The Shortest Distance from A to B

by zero-damage

Persona 4. A record of Kanji Tatsumi's year - specifically, his interactions with and raging crush on one difficult pint-size detective.

40. Chapter 29

A/N: Very long chapter. Sorry. Next story I write will need 500 word chapters, I think.

Story so far: The team took down the Reaper, and a concussed Naoto heard rather more from Kanji than she would've expected.

In this part: An epic battle with a god, a mundane quarrel with some cops, and an eventful Christmas Eve not-quite-date.

---

Souji hadn't been exaggerating about how far he'd made it up the hospital. Judging by the view from the shattered windows, the Goho-M had taken them to the top of the building. A pristine white door was set in the bloodied wall opposite the portal, with tatters of yellow police tape hanging from its frame.

"Adachi's in there," Rise said, almost immediately after exiting the portal. "Not a fake, really in there."

"Thought so." Souji glanced over his shoulder at the group. "Count of three?"

They'd trained up for days. They'd fought the Reaper. Souji had even had the foresight to bring a leaf from the fox, which they'd used before heading back to the Goho-M portal. The only problem was their Personas. Take-Mikazuchi, Jiraiya, Sukuna-Hikona, Himiko, even Izanagi – all five of them were weakened, maybe by this place, maybe by the fog. And most worryingly of all, Izanagi was the only Persona Souji could summon.

But what could they do about that other than beat down Adachi? It was the only hope they had. Kanji's grim nod came in unison with the rest of the team, and Souji turned back to the door.

"One, two...three!"

The door slammed open under his kick, and the team burst through into a clean and sterile-looking hospital room; the type that set Kanji's teeth on edge and made his stomach start swirling. White walls, white floor, white ceiling, even white sheets on the bed in the centre of the otherwise-empty space. Adachi sat on one side of the bed, leaning forward with his elbows resting on the metal frame. He didn't bother to look up.

"About time," he muttered. His gaze was fixed on the shape under the sheets. The outline looked like a person, only smaller, as if it was a little kid.

...Wait a sec.

"Don't act like you ever cared about her," Yosuke snapped, with an angry swipe toward the bed. "You knew she'd be taken!"

Souji said nothing. Just stared at Adachi, hands gripping the hilt of his sword so tightly that his knuckles had turned porcelain-white.

Adachi quirked an eyebrow at Yosuke. "Throwing another tantrum, Hanamura? Didn't you do enough of that back in Namatame's room?" he asked - and, at Yosuke's stammered half-denial, broke into a wide and vicious grin. "What, you thought I didn't overhear? Like I'd miss quality entertainment!"

Naoto stepped forward. "Allow me to confirm the crimes you've committed thus far—"

"Speaking of temper tantrums! Thought you'd bit it for a while, Shirogane. How'd it feel, relying on an idiot like Tatsumi to make sure you didn't stumble off into a wall?"

She kept his pistol trained on him as she spoke, voice level and cool. "As I was saying. You suspected this world was dangerous, yet you threw Mayumi Yamano into the TV. Knowing full well she died here, you then did the same to Saki Konishi."

"All of which I told you already." Adachi laughed; a humorless bark. "Nothing better than a pushy little bitch who loves the sound of her own voice."

With everything he'd done and with everything she represented, it was obvious Adachi hated Naoto - but something in the way he spoke down to her riled Kanji up more than he could stand. "Shut the hell up! Nobody gives a shit what you—"

"Not only that," Naoto cut in, calmly as ever and as if Kanji hadn't spoken, "but you duped Namatame into taking over your murder attempts and when the disappeared stopped dying, you sent a warning letter to ensure more victims. Even when a copycat killer emerged, you had the gall as a detective to attempt to eliminate a suspect."

"Oh, don't get prissy. Like being a detective means a damn thing," Adachi said. "There's plenty of assholes on the force who applied just so they could legally carry a gun – just like me." His grin stretched wider, now verging on a sneer. "You of all people oughta know that."

"Two people died in the last six months and a young girl is in critical condition, thanks to you," Naoto said, her voice turning quieter at the mention of Nanako – Adachi's grin dropping at the same time. "All for some foolish 'excitement' - a criminal reveling in the chaos he creates." She tilted her head. "Does that cover it?"

"Shut up," Adachi snapped. "You don't even have a point. All I did was put people in here." His gaze drifted to the sheets, and the small figure hidden underneath. "And I never touched her."

"But you would've," Souji said, voice quiet.

"Look, Yamano was a lying, cheating bitch. Konishi was a snobby little schoolgirl. And while I'm at it, you," – and here Adachi pointed at Yukiko – "were just as stuck-up. Wouldn't even stop for a proper police interview, remember?"

Yukiko's eyes widened as she recoiled. "N-No, I - I remember the police swarming the inn, but not you asking—"

"Didn't think so. You're all the same - worthless bitches," he spat. "Not like Nanako-chan. I wouldn't have thrown her in."

Souji slowly shook his head. "You looked after her. You ate with us at my uncle's house. And then you let Namatame kidnap her, take her inside that other world, and for what? Entertainment?"

"So what if I let her get taken?" Adachi's hands snared tightly around the metal railing of the bed. "She was going to be so much better off, Seta, I know that for certain now."

"That's crazy!" Teddie protested. "How would Nana-chan be better off in here?"

"Because the world outside is full of shit. The only way to survive is to be born with the magic ticket called 'talent', and if you aren't, and you realize that...all you have left is despair. Emptiness. The ultimate game over." Adachi's expression had turned deadly serious, all the spite and superiority gone completely. "Why would you ever put your precious Nanako through that?"

"She'll know, one day," Souji said, simply. "She'll know exactly what you did."

The chair clattered to the tiled floor as Adachi leapt to his feet, expression a full-on snarl. He raised his free hand, clicked his fingers once – and the world shifted.

It happened so quickly, Kanji barely had time to register the change: the white walls melting into nothing, the ceiling bursting open into swirling red and black, the spotless floor cracking and reforming into dirty rubble beneath his feet. They weren't in the building now, but on top of it, six floors or more above Adachi's screwed-up version of Inaba. And behind Adachi himself floated a bloodied, twisted Izanagi. That was why it'd looked so familiar before, Kanji realized - but why would this asshole have the same Persona as Souji?

"The hell do you think you are?" Adachi snarled. "A stupid, jumped-up teenager with his stupid, jumped-up friends. All of you piss me off! You might have hopes and dreams right now, but reality's going to shit all over them!"

Souji braced himself, sword held sideways in a guard. "Nobody ever said facing life was easy."

"No, they didn't. And you don't get anything out of trying." Adachi gestured wildly around himself, though whether at the team or at Inaba in general, Kanji couldn't tell. "When we all become Shadows, we'll still keep on living, oblivious to everything around us. How's that different to the way it is now?" His voice turned quiet again, almost nonchalant. "Cutting to the chase will make things much easier for everyone."

Kanji was on the verge of responding to that, and loudly. The last person he'd have expected to get there first was Yukiko. "Speak for yourself!" she snapped. "Living's too painful for you, but you don't want to die – of course nobody's going to understand! You're the one throwing the tantrum!"

Even Adachi had seemed a little surprised by her outburst, but the final line made his eyes glow a brighter yellow still. He clutched his head, his Izanagi raised its polearm - and before Kanji could respond, lightning crackled across the massive rooftop. Should've been a Ziodyne, but it felt no stronger than a Zio; a gesture, rather than a full-on attack. The team all took it, Yosuke having been quick enough to guard first, but it meant Adachi was getting pissed.

"Say whatever you want," he said – grinning again now, too sharp and taut to be anything but a mockery - "but people out there are still scared to death. They want the fog! They want the world swallowed up. It's my duty to see that they get it."

"Bullshit!" Kanji growled. "Like anyone in town wants to be turned into a Shadow!" Even the people in the street, the ones that had gotten sick from the fog, they wouldn't really want that. Nobody would.

"People can't live alone," Naoto said, far quieter than Kanji, in an admission that later on he'd realize couldn't have come easily. "If you surrender and sever your ties to society, destroying it will naturally seem attractive. You refuse to face life and admit your guilt, running from your own humanity like a coward. Your twisted logic is that of an immature, egotistical brat!"

Adachi rounded on her, his face scrunched and warped with fury. Behind him, blood began to roll in thick, slow rivulets down the mask of his Izanagi. "I told you to shut up! You have no idea what kinda shit I've been through!"

Teddie tugged at Souji's arm with one paw. "Be careful! Something's happening to him!"

"I said it before - this place, the Shadows, they all favour me. There's going to be a new world, and it doesn't want any of you!"

Souji moved first. His Izanagi lunged forward, weapon stretched out, tip directed straight at Adachi's Persona – and was immediately thrown back by a wave of pure energy. Kanji braced himself, expecting to take a similar hit. Instead, there was this strange flicker, a sudden pulse through his head, and when he tried to will his card into his hand, nothing happened.

He glanced around. Souji's Izanagi was flickering and clutching at his mask, and only Yosuke and Chie had evoked. Maybe the others hadn't been able to either. But that was fine, all good, wasn't like Adachi could silence a sheet of metal to the head, right? Kanji launched himself forward with his shield at his side, hoping to at least get a couple of good swings before the spell wore off.

