Chapter Text
??/??/????
The girl’s name was Kotone Shiomi.
The train she was sitting in glided across the country, taking her far, far away from her previous boring existence. She felt a little strange, as if a haze has descended onto her brain and prevented her from realizing something very important, but that could be solved later. For now, she had places to be and things to do. Soon after, the train started slowing down, indicating the girl’s arrival at her destination.
What are you waiting for? It is time.
She stepped off the train, clutching a booklet in her hand. A large, decorated clock on the wall of Iwatodai station ticked loudly, almost as if trying to get her attention.
Five minutes to midnight.
Kotone steeled her resolve and continued to walk towards the exit from the station. Everything around her was eerily quiet – the hour was late, but this was the city’s biggest train stop. By all means, there should be someone around, but the corridors were all empty. Before proceeding further, she cast one last glance at the station’s clock.
At least I don’t have to hurry now. I’m late already.
As she found the exit and was approaching the gates, the world around her started to shift. The air itself felt suffocating, oppressive, alive. Green light flooded her vision and her soul, but she kept moving forward, ignoring the world around her morphing into something terrible.
Right, I just have to-
She hadn’t had the time to finish the thought as the girl suddenly collapsed and her entire world went dark.
***
??/??/????
She was floating forever in a place devoid of everything. In a way, it was rather peaceful, with the prior anxiety and worry that she felt having dissipated into nothing. No, that was the wrong way to describe it – rather, the concept of those feelings itself did not exist here. The space around her was infinite, and she was but a speck of nothingness in it.
Until she was finally something.
She felt like she had died and come back to life. Slowly, one by one, her senses returned to her. She was lying down on something hard, and an intensely bright light shone through her closed eyelids.
Faint sounds reached her, almost caressing her ears in how soft they felt. The sounds gradually increased in both clarity and volume, and she could finally make out the wind howling into her ears. Moments later, she finally recognized the prior sounds as voices.
“… is that?! … thought … … …”
Her fingers twitched, trying to feel something, before her body responded in kind as she tried shifting around a little. Moving her hand around, she felt her fingers try to grab onto the surface under her, failing to do so as it was covered in a layer of slippery, yet viscous fluid.
Open your eyes.
She decided that it was as good an idea as any and tried to do just that. Her eyelids fluttered weakly, but she couldn’t open her eyes just yet. She was simply… so… tired…
Kotone groaned softly and closed her eyes again. The void was peaceful and calm, and the world was overwhelming and bright. It assaulted her senses, leaving her wondering if waking up was even worth it at all. After all, it was normal to spend a few more minutes in the comfort of one’s own bed to rest up, wasn’t it? And even if she wasn’t really in a bed, the void was comfortable. Familiar.
The voices were getting closer, but she still couldn’t discern anything resembling a full sentence. One thing, however, bothered her.
The voices, they sound almost… scared.
Why did that bother her, exactly? They should be scared. Or, rather, she would expect them to be scared. It’s nothing new. And yet, this new feeling now bothered her instead.
Something bumped into her hard, forcing her to roll a few times, the slippery surface under her extending her movement as she slid across it. Her left hand was now dangling midair as she lay on her back. If she moved a little to the left, would she fall down? What would that feel like, she wondered?
Curiosity killed the cat.
The voices that she heard before now sounded much louder. Were they shouting? Lazily, she tried to open her eyes again. A success, this time.
A full moon surrounded by green skies hovered over her. The huge moon was taking up at least a quarter of the sky, painting the surroundings with neon green. Dark clouds hovered high in the skies, blocking some of the moonlight and creating a dashing contrast of light and dark. Now that her eyes were open, Kotone couldn’t take them off the sight before her.
It’s so beautiful.
***
“What are you doing, Akihiko?!” a deep female voice rang out through the rooftop.
“What kind of a question is that?! That thing is a shadow, did you even look at it?”
Yukari Takeba, however, found that she wasn’t paying much attention to the shouting match in front of her. She was still shaking from the adrenaline from their fight as her fingers fiercely clutched the evoker in her hands. Sweat dripped down her forehead and her eyes were locked onto the silhouette of a person that just fell out of the shadow she just barely defeated with her seniors. A figure which one of said seniors just unceremoniously attacked, almost sending it careening over the edge of the roof.
The three of them were in rough shape. Akihiko was already injured from his prior fight with the shadow when it had chased him to the dorm, while Mitsuru was limping as she moved, barely managing to stay standing.
