?, ?, ?

Minatodai Dorm, 3rd Floor, Aigis' Room

Daytime

"This is it?" Midori hefted what looked like an armoured vest out of its box, grunting at the weight. She looked at it with a critical eye as Fuuka poked at it, examining it for something only she knew to look for.

"Yes. Put it down."

With a thankful grunt, Midori set the vest down on the workbench. "That's heavy! You sure it was meant for Aigis?"

Fuuka nodded, looking down at the paperwork that came with the add-on. "Yes. It was apparently designed to offer extra protection for Aigis at the expense of mobility." She looked over to where Aigis still slept. "I hope this will help. She should have woken up by now."

Midori offered a helpful hug, which was reciprocated. "It'll be alright, she'll wake up. It's like she was sick and needs to sleep it off." She let go of her smaller but older friend. "Now, so I'm assuming there is more to this than draping it over her shoulders?"

"Yes. I'll need you to hold things while I do the installation."

As they worked, Fuuka found herself in a comfortable place, allowing her to raise a question she had meant to ask. "Are you feeling alright?"

Unsure of the meaning of the question, Midori passed over a screwdriver. "I'm alright. I mean, I'm stuck in the Dorm with everyone, and while I would certainly enjoy the extra day with everyone, the circumstances, and the fact that my daddy must be worried... well..."

"I think I understand. But I was also asking about you. Metis hit you last night, and you and Frosty were fighting."

"Oh?" Midori grinned. "I'm perfectly fine! Even the bruises are fading." She rolled up her sleeves to show that fact off. "Hey, speaking of, where's Frosty?" She looked around the room and then patted herself down while searching for the card. "Frosty? Frosty!"

"I last saw him downstairs, on the table." Fuuka commented. "I know you're powerful like that, so I assumed you left him there in case something went wrong."

"But that's just it!" Midori started to sound worried. "He doesn't do anything unless I tell him to." She started for the door. "And I thought he was with me."

Fuuka reached out a hand to steady Midori. "Maybe he's down there still because you want to be down there yourself?" She knew that given the option, Midori would choose the more active one, so it only made sense.

"I'll go check." Midori was determined, but also recognized the validity of Fuuka's words. "I'll get something for us to drink as well." With that promise, she was let go.

1st Floor Lounge

Bouncing down the stairs, Midori followed her heart and saw that indeed Frost was standing on the table, stock still, watching Metis with burning eyes. She breathed a sigh of relief, and Frosty turned to give her a wave.

The motion was enough to grab other people's attention, and Midori found herself fielding questions about Aigis' condition from Akihiko and Ken. "Is she alright?" "Yes." "Has she woken up yet?" "No!" "Bark!" "I don't speak dog!" "Hee-Ho!" "Shut up Frosty!"

"Look," she finally managed to take control of the conversation, "Fuuka and I are working on Aigis. I'm just grabbing some water for us. We'll let you know when she wakes up, alright?"

"Our apologies." Akihiko said. "We're all worried for her, so we had to ask."

"Apology accepted." Midori announced as she turned her back to them and proceed with her real intention for being down here. "Frosty did behave himself, right?"

The three guards all looked at the black-skinned persona. "I still have trouble grasping how you do that." Akihiko finally admitted. "He was right here the entire time, but didn't do anything until you came back down."

Nodding, Midori released the focus she held on Frosty and he reverted to the card in her hand. Just like that, she felt like she had more energy than she had in days. She resolved to be more careful about that in the future. "Now, unless there's anything else?" Leaving the question hanging and when no answer was forthcoming, then went about her business.

Late Afternoon

It was quiet for the most part. Fuuka and Midori had worked as best they could to repair what they could with the parts at hand. The new layer of armour seemed to fit well, and right now the two of them rested.

Their quiet vigil was halted when a commotion came from downstairs. Hearing it, the two girls went to the top of the stairs and listened. They could hear various voices, but nothing distinct. "I'll go get Mitsuru and Chidori," Midori offered, "and you go downstairs."

"Right." Fuuka agreed and began to descend. Midori took the other staircase, ascending to get the others. She encountered them in the sitting area, themselves attracted by the distant commotion, and after explaining that she was coming to get them, they all headed downstairs.

On the way, she explained what progress had been made on Aigis and apologized for being unable to wake her.

"There is no need for that. You have done the best you can under the circumstances." Mitsuru praised the efforts made so far. "Now, let us see what this is all about. Perhaps our guest has awoken?"

"As long as it gets us out of here, I don't care." Chidori's comment was quite cold, but was something that the others could agree with.

