A/N: It's been a while since I've covered a full moon operation and writing this one was quite a blast. Well, anything's a blast when Strega is in it and I've made their presence more well pronounced during this operation as well. Someone pointed out in a previous review that the story is moving along to that point where tensions between the members of S.E.E.S. are rising and that's what I've attempted to convey here, or at least the 'calm before the storm' moments. The next chapter in particular will also have this theme and will serve as an interlude of sorts.

For those who haven't played P3, fall/autumn is the arc where things take a downturn. Most of you will know what lies ahead but I have planned some extra events that showcase more of Strega and shake S.E.E.S. up even more.

Hope you enjoy this one.

Parting ways with Junpei was a double edged sword for Chidori. On one hand, it was a huge relief since she didn't have to keep up the facade of being interested in things he had to say (unless it was when he spoke of his exploits during the Dark Hour in which case he had her full attention). On the other hand, it was bittersweet, like arriving at the end of a book or movie that you had to wait at least a year for. She rather enjoyed her talks with Junpei and found it amusing when he did his little skits, even if she didn't understand what he was going on about at all.

But now that he had told her what she needed to know, what Takaya instructed her to find out from him, there would be no need to see him anymore. His use as an information source was done and dusted. Whether or not the information itself was accurate was none of her concern; her job was to subdue him and get him to talk.

Which I have done with no regrets, she thought as she entered the area behind Port Island Station. She had ensured that Junpei had truly left the station before she disappeared into the alleyways and waiting for him to do so took longer than expected. Dusk was fast approaching and in the dank, cigarette-infested alleyways, shadows were beginning their feast on the slivers of sunlight that remained. As she walked, Chidori wondered if Takaya would be angry at her for turning up late. She thought not, though it was possible that he would be. Ever since he had learnt that S.E.E.S. had survived the fight with the Shadow in the underground arena, she noticed Takaya becoming more temperamental. It was apparent in Jin too but on a much lower scale. Chidori claimed that it was because they had both overdosed themselves on those suppressant pills but Takaya was adamant in saying that it was because his little foray into the underground arena didn't achieve what it was supposed to achieve. She had the faintest idea of what Takaya meant by that since if she remembered right, the objective was to let S.E.E.S. know that they were doing the wrong thing by destroying the full moon Shadows.

And wasn't that met?

She shrugged off the thought and crossed the courtyard into a narrow passageway. After a few steps, she made a right turn into another narrow passageway and entered the door to the rundown condominium on her left. Compared to some of the other buildings in the area, which, when placed beside some of the more modern buildings, looked like a bunch of poor children in second hand clothing, this one still looked respectable enough to warrant a pass on being demolished. That being said, the interior was in need of a major renovation. As Chidori passed through the unremarkable lobby and climbed the flight of stairs to the third floor (she could have taken the elevator but it was out of operation and even if it were working, she wouldn't have taken it anyway), she heard and felt the wooden flooring groan with every step. Saw the dark green paint peeling off the walls, the layers of cobwebs hanging in the corners of the roof, the scattered holes in the roof that had faint trickles of light cascading down. Smelt the musky scent of aging wood and stagnant air. It was a wonder that anybody could stand to live here, especially when there were cleaner and much more homely apartments just a few blocks away, yet Chidori didn't care. To her, this was home.

At least for now anyway.

Once she reached the end of the corridor, she knocked on the door once, paused, and then knocked three more times. A voice from inside told her to come in and she pushed the door open, revealing Takaya and Jin. The former was standing by the only window in the room, watching nightfall sweep Port Island Station while the latter was sitting on the bed, typing rapidly on his laptop.

"So, how was your little date?" Takaya asked without turning around. "Did you extract any information from him?"

"I did," Chidori said. "But most of what he told me were lies and information we already know."

Jin stopped typing and looked up. "Figures. Well that's what you'd expect from targeting the biggest idiot in the group."

"Indeed it is," Takaya said. "However, it is the idiot's trust that we need for us to make our next move." He paused for a moment, as if he remembered something important. "Tell me Chidori, for I am curious, what did he say?"

"He claimed to be the leader of their group. And one of the strongest. Which of course we know is false since Arisato is the one who leads them."

Jin snickered though after a few seconds, he couldn't hold it back any longer and guffawed. "Really? He told you that? Man, what a retard. Little Miss Kirijo must be desperate if she's employing idiots like him to fight for her."

"It seems so," Takaya said in a disinterested voice.

Chidori took offense to hearing Junpei being called an idiot and a retard but she remained quiet and kept her face neutral. Although she did agree with them that Junpei wasn't very bright, was it really necessary to keep calling him childish names?

Yes it is, the rational part of her mind answered. It's what reminds you of who the enemy is. Junpei is not your friend.

He was very friendly today and all the days before that though, the other part replied in a voice that Chidori thought was completely unlike her. So it's alright for you to feel this way.

Are you being out of your mind? Junpei is the ENEMY. He is NOT your friend.

Before the other part of her mind could continue the debate, Takaya turned around to face his companions and continued the conversation. "But it is interesting that he would tell you," his eyes locked onto Chidori, "a girl he doesn't even know, about the Dark Hour and what his team does during it. You must have gained his trust then."

Chidori nodded, afraid that whatever she said would be the words the irrational part of her mind would've said. She swallowed hard, inhaled and then asked, "So what is your plan for the next full moon?"

Takaya exchanged a glance with Jin and grinned. "Sabotage."

