A Wild Unison

...Because why not.

(Takes place in Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth.)

Disclaimer: I don't own Atlus or whatever. Honestly, if I did, Kasumi would be in PQ2.

Akira grunts, breathing out before brandishing his knife to cut a Shadow, knocking it flat. "There's one!" he calls, leaping back.

"Nice one, Joker!" speaks Yu, before crushing a tarot card. "Izanagi!" His Persona manifests, unleashing a cut of electricity that downs another. "Alright... how about an All-Out Attack?" he speaks, turning to Akira.

Joker nods, smirking as he leaps into the growing dust cloud, the rest of the party following him. The Shadows within wail as they are cut, bashed and stabbed repeatedly.

"Finished," declares Yu, the dust settling with all the Shadows gone, leaving some small traces behind. "That was good."

Akira narrows his eyes, picking one up. "This'll be good to sell to Theodore," he speaks. "Hm..."

"Yeah," speaks Minato, nodding. "Hopefully then we'll have new gear, too."

"Mm... yeah," smiles Minako, allowing her naginata to rest over one shoulder. "And we should see if we can fuse any new Personas together, too!"

"Yeah," nods Joker. "One thing at a time, though... let's keep exploring for now." The rest of the team nods, following as he takes the lead, being sure to keep his knife at the ready.

The voices from everyone else drifts over him, though he feels a slight frown develop underneath his mask, noting one to be absent.

"..." Looking back, he sees Minako looking downwards. As Junpei calls to her, she perks up, flashing a wide smile, briefly joining the conversation before drifting to stare at the ground once more.

"Hey, Leader, you okay?" Joker blinks, seeing Minato having moved up to walk beside him. "You don't seem to be super focused on the map right now..."

"Hm... just thinking," replies Akira, looking down to sketch out the missing walls. "No need to worry."

"...It's about Minako-chan, isn't it." Minato glances forward, and they sidestep a wall to proceed before he continues. "Ever since she found she was alone in this world..."

"She's subdued," speaks Akira, voice low. "I'd like to have a one-on-one chat, but..."

"You're our leader; you're busy," speaks Minato. "Here, let me lead for a little, and you can go over and talk to her." He pulls out his sword, readying himself to take Joker's place. "And..." He smiles. "I bet you'd like some alone time with her, yeah?" He chuckles.

"...Thanks," speaks Joker, slowing his pace until he was beside the Wild Card. "Hey, Minako-chan," he speaks.

"Ah!" She flinches, glancing up at him. "Oh, Joker!" She smiles, tilting her head slightly. "What's up?"

"Not much," replies Akira. "Just checking up on you. Doing okay?"

"Ehe... yeah, of course!" Minako pumps her arm, grinning. "I'm doing fine, so no need to worry!"

Joker breathes out. "...Mm, alright. Just know that you can come to me for anything. No matter how small or insignificant it feels, I'll always have some time to listen," he speaks.

"Yep, of course!" she replies, flashing a smile that he reciprocates. "Heh... thanks. Just this small chat makes a me feel a lot better already."

"Glad to hear it." Joker smiles back, before feeling something approach behind them, gasping as he turns. "Damnit... Shadows!" he growls, a blast of fire knocking him away. "Guh!" He rises. "Tch... of course, it's a new one, too."

"Ngh... come, Orpheus!" calls Minako, firing her Evoker. A surge of fire rushes forward, engulfing one of the Shadows, though it emerges with only a slight flinch. "Wha... it resists Fire?!"

"Oh no... that's not good!" speaks Oracle, her voice coming over. "You guys need to clear those Shadows quick, there's an FOE coming at you from the other direction!"

"Oh shit, that's not good!" shouts Kanji. "Joker, what should we-?!"

"We take care of this quickly," speaks Joker, ripping his mask off. "ARSENE!" he bellows. "RAVAGE THEM!" He casts an Eigaon, the Shadow falling. He smirks, feeling a flood of energy rush through his body. "Minato, Yu, watch our backs! Minako, with me!" he orders. The called team members nod, following. "Now then... Mona!" he declares, raising a hand. The bipedal (not) cat jumps up to take the baton, before Zorro rushes outward. "Phew..." He swallows, swiping his knife at a Shadow. Of course we had to face new ones at a time like this...!

Minako swipes, using her naganata to cut one of the Shadows, pulling her Evoker out. "AH?!" She screams as a bolt crashes upon her, making her fall. "NGH...!"