Yukari herself was not in peak shape either. Panting like she’d just ran a marathon, she wondered what would have happened if she failed to summon her persona in time, again. She was such a coward, unable to use her evoker before the other two came to her rescue. The shadow kept repeatedly swiping her away with one of its many arms before leaving several cuts on her with its many knives as she desperately tried to dodge its attacks.
She was terrified when the shadow attacked. She was terrified when she tried to summon her persona for the second time. She was terrified even when IO appeared, when the others came to help her, and for every second of their fight.
Even after being covered in the soothing green light of her persona, she still felt powerless in the face of this shadow.
Snapping herself back to the present, Yukari looked at the figure on the other end of the rooftop again. Transfixed, she started moving forward, ignoring her stinging cuts and her seniors arguing behind her. Their cries of alarm went unnoticed as well when she got closer to the person lying on the rooftop’s edge.
The girl was covered in shadow residue, but some of her features (red hair sprawled beneath her, half-lidded red eyes staring up at the full moon) were still visible.
Looking at her made Yukari shudder a little.
Akihiko and Mitsuru caught up to her. The former’s face showed guilt.
“It’s a person? But how?” He said, shaking his head in disbelief.
“Can you hear us?” Mitsuru, noticing that the girl’s eyes were open, lost no time before beginning her interrogation. “How did you get in there? Were you attacked by the shadow?” Mitsuru knelt down, inspecting her face further, before she frowned. “Is she…?”
The girl made no indication that she heard any of that. It was then, to Yukari’s growing horror, that she realized something.
We fought the shadow. This girl was inside the shadow. Oh god, she’s bleeding!
It was a little hard to see due to all the shadow residue covering the girl and the area around her, but there definitely was some red mixed in under her form.
“Kirijo-senpai, wait! She’s wounded!” Yukari shouted, startling the other two. “We hurt her when we were fighting the shadow!”
Mitsuru startled and almost slipped on the roof beneath her, looking at where Yukari pointed. She suddenly tensed, her eyes moving from Yukari to Akihiko until they settled back on Yukari again.
“Takeba, can you carry her? Akihiko and I are not exactly… I do not believe we would be able to. Get her down to the first floor, and I’ll call an ambulance from Tatsumi Memorial Hospital.”
Akihiko seemed to want to protest until Mitsuru sent an icy glare his way. Her eyes moved down to his ribs, silently admonishing him. Yukari tried to lift the girl and almost fell over in the process.
Jeez, she’s heavy. Hopefully I won’t drop her.
Yukari started her slow and arduous journey to the ground floor.
***
??/??/????
This was starting to become a common occurrence for her.
Kotone stirred to life once more, feeling something soft under her and finding that it was much easier to open her eyes and move around than the last time. She felt a little more cognizant of herself, too, compared to before.
Her eyes opened. There was no full moon in front of her anymore. Her heart clenched painfully in deep sorrow, almost as if she had lost something. Green has given way to blue. It was beautiful in its own way, but it wasn’t home.
“You’re awake!” Someone whisper-shouted, making her jump a little. She turned her head to the left and saw…
She’s even more beautiful than the moon.
A girl with short brown hair dressed in a school uniform and a pink cardigan sat on the chair next to her, looking at Kotone with wide eyes and a worried expression. “Stay here, I’ll call the doctor!” she said before standing up from the wooden chair and sprinting towards the door. The girl hesitated, looking back at Kotone one more time, before leaving the room and closing the door.
Where am I?
Snapping out of her daze, Kotone looked around. She realized that she was lying down in a hospital bed. There was a cabinet next to her and a panel with miscellaneous medical equipment above. The room itself was small but gave off a calming atmosphere – a lot of white and blue everywhere. The combination of colors soothed her a little. Before she had time to inspect her surroundings more, she heard two pairs of footsteps in the hallway heading her way.
The doctor, upon arrival, insisted on taking Kotone’s vitals. She wasn’t sure why that was even necessary, considering she felt completely fine, but he insisted. Although, how did she even know she felt fine? What even was fine? Before she could overthink everything, the doctor notified her that there was nothing wrong with her and that she was free to go whenever she wanted. She listened with muted interest on her face until eventually she was finally left alone to change into a fresh set of clothes. When did she get these?
After leaving the room, she saw that the girl from before was waiting for her outside. The girl startled from hearing the door open and was now staring at her with a perplexed expression.
