"Almost all the girls are watching the soccer team," Teddie sighed as he dragged himself to follow his friends. "Ken-Ken is definitely a formidable rival. Maybe I should join a sports club too, but what...? I know! Swimming!" The blond mimicked the arm movements of swimmers. "Not only will the ladies see my ever so graceful dance in the water, they will also have a better look at my bod."
"Good," Ryoji said flatly, "I hope you drown."
"Argh... Why are you so mean to me, Ryoji? You're supposed to be like Yosuke!"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"A person inferior to me in looks and popularity to girls. A bachelor that no girl would look at as long as moi, Teddie, lives. And the person who cleans and provides for me."
"Is it me, or are you getting more and more annoying by the second?'" Ryoji turned to Labrys and asked, "Can you give me Yosuke-kun's number?"
"Why are you asking for his number? And why 'kun'?"
The raven-haired boy ignored the blond's questions and dialed the number given to him by the elder mechanical maiden. "Hey, this is Ryoji... There's something I want you to hear," Ryoji held his hand out to Shinjiro. The taller male handed his phone. For a while, the shorter male fumbled with it, until finally, it began playing a voice recording of Ryoji wishing Teddie to drown. The record ended with Teddie describing what a "Yosuke" is.
Ryoji smirked at the comically, betrayed look on the narcissistic blond's face. He placed his phone in his pocket and he returned the other to Shinjiro, who was trying, but failing, to hide a smug smile.
Teddie began thinking on how to exact revenge on the two. Maybe I can ask sweet Mina-chan for a favor? But when he looked to where the girl was, he saw that she was already gone. "Where's Mina-chan?" he inquired, looking around for the girl with red headphones on.
"Minako-san left when you started talking about Ken-san being your rival," Aigis informed. "She said she would help Mitsuko-san until her husband is discharged from the hospital."
"Now that I think about it," Shinjiro said, "she's been going there every day after school."
"Why don't we visit too?" Ryoji suggested. "Tomorrow is Sunday, so I'm sure Minako will go for a visit again. We should ask Ken too."
"It surprising that you can actually make a good idea Mochi."
"It's surprising that Yosuke-kun hasn't called you yet."
"What?" On cue, Teddie phone rang. After what his two traitorous friend did, Teddie can't help but to feel unexpectedly nervous of what the caller will tell him. "H-hi there k-kindest person ever. What can I d-do for you?"
"Hey Ted," The voice said, too friendly to be real. "I decided to clean your room for you, so when they kick you out of the dorm, you will at least have a clean room to come back too. I also did a few renovations. You like bear, right? I'm sure you'll love what did to your room! Bare! Isn't that exciting, Ted? And you won't believe how many 'trash' I had to burn to make your room perfect."
"You didn't really do that, right Yosuke?" Teddie ask nervously.
"Of course I did! Didn't you say that's what I do? Well I have to go, bye."
"Our friendship is over," Teddie told Ryoji and Shinjiro. He stomped away to another direction, seething in anger. Please let all of it be a lie.
Minako watch as the old man stared absently at the wall. Beside her, an old woman slept, blanket on her shoulders. It has been nearly three days since she and her friends rushed the man to the hospital. But in those days, there hasn't been any positive changes regarding the elder's condition. The only thing that changed was the dextrose on the him since he nearly choked when they were feeding him oatmeal.
The girl checked the time. I should go back to the dorm. She grabbed her bag and gently shook the shoulders of the woman beside her. "Mitsuko-baasan," she called using the name the woman wanted to be called. The old woman woke and looked at the girl. "I have to go home now."
"All right Min-" A moan interrupted their farewell. The two spun to the man lying on the bed and found him in cold sweat. "Dear!" The woman ran as fast as she could to her husband. Minako, on the other hand rushed to call a doctor and the nurses.
"Please step aside," the doctor said, with three nurses behind him.
"Will my husband be fine?" Mitsuko asked frantically. All Minako could do was hold onto the woman to calm her down, but even the wild card was having a hard time keeping her composure. Memories with the couple suddenly flashed in her mind. No! Minako let go of the woman and ran to the foot of the bed. "Bunkichi-san... Bunkichi-san!" She called his name over and over, hoping that would make things better. But all that happened was the drooping of the old man's eyes.