Then Adachi's Izanagi raised a hand.

With Himiko silenced, there was no warning from Rise before the blast of wind caught Kanji head on, and no time to swing up his shield. Metal clanged against the floor as the gale threw him backward, far further than it should've, straight into something – someone? – and off the edge of the roof.

Oh, shit.

His body had just started to register the fall – his eyes screwing shut, his stomach leaping into his chest – when there was a second gust of wind. Below him, this time, and gentler. Still didn't feel good, but at least it slowed him down.

He opened his eyes. Above him, Yosuke was clinging to Jiraiya's cape, and to his right, Naoto was being buoyed by the same breeze. Kanji wasn't sure which of them he'd smashed into. Probably both. He'd apologize to them later. Once his stomach had untwisted itself. He took a deep breath that ended in a swallow, and let the wind guide him to the base of the hospital.

At the bottom, Yosuke let go of Jiraiya's cape and dropped the short distance to the ground. "C'mon, we've gotta get back up there."

"Can't y'just lift us up? Fire off another Garu?"

"Sorry, Kanji. Naoto's probably tiny enough," Yosuke said, earning a simmering glare from Naoto, "but you're too much of a lug for Jiraiya to lift."

Naoto readied her pistol. "Then we go the long way. With the Reaper destroyed, it should be a straight shot."

They started for the hospital entrance. The glass doors slid open, the three of them stepped through – and Kanji's vision flashed red.

When it cleared, he was inside the lobby of Inaba Municipal Hospital: the real one, white and beige and lined with empty plastic seats. Yosuke and Naoto were nowhere to be seen. And a single thought sprang to Kanji's mind: gotta find Ma.

...Shit, why was he thinking of...

His breath was coming faster and shallower, his pulse hammering in his throat, and he burst into a run down the nearest corridor.

...It didn't even make sense, why would Ma be...

The walls were stark and blank and he checked in every room he passed, looking for Ma, knowing she was here somewhere. She'd been hurt, it was like before when Senpai had come with him to the hospital, only this time it was for real. The corridors were like a maze and the rooms held nothing but beds and equipment. Nobody to ask, not even any other patients, what was with this place? Kanji pounded up a flight of stairs, calling out for his mother, half-limping on his still-tender leg, his heart going like a rabbit's, fast enough he swore it would burst, that he'd go out just like his old man—

Midway down another white corridor, at the junction with the next wing, he slammed to a halt.

A few meters ahead, his father smiled at him, lopsided and affectionate. "Hey, kid."

Beat-up trousers, short hair tinged with flecks of grey, fingers and shirt stained multicoloured by fabric dye. The old man looked exactly the same as when he'd—the day that he'd—

Kanji felt his fists clench at his sides. "The hell are you—"

Dad inclined his head down the corridor behind him. "Your mother's waiting. Next wing. She'll be next."

Ma going too?

Kanji's stomach lurched. "Shut up!" he roared. "She won't!"

Sighing, Dad slowly shook his head. "And I told you to be strong. Didn't listen, did ya? Kicked out, lashed out – and for what?"

Everything had hurt back then. A lot of it still did. When Dad had gone on about being strong just two days before he'd died, it'd felt like he was saying Kanji wasn't a real man, that he wasn't good enough. Who'd blame a kid for not dealing? "I – I didn't know what else to do!"

"A real man would've." Years on, his father's voice still rang clear in his memory, and Kanji still swore he'd never heard it carry such contempt. "A strong man would've taken care of your mother instead of brawling with biker gangs."

His throat felt dry and knotted. "I was trying to help her, dammit, they were makin' noise and I just wanted to—"

"Make everyone believe your tough guy act?" Dad rubbed at the stubble on his chin, like the conversation was boring him. "When deep down, you're just a scared little boy."

If the way he said it wasn't horribly convincing enough, Kanji's doubts took care of the rest. His chest felt as twisted as his throat now, but numb and hollow with it. "I-I'm not—"

"A boy who's made an art of hiding from himself," Dad continued. The smile had twisted into a snide grin. "No wonder you get along so well with that would-be girlfriend of yours - or should I say boyfriend?"

...Dad wouldn't know about Naoto. He wouldn't know any of the stuff that'd happened since he'd died. This shit was all being pulled from Kanji's own mind, and that meant this thing was too, no matter how much it looked like his old man. "You ain't real," Kanji snarled.

The illusion – not his father, not a chance – didn't flinch. "You don't want me to be," it said, level and calm. "But what I'm saying is real enough, and you know it."

Kanji screwed his eyes shut. "No, no way! My head's making you up and that bastard Adachi's yanking you out. You ain't real."

A hand gripped his arm tightly. "None of it is, Kanji-kun. Just wake up."

He took a deep breath – blood and dust on the air – and opened his eyes.

The hospital was back to what it'd been before: warped, twisted red and black, but recognizably part of this world. Being glad to see blood and slime trickling down the corridor walls was probably a little off, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

Naoto dropped her hand from his arm. "Are you alright?" she asked.

Kanji took a long breath, steadying himself. "Y-Yeah. Fine. Just – y'know." He turned to face her. "Fear magic, right?"

"I believe so. The illusions are...quite convincing," she said, quietly.

"No shit," Yosuke muttered. "Aerials everywhere I looked and Souji—" Then he seemed to catch himself and shook his head. "Forget it. We need to get—"

"Why the hell won't you just die?"

Kanji whirled around. Adachi stood down the corridor, in roughly the same place the previous illusion had been. His image kept fizzing and sputtering with static, and in the gaps between Kanji could see blood trickling down from his nose and over his lips.

"Another fabrication, I see," Naoto said, coolly. "And from your appearance, the battle must not be going as smoothly as you imagined."

"Holy crap, Shirogane, don't you ever shut up?" Adachi gestured sharply toward the ceiling. "Get back to the roof. Just try and take me down. Even if you do, it won't make any damn difference."

Like Naoto had said, another damn ghost. Wasn't like they could smack it down, but Kanji couldn't help raising a fist. "Get bent, asshole. We'll stop whatever you're tryin' to pull, and—"

Before he could finish the sentence, another blast of wind blew past him. The illusion shimmered then scattered, small particles of static dissolving as they hit the floor.

"Sorry," Yosuke muttered. "He was pissing me off. Let's go."

He started walking away, searching each door he passed for the stairwell, but Naoto stayed at Kanji's side. "Ready?" she asked.

Not really – but right now, he had to be. For once, looking at Naoto made things a little easier. "Yeah. M'good."

Working together, it didn't take them long to find the stairs. Kanji had lost count of exactly how many flights he'd bolted up while caught in the fear spell, but it must've been at least three floors. His leg certainly felt worse for it. Fortunately, most of the invisible walls from before had gone; he guessed Adachi couldn't play stupid games when he was fighting for his life. Kanji, Naoto and Yosuke managed a steady clip through the remaining levels, weaving from stairwell to stairwell, until they finally burst through the door to the roof.

Outside, Ted was cowering on the floor, paws over his head. Chie was on her hands and knees. Rise and Yukiko were ducked behind a pile of rubble, the latter with her hand held out, desperately trying to evoke. The twisted Izanagi was flickering in and out of existence, but still had his polearm raised. And Souji – Souji was on his knees in front of Adachi, staring up the barrel of a police-issue gun.

They'd never reach him in time. Adachi would—

One shot rang out, then a second. Kanji watched Adachi stumble forward barely a half step as a bullet bored between his shoulder blades – and in almost the same instant, Souji rolled to his right, a vivid patch of red blooming over his left shoulder.

Naoto ran across the roof toward him, gun trained on Adachi at each step.

Again, Kanji tried to evoke, and this time his card flared blue in his hand. Take-Mikazuchi swung back his heavy fist and pounded Adachi's Izanagi in the chest, Jiraiya rushing up close behind and whirling out a Garudyne that tore long, bloodied strips from the twisted Persona's coat. Naoto was beside Souji, now, but he evoked before she could even help him upright. The real Izanagi lunged forward, both arms outstretched, and made a grab for his twisted counterpart's throat.

Adachi seemed to curl in on himself, clutching at his chest. He trained his gun on Souji, again – and another bullet tore through his stomach as Naoto fired a second time. He bent over further, blood spilling out onto the rooftop, and made some sort of wordless noise Kanji didn't initially catch. It took him a moment to realize it was a choking, guttering laugh.

He bolted over to Naoto and Souji, already shrugging off his school jacket as he ran. Wasn't as good as real bandages – or better yet, a Diaharan - but at least it might help stem the blood flowing from Senpai's shoulder. As he crouched down beside Souji and pressed his jacket over the wound, Naoto stood with her gun gripped in both hands, sights still trained on their target. "Stop this now, Adachi-san, or face further consequences."

Adachi grinned at her, blood bright between his teeth. "What…you gonna kill me?"

"We – we can leave here," Souji said, his jaw clenched against the pain. "Together. It – doesn't have to be this way."

The laughter this time wasn't more than a gasping chuckle. Adachi dropped to his knees. His Izanagi vanished at the same time, leaving the original grasping at empty air. "You - really...won't quit, will you?" he managed - then slowly, painfully, raised his gun to his mouth. "...Fine. Have it your way."