"Damn!" curses Joker. "This is taking too long...!" He turns, catching Panther as she flies into him. "Ugh!" he grunts, sliding along the ground. "Wha..."

"Ngh... Orpheus!" shouts Minato, his own Persona manifesting. "Agidyne!"

"That FOE's caught up to you! You're trapped!" comes Fuuka's voice. "And all that combat is bringing more Shadows to your location!"

A Mr. Bear...! thinks Joker, breathing out. "Switch! Minako, Morgana, you two get up here with Yu, Minato and me! Everyone else clear the Shadows, and we get out as soon as you clear a path!" he shouts, before tearing his mask off. If memory serves... this FOE's weakness... "Arsene... Eigaon!" he declares, the FOE flinching at the spell, the familiar rush of energy flooding his senses.

"Hah... hah..." Yu pants, Izanagi appearing to clash briefly against the FOE. "Ngh...!" He falls to one knee, wiping his mouth. "Damnit... Raijinzan!" he yells, his Persona rearing up for an electrified strike, with the FOE's claws matching it easily. "No way..."

"There's still a few Shadows on everyone elses' side!" speaks Rise. "Hang in there, Senpai, Joker!"

"Yeah-GUH?!" With a blur, the Mr. Bear's claws tear into Joker, ripping his flesh apart. "Ugh..." He coughs up blood. So fast...?!

"JOKER!" he hears Minako scream, and several gunshot sounds echo outward. A surge of intense heat rushes up in front of him, the FOE's claws slipping out before it rushes away. "Ah... Tarunda!"

Joker falls, groaning. "Ugh..." Panting, he forces himself to his feet. "Hah... Rangda," he manages, feeling his concentration slip with his next casting. "Gh... Debilitate!" he declares. "Alright..." He slouches, grunting before falling over. "Damnit..."

"Minato, let's hit it hard!" yells Yu, the fellow Wild Card nodding in response before the two surge forward, slashing at the same time, the motion causing a cross shape to briefly engulf the FOE.

"Joker!" Akira grunts, seeing Minako kneel beside him. "Are you okay?!"

"Y-yeah..." His vision loses focus for a moment, feeling the ground under him become slippery, as well as a growing quantity of redness underneath him. "Th...that..."

"Here, do you have it in you to-" She cuts herself off, pulling out some popcorn to feed to him, removing his mask to directly place some of the food in his mouth.

He chews, the tastiness flooding his mouth, feeling his wounds start to close. "Theodore... ugh... makes miracle popcorn..." he manages between bites, feeling the softness of her fingers brushing against the lips. Ah... He glances away, feeling a blush start to creep onto his face. She's...

"Hehe, yeah! Theo sure is amazing!" laughs Minako. "Hm..." She looks away. "It's hurt, and slowed, but... it's still really strong." She fires her Evoker with a slight gasp. "Orpheus... Agidyne!"

"The swarm behind you's almost dealt with! Everyone's doing great!" calls Oracle.

"We're all running low on energy, though... you should probably return to the theatre after this!" speaks Rise.

"Th-thanks... Oracle... Rise..." Joker winces as he rises, seeing the excess of blood from where he lay. "That's not good," he mutters, mask returning to him. "Ngh..." Maybe... one last spell with Arsene... after that I'm...

The Mr. Bear howls, lunging forward. Minato gasps, raising his sword in a block, the impact sending him into the nearby wall. "UGH!" He falls to the ground, sword being released from his grasp as the limb itself is now bent at a very awkward angle., his uniform getting stained with his blood. "Guh..."

"Here," speaks Joker, passing a Revival Bead into Minako's hand. "Get Minato on his feet, then stay back." He rips his mask off. holding on to his face as pain jolts up it. "Kh...!" He dashes forward as Arsene manifests, readying his knife. "EIGAON!"

Yu grunts as the FOE turns away from him, summoning Izanagi. "ZIODYNE!" he shouts, and races to Joker's side. "How about we end this?"

Joker smiles, a sense of weightlessness filling his body, the pain fading for a moment. "Let's do it."

Yu smiles in return, flowing electricity through his sword before rushing around at sharp angles, steadily towards the FOE.

"Hmph!" Joker surges forward, leaping through the air at the Mr. Bear alongside the Wild Card. "FALL!" The combined assault leaves deep slash marks along the Shadow's flesh, and it howls, before turning away in another direction.

