Chapter 21: The Whims of Fate.
October 4th, 2009
So, this is what it's like to be shot, huh? Shinjiro asks himself, the echoing sound of Takaya's gun echoing around him. He knew he had been hit. He jumped in front of Ken to take the shot after all. The round should be right between his lungs right now, or even in his spine. But, it was strange. He was breathing normally, and no spike of pain fared across his chest. In fact, the only pain he felt was a slight stinging sensation on his cheek as though he had been cut. But that couldn't be right, Takaya's gun was aiming right at him.
"Aragaki-san!" Ken's voice echoes behind him as Shinjiro opens his eyes. He looks down at his chest, finding no wound or mark. A quick touch on his cheek stung him as he pulled away, blood dripping on his fingers as he looks back at Ken. He was still standing, although he had dropped his spear and was looking at Shinjiro with worry in his eyes.
"What?" Shinjiro whispers, looking back to Takaya only to see him holding his wrist in pain as he took a few steps back. His gun lying a good several feet away from him, with a bullet lodged right into its barrel next to the cylinder housing the bullets.
"Who dares intervene in my divine judgment!?" Takaya shouts looking at the rooftops until a figure materialises out from the shadows. Holding an IMI Desert Eagle in his right hand as he glared at Takaya with fury behind his mask.
"I dare." Joker tells him with a snarl, smoke still exiting the gun as he aimed it right at Takaya. "This is your only warning, Takaya. Leave — now. Or the next bullet won't miss its mark." Takaya growls at Joker, his eyes darting over to the still breathing Ken and Shinjiro as he slowly makes his exit.
"This is not over. We shall settle this, one way or another come the next full moon." With that, he takes his leave. Leaving his ruined gun behind as Joker lets out a long sigh. Placing his gun back into his coat as he looked at Shinjiro and Ken.
"Are you two alright?"
"Yeah… we are." Shinjiro replies, still not believing his eyes. He was alive, saved by Joker. The only thing he got was a cut on his cheek from Takaya's gun. He looks at Ken his eyes wide as he stood there unmoving. "You alright kid?"
"Why? Why did you try to save me?" Ken asks, stunned. "After I tried to…" His legs give out from under him as he falls to the floor, a wave of conflicting emotions running through him as Shinjiro sighs.
"I suppose I didn't want to see someone so young lose their whole life that's still ahead of them." Shinjiro tells Ken as Joker helps him up.
"Let's head back to the Dorm. Everyone else should have taken the Shadow down by now." He tells them. Shinjiro nods as he turns around and starts moving back to the Dorm, Ken's spear in his hands as Joker helps move Ken forward. But as Joker looked down at Ken, he saw a boy who had seemingly lost his will to live. And it reminded him all too much about a certain person who tried to kill him.
He had to have a word with him tomorrow.
"Sheesh, what was that last Wheel all about? It didn't do anything." Skull asks as the team make their way back to the Dorms.
"It looked like it was going to land on the Reaper mark, but it changed at the last second. I wonder what that was all about. Even the Fortune Shadow was shocked when it happen." Minako asks, looking at the Wheel of Fortune Tarot card in her hand, while her brother held on to the Strength Tarot card.
"I dunno, but I had a very bad feeling when it landed." Mona remarks, riding atop Queen's shoulders. "I wonder if Joker and the others are back at the Dorm?"
"We'll find out soon." Mitsuru replies. Akihiko was standing next to her, a look of uncertainty on his face as they soon arrive back home. Just as the Dark Hour came to an end as they enter. Finding Ren and Shinjiro sitting around the lounge with exhausted expressions.
"Shinji! Where were you?" Akihiko calls out as they enter, glancing around. "And, where's Amada-kun?"
"Ken's up in his room." Shinjiro replies, shaking his head. "He… went through a lot out there. Especially when he tried to kill me."
"WHAT!?" Everyone shouts in shock, all of them looking at Shinjiro as they now noticed the small bandage on his cheek.
"Amada-kun tried to kill you!? Why!?" Fuuka asks, shaking her head, until Mitsuru lets out a gasp.
"That's right… October 4th. The day when Amada's mother was killed." Mitsuru announces, shocking everyone but Ren, Shinjiro, and Akihiko.
"She was killed?" Minato asks, blinking in surprise.
"Yes… public records say that Amada's mother was killed in an accident. But, the truth is…"
"…we're responsible for her death." Shinjiro picks up, drawing all eyes to him. "It happened two years ago when we were hunting down a large Shadow that appeared in the city. Was a real strange one as well, looked like a skinny man with a staving dog while holding a stick with a bag on it."
