Shuffled
Story Summary: One was unwilling to fight death and the other incapable of seeing the truth. The failure of the two twisted the power of the wild card. Now Makoto Yuki must see what Yu Narukami could not and Yu Narukami must fight what Makoto Yuki would not. (P3 and P4 protagonist switch up)
Disclaimer: I do not own Persona or the Orphic hymn copied here.
Chapter 4: Girls with Guns Part Four
7 April 2009 (The Dark Hour)
Her hand in his was hard metal still warm from the lead she had fired upon the shadowy monsters of the Dark Hour. Together they ran, the robotic girl pulling him along at a staggering pace. She ran awkwardly, he noted, her hands at her sides and her body angled forward at almost ninety degrees. She was strange, interesting, and they were being chased by frightening, but marvelous villains. Yu Narukami decided the night was good.
They had arrived at their destination, the slowing of her iron legs signaling their arrival. They stood before an abandoned apartment and they were not alone. A line of the shadowy creatures stared with blank expression blocking their entrance. The metaled girl stepped in front of Yu in a protective motion.
"Enemies have located my base." Her electric blue eyes narrowed, "I will relocate."
Whether she spoke to him or to herself Yu could not determine. His curiosity overcame his sense of self-preservation as he stepped closer to gaze upon the crawling black monsters that blocked their path. Their twitching black arms held rusted daggers and their blue masks turned to look at him. They came at the pair in the dark of the hour with unnatural swiftness and agility. They jerked forward in quick impulsive bursts, an unholy mix of crawling spiders and lunging snakes.
His protector shoved him aside, away from the monsters. Yu watched as the girl danced with the shadows under the star's green light. She was an angel of metal and death and tonight she would descend upon the wicked. She was outnumbered ten to one, but it mattered little. She had bullets enough for all. She leapt into the night in elegant backflip and fired lead from her fingertips. She landed in crouch as four of her foes dissipated into the night. Blue light surrounded her as she spoke the familiar words.
"Summoning Persona. Athena!"
Yu stared in awe as the goddess arose from the depths of her mind. They were a pair to match both adorned in white and metal, the girl and the goddess. Pallas Athena raised her spear, the girl followed, and together they vanquished the remaining shadows. The God faded, the battle won for the moment and she stepped toward him with an open hand.
"There are many more to come. We must hurry," she said.
Yu accepted the hand and followed her into the apartment. They ran up creaking stairs and through abandoned halls before coming to a stop in front of room ten ninety-five. The girl kicked the door off of its hinges with a swift movement and entered. Whatever she had planned they were not meant to stay long.
Inside the room were weapons and ammunition. A treasure trove to draw the envy of Gilgamesh. Yu ran his hand across a large assault rifle while he stared at a large katana that hung from one of the dusty walls of the room.
"We have approximately ten minutes before the remaining horde arrives." She spoke in her electronic monotone, "We must speak now."
Yu smiled and offered the girl a hand, not flinching once at the situation he found himself in. "I am Yu Narukami and it is a pleasure to meet you."
The robotic girl looked at the hand dispassionately before returning to Yu's gaze.
"That thing you do with your fingers is really cool. I also liked the Terminator reference." Yu offered still smiling.
She glared in response, suspicious. His demeanor was not what she had anticipated. In her heart she knew he would not be like the previous Avatar, but she had hoped. And this boy she could see was something, perhaps, not sinister, but something ominous. He was too calm for the situation that befell him and his smile seemed so true that it must be false. The former Avatar's smiles were never offered so openly. Yu's smiles were kind, but behind them there was a cleverness that set her on edge.
"Could I get your name again?" Yu tried one last time realizing he was being examined.
"I have stated it already, but I will repeat." She said without a hint of annoyance, "I have designated myself as Alternative Universe Aigis the Traveler. You may refer to me as such."
"That's a mouthful," Yu frowned and retracted his hand awkwardly. "Alternative Universe Aigis the Traveler? I know, I will call you August for short."
August frowned unhappy with the moniker, "Do not call me that."
"Whatever you would like." Yu responded, "Now what would you like to tell me August?"
The programming that drove the advanced artificial intelligence that generated her consciousness calculated August's opinion of Yu from neutral to uncertain. She decided to ignore her new designation, nicknames were not so uncommon, despite the annoyance it caused her. "Does the name Igor mean anything to you?"
The surprised look she received in turn made her certain. "You were meant to be the new Avatar then," August looked away and adorned herself in a vest carrying multiple hand grenades and began to load a large rifle of some make. "You must listen to what I say. In one year's time the monsters that chase us now will come following a greater enemy and should we fail to stop them this entire world will die."
"Well that would be unfortunate. I really am starting to like this place." Yu grimaced, but signaling for her to continue.
"The dorm you preside in is a front for the company known as the Kirijo Group. The inhabitants are a group of students capable of summoning mythical beings in the same way you observed me do so against those shadows. They fight to stop these creatures though they are not aware of the full extent of the danger that awaits," August explained waiting for the skepticism or fear to come. But from Yu it would not come.
Yu tilted his head noting her obvious reticence. She was hiding the greater details for reasons he could not decipher. She was a mystery and he loved a good mystery.
"I see. So I take it you are from a time in which these . . . shadows, as you call them win, and the world ends?" Yu closed his eyes when August did not respond. "And you are here to tell me I need to join my fellow students and let them know what is truly coming?"
"No," August responded to his surprise. "You must join them, but only as a facade. It is their actions that lead to my world's fate. They seek to destroy twelve great shadows, but doing this is what leads to the end of the world."
Yu did not feel the slight sick smile that began to form on his lips. It was him against a team of super-powered monsters and dubious allies. Mysticism and mystery, truth and treachery; it was a grand story. He would play the the double agent, the spy, it was a destiny worthy of him. One he wanted to embrace. "So I am supposed to infiltrate their organization and stop the villains from within?" Yu began and then questioned, "But why should I believe any of this?"
August was fully aware of the excitement that was claiming the boy and suspicious of it. The skepticism was only surface, but deep beneath Yu Narukami wanted it to be true. "Your classmates are misguided not malicious. They think destroying the Twelve will bring an end to this crisis. They are being misled by a traitor known as Shuji Ikutski. As proof of my claims, we will meet Igor together tomorrow."
"Are you being cryptic on purpose, August?" Yu joked and the sick smile fully formed on his face. "Don't worry I believe you. So don't trust Shuji Ikutski, but the rest are alright?"
August shook her head in a slow mechanical way. "No, there . . . is another traitor. One of your classmates and a . . . former friend."
