Please note: A few edits have been made to Chapters 1 and 2. The most notable change is the Q&A within the author's notes of Chapter 1 being updated with three additional questions and slight edits. It was also previously stated that the rest of the characters would be introduced in this chapter. However, I decided to change it so that the protagonists could explore the Velvet Manor a little bit more and interact with Theodore. This has been compensated with a small section dedicated to each cast throughout the chapter.

Chapter 3 – "New World"

?

…Red fog was all they could see of their surroundings, and what used to be the roof of the school had been warped in ways that none of them could describe. No one knew was happening, and they were all in fear as it was quite bizarre for the environment to change that much in the span of seconds; even for the likes of them. It was only just moments ago that the group ran onto the roof of the school to reunite with the one person who changed all of their lives. He was a dorm mate, a companion, a rival, a friend, a lover, a leader… who passed away peacefully in the arms of the one who held him the dearest. No one knew what to say when it happened and the joy that had been present beforehand was soon replaced with sorrow and grief. They weren't able to wake him up no matter how hard they tried. It wasn't long until everyone had tears in their eyes and couldn't bear to make the conclusion that he was gone forever. However, the world around them soon changed and became distorted as if it was… the Dark Hour… but it couldn't be, right? It surely wasn't a coincidence that this strange event was to occur only moments after his death. Seven of them, and a dog, stood in silence and shock at what had just happened. Only questions filled their minds as they tried to make sense of the situation whilst the thick fog surrounded them. The Persona-users only caught a glimpse of this ruined world before a bright light suddenly enveloped the area…

All that remains is ruin... and a thick red fog which devours all.

Long Hallway / Velvet Manor

Morning

A long hallway stretched out in either direction from where Theodore and the Fools exited the room in which Igor resided. The attendant stood waiting patiently for the trinity to the right of the doorway, and beckoned them over. They did as he commanded and proceeded to follow the strange man in blue. The hallway itself wasn't too wide, but had large glass windows in which plenty of sunlight shone through. It appeared to be sometime in the morning due to how the sun was rising from the horizon. However, the sunlight was evidently to be blue. This was most likely due to either the glass panes themselves, or the Velvet Room's mysterious properties. Theodore, like a tour guide, began to detail the 'Velvet Manor' that the group was exploring. He turned around to face the trio.

"Ah, I shall provide a commentary on each of the rooms and facilities we pass by. If you don't mind of course," said Theodore to the Fools.

Yu nodded signifying that he was fine with it whilst Ren gave a thumbs up. Makoto on the other hand was listening to his music and didn't seem to care. He was instead looking out the window to survey the surrounding area. However, he did turn the volume of his music down so that he could listen to the tour as well.

"Splendid! Let us proceed in that case," expressed Theodore. The Fools followed suit without a word. Theodore had a hand to his chin while he walked and began to speak. "Where do I begin… oh yes! The room we just left is my Master's chamber, and is only accessible to those who possess the power of the Wild Card. You could think of it as the Velvet Room within the Velvet Room. While you three were allowed entry this once, please refrain from entering in the future unless you're summoned… or it's an emergency."

The three Fools looked at each other in worry at hearing this news. They weren't allowed in the Velvet Room?

"Why's that?" questioned Ren. Theodore continued to walk without looking back and answered his question.

"Oh…? It's for his privacy. That's all. I highly doubt you would want him entering your rooms unannounced while you're sleeping."

Ren was satisfied with his answer, but only more questions entered his mind regarding the old man. For example, would Igor leave his chamber? Does he even sleep himself? There weren't any beds in that room, and only that grand chair. Yu noticed that Ren was in deep thought, and patted his companion on the back as to tell him to not worry about it for now.

