Wednesday, 4-27-11. Weather: Rain throughout the Day

Yu sighed as he hoisted his umbrella over his head. His body was still somewhat sore from the fight with Chie yesterday, but he was healing. Now he had to work out different priorities: namely, getting rid of Orobas in some way.

Naturally the first place he went was the Velvet room after school, fumbling somewhat as he entered, trying to figure out how to fold up the umbrella he had in his hand. His Personas materialized before him, and he involuntarily shuddered when Orobas' gaze landed on him. "...I know what you plan to do."

Igor hummed. "It seems that you reject Orobas, despite the fact that he comes from your own soul."

Margaret flipped open the compendium, the card for Orobas hovering over the opened pages. "One of the 72 demons of the Goetia. He appears as a horse and answers questions of the past, present, and future. He is faithful to his conjuror. Apparently, he has also seen himself to make futures happen quicker, considering what had happened to those boys in your class."

"He comes from the sea of your soul, and yet you reject him. Perhaps you aren't comfortable with making a final decision in someone's life, and prefer to be more of a guiding presence, and give someone a purpose or put them in the right direction. Very interesting."

"Well… can I get rid of him?" Yu asked tentatively, noticing how Orobas' eyes narrowed. "Or fuse him away?"

"I, um," Sylph mumbled, fluttering into Yu's line of sight. "If it would make you feel better, I'm able to fuse with Orobas, though, I don't know what kind of Persona will come from it."

The relief that Yu felt was instantaneous. "You can?" Sylph nodded. "Okay then, let's do that."

"You are making a mistake." Orobas hummed as Igor began to fuse the two together. "We could prevent heinous acts of the future. I could be your guiding light, and you the knight who would defend the truth."

"But I don't want that if it means killing others or harming them to the point where death would be preferred." Yu replied as Orobas snarled and cried out as he was forcibly thrown together with Sylph, a humanoid like Persona appearing in midair. He wore a golden set of Greek armor, a sword lifted above his hunched form as he declared behind his mask: "Before you stands Titan… I am the undefeatable one who swears loyalty to you…"

With a sigh of relief, Yu felt Orobas' presence leave his mind and Titan fill the void where he and Sylph had resided. He made to exit the Velvet Room when Marie coughed and gestured at Yu to come closer.

With his interest piqued, Yu moved closer, letting Marie say what she wanted.

"…Look, I'm sure you already know, but… I want you to take me somewhere. It's small, it's dark, The Nose never says anything. It's stuffy in here."

Yu snickered. "'The Nose'?"

Margaret hummed from her spot across from the black haired girl. "It is her form of a 'nickname' given to my master."

Marie ignored Margaret, continuing to talk to Yu. "I'm really not supposed to leave the room, but Margaret said it'd be okay if I went with you."

Yu looked to the elder occupant. "She's not lying, right?"

Marie glared and crossed her arms over her chest. "Of course I'm not! Why would I lie?"

Margaret nodded "It is true. So long as Marie is accompanied by you, she may leave the Velvet Room for however long she wishes."

Marie huffed, still glaring at Yu. "So, will you take me somewhere?"

Yu almost refused, remembering the horrible weather outside, before he noticed the somewhat desperate look in Marie's eyes. "Sure, it's fine by me. It's just raining cats and dogs out there right now."

Marie sighed, either in relief or frustration. "That's fine, I just want to leave. Still, I think you gave in too easily. I'll have you twisted around my finger at this rate."

Yu raised his eyebrow. "Uh, what?"

"'Twisted around my finger', that's the phrase, right? I've been studying." Noticing the small smile crossing Yu's face, she groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Whatever, let's just go."

Upon exiting the Velvet Room, Yu looked around in shock when he saw that the torrential rain had, amazingly, let up during his brief time in the Velvet Room. Yet, it was odd; the weather report had said non-stop rain for around three days straight, and he here was in a slightly-humid Inaba. Of course, weather reports are not always right, but he had been walking around not too long ago, and it certainly didn't seem like it was stopping any time soon.

"What…?" Looking to his left, he saw Marie halfway down the block and in the middle of the street, looking around like a lost child. He ran over to the Velvet Room resident and grabbed Marie's arm, pulling her back to the sidewalk. "Hey, be careful, you could've gotten hit by a car!"