August stared out of the window of the room looking up at the green sky of the dark hour. Her blank robotic face seemed almost sad, but she continued in the same robotic cadence.
"When we came to this city we did not come alone," August looked away sadly. "A leech came as well and has taken over one of your classmates. I do not know which, but none can be trusted. That is why I sought you out. You are the only one I can know is not infected. However, I know of way in which we can succeed. We can end this at the next full moon."
August grabbed at the base of her neck. Carefully she removed the outer covering of the metal plate that protected her Papillion Heart. And then with quiet struggle she broke it in two. Her hand was outstretched to him, palm opened in offering. In her palm was blue light, powdered but solid. It took the shape of a feather, shining brighter than any star. The shadows of the Dark Hour could not reach it and time flowed within it unaltered by the madness that had taken the world.
"What is that?" Yu asked staring wide-eyed at the treasure.
August looked away from Yu's lustful gaze. Her eyes closed in embarrassment. She had wished to offer this part of her to another, but inaction and doubt had taken that opportunity from her. The world was cruel, but this sacrifice would set it right. "It is called a Plume of Dusk. They are said to be remnants of Nyx's wings. Two of them make up all that I am it is what has given a machine life. If souls exist, then this is half of mine."
Yu Narukami looked from her hand and the treasure that sat there to her face turned from him. He saw for the first time some semblance of emotion in her stance. It looked like embarrassment. She turned her head to him and her eyes opened. They shined with doubt and with that look Yu recognized her as the girl she was, it was a good look. It was a look he had known before, the look of a girl offering him a precious gift. He smiled kindly setting her at ease as he took her hand in his.
The blue of the Plume of Dusk traveled up his arm. Before his eyes memories danced. They were not his memories. He stood on the dark street of the Moonlight Bridge, the flames of a car engulfed, rose behind him and at his feet was a boy with blue hair and tears in his eyes. He had saved him from his parent's fate only to condemn him to the fate of the Martyr. These were her memories; the ones she let haunt her. They spoke of regret for the judgment she had passed on the boy, the fate she had doomed Makoto Yuki too.
These were her memories, but in them he was the Martyr.
Yu staggered backwards his head drumming with a dull beat. He strained to hear her speak.
"This piece of Nyx will seal away a great shadow. The shadow will become trapped within the wings of night, the same wings cast over the world now that generate the Dark Hour. It is the one place the shadows cannot reach man and the one place man cannot reach the shadows. With one forever sealed the end will not come. However, my body cannot hold the shadow," August looked into his eyes. "Can you do this Yu Narukami?"
Yu's response was a smile bright and full of charm. August frowned one last time. This boy was not the traitor, but he was a treacherous thing. The last avatar had proven a quiet child and had let the world pass gently. The boy in front of her now she knew would be no child and the Thanatos in him would not bring a quiet end. The personification of Thanatos in Yu Narukami would not bring a death of gentle passing. August frowned in mixed anger and guilt. By handing him half her heart, a Plume of Dusk, she had condemned him to death.
"The shadows are here. I will deal with them. Run in the direction of your dorm. I will clear a path. Your classmates cannot know we met." August started, "But, I'll . . ."
"Be back?" Yu finished smiling in a pained way as he shook away the last remnants of August's memories.
August glared and decided she did not like the boy.
She jumped from her window, the tiger ready to feed on its prey.
Her legs of white polished steel gleamed in the dark night sky bright as any star as she flew from the window sending shards of glass raining down upon the horde. She landed in the middle of their black mass and her dance began. She fired the assault rifle she had fashioned upon her left arm in a circle clearing the shadows immediately around her and drawing the attention of the rest of the horde. Together the shadows moved in as one. They were a black ocean's wave threatening to swallow the white pearl at the center of their depths.
Two shadows lunged forward surprising her. She had never witnessed them take to the air before. She kicked one away with a strong white limb of metal and fired her assault rifle at the other finishing them before they could disrupt her plan. "Minimal Damages. Preparing for the next battle!"
The black wave was almost upon her. The black tides rose around her blocking her view. Only above her did the star's shine, but it was light enough and she had won this battle.
"Partial Orgia Drive activate!" She yelled. The gears that powered her legs spun with released power and they glowed a warm orange from the heat they generated. She leapt into the air above the mass of shadows that had accumulated where she once stood. A small smirk of satisfaction graced her usually blank face. They had fallen for her trap. She unbuttoned the combat vest and pulled the pins on the grenades. It fell consumed by the horde and then there was thunder and fire.
August landed in crouch and turned off her Orgia drive before it crippled her legs. Smoke and fire rose behind her casting her in a dim yellow glow of victory. "Hasta la vista baby."
She noticed Yu's exit from the apartment and quickly pointed him in the direction that would lead him back to his dorm. Yu gave her a thumb's up in response indicating that he knew what to do. She gave him a single nod before she turned and scaled the nearest building and disappeared behind its roof top.
Yu Narukami ran in the direction August had pointed past the black oozing remains of the foes she had vanquished and the warm fire that choked the air with grey smoke. Iwatodai was everything he could have wished for and more.
Mitsuru Kirijo had a secret. She did not consider herself a leader. She had been trained since she was a child to lead. It had been ten years since she first unlocked her potential; ten years since the incident at Gekkoukan that had changed the course of her life. But even before the incident she had been raised to take over the Kirijo company. Her father had raised her with the best tutors by the time she was five. At the age of six she took up the Kirijo family tradition of fencing and at the age of seven she had awakened her persona. She was born with the destiny to lead and raised to succeed, but she did not consider herself a leader and she knew failure as well as any other.
Ten years ago she learned her family's dark secret. The Kirijo Group had dreamt too big and while they slept monsters had been given life in the dark of night. They had tried to master the basic foundations of reality, tried to control the tides of destiny. They had tried to build a time machine. It was ego unmatched, but all they had received in return for their efforts was the dark hour.
Her father wished to correct her grandfather's mistakes; atone for the suffering their legacy had wrought upon the world. But her father did not have the potential. He could not summon a persona and was powerless to achieve his atonement. Mitsuru loved her father more than any other and his dream had become hers. She would lead the Kirijo Group to its redemption.
The sins of the father's father had fallen upon the shoulders of the first born daughter. Mitsuru had only momentary glimpses of her grandfather. Memories that faded as quickly as they came. The memories were wisps of sweet scents on the air and vibrant colors in her mind's eye as she played in the arms of her grandfather. They were pleasant memories. Even now she wondered how her memories could be so different from the reality she knew to be true.