"Also, before I forget… if we were to retreat backwards and head in the other direction we would have eventually reached the stairs to the observatory. I apologise for not taking you there due to time constraints. However, I do recommend having a look at the facility during the night. It is quite a spectacle to witness," explained Theodore. Makoto appeared interested. It would be a great place to take her…

It felt like hours passed as the quartet continued to travel along the long corridor, but in reality it had only been a few minutes. Ren even swore that he saw the exact same portrait of Igor on the wall at least five times. The hallway itself was narrow, but did have just enough room for the occasional bookshelf, table or seat to rest. It seemed that a majority of the furniture was made out of wood, but stained blue of course. Acting as if it was his duty, Theodore would periodically deviate from the straight path to adjust a painting or vase before continuing on. Ren found it oddly amusing.

The only thing of note the group passed by whilst following the attendant was a strange door with what looked like a man holding a carry bag engraved over the entirety of it. It was an impressive piece of art with a mysterious aura to it, but the lack of a door handle meant that no could enter. Furthermore, any attempt to ask questions about it led to silence or a slight cough from Theodore.

After what felt like a tape being replayed numerous times, the group soon reached what looked like stairs at the end of the hallway and stopped in their tracks. Theodore was debating where they should go.

"Hmm… shall we head up or down?" Theodore muttered to himself. The mansion was quite large after all, and he had been entrusted the task of showing the three guests a majority of the grounds.

"It's up to you," replied Yu upon hearing the Velvet Room attendant unaware that he wasn't meant to answer.

"Oh—ahhh, let's begin by viewing the Command Room. This way!" concluded Theodore who began to ascend the staircase. The existence of this sort of room caused the Fools to ponder why it was needed, but they followed suit regardless…

?

…What is with all of this red fog!? Did we fail to truly solve the case!? Is this the TV World!? That is all that ran through the minds of the seven figures standing on the train platform when the world around them suddenly became distorted in ways that no one could describe. Why did this have to happen now of all times? They had just said farewell to the guy who was their senpai, sensei, partner, friend, lover… and leader. The boy walked onto the platform and stepped on the train so casually, but they could tell the passenger didn't want to leave the town he had called home for the past year. It's not like he was going to be gone forever and they would never see him again. He promised to return during the holidays after all. However, they still felt like without him there would be a huge hole in their lives. All of them felt sorrow at seeing the train leave the station and disappear into the distance. Whilst some demonstrated this physically with tears, others tried to keep it contained. There was no point in hiding the pain now that none of them could see more than a metre away from themselves due to the thick red fog. It was apparent that none of them knew what was going on, and they were all afraid. However, this fear only lasted a brief period of time as each of them became covered in a bright light…

Stairs / Velvet Manor

Morning

"There's a Command Room!? What is it for?" asked Ren wanting to know whether it should be a cause of alarm or reassurance. Makoto on the other hand was reminded of the Command Room in the Iwatodai Dorm. He chuckled at the thought of watching the replays on the monitor when no one else was around. Those were much simpler times, but it did alarm him that the entire building had been bugged with hidden cameras. Luckily Aigis and Koromaru discovered them… Suddenly, Makoto's train of thought was interrupted by Theodore as they continued to climb the stairs to reach the top floor.

"Why wouldn't we require a Command Room? It is a place where we can monitor the town and surrounding area for signs of danger, and keep track of our guests. You will find the room to be quite useful." Theodore concluded his explanation upon reaching the door to the place in question. This 'town' was mentioned yet again, and each of them knew that they will have to ask about it in the near future, or find out what it is fir themselves. However, they had to set priorities, and finding out what this Command Room was all about was on the top of their lists… for now. The attendant looked back at the three boys behind him with a cheesy smile on his face, and turned the doorknob as if going on-stage. "Welcome to the Command Room!" exclaimed Theodore to the Fools. Makoto sighed at this unnecessary extravagance.