Marie indignantly pulled her arm back and rubbed at the spot where Yu had grabbed her. "I'm not a child, I can handle myself!"

Yu hesitantly retracted his hand and kept a close eye on Marie as she gazed at the various buildings scattering the sidewalk until they stopped in front of Souzai Daigaku. The resident let out a relieved sigh, apparently satisfied with the distance she had traveled from the Velvet Room. "I can finally breathe now. It's stuffy in that car." She looked around the northern end of the shopping district, a reminiscent expression on her face. "Y'know… I feel weird. It's like, nostalgic, for the smell and all."

"'Nostalgic'?"

"Yeah, nostalgic. That's what I said. It just… feels that way. There's a lot of stuff that I've never noticed before."

Yu moved closer to Marie, trying to keep her within an arm's distance. "Like what?"

Marie ignored Yu and turned to examine Souzai Daigaku. "A 'Steak Skewer'?"

"Yeah, I came here once with Yosuke. They were actually pretty good, so—" Marie walked towards the vendor with little hesitation "Hold on!" Why does she keep rushing ahead of me?

Marie talked brashly to the vendor, little care behind her actions or words. "Hey, lady. I want one of those skewer things."

The lady behind the counter smiled. "Oh, hello. That'll be 320 yen, please."

Marie stumbled over her words. "Thwee hunnert twin… Bleh. That's hard to say." She paused as she realized what the woman meant. "You can't eat without money?"

"Want me to pay for it? I don't mind getting you something to eat."

Marie turned around, surprised. "You have money? That's awesome. You're awesome."

"Yeah, I got it from my job. Here, let me…" Yu paused as he saw Yosuke walking towards him and waved. "Hey, Yosuke."

"Yo, Yu! Gettin' your steak on, huh?" The Magician turned to his left and saw Marie, a slight blush crossing his cheeks. "...She's cute.

Yu sighed and shook his head. "Really, man?"

Yosuke snapped out of his reverie and frantically looked between the two. "What? What's going on here? Who's this?"

"This," Yu gestured to Marie, who shuffled uncomfortably in place. "is Marie. She's a friend of mine."

"Friend…?" Marie shrugged. "I guess… I don't know."

"Ahh, I see. A 'friend,' you say, huh?"

"See, I thought you would do this when I said I brought Chie to Aiya."

"That's different! You were making up for dragging her around Inaba, this time you're just casually bringing a girl to Souzai Daigaku."

"We. Are not. Dating. End of story."

"Oh, so she's single then?"

"Yosuke."

Yosuke turned to Marie, a smooth smile on his face. "Heyo, I'm Yosuke Hanamura! I'm his friend. His partner, y'know."

Yu covered his face with his hands. "Oh my God Yosuke."

"...Partner? You mean like a close friend?"

Yu switched over to English, hoping that Yosuke's knowledge of the language wouldn't let him understand what he was saying "You've known her for all of two seconds and you're already trying to hit on her."

"Heheh, yeah, that about sums it up. Do you mind telling me your name?"

"...I might be dying watching this right now, I just might be dying."

Marie turned from Yosuke and glared at Yu. "What are you saying?"

"Yeah, dude, it sounds like you're speaking in English."

Yu sighed. "Nothing, just… making a few mental notes to myself. Anyway, Yosuke, this is Marie."

"Hmmm, Marie-chan, is it?"

Yu turned to Yosuke. "Please don't call her Marie-tan, otherwise I might never hear the end of it."

"Hey, relax partner! I'm just introducing myself. Plus, I'm nowhere near as bad as Teddie."

"...Fair enough."

"Anyways, you guys want steak skewers? These'll be on me!" Yosuke walked to the vendor, and Marie awkwardly shuffled away. "Hello, Motomiya-san, how's the family?"

The woman behind the counter smiled. "Ah, Hanamura. Daisuke-chan and Jun-chan have been growing up fast. They might be in Yasogami before you graduate!"

"...You mean you'll buy it for me?" She turned to Yu. "Is that okay?"

Yu shrugged. "There's no reason to decline." Though I don't want to be the reason why Yosuke will be using up his last paycheck…

"Hey, don't worry! I got a little extra in my last paycheck."

"I'll still give you any money if you need it, Yosuke."

