[b][i]Sunday 26th April 2015: Time Unknown[/I][/b]

[b]Leiko Hamada: Enchanted Woodlands- Grand Stage[/b]

The battle raged on from within the thick of the woods, as both the creature and the three Warakuma students delivered their blows. At first it seemed that Leiko's other self was taking the upper hand, a sharp gasp escaping the real Leiko as she watched one of the boys fall back from a particularly vicious vine attack. Guilt welled up within her as she watched her doppelganger cackle in ruthless mirth, but it wasn't like [i]she[/i] could do anything. It wasn't like she had any power right now...

Lost in her inner crisis, she tightened her eyes as the screams and the sound of clashing weapons rang through the air. It was only when she heard a new, unfamiliar voice that she was broken from her reverie, looking up along with her fellow students at the new boy who had appeared onto the scene, and rather dramatically too, as he proved himself to be another person with mystical powers. 

The battle quickly swerved into their favour, and a happy but strange, alienating emotion rose from within Leiko. The cries of her other self cut into her like a knife, causing her to clutch at wounds that weren't there. It wasn't until her hand found a certain strip of material in her breast pocket that suddenly everything started to become clear.  

[color=slategray]"And Leiko, you decide for yourself who you are. We're just here to make sure you don't have to face that alone"[/color]

Rui's words cemented her resolve, Leiko's face creasing into a look of determination as she watched the group of four deliver the final blow to her Shadow. 

Her...Shadow.

Her other self finally fell to their onslaught, letting out a defeated shriek before disappating into black vapour, the image of her faerie-like body taking form in its place. She looked lost and hopeless, her yellow eyes welling with pain as her arms tightened around her wispy figure.

[Color=yellow]"Not so confident now, are you?"[/color] Leiko finally found her voice again, soft and yet surprisingly strong as she looked at her Shadow straight in the eye. [Color=yellow]"Always looking to stay on top. Stay in the spotlight. It feels good...having people bow to that power."[/color] She shook her head piteously. [Color=yellow]"And Noboru is right. Being a President was only ever about me. Making [i]myself[/i]  feel important, special. Everyone else came second."[/color] She took a sharp intake of breath, her phone strap clutched tightly into her palm like it was giving her the strength to continue. [Color=yellow]"In truth, I really am a selfish person. I really can't accept the idea of someone besting me. And yet...having you guys coming to rescue me...made me really happy."[/color] She made a disgusted noise under her breath. [Color=yellow]"This place is like my delusion of grandeur. An impossible dream of owning something that's entirely mine. But I needed to be dethroned one day..."[/color]

She looked over at her Shadow and smiled, an action that surprised even herself.[color=yellow]"Rather than trying so hard to rule over everyone, why don't we focus on supporting the ones that do care about us? How does that sound, me?"[/color]

The Shadow looked surprised for a moment at Leiko's confession, a smile gracefully forming on her lips as she took a final bow before fading away.

Suddenly, a graceful, feminine [url=http://i.imgur.com/0HR5zrk.png]figure[/URL] appeared before her, flowers and vines coiling around her wrists as a calm, comforting serenity radiated from the ethereal being. Leiko didn't know why, but looking at her made her feel warm and safe, like a maternal embrace. 

[i]I am thou...and thou art I.

I am Titania, the fairy queen of dreams...[/i]

The magical being was gone a moment too soon, a gush of wind rippling through her as a card bearing the Roman numeral III appeared from the aether and slipped into her fingers. So this was...a Persona? The name that echoed in her head felt right, somehow.

So the ordeal was finally over...

She turned her head towards the others, a weak smile adorning her face even as she felt her legs about to give way. [Color=yellow]"That was a great performance...everyone."[/color]

With that, she felt her body finally falter as her knees hit the solid ground.

She really did feel...tired.