A/N: I really need to not get sick, its not good on my muse :( Well, here we are, the next chapter! I'd also like to address an issue brought up in a review. I forgot to explain why Minako is still a junior. I'll go back and add it, but until then, I figured since she has no memory of her final months of her life, she was picking up where she left off. That and to stick her in her senior year almost near the end of the school year seemed wrong. She'd be too far behind.

Chapter 6

The Velvet Room was dark and comforting as always. Igor sat across from me with his hands tucked under his chin and Theodore stationed to his left. The elevator that had been stopped on my last visit was now moving again, ascending into the unknown. I closed my eyes briefly and took in a deep, comforting breath.

"It is good to see you." Igor drawled. "I see you have made your choice. An interesting one to be sure. I have brought you here to sign a contract. One you should be familiar with."

A piece of paper appeared on the table before him. It looked identical to the one I signed before. A pen lay beside it. "If I sign this, what becomes of my power?"

Igor smiled. "Can you not feel it? Your power has already shifted." He waved his hand before him and the arcana card for Death appeared face up on the table. "It would seem there was a shift in your power of persona. An unexpected change, I assure you. As I said before, it would take a great power to take Thanatos from you. And it would seem your desire to see your friend—the love you have for him—was more than powerful enough to separate him from yourself."

"You mean?" I clutched my chest. I felt hollow. Devoid of power. My mental shield against the world was gone. Thanatos ripped from my very being. I began to hyperventilate.

"Do not be frightened, Arisato." Theodore soothed, leaving his masters side to approach me. His gloved hand on my shoulder was reassuring. "You have not lost your power. It is merely evolving."

With another wave of Igor's hand, a card appeared on the table. Judgment. Light flowed from the card. It wrapped around me in a comforting cocoon before seeping into my skin. The empty place in my mind filled, ending my panic. A name fell from my lips.

"Messiah."

"Indeed. Your desire to find the truth and to root out evil has awakened the strongest arcana."

"Does this mean I'm the Wild Card?"

"It does not, but together with your comrades, the Wild Card will not be needed. Everybody is already reinforced with the bonds of friendship. Nothing can change that, or strengthen it further." Igor explained.

"If I'm not the Wild Card, what is the contract for?"

"The same as always, to tie you to your word. That you will take full responsibility for your actions." I nodded and picked up the pen. Without hesitation, I signed my name. "It has been a pleasure, but alas, our time is at an end. Farewell."

Tension rang high among the group. They stood around the newcomer, persona all at the ready should he prove to be dangerous. Yosuke wasn't sure what to do, what order to give. With Narukami gone, everybody seemed to gravitate towards him for leadership. He wasn't as confident as their leader or as smart, but he would do his best to protect his friends.

Arisato laid unconscious before them with a boy their age holding her in his arms. Nobody had the faintest idea where the boy came from. One minute there was a blinding light, all the shadows evaporated and he appeared. He looked calm and collected. Nothing at all like an enemy. And the way he cradled Arisato disturbed him. Yosuke felt like he was seeing something not meant for the public eye. There was such adoration and love in the strange blue eyes of the newcomer.

"Rise, can you get a read on him?" He asked.

Her persona appeared behind her and placed the visor over her eyes. "He's like Teddie."

"You mean, a shadow that's not really a shadow?" Kanji asked.

"Yeah, I think so."

Teddie walked over to the stranger, closer than Yosuke would have liked. "What is your name?"

The boy looked up and squinted at Teddie. "My name is Mochizuki Ryoji."

"What are you?"

"What am I?" Ryoji repeated the question back. He looked down at Minako and back to the group. "That is a question I'm not sure I have the answer to. I am a shadow, Death. But I am also human, thanks to her."

The visor lifted from Rise, "Where did you come from? And what happened to Minako-chan?"

"Do not worry, she is fine, only sleeping. It took a lot out of her to release me. She told you about what happened to her, three years ago, correct?"

The group nodded.

"I am Ryoji, the Appraiser."

"So, if you're here, does that mean that Nyx person is coming again?" Yosuke asked.

