That night , the members of SEES gathered in the dorm , with the exception of Minako and Akihiko . The events of that night were still looming over them , and they wondered if the whole ordeal was nothing but a nightmare .
Ken was the one who seemed the most distraught about the situation . Shinjiro was shot down , and the public treated the whole incident as an accident , just as how it happened with his mother . Was that what Shinjiro meant , when he said he would end up like him ?
The silence in the dorm was unbearable , and yet no one seemed to have the courage to break it . Except for Minato , who approached Ken and started " Ken , I have a question for you ... "
Just then , the front door of the lounge was opened , and both Minako and Akihiko entered the dorm . Everyone rushed to them , with one question that united them all ...
" How is Shinjiro ? "
" he's .... alive ... "
Akihiko replied in a stiff tone without looking at his team , while Minako remained silent . Even though he was indeed alive , he didn't seem like one at all . Even with all of those machines sustaining his life , he was still so close to death . Minako could feel the tears filling her eyes again , so she brushed past her team and made her way to her room .
" you're going nowhere " Minato held her by the wrist sternly " since everyone's here , there's something I'd like to discuss "
" can't ... can't it wait ?! " Minako looked at Minato and behind him everyone else , she was crying
" no ! " Minato was having none of it , and he sternly replied " the sooner I get this straight with everyone , the better it is for everyone "
" it's all my fault ! " Fuuka bursted into tears as she saw Minako crying " when Ken told me that he couldn't participate in the battle that night ... I ... "
" it's not your fault . If anyone should've realized it , it should've been me . I was aware of the events that took place that night two years ago , and yet ... " Mitsuru stopped and covered her mouth with her hand as she tried to prevent herself from crying .
" it's nobody's fault , and there's no point dwelling on the past " Akihiko replied firmly " Shinji is still alive , and he could regain his consciousness at any moment . How would he feel about his team sulking behind him ? "
" Akihiko ... " Mitsuru looked at Akihiko with surprise and admiration
" before we stop dwelling , we need to get something straight ! " Minato angrily interrupted Akihiko " if we ignore the past we'll repeat the same mistakes all over again , and then we'll have another Shinjiro wrestling with death in our team ! "
That sentence hammered a heavy truth on everyone , while they told themselves that what had happened that night was purely a twist of fate , Minato jolted them by his statement , which clearly implied someone was at fault for what had happened . Not only that , but death could happen among them again . However , what Minato was going to say next was even more shocking , as he turned to Ken and said in an accusing tone " what were you doing that night with Shinjiro ?! "
" No ! " Minako screamed furiously " what do you think you're-?! "
" Don't interrupt two men talking !!! " Minato replied with an even more furious tone , immediately robbing Minako of her voice , he then turned to Ken and repeated his question
" Arisato , I had mentioned ... "
" please , senpai . He's a man , he can speak for himself ! " Minato turned to Ken and urged him with " well ?! Can you speak for yourself ?! What were you doing that night , and why ?! "
" I ... I ... I was ... I mean ... " Ken felt scared like he had never felt in his entire life , with everyone eyeing him
" no stuttering ! Take a deep breath , raise your head , look me in the eye and say it without fear ! "
" I told .... Shinjiro-san ... to meet me ... in the back alley of Tatsumi... port island ... "
" why ?! "
" because ... I ... " there was no escaping that question , Ken took a deep breath and responded , and he felt like he was impaled in the chest as he replied " I wanted to kill him "
" no ... " Minako covered her mouth in shock , she had been aware of what Ken was trying to do ever since Mitsuru told her of what Ken had against Shinjiro , but to hear it from Ken himself was still shocking
" why ... ? " Minato asked yet again
" Minato ! " Yukari interfered " what're you doing , he's just a kid ! "
" he's a man , isn't that what we agreed on ?! " Minato sternly stopped her " I made it absolutely clear from the very first day that this man stepped into the dorm , that kids have no place in the Dark Hour ! Since he insisted on accepting the responsibility , he will face the consequences of his actions ... all of them ! He's not going to just revert back to being just a kid in our eyes after making such a mistake !"
