A/N: Shop till you drop! That's today's prompt, anyways. Shopping. So we'll get to do some of that. I hope everyone liked last chapter, by the way, because from now on I'm going to try to include more Persona characters into the stories than I was previously. Except for in this chapter. And a lot of other chapters. But for some, we'll be including other characters. Yay. Do you like that plan, audience?

Audience: "You suck."

Yay! You like it. Anyways, on with the story, right?

I hope you like it!

"Makoto, over here!" Labrys shouted from by the arcade, at her boyfriend by the fountain. He glanced towards her, before starting to walk towards her at a leisurely pace. He was a little late, but he tried to appear as casual as possible, despite his embarrassment at that fact. After all, he usually had to hassle his girlfriend for being late (always playflly, of course), so he didn't think he'd ever hear the end of being late this time.

The pair had decided that on their day off this week, they would get together and go shopping. Makoto had promised Labrys, after all, and he couldn't go back on a promise to his girlfriend, whether it was to go clothing shopping or not. To say the least, it wasn't one of his favorite hobbies. So the couple decided to meet at Pawlonia Mall and browse the various stores, so that Labrys could increase her collection of human clothes. Still, as per the usual, Makoto expected any activity with Labrys to be at least somewhat amusing, even if shopping felt more like a chore than a joyous activity.

"Hey," she said, offering him a hug as greeting, which he gladly accepted. "I thought you weren't gonna' show up! You're ten minutes late," she said, sticking her tongue out in a teasing manner.

He laughed. "Sorry, sorry."

"It's okay, I forgive you." She giggled, quite fond of teasing her boyfriend. Fortunately for the both of them, he was quite tolerant and found it adorable. "Thanks a bunch for comin' today, Makoto. I know shoppin' is kinda' a girly thing, but it means a lot that you'd show up." Well, he heard the end of it a lot sooner than he thought he would.

"I wouldn't miss it." He patted her head in the way they'd both grown accustomed to. Despite the fact that it happened all the time, Labrys still blushed at the comforting gesture, as if it was wired into her brain to do so.

"R-Right," she said, turning away to hide her embarrassment. "Where do you wanna' go first?" She asked, looking around at all the different stores. "There's so many. . . And, as usual, you sure know a lot about this place, so you probably have some good ideas, right?"

"Depends on what you're looking for." Makoto pretty much knew this mall inside-out at this point. Anything she mentioned, if it was in the mall, he could find it. He'd been frequenting it for the past three years after all, so it would probably be a surprise to most if he couldn't find everything.

"Uh, I dunno'. I didn't really plan out what I was comin' her for, I just . . . thought it would be fun, to just . . . spend the day together, y'know?" Once again, she blushed. Makoto smiled. Her innocent intentions that she felt the need to keep a secret just accentuated how adorable she was at times like this.

"Alright, I know some places." He grabbed her hand, leading her towards the Antique Shop a few doors over.

Labrys didn't question it, allowing herself to be whisked away, barely containing her excitement.

"Whoa, Makoto, take a look at this!"

She had taken to the antique store far better than Makoto had anticipated she would. Ever since they walked in the door, Labrys just couldn't stop looking around. Even things that didn't seem particularly interesting to most stood out to her as if they were national treasures. "See, it's a big sword!" Right now, she was holding up an ancient katana that probably had some intense legend written about its construction. It did give off a somewhat ancient glow.

"Yeah, it's nice." Makoto walked up to it. "Little big though." Makoto was no stranger to swords, but he was more into the shorter variety that you could wield easily. This looked more like one of those "one slash, one kill" weapons that he couldn't see himself using. Not against Shadows, anyways.

And then, as soon as he had settled down to actually examine the sword, Labrys had run off to look at an antique record player. Makoto couldn't help but smile at her childlike behavior. It was like chaperoning a kid for their first trip to a candy store. She was enthusiastically asking the owner questions about the age and make of items, with a glow in her eyes as if she was holding a million dollars. It really was adorable. I'm glad I picked this place. "Hey, hey, Makoto!" she said, now holding up something. "Do you think Mitsuru-san would like this?" She was holding a traditional Japanese fan, adorned with fancy patterns that Makoto somewhat recognized from High School history lessons.

