Old AN/s for chapter 66

Counting the days until Winter Break now… hell, by the time this chapter uploads, I might already be on break (or it might've passed already).

Hashirama 1710: Pft, that's tempting. Like, really tempting now. Funny thing is, I wasn't even thinking of that; I only realized it just before I submitted that chapter. Eh, it's whatever.

Matemeo3: Jesus, I really did make everyone love Pharos, didn't I? Remind me to update DFW's scrapbook with the original god-knows-how-many variations of Makoto's decision to attack SEES. Hell, the entire last arc only happened because I couldn't think of something that'd drive Makoto over the edge and hit the breaking point. Ah well, what's done is done.

*weeks later* Yep, this certainly went up after Winter Break. Shit, that's how long this had been on hiatus? Oops.

*even longer* Jesus fuck, this went through… so… many… re-writes. I started this chapter when again, in December? Fuck me!

*Even LONGER* … Oh right, this fic is still a thing. In defence, this time I had SATs to prepare for.


Current AN/s

Huh, the old ones are at the top this time. It feels weird, especially now that it's for 66 even though it's now chapter 65.

Anyhow, yeah, this is where things are going to start diverging from the old chapters. I feel like I neglected Kotone a bit—as a character, I mean. Sure, she appears a lot, but outside of that, she feels like a Satellite Love Interest.

Luckily, if there's one thing I'm good at, it's planting seeds in the past to save me in the future! I-I have no idea wtf I just said.

Alright, time for semi-filler chapter. I say semi because this is really just something leading to another thing that I can focus on before Ryoji… does exactly what you guys expect him to.


"Uh-huh," Minato sighed, propping his head up with his elbow as he endured a lecture from Kirijo herself. He knew that skipping school with Kotone was going to bite him somehow, so this was the price he was going to have to pay.

"Do you realize how many days you've missed?" Of course, Kirijo was going to give one of these lectures. Minato had already come to terms with the fact he would most definitely have to repeat another grade unless he managed to pull some miracle, but those seemed to be in short supply.

And yet, he was still going to have to endure the young woman going off on a diatribe. Every word was going in one ear and out the other, something that she no-doubt noticed much to her chagrin.

"I mean, honestly, what were you doing that was so important to miss another day?" Kirijo finally asked a question he could answer.

"Well, towards the end of the day, your leader and I wanted to make up for the lost time." Minato smiled, knowing just how this was going to end. He was lucky that Kotone had already been admonished in private, or this she would have been preparing to kill him right about now.

"First we started making out and I pushed her against the wall, but we were still outside our rooms so we couldn't really get too touchy," Minato explained, grinning when he saw the crimson cheeks making their appearance. "We began to argue about which room to go to, seeing how mine is closer but hers is away from Ken's—we don't wanna walk the next day, but not at the risk of scarring a kid, am I right?"

"I-I…" The stuttered only solidified Minato's resolve to continue. Seeing one such as the Kirijo heiress herself become reduced to a gibbering mess while only a few sentences in the retelling was a sight to behold.

Kotone was going to kill him later, but that could wait.

"Eventually, I say, 'screw it,' and picked her up. She squealed and starting leaving a dozen kisses until we got to her room and I put her on the desk," Minato chuckled, crossing his legs and leaning back into his seat. "Personally, I wanted to take her then and there, but then she said she wanted to experiment—or rather have a little fun as she put it—so I took my thumb and—"

"Y-Yuki, that's enough!" Mitsuru screamed through her rosy cheeks, trying desperately to silence the boy. It was bad enough to know what they did under the dorm's roof but to retell it so in such a casual manner.

So eager was she to end his tale that she didn't notice her mistake.

"Yuki," Minato repeated in his head. Most of the people at the dorm had begun calling him by his old name—or real name, as Kotone would put it.

Everyone at school still called him that, being that's the only name he was known as there. It's the only name that his foster-family knows him as, too. In a way, he supposed that there was no way he was ever going to erase the mark Makoto Yuki had left, only pick up the pieces that were left.

"Sorry," Minato apologized, brushing off the cold glare directed at him. "But hey, be careful what you wish for."

"Must you be so risqué?"

"Yes." If this keeps up, he was going to have to question if he just loved flirting with danger. Come to think of it, that would certainly explain a lot.

"Ugh," Mitsuru let out an exasperated groan, throwing her hands into the air before walking off, saying, "just don't skip school again."

"Unless I want to," Minato mumbled, looking off to the side with a smug look on his face. The Ice Queen might have been intimidating, but he's already stared Death in the face. There wasn't much she could do to him at this point.

