A/N: I am going to be working full-time soon, so the rate at which I get chapters out is probably going to suffer. I know it wasn't that fast to start with. But, I was consistently slow! I think every chapter past the prologue set was roughly in a window between 10 to 20 days, except for one chapter that somehow took a month. Anyways, there's your heads up, and it may not be that bad, I'm just not sure how good my time management skills will be. Back on topic… picking which social links to explore is a painful process and one I am not good at. I am also trying to make the summary more appealing, but that has never been my strength. This chapter has a lot of information in it and the subtext as well. I hope you notice some of the connections with previous chapters. I know this author's note is disjointed, but that's what happens when I've been thinking about the story for too long and the fact that my beta hasn't read over it yet. This chapter is on the longer side, but it isn't really a trend yet. There is some character development and a lot of things in motion this time around. And I am now out of stuff to say now, so super late Happy New Year since this is the first chapter in 2014!
Thank you to my beta, rEpose.
Final Update: Added my beta's changes in.
Reader Reviews:
Yoshikunitsu: Yeah, it could take a while for his abilities to truly manifest. We did see way back in Chapter 8 that Minato could sense the Magician Arcana just before it appeared. And there is some foreshadowing in this chapter as well. I am eagerly awaiting for Pharos to reappear as well because the possibilities there are quite real. Actually, there are so many that I haven't been able to narrow it down yet, to be honest. Thanks for the encouragement.
Sir-Godot: Thanks for pointing that out! I'm glad that I'm doing some good things with the story, and I did struggle a bit with thinking whether I should show every character's reaction to the immediate aftermath of Minato's rash decisions. I think I decided to include it in because the possible repercussions down the line would fit better if there was some basis. Not that I know exactly how things will unfold just yet, but I think that was one of the main reasons that I included everyone's reaction and hoping that it will work out. If you have any suggestions on any further common holes in time travel plots I would be glad to hear them so I can avoid the pitfalls.
Agreed on the part about Hamuko. She is really the driving force of the story and it helps that she is malleable enough so that the appearance of Minato can change things without it being too implausible. I think one of the common major themes with her character through the original game and this story is that she has an impossibly large amount of things to juggle even when compared to other S.E.E.S. members. Of course, that can lead to a myriad number of outcomes, and none of them are good. Thank you for the informative review as usual.
DeathChaos25: Good to see you again! I'm glad college hasn't made you forget about this project of mine. And yes, Minato is struggling to figure out what to do socially. He always was the reserved type, but he doesn't have the convenience of the Wild Card making him compatible with everyone he meets. Just like anyone else he'll have his mistakes during conversations. You'll see what Mitsuru is up to in this chapter. Still not sure about the social link aspect between Hamuko and Minato. I'm not really sure how I would approach it to be honest as on one hand he could get caught red-handed doing something that breaks part of his wall down versus a good old social link. I hope I haven't written myself into a corner, but I'm bouncing ideas in my head. And pacing is still a work in progress for sure. Thanks for catching that mistake! I fixed it when I saw your review.
Guest: Here's the update you were waiting for. It is surprising to me that I've managed to get out 19 of these now. It only seems like yesterday that I was still wondering why I made the first part of the prologue so short. I wouldn't really call it a harem since it is really just more about Minato trying and sometimes failing to build relationships with those around him. Yeah, Akihiko is a more complicated character and more of a challenge to write than I first thought.
Ryuken-Sogetsu: Hmm, at this point I would say fusion raids are unlikely because Minato's powers are still on the weaker side and things could get a bit hard to write if he was suddenly busting out fusion raids with every party member. There's a good reason that he was able to summon Penthesilea at the same time as Take-Minakata, but I can't say it yet. Thanks for the review.
Laxard: No worries about your English. Minato doesn't seem to really like Junpei too much yet it seems, and it is an arm injury if I am remembering right. Minato will probably help his teammates at some point, but on his own terms, whatever they may be.
Chapter 19: Uncertainty
May 23rd, Saturday (Tatsumi Memorial Hospital, After School)
Minato P.O.V.
