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Rising Phoenix

Summary:

The legendary, eponymous firebird from Greek and Roman mythology - the phoenix - was said to have its tears grant immortality, and that killing it would merely see them rise from the ashes. Yukiko Amagi, for one reason or another, couldn't help but associate with the myth on that measure; here she was, accused of a crime everyone in Inaba knew she didn't commit, and yet was sent to Tokyo for one year under the threat of rehabilitation. Regardless, it was perhaps to be said that, if nothing else, she too would rise from the ashes of her bondage to take wing in a far more incendiary form...

...one that would see the underground of Tokyo set ablaze.

~

A revival of 'Fall With The Petals' that incorporates the canon from Persona 5 Royal alongside more quality writing and forethought put into it.

[DISCONTINUED]

Chapter 1: How We Got Here

Notes:

Boy howdy, was it a long, long time since I've even considered touching a fic like this. And I'm truly sorry about that.

For those who don't know of the old project, I nonetheless bid you welcome! This is a fic that's been dating back to 2017 with Fall With The Petals a rewrite AU of Yukiko replacing Akira as the leader of the Phantom Thieves. Due to a lot of similarities I felt were apparent between Yukiko and Akira, I felt it would be awesome to rewrite Persona 5 with Yukiko in mind. Unfortunately, due to my lack of experience with the project and a lot of "throw it in" ideas, and on top of Persona 5 Royal coming out, I've decided to take measures to completely rewrite Fall With The Petals with a new-and-improved format in Rising Phoenix!

There will be no breaks taken for a fic this monstrous in size, nor will I intend to ever stop it until it's done. This'll be a fic covering from the entirety of Persona 5 Royals' beginning to the True Ending, and I intend on having all possible avenues in this rewrite explored! I really want to do justice to my 2017 self with this fic idea, and, well, I hope that everything will be worth it to you.

Of course, I have all of the old script tucked away, so I'll definitely be sure to update as regularly as possible with this fic until I reach the current chapter - which may in turn be unrecognizable from how it was beforehand, because honestly, my weakness was not planning everything in advance when I should have by all means. Not that the old project was bad, but it certainly didn't have many good decisions behind it. But I know better now, and intend to show you the fic at it's most fruitful!

Please enjoy. ;)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Escape - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kg_cZbitAtY)

??? – ??? – ???

The first thing the masses of gamblers and dealers heard were alarm sirens.

Within the floor of a luxurious, high-end casino, one could almost see the general lackadaisical approach to life and their money most of the guests had. They were carefree, eager to spend and take a spin of the wheel... but this would not last. Guards began swarming around the premises as the alarm sirens rung like a clarion of vigilance throughout the facility. And as if on cue, people stopped in their tracks, murmuring breaking out among the best of them.

"What's going on?!"

"Something's wrong here..."

"Wait, why are there guards running about?"

"Can we just go back to gambling?!"

As numerous adults, dealers and guards alike darted around the plethora of flashing video lights and siren alarms, all of increasing intensity, a shadow blurred from one grandiose, crystalline chandelier to another. A warm wind swept the land he walked on, as if igniting the air itself in a fiery combustion. But it certainly wasn’t until this shadowy figure was spotted up on one of the chandeliers she was swinging from before everything would take a turn for the worst.

“Look! What’s she doing up there?!”

"Oh, my God!"

"S-Someone! Send back up!"

"E-Everyone, calm down! Security has this under control!"

The murmuring surrounding the girl was all old news to here, the last crescendo of an otherwise flawless heist. As guards immediately began pointing their guns directly at her, she simply mockingly raised up the suitcase in her hands and waved it around.

Her codename was Phoenix. Starlet and leader of the Phantom Thieves. She wore a reddish-pink cuirass that gave little to the imagination thanks to the curvaceousness of the cleavage, her arms in pink silk gloves as a skirt and traditional Japanese datemaki with pink and red linings each. Perhaps more deviously though was the pink and reddish thigh-high latex boots with high heels, with all the aforementioned accessories being adorned with white frills reminiscent of feathers... fitting, too, given the peacock-like pink mask that clearly had the adorning of scarlet feathers. Her name was named after the bright red, mythical firebird for a good reason, having the look and attire down almost to a t.

However, anyone else who was a part of her life would know her better as Yukiko Amagi. 

"Looking for this, gentlemen?" She spoke, an air of utter confidence to her. "Come and get it."

Just with a single taunt, several guards dressed in all-black business suits glared at the flamboyant woman, and all of them pulled out pistols and quickly opened fire. A chorus of screams rung among all the individuals throughout the casino, and it certainly wasn't hard to dodge those bullets and be gone before any of them could react. But even so, "Phoenix" deftly leaped to another chandelier to avoid any further unwanted attention from the guards. And as she continued to dart along with grace and precision, the earpiece crackled alive as a boyish voice spoke.

(Music Playing – Life Will Change - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwoKPU1K-88)

“Alright, I have no doubt you’re in the clear from here, Phoenix! Get over to the rendezvous point and we’ll high-tail it outta here!”

"No need to tell me, twice!" Phoenix spoke with some degree of adrenaline, due to all the bullets whizzing by her now. But it wasn't long before, almost too soon after a deft leap to another chandelier, that the voice on the communications channel again sparked to life once more... complete with banter this time, no less.

“Jeez, you sound pretty sure in this plan, Mona…”

“Of course I would be, Dragon! Queen planned everything, after all.”

“C-Come now, enough with the flattery…”

As this mysterious Phoenix continued to dart along the chandeliers and signs, the radio continued to crackle with voices.

“Be careful Phoenix! I’m sensing some powerful enemies to your right. You’re gonna have to go the long way.”

“Hm, you seem to be attentive today, Oracle. That’s more than I can say for Skull, for certain.”

“Oh, shaddup Inari! Like you’re any better!

“With all due respect Skull, he does seem to have rather more attention to detail than you often display."

“What the – Noir?! C’mon, Crow, help me out here!”

“To be frank, I'd consider it a surprise if you had any attention to detail. It definitely isn't among your strong suits."

“C-C'mon…!”

"Alright, cut the banter you guys. Meet me and the rendezvous point." Phoenix said, speaking into the comm once more. "See you on the other side! And... be safe on the way back, Dragon."

"Ehehehe... t-thank you..."

Phoenix's cheeks colored upon hearing her girlfriend's legitimately heartfelt giggle, but this was no time for distractions - she had to focus on getting out of here first.

As the crimson-clad burglar finally reached the balcony after a series of expert, almost-impossible acrobatics, three guards finally appeared from the stairs… but upon closer inspection, one of them seemed to be a shadow-encroached being with a devilish mask.

Phoenix smirked. Before the guards behind the oddly-masked man could react, Phoenix lunged forth and deftly ripped off the mask of the middle person. After a series of repeated convulsions, the convulsing shadows of the "person" devolved into an eldritch blackness, and out sprung a bull-like demon with not just an auroch's head and horns, but an ethereal, incomprehensible blue body. As the demon roared, anyone lesser would find this a fight of their life.

For Phoenix, though, it was just another pawn to knock out of the way on the way to checkmate.

“Comparing power levels… no threat. Get ‘em, Phoenix!”

All before the towering bovine demon could gore Phoenix, she stepped to the side, and the crimson-clad young girl proceeded rip off her mask -

“Come forth! Konohana Sakuya!

...and in a spectacular blue light, a blazing red fire proceeded to incinerate the auroch behemoth to ashes, leaving nothing in its wake but charred demon flesh and dissipated shadows. As the two other guards took a step back from the display of arcane might, the occult phantom thief proceeded to dart past the guards before they could have even noticed.

“What the actual… what is it we’re dealing with here?!” The guard immediately turned on the comms device. “Send backup, now! We have an armed robbery on the scene... with... with... magic!"

"Magic?! For fucks' sake Aidara, what the hell are you talking abo - "

"Just do it!" The guard screamed in a panic, and with a pause of silence, the call beeped a tone that signaled that his request came through.

Backup, as it happened, was not far away. Six guards in the same demonic masks manifested midway through the escape route, falling from the top of the air conditioning unit to surround Phoenix. A few of them looked rather smug about it, their glowing yellow eyes narrowed in smug satisfaction, but it'd be a whole nother thing before Phoenix would let any of these creeps capture her.

“Oracle, I think I might be a little late.” Phoenix growled, looking around frantically for a possible exit. “Apparently security realized this was an ideal escape route.”

“Of course they did!” Oracle cried out back. “First that weird reading keeping on showing up, now these guys! They’re weak too, but they know that delaying you gives their buddies more time to lead off the exits! Time constraints, be careful!”

Phoenix lifted her bladed fans, becoming a challenge to the guards and the seventh figure walking in from the doorway -

Who was very much not a guard.

Confused, Phoenix let her fighting stance slip a little to get a better look at the tall, feminine figure.

Then she saw the slight trace of feather designs on her mask, the reddish leotard, and the ponytail of red deeper than even Phoenix’s own outfit, and let out a breath of relief.

“I’ll end this right now.” The girl in the dancer’s costume leered as she emerged from the stairwell, drawing out a large rapier and challenging the guards.

“Phoenix, it’s her!”, Oracle said. “She’s the weird reading I’ve been getting!

The guards turned to face the new intruder, and with it, away from Phoenix.

Big mistake.

(Music Playing – Take Over - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygEmeAtWYvA)

The girl tossed her rapier in a small juggle, building enough momentum to send it flying – right into the guard behind Phoenix, him having generously exposed his chest. He slumped over with a note of final surprise, black lifeblood pouring from the wound. Enraged, his compatriots rushed the girl, who simply cartwheeled out of the way before revealing her rifle, backflipping to dispatch two more of the guards with a well-placed moving shot, the white rose on her waist glinting through the dissolving guards. Shocked, the other guards drew back to melt into their monstrous forms, which the girl took as an opportunity to calmly pace over to Phoenix.

“My weak self relied on you and the others so much...” The mysterious girl said that with no hint of remorse, extracting her rapier from the dissolving guard with a quick, graceful twirl. “That ends today. Let’s do this, Senpai!”

She said that now with resolve as she took her position next to a Phoenix who was in a much better mood than at the start of the ambush.

The guards, now revealed as two humanoid leopards dual-wielding sabers and a bird with a golden crown and a reptilian tail, bunched up before the stairwell, trembling only slightly.

“…the enemy readings have decreased?!” Oracle's surprise and confusion was all but palpable.

“They’re not the only ones with reinforcements then, it seems.” Phoenix said, nodding politely to the girl who looked… well, like someone who had stolen Phoenix’s costume look for a ballet outfit’s general aesthetic.

“It’s been a while since we last fought side-by-side.” The strange girl said as she casually pirouetted out of the way of miniature tornado thrown at her by the bird. “But this time, it’s my turn to come to your aid, Senpai. Now let’s win this!”

The guards didn’t have a chance. A single blow from Phoenix’s fans sent the bird off-balance and caused it to have a spill right onto the floor, allowing the other girl an opening to take off her mask. “Cendrillion! Vorpal Blade, now!”

There was a brief impression of a woman made of glass with a white cape manifesting behind her, before said impression suddenly took off at top speed, the only hint of her presence being the great slashes she left in all three guards, both the leopards joining their compatriot on the ground.

HOLD UP!

Phoenix nodded. As both she and the girl pointed their general plethora of pistols at the shadows, all it took was one mutual glance and look of understanding for them to give the signal.

“Now!”

Both of the humans were quick to follow the glass woman’s example, darting in and out so fast that all anyone could see of them would be dark shadows against a red background.

Upon having finished he girl leapt back, revealing a blue ribbon a stick as she danced, twirling it about herself as she grabbed part of it in her mouth.

BEAUTY IS DEVOTION

“Stuck the landing!”

(Music Playing – Life Will Change - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwoKPU1K-88)

The girl rolled her neck, turning to face her Senpai. “I think… that’s the last of them?”

“Unless there’s more up there…” Just to be certain, Phoenix summoned a fireball, and threw it like a rock at the vents. As the explosion that occurred proved without bloodcurling demonic screams...

Phoenix grinned a bit too maniacally. “Nope! Hehehehe.”

Phoenix could feel Oracle throwing up her hands. “I genuinely have no clue what just happened, but I take it you’re okay?”

A half-second later, the celebration ended. “Wait - bad news. Enemy backup’s headed your way! You need to book it, right now!”

The other girl heard that. “Please go. I’m going to make it harder to them to track you down.”

“Thank you for the assist.” Phoenix smiled to the extent she could in a tense situation. “I would love to stay and chat, but I still have something I need to do as a phantom thief.”

“I won’t stop you.” The girl said, turning away. “I’m not a member of the Phantom Thieves, anyway. I’m in no position to interfere.”

With a small shake of her head, the girl leapt up to the rafters. “However… please don’t forget the promise we made, okay?”

“… I’m going to ask about that promise later.” Dragon said through the comms, “But right now, you need to get out of there, Phoenix! Keep moving!”


(Music Playing – Run Away ~ Arrest - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nl1209wa08)

??? – ??? – ???

Everything in that moment was going according to plan.

Okay, decidedly not everything, given the young, masked girl was currently on the run from a plethora of angry, gun-toting guards who wanted to see her arrested, dead or worse. But what's the fun in everything going according to plan, anyways? With how often things went sideways and them succeeding in spite of it, who's to say they really don't have the kami on their side after all?

Phoenix cracked a self-assured smile while thinking this to herself, even with the shouting guards hot on her trail. As she evaded a few other guards with the help of Oracle, she managed to find her way to the top floor, only to find a balcony under the glass window - and no doors out.

“Oracle...” Phoenix hissed, sounding a little irritated. “I thought this was an escape route!”

It is an escape route!" Oracle cried out defensively. "You just gotta get over to the window!”

Phoenix rolled her eyes as a bullet whizzed past her left ear, prompting her to jump from one chandelier over to the wall, trailing over the catwalk until she was right on top of the second chandelier. Just in time, too; right as the young girl made her first steps on the glass-caked decoration, several guards – fully armed and loaded – were pointing at her.

Phoenix cracked a devilish smile. This was what she lived for.

“Seeya!”

Much to the shock of the civilians below, she jumped out the window, the glass pane shattering and she flew down and landed with perfect precision.

“Woah… is she for real?!”

“Even by her standards, that’s just excessive…”

“Wow. She really is a show-off…”

"It's Phoenix. Jeez, what else were you expecting, huh?"

Dusting off some of the shattered glass on her outfit, she pressed the comms device once again to give a status report, bearing a cocksure grin and all.

“I got the briefcase. See you back at the rendezvous - "

...and just like that, the shine of flashing lights interrupted her thoughts.

Instinctively raising her hand over her eyes to dim the light, closer inspection gave way to a fully-armed SAT team with guard dogs and riot shields ready to, for a better lack of a term, "arrest" Phoenix. And that was the thing Phoenix wasn't expecting, her eyes widening in genuine shock underneath the feathery mask of hers.

“Wh-What the hell is going on?!”

“No way… is that the police?!”

“How… how did the police get here?! That shouldn’t be possible!”

"Phoenix, run!"

Indeed, the fully armed SAT team was here and very much ready to take down the lone phantom thief. Her eyes widened even more as she saw a guard – likely the captain, if anything – step forward and give the order to his men.

“After her! Don’t let her escape!”

Suddenly, a mass of armored cops charged at her.

Everything else was sort of a blur after that.

After hearing the panicked cries from Dragon to get to safety, her attempt to escape via the fire escape was almost certainly one that would've gone without a hitch. She leapt onto the fire escape's ladder, all while the panicked cries from her intercoms led her to continue to climb upwards...

...only to be met with the disturbingly eager smile of a SAT member, slamming the butt of a shotgun directly into Phoenix's face.

"Uagh!" As the strike sent her careening back down to earth, the first thing Phoenix felt was her head feeling split in two, and blood trickling down her forehead. The second thing she felt was hordes upon hordes of SAT team members immediately restraining her. It certainly wasn't long before one of the cops, the aforementioned SAT team captain, leened in with a smug smile.

"So... we finally caught you." The captain said with a bit of sadistic glee. "...you're just a kid. Who'da thought a brat like you was so easy to rat out from the inside?"

Phoenix's eyes widened at what that meant.

She's been sold out.

"Cuff her!" That was the last order the police captain gave as he barked at his compatriots to restrain Phoenix As she felt cold metal cuff her arms and wrist, the sting of a syringe around her neck was the last sensation she felt before slipping away into unconsciousness.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

By all technicalities, she was awake, in that she could perceive things she wasn't dreaming. Not, however, awake enough to even begin to open her eyes, or move. 

"Guess the drug was too strong." A mildly annoyed voice on the edge of her reviving awareness said. "Wake her up!"

Then came a blast of cold, which shocked her into full awareness.

"No dozing!" The cop holding the bucket said that with no small part of furor, as he swam fully into view along with the rest of the holding cell. And she realized there was the pressure of handcuffs keeping her hands together.

This all still felt so surreal to Yukiko Amagi.

It wasn’t even half a year ago when she was roped into this mess. After obtaining her power, she vowed to use it to bring the corrupt to justice, to change the hearts of people in power, so to speak. Granted, she was hardly surprised that she was now in this situation, handcuffed to a chair in a dinky interrogation room.

She was a bit too beautiful for that, at least she thought so; even when bruised and bloody, the young girl looked gorgeous, her black hair neatly flowing behind her head while her face – barring any obvious painful usages of fists and feet – was practically flawless. She was also dressed in her unique take on the female’s winter Shujin Academy outfit, only with a twist: instead of a black and red sailor fuku, the shirt was completely red with a yellow sailor tie tied to it. It didn’t exactly look all that different from her outfit back in Yasoinaba, truth be told.

Admittedly, “beauty” didn’t really stop you from being arrested, but the image of an otherwise pretty rich girl lolling in a chair, bruised and bloody, was a bit incongruous. Especially since she was that girl.

“You comfortable yet, you little bitch?” The taller partner of Officer Bucket smirked. “You shouldn’t be. Because after all you’ve done, the last thing you deserve is a free pass.”

Yukiko remained silent through it all as the two men circled around her. Finally, the other man spoke.

“Your silence annoys the hell out of me.”

Suddenly, she felt a large fist punch her lights out. Yukiko gasped as blood trickled from her lips, but she barely had enough time to regain her breath as she was knocked to the floor, chair and all.

Emitting a cry of pain, Yukiko looked onwards as the two police smiled with each other.

“Aw, what’s the matter?” The first cop said mockingly, clearly approving the second cop’s brutality. “Think we’re going to go easy on you just because you’re a woman? Cooperate, unless you want another shot.”

Yukiko snarled even as a boot heel dug into her cheek.

"Feisty one, aren't you?" The officer paused, then noticed where she was glancing at. "What, the camera? You really think that's gonna be video evidence?"

Even from the tone, Yukiko guessed the answer. "...doubt the barely trained drunk knows how to turn it - urk!"

The cop growled as he gave her another kick. "Watch your mouth, sweetness. Or I'll drag you and a nightstick to the guy you just insulted." With that, he motioned to his partner, receiving a clipboard and a pen, which he read off. "Besides, it's not like anyone would care if he didn't delete the log."

The cop who kicked her growled, then went silent. Afterwards, he nodded to the other cop; he was quick to show a clipboard, to which he gave it to Officer Kicker on the side; as she glared while futilely fighting the strong drugs in her system, the officer ran off a series of charges that Yukiko would've called bogus had she not have been drugged the entire time.

"Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation, possession of weapons... and manslaughter too, of course." A snort, then a condescending glare. "Gods, lady, no judge in the world's going to care if interrogation's a bit forceful for a real piece of work like you."

He walked over, idly fanning himself with the board. "Really, though, all of that from a punk like you... bet you enjoyed every second of it, didn't you?"

Yukiko opened her mouth for a retort -

And found nothing, upon the realization she couldn't quite remember.

What was even in that syringe?

Satisfied with this apparent victory, the cop motioned for his partner to unlock her from the chair. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Know your place, you little brat."

With that, he came out over to throw her out of her chair, mobile but not particularly free or coordinated, while he shoved the clipboard and pen in her face.

"Sign here. This confession's the only thing that could mean you ever see the outside of a jail cell again."

Yukiko debated ignoring the offered pen, but realized it was probably for the best to sign -

But not before the cop got in her face again. "Make no mistake; don't expect to make it out of here in one piece. We're going to make you understand that one must take full responsibility for their actions. Man or woman."

With that, Yukiko glumly lifted the clipboard before her.

I hereby accept the terms of this contract,

Yukiko Amagi

Rudely grabbing the clipboard from the girl, the two cops laughed with each other as the sudden motion caused her to retch, spitting out a bit of blood from her busted lip.

"See you round, sweetie." The cop said that in a sickeningly good mood as he and his compatriot strode out of the room, looking immensely proud of themselves for having beaten compliance out of a drugged teenage girl.

As the two rudely slammed the door to the room, Yukiko scoffed to herself.

“Assholes.”


(Music Continues)

??? – ??? – ???

The two initial interrogators were gone, too busy flipping through their notes, though the guards outside had been given enough of a play-by-play to guess at it.

"Regular spitfire, isn't she?" The first guard suppressed a snicker. "Kinda fitting, if you go off some of the weirder reports."

"Me, I'm thinking more that she should be wearing blue, given how much of an ice queen she is." The other guard said that with a roll of the eyes.

"Nah, I'm going with spitfire; we've got this tempest safely in a teacup." The first guard shrugged, before smirking lecherously. "Still, it's amazing how vulnerable she is now that she's finally stuck."

The other guard knew exactly what he meant, and grinned smarmily in response. "Heheh. Yeah, it's just like my dad said. Sometimes, the wild mare needs to be - "

“Gentlemen?”

The two cops turned to see a tall, silver-haired young woman dressed in a black cardigan and high heels standing in front of them. Both officers immediately saluted the young woman.

“Ma’am.” The first cop saluted before bowing in respect. “I’m afraid this is a restricted area. Please, we request that you - “

“That won’t be necessary.” The silver-haired woman nodded curtly, before flashing a badge. “Sae Niijima, Public Prosecutor’s Office. I request an interview with the young woman inside. I will only take a moment of your time.”

The first cop frowned. “What business does the Prosecutor’s Office have here?”

Niijima’s expression, if anything, grew a bit more intense. “Just let me through. There’s something I need to confirm with the suspect, and it’s urgent.”

The second cop shook his head. “With all due respect Niijima-san, I believe this case is no longer in your jurisdiction. Besides - ”

Suddenly, the phone rang.

“Ugh, who could it be now…?” Immediately flipping the phone open, she heard a familiar voice, sighing.

“Niijima, I thought I ordered you to stand by.”

“Sir...” Niijima began, aggravation creeping into her professional tone. “With all due respect, I’m responsible for this case, but I’m not even allowed an interrogation?”

“I’m calling because I knew you’d bring it up.”

“And I need to build a case. I will not be convinced unless I confirm it for myself, and that’s not going to result in a good case if I’m not believing what I’m saying.”

The weary SIU director sighed over the phone. He should've known better than to assign Niijima with this case; when there was something she needed to do, there was no immovable object that could feasibly stop her.

“Frankly, Niijima-san, you’re becoming an inconvenience.” The old man said that with a grumble, and pause. Then he spoke curtly, and with no lack of disapproval of what he was to say next.

"Thirty minutes. That’s all the time you get. Over and out.”

And almost like that, the old man hung up.

“And he said…?” The second cop inquired.

