Baby Baby Baby Ooh Yeah-
2024 AN: Long time no see! Rewrote this chapter for the plot :)
Persona 3 Reload rocks!
Mass Protection
I flipped open my folded phone, to see a notice pop out that said: 35 unread emails. I didn't need to see who sent them, for I had a very good idea who it was.
One of the senders was Akechi, who sent me 2 emails. The other one...I pushed the button and checked the sender list.
33 unread mails
Sent from, as she likes to call herself: 'your protector'.
Thank god we still didn't have iPhones. If this was an iPhone with a messaging app, I was pretty sure the count would have reached 77.
Sighing, I closed my eyes and thought back to where this chaos all began...which was actually yesterday, god damn it.
The story of my life...
A day ago
"...! Give him another dose of amphetamine...50cc IV...signs of extreme hypotonia...risks of apoplexy..."
"Clogging due...phlegm... arrhythmia and severe palpitations...!"
"Where is...no good...the 'Plume of Dusk'!"
Voices..so many...sounds...sleepy...
"What...the vitals...how can he...the anesthetics!"
I slept.
...
...
...
"...What the..."
Those were the first words that came out of my mouth when I regained consciousness.
First, I was on a king-sized hospital bed. Yeah, that was already strange enough. Nobody uses a bed that big in the hospital of all places.
The only reason I knew it was a hospital bed was due to its rather unique characteristics such as the nurse call buttons, the built-in vital monitors, and the IV bag carrier arm that was right above my head. Oh, and the snow-white sheets.
Second, I was in some kind of hotel suite room in a Five Star Hotel. The fuck?
Well, maybe not a hotel, but definitely someplace related to the Kirijyou. I mean, the Kirijyou name plastered on the glass round desk a few meters away made their connection rather clear.
I pulled out my IV, applied pressure for exactly two minutes, and scratched my chin once the wound stopped bleeding. The warm haze that had been clouding my mind had cleared up, leaving me more room to think coherently.
The memories flashed back inside my aching mind.
...Oh. Yeah. Thanatos Picaro. Mitsuru Kirijyou.
Akechi.
My hand flew sideways and smashed into the nurse call button.
Almost immediately, a nurse flew into my room.
"My condition is fine. Do you know what happened to Gorou Akechi?", I cut in before she could ask any questions.
The nurse blinked, probably taken aback by my bluntness, before she snapped back and replied.
"Gorou...she received some counseling and a check-up but nothing more. She was uninjured so was released. She...just left a couple of hours ago after coming here to check on you. Really, you should treat your girlfriend to a dinner date."
This time, it was my turn to blink. Check on me...did she just indicate that Akechi has been visiting me ever since she was discharged!?
No, I had more important stuff to clarify, first and foremost.
"I'm not her boyfriend, mam."
...
...
Meanwhile, back at her little apartment, a 14-year-old reddish-brown-haired girl had woken up from the strange fever that had been plaguing her for the past few days.
She had been glimpsing through her corridor of memories, a vertical tunnel filled with a dazzling myriad of long-forgotten shards containing lost memories.
She felt the connection towards her persona...the beast that appeared on that night of her awakening...Thanatos grow stronger.
She remembered. Not everything, but more than enough.
Kotone Shiomi...no, she remembered her true name now, the name that had been sealed with her memories surrounding that trauma...Sakuya Arisato.
Yes, Sakuya Arisato...she...she couldn't believe that she had forgotten him, all this time. Her baby brother. Her darling brother.
All. These. Years.
A wave of nausea assaulted her, making her rush to the toilet on trembling legs. She vomited into the sink, once, twice...multiple times.
How could she? How could she!?
Tears welled up from her eyes as they splattered down onto the floor. Her legs gave way. She slid down onto the floor with her back against the wall.
One could argue that the memory loss was something inevitable. Something that could be excused. Something that should be forgiven.
After all, she did lose both of her parents in a horrifying accident.
However, Kotone...Sakuya's sense of responsibility refused that merciful path of forgiveness. How could she not refuse? Even if all her friends and family -adoptive family- said that it wasn't her fault, how could she forgive herself?
She promised her dying mother that she would protect him...Mi■■to.
Wait...■■■■■■? What was...what...
An icy chill ran down her spine at the haunting realization.
His name. Her brother's name. His face. His voice.
What was it? ...Where is it!?
Panic clawed inside her chest like a rabid beast trapped in a claustrophobic cage. Her heart was beating so much that it hurt.