"The Fool…" Minato comments, picking up the Fool card with the same figure on it. Although, the figure and the dog were a lot more healthier in the picture. "…that must have been it. So, that Shadow was already taken out two years ago."
"Well, it was a bad time for it to appear." Shinjiro replies, shaking his head. "I had only awoken to my Persona at the time… didn't have that much experience using it. And for a moment, I lost control of Castor."
"You… lost control?" Ann replies as realisation sank into everyone.
"Yes." Akihiko replies, shaking his head. "At the time, we were so focused on stopping the Shadows that we forgot about the civilians we were supposed to protect. And because of that… we had a casualty."
"Amada-kun's mother?" Haru asks, holding her hands over her mouth. "No…"
"That's why Amada-kun tried to kill you, Aragaki-senpai?" Yukari asks. "He thinks that you murdered his mother?" Shinjiro nods his head, letting out a sigh as he sank into the couch.
"That's right. And honestly, I was going to let Ken kill me." He replies, shocking everyone. "Not before I warned Ken he would end up becoming like me. Not that it mattered, seeing how he planned to kill himself after he killed me."
"Amada… planned to kill himself?" Junpei asks, eyes going wide. "That's messed up!"
"Is that why you have a cut on your cheek?" Ryuji asks, motioning at the bandage. "Did you let Amada-kun take a stab at you?"
"No… it's not from him." Shinjiro replies, eyes going hard. "It was from Takaya."
"Him!?" Minako shouts as Minato growls alongside Koromaru. "What was he up to!?"
"Looking for our navigators." Shinjiro replies, stunning Futaba and Fuuka. "Looks like he wanted to kill you both to 'even the field' after we took Chidori from them."
"He… wanted to kill me? And Futaba?" Fuuka asks, feeling her knees go weak as Minato grabs her in a hug. Stopping her from collapsing as Haru did the same with Futaba. The two navigators going pale as everyone narrows their eyes in anger.
"Yep. Tried to get us to spill, but we refused. Hell… Ken even said he was a navigator to throw him off the trail. After he lost his will to live." Shinjiro replies, shaking his head. "I don't think he's in the right headspace any more."
"I should have considered this when he volunteered to join." Mitsuru comments out loud. "How did I fail to see the connection?"
"But, how are you alive? I doubt Takaya would have let you walk away with a cut on the cheek." Yusuke asks, wondering why he was still alive. Shinjiro gives a smile, looking over at Ren as he nods his head at the Phantom Thief leader.
"I own him my life." He replies. "He saved us at the last second. Shooting Takaya's gun out of his hand and leaving a bullet blocking the barrel. You changed my fate, Ren."
"What can I say? I've been doing that ever since I became a Persona user." Ren replies with a grin, before frowning sadly. "Still, I need to have a word with Ken tomorrow. I can't leave him alone like this."
"Why?" Yukari asks, watching Ren get up as he heads for the stairs.
"If I don't… he'll become another Akechi." Ren replies simply as he goes to his and Makoto's room. Leaving everyone else behind in silence. What else could they say to that?
October 5th, 2009
Ken did not leave his room when morning came. In truth, he couldn't even bear the thought of looking at anyone. He had tried to kill someone, only to then get told to his face that it wouldn't bring him the peace he wanted. And when he willingly gave himself up to die, the person he tried to kill was willing to take the bullet for him! Just… what was he supposed to do? What was he supposed to do with this life he had all but given up on?
"Why am I still alive?" Ken asks himself bringing his legs up to hug as he quietly cried to himself. A soft knock on the door intruded his thoughts, bringing his eyes up as the door is opened. Revealing Ren as he walked into the room.
"Hey… how are you doing?" Ren asks gently, standing in the middle of the room. Ken looks away not able to bring himself to look at Ren as he lets out a shaky breath. Ren could see the stress on Ken, how his eyes seem to have sunk in and the tear lines on his face. It looked like he had truly given up on life.
"I don't even know myself any more." Ken replies, shaking his head. "I just… want to run. Run away from everything. But… I don't even know if that's the right thing to do. I just… don't know any more." He lets out a sniffle, trying to stop the tears from flowing just as Ren sits next to him.
"Ken… if you'll let me, allow me to tell you the story of someone I knew, who was just like you." Ken blinks, looking up at Ren who lets out a sigh as he glances out the window. "He was just like you, you know? He lost his mother when he was young, and bounced around orphanage to orphanage, never staying in one place for long. And while that happened, his anger grew at the one person he blamed for abandoning him and his mother. His own father." Ken looks at Ren, letting himself get drawn into the story as he continued.
