Author's Note:
Haiii gaiiiz. /wave I'm so sorry for not updating this in months. D: I don't even really have a decent excuse; my friends came back to town for break, I had finals, and... that's about it, to be honest. I'm really just lazy and I bought new video games and got distracted. XD But I picked up P3P again last night, so here we go~
Thank you thank you guys for all of your support. Especially to Reizna, Meow Factory, Ryfee, Liza Taylor, Jonaleepuff, Cielle's Amour, Jade Ookami, The Aracana Quotes, OH YEAH MORTAL COMBAT, and Ryurieri for reviewing! I love all of yooooou!
Twenty-Five Hours
a Persona 3/Portable (© ATLUS) fanfiction
The Sixth Hour
Opening Song: "Her Morning Elegance" - Oren Lavie
"I'd say this girls' night has been long over due."
Yukari was grinning ear-to-ear as she skipped into Mitsuru's room with her arms heavily occupied by chips, Hostess snacks, and a variety of other unhealthy snacks. Minako and Fuuka looked up from the questionable cake sitting in the center of the room, a brief look of relief swept across the leader's face when she realized they had been saved. "Hm? Where's Mitsuru-senpai?" the brunette asked as she dropped the night's supplies onto the center table, her eyes darting around in search for their older friend. "Oh, did you bake that for tonight?" Yukari could barely conceal her disgust for the oozing, too watery frosting that slid down the uneven layers of the cake. She managed to slap on a grin when Fuuka looked up at her sheepishly, though.
"O-oh, yes, I tried to make some sugar cookies, but I accidentally sifted salt into the batch instead of sugar," the analyst replied, her voice lowering with each word she uttered. She ducked her head in embarrassment, red dusting her cheeks.
Sensing Fuuka's dropping confidence, Minako flashed a grin and patted her on the back sympathetically. "It looks great, Fuuka! In fact, I'd say it should be the first thing we eat today!" As Fuuka beamed, Yukari inconspicuously glared at her, though she merely giggled in reply. If they all took a slice in the beginning, she figured, they could just drown out the bad taste with ice cream and twinkies later. Strategy came into play in all aspects of life - including slumber parties. "And Senpai's just getting changed in the bathroom."
"I bet she sleeps in silk," Yukari commented absentmindedly as she scanned the dorm room, taking in all the expensive furniture and electronics. "Even in a dorm she manages to live like royalty."
"Yeah, now I feel like a kid after seeing her room," Minako agreed, silently recalling all the stuffed animals she had lined up in her own room. Akihiko had probably been in Mitsuru's room before; after all, they'd been together and known each other for years. They must have had meetings or talked or something. Her room was so refined and mature, something that you found in mansions, not school dorms. In comparison to Mitsuru's room, Minako's probably looked like it belonged to a five-year-old. With that thought in mind, maybe it was a good thing she hadn't invited the boxer to her room...
She was pulled away from her thoughts when the door opened, and in walked the Kirijo heiress (who was, sure enough, wearing a white silk nightgown). "That's odd... There isn't anyone in the lounge," she noted, a contemplative expression on her face.
"All the guys are gone?" Yukari asked, surprised, as she took a seat on one of the couches. "Well, it is Saturday night."
"That's true, I suppose, but Akihiko doesn't usually go out at night without saying anything. Did he say anything to you, Arisato?"
Three sets of eyes were on her, causing a blush to scrawl itself across Minako's cheeks. Though they'd done their very best to keep their relationship low key, few things could escape the watchful eyes of Kirijo Mitsuru. After spending all Monday and Saturday afternoons together, walking Koromaru together every night, and "consequentially" disappearing at the same time during holidays, though, even Junpei couldn't remain oblivious to it. They didn't spend every minute of every day with each other, but they spent enough time with each other for the entire dorm to know that they weren't just "good friends." ("If he's a good friend, then what do you do with your best friend, Minako-chan?" Junpei had asked with a grin after she gave him that excuse - shortly before being smacked him upside the head.)
"No, he didn't say anything," she answered, shaking her head as she ripped open a box of Hostess goodies. "He could just be taking Koromaru out on a walk, though."
"With Junpei and Ken-kun, probably, since his usual partner is preoccupied." Yukari's suggestive grin only intensified Minako's blush, and the latter promptly chucked a pink Snowball at the former.