"I dunno', it doesn't seem quite her style." Mitsuru was flashy, but it was a different kind of flashy. Her presence was more dominant than showy.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. But still, it's really pretty!" She put it back on the rack with the other fans, once again running off to another area of the store. It was practically impossible to keep up, but the person he was following motivated him to keep the pace.

"Makoootooo!" she shouted, now pointing to some Yukata on the wall, with some pictures of a Japanese model surrounding it to show what it looked like while being worn. "Isn't that pretty?"

It was really nice. The light blue color with the intricate patterns was easy to look at, to say the least. "I guess so."

"Oh, I wonder if I could wear one. Maybe to the Summer Festival. That'd be fun, don't you think? We could go with everyone, and draw fortunes. . ." She continued summarizing her fantasies aloud.

Makoto looked to the price tag. Huh. Affordable. "Only one way to find out," he said, hailing the store attendant over.

Labrys's expression looked more excited than a chipmunk who'd had too many cups of coffee that morning. She looked absolutely ecstatic.

After the cashier had rung them up and Makoto had purchased the yukata, Labrys tackle-hugged him. It was a simple gift, and it didn't cost too much, but everything seemed to mean so much more to Labrys. "Thanks a bunch, Makoto!"

"Not a problem," he said, kissing her forehead. "That's what we came to do, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so. Hey, you wanna' go look for more stores?" Before even getting a definite response, Labrys had run out the front door like a preschooler, giggling happily. Makoto sighed, being left to carry the bag, but that sigh was quickly replaced by a bright smile as he followed after her, intent on making her first real shopping spree her best one.

And hopefully her last one. He didn't have that kind of bank account, after all.

"Oh, this pair is neat. Ooh, and this pair, and this pair!" Labrys exclaimed, pointing to pieces of jewelry in the case. Now in Be Blue V, an accessory and jewelry store, Labrys was looking at different pairs of earrings and necklaces. Her eyes were sparkling even brighter than the gemstones. "Oh, I just can't decide, they're all so nice!" She had never thought herself the type for such girly things, but it was just a way to have fun. It gave her stuff to talk about with Yukari, and it was kind of interesting to see all the different makes and models of these things. They sort of reminded her of really fancy parts.

To avoid breaking his bank account or his girlfriend's heart, Makoto had set her a spending limit per store. Whether he wanted to or not, he did still need to eat for the next couple of months. She'd already purchased the Yukata from the antique store and some records from the Record Shop next door, and now she'd found her way in here. Jewelry. . . Expensive. Seeing the amount of zeroes on the price tag practically made Makoto cringe. How do girls spend so much money on this stuff? He remembered how often Yukari would stop by here before they went to Tartarus, to purchase new necklaces and pendants. Maybe it was a good luck charm? Who knew.

"Hey, this is kinda' nice," said Makoto, trying to direct Labrys away from the diamond earrings she was currently examining to the more modest sections of the store. The object in question was a plain gold bracelet. Makoto tried to ignore the karats and the price tag, simply satisfied by the fact that there were only 3 zeroes rather than 5.

"Oh, yeah, it is. It's pretty simple, but it has some kind of sophisticated look to it, don't you think?" she said, using that kind of fashion talk that only she and Yukari would understand.

". . . Right."

And so, that was the selection Labrys made as they left Be Blue V. Thank goodness for the Sunday discount, thought Makoto, as he only had to fork over a small portion of his wallet to pay for the gift.

"So what's next?" asked Labrys, as Makoto tried to think of another good store they could go to.

He thought for a bit. "There are some other clothing stores, or we could go to the arcade. . ."

"Oh, that sounds like fun!" she said, her eyes lighting up at the thought of the arcade. "Maybe I can beat you at some stuff!" While she realized that the prospect of that happening was relatively low, it didn't stop her from getting revved up for some "friendly" competition.