"Don't worry, Yu, I've got it covered. Three steak skewers, please! One for each of us."

The vendor, Motomiya, smiled. "Oh my, business is booming! Just a moment, please."

Yu patted his belly as the skewer settled. It was a filling meal, and it tasted great too, but he still felt guilty for having Yosuke pay for three plates.

"Whew!" Yosuke stretched his arms above his head. "Is that a bellyful or what! This place always has huge portions."

"Still, I wish you had let me help pay. I feel bad."

"Nah, I know you'll repay the favor for me one way or another. Besides, you don't have a job yet."

"No, I work at the Daycare, now."

"What? When did this happen?"

"About… two days ago? Before Orobas went nuts."

"Oh yeah, did you get rid of him?"

"First thing I did after school today."

"Good, last thing we need is another fist fight in the middle of the hallway." Remembering that Marie was less than a foot away, he turned to face her with a nervous smile and attempted to change the subject. "So, Marie-chan, what d'you think of the local specialty?"

"It's really weird. It's tough, hard to bite into, and it got cold while I was still eating it." She turned to face Yosuke with a slight grin. "It was delicious."

"Oh, uh… that's good. Didn't sound like you liked it at the beginning there. But, all's well that ends well!"

Marie ignored Yosuke's comment and turned back to Yu. "Hey, why's it called 'steak', anyway? Is it short for something?"

"Yeah, it's short for 'Beefsteak'. Steak's just easier to get the point across."

"But if you drop the word 'beef' from it, you don't get any sense of what it's made of. It should be, like… 'Fsteak'."

"That's, uh… not much better…"

"And also a lot more difficult to say."

Yosuke turned to Yu. "Marie-chan's a strange kid, huh? Well, that makes her cute… I guess?"

"Sometimes I wonder why I'm friends with you guys."

"Hey, c'mon, we're two city boys livin' out in the boonies. Gotta have some fun."

Marie sulked in her spot. "You eat this every day? No fair, I should've come earlier…"

"Do you want me to get you another one?" Yu asked "I'll pay."

"I… don't think I could eat anything else right now."

"Yeah, this stuff'll probably make you as fat as a stuffed pig."

Marie tilted her head. "A… pig?"

Yosuke's eyes widened. "Ah, crap, that came out bad, right? I totally just insulted you I'm sorry, I'm really—you look fine."

"I don't… think that's what she meant." Yu said slowly, unsure if Marie even knew what a pig looked like.

Marie turned to Yu. "Do you think The Nose'll let me bring some back?"

Yosuke snickered. "The… The Nose?"

"It's her nickname for her… guardian." Ignoring Marie's cross expression, he continued. "And I don't think he'll let you bring anything back."

Marie tilted her head down and mumbled. "Stupid Nose, stupid room, stupidstupidstupid!"

Yosuke laughed and put his hands in his pants pockets, only to pull them out in panic as he pats his back pockets, clearly not finding what he wanted. "Ah, crap! I left my key back in my locker at work! I've gotta go back to Junes! See you later, Yu! You too, Marie-chan!"

Yu shouted at Yosuke's retreating form. "Hurry up before the rain starts up again!"

Marie hummed. "Your 'partner' is a funny person."

"That he is, Marie. That he is."

"But he bought me meat. That makes him a good person. That is fact." Marie stood from the serving table outside Souzai Daigaku, taking little consideration of the nervous expression on Yu's face. "Hey, let's go somewhere else. Somewhere with a nice view."

"Uh… I can't think of a good place off the top of my head—" Marie started to wander off, causing Yu to abruptly stand up. "Hey, wait! Marie!"

Multiple times after losing Marie (and having to use Izanagi to help him locate her), they wound up on the hill looking over the town. The view wasn't the best, since the sky was clouded over and the sun would just barely poke through for a moment and disappear, but it showed most, if not all, of Inaba.

Marie looked around the hill, and Yu almost thought she looked disgusted at the scenery. "It's really green here. Green and… green. And some brown and… Darker green?"

"Well, those are the 'colors of nature' as a philosopher has inevitably said at one point." Yu commented, sitting down on one of the wooden benches scattering the area. Izanagi hovered above them, entertaining themselves by darting up into the clouds, occasionally letting off a little bit of electricity.