Why couldn't she remember!?
Suddenly, another fragment of her memory pierced through her mind, making her wince in pain.
A burning car. The gigantic full moon. The gunshots and a dark looming reaper-
Wait, what? Gunshots? But-
Just as she was trying to make sense of the memories that surfaced in her pounding head, someone urgently knocked on her room's door.
"Kotone! Kotone! Are you alright? May I talk with you for a minute?"
It was Maya Amano, her adoptive guardian, her family, and her best friend. Kotone stood up on wobbly legs and stumbled to her door.
Maya's eyes widened in concern as she took in the ragged state of her ward.
"Kotone, do you need-"
"I'm fine. I...I'm fine. What happened?"
Maya scanned Kotone with her eyes but sighed once she saw the stubborn resolve on her face.
"I heard you throw up, that is what happened.", Maya said while rolling her eyes. "...You wanna drink some hot chocolate and chill? You stink of vomit."
Kotone blinked, then cracked a watery grin and weakly punched Maya's arm.
"Is that even a question, mommy?"
..
...
Meanwhile, in Gekkoukan Dorm
...
"Father!? W-what brings me the pleasure of receiving your call at this busy hour?"
The 15-year-old girl's face lit up with joy as she nervously twirled her red hair with her finger.
Her father, however, being the reticent and blunt man with the literal weight of the world on his shoulders as he was, curtly stated his business.
"Mitsuru...I read the report about the boy you found. Are there any records of the name...Minato Arisato?"
Mitsuru looked equal parts bewildered and concerned but shook her head and continued.
"I'm afraid that I remember no such name on the official hospital record. I believe that the records state that his name should be Yuki Mishima."
Takeharu Kirijyou fell silent for a few seconds. When he spoke again, it was in a...peculiar tone that Mitsuru almost didn't recognize. Was it...guilt?
Mitsuru ignored the nagging feeling in the back of her mind for later thought and answered her father.
"The doctors all assured me that he would be fine. I wouldn't be surprised if he would be discharged in a couple of days-"
Mitsuru's business phone rang. Before she could utter her words of apology, her father cut her off.
"Take it. I will call back later."
"Father-"
'Toot-toot-toot-'
Mitsuru sighed as she put down her now silent cell phone. She glared at the cause of her frustration and took the call with another sigh.
Duty comes first.
"This is Mitsuru Kirijyou...Yes. Yes. Splendid! He made a full recovery- he did WHAT!? What do you mean he just ripped off the doors!?"
...
...
...
Just when I thought I could get some peace and quiet after quietly leaving the hospital through the back door...this happens.
"Minato-san, my most earnest wish is for you to be by our side."
"...What. (Oh, HELL. NO. How is this even possible.)"
With her sleek black metallic body, golden helm-like headpiece, red butterfly visor, black hair, fair synthetic skin, glowing red eyes, and armored skirt that represents a butterfly's wing, her identity was unmistakable.
Before me, stood not Aegis, but her 'sister'.
Metis.
The accumulated Shadow within Aegis' sea of souls that materialized in the real world, the embodiment of Aigis' rejected emotions...or as she likes to call herself: the 'Younger Sister' of Aegis.
In other words, she shouldn't be here. She shouldn't exist, at least, not yet.
Of course, this was a different universe, so this Metis might be different from the one in 'The Answer'...but if that's the case, what was she?
Was she really a 'sister' android? The Anti-Shadow War Machine? Or was she something different entirely? An embodiment of something else like Pharos?
Most of all, why was she standing here in the back alleyways of this hospital?
Metis' crimson lips curved into a soft smile.
"We've found you...at last.", she said softly.
Hmm...yeah. No.
I swiftly U-turned, walked back, shut the door, and locked it for good measure.
...I mean, technically, they didn't give my notice of discharge.
A patient gotta stay indoors.
Then, the reinforced steel door was ripped off its hinges.
Metis smiled at me, with her hand still embedded in the twisted piece of metal that was the door.
"Are you hungry?", she asked.
I nodded.
You thought it was the beloved Toaster? But it was I, Siscon!
Hamuko/FeMC is big sis. Damn. And yeah, pre-Gekkoukan high era.
Maya Amano? Some Deja Vu there...eh, a coincidence for sure.
PS. Hamuko/Kouko didn't stick to me, it doesn't click in Japanese, so I went with Minato's third less-known name, Sakuya. As for why they had completely different names until now...and why they have no official records...why indeed?
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X-kalibuuuur, mass destructed.