“I have an audience for thirty minutes.” Sae said with a satisfied smirk, walking pass the two cops. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I believe you have a report to give to the chief officer."

“Tch…” The first cop cursed under his breath. “Fine. Don’t say we didn’t warn you if you get hurt.”

As soon as both cops left the scene, Sae Niijima shook her head and hissed a few expletives when she thought nobody was listening.

Those bastards... Niijima thought with no amount of venom as she scanned an ID card for the interrogation room. We’re they actually considering molesting a 16-year old? Disgusting...

The door opened, and Sae thought it couldn’t get worse.

She was quite wrong about that.

Yukiko Amagi sat on the slightly damaged chair, bleeding and bruised heavily, all while breathing raggedly as her chest rose. She wasn’t just exhausted, the three syringes scattered on the floor indicated she was drugged.

Dear God... what the hell am I even looking at...?! Sae looked on in mild horror and untold amounts of disgust. What was she even drugged with, thiopentone?! That’s a euthanasia drug in the right dosage, for God's sake! This is definitely personal for someone…

Sighing softly, she brought a wheeled chair over from the corner to meet Yukiko Amagi in the eye. Finally, she had an exclusive opportunity to talk with the Phantom Thieves’ leader herself.

“Are you lucid?” That was the first question to come from the Prosecutor.

“Y-Yeah...” Yukiko nodded. “I’m just a little roughed up is all. What is it that you need…?”

She’s coherent, but she’s clearly hazy. Sae sighed to herself. With the time limit she was given, she might as well get to the point.

“I’ll be honest, Amagi-san...” Sae began. “Almost anything can happen here… and I can’t stop them. The only way out is through telling me what I want to know so you can be released. Whether into prison or house arrest, I don’t know, but you’ll be out of this room.” And away from those sadistic bastards guarding the door.

Yukiko nodded. “I understand. Then… what is it you want, then?”

“Tell me about that ‘other world’.”

Yukiko’s eyes widened briefly, shocked a little bit by the blatant question.

“What…” Yukiko stuttered for a moment. “What do you need to know?”

“Everything.” Sae sighed, placing the briefcase on the desk. “The whole story; how we’re you able to change hearts? Why are you in possession of such strange powers? And most importantly… what’s your motive for doing so? If you want any chance of leaving, I expect you to give me nothing but the truth. I already suspected it was more than just some bizarre prank, but the supernatural is the only simple explanation. The only way I can build this case.” She paused. “Start from the very beginning.”

(Music Playing – Aria of the Soul - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE)

Suddenly, a glowing blue butterfly flew across the room, shining ethereally as a voice whispered to the teenage girl.

This is truly an unjust game… your chances of winning are almost none…

The voice, familiar to a denizen of ‘that room’ herself, slowly grew into a more hopeful tone.

Even though you’re of the Priestess Arcana, you still possess the power to save the world… for the sake of all you care about, please… remember.

Yukiko smirked softly at the prosecutor, feeling her will renewed.

“You wish to know the whole story? Fine.” Yukiko said with a nod. “It’s a long one, though.”

very long one, thought Yukiko.


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

April 9th, 2016 – Shibuya Line – 2:32 PM

Yukiko Amagi was a complex mess of emotions right now.

In short, there were three emotions in her mind vying for control right now: joy, anger and sadness. Yukiko was so conflicted as she sat on the train seats, her mind thinking about a thousand things at once as all other Tokyo natives discussed freely.

For starters, she was happy she could leave Yasoinaba. Born on December 8th, 1999, Yukiko was the heiress of the famous Amagi Inn, but she never felt happiness with everyone making the decisions for her. Not that her parents didn’t love her: they adored Yukiko and completely valued her happiness, but it’s just… she had no friends. She was always an outcast for her aloof nature, and being able to visit the bustling city of Tokyo was a very welcome and exciting change.

Two, she was incredibly angry at the same time. One late night in March, she was walking home from errands at Junes, only to be drawn by the sound of scuffling and screams. The image had burned its way permanently into her memory over the past few weeks of constantly replaying it.

"Please, help!" The woman stumbled back from the swaying man, trying to get her hand out of his grip, the tug on her shirt causing it to lose a button.

If anything, that seemed to make the man even angrier, his free hand clenching into a fist.

Yukiko's hand came up, just trying to grab him and surprise him long enough to drop her-

Except she didn't realize how drunk he was, his sudden whipping around to face her proving too difficult for his compromised balance to keep himself standing up.

A small trickle of blood came down a suddenly sober face, eyes from behind clear orange sunglasses burning with humiliated anger and wounded pride. "You bitch! I'll sue!"

The cops grabbing her as the red and blue lights flashed, the man grinning with savage vindication.

As it turns out, that man was a rather popular politician of some kind. She was too shocked to know what for, but his word - and for whatever reason, his victim's - word against Yukiko's? The Amagi heiress did not have a chance.

Finally, she just felt sad. Less for herself, and more at looking her shocked, horrified parents in the eye who, despite tensions, she still loved, and them saying “how could you?” That hurt far more than any probation sentence could, and she almost wanted to cry for disappointing her parents like that.

It really sucked overall.

Adjusting her custom-made, red Shujin Academy outfit – the school she’d be transferring to in less than a week – she sighed and flipped her raven black hair, until the announcer called out the destination.

Shibuya Square. This is Shibuya Square. All passengers watch your step before leaving the train.

Stepping outside, she was greeted with and overwhelming set of sensations: hundreds upon thousands of people squeezing each other crossing the street, the gargantuan cityscapes up yonder, and the famous Hachiko statue by the park.

It was almost overwhelming enough that she didn’t notice her smartphone go off.

New app downloaded: Metaverse Navigator

“Huh?” Yukiko blinked a bit. She was confident she never downloaded any sort of app like this… though she had to hold in one of her infamous giggling fits: the logo was adorable!

Letting her curiosity get the better of her, she pressed the button.

And things got weird.

(Music Playing – Awakening (Persona 4 Edition) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9GikHvhukk (Note: music in this scene is on complete loop from 0:00 to 0:48))

Suddenly, time completely halted. Completely. Everyone stopped moving, people were walking and kids were still mid-air, and even the leaves were stationary. Yukiko stared at the scene in awe, until a burning bright, blue fire from afar caught her attention.

It was a blue figure, and it looked as though it had wings. Either way, it was completely engulfed in the blue flame… and it was staring directly at Yukiko.

My other self…

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

Suddenly, people were walking around like nothing happened.

“H-Huh?” Yukiko blinked, rubbing her eyes a bit. “Was that a bad daydream?”

Regardless, she looked down at the phone app with the devilish logo on it, and immediately dragged the app into the trash bin. Rubbing her eyes somewhat, she shook her head and brought up the directions to Yongen-Jaya, the location of where she’s supposed to stay.

“I’ve seen enough horror movies to know that app’s bad mojo…”


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx-6-wAid70)

April 9th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 2:58 PM

A small café with a flickering TV was in scene, with a skinny, bearded man with an apron wiping a coffee mug behind the counter as he overlooked a crossword. As he continued his activity, two elderly people were eyeing the TV news.

“A public transit bus was driven down an opposing lane with its customers still in it!” The news reporter spoke as though he was more excited about the news than upset about it. “The citizens can’t live in peace if this keeps up..."

The old man shook his head. “How frightening…”

The old lady next to her elderly husband sniffed a bit. “What could be going on? Didn’t something similar happen just the other day?”

The manager… was not listening. “And down is… the name of a shellfish used in pearl farming…”

“Does it have four letters? I’d say ‘clam’, but I think they’re a mollusk…”

The manager froze in place, looking up to hear the bell ring and door open. And his expression further widened upon seeing this woman right in front of him, especially after Yukiko offered him a solution to the crossword puzzle from the front door. 

A long pause, before he sighed grimly. “…oh, right. Well, they did say that was today...”

It was good timing, too: as the old couple said their thanks, payment on the table, the man glanced at Yukiko Amagi, clearly aware that this was the girl he was going to take in for a year.

The old man chuckled. “At least this place is in the back alley, so there’s no worries of a car crash in here.”

The manager blinked. “A what now?”

“There’s been a string of those rampage accidents, you know. I just hope that none happen around here.”

The manager shrugged. “It’s none of my concern.”

The old man chuckled. “We’ll see you next time.”

As they left, even the trace of professionalism the manager had dissipated. “Four hours for just a single cup of joe…”

“Well, they probably are retired, and they like you.” Yukiko said, brightly. “They’re probably paying more for the ambience. It’s a nice place.”

The manager took a second to answer, apparently trying to square his mental image of her to… well, what she just said. “…so, you’re Yukiko Amagi?”

She nodded, bowing politely. “The same. And might I ask – is Sakura-san here, or am I currently speaking to him?”

“…the latter.” The manager said this with a bit of skepticism, brow furrowing in uncertainty. “Sojiro Sakura. You’ll be in my custody for the next year.”

He paused in that moment, clearly sizing up her appearance once more. “…I’ll be honest with you, I was kind of expecting bleached hair. And a ponytail.”

Yukiko giggled. “Sorry, I’m new to this whole 'delinquent' thing. I’m still getting the hang of being against 'The Man'.”

“I see…” Sojiro nodded. “Actually, funny story - I went to college with your father, Shigeru, and since Shujin Academy was the only school willing to accept you after you got expelled from Yasogami, I…”

He trailed off when he noticed the wince. “Right. Sore spot. Sorry. Doesn’t really matter to me anyways… ahem, follow me.”

Respectfully bowing, she followed up the middle-aged man up the stairs to be greeted with...

...a dusty, decrepit attic. Seriously? She was going to stay here?

“Um, sorry for the mess…” The middle-aged man rubbed the back of his head nervously. “I know it’s not the best room, but… there’s a few reasons I don’t want relative strangers at my house. Call me paranoid, but I’ll help clean up.”

“Thank you for your concern.” Yukiko bowed courteously. “I’m just happy I don’t have to pay rent.”

“Is that an offer?” Sojiro said with a humorous smirk, before his face fell again. Nervously rubbing the back of his head some more, he cleared his throat. “Well, this is awkward. I had this speech about how you needed to start pulling your own weight, and how you were lucky that when your parents didn’t pull you out of the fire, you just ended up here, but uh… you don’t exactly come off as, y’know…”

“Spoiled?” Yukiko supplied.

“Yeah, that. I mean, they just told me you assaulted a man but…" An awkward cough. "...you just don’t seem like the kind of girl who'd resort to fists instantly. Just… what happened?”

Yukiko fell silent. Despite only barely meeting, he could tell Sojiro was a good man. But she felt the less said, the better: nobody would believe her story anyway.

He got the message. “Hey, if you don’t wanna talk about it, that’s fine by me. But… do you think you were justified? Or even guilty?

She wasn’t expecting that. Regardless, she swallowed her fears and spoke an answer. “Y-Yes. I believe I was wrongly convicted.”

Sojiro sighed. Normally, someone would come off as trying too hard to be sincere, or angry you even asked, but Yukiko just sounded… resigned. Like it was something she had just realized was never going to change. The kind of resignation that comes from sincerely believing that she was going to have a false charge hanging over someone for the rest of their life.

Being in the restaurant business long enough lets you see the same eyes in different people, after all.

Smiling softly, he motioned over to the broom.

“There’s a broom downstairs.” Sojiro nodded. “How about I help you clean up? We’ll be able to get things done before I have to close shop anyway.”

Yukiko, blinking, was nonetheless flattered by Sojiro’s trust. Blushing a little, she puts her reservations aside and nods.

“Alright.” Yukiko smiled for the first time today, bowing courteously. “Thank you, Sakura-san. I truly appreciate your hospitality.”

“Hell, don’t mention it; I just couldn’t believe a kid like you would commit a crime like that. It’s just… beyond me.” Sojiro’s smile turned into a shrug. “Anyway, go get the broom, please.”

And Yukiko did just that. Thanks to the power of two, the room was cleaned up in a jiffy.


(Music Continues)

April 9th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 7:52 PM

It was five hours since virtually every speck of dust was cleaned up by Sojiro and Yukiko, and the raven-haired girl smiled happily as the room was nice and tidy. She had time to get into more comfortable wear, too; her standard red-and-black spring outfit was on clear display.

Really, apart from the lack of any kind of view, and the lack of decoration, it was... nice. Mostly because of the size, but as far as delinquent cribs went, this was the highest of low lives. All the space she could ever want.

Suddenly, Sojiro came up the stairs. “Hey, I’m gonna close the place for the night. You’ll be alright by yourself, yeah?”

Yukiko smiled. “Yes, I’ll be fine Sojiro-san. Thanks again for helping me.”

Sojiro scratched his cheek nervously. “Uh, you’re welcome. I couldn’t just let you do the work by yourself. Even if you were stuck here for justifiable reasons, it wouldn't do just to leave someone who clearly's more than that out to dry.”

Yukiko bowed, grateful for the fact she currently had a guardian who at least bothered to be nice. "I appreciate the thought."

Sojiro smiled before nodding. “Well, I’m gonna head out for the night. But I figured I’d let you know something before I go.”

Yukiko looked up at her new guardian, who looked rather somber.

“Let's be honest; I was expecting you to be a real punk, and while I got around that quick, it doesn’t mean others will.” Sojiro sighed, sliding his hands into his pockets. “You’re still on probation, and well… most people don’t exactly take kindly to criminals. Being able to disarm first impressions won't work on a lot of them. I want you to be on guard; remember, it's just for a year though. Then you'll be able to go back home.”

Where Yukiko was bound for a much nicer prison, if you asked her, but he didn't know that - nor did he need to. "Cynical advice, but good advice. Thank you."

Sojiro’s sighed, then relaxed as he waved with a smile. “Well, I’ll be out. Be sure to lock up the place before I leave, okay? G’night.”

“Goodnight.” Yukiko nodded as Sojiro descended down the stairs, and a familiar ringing of a bell signified that Sojiro left the building.


(Music Plays - City Night Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vg1mpD1BICI)

April 9th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 11:23 PM

After locking the place up, Yukiko found herself unable to sleep. So many thoughts were going through her head as she lied down on the bed, dressed in her night clothes. What kind of life could I live here, what’s life like beyond the inn? These thoughts plagued Yukiko long before she fell asleep, but she figured any life would be better beyond the Inn and Yasoinaba. 

She should have really checked to see if there were any monkey's paws in the possession of a guest. Now, she had a lot of regrets about how and why she left, though there was a silver lining in that she left at all. 

The one big thing she did regret wasn't something she left, either. She just wished she saw that girl again.

When Yukiko was six, she was found crying as she was unable to bring in a dog into the Amagi household. It was when an auburn-haired girl her age comforted her. It was unclear to Yukiko who the girl was, but she definitely recalled the two being the best of friends – and more importantly, her crying even more when she had to move away.

She never saw her again. But who knows? For all she knew, she’d be in Tokyo, or even the same school.

Yeah, monkey's paws probably didn't have that kind of mercy. All of that was left with the rest of the monkey.

*bzzt*

“Hm?” Yukiko’s eyes fluttered to see the same app that had downloaded itself to her phone before that strange experience at the train station.

Metaverse Navigator, again?!

“And you are getting irritating..." Yukiko scowled. "Either you're a spambot, or a really persistent ghost. Or the persistent ghost of a telemarketer. In any case, back to the bin you go."

She dragged the app down to the garbage bin below and deleted it, and with it, the young girl finally felt her eyes drift away as she fell asleep.


(Music Playing - Night Town Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSbYpFMNxLI)

F ebruary 18th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 8:11 PM

She recalls having this dream.

Granted, she’s unable to do anything about it but watch it repeat, but it still bothers her what happened that day.

A lone Yukiko Amagi walked down the shopping district, with a plethora of shops closed either from it being night-time or from Junes’ outdoing them. But from a distance, she hears voices.

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

"Just get in the fucking car!"

The man's voice is slurred, drunken. He sounds like he needs help, or at least someone to take him home, even if it is a bit.. forceful.

"How dare you cross me..."

Or if he doesn't, whoever he's arguing with does. She follows the voices, only to find...

Well, Yukiko did not need to see drunken abuse of a woman today. Or ever.

"No...!" The brown-haired woman tries to get away from the bald man, but he's boxed her in. Even a bodybuilder might have trouble getting out, and this woman looks like a secretary, if at that.

"Don't give me that shit..." The drunk doesn't seem to talk so much as hiss, invading her space as much as possible.

"Ow! P-Please, stop..!"

It's more than an argument. Yukiko realizes, at best, someone is going to get hurt.

She steps up towards the two, clearing her throat.

The drunk doesn't notice at first. "Tch, what a waste of time. You think you're worth causing me trouble? Huh!?"

"I'll... I'll call the police!"

The drunk laughs. "Call them if you want! They're my bitches. They aren't going to take you seriously."

He does hear the sirens, though. For all his confidence, he became bit subdued, looking up. He snarled. 

"Get in the car!" He starts fumbling for her arm "Incompetent fools like you just need to shut your mouths and follow where I steer this country!"

Yukiko clears her throat louder, revealing the number she dialed on her smartphone. The drunk finally looks up, at the phone, and glares at her through his clear orange sunglasses.

"What're you thinking, you little whore? Unless you want to get in the car with her, scram. This doesn't concern you, and I'm sure the cops will be a little peeved to come out to a fake call." 

He turns back to the woman. "See? This is all because you're so damn slow! Get. In. The car!"

"Please help!" The woman stumbled back from the swaying man, trying to get her hand out of his grip, the tug on her shirt causing it to lose a button.

She knew how the rest of the dream went. Fall, lawsuit threat, bells, sirens -

(Music Plays - Trick - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTFt_dSHC4c)

Wait.

Bells?

In that moment, the dream froze in place. An endless sweeping plain of nothing overcame the sleepy townscape of Yasoinaba, and thus a blue fog as well.

"W-What the...?" Yukiko outcried. "What's going on - "

...wait.

Wait.

Were those chains -


(Music Plays - Prison Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVmWdIwjgKA)

??? - ??? - ???

She woke up, or at least she dreamed she did.

From the blue-colored padded walls surrounding her, the stiff prisoner's cot she was on, the chains hanging from the ceiling and (she realized with a start) the striped jumpsuit she was wearing, arm shackles, and the ball and chain around her ankle, none of what she seemed to be in seemed real. At least, she didn't think she fell asleep in this room.

But even as she collected her thoughts, she started noticing things, like the lack of a telltale sense of constriction from her blanket, a tendency for the pattern on the walls to remain constant, the sudden realization she was noticing these things as she observed them rather than in hindsight. If this was a dream, it was an immensely lucid one, and apart from her memory of that night, there wasn't many dreams Yukiko ended up lucid in.

She sat up, looking at her shackles with more confusion and bemusement than fear. Also no small amount of anger at her subconscious, which was apparently intent on making her feel trapped even in dreams.

The sudden silence being broken by a young girl's laugh was almost a relief, because that meant she could have something happen to her that wasn't just... staring at the shackles. She looked behind her.

By all rights, the figures before her should have been somewhat cute. Two little girls, about 11-13 years old if she had to guess, stood in front of her cell in nearly identical prison guard uniforms. The two were obviously sisters; the only real visual differences between them was which one of their golden eyes was covered up by an eyepatch with a stylized golden V logo on it, the English letters on their hats, their hairstyles, and the fact the ponytailed sister had a clipboard and a serious, emotionless expression, and the one with buns had an extendable baton and a smug, slightly taunting one.

Of course, the cell part made it all a bit eerie, especially as the two sidestepped together in eerie synchronization, never breaking eye contact with her.

After a second, Yukiko inhaled, awkwardly. "Um... hi?"

No response, though she could have sworn the smugger one's lip twitched open slightly.

"...say. On the off-chance you're not symbolism of how trapped I feel... could you let me out? Please?"

No response again, at least not in the form of talking. Instead, both drew together, and moved out like they were the two halves of a single double door, keeping their uncovered eyes on her until the very last possible second.

When their heads did finally turn, that was when Yukiko noticed the desk with a gasp. And the person sitting on it.

"Trickster." The long-nosed, goblin-like, bald man began in a low, sonorous tone, his broad, teeth-showing grin never faltering. "Welcome to my Velvet Room."

(Music Playing – Aria of the Soul - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE)

It took a long while for her to process it. But the room, now that she thought about it, looked laden with the color blue... Yukiko stood up in that moment, processing all that she was witnessing... all before panicking just a little bit.

"...okay, uh, thanks, but, uh, can I get out now, please!?" Yukiko spoke as her voice cracked from growing anxiety.

"So you've come to, Inmate." It took Yukiko to realize that the playful, sly voice had come from the sister with hair buns.

"The you in reality is currently, fast asleep..." The ponytailed sister began, in a much softer and gentler tone - but not a warm one, more of a polite and respectful professionalism. "You are only experiencing this as a dream."

The smug sister tapped on the bars with her baton, causing it to spark with electricity. "You're in the presence of our Master. Stand up straight!" 

It was kind of hard not to do that by reflex. Still, best not to upset the... head guard, she guessed?

"Welcome. I am delighted to make your acquaintance... I am Igor." The sisters' Master said. "This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room only those who are bound by a 'contract' may enter. I am Igor, the master of this place. Remember it well."

All very informative, but it didn't stop the fact that Yukiko was also in the middle of a neon cell that may have been about 1.5 times the width of her bed in the real world, and Igor and his apprentices were in a nice, big central chamber. She only felt more and more uncomfortable.

"I summoned you to speak of important matters." The strange, goblin-like man continued before she had a chance to speak. "It involves your life as well."

Realizing she wasn't going to get out until Igor finished his speech, she drew herself up, nodding. "If they are that important, please continue."

"Still, this is a surprise..." Igor said, looking around. "The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such."

Thankfully for Yukiko, she had the willpower to not ask if Igor had been living under a rock for the past decade.

"You truly are a 'prisoner' of fate..." Igor said, eyes back upon her. "In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you."

"Are you kidding me?!" Yukiko said, her composure breaking under all the indignities left she had left to suffer.

Igor chuckled. "Worry not. There is a means to oppose such a fate. You must be 'rehabilitated'... rehabilitated towards freedom. That is your only means to avoid ruin... do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of this world?"

Yukiko blinked, and gave a long-suffering groan. "I suppose I'll find out. I'd rather not have 'ruin' in my life."

Igor nodded as the two guard sisters strode back to face her. "Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation." He paused. "Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others."

"To your right is Caroline. To your left, Justine." He said this with the appropriate gestures for both, motioning to the smug sister and giving a nod towards the more professional one. "They serve as wardens here."

"Try and struggle as hard as you like!" Caroline said with a scoff, apparently daring Yukiko to do so.

Justine did not seem to notice. "The duty of wardens is to protect inmates. We are also your collaborators." Her voice turned harder. "That is, if you remain obedient."

And no doubt Caroline was eagerly anticipating disobedience, Yukiko thought with a wary glance at her electric baton.

"I will explain the roles of these two at another occasion..." Igor said. "Now then, it seems the night is waning... it is almost time." He tapped his fingers, rhythmically. "Take your time to slowly understand this place. We will surely meet again, eventually..."  

And seemingly right on his cue, the sound of an alarm clock ripped through the Velvet Room.

"Time's up!" Caroline said, imperiously. "Now hurry up and go back to sleep!"

As the Velvet Room faded, Yukiko's last conscious thought was a strange premonition of that phrase being uttered a lot.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

Yukiko sat hazily in the Interrogation Room as she continued to tell Sae the whole story.

