The worst level of burn, and the worst style of interrogation.
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Finding a suitable television proved to be harder than Naoto and the others had thought it would be. Mitsuru had not one, not two, but SEVEN TVs of an appropriate size. No one could seem to agree on which one to use, though. The projection TV was undisputedly the largest...but its location wouldn't work for passing through. Marie rejected another set for its "unfeeling aura". Teddie stuck his head in a third and declared that it emptied out into a bad area. Finally, in an unused room towards the back of the mansion, they found a TV set that passed muster. It was nearly as large as Naoto, and so old that it was set inside a polished-wood console.
As Teddie and Marie vanished through the rippling screen, Kanji approached hesitantly. "Hey, uh, about that babe huntin' shit from earlier…"
"You don't owe me an explanation, Kanji-kun." Naoto had nearly put the entire unpleasant scenario out of her memory until now. "We were invited to Yakushima to have fun, after all. If...if such an activity is something you find fun…"
"But it ain't!" Kanji blurted out before lowering his voice. "I wasn't into looking for girls, I just went because Teddie was gonna get into trouble if someone didn't keep an eye on him. Senpai did, too. Hell, nobody except Teddie was after the girls; all Senpai did was talk about-"
"You guys coming?" Yu interrupted with suspicious timing. They appeared to be the last ones left to enter the TV.
"Uh...yeah! Yeah!" And Kanji all-but-dragged Naoto along with them as they plunged through the screen. What was that about?
They climbed out of the TV set not in front of a tower, but a comfortably worn set of furniture. It appeared to be the lobby of an old hotel, which left the Investigation Team confused, but the Shadow Operatives wistfully nostalgic.
"Gee, for an evil tower, it's sure got a nice living room," Yosuke quipped.
"This isn't Tartarus," Mitsuru replied, "It's our dorm." She seemed almost disappointed to be there.
Ah. In most towns bigger than Inaba, it was more convenient for students to live closer to their campuses. On closer inspection, Naoto could see that the room looked more lived-in than an area you would just pass through. There was a dining table just a few feet away, a kitchen, and the bathrooms along the wall also contained shower stalls.
"But why, though?" Yukari wasn't any happier about their location.
"Well," Fuuka mused, "I suppose this is where it all started, isn't it?"
"It's as good an access point as any," said Yu. "Let's head out. Which way to the tower?"
Ken stopped him. "Wait a minute. If this is the Dark Hour, we can't exactly ride the monorail to Tartarus. It's on Port Island, at the high school." Oh. Electronics being inaccessible during the Dark Hour was going to pose a problem. The Team had been to Gekkoukan before, but that was during a regular day. How were they going to get across the lake?
"Don't worry about the monorail." Akihiko had opened the front door, something Naoto mentally cursed herself for not considering. They all gathered around the narrow entryway and collectively gasped.
Tartarus was literally across the street.
"...I'm not even gonna ask," Junpei said.
"If this location is an accurate recreation of our past lives," Aigis began, "does this mean that all of our rooms and the items within them have been recreated as well?"
A moment passed before the others finally caught on. "Our weapons!" Yukari gasped. The Shadow Operatives ran up the stairs. This left the Investigation Team to anxiously make themselves at home in the lobby.
"So this is a…'dorm'?" Marie had been leaning against the wall, looking at everything as if she had just gotten off a plane in a foreign country. "It looks like a big house to me."
"Yes, it's a house for a group of students who are attending the same school," Naoto explained. "Though most dormitories aren't used by both genders. I recall reading that Ikutsuki-san and the Kirijo Group arranged for this dorm to be reserved for Persona-users and those with Potential, under the guise of an exclusive school club."
"Imagine if we all lived together," said Yukiko. "What do you think that would be like?"
"Chaos," Yu replied. "Teddie sneaking into all the girls' rooms."
"Rise sneaking into your room," added Yosuke.
"Hey!" Rise didn't look nearly as indignant as she ought to be at that statement.
"The kitchen burnin' down every week," said Kanji, and the boys collectively cringed.
"HEY!" That infuriated Rise properly...along with Yukiko and Chie.
Chie stomped her foot. "Maybe we wouldn't cook for you, then! How'd you like that?"
"Like it? I'D LOVE IT!" Yosuke was in serious danger of being Galactic Punted.