She was no leader and yet she led.
Akihiko struck at a shadow ending its existence with one iron clad fist while Yukari's arrow struck another in its expressionless blue mask. "Down this alley," She ordered, leading them toward the explosion they had heard and the essence of the Persona she had felt.
Originally she had led a team much like the one she led tonight. Only Akihiko was left from that original team. The others had met terrible ends under her leadership. She shook away the doubt; it did not serve her here. She would not repeat her mistakes; she would not let another die under her watch. They would find Yu and return him safely to their dorm. She would lead despite not being a leader because it was her responsibility and the Kirijo's did not shirk from their duty.
She steeled her resolve for the dangers that were to come, but her eyes widened when she saw their mission's goal jogging calmly toward them. His light grey eyes smiled in response as he approached them.
"I found you guys finally!" Yu exclaimed happily. "I'm guessing you know what's going on based on the guns and weapons?"
Akihiko laughed in response. "Looks like the new recruit has some potential. Didn't even need our help and here I was hoping for a good fight."
Yu extended hand to his fellow silver-haired dorm mate. "Hello, I am Yu Narukami. It is a pleasure to meet you."
Akihiko accepted the had with a quick shake and returned the smile Yu offered.
"You had us really worried." Yukari said exasperated, but relieved.
"I am sorry that I worried you, Yukari." Yu apologized. "I am flattered to have your concern though."
"Yeah, yeah." Yukari replied looking away with an exasperated frown.
Mitsuru stepped forward with an inquisitive look. The serene smile on the silver-haired teens face was unexpected. "Did you summon the Persona and cause the explosion?"
"Persona? Explosion?" Yu asked with a tired and confused smile.
Mitsuru Kirijo had a secret. Her crimson gaze narrowed at Yu's charming smile. She had a secret, but so did Yu Narukami
8 April 2009
Yu woke an hour earlier than the rest of his dorm mates and left for Gekkoukan before they had the chance to awaken. He wanted to avoid them, Mitsuru in particular. The red-haired girl with the crimson eyes did not believe the lies he had told them. Of course neither did Akihiko nor Yukari, but at least they were not so aggressively challenging his words.
He also awoke with a headache. Lack of sleep and so much more set a dull throb in his mind. In truth it had never ceased from when he had taken the Plume of Dusk from August.
So Yu Narukami had woken up with the sun's rising to avoid them. He fastened his collar one last time before buttoning up his school uniform and quietly walking down the stairs to leave the dorm.
He was not completely unsurprised to find her waiting for him on the couch, but he had hoped and that hope had proven false. She sat there her eyes closed and her smile knowing. Her crossed legs shifted as she met his gaze. Yu smiled back, Mitsuru Kirijo might be his undoing, but there were worse things in the world then punishment from a gorgeous woman.
"Morning Mitsuru," he offered in casual response shifting the school bag that hung from his shoulder. "You are up suspiciously early."
The corner of her mouth quirked up in smirk. "I am always up at this time. Though I could say the same to you, Narukami. I suppose we were both up rather late last night."
Yu's head tilted to the side in amusement and thought that perhaps she was enjoying this as much as he. Still if August's warnings were to be believed, and he desperately wanted to believe them, then silence would be the appropriate response. He did not want to answer her questions, but that did not mean he had to lie. Yes, surprise would be the best course of action for now. He would be honest about not disclosing what he withheld from her.
"Want to address what happened last night?"
"Is there something you want to tell me about last night, Narukami?" Mitsuru asked politely.
"Nope, the last thing I want to talk about is last night," Yu looked away pretending to check the time. "Anyway I am going to go wander around a bit before school and find something to do."
The frown on her face meant victory to him, but just as he was about to exit the dorm she spoke once more and claimed checkmate. "You are right we should not address last night for now. In fact, I was hoping to catch you this morning for other reasons."
Yu paused and turned to face her. The dull throb in his head increased the rhythm of its beat.
"I was hoping you might help me with an errand at school. I need someone to help me move some furniture out of the student council room," Mitsuru stood up and seemed taller than she was, "As student body president I would greatly appreciate your help in this matter, Narukami. In fact, I am hoping you will join the student council. We are always looking for independent and capable people. It will also give you the chance to meet a few of your fellow students."
Yu smiled, but behind his upturned lips his teeth ground together. It was an anger he did not quite understand, but one that would become far more familiar in the coming months. Perhaps it was the rejection of his freedom, he really did want to go wander the town, but he had no doubt that the woman in front of him would find the means to have her way.
"Sure thing Mitsuru it would be my pleasure."
Together they left the apartment. The walked in comfortable silence to the train and sat in idle chat while they rode it to Gekkoukan High. As they entered the through the gates of their school Yu noticed a familiar shade of blue hair. Fuuka Yamagishi the girl who called her bullies friends. She was jumping desperately to retrieve a pair of shoes, presumably her own, from a branch on a tree just outside of her reach.
The situation was clear to him at once and it was a pitiable one. Still Yu felt little pity for the girl. Those who did not see worth in themselves often had no worth for others to see. Still he could not bear to watch her struggle any longer. He jogged away from Mitsuru's side to help the blue haired girl. The red haired girl for her part stayed behind to observe his actions.
His gait slowed to a calm walk as he reached Fuuka. She turned at the sound of his footsteps, but quickly gazed away to the ground in embarrassment when she noticed it was him.
"I . . ." Fuuka began trying to explain.
"Those friends of yours do this?" Yu asked innocently hiding his anger at the situation.
When the only response he got was a dejected mummer he sighed and reached above her head claiming her shoes from the branch. He handed them to her with the same smile he offered all others.
"Thank you," she said quietly.
Seeing the way, she just accepted her fate Yu could not stop himself. He spoke his mind, his true feelings. "You know if you stand up to a bully they usually fall away. It is not wrong to fight for yourself Fuuka."
Her eyes opened wide in worry, the same desperation he had seen from her the day before. She had rather dull grey-blue eyes and they were hard to look upon when that desperation entered them.
"It's not like that I," she began.
Yu held up his hand to stop her and she fell silent quickly. He closed his eyes to hide the anger in them. This girl was the victim, but a willing one. He turned away to leave, but offered one passing piece of advice. "Not everyone deserves kindness Fuuka and there will not always be someone to get your shoes for you, but do what you want. I won't burden you with my help any further."
Yu began to walk away, but stopped at the sound of her voice. It was quiet almost inaudible, but there was confidence and an assuredness he did not think her capable of, so he listened closely.
