Takaya watched as Jin leaned back in his desk chair, the other young man's face hidden behind his hands as he let out a pained groan. His glasses had been set aside as well, which was the bigger indication to Takaya that Jin was a special tier of upset. "Of all the places … of all the godsdamn forsaken places …" Jin muttered, now halfway out of the chair and clearly not interested in moving from his spot. "Eight years. EIGHT. FUCKING YEARS." he began, voice raising in pitch in clear frustration. "And they just. Show the FUCK up HERE?!"

"That seems to be the case." Takaya deadpanned, taking a sip of water. It was only years of being around Jin that prepared the thin man for the abrupt bang of Jin's fist against his computer desk; he still had a bit of a delay in catching the pencils that were launched into the air from the action. Gold eyes watched where they landed before flicking back to Jin. "At least, assuming there aren't multiple red-eyed girls running around Iwatodai."

Jin muttered something inaudible before sitting up properly, brows furrowed over dark blue eyes as he stared at the wall past Takaya. "If it was just the red eyes, I'd think it was a cosplayer first." He muttered, voice slower than Takaya was used to hearing from Jin. "But with Miki sayin she directed a brother sister duo to what seems to be the tower climbers' base of operations, and just all the bullshit goin on in the two months since then…"

"Were they supernatural magnets in the past?" Takaya arched an eyebrow.

"Not that I can remember. Kinda rich for me to say when I don't even remember their fuckin names!" Jin gestured as he spoke, arms moving in agitated jerks. "I mean, I remember they were always a bit off, but they were born and bred theatre kids. Bunraku theatre kids at that! So, y'know, a relatively normal tier of weirdness!"

Takaya's reply was cut off by the door to Jin's room opening. Both young men turned to look as Chidori poked her head in, worry actually creasing her brows. "Why are you assaulting your desk?" She asked Jin. "That was louder than your usual 'entitled yet inept customer' slam."

Jin didn't respond at first, opting to put his face in his hands again and groan. "... I think the people I'm looking for are in this damn city too."

Chidori's expression went from worried to shocked, and she looked at Takaya. He responded with a shrug. "I had a very random encounter with someone who matched the vague description he recalls, just with an eight year absence accounted for." At that, he hummed, gold eyes returning to Jin. "... is there any way we could be certain it's them?"

"... a white marionette." Jin said after a moment. "I just have fuzzy memories of that white marionette." moving his hands from his face, he let out a sigh. "How much of the fuzziness is from time, and how much of it is something I might've purposely rammed outta my head, I can't tell you."

Chidori frowned. "...The only one of us who can safely be active in the Dark Hour is Miki, and Helen only allows her to "see" in solid colors for a person's aura." She sighed in frustration. "And even then, only those who have something similar to Helen."

Takaya let out a grim chuckle at that. "So unless one of the three of us were to risk going out and about, it might take too long to know for sure if the two Jin is looking for are part of the tower climbers."

"Honestly, I wish I could remember more of what the fuck happened to explain it!" Jin sighed, shaking his head. "I'm amazed I remember anything about 'em to begin with, just from how long it's been. And I … don't remember what exactly separated us. Just that the Dark Hour was involved, and I lost track of them. Then, well …" Dark blue eyes flickered to look at both Chidori and Takaya, a frown deep on his face. "Then we ended up in that building, and I have no clue where they could have gone."

At that, Takaya's gold eyes narrowed. "That already gives implications, all of them terrible."

"At the least, we know they didn't get wrapped up in the … situation we all did." Slipping into the room proper, Chidori shifted Jin's glasses aside before sitting on the edge of his desk. "... Was the Kirijo group involved in the previous incident?" she asked, looking at Takaya. "The one you lost family to, I mean. Because if they've been active for that long …"

Takaya shook his head, thin face darkening. "No. Kirijo had separated from the Nanjo Conglomerate a few years before the Mikage-cho debacle occurred. From what I overheard in the years following that mess, the responsible party was SEBEC; as far as I'm aware, they were shut down due to sanctions at the turn of the millenia."

"What are the odds that a SEBEC employee was scooped up by Kirijo, though?" Jin asked, rubbing his forehead.

"That wholly depends on when Kirijo's less than scrupulous activities started." Takaya admitted. "... It is perhaps something that we should question Shinshoudo about; for as much as that woman knows about our predicament - and Personae as a whole - I wouldn't be surprised if she had a hand somewhere along the line."

"...if she did, it'd explain why she's willing to help us." Chidori muttered. "Even if she wasn't one of the ones there …"

"Honestly, I'd be surprised if any of the fucks who had a hand in our situation were still alive." Jin shook his head. "... We all saw what Miki did to that building. As good a person as she is deep down, I wouldn't be surprised if somebody died that day."

"Don't curse her with that; she's already working herself to the bone trying to help us." Chidori's frown deepened.

"Trust me, that is going to my grave and my ghost's grave." Jin let out a sad hum as he spoke. "But just realistically speaking, somebody was probably crushed or electrocuted. That building lost, hard."

"... Come to think of it, I don't recall hearing of a cover up story regarding that building's destruction." Takaya mused to himself, frowning more. "I don't dare to investigate the area though."

"A wise survival instinct; it's absolutely the most haunted part of Iwatodai short of Port Island proper." Chidori shook her head. "But to focus back on the situation, what should we do? We don't know who all is working for the tower climbers, or who's sponsoring them."

"Y'think they have a sponsor?" Jin hummed. "Well, there are a lotta questionable money revenues in this city…"

"The only ones that we know of who are aware of this hell are just Kirijo and Shinshoudo." Takaya sighed. "And since Shinshoudo is sheltering us, then it's … likely Kirijo."

Jin groaned, muttering a choice curse under his breath. "Only way we can prolly know for sure is to try and spy on them." He admitted.