Souji lurched forward, almost pulling out of Kanji's grip. "Wait, don't—!"

The tip of the barrel had barely grazed Adachi's lips when he was yanked upwards, backwards, a puppet dragged up by its strings – the gun clattering uselessly against the rooftop. Black Shadows spiraled out of his form to pull and tug at his limbs, until finally he hung motionless in the air five or ten meters off the ground, his arms outstretched and eyes closed. The fog rushed back in around the rooftop, thicker and darker than ever.

Rise crept out from behind the rubble, evoking as she moved. "A-Adachi-san? Is that—I can't tell—"

Adachi's eyes snapped open: vivid, shining purple and gold. "All humans will become Shadows, and I shall descend upon the united world as the master of order." Kanji knew Adachi's voice and every irritating note he'd come to hate; this was deeper, colder. Ancient. "Both this world and yours will soon be enveloped in a fog that never lifts."

Souji struggled to his feet, one hand holding Kanji's jacket against his shoulder. "...Who or what are you?"

"I am Ameno-sagiri," he said. "One who rules the fog. One awakened by man's desires."

"The god of fog," Naoto said. "But why—"

"Yeah, yeah. Wishes, desires, we've already heard all that," Yosuke snapped. "Whoever you are, do you really think humans are that dumb?"

"Do or say what you will, but your world's erosion cannot be stopped." Arms still raised, Adachi arched his back. "It is an inevitability."

The air seemed to shimmer, just for an instant, before a wave of fiery energy blasted out.

Kanji threw himself to the deck. There'd been no time to grab his shield again, and all he could do was grit his teeth against the scorching heat over his back. But it quickly faded, most of the pain with it, and as he uncurled himself and stood, he stared up into the fog where Adachi had been.

...Holy crap.

Whatever it was, it was huge. A massive, spiky sphere, taller than five of him stacked together. The surface seemed to be made up of dozens of rippling black scales, and the gaps where they joined glowed many different colours. As the fog dissipated around it the sphere seemed to open up, a flap – no, an eyelid - sliding open to reveal a chromatic eyeball beneath, the rings of the iris resembling the lens of a camera.

Oh man. This was gross. Bad enough they had to throw down with Adachi, now they had to tackle a giant glowing eyeball?

"Everyone!" Rise, via Himiko. "That thing – I think it's the source of the fog. I can feel it trying to pull this world and ours together!"

Souji looked up at the monster. "...Why...would you want to merge the two?"

His voice was almost too low for Kanji to hear. Ameno-sagiri still answered. "Humans tore down the walls between image and reality. This is the outcome they desire. Mankind's desires are my desires - and thus I must expand this world."

So this thing really was trying to screw up the real world. And, just like Adachi, it figured that was what people wanted. Bullshit. Kanji's first instinct was to evoke, but it hadn't attacked yet and Souji hadn't given any signal for the team to strike first, so he swiped his arm through the air instead. "Why the hell would anyone want that?"

Ameno-sagiri blinked down at them, slow and deliberate. "Mankind will soon become Shadows, as they wish, and live on in the darkness of the fog. This is part of the sea of unconsciousness that exists within human hearts. A hollow forest, born from bloated desire and false imagery."

Yukiko stepped forward. She had one arm around Chie, helping to hold her up. "Then – this place isn't simply affected by people's hearts, it actually exists inside them?"

"Mankind abandoned its pursuit of truth, placing itself in the depth of chaos and falsehood. I bestowed power on those who could brave the hollow forest."

Souji raised the hand on his injured side slightly, as if planning to evoke, then carefully lowered it again. "You...mean the power to enter the TV."

Wasn't like a big floating eyeball could nod, but Ameno-sagiri didn't disagree. "Humans fear what they cannot see, and see only what they want. This is a world built on desires, viewed through a window from which one sees what one wishes to see."

"Of course...the Midnight Channel," Naoto said. She had her gun trained on Ameno-sagiri now, for all the good it'd do. "Now I understand. The Midnight Channel we saw in Namatame's hospital room did not reflect his true intentions at all, but our own preconceptions. We wanted him to be the killer."

"The more false images one yearns for," Ameno-sagiri rumbled, "the more one stops yearning for reality. And so the forest grows on." A pause. "But you, I did not foresee. You not only mastered your own Shadows, but the power they held. A new and uncertain facet of mankind..."

The lines crisscrossing the eyeball's surface glowed brighter – pulsating, now, in time with a throbbing hum of energy.

"Is it worthy to put my trust in?"

"Watch out," Rise started, "I-I think it's gonna—"

"It must be tested."

A brilliant, blazing burst of light.

Kanji had screwed his eyes shut but the light still seared through. The blast of energy that followed a split-second later was no surprise. Megidolaon. With no chance to guard, he was easily knocked off his feet and slammed into the floor. He lay there for several valuable seconds, jaw clenched against the pain coursing through his entire body, and heard the same hum start up again, pulsing faster and faster. Ameno-sagiri, gearing up for another Megidolaon. No way could they take it, they'd been beat up enough just from fighting—

Another flare of light through his eyelids - and at the same time, the sound of a card shattering.

There was no pain this time. Kanji forced himself into a sitting position and blinked against the spots still speckling his vision. Two meters ahead, Souji was on his knees with one hand raised, the other still clutching Kanji's jacket against his bleeding shoulder – and midway between him and Ameno-sagiri, Izanagi was holding out his weapon horizontally in both hands, trying to block the wide beam of light shooting out from the eyeball's pupil. Only it didn't look like Souji could hold it for long. He trembled with the effort, Izanagi sputtering like a match.

"We gotta help him!" Yosuke yelled, somewhere behind Kanji. Then, "Jiraiya!"

Jiraiya shot toward Izanagi in a red and white flash and threw up his arms to help block the raw energy of the Megidolaon. He immediately flared brighter, and within seconds he was a dazzling white. Like he was absorbing the spell, or couldn't block it. But if that was true, why wasn't Izanagi affected? It was too bright to make out much more than splashes of colour, but for the briefest moment, Kanji thought Jiraiya seemed to change – white and red shifting to pale blue – right before Izanagi swallowed the light completely, and Yosuke's Persona with it. As Izanagi's outline glowed the same brilliant blue as a summoned Persona card, Souji shuddered, his lips moving in a whisper, but didn't lower his hand.

Yosuke staggered back. "Ugh - what the hell just—"

"I don't know!" Kanji glanced over his shoulder; Rise was shaking her head beneath her shimmering visor. "Jiraiya's still there, but he's – part of Izanagi, now?"

"Then we do the same." Naoto tossed her card into the air and fired a bullet straight through. Sukuna-Hikona rocketed through the air to Izanagi's side and hovered there, his glowing sword held out in a guard position. Again, he glowed brighter, was nearly lost in the glare within seconds – and again, he seemed to change, his head lengthening and the blue dissolving into white. The light merged with Izanagi just as before, causing the larger Persona to flare blue a second time. Naoto seemed to wince a little and lifted a hand to her head, but she stayed standing.

Colours raced across the gaps in Ameno-sagiri's scales. The beam of energy grew brighter and wider, and more ragged at the edges, like the monster was trying to ratchet up the power. Izanagi staggered back, slightly, but kept his naginata raised. Wind had started to whip across the rooftop, weaker than a Garu but enough to blow patches through the fog.

"Guys, Izanagi's getting stronger! Try doing the same thing!"

Well, crap. Maybe Naoto and Yosuke were on to something. Kanji summoned his card and crushed it in one fist. "Take-Mikazuchi!"

As Take-Mikazuchi lumbered forward and launched himself clumsily into the air, three more cards shattered. Kamui, Amaterasu, and Suzuka Gongen all shot to Izanagi's side. One by one, they melted into Izanagi's form, though this time their outlines and colours stayed fixed in the light. Take-Mikazuchi was different. Right before the light consumed him, the Persona's dark black form flashed a fiery red, and Kanji felt a rush of lightning down his spine. For an instant, the bond between Persona and owner felt stronger than he could ever remember – then vanished completely with a sudden, searing flash of pain. Izanagi swallowed Take-Mikazuchi whole – Himiko too, from what Kanji could tell - and after that, the blue glow didn't fade.

Kanji glanced at Souji. He had both palms pressed against his skull, eyes screwed shut, as if struggling to handle so much energy. Shit, what if they'd done the wrong thing? Senpai was already hurt. Kanji couldn't really hear or feel Take-Mikazuchi now; it was like Souji had swallowed him up, and all the power that went with him. "Hang in there, Senpai!"

"You can do it!" Chie was still half-hanging from Yukiko's shoulder, but her voice was strong.

Yosuke ran forward and dropped to his knees at Souji's side. "Yeah, we're right here with you!"

Souji's lips pursed around a single syllable. "Per-"

"Keep going, Sensei!"

"-so-"

"Senpai, I believe in you!"

"-na!"

The air rippled with energy. Kanji's vision blurred blue and white, and when it cleared, Izanagi was—

No, not Izanagi. Something different. Looked like Izanagi, but his coat was pure white and his naginata was silver and gold. He seemed to radiate an almost blinding light.