“A… Velvet Room?” Sae repeated, staring in disbelief. “And they gave you a vague warning about the end of the world? Is this some kind of joke?”

Yukiko looked down at her own feet, scoffing. “Believe what you will...”

A long pause. Sae took a while to stare in disbelief. Was this some kind of joke? Still, given all the levels of supernatural activity that led up to this point, Sae simply couldn't dismiss the likelihood of this occurring, as seemingly far-fetched as it was. Sae, in that moment, shook her head, and sighed.

“...alright. I’ll listen to your story some more." Sae began, continuing once more. "Now, tell me what happened the next day, and please confirm to me… was that the last day you were a ‘normal’ student?”


(Music Playing – Morning Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxnIOtDmO74)

April 10th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 6:48 AM

“Hey, c’mon Yukiko… time to wake up.”

“Nnnh…” Yukiko tossed around a little in her sleep before her eyes finally fluttered open. Sojiro was standing right over her, wearing a distinct white hat.

“Get your things ready.” The coffee-shop owner nodded. “It’s time to show you Shujin.”

Yukiko nodded, getting up with a yawn. "That's... in Aoyama, right? I know where my train cards are, don't worry."

"I appreciate the thought, but not today," he said with a shrug. "I figured you might need some help with the more procedural aspects of transfer, so just this once, you're going to be driven to school." 

"Oh." Yukiko blinked. "Um, thank you!"

"Don't think this is a habit." Sojiro said, making his way over to the stairs. "Believe me, a girl less than half my age in the passenger seat for one day is already awkward enough."

Yukiko blushed slightly as she processed that statement and its implications. 


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx-6-wAid70)

April 10th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Front Entrance – 7:04 AM

Thanks to a distinct lack of traffic, Yukiko and Sojiro managed to arrive to Shujin Academy without much trouble. After parking the car in the back, both the teenage girl and the coffee-shop owner stood out in front.

“So, this is Shujin Academy, huh?” Sojiro scratched his cheek. “Sorry, I’m usually a bit too busy with my job to visit the school. That, and my next of kin doesn’t really…” Yukiko cocked an eyebrow at this. “Ah, it’s nothing. Not really any of your business, anyways… no offense.”

“None taken." Yukiko said with a smile. “Let’s go inside, please.”

Sojiro nodded, before looking serious. "Before we go in, do us both a favor and be on your best behavior. No offense, but beyond what happens to you, it's going to reflect pretty bad on me too, and we don't need you going into class already marked as a delinquent."

"I understand." Yukiko said as she followed him in. I just hope that it matters how well-behaved I am to the staff.


(Music Continues)

April 10th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Principal Office  – 7:08 AM

As Sojiro finished signing in as a guest and adult observer, it became clear her prayers weren't answered for at least one case. Even more unfortunately, it was the guy in charge.

Principal Kobayakawa, a bald, chubby man in a nice suit that reminded Yukiko as an extremely finely dressed and grouchy egg, peered up at her with a cold expression, somehow managing to make her feel like she was the shortest person in the room despite him being the only person sitting down.

"To reiterate, Ms. Amagi...” The Principal began his tirade with a notably accusatory tone. "You will be immediately expelled if you cause any problems. In my opinion, you're a liability, but we had our own circumstances to consider. Do not squander this luck. Whatever you may have gotten away with Yasoninaba, those days are over. If you are thrown from our school, there will be no place for you to go. Keep that in mind."

“I understand, sir.” Yukiko bowed courteously. “I’ll make sure I don’t cause any disruptions.” Ugh, what a jerk...

“Good. Glad to see you understand the gravity of the circumstances you're in.” Kobayakawa nodded before turning to the black-haired woman woman in a yellow cardigan next to him, who by her dull, slightly unfocused expression, may or may not have fallen asleep standing up with her eyes open. “This is the teacher in charge of your class.”

Life came back to woman's eyes as as she stepped forward. “I'm Sadayo Kawakami. Here's your student ID.”

As Yukiko bowed once again, Kawakami slid her hand into her pocked to bring out a card inside a small case.

Yukiko Amagi

Second-Year

1650025

Pink.

...pink?

Under the card and its holder seemed to be a small poster or a flyer of some kind; for what, exactly, was hidden by the ID card and its leather case, but it was definitely hot pink.

Noticing Yukiko's confusion, Kawakami looked down shortly before her eyes widened and she snatched the pink item away before the Principal noticed.

And just like that, the moment was passed, the teacher's professional coolness returning. “Be sure you read the school rules. Any violations of them will have you sent to the principal’s office. And if by chance you cause any problems, I won't be able to protect you at all.”

“Thank you for your courtesy, Ms. Kawakami." Yukiko said, bowing once more. “I understand I am responsible for all my actions.”

A slight look of relief broke Kawakami's determinedly neutral expression for a half-second. “I expect you to.” She turned to the Principal. "Though, I must admit, I am wondering why I, specifically, have her..."

"It was a sudden transfer, and your class was the only one that had an opening." Mr. Kobayakawa said with a shrug. 

She also happens to be standing right here... Yukiko thought, keeping her expression free of any sourness.

“If you're done explaining things, mind if we get going?” Sojiro cut in with a cough. “I do have a store to get back to.”

Both nodded. "Sakura-san, please keep a close eye on her," the Principal began. "Don't let her cause any trouble outside."

How would I?, Yukiko thought. There's nobody else there. What, am I a graffiti artist now, too? Where would I even put my stencils and cans? In my uniform? ... Note to self, buy stencils and spray paint, now I'm curious.

“I understand,” Sojiro nodded, scratching his cheek a little. “I’ll be sure to have a serious talk with her about the situation she’s in."

Kawakami nodded. "Amagi, come to the faculty office when you come in tomorrow. I'll show you to your classroom."

"I'll be sure to do so," Yukiko said with all the cheer and eagerness she could fake.


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

April 10th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Outside Commons   – 7:11 AM

As if this week didn't already look long enough... Kawakami sighed as she strolled(/dragged her borderline quiescent body through sheer refusal to fall unconscious on the nearest bench) through the commons. She never once considered herself suited for a job like that, so why was she picked to watch over a delinquent? Yukiko might have had a polite demeanor, but for all she knew, that was merely masking a real troublemaker. How was Sojiro able to be so calm around someone with an assault charge on her record? 

And the fact she was reaching the point where she caught her sleep-deprived mind calculating how the insidious influence of Buchimaru the Panda was manipulating all levels of the Japanese government wasn't helping.

She almost didn't notice the muscular, bushy-haired figure of Suguru Kamoshida, the PE teacher, approaching her.

"What a troublesome situation." he said, shocking her out of her zombie-like shuffle.

She regained her composure quickly, though. “Yeah, tell me about it… I’m can't believe they’d push somebody with a record on me. Though then again, she is a female likewise... I can see a male teacher being a better fit, but...”

"You know, sometimes connecting genders isn't always a surefire solution. Sometimes you just need a strong hand, y'know?" Kamoshida said with a shrug. “Still, why in the world was somebody like that admitted here…?”

“Who knows? It was the principal’s decision.” Kawakami said, tapping her foot on the floor. “I was told it's for the school's reputation...”

“Really? I would've thought my volleyball team has contributed more than enough to cover that....” The man said that with no shortage of skepticism, crossing his arms.

Oh no, here he goes... Kawakami's mind said. “That's certainly true..." her mouth said.

“If it makes you feel better, I have no idea how to deal with female students.” Kamoshida said with a laugh. “I’ll admit she is kinda cute though…”

She blinked. “Pardon?”

“Oh, nothing. You just be careful, okay?" Kamoshida said with a frown. "If anything were to happen, I do know I'd kick out a student like that right away.”

"Whereas I'm wishing she'd just... not end up coming to school." Kawakami said. "That isn't something I should be saying as a teacher, but it'd make my workload a little lighter."

Kamoshida shrugged once more. "Speaking of workloads, I should be returning to practice - especially with the tournament up and all that issue with the track team. Having such high expectations placed on you by others is quite a problem in and of itself..." He said that with a grin that showed he wasn't especially unhappy to have this problem. Regardless, Kamoshida gave a final wave as he departed from the commons, leaving a thinking Kawakami in his wake.

Kawakami sighed. “Why'd it have to be my class…?”


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx-6-wAid70)

April 10th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Front Entrance – 7:10 AM

"I'll admit, I was expecting the cold shoulder, but I was kinda surprised by them just... forgetting you could overhear them talk about you." Sojiro shook his head. "That's what having a criminal record does to you."

"The past will always follow you, whether good or bad..." Yukiko agreed, glumly.

"True enough." Sojiro paused. "I'll be honest though, I'm trying to act in good faith, but on the off chance you get expelled now, I will be charging you rent, and you'll find I can be a really bad landlord when I feel my faith was displaced."

"I think I can scrape by..." Yukiko said before she could stop herself. The pressure was getting to her.

Sojiro rose an eyebrow. "You know, if that's the attitude you're going to show here, I might as well start drafting up a residence agreement now." He sighed. "Not that I blame your temper right now, though. School never changes, huh? Come on, we're going home."

It wasn't long before they've navigated the stairway downwards. Sojiro soon craned his neck as he unlocked the car, raising an eyebrow.

“So, want to do something together?” Sojiro asked Yukiko from the driver's side of the car. “Rent threats aside, I kinda feel bad that you had to deal with all that, so how about I whip you up some curry?”

“Oh, that’d be great!” Yukiko replied. “I love curry.”

“Heh, good to hear. If you love curry that much, I think I could have a job for you as part of the curry team.” Sojiro spoke with a genuine smile, but was surprised to see Yukiko blush and turned away. “Eh? Wait, have you never cooked before?”

“U-Um, yes I have! Multiple times, too!" Yukiko quickly conjured a lie to get it off her trail. "I’ll have you know that the Amagi Secret Recipe of curry has been - “

(Music Abruptly Stops)

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

“WoaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH...!”

Suddenly, a bicycle and her rider ran past the two at lightning speeds, followed by a thunderous crash as someone landed in a nearby garbage can, its contents thankfully empty for the young girl’s hygiene and green coat.

“O-Ohhh…” the person whined, the pitch of their voice indicating that it was a girl. “S-Somebody… heeeeeeeeeeelp…”

Sojiro's brow furrowed sighed as he noticed Yukiko's look of sympathy. ““Leave her be. She got herself into this mess. There's just not enough energy to have sympathy for people who make careless mistakes in the world…”

“B-But she…” Yukiko trailed off as Sojiro walked over to the car. Once out of sight, Yukiko looked back at the crash scene with sympathy and headed over to Sojiro.

“Yowch… that looked like it hurt…”


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx-6-wAid70)

April 10th, 2016 – Highway – 7:39 AM

Twenty minutes after leaving the school, and Sojiro was still caught in a traffic jam. The music from the radio barely managed to drown out his groaning.

“It's not moving at all... I think it'd be a better idea to take the train, starting tomorrow.” Sojiro rubbed his forehead. "This kind of jam should only be suffered once a month at my age..."

“Yes, it is quite a pain, I agree.” Yukiko said with a chuckle. “We never had traffic like this back in Yasoinaba.”

“Yasoinaba, huh? How are Shigeru and Chiyoko doing? Your parents, I mean. It’s been ages since I visited Yasoinaba. Do you miss it, yet?”

Yukiko paused, before sighing glumly. “Truth be told… no. I don’t miss it. Not even a little bit.” She ended that sentence with a bit of a frown.

“Really?" Sojiro blinked, surprised to hear that. "From what I got, I thought you enjoyed life at the inn. What, life there a bit too strict for you?”

“Actually, that’s exactly it." Yukiko's expression darkened as she finally felt a rant building up. "I hated being told what to do all the time. Everything was claustrophobic and decided for me, from how I lived to even where I'd die. I’m just so sick of having these things chain me down. I just want to be free from it all…”

There was a bit of a pause. "Yeah, I can imagine that feeling hasn't really gotten better, now."

“It's fine; even though I say that, I'm still just being selfish." Yukiko said, shaking her head. "My parents love me to death, they spoil me and give me tons of attention… but it all feels like a gilded cage, like they’re guiding me on this strict path and all the love I receive is just to get me ready to inherit the inn…"

A dark sigh. "I dunno, Sojiro, I just… feel conflicted. Ironic, isn't it? I finally get the opportunity to live in Tokyo, but thanks to the circumstances, I’m even more restricted and chained down than I was as an inn maiden…” A wave of emotion hit Yukiko as she spilled her guts out. Sensing this, Sojiro wished he could've patted her on the head.

“You know, I kinda felt the same way as a kid myself. Granted, it wasn’t anything comparable, but I always felt my parents wanted to guide me down a strict path, like I had no choice in the matter." Sojiro began, speaking softly. "They were one of the first Western-themed coffee shops in post-war Japan, and I just felt like I’d be unhappy following suit. But as it turned out, I would’ve been happy doing just that. And because I chose to stay in that sense, I got to meet some very special people in my life..."

Sojiro's smile turned into a wince upon seeing that his story didn't make Yukiko feel better. If anything, her depressed-looking scowl looked worse, causing Sojiro to wince more and awkwardly backpedal.

“Uhm, anyway..." Sojiro concluded. "I'm not saying that you have to work at your inn, but just try not to think of it as the worst thing in the world, and - ”

“Sojiro… thank you. I'll try to keep that in mind.”

"Hm?" Sojiro blinked, surprised to see Yukiko smiling weakly, clearly something forced from the woman herself. But a smile was still a smile; Sojiro knew what it was like for someone to suffer depression, and he simply nodded gently, taking what he could've gotten from his story.

“Hey, anytime." Sojiro nodded. "Again, I just find it really hard to believe that you committed a crime like that - least, not without being really pushed. You seem so polite, and… well, I seriously doubt you’ll be able to overpower a fully-grown man unless something funny was happening. Reason you were convicted was because you pissed off someone who knew the judge, if you ask me.”

“That was Rise 'Risette' Kujikawa’s new song, 'Love! Like Me', straight from her latest album and comeback tour,” The newscaster on the radio cut through their conversation. “And now for the news. A subway train has derailed, severely affecting the timetable across all of the Aoyama-Shibuya metropolitan area. Nobody was rumored to be hurt in the crash, but the reports say that the engineer has no memory of the incident, nor what caused him to accelerate to maximum speeds, leading sources to believe it to be another 'mental shutdown' incident. All traffic around Shibuya Station is being redirected due to the accident, so drivers should expect jam-packed streets More coming at 7:45.”

“Jeez, another mental shutdown accident?” Sojiro asked with a groan. “They’ve been happening left and right lately. And of course, it had to be today", he said with a groan. "At least nobody died this time."

Yukiko turned to him. "...do I want to know?"

"Might as well, if these things happen weekly." Sojiro said with a bit of a wince. "About a month ago, before you came here, a fifteen-year-old girl got into a bad car accident crossing the street, and well..." He shrugged. "Her parents have gotta be just..."

"Yeah. Look both ways..." a slightly paled Yukiko said. "And pay attention to people who look... shutdown, however that looks."

A long pause occurred in that moment, but it wasn't long - even amid this traffic - that Sojiro turned back and smiled. “Hey, when we get back, you up for some coffee? It’s not like you have anything else to do for today.”

Yukiko merely smiled, in response.


(Music Plays - Office Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuwGT88P-RU)

April 10th, 2016 –SIU Office – 6:39 PM

“More reports to come on the sudden Shibuya crash. Please, stay tuned.”

The SIU Director, a bald, bespectacled man sighed bitterly at the latest incident of these mental shutdowns. With him stood a silver-haired woman who looked just as disappointed as he was.

“It's less of an operating accident and more of a crime of the company and the government…” the SIU Director said, shifting his glasses, somewhat. “Site inspectors reported all of this six months ago; the deterioration of the tracks and the ATC. Seems the railway company and the Ministry of Transport both turned a blind eye to the truth. There's no way they can hide... this will go all the way to the top." He said that with a bit of grim vindication.

As the story continued, explaining the overall pattern of the mental shutdown incidents the man sighed and turned his attention back to the woman next to him.

"Everything's linked. That's what you're thinking, correct?", he asked her.

After she gave no obvious reply, simply choosing to stare intently at the screen, he chuckled. "Ah well. Are you free? You and I haven’t gone for a drink in a while.” The Director smiled softly.

“Oh, thank you for the offer, sir. But I do have another meeting to attend to…” The woman said with a smile and a polite bow. "I must be going."

With that, she finally opened the door to the hallway and exited the office - all the way into what appeared to be a courtroom hallway.

(Music Plays - Courtroom Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoizNffi7Is)

As she descended the stairs of the police station, she was greeted with a brown-haired teenager in a grey suit about midway down the stairs.

The young boy smiled gently as she made her final steps down the flight of stairs. “Did you ask for me?” He inquired. “Is it a case?”

“Not quite." Sae spoke, curtly. "I want your opinion on something."

“Sure! Your judgement is quite often correct, though.” The young man smiled happily. “Can we discuss this over sushi, perhaps? You are making a student work late, after all.”

“Conveyor belt, only.”

The student pouted audibly at this revelation.


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx-6-wAid70)

April 10th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 3:42 PM

"Well, sadly, the traffic had different ideas on what we were going to do today..." Sojiro said, uncrimping his legs. "Wasn't even able to open the cafe today..."

"It wasn't a complete loss. I did pick up car-spotting." Yukiko looked over her phone and its notes program, whistling. "Amazing how many Hondas there are in the world."

"...I had no idea that could be a hobby." Sojiro blinked. "But okay."

"I should thank you again for driving me, though." Yukiko said as she pulled up her news alerts. "Looks like about eighty people were involved in that crash. It's a miracle everyone's fine."

Sojiro blanched. "...and the joke I was going to make about maybe an accident being less of a time sink than a parking lot just died a premature death. Ah well."

With that, he took a plain black notebook out of his pocket. "Before I leave, here's a diary. It's not a gift, mind you - it's a court requirement. Your probation doesn't have many restrictions on your behavior beyond the harshness of the law if you poke it, but it does obligate me to report on you. It's going to result in a lot of problems if there's nothing I can say, which means I'm asking you to take a daily log of your own activities and save us both some major hassles."

Yukiko took the notebook and bowed. "You have my most sincere promise - "

The formal thanks was interrupted by Sojiro's own phone ringing. His eyes gave a slight wince as he checked the caller ID, as he quickly put it to his ear.

"Hey, what's up?" Sojiro began with a softer tone of voice than Yukiko had ever heard him use. Suddenly, he frowned. "...I'm about to leave right now. Don't worry. I'll be there in no time. Uh-huh. I'll see you soon."

Funny... Yukiko thought as he hung up. That seemed outright careful.

Who needed such a relatively delicate tone went unanswered as Sojiro went all business again. "Well, I'm off. Do whatever you want for the rest of the day. Just, don't mess up my store, and I'd go to bed early. First day of school tomorrow, and I doubt that Principal is going to be any less of a hardass tomorrow."

"Well, that's not impossible." Yukiko said with a bleak smile. "He could suddenly get sick the first day."  


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask (Rain) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY7ngS9QxMg)

April 11th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome – 7:32 AM

Even two days on, the Velvet Room was a dream that remained clear to her.

It was less that she had it and more that it felt so real. Hardly any dreams Yukiko had in the past were so vivid and detailed, as if she was fully awake in that room. Still, she couldn’t shake off all the gibberish the man said to her. How the world was in danger and it was up to her to save it, or something like that. As fun as it would be to act out an episode of Featherman, it was all too much to think that it was supposed to actually mean anything in real life. It was better than yet another flashback to That Night Everything Went Wrong, in any case. 

Better to just think about school, Yukiko told herself. After eating a plate of Sojiro’s curry for breakfast, Yukiko left Leblanc and headed off to school. She took the first train from Yongen-Jaya to Aoyama-Itchome and prepared to enter the last stretch to Shujin. It would have been a cinch, too, had it not started raining immediately after she left the station.

(Music Plays - City Ambience (Raining) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8slvvcfKb20)

“The one day I forget my umbrella, too…” Yukiko scowled as she took cover under a building. With any luck, this was just a cloudburst, and the rain would let up, soon. “Might as well check my mail.” Having nothing better to do, Yukiko took out her phone to mess around until the weather cleared. When doing this, though, her eyes widened at the sight of the app she had deleted earlier, the red eye staring at her as if it was meant to be there.

“Ugh, seriously?! Go. Away!” Yukiko removed it again and prayed that it wasn’t some kind of virus. As she stood there, a new figure, a woman wearing a white hoodie with the hood up underneath a Shujin blazer, appeared next to her. Removing the wet hood, the woman revealed to Yukiko ash blonde pigtails shaping a face of foreign beauty.

(Music Playing – Encounter - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6xYlky1SWw)

How appropriate it would’ve been, Yukiko thought, if it stopped raining, right this second, especially with the small, polite smile the blue-eyed girl gave her.

“Good morning! You two girls need a lift? You're going to be late.” Someone’s shouting snapped Yukiko out of reverie. At some point, a man in a blue tracksuit with bushy hair had driven up to the curb.

“N-No, thank you sir. I’ll be fine on my way to school.” Yukiko humbly declined with a bow.

"Um, sure. Thank you." The other girl, in direct contrast, agreed to the ride and stepped into the vehicle.

It wouldn’t have bothered Yukiko nearly as much if the girl didn't look absolutely miserable the entire time, but before she could say anything, the car had driven off.

(Music Plays - City Ambience (Raining) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8slvvcfKb20)

“I hope I’m just being paranoid about all of this…” Yukiko said to herself. “...It doesn’t look like this rain will let up. I should probably get back to walking…”

"NOT AGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIN...!"

Yukiko had barely stepped on the sidewalk when a bicycle and its rider slammed into a nearby post. It took a few seconds to register, but Yukiko recognized the voice as belonging to the same girl from yesterday.

"Unnnnnnngh..." The girl, who was a short-haired brunette, whined loudly. "Second crash in two days...!"

Yukiko internally winced, seeing the poor girl writhing in pain like that. With little hesitation, Yukiko ran over to the girl to offer her a hand.

“Hey… do you need help getting up?” Yukiko whispered. “Will you be okay?”

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

“Y-Yeah, thanks…” The brunette girl said with a point, grabbing Yukiko’s hand as she helped pull her off the ground. "Seriously, this bike is really unraveling at the seams... I better just opt to walk from now on." After an awkward wince, the girl looked to the side and sighed heavily.

Looking at her, Yukiko saw that she had brown hair put into a bowl cut, a green jacket, and what appeared to be bike shorts underneath a Shujin skirt. Almost instinctively, the girl blushed, looking to the side. “U-Um, you won’t tell anyone I crashed into that post, right…? Alright have enough of a bunch of headaches to deal with...”

Yukiko smiled awkwardly. “It’ll be our secret. I can definitely keep them.”

“Awesome!" The brunette beamed, pumping her fists skyward... before pausing for a second to look directly at her rescuer, tilting her head. "...uhhh, do I know you? That’s a second-year Shujin uniform, but I’ve never seen you in class.”

"Oh!" Yukiko blushed, before smiling. “Oh, I’m actually a transfer student. I'm straight outta Yasoinaba, you can say."

Immediately, the brunette beamed more. "Heeeeey, I'm from Inaba too! Well, mostly. I moved out when I was eight, so..." An awkward cough emerged from the girl's throat, but it wasn't long before she smiled genuinely - and as if in total disregard of her usual heritage, extended her hand to shake.

