"I mean, I just don't understand it!"

Fuuka had always been grateful to have friends, actual friends who cared about her and put a stop to all the bullying she'd suffered throughout her school years. Today, however...

"Okay, I understand it, but I don't get it. She's supposed to be my best friend!" Yukari had taken one moment to greet Fuuka as she and Aigis pulled the smaller girl into a limo, and then immediately launched into a tirade about the limo's absent owner. "Maybe she didn't know what today was, but she could have said she knew what today was anyway!"

Fuuka knew what today was. She'd spent every June 6th in a cloud of depression until she remembered why. Little things would remind her; someone on the monorail with headphones, crab bread being sold, making a satisfactory rice ball. She hoped that wherever he was now, Makoto was proud of her.

These past few weeks had been especially difficult. A scholarship opportunity had fallen through, so Fuuka had hoped her parents would continue to pay for her education. The robotics professor had nothing but praise for her understanding of electronics and "theories" of how one could make a fully-functional android...but in the end, went with an older student capable of speaking in front of large crowds. Fuuka still struggled with that. When she approached the subject with her parents, she was saddened to see that they saw this as a sign that she should become a doctor after all. So now she was forced to spend extra time taking work study courses, vainly working toward a goal that kept moving away from her.

A little voice inside her head kept insisting, Why not ask Mitsuru-senpai? She'll help!

Oh, I don't want to burden her. She's always so busy.

It's for education – she loves that!

I feel bad asking her for money – and it's a LOT of money!

She pays for Akihiko-senpai's college.

Akihiko-senpai doesn't have parents.

Fuuka winced. She couldn't even speak poorly of someone in her own mind. Akihiko had been dealt a poor hand in life. He was lucky to have Mitsuru. At least she had parents who...loved her?

"Don't you think so, Fuuka?" Oh, Yukari was asking her something.

"Huh?"

"Weren't you listening?" As Yukari griped, Aigis gave her a funny look. What was that about?

"I'm sorry, Yukari-chan. I..." Fuuka really wanted to tell the girls what was bothering her, but Yukari seemed to be in a bad mood, and Aigis, for all her progress toward humanity, still missed the mark on things like sympathy and empathy. She didn't want to bring everyone down. "I'm just a little tired."

Aigis was determined to try to be friendly, anyway. "How is your schooling going?"

"It's going well, thank you. I'm really enjoying this semester." That was what she no doubt wanted to hear.

"Well, at least someone's life is going right!" Yukari still wasn't pleased. "I don't know how you do it, Fuuka. I mean, your best friend is halfway across the country, and she still talks to you!"

Would that she could tell Yukari that Natsuki hadn't replied to any of her messages in weeks. The last Fuuka had heard, she met a guy who wasn't "all phony and junk", and he occupied most of her time. She at least sent a generic "yay 4 U!1!" text when Fuuka told her about the scholarship. She couldn't even afford to go to college, so complaining to her would probably be in poor taste.

"I'm sure Mitsuru-senpai still cares about you. She did leave you this limousine, after all." What was she going to do when there was no bright side to find? "People deal with grief in different ways, remember."

Some people whine about keys like a five-year-old.

Where did this devil on her shoulder suddenly appear from?

Yukari managed to stop bitching about Mitsuru for the rest of their outing – but she switched to reminiscing about Makoto instead, and that tugged at Fuuka's heart more than she cared to admit. He had been her first love, too, but she couldn't possibly tell Yukari that. It settled in her stomach along with the rest of her feelings, making it difficult to digest her ice cream.

Just swallow it down.

Just like always.

Why did progress always start with taking two steps back?

The entire Gekkoukan school district was undergoing renovations before, during, and after lessons. The high school was relatively new (and Ken knew why), but Gekkou Middle had been around even before Mitsuru and Akihiko attended. It was agreed that they needed all new technology – or at least new second-hand technology Gekkou High was no longer using. Unfortunately, this meant little hiccups like class being held in the cafeteria, portable units with no air conditioning, and database errors that gave some students library fines and ejected others from the system altogether. Couldn't they wait until break to do this?

Ken had been eating lunch on the roof all that week to avoid the construction and the students complaining. With so many construction workers and computer techs, the school was even more overcrowded than usual. He had hoped to see some of his friends – Fuuka worked with Kirijo computers when she had time. Mitsuru herself had stopped in to oversee the progress, but she hadn't said anything, just briefly acknowledged him with a smile. He probably shouldn't have expected anything more. Akihiko had told him that there were benefits and downsides to being friends with Mitsuru Kirijo. It was hardly a secret that Ken knew the heiress, and rumors were the backbone of any good middle school. He'd already had to explain to several classmates that he had no idea what was going on with the renovations.

He'd barely finished his bento when some abrasive second- and third-years came tramping up the stairs, not bothering to hide their displeasure. "How are we supposed to study when it's so noisy?" one whined.

"Well, at least you didn't have to explain to your parents that you haven't checked out eighty books!" another was saying. "I'd never even heard of some of them! And they said I might not even graduate unless I can pay them all off!"

A girl that Ken had really been hoping to avoid this week had joined them. "The breeze is nice up here, I wonder why everyone else is sweating bullets in the caf-oh, look, it's...Kenpai!" Ugh. Such a childish nickname. How was that respectful? Ken may have been a little on the diminutive side, but he was still a third-year and a Student Council member to boot.

"I didn't think someone like you would be breaking rules, Amada-san," the oldest boy addressed him.

"There are still roughly fifteen minutes left in the lunch period," Ken answered, probably predictably, but he didn't really care.