Ken ducked as a bolt of lightning zoomed over his head and scarred the wall behind him. He then concentrated, raised his Evoker to his temple and pulled the trigger. Nemesis materialized in the air above him and charged towards the Shadow, which was a black quadruped creature that had its legs connected to the cables on the floor, a white mane, and what looked to be several large light bulbs on its back. Before Nemesis could slam its jagged ring into the Shadow though, the latter started absorbing electricity from the cables, causing them to crackle, and summoned bolts of lightning that danced around itself intermittently. Realizing the danger of the barrier, Ken commanded his Persona to fall back. He would not allow the connection to be broken so easily. Not when he could only handle the sharp pain that smacked him in the head and body a maximum of two or three times.

The Shadow anticipated this retreat however and it directed some of the lightning bolts at Nemesis. Ken cried out and watched hopelessly as his Persona was about to be struck when there was a gunshot and the lightning instead collided into a shield of ice, which shattered into tiny pieces and fell to the floor like sprinkles.

"Amada!" Mitsuru said, lowering her Evoker. "Are you all right?"

"I-I'm fine senpai."

"Good. Next time, don't be so hasty. We need to buy Arisato and the others more time so try to ensure your Persona isn't hit." She dismissed Penthesilea, and then closed her eyes and tapped into the communication network that Fuuka had set up with her Persona. "Yamagishi, how are the others doing? Have they located the underground generator?"

From outside Club Escapade, Fuuka, who was inside her Persona's glass sphere, replied, "Not yet. Aigis tells me that they are close but are being held up by Shadows. Can you still hold on for a few more minutes?"

"We can try." Mitsuru opened her eyes and turned around. "Okay you two, it's time to get back into it."

Akihiko grinned and readied his Evoker. "Heh, round three here we go. You ready to see my Persona last longer than yours again Shinji?"

"Shut up and just get on with it already," Shinjiro said.

Two more gunshots resounded in the warped dance floor of the nightclub and two Personas darted towards the Shadow. Ken watched in awe as his senpai's Personas evaded the lightning bolts and slammed into the Shadow's electric barrier. Castor struck the barrier first and flickered momentarily before dissipating. Ken heard Shinjiro grunt but that was soon drowned out as Polydeuces broke through the barrier and threw a punch at the Shadow. Bright blue flashes of light flickered as the Shadow countered the attack with lightning and an explosion ensued.

Seeing Akihiko cringe as his Persona dissipated for the third time, Shinjiro breathing heavily, and Mitsuru readying for another sortie at the Shadow, Ken gripped his Evoker tighter. At this rate, they'd be lucky if they could attack the Shadow one more time and still walk out of here without being completely deprived of energy. He wondered if the fight would have played out any differently if Minato was here.

I'm sure it would have, he thought. Arisato-senpai is stronger than all of us. Heck, even if Iori-senpai was here, we'd be in a much better position. I can't believe he would ditch us for something like this.

The disappearance of Junpei had come as a bit of a surprise for everyone and after a thorough search of the dorm, which yielded no results, Ken found himself as annoyed as Yukari was over Junpei's absence. And although the Chairman had blamed it on teenage mood swings, Ken wasn't so sure that that was the correct explanation. If Fuuka and Akihiko's story of how Junpei had felt like a useless nobody that couldn't contribute to the team, became jealous of Minato's powers and got into a fight with him which almost destroyed the dorm was to be believed (and Ken did believe it), then it was possible that Junpei had disappeared because he didn't want to repeat what happened in the past. With Shinjiro and Aigis around, it'd be even more difficult for him to prove his worth, which, according to Yukari, was something he'd been trying to do since the first full moon operation where he screwed up.

But after the fiasco of the previous operation, Ken believed that they were going to need everyone present to deal with Strega and the four remaining Shadows. Takaya and Jin were no pushovers and neither were the Shadows that had yet to show themselves.

Ken raised his Evoker and summoned his Persona once more. Mitsuru, who was standing beside him, did the same. Just as they were about to issue orders, Fuuka spoke in their minds.

"Senpai!" she said. "Minato and the others have arrived at the generator room. They're expecting to turn it off in the next few seconds so get ready!"

"Understood, Yamagishi," Mitsuru replied. She turned to Ken. "Are you ready?"

Ken looked from Mitsuru and her Persona, to the Shadow and its dazzling electricity show, and back to Mitsuru. Then he nodded. "Let's go!"

The bow vibrated in Yukari's fingers as she released an arrow into the green darkness. She wasn't sure if she had hit anything but it was better than waiting for the Shadows to get closer. If that happened, she would be done for and there was no way she could rely on her Persona in such a confined space. She suddenly wished that she had chosen to stay at the nightclub to distract the Shadow from draining Port Island's electricity supply instead of venturing into the restricted areas of Paulownia Mall to find and switch off the electricity generator. After Fuuka's analysis on the Shadow, cutting it off from the electricity supply was the only way to damage it and that meant splitting into two teams.

It's all Stupei's fault, she thought. If he hadn't run off somewhere, he could've taken my place here and I could've been back up there, where I can actually see where I'm going and what I'm doing.

Yukari found it strange that Junpei had decided to sit this fight out because he was normally excited when another full moon operation came around. His eagerness couldn't match that of Akihiko's but he still wanted to make up for the time he almost got her and Minato killed on the monorail. She wondered if she'd ever witness it happen and jumped when Koromaru barked from up ahead.

"What's he saying Aigis?" Minato asked as he slashed at a floating Shadow that wore a pink tiara.

"Koromaru says that the generator room is straight ahead," Aigis translated. "He also says something smells odd and that most of the Shadows have retreated."

"Does that mean there's something waiting for us in there?" Yukari asked.

"It is possible."