It was probably the smell that first told Minato that he was back in the hospital, with the bevy of odors that he had no choice but to inhale while walking down the spacious hallway. As Minato was in no hurry, he dragged his feet a bit as the nurse who eventually led him to his room constantly looked back to see if he was still following her. After they had reached his room, she closed the wooden door abruptly and left Minato alone to wait for the arrival of the doctor who had performed the operation on his shoulder last month. Minato swung his legs back and forth out of boredom and observed how the floors were polished to such a degree that he could swear that he could almost see his reflection. Why Mitsuru and Akihiko had both decided to escort him here was worth pondering about, but for now he would just let the chips fall where they may, as the doctor knocked on his room's door.
The doctor's examination of his shoulder had been thorough and annoying, as he asked Minato several mundane questions, and prodded his finger at seemingly random points on his arm. With that all said and done he explained to Minato that the injury was taking longer than usual to heal.
"Have you done any strenuous activity since we fitted you with the sling?" the doctor asked in a manner that suggested he already knew the answer.
"I would have to admit a little bit," Minato replied glumly. His actions on the monorail mission had given him a setback in his return date to action.
"You're looking at around three to four weeks for a fully recovery," he said and scribbled some notes in his file. "And remember, this is only if you allow it to properly heal. That's all I have for you today."
He left and Minato closed the door as he took off the flimsy hospital gown and clumsily dressed himself back into his normal clothes. Before leaving the room he looked at the calendar and saw that he would not be ready for the next full moon phase. He had been foolish to think he could throw his body around without any repercussions. Eventually, Minato walked back to the receptionist area. One look at his face seemed to tell Mitsuru and Akihiko all they needed to know about how it had went. Akihiko stood up and immediately said, "I can already guess that you didn't get good news. Look, all of us know you saved the team last time. It's our turn to take care of things."
"Three to four more weeks," Minato muttered, and shaking his head in disgust. He barely registered what Akihiko had just said to him.
"Do not worry if you are unable to participate in the next major battle, Arisato-kun. You need to rest." Mitsuru gave him a slight frown as she said this, maybe to discourage him from thinking otherwise.
"Well, let's get out of here then," Minato said to his two senpai. "I don't really want to stick around here any longer than I have to."
"You and Akihiko can go on ahead," Mitsuru replied. "I need to take care of a matter before I return to the dormitory."
"Alright, see you later, Mitsuru," Akihiko said and steered Minato toward the exit of the hospital.
Mitsuru P.O.V.
Ikutsuki's lanky figure came into view as he stepped out of an office. He recognized Mitsuru right away and immediately walked towards her with a jovial expression on his face. She had arranged for this meeting because she wanted to vent her suspicions to someone she trusted other than her father, who was always too busy to talk with her.
"Ah, Mitsuru," he said in that comfortable drawl of his and adjusting the lapel on his jacket. "What is it that you wanted to speak with me about?"
"Chairman, my father has always reiterated to me that I should trust you completely regarding any and all matters involving S.E.E.S.," she began, and Ikutsuki's facial expression became serious.
"But of course, Mitsuru. Your father and I have collaborated for many years and have the utmost trust in each other. Since we're discussing such a sensitive topic, why don't we go somewhere private?"
"Indeed, I neglected the fact that anyone could hear us in an open space like this," she said. They went back into the office that Ikutsuki had appeared from, which was rather plain in design. Mitsuru saw how the walls were scarcely adorned and how everything seemed to be an opaque shade of white, except for the various manila folders that held information about the hospital's operations.
"So, what is it that you wanted to talk with me about?" Ikutsuki gently said as he sat down on a squeaky office chair.
Mitsuru cleared her throat and said, "I am concerned that there may be a spy in our group. I do not have reasonable evidence yet, but my intuition tells me that a member of our team is not quite right, for a lack of a better term."
"That is a very serious accusation," Ikutsuki replied after a long pause, with wrinkles lining his forehead. "Mitsuru, you do realize that accusing one of the team members under your leadership may cause undue turmoil if you are incorrect. Even if your hypothesis is correct, weakening the team would be disadvantageous for your chances of succeeding in ridding the Dark Hour."
