Chapter Text
Time passed rather fast for Sylvain in Iwatodai. Fighting in Tartarus, befriending people, exploring the city, all of it took his and Bernadetta's time. The more he explored, the more curious he was about this place. Considering this was 2009, a time so far away from his, the technological development made here took him but surprise. Yet, at the same time, he guessed that humans would evolve their ways eventually. They wouldn't be stuck with the same methods over and over and over again. That would be really stupid and predictable. You could never win a war like that .
Currently sitting is decorated room that looked brand new, he was searching for anything to watch in the cube machine they called a TV. He was mindlessly switching through the programs, sitting on the carpet. His new room looked completely different.
The walls had been decorated with some posters he bought from this shows called 'Anime' that he found cool. His desk had the laptop he bought, which Mitsuru helped in setting up the whole WiFi thing, plus a few notebooks to keep track of anything he needed, he bought an orange carpet for the floor, Akihiko was kind enough to help with setting up the TV on the corner, and his closet was filled to the brim with new clothing. He can't really complain here, they were treating him nice, like an equal. And the girls didn't want him for his crest. Well, they just didn't want him romantically in general, but still. This was a big improvement.
"Yo, Gautier! Kirijo-senpai is calling us!" Junpei called from the hall, breaking him out of his train of thoughts. He turned off the TV and got up, walking towards the door. Opening it, he saw both Junpei and Fuuka standing outside. The latter had a box in her hands. Sylvain raised a brow.
"What's that?" he asked.
"Kirijo-senpai said that both yours and Varley-san's battle gears got ready last night, but she couldn't find time to give it to you. She told me to give this one to you." Fuuka explained. Sylvain blinked as he took the box in his hands, thanking Fuuka before he closed the door. He heard them walk away, muffled chatter echoed through the halls. Sylvain stared at the box with curiosity as he slowly opened it.
The first thing he saw was a dark red turtleneck shirt that looked to be explicitly made for combat. He also saw some knee protectors, a pair of brown boots, black overalls and a belt with a holster for his Evoker. He slowly emptied the contents of the box, staring at the gear in surprise. Mitsuru had thought of him too. She actually thought of him. That was really nice of her. He slowly undressed, ready to out on the gear. However, he stopped midway. A hand traced one of the scars he had, the one on his hip. It never properly healed, and sometimes he can still feel lain through it. But at least it was better than the one he had on his back.
He shook those thoughts away, getting dressed. The turtleneck was a bit heavy, so he considered it being a weighted shirt. He finished getting dressed, and saw a small red ribbon at the bottom of the box. He took it out, looking at it with a curious glint. What could he do with this? He stared at it for a few more seconds, contemplating, before he lowered one of his sleeves and wrapped it around his wrist. He wrapped it carefully, not wanting to tear it apart, and made a small yet strong knot once he finished. Content, he walked out of the room and downstairs to the common room. He walked slowly, getting used to his new boots, seeing everyond turn their heads towards him.
"Woah... You look so different now, Gautier." Yukari blurted out, surprised. Sylvain smiled at that.
"Red definitely suits you, dude!" Junpei grinned, giving Sylvain a thumbs up.
"Now that our last member is here." Mitsuru spoke up "Let's discuss tonight's operation. We have detected a full moon Shadow somewhere outside of Tartarus." she announced.
"So they can appear outside of Tartarsauce?" Sylvain asked. Junpei snorted at that. However, a harsh stare from Mitsuru made them stop joking around. They straightened, now serious.
"Do we know where they are?" Makoto asked.
"Shirakawa Boulevard." Fuuka answered as her Persona dispelled, something the two nobles had gotten used to. Even if Bernadetta hadn't awakened a Persona—if she even could awaken one, that is—she had gotten used to seeing Lucia a lot. After all, she mostly stays with Fuuka. Yukari scrunched up her nose at that.
"There? Why did it have to be there, of all places?" she groaned. Bernadetta and Sylvain exchanged a look of confusion.
"What do you mean? What's wrong with it?" Sylvain asked.
"They've been finding the Lost in pairs, now it makes sense." Ikutsuki hummed, a hand on his chin. Bernadetta discretely scooted closer to Sylvain.
"In pairs?" Mitsuru asked.
"From what I've heard? Tons of these 'love hotels'." Sylvain answered, making air quotations "I have no clue what those are. Is it some place where newly weds spend their time after getting married?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. Fuuka's cheeks reddened at the mention.
"Wow. You guys really don't know." Junpei said, shocked. Bernadetta rubbed her arm at that.
