Fate/Reach Out (Fate/Stay Night x Persona 4)

[Xamusel]

...the heck? What just happened near the end?

[Kishou the Badger]

...the heck? What just happened near the end?

(singsong) I know something you don't know!
And I'm not telling! XP

In all seriousness, the girl's identity here is supposed to be a mystery, which will be revealed in a chapter or two. And I hope to keep it like that for a surprise.

[Xamusel]

Okay, if it's meant to be secret for now, I understand. I'll just wait however long you intend to have us wait.

[Alternative Ice]

I'm gonna guess vampire.

[Kieran]

I'm gonna guess vampire.

Probably a good guess . . .? I mean, something in her mannerisms trips Altrouge alarms in my head - it fits how I've seen her depicted. *Shakes head* . . . I suppose "vampire" is a better solution than wondering "OK, is this becoming a High School DxD crossover, as well?"

. . . Poor jokes aside, however, it's nice to see this back.

[Kishou the Badger]

Chapter 35: Fallen

<><><>
June 24th, Velvet Room

Shirou liked to think that he was starting to become a man of the world. Yes, there were still things he was ignorant about, such as the nature of magecraft and the identity of the culprit murdering people in Inaba, but he was quick to adapt and accept things as they are. He kind of had to grow into that mindset after seeing a handful of Shadows reveal what they really thought of the world around them, and how they went contrasted against the people they represented.

But he would still get blindsided from time to time, such as finding a new face in the Velvet Room when he entered, around his age no less.

She was sitting opposite of Margaret on the upholstery, with her legs crossed and writing something on a piece of parchment in her hands. She wore thigh-high strap boots over black and white striped leggings, and a short red checkered skirt that failed to meet where her leggings ended. Shirou found himself staring a bit too long at part of her pale legs’ skin before realizing how… revealing her position was, and quickly gazed away. Further up, she wore a black belt with a golden buckle slightly loose around her waist and a white button-down sleeveless blouse. A black tie and red choker with a key lock were present around her neck, the former more prominent than the latter. Black and red striped sleeves covered her arms and a big blue bag was slung around her shoulder. Last but not least, topping her short black locks was a matching blue cap with a golden “V” badge sewed onto it.

Her grey eyes glanced up to him briefly, and then back down to the parchment in her hands. A few seconds later, she stopped and did a double-take, before suddenly stuffing the paper and pencil she was using in her bag. “Geez, ever heard of knocking?!”

Shirou blinked. As far as he knew, Igor and Margaret were the only residents in the Velvet Room, and that the room wasn’t open to others so easily. Somehow sensing that she didn’t want to talk to him, he turned to Igor. “Does she have a contract, too?”

Igor’s smile broadened, as if impressed. “A good assessment, but not quite.”

“This is Marie,” Margaret told him. “She’ll be joining us in the Velvet Room as an apprentice to our Master and help you on your journey. Her soul is very young and--”

Marie let out a low growl with a fierce scowl being promptly directed at the Being of Power. While not at all threatening, Margaret seemed to get the intent and dropped the matter quickly. “Well, she’s brusque to say the least. I hope you can overlook that and get along with her.”

Shirou glanced between the veteran guests and the new one. They hadn’t given him a reason to think this was some sort of trap, or trojan horse plot meant to throw him into a bad situation. Marie might look like she wanted to be anywhere but here right now, but if she could help, then he’d accept the olive branch.

“Nice to meet you, Marie. My name is Shirou Emiya,” he said. The black-haired woman crossed her arms and looked away, not feeling particularly friendly. “So, what do you do here?”

Marie shrugged. “I make Skill Cards,” she told him simply. But when he kept looking at her, expecting more, she relented. “Personas can learn and use only a finite set of abilities, from magic spells to support moves. The Nose and Margaret told you before that fusing Personas allowed you to inherit skills, right?

Shirou fought the urge to chuckle at what was likely Igor’s demeaning nickname. The old gentleman, at the very least, didn’t seem to notice or care. “Y-yes.”

“I’m the alternative. It takes me a while to actually draw them out, but as long as you have an idea of what skill you want, and it’s not going to stupid yourself to death again, then I can make it for you to equip to your Persona. One-time use.”

“I like her!” Pixie declared. Shirou wasn’t sure if he shared the same sentiment yet.

“Well, it certainly sounds helpful,” he smiled. “Think you can make me one right now? A healing spell that affects everyone. Media, I think it was called.”

Marie immediately reached for her bag to pull out a notepad and start drawing. “Yeah, whatever Four.”

Shirou tried, and failed, to look passive, but something about the term she used baffled him. “‘Four’?"

“It’s in your name, isn’t it? Fourth son. And I think you’re the fourth ‘unique’ guest in this room, or something. So that’s who you are now.”

Shirou’s brow twitched a bit. “Actually, my name reads as ‘samurai warrior’.”

Marie shook her head. “Not as catchy. You’re Four now, deal with it.”

Shirou sighed. Marie’s thing seemed to be making nicknames for people that she thought suited them best to what she knew or saw of them. She was also rather stubborn on what she decided to do, which might make future conversations an uphill battle.

But he could worry about that later. Marie was focused on her Skill Card task, and he had his own task to complete. “Anyway… I’m ready to fuse now.”

“Excellent,” Igor’s perpetual grin broadened. “Show us the fruits of your labor.”

Exhaling a breath, Shirou imagined two Persona cards in his hands. “Lilim, and Valkyrie,” he said to himself. “This should work… yes? Yes, I think so.”

The fusion of Personas was complicated, as the compounding of Arcana resulted in an entirely new one. There was probably a deep mathematic breakdown for the process, from the Arcana to the strength of the cards. But that was neither here nor there.

He tried to imagine how Igor made them rocket into the air, but that was a bit too much flair for his skill level. All that was necessary of the ritual was to fuse them, and temporarily killing them so their spirits could be reborn into a new consciousness. It pained him to think that, but they were not truly alive to begin with. They were literally facets that could be changed or thrown away by other people.

That didn’t mean he cared so little for them as to not keep using them even after a prior fusion.

For now, Shirou held both cards on his palms. With a steadying breath as the flow of prana grew, he clapped both cards together and power surged from the gaps of his hands. Tenderly, he removed his hands and saw not two cards, but one.

He pulled his hands away, and no flash happened like the previous time. Instead a card slipped out and fluttered to the floor like… well, a card. Everyone stopped and stared at the floor, before Shirou leaned down to pick it up and look it over.

The image on the Tarot was of a woman, serene and eyes closed, holding in her hands a string guitar instrument named after her. She wore a green leotard with gold and white around the upper body, and a veil loosely flowed around her arms.

“‘Sarasvati the Priestess’,” Shirou read, confusion slowly setting in. “I don’t get it. I should have gotten Ippon-Datara.”

“Sometimes, the forces that move the arcana can lead to… mistakes,” Igor explained. “Ashamed as I am to admit it, sometimes I too fail to create the desired Persona through fusion, and you are a fledgling to this craft. It’s almost expected the first time would be a mistake.”

“So fusion is not a certainty?”

“It is highly probable, at least. Just with… a two percent factor of mutating into something else entirely.”

“HA!” Marie let out a single laugh, a wide smile on her lips as she went back to drawing. “Maybe I should call you ‘Fail’ instead of Four.” Shirou’s ears burned with humiliation.

“I’m sorry,” the First Tridevi Persona spoke, her spirit appearing as a faint outline above her card. “I did not mean to come into being this way, as a hindrance to you.”

Shirou had been upset, sure, but accident happened. Magi that screwed up tend to end up a lot worse for wear, and yet all Shirou got was a different card. He had been meaning to get a Priestess card for Amagi anyway, so if anything, it was still a win.

“It’s fine,” he smiled. “I’ll be counting on you in the future.”

Sarasvati’s serene face graced him with a small smile before the spirit faded away, and the card slipped into Margaret’s compendium for safe keeping. He could only hold onto so many Personas in his mind at a time, so he focused on the most relevant issue of completing Margaret’s request.

Sure enough, reusing Lilim and Valkyrie for a second fusion was much more successful as a new figure appeared, with a flashier fanfare.

Standing on only one leg was a tall man with one eye. Bronze was adorned around him, such as the greaves, the metal helmet, and other pieces on his arms and back. In his left hand, a pair of forceps. In his right, a hammer. His green skin was covered mostly by a black, leather welding apron with a crooked “4” stylized on it. Another “4” mark was also marked on his helmet, over the spot where a hole for the right eye would be.

He saw Marie spare a quick glance at the new Persona and smirking to herself. No doubt she felt very validated of his nickname now.

“An Ippon-datara with Sukukaja,” Margaret nodded. “Well done.”

“This hardly feels like progress, though,” Shirou frowned as the silent blacksmith reverted to a card. Igor literally pulled it off with magic, and he had to settle with acting like a stage magician just to get a pass.

“It is to be expected, but the process was to see how you manage in a new study beyond Gradation Air. Now, we can begin our next lesson.”

“Right,” he nodded, and the two of them stood up.

Marie stopped her drawing and looked at Margaret with surprise. “Wait, you’re leaving?”

“Only temporarily.”

“Then let me come too! I’m getting cabin fever from being stuck in here for weeks!”

Shirou blinked, turning to Margaret for inquiry. “What is she talking about?”

“As we’ve explained before, Marie is staying with us as an apprentice, but her state of being makes it hard for her be outside for very long. Like it or not, she is tied to your fate and is the main reason why I brought her here.”

“Yeah, I love lodging and sleeping in a cramped car seat,” Marie quipped, turning to Shirou. “Seriously, it sucks in here. It’s small, dark, and stuffy, they only have wine to drink, and both of them creep me out with how silently they sit here all the time.”

“What do you mean ‘creepy’?”

“Well, for one thing, I never see the two leave.”

That alarmed Shirou, as he looked to the ever-stoic residents of the Velvet Room. Igor sat in his hunched posture the whole time, and Margaret was currently looked over the Compendium on his newest Persona. He figured they were abnormal people, beyond even magi, but how abnormal were they? He was just thankful that they had his best interests at heart for whatever reason.

Still, he recalled the one-time Igor was absent when he visited the Velvet Room, and could only imagine Marie’s discomfort sitting with these enigmas 24/7. All this pondering raised some questions, but he knew better than to suddenly ask--

“Question!” Pixie spoke, suddenly popping out of Shirou’s subconscious. “Mister Igor? Margaret? Do you guys poop?”

Everyone stopped and stared at the fey Persona. Margaret’s normally stoic face showed a rare instance of surprise. Marie’s own slowly turned red, slowly veering from shock to rage. Igor didn’t react, which was scary by itself. Shirou sunk back in his seat and swore, for a moment, that the room was silent and he couldn’t hear the opera motif at all.

“W-W-Why did you even ask that?!” Marie stammered with a red face.

“What? You said yourself they never left! I wanted to know!”

