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There's a bone-deep weariness that doesn't just permeate your body, but your very soul. It's almost time. But you must fulfill that promise you made, there's simply no choice. You walk up the last steps after taking several moments to catch your breath, your hand on the window next to you. The doors look so far away, the bright light of the clear, spring day nearly blinding you through the windows.

But you must do this, you forced yourself to stay for an extra month for this. You walk up those steps, your knees threaten to buckle every time. But you make it to the top, desperate to get those doors open. The light nearly blinds you but you dare not close your eyes, you have to see, have to know, if one of them, any of them, made to the rooftop. The light fades as your eyes adjust and there... is Aigis. She turns to you with a warm smile on her face, the warmest you've seen on the robot in a long time even as it's tinged with sadness.

"We meet again," She says softly. She's the only one there, the reason for the sadness. The others have not yet remembered. Would they? You're not sure, but there's nothing but love in your heart for them anyway. You just continue to hope. It's almost time. You smile at Aigis and begin to walk toward her and she does the same.

The wind is warm, pleasantly so. But your knees finally buckle and with a grunt, you nearly fall. Aigis is there to catch you and gently lower you to the ground. She holds you tight. "Welcome back, Minato."

Soon, she had your head in her lap, resting on one of the many stone benches on the rooftop. The stone in warmed by the sun, threatening to lull you to sleep as does Aigis' hand on your head, gently stroke your hair. You dutifully keep your eyes open, watching her as the spring breeze continues on. Sakura petals wisp by. She speaks to you with that smile on her face. "The breeze feels nice, doesn't it? I finally understand now. The end that will surely come. Only those who were able to face the truth that it will come to them will be able to find it. What it is that proves that you're alive. I have found it, too. My reason for living, my purpose for living." She looks down at you, tears shining in her eyes. "I... I want to go on protecting you, forever. I want to lend you my strength. That's what it means to me, to be alive."

She places her hand on yours, but you lift one of yours to her face. "Don't cry." Your thumb wipes some of the tears away. It's exhausting to do even that, but you want to do it anyway. It's the least you can do. It's almost time. You smile up at her, small and tired.

"You must be exhausted," She continues. "You should get some rest now. I'll always be here for you. You'll be seeing the others soon, too. You have nothing to worry about. I'll always be by your side, protecting you."

You sigh softly, so, so tired... and then.

"Heeeeyyy!! Minato!!" You blink and turn your head. Your vision has since blurred terribly, the world becoming almost too bright. But you see them. They continue to call your name as they run to you. There's even a bark! The world grows ever brighter and blurrier but you smile. You smile and you close your eyes. They came, your precious friends came as promised.

It was time and the world eventually fades away. You're so very sorry you can't stay awake for much longer, but you also have no regrets.

None at all, except perhaps... to have a little more time with them.

Your friends' voices are the last thing you hear.

----

You're running up the flights of stairs, pulled by the girl your age in a desperate attempt to get away from the beings attacking your dormitory. The urgency is palatable, but for some reason you're as cool as a cucumber. You know this is serious, but perhaps it's because of Yukari who seems more than a little harried for someone who seemed to know more about what was going on than him. Of course, that could be precisely why she is acting the way she is.

They turn to run up another flight, but you stop and pull your hand of her grip to look outside. The moon is so bright and yellow and big. Why is it like that? Yukari immediately rounds on you. "Arisato?! What are you doing?"

"The moon..." is all you can say.

She grows even more frustrated. "Our lives are in danger! Do you want to die?!"

You continue to stare, fixated at the moon. It was midnight, or it should have been, and you had been woken up to be told that they were in danger. He knew they were, but as he turned to Yukari, you couldn't help but simply reply, "I don't really care."

It was more in reference to himself than to her, but you're not very good with words. You haven't been for some time now. She doesn't look shocked so much as giving you what appeared to be a pitying look. You can't tell. You face her fully. "Is dying really that scary to you?"

She looks horrified at you now. "How... can you say that?"

Anything else is cut off when a many armed... thing crawls to the window that you two are at. Yukari stares at it now. "What is that?!" Shouldn't she know? Or is this something new even for her? You can't think much more because it's suddenly breaking through the window and your fellow student has tackled you to the ground, protectively covering you from the spray of glass.

She pushes herself up, gasping in pain but she's quickly pulling you up with her, telling you to get up and to the roof. She's pulling you again and you have no choice by the follow. You make it to the roof, where it seems the coast is clear. She asks if you're okay but she is cut off by a loud noise that shakes the whole area. You follow the noise. That monster has followed you up to the roof!

"Run!" Huh? What was she going to do?

She pulls her gun from the holster at her thigh, pointing it straight at her own forehead. What? But she doesn't pull the trigger, because of course not. Suicide is never actually an easy thing to do, especially for someone who recently told him she doesn't want to die. She hesitates too long and is easily knocked away. You barely had time to warn her. And then... the thing ignores you completely, going after the downed girl. No... no!

You can't watch this again! Dying isn't so scary but does that mean you want to watch someone else die before your eyes? You glance down, the gun she was using is at your feet. You pick it up, breathing heavily, almost hyperventilating in fact. Memories flood in, a bridge on fire, a destroyed vehicle, blood and fire all around you...

And then, a voice. "Go on."

You know what to do. You place the gun to your temple, breathing heavily still, mustering the courage because you said it yourself. Dying wasn't that scary, was it? You grin. "Per...so...na!"

You pull the trigger, the crack of a gunshot is heard, but no bullet enters your brain. Instead, it feels as though something is freed and your grin widens, head tilting to the side from the recoil as above you, a being appears. A voice sounds within you, your own voice but not. I am thou. Thou art I. I come from the seas of thy heart. I am the Master of Strings, Orpheus!

And it's with but a thought that it attacks the creature before you. It uses its own lyre to Bash the creature, hard and fast. Then, it plucks the strings in a song and Agi explodes around the monster. It tries to run away, but you stop it at every turn with the fire magic. You feel yourself growing exhausted quick, breathing heavily for another reason now. But then, suddenly, you feel pain in your head. It's excruciating, you hold it and scream. Orpheus does the same, its head collapsing in on itself that you witness yourself as you scream to the dark green skies of the Dark Hour. White gloved hands burst from the metal chassis and then an entirely new being bursts forth from Orpheus.

Thanatos

It makes quick work of the monster, slicing through its mask and destroying it completely. You watch the area burn around you, then the ground rushes up to meet you and your world becomes black.