"Love hotels are for when couples have s-"
"Adult activities!" Yukari slapped a hand over Makoto's mouth, embarrassed "Do not say that out loud! I don't care if you're our leader, we have a child here!" she hissed at him, glaring. Makoto just gently grabbed her wrist and got her hand off of his mouth, staring at her with his characteristic nonchalant look. He knew she was referring to Bernadetta.
"Oh. So they just have intercourse there?" Sylvain asked. If hotels like that existed back in his world, then he was sure that a few girls would have invited him to one.
"Can we not speak of this at all?! Please?!" Fuuka pleaded, embarrassed.
"Yes, it'd be better if we focus on the mission right now." Akihiko agreed, sweatdropping.
"Alright then. Yuuki, who will go in?" Mitsuru asked. Makoto stared at the group.
"Kirijo-senpai, Sanada-senpai and Yukari will be coming with me. The others will stay behind to guard Fuuka." he announced. Although Junpei looked defeated at that, everyone nodded. With this, the group set towards Shirakawa Boulevard.
"How long have they been suspended in the air?" Mitsuru asked Yukari. She furrowed her brows, trying to think of how long she had been lifting Junpei and Fuuka in the air.
"Uh... About 20 minutes, I think." she answered. Ken just sweatdropped.
"And why are you doing this?" he asked.
"I want to see how long I can hold people in the air before it starts to strain me." the archer answered, feeling her arms stinging already. Slowly, she let them down and was careful to not drop them harshly.
"That was amazing, Yuka-tan!" Junpei beamed, sparkles around him. Yukari sweatdropped.
"I barely did anything, though. I just lifted you guys off of the ground." she said.
"You're the one who has advanced the most when it comes to Reason. The praise Iori is giving you is not out of the blue." Mitsuru told her, a smile on her face "I'm proud of how far you're getting, Takeba." she told her. Yukari felt her face slowly turn red at her words. Something that didn't go unnoticed by the second years. Fuuka and Junpei shared a look, smiles on their faces. Yes, they knew. They could only hope the oblivious pining would be over.
"I'm probably going to stick with the Faith seminars." Ken shrugged.
"Why is that, Amada?" Mitsuru asked, a brow raised.
"Faith is basically the equivalent to my light affinity. I feel more drawn towards it than the Reason seminars." Ken explained "I suppose Yamagishi-san is the same?" he asked. Fuuka nodded.
"It's mostly because of my support role in the team, but I do feel more inclined towards it because it's also the equivalent of being the support of the class. I can heal or rescue, as Casagranda-sensei explained to me." Fuuka said "I think Martritz-san is the same." she added.
"I see. This time is truly interesting." Mitsuru hummed, rubbing her chin.
S.E.E.S arrived at the building the Shadow was in, according to Fuuka. "So Junpei, Bernadetta and I will stay outside to protect Fuuka, then?" Sylvain asked, a hand on his hip. He wanted to make sure he got everything right. He didn't wanna screw up his first official operation. Makoto nodded.
"Whoa! Looks just like I imagined!" Junpei said, excited. However, he looked at the name with confusion.
"Champs... Dee... Floors? How do you say that?" he asked. Sylvain looked at the name as well.
"Champs De Fleur." he and Mitsuru said at the same time. The red haired girl looked at the noble.
"I did not know you could speak french as well, Gautier." she said. Sylvain grinned.
"I'm a man of many talents, Mitsuru." he playfully said.
"What does the name mean?" Fuuka asked.
"Field of flowers." Sylvain answered. Mitsuru smiled.
"I cannot wait to have a conversation with you in french." she told him. Sylvain chuckled at that. Truth to be told, this 'french' Mitsuru spoke of was the home language of Sreng. He learnt it when he was a child, for negotiating purposes of course. He was the heir of Gautier. It was expected of him.
"C'mon, Leader. Let's get this over with." Yukari said. The vanguard all went inside, while the others stayed outside. Junpei huffed.
"Man... I wanted to go in." he grumbled to himself. Sylvain walked over to the capped boy.
"Maybe we'll get to act. There were two Shadows last Full Moon." he told him, patting his back "You might get to enter in action." he suggested. That seemed to brighten up the sword wielder.
"You're right!" he grinned. While Fuuka gave the commands, the trio sat down on the floor. Bernadetta stayed next to Sylvain, not participating in the conversation much. She only answered if Junpei asked her anything.
"What's your school back in your home?" Junpei asked, curious.
"Very religious. We attend classes at a monastery, so some of the teachings, if not most, are based off of the gods and such." Sylvain answered "It's where I learned my fire magic." he added.