“ShutupIhateyoustupiddumbfairy,” the apprentice growled, streaming a bunch of words together in a single breath. She turned from Pixie to Shirou, and seemed to glower at him even more. “And you, shutuptooforIhateyoumorestupidjerkfacewithsupresse dpervertedthoughts!”

“Hey, I didn’t even say-!”

Igor suddenly laughed, breaking the tirade. It was the same gleeful laugh Shirou had grown to know the man by, and he spoke as politely as ever. “Oh yes. I poop.”

A long, awkward silence filled the room. Margaret was still decidedly silent, refusing to look anywhere but the door. Marie stared wide-eyed at the long-nosed man for his casual answer. Shirou was left with even more questions that he knew he had no desire to ever ask.

“Huh. I see.” Pixie said. “Curiosity satisfied then. Bye!” She waved before dispersing back into Shirou’s troubled soul.

Marie turned to him with an expression of tiredness and resignation. “Please let me out.”

<><><>

Inaba Hill, Late Afternoon

The following lesson on magecraft involved learning to actually use the new magic circuits, and feeling out the mana around him. Shirou had already knew how to do this in the TV world, but to do it out in the normal world was beyond him until now. The feeling was scarce, but the rich smells of mana were still intoxicating. In fact, they almost overwhelmed him to the point of knocking him out by senses alone.


Was this how the highly-trained magi felt every day?

With the lesson complete, Margaret saw herself out and left. After resting for a few minutes on the ground, Shirou was about to leave when he noticed that their audience hadn’t moved from the gazebo since they got there.

“Why are you still here?” Shirou asked.

“I’m making the most of this trip,” Marie said, fiddling with a used steak skewer in her hand like a toothpick. “And you’re still here. I’m fine to be outside as long as I’m around you.”

“Was it really that bad in there?”

“The Velvet Room is like a gilded prison for me, and until you came around, I thought I was going to be stuck there forever.”

He kind of figured that she cared more about the outdoors than seeing his magecraft in action. He didn’t mind, and simply allowed her to come along because she asked. Margaret and Igor agreed, saying she was allowed to leave as long as they were together. It was also why he agreed to buy her a steak skewer before heading here.

“But why were you there in the first place?”

Marie’s eyes narrowed before she tossed the skewer into the waste bucket in front of her. It missed and hit the metal rim. “Well, it was either their place or trying to find somewhere else on my own, and that’s kinda hard to do when you ‘don’t exist’.”

Something about that statement seemed ominous, but her body language and tone made it clear that she didn’t want to talk any further on the subject.

She rose up from the bench and walked over to the grassy field. “There’s so much green here. Like, all I remember seeing recently was black, white, and purple. But there’s a lot of green here. No, not green… some brown too.”

She looked wistful as her gaze looked up to the orange dusk sky, muttering softly: “Leaves of green fly away / Farewell to you, clouds of the sky / I fly as well, lost as the day. / Farewell to you, star up so high.”

Shirou smiled. “That was a nice poem. Did you just make it up?”

Marie stiffened, as if forgetting he was there and listening. She looked at him like a deer in headlights. “N-No! I-I-I wasn’t making up a poem at all! It was just… words of association I was thinking up! Yeah, that’s it!”

When he didn’t look convinced, her face flushed and she looked away with crossed arms. “ShutupIhateyouyoustupidjerk!”

“Tsun alert! Tsun alert!” Lilim sang.

“Hey, I want in that next time!” Pixie demanded.

Ignoring the peanut gallery that was his own subconscious, Shirou’s gaze lingered on the town below the hill. He barely got to see this view the first time he came here with Margaret, but…

“It really is big, huh?” Marie asked, joining next to him.

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I lived in Fuyuki City most of my life, which was plenty big itself with urban and suburban architecture. But this little town of Inaba? It feels… vibrant.”

"...yeah, it does."

Shirou looked to his side. Marie had a wistful look again, but it was almost a mask of sadness.

“I don’t remember anything about myself. Where I’m from, who I am… my clothes were gifts from Margaret, and my name was something I picked on a whim. I was too confused to really notice the first time I was wandering around, and got mixed up with some cops. Akechi and Niijima, were they?”

She mulled the thought over before shaking her head, resuming her train of thought. “Anyway, walking around the streets, eating meat, riding the bus here; it was all nostalgic and stuff. Like I can almost remember something. Maybe I used to live here, or at least somewhere just as pretty. But I don’t know for sure…”

“You have no memory at all?”

“No, and it really bugs me,” Marie lamented. “I just know there’s an answer somewhere in this town, and I just need to find it.”

Shirou thought over what she said. Well, he knew what he wanted to do, but how to phrase it required a bit of thinking. “We’ll look together then.”

“Huh?”

“Personally, I’d feel awkward for you helping me with Skill Cards unless I did something to pay you back in return. So whenever you feel a need to see more of Inaba, let me know and I’ll show you around.”

“Please do,” Marie nodded. “I expect you to keep your word, Four. No backsies.”

She was obviously expecting him to help her now, but she looked happy that he offered to begin with.

Unsurprising to him at this point, another tarot card materialized in his mind’s eye. The image was of a humanesque figure with a curved face like a beak, holding a staff and bisected from the shoulder. This figure stood in an orange sphere, surrounded by more color backdrops of dark purple, green, blue, and violet. It looked like the orange circle was like a gem, further emphasized by the smaller red circle below it and the black arm-like wreaths surrounding it.

Thou art thou, and thou art I.
Thou hast established a new bond.
It shall bring thee closer to the truth.
Thou shalt be blessed by Personae of the Aeon Arcana.

Aeon? Shouldn’t the arcana be Judgement, based on the Roman numeral XX? Would he have to double up on Thoth equivalents now, or was Marie that abnormal?

“I’m hungry, and demand more meat,” she suddenly declared. “You have money, so you will buy me some. Or no card for you.”

Despite himself, Shirou smiled. They were going to get along just fine.

<><><>

June 25th, Shopping District, After School

The world was out to shit all over him, it seemed. News stations making guesses about his next course of action, students of Yasogami talking shit behind his back, and that thing with Naoto… geez, couldn’t he have asked before making decisions like that?

Still, Kanji Tatsumi shouldered on. He was a man that was afraid of nothing. It would take more than all this to really get to him.

For once, Naoto wasn’t around to pick him up. The kid was usually punctual, but he wasn’t waiting at the gate today when he came out. Come to think of it, he had mentioned that he had to do some sort of errand first and would meet him back at his house or something?

Figures; the kid was probably ticked about the sleepover the other day still. That’s fine; he preferred being alone anyway.

“Stop right there!”

At the intersection of the lower end of the shopping district, he saw a familiar yet unwelcome face calling him out. He wore a different school uniform than Yasogami, more like a tuxedo than a gakuen. He had a rigid, hostile pose of bending his arms and legs, like the ones on Shonen shows about guys that win with sheer guts. Yet he was still getting soaked by the rain. Either he was trying to look cool, or he forgot to bring an umbrella.

Kanji tsked. “You again…”

“That’s right,” the beady-eyed boy spat. “I’m Mitsuo Kubo, the one who will bring you to justice!”

The bleach-haired teen shook his head. He wasn’t in the mood to deal with him again, much less give Kubo’s sister trouble having to save his ass. “Look, chickenshit, I don’t care who you are or what you do for your free time. Just leave me out of your damn LARPing or else I’ll give a good, painful reminder of who I really am.”

His threat did the trick as Mitsuo flinched and stepped away. Good. As much the guy pissed him off, he was just a nameless nerd. Knew less about fighting than a biker, and had none of the confidence to muster behind.

It would be a pointless fight, in other words.

He was just a few feet away when the guy suddenly yelled back at him, “Everybody knows you did it!”

Kanji stopped, and looked back to the guy. “‘scuse me?”

“You heard me!” Mitsuo yelled. “You killed the announcer! And that Konishi girl, too! You’re a big, tough guy who does whatever he wants and the cops hate you for it! You really killed them, but no one has proof! That’s why that worthless shrimp of a detective is following you! To find proof!”

Now he had Kanji’s full attention. With a glare, he walked back to him.

The action only seemed to embolden Mitsuo, from the growing smirk on his face. “And you know that, don’t you? You might have fooled everyone else, but not me! Or the police!” he deliberately closer to him as they were now at arm’s length. “And it’s a shame that you make your mommy worry about you, too! You’re nothing but a piece of shit!”

His eye twitched, and his hand tightened to a white fist. It would be so damn easy to punch his lights out and make him regret it, especially for talking shit about his mother and Naoto--!

Naoto.

Just thinking about the kid made him weird. He still hated the guy, but… Naoto never actually did anything to deserve it, and never made him feel small just for being different. He gave him a hard time that was like being scolded by another parent, but in some ways, he was more of a man than Kanji ever thought he could be.

So instead of acting on what he would do, he took a deep breath and asked himself; what would Naoto do?

“Go ahead then,” Kanji said. “Hit me.”

Mitsuo blinked. He didn’t expect that reaction. “Wh-what?”

“You want to kill me? Or have me arrested? Don’t you want to beat me up for those people you accused me of offing?”

“I-I… uh…"

Yep; call his bluff was the right move.

“Huh. Well that’s a shame.”

Kanji’s foot suddenly stomped hard over Mitsuo’s shoe. Mitsuo’s eyes bulged and he screamed like a girl before falling down on his ass. Right into a puddle, no less, judging by the splash. How fitting for a little wannabe bitch.

“Say what you want about me all you want, chickenshit. But you bring Naoto or my ma into this, then there’s gonna be hell to pay.” He then whispered close to the boy’s ear. “And not even your sister will help save your worthless ass.”

Satisfied in his throbbing pain, the delinquent teen turned and continued his walk back home. Mitsuo looked back at him in shock. “Th-That’s it?”

“You’re not worth beating up. There’s no fun in pushing around a weakling, and I’m already in enough trouble as it is.” He then spared a glance to the aggressor. “Then there’s probably the fact that you’re trying to play martyr by getting me to fight you. Get beat up, call the cops, spin some sob story to them and blame everything on me, right?”

He said nothing, which was telling in and of itself. Kanji gave a cold chuckle. “Yeah, like I’m really that stupid.”

“S-So you’re running away?!" Mitsuo cried, voice cracking. “Then you admit to killing those girls?! You’re the serial murderer!”

If it were anyone else, Kanji might be compelled to care and make him shut up with force. But hardly anyone went out during a rainy day in Inaba, so Kanji let him whine and howl all he wanted. He knew desperation when he saw it. “Yeah, keep telling yourself that, chickenshit. Go ahead and tell someone else. You know, who cares.”

Mitsuo tried one last attempt to egg him on. “Coward!”

But Kanji kept walking, raising his hand behind him with his middle finger extended.

<><><>

Evening

Mitsuo Kubo hated people.

Everyone was so fake that it hurt. They made fun of him, criticized him, and then labelled him the one at fault whenever he tried to do something.

Why talk about the murderer when no one was actually trying to find him? The police couldn’t find him after months of looking. Or were they just sitting on their thumbs being useless? They’re the ones with the problem in this town - nay, this country!