"Yes, I am well aware of that, Chairman," Mitsuru said, "However, what if my assumption is correct and there is an informant in our ranks? Not uncovering him could sabotage our entire mission before we get much further."
Mitsuru kept herself calm and collected on the outside, but on the inside she felt a whirlwind of emotions as she wondered if this had been the right decision. What if the Chairman was correct? Her decision to accuse Minato of being a spy could lead to chaos in S.E.E.S., and after all she had gone through to gather a large enough team capable of exploring Tartarus.
"Did you say, 'him?" Ikutsuki momentarily took off his glasses and took out a soft cloth to clean his glasses. Mitsuru did not recall the last time Ikutsuki had looked so serious. "I am surmising that you are referring to Minato, am I correct?"
"Y-yes," Mitsuru said with a stutter. She was surprised at the change in the Chairman's demanor.
"From the report that you wrote about the monorail incident, it is reasonable to suspect that he is hiding something," Ikutsuki said without changing his tone. "However, I do not want you to act on mere speculation, as we have worked so hard to gather the group together. We need concrete evidence and do not want to do anything rash. I'm certain that your father would agree."
"I understand. Thank you for understanding, Chairman." Mitsuru felt some relief, because this issue had bothered her since the monorail incident. The Chairman was someone who her father trusted enough to put as adviser of S.E.E.S., so there was no reason to doubt the eccentric man.
"No problem, Mitsuru. I'm glad that we talked about this issue. I will be certain to watch Minato more carefully from now on." The Chairman gave her a smile and saw her off, for which Mitsuru was glad, as the atmosphere inside the small office had been rather stuffy.
(Iwatodai Dorm, Evening)
Minato P.O.V.
"Yo, 'sup dudes?" Junpei said from the couch as Minato and Akihiko entered the dorm.
"Junpei, call everyone together for a meeting," Akihiko said with a firm tone, "We need to talk."
With that, Junpei was off to the races, hollering up the stairs for Yukari and Hamuko to come downstairs.
"Senpai, I know we're always trying to add more members to our group," Minato said after Junpei was out of earshot. "But, we should be aware of why they want to join us in the first place."
"Yeah, I'll keep it in mind, but one of the reasons that we try to recruit members is for their own protection," Akihiko replied, looking rather thoughtful. "Though, judging from what you said on our way back here, you have no problems with Yamagishi."
"She's a bit on the shy side, but dependable from what I've seen. If we just keep Junpei away from her I think she would be a great addition, assuming she wants to join us."
"Well, here comes everyone else. Let's see what they think," Akihiko said.
Hamuko bounded down the stairs with a less energetic Yukari trailing behind her. Junpei brought up the rear. Everyone sat around the dining table with a disorderly rumble of chairs sliding in all directions.
"I'll get right to it. It seems we've found another Persona-user. She's a junior that goes to our school and her name is Fuuka Yamagishi." Akihiko seemed to look around for some recognition in the faces of Yukari and Hamuko.
"Oh, that girl," Yukari said without much enthusiasm. "I don't really know much about her because she's rarely in class due to illness."
"Yeah, she's in class 2-E, so we don't really know much about her, senpai," Hamuko said.
"Whoa, are we trying to recruit a girl who likes to cut classes?" Junpei said enthusiastically.
"She's sick most of the time, Junpei. Are you even listening?" Yukari rolled her eyes a bit and met Minato's for a second before she looked away.
"Oh, then never mind. Forget I asked," Junpei said, sounding rather disappointed.
"How did we find out about her, senpai?" Hamuko asked. "I mean, it seems a bit odd that we could just find out that someone can use a Persona if we don't find them during the Dark Hour.
"Minato met her in the hospital during one of his visits there, and she seemed to have the potential. Though, if she's sick most of the time, maybe she's just not cut out for battle. Tartarus is too dangerous for someone who isn't in peak condition." Akihiko's enthusiasm seemed to have deteriorated rather quickly. "I already had an evoker made for her, too."
