Chapter 44

A few days after the most recent Full Moon incident, S.E.E.S. was all together, gathered in a circle within the Control Room. Some were seated in chairs, some squatted or hunched on the floor, and the others simply stood - a miscellaneous grab-bag of postures. Yukari, Fuuka, and Akihiko had all been reluctantly given temporary permission to leave the hospital (despite the recent attack they had endured), and Yukari found herself sitting between Hamuko and Junpei, cross legged on the floor with her cast resting on one knee.

She looked around the room at the others, each in varying conditions. Thankfully, most people were largely unscathed, even after the havoc of the Full Moon battle. But she could see the bandages on Minato's shoulder peeking out from the collar of his shirt, and Akihiko's face was still partly covered in gauze (now thoroughly frayed from his constant picking). Plus, Fuuka still had cuts from her initial injury, now healing and no longer requiring medical attention, but still visible.

And - of course - there was Yukari herself: covered in criss-cross patterns of cuts from the Shadow bird. She was positive that some would end up being scars. Looking down and inspecting her various wounds - both the new ones and the ones from last month - Yukari could now only frown and hold back a sigh.

Goodbye, dreams of perfect skin.

In the midst of her mental ramblings, Ikutsuki cleared his throat and stepped forward, ever so slightly entering the center of the circle. "I truly appreciate you all coming today," he said, gently adjusting his grip on a manila folder he held by his side. "I will not take up much of your time, but I thought it would be useful to go over some notes from the two encounters we had on the night of the last Full Moon."

He extended the folder in front of him and opened it, lightly tapping it once, with a nod at Mitsuru. "I know Mitsuru-san has already talked with each of you briefly - her notes from those conversations have been compiled here, as has her general summary of both situations." He glanced up with a small smile. "I will also be talking to each of you individually later, to ask a few questions of my own."

Looking back down, he flipped a page in the folder. "First, things that could use improvement. I understand a major issue from the fight at Shirakawa Boulevard was that Minato-kun was Charmed by the enemy."

"Yeah." Minato seemed to be trying to be even more stoic than usual, stone-faced while trying to shrug… before wincing slightly as he raised his injured shoulder. "I lost focus when I heard Fuuka-chan, and I tripped, and I forgot to move Icarus out of the way of the Charm spell." He paused. "It… seems that certain status conditions can affect you when they hit your Persona."

Ikutsuki nodded. "Important information to have," he said, "And now we know. But let me also say: although it's unfortunate, sometimes mistakes happen, despite our best efforts." He shrugged. "Do not beat yourself up over it, Minato-kun."

Minato looked at Ikutsuki with slightly narrowed eyes before nodding (and wasn't that weird), but Ikutsuki simply looked down and flipped a page. "Next, we have a related note - what to do if someone is Charmed. I see that before Hamuko-chan was able to use a Dis-charm on Minato-kun, Junpei-kun attempted to break the Charm on Minato-kun by force."

All eyes turned to Junpei. Looking down, he pressed his lips together while his face slightly flushed. "Er, more or less." Scratching his arm, Junpei cleared his throat before going on. "I wasn't thinking and I, well, I used Hermes." He looked up at Minato, who was now watching him impassively. "I'm really sorry," Junpei blurted. "I know I shoulda said it a while ago, but I didn't mean to get you that bad. I honestly thought that the new suit would kinda… protect you. And that maybe roughin' you up would snap you outta your possession."

"And that is an important point to bring up," Mitsuru said, cutting off a reply from Minato. "The new combat gear has many features - the suits are bulletproof, temperature change resistant, tear-and-blast resistant, machine-wash friendly…"

"Thank god for that," Minato muttered.

"…but," Mitsuru continued, giving Minato a quick, reprimanding look, "they do not make you invincible. I understand it can be hard to fathom, but we must take to heart the knowledge that the power we wield is incredible. It is no exaggeration to say that each of us could destroy a building or lift a train car, and our power grows by the day. One misstep can easily cost someone their life - new suits or not."