"Prepare to perform CPR and get the defibrillator."
Thank goodness, Teddie thought. When he arrived to his room, in Yosuke's apartment, he noticed that everything was in place, saved for his clothes on the floor and the missing magazines in his closet. Farewell beautiful ladies... He sighed, when he thought of how many stolen cash from Yosuke had gone to waste. I'll definitely get back at those two. And Yosuke too.
The blond make a detour to Chagall Cafe to scheme his revenge. Before he could enter the cafe, he saw a familiar figure standing on the other side of the fountain, holding a hockey stick. He glided over to the small body of water as inconspicuous as he can, but when he was close enough to see the person, he tripped. He in less than a second, he caught himself. When he looked up, the person was gone. The boy scanned the area, searching for the person holding a hockey stick. But in the end, all he saw was a group of housewives, gossiping about their husbands' coworker who got fired.
"Must be seeing things… I could've sworn she smelled like Mina-chan."
Crimson eyes gazed awestruck at the landscape before her. Just moments ago, she was in front of Paulownia Mall's fountain, but after plunging into the water, she found herself in the mall's counterpart in the TV World. "Why didn't Elizabeth tell me about this before...? Never mind." She checked her pocket to make sure the gem - that will teleport her back, where she is now, after a time limit is over - the siblings gave her, before she left, was there. "Good." Then she swung the hockey stick that Margaret managed to make for her. "I guess it'll do." Then she checked her watch. "Only for two hours, then I go home... two hours." She marched forward to the tower.
"Mina-chan, your Teddie is home," the boy announced, but when he reached the dining table, the girl was nowhere in sight. "Mina-chan?"
"She said she has to take care of Kitamura-baasan first," Ken answered. "She might come home late."
"Oh, I see" My revenge on those two traitors would have to wait. "So Ken-Ken, are you busy tomorrow?"
"I'm free. Why?"
"We're gonna visit the cute, old couple tomorrow. Do you wanna come with us?" Teddie asked hopefully.
The soccer team's captain smiled, "Sure. Why not?"
"Yay!" The blond cheered. He finally decided to join them for dinner and sat as far as he can from his treacherous friends. Ryoji and Shinjiro eyed him mockingly before resuming to their meal.
"So I heard Yosuke-san kicked you out," Ken said.
"He didn't, but he did send angels to ashes..."
"...What?"
"This is the fault of those two, treacherous fiends!"
"You brought this to yourself," Shinjiro retorted. "We were just lucky to finally get something useful for once."
"What do you mean?" Teddie processed the information. "Don't tell me you've been doing this for a while now?"
"We only started two days ago."
"I never knew you two are so obsessed with me."
Ryoji quickly elbowed his accomplice and whispered, "His trying to turn the tables. What do we do?"
"Just ignore him," whispered the pony-tailed boy. "He'll shut up sooner or later."
"Thank you for lending me this," Minako said to Margaret, handing over the said item.
"How is your progress, Minako?" Elizabeth asked eagerly.
"Not so good. I not sure how to retrieve the lost memories anymore," the brunette said grimly. "I was so sure that those full moon shadows have something to do with it... but now, I don't know."
"But you said that the people regain some of their memories after a full moon, correct?" said Theodore.
"That is true... but I don't think I can wait for another full moon." She suddenly remembered how Bunkichi almost lost his life and how he was moved to intensive care unit after his heart and stomach showed signs of abnormality. "I know there's less than a week before the other full moon, but I need to find a solution now, or at least something that can slow down the effects. If I don't hurry..." Minako clenched her hands tightly. She couldn't bring herself to continue and instead said, "I am sure that the answer is in that tower, that there is another way for them to remember. But what can I do if I can't go any further."
"How are you certain that defeating those shadows is not the only solution, that there is another?" asked the eldest of the siblings.
"Because of Junpei. By some miracle, he remembers me as the leader of SEES! And I'm sure that the tower has something to do with why Shinjiro and Ryoji remember me in the same way."
"But what if they were meant to remember you from the start?"