Now, he had the day to himself to do whatever he wanted, except he had nothing to do. After her lecture, Kotone went out with some of her friends, so she wasn't an option.

All that was left was to essentially play meet-and-greet with the team, something he put off to the best of his ability. Kotone was simple—approachable—but the others—how do you approach those that you tried to murder?

If he asks Kotone that same question, she would always reassure him that it wasn't him. In a sense, she was right; Makoto wasn't in his right state of mind at the time, something that everyone knew. But that didn't change what he did.

But who said that making amends was going to be easy? Where should he start though?

A loud crash suddenly erupted from the kitchen, loud enough to cause Minato to briefly jolt in his chair before it was joined a familiar scream from the girl that he had been warned about.

So Fuuka—definitely Fuuka—he needs to help her before she gets herself hurt.


Tick.

Tock.

Tick.

Tick.

Time continued to count down as the bluenette sat in the chair, eyes facing downwards at the floor. He didn't want to be here; he never wanted to be here. Unfortunately, there was no convincing anyone. Words are useless are those that refused to listen.

"How was your day?" It's always the same question. How many times does one think to ask the same question but expect a different response?

"Fine," Makoto answered the same way he always did.

"How is school?"

"Fine."

"Making any friends?"

"No."

A sigh left the woman's lips. Interlacing her hands together, she leaned slightly forward and into her desk before saying, "You know, Makoto, I can't help you if—"

"Should I care?" Makoto rolled his eyes. What was the point in pretending? It's not like it would change anything. Plus, could he lie to someone like this—someone who had seen countless lies before? It was an interesting question, but now wasn't the time to seek an answer.

"So, you don't care?" The woman asked, raising her eyebrow. "About making friends? Yourself?"

"Does it matter?" Makoto scoffed before letting out a soft chuckled, "for a doctor, you're shit at your job."

"Makoto, language." The woman said such as thing that only made him roll his eyes more. He watched his family burn five years ago, but they're concerned with him saying naughty words.

"Whatever," Makoto opted to end that conversation as swiftly as possible.

Another sigh from the woman sitting across from him as it became clear what the problem was. The others before her had all given up on him, citing that they cannot help someone who does not want it.

He sees her as his enemy—someone who is trying to invade his soul while forcing him to lay it bare. His stubbornness had driven everyone else away, so now he thinks that he can do the same again.

"Would you mind telling me some of your hobbies?"

Choice, is that what she's pretending he has now? Fine, he'll play her game for now.

"I like cooking…"

"Cooking, hmm?" She repeated, smiling and nodding in approval. She thinks she's getting somewhere—cute. "Have you ever considered joining a culinary club? Do they offer that in your school."

"They do," Makoto admitted.

"But, you haven't joined?"

"I tried once," Makoto shivered at the memory. "I hated it."

"Why's that? Do you like cooking in private?"

"I do, but no," Makoto shook his head before finally raising, "most people don't even know how to hold a knife."


"No, no, no, no," Minato said in rapid succession, overlapping Fuuka's hand with his to stop her. "Do not put your finger on the spine of the blade."

"But, I was told that—"

"Whoever said it is an idiot." Minato forced her index finger to retreat, ensuring that she was now gripping the knife by its handle correctly.

"The knife is sharp enough that it doesn't need the extra force," Minato enlightened the poor, ignorant Priestess.

With him acting as the guide to her limbs, they brought the knife down on the vegetables on the cutting board, applying just a bit of pressure as the blade began slicing through.

"See?" Minato asked, raising the knife before bringing it back down again. Like before, the blade was able to cut through with just a little bit of pressure. "As long as it's sharp, there shouldn't be a problem."

Minato let her go, taking a few steps back and keeping his hand raised. Holding an imaginary knife, Minato continued, "if you keep putting your finger there, you're going to lose control and...," he sliced downwards with the imaginary knife in his hands, keeping the finger on top before suddenly losing control and driving the knife to the left towards his hand.

"Get the idea?" Minato asked, shaking off his nonexistent injury.

Fuuka nodded before looking around confused, "Um, do we have a press anywhere?"

"For what?"

"I was going to mince garlic, but…"

Minato sighed, "Put it on the board, place the flat end of the knife on top, hammer it, add some salt, and then just keep chopping it. The salt should keep it together and stop it from oozing."

"Um…"

Minato bit his lip, slowly nodding to himself. He knew what he was getting into when he went down here, so he had to carry it out. Holding up his hand, he said, "gimme the knife again."