Yukari felt herself frown slightly, and she hesitantly spoke up. "If that's all true, then why have the suits at all?" She made eye contact with Mitsuru when the Kirijo heir turned to face her. "It seems like they're not doing much."

"In the face of a direct assault from a Persona, you are correct, Takeba." Mitsuru gently and subtly adjusted her hands, currently primly folded on top of each other. "But survival sometimes comes down to a matter of tiny changes. The difference between a Shadow striking or missing your vital organs can be a matter of centimeters." She looked around the room, directing her point to the group. "This is why I must stress that we maintain the same level of caution as always, even with the suits. They are not an unstoppable shield, but a final failsafe should…" She hesitated. "…should things go awry."

Mitsuru decidedly did not look at Yukari as she finished her thought. Yukari had to stop herself from huffing a bit, instead adjusting her cast's position on her knee.

"I quite agree," Ikutsuki said, smiling and giving a nod to Mitsuru. "But I have one last major point to bring up, and that is the matter of the public."

Yukari noticed from the corner of her eye Minato frown, cocking his head slightly to one side.

"I agree with the prioritization of safety over stealth - but I must emphasize the importance of stealth regardless." Pushing up his glasses, Ikutsuki straightened his posture. "I need to ask - did anyone see you at Shirakawa Boulevard before or after the Dark Hour?"

"...Probably," Hamuko said with a nod, crossing her arms as everyone looked at her. "Right at the end of the mission, Junpei, Koromaru and I had to run down to a lower entrance to leave so that we wouldn't break our legs trying to jump from the highest floor." She scratched her arm, briefly looking at Ikutsuki before glancing over to Mitsuru, and settling her gaze there. "We tried to avoid the reporters and cameras for the most part, and we jumped out a lower story window, so we mostly succeeded. But, there were a lot of people there. I can't say for sure if anyone took a photo, or if we were caught on some security camera footage."

"We can deal with security camera footage, if necessary. But the rest of the press may be a different matter. Were your faces covered?"

Hamuko hesitated, then slowly shook her head. "Not fully, at least."

Ikutsuki's lips pursed, and his brow furrowed. "I see. Well, there is nothing to do but keep an eye out for potential trouble at this point." He shook his head and his expression cleared as he closed his folder. "As long as we continue to avoid contact with the public as much as possible during missions, the Kirijo Group can handle the rest."

Yukari couldn't help but frown at that, and her eyes automatically found their way to Mitsuru. One look at her face showed that the Kirijo heir also felt uneasy about Ikutsuki's last statement. Yukari couldn't be sure that Mitsuru felt exactly the same as her, but she had a feeling that everyone had gotten out of that situation too easily. Sooner or later, it felt like the other shoe would drop, and the full ramifications of that night would come. She just didn't know when - and judging by the look on her face, Mitsuru agreed.

"Now, then, there is just one last bit to mention…" Ikutsuki turned to look at Fuuka, who froze in place. "Fuuka-chan, I believe you have awakened to your Persona! Is that correct?"

"Y-yes, I have," Fuuka stuttered, only squirming slightly as all eyes turned towards her. "And I… er, have to a-apologize for accidentally reaching out to you all during the fight. I-I certainly did not mean to."

"I mean, even so… Fuuka-chan, that was amazing!" Junpei said, a wide grin on his face. "I don't think that's something Mitsuru-san can do!"

Although Mitsuru raised one eyebrow at Junpei for his comment (Akihiko only slightly winced as he listened), she turned to face Fuuka with a nod. "I agree. That is not something I can do, which makes me wonder: is your Persona support-type? Did you feel any ability to attack or cast a spell when you summoned it?"

A frown appeared on Fuuka's face. "...Feel a new ability to… cast a spell? No, I did not feel anything like that when my Persona was summoned." She turned to look at the rest of the room, her eyes resting on Minato for a bit longer than the others. "Do you all… feel something like that when your Persona is summoned?"

