A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the late update! Had somewhat of a tough time trying to write this chapter. Also, I re-read the last chapter and I wasn't too happy with it. I hated how I wrote the fighting parts, they were so boring! I'm no good at fighting scenes, so I was wondering if someone was interested in collabing with me, and helping me write this story. Of course, I will write out the dialogue and everything else, I just need someone to help me write out the fighting scenes! So, if you're interested, please send me a PM! Thanks~! :D

P.S. Nothing really interesting happens in this chapter, just kinda stalling till I find someone interested in helping me write those fighting bits! Enjoy nonetheless~! :)

Early Morning

Wednesday

April 22, 2009

Minato looks out the window of the monorail, and watches the scenery pass by as he taps his fingers against his knee to the beat of his music. He removes his eyes from the window once, and that's to look at the sleeping brunette girl next to him, her red earphones dangling around her neck.

The blue-haired boy shakes his head, and returns his attention back to the window. 'Is there a time when this girl isn't asleep?' He thinks to himself, and begins to gather his things when the school comes into view.

When the monorail comes to a halt and the doors open, Minato gets up from his seat and makes his way out, forgetting all about his classmate.

XXX

Minako feels a small tap on her shoulder, causing her to stir in her sleep before letting her eyes slowly flutter open.

"Morning, sleepy-head." She hears a voice say. Looking up, her eyes land on Akihiko. The silver-head boxer is smirking at her, his black jacket slung over his shoulder.

The girl's red eyes widen, and she quickly bolts up from her seat, bowing slightly to the Senior. "Ah! Akihiko-senpai!" She exclaims, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I guess I fell asleep on the ride over here!"

The Senior gives her a small smile and shakes his head. "It's fine. I didn't even know we were on the same train, till I saw you asleep here. You do know that everyone has gotten off already, right?" He says, and the girl takes a look around.

He was right. All the other students were gone, and it was just the two of them. Minako begins to panic, "Oh no, we're not late to class, right?"

Akihiko shakes his head again, "Nah, we still have some time left before the bell rings." He says as he picks up the girl's school bag and hands it to her. She smiles in thanks, and the two exit the monorail.

When they're in front of the gates, Minako looks up at the silver-head and apologizes again for causing him trouble.

But he just smiles. "It's alright. I understand why you might be out of it, things have been crazy these past couple of days. You must be confused since you've just transferred here too."

The girl gives him a thumbs-up and smiles, "Don't worry, I'm alright!" She tells him confidently.

Akihiko chuckles lightly, "Wow, that's impressive. You're completely different from Junpei. On the other hand, I'm so bored that I feel like I'm going to die..."

His expression suddenly changes and his voice lowers to a whisper, "Hey, is there any way I can sneak in on the fight? Maybe I could get past Mitsuru if I wear Junpei's hat?"

Before she could reply, the older student lets out a sigh, "...No, never mind. The consequences wouldn't be worth it..." His shoulders slump in defeat, and Minako pats him on the back in a comforting way.

The silver-head brightens up a bit, "Thanks for trying to cheer me up. I guess I'm just going to have to wait till I'm fully healed. It's gonna be a pain, but I'll deal. Anyway, I should get going. See you later." He nods to her, before turning and heading into the school.

Minako was about to get going herself, but she spots a certain blue-haired boy talking to another student. Getting closer to them, she over-hears part of their conversation.

"Man, I knew it." The brunette boy with Minato says with a sigh, "I heard from Junpei that you're pretty close with Yukari-san. What's up with that? Well, I guess it doesn't matter. I'm looking for someone with a little more experience anyway. By the way, I'm Kenji Tomochika."

Minato nods in acknowledgment, and it is then that Minako decides to make her presence known. She walks up to them and stops next to her fellow dorm mate, slinging her arm around his shoulders casually.

"Made a new friend, Minato-kun?" She says to him, before giving Kenji a smile. She then tightens her grip on his shoulders, "Maybe you should of waken up your other friend and tell her that it's time to get off the monorail first!" She angrily says, glaring at the boy next to her.

