Maybe now that Ken is part of this, it could help Shinji move on and we could keep that promise. Together.
Not that he wants Amada involved in SEES or any kind of danger to begin with, he deserves so much better. But Akihiko needs his brother back whole at his side too, they have a pledge to keep.
Seeing the twins argue after the meeting disturbed him; they're like two faces of the same coin, and yet… Ken's joining created a subtle rift between them, painfully echoing his own tumultuous relationship with Aragaki after the incident.
Is there something one of them can't accept, just like him?
They've always been so close, and from what Minako hinted, they stuck together in a very symbiotic way during the last ten years. It wasn't pleasant either, that much they both told him.
Perhaps they came through it like Akihiko and Shinjiro did; abandoned to themselves with no parents, living back-to-back as fighters through every hardship. They had nothing and for a time they shared the love of a frail little girl that died too young. Heck, Shinji joined SEES to stay at his side at all costs, not wanting to break the chain they wrapped around each other like a lifeline.
Yesterday, he wanted to ask the twins about their argument but…
I wouldn't want them asking about Ken.
There's also Mitsuru to consider, she never completely moved on from Shinji's departure and his shadow is lurking over hers in a thousand little ways. She's always isolated herself in her perceived duty, feeling the need to be what she thought was expected of her by her father, and Shinji was slowly beginning to help her crack that façade.
Ironic how recent events started to open my eyes. She burns the blinders away.
Then the accident happened, and his brother broke and ran, never saying her name again. Akihiko owes her so much for the last years, and adding to her pain is the last thing he wants to do, but the chairman's words highlighted how much finishing the fight means to her.
She'll never let herself live her life until the Dark Hour is gone. That would help her shed that ice casing she entombed herself into. Perhaps he'll stay too.
In the end, if they want extra power in the field to get rid of those shadows, Aragaki is the best they can get. He's inspired Akihiko to get stronger, yet he never managed to match his might or bulk despite all his training. His adoptive brother is a natural at fighting that he strives to emulate since his youth, in vain.
Shinji was right: I get sappy when things are on my mind.
He takes a deep breath and exhales slowly, numerous times, once they start to slow down at the playground. It's early, and he's not at his best to sort what yesterday's troubled dreams left behind.
From the horizontal bar at Minako's side, Akihiko caresses her soft hand like perhaps all the answers to his worries lie in the lines of her palm, waiting for his sun to rise again patiently. She craved the freeing motions of running as well; her mask was taunt and cracking when they met near the dorm lamp post.
When you're worried, I worry about you.
Perhaps it was his presence she wanted too, that still amazes him every time he thinks about it. Her fingers eventually close around his own and her lashes part slowly, revealing two red flames that rise to the skies, but her face looks troubled instead of serene. It takes a few breaths before she whispers.
"Is it weird that I want to nurture and protect him, and yet I want him far away from all of this?"
"It's not just you, I think most of us feel the same."
I can't believe the chairman even thought it was a good idea. Is it because Mitsuru awoke to her power so young that he thinks it's fine?
"His altruism makes me feel shameful. At his age, I thought only of Min… I was just full of anger at the world too."
And I thought only of my powerlessness when the orphanage crumbled to ash, and that pale, soot-smudged little face that would never call me big bro again.
Akihiko laces her fingers tighter, and she just leans into him in reply, squeezing back so much it burns.
They hold on to each other in soothing silence, listening to the minute sounds of the trees waking in the dawn while the air keeps whistling softly. His malaise eventually passes and he finds his voice again.
"By the way… I ran the Apathy numbers you wanted and spoke to the chairman. You had it all right, but he said it was normal, like a virus fighting back. He kept a lid on it for morale but he's aware."
Akihiko can hear the sigh escape her throat, then the quiet words that follow.
"That makes sense, I guess, but it's hard to look at. We just need to finish this, then. Next full moon's almost here."
About that…
"I might have someone we could ask for help. A former member of SEES. I'd have to run it over with Mitsuru first, but..."
That's not going to be a pleasant conversation.
"I'd rather not have to train two people at the same time, who is it?"