1st Floor Lounge

"No, I don't know why you didn't answer the door! I knocked! You ignored me!"

Yukari was standing by the door, angry at the attention she was receiving. On the other side, Akihiko was annoyed that she had apparently decided to sneak in the front door.

Neither side was budging, despite Fuuka's best efforts to play moderator. Mitsuru took one look at the situation, and knew she had to stop it. "Akihiko! Yukari! Stop!"

Instantly there was quiet, a skill that Midori wanted to have because it would be so cool. "Now, one at a time, Yukari first, I want both of you to explain just what happened here." Mitsuru commanded, and none opposed her.

Yukari explained her position. "I finally had time to come by, as none of you were answering your phones." She looked around at the awkward and confused faces of everyone else. "Right. Whatever. So I knocked, and there was no answer. I knocked again, and still nothing. So I open the door, come in, announce myself and still nothing, so I figured you were all upstairs or something. I take a few steps in and suddenly people were here and that when we started arguing."

"Thank you Yukari." Mitsuru turned to Akihko. "And you?"

"We were watching over Metis and the door. Then Koromaru started barking and we saw that Yukari was standing there. We didn't hear any knocking, so she surprised us when she appeared."

Midori looked at Yukari. She was dressed in her winter casual-wear which seemed odd given the apparent urgency of the situation. It was almost like she wasn't taking this seriously at all.

"I find both stories odd." Mitsuru tried to figure out how they could both be telling the truth. "Yukari, could you please see if you have a signal on your phone? We have been having troubles communicating with the outside." The explanation seemed to be enough and Yukari quickly located her phone and tried to make a call.

"That's weird. Hold on, let me step outside." They watched as Yukari tried to open the door, but failed. After a moment's fighting with it, she stomped around to bring an angry face against everyone. "What the hell? This better not be a joke!"

A word of annoyed refusal died on Midori's lips as Fuuka spoke up. "We've all been trapped in here. It started when Metis arrived." She pointed at the bound robot, still unmoving.

"Metis?" Yukari seemed to take account of everyone present. "Who is she? And where's Aigis?"

"Aigis was hurt in the fight." Midori interjected. "And we've got this weird hole in the floor of the dining room. Want to see?" She tried to bring some levity to the conversation, but it fell flat.

But Yukari did respond by walking heavily – not quite stomping, but no hiding her annoyance either. She examined Metis briefly, then went over to the hole in the floor. "Oh, this is all kinds of wrong!"

"Agreed." Several people voiced their opinion simultaneously.

"So... what?" Yukari didn't seem pleased by all these developments one bit. "You're saying we're trapped in here?"

"That is correct." Mitsuru said. "We were hoping you could provide us egress, but it seems our situation conspired to keep us contained." She indicated Metis. "And this is the source of all our problems."

"We're waiting for Aigis to wake up," Midori offered. "Metis seemed focused on her, so maybe there's some answers there."

"This.. this! ARGH!" Yukari raised her voice in frustration, "THIS IS NOT RIGHT!" She ignored Metis to head for the couch, where she sat down in a huff. "Someone fix this so I can get on with my life!"

"We are working on it, Yukari. Your assistance would be appreciated." Mitsuru tried to be diplomatic. "With you here, I can issue your Evoker back to you, and we can begin preliminary exploration of the new region under the dining room."

"No."

"I'm sorry?" Midori found it almost funny how Mitsuru just couldn't understand people refusing her outright. She was so used to people agreeing with her or negotiating that such plain language was outside of her personal context. "I had thought you would provide assistance."

"Well I'm not. I don't want my damned Evoker. Besides, what use would it be? Only Midori can do her thing outside the Dark Hour."

"Hey!" Midori took the slight personally. "Shut up and listen! This is like the Dark Hour! I had Frosty running for hours since yesterday, way more than what I can do in the human world. We are all stuck in this together, and we need to work, all of us, in getting out!"

Yukari was stunned at the outburst. But her resolve was firm. "No. I don't want a part of this any more."

"Komaki, Yoshino, Akihiko, Amada. I'm tasking the four of you to make a preliminary search of the grounds at the bottom of the stairs. Yamagishi will provide support from up here as well as keeping an eye on Aigis." Mitsuru started to issue order. "Koro-chan and I will stay up here with Yukari and Metis in case the situation changes." She regretted sending them away, but needed them out of any potential conversation she might have with Yukari. Komaki was too much of a firebrand, Akihiko had his pride while Yoshino and Amada would only prove to be a distraction.

It wasn't the best solution, but it was the only one she could work in with such short preparation time. The others seemed momentarily confused by the change in priorities, but thankfully the more astute amongst them realized the necessity of the change in plans and moved to support her. She felt good to have such a supportive group at her command.