Yukari shivered as they continued down the long dark corridor. The thought of there being another full moon Shadow had crossed her mind when Fuuka pointed out they would have to split into teams. Because that was the trend wasn't it? Wherever the first Shadow was, the second would be nearby and generally positioned to aid the first. It had been like this since Fuuka joined the team and Yukari was sure as hell that tonight was no different. And now that there were no more Shadows standing in their way, the potential for that thought to become reality was becoming more and more likely.

Maybe that's why Minato opted to take lead of this team. Just in case there was something down here. She felt somewhat proud at figuring that out but that feeling faded when they entered the generator room. A murky dark green glow, the Dark Hour's choice of color, coated the room and made the many generators appear as black bulky objects. Two sets of walkways – one on the right and one on the left – led down from where they stood to the ground level and in front of them was a narrow walkway where one could oversee what was happening in the whole room. With the Dark Hour rendering all electronics and machines useless, the usual whirring of the generators was replaced by an eerie silence. Yukari shivered again. Now she really wished she hadn't come down here.

"Alright you guys, keep an eye out for any activity from the generators," Minato said, sheathing his sword and drawing his Evoker. "Aigis, do you think you can–"

A rattling hum interrupted Minato and seconds later, blinding flashes of blue lightning appeared and circled a generator located near the back of the room.

"Well that must be the one we need to switch off," Yukari said, turning her eyes away from the bright flashing. "Should we go straight or down the stairs?"

Minato opened his mouth to make a decision but instead of hearing his voice, Yukari heard an ear piercing whinny. The four of them turned and saw a knight in black armor floating just above the walkway, sitting atop its devilish steed and holding a sinister jousting lance. Yukari's heart lurched at seeing the size of the Shadow and when it pointed its lance at them, alarm bells began ringing in her head. This was the partner of the Shadow in the nightclub. It had to be.

The Shadow then charged straight for them. In a panic, Yukari loaded her bow with two arrows and fired them as soon as she drew the bowstring as far back as she could. Aigis accompanied her by pointing her fingers at the Shadow and unleashing a burst of gunfire. The first arrow missed its target. The second, along with the bullets, ricocheted off the Shadow's armor.

Not knowing what else to do, Yukari hastily slung her bow across her shoulder and drew her Evoker. She raised it, placed her finger on the trigger, and was about to squeeze it when Koromaru howled. Cerberus materialized in front of them and roared, summoning flames that teared at the Shadow's steed. It seemed to be ineffective too though, and the Shadow darted straight through the flames and smashed into Cerberus. The Persona vanished and Yukari heard Koromaru whimper in pain. She moved to stand in front of him and when she looked up, the Shadow had reached them.

Before it could impale them all on its lance, Aigis deployed her Persona. Palladion immediately appeared and shielded them from the Shadow's attack. Relief washed over Yukari for now they were safe and could move into a better position where they could–

Palladion flickered.

It happened in a span of milliseconds but Yukari saw it and realized Aigis wasn't going to be able to lock the Shadow down like this for very much longer. Within the next few seconds, the Shadow would break through Palladion's shield and they would be wide open. Yukari raised her Evoker and squeezed the trigger. In doing so, she heard a gunshot on her right and noticed Minato had summoned Orpheus. Like before on their very first full moon operation, both of them had their Personas strike the Shadow. Io's wind pushed the Shadow back along the walkway (though not by much) and Orpheus blasted the Shadow with multiple fiery explosions.

To Yukari's horror, the Shadow remained relatively unharmed after their retaliation and followed up with a slash at their Personas. Unprepared for the sudden counter, Orpheus and Io dissipated and after a few seconds, so did Palladion. The recoil created by all three Personas vanishing so close to their owners sent Aigis flying down the left walkway, Yukari and Koromaru rolling down the right walkway, and Minato back into the doorway where they had came from.

Yukari hit the floor of the room, winced as her right arm smacked into the wall, and again when Koromaru crashed into her. It was pitch black down here and as she waited for her eyes to focus, more blue lightning shot upwards from the generator at the back of the room.

"Everyone!" Fuuka yelled in their minds, causing Yukari's head to ache slightly. "Mitsuru-senpai says the Shadow has absorbed too much energy and won't be able to hold out much longer! You've got to turn off that generator as soon as possible!"

Yukari heard Aigis reply that they would get to it soon, and then looked upwards as three more gunshots pierced the air. She saw Minato had moved to the center of the walkway, closer to the Shadow, and was flanked by three Personas she didn't recognize. She watched Minato push those three Personas together and what followed was a glowing white light that lit up the entire room like a firework. Emerging from the light was a caped warrior clad in white armor. The new Persona was carrying a spear and once the light faded, it dashed to the Shadow and attacked.

"Yukari! Aigis! Go and turn off that generator!" Minato shouted over the cracking bolts of electricity and the metallic clang of steel on steel. "I'll distract it for you!"

"R-Right!" Yukari answered. She scrambled to her feet, scooped up Koromaru, and ran to where the sound of gunfire was the loudest. She found the android hiding behind a generator, popping in and out of cover every now and then to unleash a barrage of bullets. "C'mon Aigis! Minato's got this and I need your help to turn off that generator."

"Understood Yukari-san," Aigis said.

The two of them glanced upwards to where Minato was for a moment, and then darted towards the generator.

Fuuka received the message. And as soon as she did, she sent it to Mitsuru.

The crackling ceased.

Ken lowered his arms (he and the others were bracing themselves as their Personas took the full brunt of the Shadow's massive electricity discharge a few moments earlier) and noticed that the Shadow was stunned, no longer standing upright and didn't have any bolts of lightning circling around itself.