Marie remained silent, staring off into space before murmuring to herself. "Leaves of green fly away, Farewell to you, clouds of the sky… I fly as well, lost as the day, farewell to you, moon of the night." Yu's eyes widened as he vaguely heard Marie say something that rhymed, and made to comment on it. However, she snapped out of her reverie and turned around to face him, crossing her arms over her chest and blushing furiously. "N-No! I wasn't making up a poem! It's just some words that I was thinking! That's all! Yeah!" There were a few seconds of silence before Marie looked down at the ground, a slew of words flying out of her mouth. "ShutupIhateyoustupidejerk! Don't snoop on me!"

"I wasn't snooping, especially not if you're improving poetry in the open." Yu teased.

"Sh-Shut up!" She turned away to look at the view, and also to escape Yu. Her anger disappeared as she looked out at the countless buildings covering the countryside. "Wow, it's pretty big…"

"You should see Tokyo. Then again, you can't really get nature like this in the middle of a city."

"I don't know why, but I feel good about this place. It reminds me of something." Marie glanced at Yu with an odd amount of excitement considering her prior behavior. "Are there any other places we can go? I want to see more."

"I'll show you around. We barely got to see any of Inaba, there's a whole lot more than what we can see up here."

"Please do. I notice a lot of things when I'm with you. It's pretty fun." Marie smiled, and Yu returned the gesture, a little nervous for what she would see while in Inaba, but still ready to show her the town. The sound of shattering glass filled the air, and time slowed to a standstill. A card materialized between Yu and Marie, a silhouette of Thoth was inside of an orange circle, with four lines with the colors purple, green, and light blue behind it. Held in golden trimming was the Roman numeral XX.

Thou art I, And I am thou.

Thou hast established a new bond…

It brings thee closer to the truth.

Thou shalt be blessed when creating Personas of the Aeon Arcana.

Marie grinned and turned back to the stairs they had walked up. "All right, next! Where to now?"

Thursday, 4-28-11. Weather: Rain throughout the Day

While the horrible weather had let up for the duration of Marie's stay outside the Velvet Room, it had worsened and stubbornly remained so for the rest of the evening and into Thursday. With his umbrella hoisted over his head, Yu tried to avoid as many puddles as possible as he walked to school, only to get splashed when Chie ran up to him, the shorter girl bursting with energy.

"Morning!" The Chariot greeted, a grin plastered onto her face. "Wanna hear some good news?"

"Morning to you, too. And yes, good news is always appreciated."

"Good, because Yukiko told me she'll be able to come to school again in two days! Oh man, I'm so happy right now!"

"She's recovered?"

"Well… I don't know about 'recovered'," She looked around and leaned closer to Yu before lowering her voice. "I've visited her nearly every day after school and spent Sundays with her, too, and she hasn't mentioned a Persona. Tomoe and I haven't seen it either, so we don't know if she's ready yet."

"Hm… well, if she doesn't mention anything or doesn't see anything, then we'll leave her out of it. Is that alright?"

"Yeah, of course! It'll be the three of us. Or, well, the three of us and one bear thing?"

Yu laughed, adjusting his grip on his umbrella. "Yeah, the three of us and one bear thing saving Inaba from a crazy murderer. That sounds about right."

Since he was able to, and Soccer practice was cancelled due to the rain, Yu went to drama club with Yumi. For most of the beginning, they simply went over a few practice lines and a few tongue twisters (which Yu was horrible at) and he sulkily told Yumi that he hadn't watched the play yet. She understood, but pushed him to do it tonight, if he didn't have plans.

He didn't, but that wasn't an automatic guarantee: anything could come up.

Nagai spoke up after half an hour of practicing. "Just doing fundamentals all the time gets boring, so let's try doing some real performing!" At the positive responses, he continued. "We'll hold an audition. Everyone, remember the line I'm about to say-"

Titan interrupted Nagai, making Yu jump when the deep voice rattled directly behind him. "Why are you wasting your time with this when you could be slaying the Shadows that haunt the humans of this residence?"

Yu sighed and leaned back slightly, not paying full attention to what was happening in front of him. Oh, God, you can't just do that!

"Do what?"

Just start speaking out of nowhere, especially since I don't know you well and we're surrounded by people who don't know anything about Personas? I can't talk to thin air without someone thinking I'm psychotic.