In near-silhouette beneath him, Souji raised both hands, palms facing outward. The Persona moved in turn, pushing against Ameno-sagiri's bolt of white-hot energy. In a single smooth motion he spun his weapon, pointed it directly at the monstrous god, electricity crackling the length of the blade – and drove it forward.

The light flared even brighter, blazing through the fog around them. Kanji could barely make out the Megidolaon streak back toward Ameno-sagiri and strike the pupil head-on. There was a high-pitched screech, the sound of glass shattering – and when the light cleared, Ameno-sagiri's outer shell had fragmented into its scales, vivid colours racing over the eyeball inside. It plummeted to the rooftop, but rather than smashing through the concrete, it seemed to sink halfway into it, surrounded by a pool of black Shadow slime.

Izanagi, now back to normal, winked out of existence. Yosuke helped Souji to his feet as what was left of Ameno-sagiri blinked sluggishly at the team.

"You…have proven the potential of humanity," it rumbled. Its colours had faded to dull steel grey. "I will lift the fog from the place you will return to."

"Keep your word," Souji said, firmly. "Nobody really wanted what you offered."

"Mankind's desires are my desires. And if mankind desires it, I will return at any time. I will always be watching."

Was that supposed to be a threat? "Yeah, yeah," Kanji snapped. "And if you do, we'll be waiting."

The eyeball rolled forward once, blinked a final time. "Farewell, children of the new potential," it said, then sank completely into the black pool.

The wind had settled, but as Ameno-sagiri disappeared beneath the oily surface, it picked up once more. The patches in the fog around the roof grew wider and wider, till the murky grey had rolled away almost completely to reveal the pale blue sky above. Sunlight filtered down on the group. They all stared up in silence, blinking against the light.

Eventually, Yosuke looked at Souji. "Okay," he asked, slowly, "so how the hell did you do that?"

Souji took a deep, shuddering breath. "...I...have no idea?"

In a single burst, Kanji felt Take-Mikazuchi rush back into him. He caught a blue and white flash to his left - Yukiko summoning Amaterasu, he'd soon realize - and everyone present was enveloped in the warm glow of a Mediarahan, Adachi included.

Souji slowly stood up. Between his fingers he held a bullet that Amaterasu must've driven clean out of his shoulder. In silence, he walked over to Adachi, who was gradually stirring on the floor, and the rest of the team followed.

Chie hopped nervously from foot to foot, brow furrowed as she watched Adachi carefully. "You think that monster was controlling him?"

"I believe it was at least partially his own intention," Naoto said. Her pistol was lowered, but she hadn't holstered it.

Kanji was inclined to believe her. Everything Adachi had said - it was like the crap a Shadow would've spouted, meaning it came from inside him, somewhere. Meaning it was probably the truth. And if it was...

Adachi pushed himself up onto his hands and knees. Blood was still pooled beneath him, but the wounds in his stomach and chest now appeared healed. "Get…outta here. The Shadows will finish me off." He tipped his head, gaze traveling across each of the team. "You did come here to kill me, didn't you?"

It'd been tempting before. Still was. But the team had been in this to stop murders, not commit another one. They didn't do that, and Kanji wasn't sure he ever could. He shook his head. "No, idiot."

"Why do you think I healed you?" Yukiko asked.

Souji stepped forward. "We're all leaving," he said. Adachi stared up at him, wide-eyed, and Senpai held out his hand. "Live, and face your punishment."

---

As soon as they were back in the electronics department – an hour after Junes had closed, going by the blue-lit clocks on the dozens of DVD players – Naoto stepped aside to call the police. Exactly how they were going to explain this situation, Kanji had no idea. He figured either Souji or Naoto would come up with something. His attention was firmly on Adachi, who was slumped on his knees and staring at the floor, suit still stained dark red with drying blood, shoulders heaving with each heavy breath.

Two beat cops showed up within ten minutes: one skinny and balding, the other younger and well-built. The balding cop gave Kanji a surprised and very wary look, until he recognized the man in the centre of the group. "A-Adachi-san?"

Adachi lifted his head. A trail of dried blood ran from his nose to his chin. "...Yep. Here to take me away, Matsumoto-san?"

Matsumoto looked at Naoto. "Shirogane said—"

"I bet she did." Adachi raised his hands in front of him, his wrists exposed. "...Get on with it."

"There's an ambulance on the way," Naoto said, then added, quietly, "Dojima-san requested it."

The ambulance took another ten minutes to show, more than enough time for Yosuke's overworked dad to surface from the back offices, wanting to know just what the hell was going on in his store and exactly what Yosuke had to do with it. Hanamura was stuck talking his way out of trouble, same time as Naoto was still spinning some story to two newly-arrived detectives. It would, Kanji figured, be a heck of a lot easier if they could just be honest. But who'd believe them?

He wandered over to Souji, who was tapping at his phone. "Texting Dojima-san?"

"Nope, he hardly ever reads them. I'm contacting Uehara-san," Souji explained. "Apparently Naoto called Uncle too, just as Uehara-san was wrapping up her shift. She wants to know if we need any help." He looked down at the screen, lips curved in a small smile. "Nice to know some adults are on our side."

Kanji shrugged. "Better late than never."

Thankfully they didn't need a nurse. He felt – okay. Exhausted, but okay. Not like he'd felt the other times they'd rolled out the TV lately, bruised and battered. The healing this time seemed to have worked, so maybe clearing the fog had finally fixed whatever had been going on with their Personas. He still wasn't sure exactly what had been going on with that weird red version of Take-Mikazuchi, or how Souji had harnessed the big guy's power - and maybe he wouldn't find out. With the killer caught for real this time, Kanji might never need to summon his Persona again...and there was something kind of sad about that.

By the time the detectives left Naoto alone and Yosuke had temporarily bullshitted his way out of trouble with his old man, Adachi was already on his way to the hospital. The rest of the team had already retreated to a far corner of the electronics department, figuring their slightly scorched and blood-stained clothing might earn some unwanted attention.

"I am in such deep shit," Yosuke muttered, hands shoved in his jacket pockets.

Souji clapped a hand over his shoulder. "Maybe my uncle can talk to your dad later. Let's just head home."

Yosuke rubbed at his face. "Yeah. Fine. Listen, I can't go back to your place with you and Ted." He rolled his eyes. "I have to wait for Dad in the lobby."

Naoto didn't look much happier than Hanamura. As they headed down the escalators, Kanji stood on the step behind her. "Thanks," he said, leaning down. "I mean, for talking to the cops. Getting us outta trouble."

"I doubt they believed a word of it," she muttered. "Fortunately, Dojima-san had already alerted them to Adachi's culpability. Or in their eyes, potential culpability."

Potential. Kanji didn't like the sound of that one bit. But they were nearing the base of the escalators, within sight of the lobby, and his attention was drawn to the glass. Thick fog should've been pressing up against it, like always.

It was clear. Ameno-sagiri had kept its word.

Up ahead, Kanji heard Yosuke whistle. "Whoa."

As one group they raced out of the lobby doors. Kanji barely noticed the blast of cold air. Outside, when he tipped back his head, he could see the streetlamps and the neon Junes sign shining overhead - and high above it all, the stars in the dark and cloudless sky.

---

They'd all jabbered excitedly, the girls had kept hugging each other (Naoto deftly ducking away each time), and Souji had grinned twice as wide as Kanji had ever seen and smacked both him and Yosuke on the back. Eventually, they'd calmed down enough to realize that it was both seriously late and seriously cold, and that they'd better all head home before they either froze off their asses or got them roasted by their respective families.

Teddie hadn't got the memo. "Group hug! Group hug!" he trilled, spinning wild circles through the snow, then dove toward Chie and Yukiko. "Chie-chan, Yuki-chan, we'll start! Rise-chan and Nao-chan can join in ay-es-ay-pee!"

"Fine. I'm so happy right now, I'm actually gonna let you do this," Chie said, as Ted threw his arms around her neck. Then he lunged forward, lips puckered expectantly, and she kicked him in the shins. "Ugh, I knew it!"

Yosuke tried to pull Ted away, Yukiko burst out laughing, Rise was too busy talking with Souji to notice – and Naoto was standing off to one side, staring up at the sky. Kanji wandered over to her. "We did good, right?" he said, watching her in profile.

She smiled, though she didn't look at him. "The fog's finally gone."

"Yeah. Makes tonight worth it."

"I wish everything else were solved as thoroughly."

Adachi. It still came back to that asshole in the end, everything he'd done to hurt innocent people and everything he'd put Souji's family through. And it struck Kanji then, that it could've all been settled inside the television; that Naoto had come close to settling it, the moment she'd put the first bullet in Adachi's chest.

"You shot him," Kanji said. "Adachi." Twice, in fact. But Kanji had been just as livid at the bastard, and he knew too well what effect that had. White hot anger blinding him, making him lash out at Sonoda or those thugs or whoever was trying to hurt him or the people he cared about. "I don't blame you or nothin', but would you have – you know."

"Killed him?" Naoto finished, impassive – then let out a quiet breath, a cloud in the cold air. "…I don't know. For a moment, I thought I had."

"Wouldn't have been a big loss," Kanji snorted. "But s'good that you didn't."

"He was about to murder Souji-senpai - and honestly, I was furious with him. I'd prefer to think there was no other choice…" and here, she shook her head, "…but I'm aware how good I am at lying to myself."

