Akihiko had woken up as early as 04:00 and could never find sleep after that for the rest of the night , so he decided to grab his boxing gloves and go for a warmup . Before he knew it , he got carried away and continued practicing until the sun was beginning to rise . Seeing as how there was little point in trying to sleep after that , he decided to descend into the lounge . To his surprise , Ken was there as well , sitting with Koromaru by his side .
" you're early ... " Akihiko remarked as he approached him
" yeah ... I couldn't sleep ... " Ken said as he softly brushed Koromaru " an enemy that cannot be defeated ... no TV show has ever prepared me fro this ... "
" is it really impossible to defeat Nyx ? " Akihiko thought loudly , and as he saw Ken looking at him silently with confusion and surprise , he let a stiff chuckle " the more I think about it , the more I hate the idea that I cannot defeat it , and the more I want to fight it ... heh ... I guess I didn't change all that much after all , Shinji would probably mock me for thinking recklessly ... "
" I don't know ... I think Shinjiro-san will probably be the first to say that he will fight Nyx ... " Ken sighed " you weren't there to see him fight Takaya back ... "
" yeah ... well , I've made up my mind ... " Akihiko bumped his fists together " I'll fight ... I won't let Shinji call me a coward ! Nyx can't be defeated , to hell with that ! The only one who decides what enemy I can and can't defeat is me ! "
" Sanada-san ... " Ken felt a fire burn within him as he heard Akihiko's words and saw his face , he had the same gleam in his eyes he always had whenever he entered the ring " you know ... now that I think about it , even Koromaru would agree with Shinjiro-san ... he defended his master's resting place against a shadow that he could never defeat , and in doing so found the strength within himself to call a Persona ! "
" yeah , he looks ready to fight Nyx right now ! " Akihiko nodded with a smile as he saw Koromaru wiggle his tail excitedly and jump in place before Ken , then he turned to Ken " what about you ? Don't think of me or the others , think of your own life ... "
" well , I gave it some thought , and I want to fight , too ! " Ken said eagerly " if I die now , the only thing I can tell my mother in the afterlife is how I tried to kill Shinjiro-san , and caused all this trouble for the team and especially for Minako-san ! I want to fight , I want to achieve something in my life "
" I see ... "
" besides , now that I think about it , if I choose to have my memories erased , that would include my understanding of Shinjiro-san's conflict, and I don't want that ... "
" what are you boy's talking about this early in the morning ? " Minako's chirpy question interrupted their conversation
" we could ask you the same question , you're early today " Akihiko turned and stared at Minako and the extremely long scarf that she was carrying " what is that ? "
" oh , this is for Shin-chan " Minako smiled sweetly " I'm still new at this , so it came out a little long and uneven , but I still think the two of us can share it "
" oh , Minako-san , about our—! " Ken started
" so you're going to visit him right now ? " Akihiko intervened , while giving Ken a meaningful look that they shouldn't tell her yet , not when her mind's occupied
" yup ! I'll probably be back by noon " Minako said as she walked toward the exit " see you later ! "
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Minako arrived at the hospital, and was met with a hectic sight . Ambulances were storming out of it alarming quantity , and inside doctors and nurses were rushing around the corridors hastily , sometimes pushing her aside to move . The whole atmosphere stirred Minako's heart and made her feel nervous . She held her gift close to her heart , as she hurried toward Shinjiro's room .
While she was trying to force her way through the chaos , she learned from the gossipers and bystanders that many hospitals were becoming more and more flooded with patients with Apathy syndrome , most of which were restrained because they were becoming aggressive at night . Those patients who weren't suffering from Apathy syndrome were victims of those who were during their rampage , from drivers who skidded into a wall to avoid someone standing motionlessly in the middle of the street , to people who were minding their own business only for an aggressive patient to attack them and cause them fatal injuries. The mere snippets of these stories was enough to Minako's heart to slump down , and she found herself standing in front of Shinjiro's room wondering what face she should show to him , even though she knew he was unconscious and wouldn't see her face .
" you're visiting the patient Shinjiro Aragaki , aren't you? " a worker asked " Yuzuru-san will be here soon ... "
" y—yes ! "
Minako took a deep breath , and put on her best smile , as she entered the door . However , when she entered the room , she screamed loudly in shock and fear ...
Shinjiro's bed was empty ...
Minako stood before the opened door , her shaking leg barely supporting her , as her mind stammered through what the disappearance of Shinjiro meant . The room was tidy and clean , as if it was never used . Minako found herself checking the number of the room over and over again , but it was definitely Shinjiro's . Just as she was panicking , though , the sound of the nurse responsible for Shinjiro's condition reached her ears from the chaos that was around her room .