“Hi.”
“O-oh, hello. They’re letting you leave already? How are you feeling?” The unnamed girl asked her, frowning a little. Kotone nodded.
“I’m okay. What’s your name?”
“It’s Yukari Takeba. You can just call me Takeba, it’s fine.” The newly named girl (Takeba, she corrected herself) said before continuing. “Um, so just to make sure, how much do you remember? Do you know why you’re here?”
“Do you?” Kotone tilted her head with a small smile on her face, expecting an answer.
“What a weird way to ask why I’m here with you…” Takeba trailed off before locking her gaze back forward. “Alright, how about this; from what I heard, you were supposed to come to our dorm anyway, so why don’t we go together and we explain everything to you there?” she said, clearly feeling uncomfortable divulging any information in a one-on-one scenario. “I feel responsible for what happened to you, so this is the least I could do.”
“You’re not responsible, but sure. Lead the way.”
“Oh, and I forgot to ask – what is your name?”
For some reason, the question made Kotone pause in her steps. Her palms felt clammy and her thoughts ran amok. Her name?
Do not think. Just answer.
“It’s Shiomi. Kotone Shiomi.”
***
The walk to the dorms was mostly spent in silence. Shiomi clearly wasn’t a very talkative person, and when she was talking, her speech was outright weird. Yukari kept shooting wary gazes her way as her thoughts kept jumping all over the space.
Does she have Apathy Syndrome or something? She just looks so disinterested in everything. Maybe it’s because she was stuck inside that shadow? How long was she in there anyway?
So many questions, but those would have to wait until they got to their destination. If it was up to her, Yukari would’ve asked all of those here and now, but Mitsuru made it very clear that as soon as Shiomi woke up, she had to be brought to the dorm for questioning so that everyone was present. As much as it irked her to blindly follow Mitsuru’s orders, it did make sense for all the others to hear Shiomi’s explanation as well.
Yukari hated admitting when people she didn’t like were right.
Shiomi was also awake during the dark hour. Does that mean she has potential like us? Is that why she was supposed to be transferred here?
Right, that’s another thing about this girl. Mitsuru actually recognized her on the rooftop. She was a transfer student that was supposed to arrive at the dorm and start her studies in Gekkoukan High the next day. Except she never did arrive when they were expecting her. Well, being locked inside a shadow was a rather valid excuse. The biggest question was how the hell she got stuck there in the first place. An accident? Curiosity? Stupidity, even?
Lost in her thoughts, Yukari didn’t realize that they had finally arrived at their destination. She stopped near the entrance, noticing that Shiomi was looking at her.
“This is it: Iwatodai dorm. You had everyone worried when you didn’t show up here three days ago, you know that?” She chuckled, trying to defuse the weird atmosphere before they went in.
Shiomi simply stared at her, the same content smile on her face, as if waiting for her to continue. This girl was starting to get on Yukari’s nerves.
“Uhh, right… Let’s just go in. Everyone’s waiting for us.”
True to Yukari’s words, everyone was waiting for them. As soon as she opened the door, three sets of eyes locked onto her before moving on to Shiomi, who entered the lobby right afterwards. Ikutsuki stood up, looking at them with an easygoing smile and introducing himself (“I-ku-tsu-ki”), all the while he made some terrible pun that Yukari didn’t bother paying attention to. Without looking back, she plopped onto one of the couches next to Akihiko and heaved a sigh of relief. She did feel partly responsible for what happened to Shiomi, but she was starting to regret her decision to volunteer to be the one to watch over her this day.
“Shiomi-kun, do you know why you’re here?” Ikutsuki asked her.
“Takeba said you would explain everything,” she replied matter-of-factly. “I’m listening, if you’d like to start.”
“In that case, I’ll be brief. Would you believe me if I told you that there are more than 24 hours in a day?” Ikutsuki said, looking at Shiomi with a serious expression.
“Yes,” she answered without hesitation.
“Good then! Do you mind telling us how long you’ve been experiencing this additional hour for? I suppose you know the specifics, right? Hard to miss – the sky becomes green, blood pools appear everywhere, people turn into coffins… That kind of thing?” he chuckled.
“Oh, that? Since the beginning,” Shiomi smiled serenely as she gave her answer.
This girl was insane. Insane, Yukari thought. Because how would otherwise one justify such an answer?