"Still, I feel that you're wasting your time with this 'extracurricular activity'."

I'm not-

Nagai voice rose, drawing Yu's attention back to the club. "'...nor the golden sea, but merely the trickle of your tears.' You all got that? Well, I'm not going to repeat it! Alright, we'll start with Yu. Come on up here, in front of everybody. Show some emotion."

Shit, shit, what did he say at the beginning?

Titan hummed. "Something about being tempted by a woman's tears." Yu rolled his eyes and swore the Persona's existence. Oh that's helpful.

Yumi cheered on his right. "Don't worry, believe in yourself!"

Yu sighed and stepped into the center of the room, muttering, "You better have been right Titan... What tempts me is not the—the light of the moon, or the golden sea, but merely the trickle of your tears." Dammit I know I screwed that up.

"Does it truly matter?"

Yu scowled, not at the Persona, but at his performance and ignored the conversation between the drama club president and the vice president. Well, to me it does.

"I'll do it." Yumi spoke up. "I'm confident that I can remember. Yu gave her a thumbs up as she moved to the center of the semicircle, a serene expression on her face. "What crazes me is not the light of the moon, nor the golden sea!" She then turned to her right and crossed her hands over her heart, a shimmer of tears pricking the corners of her eyes. "But… merely… the trickle of your tears…"

Yu's eyes widened as Yumi's performance ended, somewhat shell-shocked at the level of effort she put into performing

"That was amazing…"

"She's always so good… It's scary…"

Yumi smirked at the praise from the other members and turned to face Nagai. "If anyone thinks they can do a better job than me, please come on up."

The president glared at her. "Yumi, don't say it like that…"

"If only standing around flirting made you a better actor, huh?"

Titan chuckled. "I could imagine her talking down the most intelligent and spineless of Greece and pointing out all of the puny Gods' flaws! She would be a most intelligent general and coerce all of the armies into giving up."

Of course that's what you would relate it to. Wouldn't you prefer there to be bloodshed?

"True, but this is just as entertaining."

The drama club vice president stuttered, trying to patch up the tension between Yumi and her boyfriend. "H-Hey, come on! We all remember the line, so we might as well do it, right? I think watching others act is a good experience, too. Don't you, Yumi?"

Yumi, after pausing, nodded. "You're right. Go ahead"

Slowly but surely all the other students went, but Yumi was clearly the best, no question about it. With a scowl on his face, Nagai faced the rest of the club.

"Okay, we've unanimously decided that Yumi will be the protagonist… And she'll be opposite… Yu!"

Yu ignored Titan's maniacal laughter behind him and turned to face Nagai completely. "Wait, what?"

"I mean, it's either you or me, and what I'd really rather do is direct."

"Okay, so… what character am I playing, specifically?"

"The protagonist's husband, of course."

Yu felt a blush cross his cheeks as Titan's laughter increased, the Persona wheezing as Yu's mortification grew. Shut up!

Needless to say, he didn't. "Oh Gaia, I do not regret anything."

I feel like this is mainly coming from the remains of Orobas.

"It's a mix, mortal."

The two practiced for about half an hour while the other students worked on their lines, either as supporting characters or just a character with one line and no name, or even moving around props.

"Do you have your lines memorized? Are you ready to go? Don't be so tense. This is just practice."

Yu ran his fingers through his hair. "I know, but… why is it so much easier for me to remember flash cards, but not lines on a page?"

Yumi giggled. "I know the feeling, it seems daunting the first couple of times, but you realize you remember them easier and easier after each attempt."

"You make it sound so easy."

"I try! I want us to try and take this a bit seriously, so give it a shot, okay?"

"Hey, I'll give it my all."

"Well, I'll lead you through it!" Excitedly, she looked out the window with her script in hand. "Acting is fun, isn't it? When you're acting, it's like you get to take on the life of another person. Not just yourself. Not some Yumi Ozawa, but another life to live. I don't need lights. I don't need costumes. All I need is a role to play."

Yumi looked up at the lights above her with a melancholy expression "All I need… is to not be me…"

Yu reassuringly put his hand on her shoulder. "We all need to be someone else every once in a while, don't we?"