Kanji Tatsumi had to be the one responsible! It made sense that he’d go after girls because he had some aversion to them. And he wasn’t at all kind to Yuki-chan, so he tried to get rid of her out of revenge. It had to be!

Most of the time Mitsuo came back home right after cram school, but he had tried to do something cool for once in his meaningless life, and confront the wannabe hardass. But it didn’t turn out like he had planned at all. That punk was supposed to be intimidated by him. He was supposed to confess for his obvious crimes and then everyone would praise Mitsuo Kubo as the hero.

But just like everyone else, he didn’t take him seriously. Why? Why couldn’t anyone take him seriously?!

Well if they don’t want a hero that deals with the trash of society? Fine! Then maybe he’d make them wake up by striking fear into them. He had been too soft on them, but not anymore! No one was ever going to laugh at him again!

No one--

The front door opened. “Mitsy, I’m home!”

Mitsuo’s mood made a complete 180. He rose up from his brooding corner in the room and turned to the door. “Nee-san!”

His older sister was the one person he could trust. It was weird seeing her so soon after her transfer from Misaki Town, but it was a welcome surprise bumping into her… where did they meet again? The bus stop? The floodplain? Well, that didn’t matter anymore. She was here now.

The smiling brunette quickly donned an apron and started pulling plates from the cabinet. “You hungry, Mitsy? I’m having a craving for beefsteak, and found some nice imported meat when out shopping. Mind helping me?”

Ignoring the so-called affectionate nickname she always called him by, Mitsuo smiled and nodded. “Anything for you, sis.”

Moments like these were such a blessing to Mitsuo. It was hard to stay mad as long as his sister was around. In his mind, the world was at peace because of her. And it was amazing how quickly it happened, in hindsight.

For as long as he could remember, it was just him and his parents. It was just them for now, as their parents suddenly went out on a second honeymoon. Or at least that’s what Nee-san told him, but they left their car here…

Oh well. At least Nee-san was here for the both of them, so their deadbeat folks could stay away forever and he wouldn’t care. She understood him better than they ever did.

Preparation went by very fast, and the two them were now seated to enjoy their hard-earned meal. Or Nee-san’s, anyway; Mitsuo mostly watched and set the plates up.

“Let’s eat!” she announced. Utensils were picked, meats were cut, and mouths were chewing. A very good dinner indeed.

“This is really good, sis!” Mitsuo praised. “Where did you say you got this from again?”

“Found a nice section of imported meat at the Junes mall.”

“Junes? Why were you there?”

“Oh, my new boyfriend works there,” she said with a smile. “His whole family runs the branch there so he showed me around. He was so nice that he almost gave me the family-friendly discount.”

“Ugh,” Mitsuo groaned. “Junes is just a festering shithole full of idiots.”

“Mitsy! You shouldn’t say things like that!”

Everyone scolded him for speaking his mind. That was a painful constant in his life. They got mad and scared so he really got worked up too. But Nee-san was different; she was nice and patient and always easy to talk to. He could say anything to her without getting her offended or leaving him.

“Well, it’s true!” he argued. “They want only new, shiny things and basically left the shopping district out to dry. These dumb townspeople… they’re just as much of a problem as the murderer around here.”

“The murderer?”

“Oh yeah, you were out of town when it happened,” Mitsuo said. “There’s this murderer guy that killed two people already; a dumb tv announcer and some smashed high schooler. Everyone’s been talking about it for a while, but no one knows who did it yet, let alone who he might target next.”

She mulled over his words between bites of her beef. A pale hand brushed back some of her brown hair before resting her cheek on it. “If these people were so bad, then why would anyone care that they’re gone?”

“You know how people are; they get offended over every little thing.” Mitsuo complained. To that, his sister nodded in agreement. “Besides which, only their families care that those two are gone. Everyone just wants to know when it’ll happen again. The news is already betting that it’ll be Kanji Tatsumi.”

“Tatsumi-kun… oh, the delinquent that bumped into you the other day!”

“Yeah, that’s him.” And he was clearly the one at fault. It was all that bastard’s fault. Mitsuo was innocent; he did nothing wrong.

“So, what are you going to do?”

Mitsuo looked up, his sister staring at him inquisitively. “Huh?”

“You seem so upset about this murderer thing. Do you want try and catch them? Find out where they are, or who they are? Stop them before they get to Tatsumi-kun?”

He scowled at the thought. Whether or not Kanji was innocent, he had no plan to help that asshole. Truth be told, he wanted him gone, and didn’t care if he got killed.

“Or maybe you want to… finish what the murderer started?”

“Huh?” Mitsuo asked again, once more confused.

His sister was smiling wickedly.“It works out for the better either way, doesn’t it? If you catch the one responsible, then people will respect you and get peace of mind after trying to put it off for so long. But if you start killing people, maybe even target the ones that are especially heinous, then that too would rouse them out of their rut. They’d be forced to acknowledge you, your ideals, your carnage…”

“B-But heroes don’t go around killing people.” It was true that Mitsuo had thoughts of doing such things. But they were just that; thoughts. To actually go through with it would mean becoming a villain. And, as silly as it was, all he ever wanted was to be a cool superhero.

“Normal heroes wouldn’t,” his sister agreed. “But you could be a special kind of hero, Mitsy. An anti-hero that works against the law, to target people that think they are safe from it.”

Special? Him? That was… kind of exciting. He had never been told that he’d amount to anything before, but the possibility of being special made him want to get up and do it. He couldn’t make his sister disappointed, not when she was looking at him so expectantly.

But he still had doubts if this was a good idea. “I don’t know…”

“Come on. There must be someone you want to get rid of. Someone you know who the world wouldn’t miss?”

The list was too long for Mitsuo to count, he realized. He had a lot of people who’d be better off dead. There was that Yasogami teacher King Moron that chased him more than once when he was trying to see Yuki-chan. There were those leeches Satonaka and Emiya that beat him up and threatened him when he was trying to ask Yuki-chan out. There was even that kid in the blue hat following around Tatsumi that looked at him funny; people who did that always talked shit behind his back.

Out of all of them, the one person he really wanted see drop dead first was the one that pissed him off the most. But… “Forget it.”

“Come on,” his sister frowned. “Tell me.”

“You won’t like it. You’d think it’s a stupid idea.”

“I’m on your side, Mitsy. Trust me!”

They stared at one another, and when he thought about it… yeah, she always did have his back. She never got mad or offended like everyone else did, so maybe… “Kanji Tatsumi. I want Kanji Tatsumi dead at my own hands and make this town feel safe from his jerkass ways!”

She tilted her head, slightly bewildered. “Huh. You really dislike Tatsumi-kun?”

“I told you you wouldn’t like it!” He whined. Now she was going to scold him, lecture, put him down--

“I never said that,” she insisted, to his shock. “I actually agree he’d be a good target. He seems fairly popular with the rumors going around. If we play our cards right, we might make it look like a case of self-defense in case someone asks…”

Mitsuo stared at her in awe. This wasn’t some string-along joke, was it? They were actually contemplating murder like some game? All on her insistence? It was startling enough, but the most he took out of this conversation was relief.

“I better get started, the weather is perfect for it,” she said to herself, already heading out to grab the umbrella by the door. “Keep your phone on, and we’ll go over the next few steps later, Mitsy.”

“You’d really help me?” he asked, almost moved to tears.

“Of course!” She closed her eyes and grinned at him, revealing her awfully sharp canines. “Just leave everything to Sacchin!”

<><><>

Dojima Household, Almost Midnight

“Sacchin?”

“Yep! Her full name is Satsuki Kubo. but she prefers to be called by a pet name she got a long time ago. I’m telling ya man, I’m on cloud nine whenever I’m with her! She laughs at my jokes, is really friendly, and even made two coworkers break down in tears with just a few words!”

“That’s… that last part is hardly a quality to praise someone for.”

“Yeah, but these two were a constant pain in my ass, complaining about work they never could do and ranting to me whenever they so much as broke a nail. As an assistant manager of Junes, I can’t really call them out or else I’d look bad. But Sacchin… man, she had never met them before but she had them absolutely pegged. It was amazing. Scary, sure, but still…”

“Ah, well that’s different.”

Shirou was quite happy for Yosuke. After waiting nervously for the next shoe to drop (namely Kanji’s kidnapping or the interception of the kidnapper), some good news in his friend’s social life was always welcome. Although his intention at Okina didn’t work out as planned, he finally found someone to call his own.

Small talk before midnight… Shirou never imagined he would be doing things like this, even in the midst of important work of keeping the peace of the town. And it was almost morbid that he and Yosuke were so calm at the moment.

The fact of the matter was, Kanji had suddenly disappeared. Yukiko only found out just a few hours ago when making an errand call to the textile shop. Now the team was on high alert watching the Midnight Channel as the seconds ticked away.

Shirou tried to be optimistic. Naoto was also gone, so maybe they went into hiding without telling anyone. But if that was true, then they’d have to rescue the young cop as well, and he doubted their capacity to handle two dungeons in succession. If only they had gotten the jump on finding a dungeon early like with Rise, but he knew the saying that ‘lightning doesn’t strike the same area twice’ to be quite appropriate.

“But man, do we really have to help this guy?” Yosuke asked. “He probably doesn’t need us to begin with.”

“We could always check with Teddie tomorrow just in case,” Shirou said, fiddling with the control box. “Right now I’m setting it up to record the image, so we might have something to play back later.”

“Good plan. Though I wish we had thought about it when Amagi-san was kidnapped, or had the chance to do so with Rise-chan.”

Shirou’s eyelids fell half-way in a deadpan expression. “Glad to know Sacchin has such a faithful boyfriend.”

“Dude, give me some slack! I only met her a few days ago!”

“That doesn’t exactly help your case.”

“Well, aren’t you an expert on relationships now.” Shirou shrugged, and was willing to let the matter drop when Yosuke quickly spoke up again. “So what about you?”

“What?”

“Honestly this question has been eating me up lately, but I figured I might as well ask while we’re waiting and on the line. Satonaka, Amagi-san, Rise-chan. For your sake, I won’t mince words: which one’s your type?”

Shirou was silent, trying to process what he had just heard. When he finally did, his face matched his hair, his phone almost slipped out of his trembling hand, and the only sound he could make was a sharp inhale equivalent to a mouse’s squeak. “...!!!”

“Come on, I promise I won’t tell anyone! It’s just I’m curious how you’re handling your love life, as well as how you plan to actually resolve your situation. You got, like, the whole girl side of the team pining for you now! For your sake, you better decide who you want to date before it gets out of control.”

“For once, Yosuke has a point,” Pixie told him.

“Why do anything?” said Lilim. “Keep putting it off, let the romance bubble, and the situation will resolve itself. Chances are either the best of them wins or they all do. That’s what every other lead in harem shows do.”

“You mean like those spineless, brainless, chauvinistic stains in society that twist and lead on poor maiden’s hearts in some sick form of entertainment?!” Angel spat, sounding rather judgmental at the moment. It almost worried Shirou how intensely she spoke her thoughts. “I’ve seen too many a love triangle strangling the ethics of heroes because they can’t make a committed decision.”

