling us. According to Anchin-sama's most recent memory, you claimed that this ground floor..." Minako swept her arms apart, indicating the entire floor. "...was the furthest you have explored. How is it that you even have the slightest inkling of what the labyrinth holds within?" she asked.
"We have not proceeded up the staircase leading to an upper floor. As I have told the others, Akihiko and I have only explored the first floor. Your first exploration of Tartarus is something we have done several times before. That's why we know what to look out for, including the fact the floor plans of Tartarus change every night," Mitsuru explained clearly.
"...Very well. I shall believe your words," Minako conceded. "But be warned: If I find out you've been lying to Anchin-sama, even by omission, I will set you on fire and watch you burn until your life extinguishes."
"I will not be threatened even by the likes of you, Persona," she did not back down from the threat. Her eyes hardened with resolve and in the span of a second she had drawn her Evoker and pointed it at her head, ready to summon Penthesilea. Minako made a dismissive huff, clearly unimpressed by her bravado.
"Hey, hey, Minako-tan! There's no need for in-fighting, right? I mean, Mitsuru-senpai's watching out for us, you know?" Junpei tried to diffuse the situation. Minako glanced at him before slowly closing her eyes.
"As uncouth as you are, Anchin-sama does seem to like you. Very well. I shall entrust her care to you tonight," she replied. The blue mist that everyone was familiar with appeared around her feet and dispersed with her fan, and Minako suddenly fell backwards onto Junpei in deep unconsciousness and making him fall on his butt.
"H-Hey!" he flushed as he awkwardly tried to keep his hands away from touching any inappropriate parts of her body. It did not help that her head was uncomfortably close to being in between his legs.
"You'd better keep your hands to yourself, Junpei!" Yukari warned him as she re-positioned Minako's body so Junpei could carry her in a piggy-back manner.
"I won't touch her like that, really!" he defended himself, raising his hands where everybody could see until Yukari was done adjusting Minako. He had an epiphany the moment he stood up with Minako latched to his back. "Don't tell me I have to carry Minako like this until we get back to the dorm! Wait, how are we going to get back to the dorm?"
"We have a specialized van that can work in the Dark Hour parked in the school," Akihiko chuckled at their surprised looks when he told them. "Relax, we'll make it back before one in the morning. You'll have sufficient rest to function properly the next day with a little fatigue."
"So, how was it?" Mitsuru asked with a relieved smile. Other than Minako's unique condition in regards to her Persona, everyone was safe and sound.
"No problem!" Junpei bragged with a confident grin. Mitsuru was pleased with his response, stating that their gained confidence was the best thing they could have achieved. "Wow... I didn't know I had that kind of power! But damn, I'm beat..." he let out a weary breath. "And I still have to carry Minako on my back..."
Yukari retorted that the way he fought was so hyper like a little kid playing with his new toy. When he pointed out she was breathing hard too, she did not deny it. She was still trying to catch her breath despite performing the least amount of strenuous actions. Mitsuru explained that the Dark Hour fatigued the body more easily but was confident they would adapt. She expressed surprise at how well the juniors did, performing much better than she had expected. She joked that they would catch up to Akihiko in no time who welcomed that challenge with a smile.
***Break Line***
With the exception of Mitsuru who went back on her own with the equipment she brought, the rest of SEES boarded the special van which Akihiko drove. Yukari and Junpei were beginning to doze off when they were startled by a loud scream that came from the unconscious Minako. Her scream startled Akihiko badly enough that he had to slam on the brakes to make sure he did not swerve the van into anything.
"What... What am I... What did I..." Minako was in a huge panic as she swung her head back and forth to take in her surroundings.
"Minako, you're awake! Thank goodness. I thought you would go into another week-long sleep!" Yukari was clearly relieved at her awakening.
"Don't scare us like that, man. The moment your Persona went away, you were out cold!" Junpei gave her a small grin.
"I was out again...?" Minako hung her head, curling her fingers into fists and crumpling her skirt. "Was... Did I... hurt anybody...?"
"Well... Not really..." he answered. When she raised her head to look at him, his eyes refused to meet hers. When she turned to Yukari, she refused to look at her either.
"I attacked one of you, didn't I...?" she paled drastically.
"No, you didn't," Akihiko said from the driver seat and resumed driving. "And before you mention it, neither did your Persona." If he heeded her Persona's threat, he was not lying by omission either. Neither Yukari nor Junpei were attacked by it. He was not even sure if it was listening in on them or not. The only facts he knew about it were it was sentient and had its own personality, almost as if it was a different person entirely and not a part of Minako's psyche.
"I... see..." Minako sounded relieved even though she did not look anywhere near it.
Akihiko looked at her through the rear-view mirror, seeing the haunted look on her face. An image of a teenage boy overlapped her in his mind with the same look on his face after a certain incident in the past. He gripped the steering wheel harder, vowing he would not let what happened to that boy happen to her as well. He would find a way to help Minako get her Persona under her complete control despite how her Persona ability functioned completely differently than from the rest of SEES. One person spiraling down into the pits of despair was enough for him. He did not want to see that happening to her too, especially not when Minako looked like... her.
***End Of Chapter***
The tutorial is finally over! I can move on to the important events and fights now and put my own twist on them! So in this chapter, as per the game tutorial, Minako gains a mandatory second Persona to use. Just like the game forces you to pick either Pixie or Apsaras, I had Minako, or her Persona, really, pick between an unknown Persona and another one aligned with the Emperor Arcana. The identity of the Emperor Persona is revealed upon acquisition as per the game, but who it is revealed to is another thing. Put simply, Minako is completely unaware she has gained another Persona because she did not claim it herself.
Interactions with the Velvet Room will be kept to a minimum because they are there mostly for the player's use and not so much for the story. If you only use whatever Persona you pick up as you play to completion, which is completely possible, how many times do you really need to enter the Velvet Room if you aren't doing Elizabeth's/Theodore's quests? The answer is none. You don't have to unless the story forces you to enter for the sake of progression. Not to mention, Minako in this fanfic has a low opinion of the Velvet Room in general. She won't want to enter voluntarily if she can help it.
Here's the updated list of Personas that Minako currently has.
Fool: Unnamed
Magician: ? (Already decided)
Priestess: ? (Already decided)
Empress: ?
Emperor: Unnamed
Hierophant: ?
Lovers: ?
Chariot: ? (Already decided)
Justice: ?
Hermit: ?
Fortune: ?
Strength: ?
Hanged Man: ?
Death: ? (Already decided)
Temperance: ?
Devil: ?
Tower: ?
Star: ?
Moon: ?
Sun: ?
Judgement: ?
Just like the previous chapter, feel free to suggest ideas on which Servant should be aligned with the Arcanas I haven't decided on yet and give reasoning.
I look forward to getting more readers who like this story! Do Follow/Favorite/Review this story, and big thanks to those who are kind enough to do so!