Chapter 16

Deuterium

Junpei groaned, beads of sweat dropped like waterfall as his legs gave to the floor. This was supposed to be another easy exploration. Rush to the 59th floor, beat that Intrepid Knight fucker, reach the next Floor Guardian and beat another fucker, go home and sleep through the class period. Again.

Nobody expected the Shadow to be tough as hell and snapped Mitsuru-senpai's rapier like a matchstick. He would've laugh at her surprised face if only it didn't blow him away with a mind-charged Garudyne. He was KO-ed in one blast.

It effing didn't get any better when their Router reported in a panicked voice that it didn't have any weakness. Minato quickly signaled for them to spread out and approach with caution. But the Intrepid Knight was far from done. Instead of attacking them with its giant sword, something Shadows they encountered usually do, it instead lifted up its great sword and glowing golden light trapped them. He didn't have any time to run away before a holy paper embellished in ancient writing chose its target. Their main healer was unconscious with a well-timed Hama. Great.

Fuuka's Ixtab led them back to the first floor after a hard-earned victory that costed Minato a mangled arm and Junpei was never any happier to see the front lobby and Ixtab's creepy lanterns. Fuuka ran over to them and supported Yukari's unconscious figure with her smaller body, mumbling apologies with teary eyes. The only ones left in the lobby were Shinjiro-senpai and Fuuka while the silver-haired senior stayed behind to guard the dorm. Or Miki. Same thing, really. Yuka-tan said that she suspected something different before they went to Tartarus tonight, though. Akihiko-senpai has been preventing the older senior to join the front line but Shinjiro-senpai fixed him this real scary glare and went out, anyway.

" 's okay, not your fault," Junpei waved her off with a tired grin and it alleviated her worry a little bit. Shinjiro-senpai's intimidating, tall figure leaned on the golden, woven railings that led to the second floor of Tartarus and he approached the beaten party, nasty-spiked axe in one hand. "One Floor Guardian, really? That's pathetic." Minato shifted in his position, avoiding to aggravate his broken arm.

Ever unperturbed, he summoned Unicorn and the white mystical creature galloped, thrusting its horn to the sky and healed its master's injury. Minato's complexion looked far better and the smaller cuts were closed, although he definitely needed to visit the infirmary later. Junpei shuddered at the memory of the strange physician.

"It would've been different if you were there, senpai. Your Persona doesn't have any weakness, at least." Minato said, testing his arm and nodded approvingly at Unicorn. The creature dissipated in a blue light but it never escape his mind that some of Minato's Personas were too otherworldly and strange. There was one time he was surprised when some cat girl whom Minato called Nekomata roasted those Table Shadows thingy. Makes one wonder whether the stoic boy somehow have... y'know, fetish?

The Magician's thought was cut short by Shinjiro-senpai's voice, itching to fight. "That's the point. Now haul up your sorry ass and finish today's quota. It's my turn, anyway. The rest can go home."

And there was one thing they agreed on since their number has expanded in just a few months. Usually, they decided the first party for the exploration like how they picked the King in the King's Game. Only, the King had to stay behind. Minato's an exemption, of course, since he's the Field Leader. Junpei regretted not being the King on the first run.

"B-but Shinjiro-senpai, the next Floor Guardians are in the 72th floor!" Fuuka warned, clearly afraid for their safety.

Wait...

"Floor... Guardians?" Yukari, now awake, paled.

"Yes, there are three Guardians on that floor! Strength Arcana. I'm sorry but that's the fastest I can find for now." Woah, talk about crazy-ass skill. Junpei whistled.

But seeing their current condition, it should be okay to call it a night, right? Not going with a full party is stupid. Even he knew that.

Instead, befitting of his unpredictable personality, Minato said an almost inaudible "Okay". Junpei could feel the rising tension between Shinjiro-senpai and Mitsuru-senpai after Minato agreed. They glared at each other.

"Shinjiro, I forbid you to continue,"

Junpei could see Mitsuru-senpai's point, Shinjiro-senpai was too reckless and even more stubborn than Akihiko-senpai. But they were behind their quota of reaching 80th floor this month, already, and if what Ikutsuki-san predicted was right, they have less than two weeks before the next Full Moon Shadow. All the more reason to train.

"But it could wait," Yukari argued back.

And of course, knowing Shinjiro-senpai, he wasn't going to wait. "Dammit, we're fine." And just like that, he went to the portal and Minato sighed, catching up with him and told the rest of his teammates to go back.