"Looks like they did it," Akihiko said. "And just at the right time too."

Shinjiro scoffed. "The right time would've been a couple of minutes ago when they said they were in the generator room."

"I'm sure there was something holding them up on their end though," Ken said. "Perhaps there was another Shadow like this one."

"I doubt that's the case since Yamagishi didn't sense any other strong presence," Mitsuru said. "But it doesn't matter. They got the generator down so now let's finish it before it charges itself up again."

With those words, the four of them summoned their Personas and attacked. There was a satisfying thud as the Shadow collapsed to the floor, looking like a sick goat.

"Well Shinji, you can have the honour of destroying it," Akihiko said with a smug smile.

"Oh is that how it is now?" Shinjiro retorted. "A consolation prize cos I didn't hit the Shadow at all?"

"Yeah. I'll give you that much."

"I appreciate your generosity."

"You should."

"I will."

"Good."

Ken couldn't help smiling at this exchange, which was still going, and uttered a light chuckle. Mitsuru on the other hand was rather fed up with this and sighed.

"If neither of you can decide, then I'm going to do it," she said sharply, stepping forward.

Her words grabbed both Akihiko and Shinjiro's attention instantly and they stopped arguing.

"Alright. I'll do it," Shinjiro said. He walked to where the Shadow lay defeated, raised his Evoker…

And dropped it.

The Evoker bounced off the floor and out of reach. Ken looked from it to see Shinjiro hunched over, convulsing violently, and clutching his chest as if he were being strangled by some unseen force.

"Aragaki-senpai?" Ken said.

"Shinji?" Akihiko said.

Both of them moved towards him but Shinjiro raised his hand. "Get…away from…me," Shinjiro said in a strangled voice. He staggered backwards to where the Shadow was and after a few moments, screamed in agony as Castor materialized by itself.

Ken's eyes widened at what he was seeing and the story of how Minato had lost control earlier that year replayed in his mind. Was this what it was like for them when it happened? He thought it probably was except in that story, Junpei was the catalyst. Here, Shinjiro's Persona had arisen on its own and without its owner's consent.

A pair of gunshots brought him out of his thoughts and he saw both Polydeuces and Penthesilea, floating in the air, ready to be dispatched to deal with the feral Castor.

It was unnecessary though, because Castor was more interested in destroying the Shadow. The Persona picked up the Shadow by its masked face, disconnecting it from all the cables on the floor in the process, and threw it across the room. Clouds of smoke rose into the air as the Shadow crashed and more continued to do so when Castor repeatedly stomped it into oblivion; the Persona's ghostly whinnying creating an atmosphere so haunting that made this visit to Club Escapade Ken's first and only visit.

He, Mitsuru and Akihiko could only watch the carnage with a sense of dread. Some part of Ken thought that this more than made up for Shinjiro's inability to land a hit on the Shadow but one look at Akihiko told him that light-heartedness had left the building. He turned back to watch Castor continue its relentless stomping and noticed that Shinjiro was extremely close to getting flattened by his own Persona.

Ken wasn't sure if either Mitsuru or Akihiko noticed this. He assumed they didn't and on impulse, ran forward to warn Shinjiro.

"Aragaki-senpai!" he cried. "Watch out!"

At that moment, Castor stomped the Shadow for the final time. Black goo sprayed in all directions and Ken raised his arms to shield himself from being splattered in the face. He then lowered his arms and looked up. Floating above him and staring with crimson eyes was Castor. The Persona was one Ken had seen several times in Tartarus but meeting its gaze now triggered an image in Ken's mind. It was an image that he'd tried to forget over the last two years, an image that left him traumatized for life.

Ken told himself that it couldn't be possible, that there was no way in hell that Castor had been the one to do the horrible deed. Then Castor's horse whinnied again, the image of his mother being crushed to death by falling debris flashed across his eyes again, and the memories that were deeply buried blasted out of his subconscious like a geyser. He remembered how the Persona had posed in that courtyard and how it had gone on a rampage. How it had damaged most of the surrounding buildings as it pursued something black and gooey. How it had then smashed into the building where he and his mother were living in, knocking them out of their apartment room and onto the courtyard, and creating the debris that crushed his mother.

It was 's the one who did it. Not the Shadows. Him.

The sudden realization paralyzed Ken and he stood completely still. While he was looking at Castor as if the Persona was some famous monument, he wasn't seeing Castor at all. Instead, he saw the long buried memory replaying itself over and over again; each iteration adding more details that he would never forget. His mother's scream. The spray of blood. The silhouette of a teenage boy wearing a beanie. Everything was coming back to him so quickly to the point where he didn't hear Mitsuru telling him to move, see the hoof of Castor's horse about to trample him, and feel Akihiko's tackle that sent them both out of harm's way. Even as he crashed to the floor, registering pain in his chest, the memory didn't leave. It lingered in his mind for the remainder of the night and throughout the whole of September.

Akihiko quickly glanced at Ken. Seeing that the boy was unharmed, he looked over to where Castor was, saw that the Persona was readying a second charge at them, and then directed his eyes to where Shinjiro was. It didn't look like his old partner would be able to get Castor under control before the Persona got to them so Akihiko shouted, "Mitsuru! Hit it now while it's still vulnerable!"

Mitsuru didn't need to be told and had her Persona launch a dozen ice missiles that flew across the room and stabbed Castor's chest, arm and horse. This was enough to turn Castor's attention away from Ken and Akihiko but it wasn't enough to make him dissipate. Desperate to ensure that the accident from two years ago didn't repeat itself again, Mitsuru then had Penthesilea engage in direct combat with Castor. The fight wasn't much of one – Penthesilea effortlessly broke through Castor's defence after feinting with her rapier twice and then lunging.