"He plotted his entire life to bring him down. Studying hard to be the best of his class, eventually become the second Detective Prince of Japan. But… it was as he started to put the plan to bring the downfall of his father into action, he fell into the Metaverse, and awoke to his Persona." Ren lets out a sigh, shaking his head as he turned to Ken. "And do you know what he did with that power? What he did in his relentless pursuit of revenge? He used it to alter his plan, and became a monster."
"A… monster?" Ken asks shakily
"Yes. He was so consumed with bringing his father down no matter what, that he willingly became his assassin just so he could get close to him. He triggered countless Mental Shutdowns and Psychotic Breakdowns, all so he could allow his father to reach the seat of Prime Minister. Where he would have revealed himself to be his abandoned son, and ruin his life by using the power of the Metaverse as a sort of Damocles Sword. However, it would not have worked. His father always knew who he was, and planned for him to take the fall the moment he became Prime Minister." Ren looks at Ken, resting a hand on his head and rubbing his hair.
"Akechi never realised that Shido planned to betray him until he found out himself at the last second in Shido's own Palace. When a cognition of him told Akechi himself, after he tried and failed to kill us. At that moment, he realised everything he did to get revenge, all the needless death, the killing of Haru's father and attempt to kill me and the others, all of it was for nothing. And, at the end, when he had no other option left, he let himself die while buying us time to escape."
Ken remains silent, listening to Ren's words as he lets them sink in to him. "Why are you telling me this?" Ken finally asks, looking at Ren with confusion.
"Because… I see you about to go down that same path of self-destruction. And I want to save you from that." Ren replies, looking Ken right in the eyes. "Even though he was our enemy and had killed Haru's father and Futaba's mother, we still pitied him. For if he had a different path, he could have become a valued ally to us, instead of the monster he had become. And you still have that chance, Ken."
"What do you mean?" Ken asks, tilting his head.
"You still have your future ahead of you. You've not committed any crimes like Akechi did. You can still be saved and life a happy life. It's what your mom would want, to live your life to the fullest, right?" Ken blinks at Ren, unsure how to respond as he watches Ren stand up from the bed. "Akihiko and Shinjiro are on the roof if you want to speak to them. If you still want answers, then listen to them and hear their side of the story. Only then, will you make the right choice."
Ken watches as Ren leaves him room as the gentle rays of the evening filter in from the side. Ken looks at the sun, feeling the warmth fall over him as he looks back at the door. Ren's words and the story of Akechi ringing in his mind.
"I… I don't want to be a monster." He tells him, placing a hand on his chest. "I… want to know. I want to know why." Looking back at the door, Ken pushes himself of the bed and walks outside. Heading straight for the roof, not encountering anyone else as he opens the door. Finding Akihiko and Shinjiro there, the two of them gazing at the sun as they look back at Ken.
"Hey." Akihiko greets as Ken walks up to them. "You look half dead."
"I feel half dead." Ken replies, his eyes on the ground. He looks up at Shinjiro, uncertainty welling within him as he rubs his arm. "Aragaki-san… I want to know. What happened back then? Why did you… kill my Mom?" Shinjiro looks at Ken, seeing the young boy rubbing his arm as he lets out a long sigh.
"I didn't do it by choice, Amada." Shinjiro replies, grabbing his attention. "I had awoken my Persona just that week, and I was still getting used to controlling it. What happened back then, was Castor going out of control."
"Out of control?" Ken asks, tilting his head.
"Yes." Akihiko adds, rubbing the back of his head. "It can happen to anyone when they first summon their Persona, usually inside Tartarus where the damage is non-existent. As you get used to using it, there are times that you can lose control and attack anything around you until you and your Persona are in synch. It's happened to Mitsuru, it's happened to me… and on that day, as we were fighting the Fool Shadow, it happened to Shinji."
"I didn't realise what was happening until it was too late." Shinjiro adds, shaking his head. "Everything was going fine until I was hit by a spell from the Fool Shadow. I thought I got walk it off, but as I was about to dive back in, I felt Castor start to move inside me. At that moment, everything went downhill. Castor appeared, glowing red as he attacked everything around him in a blind fury, killing that Fool Shadow, but he wouldn't stop. And I was powerless to stop him until Akihiko and Mitsuru managed to calm it down after beating him senseless." Ken looks between them, letting the words sink into him as he looks at the ground. "So, now you know the truth of what happened. Does it change anything for you, Amada? Do you still want to kill me?" Ken continues to look at the ground, silent, until he glances back up at the two. Some light returned to his eyes.