She seemed to catch Kanji's eye as she said it, but looked away again so quickly he assumed he'd imagined it. "You ain't alone there," he said. "Thass where all our Shadows came from. Everybody's lying to themselves about something."

Naoto adjusted the brim of her cap. "...Perhaps."

"Of course! All the girls lie about their insurmountable desire for Teddie!" Kanji whirled around to find Ted behind him, eyeing him warily. "Some of the boys, too."

"Get lost, Ted," Kanji growled.

Ted stuck out his tongue. "You just want to hog Nao-chan all to yourself." Then he nodded toward Souji and the girls, who were walking on ahead. "But anyway, Sensei says we're all going home now. Chop chop!"

He grabbed hold of Naoto's arm and, ignoring her halfhearted protests, tugged her down the street toward the group. Kanji glanced up at the sky, took a deep breath of clean, crisp air, and walked after them in long strides.

---

December 23rd, 2011

"Dude, did you seriously forget?" Yosuke stood on the doorstep of Tatsumi Textiles: arms folded, one eyebrow raised, and his head covered by the type of woolly hat that could've only been bought at Junes. "Souji texted you like an hour ago!"

"I was busy, alright?" said Kanji. That little kid by the river, Takeshi Nakagawa, had a lot of cousins waiting for end-of-year gifts. He'd put in another request for stuffed toys: two rhinoceroses, a panda, and three cats. Kanji had given him the kitties and panda yesterday, but the rhinos were taking a little longer. Figuring out the horns would need extra work. Then there was the koala for Ito-san down the street, and the pink giraffes for—

"Everyone else is already ordering dinner and I get sent to drag you out." Yosuke rubbed his hands together and stamped his feet against the cold. "Even Dojima-san already showed. No Naoto, though, at least not when I left. Any idea where she is?"

"Hell would I know?"

Yosuke gave him a flat stare. "Kinda late for denial, Kanji. If I had to pick one person who paid constant attention to our pint-size detective..."

And fine, so it was sorta true, but like people needed any more reason to find Kanji creepy. He shoved past Yosuke, almost knocking him off the doorstep. "C'mon, asshat. Let's go."

The fog had cleared, but the snow was still on the ground. At least Aiya wasn't too far to walk in the cold. Also meant he wouldn't have to listen to Hanamura's smart mouth for long. And since Dojima-san was out of hospital and would be at dinner too – making it a sort of 'welcome-back-we did-it-oh-and-there's-no-more-fog' thing - Yosuke would hopefully be on his best behavior. He stayed pretty quiet as he and Kanji walked through the district, snow crunching beneath their feet. Even with the frosty weather, and though it was already dark, there were more people outside today than Kanji had seen in a long while. Maybe things were finally getting back to normal, or as normal as the district had been since Junes rolled in.

As they walked past the old shuttered-up toy shop, Yosuke spoke up. "Oh, right. Souji wanted me to tell you that you're invited to his place on Christmas Eve - unless you have better plans?" His note of curious hopefulness turned the statement into a question. One Kanji didn't particularly feel like answering.

"I'm free," he muttered.

"Figures." Yosuke shoved his hands in his pockets and huddled down against the cold. "But hey, it's not like any of us have dates."

Souji Seta not having a Christmas Eve date? Yosuke had to be wrong. Then again, Souji wouldn't have invited them all over if he'd been planning to hang out with someone else. Kanji wondered whether Rise had gotten round to asking him and if she had, what Senpai had said. It seemed like they had something going on between them, something more than Kanji had seen Souji show with any of his many other admirers, but it was all too tentative to name.

...Huh. Sounded familiar.

Or maybe it was all wishful thinking. Maybe Souji wasn't interested in Rise at all. Souji was so damn hard to read, like he changed from moment to moment, person to person – but the one thing Kanji had been dreading hearing was that Senpai would be spending Christmas Eve with Naoto.

Stupid thought, really. They weren't that close. Were they?

But Naoto was a private person, Souji too, so maybe—

"Hold it, Tatsumi."

Kanji looked up. He and Yosuke were already outside Aiya – and facing two beat cops, one of whom he knew too well. The dick who'd argued with Naoto in the summer then hauled Kanji in after his fight with Sonoda. Kanji couldn't remember the guy's name, but he wore the same look of disdain now as he had that night. He folded his arms. "We got a tip-off saying you were threatening a little kid down by the flood plain yesterday. Taking money from him. Sound familiar?"

Threatening a kid? For money?

...Wait. Takeshi had paid him for the toys. "Oh, right. Him."

"Dude," Yosuke hissed.

"So you admit it." The older cop slowly shook his head. "Not a shred of remorse, either."

Hold on. Did they think—

Kanji started forward. "No, y'don't get it, I wasn't threatening him!"

"Okay, then enlighten us. What were you doing?"

Crap. Kanji had figured people would eventually hear or figure out exactly who made the toys, but a cop? Word would get all round the station, and any time the police wanted to get on his case it'd be the same crap. Tatsumi, the so-called tough guy who makes cute dolls. Tatsumi, the guy into girly stuff, and what was the natural conclusion from there? When he'd been arrested after brawling with Sonoda, that other cop, Kuroda, had been kind enough to leave the part about the dolls out of his report - precisely because he'd known all the shit that would go down if he didn't.

Kanji gulped. "I was – I-I mean, I—"

"Typical Tatsumi," the older cop cut in, expression cold, severe, and not the slightest bit surprised. "Bullying, starting fights, and now picking on little kids. You're coming to the station."

What was he supposed to do? Just let the assholes haul him in again, this time for something he hadn't even done, would never dream of doing? But he couldn't just bolt, that'd only make things—

"Sawaguchi-san, Ishibashi-san, is there a problem?"

It was Naoto. Kanji hadn't even seen her approaching behind the two cops. She stepped closer, hands clasped behind her back.

The older cop didn't even bother to turn around. "No need to concern yourself, Shirogane."

"It's no trouble, Sawaguchi-san. What's going on?"

"They want Kanji to come to the station," Yosuke explained. "For taking money from a kid by the river or something." He turned to Kanji with a confused frown. "I dunno, big guy, it doesn't sound like you."

"...Was this the same boy as before, on top of the hill?" Naoto asked. Kanji nodded, and she walked around the two cops and turned to face them. "Officers, I can vouch for Tatsumi's innocence. He did meet with that child, but not for the purpose of extortion. I suggest you leave him in peace."

Sawaguchi's eyes narrowed. "Shirogane, I told you, stay out of this. We heard about you and Adachi-san. That you're the reason they arrested him."

"Because he attacked me," Naoto said, calm and cool.

"So you say." Sawaguchi shrugged dismissively. "Where's the proof? Funny how there weren't any witnesses."

Witnesses? Naoto had been a witness. Why would the cops think she was lying? Adachi was the one who'd been stringing them all along, start to finish. Didn't they get that?

"Adachi-san's a good guy," the younger, chubbier cop - Ishibashi - offered, a little timidly. "Kinda scattered, but decent."

Naoto straightened her back, like she wanted to seem a little taller. "I only reported what happened."

"And nobody really believes you." Sawaguchi gave a dismissive shrug. "You know that."

"Why're you giving her shit?" Kanji snapped.

For a beat of silence, Sawaguchi just stared at him. Then, "Listen here—"

"No, you listen. That bastard almost killed her!" Not only Naoto, either, not by a long shot, but Kanji had no idea how to explain that. Calm debate had never been his strong point, particularly when supremely pissed off by some narrow-minded moron cop. "He ain't who you think he is, so back offa her, alright?"

"Kanji-kun." Naoto's voice was low and cautioning.

It made no difference; Kanji was in full flow. "And you wanna know why I was talking with that kid? I made dolls for his family - stuffed frickin' toys! He was giving me money for them!"

Sawaguchi's face twisted into a sneer. "Dolls? You made dolls? What a load of crap. You think I was born yesterday?"

"I ain't lying. I made three cats an' a panda for his cousins," Kanji shot back, counting the dolls off on his fingers, "and there's two more due in a coupla days. Go ahead and laugh! See if I damn well care, I'm used to that crap!"

Sawaguchi stepped closer, head tilted up to stare Kanji in the eye. "Do I look like I'm laughing? I'm not gonna let some punk kid—"

The door to Aiya slid open. Dojima appeared in the doorway, one hand pressed against the frame. "Everything alright?"

Ishibashi, largely quiet until now, cut in almost immediately. "Ah...D-Dojima-san," he managed, straightening up and tucking back his shoulders. "I, uh, thought you were still in hospital?"

"Got out yesterday." Looked like it too, going by the dark circles around Dojima's eyes. "I'm taking a couple of days off before heading back to the station. Now, what's going on with Tatsumi?"

Almost reluctantly, Sawaguchi stepped away from Kanji and turned to face Dojima. "A few cases of bullying have been—"

"He didn't do it."

"But we—"

"Believe me," Dojima said, like it was the final word. He cocked an eyebrow at Sawaguchi. "Now, don't you have better things to do than bother good kids, or do I need to tell Kuroda to switch up your assignments?"

"N-No sir!" Ishibashi stammered, with a deep and clumsy bow. "Sorry, sir!"