"... another full moon is within two days." Takaya noted, gold eyes shifting to look at the shuttered window. "If my suspicion is correct, we might have a chance then."

Chidori hummed. "... If the two I ran into at the station cross my path again, I can try interacting." She offered after a long moment. "It might take me longer than Dark Hour observation, but it will be safer."

"Why not both?" Jin nodded, reaching for his glasses again. "Not like Takaya an' I can lurk on school grounds."

Chidori arched an eyebrow at him. "... Are you suggesting I smuggle myself into the cursed school directly?"

"...Not intentionally?" Jin shrugged. "But if that's where the damn tower comes from-"

"No, no, that's actually genius."

Takaya spluttered, the water he had been taking a drink of burning his nostrils. "W-what?!"

Chidori crossed her arms over her chest. "Think about for a moment, Takaya; their base of operations is a school dorm, let alone one down the street from Shinshoudo's place." She pointed out. "If it is Kirijo bullshit, then they're potentially using it as cover for the tower climbing operations."

"Yes, but that's walking directly back into the fire." Takaya countered, voice a low hiss. "Who knows if their intentions with this group are any better than what caused our suffering."

"I spotted their apparent scanner. She's absolute dogshit at her job and needs extra equipment to do half of what Helen does for Miki."

"Ey, don't go comparin a metal detector to a fuckin boat sonar." Jin cut in again. "Especially not when I know that YOU can't do any of the shit Miki pulls off, either." Chidori huffed at that, arms crossed over her chest.

Takaya shifted his gaze to Jin at that. "And what about the girl you and Miki encountered?" He asked. "The one neither of you noticed until she ran away from the blender."

Jin shrugged. "Dunno - even if she is a case like Chidori, there's no way to know if the tower climbers are aware of her. Or even if she was just a one off due to the mosh pit." He shook his head again, sighing. "Not even Shinshoudo had a definitive answer - she herself was aware of the Dark Hour and could enter it, but she didn't get Sopdet until after encountering us."

"So it's possible she'll have a delayed awakening, and that means the tower climbers could chance into her …" Chidori hummed.

Takaya's gold eyes shifted back to her. "... Miki said she would have another round of samples for us to try regarding our situation. When she stops by, we can ask her to check in on that area again." At that, he drew a breath. "As for your other idea, Chidori, let us see if we can observe the tower climbers a bit first. Shinshoudo would potentially know more about entering the school if it comes to it." Takaya frowned at that and looked at the ceiling. "... I would still prefer if there was someone who would go with you, but Jin and I are past graduation age."

"And sadly, I don't think they have accommodations for blind students." Jin groaned. "Otherwise you could probably strongarm Miki into joining you."

Chidori hummed at that. "... Weirdly enough, I think that would actually be a hard sell for her." Amber eyes softened in thought, and she eventually nodded. "Fine, I can agree to that. I'll still try and speak to the two I bumped into at the station if I see them again, just to try and gauge from the mundane side."

"That's fair." Takaya agreed, then let out a sigh that felt far too ancient for him. "... That is all we can do for now, but I don't like that this cursed city seems to draw coincidences to it like flies to a corpse." He muttered, bitterness coming back to his voice. "And without any context as to why fate picked here in particular."

"...As grim as it is, at least the Dark Hour doesn't seem to be centralised." Jin leaned back in his chair more, deep blue eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. "... I think I saw it when I was still in Osaka, at least, but … it's all blurry at this point. Eight years an' all that…"

"That and I don't think any of us have gone to sleep yet." Chidori pointed out, shaking her head. "Hopefully our idiot alchemist is in bed for once."

"That will take a miracle." Takaya snorted, but he nodded in acknowledgement. "We should get some rest, though." Gold eyes shifted back to Jin as Chidori hopped off the desk. "... That includes you, Jin."

"Yeah, yeah …" Jin muttered, clearly not listening to Takaya at the moment. Gold eyes narrowed, but Takaya merely opted to sigh again as he followed Chidori out of the room, shutting the door behind them.

Jin remained where he was for several moments, eventually letting the hand that held his glasses come up to rest across his forehead. "... What the fuck could call them back…?" He asked the air, not wanting to acknowledge the contemplative sound of binary in the depths of his brain. "... IS it them …? If so … how … have they not died yet?"

His other hand reached to the ceiling, the plain surface fading from view as a hazy memory superimposed itself. No moon, a green sky cut from clear view by burnt out street lights. Darkness and screaming, something pitch black with a yellow mask. Red eyes, unflinching despite the terror.

Then, pink light and a white marionette holding a polearm, the memory almost verging on being a dream. A voice on the fringe of memory, but between the light and writhing pitch, Jin couldn't see who was speaking. The white marionette was still just out of his reach, even if he reached as far as he could.

'... Is it them? Or am I just … chasing ghosts before losing my own … Do I want it to be them?'

Jin clenched his hand, and the hazy memory faded away into wisps of smoke. He was alone in that moment, apart from the ominous ticking of a clock only he could hear inside his head.

'... If it is them, I need to get them out of this city.'

'But … why?'

Shinjiro let out a groan as consciousness returned to him, a grimace on his face as he tried to prop himself into a sitting position on his mattress. His left side protested, but the pain had dulled enough he was able to sit up and rest against the headboard. "Motherfucker …" He muttered darkly, rubbing his side. "Well, gotta keep a note for the next time something survives the tag-in."

Castor shifted in a corner of Shinjiro's brain, a dull throb of pain radiating through his skull. It only made him grumble more as he stretched, starting slow. To his relief, his left side didn't protest nearly as much as it had directly after the fight with the Gatekeeper, but there were still aches there. 'Should take it easy at least for another day, honestly …'

He lowered his hand, frowning a bit as he found the medical scars on habit. 'I really don't want to end up in the hospital over this again. It was bad enough it happened once as is …' Shinjiro frowned at the thought, hand falling away from his side to land in his lap. 'I don't think Gramps would let me hear the end of it.'