"We shouldn't give up that easily," Hamuko said. "We need all the people we can get."
"Yeah, we need more women on the team." Junpei's one track mind had already recovered and he sounded more than a little perverted. "I was also hoping to nurse her back to health, if you know what I mean."
An awkward silence permeated the air and the conversation grinded to a halt.
"Hey, Minato," Yukari said to steer the conversation away from the gutter, "How did your trip to the hospital go? What did the doctor say?"
"Not too good," he said. "I overdid it the last time out and the doctor says I'll be out for another 3 to 4 weeks." His response caused both girls to look at him with concern while Junpei seemed borderline indifferent.
"Don't worry, dude. I'll hold down the fort while you take your time to heal up," Junpei replied, but looking excited.
"Hope you feel better soon, Minato," Hamuko mentioned. "Your health should be your main concern, after all."
"I feel sort of bad because you would've been better by now if it weren't for us," Yukari added.
"I'll get over it. Thanks for the concern, guys." Minato, tried not to be bothered by all of the pity he was getting.
May 24th, Sunday (Hagakure Ramen, Daytime)
Hamuko P.O.V.
"Thanks for meeting me on such short notice, Hamuko," Rio said as they sat down in the pair of the best seats in the restaurant. It was a slow day at Hagakure, so they had been able to secure the best seats in the house, which provided a direct view into the kitchen area. They watched behind the weathered, wooden counter as the chef prepared their ramen in expert fashion and Hamuko's mouth began to water in response.
"No problem, Rio," Hamuko said, "I've been wanting to get out of the dorm for a while now. It gets really cooped up in there."
"What's it like at your dorm?" she replied, as they ordered a pair of ramen bowls, "It's a co-ed dorm right? I've only lived with my parents up until now."
"Haha, yeah," Hamuko said and laughing a little. "But, it's a bit unusual because everyone likes to keep to themselves, and that's probably because we already see each other during school hours. People at school ask me all the time what happens in my dorm just to try to spread all these stupid rumors. Honestly, none of the guys really bother the girls, and as long as Mitsuru-senpai is there, everyone has to behave."
"It must be a bit intimidating to live in the same dorm as the Student President. She seems pretty hard to approach any time that I see her," Rio intoned.
"You get used to it after a while," Hamuko told her. "Why did you want to meet up here anyhow?"
Rio looked a bit embarrassed and said, "Well, I don't usually come here alone, and I really wanted a bowl after seeing a ramen commercial on TV."
"I get the same urge too!" Hamuko laughed, and it seemed to put Rio much more at ease. "I see someone eating ramen on TV and it looks so good! It almost feels like that I have to eat whatever they're eating, otherwise my craving won't go away."
"Some tennis club we are, huh?" Rio joined in on Hamuko's laughter and the few people in the restaurant stared at them, dumbfounded.
(Velvet Room, Daytime)
Minato P.O.V.
"Welcome to the Velvet Room," Margaret greeted him with a practiced monotone.
"Where are Elizabeth and Igor, if you don't mind me asking?" Minato said, looking around. He had noticed that the younger attendant and the long-nosed master were not present.
"They are on an errand that does not concern you," Margaret replied drily.
Minato felt awkward since he wasn't really on speaking terms with Elizabeth's elder sister. Of all the times that he had been here she always seemed preoccupied with the memory compendium and barely saying anything when she wasn't. With no one else present, Minato felt like there wasn't much he would get done here and decided that he should leave.
As Minato turned to head towards the exit he felt Margaret's eyes boring into his shoulder so he stopped momentarily. "Um, is there something that I can help you with, Margaret?"
For a moment she didn't say anything, but then she shook her head side-to-side in dismay, causing her perfectly coiffed hair to bounce slowly in reaction. Her eyes dropped their steely demeanor and her expression relaxed as she said, "Your visit here while I was alone cannot be a coincidence. Meeting with you must mean that fate has decreed that we have a discussion. Furthermore, since you are here of your own will, your heart must have also wanted this occasion to pass. Am I wrong?"