Sawaguchi bowed too, though less enthusiastically. "That won't be necessary, sir. We'll – be right along now." Both men left in a hurry, almost scurrying away through the district toward the gas station.

Whoa. A cop – a detective, even – had just bailed Kanji out. And sure, it was Souji's uncle, but Kanji still felt like he'd made some sort of progress since May, proved himself in a way he'd never have thought possible. Didn't quite make up for blurting out one of his big secrets to a cop who hated his guts, but it was something. He turned to Dojima and mustered a grin. "Th-Thanks, Dojima-san."

"No problem. Come on inside," Dojima said, then disappeared back into Aiya. He'd left the door open a crack, probably expecting Yosuke, Naoto, and Kanji to follow.

Yosuke had other ideas. He blinked at Kanji, wide-eyed. "Dude. Dolls?"

"Shut your face," said Kanji, offhandedly.

Yosuke opened his mouth again, then miraculously thought better of it and quickly looked at Naoto instead. "Wait a sec, Naoto. Adachi was arrested for attacking you, but not everything else he did?"

Naoto had stayed quiet throughout most of Kanji's outburst. He assumed she hadn't been watching him the whole time like she was now, because the alternative was far too uncomfortable. "We needed a way to press charges quickly while Dojima-san and I try to find something more solid concerning the murders," she said, gaze finally shifting to Yosuke as she spoke. "He's confessed to his involvement in the murders, but in court he could plead not guilty – and with barely any proof, his lawyer would take care of the rest. There's little evidence even that he attacked me."

"They got security cameras in the station, don't they?" Kanji had been in the cop shop enough times to remember them hanging in the corridors and in the corners of the interrogation rooms.

"Ancient cameras that typically aren't loaded with tape. Cost-cutting, of course. That and generalized idleness," Naoto muttered. "Due to a departmental meeting and a sports game, there were no direct witnesses inside the station, and once we were outside the fog was too thick for anyone to observe us. No bullets were found in the parking lot, so ballistic fingerprinting isn't an option...not that I would've expected it to yield specific enough results." Her lips thinned. "There's other evidence we can pursue, but doing so is challenging when opinion is already stacked in favour of Adachi."

"Ugh. Just when I thought the cops in this town couldn't get any more usele—" Yosuke winced and glanced toward Aiya's cracked open door. "Annnd I probably shouldn't say that so close to Dojima-san. I'm going inside before I shove my foot further in my mouth."

He sidled past Kanji, pulled the door open further, and walked inside the shop. As Naoto moved to follow, Kanji laid a hand on her shoulder. "S'really that bad?" he asked.

Naoto's sigh wasn't much more than a quiet breath. "...It may improve once Dojima-san returns to the station. He's well-trusted, and his words will carry far more weight than my own." She'd been looking away, but now her eyes met Kanji's, topped by a reproving frown. "What those officers think of me is inconsequential and you're already a troublemaker in the eyes of the police. You didn't need to stand up for me."

Maybe she was right. He already had a black mark from the Inaba police force. In retrospect, it'd been kinda stupid to wade in - but Kanji had never let that stop him, especially when it came to Naoto. Besides, she'd done the same damn thing to try to get him out of trouble, even if he'd ended up telling those cops way more than he'd intended because of it. "You had my back," he told her. "I got yours too."

Naoto hesitated, still looking up at him. Just before the point where it would've gotten uncomfortable, she gave a quick nod. "...Thank you."

She hadn't smiled as she said it, but Kanji couldn't help a slightly awkward one of his own. "No worries."

---

December 24th, 2011

The snow had started falling at around six, in light flakes that whirled through the pools of light created by the shopping district's streetlamps. Kanji had occasionally glanced at it through his bedroom window as he sat at his sewing table, working on Takeshi's dolls. The non-custom ones he'd made for the shop had proved popular too: cute, inexpensive end-of-year gifts sold well. If he finished up his orders tonight, he could maybe start work on a few extras, bring a little more money in for his next proj—

…Crap. He was supposed to be at Souji's in less than an hour. He'd almost forgotten, and sort of wished he had. It might be fun to hang out with the guys, but all he could think was that he'd rather be spending Christmas Eve with someone else. Someone who was probably off working at the police station or studying at home (but apparently not spending the evening with Souji, Kanji thought, with a flood of guilty relief.)

Everything was pretty quiet outside, so he caught the sound of the shop bell ringing below. He just didn't think anything of it until Ma called out from the base of the stairs. "Kanji-chan! You have a visitor, come down!"

Visitor? Had Souji sent Yosuke over to haul Kanji out again? Guy didn't live all that nearby. Or maybe it was Rise coming to bug him out of boredom, though Kanji thought she'd mentioned going to the springs with Yukiko and Chie. He set down his sewing, then walked out of the room and down to the shop floor, wondering who else would have any reason to come see him.

Naoto hadn't made the list.

She tipped her cap, a few unmelted flakes of snow still visible on the brim. "Hello, Kanji-kun."

"What're you doin' here?" he blurted.

A hand smacked against his back. "Kanji-chan," Ma scolded, then turned to Naoto. "It's lovely to see you again, Naoto-kun."

"And you, Tatsumi-san. I hope you are well." Pleasantries complete, Naoto switched her gaze and attention to Kanji. It wasn't a bad feeling, but – as usual – not necessarily a good one, either. "I – was just passing by," she said, haltingly, "and thought I'd – say hello."

Behind him, he heard Ma's footsteps heading through the door to the back of the shop. "I'll be in the back, dears. Please keep an eye out for any customers, Kanji-chan."

"Yeah. Sure." Kanji hadn't bothered to look back, unwilling and unable to take his eyes off Naoto. "Uh. S'cool. Sayin' hello," he told her, trying to ignore his mental commentary of oh hell this is awkward why does everything with Naoto have to be so awkward what am I even meant to say. "I, uh, figured you'd be working?"

Naoto's gaze dropped. "I'd intended to. But given the currently disheartening nature of my work concerning Adachi, I-I thought it would be pleasant to see - a friend." Before Kanji's mind had time to spin pirouettes over exactly what 'friend' meant, she quickly continued. "I've also been thinking about our most recent trip inside the television. You took good care of me during my concussion. Without you, I might not have made it out."

No way. Thoughts like that were too much to stand - and he didn't even need to have them, anyway, because he'd never, ever let that kind of thing happen. Kanji rolled his shoulders and ran a hand through his hair. "Like I said with those cops, we got each other covered. Out here and in there."

"Perhaps so...but I didn't acquit myself well. From what I remember, all I did was lead us in circles." Her eyes met his with a look of mild embarrassment. "I apologize for that."

He shrugged again. "You got your head smashed in, man. Surprised you remembered your own name."

She gave a small nod. There was a long pause before she took a deep breath and spoke. "There are…other things I recall. Vaguely."

It'd been pretty bad getting stuck underground like that. The less she remembered, the better. Kanji frowned down at her. "Yeah?"

Naoto wasn't looking at him. Under the brim of her cap, he could glimpse what looked like a faint blush.

Uh-oh.

She straightened her back, still not looking at him, and stammered, "You – I-I heard you say I was important. Wh-What exactly did you mean?"

...Oh, crap. He hadn't even realized she was listening at the time, had figured she was out cold again, and even afterward he'd told himself it was fine, she'd hit her head so hard she'd never remember any of it, and—

"Kanji-kun? I want an answer."

Never mind a 'faint blush'; Kanji could feel his entire head turn the colour of a ripe pomegranate. What the hell was he supposed to tell her? "I – I –"

The next moment, and just as he seriously started to worry about choking on his own tongue, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He fumbled around and fished it out, pointedly ignoring the shake in his hand. Souji's name was on-screen, and Kanji flipped the phone open. "Y-Yo, Senpai."

"Hey, just wanted to remind you about tonight. You're still coming over, right?"

"I - I dunno. H-Hold on." He lowered the phone from the side of his head and forced himself to look down at Naoto. "H-Hey."

"Is...something wrong?"

"I'm, uh, s'posed to be going to Senpai's soon," he said, then realized, given the date, exactly how that might sound. "But not just me! Yosuke and Ted'll be there too!"

Naoto glanced away. She was trying to keep her expression neutral, but Kanji recognized the hint of disappointment. "Ah. I see. But—" She stopped, and the line of her shoulders stiffened. "I should be going."

"No – no. Wait." Kanji raised the phone to his ear again. "Hey, Senpai, s'alright if Naoto comes along?"

"Uh, sure, but don't you think—"

"Great! See ya soon." He shut the phone, slipped it back in his pocket, and shot Naoto what he hoped was a reassuring grin. "See, s'fine."

He'd figured he'd done a good thing, but she didn't look pleased. "You shouldn't have asked," she told him, frowning. "I don't wish to be an unwelcome addition."

Like anyone would consider Naoto unwelcome. Unless they were nuts. Which Souji, Yosuke and Ted totally weren't, though Kanji did tend to go back and forth on the last one. Asking her along might bite him in the ass later, when he still hadn't answered her question and had no idea whether he even should, but shit, she'd come here to see him, she'd more or less said she wanted to hang with a friend, what type of jerk would he be if he turned her away?