“Obviously it must be the gallant Chie,” reasoned Eligor.

“His mannerisms compliment Yukiko more!” Sarasvati declared.

“Cu Taiga has already made her claim on him!” Cu Sith barked.

“Personally I’m kinda hoping for Rise,” Pixie said to herself.

“Marie,” was the single grunt of reply from Ippon-Datara.

“Ugh,” Shirou finally recovered from the shock of Yosuke’s question, but was now reeling from the voices in his head arguing for dominance.

Unaware of his mental war, Yosuke had waited patiently before asking again. “So come on, man. Who would you pick?”

“I-I don’t know--”

“Idiotswithalibidosay’allofthem’.”

“All of them?” He said, before realizing what Lilim just tricked him into saying.

A brief stunned silence ensued as all parties in the conversation registered this. Yosuke was first. “What?”

“WHAT?!” His arguing Personas soon after.

“YES!” the devil cheered.

“That doesn’t count!” Angel bristled. “They have too many unique traits to be desirable on their own! Just because he can’t decide on one of them, doesn’t mean he should DO that!”

Thank God quite literally for his sensible retainers. “What I mean is I don’t have a preference in girls. Satonaka, Amagi, Rise, they all have their own charms so I can’t really decide yet.”

“Huh. Well, I guess that makes sense.”

Shirou let out a relieved sigh, as did his collective unconscious. Lilim was fuming while Angel was beaming and pleased with herself. The question on intimacy was put on hold for now…

And just in time, too, as soon the clock struck 12, and the TV screen flared to life.

The image was crisp and clear, much like with Yukiko’s channel prior. But instead of a grandiose castle or a striptease bar, the background was that of a modest wooden building. The music playing was almost like a slow, smooth jazz for more intimate events.

“Good evening, darling viewers!” A voice spoke from the TV, sounding familiar but having a very distinct “camp” feeling to it. “On tonight’s episode of ‘Bad, Bad Bathhouse’, we transcend the gender barrier by searching the superb sites for sublime, scandalous sensations! That is, of course, for boys only.”

The camera then panned out from the close-up view of the building to show a muscular teen with bleached hair and wearing nothing but a loincloth around his waist. He was also posing rather seductively with a flush and a smile, with each deliberate movement emphasized with a light effect of flowers “popping” out.

Shirou could only stare mutely as the voice and face clicked in. “No way…” What they were seeing on screen was--

“That’s right! I, Kanji Tatsumi, will lead the charge and venture into this exclusive haven! All you need are three things;” A close-up was directed to his pecs as his shoulders hugged them close enough to tense. “A smoking hot body…” Then to his licking lips. “Boiling hot blood…” Another cut to his hips as they shook the loincloth in place. “And a shaking, grooving fanny!”

“I think I’m gonna be sick…” Yosuke whispered fearfully on his end of the phone.

“Well that’s enough horsing around! I’m all hot and bothered now, so I’m off! Wish me luuuuuuuck~!”

The last thing to show on the Midnight Channel was Kanji’s Shadow prancing into the bathhouse.

For a long while, Shirou could only stare and wonder at what he had just seen. Hearing Yosuke on his phone broke him out of his trance. The video seemed to have affected his friend more, as he was struggling to find the right words to say. “So, uh… dude. Yeah, like… dude! What I mean is… DUDE!!”

“Meet up tomorrow at Junes? Dude?”

“Huh? Y-Yeah, sure, du- I mean, yeah, see you tomorrow.” Yosuke quickly hung up.

Pocketing his own phone, Shirou looked again at the TV. He tried playing the recording tape again, maybe pay attention to the words and setting for clues. But all that came up with an error screen of black and white fuzzy static. “Figures…”

Well there was one mystery solved and a comfort to take away from this; no one could see these Midnight Channel specials again.

Still, it was odd; he hadn’t seen anything so animated or revealing on the Midnight Channel before. In the past, it was the Shadows waiting there on the screen, as if beckoned by the viewers. But when someone was thrown in, their entire life got thrown out of whack with over the top sexcapades into the unknown. It was one thing to see it happen with Amagi’s channel, but then in Rise’s dungeon and now Kanji’s channel...

Shirou sighed and shook his head. This just proved it. “Yep. Definitely libido issues.”

“Says the magic stud.”

“I heard that, Lilim.”

[Xamusel]

(/)_-) Dagnabbit, Kishou! I thought Sacchin would be deader than dead by this point in time? I mean, I don't hate the girl, far from it, I actually want her to be paired with Shiki more than anything else! However, due to the fact that Tsukihime has her killed off in almost all the routes (not counting Melty Blood), I wouldn't have expected the poor girl to be brought back to life at this point... and still a Dead Apostle.

I sincerely hope that you explain how she survived the events of Tsukihime... alright?

[Kieran]

Ow . . . I think this chapter has given me whiplash, given the speed at which I went from squee-ing with delight over Marie ("Eeee, she's perfect!"), to pants-wetting terror over Sacchin ("Ohcrapshe'sstillalivewe'reallgonnadie!") to dying with laughter over Lilim ("Idiotswithalibidosay'all of them.'").

It was inarguably worth the wait, but I'm going to need some recovery time, now - nice job!

[Mattias]

Well, this is going to be a thing.

Sacchin has an AOE antimagic Reality Marble and the TV world is basically made of magic. I wonder how that's going to interact. And you know she's not going to join the IT since she's literally make any boss battle trival. Except for the one against her, that'll be a bitch.

Nice pull, man.

[Kishou the Badger]

A little late but here's another april fools special after a year absent. A possible what-if alpha scene in the Holy Grail War.

<><><>

It was their third base in two weeks since the war had started, now on it's way to the fifteenth day. It didn't have the homely feel of the first, and the second was not as well kept as she remembered, but this third base offered a bird's eye view of Fuyuki down below. Saber found herself coming here on watch, or at least that's what she told herself.

A lot had gone wrong in this war, or at least out of the norm. Battles against masters were put on hold, resorting to only reactionary conflicts. The third base alone was given on a loan of Taiga's grandfather. And for a time she had spent time patrolling with others instead of her master, before finally being "enrolled" as a transfer student at Homurahara. And then there was that case with her Shadow, now Persona.

Briefly, Saber's hand conjured a spinning card over the palm. She technically had the aptitude of sorcery because of her Dragon Core, but focused her skillset on her sword and trusted her sheath to heal her. Even now as a Servant, she used a style of wind magecraft for short bursts and to veil her sword. This Persona now, D'draig, was something else entirely. And yet she thought she had seen something like it once before in one of Merlin's many spells.

It was nice trump card though (no pun intended). Even if it provided yet another hint of her identity, it was not tied to her legend as extensively as a Noble Phantasm, and worked on powers separate from them. It helped that her master and his friends were well versed in these powers, but...

She frowned. Shirou Emiya wasn't fit to be a master. Not because he lacked the skills for it; his naivety and low mana reserves were well compensated by his versatility and connections. But he was simply too kind, prioritizing on stopping the Shadows and distortions of Palaces instead of confronting the other Master-Servant teams. Saber herself couldn't let people to die by consequence on her mission, and he was open to her criticisms instead of pretending she was a naïve girl, but...


No, it was more accurate to say they were partners. After her last master (ironically his own step father), she had been well prepared of just being a sword of his disposal, focus on the shared goal and try to keep confrontation to a minimum. He took time to know her, cook for her, and immediately compromise when she so much as twitched hearing an objectively bad idea. Even on a disagreement it was easy to talk to him because he didn't see her as a familiar to be ordered, a king to be cowed by, or even a defenseless woman. Just a peer and comrade at arms. Who happened to be a woman, but it was progress.

"Ah, there you are."

She turned to see her master walk up to greet her. "Shirou."

"I thought we told you to rest," he said. "You burned a lot of energy that last fight, and on top of the Command Spell too..."

"It was nothing," she said quickly. "The war is far from over and I can't afford to rest long. Someone may try to attack us while we're resting." It happened twice before, and she couldn't afford to rest just yet, not when the enemies were on edge and aware of them.

"Saber, we're all grateful for what you did for Rise, so you don't need to keep working yourself to death. We already have the perimeter secure and monitored."

"It is my duty as a Servant. I simply acted because you told me to."

"Weren't you the one who reminded me about the Command Spells, though? Just before you dove off after her?"

The Servant of the Sword blushed and looked away. "That was... well..."

She didn't have time to think. Rise was falling off with the broken section of the rooftop and she barely had time to catch her, much less tell Shirou. The command spell certainly helped give her enough reserves to use Prana Burst to slow their fall, but she didn't actually EXPECT him to do so, much less everyone thank her and send her breakfast in bed the next morning.

Their appreciation was almost embarrassing.

"A-Anyway, I also needed somewhere private to think and reflect. The roof here was just most convenient."

"Heh, fair enough."

And so they leaned over the roof railing in silence, gazing down the night streets as the people walked by unaware. It was calming and reminiscent of her time watching down her citizens from her castle.

"I have forgotten how nice this all is."

"Saber?"

"A lot of things are the same here. People are complacent of the bigger problems, while good men and women continue to fight for what they think is right. This war is very much a struggle of ideals than moral conflict, and yet beings like Shadows take advantage of this confusion. They don't care about who rules or who wins, just what is in front of them."

She sighed. "In a lot of ways, when I see this city, this time, I can't help but to feel I have failed. If I had done something different when I was alive the first time, or in the wars that followed. I wanted a great era of peace for all my people, that I strongly wished for a chance to change my fate.

"But meeting you and your friends was... comforting. And you reminded me that even if Camelot had fallen, the world itself is still standing. That generations of people continue to live and grow. It makes me relieved to see that will never change."

"You make it sound like you're going to die soon."

"It's inevitable," she said. "Short of a wish of renewal, even the victor Servant will disappear once the grail stops supporting my existence. And that's if this war was ideally what it was supposed to be."

In another time, maybe Saber wouldn't have cared if the grail was corrupted, so long as her wish came true. But growing to know the people of Fuyuki, and from Inaba, she couldn't in good conscience sacrifice their world for Camelot. None of her knights would have wanted that.

"But maybe there's another way to stay?" Shirou suggested. "Like, make a pact with Tohsaka, or reside in the other world?"

Saber shook her head. "Temporary measures at best. My existence would always be on a timer, ready to be depleted if not careful, and I owe all of you too much to be a burden."

Shirou's face scrunched in displeasure. She could tell what he was thinking; that she deserved better, and to be with friends that cared for her.

"But even so, I have come to terms with this."

He was surprised to see her smile softly. "Most heroic spirits in my position only get maybe one chance of a new life when fighting the Holy Grail War. I've been in enough of them to see that the world, but this time around was especially rewarding."

"Saber..."

"I have died for my country, Shirou. That much I have accepted, and I wanted to try and give Camelot its second chance. But now I know that as long as people, humanity, as a collective whole can survive, then that would be honoring the dream me and my fellow knights had fought to accomplish in the first place."