"Where's it- MONA!" yells Joker. "WATCH-" He stares as the Mr. Bear tears its claws along Morgana, before tossing him into a wall. "DAMN- ugh!" Joker falls to one knee as it gives out. "Hah...?!" He coughs, and sees himself shake. I can't move...?! "Gh!" He looks forward. "Minako, Minato!"

"Orpheus!" the two of them call, their respective Personas rising to meet the Mr. Bear's charge.

"Relax, Leader," speaks Yu, tapping Joker lightly on the shoulder. "We'll finish this." He breathes out, Izanagi manifesting once more. "Raijinzan!"

The FOE screams at the electric strike, falling, fading away.

"And... all the Shadows are gone!" declares Oracle. "Good job, everyone!"

"Y...yeah..." Joker grunts, falling over. "Ugh..." He rolls over on his back, pulling out a Goho-M from his pocket. "Is... ugh... everyone accounted for?"

"Everyone's hurt and exhausted, but... nothing some good rest won't fix." Minato cracks his neck, arm no longer looking awkward. "Gh..." He clutches onto the limb, before evoking Orpheus to cast a quick Diarama spell. "Phew... better."

"Are you okay, Joker?!" Minako comes to inspect him, shifting his trench coat for a better look at the wounds underneath. "Yeah, we need to get back to the theatre n-"

Looking up at her, from a corner Akira sees ghostly claws rear up, even whilst performing the action fading away further. Joker manages to concentrate energy, shoving Minako aside.

The claws rip into him, a jet wave of pure, unadulterated blood rushing outwards as a result.

He's screaming, loudly, the agony is intense, someone, no others, everyone maybe is screaming, gunshots are sounding and he has to do something to get rid of what's penetrating him and augmenting every sense to be on fire-

He blacks out.

Akira opens his eyes, groaning. "Wha..."

There's a light in the room. There's a roof, his incoherent mind somehow puts together. Which means...

Back in the movie theatre?

A dull throbbing assaults throughout his body, and he recalls the sharp claws tearing through him.

Well, great. He winces, his body feeling stiff now. That went well. Akira narrows his eyes, his mind and senses starting to return to him.

And there was something very soft under his head, and something to the side...

Minako leans against a wall, face signalling a state of unconsciousness. They're on the floor. So that softness he was feeing...

My head's in her lap. Akira sighs softly, closing his eyes. Well, might as well make the most of it.

Minako suddenly gives a very slight jolt, eyes opening. "Akira...?" she mumbles, rubbing her eyes, looking down at him.

"Hey," he speaks, opening his eyes to look up at her.

She smiles. "You okay?"

"Y-" He cuts himself off with a flinch as pain surges through him. "Ugh... yeah... I'll be fine." Akira swallows, his throat dry. "Is there any water...?"

"Mmhm! Here." She grasps a water bottle from somewhere out of his vision (why would he, when he could stare endlessly into those red eyes that never failed to captivate) and undoes the cap before pressing it to his lips.

He nods, sipping, the refreshing coolness descending down his parched throat. Grunting, he shifts into a more comfortable position. "Thanks."

"Anything for our fearless leader, right?" she smiles. "Especially..." She glances away, a forlorn expression starting to fill her eyes. "After you saved me at the end there..."

"Oh..." Right. "With the FOE?"

"Yeah..." Her smile shifts along with her eyes to allow sadness within them. "I thought you were dead for sure this time." She releases a shuddering breath. "God knows we've come close, but never quite..."

"Ah..." Akira breathes out, fiddling within his pocket. "There should..."

"You're looking for this?" Minako holds up a small statue. "When we brought you back and found this, Margaret explained that you only survived due to this... called it a Bracer of Might."

"Yeah..." He takes it from her, groaning as he assumes a sitting position. For a moment he thinks disappointment flashes in her gaze, though it wears away before he gets a good look. "And everyone else is okay too?"

"Yeah. Everyone's just exhausted and injured, so we're sleeping and resting." Minako holds her knees to herself.

"...Minako, are you okay?" speaks Akira. Something's wrong. He could sense it. Akira hadn't forged as many bonds as he had without picking up on subtler actions, usually even subconscious by those who were performing them.

She sighs, standing. "Can we talk? Please?" Minako offers him a hand.

"Yeah, of course." He takes it, and frowns when she doesn't let go. "Ah... Minako...?"

She flashes him what Akira could only describe as one of the most melancholic smiles he had ever seen.

"Kamoshidaman...?" murmurs Akira, looking around. "Hm... this was the area the Phantom Thieves and I first met you." He cracks his neck with a grunt.

