I groaned as two bodies landed on me, most likely Hanamura's and Satonaka.
"This is getting old... We seriously need to find a way to enter the TV without landing on each other..." Hanamura groaned.
"Hey... Can you two... get off me? I can't... breathe..." I huffed, lightly hitting my hand onto the ground several times, like a wrestler calling quits.
"Oh! S-Sorry! No wonder the fall wasn't that bad like last time..." Satonaka stuttered as he and Hanamura quickly jumped off of me. I sighed in relief, feeling less pressure from my rib cage. A hand suddenly appeared in front of my face, causing me to look up. It was Hanamura, a worried yet embarrassed look on his face. I nodded a thank you to him as I took his hand, raising to my feet with his assistance.
Once I was up, the first thing Hanamura and I did was putting on our glasses on for the sake of getting a clear vision. Satonaka was looking around, a nostalgic look on his face. He suddenly exclaimed, taking a step back.
"Whoa! It really is that thing from last time!" Satonaka remarked, staring over at the corner where Berry sat in, her back facing us. I blinked in confusion at Berry's behavior and walked over to her, Hanamura and Satonaka behind me.
"Yo, Berry! What're you doing?" Hanamura asked, poking Berry's head. Berry stared out into the distance, a troubled look on her face.
"Can't you tell?" Berry asked, as if it was obvious. "I'm thinking about stuff..."
"What were you thinking about?" I asked, causing Berry to turn around.
"Well... After you and Yosuke left, I began to wonder about where I came from" Berry began, her tone covered in sadness. "After all, if Shadow's came from humans and I'm a bear... Where did I come from?"
"Shadows...?" Satonaka asked. I looked at him, noticing the confused raised eyebrow, and nodded.
"Those monsters you saw when we first came here. Hanamura and I also told you about them" I explained, causing Satonaka to nod, now understanding what I was talking about. I turned my attention back over to Berry who was thinking even harder, her arms crossed with eyes closed.
"I've been deli-bear-ating over it for a long time now," Berry sighed. I twitched at her pun, finding it a bit humors and yet painful. Berry's face suddenly light up, realizing the joke she had unconsciously made. "Hey, that wasn't a bad joke. Heehee!" Hanamura groaned in annoyance as Berry giggled.
"Bad puns aside, did you figure anything out?" Hanamura asked. Before Berry could answer, Hanamura shrugged and crossed his arms over his chest. "Eh, it's probably useless to think about it too much. I've seen the inside of your skull, and it was empty." Berry gasped dramatically before growling dramatically at Hanamura.
"How rude! Stupid Pervs-ke!" Berry scowled. Hanamura blinked rapidly in surprise and possible shock, taking a step back.
"Per... Pervs-ke?" Hanamura repeated, a visible bead of sweat forming on his brow.
"You don't understand the delicate heart of a girl, do you?!" Berry continued, ignoring Hanamura's shock, as he glanced over at me.
"That was rather rude of you, Hanamura" I said with a small nod, agreeing with Berry. Berry bounced happily and hugged my waist.
"Sensei, you so get me!" Berry squeaked. I placed my hand on Berry's head as a way of comfort, feeling my cheeks warm up.
"Hey, I don't want to sound like an ass, but will you just shut up?!" Satonaka interrupted, trying hard to keep his composure together. "Now's not the time for stupid jokes. Listen... Someone came here yesterday, right?" Berry gasped in surprise as she let go of my waist, her eyes twinkling.
"Wow! There's a boy with a better nose than me?!" Berry exclaimed, placing her paws below her mouth. "Wha-What's your name mister?" Satonaka flinched at the word 'mister', blinking nervously.
"M-Mister?" Satonaka echoed, sounding stunned. "Uh... The name's Nise Satonaka. How's it goin'?" Hanamura cleared his throat, snapping Satonaka out of whatever trance he was in.
"Oh, right! Never mind that, tell me more about the person who came here yesterday!" Satonaka demanded, his eyes returning to their fiery self. Berry looked over at Hanamura, then at me, the back at Hanamura; a recalling look on her face.
"I think it happened a little after I talked with you guys... After that, it felt like someone was here" Berry said, a little uncertain.
"Is it Yukiko?!" Hanamura asked, a little too quickly.
"I don't know, I haven't looked" Berry replied as she looked at Hanamura. I bent down forward a little so that I was at eye level with Berry.
"Do you know where the person is?" I asked. Berry nodded and turned over to where Satonaka was standing and pointed behind him.
"The presence is over that way! That's probably where they are" Berry guessed. I stood up and looked over to where Berry was pointing. Satonaka turned around with determined eyes.
"Over there, huh?" Satonaka muttered. I rushed over to him and grabbed Satonaka's arm right before he ran off.
"Satonaka-san, remember our rules?" I reminded sternly, giving Satonaka a sharp look. Satonaka gritted his teeth, his body tensing. Soon, he began to relax again, allowing him some freedom from my grip. Once I was certain that he was calm, I let go and took a step back, looking over my shoulder to Hanamura who walked over to us.
"Alright then. Let's go" I said with a nod to Hanamura. Hanamura nodded back and walked over to me, in front of Satonaka, and we were off.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
"Didn't we... See this place on the midnight channel last night?" Satonaka asked, a little stunned by what the four of us were seeing.
After walking for a bit, with the help of Berry's nose, we found ourselves standing on a stone bridge leading towards a huge castle that resembled other castles found in typical European fairy-tales. The castle entrance consisted of a black and red vortex, much like the sky above. It was most certainly the castle from the midnight channel. The gargoyles around the bridge proved it.
"I think you might wanna wait out here, Nise. I know how scared you can get" Hanamura began, looking over at Satonaka with a serious- despite his teasing tone- look. Satonaka smacked Hanamura on the head, gritting his teeth in annoyance.
"No way, I'm not scared! At least, not right now- I'm going in there!" Satonaka snapped. I stared at the two as they began to argue. It was rather remarkable to see someone like Satonaka- who, after our first encounter with this place wanted nothing more to do with it- sounded as if they were afraid of nothing. I suppose Satonaka is a rather persistent fellow... And a little violent when it comes to Amagi or some of his other close friends.
Rubbing the back of my head, I I looked over to Berry, who was preoccupied from sniffing the air.
