"Yeah! We did it! We beat the shadow!"

The hooded figure raised his fists into the air and cheered, celebrating their latest victory with the shadow they've been searching for this whole time. Mitsuru sighed, but gave a subtle smile and nodded in agreement. Aigis kept the blank expression on her face while Naoto continued to stare at her hand.

"That was… amazing," Naoto sighed in fascination, "What happened…? What was that Persona?"

"I was not aware of such a persona myself," Aigis gave as a rebuttal.

Mitsuru and the man rushed towards the two and asked if they were unharmed. A more presentable introduction among Naoto, Mitsuru, and the man Akihiko were given and the course of the last few hours was explained briefly. Once everything was established and conversed over, the topic of the mysterious persona came back.

"Listen carefully… that Persona was new, but I think there's an explanation for it," Mitsuru explained, "The Kirijo group has been studying this kind of power for only a short time until it was discontinued due to other projects. We called this ability a union,"

"A union?" Naoto inquired, "A union would entail a bond between two or more things… so do you mean to say that a union would be a mixture of two Personas?"

"It is best described as such. Supposedly, two persona-users would be able to connect their Personas together in order for a more profound attack. Unfortunately, little is known about such an ability that it could either be deemed efficient or unstable,"

"It sure looked like it was pretty stable," Akihiko added.

"Intriguing, to say the least," Naoto agreed, "Certainly this would provide an excellent battle tactic."

"Indeed," Aigis commented.

"Is there not going to be anymore continued studies of these unions?" Naoto encouraged.

"Well," Mitsuru paused, "I suppose now there will be, considering the impact it left on the Shadow. It could be helpful in future battles."

As the group spoke, the sun began to rise up over the creek. Goodness, were they really out that late? Naoto was beginning to feel sleepy herself as they all walked back to the Police station. Dojima noticed the group as he was standing outside (Naoto assumed he was getting fresh air, or perhaps leaving the annoyance of the other cops once and for all). He smirked as they walked down the street.

"Dojima-san," Naoto began, "Here is the group that you wanted to see. I can assure you that they are not gang members out to harm anyone,"

He chuckled low in the back of his throat. "I'll be the judge of that, rookie. But I have to admit, you got the job done at least. Good work."

"Of course. Perhaps since my end of the deal has been settled, yours could be fulfilled as well?" Naoto lifted up her right hand, which was still connected to Aigis' left hand.

"Oh jeez, I figured by now that you would have found a way to escape those things," Dojima admitted foolishly, "Can't base things off of assumptions I guess. Give your hands here,"

He retrieved the key from his pocket and freed the two girls from the cuffs. Aigis' hand did not show much wear, but Naoto's hand was cut quite generously. Dojima grimaced at the site of her wrist, which was seconds away from bleeding. "Might wanna treat that before it gets worse. The first-aid's in the drawer, you know where it is. I'll question these three in the meantime." He pointed to Aigis, Mitsuru, and Akihiko.

"Actually, Dojima-san, I've already questioned Aigis," Naoto assured, "That won't be necessary,"

Dojima scoffed at her, "I see. Well then why don't you go treat our Naoto's wounds?" He addressed to Aigis, "We can't have her interning with us if she's injured,"

"Understood," Aigis replied dryly, "Come, I will take you for treatment," She took Naoto by the arm and pulled her through the doors of the police station. Naoto hardly had time to argue as she was dragged through the doors, so she only complied. For a moment, she felt the roles being reversed.

While Dojima escorted the other two away and was thoroughly questioning them in a separate room, Aigis began to treat Naoto's wounds with rubbing alcohol, antibiotic ointment, and a generous amount of bandages. Almost too generous.

"Aigis, don't you think that's enough?" Naoto asked.

"Nonsense. From what I have researched, bandages keep the wounds from being exposed to the air," Aigis replied.

"Only until the skin can cover itself … but that appears to be too much. Though I do appreciate your concern for my well-being,"

Aigis looked down at the cuts on Naoto's wrist. She looked unhappy. "This must be due to my pulling on you. I should have known that human skin is much more sensitive than that which is synthetic."

"I-It's not your fault, Aigis, "Naoto persisted, "If it weren't for you, we would have been beaten, or at least in a much worse predicament. Remember that there was a good outcome behind this."

Aigis sighed, "I suppose. I have just recently learned that being human is much different than being what I am. Humans are much more perishable."

"That is true... All of us have our thresholds and there are circumstances that we can and can't avoid. All we can do is be prepared for them,"

Aigis looked at Naoto with greater wisdom, as if she gained more knowledge about life. She gave a subtle smile, "You have shown me many things for only knowing me for 6.43 hours. Thank you, Naoto-san."

"I-I don't think that title is relevant for me. Perhaps Naoto-kun would be more appropriate."

"Indeed, Naoto-kun," she replied. She continued to wrap the bandage around Naoto's wrist until it was securely in place. She then kissed it.

"?" Naoto glanced at Aigis in confusion, blushing slightly from the contact, "What was that for?"

"Is this not a way to provide certainty of a full recovery?" Aigis stated in a dry tone.

Naoto sighed and chucked softly, "No, you're correct. It's just… I haven't had that done to me since I was only a child. Thank you, Aigis." Naoto stared at her bandaged wrist and smirked disappointedly, "It's quite a shame that we're no longer bound together. It actually feels weird to have my hand back."

"I have always been bound to someone," Aigis stated, "Only recently have I begun to find my own identity. Like you said previously, one should not be bound by someone else for all eternity. It is important to be your own person,"

"You're very right about that…" Naoto nodded in agreement and smiled.

Dojima exited the questioning room with Mitsuru and Akihiko and looked as though he had been trying to solve the DaVinci code; he couldn't have looked more perplexed. "I'm gonna have to get used to this whole "persona" thing that you kids keep talking about…"

"What's the verdict, Dojima-san?" Naoto inquired.

"Everything's cleared up, for now that is. As long as we don't catch any of you three vandalizing the town and causing a ruckus, things are taken care of."

"Our job is done, Aigis. We should head home while the train is active," Mitsuru encouraged.

"Yeah, I'm already sore," Akihiko added, "We could all use the rest."

"I see…" Aigis replied. She did not seem eager to leave.

"It seems Aigis has bonded with you, Naoto," Mitsuru said confidently.

"Don't feel so bad, Aigis," Akihiko mentioned, "You can always come back to visit if you wanted to. It isn't like we live too far away."

Naoto looked at the disappointed Aigis, guilty that she was the one to make Aigis feel such an emotion. "Cheer up, Aigis. Akihiko is right, I'll still be here and you can visit whenever you like."

Aigis looked up and nodded, reassured from her friends' words. "I will not forget our time shared, Naoto-kun."

With that said, she stood and awaited for commands from Mitsuru, who gazed fondly at Naoto. "Thank you for your help, Naoto-kun, Dojima-san." She nodded towards them and left for the door, with Aigis and Akihiko following.

Naoto watched, but sighed when they walked out of view. Dojima noticed the small cadet and patted her shoulder, "You earned a break. Go get some rest, we'll call you if something new comes up."

Though reluctant to go home from work, she had been painfully exhausted and rest was too big of a temptation to pass up. She dragged herself down the streets, around the corner and up the hill just to walk through her front door, trudged up the stairs, and plopped onto her bed. Not even the rising sun could persuade Naoto to stay awake.