"Time never waits. It delivers all equally to the same end. You, who wish to safeguard the future, however limited it may be... You will be given one year; go forth without falter, with your heart as your guide..."

—A message for the protagonist, Persona 3

What do you wanna do next? It's up to you, kay? Your choice!

-Maiko Oohashi

Chapter 1: In his Footsteps

4/6/16

"I'm GOING to run away! I already made up my mind!"

The girl cringed at the memory of her words. She had been so naive. So foolish. But was she really any different now?

Maiko let out a yawn. She was getting bored. Between counting and re-counting the five people in her train car, looking out the windows, and listening to her embarrassingly short playlist of music, there wasn't much to do on the high-speed train besides wait. She elected to do the second again, and turned her gaze towards the outside of the car, unable to distinguish anything from the darkness that was the Japanese night sky speeding by at sixty miles per hour. Quickly bored again by this already familiar sight, Maiko was about to return to finding a more exciting activity when something caught her eye: her own reflection.

She gingerly brought a hand up to her brown hair. It was still in two braided buns, with one on each side. That had been her favorite hairstyle ever since she had been a little girl, after all. But her hair was longer now, and a darker shade of chestnut had overtaken the lighter coloring. Her eyes had remained a gentle brown, one that her mother had usually described as "cocoa." Maiko could almost see the moment replaying itself in the glass.

"Like chocolate," the older woman said, "because you're so sweet!"

Maiko resisted the urge to run her fist through the window. Turning away, she scoffed scornfully to no one in particular, and settled on popping open a can of her favorite soda, Mad Bull. As she opened the metal can with a satisfying snap followed by the hiss of carbonation, memories came bubbling up like the drink in her hands.

That was how they had met. Maiko Oohashi, the obnoxious little girl she had once been, had asked a complete stranger to get her food and a drink. Looking back at it, it simply seemed ridiculous. Surreal. Who in their right mind would go out of their way to help her, a lonely little girl who played at the playground by herself every day because she had no friends? But he came back. The blue-haired stranger showed up the next day with a fresh order of takoyaki and Mad Bull. And that was how their strange friendship had begun: with food and a drink. She took a sip, letting the taste linger in her mouth in hopes it would let the happy memory last just a little longer.

"We apologize for any delay," interrupted an irritating automated voice over the train's speakers. "We will be arriving at Iwatodai Station soon. This is the last train to Iwatodai Station. Thank you." Now fully awake from her thoughts, Maiko sighed. As annoying as it was, she partially envied the automated announcement. It didn't have to work hard to be polite. It didn't care about anyone else's problems. In fact, besides the occasional power outage, it probably didn't have any problems. Maiko had tried to be a robot when she was younger and her parents were fighting all of the time. She had tried to ignore what they were saying and pretended that she didn't care. But robots can pick what frequency they listen to, they can pick what they want to hear. It isn't that easy for humans.

Maiko continued to sip away at her overwhelmingly fizzy beverage, and did her best to move her thoughts away from the past: she was here in her hometown of Port Island for, ironically, a fresh start. She had done the planning, the packing, and the school application form. All of it. By herself. And she was going to begin her life again. By herself.

A woman in a uniform came by with a plastic trash bag. Maiko tossed in her now-empty soda can and gave a thankful nod as the automated announcement chimed again. "Now arriving at Iwatodai Station. This is the last train to Iwatodai Station. Please take all luggage and personal belongings with you. This is the last train to Iwatodai Station. Thank you."

The train came to a surprisingly smooth and quick stop. It was 2016 after all: technology had come a long way since she had last been there. Evidence of this was Maiko's Kirijo-brand smartphone, which she grabbed and put in her jacket pocket as she stood up to leave the train. Along with it, she took her measly luggage. All she had was a small black duffel bag with half of her possessions and an even smaller red backpack with the other half. The backpack was comically small, and the straps meant for a child barely fit around her. But it had sentimental value, and she hadn't had the heart to leave it behind. Maiko politely exited the train last, letting some tired-looking salarymen go ahead of her.

Even though she was wearing her warmest leather jacket, she still felt a chill run over her as she stepped out of the well-lit train. She glanced back longingly at her seat. It was warm. Comfortable. It could take her back to her mom. Maiko turned her vision to the front. All she could see at the station was darkness. It wasn't a hard decision.

She pulled up a map of the surrounding area on her phone and set the destination as "Iwatodai Dormitory, Port Island." A small number popped up in the bottom-left corner: 10 minutes by foot. Luggage in one hand and phone in the other, Maiko set off, but not before putting her earbuds in.

Maybe it was because she hadn't been there for seven years, but Maiko swore that the area had changed. It seemed…darker...lonelier…more sinister…not like the pleasant and bustling town she once knew. Despite it being spring, the wind was icy cold. Eerily, there were no people or cars around her, but Maiko didn't dare look up for fear she would stray off course. Eyes glued to the white-screen strangely tinted green in the night, she walked for what felt like hours. All the while, indistinguishable notes and lyrics played in her ears.