Minato gave her a slight nod, partly because the intensity with which she was looking at him made him afraid to decline her offer. It wasn't like she was wrong in her assumptions, because Minato had wondered about Margaret's purpose in the Velvet Room. Besides Hamuko, Margaret was the only other person he had never met before, so he was naturally curious. There just never seemed to be an opening until now because Margaret had seemed hard to approach. He took his seat again and something akin to a smile played on her lips.
"No matter how much I sift through your memories I cannot reconcile the reason why Elizabeth decided to forego her duties as a Velvet Room attendant and attempt to rescue you before your return to this room." Margaret crossed her arms in her lap and Minato could tell that this had been bothering her for a while.
"That's something you should ask your younger sister," Minato said in reply. Margaret's inquiry helped explain some of the reason why she seemed distant to him. She must've felt he was responsible for her sister leaving her duties and the Velvet Room.
"I have already attempted that, Minato," she said. "My sister, being the type of whimsical person she is, told me that it was a fairy tale."
"That sounds just like her," he answered with a smile and took a more somber tone as he said, "I wouldn't know exactly why she would try to save me. If I had to take a guess, it had to do with our bond with each other."
"Your bond with her?" asked Margaret. "I'm not sure that I understand."
Minato figured this would be a lengthy discussion, so he tried to sit upright and not slouch in his chair so much. Margaret seemed like a stickler for professionalism, based on his impressions of her so far.
"Igor always talks to his guests about the strength of social links," Minato explained, to the best of his ability, "After all, they do form the basis for strengthening the power of the Personas used in battle. Yet in the process I think the more important thing is the bond that's formed during the process of getting to know people. When I had the power of Death and the Wild Card it was a handicap in forming what I felt were genuine bonds with others because I always knew what they wanted to hear. This time around I really don't know what people want to hear at times, and even though I'm making mistakes, I feel I don't have any ulterior motives."
Margaret seemed to mull over his words for a while as he talked about his motivations and reasoning. After he had finished she said, "So, would the bond that you formed with my sister be only because of the fact that your goal was to strengthen your social links?" She couldn't hide the disappointment that tinged her voice.
Minato wondered how to answer this and felt that honesty would serve him best. "The relationship that I had with Elizabeth never turned into a social link. I think that's why I felt our bond was one that wasn't sullied by anything. Of course, I could be mistaken."
A gentle rustling noise met Minato's ears as Margaret rose from her seat and she seemed to survey the room. She took a couple of measured steps towards one of the twin doors that were behind her. "Do you know where each of these doors lead toward?" she inquired of him.
"No, not really," he said. "It had never really crossed his mind; he had assumed the doors were just used by the Velvet Room attendants."
"Each of these doors lead to the minds of a potential guest of the Velvet Room. As you can see, there are only two right now. One of them goes to our other guest, Hamuko, and the one I'm standing at is yours."
"Did something step in or out of either door?" Minato said. He wasn't really sure what Margaret's point was.
"The shape and configuration of the Velvet Room conforms itself to the needs of our guests," she said. "Elizabeth was the one that stepped forth from Hamuko's door when she first entered the Velvet Room and I was the one that entered from your door. This is my reminder that I want to follow the strand of fate that will be spun for you. Perhaps this is the start of our own bond. I wish you well, Minato."
Margaret was smiling at him, a rare sight indeed. Maybe this hadn't been such a waste of time after all.
May 25th, Monday (Gekkoukan High, Lunchtime)
Hamuko P.O.V.
A student from Class 2-E came barging in on Hamuko's classroom, completely ignoring Ms. Toriumi, who had paused in the middle of reading one of her favorite poems to the class.
"Exam results are up," he shouted on top of his lungs, and quickly ran off before anyone could react.
"Well, there goes any hope of keeping your attention before lunchtime," Ms. Toriumi said, "You're all dismissed."
There was a mad dash for the sliding doors that led out of the classroom. Hamuko and Yukari were wedged against the chalkboard as all hell broke loose with students pushing and shoving each other out of the way.