"It makes me happy to see others happy. I know if I try hard enough I can be friends with them. I think we could be friends too; I will try to show you that. Thank you for your help."
Yu returned to Mitsuru in quiet frustration. The pounding in his head gained further speed. He was finding it a difficult task to hide his less polite feelings around the bullied girl. She was a mystery and usually Yu loved mysteries, but this one made his teeth itch.
"Someone you know, Narukami?" Mitsuru asked.
"Just someone incomprehensible," Yu responded innocently ignoring the questioning red eyes that Mitsuru offered him. "Ha ha don't worry about it let's get to work on the student council room."
Together they left the blue haired girl and entered the halls of Gekkoukan. Mitsuru led him up the stairs and to the student council room. Exasperation took him as he looked at the scene. Mitsuru had not lied. The room was full of extra chairs, cabinets, and tables. It would take the better part of the morning to clear, not the full day, but at the very least until school started. He realized now that Mitsuru had meant to merely keep him close under watch. His jaw clenched in agitation, but he released a sigh and with it his visible frustration.
He turned to Mitsuru with a congenial smile. "Lot of work to do, but if we start now I am sure we can get it all done before class starts. Right, Mitsuru?"
"You've read my mind." She answered with a smile he found to be taunting.
The hours passed slowly as they worked together to clear the room. Neither said a word to the other for their intentions were clear. Mitsuru would watch him and confine his movements until she had the truth from him and Yu would lie until she believed him. Both were too intelligent and stubborn to give into the other. The tension rose as the room cleared, simmering to its eventual boiling point and then it would overflow.
They finished fifteen minutes before class started and it was Yu Narukami who was first to lose his patience.
"Looks like we're all done," Yu said wiping sweat from his brow. "Think I'll go buy some bread from that shop in the main hall."
Yu stepped out of the student council room shutting the door behind him, but the sound of it sliding open once more froze him where he stood. He felt Mitsuru's presence behind him. Her icy gaze setting a fire in his mind. His headache pounded on harder than ever.
Neither of them noticed Yuko Nishiwaki listening to their argument with angry eyes and gritted teeth.
"I will go with you," Mitsuru offered politely.
And with those five words the boiling point was reached.
"You won't even trust me to be alone for a few minutes?" Yu stated in a clipped tone not smiling. Hammers were driving nails into his skull now.
"If you would just be honest about where you were last night then perhaps I could trust you," she shot back. Her eyes revealed the first sense of the anger she had buried until now. "You were gone past midnight and I have good reason to suspect you were not alone!"
The pressure built to its breaking point he had to relieve it. His right hand felt empty it yearned for a hammer to crack open his skull and destroy the Athena that pounded on his brain. A gun to blow her away, yes, that was what he needed.
"Damn it Mitsuru!" Yu shouted, the polite mask he wore cracked. It was just moments from bursting, revealing the true face beneath. "Who the hel . . ."
The resounding sound of a slim tanned hand rough from work connecting with the side of his face filled the hall. The blow caused Yu's eyes to water and blur and the harsh sting of the assault warmed his cheek. His eyes dried and then cleared, but the burn remained as he looked down at the girl who had struck him. His silver gaze turned from anger to confusion and then from understanding at the misunderstanding that had taken place to panic. Yuko Nishiwaki stared back at him, her gaze cutting in a way the slap she had given him could not.
"Yuko I . . ." Yu started trying to explain.
"Save it," she said turning away from Yu and to Mitsuru. "Kirijo the scumbag was with me last night and then ditched me at midnight probably to save his ass and find you. Know how to pick em, huh? Piece of advise we should both ditch this guy. Sorry for the drama, Kirijo"
Yuko stormed away leaving an admonished Yu and confounded Mitsuru behind her.
"What just happened?" Mitsuru asked with wide eyes that were both confused and astonished.
Yu turned to look at her his gaze dark and mind numb. The pressure of his migraine was gone, but he no longer felt the need to be polite.
"You want to know what happened last night?" Yu answered in a dangerous monotone. "I was with a pretty girl I liked very much, who now thinks I am playing her. Thanks to you I might add. And then at midnight do you know what happened?"
He did not wait for Mitsuru to answer.
"She turned into a coffin," his voice was quiet. "And then I was chased by black monsters carrying knives. When they finally cornered me something came out of my skull and killed them in front of me."
"I see," Mitsuru said sounding contrite. She had bought his half-lie and it would be enough for now. She had revealed the first crack in her mask and Yu took the advantage.
"Do you?" Yu asked earning him a worried look from the red head. "That's good because I don't. I have been kept in the dark by you and the rest of our dorm apparently. You never once thought how your little games make other people feel do you? I've heard of ice queens, but you must be frozen solid, senpai."
Mitsuru turned away and Yu caught the look of guilt her face held and for the first time he realized that he had misjudged this woman, no perhaps girl was the right word. The confidence and competency she displayed were surface, but underneath there was a normal person suffocating beneath the weight of responsibility. Not a child, but not quite an adult yet.
He sighed the headache returning back to its dim throb. "I am sorry. Look I promise I will go straight back to the dorm after school tonight and we can talk then. How does that sound?" Yu offered her a tired and apologetic smile.
Mitsuru nodded in agreement and her own apology. "That would probably be the best way to move forward. I wasn't acting like myself either and I could have handled this better."
They went their separate ways and the school day passed quietly by, but the coming day would break that silence soon enough.
True to his word Yu returned to the dorm right after school. He opened the doors to his dorm's entrance and expected to see Mitsuru already there waiting for him. She was there as expected, but sitting on the couch across from her was someone he did not recognize. The man had shoulder length hair and wore a pair of glasses that did little to ease the odd smile on his face. The man adjusted his brown blazer as he strode over to Yu with an outstretched hand.
"So this is our adventurous new guest," he proclaimed happily. "Good afternoon. My name is Shuji Ikutsuki. I am the Chairman of the Board for your school. "Ikutsuki" . . . ha ha hard to say isn't it?"
Yu accepted his hand hiding his alarm at learning the man's name. August had warned him that Shuji Ikutsuki could not be trusted. "It is a pleasure to meet you."
Ikutsuki released his hand and waved toward the couch.
"Please have a seat," he offered, taking his own and waiting for Yu to sit down. "I should start with an apology for the confusion of the past night. Mitsuru, has informed me of what happened last night. It is terrible that you had to face that ordeal alone. We should have been there."