"I'm Chie Satonaka!" Chie said, extending her hand. "What's your name?"

“O-Oh, yes. My name is Yukiko Amagi.” Not used to shaking hands as per the Japanese custom of bowing, she awkwardly held out her right hand to shake Chie's own. "It's really nice to meet you, Satonaka-chan."

“Ehehehe...” Chie snickered, before nodding. But almost too suddenly, Chie leaned in, clearly trying to scrutinize Yukiko's face.

Yukiko, for one, turned read. "U-Um, what're you trying to size up...?"

"...you... I dunno." Chie blinked. "You just look familiar, I don't know what..." A pause, before Chie shrugged. "...it's probably nothing, really. Sorry I asked."

“Y-Yes, it's fine.” Now Yukiko was the one with sudden contemplations about a girl standing in front of her, and something tickling her memory. Just like Chie, though, Yukiko quickly cast them aside.

“So, um, wanna head over to school together?" Chie said grinning, before nodding. "We’ll be late it we don’t hightail it, yannow!”

“Heehee. That’s fine by me.” Yukiko nodded in agreement. And with that, Chie picked up her bike and moved next to her.

"God, this hunk of junk... can't believe I have to bring it with me when this ride doesn't even work..." Chie said with a scowl, which only darkened as she instinctively turned back to Yukiko. “Speaking of rides, by the way, you made a good call not getting in that car of his."

"H-Huh?" Yukiko blinked, not picking up. "Who's 'his'?"

"Why, none other than our lovely 'King' Kamoshida.” Chie said with a dark turn to her expression.

Unbeknownst to Yukiko at that moment, she felt her phone ring, but didn't bother to check it - despite showing the Metaverse App reappearing on her phone.

“‘Kamoshida’?" Yukiko said, speaking softly. "You mean that muscular man from a moment ago?”

“That’s the one. He’s the PE teacher at our school, but he’s a total asshole.” Chie said with a dark hiss. "He regularly abuses his own students, disbanded the track team, and regularly harasses the female students! It's pretty much an open secret that he's a complete and utter douchebag, but that doesn't change the fact he's a teacher! He's supposed to help you, but nobody calls him out despite everything!"

“Really?" Yukiko blinked, surprised at the tirade Chie began going on. "Could be me just being a poor judge of character, but... he seemed nice to me.”

“That’s what he wants you to think!" Chie spoke out loudly, feeling passion surge through her and she cried out. "He acts nice in public, but when no one’s watching, he treats everyone in the school like garbage, preying on the weak and those who are unable to fight against him! This is not getting into how much of a pervert he is..." Chie groaned, slapping her forehead in exasperation. "...ugh, that asshole acts like the entire school's his castle!”

(Music Abruptly Stops)

(Music Plays - City Ambience (Raining) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8slvvcfKb20)

Match found. Welcome to: Kamoshida's Palace.

"Agh...!" Before Yukiko could respond to Chie's rant, she found herself hit with a splitting headache. Judging by the sight of Chie clutching the side of her head, the same thing was happening to her, as well.

"Ungh... well, that was something." Chie mumbled, shaking her head. "You alright, Amagi?"

"Y-Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine." Yukiko nodded. "I'll be fine, yeah. That was probably just a sudden migraine."

"Yeah, but... why at the same time...?" Chie outright wondered this, before shaking her head. "Nevermind. Follow me, I know a shortcut to get to class."

(Music Playing – To Another World - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1r5VYyHw8L0)

At Chie’s insistence, the two of them turned into an alleyway as they continued onwards toward the school, only Yukiko noticing that, as they stepped in puddles, the water became slightly red in hue.

“Wh-What in the…” After about a minute of walking, Yukiko and Chie were decidedly not at the school.

Rather, in its place stood what appeared to be an ornate castle with an eerie pink moon shining from above encircled by thunderstorms.

For one, it was very ornate, and downright exotic to look at - pearlescent blocks marked the entire walls, transcending high in the sky as both girls felt heat rise over them just approaching the castle... and in the distance, perhaps more disconcertingly, one could've heard the sound of near-orgasmic moans if one listened faintly.

(Music Playing - Dark World Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nc5LeZbAHk)

Yukiko, for one, had her mouth agape - and judging by Chie's utter shock being written all over her face, she was having more-or-less the same experience in reactions as well.

“Um, Chie…" Yukiko began, slowly. "...where’s the school?”

“I-I-I don’t know!" Chie fumbled words, trying to figure out what to say. "I know we went the right way, so... w-we probably oughta go back.”

"Hm? Go back? Why?" Yukiko blinked, apparently not realizing how obvious the answer to that question was.

"W-Well, it looks spooky for starters!" Chie spoke, wincing defensively. "In fact, why is there even a castle?! What the hell is this even, some kind of a movie set?!"

Yukiko hummed, looking at the open gate. “Hey, maybe someone inside can give us directions...”

Chie gawked at her new acquaintance. “You seriously want to go in there? Are you crazy?!”

“There’s nothing to lose by trying, I think. We seem to be lost anyways, so looking for someone to ask directions to would hurt nobody." Yukiko said with a smile. "Besides, it might be fun to go inside of a castle!”

Chie had no response to add, other than looking helpless. “You really are crazy, aren’t you?”

Sadly, Chie - as she was quick to realize - was being left behind in the dirt as Yukiko walked off. Immediately, Chie felt the hairs on her neck stand up, and she gawked awkwardly.

"H-Hey! Hey!" Chie cried out to no response, on account of Yukiko already having walked out of earshot. “Hey! Wait for me! Don't leave me heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere!"

It certainly didn't take much longer for Chie to run off after Yukiko. All that could be said was really one thing, though: she had a very bad feeling about this.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

"And that's the first Palace I ever saw, though I didn't know it, or the proper name, at the time..." Yukiko recounted, pausing for breath.

Sae nodded. "That terrible subway accident... What the public calls 'psychotic breakdown incidents.' Not really the proper term, as all the perpetrators had no long-term symptoms from the breakdown themselves, but not completely inaccurate, either."

"Yeah. I remember it pretty well..." Yukiko frowned, before clutching her head; she was still drugged after all. "Though weirdly, I can't remember how I got familiar with them..."

"It was all over the news, and one of the victims was a teacher at your school." Sae reminded her, matter of factly. "Try to focus. On that day, were you still an 'ordinary' student?"

"...uhn?" Yukiko rose an eyebrow. "Define 'ordinary', I was a transfer with a criminal record. 'Normal circumstance' left the building and moved across the prefecture a year ago."

"...let me rephrase that," Sae said with a sigh. "You transferred to Shujin Academy, an ordinary prep school that could be found in any city. Except, when you arrived, it had become this... 'Palace,' and you had no inkling as to how it occured."

"That's correct."

"So, tell me how you came up with the term, and what happened when you entered - truthfully."


(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

April 11th, 2016 – ??? – ???

The interior of the castle couldn't be exactly shut down for how extravagant it looked. A red carpet rolled itself over pearlescent tile blocks up the stairway and brancing onto two paths, all while a chandelier dangled on the above floor. Amid all this were all kinds of busts of the female physique, showcasing rather... disturbingly exaggerated proportions, and said busts being without heads, arms, or legs. If one looked closely, one could likewise peer into there being genitals visible as day.

“Helloooooo?! Anyone here?!” Chie called out immediately after entering the castle. There was no answer. “Man, where the hell are we?” Chie asked to nobody in particular as they entered the castle. “What happened to our school?! Is this our school!?”

"...I mean, we could have taken a wrong turn." Yukiko said, looking around with a frown. "This interior isn't like Shujin... at least, I don't think so. Wasn't there for long yesterday."

"No, it's definitely not like this." Chie said with a deeper frown. "Hey, mind if you can't see what your phone's GPS says? May give us a bit of a clue on what's going on."

Yukiko nodded softly, looking at her phone to check the GPS. Her frown near-immediately deeped.

“...there’s no reception, either." Yukiko sighed, pushing her phone into her purse. "Hold on, the sign outside said this was for the school, right?”

“I, uh... think? I'm still trying to comprehend there's a castle in Tokyo!" Chie said, obviously not calm about this. "This is too weird… let’s leave and just go the long way - ”

"Halt!"

(Music Playing - Dark World Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nc5LeZbAHk)

Her thought was derailed by the clanking of metal, which both girls turned to in confusion.

knight of all things, covered head to toe in gray plate armor, wielding a sword and shield, marched towards the two, his face hidden behind a blue mask of an emotionless face.

Relief coursed through Yukiko, however, as the knight came up to them. "Oh, good!"

"Good?!" Chie shrieked, jumping back from the figure. "What about this is - "

"Ahem..." Yukiko interrupted, not wanting to make this any more awkward. "Sorry, you'll have to excuse us; we got lost and we're not sure how we got here. We're sorry we interrupted your, er, shoot, but could we ask you directions for - "

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

Another knight joined the first, sword raised.

Yukiko winced again. "...uhm, I know, we probably wasted a day, but please, could we just ask the way to Shujin Academy, please?" Yukiko said that as she was starting to get a little nervous at the agitated knights.

"You stand within it, wench." A third knight spoke with a strange, echoing voice. "The true Shujin, in its ideal form."

"Wait, what?!" Chie started to back towards the door. "Um... y-yeah, and we're also kind of late for school, so we have to kind of run!"

Having gotten the message, Yukiko left the mystery of what the knight meant for pondering in a safe environment -

And ran smack-dab into the shield of another, one of four more that were blocking the way out.

"Amagi-ch - !" Chie cried out, but in that moment, she felt the butt of a sword slam into her head, immediately causing the girl to go limp.

Before Yukiko could even react, a rag - or perhaps, a towel - that stank of something chemical was pulled over Yukiko's face, and she immediately felt drowsy.

"Take the heretic and new princess to the dungeon!" A guard called, it being the last thing Yukiko heard before falling asleep. "Harm the new princess as little as possible, or His Majesty will not be pleased!"   


(Music Plays - Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4

April 11th, 2016 – ??? – ???

"...ko?!"

"Yukiko?!"

"Yukiko, GET UP!"

An indeterminable amount of time later, Yukiko awoke with a daze in a prison cell; Chie seemed to have come to moments earlier, shaking her awake.

"Nnnnh..." Yukiko mumbled. "Do you know what time it is...?"

"H-Hell if I know! I just woke up and - agh! Ow!" Chie winced, clutching her head. "Jeez, that butt of the sword really hurt. I'm lucky I'm not bleeding or anything..."

That caught Yukiko's attention, as she shot wide awake. “H-Huh?! Are you alright, Chie?” 

“Yeah, that sounds rather subjective...” Chie groaned, shaking her head.

"Yeah... I think I might've gotten hit with chloroform, but I read it shouldn't work that fast..." She looked around at the bare brick cell. 

Chie noticed it too. “Where the hell even are we?!” She tried to get up, only to shrink back from a splash of purple-pink liquid that quickly evaporated. "Speaking of, what is that!?"

Cautiously, Yukiko touched the ground, and felt nothing but brick - though visually, it seemed to ripple somewhat. Curious, she gave the ground a hard tap, and that caused the splash.

"It doesn't seem harmful..." Yukiko said, carefully. “And I think we're in a prison, but as for where the dungeon itself is... I don’t know. It’s certainly different from that other cell…”

Chie cocked her head. “What?”

“N-Nothing!” Yukiko blushed. 

"...okaaaaaaaaaaaaaay, so I'm just gonna pretend I didn't hear that." Chie said, a little unconvinced but realizing there were other priorities. “A-Anyway, we really need to get out of here before - ”

“Before what, prisoners?”

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

Almost as if waiting on cue to dash out any hopes of escape, the familiar, armor-clad guards appeared. One of them happened to be in a golden - or at the very most practical, gilded - armor, but one can tell even with the strange mask on that he felt nothing but smug condemnation.

“Be grateful your punishments have been decided while you were sleeping." The golden knight said with a haughty tone. "Peasants like you wouldn't comprehend what'd we do to those who sleep..."

"P-P-Punishments?!" Chie said, blanching immediately.

"Huh? 'Peasants'?" Yukiko said likewise, only with more of a thought given into some more blatantly trivial stuff.

"Nevermind the new princess, you are both charged with trespassing and evading justice for previous crimes in one." A normal, iron-clad guard noted. "It is only by the king's mercy you did not have to endure pre-punishment."

"Pre - " Chie got cut off by a loud scream, as she paled. "... what the hell was that?"

"Lesser criminals than you, heretic." The guard spat. "The girl with the black hair is hereby sentenced to eternal servitude for the king, and Satonoka is hereby sentenced to death.”

"WHAT?! Wh-What did I do?!” Chie whimpered in a panicked tone. “I-Isn't heresy unlawful religion?! I'm not even that religious!”

“There's more than one kind of heresy, Satonaka.”

Chie gasped as she recognized a familiar voice echoing across the hallway, but was distorted in an almost demonic fashion. "A king rules by divine right, and by spreading sedition against the king, you've insulted the divine."

"...hang on," Yukiko said as the guard bowed and got out of the way. "Isn't that..."

When he finally appeared, Yukiko and Chie saw that it was, indeed, Kamoshida. However, unlike the Kamoshida they knew, he had golden eyes and was dressed in nothing but a pink speedo, red cape covered in a quilt of pink hearts, and a shining crown.

Chie jumped back from the king immediately, looking reviled and frightened. "Ack! W-What’re you doing here?! And what the hell's with that outfit?!”

The... teacher(?) chuckled darkly, before adopting a completely smug smirk. “What do you think? I own this castle, and this is the wardrobe fit for a king! The cape really suits me, doesn't it?"

"H-Huh?" Yukiko said, still confused. "But... you're nak - "

Kamoshida, in that moment, showed how little respect he had for the raven-haired girl as he spoke over her. "Since I make the rules, I get to show off as much of my body as I like.” He said this just as he struck a pose. "Though I have to admit, I'm a little impressed. I thought it's be some petty thief, but to think it's be you, Satonaka..."

Yukiko reeled. “I... wha... how...‘ King’?!”

“That’s right!” Kamoshida turned away from Chie and focused on Yukiko with a smarmy grin. “You would do well to remember that, considering all the ‘personal’ time we’ll be spending together, wild princess.”

“Huh? I... what the... what does that even... ?” Yukiko asked, beginning.

“Oh, you little - isn’t it obvious?!" Chie's gaze hardened. "This bastard’s talking about - agh!"

A blow from the flat of a guard's sword stuck through the bars to the face cut Chie off and sent her to the ground.

“As for you, Satonaka…” Kamoshida spat, a darker expression overcoming him. “Being my slave’s a far too good punishment for someone like you. Thankfully though, nothing of value was lost by making things simpler, so..."

He opened the gate, and the guards charged in, cornering Chie and forcing Yukiko to the wall.

"For insulting and spreading seditious rumors against the king at an earlier date, I hereby sentence you... to death." He said this with a particularly evil grin plastered on his face. "Guards! Kill her!”

"N-No! No! W-Wait!" Chie cried out, instinctively adopting a karate pose. "Get the hell away from me!"

Chie managed to knock over a guard with an aimed kick, but another one of the knights picked Chie up and threw her against the wall, his sword pointed at her with one hand as soon as she was thoroughly pinned with the other.

“I await your command, my king.” the guard said.

"Hey! Get off!" Yukiko ineffectually yanked at the knight's leg, he not moving at all.

"...w-w-what are you waiting for, Yukiko! G-Go!" Chie cried out, tears building up as she felt fear swell over her. "I-I know exactly what he wants from you, and believe me, I don't want you to throw you life away for me!"

Yukiko stumbled back. "I... I..."

"Yeah, that's right. Run away." Kamoshida smirked. "Leave her to rot here - though, maybe I can issue a stay of execution, if we come to an agreement...?"

"Goddamn it, not her too!" Chie shouted, sobbing.

"Oh, looks like the coward found something resembling a spine." Kamoshida said, turning to her. "You know what, screw it. I might not need to execute you, but there's nothing that prevents me from flogging you a bit."

The guard threw her to the ground, and right into a flurry of punches from Kamoshida. 

"Take this!" He said with a crazed grin. "Lowly scum! Frigid pest! Hell, for someone so boyish you can't even fight back, huh?! I'm glad you didn't sign up for the team, if you're this much of a weakling!"

By the end of it, Chie was left sobbing on the ground, and literally spat on.

(Music Playing – Blood of Villain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

“Where'd that passion for justice go?" Kamoshida asked, mockingly. "Peasants like you aren't worth beating."

Chie, bruised and beaten, coughed and sobbed. "S-Stop..."

He turned to Yukiko, his smirk looking... weirdly seductive now. "So, princess. How about it? You be my slave even outside this castle, and Satonaka is just a prisoner instead of dead."

"I... I..." Yukiko shivered, terrified and unsure what to do. "I'll... I'll tell the other teachers - "

Kamoshida cackled. "Oh, there's that delinquent fire! Seriously though, don't tell me you don't know who I am? The teachers in this school, even the Principal, are my bitches. Call them if you want, nobody's going to believe you."

Some very unpleasant memories came to Yukiko's mind.

“Stop it!” Yukiko shouted, no longer able to watch. “I won’t let you - ”

It didn’t matter, though, as another knight quickly threw Yukiko against an opposing wall to silence her.

“Oh? And what do you plan to do?” Kamoshida asked, looking at Yukiko with mockery. “Against a king, you’re not even an insect, so if you're so insistent on being hard to get, just shut up and watch her die.” Kamoshida turned away from Yukiko once more to finish his attempted murder of the sobbing Chie.

"S-Stop! Please! D-Don't!" Chie cried out, tears streaming from her face. "D-Don't do it!"

In that moment, a guard grabbed Chie by the neck, and slammed her into a wall... and perhaps forebodingly, rose his massive sword a bit too close to Chie's neck.

"On my order, gallant knight." Kamoshida said with a psychotic smirk. "You will then be free to gut this heretic like the pig she is!"

"Stop it!" Chie sobbed. "D-Don't kill me, please!"

As Yukiko continued to thrash about the knights holding her in place, she felt her will weakened as she slumped back on the wall, bad memories finally rushing in.

This… this can’t be happening… Yukiko said, tearing up. An innocent person is being hurt right in front of me, and I can’t do anything about it… again…

It was perhaps prophetic in that moment, then, that she heard the sound of bells ringing once more. And with that, a blue, glowing butterfly fluttering about.

This is truly an unjust game. A new voice, coupled with the blue butterfly, suddenly caught Yukiko’s attention. Your chances of winning are almost none... but if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you… The butterfly disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared.

Pray tell, are you not going to do something about this?

"H-Huh?" A new voice, one that sounded like her own, yet far more like a contralto, sounded through her head. "Who's that...?!"

You’re one of the last people who will abide by suffering. And this young woman... her life is now at risk of being extinguished. If you truly care so much for the welfare of others, tell me… hast the world so eagerly put you here by accident?!

An accident… flashbacks coursed through her head as memories of what got her reassigned here came back. What else could this voice mean than the incident that brought her here, in the first place? The incident where she saw someone in trouble, did what she could to help, and was labeled a criminal for it? If she had just minded her own business, she’d still be in Yasoinaba, her life completely unchanged, and all that would be different was that some woman would stay in a tough -

...no. No. Yukiko knew, in that moment, that a fire was rekindled inside her. If she truly did nothing, that woman would've been worse off. And if she does nothing now, she'll be a slave to that creep and Chie will die... she can't allow that! She won't! She refuses to let anyone else get hurt by people like Kamoshida!

“No…" Yukiko spoke in a dark, deadly hiss, anger quietly coming over her. "It wasn’t an accident. It never was.”

Almost as if on cue, the voice in her head laughed.

Very well… I have heeded thy resolve. The voice spoke, sounding proud. Let us see how thouest handles my power…

And at that moment, a splitting, ungodly headache struck Yukiko as if it were a chainsaw ripping her cranium to shreds. Immediately, Yukiko released a shrill scream and struggled about as she felt her head being ripped apart by the psychic shock, thrashing about and screeching like she's been murdered in cold blood.

Pray to me... swear to me... I am thou… thou art I… As Yukiko began sobbing in pain, she continued to thrash about in agony. Thou whomst inner fire burns brightly with fury at the world’s hypocrisy and lies! Release thyself, and hold nothing back!

Yukiko screeched to the heavens, bawling all the while. Show that thou hast the will to protect all thy hold dearest, even if thou wouldst be incinerated by the flames of the abyss!”

The pain finally dissipated, and she found herself glaring resolutely at her captors. Drooling and tears rolling down her cheeks, but resolute all the same.

“Execute her!” Kamoshida commanded his guard, signaling the intended end of Chie’s life.

"STOP IT!"

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

(Music Plays - Prison Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVmWdIwjgKA)

Yukiko interjected with a loud voice, before roaring.

"Shut up! Shut the hell up!" Yukiko screamed. "You have no right to end somebody's life like this, you bastard!"

Kamoshida paused, simply giving the guard signal to halt. And in that moment, the guard dropped the sobbing Chie onto the floor, gasping for air now that she wasn't being strangled halfway to death.

“...what was that?” Kamoshida asked, voice cold with fury - he turned to Yukiko, a truly terrifying glare written all over his face. “Do you truly wish to defy me, wench? Fine! I have enough trophies like yourself, as it is."

Chie's eyes widened, knowing immediately what the mimicry of Kamoshida intended to do. "Yukiko, run - "

As if on cue Kamoshida motioned the gold guard over. "Guards, kill her! NOW!” The knight pinning Yukiko to the wall slammed its shield against her face as the one holding Chie dropped her to the ground.

“N-No, Yukiko!” Chie cried out as the second knight motioned its blade to stab her.

Yukiko immediately felt her life flashing before her eyes. Was she truly to go and die here...? Yukiko felt a dark shiver travel down her spine, fear awakening within her at that moment... and then...

...a gust of warm wind exploded over the room.

"Agh!" The golden shadow was thrown back, the wind warm enough to almost be hot, and Yukiko pausing in that moment to felt a jolt of energy rush among her body. And then, before any stabbing could take place...

...a pink, bird's mask with a red, feathery motif appeared on Yukiko’s face.

What in the…

As Yukiko touched the mask, she had no idea how it had gotten there. But almost in an instinctive instant, one thing suddenly became clear: she had to remove the mask from her face.

And then, she began tearing the mask off her face.

(Music Playing – Awakening - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9APGl1dSaw8)

As it was apparently attached to her face, though, this was easier said than done. Pulling on the mask even a little ripped apart skin cell after skin cell, causing her to scream at the top of her lungs. With a final shriek, the mask finally was removed from her face, drenched in blood as it was... and, for some reason, her eyes were the same gold coloring as Kamoshida’s.

A demonic cackle surrounded the room as blue flames surrounded her, though she wasn’t burnt, in the slightest. Soon, they flew off of Yukiko and revealed that her custom-made school outfit was replaced with a latex red-and-pink suit that showed off a Japanese kimono aesthetic, all while white rivets around the outfit made it look like feathered. Gold trimmings were present likewise, and her gloves were in possession of pink latex. In addition to all the above, a fan with spikes sticking out of it had suddenly found its way into her hand.

“Wh-What the hell...?!” Chie cried out, blinking in shock.

It was far from over. The flames that had flown off of Yukiko’s body had stood in the air behind her, and now they had morphed into a giant, pink bird-like figure with feathers and a strange, heart-like complexion on its face and chest, the whole creature surrounded by ghostly chains. Before Yukiko could say anything else, the creature flexed its wing-like arms and released a blast of fiery wind, knocking Kamoshida and his guards, aside.