Minato frowns and breaks away from her grip, which was becoming uncomfortably tight. "Hey, I've already woken you up many times before! Do you know how hard it is to get you to wake up?" He fires back.

"So? You can't just leave me like that!" Minako exclaims, her glare intensifying. The boy glares back, and Kenji can't help but feel out of place. "Um," He speaks up, breaking the glaring match between the SEES leaders. "There's a morning assembly today so... we better start heading over there!" He says, and the two other teens grumble to themselves. The three students head into the school nevertheless.

Auditorium

Minato and Minako quickly enter the auditorium, and take a seat next to Yukari and Junpei. Looking up at stage, they spot Mitsuru and another student. The student was at the podium, speaking into the microphone.

"...That concludes the main portion of today's assembly. Next we'll hear a word from the Student Council. Please welcome the new President, Mitsuru Kirijo from Class 3-D."

The crowd begins to applaud as the student steps aside and Mitsuru takes her place at the podium.

"Thank you." Mitsuru says, folding her arms.

In the crowd, Yukari speaks up. "So, she did get elected. Well... I guess she IS the most popular girl in school."

Junpei smiles, "You can say that again! There's like some kinda aura around her... Besides, this school's owned by the Kirijo Group, right?" He asks, and the archer nods.

On stage, Mitsuru had begun her speech. "As I begin my term as Student Council President, I'd like to share with you my vision for this coming year. It is my firm belief that each of us must accept the responsibility of bettering our school. However, change cannot occur without sustained effort and an unprecedented level of commitment. That is why we must restructure our daily lives to accommodate this lofty goal."

"I'd like each of you to dig deeply into your well of motivation, and re-evaluate your convictions... To imagine a bold new future without losing sight of the realities around you. That is the key. I am certain that many of you have your own visions of the future... For us to reap the full benefits of our education, your participation, ideas, and enthusiasm are essential. Thank you." She ends her speech, and the crowd erupts into cheers and applause.

Junpei's jaw drops, "Dang... That was freaking amazing!" He says in awe. He then turns the blue-haired boy next to him. "So... do you have any idea what she just said?" He asks.

Minato shrugs, "Sort of." He replies, and the capped boy shakes his head.

"Sure didn't sound like somethin' a high-schooler would say... If it was anyone else, we'd be laughin' our asses off. What about you Mina-tan?"

Minako rubs the back of her head, "Not a clue!" She confesses.

Junpei laughs, "Me neither! We live in the same dorm, but it's like we're on different planets... Man, if she asks for my opinion, I don't know what I'll say..." He trails off, looking uncertain.

The three other teens silently agree with Junpei, hoping that Mitsuru would not ask them what they thought about her speech. The teachers then began to round up their classes, and escort them back to class.

Afternoon

Composition – Ms. Toriumi

Ms. Toriumi sat at her desk, skimming through the pages of a book. When she found what she was looking for, she turned her attention back to her students. "All right, today we'll be going over Meiji-era literature. Open your textbooks to page 12." She tells them, and the students pull out their books and open them to the designated page. They look back at her for further directions, but she just shakes her head.

"You know what?" She starts off, closing her book and dropping it back on her desk. "I'm tired of these textbooks. I just went over this novel in the last class!" She then brightens up, "I've got a great poem we can cover instead! Close your textbooks everyone, and listen." She gets up and and stands in the front of the class.

She clears her throat and begins, "'Isolated cloud suspended over the tall snowy mountain peak...'"

Minako cups her face in her hands, a bored expression on her face. 'Ugh... this is SO boring! I just want to sleep, but knowing Minato-kun, he'll probably just leave me like he did this morning...' She thinks to herself with a sigh.

The red-eyed girl then decides to stays awake and listen to the poem. Stanza by stanza, Minako finds herself actually liking the poem, and she felt herself get smarter for some reason. She turns to Minato, and it seemed like he was enjoying it as well.

Your Academics have increased...

All of a sudden, Ms. Toriumi's eyes land on the boy Minato had befriended earlier. "All right Kenji, you'd better not be sleeping back there!" She yells, startling the boy out of his stupor. "You should be ashamed of yourself, taking a nap while I pour my heart into reading this poem! For that, you get another essay along with your regular assignment tonight! I'll expect a slice of cake when you turn it in, too!" The teacher tells him, and Kenji nods obediently.