Chie quickly forgot about him, however, when the Operatives returned and Akihiko had what could charitably be considered knives strapped to his wrists. "Ooh, what're those?"
"Heh," Akihiko proudly extended his arm, "Bladefist." He threw a few punches. "Man, it's been a while since I used these babies."
"Please don't get stuck in a wall again, Senpai," Yukari sighed. She fiddled with the bow she was holding. "God, this tiny little bow, I feel like a first year again!"
Akihiko was sulking. "That wasn't my fault. I didn't realize Shadows would duck."
The other Operatives had weapons that more-or-less fit their images; Junpei had a wide sword he was unwisely swinging like a bat, Ken had a spear that was longer than he was tall, and Mitsuru had a sleek fencing sword. As Koromaru was a dog, no one expected him to have any weapons or items on him, but he came trotting down the stairs with a knife between his teeth, looking like some kind of furry buccaneer.
Kanji's jaw dropped. "Does the dog have a knife!?"
"Well, you can't exactly expect him to bite Shadows." Ken didn't seem all that bothered by this fact. "After all, we don't know if they're toxic. Some of them even ooze."
"But...but a knife? Those are sharp, and he doesn't have hands...he could cut his face!" Kanji looked as if he were seriously considering taking the weapon away from the dog and tucking him into a basket.
"Koromaru's tough," Akihiko had been watching the two closely. "He's been doing this longer than you have. He chose to fight, and he chose the knife himself. Don't let the fact that he's a dog fool you, Shi-uh, Kanji." It was not like Akihiko to stumble over his words, but he clearly meant to say something else at the last second. Mitsuru's head whipped around, her face debating on whether to hide or express concern for him.
Koromaru understood something as well as he whined softly. Then he barked, marching past Akihiko with an almost human sense of determination.
"Yeah...let's go." Akihiko followed him.
Everyone's mood declined sharply as they entered Tartarus, their footsteps echoing on the marble floors. Before them, a staircase stretched endlessly towards a massive clock face. It felt like they were trapped inside an antique grandfather clock.
Mitsuru's grandfather's clock.
Aigis had begun looking around the room expectantly. When she did not appear to find what she was searching for, she started wandering around the imposing columns. "Yu-san," she called back.
Yu had been talking to Yosuke in hushed tones and stealing glances at the Team. He seemed grateful for the opportunity to be distracted by Aigis. "What's up, Aigis? Have you found something?"
"I have not." Aigis met his eyes and for a brief moment, neither of them moved.
When Yu appeared to have received whatever message Aigis was trying to send, he began looking around nervously and repeating Aigis' examinations of the far walls. "Okay, that's not good," he muttered to himself.
"Senpai, what's going on?" Rise had her Persona at the ready, even though there didn't appear to be any Shadows in this entryway.
"It's not here. There's supposed to be a door here somewhere, but you can't see it."
"Well, then, how do you know it's not there?" asked Yosuke.
"Because I can see it. Or I could, if it was there, but since I can't see it, it's not."
"Officially lost." When Junpei spoke, it was for all of them.
"The door in question is supposed to open directly to the Velvet Room," said Aigis. Yes, that made sense. Yu had access to their services whenever they were exploring a dungeon; what had looked like disassociation to the rest of them was apparently his mind or soul conducting business with Margaret.
"Room's busted, remember?" Marie could pretend she was bored all she liked, but Naoto had caught her looking at the clock face door as if it had triggered a memory. "It took, like, bucket loads of magic just to send me here for this. You guys are on your own."
"Aren't we always?" snarked Mitsuru.
A slow clap rang out through the near-empty halls. "Very good! Exactly as expected of our model student! Move to the head of the class."
Naoto hadn't been through many dungeons after she joined the Team, but the others told her how meeting the Shadow and exchanging threats was par for the course. This one was Mitsuru in appearance and voice, aside from the scowl on her face, and the fact that she'd chosen to wear what must have been the Gekkoukan school uniform – at least, in theory. The white blouse was left unbuttoned and simply tied around her waist, revealing a lacy bra that practically advertised what may have been an exaggerated bust. What looked like a ribbon was instead hanging from Shadow Mitsuru's neck in the shape of a noose, and her skirt...well, it would have fit better on Nanako. As it was, the fabric barely covered Shadow Mitsuru's rear end, which sashayed significantly more than the real one's as she made her way over to the group, zeroing in on her doppelganger.