Fortunately, Mitsuru-senpai trusted Minato enough to keep both of them alive. She told Fuuka to stay behind and updated her of the situations later in which the usually meek girl readily accept. It was strange for him to watch them interact, now that they knew that Fuuka worked for Mitsuru-senpai. There was a blurry line between work and teammates, but comfortable enough at its own pace not to interrupt their explorations.

The three went back to the dorm, but it never stopped bothering them.

Despite the gap of prowess between them that made Akihiko named him the Field Leader, Minato was a pushover.

Minato's passivity irritated Junpei since their first exploration. He was too silent to give direct order and positioned himself like a jack of all trades rather than a leader. He was polite and the type that listened to others, something that seemed off in most teenage boys. Minato also lacked ambitions, he even followed their whims around but there were moments when he didn't seem like himself. Junpei wondered how he became competent enough to pull them up through the growing tower.


Most of the Shadows scurried away from Shinjiro's mere presence. Minato has changed his weapon, preferring to pick off the remaining Shadows from afar with Yukari's bow as the senior bashed and wrecked the hallway to his heart's content. Minato knew what the senior could do, and seeing the torn battlefield made him certain of the raw power of his senior. Minato looked at the approaching Shadows, observing his brash fighting style that somehow still suited the rowdy senior. Minato opted to stay a reasonable distance away when he heard a laugh as the Shadows' magic didn't get to him, obviously aiming for the strongest Shadow of the bunch and ignoring the weaklings.

Hector summoned, Shinjiro sidestepped to spin with a great force that broke the Shadow's mask and he slammed the blunter side of the double-edged blade, ending the Shadow that roared its last breath. Shinjiro finished his turn and cocked a grin, surrounded on all sides with no point of escape. Minato relaxed his stance, recalling Yukari's straight back and copied her posture. The feathery feeling of the arrow's fletching against the slender body of polished wood. Pull. Aim. Kill.

The snapping sound near his ears alerted Shinjiro, who ducked away from the incoming projectile and let the Shadow eat that.

Swoosh. Bullseye.


The junior caught up with him, noting the vast difference between raw power with his own eyes, if the ichor of the slaughtered Shadow can prove anything. The unprompted sigh of relief made Shinjiro realized that Minato's attention returned to him. He threw a Diarama without any complain and observed the floor for more Shadows after the magic did its job, watchful.

"Fuuka," Minato called, tapping twice on his earpiece as his eyes swept around the visible line of enemies. In the dark hallways, the bigger blob of Shadows can be seen unaware of their presence. "I didn't count the floor before, how many floors to the next Floor Guardians?"

Fuuka's softer, but firm voice replied. "Ten floors left. At this pace it might take more time if you two continue to take on more enemies. The Dark Hour would end soon."

"That's what she says," Minato ended the connection. "So... Compromise?"

Shinjiro snorted. "What are you doing?"

"We just have to avoid the rest of the Shadows annd reach the 72th floor. The Floor Guardians can be dealt with later,"

"And how are you gonna do that?'

Standing shoulder to shoulder, Shinjiro could see a slight tremble in Minato's figure, a telltale sign of exhaustion. It was an understandable reaction for someone who climbed more than anyone, however reliable. "Tired, brat?"

"I'll cover you, senpai. Just go ahead." Came the deadpanned reply.

A smirk. "So you say you're going to do the job of a full party?"

Without warning, Shinjiro caught the exhausted Field Leader off guard. Stumbling, gravity worked against him as Shinjiro spun the hilt of his axe towards the pivotal point of his balance. Shinjiro didn't need his eyes to see the bursts of phantom pain that flickered in Minato's body as he grimaced, his injured arm pushed back to the wall. He could sense weakness even though Minato's expression has morphed back into its unruffled neutrality. It's like staring at an ivory-coloured, smooth mask.

"Cheeky bastard," he started. "People like you-" Shinjiro hissed with a sick grin.

"-Ended up there, on the top getting away with everything just because they're irreplacable. And here you are some fledgling who played front liner and support and tanker and healer whenever the situation suits you. I've seen a lot of crazy shit on the street and people like you are dangerous. Though you don't smell like danger but those repertoires of yours ain't your typical jack of all trades shit. Let me ask you, brat, why are you even here being a good boy?"

The mask didn't crack. Minato's steady voice, one free of inflection was reassuring. "I'm just good at staying useful."

Minato pushed back with his good hand and something changed. Shinjiro felt his aggravation faded away. "Let's go. Now's not the time nor the place, senpai." He said in a respectful tone, but beneath was a warning that told him to rein his temper.

"What the hell are you?" Shinjiro asked in undertone and he watched as passivity returned into Minato's demeanor. A docile but reliable Field Leader once again.

