Disclaimer: Fate and Persona are owned by different companies and I hold no ownership and all that jazz.
7/13
Hakuno blitzed through the Math questions, only pausing long enough to allow another to finish ahead of her. A final read-through of her answers as she watched as the teacher picked up her test.
Hakuno was confident that she passed… the bell rang as the last of the exams finished…
Something tugged at the bag of her mind…
Hakuno shook her head, Sumire looked… concerned?
Hakuno debated whether she should talk to her… Watching her pull out a nearly broken phone as she seemed to struggle to type.
Hakuno shrugged, as she approached the athlete Hakuno couldn't help but see her eyes shine with dull light? "Oh hi, Kishinami!"
Hakuno waved, "Your phone ok?"
Sumire groaned, "I've been meaning to get a new one for a while now…"
"Are you trying to contact someone?" Hakuno had her phone out, she wouldn't mind calling someone for the ruby-haired girl.
She put her hand to her mouth, before blushing slightly… "Do you mind calling Kurusu-Senpai?"
Hakuno nodded as she called, handing the phone to the other girl as it rang. Akira had picked up as Sumire was gesturing from the call…
Hakuno shrugged as the red-headed girl hung up, "Thank you so much!" Sumire did a bow?
"No problem?" She seemed very happy…
"I gotta run, going to meet him in Kichijoji!" She bolted down the stairs, leaving Hakuno in the dust. She shrugged her shoulders as she headed home, her phone pinged softly.
MemeQueen: Hey! Listen! Still got that old rig right?
Hakunon: Innocent Sin 2?
MemeQueen: Nah! Sending you new games, that old thing should still be good enough.
Hakunon: Ok.
7/14
Pirateboi: Firework Festival! Monday!
Art: Is it free?
Tricky&Kitty: I should be free.
Hakunon: Sounds fun?
Pirateboi: YES!
Makoto: That sounds agreeable if you can pass your tests. We never did celebrate for Kaneshiro, we can head for sushi later that week.
Catburglar: Sounds like fun!
Hakunon: Do you want to join Futaba?
MemeQueen: All those people?! Yuck.
Tricky&Kitty: Morgana demands fatty tuna.
Catburglar: Ooo, Us three should wear Yukatas!
Makoto: I was planning on it.
Hakunon: I think I still have mine…
MemeQueen: Normies.
Hakunon: I saw yours in the closet Taba.
MemeQueen: Don't make fun of me in front of the wizards!
Art: But… Hakuno is the only Wizard?
Hakuno walked down the stairs to the second floor of the school as she listened to the students, a few depressed people, and… rumors about a cat meowing?
Morgana didn't help Akira and Ann, did he?
Hakuno shrugged her shoulders, they will have to face the wrath of Queen if so…
Speak of the devil.
"Hey, Hakuno got a bit?" Akira waved her down, and Hakuno could faintly hear Morgana mumbling in the bag.
Hakuno nodded, she wanted to see Futaba… but she should be focusing a bit on her studies… but a few hours before gaming…
"So… Chihaya wants to meet you. The fortune teller." Akira seemed slightly nervous but Hakuno wasn't sure why, "I might have mentioned that someone I know knows a bit about what she can do, and well…"
"She got really curious!" Morgana yowled, "She asked a whole bunch of questions and wouldn't let up on it."
"But… I don't know anything about Fortune Telling. And isn't she in Shinjuku?" Hakuno didn't mind going to Shinjuku… but Ann would be angry as well as her parents if they found out… Though from their texts it seems that their work is making them work really hard…
"I got a solution to that!" Akira said as Morgana groaned… "We can head to Jinbocho! Get a few more last-minute study guides and go to a cafe?"
"Don't buy anything from her though! She scammed us for 100,000 Yen!" Morgana huffed.
They spent… 100k yen and still are friendly with the person?
"Sure… Not too long… Futaba wants to game tonight." Almost every night. Hakuno will have to wean Futaba off the games… if it's even possible.
"How old are you?" Hakuno blinked as the blonde-haired woman looked over her cards. "It's almost like you're ancient!" Her voice grew higher as other patrons of the small cafe looked over at them.