“The beginning...?” Mitsuru whispered nearby, seemingly deep in thought.
“A-Alright then.” Ikutsuki looked uncomfortable for a moment. “Can you tell us more about yourself, Shiomi-kun? We want to ask you one more thing, but before that we’d also like to know what happened for you to disappear for three days. My students here found you in a rather sticky situation, after all.”
Mitsuru’s glare burned holes in Ikutsuki’s eyes, causing him to raise his eyes in defeat.
This question seemed to actually faze the girl a little. She moved her eyes down and shifted uncomfortably in her place. “I got off my train, and…” she looked to the side, as if deep in thought. “The green hour started, and I blacked out,” she finished shortly. Yukari frowned. “I woke up somewhere afterwards and then in the hospital,” the girl continued, concluding her story.
“That’s it? But why did that happen if you said you’re used to the Dark Hour?” Akihiko said, looking at the girl suspiciously. “When you appeared on that rooftop, I thought you were another shadow. I mean, Mitsuru said…” He trailed off, choosing not to finish the sentence. “Chairman, why is she here? Does she have the potential?”
Ikutsuki, after hearing that question, smiled brightly.
“That’s what we’re about to find out.”
***
They just gave her a gun and told her to shoot herself with it.
That’s not how you normally use one, right?
She never used one before, but her common sense told her that it was a very bad idea to point this thing at herself. Kotone looked back up at the others with doubt clearly showing on her face. They were all outside the dorm (“We’ll need some space for this, just in case”) during the Dark Hour, with everyone else looking at her in anticipation.
This is stupid.
“No,” she said, before handing the gun back to Akihiko, who sighed heavily before taking it from her.
“Okay, let me demonstrate first, then. Come, Polydeuces!” he shouted, pulling the trigger and summoning an ethereal-looking figure behind him. Kotone stared at it, tilting her head slightly as she inspected the persona. So it wasn’t a gun, after all. It was merely gun-shaped. After observing Polydeuces for a few moments, she stuck her hand forward, palm up, asking for the gun back. Akihiko handed it to her, smirking slightly. “Think you’re up for it?”
Slowly, she put the gun to her temple, thinking back on Ikutsuki’s explanation about everything. A persona, summoned by this tool that he called an evoker.
Without further hesitation, she pulled the trigger, hearing the glass shatter all around her as an incredible rush of power consumed her entire being.
“I am thou, and thou art I,” a familiar feminine voice rang out in her head. “You need not learn my name anew, for you know it deep inside your heart. Everything will reveal itself in due time. For now, enjoy the play that unfolds before your very eyes and grow the strength of your heart.”
She looked down on all the others (“Afraid, they are so afraid, why?”), feeling like a queen towering over ants. Long-forgotten memories bubbled beneath the surface of her infinite mind, before one thought fully enveloped every inch of her soul.
“Please, stop thinking. Be patient. Not yet.”
Darkness consumed her vision once more for but a moment. Then, she saw blue.
Kotone was sitting in a chair with two people in front of her. Instantly, her mind has been drawn to two things – the soft-looking walls and the doors littering them. The not-man sitting in front of a table was grinning wildly at her, and his smile was unnaturally long.
“Welcome to the Velvet Room!” He greeted her warmly. “This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. Curious, most curious! We’ve never had a guest like you! I can tell, my dear, that your story is going to shake the foundation of the entire world!” He laughed quietly before continuing. “My name is Igor, and I am delighted to make your acquaintance. To your right is Elizabeth; she will be your attendant to aid you on your journey.”
“Pleased to meet you,” Elizabeth said, staring through Kotone.
Her Journey. Right. That was why she was here, wasn’t it?
“Now then, usually in matters such as this, a contract is involved. I know this must be terribly confusing to you for now, but please, bear with me,” Igor said, his grin never faltering. “However, for someone like you, I doubt we could even conjure one, so we’ll make an exception this time. I am most curious to see your journey, dear guest! You have great power concealed within, but it is not time yet for you to use it.” he said cryptically. “Let me add one thing before you depart - the gift of life is both a blessing and a curse, regardless of where said gift comes from. What you make of it depends entirely on yourself.”
Before she could say anything, Kotone felt herself being pulled backwards, having been forcefully dragged out of the velvet room.
In a moment, she was outside the dorm once again, lying on the ground. The skies shone green, and her eyes reflected the color. It seemed that mere moments passed while she was in the Velvet Room. Kotone stood up, dusted herself off, and took a look around her. Her breath hitched in her throat when she noticed the people in front of her.