The Command Room was exactly what they thought it would be. A large screen, almost the size of the wall itself, was found taking prominence to their left with computer consoles in front of it. There were also numerous office desks found in the middle of the room; each with their own computer and monitor. Finally, bookshelves lined the wall to their right. This reminded the three of what you would find at a place like NASA. However, whilst one side of the room was all business, a break area of sorts was found directly opposite of the group, and past all of the equipment. There were lounges, bean bags, a coffee table, television and even a small kitchen visible from where they were standing. The fact that everything was also different shares of blue couldn't be ignored either, but wasn't a surprise after navigating the blue hallway for so long.

Theodore appeared to have stars in his eyes upon entering the room for good reason. Yu was shocked at first and tried to comprehend what he was seeing whilst Ren was eager to make use of it. Even Makoto was impressed by the sheer size and utility of the Command Room, and it again reminded him of the dorm… but way better of course.

"Wow, this is pretty cool," said Yu to the others. Ren smirked in response and Theodore nodded in agreement with pride.

The group had entered the room at this point and explored what was inside while Theo remained near the entrance. Ren made his way to the bookshelves and began to browse it. However, he wasn't wearing his glasses and somewhat struggled to read the smaller words. It's not like Ren couldn't see without his glasses; he never wore them when in his Phantom Thief attire, and opted to go without them when walking the streets of Tokyo for the last time before returning home. Being unable to read at that moment did annoy the Phantom Thief though, but his problem was soon resolved after feeling a bulge in his pocket. Upon reaching in to see what it was, he felt his glasses and was relieved to find that they were on him the entire time.

"But didn't I leave them in my bag…?" whispered Ren in surprise hoping that no one else noticed his confusion. He placed the spectacles on his face and began to read the contents of the bookshelf. Yu was facing Ren's direction when this happened and so learned that his fellow Wild Card wore glasses.

"Huh, I didn't take him for someone who wore glasses… not that my friends and I can talk," Yu whispered to himself. Ren had already scanned through a few books at quite a fast rate. He only wanted to find out what they were about, and if their contents were to be useful.

"Hmm… these books appear to contain information on many different Personas and Shadows. This is quite an interesting find," said Ren out loud to make sure the others heard him. Over the past year, the Phantom Thief has read more than a few novels in order to improve his social 'stats' and increase his effectiveness as a thief. He had found it to be a great way to pass the time when not exploring Palaces or making connections, and so has developed an interest and hobby in reading.

"Ah yes, they are interesting reads if you have the time and aptitude. My sisters Margaret and Lavenza spend a lot of their spare time reading," replied Theodore from near the entrance to the Phantom Thief. "Those are not even all of the books we possess in the manor. There's a library downstairs with every title imaginable. It is quite expansive." Ren was speechless at learning this and made a mental note to evaluate the credibility of that statement in the future.

"What does this mansion not have?" muttered Makoto to himself while checking out the console in front of the large screen, "this all too good to be true." The blue-haired boy had become a genius from all of those nights he spent studying, and playing a Quiz Game, when he and his friends didn't go to the tower known as Tartarus, and learnt a thing or two about computers from a certain friend of his, so… working the console wasn't too difficult for him at all.

He found the date and time to be displayed on the top right corner of the monitor. Huh..!?

7:01 AM

January 1, 20XX

Makoto read the date and was immediately surprised. He just assumed that time didn't pass within the Velvet Room since his visits, even if they seemed to go on for hours, only lasted a split second in the real world. The number of times his friends asked if he was okay due to him spacing out… Makoto could only form a smile at thinking about those innocent memories…

"Ah yes, whilst time wasn't always measured within the confines of the Velvet Room this recent shift has caused occurrences such as weather and the changing of the seasons. My sisters and I decided to begin keeping track of this 'time' when you three arrived. Thus, today is the first of January is it not?" explained a voice from behind Makoto. The Fool turned around to find Theodore behind him with a smile on his face. The blue-haired boy wondered how the heck he managed to get behind him so stealthily. He appeared to be waiting for an answer.

"I guess it is," answered Makoto with no other knowledge of how time worked within the Velvet Room. At least life in the Velvet Room wasn't going to be as static as he originally thought.