Mitsuru nodded. "Certainly. I believe we all feel… perhaps, as if there is a new muscle that you never knew existed, that you can now pull."

"I felt nothing like that." Fuuka's eyes narrowed, and she crossed her arms. "Do you all feel… whispers in your mind? Ones that tell you what to do, or seem to…" she hesitated, her face twisting more before saying, "...predict the future?"

Yukari frowned at that. However, she also couldn't help but notice that Minato's head, almost unnoticeably, jerked back slightly at Fuuka's words, and Ikutsuki uncrossed his arms from the corner of the room, tilting his head.

Mitsuru leaned forwards. "The future, you say? Could you elaborate?"

Tilting her head to the side, Fuuka's frown deepened. "Perhaps… 'predict the future' is inaccurate. But I continually got… small predictions of what will happen in the next moment or two. As if someone was telling me the facets of a person or a Shadow if I focused on them."

"Intriguing." Mitsuru leaned back again. "Did you experience… visions? Perhaps in black and white, from an overhead view?"

"No," Fuuka replied. "But I also did not attempt to change my perspective."

Nodding, Mitsuru folded her hands into her lap, lacing her fingers together. "I see. The reason I ask is that this sounds strikingly similar to my own Persona when I attempt to analyze the enemy. Whenever you are comfortable, I would be curious to see what else your Persona is capable of."

After only a moment of hesitation, Fuuka nodded, and Mitsuru mimicked the motion before turning her attention back to Ikutsuki. "Thank you. Then, I have no other questions, Ikutsuki-san."

"As it happens, neither do I!"

"Excellent." At that, Mitsuru stood up, using one hand to subtly adjust her hair when a few crimson strands fell out of place. She looked around at the group, deciding (for some reason) to settle her gaze on Minato for a few moments longer than the rest. "Then we can adjourn. Everyone, please remember to make time to talk with Ikutsuki-san individually."

At this point, Mitsuru's eyes landed on Koromaru, who was staring attentively at her. She paused, and glanced at Ikutsuki with a raised eyebrow and (Yukari was pretty sure) the beginnings of a smirk. "Is Koromaru-san exempt from this meeting requirement?"

Ikutsuki blinked, then chuckled. "Yes, I suppose so. Talking with someone who cannot respond may be a bit… 'ruff.'"

Yukari couldn't help but let out a small groan at that, rolling her eyes while Hamuko chuckled to her side. Unfazed, Ikutsuki just smiled as he watched the reactions around the room. Yukari recovered from her eye-roll just in time to see Ikutsuki also watching Minato, just a few moments longer than what could be considered normal, before Mitsuru stood.

"Dismissed, everyone. And Akihiko, do not forget to study for your history exam!"

Akihiko winced, and gave a little affirmative nod, before everyone began to stand, or stretch, or congregate into smaller groups and chat. For her part, Yukari had barely moved before Junpei was immediately getting her attention by poking her knee. She looked over at him, and he raised a stack of papers.

"Got you some notes for the classes you missed! I forgot to give them to you earlier, so I wanted to be sure I gave 'em to you here."

Yukari blinked. "Oh. Right. Thanks, Junpei."

"Don't thank me - you can thank one of your archery friends. This is all their handiwork - I'm just the good-looking messenger."

"The only good-looking part here is the notes," Yukari immediately retorted, reaching over to grab them. Some part of her brain caught up to her words, and she winced. "Er, sorry. I didn't mean to be so…"

"Rude?" Junpei chuckled, a slightly smaller smile on his face. "I know. No worries."

No appropriate reply came to Yukari's mind, so she flipped through the notes instead. However, only a small portion of her thoughts went to the papers in front of her - the rest were on the boy who delivered them.