Yeah, this was totally the best idea. Maybe.

Kanji gave the firmest nod he could muster and said, "You stopped by to see me. It'd be a dick move to bail straight off." He ran a hand through his hair. "And I – I wanna hang out with you, y'know?"

For a second, Naoto just looked up at him, like she wanted to say something else. Like she wanted to ask him that same question all over again, Kanji thought with a sickening rush – just before she glanced away, toward the shop door. "Very well," she said. "Then we shouldn't keep Senpai and the others waiting, correct?"

---

The brief bus ride to Souji's place was still slightly awkward. The problem wasn't what they said, since they stuck to discussing the TV world (mostly Naoto's developing theories about where it'd come from and exactly what Ameno-sagiri's intentions had been) and Kanji's next sewing project (a scaled set of mini-Personas, complete with TV backlot diorama). It just all felt stilted, weighed down by all the stuff they weren't saying – which wasn't all that different from normal, but was made worse by Naoto's earlier question. She hadn't asked again. Kanji sure as hell wasn't going to bring it up himself either, and he was grateful when they'd reached the right stop and walked the short distance to Souji's house.

He knocked on the door, turned to glance back at Naoto, then almost fell off the step as Teddie flung the door wide open. "Kanji-chan! Nao-chan!"

Kanji flailed briefly in an effort to keep his balance. "Yo, watch it!"

From just behind the genkan, Yosuke tipped his thumb toward the interior of the house. "Hey guys. C'mon in, it's cold."

"Nao-chan, you've saved us!" Ted jumped in the air with his fists raised, almost catching both Yosuke and Souji in the face. "Our Christmas Eve sausage party isn't all sausage!"

As Naoto's cheeks flushed an impressive shade of red, Souji shot Yosuke a wide-eyed glare. "Do I even want to know where he learned that?"

"Okay, Ted, back inside!" Yosuke grabbed Ted's frilly collar and yanked him back from the door. "You're missing the movie!"

While Yosuke hauled Ted back into the Dojimas' living room, Naoto shuffled awkwardly on the front step, clutching her arm across herself. "If my presence would make things awkward, then—"

Smiling down at her, Souji shook his head. "Nah. We're just watching bad movies and eating junk food." He glanced between her and Kanji, one eyebrow quirked. "Lousy Christmas Eve date, though."

"It's not a date," Kanji and Naoto shot back in unison.

Why would Senpai even think that? Like Naoto would ever just walk up and ask Kanji out. Like Kanji would ever work up the guts to ask her, he thought dismally. It didn't help that Souji didn't look like he believed either of them one bit. "Ah. Sorry, my mistake," he said.

The next instant, as if a quick change of subject might mean Souji's question had never happened, Naoto raised the folder in her hand. It was the same one she'd been carrying when she arrived at the shop. "Um, is there somewhere quiet I could work?"

Seemed kind of weird to work at a party, but then again, this was Naoto. Souji didn't seem surprised either, and he gestured toward the stairs behind him. "My room's the only one with a desk. Upstairs, first on the right."

Naoto looked momentarily scandalized by this, but gave a quick, firm nod and a mumbled thanks before moving by Souji and disappearing up the staircase.

Naoto in Senpai's room. Just the idea rubbed Kanji up all wrong – which was petty and dumb and kind of pathetic, when all she was gonna do was sit at his fricking desk. Petty, dumb, pathetic...deep down, Kanji knew this summed up way too much about his attitude toward the relationship between her and Souji, whatever it was. He needed to talk to Senpai about it, man-to-man. Maybe tonight was right for that, he thought – then noticed Souji giving him a pointed stare.

Souji shook his head. "You didn't have to come over if you guys were—"

"No, it ain't like that!" Kanji blurted, because Senpai still had the wrong idea. Naoto didn't even know Kanji liked her yet, probably wouldn't realize if he painted it on the side of Junes in six-metre-high neon characters, so the chances of them having a Christmas date? Zero. "Naoto was just – stopping by." And okay, that'd come out kind of lame, so he quickly added, "It's not that sorta Christmas Eve thing, you know?"

Souji blinked at him. "You sure?"

Pretty sure. Mostly sure. Anything else would just be wishful thinking, and liking Naoto was difficult enough without indulging in that kind of crap. "It didn't start as a date, an' I'm not gonna try and turn it into one," Kanji insisted as he kicked off his shoes and shrugged out of his coat. "And I wasn't gonna send her home by herself, Christmas Eve or not."

"You're giving Kanji waaaay too much credit, partner." Yosuke was flopped on the living rom sofa and staring listlessly at the television. "He's as dateless as the rest of us."

"Nobody in their right mind would wanna go anywhere with you," Kanji snapped. "But ain't you got plans, Souji-senpai?"

Yosuke rolled his eyes. "Romeo's had three girls text him already."

"I couldn't spend today with one of them even if I wanted to," Souji said, with a quiet sigh. "I'd spend a week talking my way out of trouble with the rest."

"Easily solved!" Teddie looked up from his position on the floor: flat on his stomach and less than an arm's length from the television screen. "Tell them Sensei's one hot stud and that they'll just have to share!"

"They probably would," Yosuke grumbled, arms folded.

"Rise text you too?" Kanji asked Souji.

Again, Senpai raised an eyebrow. "That's kind of personal, Kanji."

Fair enough. Kanji had just been hoping that—well, didn't matter. Maybe Rise had texted Souji and he'd turned her down same as the rest. Not wanting to think about it further, Kanji sat down at the low table and tried to pay attention to the movie: some sort of weird horror-baseball mash-up. Ted kept asking questions about the plot, Yosuke and Souji were too busy making fun of it to answer, and Kanji was too distracted to follow much at all. Things didn't improve as the evening rolled on, and as Yosuke was loading the DVD for the next film – a kung-fu flick he'd probably hassled Chie into lending him - Kanji tapped Souji on the knee and nodded toward the kitchen. "Senpai, can we talk?"

Souji looked a little confused, but stood from the sofa all the same. "Sure."

They moved to the kitchen table, each of them sitting either side. Kanji was careful to wait until the DVD started playing before he spoke. "You an' Naoto," he said, in a low voice. "You like her?"

Souji didn't say anything. Which was proof enough, right?

Kanji swallowed hard. "'Cause you can tell me. I-I'll step off. I know I ain't—" He stopped, inhaled deeply, and let out a breath. "You're better. You're always gonna be better."

Wasn't a new thought, yet saying it out loud hurt way more than he'd expected. But he meant it at the same time. Souji was his senpai, one of his best friends, a stand-up guy who'd saved his life. Naoto was – Naoto, and everything that went with that. If they were gonna be together, Kanji would just have to—

Souji shook his head. "Don't say that."

"But you are. You're—everyone thinks you're amazin', Naoto included."

"What makes you think I'm competition?"

You're not, not really, because I'd never stand a chance. "You and her hang out. You spent all that time planning to take down Adachi – an' the way she is around you, sometimes, it's—" The sentence ended in another hard swallow. "You know what I'm talking about, right?"

"I don't know if I…" Souji began, then hesitated. He pressed two fingers against his forehead – like he was frustrated, maybe, or just tired. "Kanji, it isn't that simple. There were things I had to do - or be, I guess. And sometimes, that—it made it hard to know what I wanted, or whether that even mattered. I've got three girls wanting to date me on Christmas Eve, more leaving me gifts at school, and – I never really wanted most of it to happen. I just needed it to. And then...people started walking away when it did." He sighed, then rested his chin on his palm and offered Kanji a small, sheepish smile. "Naoto probably made more sense with concussion, right?"

Much as Kanji didn't want to admit it, Senpai was right. Kanji shrugged and settled for, "She likes you."

"I admit my relationship with her is…different. I've relied on her." Souji shifted against his chair, expression suddenly pensive. "In a lot of ways, we relate to each other."

"Well, yeah. You're both seriously smart."

For some reason, Senpai actually chuckled at that. "Maybe that's part of it. But you're all special to me in different ways." He paused, studying Kanji carefully. "Naoto cares about you."

Kanji ducked his head in an effort to fight off the heat rushing to his face. "Dunno 'bout that."

"She jumped in a TV after you," Souji said, simply. "What more proof do you need?"

Ever since that'd happened he'd been desperately trying not to read too much into it, telling himself Naoto would've done it for any of them, that it hadn't meant anything more than one teammate looking out for the other. Sometimes that'd worked. Others, he'd wondered just how badly he was kidding himself. "Guess so," he mumbled, then looked up at Souji. "But she cares 'bout you a whole ton too. Everyone does."

Souji smiled again, knowingly this time, but with a melancholy edge Kanji might've missed for blinking. "Especially Rise, right?"

"She's nuts about you. You got no idea."

"Believe it or not, I do." A pause. "For the record, she didn't text me."

Kanji had no idea what to make of that. He stared down at his hands, palms flat on the table. "...Oh."

Both he and Souji fell silent. Kanji could hear the sound of the movie playing in the living room – two dudes yelling, then a bunch of exaggerated thwacks and thuds. It didn't seem like either Yosuke or Ted had heard the conversation. He wasn't sure why he thought they would've, with such a racket in the background, but then he'd been half-convinced Naoto had heard it all too, paranoid as that sounded.