To his credit the man looked sincere, but to Yu's left Mitsuru looked oddly uncomfortable. Yu felt the sweat on his back, but did his best to stay calm. "I am sorry as well. Harsh things were said that were not meant," Yu offered more to the girl who sat next to him.
"Ah the young are so quick to fight, but just as quick to forgive. It is a wonderful thing." Ikutsuki said, "Now, Mitsuru here kindly brought me up to speed, but I would like to ask is there anything else you would like to tell me?"
Yu nodded his head slowly, realizing the game he was playing. "Is there something that I should know?"
Shuji Ikutsuki smiled, "Nope, not necessarily. But for the sake of full disclosure we are looking for something."
"What's that?"
"Well, to be honest we are not sure. How should I put this?" Ikutsuki scratched at the stubble in his chin. "We lost a . . . student last night or at least we thought we did, but when we checked her house she was there even though our info said she was not. Now it could have just been a false alarm on our part, but I was wondering if you saw a blonde girl about your age at midnight?"
Yu kept his eyes from narrowing. They knew about August and Yu was certain that at the very least Ikutsuki and Mitsuru knew he knew more than he was telling them. "No, it's like I told Mitsuru. I did not meet anyone else when I was being chased by those things."
Ikutski listened to his answer with the same serene smile he had greeted him with. He seemed content with Yu's answer, but that was just the surface and beneath . . . well Yu could not quite decipher.
"I see, thank you for enduring my questions. Now as for what is going on in this city I am afraid you will have to be in the dark just a little while longer until I sort out this confusion," Ikutsuki laughed at Yu's look of disappointment. "Now, now don't frown. All will be made clear very soon, Yu. However, I will have to ask that you not leave this dorm tomorrow for your own safety."
"What about school?" Yu asked with just a hint of frustration. They were trying to cage him once more. His skull beat furiously in pain. His anger returned. "You can't just keep me here without telling me what is going on!"
"Narukami," Mitsuru said softly easing him just long enough for the pain in his head to abate. "I know this is unfair, but we really do have your best interest at heart. Please . . . though I may not have earned it yet, trust me."
Yu stared at her. The look on her face was longing and hopeful, two emotions that Yu doubted crossed her face often. It calmed him for the moment, brought him clarity. Why was he so angry? He then thought of the Plume and wondered what he had agreed to with August and who he could really trust.
"It is for your own safety." Ikutsuki smiled much too like Yu's own. "So skip school tomorrow. C'mon most students would jump at the chance for a required leave of absence. Besides you are looking a little ill."
Yu watched the way Mitsuru shifted in front of the door that led to the outside and Yu knew it would be fruitless to fight. To her credit she looked apologetic. Perhaps she had really meant to work things out. There was no point in fighting anymore so instead Yu smiled ignoring the pain in his skull.
"I appreciate your concern Mr. Ikutsuki," Yu agreed affably. "It has been a pleasure to meet you."
Yu Narukami calmly walked up two flights of stairs, across a hall and through a door until he stood at the foot his bed. Never had he felt such anger. How could he fight if he was so weak? He fell into the warm embrace of his bed.
To escape into dreams would be the plan now. A release from the difficult day he had faced. He would not be an unworthy hero. His head hit the pillow and his eyes closed. To dream of an escape was his intention, but there are only nightmares to be had when a murderer sleeps.
8 April 2009 (The Dark Hour)
His eyes were not the first to see where his dreams had taken him. It was his ears that first heard the dream's welcome.
Hear me, O Death, whose empire unconfin'd extends to mortal tribes of ev'ry kind.
His breath rattled from his chest as he listened to the hymn. The words were new to him, but familiar all the same. His eyes opened to give view to the dream he dreamt. He was in the Velvet Room the same room he dreamt of the night before, but there was so much more to see this time.
A young girl in pig-tails stared up it him she smiled and called him big-bro. As quickly as she came, she had left his view; dying in a hospital's bed. She was replaced by the vision of a gaunt man with dull eyes and a depressed mien. As quickly as he came, he had left his view; torn apart by the black creatures he had come to know as shadows.
His mind screamed the names Nanako and Taro Namatame, but these were not names known to him and thus merely words to be ignored. He had forgotten them and felt nothing for them now.
Then he saw himself and the boy called Pharos; denying the young boy his contract and thus freeing his fate. Anger took Yu once the vision had passed. Why should dreams chide him for his decision?
Igor stood by him on his right now and looked up with sadness. Elizabeth stood on his left with same twinkle of amusement her eyes always held.
"My Dear Boy if you do not accept the responsibility of your actions, the responsibility will fall on another," Igor's red streaked eyes held his gaze. "Listen to the hymn and watch how your fate became hers."
On thee, the portion of our time depends, whose absence lengthens life, whose presence ends.
The scene shifted again and he watched as a miracle came before his eyes. It was August, she fell to her knees before the boy in front of her. He was the same boy Yu had seen in his first entrance to the velvet room. His blue hair covered one eye and his other was closed in prolonged slumber; he was dead for he was death. August whispered his name "Makoto?"
Thy sleep perpetual bursts the vivid folds, by which the soul, attracting body holds:
And then the miracle happened. The machine girl did what only humans could; she cried for her fallen friend. The tears turned the optic-glass of her eyes to brilliant sky blue irises. The trembling of her body shook white metal off revealing the untouched flesh beneath. The wisps of Nyx's wings, her Papillion Heart, shone brightly and faded leaving only the gentle beating of a human heart beneath her breast. Her silent tears became loud wails of sorrow and apology, but they only fell on the deaf ears of the blue-haired boy named Makoto who continued to sleep.
She achieved her answer. She became all that she could be in that moment and what she could be was beautiful. She had her answer, but it was a bitter one to accept.
common to all, of ev'ry sex and age, for nought escapes thy all-destructive rage.
At the boy's side Igor himself appeared in the vision. Smiling in his mocking, but gentle way.
The Igor at Yu's side looked away in shame.
"My Dear Girl," he spoke softly. "Dry your eyes the Wild Card has granted you a gift most precious. Its power never ceases to amaze me."
August looked up at him the tears still falling. "What was the point if they are dead, if he is dead?"
The Igor of the vision closed his eyes as he answered, "Their fate is a sad one, true. Makoto made a decision for the entirety of humanity. He acted as a King. He tried to rule. Perhaps that is not what your world needed?"
"Then why?" she begged for an answer once more.
"Perhaps," Igor began again, hesitating, knowing what his next words would do to the girl, "It was to to reinforce a lesson you already know? When you fall, get right back up."