" but ... but ... Ken is ... " Fuuka couldn't argue with that , as much as she wanted " his mother ... "
" I asked Ken for an answer , and I want an answer from HIM ! " Minato shot Ken with a glare , who was on the verge of tears , and asked " why did you try to kill Shinjiro ?! "
" he ... he killed ... my mother ... "
" fine " Minato surprisingly didn't seem to be angry about that situation , but he went ahead and asked him instead " why did you choose the Dark Hour to exact your revenge ? And why outside in the back alley of Tatsumi port island ? "
" because ... that night ... and that place ... " Ken began crying " my mother was killed ... in that ... "
" okay ! No ! That's it ! " Minako furiously interrupted , as she reached out to pinch Minato " you're gonna make him feel like it's his own fault ! "
" let go of me ! " Minato furiously shook Minako's grip on his arm " what're you doing ?! You're more angry with him than I am right now , so don't defend him ! "
" you don't ... know me ! " Minako was taken aback as she saw Minato's entire rage being directed at her
" so you say ?! " Minato angrily pointed his finger at her and asked " Can you tell me right here and now what happened that night wasn't his fault?! "
" it ... it wasn't ... " Minako turned her gaze from Minato
" liar ! Look at me in the eye and tell me you don't blame him ! Look at me and say that despite asking Shinjiro to meet him in the Dark Hour while knowing he was sick and should skip on the mission didn't make it his fault that Shinjiro died ! "
" I ... Ken is ... " Minako was choked by her sobs , and she could neither look Minato in the face nor respond to him
" I thought so ... " Minato turned back to Ken " so to recap , your mother was killed in the Dark Hour that night , and you dragged Shinjiro into the same place at the same time because you wanted him to experience as much of that revenge as possible ? "
" okay , seriously ! " Junpei interrupted " calm down here ! We're all upset , but you don't have to feel personal about it ... "
" personal , you say ? You think this is about my sister ? You think this is about Shinjiro ?! It's not ! " Minato surprised everyone yet again " do you think what happened tonight was the worst possible scenario ?! What if those Strega bastards chose to take them as hostages , just as Chidori did with you ?! What if they used them to bait us into a trap ?! Of course , none of you thought of that possibility , and you're just assuming that I'm overreacting because Minako's saddened by the whole thing ! I couldn't possibly care less about her right now , I don't care why Ken tried to kill Shinjiro , and I'm not gonna judge him for his grudge on the man who killed his mother , but for him to choose the Dark Hour on the night of a full moon , just because they happened to coincide with his mother's death is flawed beyond belief ! It's the time in which we're at our weakest and most strained state , he knew that , and still went ahead with his plan . Either he had no idea such a thing could happen which means he's dumber than you , Junpei ! Or he just didn't give a shit about it , which still means he's stupid and selifsh ! "
" but ... Ken was ... "
" he can speak for himself ! " Minato shushed everyone , before turning to Ken again " well ?! Did you not think of such possibilities ?! I had asked you before about what was troubling you , and you said you were worried about the upcoming full moon , so I'm gonna assume you were aware of the possibility , and in that case you just didn't care ! Why ?! "
" I ... I ... I was ... " Ken found himself yet again in an inescapable question " I was planning to ... after I ... do it ... to kill ... myself ... "
" Ken ?! " Minako screamed in dismay
" this is crazy ! "
" We can all have our personal secrets , and what we do with our lives is our choice , but when they interfere with the Dark Hour , that's when they're no longer personal ! I had mentioned this before , that my top priority is honesty , and when you have something in your life that you don't want it to be shared with the rest of the dorm , then forget about it in the Dark Hour " Minato turned to Ken and yelled at him " Yukari , a girl , managed to prevent her grudges from interfering with her battles , where does that put a man like you , huh ?! "
" I ... I ... " Ken was speechless , never had he thought about the true weight of that word
" we're putting our lives on the line , the very act of summoning a Persona is the literal submission to death . When we're living in such a nightmarish situation , I expect absolute trust between us , so that I could do my job as a leader and keep you all alive ! A member that I don't trust has no place to fight by my side , and a team that's not built on this meaning has no place for me in it " Minato placed his evoker on the table , before leaving the dorm
" Minato ! Where are you ... " Yukari called him
" I need some time for myself ... " Minato left through the front door
" excuse me ... " Minako mumbled under her tears and breath , as she placed her evoker by her brother's side and proceeded to her room ...
