Ao: And so we managed to write the continuation after few weeks battling against Aoki on what we are going to write.
Aoki: Hey~! I help! *glares Ao*
Ao: *unamused look* ...Oh really? All you did was lying around the floor staring blankly at this project.
Aoki: ! *blush* D-don't tell the readers that! Meanie!
[Persona 3 and their characters does not own by us but to their respective owner/s.]
"What is that thing?!" the screams continue vibrating throughout the whole school. Horrified groans and clamours lacing through their voices causing the four of us frozen by the door to the rooftop.
My eyes snaps down the hallway that was once fill with laughter and warmth is now echo with dark petrified voices cloaked with ominous air. Questions begin to fill up my mind, wondering what had caused it. Instinctively, my feet step down searching their way around the mysterious voices.
"Where do you think you're going?" the strict yet gentle voice brings me back from my reverie, at the same time noticing the grip of Akihiko's hand on my wrist. His grey eyes are filled with concern and confusion while frantically searching the answers to my reaction.
Silencing myself, I too was unable to reason my own action. I feel that something is calling me, beyond the ruckus and wails of the student body. Shaking these thoughts off, I shiver of what would have cause this idea.
"…I am just- curious?"
"Aiko, you should stay here where it is safe," Minato's voice breaks through. His confident tone overtakes his usual laid-back demeanour. Close or not, anyone would notice his change of character. It is almost like he has handled this before.
The blue-haired student cast a directive glance to his senior and his classmate, who only nod at this gesture. Akihiko and Junpei started down the stairs carefully, scanning the hallway filled with petrifying screams.
"He is going to be fine," Minato suddenly pats my right shoulder gently, attempting to chase the worried look in my onyx eyes. "He never lost in a fight before."
"Minato is right," the cheeriness of Ryoji's voice takes its turn to calm my frightened heart. "Sanada-san won't be a 'boxing champion' for nothing."
Initially, I was relief to have two of my precious friend beside me at this kind of time. If I were alone, who knows what would happen but now, I feel useless and weak to be protected like this.
"The hell…?" Junpei's confused murmurs reach our ears. The sceptical look of him causes me to unconsciously hold my breath, preparing for the worst case scenarios. Is there a homicide happening in our very own school? A murderer?
"I thought we can only see these things during the dark hour?" the question propels to the older student. Akihiko could only shake his head at Junpei.
"Things…?" I accidentally voice out what I've heard. "And what do you mean by the dark hour?"
No one answer the question I posed. Minato keep silent and Ryoji looks abnormally casual with all of this happening around us. What is going on here? I flinches with every agonizing sound reverberates along the soft breeze.
"Damn it."
In a blink of eye, Akihiko sprints towards the hallway with Junpei tailing behind him. I step forward but an arm obstructs my path to the staircase. Casting my gaze to the owner of the arm, feeling irk by the second.
Minato confident gaze deteriorates all of my feeling. There are trusts in those cobalt eyes. A trust that surfaces from unbreakable bonds between him and his colleagues leads me to step back and honour it. Glancing worried to the lower floor; I pray no harm would meet their path.
I really hope they are okay.
Well-hidden from the range of the staircase, the two students whom dashed to the rescue are now in risk of being defeated by some unthinkable creatures. Darkness dwells within their beings, hostility possesses their heart and their eyes are filled with blood-thirsty hunger.
Confronting these 'shadows' are the calm and reserved silver-haired, while backing him up is the navy baseball-capped person, moving into their offensive stances.
"Senpai, how are we going to beat these guys without using our…." Junpei chokes at his words, worried about the frightened audience around him. Although most of them take shelter in their fragile haven, some are still lingering around the hallway scurrying away while few looked soulless and unresponsive to any stimuli. He lowers his voice, whispering 'persona' to his comrade.
Slightly smirking at the question, which for him poses less significance, "Well, we will just have to use them". The attentive grey eyes gauging the weakness and strength of the ebony-cloaked horse-riding knight, hovering above the floor with a lance in it's hand preparing to strike.
"Oh… Right," the younger male looks straight back to the shadow infront of them. "Wait! Wha-"
"Caesar!"
The cobalt-eyed young man flickers down to the shadowy hallway, gathering his thought and senses from his environment. Through his passive and stoic look, I could see concern deep in his irises. My heart clenches tightly, a cold wave of guilt come rushing down drowning me within its sea.
"Minato-kun," I slowly started. "If you are worried so much, you can check up on them. I will be fine here. Ryo-chan is here too."
Holding his words to himself, the gear inside his head began to rotate weighing between the two options. Seconds passes and then he turn to look at me straight in the eye.
"I trust them."
The sides of his lips curve up slightly. Those three words and those calm cobalt eyes are enough to shove all of my retorts back down to the pit of my stomach.
Trust. It must be nice to trust someone with all of your heart.
"Aiko-chan?"
Unknowingly, I was looking down to the pavement below. Looking up back to Ryoji beside me, I gave him a little smile of assurance. The 'I-am-okay' smile which I have been always put on to keep the people around me at ease. It is not that I don't like to share my feelings. I just don't want them to feel burden knowing of how I feel. These are my burden and I am the one who is supposed to be shouldering them.
Not them. They are mine alone.
A sudden blur catches our attention, flying at a high speed across the hallway in our view. The rest was hidden by the wall protruding outward to the stairs. However, there was no sound of impact colliding with the glass or the bricked-wall. Only the melody of pain and groans reverberating across the wind could be heard. Cautiously, Minato raises his arm infront of us while his eyes searching for the mysterious flying being.
"Damn", wait this voice is… "If it wasn't for him I would have crack a bone or something." The voice chuckles a bit and his groan could be heard again. This time we saw the older senior comes to our line of sight, looking tired and concern at the same time.