Quality time was important, Yukari decided, especially between the female members of the squad. Sure, the five of them together (including Aigis) outnumbered the three boys (well, four if Koromaru was counted), but she had insisted, "We girls have to stick together!" In her defense, she had made this declaration just shortly after the hot springs incident in Kyoto.
"Where is Aigis?" Fuuka asked, suddenly noting the absence of their robot companion. "We invited her to this, too."
"Actually, now that you mention it... I think I remember Aigis saying something about already being invited out by Junpei," Minako said.
Yukari bore a slight frown. "Well that sort of undermines the cause..."
"Oh well. I'll save her some food - I'm sure she'll appreciate the sentiment even if she can't eat it," Minako reasoned, taking a bite out of a Snowball.
They all settled themselves around the table, with Fuuka and Minako sitting on the floor, and Yukari and Mitsuru sitting on the couches. The each received a small slice of Fuuka's cake, which they all managed to successfully finish through toothy grins and obvious discomfort. "So, ah, what exactly takes place during a slumber party?" Mitsuru asked, with obvious reluctance. All three girls looked over at her, surprised despite already knowing her sheltered lifestyle. Having encountered their ogling, her cheeks flushed and she lowered her gaze to the bag of chips Yukari had forced into her hands.
"Natsuki-chan and I used to have movie marathons," Fuuka explained. All their eyes drifted towards the large, flat screen TV nudged up against the wall in front of them. "But... I don't really have any movies with me, and I think all the rental stores are closed now."
"We can just talk!" Yukari chirped, grinning as though her recommendation was revolutionary.
Mitsuru quirked an eyebrow. "Talk? About what?"
"Well... About life, school, problems... Boys." Once again, the attention shifted to Minako, who was suddenly very aware that she was the only one in the room currently in a relationship. "That being said, some of us are just luckier than others, eh?" She leaned down and nudged Minako with her elbow, wiggling her eyebrows. "So, why don't you start us off, Minako? How are you and Akihiko-senpai doing?"
"Finnnne!" she whined, smacking her elbow away. Her relationship with her senpai was not something she liked to discuss, simply because that sort of thing was just... embarrassing! Minako wasn't the kind of girl who went prancing around talking about how wonderful her boyfriend was and how she loved him and how they spent time together. If she did that, she would have felt as though she were showing off, and on top of not wanting to come off as a smarmy jerk, she also didn't want to be mauled to death by his avid fans. "We're fine," she concluded, shoving another Snowball into her mouth.
"You know..." She looked up at Fuuka, almost wearily. "I've always been rather curious - how did you and Akihiko-senpai... connect?"
"Um...?"
"I mean, how did the two of you know you didn't want to be just friends?" she elaborated. Yukari and Mitsuru leaned forward in their seats, also very curious.
Minako shrunk away from their stares as she rifled around the ground in search for another Snowball to keep her mouth preoccupied. Dammit, were they already out?
...
"Hey, can you hear them?"
"Shut up! And get your elbow out of my face!"
"I really don't think we should be doing this..."
"Aw, c'mon Ken, where's your sense of adventure?"
"Well, I don't know, this just seems really immature... And what if we get caught?"
"We'll only get caught if Junpei doesn't keep his mouth shut."
"Someone is approaching the door."
"Oh sh- Hide!"
...
"Did you guys hear that?" Fuuka, Mitsuru, and Yukari paused at Minako's sudden alertness, then shifted their gazes to the door. Slowly standing, Minako tip-toed over to the door, cracked it open, and peered outside. She frowned as she pulled her head back in and shrugged. "I guess it was just my imagination," she said, retaking her seat on the floor beside Fuuka.
"Or an attempt to weasel your way out of girl talk," Yukari teased.
Minako snorted, but didn't deny it.
...
Junpei heaved a heavy sigh of relief as he stumbled out of the corner, closely followed by Akihiko, Ken, Aigis, and Koromaru. The white dog whined up at Akihiko as he wagged his tail, clearly unnerved by the entire situation. "Sorry boy," Akihiko apologized, sighing as he reached down and ruffled Koromaru's fur. His soft expression quickly shifted to a glare, which he directed to the capped boy currently pressing his ear against Mitsuru's door. He clearly had a death wish. "This is a stupid idea, Junpei. We should get out of here while we still have the chance."