"Yeah." She sighs, taking a couple of paces away from him. "I thought it was enemy reinforcements, too." Minako laughs softly. "Never have I been so glad and happy to be wrong."

"Yeah, same," replies Joker. "Why'd you bring me here, though?"

"I have to confess... I think..." She turns and grasps his collar, head down, preventing him from seeing her eyes. Then she finally looks up, and his eyes widen slightly at the tears rolling down her cheeks, accompanied with that sad smile she had in the theatre. "You've stolen my heart, Joker."

She slowly removes his mask, before leaning in to press her lips against his.

Joker feels his mind go blank, and the contact between the two of them ceases before his mind regains its bearings. "Minako..."

"Ehehe... I know I shouldn't feel this way... after all, we're from different times and worlds and everything... there's no way a relationship between the two of us would ever work out..." Minako wipes away her tears on a sleeve. "But I just can't help it." She laughs softly. "Sorry, this is probably out of left field for you, Phantom Thief."

Akira swallows. "Well, yes... but not..." He narrows his eyes. "Unwanted... I suppose is the word I'm looking for here."

"Eh?" Her eyes widen. "What do you..." She stops as he brings a gloved hand to her cheek. "Ah..."

"You may not be a Phantom Thief, but... you've stolen my heart as well..." He leans closer. "Spunky."

The kiss that results lasts longer this time, until Joker leans back from her.

"I'm truly glad I got sucked into this movie theatre, if only to meet you," speaks Akira. "And even after we get out of here, I'll do whatever it takes, if it means getting to see you again. Even if you and I are in different worlds, I will find you. I swear it on my status as the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts."

Minako smiles, this time no trace of anything but happiness present within it. "Mm... we'll meet again in the real world. I swear on my being the leader of the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad!" she declares.

"Good," he smirks. "Now then..." A squeak sounds from her as he picks her up in his arms to hold against the nearby wall.

Minako gasps as his mouth assaults her neck. "A-Akira..."

He detaches from her with a light chuckle. "For now... I think Spunky and Joker should get to know each other better..."

The only response he gets from her is a moan from his resulting actions.

"Hey, dude, you plan to just look up names of high school students at school again today?" speaks Ryuji. "C'mon, let's hang out! We haven't been to the ramen place in a while, you wanna go there?"

"Hm..." Akira narrows his eyes, looking down the long list of names with a sigh. "Damn," he mutters.

"Huh? What're you looking at?" asks Ryuji, peering down at the paper. "Uh... "List of Students who attended Gekkoukan High School"...? Dude, why're you so interested in people from another high school?"

Akira groans, standing to stretch. "I don't know... it's just... I have this feeling like there was somebody I knew, but forgot about... it's driving me insane," he admits. "And... she meant a lot to me, too. I think."

"Huh... and you think she went to Gekkoukan? Actually, how do you know that?" speaks Ryuji.

"I don't. I've just been going alphabetically," responds Akira, glaring at the paper before him. "And this was just next on the list..."

"Hey, you planning to spend the whole day looking at people who've attended random schools again?" speaks Morgana, peeking his head out of Akira's bag. "If you do, I'm not gonna wait for you this time!"

"Yeah, yeah." Akira starts to put away the list. "You said ramen? Sure, sounds good," speaks Akira, nodding to Ryuji.

"Hm... huh, that's interesting." Ryuji peers at the paper. "Two people with almost the exact same names on here... Minako... and Minato Arisato...?"

"Struck me as odd too, but whether or not their names are similar is irrevelent to... whatever I'm searching for." Akira rubs his eyes, removing his glasses. "Damnit... it'd be easier if I had some clue what to look for..."

"Hm... probably twins, I guess, they transferred in their second year... says only one of them finished high school though..." Ryuji frowns. "The other... passed away..."

"Who was it?" speaks Morgana, as Akira prepares himself and gets his bag.

"Huh... Minako Arisato. Minato graduated, but..." Ryuji grunts. "Seems..."

"Sad. Melancholic," speaks Akira, putting the list away. "Alright, let's go get some ramen."

"Hm...? Oh, yeah! Let's go!" declares Ryuji. "It's been too long..."

"Yeah..." Akira breathes out, following the Chariot out of the school. When Ryuji first said her name...

Some part of me felt satisfied for some reason.

And when he said she died...

It felt like that same part of me died too.

Thanks for reading!