Upon hearing the boy's punishment for sleeping in class, Minako winces. 'That could have been me!' She thinks, inwardly glad that she had decided to stay awake...

After School

Minato and Minako had put their little dispute behind them, and were about to head to the dorm when they ran into Junpei. The three of them decided to head home together, but when they reached the front gates, they noticed some kind of commotion going on.

"LOOK, IT'S AKIHIKO-SENPAI~!" An Akihiko fangirl shouts, pointing to the silver-head.

"WAIT FOR US!" Another fan yells, and she and a whole group of other girls run after the boxer. However, Akihiko doesn't seem to acknowledge them though.

Junpei adjusts his hat, "Man, would you look at that? I hear they're always swarming Akihiko-senpai like that. I know he's the captain of the boxing team, but... I mean, come on! You don't even see girls flock like that on TV! I wonder where they're going...?"

All of a sudden, Akihiko turns and makes his way over to the trio, his fans quickly trailing after him. "Hey, are you guys free this afternoon?" He asks.

"Huh? W-who us?" Minako mumbles, suddenly feeling nervous as the fangirls begin to glare at her. They hate it when their Senpai talks to a girl that isn't them...

The silver-head nods, "I want the three of you to meet me at Paulownia Mall. You know where it is, right? I'll be at the police station. See ya there." He explains curtly, and makes his way to leave, but Junpei stops him.

"Wait! Th-The police station? ...Uh, are your friends gonna come along too?"

Akihiko frowns, "Who, these girls? I don't even know their names. They talk so much they give me a headache." He sighs, "Anyway, I'm gonna head out.. don't keep me waiting." He says before he turns and leaves.

"Awww... Why can't he be more friendly?" One of the fangirls says with a sigh.

Another girl smiles, "But, that's what makes him so cool!" The others agree, and they quickly run off after the silver-head.

When the girls are gone, a frown makes it's way onto Junpei's face. "Man, how can he not know their names! I mean, seriously! Just look at them!" He shakes his head, "...Oh well, let's go."

Police Station

At the station, the trio find Akihiko already there and speaking to an officer behind a counter.

"Thank you, Sir." The silver-head says, before spotting the other teens. "Oh, these are the guys I was talking about earlier." The officer looks at them, and nods. "I was waiting for you guys. This is Officer Kurosawa. He helps keep our squad well-equipped. And, this is from Ikutsuki-san..." Akihiko explains, before handing each of them some bills.

"R-Really? Sweet!" Junpei exclaims happily.

"You can't fight something empty-handed, so find something you like. Officer Kurosawa has connections... but, these things still cost money." The boxer says, and the officer finally speaks up.

"Of course they do. Nothing in life is free."

Akihiko nods, "I realize that. Well, I'll see you later. Thanks again." The boxer exits the station, and Kurosawa turns to the trio.

"I've been informed about you three. My job is to maintain peace in this city, regardless of the circumstances. I'm just an ordinary police officer, but it doesn't take a genius to know something strange is going on here. I'm only doing what I think is right." He then leads the teens into a secure back room, which was covered in shelves with cases of weapons, armor, and accessories.

"I don't have that much, but you should be able to find what you need." The officer announces, moving so the teens can look around.

"Ooh! Do you have a big sword for Junpei?" The capped boy exclaims, instantly going to the weapon section.

Minato turns to the red-eyed girl next to him, "So, what should we get first? We don't have that much money at the moment, so we can't afford to waste it all at once." He reasons, and the girl nods.

"Um, let's look at the armor. The safety of the team is what really matters right now, especially since Junpei-kun and Yukari-chan are still getting used to calling forth their Persona." Minato agrees with her, and they head for the armor case.

The case only contained a couple of items. Minako reaches in, and pulls out a shirt. She inspects the item, while Kurosawa explains to them the stats of the shirt. "That's a Rash Guard. It's a highly elastic shirt that raises your defense to 40%. The cost is 3,500 yen."