She turned to him with conviction in her eyes. "We'll win this war and make sure an incident like the Fuyuki Fire will never happen again."

For a long moment, they stared at one another. There was a strong trust that no mere Master/Servant relationship could explain, and they were both ready to face whatever hardship came their way.

"Thanks," he nodded with a smile. "I'm counting on you, Altria."

Her true name. To hear a man dubbed her master call her that with such trust and ease felt... nice.

And then, something in her heart suddenly stirred. The Persona metaphorisized from a draconic knight waving a battered flag to a shining, armored knight with a claymore-sized Excalibur.


I am... no, we are King Arthur.

[Kieran]

Oooh, nice - and it definitely whets my appetite for the Grail War sequel.

[Mattias]

Oooh, nice - and it definitely whets my appetite for the Grail War sequel.

Due out 2025.

[Kieran]

*Chuckles* Probably - but it would be worth the wait.

[Kishou the Badger]

Fate/Reach Out
Chapter 36: Sauna

<><><>
June 26^th, Velvet Room

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU WANT TO SIDELINE ME?!?!”

Shirou flinched and looked up at the fuming face of a black-haired devil hovering in front of him. “Now, Lilim—”

“You need me to fight off the other Shadows that fling curses and hexes around! You would have been dead without me literally sweeping that fight with the snake, the wheel, and the samurai! Not only am I helpful, but think of the A-material I can bring! You’re going to a frigging sauna! You can’t leave me out of this!”

If Shirou was perfectly honest with himself, this was part of the reason why he wanted Lilim absent from his mind. Her innuendo seemed to grow by the day as she went around with him, and she seemed almost stir-crazy at the prospect of getting a proper candidate to start The Devil Social Link. While he didn’t see this power as a gross hindrance anymore, he still wasn’t actively seeking to start up new links. They seemed to come naturally when they did, so he’ll just wait and welcome them with open arms when they do.

“I’ve also already left Valkyrie with Margaret,” he said, lightly glaring at the amused woman. “And she didn’t make as much of a fuss.”

“That’s because her kind regularly fetches corpses from battle instead of taking part in them, but that’s not the point! Why does SHE get to go?!” the she-devil screeched. It was obvious who she meant.

“Angel’s my guide to Nanako who I have a Social Link with. I’d rather keep my active roster with Personas that can help me with my immediate friends and loved ones.”

It was a new dungeon, and he wanted to be prepared in rescuing Kanji. He needed stronger, capable Persona, blessed by the Arcana. He hadn’t noticed at the time as his fusion ability wasn’t as grandiose as Igor’s, but Sarasvati and Ippon-Datara were both slightly stronger from their original level. They were definitely coming along, as were everyone else.

He made a point to ignore how childishly smug Angel was acting in his subconscious, though. Clearly their century-old conflict of Heaven and Hell would never be resolved.

“That’s still not fair! Why are you being a jerk about this?!’

“Because he’s taking his power seriously.”

Shirou and Lilim turned to see Eligor sitting next to his contractor (sans horse). “A fool he may be, but fools can only last so long through luck alone. A true warrior cultivates his power and skill so future conflicts will be met with easier effort.”

“But I’m power and sexy in one card pack!” Lilim huffed. “Shouldn’t he have as much power available as possible? Heck, he can bring Valkyrie too, while he’s at it!”

Eligor shook his head. “The danger of having too many weapons at hand is lacking the skill or time to use them all. Most fighters stick with one weapon for their lifetime and perfect it. And if they branch out, then they master one weapon before learning the next.”

The devil seemed to accept his argument, but still looked mad. “Yeah I guess he would want to master you sooner to get closer to Spat-skirt.”

“On the contrary, I wish to also sit out of this sortie.”

“Wait, what?” Shirou was just as surprised as Lilim upon hearing this. “But why? You’re one of my leading fighters.”

“Izanagi is your sword. Pixie is your wand. Cu Sith is your gale. Sarasvati is your frost. Ippon-Datara is your hammer. If you wish to master your fusion powers, you need to learn to make do with what’s at hand. To understand your limits. That will help cultivate your judgment in using new powerful Personas.”

Shirou found himself nodding to his Persona’s assessment. The fight against Shadow Rise was still fresh in his mind as a near disaster, and he never had time to properly assess what Personas to use yet. If he couldn’t handle them at this point, then forget saving Kanji; saving anyone would be impossible.

“Then where does Angel fit in all this?” Lilim demanded.

The lights in Eligor’s helmet dimmed and narrowed as they glanced over him. “Moral conscience.”

“I KNEW IT!”

Smartasses… Even Angel was offended.

“Do you guys have a point going on or do I have to kick your red pubic ass out of here?” Marie complained, eyes locked on her notepad. “You’re making it hard to draw the cards you want.”

“Are you really an amnesiac?” Shirou asked incredulously.

She looked up at him coolly and with a critical once-over. “Are you really the star of a harem show?”

Shirou’s face flushed. Lilim grinned. Eligor awkwardly coughed into his gauntlet.

“I am not!” / “Hell yeah he is!” / “...possibly.”

The other members of the Velvet Room were obviously amused, watching as mutely as ever. Marie simply shrugged and resumed her sketching.

Eligor quickly regained his composure and turned to his summoner. “That aside, do you remember the grafting technique you used on Izanagi?”

“You mean Trace Persona?” Shirou answered. That was a literal last-minute saving grace, turning a Persona into their iconic weapon, or at least one that best represents them. It was a miracle he turned Izanagi twice in succession with Teddie’s help.

“I am concerned for Chie’s weapon proficiency. At the castle she used a chain whip. An accident. At the strip club a staff. A coincidence. And now as we prepare to storm the sauna, she is considering yet another weapon. At this point, it is a pattern.”
Shirou could see where he was going with this. “So you want me to Trace you into a new weapon for her?”

“Make him a lance!” she proclaimed, arms spread wide. “A HUGE one with a big, flaming head that can pierce the deepest wo—"

“Lilim, please,” the red knight held out his hand like a father would to an overactive child. “Hierarchy men are now talking.”

Shirou found himself smirking at how casually Lilim was shot down and reduced to angrily sticking her tongue out. It wasn’t inaccurate either; Eligor was a Great Duke of Hell, and he led many legions of demons. The original Lilim were children born of Lilith and Samael to spite God in the Garden of Eden, before a new, deformed generation were conceived in Hell.

In other words, Eligor held authority over her kind. As did Shirou as their summoner.

“I have watched Chie’s fights, and her talent lies in martial arts rather than a weapon. I want you to graft my card into a weapon for her, yes. But not a lance,” he looked briefly at Lilim as her mood soured. “I want you to focus on my horse, and then turn him into a pair of greaves.”

Greaves? An odd choice of a weapon as they’re made to protect legs, not attack. But he could see Chie focus on kicking, despite her Persona using a polearm. “I think I can do that,” he nodded. “What’s your horse’s name, anyway?”

Eligor shrugged. “If he ever had one, it is lost in history, and was never even mine to begin with. He is a fine steed that had lived in the Garden of Eden before reanimated by Beelzebub. Though I have taken to calling him “Abigor”, after one of my pseudonyms.”

Shirou thought it over, and turned to Igor and Margaret. “Could I get some help here? I’d rather have it not break down like my other Gradation Air attempts.”

“It will, if you treat it like your previous Magecraft arts,” Igor said. “You are probably the only one who understands the full concept of your Trace Persona ability. It is you and you alone that can set the limitations of your power, and break them.”

“Consider it part of your training,” Margaret added. “And don’t worry. We won’t let you ‘stupid yourself’ to death.”

Well, at least Pixie was satisfied with that.

Shrugging, Shirou immediately dismissed Eligor into card form, and gently cradled the card in his fingers. He thought back to the steps of magecraft, with the careful focus on a predetermined form of footwear.

He then clenched his hand over the card, and a flash of light later, he was holding a pair of fur boots. They looked innocent at a glance, but the hoof design under the heel and lack of store identification would catch the attention of any sharp-eyed salesman. Structurally, they were very durable and even came with a minor fire shield charm. These Boots of Abigor were perfect, and had a bit of the lingering spirit of Eligor himself in them. Much like Teddie’s projection, they wouldn’t break down.

Still, he nearly fell over in exhaustion after the attempt. For now, he could only do this technique once a day, so he’d have to plan accordingly.

“Congratulations,” Lilim deadpanned. “You got a weapon for your athletic not-girlfriend. Now all you have to do is put me in the book with Maggie here.”

She then huffed, crossed her arms, and looked away with him, eyes shut. As much as she was accepting this now, she still didn’t like being set aside. She was just a Persona, a facet of himself that may or may not be an extension of himself, but he preferred to think of each Persona as their own person.

“Marie, could you make me a Stagnant Air skill card next?”

Lilim’s eyes snapped open.

“Geez, you love making me work, don’t you?” Marie huffed with no real venom. She then handed him the card she was working on. “Not that I’m complaining. I could use the distraction, and I owe your little she-devil for that nickname: can’t believe I didn’t think of Maggie sooner. Anyway, here’s your Media card.”

“Thanks,” Shirou said, accepting the skill card and turning to the she-devil. “There. Now you have a new skill to look forward to when I get ba-AACK!”

Lilim had tackle-hugged him to the side, clutching his side a bit too closely to her slim body. “I LOVE YOU MY LITTLE ROM-COM LEAD!”

“I AM NOT A ROM-COM LEAD!”

Maybe this wasn’t the best idea…

<><><>

Junes, Midday

For the umpteenth time, Naoto called Kanji’s cell and got no answer. “I was careless.”

No one had come after Kanji Tatsumi at all during the rainy days, and during that time Naoto’s grandfather had called him up to discuss something. That something turned out to be talking about old stories of his parents, continuing the long trend of police detectives that took on any case.

It was nice to unwind and think back to those days, but work never rested for long, and Naoto knew if they were still alive, they would continue to solve cases and find the truth of said mysteries.

They were a team, after all, well respected. They got far together in a male-dominated work force. Naoto couldn’t afford a single mistake if he wanted to be as successful as them.

And yet he did just that; Kanji was under his charge and for the few hours he left to see his grandfather, he was gone just like the others. If only he hadn’t listened, if only his grandfather didn’t call--

No, it wasn’t Grandpa’s fault. It was my decision in the end to go see him, and he had told me before that it wasn’t urgent. I should have anticipated this and brought Kanji along, but…

Maybe I shouldn’t have pushed to stay over that night.

That argument shouldn’t have happened. Naoto could see Kanji was upset about the very idea of him staying over, but he persisted on the issue anyway. The bleached-haired teen refused to look or talk to him after that, so Naoto thought the call couldn’t have come at a better time. He’d catch up with his grandfather and give Kanji the needed time to calm down before the day was over.

Part of Naoto hoped Kanji was just fuming mad and acting out, finding more biker gangs to fight. He had been growing more hostile ever since the talk with Emiya and Amagi, and despite Naoto’s best efforts he refused to talk. There was another possibility in that he would show up at Junes, as people from all over town came here to shop.