Ken I get; polearms and no experience, but…
The mere idea of anyone trying to coach Aragaki in combat is so funny he barely refrains from chuckling. The echo of his mirth lives in his reply and she narrows her eyes, perplexed.
"I wouldn't worry about that at all if I were you."
And now Akihiko can leverage a juicy tidbit of information Shinji himself told him a while back over ramen. Teasing her is always a guilty pleasure and he smirks with cheekiness.
"Do you remember that tall guy in a red coat from behind the station? You met him when you went looking for rumors about Yamagishi."
Minako's irises ignite in shock, and she blinks.
Score.
"How do you know about that?"
"Because that was Shinji, and he told me."
Realization dawns on her and she smiles knowingly.
"Not just a friend from school, uh."
That's right, she saw him at the hospital that day too.
"He's more like a brother to me but… don't tell him I said that. A little rough around the edges though."
Now that he thinks about it, Shinji is somewhat gruff and direct to a fault, intimidating even. But that won't faze her and she impressed him, so there's that.
"Yeah, I noticed. He literally knocked someone out with his face."
It's tempting to ask her why she never shared their little group escapade with him back then, but deep down, he knows. Minako needs no one to fight for her, she never did and she's fiercely protective of those she holds dear. Sometimes she stretches herself too much for everyone else, but that's where he likes to come in.
You don't douse a wildfire, you just… trench around it a bit.
Her crimson embers are aimed his way, perhaps expecting a few probing questions about that secret adventure. But Akihiko just grins as he cradles her left cheek tenderly in his palm. He lowers his forehead to hers, pouring silver into red and murmurs through his smile.
"Next time you feel like punching some thugs, let me know so I can watch."
Minako's laugh overlays the park's morning song like a handful of windblown chimes. Once she huffs the last breaths of amusement out of her system, she blinks and lowers her lashes, gently stroking his brow with the back of her fingers.
"Call him back then."
School starts tomorrow but at least today they got nowhere to be early. Akihiko breathes very slowly, letting his hand drop to her jaw, tracing it to her chin.
I really want to…
She meets him half-way in a flutter, reading the hesitation in his movements, barely caressing him a few times until his fingertips trace down to the back of her neck. The scorch of scarlet in Minako's eyes is heavy when the tip of her tongue travels across his lips, and he parts them, every nerve of him charring to a crisp when she slides into his mouth.
You're melting me alive.
She's all fire, everywhere he feels her it sizzles and while it's soft she's anything but shy. Her fingers dig into the back of his head, pushing him down to her, grazing his lip with her teeth in hunger before turning sideways and drowning in him.
Static is pooling beneath his ribs, pushed upward in hums that match hers in the spaces between their gasps for air.
It's dawn, noon and sunset all at once, everything is slippery red warmth and he's clutching her hair to kiss her back in kind, drunk on sunlight.
"Why are you even asking me? You have the authority to act without coming here, so just do it then."
I never inquired before because deep down I knew he would refuse. But now...
Mitsuru's words rain like frigid hail, all business, but her posture speaks otherwise. She turned away from him almost immediately when he broached the subject, showing a back of steel to hide her eyes and he knows she's biting her lip in distress.
"I could… but I won't, not unless you agree. I know what this could do to you."
I was here after he left, remember?
She stays silent, still fixing the window, just a marble statue encased in an armor of her own devising. Eventually her curls bob and wave as she raises her head upward and the manicured nails on her arm bite in the flesh.
"He's reliable and powerful… and he knows how we work. The chairman would agree."
Still the institution talking.
"Screw Ikutsuki, this is about you. Drop the act and be a person for once."
Her eyes are just pointy diamonds when she whirls around and takes two steps. The slap is halfway in the air before she relents and stops, sighing as she drops her hand, towering over him. Akihiko bites his cheek from his seat, wondering why she keeps staring at him with such a bemused expression like there's something on his face. He's starting to get uncomfortable and that makes him restless, tapping his foot on the carpet until she speaks.
"You've changed you know."
Her chuckle barely has volume, and she slides in one of the command room chairs with a looser posture than before, eyes barely dewing.