But it would all mean nothing if she couldn't use her leadership abilities to their fullest. And that meant convincing Yukari to assist in the investigation and resolution of their situation.

?, ?, ?

Underneath the Minatodai Dorm

Afternoon

"Everyone have their equipment?" Akihiko asked of the others as they stood at the head of the stairs. They nodded, although Midori was the only one who was actually looking forward to using her weapon. "Midori, you go first. It's not much, but you've been down there before. I'll be right behind you with Ken and Chidori taking up the rear."

"Alright," she chirped as she hopped down the first few steps, leaning down to get a better look at things, "but I still see nothing."

The rest came down behind her. "Good luck" Fuuka said from the safety of the Dorm.

Midori hit the ground first, her impact making no dent in what looked and felt like sand. Looking at her feet, she realized that there was no indication that Metis had landed here earlier. Around them were the ring of doors, and she realized that some of them were set back a couple paces from the others.

"Spread out," Akihiko said, "check the doors and behind the stairs."

A round of affirmations came back and they spread themselves out a little. Midori made a straight line for the nearest door. It was white with a twisting pattern in black inlaid into it. There was no handle on it, and on a hunch, went around the other side. Nothing. It was blank. Back around front she put a hand to the door and pushed, but like every other door, it refused to budge.

So she took a couple steps back and charged it. Her shoulder slam cracked hard against the unyielding edifice, causing everyone to look at her. "Try again!" She backed up again and this time performed a running kick. "Bah! FROSTY!"

A moment later, a series of magical flames and shards of ice failed to do what brute force did either. "Open!"

"There's nothing back there" Ken said as he came back from behind the stairs. "There's just these doors."

"One for every person in the Dorm." Chidori qualified. "Each having a unique design."

Akihiko did a quick count. "There's one more."

"I counted one for our robot guest." Chidori added. "I suspect that once Midori forces a door open, we will be exploring each in detail."

"Any luck there, Midori?" Akihiko asked as she tried something different – hitting the door from behind.

"I'll get it eventually!"

He sighed. Trusting in her enthusiasm to find a way if it was possible, he moved to climb back up. "Chidori, Ken? Could you two wait here? I'm going to report our failure to Mitsuru. Let me know if she actually accomplishes anything." With a casual gesture to Midori, he ascended the stairs.

3rd Floor Lounge

Evening

Midori grumbled as she sipped her lukewarm water. She couldn't open a single door, and Aigis was still asleep and they were all still trapped.

Of course, now that Yukari was with them, that meant she couldn't sleep in her room again. And hers was still empty.

Speaking of, Yukari came up and grabbed a seat across from her. "Hey," she said.

"Hello."

"Sorry if it felt like I was taking some of my frustrations out on you." The brunette apologized carefully.

"Huh?" Midori didn't seem to hear it. "You were mean to me?"

Yukari mentally rolled her eyes at Midori's some-times innocence. How she could focus on one thing completely for one moment, then shrug things off the next never ceased to confound her. And here she was, trying to be nice! "Maybe. That's why I was apologizing."

"Apology accepted. But for what it's worth, I think you weren't." Midori looked down the hall at Aigis' room. "Maybe I could sleep on the chair she has in there."

"You don't have a bed?"

"I used the spare futon in your room last night."

"Wow. I mean, I would have thought your room would be intact. Did you pack everything up for your move?"

"No! Wait. Did Mitsuru tell you about the weird date thing going on?"

"Yes. I don't believe it."

"Well, we'll see. If tomorrow is today, like it was yesterday for me, then will you believe me?"

"Something like that." Yukari rose. "For what it's worth, it was good to see you again. I'm going to go to bed now, and I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight."

?, ?, ?

Minatodai Dormitory, 1st Floor Lounge

Morning

"I slept on the couch." Midori thought to herself as she pulled herself into wakefulness. Remembering that her attempt to sleep in Aigis' room had failed with the sheer uncomfortable nature of the reclining chair for long-term napping.

Groaning, she reached out to grab her glasses. She remembered something about putting them down there last night while others took their turns guarding Metis. Someone leaned over and grabbed them and put them into her hand. "Thank you" she muttered as she pulled them on. She then pulled them right back off. "I gotta clean them."

"That would be prudent." Aigis said.

"I..! AIGIS!" Midori jumped up and through unfocused eyes saw that indeed the blond robot was standing there. "You're awake!" She punctuated that statement with a large hug that bordered on the uncomfortable for her as she pressed against the hard armoured shell. "Wait! When did you?"