"Chihaya…" Akira pulled on the fortune teller's arm causing her to finally notice the other patrons.
"Sorry," Hakuno could feel something pulse when she attempted to divine her future but it didn't feel exactly like her, and no feeling of energy coming from her but… Closer to it coming from somewhere else?
It also felt closer to Akira's eyes than her own…
"It's just… the Fool is typically the start of your journey… but it's at the end after the World and Death? It's… almost as if you had a whole life before this one…"
Hakuno's stoic face did not show the sign of shock that came through her. "I see…"
"Everything about your fate keeps changing! Only the Lovers and the ones before the World don't change… You gotta be treatin' me like some type of fool! What type of trick is this!"
Hakuno was not expecting her accent to rapidly change or her outburst.
"No no!" Chihaya slammed her hands on the table, "No I see it now! It's because of you!" She pointed her finger at Akira, "Is she your sister!? Your secret lover!? Or something!?"
"Mifune, perhaps It's because I know a bit about what you're doing?" Hakuno truly didn't understand fortune-telling… But she understood a tiny bit about Magecraft. And she definitely was not related to Akira… or his 'lover'.
"Y-Yeah!" Chihaya let go of him, "Hakuno's seen some things close to what you can do…"
Hakuno nodded, "My… old friend Rani, was able to save my life with her readings…"
Her face contorted, "Wait… you knew someone like me?" A series of emotions flashed on her face… Hakuno in a way envies how much emotion she could show…
Hakuno nodded slowly, "Rani… is no longer part of this world."
That seemed to snap Chihaya out of her current expression, "I see… I was hoping to meet them…" Chihaya looked down."Fate… is absolute… But… yours isn't solid…" She was mumbling now… "One can change fate… the other has no definite fate…"
"Akira?" Hakuno was concerned with how she was acting.
"Hakuno… Maybe it was a bad idea to introduce you two."
"No…" Chihaya sighed, "Now that there are two of you I can't deny it any longer… Fate is not absolute." She spoke the words as if it was the deadliest curse she could muster. "I… just need to accept that people can change their own fate."
Akira nodded, a confident smirk on his face, "I told you."
"Fate… is something dictated from the past, and changed by the present… Life can Change." Hakuno was sure of that… if she wasn't then her fated end at the Moon Cell wouldn't have led her to have a new chance in this world.
"Thank you… for that." Chihaya had a small smile, "It's given me much to think of… Goodbye." And with that in swift movements, she left the two sitting in a cafe alone.
"So… could you walk me through this English again?"
7/15
MemeQueen: This NPC is where you get your missions from!?
Hakuno glanced down, as a picture of Mishima appeared in the chat.
Tricky&Kitty: How did you even find him?
MemeQueen: That site is held together by hopes and dreams! It took less than a minute to trace it to him!
Hakunon: Could you help him?
MemeQueen: Already done!
Catburglar: That explains why he was freaking out yesterday!
MemeQueen: Good! It was bad. Alibaba in for the rescue!
"Um… Hakuno-chan?" Haru was standing beside the gate to the school, a soft smile on her face.
"Hello." Hakuno nodded, two sets of brown eyes stared into each other as Hakuno waited for her to continue.
…
Haru seemed to steel herself, "Um… would you like to exchange contact information? With summer vacation just around the corner, I just thought!" Hakuno nodded, bringing out her phone as Haru fumbled with her own.
"Do.. you need help?" Hakuno offered, seeing the fluff tense for a moment before settling, Haru nodded.
"I just… don't get technology. I know how to call and text… but anything more than that…"
Hakuno nodded, she had difficulty adjusting to the vast amount of functions a cell phone has… while the Portable Terminal was easier to use and vastly superior in combat… Cell Phones have variety on their side.
Haru giggled softly, "Thank you…"
"Hey Hakuno~ I was thinking," Ann said as they were walking home…
"About exams?" Hakuno was not surprised when Ann shook her head.
"No… about the Showtime thing, didn't you mention it felt like something from your world? Could the Wishing Star have fallen from there?"
