Part 125: February 12 Part 3 - February 13 Part 1: The Hollow Forest

Please excuse the slightly impolite invitation.
Whoa...She's beautiful...
Now's not the time for gawking! I think she's the one who grabbed me.
...Who is she? You know her?
A friend, of sorts.
F-Friend?
What type of friend is she...? You got one mysterious life...
Forgive me for not introducing myself sooner. We meet for the first time. My name is Margaret. I am a helper on this young man's journey...I meant you no harm.
Er, well...Can we trust her?
Of course.
I-I see...
Do you remember? I have come to fulfill my promise.
You mean about Marie?
Yes. I have come to guide you. I apologize for the amount of time it required me to prepare.

> You did ask to be taken to where Marie is...Is she here...?

...This is the Hollow Forest. The "closed realm" created by her in the TV world, the "world of the human mind"...It would seem that after Marie left us, she shut herself in here.
Shut herself in?
I do not know everything. But, as you know, she was searching for her memory. And by opening her heart to you, she finally regained that memory...It would seem that what she found was not what she had been hoping for.
Whoa, hold on. What is this all about? Marie? You mean Marie-chan? The one who was with you...?
I remember her. That fashionable girl with the hat, right?
What do you mean, she's here? And what was that about her memory...?

> Everyone is worried about Marie...What should you do...?

(Explain Marie's situation)

-Deduction-

> You explain that Marie had lost her memory, and that she is currently missing...

Emmy-chan has amnesia...?
We are inside the TV right now, correct? A missing person ending up in the TV...
Don't tell me...I mean, we put an end to all that...!
I do not think this is the same situation. I believe Marie's disappearance is unrelated to the "kidnapping incident" you all were following. She was not taken away by someone. Rather, she came here of her own volition.
She willingly came here...Does that mean Marie-san has the Persona ability as well?
No. Marie is originally a..."resident" of this side.
What kind of girl were you showing around town!?
Hold on. This is inside the TV, right? Then, aren't there Shadows in here...?
You're kidding me...That means...
Marie is in danger.
He's right. If she were to be attacked by Shadows...
I will not say that she is not in danger. However, the same goes for you...If you are to proceed ahead and search for Marie, you must have adequate resolution.
Is that why you brought my friends?
The path ahead will be relentless. You alone will not be able to reach her...If you wish to see her again, then it is my role to help you. And to do so, I decided to invite everyone who has accompanied you on your journey...here.
...I see.
I was wondering why you didn't bring just our leader here...Now I understand. You're giving us all the information and letting us choose what to do from here...You aren't here to stop us.
Exactly.
One more thing...Well, this isn't going to affect whether or not I plan to help, but...You are also like Marie-san? A..."resident of this side?"
The human mind contains more than Shadows. I believe you all witnessed that in your last battle.
Are you talking about those things that came out of Namatame and Adachi-san? Well, they WERE different from the Shadows we know about...
It does not matter how you choose to interpret it. What you see and what you believe are up to you. I know that you can supply yourselves with answers...As I know that you have been capable of coming this far. One more thing...As I just said, the Hollow Forest was originally a "closed realm." It is not the case now, but in time, this place will seal itself again.
In other words...We can't come in and out of here forever?
Exactly. It would seem that little time remains before the Hollow Forest completes itself. Once that time has passed, this place will be closed forever, and you will never be able to visit here again. If that happens, Marie's existence will be entirely expunged from your memories.
We'll lose our memories!?
Hey, what the hell are you talkin' about!?
She's just gonna up and vanish from our heads?
Tell me more.
It is exactly as I said. The closing of this forest marks the fact of Marie's erasure. Any memories you have of Marie will disappear, and you will return to your peaceful days.
No...This doesn't make sense!
I merely have come to fulfill my promise. What you do is up to you...I have made a link from the television in the mountain cabin to this world. That is the only conduit through which you may reach this place.
Huh? So we can't get here through the TV in Junes!?
Exactly. This world and your world's screens are linked, place to place...It is a fact.
Hrmmm...I can't smell the other places from here...It really isn't connected!
...I am repeating myself, but it was Marie who shut herself in this world. There is no need for you to think that you must risk your lives for her...I am sure she would not wish that, either. Please, treasure the normal lives you have. That is what Marie would want...Now, if you would excuse me.
H-Hey! Wait! Er...Please!?