Finally, Souji spoke. "Just go for it, Kanji," he said, low but firm. "I can't make any decisions yet, not until I know who I really am...and the type of bonds I want to make for myself." Then, without hesitation, "And for the record – I wouldn't, with Naoto. Even if it turned out she—" He shook his head. "I don't think I could do that to you."

You couldn't turn feelings on or off like a tap. Kanji knew that all too well – but Souji was anything but a liar, and his word would be good enough. "Thanks, Senpai. I mean it."

"I do too." Souji glanced at the stairwell. "You know, she's probably feeling kind of awkward."

Kanji frowned at him. "Didn't think anyone'd mind if she came over."

"I'm fine with it, Ted loves company, and I think part of Yosuke's always going to see her as one of the guys. But I'm not sure Naoto sees it that way. Maybe you should talk to her."

Naoto had said she'd be working. Probably meant she didn't want to be bothered, Kanji thought, but found himself standing from the table and walking over to the stairs all the same. He'd just check on her. Senpai had practically ordered him to do it, right?

He was a little surprised to find her sitting against the wall at the top of the staircase, still clutching the folder full of notes, her cap on the floor at her side. She nodded to him, looking slightly surprised to see him in turn, and he climbed the stairs toward her. "Thought you were in Senpai's room?" he said.

"I'm taking a break. I – thought I might listen in on the movie."

"Why don't y'join us?"

"It's not…" Naoto bit her bottom lip and looked away. "I…feel like I'd be intruding. It isn't the same as when you all believed me to be male."

"No. It ain't," he admitted. "Should be, but it ain't."

"That was why I decided to work instead." She looked down at the plastic folder in her lap. "I was reviewing reports on our potential evidence."

He carefully stepped around her and sat down at her side. The landing was too narrow to stretch out his legs, leaving them awkwardly bent to fit. "You're really working hard on this."

"I have to. Adachi must pay for his crimes."

"And he will, right?" Kanji asked – though part of him already knew the answer, and didn't like it. "I mean, we did it, we took him down."

"In the other world. It may not count for anything in the real one." Naoto tipped her head back against the wall, eyes closed. "I'm just so sick of this," she muttered, ending in a brief sigh. "Poring over a paltry collection of evidence and realizing he could well walk away from everything. Enduring the comments and attitudes of the police, particularly now that they know I'm the one pressing charges against him."

"Why're they givin' you such a hard time?"

"Adachi came across as very likable. Friendly with everyone. I – did not. Dojima-san and Kuroda-san have said they believe my reports, but the other members of the force..." She shook her head. "Essentially, they'll never accept me. I can't even blame it solely on being –" she hesitated "- female. I know that only makes it worse…but the situation has been the same everywhere I've worked, boy or girl, and I – I wonder how much of that is my fault. Whether acceptance is something I will never attain and do not deserve."

"I accept you," Kanji blurted without thinking – but it was true, and what was the harm in telling her? "I ain't a cop, so maybe it don't count for as much, but – y-you said you accepted me, before, when I got hauled in over Sonoda. So, it – it goes both ways, y'know?" So many things did between them, now. Each looking out for the other. He wasn't sure when or how they'd fallen into that, or how much it really counted.

He glanced at Naoto. She was giving him a strange look, somehow mixing curiosity with melancholy with something else that he couldn't pinpoint. "Do you mean that?" she asked.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, yeah. Wouldn't say it otherwise."

Naoto didn't say anything to that. She just stared down at her hands instead, now gripping the folder so tightly that the blood had drained from her knuckles. Kanji was trying not to watch her too closely, but he still saw her open her mouth slightly, as if to speak, then close it again. Several long moments passed before she finally found her voice. "You…never answered my question. About why I'm important."

…Oh, hell. Just when you thought you'd dodged a bullet.

Kanji gulped. "...Right. That."

Another long, long pause.

"I want the truth," Naoto said, softly. "Please."

Kanji's first impulse was to deny everything, because she didn't want the truth, not really, not when it'd change so many things; damage them, maybe beyond repair. But then again, didn't he owe it to her to be honest?

Dammit, there was no reason for this to be so difficult. He'd fought a fricking god, so why was he so shit-scared of someone whose head didn't even reach his chin? Kanji tensed his fingers against his knees. "I – see, the thing is –" But this was going nowhere and Naoto was still watching him. He tightened his jaw, gaze fixed firmly on the floor ahead of him, and tried again. "M-My answer's gonna change things. It'll – make them really shitty and a million times more awkward and I seriously don't want that."

"Wh-What could you possibly say that would change things so drastically?" he heard Naoto ask, and he snapped his head toward her.

"You really ain't figured it out?" And he knew she hadn't, of course he knew, but part of him had still always wondered just how clueless she really was. "You're s'posed to be an ace detective and you ain't noticed?"

Naoto stared at him, all wide, blue-grey eyes. "Noticed what."

"I – I like you, dammit!"

It was out. The words he'd guiltily dreamt of saying in more ways and scenarios than he could remember, full well knowing it was wrong. Pointless, too, when even in his imaginings Naoto had never felt the same way. She'd recoiled from him, run away, gone silent, a whole bunch of negative reactions; none of them real, but each one still a knife in his gut. And he knew he'd imagined enough of them to cover any reaction she would have right now – except none of his predictions had included a stiff nod, followed by a quiet, unsteady, "S-Since when."

Not even a question. More like – and Kanji's stomach twisted at the thought – she was confirming something she already suspected. Not clueless at all, then. The part of him that was ready and willing to bolt made him clench his fists on reflex. He forced himself to loosen them, to at least try to relax, like that was possible during one of the single most terrifying moments in his life, and took a deep breath. "F-First time we met," he said, as firm and level as he could manage. "An' the feeling's just gotten bigger and bigger."

He'd expected some sort of response, but Naoto seemed to have frozen at his side. She stared straight ahead, not moving a muscle.

At a loss, he kept going. "And you're my friend, or I think you are – or shit, maybe you were, maybe now you'll never talk to me again, but thass why I didn't wanna say anything, because I knew you wouldn't feel the same way back and—"

"Kanji. Stop."

With that, Naoto finally looked back at him.

It seemed to take an age just for either of them to move - and when they finally did, it started out less like a kiss, and more both of them leaning in and hoping for the best. Their noses bumped slightly, their teeth jarred together, they were still side-by-side on the cramped landing in Souji Seta's uncle's house, and it wasn't much at all how Kanji had imagined his first real kiss might be.

It was better.

He felt hot, light-headed, and completely out of his depth. Naoto's mouth was soft against his, hesitant and awkward with it, and somehow through his terror – shit, what if he was a bad kisser, what if she wasn't enjoying this, what if it broke everything – he managed to lift a shaky hand to cup the back of her head, his fingers brushing through her short hair and holding her against him. She was still gripping that damn folder, it was pretty clear neither of them had any experience, and even sitting down the height difference was enough to crick his neck a little. The whole thing was just clumsy – but it didn't matter, because he was finally, after all this time, kissing Naoto.

Then she jerked sharply away.

Kanji blinked at her, breathless and confused. He'd screwed it up, just like he'd figured, but which part? "Wha—"

Red-faced and already turned to the side, Naoto grabbed her cap from the floor. "I-I have to go."

"Hey, don't—" he started – but she was on her feet and halfway down the stairs. As he pulled himself up, ready to follow, he could hear Yosuke saying something, then the sound of the front door opening. He reached the bottom of the stairs just in time to see it close again. Naoto's coat was missing from the hooks on the wall, and her boots were gone from the genkan.

Yosuke was standing in the hallway, like he'd tried to catch her before she left. "Wow, Tatsumi, what did you—"

Kanji shoved past him, opened the door, and ran outside.

The snow was still falling, a few flakes settling on the pavement despite the scattered grit. He heard the crunch of Naoto's boots before he reached the street and caught sight of her rapidly disappearing form. "Naoto!" he yelled, bolting after her. "Naoto, wait!"

She was quick, always had been, but he had the benefit of longer legs. She must've realized he was keeping pace with her, because she stopped and turned to face him.

"G-Go back inside," she said, unsteadily. Even in the streetlight he could tell she was shaking, and he doubted it was the cold. "You're not even wearing your shoes."

"I don't frickin' care! Why're you running?"

"I –" she started, then rubbed a hand over her mouth, wide eyes looking anywhere but at him. "You – you said – a-and then we –"

"I know." He swallowed in an effort to steady his voice. "Y-You wish we hadn't, right?"

"I just—" She stopped, closed her eyes for a moment, opened them again. "I – don't know what to do now. I-I don't know what to think."

Desperation tugged at him. It was freezing out, his socked feet had started to hurt, but he couldn't just go back inside, not without finding a way to fix things. "Just – wait here for me, yeah?" he tried. "I'll get my stuff and we – we'll go t'gether. We can talk."

A pause that seemed to stretch out for minutes. Then Naoto shook her head. "No. No, we can't. I'm sorry."

She turned and ran down the street. Kanji stared after her even after she'd vanished into the dark, his heartbeat hammering, his stomach twisting. He gulped again - forcing down the lump in his throat, hoping he'd choke down the urge to follow with it - then, at a loss, turned around and walked back inside the house.