"Berry, can you tell if someone is in there?" I asked. After two more sniffs of the air, Berry's face became serious as she nodded.
"There is no doubt about it!" Berry announced, causing Hanamura and Satonaka's voices to stop. "My snout has even locked onto her sent!" I looked over to the castle, my eyes locking with the strange vortex. So Amagi is in there... How do we even enter such a place? There's no door, so we can't knock. Yet again, knocking would be pointless.
In the middle of my useless- and frankly, stupid- thinking, I suddenly saw Satonaka run off forward, causing me to gasp.
"Satonaka-san!" I called out.
"Hey stupid, don't go running off on your own!" I heard Hanamura call out. I looked over my shoulder and nodded at Hanamura.
"Let's go before he gets hurt!" I instructed. Hanamura nodded and ran forward, quickly catching up with me.
"Don't leave my Berry behind, behind!" I heard Berry call out. Hanamura and I ran through the vortex and instantly saw Satonaka running forward through a hallway as the sound of his breathing and footsteps echoed of the walls. Without stopping, Hanamura and I continued to run after him.
As Hanamura and I allowed Satonaka in purist, I looked around; noticing the décor of the castle. While the castle's décor was gorgeous, though rather extravagant, the dark and empty seemingly-endless hallways were rather ominous. It almost seemed to be to the main focus of the castle... It almost looked... a bit lonely. Compared to the one's you see in fairy-tales, this one seems like the kind that was abandoned- having forgotten the cheerful ways of balls and active festivities.
My thoughts were abruptly stopped as I noticed Shadows starting to fly in the air, causing me to tense.
"Watch out!" Berry exclaimed. "The Shadows are getting really aggravated, Sensei!" Hanamura and I slowed down, noticing that the Shadows were mainly heading towards us- not Nise. That was when I remembered that Berry had said Shadows don't attack normal people... at least, not until their Shadow's agitate them.
"Damn it, he can't even see them. He's blind without his own pair of glasses" Hanamura panted with a stressed and exhausted tone. I quickly regained my breath and looked at him and Berry.
"Well then, I guess that means we'll have to take care of them" I remarked. Hanamura's stressed and frustrated expression quickly changed into one of excitement as he winked at me.
"Sounds good to me!" Hanamura agreed with a cheer. I closed my eyes as I focused on summoning Izanagi, feeling that exhausting but refreshing feeling flow within me. Opening my eyes, I saw the tarot card in front of me- the Fool.
"Persona!" I called out as I clasped my hands onto the card over my heart, easily braking it. The overflowing power that was hidden beneath my skin turned hot and the cold- earning a shiver as Izanagi appeared over me, his eyes gleaming blue. Pushing aside the relatively new sensations of summoning him, I instructed Izanagi to start attacking the enemies- causing him to grip his katana tightly while he thought of an extermination plan. I looked over to Hanamura and saw a similar blue light surrounding him.
"Bring it on!" Hanamura laughed as his tarot card, the magician, hovered in front of him. Calling out, "Persona!", Hanamura jumped while doing a spin and kicked his card; the similar glass shattering sound echoing around us. Hanamura's persona twirled above his head, shaking off the blue fire that surrounded it as if entering an old 90's concert with fog machines.
I looked back forward over to the Shadows and glared at them, causing Izanagi to being his extermination, quickly flying forward and slicing a shadow- that looked like two masked prisoners wearing torn brow clothing- in half. Another one headed toward Izanagi, in which Izanagi simply stabbed it in the stomach, throwing the Shadow over to another one, the impact strong enough to kill both.
"Nicely done, Sensei!" Berry praise excitedly. I looked at her and nodded a thank you.
"I got this one, Narukami-chan!" Hanamura declared, drawing my attention back over to the Shadows. To my surprise, there were two shadows heading towards.
"Jiraiya!" Hanamura called out as he pointed to the Shadows with a wide grin. Jiraiya must be his persona's name. Jiraiya flipped over pointed his index finger at the Shadow, a green-colored tornado blasting from the floor. I was rather impressed at this move, finding it rather cool looking. However, that impressiveness quickly vanished as the two shadows dodged the tornado and attacked Jiraiya lightly, causing Jiraiya to fall. I heard Berry sigh as Hanamura exclaimed in embarrassment. Izanagi flew towards the shadows and sliced them both in one strike, a sort of unamused aura surrounding him.
"Yosuke, you still have a lot to learn" Berry said with a bored tone.
"Man, all I get is crap from you!" Hanamura barked, his eyebrows twitching.
"Let's go" I instructed, wanting to catch up to the Satonaka who had escaped our range of sight. The three of us began to run forward, Izanagi and Jiraiya attacking any shadows that approached us.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Meanwhile, with Nise Satonaka...
3rd POV
Nise ran down the hallway blindly, blocking out the sounds of his breathing and his footsteps. He had one goal in mind, and that was to rescue Yukiko.
"Hold on Yukiko, I'm coming...!" Nise said to himself, seeing two tall double doors ahead. He glared at the doors and began to ran faster, ready to tackle the doors down. Nise let out a war cry of some sorts as he jumped, his feet pushing the doors open rather easily much to his surprise. In fact, he wasn't even sure if he had even touched it. Nise flew across the room, landing on something hard, causing him to grunt in pain. He was not expecting the doors, that looked as if they were made out of gold and red metal, to open so easily. Rubbing his butt in pain, Nise slowly stood to his feet, bending down a bit to balance the pain. He opened one eye and saw a room in monochrome colors. But something was familiar about this room. Nise gasped as he stood up straight, taking in the surroundings.
"This is... Yukiko's room...!" Nise said to himself, shocked at where he was.
It was a neat, clean, traditional styled bedroom. Tatami mats were laid about the floor, a dark gray rug in the middle of the room that had a chabudai and a zabuton on top of it. Directly across from Nise was a window with a sliding screen, a birds cage hanging on the wooden frame of the window, with a small desk sat below the cage. There was a kimono on display over on the left side of the room, a closest with a book shelf on the right side of the room. Being a man and Yukiko a woman, he wasn't entirely allowed to stay in her room for very long like he use to when he was a child. He didn't really mind since a majority of the memories he has with him in the room often had him tearing up as he struggled to do his homework- seconds later throwing his book out the window and dragging Yukiko outside to play. But most of the time, Yukiko would drag Nise back and the two would just talk about random things as she did her homework, later offering her notes for Nise to read in hope to understand the material.