"Excellent," said Theodore. "If you wish to inquire further regarding the Velvet Room I would be happy to answer any questions to the best of my ability."

Makoto thought about the offer for the moment, but then decided to decline for now.

"I'm good for the time being thanks," replied Makoto. Theodore appeared to be disappointed at this response, but quickly returned to his formal posture.

"I shall wait at the entrance to the room if you change your mind, or if you and the others are ready to leave," concluded Theodore before marching off to return to his post.

"This guy makes Elizabeth seem completely normal," said Makoto under his breath after Theodore was out of listening range. He then let out a sigh before returning to make use of the consoles.

After a short while, Makoto inputted a command and various screens flashed upon the large monitor. They appeared to be showcasing footage of numerous locations of interest. Makoto immediately recognised a few of them such as Paulownia Mall, Naganaki Shrine and even the Iwatodai Dorm, but he wasn't familiar with a majority of the rest. He knew this was inside the Velvet Room as the same blue sunlight from earlier was evidently visible in the footage.

"This must be that town mentioned before," concluded Makoto in a low tone of voice. Numerous questions soon entered his mind regarding what he was seeing. Why does this town exist? Why are locations he is familiar with inside the Velvet Room? What are all of these others places? Wait… is that!?

Makoto could only stare at one of the screens in agony at what he was seeing. He was also holding onto the console tightly with his right hand.

"Tartarus...," muttered Makoto under his breath in anger.

?

…A van suddenly stalled on the coastal highway of which it had been travelling upon after a sudden change of scenery caused the occupants within to become alarmed. What used to be dazzling views of the ocean and surrounding landscape was now replaced with a thick red fog which made the area look desolate and deserted. It was so thick that no other vehicles were visible, and that there was no way to tell what exactly happened. The group inside the van noticed their leader was missing, and that the atmosphere felt familiar… He just disappeared without a trace. While it's true that the group worked together to fight against the injustices of society, there was no denying at this point that they were all friends. None of this would have been possible without him. He was a fellow thief, peer, friend, brother, lover and most importantly the leader. None of them knew if it would have been possible for them to all get together as a group again due to their lives moving on. This was something that all of them were sad about. They wanted to have one last adventure with him before he returned home. Thus, it was decided that they would 'kidnap' him and have some fun for possibly the last time. However, these plans were ruined by the world becoming distorted. No one inside the vehicle moved a muscle as there was no telling if anything was out there. After a moment of silence, a bright light soon filled the space within the van of which they resided…

Command Room / Velvet Manor

Morning

While Ren and Makoto were preoccupied, Yu had spent his time walking past all of the small monitors in the middle of the room to see if there was anything interesting. He discovered that none of them were turned on, and was quite bored at there not being much to do. It appeared that Ren had started to make his way towards Makoto at the computer consoles. They began to have a serious discussion whilst looking at the large monitor. After deciding that it was best he left the other two to their own devices, Yu then made his way to the other side of the room with the kitchen in order to see what it was all about. Upon closer inspection of the mini kitchen and the numerous lounges, there was nothing out of order.

The Fool felt like he needed a break to reflect on the day thus far and his current situation; so he took a seat on one of the couches to think to himself. He found himself lost in deep thought about the numerous revelations which he had heard earlier and what he made of the entire ordeal. The world ended? There are other Wild Cards from different periods of time? His friends are able to be inside the Velvet Room? What about everyone else he knew… Nanako!?

Yu hoped that his cousin, who was pretty much a younger sister to him, and his uncle were saved alongside his friends. He would need to consult the others once they arrive and discuss a plan of action about the entire end of the world scenario. He hoped the other two Wilds Cards were going to be cooperative and open to working together. Ren seemed serious and cunning whilst Makoto was more laid back and calculative. They truly were Wild Cards, he thought.

After some time had passed, Yu was suddenly snapped back into reality by a hand on his shoulder. The surprise caused him to be confused for a moment before reflexively jumping off the couch to face the perpetrator.