"A monastery that teaches magic? That's pretty cool." Junpei said, a grin on his face "Why didn't you learn magic, Varley?" he asked, looking at the girl with curiosity. She visibly jumped when he asked her that.
"O-Oh! Uh- I-I don't have as, um, as big as an affinity for magic as Sylvain does! I-I just use bows and lances!" Bernadetta replied nervously.
"Bows and lances? Why?" Junpei asked.
"Because I can have some distance when fighting. I hate being close when I have to fight." she groaned "It's scary."
"Huh. Well, I guess it makes sense for a kid your age." Junpei said. Bernadetta and Sylvain looked puzzled at his words.
""How old do you guys think she is?" Sylvain asked, breath hitching for a second because he was holding back a laugh .
"13?" Junpei answered. Bernadetta looked at him with a confused face, while Sylvain broke into a fit of laughter. He tumbled forwards, laughing so hard he was having difficulty breathing. Fuuka broke out of focus, glancing at the group in confusion.
"YOU THOUGHT SHE WAS 13- NOOO HAHAHAHA- I CAN'T BELIEVE IT- HAHAHA-" Sylvain wheezed, hitting the floor with his fist softly, tears already falling down his face.
"I-I'm 17, Junpei!" Bernadetta said. Both Junpei and Fuuka made noises of shock.
"YOU'RE 17?!" they questioned. Both of the nobles nodded.
"Wait, how old are you then, Gautier??" Junpei asked.
"I-I'm 19- Oh- Haah-" Sylvain gasped out, placing a hand over his stomach while the other wiped away the tears of laughter.
"YOU'RE OLDER THAN SANADA-SENPAI AND KIRIJO-SENPAI?!" Fuuka yelled.
"No f*cking way! I thought you were the same age as me!" Junpei exclaimed.
"Guess I'm full of surprises, aren't I?" Sylvain teased "You might as well call me senpai too!" he joked.
"Ah- S-Sorry, Kirijo-senpai! I got a bit distracted! " Fuuka apologized. The three turned to her.
"Ah- Well, it turns out that Varley-san is our age, and Gautier-san is... older than both you and Sanada-senpai." Fuuka said through her communicator "And- Ah! I sense another Shadow!" she warned. The three watched her for a few minutes, seeing how concentrated she was.
"Senpai?" she called. But she frowned.
"Huh? Leader? Yukari-chan?? Senpai?? Can anyone answer me?!" she questioned, her voice was laced with worry as it grew louder. Sylvain got up. That didn't sound good. If Fuuka was panicking, it meant something was wrong.
"What's wrong?" Junpei asked.
"I-I can't get in contact with any of them! It's like someone is blocking Lucia!" Fuuka explained, almost panicking. Bernadetta's eyes widened as the other two shot up.
"Wh-What?!"
"Okay. Let's not panic." Sylvain spoke, serious "Can Lucia hack cameras? Maybe you could see where they are." he suggested. Fuuka nodded, doing what Sylvain suggested. Before that, she decided to try something as well. She signalled the others to get closer to her. Albeit confused, they did as she asked. She took a deep breath, concentrating. Summoning Lucia, the four found themselves shielded inside of the Persona.
"Woah!" Junpei let out.
"We're inside Lucia??" Sylvain questioned, surprised.
"I think I can let you guys see what I see if I do this." Fuuka suggested as she concentrated again to try and hack through the cameras.
"That's pretty-"
"Ngh~ Y-Yuuki..."
They all froze when they heard that voice echoed throughout Lucia. A few images appeared in front of them. Fuuka's face exploded into a bright red.
In one of the images, Makoto and Akihiko were in a room. Akihiko was just in his boxers, his equipment discarded on the floor, next to the bed. His face was flushed pink whole his arms were loosely hanging around Makoto's shoulders. Makoto, on the other hand, was only shirtless, pressing his lips against Akihiko's freckled skin, relishing in the moment. Junpeí sputtered at that, looking away. This was a side of Makoto he probably didn't need to know. "O-Oh my..." Fuuka whispered.
"God, senpai. Do you realize how beautiful you are right in this moment?" Makoto said, his voice quiet. His hands gently rubbed the white haired boy's sides, making him let out a noise that sounded like a moan. Oh god.
"Oh I think they're going to have sex." Junpei said with a tone that said 'I did not sign up for this'. Sylvain started sweating bullets. Why were they about to have sex in the middle of an operation?
"W-We- Can we move on from this?? W-Where are Mitsuru and Yukari??" Bernadetta squeaked, nervous.
"R-Right! U-Um-"
"T-Takeba..! Ah!"