Shinjiro's frown deepened, and he stared at his hands in his lap for a moment. Although it had never been said aloud, Shinjiro knew his grandfather was suspicious of hospitals ever since Miki's disappearance. Not that Shinjiro blamed the man - Miki's frequent hospital transfers after the fire had easily been stressful, and then she had simply disappeared when being sent to one that wanted to try and save at least some of her vision.

Neither hospital knowing what happened to her was probably the worst part. Shinjiro let out a heavy breath at that, eyes cutting to the direction he knew Akihiko's room was in. It was only due to them having grown up together since they were three, but Shinjiro knew how badly Miki's disappearance affected Akihiko.

'... I wonder if he'd behave any differently if I was the one missing and he still had Bunny around …'

A knock on his door snapped Shinjiro out of his thoughts, and he turned to look at it. "... Door's open." He called out, even as he reached for the pocket watch on his bedside table.

There was a click, and a second later, Ken's head poked into the room. Worry was plain in his eyes, looking at Shinjiro as the teenager checked the time. "Mitsuru-senpai said to let you sleep in today, since it's Sunday." he said, slipping into the room and shutting the door behind him. "Do you need me to get you anything? Ice? A heating pad?"

"Not right now, no." Shinjiro shook his head, lifting his gaze from the watch to look at Ken. "I might get up and make myself food - I can still cook without half of my body protesting." Ken seemed to relax at that, even as the boy walked over to sit on the edge of Shinjiro's bed. "... You ate breakfast, right?" Shinjiro asked, frowning lightly.

"Yeah; Minato-senpai made eggs and something he called French Toast." Ken nodded, smiling. "But … did you sleep well? You were barely awake when you got back."

"I don't remember hitting the mattress." Shinjiro shrugged, closing the pocket watch with a small snap. "But, well, getting slammed into the floor by a sword taller than I am would do that." He groaned, shaking his head. "My fault, though; that big move Aki and I do tends to just delete what we hit it with, so I didn't realize Castor wouldn't automatically get his spear back."

"The biggest downside to throwing weapons." Ken mock sighed, earning a snort of amusement from Shinjiro. It won a faint smile from the grade-schooler, but it faded back into worry before long. "... but … how did you get Argo to stop? Back then, it just … rampaged until the weird Shadow was dead."

Shinjiro opened his mouth to respond, only to pause at the name used. "...Argo?" He repeated, head tilted to one side in curiosity. "I didn't know that Castor's horse had a name."

"Well … technically, 'Argo' was the Argonauts' ship." Ken mumbled, looking away for a moment as he fidgeted with his hoodie strings for a moment. "But it didn't feel right saying Castor for this, since it seems to be just the horse going berserk and not Castor proper. … I- if it makes sense."

"It does," Shinjiro gave a reassuring smile. "Just wanted to make sure we were talking about the same thing." At that, he shifted on the bed more, arms crossing over his chest. "But as for what made it stop? Takeba ran over and managed to get some healing into me, at least enough for me to function instead of just blinding pain. I got up enough and Castor was able to grab the reins."

Ken nodded in understanding, no longer fidgeting. "So … Ikutsuki-san's working theory seems to be at least partially right." He stated.

"Yeah, seems so." Shinjiro agreed. "Iori put it as basically being one shot in a video game, which is at least a bit more specific." Moon grey eyes narrowed a bit as he looked up at the ceiling. "Or at least, it's a smaller field to work with than just 'I get hit as a whole'; seems to be less 'overall damage' and more 'one really fucking hard hit'."

"...That's an understated way to look at it, I guess." Ken frowned after a moment, looking at the floor of Shinjiro's room instead. "But at least this time you were able to come back around easily, and it wasn't a complete repeat of …" Ken's voice tapered out, and Shinjiro's gaze returned to him. The teen softened, and one arm reached out hesitantly.

"...Hey, do you want to talk about it, Ken?" He asked, voice soft.

"N-no. No, it's okay." Ken shook his head rapidly, even as his voice wavered. "It's really okay! I just …" his hands grasped at the fabric of his pants, knuckles starting to turn white. "... I don't get why you want to be the one taking the hits for everyone else like this..."

Shinjiro felt a small pang of shock and guilt hit him, and his hand slowly lowered to the bed. "...Aki and Mitsuru can't take hits for shit, Ken." He said simply. "And I can't do any of the fancy magic shit they do beyond making sure everything else focuses on me so everyone else can hit the Shadows and not get smacked in retaliation." Shinjiro gave a weak shrug, even knowing Ken wasn't looking in his direction. "...So what else can I do, really?"

Ken didn't respond, his hands merely tightening as he fought against the burning in his eyes.

A year and a half, and yet it hurt more deeply than Ken could put into words. All he remembered was his mother yelling, waking him up from where he sat in the back of her car. Strange green and gold lighting everywhere, and then a minotaur monster fighting a teenager with a hammer, the teenager somehow shielding Ken's mother.

Then there was a bad lunge, and the teenager lost his balance. The minotaur hasn't hesitated, and Ken had barely reacted in time before the sound of his mother's panicked yelling preceded the teenager - preceded Shinjiro - being thrown into the car at what should have been fatal speed.

And then, that horrific screech of steel on shattering glass preceding the inferno of maroon and black fire.

Heavy silence choked the room, neither Shinjiro or Ken sure about how to break it. Both of them jumped when they heard a knock on Shinjiro's door, and the teenager lifted his head. "... Yeah?" He called out, standing up and reaching for a shirt in the simple wardrobe.