"When Mom died protecting me, no one believed the truth. To this day, they say she died in an accident that didn't even happen. That's why I wanted to clear the record. I thought that's what she wanted… maybe then she'd finally have peace. But now… I don't think that's right." Akihiko and Shinjiro raise an eyebrow at that. "Ren-san told me about Akechi… and how he saw me walking down a similar path of becoming a monster like him. And… I don't want that. I don't want to be a monster! All this hate that I've had to keep me going… all it's doing is killing me…"
"You aren't the only one, Amada." Akihiko chimes in, letting out a long sigh of resignation. "I was always running off on my own. I was too obsessed with getting stronger. Ever since I lost my sister, Miki, that's all I cared about. I thought that if I was strong enough, I could protect anyone. But I was wrong, and I almost lost not only Aki but you as well, Amada."
"In the end, none of us can run away from whom we really are." Shinjiro adds, shaking his head. "No matter how far we run or how secluded we make ourselves, it will always come back to face us. So, let's put an end to that." He holds out a hand between them, surprising both of them. "From now on, we all move forward towards the future while remembering the past. And that no matter what happens, we all have each other's backs. That way, no one else we care about will get killed."
"No need to tell me twice." Akihiko replies, placing his hand on Shinjiro's. "I've had enough of Shadows ruining our lives. And Strega trying to kill us as well." They both looked at Ken, who was blinking at them as a tear slid down his face.
"I'm tired of being alone… I can't stand the face of being alone… and that's what almost happened again." He comments, wiping his face. "I've been running away all this time. But, no more. I'm not running away any more. I swear it." He reaches up and places a hand on both of their hands. "I'm burying the hatchet and seeing this through to the end. I swear it." Akihiko and Shinjiro nod at Ken with smiles just as a strange pulse echoes through all three of them. As they all close their eyes, they can each see their Persona hovering in their hearts. Before they were engulfed in a flash of light and changed forms. And for Shinjiro, he felt his entire body become rejuvenated at the change.
In Akihiko's heart, Polydeuces changed into a giant man with black skin and red eyes behind him. White lines around his legs with silver decorative plating covering his ankles, while a shining silver sword is held in his right hand. In his left hand was a football sized, in Persona scale, globe of the earth while silver armour covered his body and head. Leaving only his face visible as a wreath crown sat on his head in silver. A white cloak reached down to his waist with a red lining, while the centre of his chest was open, revealing a man in a black suit sitting on a chair with a red mask covering his face, sipping tea.
While inside Ken, Nemesis changed into a towering being of orange and black, with thin arms and legs and a head with no eyes. Two giant orbs with glowing light acted as he shoulders, surrounded by silver metal beams that from a connecting X between them, while the symbols of the Zodiac Callander ring the outside.
As for Shinjiro, Castor became an armoured figure looking similar to Akihiko's, yet dressed in pitch-black armour. Instead of a world in his left hand, it was a giant purple shield with golden wreaths surrounding a golden eagle while holding a silver spear in his right. All the while sitting atop a horse dark as night with gleaming silver and purple armour with golden ribbons. The horses' eyes and mouth glowed the same red as Augustus's face.
And in all three of them, the names of their new Persona's echoed in their minds.
"Caesar… didn't expect a famous Roman to be a Persona." Akihiko remarks, shaking his head with a grin as Shinjiro lets out a groan.
"Seriously? What is with us getting Personas that are connected? Mine is now Augustus." While Akihiko smirks at Shinjiro, Ken actually lets out a chuckle at them as he wipes away another tear from his eyes. "How about you, Ken?"
"Kala-Nemi… certainly sounds better than Nemesis." Ken replies before glancing back at the roof entrance. "Will everyone… still welcome me? Even after what I tried to do?"
"They will." Akihiko tells him, patting him on the shoulder. "No matter what, they are all worried about you. So, it's time to show them that you are alright." Ken looks back at the two, seeing them both give him encouraging smiles as he looks back at the door. Taking a deep breath, Ken walks back to the door and heads downstairs with Akihiko and Shinjiro behind him. The moment Ken reached the bottom, he was already greeted by the happy face of Koromaru.
"Amada-kun…" Yukari's voice echoes as he looks up to see everyone's worried faces.
"Are you alright?" Makoto asks gently as Ken looks around at them. Nodding his head silently.