"Goddammit!" Shinjiro growled in that same strangled voice, flinching each time Castor was struck. He was annoyed at the pain that surged through his chest from each hit his Persona took but knew Mitsuru was doing the right thing. It was better this way than the alternative of letting Castor roam free. His eyes then fixated on where Ken and Akihiko were. He met Akihiko's worried gaze and not wanting to see that pathetic look on Aki's face, Shinjiro closed his eyes, concentrated and reached out for his Persona with his mind. Now that Mitsuru had weakened Castor for him, it was significantly easier to do so and once he grabbed hold of it, he shoved it back into his subconscious. Castor flickered and glitched out like an old '90s arcade game before finally disappearing in a purplish glow of light.

Akihiko and Mitsuru exchanged a glance, both relieved to see the relief in the other's eyes. They then turned their attention on Shinjiro, who was still breathing heavily, and began to approach him. Before either of them could get close or ask if he was alright, Shinjiro's eyes snapped open. He regarded his comrades the way a detective would upon realizing that he'd made a mistake that had cost him someone's life and darted for the exit, ashamed and disgusted at what he'd done.

A vision flashed briefly in Akihiko's mind and he remembered that this was exactly how the events of the accident two years ago played out. Shinjiro lost control of his Persona. Shinjiro's Persona went and destroyed everything in its path. Shinjiro somehow regained control after a tiring internal struggle. Shinjiro looked at both him and Mitsuru with that shameful face and then ran off, unable to be found for the next few weeks.

Back then, they could afford to disband S.E.E.S. because hunting and killing Shadows was just an activity that served as Akihiko and Shinjiro's means of repayment for Mitsuru's hospitality, as well as providing additional training for Akihiko's boxing career. Other than that, there was no more to it. But with only four more full moon Shadows to eliminate till the threat of the Dark Hour was over, Akihiko knew that there was no room for someone as powerful as Shinjiro to leave and he wasn't going to allow what happened in the past happen again. So without further thought, he got up and raced after Shinjiro.

The first thing Minato saw when he emerged from a door that led to the restricted areas of Paulownia Mall was Akihiko running out of Club Escapade, past the trio of wishing fountains (which were all now lifeless pools of blood) and towards the exit. He wondered why the boxer would have sprinted off like that and thoughts of something happening to Mitsuru, Ken or Shinjiro filled his mind. Was it Strega? Had they interfered with the operation again? Or was it something to do with Junpei?

Minato could only speculate as he waited for the others to come out. Once they did, they all made their way to the center fountain where Mitsuru, Fuuka and Ken were standing; the latter keeping his distance from both girls.

Something definitely happened, he thought. And it can't be good.

"Thank goodness you're all okay," Mitsuru said. "I didn't hear from you after receiving your message so I feared the worst."

"There was just another one of those strong Shadows that caught us by surprise," Yukari said. "Luckily it wasn't another full moon Shadow otherwise we would've been overwhelmed." She paused and looked around. "Hang on, where's Akihiko and Shinjiro-senpai?"

Mitsuru glanced at Ken, who had a look of stupor on his face, and then turned her attention back to Minato, Yukari and Aigis. It appeared that she would keep the details to herself again but instead she said, "There's been a situation with Aragaki." And then she briefly explained what happened when they were about to deliver the killing blow to the Shadow: how Shinjiro lost control of his Persona and how they had to weaken it so that he could regain control. Minato noticed that Mitsuru avoided speaking of how this had happened to Shinjiro once before and she had looked at him with a gaze that told him to stay quiet every time the opportunity to add that information into the story presented itself.

"So should we go after them?" Yukari asked once Mitsuru finished.

Koromaru barked twice and Aigis translated that he too wanted permission to run after Beanie Guy and Akee.

"For now, I think it's better if we let Akihiko deal with Aragaki by himself," Mitsuru said. "If we all went, we would just give Aragaki more incentive to stay away from us."

Yukari and Minato nodded. Koromaru's ears drooped and he uttered a small whine that Aigis translated as 'Oh alright then." And Ken remained where he was, oblivious to their conversation. Minato had suspicions about what had happened to the boy but his chance to raise the subject was stopped when Fuuka spoke from inside her Persona.

"Um guys, I've managed to locate Junpei," she said. "Apparently he's been at the dorm this whole time."

"Seriously?" Yukari blurted. "That idiot has the nerve to stay at home the whole time while we were out fighting?"

"Well I don't know about that Yukari," Fuuka said, dismissing her Persona. "I just felt his presence a moment ago and it was coming from the dorm. Maybe he was somewhere outside Lucia's range before that." She looked down at her feet, feeling disappointed with herself.

"Maybe. But it's not your fault Fuuka. It's his. I swear I'll make him regret sitting this fight out."

"If you're going to do that," Minato said, giving Yukari a stern gaze, "then make sure you don't go too far. I don't want a repeat of what happened last time."

Seeing Minato look so serious, Yukari understood and promised she would tone her scolding down. With that settled, all of them, except Ken, agreed to return to the dorm and meet with Junpei. Minato watched Yukari, Fuuka and Aigis head toward the exit and was about to leave himself when he realized that Ken was still standing in that spot of his.

"Amada!" Mitsuru said. Her tone of voice was sharp and commanding and it was enough to snap Ken out of whatever trance he was in. "We're leaving now."

Ken blinked his eyes a few times, saw that only Minato, Mitsuru and Koromaru remained in the mall, and nodded. "R-Right senpai." He walked briskly to the exit, calling Koromaru to accompany him. Koromaru barked happily at his request and soon they were out of the mall.

