Edge of Exile

[madimpossibledreamer]

We know Jun’s majorly into the zodiac.
They remember Philemon but don’t remember too much about Nyarlie or anything Lovecraftian.  Tatsuya meanwhile, has been reading to learn about the enemy, though largely nothing of that kind has been spotted in a long time.
Also this is absolutely going to be posted out of order.
It broke once while I was trying to post it.  IDK.  Retyped everything and it should work.

Main Points:
Persona 2/Persona 4 crossover (Broken Hero)
Chapter Summary: Jun considers how the kids are taking his confession about his past as the Joker and the fact that Tatsuya is missing and now has a dungeon of his own.
Word Count: 1106
Rating: gen
Pairing: Jun/Tatsuya (still mutual pining) and Jun's not subtle about it in his own head.
Warning: It's not strong, but Jun definitely has noticed Yosuke's homophobia--but he's also conflicted and not thinking about it so he can get what needs to be done done.  It will be addressed later.

 

        Jun doesn’t voice his thoughts out loud, but Tatsuya’s dungeon surprises him.  He’d expected maybe not a repeat of the Leo temple, but something similar, something far too warm that makes them all sweat, the stone walls of a temple rising up around them like any old conspiracy theory could be right around the corner.  It used to be that way, his mind whispers, both easier and harder.  He talked to you then.
        It’s this last point that hurts the most.  He tries not to dwell on it, because it’s a distraction from their true objective, and as the remaining mentorly figure, he needs to make up for the slack.
        The children are fairly quiet.  Some of that is hesitation, now that they know what he’s done.  His ‘sins’, as Tatsuya would put it.  But to his surprise, they also don’t seem too standoffish, the distance more an unconscious decision than conscious choice.  Their leader, Seta-kun, stands right next to him, scowl on his face, hand at the sword at his side.  He might be quiet for a Gemini, but like Tatsuya he knows exactly what to say, and he’s always trying to learn and grow, putting just as much importance in his relationships.  His sign comes out most strongly in his quirky sense of humor, but there’s no trace of that now, as he focuses all of his incredible intelligence on bringing an end to this as quickly as possible.
        Hanamura-kun actually looks vaguely murderous, like he’d take on the entire Shadow army by himself, if he could.  It’s a bit of a surprise, but then, he actually seems like he attaches to people easily, which would be a surprise if he wasn’t a Cancer.  He might, as any young child, seem set in his ways, but the ability to connect with a variety of others is a Cancer trait, and while sensitive and prone to changing moods like his clothes, he can’t help but care about others, particularly ones who have stuck by him despite him acting like an ass.    He’s carefully not said anything about the fact that it’s probably painfully obvious Jun is still pining and Tatsuya probably is back, probably avoided thinking about it, because he likes them so has made the decision to simply ignore it.  If not for the timing, Jun would have a talk with him, because he’s fairly certain Yosuke doesn’t actually have a problem with homosexuality, only parroting the opinions of those around him to try to fit in, but it’ll have to wait.  He’s probably also using this fight as a distraction from his own pain of losing someone he cared about.
        For once, Satonaka-chan is actually the least motivated, for a fellow Leo to Tatsuya who puts every ounce of effort she has into everything.  It would be disingenuous to suggest that she is afraid of nothing, just like he’s fairly certain Tatsuya himself is just a big ball of anxiety, which makes him uneasy because he’d known that once, why had he forgotten? 
        She seems to be the one most worried about his confession, though.  He’s vaguely surprised more of them aren’t.  Even Hanamura-kun, who had been wary of them as the potential perpetrators to begin with (a reasonable assumption, given what they knew at the time), seems to have discarded any of those thoughts, probably one of the times Tatsuya had thrown himself in the way of an attack.  Of course, that couldn’t rule out the possibility of deception, but it didn’t appear to cross Hanamura-kun’s mind.  Satonaka-chan seems to be the only one taking this as seriously as anyone should have.  Some of it might be the slight jealousy she displays, since Amagi-chan is still paying attention to them as ‘Princes’.  Most of it is the uneasy realization that while he might have been tricked into it, Jun has essentially stolen souls of his own free will, and his reign of terror was far longer than whatever killer happens to be in Inaba.  He doesn’t plan on being possessed again, but he hadn’t the first time.  All he has is his desire to atone, no matter how long it takes, and he knows that while intention is important for attorneys, it doesn’t come into much of a consideration with police officers—and that’s certainly the attitude Satonaka-chan is trying to take. 
        Amagi-chan, as per her sign of Sagittarius, is singularly on fire, willing to burn everything to the ground if that’s what it takes.  It’s clear she’s brimming with questions but is willing to wait to ask them until a more appropriate time, and in the meanwhile woe betide any Shadow that gets in her way.  Her drive reminds him, painfully, of Tatsuya.  We’ll get him back.  This is no time to get lost in thought.
        He nods to himself, only to notice the mascot’s widened eyes.  He smiles reassuringly, but Teddie doesn’t seem to buy it, still staying at a distance.  He’s harder to read, but his age is apparent.  He has the understanding of death of a child’s, but he’s aware that it’s bad, and learning of Jun’s past has only made him uneasy.
        There’s not much time to think about that, though, because here, at the crest of the hill in the mockery of the little town they see the dungeon Teddie has been leading them to, and it’s breathtaking, but not, perhaps, in a good way.  It’s placed in the middle of the Samegawa.  Unlike the location of Amagi-chan’s castle in place of the inn, this would have no significance to its victim; none at all, except the placement mocks both past and present.  Because that’s Sumaru.
        A miniature version, obviously.  And from the looks of it, the most important part is the Alaya Shrine, ominous and imposing, standing above it all, but the whole thing gives Jun a bad feeling, because it’s encased in a giant glass dome.  Nothing is on fire.  If anything, it all looks sterile, distant, cold.  Like Tatsuya has been, for the last twelve years, perhaps, the voice says, again.
        He’d told Tatsuya that it wouldn’t be too difficult to face their Shadows again.  He’s starting to think that perhaps he’d been too optimistic, that he hadn’t taken into account that the weight of the secrets his best friend and crush had been keeping would try to kill them, but he had wanted to know, to help, and leaving him to suffer is out of the question.  “Let’s go,” he tells them softly, taking comfort in the fact that he can feel their resolve echo and feed into his and each other’s.