The two were silent for a few minutes, the eery shaft of green moonlight had moved to another part of the hallway and illuminated Minato's shoes. Somehow, the enervation returned to Minato but that was no surprise. Power in exchange of durability was a fair deal and there was a sudden sense of falling that only he realized.

"Never thought we'd be storming ten floors alone, eh?" Shijiro said, as if nothing ever happened.

The question seemed inferior than trying to keep himself upright but he persevered. Minato took a deep breath and the weakness dissipated.

"Fuuka, scan the staircases for the next ten floors."

The lanterns lit up their way.


"So you're awake!"

A cheery voice cut through the grey smoke inside his mind, too eager and it caused the pounding resonated in his head. He tried to get half of his body up with shaky arms and succeeded, only to see the school physician's grinning face. He craned his neck around, asserting the guess of his hazy consciousness that he was placed in the only bed of the infirmary. He felt a shred of not-so-well thought at seeing the concoction in the doctor's hand.

"You passed out in P.E. Did you have a rough night, boy?" the lilt of Edogawa-san's voice took on a naughtier meaning but before Minato could think of an answer or something more mundane like a follow-up question, the doctor talked again.

"The news were all over the place, you know? All those people who were found unconscious and became The Lost were all in pairs so when you passed out without your... significant other, your classmates brought you here and I can safely conclude that you haven't become a zombie. Congratulation!"

Minato tuned out the rest of his conversation, until the sliding door opened and familiar shoulder-length silver hair entered the infirmary, carrying a wooden tray with three mugs on top of it, Chihiro came up behind her.

"Ah, Sanada-kun, good timing! I was going to talk about you,"

He felt the bed dipped downward, accommodating Miki's weight after she put the tray on a high table beside the bed while Chihiro sat on a plastic chair. His hands fisted the thin blanket on their own accord.

"She's the newest member of Health Committee. It's good that she works in a cafe, I don't have to spend more money on coffee." Edogawa-san talked on as he sipped on the beverage blissfully. The girl pouted and took out her notepad.

"I'm not a vending machine! And I'm only a temporary member before Saori-sepai return." which caused the eccentric man to laugh unabashedly, spilling the dark brown content of the mug to the floor.

"M-Minato-san, you're okay?"

He nodded. Feeling more relaxed, Minato clasped her shoulder with his free hand and softly expressed, "Yeah, thank you Chihiro." The familiar way Minato called her name removed her discomfort at being touched by a man. The cold but steady hand that gripped her shoulder was strong, but what affected her was that his hand didn't held any trace of deception. A warm, soft sensation bubbled up from her toes to her fingertips and Chihiro found it comforting that her smile matched his own. It was refreshing to find a honorable man.

"Good," she flushed with a smile and Miki grinned conspiratively. Chihiro fiddled with her index fingers anxiously but she resolved quickly, inhaling and exhaling softly. Minato was reminded of the image of a warrior maiden putting on her armor. With a speed that he didn't know Chihiro had, she took out something from her pocket and plastered it to his cheek. The surprise only lasted seconds and he moved up his fingers to touch the band-aid on his cheek.

Edogawa-san who watched the entire spectacle frowned, "Well, the intention is good and all but he didn't get any cut, Fushimi-kun. He didn't get hurt, just passed out."

"O-oh, ahahaha... ha," she chickened out and ran away from the infirmary with an excuse that the library across them needed more hands, just go to the library if Miki wanted to go back and they'll walk home together. Okay bye.

Minato smiled, touching the faint link that connected them in his mind. The Justice rotated slowly, enveloped in a blue light.

Miki twisted her body to take another white porcelain mug and he looked away from the room, away from the lack of ear that was supposed to be there or a patch of mottled collarbone hued in milky white and yellow and charred black.

But when a scaly, contorted hand with raised skin that was usually covered in gloves when she worked gently pried open his fingers from the blanket, Minato lifted his head slightly. Miki was looking at him, ugly nails on stubby fingers clasped around the mug. She watched, hopeful and Minato took the mug.

The smile she gave made Minato's eyes smarted somewhat. Minato filed it away in his mind to be analyzed later, adding it to the growing list of things he didn't understand.


Author Note:

Heads up, when you equipped Shirt of Chivalry on Minato, the kanji writing on his back meant 'honorable man'. That's where the idea of Chihiro thinking that Minato is a honorable man came from.

And this is another symbolically-titled chapter because Persona Series are riddled with symbolism. The word deuterium came from the Greek deuteros, which means second. In chemistry, deuterium is a stable isotope of hydrogen with a mass approximately twice that of the usual isotope. Not that it helped my test score, but whatever. Source taken shamelessly from google and thanks for reading!^^ Let me know what you think, peeps.