"Are you decent?" Kotone's voice came from the other side of the door, making Shinjiro blink halfway through pulling on his shirt. He glanced at Ken, frowning momentarily when he saw the grade schooler quickly wipe at his eyes with a sleeve.

"Gimme a second to put a shirt on, Firecracker." He responded after a moment, then paused. "And if you're going to be a little shit who counts out a literal second, I'm hiding your siracha."

"I would never!" Kotone's protest managed to wring a watery giggle out of Ken, to Shinjiro's relief. "I only do that to Minato, because if I don't he'll try to sleep until the next holiday."

"I salute your honesty." Shinjiro deadpanned, finally getting the shirt on and walking over to open his door. Kotone stood in the hallway, a wry grin on her face and what looked like coupons for a restaurant in hand. Moon grey eyes met crimson, and Shinjiro simply arched an eyebrow. "... Can I help you?" He asked, which only made Kotone's grin grow.

"Just wanted to see if you were up and hungry, really." Kotone admitted, holding up the coupons more clearly. "A new seafood buffet opened up recently, and I wanted to judge the place before unleashing Minato on it."

"He is the pickiest person about seafood I've ever met." Shinjiro groaned. "I know you two are from Osaka, but that really doesn't explain it with him." Kotone just shrugged in response. "Did you two grow up in the sealine wards or some shit?"

"Nope! Naniwa-ku, actually; close to Den Den Town." Kotone laughed. "... I think the only thing that could explain it is he had very bad seafood once and got sick? So he's just being cautious."

Shinjiro groaned. "Ah. Food poisoning would do it, wouldn't it?" He agreed, then looked at Ken. "Does seafood sound good to you, Ken? It's getting close to lunchtime."

Ken took a moment to respond, wiping at his eyes again before nodding. "Yeah, that sounds good. It has been a while since breakfast." He forced a smile, but if it was for Shinjiro's sake or Ken's, Shinjiro couldn't tell. "If Kotone-senpai doesn't mind, at least-!"

"Nope, not a problem, Ken-kun!" Kotone responded, standing on her tiptoes to lean over Shinjiro's shoulder. She stared at him for a moment, and then proceeded to let out a laugh as she playfully batted Shinjiro's shoulder with a hand. "Besides, I figured Shishi here would bring you along regardless."

Any commentary that Shinjiro had prepared came to a screeching halt, and he instead gave Kotone a confused look. "... Shishi?" He repeated, making Kotone turn to him.

There wasn't a hint of shame in her face, and she gave Shinjiro a grin that was full of mischief. "What?" She asked, tone teasing. "Did you really think I'd let you get away with 'Firecracker' unchallenged?"

"That's not the point; why 'Shishi'?!"

"Why NOT Shishi? Why do you call me 'Firecracker' specifically?" Kotone countered. She was half leaning on Shinjiro's good side now, still grinning at him without a fear. Shinjiro spluttered for a moment before shaking his head, opening the door more to step back. Kotone mercifully didn't follow him, instead standing where she was and maintaining eye contact.

"You are Firecracker because for the love of shit, you have the energy of one!" Shinjiro huffed, doing his best to keep a straight face. The fact that Ken seemed to be snickering behind him didn't help, and it was only when he saw Kotone's grin grow in response that he figured out her goal. '... Heh, she's certainly a character.' He thought to himself, even as he huffed more. "What's your logic behind 'Shishi', then?"

"You've got the mane of one, duh!"

Kotone's blithe reply was enough to make Ken giggle more audibly, but it was Shinjiro's face of pure exasperation at it that really sent Ken into a burst of laughter. The gloom that was lingering in the corners of his mind was easier to push away, even if Ken knew it'd be back before long. "I - I mean, Kotone-senpai does have a point." He managed to say amidst laughter, making Shinjiro turn the exasperated look at him.

"Who's side are you on, Ken?!" Shinjiro mock protested with a groan, which only make Kotone cackle along with Ken's laugh. The competitive part of Shinjiro wanted to keep arguing, but his stomach decided to cut in with a grumble. "... Fine, I guess it's fair." He muttered after a moment, shaking his head.

Kotone just grinned more as she made the victory sign at Ken with the hand not holding the coupons. It earned her another laugh, and the mischief seemed to lessen in her expression a bit. "See, Shishi, was that so hard?" She said, still grinning up at Shinjiro.

Shinjiro just gave her a bemused look, but didn't retort.

It only proved to make Kotone laugh more, and she backed up a bit while looking between Ken and Shinjiro. "Well, I'll meet you two downstairs; gotta run and grab my wallet out of my room." Not giving either of them a chance to respond, she darted up the stairs.

"... And that's why she's Firecracker." Shinjiro sighed after a moment, and then turned to fully face Ken as the grade schooler hopped off of Shinjiro's bed. "... You feeling okay?" Shinjiro asked, waiting to move until Ken made eye contact with him.

Ken was quiet for a moment, but he gave a nod before grabbing Shinjiro's hand. "... Just promise me you'll be more careful, okay?" He asked, voice quiet. "I know Yukari-senpai can patch people up, but … What if she's not around to help?"

Shinjiro bit back a sigh before placing his other head on top of Ken's head. "... I'll be careful." He said, voice solemn. "Now that we've got a better idea as to why my issue happens to begin with, hopefully it'll be easier to prevent."

"I suppose you're right…" Ken relented, but didn't let go of Shinjiro's hand. Shinjiro didn't pull it away either, instead giving Ken's hair a quick ruffle before removing his other head. It wrung a noise of protest out of Ken, and he looked up at the teenager. "I just wish I could do more to help."

There was a moment of silence at that, and Shinjiro had to mentally bite back all the protests in his head. "Just make sure you get the sleep you need, alright?" He said instead, beginning to step out of the door. "I know you try to stay up with the rest of us, but you need sleep when we're not dungeon crawling." Ken pouted, knowing that Shinjiro was trying to deflect, but both the sound of Shinjiro's grumbling stomach and Kotone's descending footsteps made him shelve his rebuttal for later.

