Falling Away(A persona 3 fanfic)

Part IV ( Chord )

"The time given to us was too short..."

" Did something happen?", Ryoji asked her.

Sure, he knew something happened (was he supposed to know? It seemed like a dream... ), but he didn't know the whole story.

"Junpei-kun just lost someone dear to him..", Minako said.

"People die... It's just something you have to accept... Am I too cold, Minako?", Ryoji said, looking down sadly.

"You're not, Ryoji, people have different views in life, you know..", Minako answered.

"Junpei-kun is someone I care about. That's why I'm worried... It's just... I never seen him this way before.."

Ryoji looks directly at Minako's eyes.

"Is there anything I can do?", Ryoji said, the sincerity of his word echoes in his eyes.

"My dearest... I'm sorry.."

Minako flinched at the thought. Those ice blue eyes. The dream.

"I'm sure there is, Ryoji-kun..", she answered silently.

"People die... Wait... was it something I've said before? I think it was someone precious to me too...", Ryoji mutters to himself.

She may have been dreaming too much, she thought. "Dreams are also nightmares as nightmares are also dreams. They are one and the same."

"Love that was like..."

Ryoji took you to school. Together, you climbed over the gates and quietly made you're way to the rooftop.

"I wonder if we'll get in trouble if somebody finds us..", he said absentmindedly.

"We'll just have to not be seen..", Minako answered playfully, trying to dispel whatever anxiety Ryoji may have felt. Besides, he was the one who brought her here, right?

"Haha... I see. You're an interesting person...", Ryoji answered, laughing gently.

"When I'm alone, I don't feel right...", he said, leaning on the rails.

"Thinking about you... It scares me... I just can't figure out why...", he continued, looking at the distance.

"Hey, Minako, I-I'm..", he looked down.

"I'm...?", Minako continued.

"I'm really here, right?", he shook his head, as if he was unsure of what to say. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't be saying that...", he smiled.

"I... don't want to lose you. Because you're important to me... that's probably why I'm scared...", Ryoji sighed.

"You're the only one there is for me.... The only one I want... So please, stay with me...", he said sincerely, looking directly at Minako's eyes.

"Okay.", Minako replied.

Ryoji's eyes lit up with delight. "Minako.. Yeah... Thanks..."

He held Minako's hands gently.

"You're the most precious thing in the world to me... more precious than my own life..", Ryoji said, smiling happily.

".... a kiss in the wind..."

"I think .... this is my first time...", Ryoji said, sitting at the foot of her bed.

It wasn't clearly your first time, Ryoji...
She can almost imagine him swinging his feet while sitting there.

A 2 weeks have passed ... since that event. Since then everything is going downhill.

"Please touch me..."

Minako furiously slashed at the shadow, making it disentegrate into the darkness of the dark hour.

"Persona!", Minako shouted, firing her evoker at her temple.

"Make sure that I exist."

It was the god of death that heeded her calling. Waves of purple light flashed and the shadows were gone.

"Feel for yourself that I'm actually here.."

She aimed her evoker at her head again. A small hand grabbed her arm.

"Minako-san! There are no more shadows left! It's over...", Ken coaxed her to put down her evoker. Tears streamed from her eyes.

"Why...",Minako muttered to herself.

"Minako-san...", Ken answered, loss of words, unsure of what to say. No one bothered to explain what exactly is happening to him again. Because he is still a kid.

Koromaru whined softly, sitting next to Minako.

"I'm... sorry... Ken-kun ...", Minako said, returning her evoker to it's holster. Fuuka ,Ken and Koromaru are the only ones that are still willing to go to Tartarus. And she was acting like this.

"Let's just... stop for today...", Minako said softly.

As she lay on her bed, she clearly remembered that night, December 2.

She was probably the only one that wasn't too surprised to see Ryoji active in the dark hour.

"Minako..", Ryoji said, his eyes showing mixed emotions of fear, sadness, shame...

The others may see him as a shadow, a monster or whatever that he is.

But that night she actually saw a boy who is afraid of himself. Of what he is that he doesn't want to be.

"I'm sorry. It's all my fault...", he said before he collapsed.

"Ryoji...", she said softly, supporting the now unconsious Ryoji.

The next day he gave all of you a death sentence and his final request to Minako: "Kill me."

"I'll be back on New Year's eve..", he said, heading towards the door.

"Pharos..", Minako said to him.

His eyes widened in surprise. His clear blue eyes looked to her crimson eyes with regret as he shut the door.

"Hey, Ryoji-kun, wait!", Junpei said, opening the door.

He dissappeared, like he used to, during his visits during the dark hour.

"He's ....gone..", Junpei muttered.

"We'll see him again on New Year's Eve...", Fuuka said.

Minako couldn't think very clearly even up to now. How does a person choose how to die?

"The life given to this heart was too short"