I am the eternal flame of the mountains, Konohana Sakuya!

Notes:

Yep, we certainly had an interesting cold open, for certain, haha. I hope you guys enjoy overall! And let it be known, there will be some more... interesting things later on, especially with what I plan to revise. So far, there isn't a whole lot that's been changed, but you'll soon see. :P

Anyways, see you guys next time!

Chapter 2: Starting With A Bang

Summary:

Yukiko awakens to her Persona, and by extension, the Wild Card ability. All that can be said from then on is a roller coaster of rebelling against the system.

Notes:

And we're finally back in the flesh and blood! Lord knows I'm excited to get this update down pat.

For one, I want to thank you all for being so dedicated - as well as the highly positive response you all gave and all. But I digress! Regardless, I sincerely do hope you enjoy the new fic and everything!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 1

Persona Database: Konohana Sakuya
Arcana: Fool
Level: 1
Resistances: Resist Fire and Curse, Weak to Ice
Skills: Agi (Innate), Dia (Lv. 2), Eiha (Lv. 3), Re Patra (Lv. 4), Mage’s Gift (Lv. 5)
Persona Compendium Description: "The daughter of the mountain god Ouyamatsumi. When she became Ninigi's wife and grew pregnant on the first night of their marriage, he accused her of infidelity. She stood in a burning hut, claiming that the fire would not touch her if she had been faithful, and emerged unscathed. Her emblem is the cherry blossom."

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Will Power - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqqhuZd8IXU)

April 11th, 2016 – ??? – ???

It was almost like an angel of scarlet fire descended on her.

Those were the kinds of thoughts an awed Yukiko couldn’t help but feel as she gawked at Konohana Sakuya. As the pink, feathered creature hovered above her, incendiary winds bellowing loudly, Yukiko couldn’t help but continue to look flabbergast. Her, of all people, had this power from within? Her? She couldn’t even object to her inheritance of the Amagi Inn, much less save that woman back in Yasoinaba... and yet she had this power all along? Yukiko found it startling enough that she wasn’t aware that the creature was talking directly to her.

Chie just sat back in shock, even less comprehending than Yukiko. "Wh... h-how?"

I am the rebel's soul that dwells within thine. If thouest desires it, I shall grant thee the power to break through this crisis. The feathered creature's tone was measured and calm, yet nonetheless vigilant, eyeing directly at the recovering Kamoshida.

“I…” Yukiko snapped herself out of her awe to glance at Kamoshida, and she immediately felt her blood run cold. That… sicko nearly murdered her and Chie, and if she didn’t do anything soon, they were going to die regardless. She couldn’t allow that, now that she had this power in her own hands. She'll never turn the other way again, not as long as she had the power to protect others.

“Yes, please.” Yukiko nodded, expression darkening. “Please give me your power, Konohana Sakuya.”

Hmph, very well. Dissipating into the air, Kamoshida and the guards finally stood up. This power of mine... is yours!

"Who... who the hell are you!?" A much, much less confident Kamoshida spoke as he backed off, before he all but shrieked at the guards. “...what the hell you idiots waiting for? Kill her!”

Kamoshida pointed at the girl, giving his orders to his men. Just as he gave the order, the three guards suddenly melted into a dark pool of ichor before springing free with three creatures: all three of them being small, fairy-like creatures with red hair and blue outfits.

"You'll learn the true strength of my men, you little brat!" Kamoshida spat, a bit of his bully's swagger restored.

“You dare defy our King Kamoshida?!” The fairy in the middle spoke. “You’ll pay the price for your insolence!”

Taking initiative, the fairy uttered some unintelligible words before lighting shot from her hands, blasting Yukiko to the wall.

“Agh! What?!” Yukiko gasped, recoiling a little. Did that thing just shoot electricity?! How was that possible?! As she stumbled back from the converging creatures, she thought of all the possibilities of how to proceed.

Most of them involved going through the fairies. Oh well, she needed a bit of catharsis after being in some strange dungeon and watching a friend be beaten senseless.

Leaping forth, she cleft the left fairy in two with her fan, and with an odd sizzling sound it dissipated into black smoke and ichor. The fairies accompanying her were just as surprised as Yukiko was: the inn maiden never thought she had the strength to take on even someone like that. Either the fairies in front of her were easy pickings, or...

You are enjoying the power I bestowed upon thee?

Yukiko heard Konohana Sakuya in her head, and flinched. Even if I’ve lent you my strength, brute force isn’t always the answer. Rip off thy mask once more, and unleash what beckons from within!

As the fight continued, Chie looked on in shock as she processed the mad light show before her. Yukiko had this power all along? It felt so surreal that she could fight and conjure some kind of demon, much less had the ability to take on these… things. It almost made Chie feel a little envious.

“Okay, here goes…” Yukiko made a motion for her pink, avian-themed mask. “Come forth! Konohana Sakuya!

The raging pain that was accompanied from first ripping off her mask was all but gone, and instead a bright blue light encompassed her face. And just as she commanded, Konohana Sakuya appeared right behind her, bellowing loudly and flexing its wing-like arms.

Kamoshida’s eyes were wide with shock. “That thing again? Who the hell are we - “

...but just as he was going to finish, Konohana Sakuya screeched and a blast of fire incinerated the right fairy, leaving only the terrified leader of the group left.

As soon as Konohana Sakuya dissipated, she looked at her hand in shock. “Did I… did I actually do that?” Even with all that was going on, she had no idea she had the ability to summon flames of all things. When did my life become an episode of Featherman?! she wondered to herself. Agh, ponder later, be glad it isn't a horror manga now!

“Y-You…” The middle fairy looked on in horror. “Who… what kind of demon are you…?”

Indeed, Yukiko gave no answer. Instead, she made sure to repeat what just happened.

“Konohana Sakuya!” Yukiko cried out, ripping off her mask. “Again!”

With a bird-like cry, fire sprung out from beneath the fairy, the ensuing explosion leaving nothing behind but charred demon flesh and dissipated black smoke. Looking on from the carnage, Yukiko had clearly won the battle, with a shocked Kamoshida and Chie baring witness to it all.

(Music Stops)

Just as the battle ended, her revealing outfit finally dissipated into nothingness; she was back to wearing her custom Shujin Academy outfit with only the bladed fan to keep it company.

“W-What…” Kamoshida gawked, before his expression turned to rage as he strode up to her in a fighting stance. "You... you little..."

“Huh?” Yukiko turned to Kamoshida, then to Chie. It was then she noticed the key where the fairy leader once stood. “Chie, I'll get the key!”

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gVF3IYGkcc)

Chie took a moment to snap herself out of her shock before looking downwards. “Huh?! The… the key! Oh, right!”

Yukiko grabbed the key as Chie knocked Kamoshida over with her own kick. Before he could recover, both girls rushed outside and locked the jail door, leaving the demonic king inside.

“What the…?!” Kamoshida finally snapped out of his shock. “What the hell?! You harlots! How dare you trap the king like this?! I’ll kill you all!”

Chie, still a little in shock, immediately threw the key into the underlying river. As Kamoshida continued to threaten the two girls from within the cell, Chie took a deep breath inwards.

“This is friggin' insane…” Chie whispered, still in shock. “C-Come on, Yukiko, lead the way!”

“Okay, got it!” Yukiko nodded in response, both girls leaving Kamoshida behind.

“Grr...! You think you can do this to me?!” Kamoshida banged at the cell door in frustration. "Guards! GUAAAAAAAAARDS! AFTER THEM!"


(Music Stops)

April 11th, 2016 – ??? – ???

After what felt like half an hour of running (but was probably closer to five minutes), and hopping over some hanging cells that had fallen in the river, both Yukiko and Chie felt far enough away to collapse into an open cell, Yukiko on the bed and Chie on the wall.

“H-Holy…” Yukiko gasped for air, clearly exhausted by it all. “Chie, I think we’re safe for now. How’re you holding up?”

Chie took a good long look at her, inhaling.

And then proceeded to cry.

Actually, crying wouldn’t be the right word. Bawling was more appropriate.

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

Collapsing on her knees, Chie continued to sob uncontrollably into her hands, all being left of the girl was terrified sobs and hiccups. As Yukiko internally reeled back by the sudden collapse of Chie's composed image, the brunette tomboy continued to messily sob into her hand.

“U-Um... Chie?” Yukiko said, starting to feel more than a little uncomfortable watching this. “Is something wrong?”

“I-I-I…” Chie tried to speak through her sobs, her eyes already bloodshot from the tears, as apparent when she removed her hands from her face for a split second. “I was s-so terrified… I-I thought I was gonna die, a-and then you summoned that monster thing a-and…”

Even talking about it seemed to make the fear and tears worse, her sobs becoming outright wails.

“I was… s-scared stiff, goddamnit!" Chie screamed. “I-I didn’t know what I was gonna do, a-and I thought I was gonna be killed by K-Kamoshida…”

“C-Chie…” Yukiko looked down. “Um…”

“I-I’m so sorry, Y-Yukiko…” Chie looked up at her new friend, her face wet with tears and her hiccuping wildly. “I-I was useless, a-and you w-were able to do something, and I w-was just - "

“Chie, I was terrified too.”

“H-Huh?” Chie looked up at Yukiko, clearly taken aback by her answer. Sure, the situation would’ve unnerved anybody, but the girl who just blasted those... things being scared as the person in the corner?

“I mean, I'm completely aware I summoned that creature and all. But even so…” Yukiko huffed to herself. “I was still scared witless. I was mostly operating on adrenaline and survival instinct - I just chose fight over flight. I could plan, but I think it's more going into shock than actually being calm. Pretty much everything is focused on how to get out of here alive.”

It was then when she pressed her hand on Chie’s shoulder, Chie's shuddering stilling somewhat.

“But don’t worry, we’re going to get out of here.” Yukiko said with a smile. “I just need you to be brave until we escape, alright Chie? I’m counting on you.”

“Y-Yukiko…” Chie gave a teary-eyed whimper. She didn't remember the last time someone was nice to her like this, let alone a relative stranger.

It was enough. Putting all her fears aside, she stood up on her own and smiled back, wiping the last of her tears.

“O-Okay...” Chie nodded. “W-We’ll get out of here! Just you watch!”

Yukiko smiled warmly. “Excellent! Now dry your tears, we're not out of the woods - “

(Music Stops)

“K-King Kamoshida?! W-What are you doing in this cell?!”

Yukiko winced. "...yet."

“Did you hear anything I've been screaming for the past eight minutes!? Those two thieves locked me in here! KILL THEM!”

“Y-Yes, your highness!”

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

Warning bells echoed through the prison, almost as if somebody was ringing a medieval bell from a church. And not too far off in the distant lied the garbling chorus of a dozen angry, armed shadows.

“Break over, back to running!” Chie cried, a little anxious. “Let's GTFO, Yuki!”

“Mmh, right! Though please, just call me Yukiko!" Yukiko hollered to the girl who was already way ahead of her, and with it, both girls continued their escape.


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

April 11th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Faculty Office – 11:04 AM

Sadayo Kawakami sighed, using a convenient pile of books to hold up her arm so she could properly cradle her head over the sign-in sheets. It was a minor hassle to collect them for the other teachers, but it was an annoying cherry to today's particular stress sundae.

"...it's fourth period already." Kawakami said to herself with a groan. "Sakura-san said Amagi-chan left this morning. Should I contact the police?"

A pause, before Kawakami finished weighing her options. "...no, that'll be more of a hassle. I am wondering why Satonaka-chan's missing though. Not like her to play hooky..."

Delinquents were as delinquents do, she guessed, no matter how polite they were. The teacher already had the aching feeling that something was off with the girl, something more delinquent-worthy under the surface. Even though she didn’t want to jump to conclusions, she was quite confident being this late on the first day of school was an ill omen of things to come. She just hoped it didn’t snowball, for her sake.

The door opened.

“…yo.” A taller second-year boy with bleached blonde hair shifted nervously.

Speaking of delinquents...

"...Sakamoto-kun.” Kawakami sighed, spinning to face him. “You’re late again. Third time this semester.”

Ryuji Sakamoto, the general, if-nonviolent punk of Shujin Academy, quickly got defensive. “L-Look, I had to help my mom out with a few things, alright?! Eff man, no need to get on my case…”

Kawakami opened her mouth to repay the boy for his rudeness.

Then she noticed he was extremely pale and sweaty. That was new.

“Sakamoto, you look pale.” Kawakami said. “Did something happen?”

“Ah, n-nothin’.” Sakamoto obviously lied, finishing signing in. “I didn't sleep well last night is all. Got a bit sick in the morning from bad food, too.”

Kawakami's eyes narrowed slightly. “Well, whatever. Just don’t arrive late again, okay? You’re already on thin ice with the school.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever." Giving a final wave, Sakamoto muttered to himself as he left the door.

“How the hell can somebody disappear into thin air?! I need to talk to those two sometime soon…”


(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

April 11th, 2016 – ??? – ???

“Ugh, no luck?”

“Nope, none. Shit!” Chie kicked a nearby statuette, cursing to herself for not finding the lever to the small drawbridge over one of the internal rivers. It was just beyond frustrating to Chie at this point that she couldn’t prove herself useful in some way to escape the literal dungeon of a psychopath. 

“Rrrgh... of all the luck, what even possesses people to put drawbridges underground?!" Yukiko, too, glared at the nearby statue of Kamoshida in kingly regalia with a similar intent of murder to her classmate. “C’mon Chie, let’s see what else there’s - “

“...hey! Heyyyy! You there, do you hear me?!”

Both girls jumped a little bit upon hearing a boyish voice from a cell in front of them. “Huh? Who was that?”

“Red girl! Short hair!” The voice cried out. “Look over here!”

“Huh?” Yukiko blinked for a moment. “Thank heavens, at least one of the prisoners here still seems able to talk. We'll help you out!"

“Um… alright...?” Chie nodded hesitantly before running over to the far-end cell with Yukiko.

And then promptly discovered that yes, the day could get weirder.

The owner of the voice turned out to be, to all intents and purposes, a bipedal cat with a tuxedo fur pattern who seemed like it walked straight out of a western cartoon. Big blue eyes on an enormous head, yellow bandanna for a scarf, and a utility belt made him look like nothing so much as a mascot for a burglary-themed comedy animation.

It was also utterly adorable, at least to Yukiko.

“Snrk…!” Yukiko felt ready to burst into laughter. “I-It’s so cute! Pfffft! Ahahahahahaha!”

“Gyaaaaah!” Chie cried out. “W-What the hell are you? Are you some kind of m-monster cat?!”

Ignoring Yukiko’s laughing fit, the feline gave a sharp glare at Chie.

“Okay, first of all; don’t call me a cat! I’m a human!" He bristled to show he was serious, hackles up from his shoulders. "A human named Morgana, thank you very much!”

“Ahahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahahaha!” The revelation of the living cartoon's opinion on his existence did not make him less adorable. Yukiko was already long gone, creating an audible groan from Chie.

“Damnit, today is just garbage…” Chie groaned, before shaking her head and resuming her glare at Morgana. “Anyway, why the hell are you locked in this cell?! This isn’t some kind of trap, is it?!”

“What?! N-No!” Morgana retorted, genuinely confused at the suggestion. “I was taken in, just like you guys were!”

“W-Well, um…” Chie flustered a bit, before glaring at the cat. “Well, w-we’re trying to escape, too! Yukiko you got any idea, any ideas?”

“Hahahahaha…” Yukiko giggled, her laughing fit almost over. “S-Sorry, heehee… w-wait, uh, what were we talking about?”

“Ugh, she wasn’t even listening…” Chie wanted to facepalm. “This cat is named Morgana. It...”

She paused. "Um, just so we're clear, um, can I ask if you're a - "

"Ugh... male!" Morgana replied, looking more than a little annoyed to explain what he seemed to think was obvious.

"Right, thanks, sorry about the 'it' thing - he says he was captured." Chie continued, finishing her summation to Yukiko. "He wants out. Should we listen to him?"

“Oh, um…” Yukiko pondered for a moment. “…huh. Can you help us escape, if that’s the case? If you do, we’ll be able to help you. Sounds like a deal?”

“Well, of course I can help you escape!” Morgana spoke, looking enthused.  “Wanna know where the exit is? Let me out and I'll take you out!" 

“Hey, uh, not that I doubt your sense of judgement, but Yukiko…” Chie frowned, whispering towards the inn maiden. “You sure this isn’t a trap? He could be one of those guards in monster form - ”

"Hey!"

"I don't think she meant any offense, Morgana-kun." Yukiko said with her practiced inn maiden politeness before checking her phone. "Still, no signal. We don't have much other choice anyway..."

Chie didn’t have any time to object before Yukiko unlocked the cell.

“Ahhhhhh…!” Morgana leaped forth, stretching his oddly shaped body side-to-side as his ears twitched. “Freedom tastes so great!”

“Alright, you’re free.” Chie glared. “Now you better fill in on your promise! Help us escape, or so help me - “

“Halt!”

(Music Stops)

Suddenly, a familiar voice boomed from behind them. All three ex-prisoners turned around to see two of the shapeshifting masked guards. Needless to say, Chie falls back on her feet in panic.

“Aaagh! S-Shit, it’s them!” Chie cried out as Yukiko suddenly morphed into her red-and-pink outfit wth a flash of blue fire.

“...hey, you can fight too?” Morgana eyed Yukiko, whistling. “All right! Two Personas on these amateurs is going to be easy!”

“Huh? Fighting them…?” Yukiko blinked. “You don’t mean - “

“I do.” Morgana smirked as he jumped back.

“Come forth, Zorro!

(Music Playing – Keeper of Lust - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nciaaDQTPZc)

As Chie screamed out in the distance, a bright blue flame shot from the feline and materialized into a similar creature to Konohana Sakuya - except this one was a tall, muscular man in a leather coat suit and gloves, the only thing visible of his face through his helmet being his yellow eyes and giant mustache. He swung a rapier in a "Z" pattern before holding it out in a confident stance.

“Wh-What the…?!” Chie’s eyes were wide with shock. “You have one of those things too?!”

“You insolent fools!” The left guard barked. “You shall heed and obey the word of our King!”

"And we will promptly shut you up." Morgana replied with nary a lack of a confident smirk.

Dissolving into shadows, out came creatures just like with the fairies, only this time two different creatures: one a red demon with an extra-long... appendage, and the other being a floating ghost with a pumpkin head.

"Well, that's just dandy Freudian imagery." Yukiko grimaced as she looked at the red demon. "I summon thee, Konoha - "

“Come at me with all you have, hee-ho!” The pumpkin-head cackled as fire blasted Yukiko.

"Aa... gh?"

Yukiko's immediate response was flinching, but the near-complete absence of almost all pain promptly drowned her fear in sheer confusion. ...where's the pain? Actually, where's the bur - oh, there it is. She thought as she looked down at herself and held up what appeared to be the world's smallest char pattern on her sleeve. Kinda feel bad for it, actually.

“W-What?!” The pumpkin-head cried. “H-Hee-How are you even standing ho?! That would’ve been fatal to a human, hee-ho!”

Morgana's grin went even wider. “Her other self's power is supporting her too! Now, as for mine…”

With a quick spin, he cried out for the black swordsman. “Zorro, blow them away!”

A mighty, razor-sharp wind came from the swordsman’s rapier swipes, instantly disintegrating the shadows.

“W-Wow…” Yukiko blinked in awe, clearly taken aback by the sheer display of power. “That’s your power, Morgana? The power of wind?”

“Yep, just as your power is fire!” Morgana looked rather proud of herself.

(Music Stops)

Chie sat there, having watched Morgana effortlessly wipe out the two demons. “W-Wait, I heard you say something… Persona? Her 'other self'? That’s the power you have?”

“Yeah, and it’s the power your friend possesses. The creatures we just fought there are Shadows, our enemy.” Morgana confirmed, nodding a little. “Don't know when they obtained it, but given how her image of rebellion was not apparent, I think it had to have been a bit recent...”

Personas? Shadows?! Image of rebellion?! Yukiko’s mind was racing with thoughts. This is way too much to take in. Though, isn't this linked to that... 'Velvet Room' too? I'm beginning to suspect that wasn't quite a dream...

Morgana, undoubtedly confirming he is a red-blooded male, gave a cheeky grin. "...although that problem seems to have fixed itself!"

She was so deep in thought that she didn’t notice Chie looking away red-faced.

“Huh? Chie?” Yukiko blinked. “Is there something wrong?”

Chie, unable to speak without sounding embarrassed, merely looked away. “P-Please, look down…”

She looked down at her outfit, and promptly noticed something interesting about her top.

Namely, the fact that it did not actually cover her top.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

“A-Aaaaaaaaah!” Turning beet red, she immediately covered her exposed chest and looked the other way. “P-Please, don’t look!”

“Huh? Come on, it’s just a little skin. Not like it’s anything to be worried about.” Morgana scratched his ear, looking awkward. “And… huh. I'd expect it to have gone back to your mundane outfit by now. Looks like you mastered your Persona, at least!”

“Wh-What?! You mean this outfit came from… ah!” Yukiko squeaked embarrassedly, and from the look of things, Chie was just as flustered as her. “C-Come on, can we please leave?! There’s people watching!”

“Technically, the Persona is in the mask but... going by how red you're getting, I think this explanation can wait.” Morgana snorted. “You do you.”

Running behind the flustered Yukiko, he pulled the jaw of the statue right next to the drawbridge, suddenly revealing the jaw stretched like rubber.

“Huh? That’s how we leave? Seriously?!” Chie groaned as the bridge lowered, trying her best to avoid looking at Yukiko’s exposed – and not at all undersized – chest. “Ugh, I knew I was missing something!”

"If it makes you feel better, I wouldn't want to be around Kamoshida's mouth either." Yukiko said with a shiver. 

“Well, come on!” Morgana motioned to both girls. “If we don’t get out of here, it looks like she may die of embarrassment.”

With that, he started to run off -

Shortly before he skidded to a stop before tapping himself on the forehead with a wince.

“Some gentleman I am. I didn’t ask for your names yet." Morgana awkwardly smiled. "You are…?”

“Um, Chie.”

“Y-Yukiko.” Poor Yukiko was still trying her best to cover her skin.

“Alright, nice to meet you both!” Morgana smiled. “C’mon, the exit shouldn’t be that far away. We’re almost out of here!”

“O-Okay…” Yukiko blushed. She and Chie proceeded to catch up with their newfound companion.

Thankfully he did not turn around, and discover Yukiko's new buoyancy.

God, the sooner out of this outfit, the better.


(Music Stops)

April 11th, 2016 – ??? – ???

Morgana was as good as his word - without much difficulty, he was quickly able to lead his two liberators to the main stairwell, and from there to a hallway with the same floor pattern of the main hall. 

“Oh, thank God, we’re almost out!” Chie cried out in relief when she realized the door out of the dungeon was unlocked. “C’mon Yukiko, we’re almost free! Just a few more steps into and we can finally get out of this crazy place!”

“You and me both.” Morgana said with a shiver. “You think just being down there is bad, try being surrounded by that guys' slaves for a few days. Just follow me, and...“

He paused, when he noticed where Chie was actually going. "Wait, that door shouldn't be unlocked - agh!"

There was the distinct smack of a volleyball hitting human flesh.

As Chie yelped, she landed butt first onto the floor. 

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

Yukiko and Morgana rushed into the main hall - and into the ambush a very free Kamoshida had made with dozens of guards, smirking at a dazed Chie.

