November 30, 2015 - Monday, Early Morning - Sunny

Before Lydia even sat down to eat breakfast, she noticed that Morgan had sent a link to the group chat. It was accompanied by the following message:

"If you haven't already, everyone needs to see this." Lydia recognized it as a link to the Visage of one of the local news stations. She tapped on the link and brought up a video with Dr. Memphis as the thumbnail. The title of the video read "Doctor Warns About Startling New Disease".

She went downstairs and let the video play. A newscaster's voice talked about the rise of Narcissus Syndrome and its effects on the afflicted, reminding viewers that one Dr. Christoph Memphis had been on air previously to discuss it. The station then played a clip of the doctor in his office. He seemed to be somewhere in his late forties, with a receding hairline and a pair of glasses with thick brown frames. He wore a white lab coat and was seated at his desk.

"In recent weeks, I have started to see cases of a new condition that has specifically been targeting adolescents, primarily those of high school age. It causes vivid nightmares that revolve around something deeply personal, constant feelings of stress and irritation, and leaves behind an unusual black mark on the individual's face. I would like to make it clear that this is not a development stemming from Narcissus Syndrome. This is a completely separate condition that has never been seen before, which I have decided to name Phobetor Disorder after the Greek personification of nightmares.

Unlike Narcissus Syndrome, the afflicted individuals are not inexplicably removed from wherever they were and deposited in another place. Phobetor Disorder is not aggravated by looking into reflective surfaces such as mirrors or windows. While I am still working on a proper treatment for Narcissus Syndrome, I have already put together a possible treatment for Phobetor Disorder, the first step of which involves forming support groups for those who have been affected by it. Since it primarily targets high school students, I would like to ask that if you've suffered this condition or know someone who has to please come together and support each other. The condition causes a stream of powerfully negative thoughts in those affected; to fight against these, we need to counter them with positivity.

I have also found that certain antidepressants may help curb the symptoms of Phobetor Disorder. These will not treat the condition, however. They will only mitigate the symptoms. Unfortunately, the exact cause of this condition hasn't been worked out just yet, but I do know that it is not infectious. It will not spread from person to person by any means, so please do not worry about catching it from an afflicted person. I am still working on a better understanding and a proper treatment is still being worked on, and I would ask for your patience as we work through curing this disorder together. Thank you."

QIB had a discussion over the group chat as to what the aforementioned support groups would look like. Rissa mentioned that Cameron had stopped being upset at everything, although it was second-hand info from his friends and not something she could verify by talking directly to him. Lydia also talked to Gerald about the video, asking if he knew anybody that had been struck with Phobetor Disorder. He didn't know anyone personally, but knew people who knew people that had it. He asked if she would participate in the support groups even though she didn't have it and she said she didn't know if she'd be all that much help.

When Lydia got to school, she asked if anybody there had seen Lynne. No one had. They were pretty sure that she would have something to do with the formation of these support groups, but no one was certain what her plans would be regarding them. Everyone was in agreement that they should learn as much as they could about the support groups, as they would be the best place to make a difference in the real world.

December 1, 2015 - Tuesday, Early Morning - Sunny

Lydia asked herself if she was repeating yesterday, as her day started by looking at something Morgan had posted to the group chat. It wasn't a video this time; it was a picture of a red leaflet with "Phobetor Disorder" written on the front.

"Lynne gave this to me when I came in." Morgan wrote after the picture. She continued with her next two messages.

"She said that she'd gotten permission from the school to hand these out. Apparently Dr. Memphis had been really busy and could only get these out today instead of yesterday."

"Corbin's here at our entrance. Apparently they have people stationed at each one handing these things out to anyone's who interested."

This then sparked a lively discussion in the group chat between QIB members, questioning why Sycophanta members were at the helm for this. This discussion continued in person as the Fulton students arrived at school, where Corbin just smiled and said that he was just handing these things out and said to look into the brochure for any answers. By the time Lydia got there, the rest of QIB had worked through the material in it. It was mostly a reiteration of the explanation Dr. Memphis had given on the news, with a bit towards the end talking about the need for support groups to be set up at each of the schools in Quartz. Anyone with the affliction was directed towards the school office to sign up.

When the warning bell rang, that was Corbin's signal to leave the remaining brochures on the table and bid QIB farewell before walking off to his first class. On the table beside the brochures was a poster advertising the support group here at Fulton. It urged anyone who showed the symptoms of Phobetor Disorder to join and to go see Dr. Memphis. Lydia lingered at the table and sighed as she took one of the brochures for herself.

This was supposed to be our idea, but Sycophanta beat us to it. I guess they must have been talking with Dr. Memphis to make this happen. They did all have Narcissus Syndrome, so they all would've gone to see him... and he probably saw the first few people who got Phobetor Disorder, too. But why would they be in front of this initiative? I think... somehow their own brand of "help" aligns with what the doctor thinks is the right thing to do. It's not like they could've actually turned good, right? Would that even be possible?