"Huh? You can't—"exclaimed Yu to whoever was behind him before realising it was only Theodore. Yu wondered how the heck the man was able to get behind the lounge without him noticing, but it didn't matter. Theodore meanwhile was shocked at the boy's reflexes and took a step back.

"Oh—apologies, did I happen to startle you?" asked Theo to the grey-haired Fool whose tense stance had already returned to normal.

"It is fine Theodore, just make sure to say something next time," reassured Yu.

"I will take note of that," replied Theodore before bringing to attention why he startled Yu in the first place. "I only came over to see if you were okay since you had been sitting over here for a period of time. Would you like to continue the tour? I could have asked one of the other two, but they appear to be preoccupied," concluded Theodore who found Yu to be the easiest to talk to out of the current guests.

"Sure, as soon as everyone else is ready to leave," replied Yu with a gentle smile on his face. Theodore nodded and was about to walk away before stopping himself to ask one last question.

"Ah yes. Would you like me to prepare you and the others some tea? I wish to seek redemption for my potential mishap earlier," inquired Theodore as if pleading for the Fool to say yes.

"That would be great, thank you," answered Yu. Theodore responded by clenching his fist in determination. He looked as if he had fire in his eyes.

"As you wish… please give me a few minutes," said Theodore happy to hear that he could be of further use. Yu wondered why the odd man wanted to serve him tea so much before something clicked in his head. A card flashes in Yu's mind which resembles that of the Emperor Arcana.

Whilst not being entirely socially adept, the Velvet attendant known as Theodore wishes to serve others…

You feel a faint bond forming between you and Theodore…

Thou art I… And I am thou…

Thou hast established a new bond…

It brings thee closer to the truth…

Thou shalt be blessed when unlocking the secrets of the Emperor Arcana…

Yu Narukami has established the Theodore Social Link of the Emperor Arcana!

Theodore will now prepare 'tea' when requested!

Yu was surprised to have acquired a new Social Link; especially since he had already reached the maximum bond with everyone he knew, and therefore had already become proficient in the Emperor Arcana. Wait… what if they had been reset!? Yu shook his head at that thought and cleared his mind. He's sure that all will be explained in due time.

The Velvet attendant had already made his way to the mini kitchen to the side of Yu and began to fulfil the order. After a few minutes of preparation, Theodore returned to the boy with a warm cup of tea which had a strange aroma to it; something which was both sweet and sour at the same time. It was certainly something that the Fool hadn't smelt before, and he was somewhat afraid to taste the drink.

"Oh—um, thank you Theodore," thanked Yu to the Velvet attendant who was eagerly waiting patiently for the boy's reaction.

"It is not a problem," replied Theo. He was still waiting in anticipation for the grey-haired boy to be satisfied with his work. "Well…?"

Yu gulped and lifted the cup to drink the unknown concoction which Theodore had prepared. Before doing so however, he attempted to delay the inevitable by striking a necessary conversation with the man in blue.

"So… I heard you and your sister mention a tow—"

Yu was suddenly cut-off mid-sentence as sirens began to ring loudly throughout the Command Room which had become dark. This caused the cup of tea he was holding to fall out his hand. However, the Fool managed to reflexively recover the cup before it smashed on the floor.

The Command Room itself had also suddenly switched from its many shades of blue to become red in colour. Whether this was due to the lighting being changed, or the strange properties of the Velvet Room, remains to be clear. Nevertheless, one thing was clear in the minds of all of those in the room. Something was not right.

Yu hastily rushed over to the consoles in front of the large monitor to join both Makoto and Ren who were already waiting for him. They had disappointed expressions on their faces, but not targeted towards to the Wild Card who was missing until now.