But it was becoming apparent he might have to call the police for help, despite the fact that they had dumped the responsibility for Kanji on his shoulders, including finding him after losing him. No one was convinced that Kanji was missing yet, but that would change in a few days’ time.

Then again, maybe it was also a hurt sense of pride of having to rely on them in the first place. Whether they believed him or not, this would give them an excuse to look down on his failure.

“Oh, it’s you again.”

Naoto recognized the dismissive kind of tone, but it took a while to jog his memory of who. Looking up, he saw a copper-haired girl wearing an orange, floral stamped blouse and white khakis. He briefly noticed a small heart-shaped locket around the girl’s neck before registering her face. “Ah, Kujikawa-san.”

“Shirogane,” she returned, clearly still angry but at least trying to be polite. She quickly glanced around the store. “Where’s Kanji Tatsumi?”

Naoto’s eyes narrowed. “How do know his name?”

“Geez, I get you’re playing detective, but do you have to suspect everyone?” Rise snapped with a growl. “We go to the same school, and a lot of the first-years gossip about him. He only seems to ever hang around you though, so it seems weird that you’re here but he isn’t.” At this point she actually looked sad. “I know his mom through my grandma and I heard some… concerns, so I figured if anyone knew what happened to him, you would.”

“I see…” Yes, that would be logical to assume. Rise and Kanji both attended Yasogami High, and she’d probably heard his name more than once in the weeks following her entry. And living just across the shopping district street would mean she’d know right away if something was wrong there.

With those facts in mind, the detective frowned and fiddled with the helm of his cap. “Truth be told, we had a… disagreement the other day. I had hoped to give him some time to himself, but when I came back he wasn’t at home. I have no idea where he could be.”

“Oh,” Rise said sadly. “He wasn’t… kidnapped, was he? Like the announcer lady and that one third-year?”

“Too early to say,” said Naoto. “It’s the worse-case scenario I would like to avoid, though, but I don’t know how to find or contact him.”

“Maybe it was something that happened that made him snap? Like that disagreement you two had?”

Naoto’s frown grew. “…perhaps I had pushed too much when I suggested we spend the night together. I always knew he was an odd boy, but to react like that—”

“Odd? What do you mean?”

Naoto thought twice about telling her, but she seemed genuinely concerned about Kanji. Fact is, this was an urgent matter and he needed all the help he could get. “He seems to hold a front of forced bravado almost constantly. I recall a number of times when I or someone else asked him about odd or strange behavior, and he would react as if being unfairly criticized. I can only assume it has something to do with a trauma, or perhaps a case of gynophobia.”

Rise blinked, trying to remember what the word meant, before leaning forward in a hushed tone. “You’re saying the scariest delinquent of Yasogami High is afraid of girls?”

“At the very least, he abhors feminine behavior. He is also socially withdrawn, constantly abrasive and trying to prove himself. After spending several months with him and thinking back to these signs, I’m fairly certain he has an inferiority complex.”

“Girls and inferiority complex,” Rise repeated to herself. She then nodded to him and started to head for the elevators. “Thanks, that’s all I needed to know.”

“Can I ask you something?” Naoto called out. Rise didn’t turn, but did stop to listen as she waited. “I’m thankful you are concerned and looking for him, but I can’t help but wonder why you, a former idol, would care to do this. As I just told you, he holds a general aversion to many of the girls at school.”

A tense moment passed. Naoto didn’t think she would really answer, and didn’t blame her. He was about to leave and try searching the town when she spoke again. “I was in his position once, the teasing bit I mean.”

Naoto blinked before nodding in understanding. “So you empathize with him.”

“Yeah. It’s not easy fitting in while being the weird or odd person out. And if what you told me is true, that complex thing… then he really needs to know that there are people that worry and care for him.”

“I see… And for what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”

This time, Rise fully turned to face the detective. “Huh?”

“You were right, about how I treated things like a game. I have a lot of pressure on my family name to solve this case, and I’m viewed with as much contempt by the police as by you. And it wasn’t fair taking things out on you, whether you were really kidnapped or not.

“I just…” Naoto paused, hiding his face under his hat further. “I don’t want anyone else to die. Not when there’s something I could do to make a difference.”

Rise was honestly surprised. She still had some bitter feelings upon first meeting Naoto, and she didn’t think he took her words seriously. Looking back, he tried to placate her on the lives of others, but she assumed he was trying to guilt her into complying. Instead, he was just that committed, perhaps even more than most of the cops that just wanted the disappearances to stop.

This Naoto guy reminded her a lot of Shirou.

“I see,” she said, before smiling. “Well, maybe I was a little too quick to judge myself. You’re not so bad after all, Naoto-kun.”

“I thank you,” he nodded briskly, still hiding his eyes under his hat. Rise swore she could see a faint smile and tear trail. “Good day, and good luck.”

“You too,” she said, and watched as the young detective left the Junes front entrance. At the same time, the elevator door finally opened… next to the one Rise was waiting in front of it.

“Stupid Junes and their dual-linked doors,” she cursed under her breath, digging her phone out to angrily text. “I blame Yosuke-senpai!”

<><><>

Tatsuhime Shrine, Midday

“AAAACHOO!!” Yosuke sneezed mid weed-pull, before chuckling. “I bet my new girlfriend’s bragging about me!”

Tama just rolled her eyes and plopped back down on the bench she was resting on.

The back of the Tatsuhime Shrine had really cleared up over the past month thanks to their efforts, and Tama was so receptive of them that she allowed the Investigation Team to hang around as a sub-base from Junes. Today was Sunday, so that gave the Investigation Team all day to gather intel on Kanji while preparing for the dungeon, as well as other important errands.

Because as luck would have it, Kanji was too hidden in the foggy other world to be found on scent alone, as Yosuke could attest to checking on Teddie early this morning. It would be safe to assume from now on they would need more clues before searching.

Anyway, the gang had split up and checked around several points of Inaba for information gathering, before heading back to regroup at the Tatsuhime Shrine. So far only Shirou and Rise were left unaccounted for, so Yosuke took the time to weed out the rest of the field while Chie practiced with her new weapon.

Her friend Yukiko, who had agreed to watch, blinked bemusedly. “Nunchaku?”

“Yep!” Chie nodded, brandishing her new weapon in her hands. A pair of long, black, hardened sticks connected by interlinking metal chains. “Got it just in time for the new dungeon, and I think they’ll come in handy this time.”

From his position in the back garden, Yosuke looked up with an accusatory gaze. “Like the chain whip and the short staff?”

“They were learning processes! You switched out the wrenches, you know!”

“Yeah, and I stuck with dual blades,” he argued. “Amagi-san is using a better version of the metal fan Daidara-san made her, too.”

“And Emiya-kun switched to a bow and arrow! I don’t get why you’re complaining about my choice of weaponry.”

Yukiko frowned, quickly intervening in the fight by pulling Chie away from Yosuke’s earshot. “Chie, what’s wrong?”

“Huh?” The brunette flinched, but shook her confusion off with a wide smile. “Nothing’s wrong! I’m peachy-keen!”

“Honesty has always been one of your better qualities, Chie. So much that it’s easy to tell when you’re lying.”

Yukiko may not be the most aware of the world around her, but when she focused on what she did know, she had no equal. It was how she could study and ace tests to be at the top of her class. And having known Chie for years, she knew without a doubt that something was bothering her friend.

Chie’s smile crumbled, before sighing in defeat. “Was it that obvious?”

“I was there when you fought my Shadow and Rise-chan’s,” said Yukiko. “I know we need weapons to fight Shadows, but you’re the last person I expected to pick one up.”

Chie looked offended. “What’s that supposed to mean?!”

“You’re literally one of the strongest people I know,” she replied quickly. “You’d sooner dash towards Shadows with your Trial of the Dragon moves than swing a staff around.”

She had a flush growing, equally flattered and embarrassed. “Th-They’re just that. Moves. Moves of an amateur.”

Yukiko tilted her head in confusion. “Hanamura-kun looks self-taught in swinging his knives and he doesn’t seem all that bothered about it.”

“Like his opinion matters.”

“And what about mine? Or Rise-chan’s? Or Emiya-kun’s?”

Chie looked ready to retort until the last moment, where her embarrassment came back two-fold and her mouth closed firmly. Just as the ebony-haired girl was about to ask what was wrong, the answer to her question came to her like a splash of water. “This has something to do with Emiya-kun, doesn’t it?”

Nothing came out but a hesitant squeak. “…maybe.”

Yukiko giggled. She couldn’t help it; the thought of Chie trying to impress Shirou was so adorable and cute!

Chie knew what was coming and snapped. “This isn’t funny!”

To her credit, Yukiko stopped right away. “I’m sorry,” she said, the laughter soon forgotten. There was a time and place for everything. “It’s just… he’s the last person to judge someone unfairly like that. You shouldn’t even worry about that.”

“But he makes using many weapons so easy. Like the katana or his bow, and he can just make more swords appear like, well, magic! Not to mention he has more Personas than the rest of us combined, and well… it’s no contest.”

She gripped the nunchaku in her hand tighter. “That’s why I need to find the right weapon. The perfect weapon for me, so I can be that much stronger for everyone on the team.”

Chie slipped into a stance and started flailing the weapon between her hands in rapid movements. “Aiaiaiaiaiai! “Whataaa-OW!”

Somehow during the shuffle, one end of the nunchaku spun up instead of down. Gravity took over and it clunked her square in the head, which she quickly rubbed with her free hand. She tried to smile through her wincing tears. “Okay, looks like I need to practice some more…”

If there was one thing that Yukiko hated seeing, it was self-doubt. She had wallowed in it for so long that it was surprising she didn’t notice Chie having her own insecurities sooner.

“I admit, Emiya-kun has a lot of powers, and with them a lot of responsibility.” She then took Chie’s nursing hand into both of her own. “But we’re a team, and just because he can do everything, doesn’t mean that he should.”

“Yukiko?”

“You may not think strength is important, but it is. You strike hard and fast before any of us, especially Emiya-kun, so we can focus on our next Shadow. We depend on you more than you know, because you’re this team’s strongest fighter. And you don’t need any secret weapon other than your true self.”

“Yukiko…” Chie was beyond touched. Here was her best friend, coming out on their first adventure together in the Shadow World, and giving her a much-needed pep talk. She had been worried it would be a bad idea, but aside from fighting monsters and having more friends, nothing had changed. And by the looks of it, nothing would between them either.

So she wasn’t surprised that she was nodding with her friend with a bright smile. “Yeah, you’re right! I don’t need some lame-old prop! I can kick ass just fine without one!”

Chie carelessly tossed the nunchaku to prove her point, and Yukiko smiled with her. Maybe if she was lucky, her discarded weapon would clunk Hanamura right on the head.

THUNK! “OW!”

Chie and Yukiko immediately paled, and turned around to where the weapon flew.

...that wasn’t Hanamura.