Minato raised an eyebrow at this change of behavior. He turned to Mitsuru who had a tired and worried look on her face.

"You think he's acting strange too right?" she asked.

"I do. What happened to him?"

"I'm not sure." She then met his gaze, her eyes solemn. "But if I had to guess, I think he found out the truth."

Junpei opened his eyes.

A blurry image of a girl's face appeared and for a moment, he thought he was staring at Yukari. He immediately tried to think of something to say so that Yukari wouldn't shout her head off at him for missing the full moon Shadow operation and in doing so, felt his head throb. He cringed and moved his head at the sudden pain and found that it was a mistake to do so because more pain pulsed through his head.

Did I somehow get drunk or somethin'? he thought dismally, vowing that if it were true and he was indeed as drunk as his father was every other night, then he'd never touch alcohol again. He closed his eyes, waited a short while, and then opened them slowly. Upon seeing a pair of amber-brown eyes, and a fringe of red hair, he gasped. The face in front of him wasn't Yukari's.

It was Chidori's.

"You're finally awake Junpei," she said, her voice soft, steady, soothing.

Junpei appreciated that it wasn't any louder but something about her words made him uncomfortable. He tried to raise his arms to shake off the odd feeling that rose inside him and realized he couldn't move. He looked down at himself and saw that his arms were roped to his sides.

What the damn hell? he thought.

"Chi-Chidori?" he asked. The odd feeling was starting to spread to his head now and as it did, more throbs of pain assaulted Junpei. "Do ya mind untying me so I can get to my friends?"

Chidori shook her head and giggled. It was a cute sound but like the words she had spoken earlier, something was not quite right about it. "You know, I can't believe how easy it was to sneak up on you. I thought you said you were the strongest."

"Strongest doesn't mean…" He trailed off as he registered what she said before that. "Wait, you snuck up on me? Why would you do that?"

Chidori sighed, unsure of whether to feel sympathetic or repulsed at his stupidity.

He just came to you know, that voice which didn't belong to her said in her mind, so obviously he wouldn't have a clue as to what you're saying.

Really? the rational voice said. And what if he's toying with you? Are you seriously telling yourself that he hasn't figured it out yet?

"Why I did it because…because I had to," Chidori said, shutting up both voices in her head.

"You had to?" Junpei asked, now frowning. "Okay Chidori, I don't get what the big deal is but you better stop fooling around now. This isn't funny. There's a full moon right now and I gotta– " He cut off as he looked to his right and saw the moon painted in a sickening yellow hue.

Wait a minute, he thought with growing anxiety. If the moon is yellow, that means we're in the Dark Hour. And if we're in the Dark Hour, then why is Chidori not a coffin? Don't tell me…

"I'm not fooling around," Chidori said. "I'm just– "

"She's just following her orders," a new voice said.

Junpei looked over Chidori's shoulder and saw someone emerging from what looked like the dorm's rooftop door. He couldn't make out what the person looked like but it wasn't necessary to see who it was. He'd heard that voice before and he would always remember that the arrogance in it belonged to a certain bespectacled member of Strega.

Jin stepped out of the shadows and into the pale moonlight like a magician entering the stage with a faulty spotlight. He was carrying his briefcase and appeared very satisfied with himself.

"You're with Strega?" Junpei asked Chidori. A sharp pain stabbed at his heart as the words departed his mouth. Asking the question was more of a courtesy than anything else, and it was one that he didn't really need to know the answer to because he already knew the answer. It was written all over Chidori's somber face.

"Yes she's with us," Jin answered, now standing beside Chidori. "You really took your time in figuring that one out didn't you?"

Junpei ignored Jin and looked directly into Chidori's eyes. Unlike the first time he had seen them, they were devoid of any emotion, and gazing at them made him feel as if he were staring at a wax sculpture of her. "This was your plan all along wasn't it? The meetings, the blood on your hand that made me worry about you, the pictures you were drawing. It was all a set up."

Again, there was no answer from Chidori; she just stood where she was, unable to move, talk and even blink.

"But why?" Junpei continued. "Why would you set me up out of all people? Isn't Minato the one your crazy leader is interested in?"

"Because you're the easiest to fool," Jin said. He knelt down and grabbed Junpei by the front of his shirt, making little effort to hide his annoyance at being ignored. "And Takaya is not crazy you moron. Unlike Kirijo and Arisato, he's smart enough to realise and exploit the weaknesses in your precious little team. So you better watch your mouth or I'll make feeling betrayed the least of your worries."

Junpei couldn't help but laugh at this empty threat. It was a hollow laugh, a sound that was reserved for times when everything that worked out for you went down the drain and you didn't give a shit anymore. What does it matter anyway? The only girl that I've gotten close to having a shot with is buddies with Strega. God, why does it always happen to me? Why can't it happen to Minato or anyone else? WHY?

"Oh yeah?" Junpei said. "What are you gonna do? Kill me right here? That's pretty cowardly if you ask me. Then again, I'd expect nothing less from you sneaky bastards."

He expected Jin to punch him. Perhaps kick him a few times or even whack him in the head with that briefcase of his. Junpei knew he deserved it and it was only a matter of time before Jin's fury got the better of him. To his surprise however, Jin instead let go of his shirt and stood up.

"Come on Chidori, we're done here," he said. "Let's head back before the rest of em show up." He turned and started for the rooftop door but after a few steps, he realized Chidori hadn't moved from her spot. "Chidori, what are you doing? Let's go."