After her talk with Hamuko at the hospital, Yukari was feeling a lot better about some things. She had resolved to not do certain other things - for instance, not be a total jerk as much as possible. But her reflexive barb at Junpei showed that she had some work to do… and, she realized with a tightening jaw, she still hadn't apologized to him yet.

She still hadn't told him that she used to be - maybe still was, to some degree - embarrassed to be seen with him.

She glanced over at Junpei again, who was watching her check the notes, and she flipped the pages back into their original order. "Well… I'll have to thank them, too. But I really do appreciate you bringing them."

Junpei's smile widened. "Anytime."

She tried to smile back, but Junpei's wide, open smile didn't do much to lighten the weight on Yukari's heart.

A moment later, Ikutsuki walked up behind Junpei and tapped him on the shoulder. "Junpei-kun, I don't suppose you have the time to talk now?"

"Hey, Ikutsuki-san. Sure, I've got time!" He waved to Yukari and saluted Hamuko (who had undoubtedly been eavesdropping on the whole conversation - though maybe it wasn't really "eavesdropping" if it's done from two feet away), who saluted him back with a small smile. Then the two men walked away, leaving the Control Room and leaving Hamuko and Yukari together.

Swallowing, Yukari turned to Hamuko. "So-"

"You hungry for ramen?"

Her mouth still open, Yukari blinked. "Er, what?"

"Ramen." Hamuko didn't look at Yukari for a brief second, but soon after speaking she turned to face her companion. "Wanna go?"

Still untangling the confusion surrounding Hamuko's random question, Yukari studied Hamuko's face with a careful eye. S.E.E.S.'s operational leader looked pale and thin, and her hair was still more disheveled than it ever had been before the last month. Looking down, Yukari noticed that Hamuko's fingers were dry and rough, and not only was her uniform demanding a press or two, but certain edges of it were frayed from frantic, nervous picking. But Hamuko's expression was softer, missing the jagged edges of her previous stubborn determination. It was not that the determination was gone, but no longer was it the only thing visible on her face.

Hamuko now looked like someone who was starting to think differently. Like someone who was learning how to balance being a leader with being a teenager.

And, honestly, she looked like someone who could use a bowl of ramen.

Yukari chuckled, shaking her head and adjusting her cast. "Sure thing, Hamuko," she said. "I've been dying for non-hospital food for a while."

"Well, careful what you wish for," came Hamuko's reply as she hopped to her feet (teetering backwards for a moment as she briefly lost her balance). "I think Hagakure's probably taking notes from the hospital on spice combinations."

"Noted," Yukari said, starting to get up. Then she noticed a hand outstretched towards her - Hamuko's hand. Glancing up, Yukari saw that Hamuko now bore a small smile as she looked down, and after a moment of hesitation from Yukari, she beckoned with one hand, tilting both it and her head towards the door.

Yukari paused. Then, hesitantly, she reached out and took hold of Hamuko's hand, and let herself be pulled up.

Normally, Minato liked his room. It was quiet. It was sparsely decorated, but decorated just enough for Minato to feel at home. It had everything that Minato needed, and nothing more - just the way he liked it.

But right now, the shadows in the corners seemed longer. The air conditioning made him shiver, but he still somehow felt a drop of sweat roll down his back as his tense jaw almost began to tremble, and his leg bounced up-down-up-down like a muffled jackhammer.

Ikutsuki was coming to talk to him. And yes, that did somewhat feel like a death sentence.

Minato still had yet to talk too much with the chairman, and that may have partly been due to some instinct to stay far, far away from the man. But with this no longer a viable option, Minato was left with nothing to do but feel nervous and try not to show it.

Normally, Minato tried to not look directly at where he knew the security cameras in each room were. They were supposed to be a secret, after all. But as his body's nervous jitters overwhelmed him, he couldn't quite help a quick glance at the one in his room - tucked away in a corner, hidden inside the wall. Minato wasn't quite sure if the knowledge it was there made him more or less comfortable, given who was about to join him in the room.