"Yes. I'm done running away. And… I've made peace with what happened to my Mom. I'm not walking down that path of self-destruction again. And I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."
"Don't scare us like that again, okay?" Minako tells him, hugging Ken out of the blue. "You gave us all a heart attack."
"I'm sorry." Ken replies as he glances at Ren, who nods back at him with a small smile. While in Minako's eyes, she could see Ken gaining his fifth star on his Tarot card, along with Shinjiro's gaining his own fifth star. It was then that Shinjiro let out a cough, grabbing everyone's attention.
"Since everyone is here, there is something I should mention." He reaches up and pulls hi beanie off, showing just how long his hair was. "Starting tomorrow, I'll be going back to school."
"For real!?" Junpei and Ryuji shout while Mitsuru blinks at him in surprise. Before giving him a calm smile.
"Yes. Just like Ken, I'm done running from my past. And my first step for that is going back." Shinjiro replies before rubbing his head. "Although, I am a bit far behind. I hope you don't mind brining me up to speed."
"We can help you with that." Makoto offers as she, Ren, and Mitsuru all look at him with a glint in their eyes. A glint that made Shinjiro suddenly really nervous.
"Uh oh… that's the glint Ren and Makoto have when they are about to bring out the Spartan Study session." Futaba comments with a grin as Ann and Ryuji take a few steps back from them. "Better get ready, Shinji." Shinjiro looks around, seeing how he is alone in this as he shakes his head. Resigning himself to his inevitable fate of a Spartan Study session. Which if he is being honest, is way preferable to what almost happened last night.
"Hoo boy…"
October 6th, 2009
"How are you feeling, Shinjiro? A brush with death isn't easy." Ren asks as he, Shinjiro and Minako make their way to Chagall Café. They had just finished school for the day with Shinjiro being reinstated. And just in time, he was almost reaching the point where he would be expelled.
"Honestly, I've never felt better." Shinjiro replies, shaking his head. It was strange seeing him walking about in school clothes instead of his usual attire, but he no longer walked around like he had a weight strapped to his back. "It's like a weight has been lifted from me. That, and I've never felt more in sync with my other self than now."
"We felt some sort of pulse coming from the roof yesterday. Did something happen?" Minako asks, tilting her head as the three of them find a table.
"We'll show you the next time we venture out." Shinjiro replies, glancing at the menu. "Normally, I'd avoid coming here in the past due to being out of sync. But ever since yesterday, I feel like a new man."
"I think I have an idea of what happened." Ren replies dryly as he looks over the menu. "Ground coffee… we'll need to by some of that for later."
"Thanks for reminding me." Shinjiro replies, looking at Ren.
"Are you going to use it for cooking?" Minako asks, tilting her head. "I didn't know you could do that with coffee."
"You'd be surprised." Shinjiro replies, letting out a sigh. "I'm not wasting this new lease on life." Minako and Ren nod at him as Minako sees the sixth star appear on his Tarot card. It honestly scared her when she saw it riddled with bullet holes the other day, but now it is back to normal. All thanks to a certain Trickster sitting right next to them.
September 15th, 2017
"I saved your life?" Ren asks, blinking in surprise at Shinjiro.
"Yeah. It's a debt I'll never forget since it gave me a chance to fix my life." Shinjiro replies, nodding at him. "But still, the look on Takaya's face when you interrupted him was priceless. He was so pissed off."
"Language." Makoto says instinctively, holding her hands over Sophia's ears.
"A bit late for that." Yusuke replies, shaking his head at Makoto. "Still, it is hard to believe that you would have done something like that, Ken. Considering how close you and Shinjiro are today."
"You'd think that." Ken replies, shaking his head as Koromaru brushes his head against his leg. "But, I wasn't in the best of headspaces back then. Honestly, I could have easily become another Akechi if things had gone differently…"
"We wouldn't have abandoned you, Ken." Minato tells him resolutely. "We would have stayed with you no matter what." Ken nods back at him with a grateful look as the warm atmosphere of Leblanc fills around them.
"So, there was only one Shadow left, right? But… what happened?" Ann asks, silting her head. "Apathy Syndrome didn't vanish until February."
"Let's just say November brought along too many surprises for us." Mitsuru remarks, shaking her head before becoming thoughtful. "Although, if my memory is correct, it was around this time that the twins started to use Mada in their team when we ventured into Tartarus on the 7th." At the mention of Mada, the twins froze in place as all eyes turned to them. "And to make Mada, you needed the Mara, correct?"