Junpei's heart thumped a little faster and he looked into Chidori's eyes again. He wasn't sure if had anything to do with the Dark Hour's special effects but he swore this time that he could see something different in her eyes.

Something like rebellion.

Is she thinking about not following her orders? Junpei thought. Cos if she is, then I can maybe get the advantage over Jin. Now if I can just get out of this rope and get her Evo–

The rooftop door burst open. His thoughts halted, Junpei looked past Jin and saw Minato, Mitsuru, Yukari, Aigis, Fuuka, Ken and Koromaru spilling out onto the roof.

"Junpei?!" Yukari exclaimed, taking in the scene before her.

"And you!" Mitsuru said, her eyes locked on Jin.

"Goddammit!" Jin spat. He grabbed his Evoker out of the left pocket that was strapped to his pants, raised it to his head and pulled the trigger. "Moros, come!" The one-armed platinum robot that Minato had faced back in the underground arena materialized in the air above Jin, and immediately launched tendrils of flames at Minato and the others.

Yukari was the first to react at his sudden attack and summoned her Persona. Io blew out the flames with a whirlwind and sent it straight at Moros. The impact knocked Moros back and Jin grimaced.

"Chidori!" he yelled. "Distract them!"

But Chidori didn't hear him. She was too occupied with what she'd done to Junpei and couldn't bring herself out of the daze she'd put herself in. Junpei decided that this was his best chance to snatch his Evoker (it looked like it was his anyway) out of her hands. He shimmied out of the rope, got up, wrapped his arms around Chidori's waist and tackled her to the floor. The Evoker flew out of reach and Junpei maintained his hold on her as to prevent her from going after it.

"No! Let me go!" Chidori cried, trying to wriggle out of Junpei's grip. "Medea!"

Jin turned to see his comrade down and cursed. Then he looked back at his escape route, which was now barricaded by Minato and the others. He glanced upwards and saw three more Personas (belonging to Arisato, Little Miss Kirijo and the robot) materializing. Well shit, he thought. Looks like there's only one way out of this. Jin backed up a few steps as Minato, Mitsuru, Yukari, and Aigis advanced forward, their Personas poised to attack. He reached into his other pocket and brought out a spherical object, seeing the confidence drain from their faces as they realized what he was holding.

"You might have got me this time but I've already accomplished what I need to do," Jin said. "So take this!" He pulled the ring off the grenade with his teeth and threw it at them.

If I were Shinji, where would I go?

The question was one that Akihiko had found most helpful to ask whenever he went looking for his old buddy. More often than not, he would find Shinjiro hanging out in the usual spot – the hidden courtyard in the alleyways behind Port Island Station – and by force of habit, he'd headed off in that direction. Akihiko doubted that Shinjiro would be anywhere else simply because besides the courtyard, the only other place Shinjiro would frequent was Hagakure Ramen.

And he sure ain't eating ramen at this time, he thought.

As he went down the main avenue, passing coffins every now and then, he remembered how difficult it had been to find Shinjiro the first time this happened. Right after the incident that disbanded their team, Shinjiro had fled and ceased being contactable. It had taken Akihiko and Mitsuru almost a week to track Shinjiro down and when they found him in the same courtyard where the accident had happened, his old buddy had already decided he would quit S.E.E.S., saying he didn't want anything to do with them anymore.

The thought of Shinjiro repeating what happened in those days briefly crossed his mind and for a moment, Akihiko wondered if inviting him back into the group had been a mistake. He and Mitsuru had known of Shinjiro's inability to fully control his Persona and the threat it could pose to the team and yet he had still gone chasing after Shinjiro and pestered him to come back.

Akihiko shook his head. It wasn't a mistake, he told himself. If it weren't for Shinji, Ken would've been killed by the Shadows while we were at Yakushima and we wouldn't have gotten out of the previous operation alive. Thinking of the things Shinjiro had done for them helped alleviate some of the doubt that clawed at him but it couldn't shake the feeling that what had happened back in the nightclub had been Akihiko's fault.

A piercing whinny sounded out in the dead night and Akihiko stopped moving. Recognizing it as Castor's, he observed his surroundings and concentrated on keeping an ear out for the noise. He didn't have the wait very long, for a second whinny pierced the night a few moments later. Akihiko turned in its direction and saw a faint white glow in the distance that looked almost ethereal in its appearance.

Shinji, he thought before running towards the glow.

It took him just under five minutes to reach what had once been a docking area but Akihiko didn't have to guess at what was happening. The answer was simple.

Shinji had lost control.

Again.

The situation was worse this time though because Castor held Shinjiro in the air, the Persona's hands firmly around Shinjiro's throat. Akihiko found his hand going to his Evoker but decided against it. No matter how tempting it seemed to be, he wasn't going to allow another fight between Personas happen. Experiencing it once when Minato had lost control was dreadful enough. Besides, there was the possibility of hitting Shinjiro.

So feeling like a pathetic bystander who pretended not to notice a gang of bullies beating the shit out of some little kid, Akihiko watched and waited for Shinjiro to regain control. Several seconds passed and when nothing happened, Akihiko found his hand going to his Evoker again.

No, I can't do that. If I do, it's just gonna make things worse. And there's no way in hell that I can take down a berserk Persona in my current state. I'd get my ass kicked.

Akihiko focused on those thoughts to prevent his hand from raising his Evoker and was so engrossed in doing so that he almost missed seeing Shinji pop something into his mouth. Moments later, Castor vanished and Shinjiro fell to the floor with a thud.

"Shinji!" Akihiko heard himself say as he ran to his old buddy. He knelt down and saw a small capsule on the floor beside Shinjiro. "What's in there?"