"Do you prefer your privacy then?"

"Do you enjoy asking asinine questions?" Makoto shot back with a glare. "Yes, I do."

"That was rather hostile," the woman noted, "do you act like this towards everyone?"

"With some exceptions," Makoto answered. If by some, he meant one, then yes, there certainly was an exception. "I don't like people."

"I can see that," she continued to say in that calm voice of hers that was beginning to piss him off. "Any particular reason why?"

"People just bring me headaches," Minato shook his head, bringing his hands up to massage his temples. Now he was going to be thinking about that all day, great. What a great doctor she is.

"Hmm," she hummed to herself, "I don't imagine that your behavior makes it any easier."

"In a way, it does," Makoto chuckled, fighting the smirk that was forming from the corner of his lips. "Drive people away, then they stay away. Even if I tried to make amends, they're never going to forgive me for what I've done."


"Hey, Junpei," Minato greeted the capped boy. The last they were together, he nearly blew his face off; he can come back from that, right?

"Uh… hi?" Junpei grimaced but remained seated on the sofa. He didn't want him here but didn't want to say it.

Was he scared of him? It made sense; he'd be stupid not to be afraid of him. Makoto wasn't gone, just 'sleeping' for now. There was no telling when he could come back and what would come back as. Even Minato didn't know for sure, despite feeling everything his other-self experienced.

Did he despise him? It's not like he had any right to judge him for that. Makoto was ready to kill him and those around him without a second thought, even before what Pharos did, only changing his mind because of Kotone.

No matter what he does now, he can never erase the ghost of his past.

"Um, how are you?" Still, it was worth trying at the very least.

"I'm… okay, I guess?" Junpei replied with a familiar tone of uncertainty. The longer he's here, the shakier he's becoming.

Biting lips, shaky knees, eyes darting everywhere in the room, sitting on the edge of his seat—this isn't going to work. He's scared and isn't ready for this.

"I… was just checking in, I guess," there was nothing worse than a pointless effort. It was best to end it now, on his terms before it comes blowing up in his face. "Keep… I dunno, have a good day."

Minato didn't stay to hear whatever he had to say. God knows that it probably wasn't anything good.


"You say people give you headaches," she pointed out, "how come?"

"You're not very experienced, are you?" This entire scenario reeked of amateur work. Maybe that's why she agreed to take him—you have to start somewhere while you still believe you can help people.

"Why wouldn't they?" Makoto growled, briefly causing her to jump back; a little something to unsettle her to remind her who's in control, "too noisy, too nosy—too much everything."

The woman paused for a moment, wordlessly watching him as he seemed to slowly settle down. Was that a look of pity her eyes? Really? She's too soft for her own good.

She cleared her throat before speaking up again, "so, it's too much for you?"

"That, and…" Makoto shook his head, muttering, "one other thing."


Ding

"Huh?" Minato titled his head. Were they expecting any visitors today? Wait, how often did visitors come?

With no one else around, Minato could only shrug and go to the door. If there's someone coming here, then it was unlikely anything that would cause too much trouble.

The doorbell rings again, this time joined by knocking on the door. Whoever this person was, was not very patient. Either that or they're uneasy, probably nervous. He should be careful not to unsettle them.

Minato swung the door open, "Hell—" his words were caught in his throat as he saw the person in front of him.

This was a woman and one he did not recognize. She was dressed poorly with hair that looked too stubborn to keep kempt and stood biting her lip as if part of her was saying that she should run away.

She wants to run, but something is making her stay, something important. Something that Minato could see through immediately despite her having said no words.

The woman was a stranger, but he'd seen her eyes before—those bright crimson eyes.


"what?" The woman asked what would be her final question to the boy.

"Heh," Makoto shook his head, smiling and closing his eyes. This was a waste of time, and she knew it; she knew she couldn't help him. She would just tell the same people that forced him here that she wasn't experienced enough to handle him.

Letting out one last sigh, he answered, "people always end up bringing their own problems to you."


Erm… plot-twist? Like I said, I needed something to focus on while we wait for the inevitable Ryoji arc. That, and well, Kotone feels a bit too much of a satellite love interest to me. I have to give her something to work on, plus it'd make building up to said Ryoji arc easier for me.

Also, you saw some of past Makoto. Why? Mostly because I'm starting to miss writing the guy. What is it with me and having my variants of Makoto (always named Makoto) being Ensemble Dark Horse characters? It's ridiculous! Maybe you guy just like cynicism and sado-masochism… or I'm an idiot. Honestly, it can be either one.