"A couple hours ago," Fuuka explained from where she sat on the other couch. "We didn't want to wake you at the time."

"You should have!" Midori accused, annoyed at not being there when her friend came back to the realm of the waking. Releasing Aigis, she yawned without meaning too and sat back down. "So, is it April yet?"

"No." Aigis confirmed. "I find the temporal loop odd."

"Tell me about it. It's our third day in here then."

"Actually, now that you are awake, we can advance with our plans." Mitsuru announced, startling Midori with her unexpected presence. Pulling on her glasses anyways, she looked around and realized that everyone was present in the room.

"Were you all just watching me sleep?" Midori asked with a very flat tone of voice, her hand edging dangerously towards Frosty's card. "Seriously?"

"Nothing like that!" Ken immediately lept to their defence. "It's just that Mitsuru said that we weren't on an immediate time crunch, so we didn't need to wake you."

Composing herself, Midori sat down on the couch behind her. She was pleased when Aigis took a spot beside her and after a moment's politeness, Akihiko ceded the last spot to Chidori. "So, I'm awake. Now what?"

"You release me."

Midori spun towards the voice, having forgotten in the time since her arrival what Metis sounded like.

"I see no reason too." Aigis countered quickly. "You brought harm to my friends." She picked up the butterfly faceplate from the table where it had lain all this time. "Your origin and your relation to our predicament mean that we cannot remove those restraints at this time."

"You know that is irrelevant."

"What does she mean, Aigis?" Mitsuru asked.

"The chains would not hold me. Therefore, they will not hold her." Aigis announced plainly.

"WHAT!" Akihiko was instantly on high alert as Metis flexed her arms, causing the chains that bound her to crack and fall off. "Get ready!"

"That will not be necessary." Aigis said again. "She will not attack us. If she had wanted to, she would have done so already." She, however, did not relax. "Now, identify yourself and your goals properly."

"I'm Metis." Midori caught that this Metis, now that she was speaking calmly, had a voice that was a lot more fluid and, well, human-like than Aigis'. "As you can see, you and are are practically siblings, sisters. It is my purpose to save you, my only sister, from this impossible situation."

"Impossible is right," Yukari griped. "I mean, the TV said it was yesterday today, and apparently it's even more than that for other people."

"I was made aware of our situation, Yukari." Aigis admonished the interruption gently. "You are also currently recovering from your use of your version of Orgia mode. What do you know about the region that is currently located beneath the Dorm?"

"It is called The Abyss of Time," Metis answered smoothly. "It is the cause of the space-time distortion that locks you all in place. It would be better if I showed you."

"I have already seen it, and we have sent a scouting party into it." Midori was proud that her efforts got mentioned.

"But you did not know that its existence is tied to the existences in the Minatodai Dormitory. The only way to escape the temporal loop it to eliminate the Abyss. Hence, eliminate the residents of the Dorm."

Metis' announcement brought a large round of angry accusations and recriminations. For Midori, so soon after waking, it was too much, and so she raised her voice to a scream; "SHUT UP EVERYONE!"

The outburst brought a cough to her throat. "No one is hurting anyone," she rasped, "not any more." She looked to Aigis and Mitsuru to yield the floor from her yell.

"Thank you, Komaki." Mitsuru redirected her attention back to Metis. "I presume there is an alternative?"

"Yes. Locate the source of the Abyss within it, and eliminate that." The black-hued robot replied. "I do not know how."

"This is starting to sound ridiculous." Chidori interjected into a moment of silence. "What do you get out of all of this? You are trapped with us."

"I am not in this for myself! This is all for my Sister!" Metis defended herself vehemently. "She is in danger, and I must protect her!"

"And yet," Mitsuru coldly countered, "your statements do not fit the facts. Aigis is the only active member of her series; there is no mention of a Metis in the production schedule. All units from Labrys to Aigis are accounted for. You also speak with familiarity regarding this Abyss of Time. Your existence is unaccountable."

Midori also saw something that could be used to prove that Metis wasn't who she said she was, but she held her tongue.

"Sister! I am telling you all the truth!" Metis started pleading, her expression one of fear. "You have to trust me! You have to believe me!"

"Belief and Trust" Aigis nearly growled, "do not enter into my decision making process. What I do know is that you are connected to the Abyss and therefore it is possible that you are the source of this disturbance." Aigis advanced towards Metis, who seemed to lose her composure.

"No! No! I'm not the problem!" Metis defended herself as Aigis quickly and inexorably got up and into her face. "Please! Believe me! I only want to help!"

For a long moment, Aigis stared into the eyes of her so-called sister.

"I do."