Part 45: Entry Forty: November 22nd, 2009
Entry Forty: November 22nd, 2009
Mood: ...
Music: ...
This has to stop. We have to make it stop. I'm not sure how, but things just can't go on this way.
I guess I'll talk about the past couple days to try and chill out before I get to the important stuff.
Let's see...school's all abuzz about Career Week, which starts tomorrow. It's similar to work study or service learning in American schools, I guess. We help out at a real-world job instead of going to school for awhile. It's pretty damn dull.
On Saturday afternoon, I spent some more time with Chihiro.
Chihiro: Shall we get going? I don't see anything that interests me...
Chihiro: I've been dying to read this! This is a collection of illustrations from the shojo manga I read! It even has short stories inside! I would never have expected this to be here...maybe the shop owner made a mistake.
Chihiro: Each volume is 6,000 yen, so that means...18,000 yen total? My weekly allowance is 5,000 yen, and even if I used my lunch money...but I'll get them no matter what! By next month...wait, by the time I graduate!
I considered mentioning I was carrying over one and a half million yen due to plundering the deepest depths of our school, but I thought better of it.
Chihiro was fretting about money...
...when another couple walked out of Wild-Duck Burger. Seemed like the guy was being henpecked.
Chihiro: Until recently...but I sort of understand how he feels. That man...he doesn't have any self-confidence, so he tries to compensate with his money...but I can understand how he must feel, trying to hold onto something no matter what the cost.
I was pretty sure she was talking about me again.
I'm still not sure if she's creepy or adorable, to be honest.
She ran off after that, and I headed back to the dorm.
Speaking of things that could be creepy or adorable, I caught Aigis talking to the dog about how she apparently had a crush on Ryoji. Yeah.
I went to bed early that night, and had a vision of Chidori in the hospital. She was drawing as usual...
...until she heard the sound of breaking glass, and the hospital's alarm went off.
|Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out.
Takaya: Jin. The instruments, if you would.
Jin placed Chidori's weapon, a hatchet on a chain, and a new Evoker on her bed.
Takaya: Surely you understand...there is nowhere for you to go. You must come with us. Death is not to be feared. You need only fear--
Chidori: Yes, I know.
Takaya: ...Excellent.
Jin: Hey, hurry up, Chidori!
Today was a Sunday, so I didn't have school, and with both Maya and Akinari gone I didn't have much else to do either.
I ended up going to see Tanaka.
Tanaka: ...Oh dear me. I-I just can't concentrate. I get so worked up when I picture his face!
I asked who he was talking about.
Tanaka: There was a young man who was working for me. He was a good kid who graduated from a well-known university, but this month he wasn't able to meet his sales quota, so I docked his pay. After that, his self-confidence went down the drain, then he just stopped coming to work.
Tanaka: It's his fault that the company is in the red this month! All that money I wasted on training him...it makes me sick just thinking about it. Well, he only worked with me for two years, so at least I won't have to provide a pension...
Tanaka: It's difficult growing up with no money, when you can't even afford shoes for PE class! Going barefoot in the gym during winter can be torture!
Tanaka: Your innocent appearance would be perfect for camouflaging the ugly realities of business! Think about it, will you? You won't ever have to worry about being able to buy shoes for PE.
...He wants me to be a male model?
I guess that'd be cool. I've heard of one named Rodrigo from Spain, apparently he's pretty popular over there.
Anyway, now we're up to the bad part. During the Dark Hour tonight...
Fuuka woke me up and told me to come to the command room.
She had Juno out scanning when I got there.
Mitsuru: Other Persona-users. They're outside Tartarus!
Ken: Other Persona-users...? Don't tell me it's...
Yukari: First the Dark Hour won't go away, and now Strega is back?! What's happening?!
Akihiko: How many are there, Yamagishi?
Fuuka: There's only one, but...I thought she was in the hospital...no...she's...she's inside...
All of a sudden, Fuuka's voice was replaced with Chidori's.
Mitsuru: She's speaking thruogh Yamagishi?!
Chidori: I can't stand the sight of you all anymore...so I've decided to do something about it. Come to me...
Yukari: Junpei, do you know what's going on?! Junpei!
Junpei ran off alone...
...and we prepared to follow after him.
I decided to take Yukari, Akihiko, and Ken along for this mission.
Chidori was waiting for us at Tartarus, just as Fuuka had thought.
Chidori: ...
Junpei: It doesn't make any sense! I mean, I know I'm not that smart, and I've done a lot of stupid stuff...but we shouldn't be fighting like this!
Junpei went up to Chidori to try to talk some sense into her...
...and just barely avoided getting sliced in two by her hatchet.
Junpei: Chidori...! Why?!
Akihiko: Get back, Junpei! It's useless trying to reason with her!
With that, we grabbed our weapons and went into battle.
Boss - Chidori (This fight's kind of embarrassing, really. Chidori's pretty weak, and the only noteworthy facets of this battle are her unique skill Spring of Life and the fact that her Persona, Medea of the Hanged Man Arcana, looks awesome. Also note that RB90 appears to have used Vimeo for this animation; perhaps Google Video was being uncooperative at the time?)
After the fight, Chidori was unable to threaten Junpei any longer, so he ran to her side again.
Junpei: Chidori, please...tell me why you're doing this...
Chidori: What I fear most isn't death. What I fear most is...
Chidori: That's why we only live for the moment...but you...you brought me pain...pain that I didn't want...pain that I never asked for...
Junpei: Huh...?
All of a sudden...
...Fuuka sensed something else.
It was exactly who we expected.
Takaya: Chidori...I see that it is too late. You've been poisoned by them...
Junpei: What the hell does that mean, you friggin' ghost?!
Takaya: I am no ghost...fate permitted me to live, even though I wasn't attached to life...you might say I was chosen.
Junpei: You bastard...
Junpei seemed resolute...
...but all Takaya did was laugh, raise his revolver, and then...
...we lost another friend.
(We seem to be having issues with the archive all of a sudden. It seems this entry is incomplete. I'll see what I can do about getting the rest of it up later on.)
Coming up in the next entry: Why does this keep happening?