“OH MY GOD I’M SO SORRY, EMIYA-KUN!”

Shirou winced and nursed his aching forehead while holding the offending weapon in his other hand. “Why would you throw something like this around anyway? Kids play here, for goodness’ sake.”

“Oh, suck it up,” Yosuke quipped as he and the fox walked over to them. “Your thick head should have cushioned the worst of it.”

Chie was about to snap angrily at him when her phone, as well as everyone else’s, started to ring. They wordlessly pulled them out to read the message.

“Looks like Rise-chan found something out about Kanji-kun,” Yukiko said.

“Great!” Yosuke smirked, already making for the shrine gate. “Let’s hurry back to Junes and hear all about it!”

<><><>

Junes

Tohru Adachi hummed to himself as he carried his modest bag of groceries out of the cash-in line. He’d found some cabbage rolls to last the week, and for once he didn’t bump into that crazy old lady who thought he was her grandson. She really tried his patience at times, but he hadn’t had any reason to get overly ticked off lately. Heck, he’s been having a lot of fun recently.

Dojima was probably the best partner he could ask for in this small urban town. He was experienced, gruff, serious, and made it plain what he wanted. He was also a family man so there were times where, despite him saying otherwise, he cared about Adachi. It left him conflicted that he couldn’t do better, but some partnerships just aren’t meant to last. With that in mind, he waited in front of the elevator after pressing the call button.

“Hope tomorrow doesn’t get too hectic…” he said to himself. It was currently his day off today, and he’d already heard rumors spreading that Kanji Tatsumi was missing. No one was certain it was true or not given that it was Sunday and a similar scare happened with Rise, but then again, you never knew what would happen in a supposedly crazy town like this.

His musing stopped when he heard the elevator open and a group of teens walked out of it. He waited for them to leave before doing a double-take. It was Dojima’s nephew, Shirou Emiya.

And the kids he was arrested with the other day, Yosuke Hanamura and Chie Satonaka.

And the girl from the Amagi Inn, Yukiko.

And… the retired idol Rise Kujikawa?!

Man, talk about an ensemble! Why were they all together?

“Are you sure we shouldn’t go back to change into our uniforms?” Yukiko asked softly as they walked away. “They’d be better suited for this kind of thing.”

Adachi looked between the elevator and the group of kids that didn’t notice his presence at all. A moment later, he discreetly trailed the group while looking as inconspicuous as possible; easy in a department store full of eager shoppers all around.

“We’d stand out if we suddenly go home and change into our uniforms on a Sunday, and even people in cram school need to take breaks,” he heard Shirou explain. “Besides, our supplies are all safe with Teddie. We’d only need to worry if we’re bringing new stuff.”

The brunette boy, Yosuke, scoffed. “Says the guy who got one of his girlfriends some new shoes.”

Wait, did Adachi hear him right? Girlfriends? Well damn, who knew Dojima’s nephew was such a player?!

Though it didn’t look like the Satonaka girl was wearing anything different or eye-catching. Rather, she was carrying a box under her arm. Was she embarrassed by the gift and didn’t want to wear the shoes right away?

If Shirou was embarrassed though, his next comment didn’t show it at all. “You’re just jealous because you didn’t think to give shoes to your girlfriend yet.”

“…shut up.”

Well played, Emiya. Well played.

At this point, they entered the electronics store, and Adachi stopped following as to not arouse any suspicion. He did see Rise latch onto the red-haired boy’s shoulder and make an excited remark that he was too far away to hear.

What did they plan to do in the electronics store? And who’s Teddie? Other cops noticed them entering there a lot, but their duties were just keeping to their patrols and making sure no one shoplifted or waved around weapons again.

Adachi paced in front of the store, looking in to see the odd quintet talking in front of a big TV. He was currently off duty, so he had no reason to act professional. It meant he had no reason to look into this either. Something about Emiya and his circle of friends seemed to imply he was in the middle of all this…

But what did he know? The other guys at the station would never believe him, and they barely got Shirogane out of their hair. Dojima’s nephew was on thin ice as is, but if it turned out that what he was doing wasn’t at all bad or illegal, he knew the veteran cop would go medieval on the ass for jumping the gun.

…Adachi really didn’t want to be the one chewed out if that was the case, and made Dojima and the others annoyed enough as it was. It was a miracle they didn’t hate him more than Shirogane, really, but he always fancied himself smarter than he looked.

“Well, it’s not my problem,” Adachi shrugged, already doubling back to the elevator. He was fairly certain that kids like them wouldn’t get into any trouble.

<><><>

TV World; road to Steamy Bathhouse

“Girls and an inferiority complex… Girrrrrrrrrls, compleeeeeeex…”

As soon as they told Teddie the clues to Kanji, he went to work sniffing through the fog. Everyone followed the bear as he did his thing, but were getting worried through the long trek. “He’s been at this for twelve minutes now,” Rise said. “Is this normal?”

“He said the fog has been messing up with his senses, so things must be getting harder to pick up,” Shirou told her. “But with the clues we gave him, he should be able to pick them up accurately.”

“Oh, don’t worry! I know the way back home easy!” Teddie turned to them with a smile. “It has a distinctive smell of Yosuke, and it was a nice safe space away from most Shadows.”

“Wait, why me?” Yosuke asked. “I didn’t do anything!”

Chie looked to the eerie sky, a hand stroking her chin in thought. “Actually, weren’t you complaining about something that time? Needing to have to go…”

“Ah, he needed to use the restroom, right?”

“That’s it!”

“But that means…” Yukiko began, before she and Rise both turned to Yosuke, standing between them. She quickly ran in fear and clung to Chie’s back. “EEEEWWWWW! That is so gross.”

“What?!” the offended teen yelled. “I so didn’t piss my pants!”

Rise made a repulsed face, and took deliberate steps to the side, away from Yosuke. “…I so didn’t need to hear that.”

“Well, I didn’t!”

“And no one bothered to ask, thank you very much!” Chie yelled back. “You’re just making it sound more suspicious the more you bring it up!”

“How is telling the truth suspicious?!”

“Because you’re awfully specific on whether you peed your pants or not!”

“Because I didn’t!!”

As he watched from behind Yosuke and the girls’ growing argument, Shirou smiled wistfully. Tuning their voices off, he looked ahead and picked up the pace with Teddie leading the way. “We’re walking to save a fellow student, and we’re making jokes at each other’s expense. When I planned to fight Shadows, this isn’t what I had in mind.”

“You don’t sound all that upset,” Teddie noted.

“Well, it certainly beats having to do this alone,” he replied. “Between helping others and catching the culprit to this whole mess, hanging out like this feels… nice.”

“Yeah, it does,” he said quickly with a smile. Of course the bear would do anything not to feel lonely.

“Shirou-sensei?”

“Hmm?”

“You’ve noticed that the Shadows that have been converted to Personas, they have similar powers to when they were berserk, albeit on a smaller scale.”

“…I did notice a pattern, yes.” Jiraiya’s wind. Tomoe’s ice. Konohana Sakuya’s fire. “It’s very convenient we have a full team of varied elements to exploit the Shadows’ weaknesses.”

“Yeah, very lucky,” Teddie said. “Although… Rise-chan’s powers would blow ours out of the way in terms of scouting, if she… no, when she gets used to it.”

Ah, so that’s it. “You’re worried Rise will take over and do a better job as support?”

Teddie frowned. “You saw what her Shadow did. We barely beat her when she literally danced around us- I mean, you guys. And if, no, when she figures out her powers-”

“Then you’ll be there to help her.”

The bear blinked and looked up to him. “Huh?”

“It’s possible her Persona abilities would dwarf anything you or I could scrounge up, but she’s new to this. She’s going to need all the help she can get to keep up on our mission from here on out.”

“That’s true…”

“Furthermore, you’re still our resident expert on this world, knowing more than the rest of us, and you still got me beat when it comes to Gradation Air. Your Reinforcement was vital and helped save the day.” Shirou told him with a smile. “You’re invaluable to us, Teddie. Never forget that.”

“Shirou-sensei…!” Teddie sniffled, overcome with emotion, and his eyes watered so much it looked like he was condensing mist from his tear ducts.

Wait, mist?

Shirou looked around him, noticing for the first time how oddly thick the fog was around them, obscuring their view even with the glasses on. The others stopped arguing and were also starting to notice the shift in the fog.

“Uh, guys?” Rise called out. “Is it just me, or is the fog getting thicker here?”

“It’s not fog, it’s steam,” Yukiko said quickly, lifting her glasses up briefly. “Fog is essentially a state of water condensed into cloud form, but closer to the earth’s surface. And it lifts out of the TV world to become rain in our world.”

“Wow, you can tell?!” Chie asked. She and the others were amazed by her deduction and wisdom.

“It’s not that hard to figure out,” Shirou said. “The water cycle is one of the basics of science. Anyone who’s ever made a mini-cyclone with two taped-up soda bottles could understand that.”

“That, and my family owns a hot springs inn,” the heiress reminded. “You can tell the difference easy between a cloud formed by lower humidity and one made with too much. So much that the water boils quickly from a heated source.”

“Is that so,” said Yosuke dimly. Then his eyes widened, as if a lightbulb went off in his head. “Wait, wasn’t the Midnight Channel last night set to a sauna?”

As they looked around, they could make out the inner details of a bathhouse changing room around them. Pale and pink tiles led inside, with rows of lockers leading to a set of wooden doors at the end. Small stools and towels were set up for changing, giving it more ambience without the presence of people.

Teddie smiled and spread his arms in glee. “What do you know! We’re here!”

Everyone stared at the bear, exasperated. “Why didn’t you say anything before?” Yosuke asked.

“Probably because you were all too busy talking about bowel movements,” Shirou told him. “On the plus side, we’re in a changing room so if anyone has to go…”

“I’m fine, thanks,” Yosuke droned. The girls snickered amongst themselves.

Before anyone made another step forward, a sultry voice called out from nowhere. “C'mere, pussycat...”

Everyone stiffened, and someone let a rather shrill squeak of fear. “Wh-what was that?!” Rise cried out.

“These places tend to have voices pop up that are meant to reflect the victim’s reality,” Shirou explained. “But this feels…”

“Oh... Such well-defined pecs...” Another voice called, both soothing and welcoming. If words had feeling, they might have caressed the young teens whom their words were directed towards.

The voices were close, and soon everyone was looking up to see two bodybuilders standing at the door and looming over them like giants. They were both in monochrome down the middle, their left half white and their right half black. Besides the briefs hugging their groins, they were naked and well chiseled in muscle. Their faces were remarkably human, sporting full lips and thin black mustaches. They could pass off as identical twins, with the only difference between the two men being insignias itched on their biceps; one had a blue T on his black side, and another had a red N on his white side.

They were both smiling at the group, and the man with the N said, “There's no need to be scared...”

“…I think I might take that bathroom break now, thanks.”

“Eww.”

Ignoring Yosuke, Shirou took a tentative step forward towards them. “Is Kanji Tatsumi here?”