"Oh, but we enjoy being alone, don't we?" she purred. "Remove everyone who ever might have cared for you, and there's no one left to call you out on your bullshit." She tossed her wild hair out of her face, revealing the telltale yellow eyes that clashed horribly with Mitsuru's red palette. Mitsuru – the real one – flinched, and her Shadow took the opportunity to tower over her (she was wearing boots with ridiculously high, needle-thin heels). "How's that working out for you?"
"Stop it," Mitsuru muttered.
Shadow Mitsuru smiled devilishly at Akihiko, who had been rushing to Mitsuru's side but stopped short at the predatory look in her Shadow's eyes. "Ah. Here's our delusional half-naked knight in second-hand armor! Still determined to slay giants for your illustrious lady of legend – pure as the driven snow and just as cold?" She actually snorted. "Have you got the wrong windmill.If you had any idea what goes on in this head, little boy, you'd refuse these leftovers and just stay hungry!" Then she abruptly switched gears and bubbled over with excitement like a child at a festival. "Shall I tell him?" Mitsuru hid her face, but her Shadow insisted, bouncing inappropriately. "Oh, do let me tell him, it's delicious!"
"Don't!" Mitsuru sobbed.
"Pathetic." Shadow Mitsuru scoffed, "Some Kirijo you are. Showing your enemies mercy. Allowing dissension in the ranks. They used to fear us. Now you're Iwatodai's fairy godmother! Not one of those skeletons in the closet was placed there by your own hand. You can't even kill a man properly!"
And there it was. Everyone bar Naoto and Akihiko gasped as the color drained out of Mitsuru's face. Mitsuru tried to meet both their eyes, but neither of them could face her. Naoto had assumed Akihiko was going to tell her about Tsukuda, and it appeared that he thought the same thing of her.
"You allowed this. This is what happens when you refuse to take control of things. Why would anyone bother defrosting you at all? There's nothing under the ice but a cowardly little girl! Where. Are. Your. FANGS, you hideously impotent weakling?"
"Mitsuru-san, now would be a good time to deny your Shadow so we can fight it and get this over with!" Yu told her.
But Mitsuru was cowering just as she had when they first met Tsukuda. All of the fight had vanished from her. She didn't even have anyone to hide behind; Akihiko had betrayed her. It was evident from the look on her face.
"Don't bother," Shadow Mitsuru spat, "It's not worth it. Ugh, I can't even look at you." She began to walk away, but turned back to offer one last sneer. "When you finally decide to actually take what you want instead of pining for it, you know where to find me." She cocked her head towards Akihiko. "Don't screw this up like you did the last one. We aren't getting any younger, you know." And with that, she vanished.
"Okay, a couple things," Junpei was one of the few people able to form coherent sentences at that moment. "The dead guy who was surprisingly alive that we left for dead is now alive again. If that didn't make any sense to you, congratulations, you're on the same page as the rest of us."
"That's-" Yukari began to say something very predictable.
"Yeah, we're all unanimous in believing that's impossible," Yu finished for her. "Great minds think alike, apparently."
"Also," Junpei pointed in the direction Shadow Mitsuru disappeared in, "what the hell was that?" He seemed afraid that she would immediately return and attack him, his hand actually shaking.
"Your Shadow is all of the repressed fears you keep to yourself," said Naoto, "Naturally, the things they say are going to be unsettling." Junpei didn't look reassured. "Unsettling" was probably putting it mildly, but "your Shadow will rip your heart out and show it to you" seemed a bit dramatic.
"Is that...going to happen to all of us?" Fuuka asked, nervously tugging her braid.
"You want your Personas back, don't ya?" said Kanji. "Then you gotta face your shit head-on. It ain't easy, but we all had to do it – in front of everyone, too." He still seemed to be embarrassed by his Shadow and dungeon. Naoto hadn't been there at the time, but if Yosuke and Chie were to be believed, it was quite a spectacle.
"Aw, don't worry, Fuuka-san, your Shadow couldn't possibly be that mean!" Labrys intended to console Fuuka, but it seemed to have the opposite effect. Was Fuuka also sitting on a mound of unresolved issues? The diminutive woman was outwardly calm and cheerful in most situations, with nary an unkind word for others – not even Minazuki. It was hard to believe that she would have deep, dark secrets.