"You okay, Junpei?" His tone is urgent and alarm but Akihiko is still in his wary boxing stance, defending from whatever is ahead of them. Anxiety floods throughout my system and fear began to crawl up to my stomach while curiosity surges within me.
Another groan and then the said junior are now in our view. He looked exhausted as the man besides him. Don't tell me they have been fighting someone- or something, like Junpei said before.
"Akihiko-senpai, how is it?" Minato's voice calls out to them, calm but assertive. It is a rare scene for me because usually Minato is a very laid-back person. He is the one who likes to relax while listening to his rap music and looks drowsy at times.
But now, he seems like a leader.
"Its tough", Akihiko scoffs lightly. "But not tough enough. It must be one of the guardians."
Guardians? What does he mean? Parents were the cause of this chaos? No, that can't be it. There is no way it could be like that. I shake that preposterous thought out of my head and continue to listen to the rest of their conversation.
"Alright, I'll help." The blue-haired student takes a step down and turns to look at me before leaving his gaze to the male at the top of the stairs. "Whatever happens, don't let her go down until I say so."
My eyes widen a bit before gathering the courage to speak up. "What?! No! You can't do tha—" Then, there was a light jerk on my right hand, forcing me to turn to face him. Ryoji's eyes are serious, yet a rare expression from another friend. What is going on here? My head is going haywire and muddle and questions began to pop out more and more.
Nevertheless, Ryoji's critical mien softens to a light smile while patting my head ever so gently as if I was a delicate thing. That causes me to clamp up my lips again, word dying out from my throat and my body starts to calm down from anxiety.
"Okay, but be careful." His reply was for Minato. "Aiko-chan would be worried if any of you are hurt." His eyes search mine, that kind azure orbs which I am familiar with ever since we were little. "Isn't that right, Aiko-chan~?"
I was only able to nod and turn away to see Minato few steps below. While the said man return the nod back to me adding his scarce smile fleetingly, his way to assure me that it would end well.
"Yo Minato!" The urgency of Junpei's voice rises up from the air. "A little help here!" It looks like he can't handle it much longer. With a final meaningful glance to Ryoji, he hops downstairs to the war zone down below.
Looking through the hallway briefly, Minato commands to the other two. "Let's bring this away from here". There is no trace of fear in his tone, only confidence and determination. I can't help to be envy at him for being so decisive. Unlike me.
"Roger, Leader", Junpei is grinning brightly in spite of anything and Akihiko smirks at the being infront of them. From the staircase point of view, I can only see faint shadow movements on the floor. It was something that I can't describe myself. What is that they are fighting with?
Without hesitation, the trio dashes down the hallway while Junpei roaring his battle scream. For once, Junpei is doing something. That is unexpected of him.
"Aiko-chan, are you really okay?"
I glance briefly at Ryoji, his expression was fill with concern. Smiling yet again, I nod to him. I hate to see that kind of face on Ryoji when he should be in his cheery, bright self. At least I should make the people around me to be at ease rather than worrying something that they shouldn't have to.
"Yep, just a little bit worry for them", I lied. I am extremely worried for those three. What is the world are they fighting with? They didn't even explain to me what is going on here and I know they are fully familiar with this surrounding. Their movements, gestures and emotions speak for themselves.
"Are you sure?" His tone, it is always the same tone when I am hiding something. I know I am but it is not like they could do anything with these swells of emotion boiling up in my gut. That feeling like when you have to go on stage where everyone in the school is watching you, preparing to see something silly is going to happen. "Your eyes tell me that you are not, Aiko-chan".
A small breathless laugh escapes from my throat, "Is it obvious?" I must be bad at lying. Even though I am the president of the musical theatre club, I can't seem to fool these guys with my acting. I sigh inwardly.
The man beside me beams and leans a bit closer, "Of course- for me at least". His expression changes into hurt with his hand swiftly lands on the space above his heart. "You made me upset for thinking such thing about me".
Stifles of laughter began to escape from my mouth which in the end resulted in failure supressing them down. It is after a while since I had my full laugh and not the strained titter that has been so accustomed to me.
Ryoji chuckles faintly joining in my brief happiness, "Its better if you're always like this, Aiko-chan~". He then gently patting my head, "You looked cute this way~" and ended with a wink.
Faint tint of red slowly creeps up to my cheeks, feeling bashful all of the sudden. Its not that its unfamiliar, he always said that to me when we were little. But now that we are grown up and moreover it has been 8 years since we last met, things have never been the same. We were no longer the kids that run around playing around the sandy beaches looking for mild adventure. We've outgrown that time.
"S-shut up…" Stepping backward to wall avoiding his tender touch somehow made me a little disappointed. I hate myself for enjoying being pat on the head whenever it occurs. One; it makes me look like I am a kid and two; I simply don't like to be call a kid.
Seriously, I am not a child.
The floor beneath our feet began to rumble as if the earth is swallowing the building. My body was toss towards the nearby wall as the shattering quake shaking violently. I groan as my senses began to detect the pain from the impact and I can't help but sliding down towards the rumbling floor trying to stabilise myself.
"Aiko-chan!"
Ryoji is stumbling his way through shockwaves that mercilessly pounding his balance, unable to walk straight to where I am even though we are not that far apart. He extends his hand towards me with his eyes filled with…
Fear?
Is he—scared? I am sure my eyes widen with disbelief. There is only one question lingers in my mind as I attempt to meet his grasp halfway.
What is going to happen to us?
The last thing I saw was the floor splitting between us and our hold was never linked together. The floor below me starts to jolt up, rumbling like the dragon carrying away it's prey.
Only that, the prey is me.