“Indeed,” The T man nodded. “Do you wish to enjoy a soak in the Steamy Bathhouse?”

“I just want to find Kanji, and hopefully bring him back home,” Shirou said. “I don’t have the time or money for your services, sorry.”

The two bodybuilders turned and exchange frowns, shaking their heads and tsking. “Such a waste of good manhood. I was hoping someone of his beautiful physique would be a shoe-in.”

“Truly a lost cause if there ever was one, Nice Guy.”

“Wait, your name is Nice Guy?” That would explain the N, at least.

“That’s correct. And I am Tough Guy. No relation.” The T guy paused long enough to smile and make a knowing side-glance. “Yet.”

“Oh, you big softie!”

...this was getting off track, and horribly awkward at that. “I’m sorry you feel I insulted you, but me and my friends here just want to bring Kanji back. Too much steam and hot water could lead him passing out from heat stroke, or even drowning under the water. And you don’t want your business to go under because of that, do you?”

Tough Guy and Nice Guy exchanged glances and whispers again. Back at the group, Chie looked between him and her friends. “What the hell is he doing?”

“I don’t know,” Yosuke shrugged. “Diplomacy rolls?”

“I thought DnD was just a cover,” Rise said.

“And isn’t this dangerous? I mean, those are Shadows, right?” Yukiko asked.

“They don’t look like Shadows. Personas, maybe?” Teddie wondered.

“Wait, you don’t know? I thought you lived here, Teddie.”

The bear shook his head. “All I know for sure is that they come from this Kanji you’re looking for, along with the rest of this place. It’s not all that different from Yuki-chan having that prince Shadow around.”

“Prince?”

Rise’s question was ignored in favor of Yukiko’s embarrassment, as Chie quickly added, “That’s different. It had a Noh mask and everything, while these guys look like humans. How could you not know every weird thing that goes on here?”

Teddie had a frown on his face that looked wise beyond words. “Would you have tried looking for answers before all this?”

No one had an answer to that.

“Okay, thanks,” Shirou told the two bouncers before returning to the others. “Okay, we’re clear. Kanji’s inside so let’s hurry after him.”

The bear and teens all blinked. “Wait, just like that?” Yosuke asked.

“Mister Emiya here has made a convincing case for your… fairer friends,” Tough Guy frowned towards the girls. “As long as you behave yourselves and don’t do anything untoward to our guests, you are free to enjoy the facilities.”

“Do enjoy yourselves!” Nice Guy added with a smile, before sneering aside, “Although I doubt moody bitches would feel anything short of a spanking.”

Rise and Yukiko gasped in shock. Chie took a threatening step forward with a few choice words to say but stopped when Shirou placed his hand firmly over her shoulder.

“Quickly,” he said rather tensely. “Before they change their minds.”

Chie kept her mouth shut for as long as they passed the grinning, waving Guys. Upon entering the bathhouse, a heatwave hit them from the steam, blending with the fog and wooden décor in an orange haze. The path was long, there were rows of benches to sit against the walls, and indentions full of burning red sauna rocks.

When they were at a far enough distance and out of earshot from the entrance, Chie returned the favor by turning Shirou around to face her. “What the hell was that about?!”

“This dungeon is apparently a men’s only sauna,” Shirou said. “They were intent on only allowing me, Yosuke, and possibly Teddie in, but not you three.”

“And now you’re concerned about being nice with Shadows? We could just kick their asses like all the others!”

“I’d rather avoid conflict with facets of Kanji’s psyche if I can help it.”

Everyone looked surprised and concerned. Yosuke in particular looked fearful. “Facets?” Yukiko asked.

Shirou nodded, turning to Yukiko. “They looked different, but they were definitely Shadows, and strong ones at that. They were kind of like the Charming Prince in having a deep connection to his psyche and this dungeon.”

“Oh! Like how Yuki-chan wanted to score all the hot guys in the castle?”

“Teddie!” Chie growled. “Learn some damn tact! You know that’s not true!”

Beside him, Yukiko slumped and hid her face in her palms. Teddie pondered for a moment before snapping his digits. “Oh, that’s right! She didn’t just try to make a move on Shirou-sensei and Yosuke, but you too, Chie-chan! OWW!”

“That’s NOT what I meant!” she shouted after giving the bear a fresh lump.

“I’m never going to hear the end of this, am I?” the inn heiress lamented to herself.

Rise pouted as the context of the situation, while interesting and hilarious, flew straight over her head. “You guys owe me an explanation for this later,” she demanded.

“No, we don’t!”

Throughout the whole squabble, Shirou was pinching his nose in exasperation. “ANYWAY,” he finally raised his voice, forcing the others to listen. “We’re not ready yet to take those Shadows on, and even if we could, we might damage Kanji’s mental state worse than him outright rejecting it.”

“I… guess that makes sense,” Chie admitted.

“It was tricky talking to them, I admit. They kept eyeing me like a piece of meat or something,” Shirou continued. He failed to notice the girls exchanging knowing, embarrassed looks. “But I managed to convince them to give us a pass.”

“Just like that?”

“...I might have promised to give them a full back massage on a later date.”

Bewildered silence filled the room. Chie turned to Yukiko. Yosuke to Teddie. Rise to Tama. Then they all turned to Shirou, who was sheepishly rubbing the back of his head and blushing. “I couldn’t think of anything else, all right?!”

Yukiko giggled. “Helpful to a fault even to Shadows? That’s just so like you, Emiya-kun!”

“Yeah yeah, he’s a great, weird guy. Can we hurry up and find Kanji, now?” Rise asked. “This place is so stuffy I think my hair’s getting a perm.”

“Good idea. This place looks rather wide between floors, so if anyone has a plan of action, now’s a good time for suggestions.”

Yosuke’s hand shot up. “I have a suggestion, leader!”

“What is it, Yosuke?”

“Can we head back and call it a day?”

For a moment, no one said anything. They had assumed he was joking, but the uneasy smile said otherwise.

“But we just got here!” Teddie told them. “And I know for sure Kanji’s down here!”

“And that is all great progress! So I think it’s safe to head back and rest up for another day, perhaps maybe a week later, or two.”

“Yosuke-kun,” Yukiko said slowly. “You’re not… scared, are you?”

“What? Me? What a silly proposition!” Yosuke quickly replied. He tried to laugh but his voice cracked between chuckles. “I just uh… need to check up with Sacchin, see. I promised her dinner tonight, and the phones don’t work around here so I was thinking of heading back and seeing we can…”

At this point the girls were glaring. Even the fox. “Okay, I’m scared! You saw those two guys! They’re ripped, campy, and looked like they wanted to plow me to the ground! My ass isn’t safe here, man!”

“Not helping your case, Hanamura,” said Chie.

“We’re going to have to fight them eventually, especially if we want to save Kanji before his Shadow kills him. We promised to save all the victims involved in this, and Kanji is no exception. You don’t want anyone to end up like Konishi, don’t you?”

“Well, no, but—"

“And even if you decide to head out without us, you do realize that you’ll have to run into those guys again, right? Because they’re guarding the door and thought you to be very lean and handsome.”

Between the dry tone of his voice, and the deadpan stare in his eyes, Shirou wasn’t the least bit amused of his suggestion to leave. Seeing everyone else stare at him with the same level of disdain, perhaps even more, Yosuke slowly lowered his hand back down. “This is gonna suck,” he whimpered.

“Well, since there are no other suggestions, I guess we’ll move on to business,” Shirou said.

“And what business is that, senpai?” asked Rise.

“The same thing we’ve been doing from the start. Fight Shadows, get stronger, and find Kanji before the next rainstorm. But more importantly, we need to get everyone up to speed on tactics.”

[Mattias]

That Adachi bit was strange. I know he's really laid back, but you'd think he'd be a little more invested in the team.

[MWkillkenny84]

She looked up at him coolly and with a critical once-over. “Are you really the star of a harem show?”

Marie! Stop hitting that poor Fourth Wall, it's an endangered species and it already get enough blows from Deadpool and the Pinkie Pies!

That Adachi bit was strange. I know he's really laid back, but you'd think he'd be a little more invested in the team.

Or perhaps it is because Kishou is ready to toss against us another curveball and.... dun dun dun... reveal to us that Adachi is not the "True Culprit" of this iteration of the adventures of the Investigation Team?

[Kieran]

Marie! Stop hitting that poor Fourth Wall, it's an endangered species and it already get enough blows from Deadpool and the Pinkie Pies!

True - but on the other hand, it's perfectly reasonable for her to do it; residents of the Velvet Room have, periodically, shown that kind of awareness before. Besides, it's hilarious.

Or perhaps it is because Kishou is ready to toss against us another curveball and.... dun dun dun... reveal to us that Adachi is not the "True Culprit" of this iteration of the adventures of the Investigation Team?

That could be - on the other hand, from what I remember of the Golden Animation, Adachi is rather apathetic as a matter of course. He may genuinely not care yet; it's a little early for him to be annoyed at his fun being spoiled, since he's got at least two more chances . . .



Excellent chapter, as expected - though I am, as always, waiting for some of Shirou's newer Social Links (Rise and Marie, specifically) to come to prominence.

[MWkillkenny84]

That could be - on the other hand, from what I remember of the Golden Animation, Adachi is rather apathetic as a matter of course. He may genuinely not care yet; it's a little early for him to be annoyed at his fun being spoiled, since he's got at least two more chances . . .

We already got a Sacchin Surprise, how much would be strange to see another 'Nasuverse' visitor *koff* magus researcher*koff* hijiacking the plot from Adachi, even more so if there was a small use of 'convincing *koff*hypnosis*koff* to make him forget his Persona and what he already did with Namatame?

Excellent chapter, as expected - though I am, as always, waiting for some of Shirou's newer Social Links (Rise and Marie, specifically) to come to prominence.

... would the ex-idol and the fragment of a Goddess be the first to suggest the Tenchi Solution for their love-related problems with Shirou (including the potential competition from Fuyuki)?

[Xamusel]

Magus Researcher? Really?

...Kenny, you're evil, you know that?

[Kieran]

We already got a Sacchin Surprise, how much would be strange to see another 'Nasuverse' visitor *koff* magus researcher*koff* hijiacking the plot from Adachi, even more so if there was a small use of 'convincing *koff*hypnosis*koff* to make him forget his Persona and what he already did with Namatame?

Magus Researcher? Really?

...Kenny, you're evil, you know that?

No, here's the evil thought: given that the Midnight Channel and everything surrounding it involves rumours, does that not sound like ideal grounds for TATARI/Night of Wallachia?

... would the ex-idol and the fragment of a Goddess be the first to suggest the Tenchi Solution for their love-related problems with Shirou (including the potential competition from Fuyuki)?

Rise, no - she's the jealous sort of Lovers incarnation. Marie, on the other hand . . . She'd probably view the others as concubines, but Izanami is an old-school type of goddess - and one that exists to grant wishes. If Shirou wants everyone to get along, and no one to be unhappy, that's an obvious solution to work towards, isn't it . . .?