"That's enough!" Ms. Toriumi cried out, "Settle down, a few of you go out at a time. Use the rear entrance as well."
They had all forgotten about the other door which led to the hallway because everyone was too focused on getting to the exam results bulletin board as fast as possible. Everyone looked at each other a bit sheepishly and quietly went out single file towards the end of the hallway where the results were.
After a while, Hamuko managed to steer herself to see her results and felt good about herself, as she had managed to place within the top 15. Considering the amount of cramming and her general amount of procrastination this was a coup. She turned her attention to see what everyone else had gotten. Yukari had scored above average and Junpei was somewhere in the nether regions on the results sheet that wasn't even stapled to the bulletin board. On the other hand, Minato had scored first with a perfect score.
"A perfect score?" Hamuko said incredulously and looking around for Minato, who wasn't in the throng of students.
"Yeah, we knew he was smart, but this is nuts," Yukari added, wide-eyed in disbelief. "I should ask Minato to study with me when we have our next exams."
"Let's not talk about exam scores anymore, shall we?" Junpei cringed in pain and shut his eyes, maybe hoping that this would make his scores go away.
"Don't worry, Junpei. It'll be okay," Hamuko told him consolingly. "You'll do better next time."
"I sort of doubt that, Hamuko," Yukari mocked. "He spends his time playing video games all day."
"Low blow, Yuka-tan," Junpei said as his shoulders sagged comically in defeat. "Don't kick a man when he's down."
"Are the scores for the senior class down on the first floor?" Hamuko asked. "I don't see them here."
"Yeah, it's already bad with only the junior's scores being up here, Hamuko," Yukari said. "Just imagine if both scores were here, we would never get to see our scores."
"I wouldn't have a problem with that," Junpei chimed in.
The gaggle of students around them continued to talk to each other about their test scores when the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. The general consensus seemed to be one of shock that Minato had managed to get a perfect score, and it seemed a critical mass of girls wondered how such a cutie could be so smart. When she heard this Hamuko choked on her own spit and Yukari thumped on her the back a couple of times.
(Naganaki Shrine, After School)
Hamuko P.O.V.
Maiko cheerfully greeted Hamuko the moment the redhead had ascended the last couple of steps to the shrine. Hamuko had decided to visit since it had been a while since they had last talked to each other. They played on the monkey bars for a long while, and the sun began to set in the horizon.
"Maiko, you should head back home soon," Hamuko told her as she noticed that it would get dark outside soon.
"But I don't want to go home yet," Maiko complained with her bottom lip quivering. "I like it here."
"I'll come back to play with you, just like today," Hamuko said and gave her a quick hug which Maiko reciprocated. "Why wouldn't you want to go home though?"
"My parents fight a lot and I don't like being home when they're arguing." Maiko's carefree attitude was replaced with an irascible one. "I tell them that we should all be just happy and not fight all the time, but they never listen to me. I think they'll divorce."
Hamuko was a bit shocked at the revelation, but the pieces did seem to fit together a bit. Normally a child wouldn't be in a playground by herself, but this must be Maiko's attempt at escape. It made Hamuko angry that Maiko's parents would even let their child stay out this late after school with no supervision when there seemed to be loads of unsavory people in this city. Frankly, it was a bit sad, and Hamuko felt a surge of pity for the child, but didn't let it show up on her face. Maiko didn't really seem like the type that wanted people to feel sorry for her.
"Do you think they hate me?" Maiko seemed perturbed that she was even asking this question.
"Of course not, Maiko. Don't be silly," Hamuko reassured her and tried to choose her words carefully. "I'm sure they both care for you. It's just that your parents need to work a few things out, but I can't say for certain they won't divorce."
"Yeah…" Maiko looked off into the distance. "Make sure to come and play with me again!"
"I promise!" Hamuko replied, and saw her off.