August's blue eyes widened.
Not youth itself thy clemency can gain, vigorous and strong, by thee untimely slain. In thee the end of nature's works is known, in thee all judgment is absolved alone.
"Why did you bring me here?" she asked as if to herself.
"My Dear Girl I did not bring you here," the vision of Igor spoke. "The power of the Wild Card brought you here and it is the power of possibility, of change. And there is now a forfeited contract . . . though I would beg of you not to sign it."
"Was Makoto the one who. . ."
"No it was another," Igor answered.
The smile on Yu's face faded he had answered a question wrong, he hated being wrong.
The vision continued as the memory of Igor spoke once more. "I cannot stop you from claiming the contract. It is within your right to claim it, as the Wild Card has claimed you. But it will cost you the most valuable treasure you have won from your struggles. I would not blame you if you did not sign it and I may blame you if you do."
"I don't understand." The blonde-haired girl cried.
"In truth . . . neither do I," Igor sighed, "But I am old and I am tired of watching promise die. So I will break a rule I set for myself long ago in the hopes that you will not make the mistakes of those that came before you. If you accept the contract you will be sent back. Not to your world, but to one similar and you will be given the power to defeat Nyx."
The tears in her eyes ceased their flow as wild hope filled her beating heart. "I would do anything to save them, to save him."
"I expected no less," he responded, "But you will not be able to save Makoto Yuki. He is beyond anyone's grasp. No you will only be able to prevent Nyx from destroying another world. Tell me do you know what a Plume of Dusk is?"
Her mouth shut tight as she looked away in regret. "It is the element that powers the Papillion Heart."
"That is true, but it is much more than that. It is a piece Nyx shed from her mighty wings. Only death can kill death, but to do so would create a paradox. With the Plume, with your former heart, you could trap one of the fragments, one of the great shadows." Igor explained. "If death is dead it cannot kill and if it cannot kill it is alive. This contradiction will seal a great shadow away preventing Nyx from ever coming again. But do you realize what it will cost you? You no longer have a Papillion Heart; you have a real one Dear Girl and there is nothing more precious."
Yu watched as August stared at her pale hand. The gaze held beautiful longing, terrible sacrifice, and fierce resolve.
"I see. The Wild Card is the power of possibility, the power of change. That itself must include the power to revert what has changed back to what it once was. My path is clear." There were no tears left in her eyes.
"I will ask only once more," Igor implored knowing his words would fall on deaf ears. "Do not accept this contract for your own sake."
"As a human I will sign this contract and as something less I will fulfill it."
One knee rose and another followed. Her flesh became white metal and sky-blue eyes became glass and electricity. Her heart ceased its beating and the blue wisps of death returned to the base of her neck. She stood not as a woman, but as machine. She sold her answer and her miracle. The contract was signed.
She stepped towards Yu no longer a vision, but as a true participant in his dream.
No suppliant arts thy dreadful rage control, no vows revoke the purpose of thy soul.
Her eyes held no accusation and her voice no malice. "Yu Narukami, you forfeited your contract and I signed it in your stead. The cost to me was great, but I paid it. I now bear your responsibility, but I still have need of you."
Yu stared back his emotions hidden from them.
"My Plume of Dusk was the only treasure in my possession that could bind a great shadow. But that shadow must be bound in a human vessel." August turned her back to him as she prepared to leave. "The one thing I had to give up to accept the contract was the one thing I wanted most. And the one thing I wanted most was also the one thing that could act as the prison, so now I need you. I will lead you and you will follow. And tomorrow, though it may be our last, we will save this world."
She faded from the dream her back to him. Yu Narukami had gotten an answer wrong and lost that which was most important to him, the destiny to lead. Now he was just a pawn, but pawns could be poisonous and they could be so much more if they make it to the end of the board. King's were the most vulnerable of pieces after all.
His disenchanted chuckle caught the attention of Igor and Elizabeth who still stood by his side.
"I am supposed to be the King." Yu whispered dejected.
Igor's wide eyes widened still for there was so much he failed to see in smiling silver-haired boy and Elizabeth smiled, this boy was nothing like the other, but just as intriguing in his own way.
The dream ended. There would full moon on the ninth of April.
O blessed power, regard my ardent prayer, and human life to age abundant spare.– The Orphic Hymn to Thanatos LXXXVI
9 April 2009
Yu's eyes burst open to the morning light. His clock marked the hour as the tenth of the morning well past the time to make it to school, though he had been forbidden from going there. His mind was alight with fire. His brain seared and burned. Demons and Gods struck at the grey matter behind the bone. They wanted their release. He screamed into his pillow, the pain unbearable.
Tears filled his eyes when the pain ceased to abate. Images of young girl with pig-tails and a gaunt man with dull eyes burned behind his shut eyes. His eardrums ruptured with the names Nanako and Taro Namatame.
"What is going on?" he whimpered into the covers of his bed. His pores sweat a cold liquid, but his body burned. To his eyes his arm glowed a brilliant blue, the same blue as the Plume of Dusk August had gifted him. Dread filled his heart and the sense of his impending death came over him. August had sentenced him to death, he did not know how, but he knew it to be true. He screamed his denial of his fate into his pillow until his throat cracked and dried. He gasped his refusal once more as he struggled to his feet.
He swayed over to his mirror looking at a face he did not recognize and slammed his skull against the glass cracking it and shattering it. He stumbled away from the self-inflicted blow and slammed his back against the wall before sliding down its length to his seat on the floor. Sleep claimed him in the afternoon before his dorm mates returned. The blood ran down his forehead and off the bridge of his nose.
9 April 2009 (The Dark Hour; Full Moon)
The pounding of a fist against his door woke him. His tongue tasted the dried blood on his lips as his memories returned. He idly chided himself for breaking his mirror for a moment's relief. His ears only caught momentary sounds of Yukari's voice. The thundering in his skull was returning. His desperate attempt for relief had only bought him a moment of respite.
"Sor... I.. ming.. in."
His door swung open at Yukari's thrust. Her eyes widened as she saw the state he was in. The dried blood on his face, the shattered mirror, and the purple contusion on his forehead left her with little answers and many questions. She motioned to him and when Yu did not move she bent down and lifted him to his feet. "Come on there's no time. They're almost here."
Yu recognized the terror in her voice as genuine and desperately tried to move. He noticed the slim rapier in her hand and the bow on her back and knew that the shadows and coffins were back.