But why was everything monochrome? Nise looked down and flinched, noticing that he too was also monochrome. Shrieking in fear, Nise rubbed his hands together, hoping to regain his former skin color. But after a full minute of rubbing, he was still monochrome. Trembling in fear, Nise tried to calm himself down as he looked around the room once more- but in a more terrified fashion as compared to before. When Nise's eyes locked with the bird cage by the window, he took a few steps closer to the bird cage.
As he approached the bird cage, he noticed that it was snowing outside.
"I look good in red..."
Nise gasped at the voice, instantly recognizing it.
"Yukiko! Yukiko, where are you?!" Nise shouted, not terrified at all of what was happening anymore, looking around desperately for his childhood friend. There was no response.
"My name means, 'Snow child'... And I hate it"
Nise froze in place, shocked to hear Yukiko say that. The Yukiko that Nise knew would never have said the word as powerful as "Hate". Especially not in regards to herself. Was this really Yukiko speaking now? Where was she?
"Snow is cold... And it's never here for long. It's fleeting and completely useless..."
Nise could feel his heart sinking heavy with each word Yukiko spoke. Did she really feel that way about herself? Nise gasped in horror at the thought and quickly shook it away, frantically scanning the room.
"Yukiko! Yukiko, it's me! Where are you?! Answer me!" Nise shouted, sounding a bit desperate as he opened the closet, shoving things out of the way. He didn't want to hear it. This person speaking... It wasn't Yukiko. It could never be Yukiko. The person who he has been friends with since childhood... there was no way this was her speaking.
"I guess... It fits me perfectly. Apart from inheriting the inn, I have absolutely no value."
"Still... Nise was the one who told me, 'Yukiko, red looks good on you'."
That caught Nise's attention. He stopped frantically searching the closet and took a step back, his heart beating. The room suddenly gained color. But not everything. Only the desk, closet, bookshelf, kimono, rug, chabudai, zabuton, and the single picture frame that had Nise and Yukiko smiling in it. All of those object bursted with one single color.
Red.
"Nise was the only person who gave my life meaning...
Nise is always happy and strong... He can do anything. He has everything I lack...Nise is perfect... Compared to him, I'm just..."
Nise face had grown pale, a strong grip of fear gripping his heart.
"Yukiko... Is that... What you really think...?" Nise asked out loud, his voice trembling. He suddenly felt something bump into his right foot, causing him to flinch and look down. It was a small, Santa wind up doll. Nise's pupils shrank in fear as he stared at the Santa doll. That... That's what he gave Yukiko two years ago, on Christmas. All this time, and he had never knew that he had impacted the kind, beautiful, responsible Yukiko Amagi this much. To go as far as to keep a stupid toy for two years...
"Nise... Will always protect me.
I may be worthless, but Nise's nice... He'll look after me."
"Yukiko... I... How can I...?!" Nise stammered, his body trembling. It was a bit ironic... he wants to protect Yukiko. She's his dearest friend. But with the way he was...
"'Nice Nise' huh? T-That's so sweet of her...!" a familiar, distorted voice sneered. Nise flinched at the voice and turned around, the red and monochrome room disappearing as he stood in a new room. It looked similar to the castle's décor he was just in.
"Wha... What the-?!" Nise stuttered, seeing a very familiar person standing in front of him. It was him, Nise Satonaka. But the other Nise had strange, hallow golden eyes that seemed to glow through tears as his hands covered his bottom lips in a cowardly way. Nise couldn't help but widen his eyes in surprise, taking a step back from the doppelganger.
"Who... the hell are you?" Nise struggled to ask.
"I-I'm... Nise Satonaka, of course..." the doppelganger replied quickly with a trembling voice, as if he heard someone ask a really dumb question underneath his cowardly ways.
"Cut the crap!" Nise snapped, taking another step back. "I'm Nise Satonaka!" He seemed rather annoyed and yet nervous to see a person so similar to himself acting in such a cowardly way.
"A-And I'm Nise Satonaka too...!" the doppelganger added, rather quickly.
"The fu... That's insane! There can only be one me!" Nise argued weakly, his body trembling. He was furious of what was happening right now. He was having an argument with himself. Not only that, it was with him that was acting so pathetic he could punch the doppelganger. Nise suddenly realized something and marched right up to the doppelganger, grabbing his jacket's collar.
"Where's Yukiko?!" Nise shouted. The doppelganger flinched at Nise's loud voice and trembled with a whimper.
"O-Oh, Yukiko...?" the doppelganger asked, weakly. "I-I don't know... B-B-But did you hear what she said? S-She actually thinks that I-I'm protecting her! S-She also thinks that she's absolutely worthless! D-Don't you love that...?" Nise flinched at the doppelganger's words and glared at it, his grip on his collar tightening.
"What are you talking about?! That ain't funny!" Nise barked, causing the doppelganger to whimper. For some reason, the doppelganger was making Nise furious really fast- faster than anyone has ever been able to do so. Perhaps it was because the doppelganger had his face and was acting so weak and... almost girly.
"Y-Yukiko so brave and smart a-and hot to boot...! E-Everyone looooooves her!" the doppelganger began, a rather bashful look on his face. "B-But when I heard that Yukiko was actually jealous of m-me? M-Man, did I get a charge out of that...!" Nise froze, that same feeling of fear gripping his heart- causing it to stop temporarily. The doppelganger took his chance and gently pulled Nise's hands away from his collar, taking a step back.
"T-The truth is... I-If I wasn't around, Y-Yukiko couldn't do anything. S-She's nothing without me...! B-Because I'm the brave, smart, and hot one around here!" the doppelganger continued, his trembling voice slowly disappearing as his voice raised with a smirk. Nise's eyes widened as he felt his blood turned cold, taking several steps back.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Hitomi's POV
"There! Up ahead, Sensei! I can smell Nise-kun!" Berry exclaimed, pointing ahead to the tall double doors. Hanamura and I began to pick up the speed, hearing muffled voices from the other side. Hanamura got on the left door while I got on the right, and at the same time the two of us began to push the doors open.
Once the door was wide enough to allow Hanamura and I in, we rushed inside; the doors opening wider as Izanagi and Jiraiya barged through.