They were terrified. Not a single person dared to move towards her, and as she took a step forward, Takeba stumbled back, falling down as she did so. This seemed to shake the others from their stupor. The chairman was the first one to recover, clearing his throat as he addressed Kotone.
“R-right. That eliminates any questions we had about your potential.” He said with a laugh, adjusting his tie to appear less nervous. “I suppose this is when we ask you to join us in our fight against the shadows.”
She agreed immediately, and her stomach sank as she thought back to everyone’s expressions.
***
04/13/2009
She had school today. Apparently that is why she even was in Iwatodai to begin with – she was enrolled in a school named Gekkoukan High and was supposed to start on April 6th before the incident took place.
What’s the purpose of a school?
I do not know, but I wish to learn. Presumably, it teaches younglings life.
That was silly. Why would someone teach you life? Life was what you experienced, not what someone else forced you to experience.
Life is also what we learn. On and on it goes, and on and on the cycle of living and learning continues.
Kotone took a mental note. The thing that bothered her the most was why everyone was telling her she was meant to arrive here, but she couldn’t remember any of that. Her first memory was getting off the train at Iwatodai Station, but that wasn’t normal, was it? Something was wrong with the entire chain of events.
Something was wrong with her.
What are you?
I am thou.
Her persona, maybe? In any case, the classes themselves were boring, so Kotone wasn’t really paying much attention to them. She got reprimanded a few times by some teachers, causing her to pay attention for a few minutes, only to unavoidably lose interest soon after. The people around her snickered.
“Not a very studious transfer student, huh?”
“Yeah, but she seems chill, don’t you think?”
“Maybe even too chill. She has been daydreaming the entire day!”
After school was finally over, she started to pack everything into her backpack. While she wasn’t looking, a boy wearing a baseball cap approached her with a wide grin.
“Hey, hey! Welcome to Gekkoukan High, stranger! How’s your first day going?” He said, before taking his cap off and performing an exaggerated bow. “My name’s Junpei, Junpei Iori! Just wanted to come here and introduce myself. See what a nice guy I am?”
Magician. Stern will and unfailing determination.
Kotone couldn’t help a small smile emerging on her face. “Kotone Shiomi. Nice to meet you, Junpei,” she said as she continued to pack her belongings.
Junpei grinned at her, hooking his hand around her shoulders. “I think you and I are gonna get along really well, Koto-chan.”
She wasn’t sure why, but Kotone agreed with that sentiment.
They decided to head out together, stopping at the strip mall for some ramen. Hagakure, the best in town, as Junpei attempted to convince her.
Naturally, she could only accept his evaluation as true only if she tried every single ramen shop in the city. She told that to Junpei, and he laughed heartily in return.
“I’m wounded, Koto-chan! You won’t accept my words as the ultimate truth? You won’t find anyone more knowledgeable on ramen in this entire city!”
Kotone fondly shook her head.
“By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask. You arrived to school with Yuka-tan this morning, right? She’s a friend of mine, regardless of what she says about me!” Junpei said. “But, uh, why didn’t you go back together too? Not that I’m complaining, of course! Honored to be in your company, Koto-chan! I’m just, like, curious, you know?”
She thought for a moment. The most logical reply was that Takeba was probably busy, but she didn’t know for sure. And so, she said just that. She didn’t know.
“Ouch, talk about a rough start… Don’t worry about it though, she’ll come around to it! You don’t talk much, but you seem cool enough! Which I don’t mind, by the way, I get it completely, in fact!” Junpei took a minute to stuff his face with noodles. “Sho, what’sh the… Uh, sorry about that, what’s the reason you transferred here? Parents? Unforeseen circumstances?” He gasped dramatically. “Foreseen circumstances?”
Dread pooled in Kotone’s stomach. The lighthearted atmosphere disappeared and was replaced by confusion and fear. Junpei must have noticed, because his face instantly shifted into a more neutral expression.
“Unforeseen circumstances, I guess,” Kotone replied absentmindedly, hoping he wouldn’t pursue this conversation. Thankfully, Junpei got the hint.
Their talk slowed down afterwards, and the two decided to leave after paying. On their way to the station, Junpei made more small talk, while Kotone nodded and gave simple answers. Her aloofness didn’t seem to bother him – in fact, he was glad to be the one to lead the conversation.