"Sorry, this isn't the exit." Kamoshida said with a smirk, playing with a volleyball identical to the one that was lying next to Chie. "This is a way to payback. Seriously, who in their right minds doesn't watch the front door when looking for escapees?"

"Ugh, this what I was afraid of..." Morgana grumbled. "You ready?"

As he said as Zorro's flames started to manifest. Yukiko simply nodded.

“Y-Yeah, I am.” Yukiko nodded, revealing her fan. “Come forth! Konoha – ”

A guard promptly grabbed Chie and brought his sword to her neck.

"Whoa, whoa, kittens." Kamoshida said with a pointed smirk at Morgana. "Let's talk this out first. That is, if you want Satonaka to still have a head to talk with."

A long pause went on for that moment, all as Yukiko continued to stare in shock. A mutual glance between herself and Morgana said all that needed to be said about this predicament.

"...goddamnit." Morgana couldn't have said it better as his and Yukiko's flames died down as the coach-slash-king fully turned to face them.

"There. Was that so hard?" Kamoshida began, cranking up the patronizing tone to maximum. "So, about my earlier offer..."

“G-Goddammit...” Chie whimpered, tears again forming in her eyes. “J-Just run, Yukiko! Save yourself! It isn't worth it!"

"Well, good to see you're so brave when there's no other options."  Kamoshida said with a glance at Chie, spitting indirectly at her. "Or is it because you have a new skank of yours that's got two reasons for being far more useful than you?"

"I'm not leaving her." Yukiko said, trying to stare down Kamoshida and clearly not wanting to ask what those two reasons were.

"Wow, you two really hit it off fast." Kamoshida said with mild amusement. "The delinquent and the rumor-mongering skank. There's a comedy movie in that somewhere."

"I'm not leaving a potential apprentice." Morgana said, fingering his own toy sword.

"Yeah, no, take it from me. She's a real slow learner." Kamoshida said as he came over to hold Chie's head up. "What can I say? Chickens don't have big brains, no matter how much they cluck and shit eggs everywhere."

The grip intensified, seemingly starting to crush Chie's face. "Not to mention - they're really, really irritating."

"Mmph!" Chie tried to speak.

"Stop it!" Yukiko screamed.

"Oh please, you don't know her at all. Believe me, if you had the slightest idea what kind of person she is, you'd be right here with me." He stood back. "In fact, let's prove it. Guards, let her go."

Chie was unceremoniously dropped on the ground.

"The king is giving you permission to retreat." He said with as much affected pomp as he could muster. "Go on, and I'll forget this ever happened when playing with my new toy."

Chie just looked up, silently. "L-Like hell I am..."

"Wow. I'm already impressed." Kamoshida applauded sarcastically. "You didn't bolt instantly. Wow. I wonder why that is..."

He tapped his foot before exaggeratedly snapping his fingers.

"Oh yeah, that's right - you didn't speak to anyone on the team."

"Huh?" Yukiko looked up. This was new.

Immediately, any signs of defiance evaporated from her as she looked pleadingly at Kamoshida. "Wait, d-don't - "

"So, flashback time to the new girl; back when Satonaka was a first-year, I tried to scout her for the volleyball team. She's got talent, even if most of her strength's in her legs." He made a lecherous face at her. "She's damn cute for an ironing board too."

Chie flinched away. "Stop..."

"Problem is, I didn't realize what kind of gossip she is." he continued, not caring about her discomfort. "So, the bitch starts spreading rumors about me. All because what, that I'm some kind of bully who treats the female team members like his personal harem or something? Or the fact I disbanded the track team and was in the right for it?" Kamoshida said darkly, lowering his eye level to her. "The thing is, that's kind of where it stopped, didn't it?"

Chie balled her hands some more. "Stop it...!"

"Yeah, that's right. Those rumors? Completely anonymous. Written in notes. Online posts. Hell, even the other teachers didn't know, until I brought it up, because she didn't want to put her skin in the game. You know what her nickname is now? Chie the Liar, because all she did was make it seem like she was bitter for being excluded from the team." He grinned darkly. "Me, I'd prefer 'Satonaka the Spineless', but the point is, your green heroine has a bit of yellow on her."

"S-Stop it..." Chie whimpered, holding her hands to hear ears. "I SAID STOP IT!"

"Aww, it's cute when you act so submissive, y'know that?" Kamoshida said, drawing himself up. "Point is, all she did was annoy me, because she has no ability to stand up for herself. Why would she? From what I hear, Chie the Liar wants to be a police officer one of these days, and she knows her odds are shot if she happens to be expelled for her shit. After all, a culture of silence is still a culture of peace, and she knows exactly what that'd mean for her if she broke that peace. She'd be no better than the criminals she wants to fight, wouldn't she?"

"I..." Chie gulped, tears budding in her eyes. "I-I..."

"All in all, she knows exactly where she is on the totem pole..." Kamoshida said, with a smarmy grin. "Right at the bottom. Below even dogshit and Mishima. Hell, the only reason she hasn't gotten run out of school yet is probably because she's too afraid to disappoint you. Bit late to the finish there!"

(Music Slowly Fades Away)

"N-Not listening..." Chie plugged her ears some more. "I'm not listening, I'm not listening, I'm not - "

"Chie, listen!"

Chie raised her head to see Yukiko eyeing her directly, her hand interrupting her droning.

“Y-Yukiko…?” The tomboy felt tears ride out in her eyes.

“Chie... whatever happened, it wasn't your fault. It never was!” Yukiko spoke softly, before crying out. “He says you're a coward and a liar, but the fact you're even trying shows the exact opposite! You warned me about him the first minute we met, even through it's caused you nothing but grief! You're better than what he says!" 

“Tch, you think she’s actually better than this level?” Kamoshida scoffed. “She wouldn’t even have the courage to - “

"...shut up."

Chie's words spoken were silent, in quiet defiance. But soon enough, she was standing on her own two feet, glaring resolutely at Kamoshida.

"Yukiko's right; I'm am better than this." She spoke, her tone measured but furious. "I  braved all of this horrid castle far enough as is, and I survived. I was scared, yes... but true courage is doing the right thing even when you're afraid. I knew that, but never felt why... and it's because people like you exist."

“Oh? Isn't that right?” Kamoshida hissed. “Who gave you the right to spea - ”

“Shut up, and know your place, you fucking afterthought." Chie seethed angrily. “The only person who's too spineless to be honest is you! It’s all your fault!”

Kamoshida's glare doubled to the intensity of a raging sun as Chie slowly walked over to him. "How dare you question the authority of I, the King of this world?! Whatever I say is the truth, and anyone who doubts me is therefore a craven li - "

"I SAID SHUT YOUR GODDAMNED MOUTH!" Chie screamed at the top of her lungs. "The only reason I have that name is because you're the liar!  You're the one who's caused so much misery to the track team, you're the one whose done the same to the volleyball team, and you're the one who's harassed all those girls and smeared my name! If there’s anyone here who’s a ‘dirty coward’, it’s you, Kamoshithead!”

She drew up from the ground into a fighting stance, and gave a hateful stare at Kamoshida.

“I’LL NEVER STOP COMING AFTER YOU, YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!”

And then... it happened.

(Music Playing – Awakening - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9APGl1dSaw8)

So you have finally realized it, haven’t you?

“G-Gah…!” Suddenly, Chie eyes turned gold as felt a splitting headache, and almost instinctively, she clutched her head and began screaming in pain, thrashing around the floor all the while.

Blaming yourself for the actions of this man was never the solution. That the world refused to face the truth is the sin of the world, not you. It is time to show the corrupt and willfully ignorant of this world the true meaning of justice, don't you agree? I am thou… thou art I… the time for greater action is here and now! Unleash the fury of the DRAGON WITHIN!

Suddenly, the pain dissipated, and a metal iron mask appeared on her face.

As the headache cleared, she suddenly remembered how Yukiko called her Persona with a similar mask, and started to yank at it.

“What the… she's one too…?!” Kamoshida said, his grin evaporating as he stumbled back. “Guards, kill her! NOW!”

Too little, too late. With all her strength and willpower, she ripped off the mask, letting loose a pained scream as blood caked her face, and a bright blue blast of white ice blasting them into black chunks.

When the light dissipated, the scene was very different.

(Music Playing – Will Power - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqqhuZd8IXU)

Amid the ashes of the knights, Chie’s school outfit was now replaced with a green leather jacket that sported her midriff, alongside gloves and boots of a bright cyan. And behind her, in the bright blue energy, stood a yellow-clad, armored creature with a double-headed naginata.

“H-Huh…? Is this...?!” Chie stared in awe at her new power, just as Yukiko and Morgana did as they used the confusion to get into the main hall.

“No way…” Morgana said, eyes wide. “Chie had the potential too?!”

“Holy crap… this is awesome!” Chie cried out, still examining her power. “Like hell if I have to hold back now!”

“Oh, God…” Kamoshida fell back in fear. “W-Why'd she have to get this power too!? Someone, kill her!”

“A-At once, my liege!” A wounded golden knight, despite being in the brunt of the blast, was still well and alive. “You shall know true fear, wench!”

Dissolving into a mound of black ichor, the creature that sprung from it was ironic: a red angel clad to the brim in armor, and wielding a razor-sharp sword with it.

“Bit late for that. I can see that look on Kamoshida's face!” Chie cracked her knuckles and pointed at the armored angel. “Come forth! Protect me, Tomoe!

Immediately, the yellow Persona dashed at the angel at lightning speeds, the force of her blow knocking the angel on its feet.

“Grrr… you dare defy the kindness of our lord, King Kamoshida?!” The angel bellowed loudly. “You shall pay for your insolence, you pitiful wench!”

“You call that fucking bullshit kindness?!” Chie spat. “All Kamoshida does is make you thank him for being a bully who preys on the weak! And I'm done pretending to be grateful he didn't do something even worse!”

With one motion of her finger, she gave the order to Tomoe. “Alright, Tomoe! Freeze ‘em solid!”

Tomoe spun her naginata, and a cube of ice manifested before the angel, before busting in a hyper-cold blast that froze creature solid.

A second latter, the new statue shattered into nothing more but black shadows.

“Hmph!” Chie nodded, her arms crossed. “Let that be a lesson to going up against me!”

(Music Stops)

As the battle finally cooled down - pun notwithstanding - all that was left was the black, liquid remains of the Shadows, and a terrified Kamoshida.

Looking at the carnage, Yukiko and Morgana couldn’t help but stare in awe.

“Wow…" Morgana whistled at the carnage, before turning to Yukiko. "She's certainly got a talent for mass destruction...”

“A-Ah… g-guards! Somebody!" Kamoshida cried, scrambling back. "Kill them, now!”

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

Suddenly, more guards rushed onto the scene, and they far outnumbered the three Persona-users - not to mention a significant minority had gold armor and were surrounded by a dark, unfriendly-seeming red aura.

“Ugh, can't fault him going for maximum employment…” Chie muttered. “We should get outta here, like, now!"

“You do that, ladies.” Morgana nodded, smirking. “I’ll keep them busy!”

“H-Huh? Wait, what?!” Yukiko was clearly taken aback by the suggestion. “Morgana, you shouldn’t! You’re going to get yourself killed if you do!”

“Who said a Phantom Thief such as myself doesn’t have a few means of escape?” Morgana said with a smarmy smile. “I'll be fine, I still have my original escape route. Just remember to check back in, I still have those requests you promised!"

Requests? Phantom Thief? What?!

“Now, go! Hurry!” Morgana yelled. “You guys gotta hightail it!”

Chie didn’t need to be told twice. “Right! C’mon Yukiko, let’s go!”

As Chie ran off without her, Yukiko looked back at Morgana with a smile.

“Thank you, Morgana.” Yukiko said with genuine gratitude. “I’ll definitely be sure to repay you for this.”

“Heh, thanks.” Morgana smiled with a beaming grin. “See you in a bit!”

Kamoshida growled. “What are you idiots standing around for!? Kill them ALL!”

The last thing Yukiko and Chie saw while running out of the castle and into a red-and-black ripple in space was Morgana jumping away.


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

April 11th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome – 11:28 AM

Yukiko and Chie stood right outside of the shortcut both girls took, gasping for breath.

They were almost too tired to notice the sound of Yukiko’s phone going off.

"You have returned to the real world. Welcome back." The mechanized voice quip triggered a loud shudder of rage in Yukiko.

"Youuuuuuuu..." Yukiko raised her head glaring, and if one could see the look in her eyes, the intent of murder was all but certain.

Chie slowly inhaled. "Hooooly shit we're alive." She gasped for breath... and then frowned. "Hang on, why does the phone know we're - "

"YOOOOOOU!"

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

Chie jumped back as Yukiko suddenly gave her phone a look that, if glares could kill, would have probably turned it into raw ore.

"I don't care what you're selling, you stupid app, I just barely survived - wait." Her rage paused. "How'd it know we were back in the real world?"

Yukiko opened the task manager on her phone, and her eyes widened.

"Hey, um... Chie-chan?" She showed off the very open Metaverse Navigator on her full screen. "It says we were in a 'castle' belonging to 'Suguru Kamoshida.'"

Right there on what appeared to be a list of frequently used destinations, it also listed the location as 'Shujin Academy' and 'Castle' as the 'distortion.'

Chie blinked, before her eyes widened. "Hang on, Metaverse Navigator?! Does the icon happen to look like this?"

She pulled out her own phone, to reveal a very familiar black eye on a red background.

Yukiko whistled. "Uh-huh."

"Yeah, I was going to take my phone to a repair shop after it showed up yesterday and it undeleted itself..." Chie said, wistfully remembering her tide of profanity regarding that incident. "Hey, you don't think it's - "

"What's the commotion? Are you students of Shujin?"

The discussion was interrupted by two police officers walking up. Yukiko instinctively winced, before hastily turning around to think of a suitable excuse.

"U-Um..." Yukiko fumbled, not knowing what to say.

"I said are you students of Shujin Academy?!" The left officer bellowed. "You better not be skipping class right now..."

Yukiko blinked once, laughed awkwardly, and then cleared her throat. "Why, um, yes we are! We um, took a wrong turn and went into a movie set castle that we think was a fetish dungeon of our.... PE... teacher..."

She trailed off, realizing exactly what she was saying. Chie turned just as red in the face as her new friend as the police officers turned to gawk at the apparently insane girl.

"...hand over your bag." The right officer deadpanned with nary a lick of humor in his voice. "Whatever you're on, we'll find it."

"...oh, silly me, I'm thinking of a light novel I was reading on this phone!" Yukiko laughed nervously in a way that did not confirm her soundness of mind or sobriety. "Here in reality, we're just lost, right Chie!?"

"Um, yeah! That was my bad!" Chie twisted her face into a rictus grin she desperately hoped was 'innocently dumb.' "See, I told her there was a shortcut, except there was really more of a longcut because we got lost and... why isn't it raining?"

The officers did not seem especially convinced. "It stopped raining after eight. You've been lost for three hours!?"

The exact phrasing of the thoughts running through both girls' heads was not quite 'oh shit', but given how a more detailed summation would have contained enough profanity to melt most religions' holy symbols, it sufficed.

Yukiko inhaled. "You know what, we can find the rest of the way, thank you, bye, OH GOD WE'RE LATE!" 

Said statement was all one breath as the two girls took off at several kilometers per hour in the direction of Shujin.


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

April 11th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Front Entrance – 11:31 AM

The school, it seemed, had ceased to be a castle. In fact, it looked completely normal.

"Are you... freaking... kidding me?!" Chie exclaimed, panting from her recent dash. "I swear to Christ, we went the same way I always take..."

Yukiko shook her head, trying to clear up the confusion in it. "...what on earth going on here?"

"That's exactly what I want to ask you."

Astern voice came from the top of the stairwell.  The speaker, a bespectacled man in a fine tan suit Yukiko recognized from his portrait by the counselor's office, walked into view. "We received a call from the police that you to have been loafing around. Explain."

 "...eep." That was the only syllable uttered by Yukiko, knowing full well the implications of her being so late. Goodbye, free rent. I knew we should have asked that cop not to tell on us...

Chie, however, while not actually being a Liar, knew how to take one from the team. "Counselor, please don't blame her. It was my fault; she had some trouble with finding her way to the school, and I got us both lost. I'm sorry."

The counselor gave her a raised eyebrow. "Graduating to full delinquency now, Satonaka? Birds of a feather and all that?"

Yukiko blinked. Um, wow. Excellent job being an unbiased mediator of the student body, counselor, I almost can't feel the emergence of new stress disorders. Nonetheless, Yukiko took a deep breath and stepped up; her eyes pierced the older man's orbs, and she knew that if she was getting out of this in one piece, she needed to improvise, and fast.

"It's true." Yukiko said, stepping in. "I'm not mad at her, I think I screwed up her internal sense of directions."

"Hmph. Where even were you?" The councilor didn't even look unimpressed so much as completely unconvinced.

Chie opened her mouth to explain herself, but she was stunned by Yukiko opening her mouth and explaining.

"It was my first day, and the thing about me getting lost around the city was... everywhere." Courtesy of her acting skills, Yukiko managed to get up enough shame to blush. "I'm a country mouse who was in a city for the first time, so I'm sorry that I got lost. I assure you it won't happen again."

Chie bit her lip. "Yukiko..."

The counselor frowned, but by all the graceful heavens that exist, he seemed to have believed her. Somewhat. The counselor's scowl slightly lessened, and he just shook his head.

"Honestly, I don't know if you're either airheaded, playing dumb, or both." The delinquent spoke with a grimace. "You're free to go inside, 'country mouse'. Don't let it happen again."

"Sorry, what's this about a 'country mouse'?"

Yukiko, who was by no means looking forward to hearing even the non-flanging voice of his again, winced upon seeing Kamoshida stroll into the scene. His face almost had a quizzical curiosity marking his expression, but Yukiko had been in the Castle for enough to know it was all calculated; regardless, the good news was that her ploy worked, and even if it didn't, the attempt by her to spin the lie into something sensible wasn't needed.

That was also the bad news; the interruption was still Yukiko and Chie's current least favorite person in the world walking up next to the counselor.

"K-K-Ka-Kamoshida!?" Chie all but shrieked.

"You need a hobby, Satonaka." Kamoshida said with a light teasing voice, or it would be light teasing to anyone without the patronizing context. "I know you aren't interested in the volleyball team, but you need better things to do with your time than lead transfers around in circles."

Chie, by design of Kamoshida, did. "I should know, given how you hang it over my head every damn day - "

"How dare you speak that way to Mr. Kamoshida!" The counselor said that in a tone of genuine offense, in one of the first times he ever showed anything resembling an emotion other than irritation. "Obviously, the delinquent you're traveling with has brought out an even worse side to your personality."

Chie blinked, then turned to Yukiko, uncomprehending.

"...I'd rather not talk about it." Yukiko said, the shame in her parents' eyes becoming very prominent in her mind. "Not right now."

"Trying to evade responsibility, are we Amagi?" The counselor glared at her. "Satonaka, the girl next to you is a convicted felon for assault."

If he had stabbed her in the gut, it probably wouldn't have hurt as much. Yukiko's muted wince was in the exact same amount of pain as the flinch of shock Chie did was.

"W-Whaaaaa...?" Chie blinked. "Her? Yukiko? H-How...?"

"That's between her and the administration. Frankly, it's hardly any of your business, and you should keep out of it." The counselor said that despite not apparently exploding from the hypocrisy in that statement. "Come with me."

With a final, confused glance at Yukiko, Chie trudged off after him.

Slowly, trying to ignore the shame and fear of losing her first actual friend in this hell wrapping its hands around her windpipe, Yukiko started to drag herself up to class herself.

As she passed the coach, he cleared his throat. "That... was out of line."

Gee. He only deliberately exposed my criminal record despite knowing full well I was uncomfortable with it to someone in the worst possible phrasing. I think it's perfectly in line for the school that hires you, King Speedo. "It's okay." She spoke without showing her true feelings, looking down. "It had to come out some way."

There was a pause. "You know, speaking of the volleyball team, we've got some pretty open-minded students on it. Just keep that in mind after you meet with Ms. Kawakami."

The coach gave her a pat on the head in an affectionate manner with a seemingly kind smile. Watching him retreat into the distance, the seeming disconnect between King Kamoshida and Coach Kamoshida hit her.

Namely, a certain phrase King Kamoshida had said in reference to Chie.

"Hell, even the other teachers didn't know, until I brought it up."

"...you told him." She whispered in quiet horror at the scheme. "You told him to bring it up. So that I'd be isolated from your accuser..."

Coach Kamoshida may not have recognized anything King Kamoshida did, but it was clear they shared the same personality.

And that personality was a predator.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

“The school turned into an old castle and in it...” Sae spoke slowly, rubbing her forehead. “...there was a talking cat. And the demonic form of your PE teacher, who was a more blatant form of a predator in the exact same way as the real man.”

She couldn’t help but stare incredulously at the drugged teenager. “...are you sure you're not hallucinating from an overdose? I won't put up with you if you're simply joking around."

“Believe it or not, that’s what happened.” Yukiko spoke in a slightly slurred tone. “You can drop this interrogation if you want… but it doesn’t change the truth.”

Sae scoffed inwardly at the idea of any of this happening. Seriously, Personas?! Shadows?! Even if the idea lines up nicely with Amagi’s pyrokinesis and other supernatural abilities, it was still so far-fetched that she could hardly believe it.

...except Amagi had pyrokinesis and other supernatural abilities. The logical side of Sae, the one that pointed out that reality did not need to obey the constraints of fiction, quietly suggested it might be that she didn't know the rules.

What she needed to know the truth, no matter what.

Sae merely sighed in resignation. “…fine. For now, we’ll account your story as plausible given the circumstance. But on the subject of Kamoshida...”

Opening up the briefcase, Sae pulled out a manila folder with a red-print [CLASSIFIED] on the folder in Japanese kanji, before opening it up to reveal pictures of Kamoshida and the logo of the Phantom Thieves on a printout. 

“Suguru Kamoshida, age 32, was a Olympic medalist turned PE teacher at your school, Shujin Academy, of which is he also an alumnus." She spoke with no hidden undercurrent of resentment in her voice. "While the subject of his… desires… were abhorrent, his confession hardly lined up with his motives. It was as if there was some sort of external influence that made him confess his crimes. In particular, this only happened, and only had signs of happening, after he received a 'calling card' from the Phantom Thieves."

Suddenly, Sae leaned over the table, eyes boring into the disorientated Yukiko.

“While Satonaka's motive is obvious, you had no prior connection before you wound up at Shujin Academy. Why did you, specifically, target him?”

Yukiko scoffed to herself before looking away. “What, him siccing his flying monkeys on me so he could bully his way under my skirt wasn't enough?" 

Take this seriously!” Sae slammed her palms onto the shaky desk, making Yukiko jump. “Try to remember. There must have been something else that drove you to act in such an extreme manner, even beyond your suspicions. You yourself said you weren't entirely sure if his 'Palace' was real yet.”

"I'm getting to that. First, though, I discovered the hard way that Kamoshida had more than just Mr. Mochida - er, the former counselor - as his goon..."


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask (Rain) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY7ngS9QxMg)

April 11th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Faculty Office – 11:50 AM

"So that's her? The girl with the criminal record?"

"I hear she keeps a lot of weapons in her bag."

"What's with her keeping her eyes in shadow like that? Is she some kind of yandere?"