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The twins sat in their room in the dormitory , silence was governing them , apart from Minako's sobbing. After that argument with the members of SEES , Minako was very cross with her brother that she didn't even look at him or speak with him . She thought that he shouldn't have taken it all on Ken , and she insisted that he shouldn't take the blame for what happened that night . Minato was even more insistent that his sister was in denial , and he knew she wasn't ready to talk about the whole situation , so he didn't press her or defend himself against her thoughts. Just then , a familiar child in rags appeared in their rooms .
" hello , my dearest ... " Pharos noticed that Minako's eyes were fixated on the floor and she wasn't responding " it's cold tonight , isn't it , who would've thought that autumn would be here so quickly ? "
" right ... wasn't it you who said ... and I quote ' time never waits ' ? " Minato replied
" yeah , I did say that " the boy chuckled , before deciding to ask " you both seem rather tired , are you going to get sick again ? Or did something happen ? "
" we lost a friend " Minato replied , and he could see from the corner of his eyes that his sister flinched from that word
" he's still alive ... " she mumbled
" is that so ? " Pharos's eyes drifted between the twins before saying " in this world , people die everyday ... for the longest time , this was the same to me as the blowing of the wind "
" how can you say that ?!! " Minako suddenly bursted into tears " people's death like the blowing of the wind ?! Those ' people ' had families , friends , hopes , dreams , hobbies , fears and ... and ... everything !!! How can you be so insensitive as to brush off their death just like that ?!! "
" I ... Minako ... "
" I ... that is ... " Minako realized she was taking her anger on someone who had nothing to do with her loss , and she clutched her forehead with her hand and wept " I'm sorry ... it really isn't your fault .. I ... was ... I don't know ! I can't even think straight anymore ! "
" Pharos " Minato explained " a stranger dying is different than a loved one dying . If me or Minako were to disappear , how would that feel for you ? "
" I ... I don't know ... " the boy seemed to think deeply about it " I wouldn't wish to live through that ... I don't want to think of such a possibility ... it scares me ... "
" yeah , that's what's happening with Minako right now "
" I ... had no idea ... I'm so sorry ... "
" it ... it's not your fault ... "
" please give her some space , she's been through a lot " Minato sighed
" I came tonight because I remember more of the end ... many refer to it as the Fall , and some refer to it as Salvation . Is it not strange ? The more I remember of the end , the less it seems like a ' salvation ' "
" we're going to prevent it , there's only one shadow left for us to eliminate , after all "
" I see ... I wish you the best " Pharos smiled " but do you sense the fast approaching of the end ? "
" I ... I can't say I do ... "
" that's strange ... I always knew we were connected , and yet I continue to remember while you don't ... "
" I don't remember anything about the end , or the Fall as you called it , but I'm gonna prevent it . I promise ! "
" I see ... well please be careful . As I had mentioned , there are those who relish in the thought of impending doom , and as your journey is nearing its end , they will try to stop you "
" I know ... I'll be careful ... "
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I'm sorry for the harsh tone on Ken first thing in this season , which is partially the reason why I ended the previous season and said that the new season will be heavy and dark . I don't think I have much to add , as Minato pretty much said everything I have against Ken .
I just remembered this before I published , but I have something to ask all of you lovely readers . This may sound absolutely absurd and may give you a scare that I'm considering it , but ... well ...
Do you want Shinjiro to live or don't you ?
Look just hear me out , okay ?! Don't kill me for asking ! Okay ... phew ... see , the thing is , I've heard that Persona 3 Portable got a lot of criticism , specifically for Minako , because ... and I can't actually believe this is a thing ... they don't like how in the game she can keep Shinjiro alive , they think that this hurts the flow of the story and character development of other characters ... cough ! Akihiko and Ken ... cough !
What I think is that , unlike the male protagonist who represents the acceptance of death , she represents the belief and hope for miracles . Her cheerful personality contrasting her male counterpart's apathetic attitude is proof of that . I don't know , maybe it's my upbringing , but I believe miracles are an important part of this subject .
No one cares what you think , you stupid writer !!!
Okay ... this is why I'm here , and the reason I uploaded this part earlier than February 1st , to ask you all again , do you want Shinjiro to live or not ? To be honest , though , from your comments in the parts regarding his story , I'd say I already know what you think . Nevertheless , comment your answer , and don't think this would hamper my narration , I've already figured a scenario for wether he lives or dies , so don't feel restricted . You have until April 19th . With that , I hope you enjoyed this fanfiction , and stay safe .