It was a nice feeling. Kotone smiled on her way home.
***
04/20/2009
Tartarus.
That was the name of this giant, twisted tower with no end in sight that Kotone was currently standing in front of. Earlier today, Mitsuru called them all together for a meeting, where she explained that tonight they will explore the Tower of Demise for the first time. The people to go in today would be herself, Junpei, who recently joined them upon discovering his potential, Takeba, Akihiko, and Mitsuru herself.
In the lobby, Kotone overheard Akihiko and Mitsuru arguing about something. She didn’t hear much (“…dangerous… … …lose control…”), but after a disgruntled Akihiko walked off to the side angrily (“…ribs... …her leg…”), she decided it was a good time to approach Mitsuru now to ask about further instructions.
“Shiomi,” Mitsuru said upon her arrival, looking at her warily. “Call the others, too. We’re going in soon.”
“Alright.”
She turned around, seeing that Takeba and Junpei were already looking at her. She gestured to them with her hand, asking them to approach. Junpei jogged over, whooping as he did so and clearly excited for their first trek into Tartarus. Takeba, meanwhile, looked deeply troubled for some reason.
Wide eyes. Primal terror, as if looking at something monstrous.
Kotone shook those thoughts off, standing in front of Mitsuru with the other two catching up to her.
“Listen up, everyone.” Mitsuru started talking with a commanding tone. “Today will be the first time all of you are going to infiltrate Tartarus. This place is dangerous, teeming with shadows, and extremely unpredictable. Do not treat this as something unserious,” she glared at Junpei as she said that, clearly singling him out as a recipient of this particular message. “I’ll be the one to lead our team today, as you may have guessed. Listen to my commands, but don’t hesitate to act independently at times when you feel that it’s necessary,” she finished before turning towards Kotone.
“Shiomi. Do not summon your persona unless we’re in an extremely dire situation. As powerful as it may be, we’ll be at an extreme disadvantage if you collapse again as you did the last time. Just use your weapon for normal shadows.”
Kotone understood what was being said between the lines. Her collapsing had nothing to do with this.
She is afraid because she doesn’t understand. Do not take her words close to heart, mea alia.
Kotone nodded and accepted the order without arguing, her hands clenching the naginata that she was holding. Mitsuru seemed pleased with her non-verbal answer, and they all went into the entrance to the first floor of Tartarus.
Their initial encounter with shadows went well. Mitsuru was clearly an experienced fighter, and taught them how to hold their weapons correctly, how to ambush shadows, how to strike their weaknesses before they respond in kind, and the general logic of Tartarus. Or sometimes, its lack thereof.
As fate would have it, however, all their plans and strategies were thrown aside the moment they reached the fifth floor. The three shadows there were much larger than the ones their team encountered before, and they completely blocked all of Mitsuru’s attacks while resisting all of Takeba’s.
They were also flying, so Kotone couldn’t reach them with her naginata. She was a mere spectator in this fight.
“Iori, keep attacking them! We’ll hold them off!” Mitsuru shouted, nimbly defending herself against two of the raven-like shadows with her rapier as Junpei’s persona kept throwing fireballs at them. The third one screeched before diving down to attack Takeba with its talons.
Don’t you dare!
Kotone launched herself forward, positioning her naginata to wedge it in between the shadow’s talons, before pushing back with all her might and launching it a few meters backwards. She looked over her shoulder at a shaken Takeba and visually inspected her for any injuries.
“You okay?”
Takeba nodded before her eyes widened as she shouted, “Look out!”
Before Kotone was even able to turn around, she felt the wind knocked out of her as she stumbled backwards. Her naginata clattered uselessly to the floor, and she fell on top of Takeba. The shadow swiftly descended once more onto them both. Kotone was powerless to stop its assault.
You have great power hidden within, but it is not time yet for you to use it.
Was it time now? Is that what he meant?
Without a second thought, she reached towards Takeba’s evoker and swiftly put it against her temple.
“PERSONA!”
***
As soon as she heard the girl shout, Yukari instinctively closed her eyes. However, a moment later, instead of being enveloped by a pure, unadulterated terror, a soothing melody washed over her. The shadow that was moments away from tearing into them screeched in pain as a giant fireball crashed into it.
“H-Huh?!”
On top of them stood a transparent feminine figure with a heart-shaped silver lyre. It strummed the instrument, playing a beautiful melody and rejuvenating everyone with energy.