That did not make this better for the four. They all froze as the other screen showed Yukari and Mitsuru, the both of them were in their undergarments. Mitsuru was laying on the bed, her hands above her head, while Yukari was slowly undressing her, getting rid of her bra and-
"I think I'm gonna faint." Junpei said, covering his eyes.
"Children, avert your eyes! Nobody look!" Sylvain screeched, covering Bernadetta's and Fuuka's.
"C-Children?! We're not children!" Junpei countered, yet still refused to uncover his eyes. Even if they did, they could still hear their moans, much to their despair.
"E-Even if we don't look, we-"
"Senpai, I want you to scream my name out like there is no tomorrow so badly right now." Yukari chuckled, gently pressing her knee between Mitsuru's thighs. The redhead let out an audible gasp, squirming. That was enough for Fuuka to dispell Lucia, almost fainting on the spot from what she just saw.
"What the f*ck..." she whispered, cursing for the first time. Nobody blamed her. This was all crazy.
"Alright! We're going in!" Sylvain ordered, heading to the door first so no one could see his red face.
"Fuuka, stay with us!" Junpei told the navigator, who nodded. The group entered the hotel.
"The. The Shadow did what to the group." Seteth blinked, feeling his face growing hotter. Rhea, as much as she tried to remain calm, looked away, somewhat embarrassed. Sylvain nodded.
"I wish I was joking. It really did that." he sweatdropped.
"It was different for me, as I ended up in the same room as Junpei and Mitsuru-senpai and Akihiko-senpai ended up in the same. But, yeah. I had scratches on my back that time, and Junpei had hickeys all over him." Kotone admitted, lowering her head in embarrassment. It took Sylvain a few seconds to register that.
"YOUPEGGED JUNPEI?!" he screamed, his head whipped towards her. In return, he got punched on the head by Kotone.
"BE QUIET!"
The group barged in the room. And there it was. There was the Lovers Shadow, standing in the middle of the room. A heart that looked like it was bleeding with wings that grew out of its sides. How ironic, Sylvain thought to himself. "Fuuka, stay back!" Sylvain told her. She nodded, the rest ready to fight the Lovers Shadow.
"Be careful!" Bernadetta warned, preparing her bow.
"Give me some time to set up the scan!" Fuuka asked. The others nodded.
"Hermes!"
"Seiros!"
The two Personas came forth, tinted in the blue hue that characterized the summonings.
"Vacuum Slash!"
"Gale Slash!"
They charged forwards, slashing and punching the Shadow. Fuuka summoned Lucia, shielding herself incase the Shadow wanted to attack her. The Shadow flapped its wings, an arrow headed towards Junpei. He deflected it with his sword, sending it flying to the air. The Shadow then sent a pink blast at Sylvain, who rolled forwards to dodge it.
"I got it! The Shadow can block pierce attacks, lightning and fire!" Fuuka informed. Sylvain cursed under his breath. Well, there were two fire based Personas in fight right now. So this was going to be hard.
"That arrow right now..." Bernadetta whispered "I think the Shadow wants to mind control us!" she told them. They turned to her.
"Huh? What do you mean??" Junpei asked.
"It took over their minds... It makes sense now! It can mind control!" she told them. It was a working theory, yes, but the evidenceproved it to be true.
"You're kidding me!" Sylvain exclaimed. Just then, he got hit by a bashing attack. He fell back, but he was quick to catch his feet.
"Dammit!Seiros! Fatal End!" he roared, summoning Seiros with the Evoker yet again. The Persona swung at the Shadow, who screeched in pain. Still, this was a tough one. Tougher than the Empress and Emperor Shadows. And it was because it was a two man team. Two people only had Personas, and Bernadetta couldn't do anything.
"I'll use my Theurgy!" Junpei suggested.
"Wait! Isn't if fire based?? Would that even work??" Sylvain inquired.
"It's Slash! And even if it was fire based! We have to try!!" the capped boy shouted, his Evoker pointed at the side of his head as he inserted the cartridge inside the bottom of his Evoker and activated his theurgy.
Hack 'n Blast
He ran forwards, but Hermes was faster. He started slashing at the Lovers Shadow while Junpei got up. He jumped high in the air and landed another blow before he blew up the Shadow. That did deal some damage, but the Shadow smacked Junpei with one of the wings. He flew backwards, nearly crashing onto the wall. If it hadn't been for Sylvain's quick thinking to summon Seiros to catch him.
"You good?" Sylvain asked.
"Yeah. Thanks, man." he smiled. The redhead nodded before he took a deep breath, loading the cartridge as well.