Minato turns to his fellow leader, "40% defense sounds pretty good, should we get one for Junpei, and another for Yukari?"

The girl nods, "I think so, they'll need the extra protection." Minako reaches back into the case and pulls out another Rash Guard. She then pulls out the correct amount of money and hands it to the officer.

"Thanks." The older man says with a nod, as Minako places the shirts in her bag.

"Well, I think that's all we're getting today. How about you, Junpei?" Minato asks the capped boy, who turns and pouts.

"There wasn't any big swords for me..." He says with a sigh.

"I'll be getting shipments of new items now and then, so come back when you get a chance." The officer explains, and the trio thank him before exiting the station.

Once out in the mall, Junpei sighs. "Pshh, only 5,000 yen... and no big sword for me... I'm gonna take off, since I'm in a bad mood now. Later." The capped boy says, before he heads for the exit.

Minako sighs at the capped boy's immaturity, before turning to the blue-haired boy next to her, "Hey, Minato-kun? I've been wanting to check out that café over there, so if you don't have anything else to do, would you like to join me?" She asks with a smile.

The boy returns the friendly gesture, "Sure, why not."

The two enter Chagall Café, and take a seat at a booth near a window. A waitress notices them, and makes her way to their table, and hands each of them a menu. She then leaves to tend to other customers while they decided on what they would like.

"I heard that their Pheromone Coffee will make you more charismatic." Minako explains, as she looks at the contents in the menu.

"Where'd you hear that?" Minato incredulously asks.

"Oh, some girls were saying it. They wanted to try it because they thought if they were more charismatic, then Akihiko-senpai would give them the time of day." She says with a wave of her hand.

"Is that so? Are you going to try it?" Minato asks, putting down the menu and looking at her.

"Yeah, but let me be clear that I'm not trying it because I want to flirt with Senpai!" She then points to a picture, "Oh, and I'm going to get one of these finger sandwiches too!"

"That looks good. I guess I'll get the same thing." Minato says, as the waitress returns to take their orders.

The two make small talk while they wait for their meal to arrive. When it does, the waitress places their food on the table, and makes a comment about them being a cute couple. Of course, this causes the two teens to become flustered, and deny it.

Finally, the waitress leaves and the teens began to eat in a somewhat awkward silence. Minako gently picks up her cup of coffee, and silently sips it. As she swallows the liquid, she feels the eyes of everyone in the café land on her.

The red-eyed girl coughs nervously, and looks up at Minato. "Hey, drink some of the coffee." She commands him in a hushed tone.

The blue-haired boy sends her a confused look, but lifts the cup up to his lips nevertheless. As he takes a sip, the same thing that happened to the girl, happened to him. All eyes in the building land on him, and a quiet murmuring is heard.

Your Charm has Increased...

"I can't believe that the coffee actually works! Those girls were right!" Minako exclaims as soon as everyone returns their attention back to their own meals.

Minato is surprised as well. "Yeah." He agrees, before a small smirk makes it's way to his lips. "Are you going to try and flirt with Akihiko-senpai now?"

The girl looks down at her food, "No!" She disagrees firmly, but the boy just chuckles at her.

"Ne, what about you?" The girl looks back at him, an identical smirk on her face.

"What about me?" Minato asks, curious as to what she was going to say.

"Well, apparently both Kenji-san and Junpei-kun seem to think that you and Yukari-chan are pretty cozy. And she just happens to be pretty popular, so are you going to use your new found charm to woo her?" Minako explains.

The blue-haired boy frowns, "Jeez, why does everyone think something is going on between me and her...?" He mutters, looking away like she had done earlier.

Minako grins at him, "Sorry, I just couldn't resist saying that!" She laughs merrily, and Minato can't help but join her. Her laugh was contagious.

The two then continue to eat their meal, feeling that their friendship had grown a bit. Before either of them knew it, the sun was beginning to set, and people were beginning to leave the café.

"Wow, I can't believe it's already this late! Time flew by fast!" Minako remarks as she and Minato exit the café after having finished their meals.

"It sure did. We should head back to the dorm, before it gets dark." The blue-haired boy reasons, but as they were about to head out, something caught their eye.