"Hey Nise, you okay?!" Hanamura called out. Berry exclaimed in fear as she hid behind me, Hanamura and myself gasping a little, stopping a meter or so from Satonaka... And a much more feminine version of Satonaka standing not that far away from the real Satonaka.
"Oh, man... Is that...?!" Yosuke began, his eyes widening at the sight of the other Satonaka.
"It's just like Yosuke!" Berry squeaked. "He lost control over his suppressed self! Now it's a Shadow!" Finally hearing our voices, Satonaka turned around, his face as white as a newly washed, white bed sheet.
"G-Guys... I-I'm-!" Satonaka began, his voice cracking to the point I thought he had been here for years without an water. Suddenly realizing something, Satonaka shook his head frantically and hugged himself.
"N-No! Just stay there! Don't come near me!" Satonaka snapped, his expression suddenly turning furious. Then his face turned sour, his hands sliding up his arms and covering his ears with his head.
"No... No no no no no no no! It's all lies! They're all lies!" Satonaka shouted, his body trembling violently. I flinched at Satonaka's trembling body, taking a step forward.
"Satonaka-san, calm down! You're not sane!" I called out.
"You idiot...!" Hanamura growled as he began to run over to him. Suddenly, the room bursted with Shadows, several ones with white and black stripes- their tongues hanging out- surrounding Satonaka and his shadow. Berry suddenly screamed, tugging my dress furiously. I turned around and saw multiple shadows flying towards Izanagi and Jiraiya. Turning around to face them, I felt something- or rather, someone- touch my back with theirs.
"Damn it...! There's so many of them!" Hanamura growled as Izanagi and Jiraiya got prepared to attack, their backs touching like Hanamura and I. I looked over to Berry and pushed her a little.
"Go hide, Berry" I instructed calmly. Berry hesitantly nodded and ran off over to the corner of the room as Hanamura and I turned our attention to Satonaka. Satonaka's Shadow let out a sigh, taking a deep breath. The almost girly looking face on Satonaka's Shadow hardened, looking more of a manly one while crossing his arms over his chest.
"That's right. I'm the one who can't do anything alone... Nobody gives a shit about scared, stupid, little ol' Nise... I can't win as a guy, let alone as a person; I'm pathetic! But Yukiko... She depends on me. She needs me to protect her!" the Shadow began. Satonaka gasped at the words, his face turning sickly pale. This is bad, Satonaka's mental health is in danger!
"That's why she's my friend... I'll never loosen my grip on her. People will look at me as some strong, macho dude with Yukiko around. A perfect cover up for my pathetic cowardly ways!" The Shadow's face began to grow irritated. The Shadow brought his hands close to his eyes and wiped his tear covered eyes, looking feminine like before.
"But y-y'know what makes me sad...? How much braver Y-Yukiko is compared to me. G-Girls are supposed to do girly things, hang out with friends, and act d-defenseless. But then there's Yukiko- the near to perfect girl who would have been better off as a guy...! I-I wish I was born a girl so that I wouldn't f-feel so awful about feeling satisfied from being depended on...!"
"No...! That isn't what I think...!" Satonaka stammered, terrified and frustrated. Shadow Satonaka looked up from his hands, looking muscular again as he glared at the real Satonaka.
"Oh, but it is" the Shadow sneered, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I'm such a pathetic bitch that it took me an entire year just to get over the fact that someone would have to try and punch me during kung-fu class! I can't even get dressed without worrying that someone will walk in. Why should I even care- I'm a guy! But that shows just how much of a bitch I am. I'm so pathetic. Why can't girls act like little things that can't defend themselves and leave the hardcore stuff- like working- to us men? Maybe I'd finally be able to pass as a human being!"
My eyes widened in surprise as I looked at Satonaka. Is that how he really feels? How does that earlier feminine side connect with all of this? Perhaps it was all a cover up...? Satonaka's words echoed into my ears as I recalled what he said back at the police station...
"If a girl like Narukami-chan can handle that world, so can I because I'm a guy!"
I blinked in surprise as Satonaka's voice vanished from my head. Could it be that he's a lot more timid that he appears to be? Is that why he likes all those kung-fu movies- to try and feel more masculine that he actually is?
Satonaka fell to his hands and knees, his body trembling. He looked just about ready to collapse and stat crying like a newborn baby.
"No...! You're wrong...!" Satonaka whimpered, his voice shaking.
"Are you really going to continue to ignore me? Pretend that I don't exist?" the Shadow asked, tears welling up in it's hollow eyes as it pouted in a girly way.
"Shut up! You aren't real! You AREN'T real!" Satonaka shouted, shaking his head furiously.
"You have to be strong, Satonaka-san!" I encouraged.
"He's a liar! That isn't me!" Satonaka shouted, his emotions finally breaking. Satonaka's Shadow began to laugh- weakly at first, but gradually becoming hysteric- slowly turning warped, echoing throughout the room as a black and red aura soon engulfed him. Hanamura and I braced ourselves as the black and red aura swiftly passed. The whole room was tinted with an eerie, red light. Satonaka's Shadow was no longer the same as before, now taking on a different form that suited his sudden aggression.
Satonaka's shadow took on the form of a dominatrix scantily clad in yellow leather. He wore long, yellow gloves that covered up to his upper arms and sharply heeled knee-length boots. The upper part of Satonaka's Shadow's face was covered by a cone-shaped yellow mask with an over exaggerated smiley face drawn on it, it's eyes sparkling like from a shoujo manga character. He was supported by three puppets that resembled girls in our school uniform, their faces red with hearts in their eyes. The puppets all struggled to hold Satonaka's Shadow in place while he sat on top. Long chain dangled in between his fingers on his right hand, a girl holding onto him looking distressed, and in his left hand he wielded a whip. The girl that he was holding had long black hair that covered the floor behind them.
"I am a shadow, of your true inner self!" Satonaka's Shadow said firmly, sounding more like the Satonaka I had come to be acquainted with, rather than that timid boy. Satonaka let out an ear piercing scream, causing Hanamura and I to take action.
"Nise!" Hanamura shouted, causing Jiraiya to use his two shuriken, slashing the enemies around Satonaka. Satonaka's Shadow growled in annoyance and pulled his whip back. Before the whip could strike Satonaka, Hanamura tackled him out of the way.