"Alright, I will." Ken said instead, doing his best to act like an annoyed kid as Kotone reached the second floor again. "But they need to put Featherman on at a different time slot, then! Sometimes the episodes get too exciting to wind down from, so I'm not tired in time." Kotone's snicker at the statement was enough to convince Ken that she had bought the act, and he offered her a nervous smile as she led the way down the stairs and out the door.

He didn't let go of Shinjiro's hand until they reached the buffet.

Evening crept in slowly, the various residents of the dorm spending the Sunday milling around and relaxing. Mitsuru had settled into the lounge to read for a bit, one carmine eye watching as the juniors sat around a game system of Junpei's to play a game together. She couldn't quite figure out the point of what they were playing, although Kotone's frequent bursts of cackles told Mitsuru that at least the other girl was enjoying it. Akihiko sat nearby, watching the game a bit more intently than Mitsuru as he snacked on a bag of popcorn.

Overall, it was a fairly mundane day, which only put Mitsuru more on edge as she glanced out the window. The nearly full moon seemed to stare back at her, silvery light oddly gentle despite the anticipation in Mitsuru's body as the time slowly drifted towards midnight. 'I wonder what it's like to enjoy the evening without knowing about the Dark Hour?' She thought bitterly to herself for a moment, tucking a bookmark into place when it was clear her focus wasn't on reading anymore.

She glanced at the rest of the people in the lounge as she stood up. The game had ended a while ago, and now only Minato and Junpei remained at the console. Minato had shifted from sitting on the floor with Junpei to almost gargoyle perching on a chair at some point, and Mitsuru just stared at him for a moment before shaking her head. "Arisato, Iori." Mitsuru spoke, relieved when both of the boys shifted to look at her.

"Yeah senpai?" Junpei asked, head tilted in curiosity. "...Wait, is it our turn to go on patrol?"

Mitsuru shook her head. "It was supposed to be Shinjiro with Arisato, but with his injury last night, I would appreciate it if you swapped with him."

"Yeah, I can do that." Junpei nodded, and then looked up at Minato in his chair. "Are we gonna buddy system, or should we split up?"

Minato took a moment to respond, his fingers tapping on the side of the controller. "... Things have been pretty rough out there this past week, so buddy system would probably be smarter." He said after a moment, tilting his head to look at Mitsuru. "Is there anywhere in particular you'd want us to look?"

"At the moment, no." Mitsuru shook her head. "I'll have my equipment set up, but I will touch base with the two of you throughout the night." She frowned at that, gaze shifting to look outside again. "... I'm still frustrated that this is the best of Penthesilea's scanning capabilities. Even if the situation with Yamagishi turns out for the best, it's been a discouraging experience."

Akihiko gave Mitsuru a sympathetic look from his seat, where he now flipped through a textbook. "Hey, you can't do everything alone, Mitsuru." He chuckled gently. "And at least we're finding this out now and not near the top of Tartarus."

"Those weird barriers are a blessing in disguise for that, honestly." Minato admitted, putting his controller aside as Junpei turned off the game. Standing, the teen shifted on his feet for a moment before looking at Mitsuru. "So we'll head out, and coordinate in about five minutes?"

"Correct." Mitsuru nodded.

"Can do, senpai." Junpei grinned as he stood up, and then looked at Minato. "Although, uh … would you mind not usin' your skateboard tonight?"

Minato nodded. "If we need to hustle, you'll resort to Air Hermes?"

"Yeah, Air Hermes."

Mitsuru just gave them both a flat look, and quickly bit the inside of her cheek to keep from chiding them about joking around. 'They do take this seriously,' she reminded herself firmly, giving both of the juniors a nod before heading upstairs. 'The humor is their way of keeping from being overwhelmed, not them blowing you off.'

It was a mantra that Mitsuru hated having to admit was necessary for her, and not for the first time made her feel the strange sense of isolation. '... Perhaps I should talk with Kotone at some point.' She thought to herself as she entered the control room. 'It seems she's been aware of the Dark Hour almost as long as I have, yet she seems less .. weighed by it.'

Such an apparently carefree attitude was truly the most puzzling thing Mitsuru could think of about Kotone, but she pushed it aside for the moment as she drew her scanning equipment towards her. The smothering stillness of the Dark Hour accompanied the movement, making Mitsuru frown more as she felt Penthesilea stir to wakefulness in her head.

Hands turned gears out of habit, the unnatural humming of the amplifier making the hair on the nape of Mitsuru's neck stand up. Even knowing what it was that powered the device - and her motorcycle - it still unnerved her to be around, even as she focused Penthesilea's energy to channel. There was still resistance, bristling at trying to force a metaphorical glacier through a bottleneck, but making it work was second habit to Mitsuru at this point in time.

Time still didn't make the sensation less unpleasant.

Bracing herself against the discomfort, Mitsuru focused on the device as she did what she could to spread her senses further. The ping of a telephone pole helped her navigate, and it didn't take long before she located Minato and Junpei as they moved. "Have you encountered any problems yet?" She asked, hitting the comms button on the side of the amplifier.

[No, not yet.] Minato responded first. [It's almost disgustingly humid out here though.]

[Yeah, it really is.] Junpei agreed, and Mitsuru heard the grumble in his voice. [I mean, it's probably for the best that the Dark Hour somehow PAUSES WEATHER, but it doesn't mean it's pleasant to work in.]

"It is also early June; we're closing in on the summer weather." Mitsuru nodded, unable to stop the chuckle from leaving her. "... Although, Iori, now that you mention it … the Dark Hour does seem to bring weather to a standstill as well, doesn't it? I never thought about that before."