This must be an exit, like the ones Teddie has.
So now what!?
What else? That Marie chick is in here, right? If she's in danger of being attacked by Shadows, then we've gotta get in there and find her.
Hold on. It might not be that simple. Let us leave for now, at any rate. We cannot blindly run ahead so suddenly.
...Yeah. Plus, we're totally unprepared, right? If we're gonna do it, let's get ready and take this on full-force!


Shut it. There's eight of us, and it's a tiny frickin' TV.


Uh, no.
What are you guys clowning around for? C'mon, get up! We got a meeting to hold!


I guess she just wanted to be the one to say it.
Yeah, it would really mess with my head if Chie-senpai was coming up with good plans.
Shut up! That's rude, you know!

-Deduction-

Still, that was a surprise. Y'know, that whole "Marie being from the other side" thing.
Wait, so the TV world is the "world of the human mind," huh? It's not really sinking in, though...
I couldn't even tell.
There wasn't a chance to explain.
Haha, no one's complaining, man. If you'd tried introducing her like, "Oh, she's from another world," the "?" above my head could be seen from orbit.
...The issue here is Marie-san's motive. Why would she risk her life to shut herself in a place like that?
I could see it if she was thrown in like we were, but why would she do that to herself?
Her memory is the key.
Yeah, that blue chick did say Marie lost her memory.
Maybe she remembered something that made her do that.
Hey, I just thought of something...If the world she's in closes, she'll disappear from our memories, right?...Isn't that the same as dying?
Wha--wait...! You mean, sh-she's trying to...!?
I-I don't know, but it just feels that way to me...
She wants to kill herself and make us forget about her...?
She's erasing her own existence...?
I think...Emmy-chan's like me.
I was really worried when I couldn't figure out who I was...When I finally found out I was a Shadow, it was traumatizing...I don't think Emmy-chan's a Shadow, but I think she feels the same way I did...That she..."shouldn't exist."
Teddie...

> The atmosphere is heavy...What should you do...?

We can't leave her like this.
Yeah, I think that too. I can kind of understand how she feels. Not having anyone know the real you, being alone all the time...Even when someone's friendly to you, you feel like there's something wrong...If I didn't meet all of you, I might have thought the same as her.
Same shit with me. I was always being misunderstood, so I toughened up and started biting back...I was scared that no one would accept the real me if I ever showed it to them. In the end, I couldn't even admit it when I was showing myself...Pointless.
Yeah...We're all like that. Everybody's suffering in some way.
Yes, but we were able to change...
No matter how much we hated ourselves, we were able to face it and accept it. Because...we had dear friends.
Yeah...! I know now. There's nothing to be afraid of. We're the only ones that can save Marie-chan. If she's really thinking the same way we were, we have to go stop her!
That's that, then.
We should find out exactly what we're getting into, first. It's better to know anything than to go in knowing nothing. It'll at least make things easier on us.
...We should devote a day to it. Teddie, Rise-san, can you scan that world? From the usual spot, of course. The rest of us should rest up to prepare for the exploration...If there are Shadows in there, then we can't avoid fighting them.
All right, let's do this! Heh...This takes me back. Even though it hasn't been that long since we finished the other stuff.
Yeah! All right, it's super-sniffy time together with Rise-chan!
Heheheh...My superultramegahyperuber Teddie nose can pick up even the slightest scent! But...This skill is not without its drawbacks. After three minutes, I get just an ungodly amount of snot...


Hey, don't damage the bear before showtime. At least he's actually useful in a fight.
How rude! What do you mean, "at least!?"
Let's regroup at school. Okay?

> Your friends are thinking back to the way things used to be...According to Margaret, there isn't much time before that place closes. You must find Marie quickly, or you will never be able to see her again. You are concerned about Marie, but first you should get a grasp of the situation at hand...You return to the lodge and pack your bags to return home...



> Today, you're supposed to discuss what happened yesterday...Hurry to school.