"Wishing Star?" Hakuno hadn't heard of it before…
Ann was now the one confused, "Now that I think of it… you never did meet Jose have you?" Hakuno shook her head, she couldn't think of anyone with that name…
"He's a cute kid that drives around Mementos… Not human? We don't know what he really is, but he gave us this little star that fuels the Showtimes we do."
Huh… Hakuno had guessed they had something to fuel their 'Showtimes' but she didn't know what exactly… It has been far too busy these last few weeks… It also has been a long time since they went to Mementos…
"When exams are done and break starts it'll be one of the things we check out… including the whole Magic Circuit thing…"
Ann looked conflicted, "Why does it need to be during summer anyways?"
"I heard it hurts?" Hakuno was probably being overly cautious about it… "But Rin mentioned it hurts at first… My Circuits have been open since the preliminaries of the War, and I'm not even sure how to open them..."
7/16
MemeQueen: Dawn of the final day! 24 Hours Remaining!
Hakuno rolled her eyes as Ann approached her, "Hey." She seemed nervous… "Shiho wants to head to Shujin after school… Can you be there with us?"
Hakuno nodded as she sent a quick text to Futaba telling her that she will be busy for a while after school…
MemeQueen: :T ಠ_ಠ Fine! Two days in a row though!?
Hakunon: We will play whatever game you want
MemeQueen:... Any game you say? Can't take it back now!
Hakuno rolled her eyes as the two girls headed into Shujin.
Hakuno felt odd being the one walking behind Shiho, Akira, and Ann were holding onto the black-haired girl as they ascended the steps.
Most students gave the group a wide berth, and a good number of students went silent as Shiho limped down the halls. Hakuno had asked Makoto to unlock the door as soon as they found out that Shiho wanted to see them again.
Shiho was panting as they reached the roof, Hakuno was hesitant to cast her recovery magecraft on the girl… She didn't deserve this… But if she did ever heal her, then she and her doctors would find out about it… But now that she is mostly healed? Then…
"Ann… Kurusu-kun, I'm pretty heavy, huh? Thanks for the help." Hakuno stayed back beside the door, she kept a small lookout to ensure that no one would disturb the group.
"Aren't they super reliable?" Ann commented as Shiho unhooked herself from the two, causing the black-haired girl to giggle.
"Mm-hm, just like you were telling me." Hakuno was unsure of why she was here… But seeing Shiho walk towards the edge, in front of the newly built fence had Hakuno's heart skip a beat. "We're so high up…"
"Why did you want to come here?" Akira looked calm, his hands in his pockets as he slowly stepped closer to Shiho.
"I think… to settle things. To tell you the truth… I wanted to reenact that moment. Wearing these clothes, standing here again… I wanted to know what it would feel like." Hakuno… understood her. She has seen what could happen if someone didn't find their own closure…
She herself… in her own way has yet to truly find closure, she clings to her memories of the Past. Her heart still aches to see her old friends even knowing the impossibilities… Perhaps when Yusuke is finished she can attempt to put some of her memories to rest…
"Revisiting the past… can help one heal." Hakuno quietly said Shiho gave her a sad smile. Not… that Hakuno can ever revisit her own past. Her ties to Lunar Seraph had all but faded. With no Palace, Hakuno has no choice but to strive to protect her connections in this world.
"Yes… I think I agree."
"What about back then? What were you thinking?" Ann had asked so quietly that Hakuno wasn't sure that Shiho heard.
"I… I didn't want to die." Shiho slowly said, "I just needed to escape. It was like another person inside of me was screaming, telling me to come up here…"
Could... That have been her Shadow? Shadows are typically the part that the person refuses to face… That mixed with what That Bastard did to her…
"It almost felt like that person was trying to kill me…" Shiho turned around, "But I know that person was part of me too… My Weakness. So I wanted to see if she would show up again now."
"She's gone, isn't she?" Akira said, his voice resolute. Hakuno wasn't sure where Akira's confidence was coming from… but seeing Shiho's slow nod with her slight smile said it was true.
"Yeah… She doesn't exist anymore. I've accepted it."
"...You're so strong, Shiho…" Ann mumbled Hakuno could already see tears form in her eyes, "The only reason you can stand here now is because of how hard you worked for your rehab."