"I guess I… need some closure. So, it's for the best, for both of us."
"Are you sure Mitsuru?"
She never even hesitates, back in her armor already, stiff with the certainty of her decision.
"Take it and go."
And her hand points toward the armory imperiously as she gets up, walking off to her room.
He needs some leadership gravitas to make this work because he has one shot at this, and he can't ask Minako to come with him. Not with how he's planning to force Aragaki to come back.
She'll ask questions and I could never lie to her. She's got enough to worry about.
His only option is to choose a time she's busy and ask her brother. He trusts Minato as much as her, he's second leader and he's reliable to a fault, but guilt is still making somersaults inside his chest.
It's the first day of school and while usually she'd be free to hangout with him after class, student council called a meeting to kickstart the semester.
It has to be today.
Taking his phone out during French lessons, he starts texting discreetly.
Minato makes his way to the gate where he waits, small silvery briefcase in hand, and his eyebrow perks up immediately.
He knows what this holds.
They silently stare at each other until a sea gray eye glints, and he finally speaks his mind.
"Why didn't you ask Mina instead?"
He saw right through it.
"I'd like you to… ignore what you'll hear. And to avoid asking about it, please."
Now Minato smirks knowingly. Not that he ever expected to deceive him in any way because the twins are uncannily perceptive.
"…All right. You owe me though."
I already do, and you know it.
"Add it to the tab. And… thanks."
Their stakeout takes less than an hour as they hover near the back alley and strip mall, until Akihiko spots the familiar figure they are hunting for. Aragaki is heading for one of the restaurants, hands in his pockets and head held low, when both teens block his path near the staircase. Minato isn't the most imposing figure by himself, but he is mimicking his own demeanor like a mask, stoic and back straight. The eyes under the knit cap turn hostile and Shinji snarls immediately.
"You're really starting to piss me off Aki!"
Fingers tightening around the briefcase's handle, Akihiko stands his ground, speaking with confidence.
"Things have changed. Sorry, but I'm not taking 'no' for an answer this time."
Shinji looks confused at his tone and looks up, glancing at both his opponents. The fact that he's not alone to confront him seems to take him off guard just a bit; he sure never approached him like this before.
I'm serious this time.
"This… belongs to you."
Hazel gaze falls to the briefcase he's being offered, but no words come out, so he keeps talking.
"There's a new threat. Persona-users, just like us."
Looking sideways, Aragaki takes a few seconds to reply, his eyes almost... haunted.
"…So? That's not my problem."
Yeah, I figured.
"That's not everything… Amada has joined our team."
Now Shinji shudders in shock, taken aback, and gets into his space with a loud bark of anger. Minato just stays impassive, but he didn't miss any part of it and his eye flickers to Akihiko.
"What the hell do you mean!?"
"He has the potential, and Ikutsuki approved it. He's a Persona-user now."
Shinjiro turns around, shoulders slumping as he mutters softly.
"I don't believe it…"
It takes him a while to talk again, almost solemn.
"Tell me one more thing Aki… Was it his decision to join?"
"Yeah. He volunteered."
Sick twist of fate, I know.
"I see…"
Aragaki's imposing figure seems almost defeated, as if this conversation is a cloak of pain he needs to shoulder on with resignation. He sighs and straightens his coat.
"Then… I guess I'll stick around. My old room still empty?"
Swallowing painfully without quite knowing why, Akihiko hands him the Evoker case, nodding.
"Yeah."
Welcome home Shinji.
The large, callused thumb caresses the handle slowly before he takes on the weight and Aragaki raises his eyes to Minato, calculating.
"So, you're that girl's twin, huh? I wonder why you didn't bring her instead… Keeping secrets Aki?"
Nothing escapes you.
Akihiko bites his cheek, not wanting to draw attention to the fact he doesn't want to involve her in the history surrounding Ken. Shinji grumbles something intelligible under his breath and eyes Minato respectfully, they also met before and he kept the good impression.
"I got a question for you: What are you fighting for exactly?"
"My sister's sake."
As expected.
"I see… We gotta work together, either way. Speaking of her... Guess I should go introduce myself properly."