Ryoji shook his head. "No, she is well and truly sealed away. I have been connected to Minako in many ways. As Pharos, as Ryoji, and as her persona, Thanatos." He looked around. "Being in this world allowed my voice to reach her. When she summoned me, she didn't summon me as Thanatos, but as Ryoji." He looked at his hands. "I did not expect to take this form ever again."

"Okay, so let me get this straight." Naoto said. "She went to summon her persona to fight and instead of her persona, you showed up?"

Ryoji nodded.

"That's fucked up." Kanji swore.

Minako's body began to glow with a soft, warm light, drawing everybody's attention. A blue card hovered in the air above her, floating, spinning. Rise gasped.

"Her power, it's changing." She exclaimed. "I've never felt anything like it."

The blue card descended, casing a blue light around her body as it touched her skin. Ryoji laid her out on the ground and took a step back as her eyes fluttered open. She groaned and brought her hand to her forehead.

"About time you woke up, sleepyhead." Ryoji chuckled.

Minako's body froze and her eyes widened. Her hand fell from her face and she locked eyes with Ryoji. They stared at each other momentarily before she scrambled to her feet and launched herself at him. He caught her and spun her around once before placing her back on her feet.

"Ryoji-kun!" She squealed. "Oh my goodness, I can't believe it's really you!"

"Okay, I hate to break up this touching moment, but guys…" Rise interrupted. "We are completely surrounded by shadows.

The group reacted immediately, standing with their backs to each other. The shadows showed themselves and approached, chattering and howling. Yosuke's blood was thrumming with excitement. He had to admit, he missed the action of fighting for his life. Susano-o sprang to life and blasted the group with a Magarudyne. Several evaporated, and a few of them reflected the spell back his direction. The wind magic brushed past him harmlessly.

"I guess this calls for Yamato-Takeru." Naoto summoned her persona and let loose a Megidolaon.

Minako glanced at Naoto and a grin flashed across her face, lighting up her bright, red eyes. "Messiah!" her persona appeared in front of her, his hands stretched out towards the shadows. "Morning Star!"

Between the two Almighty attacks, the enemies were wiped out, leaving the Investigation Team in shock. They hadn't seen that kind of power since Narukami.

"Impressive." Yosuke smiled.

"Thanks!" She chirped. Her chipperness seemed to fade as she looked around at the landscape. "We need to find out what is behind this."

The group nodded in agreement.

"I think we should head back and regroup tomorrow." Naoto said. "A lot has happened today. It's a lot to take in at once."

Shinji paced the room. His hands stuffed in his pockets and his eyes trained on the floor. Where was she? She'd been acting strange since they arrived here in Inaba and now she's late coming home from school. She'd always been punctual. If she was out hanging with friends, that was great, but she should have called him or sent him a text…something to let him know she was safe.

He paused in his pacing and stared at his axe propped in the corner of the room. Something was happening out there. His worst fear was it found Minako and hurt her. He couldn't stand to go through that again. She was his world. This not knowing where she was, was killing him. He growled under his breath and approached his axe, ready to grab it and walk out the door with intention to murder whoever might have touched Minako.

Her laughter hit his ears and he relaxed. Another voice. Male. Also laughing. He tensed again, this time for another reason. His hands itched to grab the weapon, but he stuffed them back in his pockets and took a seat at the table. He wouldn't get mad. He had no right to be. Or did he? His head was a mess.

The door slid open and Minako walked in, followed by a boy he'd only seen pictures of. He was on his feet again, hands clenched tightly in his pocket. Instead of demanding to know why Ryoji was in their room, he decided for a different approach.

"Do you realize how late it is?"

The smile faded from her lips. He could see her struggling to form a proper response. She'd never been so indecisive. He remembered her being perfect. Always knowing what to say to get anybody to smile. Where had that Minako gone? Had the Seal changed her that much?

"Were you worried?" She finally asked.

No shit he was worried! Why wouldn't he be considering she rushed off to this desolate town to meet these new persona users, not to mention talking about another threat to humanity. Wait, why was her uniform dirty? And was that a tear on her sleeve and a smudge of dirt on her cheek?