At one point, he heard a creak in the hallway, and he froze for a moment, before the creaks descended down the hallway as someone walked out to the main staircase. Taking a deep breath, he had to resist the urge to physically smack himself on the head.

Get a hold of yourself, Arisato. This is just a talk.

(With some effort, Minato managed to push aside the realization that his inner conscience sounded a bit like Mitsuru.)

It felt like barely a moment later that a double-tap knock rapped on his door, and any semblance of calm was shot into the stratosphere. Minato jumped, surprising himself with his restraint when he didn't leap high enough to crater his head through the ceiling.

Then, like a completely normal human person, he rose, walked forward, twisted the doorknob, and opened the door.

(He forgot to breathe until a few seconds later.)

In the doorway was - to no one's surprise - Ikutsuki. His cream colored jacket looked slightly rumpled, and his brown hair rolled down to his shoulders. The ever-present smile on his face was there, too, but Minato's unease only grew when he could find no fault or deformity in it.

"May I come in?" Ikutsuki asked.

"Of course," replied Minato, almost against his will.

As Minato stepped aside, Ikutsuki stepped in, giving a light nod of appreciation. He glanced around the room as Minato closed the door before turning to face the older man with a light flutter of trepidation.

…Alright, maybe it was closer to a heavy stampede of trepidation.

Meanwhile, Ikutsuki surveyed the room like a nosy tourist on a safari. He opened up Minato's computer (it was off), then closed it, and then looked at the other items on the desk, before he finally turned back around. Ikutsuki looked at Minato and gestured at the bed. "May I sit down?"

Minato almost rolled his eyes. Oh, now you ask for permission?

Regardless, he nodded as he walked back over, and the two men sat down almost at the same time (Ikutsuki sat gently, while Minato felt like his legs collapsed from underneath him, and the bed squealed in protest as he sank into it).

A pause extended into an awkward silence, stretching out for many long seconds. Ikutsuki's eyes wandered towards the clock in Minato's room, waiting for an oddly long length of time before he finally spoke. "I must admit, I have been very much looking forward to speaking with you one-on-one, Minato-kun." Ikutsuki removed his glasses, slowly wiping them off with the bottom of his shirt as he talked. "I have read many reports involving you, and they are all so interesting. Mitsuru-san, too, is very intrigued, given your proclivity for Persona expertise and your downright…" he paused. " Prophetic knowledge."

Minato tried to be still, but at that last phrase, his heart began hammering away in his chest. A cold lump of horror slid down his throat and stuck to his ribs, settling uncomfortably in his stomach as Ikutsuki continued to gently clean his glasses.

"Can I tell you a secret, Minato-kun?" He asked. "The only reason I decided to meet with everyone one-on-one was to talk to you without suspicion. "

A wave of chills rolled through Minato. "I'm flattered," he heard himself say, his tongue dry and voice moments away from cracking.

Ikutsuki glanced up with a smile, no different from any of his usual smiles. But a moment later, the smile faded to just a faint upward slant of his lips, and he glanced back down to his glasses.

"Did you know," he said, "That not once - not once - have you plugged in that security key usb drive Mitsuru gave you several weeks ago?"

"…How do you know that?"

"It is almost as if you had a reason to be cautious, or already knew what it contained," Ikutsuki continued, not paying any mind to Minato's words. "Did you know that not once have you struck a Shadow with an attack that it was resistant towards, or that it negated?"

"That I didn't know."

"Do you know how unusual it is for one person to be so closely intertwined with our two newest Persona users? Before any confirmation that they truly were Persona users?"

"…"

"I could go on, but I will spare you," Ikutsuki spoke, a horrifying, seemingly-guileless smile on his face. "Suffice it to say that you wield Personas with skills far greater than someone who has only recently been introduced to them. Your Persona itself may not be the most powerful, but you use it effortlessly, as if you have had much more experience than anyone else on S.E.E.S."