The Goddess' Fury
Seiros roared, her blade igniting in flames as she sent several fire slashes at the Shadow. Sylvain boosted himself upwards, his lance tossed up. Both of his hands glowed as he sent several fire blasts at the Shadow. He then grabbed the lance that fell in his hands, Seiros boosting him forwards before the two charged at the Shadow, slashing it. It did heavy damage, but it still was not enough. A pink blast hit Sylvain, who crashed onto the wall. "Gautier!" Junpei shouted as he dodged another arrow. Sylvain slowly got up, his eyes clouded.
"G-Gautier-san?" Fuuka asked, worried.
"He's mind controlled!" Bernadetta yelled.
"You-You have to be kidding me!" Junpei gasped. However, she wasn't. Sylvain charged at Junpei, a sickening grin on his face.
"Yamagishi!" relief washed over Fuuka's face when she heard Akihiko's voice through the communicator, his voice gruff as always"Where are you guys?! We can hear Gautier and Iori!"he questioned.
"I'll send you the coordinates! Right now-"
"SYLVAIN, SNAP OUT OF IT!"
"-We have a bad situation! Gautier-san has been charmed!" Fuuka informed over Bernadetta's voice.
"He's been mind controlled too?" Makoto asked, his voice more soothing and quiet. There was still concern in his voice.
"Yes! Please, regroup with Kirijo-senpai and Yukari-chan, and fast!" Fuuka pleaded. Bernadetta held her head in her hands. She dreaded this. Why couldn't she just stay home!? Why did this have to happen?!
"What can I do..?! I'm useless..!" she sobbed.
"No, you're not." a voice in her head said. Her eyes shot open.
'H-Huh?'
"You are not useless, Bernadetta. You are so useful and kind. Do not let your fears eat you up."
'But...'
"Would they have taken you on this mission if they had rendered you as useless? Would they have let you tag along if they saw you as a dead weight?" Bernadetta blinked. That's... That's right. Never once did they call her useless. Never once did they render her a dead weight. Everyone let her come with. They were okay with her not wanting to fight in the front. She usually stayed with Fuuka, yes, but... They still thought she was strong enough to protect their navigator.
Her eyes widened with realization. They... They thought she was useful. They really did. "Ah..." she let out, her hair hovering over her eyes. Now she understood. Her hand slowly trailed off to the Evoker in the holster attached to her leg. Slowly, she pointed it to her chin. She watched how the Shadow threw a blast at Junpei, charming him as well. It was now or never.
"Per."
Fuuka looked with terror, watching how the two boys slowly turned to her and Bernadetta with sick grins on their faces.
"So."
The door flung open, Akihiko and Makoto about to run in, while Yukari and Mitsuru behind them.
"Na."
A shattering noise echoed through the room as a blast of wind blasted everyone away from Fuuka and Bernadetta. "This is..!" Fuuka gasped. Sylvain and Junpei were blasted backwards.
"Thou art I. And I am thou. From the sea of thy souls, I cometh. My name is Indech, one of the four saints, the saint of Wisdom and Dexterity." a voice echoed through the room as a figure slowly appeared behind Bernadetta. She looked up, a new fire in her eyes.
"Slap some sense onto them! Me Patra!" she ordered. Indech hummed, his palms glowing a bright green. Both Sylvain and Junpei seemed to snap out of his daze.
"W-Wha-"
"Huh?"
"Bernadetta?!" Sylvain gasped when he saw Bernadetta and Indech. She summoned it again, not wanting to lose. She could not lose.
"Indech! Garudyne!" she chanted. Indech growled, his hands glowing bright green again. This time, however, a powerful wind blast hit the Shadow.
"Nice one Bernie!" Junpei cheered, summoning Hermes. Sylvain grinned, summoning Seiros too.
"Send it to hell!"
"Cut it to pieces!"
"Blast it back to where it belongs!"
The trio shouted, their Personas charging in a combined attack. Indech created a wind attack under the Shadow, Hermes then ounched it repeatedly and finally, Seiros' blade glowed as she made several slices.
"Go guys go!" Fuuka cheered.
"Hit it where it hurts!" Yukari joined in.
"Keep it up!"
"Give it hell!"
"Make it regret ever have been born!"
The constant cheers of the others made Bernadetta more determined. She would not lose. She would not be useless anymore.
"INDECH! GARUDYNE!"
"SEIROS! FATAL END!"
"HERMES! ASSAULT DIVE!"
The three Personas charged in, beating the hell out of the Lovers Shadow, and finally ending the battle. It fell dowj in defeat, not moving anymore. Once the fight was over, Bernadetta fell to her knees. "Bernadetta!" Sylvain called. She gave him a shaky thumbs up.
"I... I did it... I was... useful..." she whispered before fainting.