[To be fair, if things like storms abruptly skipped over Iwatodai in the fraction of a second, that'd absolutely start rumor mills in abudance.] Minato pointed out, his voice distracted. [ … I wonder if the Dark Hour would even freeze a typhoon.]

[I'll pass on that, thank you very much!]

Mitsuru chuckled again, and let the communication drop to continue trying to extend her reach. While it seemed that the telephone wires helped anchor and direct Penthesilea's shaky gaze, it wasn't enough to satisfy Mitsuru.

'And the Shadows are largely terrestrial, so it makes it almost impossible for me to track them …' She thought to herself, frowning more as she fiddled with more of the dials on the amplifier.

Her hand was off the dial for a moment when the faintest ping of a Persona registered on the amplifier's display screen. Both Mitsuru and Penthesilea focused on it, fully alert. "!? Is there someone else awake?" Mitsuru asked the air around her, and reached to fiddle with the amplifier more. "How are they on level with the telephone poles-?!"

Triangulating the faint signal was surprisingly easy, and Mitsuru was about ready to flip on the comms to direct Minato and Junpei when the piercing sound of a 'lost signal' alarm blared at her from the amplifier. In the same instant, she felt Penthesilea rear back as the teeth shaking rattle of a foghorn assaulted the inside of her mind.

"T - the interference..It's … it's a Persona-user?!" Mitsuru realized as she righted herself, hastily turning down the volume of the amplifier. The no signal alarm muffled easily, but a glance at the display showed that the ping had faded from view. "How-!?" Her question was cut off by the sound of an incoming message, and she shifted to open the comm channels. "I'm here, what's the situation?"

[I shit you not, senpai … there's a tank.] Junpei's voice came over the radio. [It's fire truck red and has a big mask instead of a manhole, but we're staring at a tank-shaped Shadow.]

[Mercifully, there are no smaller Shadows hidden in it?] Minato followed up, cautious optimism in his voice. [Also that it doesn't seem to have noticed us y - SHIT!?]

[SON OF A FUCKING FUCK!]

Mitsuru wasn't certain what made her double take harder, Minato's blatant use of profanity or that Junpei's profanity had been in perfect English. Shelving it for later, she did what she cold to focus on the juniors. "Did it fire on you?! Are you injured?!"

[No, something just dropped on it from out of the sky and picked a fight with the tank!]

Out on the streets of Iwatodai proper, Minato and Junpei both stared at the scene in front of them. Both of the teens had hidden behind a parked car, watching the tank warily for an opportunity to sneak past. They had almost gotten an opening when a blur of black and white crashed onto the tank out of nowhere, the clang of metal meeting concrete making Minato jolt and fall backwards.

The tank seemed disoriented - if it even had eyes to SEE with - and whatever had crashed into it rolled off scott free. Junpei frowned. "... Hey Mitsuru-senpai, two questions. Is Shadow on Shadow violence a thing?"

[It has been recorded before, but very rarely.] Mitsuru confirmed.

"Okay. Question two; do we know any Shadows with swan wings made out of fucking katanas?!"

Minato ignored the conversation for a moment, focusing on where the smaller bundle of steel and blue fabric rolled, blinking as the wings Junpei spoke of in a flurry of blue fire akin to a dismissed Persona. Standing up was a person in black and white with flashes of red, and Minato felt a jolt of realization hit him in the face.

'Wait, that's … that's the person who pointed Kotone and I to the dorm!'

The thought rattled in Minato's head as the white-haired teenager shook their shoulders briefly before hefting a scythe into view. "Man, the one time Takaya asks me to poke around an area, and he's right about shit happening again." They groaned, voice giving them away as a girl about their age. There was a slight rasp to her voice, and both Junpei and MInato watched her as she tapped the haft of her scythe for a moment.

"... Did … did she just have wings for a Persona?" Junpei whispered to Minato, shifting the kanabo into a fight ready position. "Is she friendly?"

"Given that she dive-bombed the tank and not us? I'd say 'friendly, for now'." Minato whispered back. "Mitsuru-senpai?"

[...I cannot tell myself.] She replied after a moment. [Right before the two of you contacted me, I had a read on presumably her, but … I think she noticed me and did not appreciate it.] A distant memory came back to Minato at that, from the first time he had encountered the woman in front of them.

"Best to keep this anonymous, you know? Don't want to make the wrong people panic; they're prone to doing stupid things."

'... Why would she not want us to find her?' Minato wondered to himself, eyeing the white-haired girl as she took a swing with the scythe. The sharp screech of steel on steel made him cover his ears, and Junpei visibly winced.

The sound didn't seem to do the girl any favors either, and she frowned. "Figures. Figures just hitting you wouldn't do it." She grumbled, and the familiar flicker of blue and white began to swirl around her. "Guess I gotta do this the messy way, don't I?" the fire flared, and both Minato and Junpei yelped as a terrifying laugh echoed in the air.

A woman made of shadow and steel appeared above the teenager, the laugh echoing for a moment longer as the swan wings Junpei spotted flared to their full extent for an instant. They slammed forward, and a tidal wave slammed into the tank and sent it skidding a few feet, making sounds of mechanical protest the entire time.

"Hey, in the alley over there!" The girl calling out to them made both boys jolt, and they looked at her. She didn't seem to take her gaze off of the Shadow as it slowly clambered out of the water. "This is a big bastard - I suggest you either get outta the blast zone or help me out."

"Can we at least get a name?!" Junpei shot back, even as he moved forward to help out. Minato followed wordlessly a moment later, awkwardly drawing the Evoker at his waist. The girl opened her mouth, but the sound of agitated machinery made her pause as all three turned to look at the tank. It had picked itself up, in a manner of speaking, and the turret was now pointed directly at the white-haired teen.