Relief washed over Maiko as she saw on the screen the words "Arrived at destination." Her relief quickly turned to regret, however, when she finally looked up from her smartphone and saw the destination in person. She took her earbuds out and stared in awe.

It was an old style of dorm, probably from decades ago. The imposing height of the stone and brick building was aided by the presence of an elegant yet intimidating metal fence around the perimeter. The edifice was complimented by a variety of flowers and trees at the base, but the plant life seemed wild and dangerous in the lack of light. The building looked grand; or it could have in its prime at least. Eroded by time and the chaos that was Japanese weather, it now looked more like an abandoned house that classmates would dare each other to enter. Roof tiles were missing, vines were climbing, and the windows were spattered with dust and dirt. Maiko only now noticed the moon, which had set itself right above the roof of the dormitory. Nearly full, it had a green tinge she knew wasn't normal. But she shrugged it off, blaming it on the lack of sleep and her high caffeine intake.

Maiko made her way to the wooden double-doors, briefly stopping to read a faded plaque placed next to them. "Iwatodai Dormitory." No mistaking it. This was it. She steeled her nerves and took the dare, pushing in on the door.

Maybe I should have knocked, she thought as the door gave way and she stepped in. Oh well. Too late for that.

It only took her one glance inside to be pleasantly surprised. It was well-lit, and the spotless green carpet went along well with the ornate wooden wall panels. More importantly, it was warm. Eager to escape the chill, Maiko fully entered and closed the door behind her.

"You're late. I've been waiting a long time for you."

The voice startled her, and she swiveled her head towards the source of the sound. Sitting at what looked to be the dorm's check-in counter was a young boy, no older than thirteen. He was abnormally pale, and his short black hair was also faded of color. Yet his piecing blue eyes seemed to see right through, no, into Maiko. The eyes were almost as noticeable as his clothes, black and white striped pajamas. A little strange, but this was coming from the girl who liked to wear denim skirts when she was in elementary school.

"Before we can proceed, you'll have to sign this," he said calmly as he held out a long slip of paper for her to take. His voice was soothing and quiet, and it made Maiko tired just to listen to it. But she had had enough experience with divorce lawyers to know that signing something without knowing what it was could be trouble.

"What is it?" she asked politely.

"It's a contract. Just procedural stuff."

As suspicious as that sounded, something about the boy made Maiko want to trust him. Maybe it was his voice, or maybe it was the innocent look on his young face. Maiko couldn't quite pinpoint it. She dropped her duffel, and reluctantly took the paper and tried to read it. It was all gibberish: she couldn't understand a word of it. All she understood was that she needed to sign at the blank space at the bottom. Growing tired of whatever was going on, she wrote in the good part of her name. "Maiko." Next to her messy signature was a crossed out name that she couldn't quite read. Maybe someone had had second thoughts and backed out? She handed the document back to the boy, who took it with an endearing yet odd smile.

The boy stuffed it in his pocket and laughed quietly.

"No one can escape time."

"It delivers us all to the same end."

"You can't plug your ears and cover your eyes."

Maiko blinked in surprise and opened her mouth to ask him what he meant, but when she opened her eyes, he was gone. Just like that. A faint echo of his voice could be heard resonating throughout the room.

"But sometimes, there are second chances."

She rubbed her eyes, trying to make sure she was seeing clearly. Apparently, she wasn't. The interior of the dormitory had changed to match the exterior: no longer was it bright and warm. Instead, green light trickled in from the clouded windows and created looming and ominous shadows. A cold draft ran across Maiko, and she shivered involuntarily. What…just happened? She wanted to stop and think about what had just happened, but fate had other plans.

To her right, a hint of movement caught her eye. One of the shadows was…moving?

"Grr..." A low humming spread throughout the room. It sounded like...a growl?

"Grrrrrr..." It was getting louder. Closer. Angrier. In the dim eerie light, something a couple of feet from Maiko's legs stirred. Frozen with fear, she bit her tongue to hold in a scream and stayed as still as possible.

"Ruff! Ruff! Ruff!" The short dark shape rushed towards Maiko, and she covered her eyes with her arms, face contorted in terror.

Maiko kept her eyes shut tight, expecting to be hit at any second. Something brushed her leg, and she lost it.

"EEEEEEEEEEEK!"

By her feet, the creature let out a high-pitched yelp, and Maiko heard light steps quickly pattering away from her. She nervously peeked an eye open. Thankfully, the warm yellow glow of the lights had returned to the room. In the corner by what looked to be a stairwell, a boy was standing. Something gray and white was moving around by his feet.