"DON'T GET IN MY WAY!" Satonaka's Shadow shouted, glaring at Hanamura. The chain around Satonaka's Shadow's hand aimed towards Hanamura and Satonaka, ready to smash them. I glared at the shadow, causing Izanagi to slash the chains, destroying them with ease. Satonaka's Shadow looked over at me, it's eyes wide with fear.
"W-Why would you do that? Y-You could have hit me!" Satonaka's Shadow whimpered. For a moment, I felt almost guilty. But then grinned evilly, causing me to flinch.
"It seems we have an annoying bitch in our midst!" the Shadow growled. "Well then, I better teach you a little LESSON!" Satonaka's Shadow used the girl's hair, ignoring her cry of pain, to whip me. I stood my ground as Izanagi slashed the girls hair, turning it to black mist.
"Bear-ific Sensei! You were great!" I heard Berry praise. I flinched at Berry's voice, turning around to look for her.
"Berry?!" I called out in slight surprise, seeing that she was standing in plain sight. I suddenly heard Hanamura let out a cry of pain, causing me to look forward again. Jiraiya was standing in front of Izanagi, blocking Satonaka's Shadow's remaining chains. Satonaka's Shadow slashed the chains, causing Jiraiya to fly backwards. Hanamura let out another cry as he himself flew as well, leaving Satonaka unprotected.
"Hanamura!" I called out. Satonaka's Shadow laughed hysterically as he used the girls long hair to hold Jiraiya captive. Jiraiya struggled to get out of the Shadow's grip, squirming. I began to ran forward, but numerous Shadows surrounded me. I glared at them as Izanagi began to destroy them.
"You're still there?" Satonaka's shadow asked, glaring at Satonaka. "I wish you'd die already! I promise to treat Yukiko very well~! I'll tell her just how much she 'means' to me~!" Satonaka's shadow grabbed the girl's head, tilting it back and licking the girls throat. I felt my face heat up a little in surprise, a little stunned that Satonaka thought of Amagi in a sexual manor. Satonaka flinched at his Shadow's actions and words, glaring weakly at it.
"Let her be...!" Satonaka growled. "I never... Thought of Yukiko like that!"
"Nise! Be smart...! Don't let him trick you...!" Hanamura said with a shaky voice, struggling to sit up. Satonaka's Shadow glared at Hanamura, using his whip to tightly wrap Hanamura's neck. Hanamura choked out in pain, gripping and pulling the whip to releases him.
"Hanamura!" I called out again, ready to aid him. A Shadow suddenly swooped in front of me, blocking my way. I gritted my teeth in annoyance as more began to gather.
"I'm not trying to trick him. These are my true colors!" Satonaka's Shadow said with a bored tone, tears welled up. He raised up his right hand, raising the chains.
"Like it... OR NOT!" Satonaka's shadow shouted as the chains smacked the ground, causing the room to turn black.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
3rd POV
Nise slowly opened his eyes, his consciousness returning. He gasped in horror as he saw multiple empty faces floating around all with the same grin. It was Nise's face.
Yukiko is so pretty and strong... I should have been born a girl.
But I have to be strong, because I'm a boy... And with the boys going crazy over her, I have to protect her, right?
"This is... me?" Nise asked to no one in particular. After all, there was no one else in sight besides from him and his empty faces.
"Yes" a distorted voice said in a sly tone. Nise flinched at the voice, recognizing it as his doppelganger. "Those are all of the feelings you have. The ones you keep bottled up, deep down inside."
Without me around, she can't do anything- because I'm a guy and she's a girl.
If it weren't for me... She'd be nothing. As long as I can keep up my strong guy attitude, people will finally forget that I'm such a coward.
"No, no...! NO!" Nise screamed, his face pale with disgust and horror.
"I... This is how I... really feel? I'm... I'm a pig...!" Nise sobbed in disgust, tears threatening to form. How could he have let himself feel this way about his best friend? About his friend who had saved him- who he could be open with without feeling any shame or embarrassment.
Slowly, his body began to disappear, his face becoming just like the other masks floating around. Nise was so disgusted by himself... He didn't want to live anymore.
"So what if it is true?! Who cares!"
Nise gasped at the familiar voice. It was Yosuke's voice.
"You're still her friend, aren't you?" Hitomi's voice asked, causing Nise's heart to stop. Something rushed back into his mind- a beautiful thing. Something he will remember something that he will always cherish. The day that he and Yukiko first met. When they first became friends.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
10 Years ago...
It was a rainy, misty day in Inaba. A little girl with medium length black hair that were tied in pigtails, a red headband on top of her head, wearing a light pink dress sat on the top of the stairway leading to the Samegawa River. The rain poured down on her small body, getting her soaked, but the little girl didn't care. She didn't mind, because it was just water after all. In the little girls arms was a small puppy with white fur and brown spots. The little girl held the puppy tighter in her arms, wanting comfort.
As the rain continued to fall, a small boy with light brown hair styled into a bowl hair cut happily stomped in the puddles, getting his green boots muddy. The little boy had large tears in his eyes that fell as quick as the rain, sliding on the outside of his boots. There was no real reason for the boy to be crying, but the tears wouldn't stop falling. Rubbing his wet eyes with his big- too big- long sleeved shirt and began to walk again.
As the boy walked, he saw the little girl sitting by herself at the top of the stairs. The little boy stared at the girl, wondering what she was doing. Curious, the little boy walked over to the little girl, holding his umbrella up above her.
"What's up?" the little boy asked, catching the little girl's attention. The little girl was rather surprised to see such a sad looking boy, who had obviously been crying due to his tear streaked face. Noticing the puppy in the girls arms, the little boy's face brightened so much that it looked like his yellow umbrella.
"Whoa! How cute! Is that guy yours?" the little boy asked, causing the puppy to being wagging it's tail, happily. The little girl looked at the little boy with a surprised face before looking hugging the puppy, avoiding the boy's eyes.
"I found him..." the little girl began, shyly. Tear began to well up in her eyes, hugging the puppy close to her face. "But my parents said that he can't stay, he has to go. And now... He'll be all alone again...!" Seeing the little girl's tears, the little boy began to tear up as well, the tears he had earlier wiped away falling down from his eyes yet again. The little boy dropped his umbrella to the side, wiping his tears away.