He knew the signs of battle well enough to know she hadn't just been hanging out with friends. "Where the fuck have you been? And why is He here?" He spat the word like venom. He'd heard stories of this Ryoji kid and the disaster he brought with him. How it was him that brought Nyx down on their heads. Not to mention the kids infatuation with his woman.

"His name is Ryoji, and I've been doing some investigating." She replied shortly.

"And you didn't think to come get me?" He snapped. "We came here to work together. Not for you to run off and nose dive into danger alone."

The thought of her fighting alone scared him to death. She didn't have her arsenal of persona anymore and her weapon was still here in the hotel room. She could have gotten herself killed.

"Actually, I wasn't alone." She pointed to Ryoji. "He was with me, and so were the entire Investigation Group."

"Investigation Group?"

"The other group of persona users. It's what they call themselves. Kinda like how we are SEES." She explained. "They are a lot like our group actually. I think you'd like them. Oh! And one of their members is a shadow with the power of persona!"

There was a twinkle of excitement in her eye. A glimpse of her normal self. Had this group managed to bring out the true Minako when he could not? He bit the inside of his cheek. How had they grown so far apart? Oh yeah, three years is a long time to be apart when they'd only been together a few months. They were practically strangers.

"Can Ryoji-kun stay here?" She asked, plastering her puppy eyes to her face and jutting out her bottom lip in the cutest pout he'd ever seen.

As much as he loved that look, and wanted to give her whatever she wanted, he would not let that thing stay in the same room as them. "He's gonna have to find some other place to crash. Sorry, Mina."

She frowned and bit her bottom lip as she turned to face the blue-eyed boy. "Where will you stay?"

Ryoji shrugged. "Don't worry, Minako-chan. I'll figure something out." He reached out and tucked a wisp of her hair behind her ear. Jealousy raced through his veins, begging him, urging him to introduce Ryoji to the blade of his axe.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" She asked him.

"Of course." He leaned in to kiss her on the forehead but took one look into Shinjiro's eyes and hesitated. He thought better of it and took a step away from Minako. "Until tomorrow." He tipped an imaginary hat and strolled out the door.

"Are you feeling alright, Shinji?" Minako asked, stepping close enough to him he could feel the heat radiating off her body.

His emotions switched on a dime and he wanted to pull her close and show her who she belonged with. To claim her with his body. He was forced to close his eyes and turn away to keep from reaching out to her. What the hell was wrong with him?

"I'm fine, just been a long night." He answered.

She wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, and pressed her face between his shoulder blades. He held his breath as his body tightened. How long had he dreamed of touching her, holding her, loving her? Now that she was finally here, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was afraid he'd hurt her. That he'd lose himself in her.

"I'm sorry for worrying you." She whispered, squeezing him gently. "I know it's been a rough couple of days. I'm sorry. My head's a mess. I can't make sense of anything. I don't mean to be angry all the time." She was silent for a moment. "I love you, Shinji."

He relaxed in her embrace and placed his hand on her arms. "I love you too, Minako."

Humans prided themselves on social and technological advancement, but they were no different now than they had been an age ago. In fact, they were worse now than ever. They fought countless bloody battles all for the sake of greed. Crime was at an all time high. If they wanted something they took it, regardless of the consequences. It was a flood of these emotions that woke him from his slumber. If the human race was so desperate to know about the end of days, he shall show them. He would cultivate rage and temptation; plant it in the minds of the weak and young. He needed to feast off the strongest of the baser emotions to rekindle the main spark of his true power.

His eyes narrowed in confusion. Nobody had the power to resist temptation, rage, and greed. It was human nature to give in to your baser instinct. How were these two humans thwarting his advances? Everybody else he pushed snapped like branches under foot. They gave in to themselves and took what they wanted. They became food for the cause.

These humans, they had a strong will. Their minds partially shielded from him with a power unknown to him. He could sense their darker sides, and coaxed and pushed that dark side to emerge, but they never fully did. Just when he thought they would snap, they'd reign themselves in and he'd have to start from scratch.

It looked like he would have to try harder.