pishirogane | prismatica

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"Mhm. Seems kinda mean from the outside, but we ain't leavin' 'em. They just wanna push buttons like all kids do, show us that they're all grown up and don't need us."

And he kept pace when the dragons caught up. Boy, he hoped there was some tasty food up top or he was gonna deal with cranky dragonets. The King, however, had promised them...

"But... huh. So there's dragons here. They had pegasus on the Iris moon. What other crazy storybook shit's in this world?"

"I see... My interaction with children and understanding their behavior is limited." And again, she hadn't been like most kids her age growing up.

The dragons caught up, but she maintained her attention ahead so they wouldn't lose their step. They'd be happy once they arrived anyway no matter what trickery they might be temporarily subjected to.

"Hm... maybe Chimera?"

"That'd be kinda cool... if they're friendly, anyway. But I doubt it, if they gotta eat stuff to get Chroma."

But he couldn't help wondering, casually climbing the hills now.

"Wait... the King. The big guy who runs the whole dragon outfit. He might be able to tell us more than the Prismals ever could. Especially after we raised babies for 'em. Did 'em a favor."

"Right. And that's more likely the case should we encounter one."

Again, it made her wonder more about the lack of Chroma and its production only through Moonlacing.

"... Yes, he might. We can try asking, but there's no guarantee he'll know anymore, or be willing to provide a straight answer."

"Right. But if nothin' else, maybe some... I dunno, some history. Dragons live a pretty long time and might have seen somethin' that talks about what happened to all the Chroma."

He brightened up immediately.

"See? If mysteries just fell in my lap around now instead of back when I was like 15, I'd be crushin' 'em! ...Maybe...!"

"... But, another thought. Raising the eggs and babies, they required so much Chroma themselves. If dragons need Chroma as well... and if supplies have been low..."

She sighed. So many dragons had been born now because the Moonblessed, Moonlacing, and the sacrifice of the Chroma they produced. Hopefully, as the dragons aged, they required less or there were alternatives to surviving until more Chroma was present.

However, she was a pessimist.

"Hmm, you're right. The King and others have been doin' okay though. They get by somehow. Prismals can't produce Chroma, but what if dragons can? They just need a bunch as they grow in the eggs, maybe."

Too many questions, not enough answers.

They'll get some soon, hopefully. They just needed to reach the drop-off point.

"It's possible. Though, if they can produce Chroma, why don't they assist the Prismals with the Chroma crisis? There's something going on, but how do they expect a solution to be reached if they don't tell us what's going on?"

It was frustrating. She would really like answers soon when it was so obvious there was a problem.

He scratched his head. No, she was bringing up a lot of good points.

"Okay, new theory- everybody's a dick, and that's why this energy crisis is as bad as it is, and they don't believe they're in a crisis until somethin' puts a bug in their ass."

He shrugged.

"Still, won't hurt talkin' to the King. He owes us."

Oh.

That's a hell of a climb right there.

"I can concur with that theory. However, it might be less a matter of people being 'dicks' and more trying to appease the populous from a crisis they don't have a solution for..."

She shook her head.

"Yes. We'll find out something... hopefully."

However, this might be a roadblock.

"... How are your rock climbing skills?"

There was a small, pleasant shiver when she swore, but he ignored it just as quickly.

"Uhm... I mean, never done it before, but I've climbed trees. Ain't the same, but..."

He canted his head.

"Same dangers. Man, if I was transformed- and I thought I'd never say that- I could probably clear this pretty easy. Damn. Think the plane's got ropes and stuff?"

"... Not exactly. With this incline, the chances of injury at a lower height increases, and once we reach a certain height... well..."

They wouldn't want to fall... at all.

"They should among their emergency supplies. Though, I don't think it's enough for this climb. There's also a matter of getting the dragons up too."

He folded his arms with a sigh, at a loss of what to do.

"So... that's it? That can't be it. These guys have to go back home."

He set his jaw.

"I'm goin' back for rope. It's better than nothing."