Minato had to bite his tongue to keep from quipping, ' I thought you weren't going to go on,' but Ikutsuki barely gave him an opportunity to speak regardless. "Somehow you knew the time when the Full Moon Shadows appeared long before anyone else. I assume that you knew where the very first Full Moon Shadow would appear, too, as you happened to be at the right spot to distract it from hunting Akihiko. You even knew that the Emperor and Empress would change their weaknesses. You also happened to immediately know Fuuka-chan's address, and you have been heard being unusually familiar with a few members of S.E.E.S. on odd occasions - Akihiko-kun recalls you calling him 'Aki' during the Full Moon fight with the Emperor and Empress Shadows. For heaven's sake, you brought two doorstops to the last Full Moon mission at Shirakawa Boulevard, and they were exactly what was needed to prevent S.E.E.S. from being trapped. Not to mention, you - completely on your own - found a brand new Persona user, wholly unprompted. And it was a dog."

"Ikutsuki-san," Minato interrupted, mentally stamping down on the panic yowling and roaring in his head. "This… this is all very flattering that you've paid this much attention to me, but what are you suggesting?"

Ikutsuki paused, putting his glasses down on the bedside table and looking at Minato with a gentle nod, totally at odds with the howling emotions screaming inside Minato. "That is a fair question."

He steepled his fingers and closed his eyes. "It would stand to reason to assume that this is all coincidence. And that is fair, because what other explanation could there be?" Ikutsuki gave a half-smile, not yet opening his eyes. "However, many people are missing key pieces of the puzzle, with the only exception of Mitsuru, who already knows much more than everyone else in S.E.E.S. And what are those pieces? Why, they are the purpose of the experiments done by Mitsuru's grandfather all those years ago. The experiments involving Shadows, and their use as a power source… and their possible use as a means of time manipulation."

He lingered on that phrase for a few more moments than was comfortable, and opened his eyes, staring down at Minato. Minato swallowed, trying to look natural as he adjusted his position in his seat.

"I wasn't aware of that," he lied. "…Why are you telling me all this?"

"I am telling you this because I am making a gamble, Minato-kun. Because there are very few logical explanations for your behavior. There are even fewer explanations for how you know things that I do not know, how you know things that no one should know. In fact, I would argue there are basically no explanations other than chance… with one exception."

Ikutsuki looked Minato dead in the eyes. Minato used all of his significant willpower to not look away.

"I am making a gamble that this is not luck, or some unknown skill that I am not privy to. I am gambling that there is one reason, and one reason alone, that you have been able to know and do all these things from the very moment you arrived on Port Island."

Then, finally, Ikutsuki leaned towards Minato. As he did, a wide grin spread out across his face, like an old crack in a wall splintering. On reflex, Minato leaned back, away from the man in the pale suit, away from the unwanted words he was hearing, away from the sudden arrival of the consequences for Minato's own actions.

But it was no use. Minato had been true to his word last month: he had changed the future. He had made many, many changes - good changes for the most part, but changes nonetheless. And now, just as he had initially feared when he arrived in this universe, those changes had caught up to him.

Now he was paying the price for his choices.

"I believe that Shadow-based time travel is possible. I think you came from the future," Ikutsuki said, words dripping with eager, awful intent. "And I'd like to make a deal with you."

Shout outs to:

sdfahsefgjk, SonicVinilf, Terumi Gremory, E3L, SpeedytheMemeLord for following;

SonicVinilf, Terumi Gremory, SpeedytheMemeLord for fav'ing;

0lcra, Da Etan, and EmD23 for reviewing;

and my amazing beta Disasternoj for beta'ing!

One more chapter y'all. Thanks as always for reading, and I'll see you all for the final chapter of Lateral season 3 next week!

[Last chapter of Lateral season 3 drops on August 27th, 2024!]