That was when the familiar sensation of having a card forming in front of her eyes occurred again. It seemed she had successfully managed to forge a new social link, and she patiently waited for the card to turn and reveal its identity. When it flipped, the image she saw on the card was of the Hanged Man Arcana that she knew well from watching Minato use it to summon his Persona. Without warning, Hamuko felt a crippling headache that caused her to clutch the back of her head. The image on the card flipped itself upside down and she heard a noise that could only be described as a window shattering violently. The picture in the card began to warp grotesquely and the card itself began to melt away even though she tried to snatch at it. She felt no warmth of energy that usually accompanied her social links, instead feeling a dull chill down her spine even though the weather wasn't cold at all. A visit to the Velvet Room seemed in order to figure out what had just happened.
May 29th, Friday (Velvet Room, After School)
Hamuko P.O.V.
It had been a hectic couple of days in between tennis club, library committee, and grinding through the Arqa block during the Dark Hour at Tartarus. Hamuko let out a giant yawn as Igor and Elizabeth welcomed her to the Velvet Room. Igor gave her a small snort of disapproval through his long nose. Normally Hamuko would try to be more polite, but Akihiko had pushed the team to get to the next dead-end as fast as possible and she was exhausted. Getting to the 40th floor was no small task, and finding another one of these old documents didn't really seem like much of a consolation prize for her efforts. No one on the team could make much sense of what was written in them, and Hamuko had pondered whether she should throw them away.
Remembering why she was visiting the Velvet Room in the first place, she said, "Igor, I was wondering if you could tell me about reversed tarot cards."
"The reversed arcana represents the opposite values of the normal tarot card," Igor answered, joining the tips of his gloved fingers had learned over the course of her numerous visits that this gesture meant that Igor was deep in his thoughts. "If an arcana is associated with action, then the opposite would be of paralysis."
"I'm guessing that isn't very good," Hamuko said. "What would a reversed card mean for me though?"
"Indeed, it isn't a good sign," Elizabeth clarified for her. "In your case, if the position of a card was reversed that would mean that you are in danger of breaking off a social link. If that were to occur it would be difficult for you to regain that connection. Regardless, my master is impressed by your ability to nurture your social links, so do not be overly concerned."
"But when I tried to form a new social link of the Hanged Man Arcana, the card reversed itself and disappeared." Hamuko's agitation was evident in her voice.
"An interesting phenomenon," Igor mused. "I cannot recall a similar occurrence, can you Elizabeth?"
"I'm afraid not, master," Elizabeth said. "It is peculiar that the social link is broken without even forming itself in the first place."
"This is purely conjecture, my dear guest," Igor continued with his bulging eyes locked onto Hamuko. "But I feel that you are unable to form a social link with the affinity of the Hanged Man Arcana. If circumstances change then please do inform us, but for now it may be wise to focus your energy in increasing the strength of your social links in other avenues."
Hamuko felt frustrated that Igor couldn't explain why she was unable to form a social link with Maiko. She had promised to spend more time with her, but if she wouldn't yield a social link maybe she should just go elsewhere. At the same time, she shuddered at the thought that she planned to allocate her time based on the usefulness of a relationship. This though raised a lot of uncomfortable questions in her mind, so she attempted to change the subject. That's when she recalled the fact that the Shadows she had fought seemed to all be adorned with masks with numbers on them.
"Igor, I noticed that the masks on the Shadows seem to have Roman Numerals on them. Is that also related to the arcana?"
"An astute observation and an accurate one," Igor said, sounding rather pleased. "Each arcana has different attributes and abilities, as you have already personally experienced. Identifying the arcana of your enemies could lead to easier engagements during your journey."
"Thank you for the advice," Hamuko said with some finality. It was one of the few times that Igor provided her with clear and useful knowledge that she could use right away. Of course, during the heat of battle it could be hard to see what the Roman Numeral on a Shadow's mask is, but it was useful if she was facing a Shadow for the first time and Mitsuru couldn't identify its weakness fast enough. There had been an unfortunate battle where a Shadow reflected her ice spell towards Akihiko and that had led to Hamuko vigorously apologizing afterwards.
"Until we meet again, Hamuko," Elizabeth said to her.