Meanwhile, Akihiko had decided it was time to apologize to Mitsuru, but she backed away from his hand as if his touch burned.
"You weren't going to tell me," she nearly whispered.
Akihiko turned that hand into a fist, but it remained limply by his side, his anger being tamped down with all the effort he could muster. "I kept trying to! Believe me, I tried!"
"How long have you known about this? Why am I only hearing about this now?" Mitsuru began looking at everyone as if they were hiding knives from her. "What else has been going on behind my back that I should have known about?" In the wake of discovering long-buried Kirijo Group secrets, it seemed she'd developed a bit of paranoia.
"I wasn't keeping it from you. I kept trying to bring it up, and shit kept happening. I was planning to tell you that day by the river, but-"
"So this is revenge for Yuki?" Mitsuru's eyes began tearing up. "Are you that petty?"
"NO!"
But she didn't hear him. "I've trusted you...for so long. I have let you into places that no one else even knew existed...because I thought that perhaps I was as important to you as you were to me."
"Wh-you are! Mitsuru…" Akihiko looked as if he were crying as well.
"Not important enough for the truth?"
"I didn't want to hurt you any more than you were already hurting!" Now Akihiko was yelling, his voice ragged and cracking. "You don't-I hate seeing you like this, I always have." Yukari was now looking at him oddly. So was Yu. "You broke once. I couldn't stand there and watch you break again. It would have killed us both."
Mitsuru tensed, and she spoke as if she was afraid of the words themselves. "So you think I'm too fragile to be left alone? Because you pity me?"
"NO, BECAUSE I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU!"
Naoto was never as good at acting as Rise claimed to be. She'd really meant to gasp this time along with the others, pretend that she was just hearing about this now. But her "I'm shocked" reaction came just a second too late, and Yu seemed to notice. Hopefully he thought she'd just deduced it.
Akihiko had deflated, his outburst even shocking himself as he let out a shaky breath. "You really think I'd spend all those nights with Yukari or Fuuka if they had a bad dream?" he chuckled ruefully.
Mitsuru took this news just as she took every other revelation that disrupted her routine – paralyzing disbelief. A series of emotions danced across her face: shock, confusion, terror, and sadness. It wasn't clear which one she would vocalize, but when your oldest friend and colleague has just declared his love for you, the question on everyone's mind is whether you will accept or deny his feelings.
Mitsuru chose neither, and fled.
"Senpai!"
"Mitsuru-senpai, wait!" The female Operatives took off after their leader.
"Wow. Well, that just...happened." The rest of the Investigation Team didn't really have a handle on the Shadow Operatives' history and were slightly disappointed they couldn't fight some Shadows. Even Yosuke's usual snark fell flat.
Akihiko headbutted a pillar. It wasn't entirely clear whether his wail that followed was caused by that pain or his grief. Kanji had a knowing smirk on his face as he went to console him, with Chie following.
"Do you think Mitsuru-san's going to be all right?" asked Yukiko.
"She's...still in the TV World," Rise had her Persona out and scanning. "They haven't found her yet, though." She shuddered as she dismissed Kanzeon. "And here I thought my Shadow was cruel!"
"We should go assist them," Naoto decided finally. Of the two, Mitsuru would be the least understanding, but the one in the most pain. The boys would keep Akihiko from getting stuck in the walls – or flailing at windmills. Shadow Mitsuru had made a very astute observation about the boxer's devotion to his idealized Dulcinea. "I don't think we'll be making any progress tonight."
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Yeah, the Iwatodai Dorm is going to act like the outside of Dungeons, where you can switch out your party and get healed for all yo' yens. It's not the real one that Ken lives in – just a replica because the SO has regressed back to the way they were when they were still in school.
Sorry, Kanji. Akihiko saw a tough guy fawning over a dog and had a flashback.
Anyone else just now realize that there was no Shadow Fuuka in Ultimax? Obviously, she's not a playable character, but that really ties in with my theme of Fuuka feeling like she's unimportant compared to everyone else.
He's not nearly as delusional, but Akihiko's devotion to Mitsuru and his determination to fight everything in his way has some Don Quixote vibes.