Shinjiro scoffed and leaned forward to grab the capsule. "It's nothing."

Akihiko snatched the capsule before Shinjiro could get hold of it, glanced at the label and gasped. "These are those pills I've heard about. The ones that can suppress your Persona from getting out of hand. But the side effects…" He tried to give Shinji one of his hard stares but what he gave instead was a look of fury laced with pain. "Why didn't you tell me you were taking this Shinji?!"

"Hmph. You know why."

"Come on. That was an accident and you know it wasn't your fault."

"Not my fault?" Shinjiro repeated. He raised his voice. "Not my fault? That's bullshit! Who's the one that screwed up and completely ruined some kid's life Aki? Who was it?"

Akihiko didn't answer. There was no point. He knew Shinjiro was right and that Shinjiro knew that he knew the answer. "So that's why you came back huh? For Amada's sake?"

Shinjiro snorted and got up. "Perhaps. But something like that can't even begin to be atonement for what I've done to him. Hell, I can't even control my Persona and I let the thing happen in front of the kid again."

"And you decided to rely on drugs instead of seeking help from me?" Akihiko asked, getting to his feet as well. He wasn't sure if it was Shinji's stubbornness or hearing those words aloud that infuriated him but nonetheless, he yanked the front of Shinjiro's jacket. "Why? Why would you do that? Why would you not rely on me?"

"I almost killed him Aki," Shinjiro said calmly. "Don't you realize that? I almost killed him. If it weren't for the goddam drugs I would've killed him!" He pushed Akihiko away. "Besides, would asking you have made any difference?"

Akihiko felt his anger rise at those words. He couldn't believe Shinji was this stubborn and could only look to the side. "I guess not."

"My thoughts exactly."

Shinjiro prepared to head off but stopped when Akihiko addressed him.

"Have the side effects shown up yet?" he asked softly, his anger exhausted. He didn't expect Shinjiro to answer, especially when his old buddy was already leaving, but perked up when Shinjiro did.

"No. And they won't until I've taken responsibility for my mistake."

The grenade exploded.

It hit the ground before anyone could react but instead of an explosion that left a scar on the floor, white grey smoke erupted forth and covered the whole rooftop. Minato was relieved that Jin had just thrown a smoke bomb and not an actual grenade, and after catching sight of a moving silhouette, he darted forward in the hopes of running into Jin. By the time he arrived at where the silhouette had been however, he found himself standing by the edge of the roof. Minato frowned. Had Jin really jumped off?

He must have, he thought while picturing the bespectacled member of Strega leaping off the roof with no concern for safety, because there's no other means of escape. He sighed and walked away from the edge. There would be another time to confront Jin and Takaya and end the threat they posed for good.

Once Yukari had her Persona blow the smoke away, Minato and the others found Junpei still holding Chidori down and approached him. The latter had given up in trying to break free of Junpei's hold and looked completely defeated.

"I can't believe I couldn't sense her until we got up here," Fuuka said as everyone sans Ken gathered around Junpei and Chidori.

"She must be a Persona-user who is able to conceal her presence," Mitsuru said, kneeling to take the Evoker from Koromaru, who had gone and retrieved it earlier while the smoke still shrouded the rooftop. She eyed Chidori, a number of questions popping up in her mind. "Are you allies with that man who was here earlier? What were you and him doing at the dorm? And why did you take Iori as a hostage?"

"I'm not…afraid of…dying…" Chidori whimpered as Junpei brought her to her feet. "M-Medea…Ah-I'm…"

"I think we should lay off the questions Mitsuru-senpai," Minato said. "For now anyway. We can try again when she's had some rest and is not so distressed."

Mitsuru looked at him for a moment. Minato noticed she was a trifle annoyed at not being able to have the answers now and returned the most neutral look he could muster. Then she nodded slowly.

"R-Right," she said. "Of course. In that case, we'll let her stay here for the night until we can make arrangements with the hospital."

"Should I stand guard in front of her room Mitsuru-san?" Aigis asked.

"Don't worry about it Aigis," Junpei said, his tone so stern that it made everyone flinch. "I'll make sure she doesn't wander off." He gave all of them a serious stare – he made sure his face was exceptionally serious when meeting Yukari's eyes – to really prove that he meant what he said.

"Alright then," Mitsuru said. "I'll leave her in your hands. Make sure you get some rest too Iori because I'm going to want a full report from you tomorrow."

Junpei nodded and guided Chidori to the rooftop door. As the rest of them followed suit, Minato remained behind on the roof and waited for the Dark Hour to end. He walked back to the edge where Jin had supposedly leaped off and looked out at the warped landscape of Iwatodai. While tonight hadn't been as close a call as the previous operation, he felt that it was the start of something brewing over their heads; a poisonous concoction of sorts that would rain down on them, tearing them apart and destroying them before the arrival of the final full moon Shadow. The ingredients were already there: Ken's distant behavior, Shinjiro's sudden departure, Junpei's no nonsense attitude, Strega knocking on their doorstep.

The latter was the one that scared him the most and when he had seen Jin standing in front of him, his instinct immediately told him to find Takaya instead of responding to Jin's attack. The fact that Takaya wasn't around did little to make him feel less anxious; on some level, Minato would have preferred to see the leader of Strega standing beside Jin because then at least, he wouldn't have to worry about being ambushed.

Takaya, just what are you planning by having your minions infiltrate the dorm and kidnap Junpei?

Minato shook his head and started for the rooftop door. As he did, the Dark Hour ended, the rippling shift coursing through the air and turning everything back the way it should be.

Everything, except for the fate of S.E.E.S.