She continued looking over the sheer wall, hoping to find another route up, but there wasn't any. Unless they could sprout wings and fly suddenly, climbing was their only option.

"... Alright, I'll keep looking for a safe route up."

Naoto glanced towards the dragons. She'd try to keep them from following Kanji back.

Kanji turned, then paused. He swore and slapped his forehead.

"...Wait, whadda we need rope for!?"

He raised his arm and called on the Emperor card, following its descent before he crushed it between his fingers.

"PERSONA!" He felt the familiar split of his soul, and from it emerged the great red, white and gold-clad demon.

"Hm?"

Both eyebrows shot up at the head smack, eyes widening when he drew the Emperor card. Oh... oh! Wow, how could they possibly forget about that.

"... Right, our Persona can fly. I can't believe we neglected that option... but we did have the dragons on our mind this whole time."

Letting Yamato-Sumeragi play with the dragons would've resulted in less painful bites too.

He sighed, a short and weary puff. "Yeah, I'm really sympathizing with parents with toddlers... and those're human toddlers."

Zaiten lowered and offered his very large hands.

"Either way, I can get us all up no problem."

"Agreed. Whenever we return home, I'll have to call and thank my grampa again..." He might've raised her from a toddler, but he hadn't been in his prime.

Gazing up at Kanji, Naoto soon looked down and stepped onto Zaiten's palm. In turn, she waited for the baby dragons to get on as well. "It's alright you two..."

The ribbon dragon paused, trilled, and wasn't sure what to make of this other thing that smelled like Papa. But Mama seemed to be okay with things. After using a claw to touch the metallic carapace, she climbed on and wound her tail around Mama's ankle for safety.

Kanji hopped onto the opposite palm, and once everyone else was on, he tipped his chin and sent Zaiten slowly upward.

"Heh. Same with my mom... I was a fuckin' nightmare."

The other dragon had tried biting Zaiten before deciding to join Mama and their sibling. Naoto knelt down beside them, placing her arms around to hold them close. Going up into the air might startle them, but they would be okay...

"I heard suggestions that you weren't always..."

Kanji had gone momentarily quiet, thoughtful. He hadn't been there for what Yukiko said in the classroom, catching Chie, Yosuke and Souji by surprise. But Naoto... she likely had questions for his mom, for starters.

"Yeah... I mean, before Dad died, I wouldn't'a been different from most other kids."

He looked her way as Zaiten landed neatly, and lowered his hands again.

"But as a toddler, before any of all that..." He took in a breath and looked around.

"...I hated pants, a'right!?" 'Clothes' was more like it, but this wasn't the time or place to talk about a naked phase that gave his mom a lot of stress while his dad laughed his ass off.

Riding along, Naoto was quiet, letting Kanji speak while she focused ahead. Though, he too was paying attention forward just to make sure Zaiten didn't overshoot.

There was a pang when he mentioned his father, but Naoto remained silent.

Her head snapped towards him though, her jaw feeling loose. "Pants? So, you made a habit of strolling around naked... Goodness." She giggled softly at the thought of his father being quite unhelpful and his mother's exasperation. It wasn't what she expected him to say at all.

"I-I didn't say naked!!" But judging by how his face went through every shade of pink... busted.

"Stuff just... kept gettin' dirty from bein' outside or felt too tight on me, th-that's all." That's just what happened when you had frequent growth spurts like he did. He swore he grew an inch taller a week.

He didn't need to say he was. Looked like she got it right anyway.

"Considering your height now, you grew faster than your clothes could often keep up with." But she was going to take note of Kanji's mention of getting dirty while outside. Not wearing clothes would certainly keep them clean, but public indecency was a thing...

"Yeah, money got a little tight for a while, so it was kinduva 'swing and a prayer'. Lotta my stuff was handmade, but we had weeks apparently where in the time it'd take to finish a new pair of pants for me that it was already too small for me." He chuckled.

"Ah, anyway... I really should meet The Man, The Legend." He looked up.

"Your Gramps, I mean. I hear all these stories and I got all these pictures in my head...!"