They climbed the stairs as quick as they could despite Yu's stumbling and the thundering noise of the monsters just a staircase behind them. They reached the top and exited the door to the roof. Yukari slammed the door behind them sealing it with her wood of her bow. Yu felt the sharp night's air hit his face and the pain returned with full force. He collapsed screaming at Yukari's feet. He could hear her cries of desperation behind the explosions that rang in his skull.
He felt her stumble backwards in fear and saw as a great shadow scaled the side of the wall and appeared in front of them on the roof. It was larger than any he had seen before and its menace had grown with its size.
Yukari stood with rapier in hand trying to strike at the beast, but it knocked the blade away in disdain sending it rest by Yu. Yu sat up with all his strength fighting desperately to live. Yukari pulled out her gun and pointed it at her temple. Yu screamed half trying to stop her half trying to find some release. He did not want to die.
Yukari could not pull the trigger and in her hesitation the great shadow struck at her sending her unconscious at Yu's feet. He didn't want to die. He didn't want her to die. The beast lumbered towards Yukari tauntingly and drew a rusted knife bigger that the ones before. It dripped bloody and black.
With what little strength he could muster he threw the rapier at the shadows mask. The blade connected halting the shadow's attempted stab at Yukari. It turned its attention to Yu and moved to claim him. Yu crawled his muscles burning and his mind screaming with every motion. He backed up against the cement wall and the door. The monster was just a foot away and death was there to claim him. He did not want to die.
The sound of a bullet hit between the beast and his feet. It stalled the beast for a moment and Yu knew it was August that had bought him time. By his hand laid Yukari's fallen gun and his body moved instinctually as if it were born for this moment. With explosions in his skull, trembling hands, and dry throat he put the gun against his head and spoke the word.
"Per . . . so . . .na!"
And then there was relief.
"Thou art I . . . And I am thou. I am Thanatos and I shall walk by your side for what little time you have left to live."
The Greek personification of death emerged from his mind and ended his suffering. Yu's vision began to fade as the faces of death returned to him. Thanatos struck at the great shadow with his blade causing it to screech and gurgle inhuman noises of pain. A young girl with pig-tails smiled at him. Her name was Nanako. A gaunt man with dull eyes stared at him in fear. His name was Taro Namatame. Yu did not know how or why, but he knew he had killed both of them. Tears fell from his sightless eyes and his heart's beat slowed to a crawl. Thanatos grasped the remains of the great shadow in his mighty hands and crushed its body. Yu's body glowed the soft blue of the Plume of Dusk.
Thanatos turned to him and though Yu could not see, nor hear, nor feel, he knew death had come to claim him. He did not want to die.
August landed on the roof of the dorm staring in sorrow at the fate she had bestowed upon the boy.
Thanatos spoke to him once more and his words fell upon the ears of the dead. "Remains of Mother if you die now death dies with you chained forever. The great shadow's heart beats as your own. Will you accept these shackles and journey with me to Tartarus?"
He did not want to die. Chains were for the condemned not for the liberated. He would not wear them. Chains were for slaves not kings. Personas were just slaves to the soul that summoned them. Yu Narukami would not die.
"Do you know the tale of Sisyphus?" Yu whispered to the personification of death. "Well I do. Yes, Thanatos I will come with you, but could you show me how to wear the chains. I am a King and I do not know of such things. Will you teach me?"
August's eyes widened for she knew the story as well. "No, you can't!" she shouted, but it was far too late.
Thanatos placed the shackles on his black arms. The persona screamed at the treachery, but it was chained and could do nothing more. Yu rose to his feet changing his fate, a gift he would steal from the Wild Card. That made two gifts he had stolen, but there was one more he wanted to claim.
"Stop this now!" August commanded.
Yu smiled and picked up the gun placing it to his temple once more. The last gift was just a trigger's pull away. "Let us try that one more time."
"Summoning," August began.
Yu pulled the trigger against his skull and spoke the word, "Persona!"
"Persona!"
The Goddess Athena rose from her mind and from his mind came the Twisted god. Thanatos faded away prisoned and shackled.
"Who calls to me?" His new persona spoke.
"Your King," Yu answered.
"One who shines in unimaginable darkness . . . Will you even draw on your hollow self for your strength?" It asked.
"Help me show the Goddess of Wisdom the correct path and I promise you release." Yu promised.
The twisted God laughed pleased with the answer. "Thou art I . . . and I am thou. I am Magatsu-Izanagi! And I will determine the path you take!"
The Gods clashed. Athena struck her spear through Magatsu-Izanagi's heart and Magatsu-Izanagi cleaved his great sword through Athena's skull. Together they toppled over the roof's edge and plummeted to the concrete below fading in the night.
August took the opening and tackled Yu. Her legs powered by the Orgia Drive sent them sailing through the night's sky. They landed with a crash on the roof of an adjacent building. She skidded landing in crouch ready to strike again. Yu rolled on his side and slowly stood once more.
"What have you done!" August bellowed in anger. "You have become part of the shadow. If you should die Nyx will come and if you live the Dark Hour will never end!"
"What have I done?" Yu yelled back in disgust. "I have chosen to live. I chose not to be a coward, which is more then I can say for you."
August stared in bewilderment. She raised her rifle at his heart knowing she could not kill him now that he was one of the fragments.
"Yes, I chose to live," Yu spat. "I will kill the remaining shadows and stop Nyx. I do not wish for the end of the world. But the Dark hour will go on! Why would you ever want the Dark Hour to end?"
How had she not seen the filth that slept in his heart. The wicked truth was laid bare to her now.
Yu paid no mind to the weapon pointed at him. "But if you do seek the Dark Hour's end I will find a way to grant you that. Consider it repayment for the gift you gave me."
"What are you going to do?" She demanded.
"I am going to live," Yu answered. "And I am going to live as a king."
And what wicked King he was.
"Then your reign will be Sisyphean." August shouted at him.
"Then you should be on guard, August." Yu answered back, "If I am Sisyphus then I still have one trick left to play."
She glared, her rifle still aimed at his breast where his heart and a part her own yet beat. "Then you will roll your rock in punishment for what you have done."
"And gladly I would. It is better to struggle eternally as the King, then it is to lie down and die as the Martyr," Yu was smiling now. The kind and serene mask of the lord rested upon his face once more. His voice was calm as he spoke and the white teeth of his smile shined warmly in the dark. "If you insist on your path then play that game with your own life as the currency. To do any differently is not to die as a martyr it is simply to live as a tyrant. But, something tells me we were both meant to live as rulers. I promise to show you that before the end."