"... rain check?" She asked, head tilted owlishly. It was a motion that made both Minato and Junpei looked at one another briefly, but then nodded.

"That works!" Junpei agreed, then yelped. "Duck! That's a fireball its loading up!"

Minato moved as Junpei spoke, and the white-haired girl let out a curse as the wings of what had to be her Persona appeared and wrapped around her and Junpei. The fireball evaporated harmlessly against the wings, and Minato noticed the large golden eyes on the blue fabric before the wings vanished once more.

'... I want to learn how to do that.' Minato thought to himself briefly, even as he pointed the Evoker at himself. Orpheus and Apsaras responded in turn, Cadenza coursing over him, Junpei and their temporary ally. "We don't exactly have a lot of room on this street…"

"Yeah, but there's also a lot of cars at that intersection up ahead." Junpei responded after a glance behind them. "Don't wanna let this thing get snacks!"

"Just give me directions for where the fireballs are aiming, I should be able to drown 'em out." The girl called out even as she charged forward, another rush of water slamming into the shadow. "Either of you got lighting?"

"Not with you in melee range!" Minato called out, even as he made the mental shuffle to Rakshasa. "Would it even be weak to lightning?"

"Maybe not, but it's drenched and a hunk of metal!" Junpei countered even as he summoned Hermes, the blur of blue and gold drop-kicking the Shadow's turret. There was a metallic bang, and the weapon dented slightly, but it appeared to still be functional as it fired a shot at Junpei. "Oi!"

[Iori has a point; even if lightning might not cripple it normally, the water will cause a chain reaction.] Mitsuru cut in. [...Also, you will have to coordinate amongst yourselves; I cannot establish communication with your mysterious companion. Even knowing that she has a Persona, something about her keeps Penthesilea from getting a reading on her.]

'Lovely.' Minato frowned at that, one grey blue eye shifting to the girl in the black and white hoodie as she hopped backwards away from the Shadow into a crouch. It was enough for her to dodge the turret as it violently jerked in her direction. Not wanting to ponder the implications of how she could seemingly disrupt Mitsuru's scanning, he instead called forth Rakshasa.

The lightning bolt the sword devil let out was larger than Minato was used to, and it arched through and around the Shadow on contact. He swore he could see it cartoonishly flicker in the burst, and when the light faded, the turret was twirling in a confused circle.

"Heh, I can almost see the little gear birds spinning around it." Junpei laughed, then looked at Minato. "I don't think hitting it with fire would be smart, what about you?" Minato shook his head, and was about to respond when the sound of footsteps dashing in their direction caught his focus instead.

Running up the street at them, wide-eyed and dressed in pyjamas, was Yamagishi Fuuka.

She stopped a few feet away from where Minato stood, head spinning between him, Junpei, and the tank. "I - I heard the commotion, and saw that bright light. Wh … what's …?" She asked, confusion and panic in her voice.

Minato and Junpei shared a look, then both of them looked at Fuuka. "We'll explain after the tank's gone, just … don't run off this time, please?" Minato said after a moment, gesturing at the Shadow in question. It still seemed to rattled to move.

Fuuka nodded, her eyes focused on the Evoker in Minato's hands for a second. "Ok- okay? What about the guns, though?"

"I second that!" The white-haired girl spoke up as she moved again, darting towards the Shadow even as her Persona manifested above her again. Instead of another turret of water, one of the massive wings slammed into the tank instead. The blow slid harmlessly off of tank to hit the pavement instead, and the Shadow did not react. "Tch, figures… Tanks are covered in armor, dumbass." she scolded herself as she leapt back.

"! It's you again!" Fuuka's head snapped in the other girl's direction. "Do -do you know one another?"

"Not really!" Junpei responded, even as he directed Hermes to dive bomb the same spot; like the wing slash before it, there was no discernable effect. He grumbled before he looked back at Fuuka. "Do you know her?" he asked, jabbing a thumb in the black and white teen's direction.

"N-no -!" Fuuka's head snapped to the Shadow so fast that Minato worried the girl would hurt herself, but she gasped. "I - I think it's getting back up!" She stated, making Minato's eyebrows shoot up as he looked. Like Fuuka claimed, the Shadow had staggered back up onto its treads, the turret swaying slightly as if debating on who to focus on.

A debate that seemed to be resolved with carpet fire. Minato, Junpei and Fuuka all ducked; the taller teenager just seemed annoyed, one wing coming up to block the flames again. "... Hey, curious question. Is the tank red to you guys?" She asked after the wing dispelled itself.

Several things clicked in Junpei's head at that, and he frowned briefly. "Yeah, it's very red. Kinda fire truck red, if you like irony!" He confirmed, then shook his head. "Explains why Hermes doesn't seem to be doing much to hurt it …"

Fuuka looked at the other teens, then back at the Shadow as it stopped shooting flames. "I … if it's a tank, shouldn't lighting work on it more? Or mud?"

Minato groaned. "Sadly, I don't think I have anyone that can do earth … and while I can do lighting, it's not particularly powerful …"

"The fact that you can do it at all is what matters, Blueberry." an eerily familiar aggression had snuck into the white-haired girl's voice, making Minato look at her warily as she shifted her grip on the scythe in her hands. "Big Blue, you think you can help cover me? I can probably shotgun it with water, but blocking the fireballs is distracting."

"If you mean, me, yea; I can Ikaruga fire with fireballs if you need it." Junpei responded with a nod out of habit, but then winced to himself. It was an action that made Minato blink in confusion, but he looked to Fuuka instead.

"You … can tell what it's doing?" He asked, gesturing to the tank.

"S… somewhat?" She confirmed, voice nervous. "It's not subtle, but … ! Something's coming!" She ducked behind the garbage can as she spoke. "An airstrike?" she guessed, and Minato and Junpei both noticed the turret pointing skyward as she spoke.