"Yeah, but with all of this work going on, it'll take at least that long to get back to class."

"Why are they even doing this now, anyway?" Library-Fines griped, "Who cares if Gekkou High is getting new computers – our computers worked just fine!"

"The Kirijo Group built it – of course they'd get new stuff!" Studious replied. Oh, here we go.

"I heard they built that school to cover up a bunch of dead bodies!"

"Does that mean it's haunted?"

"You're all being ridiculous." Ken had to butt in. Sure, they were circling around the actual truth, but...well, it was a lot more complicated than that. More complicated than Ken had time to explain.

"Kenpai," Cringe... "is it true that someone died at that school?"

"I have to get to class!" He didn't want to try to explain that. That wound might never heal.

Library-Fines gasped. "What if they're putting in new computers to cover up a dead body here?"

Ken spun around. "You have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Could be," his classmate said, "Have you seen the news lately? People that worked for the Kirijo Group are turning up dead, and a Kirijo warehouse burned down."

"That whole family is awful!"

"SHUT UP!"

The outburst was so uncharacteristic of Ken that everyone was indeed silent, their mouths hanging open in shock – including Ken himself for a moment, as he tried to regain control of his emotions. He tried to channel his best Mitsuru. She was always so cool and controlled when delivering a smackdown that you had no idea how torn up she really was inside.

"Listen to yourselves. You're all such immature rumormongers that you'd gladly slander the reputation of someone who's never done a thing to you. You think your lives are hard? If you knew anything about how Mitsuru-san grew up, you'd get down on your knees and thank whoever's up there that it wasn't you!" His face was beginning to heat up. "Now I suggest you all stop spreading nonsense and get back to your classes – the ones that Mitsuru-san was gracious enough to keep funding for you, because she believes you deserve an education – even though you believe she's a murderer!"

As he whirled around to leave, the snotty girl couldn't resist one last quip. "What's with you? You act like she's your MOM or something!"

Summoning a Persona without an Evoker or supernatural assistance like the Dark Hour or TV World was incredibly difficult. But Nemesis had always been rather unstable, and evolving into Kala-Nemi didn't help. A trigger was definitely pulled. If Ken didn't get away from innocent bystanders soon...

The door to the roof slammed with enough force to shake the building.

Koromaru was tired. He was a very good boy, and unlike other dogs, he had a serious job. He was keeping the town safe from Shadows alongside his good friend Ken. But he was getting older, and making sure everything smelled safe took a lot of energy. He would have to take another nap after patrol.

Just as Koromaru was settling into a comfy spot by the television (it was warm after someone used it), the door handle clicked. Ken? When there was no soccer practice, Ken came straight home to feed Koromaru. But it was too early for Ken! Breakfast...a walk...little nap...patrol...wait for mailman...snacks from the nice housewives...protect the shrine for Master...a little nap...Ken.

The door opened with a sigh. It was Ken! Ken, Ken! You're early!

"Hey...Koro." Ken didn't sound very happy. Ken was always happy to see Koromaru when he got home. But this was early. What was Ken doing home early? He cocked his head slightly, waiting patiently to be asked onto the couch. Koromaru really wasn't supposed to be on the couch – the other humans didn't like him there very much – but Ken would let him hop up there when he got home.

"I did something stupid, Koromaru," Ken said sadly.

Koromaru yawned, making an "Oh?" sound.

"I shouldn't have let those kids get to me, but...they don't know what they're talking about! They're just repeating what they've heard their parents saying about Mitsuru-san."

Mitsuru? Koromaru's ears twitched at a familiar name. Mitsuru was SEES' master. She usually smelled of tea. Sometimes she had a strong, leather smell. He had no idea why they said she wore a "catsuit". It didn't smell like a cat at all. She was always cold, so she got herself a coat like Koromaru's. That was a good idea. His fur always kept him nice and warm. Mitsuru was a very smart human.

"But I let them get to me, and I almost-" Ken was very upset. Koromaru decided not to wait before jumping on the couch next to him. "I almost summoned my Persona," mumbled Ken as he shakily began petting the dog's soft fur.

Koromaru was only a small dog on the outside, but inside he felt big. Strong. Fierce. When he needed to fight Shadows he called upon the Great Dog, and it appeared. Humans had a special word for the power they could summon, their own versions of the Great Dog. Calling on it usually made them tired. No wonder Ken sounded tired.

"None of those kids have any idea what it's like, growing up different. The worst thing they've ever had to worry about is being grounded! I got so angry that I could barely control myself. I had to tell the nurse I wasn't feeling well so I could leave school." His voice cracked. "Is this what...he felt like?"

He? He is...Shinjiro. Koromaru remembered delicious food and strange smells. Lots of coughing. Shinjiro was always sad like this. Aigis said that Shinjiro was afraid; his Great Dog was always angry and it made him even more tired than everyone else's did. But Shinjiro didn't realize that he was a good boy. Koromaru tried to tell him, but he couldn't understand.

Koromaru climbed onto Ken's lap and pressed his nose into his face, wagging. You are a good boy, Ken.

"Thanks, boy," said Ken, "I'll be all right."

It was time for everybody to take a nice, long nap.

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Sorry these chapters are so short, things are chaotic here, and I just want to keep updates going with something.

I really didn't intend for Fuuka's section to be the shortest, but it made my point for me, in a way. She'd probably say it was all right - other people had a lot more to complain about than she did. Fuuka strikes me as that person that puts others before herself and downplays her own troubles so as not to be a bother.

Writing for Koromaru was different because he's very intelligent, but he's still a dog. Being good is very important when you're a dog.