Yumi smiled, although it seemed forced. "Yeah, we all do." The tender moment was broken as the tarot card for the sun appeared, the number 2 appearing as it glowed golden before disappearing. "Oh, sorry! Let's keep practicing, otherwise you'll end up forgetting your lines. How about… we ad-lib a kiss?"

"Oh Gods and Goddesses, young love is a curse among you mortal beings."

Wow you are just a pessimist aren't you? Yumi took a step back "Uh, you okay? You looked really angry for a second, do you not want to do it?"

Yu snapped out of it, smiling sheepishly at Yumi in a hope to not scare her more. "Ah, no, it's fine. Let's just… focus on the lines."

[22:43] Late night studying, or are you actually getting sleep?

Yu jolted from his seat and gasped. He groaned when he realized that he had lost his place in his textbook and glanced at his phone.

He groaned again.

[22:44] The former, until you interrupted me, Ama.

[22:45] I heard from a little birdy that another murder AND another kidnapping occurred.

[22:45] Are you okay, Yu?

[22:46] Yeah, so far. None of the victims were friends, but I'm helping others out.

[22:46] With school or grieving?

[22:47] Technically both.

[22:48] If Dojima-san asks, then it's school.

[22:48] Ah, Dojima.

[22:49] Is this your wonderful uncle Mister Jin has mentioned?

[22:50] Yes, and don't worry, I haven't mentioned you guys to him yet.

[22:51] I wasn't concerned about that, but in all seriousness, Yu-chan.

[22:52] Please don't call me 'Yu-chan.'

[22:52] Get some rest, and contact us if you need help.

[22:53] Especially if this murderer comes after you, do you understand?

[22:54] I understand, Mom.

[22:55] Be glad that your mother can't contact you, otherwise she would be shitting bricks.

[22:56] True, but I need to study.

[22:57] Fine, but stop soon, it's late and you need to sleep.

[23:02] Thank you, Ama. Love you.

[23:02] Love you too, Yu.

Friday, 4-29-11. Weather: Rain throughout the Day.

Yu patted his stomach. Earlier in the day he had eaten at Aiya, and it had looked like he had barely scratched the surface before he had given in. Now however, he was stuffed, and he let it pass when Nanako and Dojima decided to order take out, and he sipped at his tea.

"Due to the weekend rainfall, clear skies seem unlikely in the area. A thick fog is expected to set in tonight and remain until tomorrow morning, with heaviest concentration in the Inaba area. Anyone planning to go out tonight should take care. Now for our hourly weather breakdown…"

Yu sighed. "Man, the rain's been awful these past few days. I kind of expected to see the riverbank flooded."

Dojima looked away from the TV, giving his nephew a concerned glance. "You went to the riverbank?"

"I was trying to figure out my way around town, or find something to do. I just ended up eating at Aiya's."

"Well, get use to the weather around here. Hope the fog isn't a sign of more trouble…"

Yu idly sipped at his tea, watching as the news changed to a story of a raid that had happened earlier that day in Tokyo. If we hadn't found Yukiko, it may have been, but we should be okay now.

Nanako leaned over and changed the channel, only for Dojima to sit up with a somewhat cross expression on his face. "Ah-ah-ah, what did I say about changing the channel without asking?"

On the different channel a commercial let out a small jingle before starting. "Have a great day even during Golden Week at your local Junes! Come see for yourself, and get in touch with our products! Everyday's great at your Junes!"

"Every day's great at your Junes!" Nanako sang. "Dad! They're going to be open during Golden Week!"

"Haha, I heard. Do you want to go somewhere during the long holiday?"

Nanako stood up, a surprised expression on her face. "We can go somewhere?"

Dojima turned to Yu. "How about it? Got any plans yet?"

"Nope, no plans. I wouldn't mind leaving for a bit, if it's okay with you, Dojima-san."

"Ha, no need to keep adding the 'san' to the end of my name. Makes me feel older than I am."

"Then let's all go somewhere together! Junes! Junes Junes Junes!"

Dojima sighed. "You're sure you want to go to Junes? We can go there anytime…" The older man stood from the couch and gently took Nanako's hand. "Come on, girl, time for bed. It's late."

"Alright…" The six year old smiled and started to sing as Dojima lead her upstairs. "Every day's great at your Junes!"

