The dream faded, and Souji awoke on the futon in his room on the second story of the Dojima residence. It was already past midnight, and it wasn't raining, but he looked at the television in his room anyway.

'We were spurred into action by Souji Seta when he touched the TV in his room some nights ago,' the Shadow had said while wearing his own face.

It was his fault... wasn't it?

Despite not being his Shadow, the monstrous sun had taken on a form designed to disturb him the most, even carrying a Baby Bear toy and other objects that had been important to him in his youth. The sun itself had looked like a drawing he'd made when he was a kindergartner for his mother to put on the family refrigerator, though he hadn't admitted that to anyone, not even Naoto, whom he could trust to keep a secret.

Naoki... And it had attacked Chie as well...

What could he do? He couldn't get rid of his Personas. Even if he could, would he want to? The power of the wild card was said to be an exceptionally rare gift. Margaret would have something to say about that, let alone her younger sister who desired that same power herself...

The wild card... Like the number zero, empty, and yet filled with infinite possibilities...

I'm feeling empty right now, Souji thought to himself, leaning back in his futon to stare at the ceiling. If he'd only kept his curiosity in check and hadn't touched the TV, if he hadn't checked the Midnight Channel...

If he hadn't come to Inaba...

If this, if that... He couldn't change the past. Was that what Margaret had been trying to tell him?

The paths stretched before him. If he couldn't discard his power, and struggled even to keep it in check... What else was there to do but use it?

The Investigation Team's scheduled meeting was postponed due to Naoki Konishi's funeral. It was a beautiful sunny summer day, completely at odds with Souji's feelings. He wanted the sky to be overcast and threatening rain, to mirror the mourning bursting in his heart.

He was surprised to find Naoto waiting for him at the temple where the funeral would be held. At first, he thought that she had come there to support him, but she reminded him quietly that Naoki had been her classmate at Yasogami High.

In fact, Naoto wasn't the only Investigation Team member present. Kanji was there, along with his mother. It was strange to see him wearing a formal dress suit. He'd even removed his piercings for the occasion. Souji recalled that Kanji had been friends with Naoki in middle school. Yosuke was also present, perhaps in memory of Naoki's sister, who had worked at Junes before she had been killed. Yukiko had come to support Chie, who felt a commonality with Naoki as the Shadow's intended victim.

During the sutra reading, Naoto lightly touched Souji's hand to bring his attention to it; he had been holding the prayer beads so tightly that his hand was turning red. His frustration and helplessness at Naoki's loss seemed magnified during the ceremony.

After the funeral ended, Souji thanked his friends for being there, and then he went home and spent the rest of the day alone in his room.

Souji's friends noticed the melancholy eating away at him. To pull him out of it, they invited him on a trip to the beach. He almost declined, but Yosuke's enthusiasm for the trip made it difficult to refuse. Yosuke also smartly invited Nanako, and Souji couldn't let her go without him.

To Yosuke's—and perhaps Kanji's—disappointment, Naoto had already left Inaba for a case elsewhere, and so the mystery of what she looked like in a swimsuit remained unsolved. Perhaps she had suspected a trip to the beach was in the works, and escaped before she could be roped into coming.

The trip ended up cheering Souji up a bit; it was great to see his friends up to their usual antics. Teddie started a splashing fight with Yukiko and Chie, who teamed up to get back at him, prompting him to call for Yosuke to back him up.

Nanako made a sand castle, and Kanji accidentally tripped over it. In apology, he helped her make an even more elaborate one. Then Teddie declared himself the king of the sand castle, and he tried ordering Yukiko to be his queen.

At least this time, Kanji didn't lose his swimsuit and cause a near-disaster with the girls.

Souji himself didn't spend that much time in the water; he had more fun watching his friends. He also still had a lot on his mind...

That night Souji remembered something Margaret had said... that even old friends were still a part of him.

He scrolled through his contact list on his cell phone. There were so many people there whom he'd lost contact with after moving away from where he'd met them. He'd kept up with the Investigation Team, of course, but there were other people whose numbers he'd recorded before moving away, numbers he'd never once called.

He remembered a conversation he once had with Yosuke, in which Yosuke admitted that he, too, never called any of his old friends from before his family had moved to Inaba. He hadn't wanted to bother anyone by calling. Souji thought hard about it now. He knew that if anyone called him, he would be happy to hear from them. It wouldn't bother him at all.

While thinking, he'd scrolled all the way to the letter 'N' and stopped on a name there. 'Naegi.' That was a surname. What had been that boy's first name? Something ordinary... Souji hadn't put it in the phone.

Putting on a brave face, Souji called the number, and when the boy picked up, he explained who he was and why he was calling. "I saw your number in my phone and wondered how you were doing."

"You remember me?" the boy named Naegi said. "I'm really surprised! I tend to blend in with the crowds..."

Souji smiled to himself. "I remember that hoodie you always wore."

"I still have it!" the boy exclaimed. "In fact, I'm wearing it right now!"

"Do you remember me?" Souji asked. "I moved not too long after we met, but..."

"Let's see..." Naegi seemed to be thinking. "You were a year above me, but we were in soccer club together, right?"

"That's right!"

They spent a lot of time talking; Naegi was especially excited to hear that Souji was friends with a pop idol. After they ended the call, Souji basked in the warmth of his elation at having contacted an old friend. Naegi had been a good kid, but not very good at soccer, if he remembered right. It had been really fun to talk to him.

Empowered by the success of the call, Souji decided it was time to face his future. He scrolled further down into his contact list, seeking the name 'Shirogane.' Of his friends in the Investigation Team, this was a number he didn't often use; usually he relied on Chie to keep Naoto up-to-date.

Even Naoto was aware of it. "Souji-senpai? This is rather unusual," she said when she picked up.

"Naoto..." he said. "Could you get me into contact with Mitsuru Kirijo?"

"Of course," Naoto replied without hesitation. "I have her number here. I can inform her that you plan to call, as well."

"Thanks, but I plan to call her immediately."

A few moments passed before Naoto spoke. "Is something the matter? Well, if there is, I assume it's urgent, so I won't keep you." She proceeded to tell him the number.

"It's nothing," he said. "I just wanted to talk with her about something."

"Very well," said Naoto. "I'm sure she would enjoy hearing from you."

Souji appreciated how Naoto could keep her natural curiosity in check. He'd sensed her interest over the line. He'd have to talk to her again later.

He punched in Mitsuru-san's number. He stared at it on his cell phone's screen for several long moments before finally pressing the call button.

"This is Mitsuru Kirijo," said a mature, confident woman's voice. "May I know who's calling?"

"Hello, Mitsuru-san? This is Souji Seta." He paused before deciding more information might be required. "We met during Golden Week."

"Bien sûr! I remember." Her friendly tone of voice gave the impression that she was smiling at the other end. "You were the leader of your team. Your determination reminded me of an old friend... What can I do for you, Seta?"

"I was wondering... Would it be possible for me to join the Shadow Operatives?"

THE END

[Author's note: The story has a sequel called Burn My Regret. It can be found in my profile or at:
s/10395873/1/Burn-My-Regret

Thanks for reading!]