The sound of a mortar fire echoed a second later, and Minato yelped as he backpedaled away from several intangible arrows. Junpei managed to twist his way out of most of them, and the attack came nowhere near Fuuka; the white-haired girl seemed to merely take the hits without a care, even as a few arrows tore through the sleeves of her hoodie.

"C'mon, Helen, Drown 'em!" She called out instead; the horrifying laughter from before was the only warning the Shadow received before her Persona was in the air once again, both wings slamming forward to send a massive wall of water at the Shadow.

Not wanting to risk it, Minato waited until he saw her leap away from the deluge before pointing Rakshasa at the very wet Shadow once more. There was a loud crack of thunder as the lightning hit the water as it slammed into the Shadow, and it once more lit up in a comical fashion before collapsing to the ground, turrets splayed to the side.

The white-haired girl's face sported a wolfish grin, and she shifted so that both of her hands were on her scythe. "Heh, don't let it get back up again!" She yelled before leaping forward, an action that Minato and Junpei didn't hesitate to mimic. Whether by luck or actual coordination, Minato didn't know, but all three of them were able to strike the large mask that the turret protruded from.

With a last groan of shearing metal, the tank shaped Shadow evaporated into mist, a handful of red plates clattering to the ground. Minato stared at them for a moment, panting, and then looked to Fuuka to wave her over. "It's safe now, Yamagishi-san." He called out, noticing how the girl was warily looking up and down the street. "At least, I think so?"

Mitsuru didn't respond, but the white-haired girl hummed as she knelt to scoop up a single red plate. "I can do a quick sweep upwind if you two wanna explain shit." She offered, tapping the metal in her hands before giving a nod. "Good quality stuff, damn …"

"U - uhm …" Fuuka spoke up as she approached, her eyes on the other girl. "Where … where is your friend this time?" she asked shyly after a moment, making Minato and Junpei shift to look at the white-haired teen as well. Tellingly enough, she didn't turn to look at them.

"He had other things to take care of tonight." She said simply, and then slung her scythe over her shoulders. "... But I should get going. The night's trucking on, and I don't think any of us want to get caught with weapons and guns when the world goes back to normal." she began to walk at that, waving her hand idly at what she assumed was Minato and Junpei's direction. "Make sure she gets home safe, alright boys? It's the second time she's witnessed a supernatural street fight."

Not waiting for any of them to respond, she simply called out her Persona's wings once again. Minato jumped a bit at the action, and took a step forward. "Wai-" he began, only for her to leap into the air and take off in a flurry of steel feathers. "t … Nevermind." He sighed, shaking his head.

Junpei just frowned for a moment before shifting to Fuuka, awkwardly scratching his head. "... Hey Yamagishi-chan, been a minute?" He began awkwardly, laughing in an attempt to break the tension. "We didn't really talk a lot when we had homeroom last year …"

Fuuka blinked, and then recognition hit her a second later. "O-oh, yes! I remember that now, Iori-san." She agreed, nodding her head. Teal eyes shifted to look at Minato for a moment, and then back to Junpei. "So … what exactly just happened …? Who….?"

"Couldn't tell you about the strange angel of death lady." Junpei shook his head. "First time I saw her was her dropping onto that Shadow back there. You, Minato?"

Minato didn't respond for a moment, frowning as he stared at the spot. He looked back after a moment, and shook his head. "Can't say I know her any better than you, sadly." He sighed, and then looked up at the moon. "But, she had a point … we should probably get Yamagishi-san back home for the night." At that, Minato tapped the communicator he wore. "Are you listening in, Mitsuru-senpai?"

[I am.] There was a slightly distracted tone to her voice, but Mitsuru let out a sigh. [I don't know if Yamagishi can hear me, but let her know we can explain things tomorrow after school. Both of you return to the dorm after escorting her home; I want to hear what you've figured out about that Persona-user.]

"Alright, although I can't say we learned much …" Junpei sighed, a strange frown on his face. "Well, I noticed something? But it doesn't seem like it does much for her being a Persona-user." He noticed Fuuka giving him a confused look at his words, and he snapped his fingers. "You recognized her though, right?"

"A little?" Fuuka admitted. "I … can explain as we walk. My house isn't too far…" Minato gave a noncommittal noise at that, following behind Junpei and Fuuka. He listened with half an ear, glancing up and behind them the entire trip.

Ducking just out of sight on a roof, Miki kept her head tilted in a way to keep an ear on the group of three teenagers, a frown on her face. 'Well, shit … seems that poor girl is already too deep in this mess to push out again.' She sighed. 'Great; Takaya was worried about this, and now three of the tower climbers have seen my face. I'm going to have to be extra careful when doing errands in the Dark Hour now. At least their current scanner is … very obvious when they try to focus on you.'

She took a moment to lean against the edge of the roof, blind eyes seeing nothing as the trio of high school students left Helen's range. 'We're gonna have to figure out a plan of attack, and fast. I can't help but feel like we just hit the fast lane for supernatural bullshit … but that's for tomorrow to make or break.'

With that last thought, Miki leapt into the air and began to fly towards the safety of Reimu's house.

Tori's notes: And with this, Shit is officially hitting the fan and I'm excited to drive this crazy train from here on out!

I don't have too much to say, beyond 'oh thank fuck this chapter didn't take as long to write as the last few'. But this chapter has a fair amount of chaos going on, some funny, and Miki has officially been spotted by at least two SEES members!

Helen being able to repel Mitsuru's scanning is just a case of 'No, I am BUSY, stop trying to call me!'

but with that, I am gonna go to bed; I have work in the morning, my body just refused to wind down until I got all these words out on paper and yote them into the void of the internet. See you next chapter with the next full moon!