"Yes…" Minako replies, rubbing her head. "…but we didn't know at the time!"
October 6th, 2009
"Welcome back to the Velvet Room." Igor greets the trio as they sit in their chairs. "What brings you here today?"
"Well, Joker here was talking about a Persona he once made called Mada and how it proved to be a very powerful fire specialist until he replaced it with another called Lucifer. We were wondering if we could make it?" Minako asks, tilting her head as Minato nods beside her. Igor blinks at them in surprise while Lavenza looks at Joker, who shrugs at her with an uneasy look.
"Yes… you can make Mada." Elizabeth replies, looking at her grimoire. "However, the original fusion recipe has been corrupted. We are currently using the fusion recipe that uses Mara as a replacement fusion material." At the name of Mara, Joker suddenly when pale alongside Lavenza. Which went unnoticed by the twins.
"Can we make Mara?" Minato asks cautiously.
"Yes…" Theodore replies cautiously. "…but I warn you it is not of the faint of heart."
"So? We've seen some crazy things on our journey so far." Minako replies with a grin as Joker silently shakes his head. Pleading her not to make it. "I'll make Mara so I can make a Mada."
"Very well then…" Igor replies solemnly, summoning the required Persona into cards and sending them into Minako's head. The cards impact, fusing as they take form above them. But what appeared before the twins… was not something either of them expected.
"HUH!?"
"What!?"
"Not again…" Joker tells himself, shaking his head as the twins stare at the Mara before them. Something that Igor, Elizabeth, Theodore, and Lavenza also looked away at. A phallic creature atop a cart with spikes on the front.
"I am Mara… you cannot hide from me. Those inner desires are but another of your facades." The Mara tells them before turning into light and settling into Minako. Who just stares forward with a blank expression as Minato touches her shoulder gently.
"Minako?" He asks quietly as everyone looks at her with worry. Until Minako lets out a long whine as she buries her head into her hands.
"I have a dick in my heart… why do I have a dick in my heart?" She says out loud with a weary voice before looking up at Theodore with a pleading look. "Can you please fuse Mada already?" Theodore quickly nods as he removes the offending Mara and brings up the fusion recipe that Joker used to make his own. Quickly using the Mara to create Mada, who silently takes up residence inside Minako who already felt better at getting rid of Mara. While Minato looks at her with a blank stare, Elizabeth quietly coughs into her hand to grab his attention.
"Do you… want to make one as well?" She asks in a calm voice. Minato blinks as he glances at Joker and Minako before letting out a long groan as he nods back.
"Might as well… let's get it over with." He remarks as he braces himself to welcome Mara in him. Even if it would be for the briefest of moments.
For once, the twins thought they could get a good night's rest after what had happened the last few days. But the memories of what happened in the velvet room spoiled that, as they could still see Mara in their dreams. How they wished it was their significant others instead. They couldn't help but wonder if Ren had the same problem as well. But as they tried and failed to fall asleep, a voice echoed out to them, waking them from their restless slumber.
"Hi." Pharos calls out, grabbing their attention. "It's pretty chilly tonight. Are you both warm enough?"
"We are." Minako replies, rubbing her eyes. "Although, it is crazy at how close we are to winter. The year has gone by far too fast."
"Indeed. Are you okay? You both look a little tired." Pharos asks, noticing how tired the two of them are.
"We almost lost a friend. It's been on our minds." Minato replies, the admission making Pharos frown in sadness.
"I see. In this world, people die every day. Until recently, I thought that was normal as the changing of the seasons. But now, I understand why people mourn." Pharos tells them, rubbing his foot on the floor. "For the first time, I have friends that I don't want to lose. And lately, I've been remembering things more clearly. Do you recall the end I've spoken of? Well, some are calling it 'the Fall' as well."
"The Fall?" Minako asks, blinking. "Why are they calling it that?"
"I don't know, but it is growing closer with each night. Can you feel it?" Pharos asks, glancing out the window. "We are like kindred spirits, so I wonder why I'm the only one who remembers." He looks back at them, shaking his head. "This is tearing me up… can it be that you can't accept me for who I am?"
"What do you mean?" Minato asks, blinking in surprise. Pharos smiles sadly at them, even as his card shoots up to rank eight.
"It's nothing. I'm sorry if I'm not making sense today. Maybe it's the changing of the season? But we're still friends. That will never change." And with that, he vanishes, leaving the twins alone as they try to get back to sleep. Their thoughts are no longer plagued by Mara but by something else.
Just what was 'the Fall'? And why did it scare them more than anything else?