Yukiko grimaced upon hearing the torrential downpour of gossiping surrounding everywhere she went. There wasn't anything like this back in Yasoinaba or Yasogami High; it almost was assured that those that had something to say would undoubtedly say it up-front, none of this pesky backstabbing gossiping. As she determinedly ignored the muttering of the school gossips on the way to the faculty office, Yukiko bit her lip and did her best to ignore it.

Well, I guess I'm beginning to feel a bit murderous. Yukiko paused as she went over how that sounded in her head, and grumbled. That, or the urge to go into a corner and cry. Maybe cry while stabbing someone. That'd be nice.

With no small amount of force, she slammed the thankfully sound-muffling door behind her as she presented herself to the yellow-shirted teacher.

Who did not seem any happier than she did in Kobayakawa's office.

"Unbelievable..." Kawakami began, sounding at the exact mid-point between resigned and angry. "Being over half a day late on your first day?"

"...I was lost. Sorry, country-mouse and all..." Yukiko mumbled, the lie that depended on a now-burned bridge tasting bitter in her mouth.

"So I heard." Kawakami said, turning to her. "Satonaka managed to break free long enough from Mr. Mochida to tell me."

"Huh...?" That was not what Yukiko expected to hear.

Kawakami rose an eyebrow, but not much else. "Still, that doesn't excuse you being lost until it was nearly lunchtime! I know you're not used to the area yet, but will you please pull yourself together? You were given fair warning yesterday."

Yukiko snapped out of her confusion long enough to register that. "Um, yes! I am truly sorry, it won't happen again."

"It'd better not." Kawakami said with a frown.

Which softened a bit. "Still, better Satonaka than that Sakamoto..."

Yukiko rose an eyebrow. "Who?"

"The one who makes a habit of being late." Kawakami said, without much further elaboration. "Truth is, you're going to hear a lot of rumors about Satonaka, and I'm going to say this up front - don't believe them. I don't even know how they started, but I think you and she being peers might do the both of you some good. Even if, apparently, she can't find her way out of a cardboard box."

Way ahead of you, sensei. Yukiko thought with a small smile, more genuine than any she had had in Shujin thus far. 

"Anyway, break's almost over. Classes will end today after the fifth period due to the subway accident," she continued. "I'll have you introduce yourself when class resumes."

Oh yeah, Yukiko thought to herself as her smile fell. That.


(Music Playing - School Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeAvHUGsvIY)

April 11th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 12:01 PM

Eyes thoroughly affixed to her feet, Yukiko shuffled behind Kawakami, at least seemed like she had slept in the previous day.

“Now, please don’t say anything unnecessary.” Kawakami said with a depressed sternness, which Yukiko did not realize could be a thing. “Even if you're lying, be serious about it.”

“Yes, Ms. Kawakami,” Yukiko bowed politely. “I’ll be sure to behave.”

“We all hope.” Kawakami nodded before opening the door.

The formerly bustling classroom fell silent once Yukiko came into the scene, in which she noticed a familiar face: the same pig-tailed blonde girl she saw by the street earlier today. On the other end of the classroom sat a blue-haired boy with several bruises and a white t-shirt.

Also found were several of the rumormongers.

"This is our delinquent transfer? Seriously?”

"Well, she did decide to show up after noon. She's probably decided to make herself look normal."

“She’s actually kinda cute…

“Yeah, in the same way a coral snake is..."

"Settle down!" Kawakami began, annoyed. “I would like to introduce our new student: Yukiko Amagi. You'll have to forgive her being late; she wasn't feeling well.”

Yukiko kept her poker face, but was caught off guard by that. Huh?! I mean, "she got lost" sounds like I'm really stupid but - actually, is that the reason? Trying to protect my reputation? Or Chie's?

Not giving any signs of the motive behind her lie, Kawakami turned to her. "Alright, please say something to the class."

“Y-Yes, of course.” Yukiko nodded, bowing politely in front of the class. “Good to meet you all. My name is Yukiko Amagi.”

“She looks demure, but I bet when she loses it…”

"Yeah, she has yandere radiation coming off of her..."

“Okay, she’s DEFINITELY cute…”

“Hey, she was arrested for assault… stay away from her!”

“No way, really?! Jeez, that’s some rumor if I heard one…”

Kawakami blinked, looking almost as uncomfortable as Yukiko. "Uhh... so..." She shook her head, obviously troubled by something. "Your seat will be over... there, by the window." she said, pointing at the empty desk behind the blonde girl. "Sorry, but can the people nearby share your textbooks with her for today?

"This sucks..."

The blue-haired boy grimaced.

“Um, yes ma’am.” Motioning over to the one empty seat next to hear – which was conveniently close to the blonde girl – she could’ve swore she heard the girl mutter something to herself.

“Lies." The blonde girl muttered with a dark grimace.

"Did you catch that? Do those two know each other?"

"How fitting, that the delinquent and Bicycle Takamaki knew each other before she got here."

"Yep. Kamoshida's probably thrilled though."

Yukiko thought as the newly introduced Takamaki tried to shrink into herself, and winced. And suddenly, I can't begrudge her attitude at all. The hell's wrong with this school?!

"Oh, right, the volleyball rally is in two days." Kawakami said, attempting to sound enthused about it. "Everyone's just changed classes, so make sure you use that time to get to know each other. So, who's on duty for starting classes today?"

The blue-haired student rose, trying very hard to look away from Yukiko and Takamaki's side of the room. "Everyone, please rise..."


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

April 11th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway – 2:30 PM

Yukiko sighed to herself, still overwhelmed by the events of today. Compared to an escape from a demonic castle, lectures about Japanese composition seemed really boring in comparison, despite the addition of the Shujin Peanut Gallery. That wasn’t even factoring in her exhaustion from the day; never before had Yukiko been so glad at the thought that she’d get to just fall asleep when she gets home.

Of course, her brain did not seem eager to let her forget what had actually happened that day, as she saw a flash of gaudy red carpet in the place of the wooden floorboard for a second.

Kawakami came out just as Yukiko was rubbing her eyes. "Hm? Is something wrong?"

"This is going to be a strange question, but... is this still a school?" Yukiko said. "It hasn't turned into a castle?"

"...are you sure you're okay?" Kawakami gave her a strange look, then looked away. "Not that I blame you after today. I never told anyone about your record, but... everyone's already talking about it."

She leaned into the door, seemingly forgetting Yukiko was there. "I can't even catch a break... why do I have to deal with this?"

I wonder if it's just me, or does she not have the ability to keep internal voices internal. Yukiko thought. Maybe I could make that a club, given what I say inside my brain...

She turned back around. "You should head straight home, not be distracted by much. Sakura-san sounded pretty worried and more than a little angry."

"He has every reason to be. At this point, I wouldn't let me leave without a map." Yukiko said with a small smile.

"Glad you see the humor of it." Kawakami said, flatly. "Though, I forgot to tell you earlier; I heard Sakamoto-kun is wondering where you and Satonaka-chan were, so I'm advising you if a boy with bleached hair comes up to you, don't get involved - "

"A-hem." Chie came from down the corridor, giving Kawakami an annoyed glare.

Kawakami sighed. "Hello, Satonaka-chan..."

"Yeah, hi." Chie said, very clearly avoiding being polite. "I was here because I wasn't sure about whether I should talk behind others' backs or not."

Kawakami sighed. "Look, I know you and Sakamoto-kun share a lot of opinions, but even you have to admit he cuts classes. I'm just worried he'd be a bad influence, especially when Amagi-chan is trying to improve."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Chie said, not sounding especially mollified. "I'm just here to walk with her home, so I don't screw up again. I'll leave you to the talk." 

She passed by Yukiko, only to tap her on the shoulder. "I want you to meet someone on the rooftop." That was all she whispered before walking off.

Kawakami sighed as Chie went out of sight. "She's a good girl, but even I admit she has some... strong opinions. Just, keep what I said in mind, okay?"

With that, she herself walked off.

As Yukiko started to make her way to the rooftop, she nearly bumped into two of the reasons she currently hated her life, barely hiding in a classroom before they noticed.

"I'm beginning to have my doubts about letting Amagi transfer here." Kamoshida said to Principal Kobayakawa. "She's already causing a bunch of issues in the student body, and I hear Sakamoto might be trying to form a gang with her."

He frowned, looking every bit the troubled teacher. "A student with a criminal record, a notorious gossip, and the culprit of an assault case? At this rate, it'd be pointless how much I contribute to the school."

You - ! You're the one trying to get me to sign up for your stupid team, you two-faced pervert! Yukiko's grip on the door tightened a bit. And now you're trying to blackmail me with expellation or something!?

"Now don't be like that." The Principal said with the apparent intent of trying to mollify him. "This school counts on you, Kamoshida-kun. You are our star."

Suddenly, a lot of Kamoshida's opinions of himself made a lot more sense.

"Still, a steady build-up is necessary behind such brilliance as well." Kobayakawa said with a sigh.

"Your troubles never seem to end, do they, Principal Kobayakawa?" Kamoshida shrugged. "All right, I understand, I'll continue to do my best to answer your expectations of me."

Somehow, the forced humility of that statement made it seem even more smug. 

Thankfully, the two left without glancing in Yukiko's direction, allowing her to break for the roof.


(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

April 11th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Rooftop – 2:31 PM

The door was already open, revealing Chie and a bleached-blonde boy with spiky hair and a graphic t-shirt, the kind of person who'd take "punk" as a compliment.

"Hey Yukiko!" Chie said, apparently completely genuinely happy to see her, to which Yukiko gave a hesitant smile and wave back.

"...uh, yo." the boy said, looking a bit awkward.

"Hey to you as well!" Yukiko said, bowing. "I'm Yukiko Amagi. I believe Chie-chan wanted to introduce me to you?"

"Um, you can drop the honorific thing." The boy said with no lack of disquiet to his voice. "I'm Ryuji Sakamoto."

Immediately, Yukiko recognized the name as a bad influence and someone who may have been a fellow convict of assault.

According to a teacher who seemed to regard having her as a burden and the worst person Yukiko had ever met, so she wasn't feeling especially uncharitable.

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" She said, with a pleasant smile.

The delinquent relaxed. "Well, that's a relief. Bet Kawakami's already told you stuff like 'don't get involved with him', right?"

Yukiko frowned. "More or less..."

"Yeah, he's got a reputation he doesn't deserve." Chie said. "We aren't really 'friends' per say, but it sometimes seems like we're the only students who haven't bought into the whole 'ra-ra Kamoshida' crap."

"...like the staff?" Yukiko said with no lacking undertone of bitterness.

"You saw how the Principal kisses his ass too, huh?" Ryuji fumed. "'Eff all, man. Seriously!"

"Yeah, and anyone who speaks against him is automatically a troublemaker! Doesn't matter who you are or what you do, you're a delinquent!" Chie grumbled. "So, yeah. Meet the, ahem, 'delinquent' contingent."

"Woo, go Team Graffiti!" Yukiko said, thrusting out her hand in a cheer. "All we need is a tag and..."

She trailed off at the weird glance from both of the other students on the roof.

"Aaanywayyy..." Chie said, awkwardly. "I think Ryuji wanted to ask you something?"

Ryuji sighed, looking away nervously. “…oh, goddamnit. This is gonna be hella awkward.”

He honestly had no idea how to put it without looking like a complete doofus, but he put his reservations to the side and spoke blatantly. “So, I'll just put this bluntly: I was walking to school and ended up, uh... seeing you guys conversing in an alley way. And, uh..."

Ryuji took a deep breath. "So, how did both of you disappear into thin air?”

Yukiko and Chie looked at the punk incredulously.

“Excuse me?” Both girls said in perfect unison.

Disappearing into thin air? What could they even mean about that regarding us? Yukiko racked her brain. Let's see, I don't think Sakura-san was putting anything funny in the curry...

“Well, um…” Ryuji trailed off. “Again, when I was finishing up some errands for my ma, I saw you two girls near the shortcut and then you, suddenly, uh… vanished. Like, into thin air.”

I don't see how that would be, unless...

Wait.

...ooooh.

He saw what happened.

...

HE SAW WHAT HAPPENED!?

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

Yukiko and Chie quickly glanced at each other in panic.

“So, I was wondering if you could tell me, uh… what’s up with that?” Ryuji said. “Is-is there like some sort of magic trick had planned?”

Chie quickly flushed a deep shade of red, the full irony of being nicknamed Liar taking full control. “U-Uh, hahahaha… wh-what could you possibly be talking about? Why, I heard that vanishing and demonic castles belonging to Kamoshida is a known side effect of inhaling Venus gas off a weather balloon - MMMPF!”

Yukiko instinctively pressed her hand on Chie’s lips. “Chie, don’t say it!

“Huh?” The boy stared at both girls incredulously, his eyes wide. “What… did you say “demonic castle,” and “Kamoshida” in the same effin’ sentence?!”

Crap crap crap crap craaaaap!

Yukiko quickly tried to salvage the situation. “W-We most certainly did not! It, um… must’ve been the wind that made it sound like that! Y-Yeah, the wind… and the weather balloon app."

Then she realized what she was saying. "Um, the app, on the weather balloon! Really, really high tech... weather balloon!" 

Awkward silence quickly followed. Meanwhile, Ryuji’s mind was racing with whatever the hell was happening. Seriously? Apps? When did apps come into this -

Then he realized something.

Something involving his troubles with a mysteriously immortal app.

“Um…” Ryuji broke the terse silence with a slightly shocked expression. “May, I, uh… see your phone real quick…?”

A long silence quickly followed. It was pretty obvious Chie and Yukiko were caught red-handed at this point, both girls looking incredulously at each other.

Before Ryuji could obtain their phones, both girls quickly made a high-tail for it.

“A-Aaagh!” Chie cried. “S-Sorry, Yukiko!”

“Huh?! W-Wait!” Ryuji cried as the girls ran off in panic. “G-Get back here! I JUST WANT TO ASK YOU, DAMNIT!”

Ryuji groaned tiredly, slumping down on the generator where he sat. “Damnit! I better ask them some more about this shit later…”

*bzzt*

Ryuji brought out his phone, staring at the returned Metaverse Navigator, fresh from its second deletion at the end of the last class he had that day. “Fuckin' hell, what the hell are you...?”


(Music Playing – City Ambience -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws )

April 11th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Front Entrance – 2:33 PM

"Weather balloon?" Yukiko asked Chie between pants. "Seriously?! Why a weather balloon?"

"I dunno, I was talking about B-movies with my dad last night!" Chie cried, breathing heavily. "It just came to mind!"

"I'm not criticizing you, I just... I think we've used up our lie budget on 'getting lost,' if that's what we're coming up with." Yukiko held her head. "What would Venus gas even smell like?"

"Yeah. At least we're out of there." Chie inhaled, drawing up. "Anyway, we can think about that balloon - ugh, castle tomorrow."

A look of trepidation came over Chie's face. "Um... there was something I wanted to ask you about, though."

Yukiko looked up, trying to not let her sudden dread of the inevitable show. 

"...shoot." Yukiko said, quietly.

"It's okay if you don't want to answer, but..." Chie inhaled. "Did anyone... hurt you?"

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

Yukiko blinked. "Huh?"

"Look, I'm not even going to sugarcoat it; Mochida's an asshole." She spoke gently, starting to show slightly more confidence. "He's a crap counselor, nobody goes to see him - basically, I knew he'd have just said that to hurt you. And the thing is... the way you helped me in that castle... I don't think that girl I saw there would have hurt someone."

She paused, realizing how that sounded. "Not unless, well... Someone really hurt her first."

There was a bit of a pause as Yukiko processed the statement.

"...pbbt."

Then she cracked up, both in the sense of laughter and tears. "Hahahahahahahaha...! AHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAA...!"

Chie flinched. "SHIT! Oh God, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to - "

"AHA - haa... oh god, I... pfft. I just - I should be apologizing to you!" Yukiko wiped away her tears. "I'm just... I'm so embarrassed... I thought you'd think I was... but I'm happy too..."

Chie blinked. "Uh... okay. Is that a... no?"

Yukiko regained her composure. "Well... no, but not in the way you think. See, I was walking home one night, and..."

Yukiko then explained in succinct detail what happened to her that led to her expulsion.

The story went on for a while as she recounted every detail about getting sent here to Tokyo. And as she got to the conviction in the story of the Worst Days of Her Life, Chie's own composure broke like glass.

"YOU WERE CHARGED FOR THROWING A DRUNK OFF A WOMAN?!" Chie screamed as Yukiko finally finished her story.

"More or less." Yukiko said with a wince, Chie's shout still ringing in her ears. "It's... kind of cynicism-inducing."

"I just... that's like, I dunno, a hundred-yen fine at the absolute worst! He should be in jail, not you!" She held her head as she bellowed outwards in frustration. "Ugggh! Why the hell did the police go along with that?! They're supposed to know what's right in these instances! DAMNIT!" 

Yukiko winced. "To be honest, I'm wondering why you feel that way to begin with. You saw how those two officers harassed us both, right?"

Chie paused for a moment, processing it internally. After finally calming down, she took a deep breath in and out to calm herself further.

She shook her head. "I just... I plan on being a police officer one of these days... still, I'm really sorry for all that. People shouldn't be punished for being weak or not having connections, but it did, and now you've got a stain on you for the rest of existence..."

"It's fine. It has a silver lining." Yukiko said with a bleak smile. "No more inn inheritance!"

Chie took a step back in confusion.

"...y'know, I'd ask you more about that, but I think your probation officer might freak out." The tomboy said this with a bit of a shrug. "Unless you need me to corroborate why you were late?"

"It's fine. Sakura-san is a nice man, if a bit gruff." Yukiko seemed very happy Chie even bothered to ask, though.

"Okay. But, uh, first." She texted Yukiko her phone number. "Just in case we need to get into contact."

Yukiko promptly responded in kind. "Good plan. But for right now... see you tomorrow?"

"Assuming we don't wind up in any Japanese demon palaces, sure!" Chie waved, and walked off.

Yukiko went the rest of the way home in a better mood than she had felt in months.  


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask (Instrumental) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=330nrS4eoxE)

April 11th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 6:53 PM

Of course, all the optimism in the world couldn't change the inevitable Talk, capital letter needed, with Sojiro.

As Yukiko finally opened up the door of Café Leblanc, she was not surprised to find her guardian with his arms crossed together.

“You were late on your first day of school? On probation?!” Sojiro began, archly. "Seriously?!”

Yukiko looked away to the side, embarrassed. “Um… I had bad directions. Don't forget this is my first time in the city.”

Sojiro did not look convinced. "The school told me that. But there's lost, and then there's 'vanished for three hours.' Do you need a compass? A map? A global positioning system wired into your skull?" 

He held his head. "This isn't starting well... you got off really lucky, because the one person with a worse sense of direction than you was willing to own up to it. One wrong step, and your life is over."

Yukiko bowed respectfully. “Y-Yes, sir. It won’t happen again, I promise.”

"Good. Don't let it happen again." Somehow, Yukiko got the sense he didn't fully buy that.

What discussion about being punctual, and possibly walking through the map of Tokyo, was interrupted by Sojiro receiving a call.

"Hey, what's up?" He said, going straight back to that gentle tone of voice he used. "...yeah, I just closed up shop, I'll head over in half an hour, as promised."

He briefly looked up, his hard expression returning. "Don't let it happen again. We're going to have a talk about this in the morning, get upstairs and go to bed."

Yukiko squeaked from the whiplash. "U-Understood, sir!"

"...no, it is a girl, but she's a new part-timer who did something dumb, nothing else." he said, back into the phone, soft tone back up.

...okay, that kind of shift is impressive. Definitely the same person as last time though... Yukiko thought this as she awkwardly marched to the stairwell.

"Don't forget to lock the door and turn all the lights off, okay? ...yup, I'm leaving now. I told you, she's a part-timer..." Sojiro's talking gradually became inaudible.


(Music Continues Playing)

April 11th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 7:22 PM

While it was a grounding, Yukiko couldn't disagree with the sentiment of "bed now." Her eyes were baggy, and she swore her body was starting to have a half-second delay in reaction to her commands. Not willing to stay up a minute longer, she proceeded up the stairs to the attic when her phone suddenly went off.

*dzzt-dzzt-dzzt*

"Hm?" Yukiko turned to see her newest contact - before giggling a bit at the sheer absurdity of the name.

steak trash: yo, yukiko, u holding up?

Yukiko Amagi: Yeah, I’ll be fine, thanks. I’m just extremely exhausted.

Yukiko Amagi: Also, pfffffffffft. 'steak trash'?

steak trash: HEY EXCUSE ME STEAJK JIS FUCXKING AWESOME

steak trash: FILET MIGNON SQUAD

Yukiko Amagi: Pfffffffffffft. ((●≧艸≦)

steak trash: i got grilled by my parents… ugh, it was a long-ass lecture, i think i hve to take on online geography course now

Yukiko Amagi: Same… well, except the lecture I received was much shorter. Guardian was interrupted.

steak trash: rly?!?! lucky

steak trash: also, good thing we got out of there in 1 piece, right? ryuji looked rly scary… (`〇Д〇)

Yukiko Amagi: It’s also a good thing we got each other’s contacts before we left.

steak trash: ill say

steak trash: hey, at least this mean ill be able to kit with u!

Yukiko Amagi: Heh. Yeah, I’m happy about that too.

steak trash: lifes a piece of cake as long as its with friends

steak trash: …shit, now im hungry for cake

Yukiko Amagi: Umm… how’s that relevant with anything…?

steak trash: oh, im just hungry 4 somethin sweet

steak trash: which is pretty rare as I loooooooooove dem meat

steak trash: mmmm, yakisobaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Yukiko Amagi: Heh.

steak trash: um… btw

Yukiko Amagi: ?

steak trash: i want 2 apologize for freaking out like that

steak trash: yknow, back when ryuji grilled us 4 why we poofed

steak trash: i guess i kinda panicked when he was onto something about that world, yknow?

steak trash: hes an okay guy, but he has a real bad temper, and he can be stupid when he's on a warpath

Yukiko Amagi: After the things we’ve seen, I think that panic’s a little justified.

Yukiko Amagi: Don’t worry about it too much.

steak trash: if you say so

Yukiko Amagi: I mean, still… that power you had was amazing.

steak trash: hey, IM not the one who saved my ass from being cut 2 death

steak trash: u kinda deserve the credit 2, yukiko

Yukiko Amagi: You… think so? Honestly, I never thought I was worthy of praise like that.

steak trash: srsly?!?!?!

Yukiko Amagi: ???

steak trash: youre, like, the coolest, smartest and most beautiful girl I know!!! srsly, the way u fought through that shithole with such a brave face is so admirable!!! i rly made the right choice regarding the first friend of my second year

Yukiko Amagi: You… actually think so?

steak trash: yep, mean every word 2

steak trash: including the beauty part

steak trash: seriously, I wish I had a fraction of your form SHIT FORGET I SAID THAT – (edited on 7:31 PM)

Yukiko Amagi: What?!

steak trash: sorry sorry sorry sorry SORRY

steak trash: G2G BYE

steak trash is offline

Yukiko stared at the screen in red-faced horror as Chie signed off.

Today had been a very long day for Yukiko.


(Music Playing – Aria of the Soul - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE)

April 12th, 2016 – Velvet Room – ???

A familiar rattling of chains woke Yukiko up from her slumber.