"Lydia, come on! We're going to be late." Allie called out to her. Lydia put the brochure away and followed her, hoping she would get a few answers from Lynne in the hallway after first period.

Tuesday, Morning - Sunny

"The support groups are going to be for those who have the disorder. Given that it causes nightmares that people don't want to talk about, there aren't really going to be unaffected people at the meetings." Lynne said to Lydia as the two of them stood next to each other in the hallway. Corbin was nowhere to be found and Damien and Allie had gone on ahead.

"What are they going to do? Talk about their experiences? Who's even going to lead these sessions?" Lydia asked.

"It's not me. We got one of the teachers - Ms. Moore, one of the English teachers - to be the faculty sponsor. Apparently she's real close to someone who's a recovering alcoholic, so I guess that makes her the best person to run them here at Fulton. The support groups are just that, support. Everyone's supposed to go see Dr. Memphis to make sure they're receiving real medical care first and foremost. That said, I will be there as an ally of sorts since I went through Narcissus Syndrome. I'm supposed to help get discussions going since I'm a student and therefore won't come off as intimidating." Lynne explained.

"What are you... going to tell them?" Lydia asked. Lynne smiled at her and chuckled.

"To face their inner selves, of course. People meet their other selves in the nightmares. The best way to overcome the terrifying things they go through is to stand up for themselves, to embrace their ideal images!"

"But... you know what's really going on inside! How do you think that's going to help them?"

"When they accept who they're meant to be, there won't be any conflict between the surface and the depths anymore. That'll make the nightmares stop. It'll cure the disorder... at least, that's the idea. We haven't actually tried it yet, of course. But what you're doing isn't actually fixing the problem. All you've been doing is cutting the weeds since you can't uproot them. What we intend to do is to turn the weeds into flowers." Lynne straightened her backpack on her back.

"There has to be another way." Lydia responded.

"Go find it, then. In the meantime, I'll be doing what I can to help the people of Quartz. I'll see you later." Lynne walked away, leaving Lydia with a swirl of frustration and confusion.

Tuesday, Afternoon - Sunny

Right before English class, Lydia listened to Alice and her friends talk about the support group that was beginning to form. Having been one of the first Phobetor sufferers, she went to the office earlier in the day and signed up. She was told that the first meeting would be after school on Friday and that people would still be free to join even after the first meetings, as it was pretty likely Phobetor would continue to pop up in people and they'd still need the support.

"So we're not allowed to come with you?" Hannah asked Alice, who was sitting at her desk in the classroom. Her and Molly stood beside her, keeping people from getting too close to her.

"No. They only want people who have this thing - or people with Narcissus Syndrome, too - to come. They say it's because there'd be too many people going if their friends or family could show up too. They want to give us space." Alice responded. Molly crossed her arms and said,

"I guess that makes sense. It still sucks, though. What are they even going to have you do there?"

"Um, I'm not sure. I guess talk about what we've gone through. I do feel better than before, but that doesn't mean I want to tell other people about my nightmares, even if they have gone through something similar. That's way too personal." Alice said. She glanced over at Lydia, briefly acknowledging her presence before looking back up at Molly.

"Well, hey. It's not like you have to go there. You could just stick to going to the doctor." Molly shrugged.

"Yeah. You still have us, you know? We're always going to be there for you." Hannah added. Alice put her hands down in her lap.

"I know, I know. But I still want to go. It'll be nice to... actually see that other people are going through this, too." She pointed at the mark on her face. Lydia turned to look at her.

Yeah, I guess that's a pretty obvious sign if you've got Phobetor Disorder or not. The mark can't be wiped off and looks like a face tattoo, so it'd be pretty hard to fake having it. What are we going to do about Lynne going to these meetings? The only way I'd learn about it is if someone who goes there tells me what goes on.

Molly looked up at the ceiling and expressed her thoughts out loud.

"I guess so. Well, hope it goes well for you. Seriously, what is even responsible for this? How often do you get not one, but two never-before-seen diseases in the same place in the same year? There has to be something weird behind it. Is it something in the water? In the food? In the air? How else do you explain it happening here and nowhere else?"

"I don't know. All I know is that I want it all to go away." Alice replied.

December 4, 2015 - Friday, After School - Cloudy

Alice was part of a group of five students at Fulton that had decided to show up to the meeting. They were in the corner room on the second floor on the far side of the school, which had a room that was meant for after-school clubs but was rarely used. Everyone sat on chairs arranged around a long, rectangular desk, with the faculty sponsor Ms. Moore on one end and Lynne on the other. After a round of introductions from everyone, Ms. Moore explained to the group what the sessions were going to consist of: a series of self-help exercises authored by Dr. Memphis, along with time for discussion if anyone wanted to share their experiences.