"Th-that's so sad...! Please don't cry!" the little boy sobbed, catching the girl's attention. She stared at him in surprise- finding it rare for a boy her age to be crying so openly. What surprised her more was the fact that the boy was not only crying for the dog- but for her as well. Sobbing and sniffing his running nose, the little boy wiped his eyes violently and pressed his lips together as he took deep breaths through his nose.
"Hey! Check this out!" the little boy shouted once he had calm down, causing the little girl to jump in surprise. The little boy began to stretch his face, making strange sounds. He soon started to do some strange dance moves, almost falling on his face as he tried to flap his arms like a bird while skipping in place, all the while- tears running down his face. The little girl, stunned by the boys actions and tears, began to giggle. Hearing the little girl's giggling caused the boy to stop, a small smile underneath fresh tears, as he panted.
"Sorry for crying... I know it isn't very manly of me..." the little boy apologized, bowing slightly. The little girl shook her head and smiled gently at him.
"It's okay... It's a good thing" the little girl giggled. The little boy straightened up in surprise and gasped, fresh tears welling up in his eyes. Wiping his tears away, the little boy smiled.
"I-I'm Nise! What's your name?" he asked. The little girl slowly stood up due to the weight of the puppy in her arms, a smile on her face.
"Hi there... I'm Yukiko" the little girl greeted shyly. Yukiko wasn't used to talk with boys her age before. But somehow, she felt strangely comfortable with Nise. After all, he was the first boy she had ever met since pre-school that cried so openly in front of her.
"O-Okay, we're friends now!" Nise cheered as a tear fell down his swollen right eye, causing Yukiko's smile to widen. Nise looked at the puppy in Yukiko's arms and petted him. "Same goes from you, big guy!" Yukiko giggled softly, slowly giving the dog to Nise.
"Take good care of him" Yukiko said with a nod. Nise blinked at Yukiko with wide eyes, before smiled and nodded as more tears fell down his face.
"Okay! And hey, if you ever want to see him, come stop by my place and the three of us can play!" Nise hiccuped happily, as the sun shone down on the two from the gray, cloudy sky.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Present Day...
Nise closed his eyes as the treasured memory slowly drifted from his mind. He opened his eyes with a gentle smile on his face, his body quickly returning to him.
"Yukiko..." Nise muttered to himself. "Even if I do have these feelings inside... You and me; we'll always be friends!" Nise took a deep breath, gathering as much courage as he can to prepare himself for what he was about to do next. Nise slowly turned around and shot a deadly look upwards into the darkness.
"Listen, you're a part of me. It's true" Nise began, causing the darkness to disappear as if it was cut by Nise's words. "You're a voice... That I pretend doesn't exist." Hitomi weakly fell to her knees, catching her breath as Izanagi finally finished off the last of the pestering Shadows.
"You're the pathetic part of me..." Nise continued as he slowly stood up, facing his shadow. "But... You're still a part of me. Isn't that right?" Yosuke continued to struggle to remove Nise's Shadow's whip from around his neck, the whip starting to loosen.
"That's it...!" Yosuke choked out, encouraging Nise to go on. Nise's Shadow growled, static starting to surround it.
"C-Cut the crap! Are you seriously going to acknowledge my existence and just accept me?!" Nise's Shadow snapped, not buying Nise's words. Nise's Shadow grabbed the girl's head, using her hair to whip Nise. Hitomi flinched and sent Izanagi toward her classmate. Izanagi swiftly flew in front of Nise as Hitomi instructed and got smacked away by the hair. Hitomi let out a muffled cry as she flew backwards just like Izanagi. Yosuke flinched at Hitomi's cry of pain and turned his head towards her direction, seeing his partner skid across the floor, struggling to sit up.
"Sensei!" Berry cried out, running towards the tired girl. Her body was, once again, covered with small bruises and scratches. Was it because she was a girl and that she was weaker? Or could it be that she wasn't 'special' like Igor had claimed she was? Hitomi wondered these things as Izanagi disappeared, tired like herself and unable to battle, her eyelids heavy.
"Narukami-chan!" Nise called out, seeing Hitomi's body trembling on the ground. Yosuke gritted his teeth in anger as he glared a dangerous look to the Shadow.
"You bastard! That does it, you're finished!" Yosuke growled, strength coming to him as he slowly began to rip the whip once choking him. But Yosuke was too slow as Nise's Shadow gave him a scornful look. The whip regenerated itself, choking Yosuke while lifting him up in the air.
"I'm going to rip you to pieces! Scream for me!" Nise's Shadow laughed.
"Yosuke!" Nise shouted, sweat begging to roll down his face. Berry looked back and forth between Hitomi and Yosuke, panicking.
"Oh no, oh no! Sensei, if we don't do something quick, Yosuke is gonna be a goner!" Berry squeaked, helping the tired girl sit up. Hitomi's eyes scanned the room, trying to find her partner. Spotting the scene, Hitomi's eyelids that were falling shot back up at the pain of her comrade.
"Hanamura...!" Hitomi grunted softly. She had no idea what to do. Izanagi was too tired to come out- she couldn't summon him until he was ready. She needed help, and fast. Hitomi closed her eyes and took a deep breath and began searching for the key of her consciousness. The conductors key.
Soon, a room began to form. A very familiar room. It was the Velvet room, where Igor and Margret calmly sat in. Margret opened her eyes and looked forward, out the window across from her.
"You have established a new bond, and have established a new arcana" Margret said, not wasting any time at all. She could feel the urgency of Hitomi's presences alone.
"Margret-san, what can I do to help Hanamura and Satonaka-san?" Hitomi asked, speaking for the first time inside the Velvet room.
"You posses the power to wield multiple persona's" Margret began as she looked over to Hitomi. "It is the 'Wild Card' oh, chosen one." Hitomi blinked in confusion and was about to ask what Margret meant, but before she could she had returned back to the real world. Hitomi's breathing had regulated, time moving slowly.
"I... Am thou" a mischievous voice began in her mind. "Thou... Art I." The familiar feeling Hitomi had when awakening Izanagi filled her body, yearning to be released. A card, similar to Jiraiya's, appeared in front of Hitomi in the real world- causing Berry to squeak. Using both of her hands, Hitomi smashed the card. Blue fire surrounded Hitomi as a small creature laughed, flying up in the air in a swirling matter. The small creature flew towards Hitomi, stopping right in front of her and Berry.
