The twins were preparing to leave their room , each of them was brushing their hair . Outside , the weather was both snowy and cloudy , giving the room a dreamy feeling , like it was both morning and night at the same time , blended together to create a pale day when light is not strong enough to keep you awake , but it was still a little too bright for you to go to sleep .
" why is it ... so cold here ... " Minato grumbled
" I think the boiler broke , there was no hot water when I went to take a shower "
" seriously ? It was acting up for three days now ! Why hasn't anyone fixed it ?! "
" I think a chairman is supposed to have someone fix it ... but this dorm has got a bad reputation for being cursed , or haven't you heard ? " Minako giggled " two chairmen have died in a row , people are scared of this place ! "
" ugh ... dammit ... " Minato sighed , as he stood and made his way to the door" I don't think I can blame them , with the Apathy Syndrome and all the disappearances , even I would've been superstitious "
" Minato ! " Minako stopped him , she hesitantly asked " about what Margaret said ... "
" I know we agreed with our friends on honesty , but so far everyone has broken that rule once . I think we're allowed to do that once , too, so long as it doesn't affect them "
" yeah ... I think telling them what Margaret said would hurt them more ... but how will we keep it a secret? "
" just do this " Minato turned to his sister , as he swiped the palm of his hand across his face , as if he was wearing a mask
The students trudged through the snow to the school , as snowflakes were falling slowly from the sky . Maybe it was the Apathy Syndrome , maybe it was the patients becoming more erratic , but the city was starting to get more and more neglected . Trash and garbage was starting to accumulate , snow was building up in the streets , and posters were being plastered on the walls haphazardly and even on the snowy ground , to say nothing about the incomprehensible graffiti. The Dark Hour had become an undeniable phenomenon long ago , people were aware of an impending doom and were even talking about it . Maybe they weren't told directly, but the world around them was falling apart , slowly but surely .
" you know what I think ? " one student whispered " I think we're in for a zombie apocalypse ! "
" what ?! Where did that come from ?! "
" think about it ... these apathy dudes are going aggressive every so often , attacking and even biting people who mostly eventually get the apathy syndrome , too ! "
" is that true ? " the classmates looked at each other in doubt
" I think not ! " another scoffed " I mean people were getting sick even when they weren't bitten ! You probably just want to be a part of some action or survival horror movie ! "
" I don't think it's a zombie apocalypse , but I still think it's the end of the world ! " one among them decided " I read about it on a website... the world is coming to an end in one month , but if you believe in the end that it is a deliverance and a blessing , you will be saved "
" what the hell ! It's that bullshit cult , you idiot ! "
" well , to be honest I didn't understand what they were saying , but it sounded ominous and interesting! "
Among the crowd , the members of SEES were trudging toward the school as well . They could see that the number of students walking to school is much less than usual , as if half of the school was missing . Apparently , most of them were suffering from the apathy syndrome and had to be locked in asylums , with how erratic they were behaving , and they were also some who ' pretended ' to be suffering from apathy syndrome just to skip school . The young Persona users could hear them talking about the end , salvation , the apathy syndrome and everything related to the Dark Hour . It made them feel powerless to protect the innocent society of the horrors of the Dark Hour .
However , in that abyss of futility and failure , the snow seemed to soothe the troubled hearts of the students , more specifically those who feared their fate . As soon as the students arrived at the school , they found themselves unable to resist the temptation , and began playing in the snow . Stuffing it in the shape of a ball and tossing it at each other , while the girls set out to build a snow man .
" it's a good thing I brought a carrot with me for lunch " Natsuki said as she stuffed a carrot in the snowman's face
" here ... here is the mouth and eyes ... " Sumire said as she stuffed a few pebbles in the snow
" wow , Sumi ! I had no idea you were so good at building a snow man ! Where did you use to live ? "
" I ... I watched a few videos... "
" well , I should've done the same . I mean look at our snowman and then look at the others' ! The difference is like night and day ! " Yuko said proudly
" you're right—ahh !!! " Rio winced as she received a snowball to the face , startled by that , she turned and saw the boys throwing snow balls around .
" ahh ! What the ... ?! Who threw that ?!! " Yuko angrily looked around , and was met with a snowball from Kenji " Kenji ?! What do you think you're doing ?!
" that was Kaz " Kenji replied quickly as he hid his snowball ammunition , but then more students began throwing snowballs
" alright , that's it ! " Natsuki eagerly grabbed the snowman's head
" m—my snowman ... " Sumire weakly objected
" TAKE THAT !!! " Natsuki chucked the snowman's head at the boys . While she failed to hit any of them , the panicked boys stumbled on the snow and some fell face first in it
" SNOWBALL FIGHT !!! "
the field in front of the school erupted in chaos , the boys hid behind the trees and attacked , while the girls used the remains of the snowmen as cover . Among them , the members of SEES found themselves in the crossfire . At first they were confused , but then they caught on the situation , with the girls rushing to the girls' side , and the boys to the boys' side .