"Maybe… but that was all thanks to you, Ann." Seeing Ann's confused look, Shiho had a small chuckle before continuing, "Because I saw how hard you were trying, too… Trying to be strong, to be cool… Wanting to be an action star… Striving to be a better model. You were so positive… your eyes sparkled with motivation. With you putting that much effort in, I couldn't just let my life go to waste in a hospital bed."
Hakuno had noticed Ann was trying harder and harder to be the 'ideal' model, her new 'diets', gym runs, rivalry with Mika, and her outings with Akira, everything was to push towards her goal.
…
What was her own goal? In the past, it was so clear… To Survive, see another rise of day… But now that she has a solid life? A strong support group?
"That's why, I wanted to stand again… It was because of you. Being able to change others light their own fires of determination… that's what true strength is."
Hakuno glanced at Akira as he nodded slowly. "Ann showed you her own strength." Shiho smiled at Akira's words.
Ann was crying tears ruined her makeup, "Shiho, I'm not that strong…I'm nothing without you. I'm just a lonely, scared girl…"
"No… you're not." Hakuno said, "You're both strong." And she meant it. She has seen Ann's resolve, it has been tested time and time again. Ann's heart is strong. Shiho's strength in fighting her own demons, walking up these steps once more… Just shows how strong she is.
"I'm sorry, for deciding to transfer schools…" Ann's tears slowed, as a look of pure resolution appeared.
"I'm… I'm going to become a real model! That way you'll be able to keep seeing me… and keep giving life your all. I'm gonna be in a bunch of magazines, and I'll say tons of good stuff in interviews… So… Stay healthy. Work hard, but not too much… and keep in touch. Just… Take care of yourself… Please…"
A small flicker of life returned to Shiho's eyes as she mumbled Ann's name and embraced her, "I love you… Once I can smile again from the bottom of my heart, I'll come visit."
"Y-yeah…" Ann sniffled.
"Hakuno… would you mind helping me down? My parents should be here soon…" Hakuno was somewhat confident to help the former athlete down… Leaving Ann with Akira, Hakuno took Shiho's arm and helped brace the fallen volleyball player as they began walking down the steps.
"... Phantom Thieves huh…" Shiho mumbled, "Are all of you a part of them?" Hakuno nodded slightly, Hakuno had guessed that someone as close to Ann had figured it out. "Don't worry… I won't tell a soul."
"Sense you know… Recover." Blue lines covered Hakuno's arm as the healing Magecraft slowly eased the weariness that Shiho was dealing with.
"Thank you. I wish you could've done that sooner," Shiho's laugh was hollow but Hakuno felt a slight pang in her chest…She wishes she could do more."Can all of you do that?"
Hakuno slightly shook her head, "No… just me."
The third floor was deserted, Hakuno couldn't even guess the time."Is.. what you guys do dangerous?"
"It can be…"
Shiho gave her a knowing smile, "Can… you make sure Ann stays safe? She can be a bit stubborn…"
Hakuno suppressed a sigh, in truth, it was Hakuno herself that was reckless… But.. "I will… I don't want anything to happen to them."
"I'm glad." The two had reached the second-floor staircase, "You stay safe to ok? Don't push yourself too hard…" Hakuno sighed this time, not even bothering to hide it.
"I can't promise that…" Shiho reached her arm around and patted her head.
"You will, you guys have a bright future…" Shiho mumbled the last part and Hakuno had the limited people skills to know to ignore it. Hakuno hoped that things would turn out well for the group… But a nagging part of her, perhaps Avengers' own opinion, insisted something is going to go wrong.
She knows that they are playing in a field larger than they know… She just hopes it ends well for their group.
Shiho's parents met them on the second floor. Shiho gave her a small hug before leaving with them.
Author's Note: Well… A bit of Hakuno time with new characters! Though Shiho is going to be gone after this…
It's been 35 chapters and Hakuno is finally starting to question herself slightly, it's been one thing after another with little time to rest, and while Hakuno has had 15 years she has been coasting in her current life.
Huh… Over 100k words were posted. Tbh never thought I would make it this far.