"I'm Pyro Jack! Nice to meet ya, hee ho!" the small creature greeted with a laugh. The creature had a pumpkin head, a wicked smile with glowing eyes while wearing a dark turquoise witches hat, a matching cape, and a single hand out to hold a lantern. The creature was floating, no body present like Izanagi. Hitomi nodded a hello to Pyro Jack and looked over to Yosuke. Not needing any words, the floating pumpkin laughed and flew towards the struggling boy.
"What?! No fair! This blows, she get's to use two persona's?!" Yosuke choked, seeing the flying pumpkin.
"Take him. Agi!" Hitomi called out, her strength suddenly returning. She quickly put together that it was possible that with the summoning of a new persona, all the damage that Izanagi and Hitomi had taken disappeared. Either way, she couldn't think about it right now- her classmates were in danger.
Pyro Jack lifted up his lantern, fire suddenly scooting out from it and hitting Nise's Shadow. The fire landed on the whip that held Yosuke captive, letting Yosuke fall to the ground. The long hair that had kept Jiraiya captive caught on fire, letting the strands quickly disintegrate and allowing Jiraiya to break free. Hitomi rose to her feet as Yosuke coughed several times, exchanging glances.
"Hanamura!" Hitomi called out with a nod. Knowing what to do, Yosuke smirked and nodded back.
"On it!" Yosuke replied, turning his attention to the Shadow, who had more static than earlier. Yosuke extended his right hand to the Shadow, causing Jiraiya to flick its index at the Shadows. Three small green tornado's began to form around the Shadow, in which Hitomi extended her left hand. Pyro Jack raised his lantern once more, sprouting out three small fireballs that mixed with Jiraiya's tornado's, burning the Shadow. With no way to escape the fiery winds, the Shadow tried to put it out with the chains, closely bringing the girl close to him. But the chains did nothing, letting the Shadow to be engulfed by the flames. With a cry of pain, the Shadow disappeared, returning back to it's human form.
The real Nise staggered up to his feet and walked towards his Shadow, who was floating in the air- very slowly descending downwards. Nise knew the truth, and he was going to accept his other self. Even though he didn't want to at first, if it wasn't for Hitomi's words; he would have never wanted to accept his true feelings. For the sake of the others, Nise was going to do it. For Yukiko and his sake as well.
"It's true... You're me" Nise said with a firm voice. The shadow smiled wearily at Nise, closing it's eyes as a soft blue light surrounded it, disappearing with the light. The instant it did, another figure replaced the shadow. The figure floated in the air, staring at Nise. The figure resembled that of a samurai armed with a double-bladed staff. He was dressed in a yellow and black outfit with white boots and a tall, white helmet. He had long, black hair that reach down to his waist, tied in a low ponytail. The figure then disappeared and turned into a card, slowly descending down to Nise. Nise stared at the card, lifting up his hands to the twirling, glowing card.
"What's this...?" Nise asked, his eyes glued onto the card. Hitomi and Berry walked over to Yosuke, Pyro Jack and Jiraiya standing next to each other.
"It's a persona" Hitomi replied as Yosuke placed his right hand to his hip, a smile forming on his lips.
"So then... This is mine...?" Nise asked.
"That's right" Yosuke confirmed with a smirk.
"This... is my persona" Nise muttered to himself, the card disappearing into him, giving him warmth. Hitomi stared at Nise, glad to know that in the end everything was alright. Nise looked down at his feet, a guilty look on his face.
"...It's true that part of me feels that way" Nise began as Hitomi and Yosuke walked over to him. "I use to wish that... I was a girl back when I was a kid- 'cause my Dad would always tell me to be more manly. I tried to be more manly by taking kung-fu lessons and watching kung-fu movies with my old man, but... Somehow, I always ended up crying and he'd hit me." Nise's hands tightened up into fists, a disgusted look on his face.
"It doesn't really help that I have such a girly face either. Before I met Yukiko, everyone knew me as the 'crybaby' or the 'scaredy cat'" Nise continued, his teeth gritting. "But when I met Yukiko, I was able to not cry and act as the super cool guy in sixth grade. But thanks to that and all those kung-fu movies, I began to think that girls should always be the damsel and guys have to always be the hero. I've tried not to think like that a few years back, but..." Nise looked up and gave an apologetic look to Hitomi, causing her to blink.
"I... Sorry about all that..." Nise began, his cheeks flaring up. "To be perfectly honest, I was a little pissed off at the fact that you were able to use your powers. If you were a guy, I'd probably would have respected you... It's just that, when a girl is able to do something I can't... I'm the one who feels like the defenseless damsel in distress..."
"Well, that makes sense. Seeing as how girly your face is and how you get scared of literally everything" Yosuke joked with a wink, trying to lighten the mood. Nise's face flared red with anger as he glared at Yosuke.
"Shut up, you! I bet you weren't all that comfortable either!" Nise snapped. Hitomi stared at Nise with a blank look, rubbing the back of her head.
"Well, of course he wasn't" Hitomi began, catching the boy's attention. "I can understand why you would feel that way about girls, Satonaka-san. A lot of people do. It's mainly the reason why I still tried to help you, and that I'm not greatly affected by your inner feelings." The boys stared at Hitomi with wide eyes, completely stunned by Hitomi's unaffected personality. Hitomi turned around to face Berry, causing Pyro Jack to disappear.
"Anyway's, let's call it a day. Satonaka-san doesn't look good" Hitomi pointed out. Berry smiled and bowed in agreement. Nise snapped out of his shock and narrowed his eyes slightly.
"I-I never said I needed a break! I... can still keep g-going..." Nise growled weakly, when his legs suddenly gave out. Hitomi turned around to face the boys again as Yosuke caught Nise with an irritated look.
"Hey, man- don't think you're some macho dude. Narukami-chan and I need a break too. That fight was exhausting" Yosuke said in an angry tone. Berry stepped forward to Nise with a worried look on her face.
"Don't over do it" Berry said with a caring tone. Hitomi nodded at what Yosuke and Berry were saying. Starting to feel his consciousness staggering, Nise nodded slowly in defeat.
"...Fine..." he muttered in defeat. Hitomi looked over to Yosuke, turning a little to the doorway.