" ... she's been visiting you every day ! Just wait until I call her and have her talk to you ... oh ! Minako's here ?! "
Minako's eyes darted to the source of the voice , and she found the nurse standing at the end of the crowded corridor and behind her stood Shinjiro . He seemed tired , but he was still smiling . Minako couldn't believe her eyes , in the middle of a hospital that was filled with dying patients and crying families , she had somehow managed to find life . Her lips trembled , and her lungs jolted , as tears came gushing from her eyes as if they were erupting . She ran toward Shinjiro , arms widely folded , before she jumped into his embrace .
" Shinjiro ! Shinjiro ! Shinjiro ! " she wept , as words came out of her mouth erratically , as if one word was racing the other to her throat , as if she was actually interrupting herself " you're alive ! I ... I was so .. so ... so worried ... I thought you ... and I was ... but then ... and he didn't ... and I was ... !!! "
" slow down , I don't understand what you're staying " Shinjiro lightly and playfully bashed her on the head
" he had regained consciousness late at night , and his condition mostly stabilized by morning " the nurse explained " he was undergoing checkup just a moment ago ..."
" you dork ... " Shinjiro sighed as he brushed her hair " people are watching , you know ... "
" well , you can talk to her in your room , Aragaki-san , I'll leave you to each other "
" thank you ... " Shinjiro thanked the nurse who left them in the hall , before looking at the crying Minako who was still attached to him " hey , can you let go of me ? I can't walk with you hugging me like that ! "
" muffer ! " Minako said a muffled yet stern ' never ' as she buried her face in Shinjiro's clothes
After some dragging around , the two of them were finally in Shinjiro's room . Then after a few minutes , Minako finally felt comfortable letting go of him . She then tried to fit her scarf onto him but it was too long for him , so she tried to include herself as well , but it was still long enough to wrap the two of them completely . When that messy situation was resolved , Minako took out a small plastic box , and from it she took two cupcakes , one wrapped in a pink handkerchief , and the other in blue .
" I've been wanting to give you these for a long time ! " Minako eagerly said " give each one a bite and tell me how they taste ! "
" what's that about ? " Shinjiro looked at them curiously
" never mind the details , just do it ! "
" okay ? "
Shinjiro took a bite of the one in blue , and commented his opinion on it . He thought it was it was lacked a little in sugar , but beside that it was good . Then he took a bite of the one in pink , which had a bolder taste , as if more sugar was put into it . He then noticed that Minako was grinning triumphantly , and he wondered if there was a trick that he didn't figure out .
" don't tell me they're both made from cotton and sugar or something , and you just did that to prank me ! " Shinjiro said accusingly
" actually , Fuuka baked the cupcake that was wrapped in blue ! " Minako declared victoriously
" cough ! Seriously ?! " Shinjiro choked at the surprise " the Fuuka Yamagishi ?! Our Fuuka ?! She cooked ?! "
" the one and only ! She's been training daily in our cooking club to impress you , and I've been helping her out , too ! " Minako said proudly " she had a problem with sweets , and would add sugar and honey to basically everything , that's why I had to train her against using it ! "
" looks like you've been very busy , haven't you ? " Shinjiro sighed , but then he noticed the noise if the mess that was outside of his room , and became aware of the panic in the hospital " what's going on out there ? "
" oh ! There was this one time that a friend of mine was accused of tarnishing the school's reputation , but me and Minato ... ! "
" Minako , how was your life in the time I was hospitalized ? " Shinjiro noticed that Minako was hiding something
" w—well ... it's a long story ... ! " Minako mumbled
" uh huh ... we have all the time in the world , go nuts ... "
" b—but ... but I still haven't told you of the time I worked with Minato and Mitsuru senpai to defend a student from bullying , and got a teacher fired and blacklisted ! " Minako nervously tried to sway Shinjiro off the topic " or ... or ... or what about the time in the hot spring in Kyoto when—!!!