Hamuko left the Velvet Room with more questions than she had entered it with. Though she had to admit she enjoyed her visits there. Elizabeth had really grown on her a bit during the time they had known each other. As per her request, Hamuko had led her around Paulownia Mall a couple of days ago. She had seemed genuinely excited to see the sights and bought two pairs of earrings, generously giving her one set. Of course, this led to the question of why Elizabeth had so much money in the first place, to which she answered it was from working in the Velvet Room for so long. One thing that caught Hamuko's attention at the time was how Elizabeth said that the water fountain spirits in her world really worked. Hamuko was a bit skeptical at this, but dropped in some spare change in the center fountain on her way back to the dorm.
(Gekkoukan High, After School)
Yukari P.O.V.
Yukari felt irritated that she had somehow ended up with cleanup duty for the archery club. It wasn't like she was the newest member to join the team. These entitled freshmen really needed to be taught properly on how to clean things up. She grunted as she lifted some of the equipment to put back in the storage shed. It took a while, but she managed to pick up after everyone, and was wondering if she had forgotten any of her stuff when she felt someone was staring at her. Yukari turned her face to see who was loitering near the archery fields and saw none other than Minato approaching her.
"Oh, hey," Yukari said as she picked up her belongings off the grassy field and tried not to face Minato, "Why are you still hanging out at school?" This was getting rather awkward because she had been prepared to yell at whoever was stalking her. She had really grown tired of guys trying to ask her out and was ready to shoot down whoever it was.
"Hey Yukari," he replied, and walking up to her side and looking unassuming, "I just needed to take care of some things and I noticed you were here as I was about to leave. But since we're both still here, mind if we walk together back to the dorm?"
"Huh?" That was Yukari's response in a nutshell.
"I don't mind if you don't want to, but I thought it would be nice to have someone to talk to on the trip back. I never got that intro tour that you gave Hamuko, after all."
Yukari contemplated what to say, considering how tongues would waggle if she was seen with Minato again. Still, she decided to tease him and said, "Well, you didn't get that tour because you went with Akihiko instead. I was going to show you around too, you know."
"Yeah, I regret it," he replied, and looked like he was experiencing a bad memory. "His light jog to school turned out to be a mini marathon around the city on my first morning to school."
"Really?" Yukari laughed at the idea of Minato being forced to run around the city, chasing Akihiko around. "Oh well, I guess you learned your lesson then."
They began to walk closer together towards the corridor that held the old persimmon tree when they heard an annoying laugh coming from a pair of girls. When Yukari and Minato passed by them she could easily tell that they were making fun of someone and didn't want to stick around to hear it. She pushed Minato through the door back into the main building, with probably a bit more force than necessary, as he stumbled a bit.
"Sorry that I pushed you, but I hate people like that," she muttered to Minato as they neared the shoe lockers. "Why do people have to bully others? Most people already have it hard enough as it is without people piling on. That's why I hate rumors, because they usually turn into bullying sooner or later." Yukari didn't even know why she was blabbering all of this to Minato who seemed hardly fazed by what had happened. She really wanted to know sometimes what was going through that head of his.
They walked in silence and didn't say anything until the train had almost arrived at the rail stop closest to the dorm. That's when Minato said, "I don't like it either, Yukari, but is running away really the best solution?"
"What would you do then?" she seethed. She felt that Minato's reply was rather sanctimonious. He had no idea what it was like to be bullied and shunned by people. Yukari and her mother had to deal with unending waves of prejudice for years because the Kirijo group used her father as a scapegoat for the explosion ten years ago. It was a lucky day if people threw eggs at their windows. When she was a child, she always wondered why her father's tombstone always seemed defaced and why the families of those killed threw insults at her mother. She had lost count of the number of times that they had to move around to different cities because it always seemed like someone knew that they were related to her late father. It had been truly ironic when she had enrolled at Gekkoukan and ended up living in the same dorm as the Kirijo heir.
"You have no idea, do you? You don't know what it's like when everyone is against you!" Yukari hands curled into fists, but she managed to not slap him. Instead, she stormed off the train once it stopped and left for the dorm as fast as she could. She didn't even care at all of the glances of strangers with their mouths agape at her.