A blue door below the Mandragora karaoke bar seemed to be calling out to them. It shined with a brilliance, and the teens felt themselves being pulled towards it. The Velvet Keys began to glow in their hands, before fitting into the door's keyhole...

Velvet Room

"Ah, there you are." A familiar voice rings out, as the SEES leaders open their eyes. "Welcome to the Velvet Room." Igor announces.

Minako straightens up in her seat, "Wait, don't tell me that that door in the mall is an entrance to the Velvet room!"

Theo smiles at her, "I'm afraid it is. The door is placed there, so you and Master Minato can come and visit whenever you have free-time."

"It's convenient really," Elizabeth speaks up, "This way, you two wouldn't have to wait till the Dark Hour to come and see us."

The teens nod in understanding, and Igor takes his turn to speak. "I suppose it's time for me to explain what I really do here." He says, and the wild cards give him a look that said, 'Finally!'

"It is my job to create new Personas." Igor explains, "But, in order to do so, I must fuse your Persona cards together."

"Persona cards?" Minato interrupts, "You mean, those 'faces of possibilities,' right? Like, Pixie?" He asks, recalling the small fairy they had received the night before.

"Precisely. I will merge those Persona cards into a single Persona. Furthermore, if you've established a Social Link, you may be able to create an even stronger Persona. So, as you accumulate cards, please bring them to me."

"We will!" Minako says with a nod of her head.

"Excellent." Igor smiles at them. "Well, it seems that it's getting late in your world, so I shall let you go." As soon as the words leave his mouth, the room becomes fuzzy.

"We look forward to your next visit." Theo's and Elizabeth's voices is the last thing they hear, before everything becomes dark.

Paulownia Mall

When the teens reopen their eyes, they find themselves back in the mall. Minato turns and looks behind them, spotting the sparkling blue door.

"It's still there." Minako comments, gazing at the door.

"Yeah. Well, at least now we can visit them from here too." He adds, and the girl nods.

"Yup. Oh, we should get going, the others will get worried if we're not there before dark." Minako says, and she leads him out of the mall.

Dorm

Minato pulls open the door for himself and his fellow dorm-mate. They enter the dorm and spot their team-mates relaxing in the lounge. Mitsuru, who was reading a book in one of the couches, looks up at them and offers a small smile.

"Welcome back." She greets, as the teens place their bags on the ground and fall into one of the seats.

"Perfect timing. I'd like to speak to you both for a moment." The red-head continues and she closes her book and places it in her lap.

"Regarding our exploration of Tartarus... Akihiko is still on the mend, so for now, I'd like you two to keep the positions you were assigned as leaders. You never know when a powerful enemy might appear, like the one you both faced the other day. It's best to be prepared, or else you may find yourselves in a difficult situation."

Minato nods, "Of course. We'll do our best."

The red-head smiles, "I'm holding you to that. There's another matter I would like to discuss. I want you to consider having Tartarus explorations on certain days. This way, we'll all know when to be ready, and everyone will have time for other activities."

"That a good idea!" Minako exclaims. "What days should we assign for explorations?" She turns to Minato.

"Hmm, what about Monday, Wednesday, and Friday? That way we'll have a day in between to rest, plus the weekend to do what we want." The 1st in command suggests, and his 2nd in command nods her head.

"That's perfect! Is that alright, Senpai?" She turns to Mitsuru, who gives a small smile.

"If that is what you both agree on, then it's perfectly fine with me." She says, and both leaders nod to show that they're in agreement.

"Well then, that will be our schedule. I'll let everyone know so they can be there on those days. Oh, one more thing. Since I'm sure there are other things you will need to take care of, you may go out at night if you need to. Well, that's it. Keep up the good work." The red-head then picks up her book, and begins to read once more.

The leaders then get up and grab their things, before heading up to their rooms. They were going to need their rest since their exploration would continue the next day...

A/N: So, there you have it! Again, if you're interested in helping me with the fighting parts, please send me a PM so we can work something out! It would definitely help if you actually knew Persona's plot and had an ability to write fighting scenes, just throwing that out there now... -.-'