-Deduction-

First, allow me to report. Just in case, I've checked for missing people in the local jurisdiction to see if anyone may have wandered in there. Zero results. There are no missing person requests, either. It seems that this place really doesn't have anything to do with our previous "case."
Hey, no fair. You said to rest, and yet you went and did research.
...But I went and checked the newspaper, too. I looked for any news of missing people, but there wasn't any.
I also tried asking our suppliers and customers if there was anything going on, but there aren't any rumors.
Ditto. I asked around at work, but didn't come up with anything. You can't underestimate the Housewife Network!
Yeah, I tried talking with some former punks, but didn't get jack.
...Considering that none of us could find evidene, perhaps it's safe to say that no one has wandered in accidentally. But more important is whatever Teddie and Rise-san found. How did your search go?
I can feel that "Hollow Forest" really far away, but that's it.
I couldn't sense Emmy-chan's presence at all.
That place...It's big. I'm glad we didn't just jump in there without making sure we were ready for it.
The "Hollow Forest," huh? Is that place also affected by the mind of the person inside?
If that's the case...then did Marie-chan make that area?
"Hollow Forest"...We heard that phrase before...In the last battle, right?
I was wondering the same thing. Ameno-sagiri mentioned it. The place that gave birth to those who answer the "desires" and "wishes for lies" of humans...was that it?
Hold on. Are you saying that the image in Marie-chan's mind is the same forest that created that monster?
...What's going on here?
The hell...? Who is she, exactly?
...Our objective is to save her, but it doesn't seem like things will end there. If she is related to those monsters, then we need to do more research. What is she trying to do? Who is she, really? It seems we have no choice but to go see her and find the truth directly from her.
Let's go.
Yeah, let's do it! Whoever she is, we're not letting her die like this.
That's right! I'm burning up! Hrrrrrrng!
Right, let's do it. We don't know what she's bummed about, but we'll save her!

> Everyone's hearts have come together...

Wait a sec! If I come and save Emmy-chan...That's like an arrow straight through the heart, right?
What should I do!? I'm not ready for this...
Dude, I can't tell if you're being a creeper or not!

> You hurry to the Mountain Cabin to save Marie...

-Snowflakes-


We can get to that Hollow Forest by entering this TV...
Let's hurry and jump in there, then! That place is gonna get closed off soon, right?
Yeah, that Margaret person said it was definitely going to happen...I think we're still okay for today, but I can sense it getting further and further away...
W-Wait...Does that mean we have no idea what'll happen tomorrow!?
...That is quite likely. It was a completely different place until very recently. Since there's no guarantee that we'll be able to enter it tomorrow, we must do something about it today.
...Right. It'll be a bit tough, but we've got to do this.
C'mon, let's save Marie-chan today!
(Ask about Marie)
Marie-chan is in the world inside the TV here...
I didn't know she'd lost her memories. I hope she's okay...
These memories that have resurfaced seem to be the reason why she's shut herself inside that world.
I don't know what she's remembered, but no good will come from shutting herself up inside there.
No matter how painful things may be, you can't ignore it and hope it goes away. You have to face it with your friends and get past it...
We need to try and get Marie-chan to see that.
Heh...If she says she don't get it, maybe we just gotta make her understand.
That place will be cut off soon...We gotta hurry and rescue Marie-chan!
(Ask about this TV)
We can reach the world where Marie-chan went from the TV here, right?
Yes...though we don't appear to have much time until it closes.
That foxy lady Sensei knows said so!
That Margaret woman said that where she went is different from the other worlds. It's isolated...
Well, we confirmed that since we had Rise-chan and Teddie look into it.
Then she's in pretty deep shit...We gotta get her outta there.
Yeah...Today's our only shot at this. Let's go in and save Marie-chan!
Let's go, Sensei!


...Huh? It's snowing.
Oh, you're right...
......
Huh? This is...
This isn't snow. These are flower petals.

> You can hear a voice from somewhere...

Listen...To my voice...
My shouting, bellowing voice...
Here I am
Pouring my blood into my words
Yelling at the very edge of the world...
I am the little mermaid...
Unable to return, the little mermaid...
Fated to foam, the little mermaid...
...Is that Marie-chan's voice?
...She sounds so sad...