" Minako ... you and you're brother have been shouldering this team of fools long enough , it's time you take this burden off of your shoulders , if only for a little while " Shinjiro placed his hand on her shoulder , and said gently yet firmly " besides , you wouldn't want me to worry about you , right ? "
" yeah ... I'm not gonna lie , it's a depressing story ... " Minako sighed in defeat " as it turned out , our previous chairman , Mr. Ikutsuki , was a fraud ... "
" What ?! Shinjiro's eyes were wide open with shock and anger , and Minako winced from his response
" he told us that we can end the Dark Hour by defeating the twelve shadows that appear during full moon nights , but that was nothing but a lie . In reality , defeating the twelve shadows unleashes a thirteenth shadow , Death , and the chairman was preparing to sacrifice us to hasten the appearance of that shadow "
" and where is he now ?! "
" dead ... he lost his life trying to sacrifice us , and Mitsuru senpai's father was killed that night as well ... "
" unbelievable ... "
" then there was this one student , his name was Ryoji . Apparently , he was the harbinger of that shadow , and was supposed to bring about the end of the world ten years ago ... but Aigis stood in his way and sealed him inside us . She actually tried to stop him , but he was too strong for her... "
" wait , run that by me again ! " Shinjiro exclaimed anxiously " you're saying the harbinger of Death was inside you for ten years ?! "
" I know , crazy , right ?! " Minako began crying " Death was inside us all this time , and by coming back to Iwatodai we awakened the twelve shadows! It's like every decision we've made brought us into this messed up reality !!! "
" Okay , stop talking like it's your fault " Shinjiro interrupted her gently as he wiped her tears " you know that the members of SEES owe their lives to you and your brother , right ? "
"Y—yes ... " Minako tried to calm down as she continued " when we defeated the twelfth shadow , Death's harbinger was set free and he took the form of Ryoji . When he regained his memory , he gave us a choice . We can kill him , lose our memory and delay the end of the world , and when the end comes it'll just happen without anyone realizing it . Or we could not kill and have to witness the end of the world . Some creature he called Nyx , which we know literally nothing about , would bring the end of the world that day "
" ... what about a third option ? " Shinjiro said , and was met with Minako's shocked and expectant gaze " we fight Nyx , can we do that ? "
" oh ... well ... about that ... " Minako lowered her gaze in defeat " Nyx can't be defeated ... it just can't ... "
" who told you that ? " Shinjiro said in a cold tone as he stared at Minako's crying face
" it was ... Ryoji ... "
" and you believed him ? "
" what ?! " Minako's eyes darted forward , immediately her crying stopped , but she was now staring at Shinjiro in disbelief . All this time , she had been under the impression that fighting Nyx can only end in their defeat , but that was only based on what Ryoji had told them , but what if that was never the case ? After all , there's a huge difference between extremely hard and impossible , even if it didn't seem like much at first " what ... what do you mean ? "
" moron ... " Shinjiro messed with her hair " who do you think gave me the resolve to keep fighting ? I had said my peace with life and was ready to die , but you gave me a reason to keep living ... And now you give up ? "
" then ... you're ... "
" if I kill that Ryoji , whoever he is , my memories of the Dark Hour will be erased , right ? Well , it's not like I enjoyed my life before I met you , and if I forget the Dark Hour , that would include you as well " Shinjiro shrugged " and Nyx or whatever the hell that is ? He can eat those words for all I care , the only one who decides what I can and can't fight is me ... "
" hehe ... funny ... I always thought it was the other way around ... " Minako laughed bitterly as she held Shinjiro's big hands against her tear soaked cheeks " it was you who gave me the courage to look the impossible in eye ... "
" so you decided to fight Nyx ... " Shinjiro nodded proudly " I'm glad I won't have to convince you ... "
" I just wish I'd managed to resolve all of this before you regained consciousness ... " Minako sighed " between the two of us , you're the only one who kept his promise in the end ... "
" well , you can still keep another promise " Shinjiro smiled to her " you said you wouldn't cry , remember ? "
" of course , I can definitely keep that now that you're here ! Just wait until you get back to the dorm and meet the others ! We're gonna have a big feast to celebrate your arrival , and me and Fuuka will cook something so delicious it'll leave you all licking the tips of your fingers and ... "
After the discussion , Minako was smiling so happily that she was almost shining , as she went on planning for Shinjiro's return , with he sitting on his bed , listening to her with a satisfied smile on his face . It was as if the world outside that room couldn't reach them with its conflict , and it was as if they had the world to themselves . Finally , after all this time , Shinjiro had regained his consciousness and was back with them , and that granted Minako some of the happiness that was taken with throughout all those months , and gave her the last push she needed to cement her decision .
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Congratulations ! Shinjiro is back !!! What ? Did you not expect me to bring him back this early ? Are you satisfied with his early return ? I sure hope you are ...
I was actually planning to use a title card that included him as well with Minako in the frame , but that would mean spoiling the events of this part , so I chose a title card with only Minako in it .
Anyway , if you're done celebrating Shinjiro's return , I have a question for you ...
Do you want him to live until the end or —nah , I'm kidding !
My question is : do you want Shinjiro to return to SEES as a Persona user ? Rest assured , that no matter what you choose , Shinjiro will not die , not after the debate we arranged decided that he would live . Keep that in mind when you comment your opinion ...
You have until the part after the next is published so that's approximately a week to decide . Let me know what you think in the comments , and while you're at it remember to let me know your opinion regarding the changes I plan to make in my upcoming Persona 4 fanfiction . Lastly , if you enjoyed this part , please consider voting for it , and follow me for more updates , and I'll see you in the next part . Stay safe .