"Come on, don't tell me you're not interested in what they're saying," he hissed in reply, careful to keep his voice lowered as to not be heard again. "It's a girls' night, dude! They must be talking about all kinds of juicy secrets..."
Akihiko and Ken exchanged a look.
"They just mentioned Akihiko-san." They all gawked at Aigis, who stood several feet away from the door, alongside Akihiko and Ken.
"You can hear them, Ai-chan?" Junpei asked, peeling himself away from the door.
She nodded. "Yes. My hearing is acute. I can hear everything they say."
Before Junpei could demand to know why she hadn't said so in the first place, Akihiko had blurted out, "What are they saying?" The eagerness in his voice, which did not go unnoticed by the others, caused him to redden and shrink back.
"They are saying that-"
"Woof!" Koromaru yipped, growing more and more impatient.
Junpei and Akihiko scrambled to their knees, trying to silence him. "Danger is approaching." Before either of them could question what she meant, Mitsuru's door slammed open, and in the doorway stood four seething women.
"I-I-I-I can explain!" Akihiko protested instantly, jumping to his feet.
Mitsuru would not hear any of it. "Silence! I'm going to execute you all!"
...
Minako "tsk"d as she wrapped her sheep-decorated blankie around Akihiko's shivering form, which was currently seated on her bed. "That's what you get for eavesdropping. Come on, now, didn't you learn anything from Kyoto?" Another violent shiver racked his body, followed by a sneeze, and she giggled as she wrapped a red scarf around his neck. "Geez, she was really ruthless this time. I don't even know how she had enough energy to conjure up that many spells."
"Once again, I am a victim of another one of Junpei's plots." His head, which was beginning to throb painfully, drooped so that it rested on Minako's shoulder. "I think I saw my life flash before my eyes..."
She laughed, amused, and leaned her head against his.
They sat in a comfortable silence, with the occasional shiver and giggle, until Akihiko suddenly sat up. She looked at him questionably as he scanned his surroundings. "I just realized," he began, "this is the first time I've ever been in your room."
Minako flushed, suddenly remembering her thoughts from earlier. "O-oh, yeah," she managed, trying to smile. "It's, uh, it's well... Is it weird?" she couldn't help but ask. Shortly after, she realized that was what Akihiko had asked the first time he invited her into his room.
"I think it's cute," he answered, grinning reassuringly. "It suits you." That's what she had told him.
"It's not... too immature?" He blinked, then burst out laughing. Growling, she punched his shoulder, causing him to topple over onto his side. "Don't laugh at me!"
He pulled his arms out of the blanket cocoon and grabbed her hands, which had been swatting at him. "I think it's cute," he repeated, making sure to hold her gaze. She huffed, still bothered, and he chuckled as he placed a chaste kiss against her lips. "It's you, Minako." Her breath caught in her throat as he dropped her wrists and cupped her face. The proximity of their faces began to close, her eyelids drooped, his breath tickled her lips...
"Minako-chan?" Several knocks sounded at her door, instantly shattering the mood. Minako had this sudden urge to execute Yukari. "Ken-kun's taking care of Junpei now and Aigis is taking Koromaru out for a walk. When you're ready, we'll be back in Mitsuru-senpai's room."
"Okay!" she replied, and waited until her footsteps completely disappeared before she said anything else. "Well, I should get going. They'll be expecting me." She kissed his cheek and headed for the door, ushering both of them out.
They both walked down the hall, with Minako headed towards Mitsuru's room and Akihiko headed towards the stairs. They stopped just outside Mitsuru's room, in which Akihiko whispered, "By the way, don't worry, I like your pajamas more than Mitsuru's." He grinned as she blushed, then swiftly pecked her on the cheek before heading down the stairs. A sneeze sounded just before he slipped into his room and slammed the door shut.
Still blushing, Minako looked down at her sleeping shorts, which were decorated with different-colored sheep. "Cute," she grumbled, though she was unable to hide her smile as she rejoined the other girls.
Closing Song: "Fairytale" - Alexander Rybak
Here's something longer for you guys since I made you wait for foreeeeever.
Always with love,
Renoh