"Can you fight just a little longer as we head back to the entrance?" Hitomi asked, not wanting Yosuke to over do it himself. Yosuke smiled and nodded.
"I'll live" Yosuke replied in a rather playful manner. Hitomi turned around and faced forward, summoning Izanagi who felt rested enough. Izanagi appeared above her and the two of them took the lead. Yosuke and Berry helped Nise walk as Jiraiya flew forward, catching up with Izanagi.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Late Afternoon...
Hitomi's POV
I sat at a serving table in the Junes food court, the setting sun's rays changing the sky to a beautiful orange and pink. Hanamura was working while Satonaka and I sat together in silence. Satonaka was a little tired to walk home, so I decided to stay with him until he was well enough to leave. I watched Hanamura work, dealing with customers who asked over and over again about what had happened earlier this morning with the weapons.
"He looks kind of busy right now, doesn't he?" I thought out loud, wanting to break the silence between Satonaka and I. Glancing over at Satonaka, I noticed that he was looking down at his lap, possibly not even hearing what I had said. I sighed softly through my nose and looked down at the table, finding something to do. When my eyes caught the sight of the napkin holder, I pulled out a napkin from the napkin and began to fold.
"...I'm so pathetic" Satonaka muttered, casing me to glance up at him as I continued to fold. His eyes were glossy as he stared at his hands, a look of self pity on his face.
"The next time it get's foggy over here, it's very possible that Yukiko could die...!" Satonaka continued, his body beginning to tremble as tears welled up. "And I... I won't be able to do anything...! Useless..." I stopped folding my napkin and looked up at Satonaka, giving him my undivided attention.
"Don't say that, you're far from useless" I began, catching his attention. "If we have to go back there and save Amagi-san, then I know we'll need your help to do it. Now that you have the same power as Hanamura and I, you can fight with us." Satonaka's eyes widened slightly at my words. After a short pause of silence, he looked back down and wiped the tears from his eyes, a weak chuckle escaping.
"...Man, I feel like a jerk now..." Satonaka began, causing me to blink in confusion. "You and Yosuke warned me about that place, and that I shouldn't have gone alone... And yet I did."
"Don't worry about it. You can make up for your mistakes by helping Hanamura and I save Amagi-san" I replied, sitting all the way back in my chair. Satonaka smiled gently at me, a soft pink dusting his cheeks.
"Thank you for giving me a chance..." Satonaka said softly, a little crack in his voice. Satonaka then reached down to his pocket and winked at me.
"As a token of my thanks, I'll show ya somethin'" Satonaka said as he pulled out his iPhone, swiftly unlocking it. I sat up straight in curiosity, leaning forward a little.
"What is it?" I asked as Satonaka quickly pulled up something on his iPhone. He then smiled at his screen and showed it to me.
"A shot of my dog. He's a serious porker and stinks like no one's business!" Satonaka laughed, the picture containing a picture of Satonaka happily hugging a large dog with white fur and brown spots, a matching smile on the dogs face. After a moment, Satonaka pulled his phone back, staring at the picture with gentle eyes.
"But if it wasn't for this guy... Then I may have never met Yukiko. He's the reason why he made our friendship possible" Satonaka explained. I stared at Satonaka for a while as he continued to stare lovingly at the picture of his dog, muttering Amagi's name. The two of them are wonderful friends... It wold break my dead heart if we failed to save Amagi and Satonaka fell into depression. I blinked in realization as I stuffed my hand into my dress pockets, pulling out my own iPhone.
"Hey, may I have your number?" I asked, already creating a new contact.
"H-Huh?" I heard Satonaka stutter. I looked up at him and noticed his face was beet red, his iPhone nearly falling out of his hand.
"For the investigation. If something were to happen that was out of my hands, I'm going to need to call you so that we don't waste any time" I explained. Satonaka blinked in surprise, his red face returning to its normal color. He looked down at his iPhone rather shyly, his thumb gingerly moving.
"Alright... Sure" Satonaka said softly, quickly making the contact. Once he was ready, we used the 'Number exchange' interaction and in five seconds flat, received each other's phone numbers. Satonaka began to fiddle with his iPhone, possibly check on new messages or some sort. Wanting to give Satonaka and his phone some privacy, I turned my attention back to my paper crane.
"You really like to make those cranes, don't you?" I heard Satonaka ask after a moment of silence. I nodded in reply, making the finishing folds.
"It's quite the challenge. You should give it a try, Satonaka-san" I suggested, then blowing on the middle fold before placing the finished paper crane on the middle of the table.
"Nise" Satonaka muttered. I looked up at him in confusion, tilting my head slightly. He smiled gently at me as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"You can call me 'Nise' if you want. Sort of seems reasonable after seeing all that stuff about me, you know?" Satonaka explained, chuckling shyly. I blinked in surprise before nodding, thinking his reasons were alright.
"Alright then... Nise-kun" I replied, causing Nise to tense up, a blush creeping to his face.
"Whoa! Did you make that?!" a high boyish voice asked, catching Nise and my attention. We looked over and saw a group of kids staring at my paper crane in astonishment. I blinked in surprise at the lot of them, wondering where their parents were.
"Ah... Yes, I did" I replied, hesitantly. The group of children exclaimed in awe, rushing forward to the table Nise and I sat in. I fidgeted slightly as sweat formed on my eyebrow, unsure of how to handle the children. I wasn't bad with children, but when there's such a large number- especially with all the recent incidents- I was a bit nervous as to what to do. The last thing I need is a mother or father to suddenly say that I was kidnapping their child and get arrested again. The children all talked at once, trying to grab my attention.
"Whoa! That's so cool!" the same boy from earlier exclaimed.
"It's made straight from a napkin!" another boy exclaimed, baffled by the paper crane.
"It's so cute!" a little girl giggled.
"Can you teach me how to make one?" a little boy asked. Soon, all the children's eyes were on me, sparkling with excitement. Sweat rolled down my jaw as I blinked nervously at them.
"Uh... Alright then" I replied with a nod, earning a cheer from the children. Everyone gathered around the table grabbed a napkin, even Nise, as they looked at me patiently for the first instruction. I pulled out my own napkin, a bit concerned if it was okay to use so many, and placed my napkin down in front of me.
"You want to start it out like this..." I began, the children and Nise obediently following my example. This was going to take a while...