" I ... I don't think I should ... " Mitsuru seemed uncertain
" c'mon , senpai ! " Fuuka eagerly invited her " we don't see snow all that commonly in Iwatodai ! "
" I've been waiting for this ! " Akihiko said as he grabbed a snowball
" what a pain ... " Shinjiro groaned as he was dragged by Akihiko
" we started this war , and we'll end it ! " Junpei declared
" oh yeah ?! " Yukari boldly replied " unlike you losers , we have Aigis ! "
" initiating battle mode ! "
Aigis jumped high in the air , and began tossing snowballs at the baffled boys . However , the leafless trees still blocked most of her attack . The boys eagerly stayed close to the thicker branches to make sure most of the snowballs thrown at them will be blocked like before . In fact , the boys were preparing an aggressive counterattack , as they tied the handles of their schoolbags to the branches and made them into catapults for bigger chunks of snowballs . The girls remained committed to their assault , and they continued to fight . Just as the battle was reaching its climax , the door of the school was flung open . The students looked at the door in shock , thinking a teacher was out there to scold them . However , at the door stood the twins , their hands filled with snowballs
" what's good , you losers ! " Minako boldly exclaimed
" we'll show you why we were called once the ' blizzard twins ' ! " Minato added
From the windows , the teachers were watching , but no one among them wanted to stop this total snowball war between the students . In the end , they thought this is what the students needed to cheer them up , in a time where future has become a distant mirage . In the end , when the bell rang , the students had no choice but to end the snowball fight and return to their classes . While neither a winner nor a loser was confirmed , deep down , everyone was happy , and for a short while everyone forgot about the circumstances of their lives .
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During lunch break , the talk about Apathy syndrome returned to fill the classes . The members of SEES could only listen to it quietly . While the twins were trying not to pay attention to what they were saying , Junpei turning to them . He asked them to meet him at the rooftop , and the twins simply agreed . Making their way to rooftop of the school , a cold gust of wind passed through the twins as they opened the door to the outside .
" yo ! You came ! " Junpei said as he approached them
" What is it , Junpei ? " Minako asked curiously
" well ... I just felt like talking ... " Junpei said as he looked at view before them " but if you have something else to do ... then ... "
" I'm cool with talking ... " Minato sighed " anything to drown away the buzzing about the apathy syndrome and the end ... "
" hehe ... yeah ... " Junpei laughed wryly " do you think we'll live enough to see the coming of age day ... I used to take for granted , how silly ! "
" don't worry about it , Junpei ! We'll definitely be alive by then ! " Minako eagerly replied , while her brother didn't comment .
" well ... the world is already falling apart , isn't it ? " Junpei sighed " people have been passing out , others are going missing ... senpai once told me that people don't remember what happens during the Dark Hour , so everything that happens in it becomes rumors and urban legends , but it's going way out of control at this point ! "
" yeah ... there's only so much you can blame on poor remembrance , and a lot has been happening in the Dark Hour ... " Minato said as he clutched the rails of the rooftop with clear frustration " we used to be able to patch it out , whenever we rescued a victim or something like that . However , more and more people are wandering into Tartarus, and they're becoming of the Lost more unpredictably than ever before . It's aggravating ... I hate this ! "
" it's gotta be Nyx ... "
" yeah ... and then there's that doomsday cult " Junpei sighed " they've been running around telling other people bullshit like ' if you believe in salvation and deliverance , you will be saved from the end of the world ' ... what the hell does that even mean ?! "
" don't bother with that ... " Minato replied " we have enough on our plate as it is ... "
" speaking of having too much on our plate ... we also have Strega to deal with ... " Junpei said as he glared at the world around him " how are they still alive ?! Didn't we deal with them back when they kidnapped Fuuka and nearly kill you , Minako ? How did they survive that ?! "
" I don't know ... not even Ryoji could tell us ... " Minako replied with a troubled expression
" none of that matters , our opponent is Nyx " Minato said firmly " we defeat her , we save the world ... the end ... "
" yeah , and with that new secret power you have , this will be a cakewalk , right ? "
" yup ! " Minako nodded with a smile " Nyx wouldn't stand a chance ! "
" and after we're done with that , I'll treat you to the biggest bowl of ramen you've ever seen ! "
" I'll take your word for it , then , so don't you weasel your way out of it ! " Minato laughed
" I'm glad to hear that ... " Junpei said " so when this is all over , we'll still be together , best friends , right ? "
" yes ! You know it ! "
" great ! Anyway , lunch break is almost over , so I shouldn't keep you here for too long . Eat something before the lessons start , okay ? " Junpei said as he left the rooftop back into the school
The twins stared at the world outside . Thinking of how their conversation with Junpei went , of the world after Nyx , and if they were going to live that long to see it .
" Minato ... let's make a promise ! " Minako eagerly held her brother's hand " this new power ... let's not use it ! "
" what ... but Nyx ... "
" we don't need that power , I know we don't ! " Minako looked into her brother's eyes earnestly " we can defeat Nyx without that power ! I mean look how far we've come , and we have everyone fighting alongside us ! "
" Minako ... " Minato stared at his sister with a pained look on his face
" don't look at me like that , please !!! " Minako cried " we have so many Personas , each is more powerful than the last ! One of them has to be strong enough to defeat Nyx ! What if we called both Orpheus Telos and Orpheus Picaro at the same time , we can overwhelm her then , can't we ? "
" I don't know ... I know nothing about Nyx , just like you ... "
" that's fine ! I still believe we can do this without any stupid sacrifices , okay ? Okay ? " Minako forced Minato's gaze back at her " look , you and me both have this power , do you want me to sacrifice myself ?! "
" I ... I don't think ... " Minato seemed hesitant for just a few more seconds , but then he looked at Minako firmly " no , you're right ... we've come this far without sacrifices , even Shinjiro is back ! We're going to win this fight as we have always done , without any sacrifices ! "
The twins reassured each other that they would defeat Nyx without any sacrifice , before they sat down to eat their food . After that conversation , they exchanged few to no words between each other until the bell rang again
Only twenty days stand between them and the promised day
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