First thing tomorrow morning.

(chapter originally by faith on writing.com)

The morning. That answer turned butterflies in Minako's stomach. Morning was still several hours away. Given how events had progressed so far, that meant several more hours spent in a bed engaging in a series of erotic activities with her two best friends she had never imagined doing in even her naughtiest of fantasies. Being helpless to do anything about the situation was both extremely exciting and extremely embarrassing.

"Fine." Minako said at last. "But what exactly are we supposed to do? I can't even talk about this shadow without 'pervy me' getting switched on and taking over! Unless there's a way to break this spell, we can't even get close to it without getting hypnoed again!"

"As fate would have it, there is a solution." Igor said, as pleasantly as ever. "Inaba is a most remarkable place, a town in which many secrets are hidden and many truths are revealed. A solution to your current dilemna may be one such truth."

"So...we need to go to Inaba?" Minako guessed.

"No." Margaret said in her sullen tone. "The situation is more...complex than that."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"The Inaba he speaks of doesn't exist yet." Margaret said with a shrug.

".....are any of you capable of saying anything without being incredibly cryptic??"

"It is as I said. The Shadows have not yet manifested in Inaba. They will do so a few years from now, at least assuming that your current circumstances have not already corrupted the timeline."

"....oooooookay. So...your from the future?"

"I suppose you could say so, although to be more accurate you are from my past."

"....right. Anyway...how is that possible? I knew you guys in the Velvet Room were powerful, but isn't this a little much even for you?"

"Hmmmm. An interesting question. I have never attempted to pass through time under my own power on the scale of several years before. It would be an interesting challenge..." Margaret said, then blanched as Igor glared at her. "Ahem. The reason I can be here is the same as the reason you and your comrades have a Persona. The Dark Hour, and more to the point the edifice at its center, have allowed my passage to this place."

".....Tartarus is a time machine?" Minako asked, reeling in confusion.

"After a fashion. To be more specific, if one knows the correct path it is possible to move from one's present into one's past by way of the Tower. Or to be more accurate still, by walking through the Abyss hidden beneath it."

"Wait. There's something underneath Tartarus? Since when?" Minako asked.

"For as long as the edifice has existed! Had you not been so focused on ascending, perhaps you would have learned what lies beneath!" Margaret snapped.

"But there aren't any stairs going down!" Minako protested. "Where's this entrance supposed to be?"

"That is true. The way into the Abyss does not appear with the reliability of the way into Tartarus. The doorway appears in the mortal realm only in response to intense emotions focused on a specific event in the past. Otherwise the entrance flickers in and out of existence, moving from one place and time to another through an infinite number of realms each hidden within the depths of the sea of the human psyche. Even for one such as myself, finding the gateway in order to come here was...a challenge." Margaret said, a hint of pride in her voice. "Unfortunately, the Abyss and Tartarus are linked to each other, each the opposite face of the same coin. For that reason, the forces that cause Tartarus to come into being will not allow the entrance to the Abyss to manifest in this timeline. To put it simply, while I was able to enter the Abyss by the 'front door' to get here, we will have to find an alternative way to enter it to get back to my time."

"So how do we..." Minako said.

"You will go to your school, and endure the humiliations your taskmaster has in store for you for that day. And you will find a means to remain there until the night comes. As you know, there are two methods for entering Tartarus. You may either enter from the ground floor after the Dark Hour has begun, or you may stay within the confines of the school as the Dark Hour arrives and be transported to a random floor as the Tower forms. As I said, Tartarus and the Abyss are linked. If you remain within the school and stand at precisely the right location long enough, the Dark Hour will take you into the Abyss rather than the Tower. And finding that spot will be child's play for a servant of the Velvet Room."

"But didn't you say the Abyss only takes you into the past?" Minako asked.

"Yes, but such things are relative. Were any of you to attempt to find a path to Inaba, the effort would fail. You could only walk into the past or return to the present. But my present IS your future. Once inside the Abyss, I can return there any time I wish. And in that way, I can guide you to the proper place and time as well."

"And...doing all that will help us with this Shadow?"

"Perhaps. As with all things, my duty is to guide the guest down the road to the place where they might realize the destiny. Whether they have the wisdom to grasp that fate in their hands, or the courage to follow through with the role it would have them play...these things are up to them. I will take you into the future, and if you can fulfill your potential there I will take you back to your own time. But what you accomplish there is entirely out of my hands."

"Okay...but..."

"Allow me to be concerned with the trials of your temporal journey. I believe you will have quite enough to occupy yourself with, considering your current lack of attire beyond those bits of swimwear and the plethora of humiliations your other self no doubt has in store for tomorrow!"

"Ah. RIght." Minako said, the butterflies in her stomach returning with a vengeance.

"That is all I had to say to you. You may go now." Margaret said.

"Right. I..." Minako bowed briefly. "I am sorry for offending you."

"....." Margaret said nothing.

"And I apologize for my sister." Elizabeth said darkly. "She is normally the picture of hospitality and patience towards our visitors. She usually does not take contract breaches as personal affronts."

"....Stay out of this, my sister." Margaret warned.

"I believe I have held my tongue long enough, sister. Will you not accept her apology? You have never acted this way, not even in the face of MY indiscretions! Which, if I may say sister, were one and all more egregious and more deliberate than anything Minako-chan has done."

"Yes, sister, I remember. You and Theo both, you have always been impressionable and naive...and powerfully curious about the human world. I found your antics amusing back then, and I saw it as my duty to protect and mentor you both. Perhaps I should have paid more attention, to save you from your own foolishness."

"What is this all really about, sister?" Theo chimed in, stepping up beside Elizabeth.

"The heart can be stirred more by a single action than a thousand words." Margaret said softly.

"I believe I agree with Minako. These cryptic statements are becoming tiresome." Elizabeth said.

"This girl's actions have stirred both your hearts, have they not?" Margaret asked, pointing at Minako accusingly. "She has captivated many in this way. She not only stirs the hearts around her, she captures them. The proof lies there in the mortal world, in the ease with which she entrapped her comrades in her new master's web. And she will continue to do so."

Igor glared in warning, but Margaret pretended not to notice.

"Not long from now, this girl will perform another action. This will be the culimination of all she has sought to do, and it will be a vital action for many. And yet for you both it will stir something once again in your hearts, deeper than anything ever has. And in response you will do something...beyond foolish. You will commit a sin that can never be redeemed, and it will forever sever the bond between us. Because of her my family has been taken from me and I alone am left to fulfill our obligations! But I WILL fulfill those obligations, even when they say not to harm this little girl and to help her out of this absurd situation she trapped herself inside. But forgive her for what comes next? Nothing on this earth or beyond it will ever **** that from me."

The silence was deafening. Minako could feel her heart pounding. Then slowly the blue door behind her creaked open.

"Minako-chan." Igor said softly. "Please return to your world. There are things to be discussed now that would disturb you. And I do not wish to do that to our guest."

"R-right. I'll see you tomorrow." Minako squeeked, racing from the room as quickly as she dared.