Each person had been given their own notebook to record their responses to the prompts some of the self-help exercises asked of them. Ms. Moore emphasized that the contents would remain private - no one would be forced to share what they'd written, but anyone would also be free to share if they desired. The other Phobetor sufferers all seemed to want to keep to themselves, as did Alice; people by and large wrote in their notebooks and quietly listened to what Ms. Moore had been given to talk about by the doctor. The session lasted about one hour; towards the end, Lynne announced that she wanted to say something to everyone before they left.

"I know my experiences aren't quite the same as yours. I'm not going to pretend I know exactly what anyone's gone through. But what I do know is that we all have something in common - that each and every one of us, in our own ways, have had our images of ourselves questioned in ways we never wanted to consider. I used to see this... impossibly beautiful version of myself any time I looked into a mirror for more than a couple of seconds. I had this ideal that I could never live up to literally staring me in the face every day and I couldn't escape it. I didn't know if I ever would.

But somewhere along the way, I realized something. There was something deep down inside me that said, 'That mirror is daring me to be someone I don't think I can be. My ideal self is within me, waiting to break out. I can be what I see in the mirror. I already have it in me to become something truly amazing, truly admirable!' I dared to fight back against the voices that tried to keep me down. That's what your nightmares are trying to do to you - they're trying to tell you you can't ever be a better person, that you're not good enough. You can fight it. You can beat it! You can take what's being thrown at you and not only take it, but throw it back and show it that you can be that ideal!

It's going to take some time, yes. It took me a while to really get going on this, to be convinced it really was possible. But I haven't lost myself in the mirror for months now, and it's all because I dared to try and be the best version of myself that I could be. I hope you all can make that journey too."

No one was sure what to say after that. Alice looked around and saw varying reactions from the other students, ranging from hope to nervousness to annoyance. Ms. Moore thanked Lynne for her words and said that the group would meet again at the same time next Friday. As the rest of the group left, Alice looked in her notebook and reread what she had written.

"Do you think it went well? I know I probably went on for a bit too long at the end there." Lynne asked Ms. Moore. Alice wanted to glance at them, but didn't want to draw their attention, so she kept her face in her notebook.

"It went well, I think. I expect we might not see everyone who was here today return, but so long as they continue seeing the doctor, it's okay. And regarding what you said: I think you meant well, but I also feel that perhaps it might be too much, too soon. We don't want to pressure people into making huge leaps. Small steps that stick are better than big leaps that don't." Ms. Moore said to Lynne.

"Right. I'm sorry. I guess I should tone it down in the future." Lynne responded. Alice glanced up from her notebook and saw Lynne unlocking her phone. Alice decided to get up and leave, thinking that she would call her friends to talk about what the meeting was like.

"Alice." Lynne called out to her.

"Yes?"

"There's something I forgot to say earlier. I wanted to tell everybody, but I got caught up in my speech."

"What?"

"If anybody starts to question what we're doing here, you tell them exactly what happened. There are some people out there that think this isn't going to help, that we're actually making things worse by trying to help you guys look into yourselves and figure out how to move forward."

"Really? Why would they be against this? I mean, I get not everybody seemed to be into it, but I thought it was worth coming to. Dr. Memphis made all the materials for it, didn't he? Doesn't that make it legit?" Alice said. Lynne glanced down at her phone and saw Lydia's name in her message history. She sighed.

"Both Phobetor and Narcissus have some pretty weird elements to them, like the body markings that don't go away. Some people think that that means there's nothing doctors can do about it, that there's some kind of mysterious spiritual cure that's out there somewhere instead." Lynne said. Alice touched the marking on her face.

"That's... well, I mean, this is pretty weird. Maybe there is something spiritual that can be done- on top of this!" Alice said. Lynne shrugged, saying,

"I guess no one really knows for sure. If you're the religious or spiritual type, maybe you can pray or meditate or something to help your state of mind. But don't listen to anybody who might tell you this here is a waste of time. I know it can help people. We have the doctor on our side, too. I'll let you go now. Thanks for coming."

Original upload date: January 13, 2020

Defender31415 - Indeed, only time will tell...

RosyMiranto18 - I appreciate the effort you put into each review. I can't address every single point since it's already explained or would spoil future plot points, but it's good to know someone is combing through the finer details. I had always figured Personas were just as tangible as their other selves, but since they're usually manifested only for seconds at a time, this tangibility doesn't mean much. Similarly, I figured that they're not out for longer because of the energy cost to do so.

nightelf37 - More new Persona-users? Perhaps. We'll see.

A/N: So it's 2020 now. I'm still here, and hopefully so are you. We're both one step closer to seeing the end of this story.