“It’s beautiful…” Yukari whispered. How on earth did Shiomi have this persona within her along with the other one? Scratch that, how did she have two personas in general?
As she tore her gaze away from the sight above and instead looked a bit lower, she saw Shiomi panting heavily with Yukari’s evoker still held to her head. The shadow that Shiomi attacked earlier was on the ground, but it was slowly getting up. Not wanting to give it a chance to do that, Yukari twisted her bow sideways to give herself space to pull the string back and grabbed an arrow from her quiver. Taking a deep breath, she released the arrow after a few moments of careful aiming.
She hit it right in the head. Yes!
With a final dying screech, the shadow was finally defeated and dissipated into residue. Yukari took a moment to look at how the other team members were doing. It seemed that they were also just done dealing with the other two ravens.
“Um, Shiomi?” Yukari said.
“Y-Yeah?” Shiomi answered, still breathing heavily.
“Thank you for saving me there.” She said, smiling slightly. “But… Can you get off me now, please? And give me my evoker back?”
Shiomi’s eyes widened in an uncharacteristic show of emotion before she hurriedly scurried off Yukari. She sheepishly handed Yukari the evoker, her face donning her usual soft smile, although this time it looked a little strained. Yukari took the evoker off of her hands.
“Why didn’t you use yours anyway? Did you forget you had one?”
“Yours was closer. More convenient to reach.”
“Right…”
Desperately wanting to change the topic, Yukari saw that Kirijo-senpai and Junpei were approaching them, looking absolutely drained. Well, she and Shiomi probably didn’t look any better. They didn’t expect to meet such a strong shadow so early after all.
“Great job, Takeba, Shiomi.” Mitsuru praised them, her usual commanding tone absent due to her exhaustion. “I saw a different persona fighting with you. Which one of you summoned it?”
Finding herself under Kirijo’s scrutinizing gaze was not a pleasant experience. “Um, it was her.” Yukari said as she pointed to Shiomi. “She took my evoker to summon it, so maybe that’s why it happened...?”
Shiomi shook her head.
“I have multiple,” was all she said, refusing to elaborate further.
“What?! How come you get more than one?” Junpei shouted, looking dejected. “Man, now I’m jealous…” he added with a laugh. “Uh, what’s the other one? I’ve never seen you use it.”
“That is not important.” Kirijo interrupted before Shiomi could say anything. “We’re all tired and bruised. I suggest we end our excursion here and return for the night.” Without waiting for an answer, she turned around and started walking towards the teleporter, limping slightly.
Huh, did she not fully recover since that fight with the huge shadow? She should’ve told us…
“Wow, she does not mess around, does she?” Junpei said with a sigh. “Come on, guys, let’s get out of here. Man, I don’t think I’ll be able to get out of bed tomorrow,” he laughed in spite of the situation. “What about you, Koto-chan, Yuka-tan?”
“Tired. Need sleep,” was all Kotone said before she moved to follow Mitsuru.
“Same, I feel like I’m gonna pass out as soon as my head touches my bed,” Yukari complained, “That last fight really wore us out, jeez.”
“Say, Yuka-tan…” Junpei’s face suddenly morphed into a mischievous smile. “I was pretty preoccupied with helping Kirijo-senpai fight those shadows, but I couldn’t help but notice you and Koto-chan got veeery close and comfy in that corner~!” He winked at her conspiratorially. “Anything you wanna tell me? C’mon, gimme the dirt!”
Yukari stared at him with an unimpressed expression.
“Shut up, Stupei. You owe me a coffee now,” she flicked him on the forehead before leaving the room.
“Hey!”
“Chagall Café as always, got it?” A conflicted expression suddenly appeared on her face. “There’s something I wanted to talk about, too. You weren’t there to see it, but… well, you’ll see.”
Junpei grinned. “Sure thing! You’re paying, though.”
“What?! You’re flipping it on me? Listen here, you little-“
“Takeba, Iori, are you coming?”
Yukari squinted and put two fingers at her eyes before pointing them towards Junpei. “I’ll remember this, Stupei.”
She turned around and smiled, making sure Junpei wouldn’t see it. His laughter echoed from behind her as she shook her head.
Her worries about one of their members may be unfounded, but Yukari felt like she had to share them with someone. Even if that someone was, well… was Junpei Iori. That was the best way to describe him, really.
She was so not looking forward to this conversation.