"Alright, then." Makoto chuckled, once again astounding by her enthusiasm. "I don't know what games they'll have today, but we might as well check it out." Before even waiting for directions, Labrys had already rushed off in the direction of the arcade, leaving Makoto to chase after her.

"Hah, I totally won this time!" said Labrys, holding up the small piece of paper that the fortune game had given them.

Makoto's was "Bad Luck", but Labrys had received a "Great Fortune" card. Naturally, it being the first game she'd won so far, she was pretty happy about winning.

Makoto laughed. "Yeah, you got me," he said, only finding amusement in her childish gloating. It was cute, rather than frustrating. "What game do you wanna' try next? There's a lot of them. . "

She looked around, before selecting one. "Oh, let's try the Punching Bag game!" she said, running over before waiting for Makoto's opinion on the matter. He sighed, smiling as he ran to catch up with her. "We've each got sixty seconds to hit the bag a bunch, and whoever hits it more wins, right?"

"Yeah." Makoto went first. It was more of an Akihiko or Junpei thing, as they did physical activity on a more regular basis, but Makoto didn't do poorly by any means. His combat experience was pretty vast, and if beating up a punching bag was anything like beating up a Shadow, Makoto would be an expert. The game gave him a "strong man" rating, which was 4th from the top, so he took it as a victory. He did have some second thoughts, afterwards. Maybe I do need to start following Akihiko's protein consumption diets. . . He didn't like the thought of "4th place" when it came to actual combat. Still, he was on a date, so he looked at it through rose colored glasses.

Labrys applauded him as he stepped back. "Good job. Now, it's my turn!" She walked in, getting ready to wail on the punching bag.

Perhaps this was a bad idea, in hindsight.

Labrys was a deadly Anti-Shadow Suppression Unit, after all. And, she had detachable hands. As she went to swing her first punch at the punching bag, the chain in her arm let lose and her arm flung forwards before Labrys could stop herself, her natural instinct taking over as Makoto's eyebrows raised in surprise.

The 'thump' released from the punching bag as it hit the floor, broken from its stand, was the only sound either Makoto or Labrys heard for a second.

She quickly reeled in her hand, blushing nervously. "I, uh. . . I think, uh. . . th-that was a bit out of hand. . ."

Makoto and Labrys had a brief moment of silence between them, before laughing. The situation was just too obscene to not laugh at, so Makoto just did what felt natural. "C'mon, we better get out of here, Makoto!" she said, trying to avoid being discovered. They quickly left the arcade, laughing and snickering all the way. "Oh man, that was pretty crazy, huh?" she said, looking around to make sure no one from the arcade had followed them out. "I didn't think it was gonna' break!" She giggled wildly. "But that means I win, right?"

"Yeah. Remind me never to get into a fistfight with you," said Makoto, laughing. But he was admiring his girlfriend at the same time; despite how pretty and graceful she was, she was pretty powerful too. He almost forgot she had that side of her, but it was just one of the many things that was remarkable about her.

"Well then, you better listen pretty good, right?" She giggled, once again finding joy in teasing her significant other. "That was a lot of fun. But, uh, let's just stick for the shopping for a bit, right? Don't wanna' break anything else."

"Hey, it wasn't my fault," he said, poking her cheek in a teasing fashion. She giggled yet again, smiling warmly.

"Anywhere else you think we could go, Makoto? I'm not done yet, we haven't hit all the stores!" She tugged on his arm, pulling him forward as he laughed, her enthusiasm resurfacing.

"Hmm. . ." His attention was drawn to the center fountain. "Oh, I know. Ever made a fountain wish?"

She raised an eyebrow as they walked towards the fountain in the center of the mall. "Uh. . . What'dya mean?"

"Here, you do it like this," said Makoto, pulling a coin out of his wallet. He clasped his hands together, briefly reciting a wish in his head before tossing the coin into the fountain. He couldn't think of anything to wish for on the spot, so he just winged it. "You do that, and you make a wish."

Labrys clapped, eyes glittering as the coin plopped into the water. "What'd you wish for?"