Before August's eyes memories of a life forgotten danced. She sat upon the throne of soft velvet as the club's pounding music played. In her hand were chop-sticks their end colored red, it was the scepter that marked her royal status. At her feet kneeled the girl warrior adorned in her green armor. Around her neck the priestess embraced her. She wore a robe of red. And at her lap lay the head of a lover, the idol his peer's desired. These were his memories; the ones he had lost. They spoke of a tawdry game played by one of his age, the Kings Cup.
These were his memories, but in them she was the Queen and what a wicked queen she was.
Yu Narukami walked away as August fell to her knees. There was less then a year left before the world would end and her actions had cast judgment upon them all.
AN: Well that officially ends the first part of this story. The Girls with Guns section is over. What will follow next is a series of interludes that lead into the next big 4-chapter section. The interludes serve two functions they move time forward and allow me to write the slice of life moments that I love so much about the persona games.
They also allow for a lighter tone. The past chapters have been a little dark, but it was necessary to establish how screwed up the protagonists are in this fanfic. I got to show a glimpse of Makoto's despair and Yu's arrogance. Now that these attributes have been established I can begin the rode to their redemption . . . or demise. They do not necessarily have to succeed.
This chapter was also filled with references to Greek mythology and if you find yourselves confused then I encourage you to look up the references. Greek and other ancient myths are some of the first and best stories humans have. They are wonderful little stories and the references will only continue to be included in this fic. In fact, if you know the story of Sisyphus you might be able to guess some of the future plot lines for Yu.
If you don't know, Sisyphus, was an arrogant, but clever and talented King. He angered Zeus and as punishment Zeus sent Thanatos to take him to Tartarus. Sisyphus then tricked Thanatos into chaining himself and avoided death. You will have to look up the rest if you want to know how that story ends or just keeping reading this fic and figure it out for yourself.
And as usual another character sketch.
The Fanatic Femme Fatale
Mayumi Yamano
Age: None of Your Business
Persona: None
Arcana: None
Weapon: Handguns
Personality: Fanatic Worshipper
Personality Flaw: Adachi is her object of adoration
Skills: Abduction, Great Camera Presence, 100% Devoted, Adachi's first and favorite
Likes: Tohru, Leather Biker Outfits . . . Taro Namatame
Dislikes: Naoto Shirogane . . . Adachi
Stats (1-5 scale):
Courage – 4
Charm – 4
Intelligence – 3
Understanding – 2
Expression – 4
Diligence – 3
Bonus Stat: Devotion - 10
Bio:
Mayumi Yamano lives and dies for her king. Her devotion is a treasure more valuable than any trinket in this world. There is not a person she would not kill nor a crime she would not commit for her lord. She was the first of the four concubines to pledge her soul to him. She is the most loved and the most powerful. It is a shame that loyalty is directed towards someone like Adachi. It is also in stark contrast to the original story where she was pretty much disgusted by him. How did this sudden change happen? Well, it has a lot to do with chop-sticks and very little to do with Makoto Yuki.
As for her relationship with other characters in the story. She does not hate Makoto Yuki and thinks very little of him despite knowing what he has done to his previous world. In truth she pities the boy and feels sorry for his fate. However, Adachi ordered his execution and Mayumi intends to follow that order to its completion. She hates Naoto. It is a dislike that grew first from her defeat at the young detective's hands (taking six rounds to the gut and then being left to the shadows for a stab fest will do that to a person). But the dislike will only continue to fester as she learns more about the detective and they continue to clash.
Mayumi is a proud woman, not only that, she Is proud to be a woman. Seeing the way Naoto hides from her true self disgusts Mayumi. She sees the idea that Naoto views her gender as weakness in her line of work as an insult. Furthermore, Mayumi knows her desires and wants, as such, the Detective's insecurities disgust her. They will continue to be rivals in this fic.
Blizzardfang: I am glad you like the reference to mythology. It is a passion of mine and it is always nice to meet someone who shares that interest. I hope you will continue to enjoy what I have planned.
charizardatemymathteacher: Thank you for the kind words and yes it was simply an error on my part.
A Dog in Fox Clothing: Please feel free to write your story. I am sure I am not the first to think of a protagonist switch up plot and I would love to read what you have in mind :)
I am glad you enjoy the characterization; it is the aspect I am most worried about in this fic. I am taking two protagonists that people care about and screwing with them to make characters that are far less likable. I expect some backlash to say the least. As for Makoto running from his shadow it is something that will come back to bite him eventually. He still hasn't accepted who he really is and that will be a continuing plot point. I am glad you like the mythology and it will continue to be referenced in this fic.
I am also happy to learn you like the nickname August. I had to find a way to differentiate her from the the Aegis of the current universe and the moniker just sort of popped into my head. As for Yu I am glad you saw the cracks in his first chapter and if you are still reading this you probably got to see the entire mask fall.
Please feel free to offer any critiques you have. It is the only way I can improve and I have fairly thick skin so my feelings will not be hurt. Finally thanks for the review!
MHplayer749: Thank you for the compliment and the review. I hope it continues to hold your interest.
DeXM TIK: Thank you for the kind words and the review.
RandomReview: Thank you for your comments. I am sorry that I appeared to have a bias towards Yu. I can certainly see why it seems that way. All I can say in response is that I am actually neutral towards both MCs as I view them as both blank slates and as such don't have strong feelings on either. I am far more invested in the other members of the Persona cast. I am glad you enjoyed the prose, however.
As for names feel free to use whichever you want. I flipped a coin on whether to use the manga names or the television and movie names. Obviously the TV and movie iterations won. But I have no strong attachment to either. Makoto/Minato gets his pre-new game personality because he failed and killed a world. That is bound to shake even the most unflappable person. Though the ultimate goal of this fic is to take the flawed status of the MCs and make them into the characters they are traditionally viewed as.
As for Yu I would argue he is not his new game personality. Yu is generally considered to be this great guy liked by all, but now imagine that he is still an exceptional human being, but secretly very callous and arrogant. So, yes, he is a d-bag. That was the point as you deduced. I understand if this puts you off the story, though, I hope you will continue to read. But I understand if I lose you as a reader. Finally, thank you for the reviews and the criticism it has given me much to think about.
Guest: Thank you for the kind words! Yes, it has gotten pretty dark, but that will change in the next couple of chapters as I get into the slice of life moments that fill the Persona Series. As for your comments on the MCs characterization all I can say is, Yes! That was what I was going for . . . mostly anyway. I am glad that it was conveyed that way to at least one person. Thanks for the review!