Yu breathed out and stood up slowly, rubbing at his eyes as he went upstairs. In the background, he heard Nanako and Dojima talking, the older man trying to calm down his daughter to get her to sleep. Entering his bedroom, he closed his blinds and double-checked that the TV was off, Izanagi floating nearby and providing a small bit of comfort.

The rain is supposed to stop tonight, Yu thought as he changed out of his school uniform and into his pajamas. And that means the fog will roll in. Have to check, just to make sure that no one shows up like with Saki-senpai.

It was nerve-wracking, waiting for midnight to roll around. Finally the clock ticked over, and the TV buzzed to life. Endless static covered the screen, but no ghostly figures writhing in agony appeared, and a wave of relief washed over Yu. No one's dead, Yukiko's fine, there won't be another body. Yu had to remind himself to breathe, and Izanagi moved closer in an attempt to make Yu feel better and calm him down.

"I need to sleep," Yu mumbled, trying to get to his futon only to find his legs were locked. "Breathe, Yu, breathe and move!" Izanagi once again helped by picking up Yu bridal style and carrying the teen over to his bed, carefully putting him down. Making themselves tangible enough, Izanagi grabbed the blanket and pulled it over the teen, who was slowly calming down. "I don't know who's a worse mother, you, Ama, or my actual mother."

The look Izanagi gave him was teasing, but it also conveyed the same stern message that Ama had given him the night before: Go to sleep.

Hidden in the fog shrouding Inaba, a figure looked up at a telephone poll, a grimace crossing their face. With a grunt, the man turned and left the shopping district, hands in his pockets, leaving the area disgruntled.

Yukiko woke up slowly. Weeks of practically being pampered by the staff and her mother had brought her out of her routine of waking up early for school. However, her alarm clock was buzzing, and she promised Chie she would get up and go, so she had to go.

Opening her eyes, she thought she was dreaming. A layer of pink feathers covered her, shielding her body and hiding her from sight. Only a few rays of sunlight peaked through, allowing her to see around herself, but she was still in her bed at the Inn, and she could hear—just beyond her alarm clock—the bustling sounds of the workers and the cheerful laughter of the guests.

She must've been awake then, right? Yukiko reached out her hand, pushing at the feathers and sitting up. The feathers shrouding her parted, and she looked around herself, seeing no elaborate piles of feathers or a curtain made of such a material, so where…?

Yukiko turned around and gasped, her voice stuck in her throat. Behind her was… a woman? Attached to their wrists were two large disks covered in the feather-like things that were covering her and they connected like a long cape around their back, a helmet covered their head and hid their face, and their knees were drawn up to their chest.

The two stared at each other, and Yukiko felt like her soul was being stared into, despite being unable to see the being's eyes. With a small tremor in her voice, Yukiko whispered. "Have you come to kill me?"

A silence descended between them, and just when Yukiko was about to scream, a voice rang out in her mind. "...I am Konohana Sakuya; my flames will forever shield you." The being spread their arms and beat them down, jumping up and… moving through the floor, leaving Yukiko alone in her room.

She still didn't know if she was awake.

A/N: And another arc is done! I've decided that each 'arc' will end after each kidnapped victim 'wakes up' and comes back to the school, so the next chapter will deal with Yukiko waking up with her Persona and getting shit explained to her, finally going back to the TV World, and more P3 storyline stuff! Just for clarity, this fic ignores the continuity of Persona Q (because I haven't finished it), P4 Arena, and P4 Arena Ultimax because I haven't played either version and I don't want to change the plotline I have planned out due. As such, as far as anyone is concerned, Labrys and Sho do not exist in this story.

The reason why S.E.E.S. left so quickly, for me, is that 1) I'm awful at writing them and 2) I'm setting this up for a later plot point. I needed them in, and out, but they are coming back!

I'm not going to be able to update next week, as I will be in Disney for a school trip and away from my laptop. I have been working on chapter 14, but writing battles is difficult, especially because I'm playing this file on super-easy mode simply to blow through the story and not have seven different retries of a boss-fight. In other news: I have finally, finally completed Persona 4: Golden on my personal file! It was a great way to end it, but since I was awful at maxing social links, I never got to fight Margaret, nor did I max Rise or Naoto. I've decided that, at the very least, I'm maxing out all the social links for the members of the IT team, Margaret, and Marie for the story. Other social links are kind of in the gray-zone. I may just establish them, but not max them.