"Well, you're not allowed to tell anyone or it might not come true."

"Oh," she said, looking puzzled. "So, you make a wish and offer your coin t'the fountain to make it come true?"

"Well, I don't know if it'll come true, but it's worth a shot." He pulled another coin out of his wallet, handing it to her. "Try it."

"Oh, alright." She looked down at the coin, before repeating his gesture, whispering a breathy wish under her breath. With slight reluctance, she threw her coin into the fountain, watching it plop into the water. I wish. . . That Makoto and I can be together forever, she thought, red rising to her cheeks.

"So, what'd you wish for?" asked Makoto, smiling slyly as if he couldn't guess what the subject material of the wish was based on the rosy hue of her face.

She held a finger over his lips. "It's a secret!" she said, skipping off into another direction. "C'mon, we've got more to do!" she said, laughing as he scrambled to keep up with all the bags. It feels like they're increasing by the second. . .

"You having a good time?" asked Makoto, with yet another bag to carry as they left a clothing store.

She giggled. "The best! Thanks so much for comin' with me, Makoto. This place is a lot of fun."

"Yeah, this is where I would hang out in high school." Makoto looked around, reminiscing for a bit before Labrys laughed uncharacteristically. "What?" he asked, a look of concern spreading across his face.

"Well, it's just, everyone says you were kinda' a delinquent back in High School," she said, suppressing her laughter. "Like, you'd walk around with your hands in your pockets everywhere, and you'd hang out with some weird folks."

It was true that Makoto had some weird friends in High School, like the Gourmet King, or the television marketer Tanaka, or even the old man from Escapade that he would occasionally talk to at night. But he didn't think delinquent was the word he'd use. "I guess so," he said, scratching the back of his head. He decided to have some words with the rest of S.E.E.S. based on how much of a "delinquent" he was at work tomorrow.

She laughed. "Maybe one day I'll have friends just like the ones you did, yeah?"

"I'd say you already do. The Shadow Operatives are a colorful bunch."

She laughed once again. "Yeah, we've got a couple oddballs, don't we?" she laughed. "I guess I'm even kinda' an oddball," she said, looking down at the ground as some bad memories started to resurface.

Makoto decided to distract her before she wound up on a negative train of thought. He kissed her for a brief few seconds, setting his bags on the ground so he could place his hands on her shoulders. "You're not an oddball. You're wonderful."

She blushed, as she always did when he comforted her on these kind of problems. He didn't really have to anymore; he was one of the main reasons she could cope so well with her problems, but it always made her feel warm and fuzzy when he tried. He usually succeeded, anyways. It was like he had planned beforehand exactly what to say if one of these situations came out. "Th-Thanks," she stuttered out, now with a wide smile on her reddish face. "So, uh, what d'ya wanna' do next?"

"I'm happy with whatever you want to do." He collected his bags again, putting as much sentiment as he could into that sentence, because it was true. Normally, when he shopped, it was a bore or a drag, but she added some color to it all with her bright outlook. "I know a couple more places we could try."

". . . Okay!" she said, regaining her earlier enthusiasm, once again bubbling around the edges. She started to run off, but she spun around again. "And, Makoto?" she said, a light blush powdering her cheeks. "Thanks again. You really are the best guy in the whole world."

"Only because I'm dating the best girl. I love you."

Turning away to hide the brighter blush forming on her cheeks, Labrys ran off into the mall again, leading Makoto to play catch-up for the umpteenth time that day. But honestly, if it was her he was chasing, he didn't care, as long as he caught up with her eventually.

That, however, was the hard part.

A/N: Yay, done! These things get more and more complicated as we go, woo! That was a fun one to right, though. Was it a fun one to read?

Audience: "You suck."

I wonder if I'm ever going to get tired of typing that? Probably not! Anyways, lemme know if you liked it. Favorite and review if it's your favorite! Follow if it's your love interest in the hallway and you want to sneak some photos of them in without them noticing (that's actually kind of creepy don't do that but do follow).

Or if you just wanna' read more!