"I know that they aren't supposed to remember, because no one is supposed to remember me. No one but you guys, Ryoji, and him. But for some reason, Shinjiro, and now, Junpei, know who I was."
"But is this not what you wanted?" Margaret asked. "For them to remember you?"
Minako looked down pensively, "There's nothing about me for them to remember…"
"But you still wish for them to know."
"…The fact that I'm still wishing – that all of it was real – was the main reason why I wanted to forget." Minako slumped at the chair, facing Igor – who only watched the scene in front of him. "I've told so many lies, that I'm starting to believe them."
"If you tell them the truth," Igor said, surprising all of them, "By disclosing the truth, you will not only be freeing yourself, but you will also have a chance to mend your own damaged psyche. Once the truth is out, it will also be easier for you to complete your undertakings. Of course, this is only my opinion."
"And the first I've heard," the girl said, smiling. "I'll keep that in mind." The girl stood, and gave them a bow before she left.
"If I let you outside, would you stop staring?"
"I am sure that Elizabeth and Theodore would circumvent, even without the Master's permission."
" 'Tis a trait you share with them, is it not?"
A light flush colored Margaret's cheeks, "Yes, Master." She glanced at her siblings, daring them to laugh.
"I'm home!" Minako announced. Ken and Koromaru greeted her. She dragged herself and lied down on the sofa across the male.
"You look tired, Minako-san."
"My butt hurts from sitting too much..."
"Did you have dinner already?" The girl gave a thumbs-up. "I see... Well, are you going to visit Bunkichi-san tomorrow?"
"Why'd you ask?"
"Teddie suggested we all visit him tomorrow. So are you going?"
"I'm not sure, Bunkichi-san is in the ICU so I doubt all of us can visit him at once."
"ICU?" Ken said worriedly. "What happened? Do you think he'll be alright?"
"His organs were not functioning properly... but I think he'll be alright."
"That doesn't really sound good. If we can't visit, maybe we can help out at their book shop."
Minako considered the idea for a while then responded with a, "Sure. Why not?" She rolled and got off the sofa. "I'm going to my room now. Good night."
"Good night."
But instead of going to her room. The girl went to the rooftop. She sat down and gazed at the waxing moon. "Makoto." She closed her eyes and waited for a reply, but all she got was the kiss of the cold wind on her cheek. She never knew of the boy who was listening next to her. "I guess you already know about Bunkichi-san..."
"Yeah..." Makoto looked down ruefully.
"I just want you to know that I'm trying my best to make sure he gets his memories back. I will do everything in power just for him to be back to his old self again. You hear that?"
"Yeah."
"I have to go now, see you."
"Hey Mina-mina?" the boy called when he noticed that the girl wasn't listening to her. He poked her cheek and called her again, "Mina-mina!"
"I told you to stop calling me that," the brown-haired girl said, pouting. She grabbed the blue-haired boy's finger to stop his attack. "What is it?"
"Are your parents coming to the recital choir?"
"Yup," the girl said, frowning.
"Aren't you happy that they're going?"
The girl bit her lip and scratched her palms. She looked anxiously at her friend and said, "I think they shouldn't go. I think we shouldn't go, either."
The boy studied his friend. His countenance grew concerned when he noticed that the usual smile on the girl's face refused to show. "What's wrong?"
Minako looked up and gazed at him for a while. After moments of staring, she shook her head and beamed nervously. "I just had a really bad dream last night."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"It's only about a robot and a monster," the girl shrugged. "They only fight in TV shows, right?" Young Makoto nodded. "So that dream won't happen, right?" He nodded again to assure his friend. The girl sighed in relief.
"Are you okay now, Minako-chan?" the boy asked.
"Yup." Images from the dream flashed before her eyes once again: moon, bridge, car, blood, and two adversaries in the midst of battle. She brushed the thought and mentally said to herself, It's just a dream. It won't happen.
Sorry this took a while, and is not that long, and is meh or something really frustrating. My brain doesn't want to cooperate with me, you see.
Anyway, thank you readers. I will make it up to you guys; I just don't know when.
Asahar4: I know... What have I done to her!? ~sighs~ She'll man up, eventually... I think.
Megami Tensei Emeperatriz: You promising make me feel even more ashamed. Thanks though.