"Koro-chan, you can't do this to every visitor we get," the boy chided as he ran his hand over the top of the thing. In response, it whined and whimpered. It was a dog, puffy-furred and medium in size. A Shiba Inu, if Maiko remembered correctly.

"You can tell by the sharp ears and curly tail, Maiko," the man said. The dog came up to the little girl and stuck its snout in her face, licking her nose with a soggy tongue.

The little girl giggled. "I want to keep him, dad!" she shouted excitedly as she rubbed the creature under its ears. "What should we name him?"

Her father put his arm around her shoulder. "We can call him Ko, like in Maiko."

"Maiko?"

"Huh?" The teenage Maiko snapped out of her flashback. The boy was much closer now, standing a few of feet in front of her. Dressed neatly in a black uniform and jacket over an orange shirt, he had an air of quiet authority about him, even with his messy golden-brown hair. The dog was nowhere to be seen.

"Your name's Maiko, right?" he asked.

Maiko had more trouble finding her words than she would have liked. "Oh, uh...yeah. That's me. Maiko." She laughed nervously. Weird. She was usually great with strangers.

"I didn't think you'd get here so late," the boy said. He gave her a slight smile and extended his hand. "My name is Ken Amada. I'm one of the students who live in this dorm." Ken scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly. "Well, I'm the only one here, actually. Or I guess I was, until tonight."

"Nice to meet you," Maiko responded automatically, as she had learned to do in cram school way back in the day, and took his hand. The handshake was firm and confident, but uncomfortable because of their height difference. Maiko, unfortunately, had been comically short and small since 6th grade. "Micro-Maiko!" was what classmates had shouted to tease her. Ken, on the other hand, was quite tall and lanky. But more importantly, he was the only student here?...Was that even allowed?

Stepping back, Ken said, "It's getting late, so you should get some rest." Now that he mentioned it, Maiko was completely exhausted from the long trip and the strange events of the evening. "Your room is on the second floor, at the end of the hallway. It was the only one I could get ready in time." He pointed to her black duffel bag on the ground. "Want me to get that?" Maiko shook her head. Picking up her things, she followed Ken to the second floor. The wooden stairs showed their age as they stepped over them, creaking loudly.

Ken sighed. "The dorm is pretty old. I try my best to keep it up and running, but it's a hassle." Maiko silently shuffled along behind him, unsure of what to say. He seemed to notice, and chuckled. "Sorry about Koromaru-chan. I swear he's going mad in his old age." Somewhere from the first floor, a loud bark echoed in response to Ken's claim. Maiko stifled a giggle.

They stopped at the end of a spacious hallway. Ken said, "This is it. Pretty easy to remember since it's at the end of the hall, huh? Oh, and don't lose your key, or I'll never let you hear the end of it." Maiko rolled her eyes.

"Don't lose your key, sweetie. If you don't have it and I'm not home, no one will be here to let you in...Your dad is busy with work again..."

She clenched a fist and hid it in her sleeve. "Thanks, Ken," she replied with a forced smile.

He frowned for a moment, but shrugged it off. "Any questions?" Maiko actually had many questions, but decided on just one for now.

"What was that contract for?" she asked, tilting her head to one side curiously. Ken only returned a puzzled stare.

"Huh? What contract?" He scratched his head awkwardly. "We can handle any paperwork tomorrow. You're probably exhausted. But still..." Ken shifted his gaze nervously. "...was everything, um, okay, on the way here from the station?" Maiko nodded her head, and Ken let out a breath of relief. "That's good," he said. He put her bag down by the door and turned away. "If you need anything, I'm only two doors down." Maiko felt her cheeks redden. Was it okay for a boy and a girl to sleep in the same dorm, let alone the same floor, all by themselves? Ken didn't seem to notice, but he gave her a "goodnight" smile as he entered his room and closed the door.

Maiko gently opened the door to her new room and entered, leaving her two bags by a cabinet. It was a very plain room, with nothing particularly notable about it. Just a desk, dresser, bed, closet, and some carpet in a small space. There was also a sink and a mirror in the corner, which seemed rather convenient. Too tired to think about any of the questions that were piling up, Maiko plopped straight onto the bed and attempted to fall asleep. But it was the same feeling of insomnia as usual. She was chained to consciousness. Helpless. Sinking into the past.

"I guess it is getting dark. But, I don't wanna go home yet...I don't like it there," nine year-old Maiko said.

The blue-haired boy simply patted her on the head comfortingly. He didn't talk much, but it was still nice to be around him.

"Can't we stay together for a little longer?" The boy shook his head, and she pouted.

"...So, my mom and dad...they fight a lot. They're going to get a divorce, huh? I tell them I want us to be happy, but they don't listen. They probably hate me, too." Maiko was doing her best to hold in her tears now. She wiped her eyes and smiled.

"...Hey, we can play again later, right?"

"I think we're friends now."