"What's going on!?" shouted Yu trying to have his voice be louder than the sirens. Makoto and Ren turned to face him and then pointed at the large monitor to reveal three highlighted screens; one of which displayed a familiar group of individuals fighting what looked like monsters. They weren't the only group present on the monitor, however. The two other screens also featured groups of teenagers currently engaged in combat. Yu was relieved to see that his friends were alive but was devastated to learn about the presence of Shadows in this world. He also noticed that they weren't looking too good either, and appeared to be losing. Makoto and Ren also realised this, and worried about the safety of their friends as well. At this point, the sirens stopped but the room remained red as if it was in high alert.

"I am very sorry about the loud sirens. We just had them installed," apologised Theodore who had been behind the trio whilst they were watching the screen. The way he somehow managed to get behind them was like he teleported… "It seems that there is a danger afoot. Whilst I am to defend the Velvet Room if it were to directly be attacked, which is incredibly unlikely to ever happen, anything outside of the manor's grounds are your responsibilities. I apologise for this burden to be placed upon you three."

After this statement the atmosphere within the room intensified. All three of the Wild Cards knew what they were going to have to do, and prepared themselves mentally for the challenges ahead.

It is evident that each of us are prepared to fight for both our friends and the world...

We feel a faint bond forming between ourselves...

Thou art I… And I am thou…

Thou hast established a new bond…

It brings thee closer to the truth…

Thou shalt be blessed when unlocking the secrets of the Fool Arcana…

Makoto Yuki, Yu Narukami and Ren Amamiya have established the Trinity Social Link of the Fool Arcana!

The protagonists are now able to leave the Velvet Manor and enter combat with their Personas!

Makoto Yuki has joined the party

Orpheus has been awakened!

Yu Narukami has joined the party

Izanagi has been awakened!

Ren Amamiya has joined the party

Arsene has been awakened!

NEXT CHAPTER

"Reunions"

Featuring

SEES - Investigation Team - Phantom Thieves

Guest Starring

Theodore - Elizabeth - Margaret - Lavenza

PARTY

Makoto Yuki (1) - Orpheus / Yu Narukami (1) - Izanagi / Ren Amamiya (1) - Arsene

SOCIAL LINKS

Fool

Trinity (Rank 1)

Emperor

Yu - Theodore (Rank 1)

Author's Notes

Okay, I was being a little ambitious by attempting to write this chapter within a week. Sorry for the wait, but I have had assignments, exams and other commitments (such as playing Persona 4 Arena Ultimax for 'research' purposes) these past few weeks which were of course higher on my priority list. This is the longest chapter yet so I hope you all enjoyed it.

I have to admit that Theodore is the character I'm having the most fun writing thus far. If you believe he is taking too much of the spotlight, don't worry. Theo will play less of a role in the next few chapters. However, just wait until he meets the rest of the characters.

Any reviews of this story which may require a response will be responded to within the author's notes from this chapter onwards. I will not include the username of the reviewer just in case they don't want it to be featured.

"Is Persona 4 Golden canon?"

Yes, the events of Persona 4: Golden are canon within this story.

"How about Persona 3 FES?"

Persona 3: FES is canon as well. I also added this and the previous question to the Q&A in the author's notes of Chapter 1 for future reference.

"This is getting rlly good!"

I'm glad that you enjoyed the first two chapters. I hope Chapter 3 also meets your expectations.

"When is chapter 3!?"

This is awkward... hahaha. I suppose it has been two weeks since you asked the question.

"Looks interesting. Will follow. A bit dissapointed Minako / FEMC won't be here though."

Thank you for following! I'm sorry that you are disappointed about the lack of the FeMC. However, you never know if there will be references made towards her throughout the story. For example, there will be a scene in the future where it is revealed that Theodore's favourite colour is actually pink. I wonder what the true favourite colours of the other Velvet attendants are...

Finally, I have to admit it is unbelievable that this story already has 1,060 views, 41 followers and 38 favourites after only two chapters. This is my first attempt at writing fanfiction after all so it's pretty awesome.

That is it from me for now. Please feel free to send feedback, and leave a review. I'm always open to constructive criticism.

See you next time!