Upon coming too, she saw the same room that haunted her dreams earlier in the week; the familiar, blue prison that she was held captive in. With it, she was also once again dressed in her prisoner outfit, shackles and ball-and-chain included.

Hello again, Velvet Room. Yukiko said with a bit of internal snark in her voice.

Caroline and Justine, if she recalled their names correctly, were once again at opposite ends of her cell and Igor's desk was facing directly across, its owner with the same eerie, Cheshire-cat smile he always possessed.

“About time you've come to, Inmate.” Caroline spat with all the patience and compassion she had shown previously, before banging the baton on the cell. “On your feet!”

Justine adjusted her clipboard before speaking. “Our master wishes to speak with you. It's for your own sake that you take his words to heart.”

Igor's smile grew, clasping his hands together. “First off, let us celebrate our reunion."

Yukiko smiled awkwardly and lifted a fist. "I'm back in a cell for the second time today. Hip hip, hooray, I guess?"

"H-Hey!" Caroline's taunting composure flickered. "It's a great honor to even be in the Room!"

"Your frustration is understandable. But, that brings me to my next point." Igor said, without missing a beat. "You've awakened to your powers... and special ones at that. Ones you were not born with, but granted to you by a higher power."

Powers…? So, you do have something to do with Personas. Yukiko, thanks to her intelligence, instantly deduced what Igor meant. But, what's this about them being 'special'? They can already conjure a guardian spirit and a magical girl costume... am I notable for my color scheme?

Igor's grin slightly shrunk into a more serious smile. “Your rehabilitation can finally begin.”

“Huh?” Yukiko stared in mild disbelief. “Powers, I get, but rehabilitation? What do you mean?”

Igor gave a small chuckle. “There’s no need to understand all of it for the time being. You will be training the power of Persona, which you have awakened to.”

Igor continued his speech. “Personas are, in other words, a “mask” of sorts… an armor of the heart when confronting worldly matters. I have high expectations for you.”

Yukiko blanched, a part of her wanting to bluntly ask if Igor would like to pile more on her plate, but the other parts of her promptly slapped that part for being suicidally dumb. "Um, what are these expectations...?"

"You will have no chance but to hone your strength." Justine said, somehow sounding both soft-spoken and ruthlessly blunt. "It's not because we're forcing you, but because this is your fate... neglect it, and you will die."

Yukiko grimaced hard, before only barely reigning in a bit of a hysterical giggle. ...oh. Spiffing! Absolutely spiffing. Please, fate, hit me more! I think you missed a spot!

"By the by, have you come to appreciate the Metaverse Navigator?" Igor asked with nary a tell on his face, barring his inhumanly-wide grin.

And just like that, the implication hit Yukiko like a truck, her immediately bolting upwards. "Wait, you made that thing!? Can you tell me how to uninstall it, because I'm worried it might be malware - "

"M-Malware?!" Caroline began, turning to her with flushed cheeks. "We worked really hard on that thing, it does not need to be put in the same category as BonsaiBuddy - "

"Caroline!" Justine cut in, causing the other warden to slink back to her post, muttering about how she coded much cooler things than gacha games.

Igor simply gave a hearty laugh in response. “At ease. It will not harm your phone; it is simply a method of egress between reality and Palaces."

Palaces, huh... how fitting, Yukiko thought, before immediately perking up. .wait, that was a plural. Don't tell me there's more than - 

Igor continued before she could ask. “I granted it to you as a means to train you as a thief."

"The Metaverse Navigator is a gift from our master! You will take care in using it, Inmate!" A still pouting Caroline said. "And stop deleting it! It! Is not! Malware!"

"Devote yourself to your training so that you may become a fine thief." Justine replied. "And please forgive my sister. She labored long and hard on the code, and she is relieved it even works."

"N-No I'm not!" Caroline perked up blushing, a bit offended by Justine's own accusation. "I-I'm just relieved she hasn't been stupid enough to break the phone to get rid of it, that's all!"  

It was at that point that Yukiko concluded that no matter how eldritch they were, the sister wardens were still young children. And weren't very good at hiding it, in Caroline's case.

"It must be disheartening to make use of the Metaverse Navigator alone." Igor said, ignoring the wardens' bickering. "But as you are aware by now, should there be others who prove beneficial to you, I will grant it to them as well."

So that's how Chie got it... Yukiko thought to herself. Though I'm not putting it past Caroline to have put it in an infected attachment...

“Now, I do believe I have taken far too much time than is necessary. It is already quite late in the real world.” Igor said with a smile. “I will explain the nuances of the unique nature of your Persona in the near future. But know that it is ultimately a power of connections and the heart. Know your teammates and Confidants well, and the Social Links between you will nuture it, and speed your rehabilitation.”

“Hmph, it's time!” Caroline barked. “Go back and enjoy whatever virus-free rest you might have..."

“Wait!” Yukiko cried out. “I still have some questions - “

Before she could notice what happened next, she was awake in her bed.


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask (Rain) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY7ngS9QxMg)

April 12th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchtome Subway - 6:48 AM

Last time Yukiko checked, she didn't think her life turned into a magical girl show.

Amid the lighter downpour of rain as opposed to yesterday, Yukiko's head was still spinning with thoughts from the dream she had. Seriously? Special power? Confidants? Social Links? What was all of this about? Why didn't he just explain things?

Still, there was a silver lining to her confusion; being able to ignore the depressing chatter on the trains, for the most part. Something about the rainy days seemed to focus people on all the mental shutdowns and possible causes thereof. Which meant some rather despairing speculation on how the economic issues resulted in stress-born crackups, which Yukiko perfectly understood. And was all the more upsetting for it.

Thankfully, while changing trains, she managed to somehow get away from the conversation and behind some less melancholic students.

“Look, isn’t that her?”

Including one who was apparently famous.

“You mean that one with the red ribbon? Uh, I guess so.”

Said girl, an athletic-looking redhead whose hair was tied back in a long ponytail, seemingly didn’t notice. Then again, she was at the front, so Yukiko, remaining carefully in the back, couldn’t exactly read her expressions.

“She’s so thin… it’s not fair! I’ve got my hair in a ponytail, too…”

Thankfully, Yukiko didn’t react fast enough to stop the boy from actually saying what she was opening her mouth to say herself: “…okay, and what’s that got to do with being thin?”

The other student apparently realized how dumb and biologically impossible an assumption that was, and clammed up until the other, yellow train arrived.

Still, by this point Yukiko had become a little curious herself, following the redheaded girl - who, going by the uniform she now saw from the front, was a Shujin student - as she parked herself in a seat.

About a minute after leaving, an older lady obviously not a fan of standing up for long period of time hobbled by Yukiko.

The girl noticed, standing up. “Please, take my seat. My station’s coming up.”

The old woman smiled, starting to hobble over…

And was nearly bowled over, along with the girl, by a salaryman who promptly parked himself right in it.

“…oh wow, what speed!” The younger student said as soon as she realized what happened - and promptly confirming to Yukiko she had the patience of a saint, if nothing else – any less patient, and she'd tell the salaryman to stick those legs where the sun didn't shine.

The salaryman stared at her for a second... and then closed his eyes, determinedly making snoring noises.

The redhead blinked. “Oh…”

Yukiko cleared her throat. “Well, I’d say you’ve found the world’s most tired man. You want me to test how asleep he is?” She grinned darkly, taking out a sharp pencil.

The redhead noticed her. “It’s alright. I can understand his position as well.”

His position seems to be okay with possibly knocking over someone’s grandmother so he can have an uncomfortable seat for five minutes.. Yukiko snarked internally, but she didn’t press the issue.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be any help.” The younger student said this to the old woman. “Please allow me to carry your luggage, at least!”

“Why thank you dearie. Isn’t it heavy, though?” The old woman tilted her head in curiosity.

“That’s alright, I train plenty!” The student replied with no lacking amount of cheer.

Well, at least someone was cheerful and helpful today. Unlike certain salarymen.

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

It wasn’t the last Yukiko would see of the girl, though. In fact, she was just about to exit the station when she heard a familiar voice behind her.

“Pardon me, but thank you so much for earlier.” The redhead said with a polite bow.

“…isn’t that a bit excessive for just threatening a random jerk with mild pain to get him to move?” Yukiko asked with some bemusement.

“Not at all! You tried, at least, and that’s what counts!” The redhead beamed. “A bit excessive, but thank you for the thought at any rate. Though… you’re a second-year at Shujin Academy, correct?”

“Yes." Yukiko nodded, carefully. "And you’re a first-year, I think?”

“Which is why I went after you." The red-head said this with a small frown - one that quickly went back to a perky smile. "Thanking you totally slipped my mind back on the train, and I didn’t want to be rude to my senpai.”

She bowed again. “Please excuse me.”

As Yukiko, still taking a bit of this in, watched, the ponytail retreated into the crowd.

“…uhhh, you’re forgiven?” Yukiko said to the air, not quite sure what she was supposed to be forgiving her junior for. With a shrug, she went on her way to head to Shujin Academy.

“What a strange girl...” She muttered to herself. “Strange, but nice. Hopefully we’ll meet again.”


(Music Playing - City Ambience (Raining) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8slvvcfKb20)

April 12th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome – 7:18 AM

Any more thought on either the Velvet Room or the redheaded student was silenced by reaching school on time, what with the micron-thin ice she was on with being late at the moment. 

This time, at least, she was prepared for the rain downpour, and brought her own red umbrella.

Sighing to herself, she continued to walk down the sidewalk in her own reverie, almost not noticing Chie walking her bike up next to her.

“Yo, Yukiko!” Chie said with a gregarious smile. “How’re you, doing? You’re okay, right?”

“Huh?” Yukiko paused for a moment before smiling at Chie. “Yeah. I’m, uh, okay. Admittedly, I had to wake up thirty minutes early to show I could use a map, but nothing much else. Thanks for asking, Chie.”

Chie grinned. “No problem! I was called twice to make sure I knew which intersection I was in, but thankfully, no other problems.”

She stopped for a moment, before blushing somewhat. “Uh… s-sorry about that text. Y-Y’know, the one about your, uh… form.” Chie turned red upon mentioning it. "Y-Yeah. Wasn't really proper of me to bring that up, huh...?"

“Oh, u-um…” Yukiko turned just as red, shifting around somewhat uncomfortably. “It’s fine. I’m guess I’m okay with it if it’s you who’s talking about it…”

“Well, if I were being honest... part of it's a bit of jealousy.” Chie said with a wry wince; when Yukiko opened her mouth to speak, Chie panicked and raised her hands defensively. “N-Not like jealous jealous! Hahaha... I mean, um, I'm not exactly gifted in the departments you are, like looks, confidence, so, I, uh...” She trailed off, not certain.

Yukiko and Chie both sat in awkward silence, still shuffling around in anxiety. It took a whole minute before Chie spoke again.

“Hey, Yukiko...” Chie said somewhat sternly. “I think we should go visit that castle again. After school, I mean.”

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

That caught Yukiko’s attention. Immediately perking herself upwards, she glanced at Chie with a raised eyebrow as she began to explain. Mysteries were good and all, but most mysteries didn't involve being imprisoned and possibly murdered!

“Just hear me out, okay Yukiko?” Chie raised her hands defensively. “I was thinking of visiting that castle to find some clues about what Kamoshida is like and all. I mean, the things we’ve seen? There’s got to be some meaning behind it. That’s why I was thinking of visiting the cat again – you know, that deformed cartoon cat! I think he was called, uhh…”

Yukiko, thankfully, was more on the ball in general than Chie was. “Morgana?”

“Yeah, that’s his name!” Chie chirped. “Listen, I just feel as though we need to look into this, together. It’s easy to run away from it all since we we’re nearly killed, but now that we have the means to protect ourselves, with our Personas… I don’t think we can just ignore it now, especially when we can learn more about it. I even managed to get us some equipment and medicine from a bunch of stores too!"

A pause, before Chie looked desperately at Yukiko. "...you understand what I mean, right?”

As much as Yukiko would prefer otherwise, it was true. Even discounting their Personas, Yukiko now had the pink, sakura-like bladed fan in her pocket. It was just something neither girl could look over now that they had the means to investigation. That, and I know Kamoshida is just as much a creep as his king version...

Speaking of fans, though...

“Um, I don't mean I think your Persona is weak or anything..." Yukiko began, trying to carefully phrase what she was about to say. "But... what do you have to defend yourself? I think there's a reason mine gave me a weapon..."

“Well, simple!” Chie suddenly gave a cheeky grin. “I don't need one when I got two of 'em down here! HWAA-TAH!”

Chie quickly got into a kung-fu pose and kiai that Yukiko couldn’t help but find extremely funny.

“Snrk…” Yukiko began laughing uncontrollably. “Chie, that was – that was – pffft, ahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahaha!”

“Huh!?” Chie slumped down in defeat. “Ugh, you’re such a hyena…”

“Heeheeheeheehee… s-sorry Chie…” Yukiko’s laughing fit finally subsided. “Um… w-well… snrk… I-I’m happy you’ll be okay, Chie. I want to protect you, you know that?”

Chie suddenly turned red at the suggestion and looked away. “U-Um, that-that’s what I’m supposed to do, silly!”

Yukiko gave a goofy grin. “Alright, fair enough. We’ll protect each other. Sounds like a fair trade, right Chie?”

“Yeah, it totally does! Who needs bladed fans when you have these legs?” Chie cracked a goofy grin before her blush came back. “And, um… I hope it’ll bring me closer to you, Yukiko… you’re special to me, after all.”

“Chie…” Yukiko paused for a moment before blushing alongside Chie. "You actually mean it?"

"...of course I do." Chie nodded. "Ryuji's cool and all... but I think you're the first person I can really call a friend. Right... Yuki?"

Yukiko blinked, before giggling. "Just call me Yukiko for now. I'll be happy with the nickname as I get to know you better."

Chie winced, before laughing awkwardly. "R-Right, sorry. Umm..."

The brunette tomboy then stuck out her hand and grinned. "Let's do our best, then! Together!"

Was it even possible to become such close friends after meeting a day before? Come to think of it, running mutually for their lives was probably quite the bonding activity… though there was something else at play, as well.

Regardless, as Chie stuck out her hand and Yukiko felt obliged to shake it, both girls grinning at each other joyously.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

Sae's arms were crossed as she leered at the drugged Yukiko.

“You were a highly competent leader, but one woman couldn't manage a team alone. We know you had a deputy to assist in the running of your gang, and she the first member of it." Sae said, glaring at the girl. “She was there the whole way through your journey, being your closest confidant, your best friend… and your girlfriend.”

Slamming her hands on the desk, she looked directly into Yukiko’s drugged eyes.

“I’m not wrong… am I?”


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

April 12th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome – 7:24 AM

And just like that, time stopped, and a voice all too familiar echoed in her ear.

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Victory Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

VICTORY (VII) RANK UP! RANK 1

As time continued to remain stopped, Yukiko thought to herself. ...wait a minute, is this what Igor meant by 'Confidants'...? Huh...?

Before she could have an answer to her question, time promptly unfroze itself.

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

Chie gave a small smile to her friend (not noticing her baffled and now exasperated expression at all this supernatural stuff) before checking her phone. Her eyes almost widened to the size of saucers upon seeing the time.

Oh, frick!” Chie cussed to nobody in particular. “C’mon, Yukiko, we’re gonna be late! Let’s go!”

Pondering that voice could wait until a period she wouldn't be expelled for thinking on it, Yukiko decided.

With that, both friends rushed down to class.


(Music Playing – Is It Boring – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID7z4mE_XDM)

April 12th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 8:39 AM

“Alright, listen up!” The teacher, an unfriendly-looking man in suspenders, began. “I’m your social studies teacher, Mr. Ushimaru. I'll be teaching you the rules of society this year - and from the look of the class, I can tell a lot of you were spoiled growing up. For the first lesson of the year, I'm going to ask if any of you are familiar with Plato's idea of the soul...”

As Yukiko continued to listen to the lecture, her phone suddenly went off.

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

steak trash: oh my goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooood

Yukiko Amagi: ?

steak trash: i looked at my curriculum, AND I HAVE CLASSES WITH USHIMARU NEXT

steak trash: anyone but the chalk-toss champ of the grump league

steak trash: somebody please end my suffering

steak trash: (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻

Yukiko Amagi: That’s great and all, but you should really focus on your end of class, Chie.

steak trash: but i dont wanna

steak trash: i mean, how tf can u focus when were going to go into some hp lovecraftian hellhole with a psychotic king inside?!?!

Yukiko Amagi: School still comes first, though…

steak trash: ugh, fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine

steak trash: blech

steak trash: BLECH

steak trash: ◝(๑⁺᷄д⁺᷅๑)◞՞

steak trash: ur no fun at all, u know that?

Yukiko Amagi: ‘Killjoy’ is my mother’s maiden name.

steak trash: wait, rly?!

Yukiko Amagi: …that was sarcasm, Chie.

steak trash: (;¬_¬)

steak trash: I TOTALLY KNEW THAT, OKAY

Yukiko Amagi: Uh-huh. Sure you did, Chie. Suuuuuuuuuuuuuure.

steak trash: yeah yeah, keep bein a smartass

steak trash: just r3member to meet me outside for our investigation, ok? i’d be really scared to do this alone, tbh

Yukiko Amagi: You’re cute when you act insecure, y’know that?

steak trash: aGFUIESUIGjksn

steak trash: goddamnit yukiko, pls stop roasting me

Yukiko Amagi: Heehee! Okay, sorry, sorry… heh.

steak trash: ugh, ur such a pita sometimes

steak trash: well, fine. ill return to the boring-ass lecture t he waodji

steak trash: OH S H it

steak trash: TEACHER SAW ME, G2G

steak trash is now offline

“Hey, Amagi!” Mr. Ushimaru barked. “We’re you listening to my question?! What did Plato say were the three parts of the human soul?!”

“H-Huh?!” Yukiko quickly put away her phone; thankfully, the teacher didn’t notice her texting - thankfully, Yukiko knew about this beforehand, and replied automatically. “Oh, um… appetite, spirit and, um… logic?”

The class was abuzz as Mr. Ushimaru clapped with a small smile on his face. “Yes, correct! I’m surprised you knew before I even began!”

“Wow, are you sure she’s a delinquent?!”

“She’s both cute AND smart?! I think I’m in love…”

“Hmph! Well, she probably looked up the answer while on her phone…”

“C’mon, senpai. You can admit that you’re jealous.”

“Me, jealous?! I-It’s not like I’m envious of her, or anything! I-Idiot!”

Yukiko felt some pride swell up within her upon guessing right. She was the starlet of Yasogami High before being expelled, after all.


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

April 12th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway - 3:10 PM

As classes finished, Yukiko began to plan out what the plan of observation for what Igor called the Palace was as she exited the classroom.

"Hey there, Takamaki."

Yukiko scowled, immediately recognizing the voice. ...apparently, speak of the Devil or think of his domain, and he shall appear.

Good news was, Kamoshida wasn't interested in, or even noticed, Yukiko. 

The bad news was, this was because the blonde student in question's eyes were widening as he approached her.

"Things have been pretty dangerous lately, with all those accidents..." Kamoshida said with a barely-honest kindness. "Want me to drive you home today?"

"Sorry... I have a photoshoot today." The blonde student replied with a tone one might describe as pretending you were sad to discover you had no risk of lung cancer while genuinely being immersed in raw sewage. "It's for the special summer issue, so I can't really afford to miss it..."

"Hey now... being a model's fine and dandy, but don't work your pretty little self to the bone." Kamoshida paused. "...actually, didn't you say you weren't feeling well? Something about appendicitis?"

Takamaki tensed. "Yes. I keep planning on going to the hospital, but life keeps on getting in the way... sorry to worry you."

"Hm. Has to be lonely too, especially with Suzui having to stay at practice so often..." Kamoshida replied, getting rather close to Takamaki. "Oh, and uh, be careful around that transfer student. She has a record, and I'm worried she might involve you in something dangerous. I'll tell you if it's safe to talk with her."

"...thank you." Takamaki replied in the same sincerity as someone stoically enduring bamboo stuck under her nails. "Please excuse me." 

And with that, Takamaki finished, moving off as quickly as one could and still be considered walking.

Kamoshida's mask fell, he releasing a frustrated groan as he walked off.

Slowly, Yukiko became aware her mouth had twisted into the platonic ideal of a grimace of disgust, regaining control of her face with a long-delayed retch. That was supposed to be a relationship with a teacher?! Takamaki looked scared out of her mind. Probably desperately needed a friend - who knows, maybe the delinquent contingent had room for another blonde to stick pins into voodoo dolls of coaches.


(Music Continues)

April 12th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Front Entrance – 3:15 PM

The creep-induced nausea having cleared up, just like the rain in the afternoon. It wouldn't be long then before Yukiko reunited with Chie in the front entrance.

The first thing the inn maiden noticed was the lump on her friend’s head.

“Hey, Chie!” Yukiko’s smile turned into a frown upon seeing the lump. “Um… where did you get that lump?”

Chie looked away, blushing. “N-None of your business! W-Well, I mean, uh...”

She paused for a moment, before sighing in defeat. “Umm… Ushimaru-sensei demonstrated his chalk-toss skills. ”

“Ow…” Yukiko frowned. “That’s gotta hurt. Sorry to hear that.”

“Nah, it’s fine. I’m tougher than I look.” Chie gave a small grin. "And thankfully, he's not half as bad as Kamoshida; he just hates everyone equally, so he's pretty fair on grading work."

"Yeah, I got that when he insulted his class in his opening speech." Yukiko said with a shrug. 

“Basically, getting chalked by him is a right of passage. Don't sweat it." Chie said with a grin. "Anyway, let’s go by the shortcut, alright? Then we can fiddle with that app to see if we can get into the castle.”

As Yukiko merely nodded in response, both girls remained oblivious to someone sneaking in the shadows – the fact they remained oblivious was kind of surprising to him, too.

Upon finally leaving sight, the boy stepped outside to look at his phone, carefully stalking down the alley.

“Alright...” Ryuji nodded. “Time to figure out what the eff all of this is about…”


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

April 12th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome, Alleyway Shortcut – 3:37 PM

“Okay, so, um… how does this app work again?”

Chie grumbled to herself as she fiddled with the Metaverse Navigator, as was Yukiko. And not having fun.

“Ugh, I hate computers…” Chie moaned weakly. “Yukiko, how’s things going on your end?”

“Huh?” Yukiko put down her phone to look at Chie. “Oh, things are fine. It’s not that hard to navigate through, honestly.”

“Huh? Seriously?!” Chie immediately turned a tint of red as her lack of experience with tech was made apparent.

“Um, yes…?” Yukiko looked down nervously. “Then again, I do work with a lot of computer stuff in my freetime…” Also, I think I know the head coder - not that she'd be helpful. In general, really... 

If nothing else, this expedition was worth it for the mental image of Caroline in a headset, miming whacking a particularly dumb customer with her baton.

Chie pouted somewhat. “Oh, I see. I was never good with technology, to be honest…”

The alleyway had not changed, remaining the same shortcut as before - which, if nothing else, confirmed it was the Meta-Nav App that did it, not the alley.

But before they started trying it out, Yukiko had time to ask about something.

“Hey, umm… Chie.” Yukiko began. “You never really told me about why you became known as a gossip.”

Chie put down her phone to look at Yukiko. “Huh? What do you need to know?”

“Well, I don’t mean to reopen some wounds, or anything...” Yukiko began, looking somewhat sympathetic. “But do you mind explaining to me what’s wrong?”

(Music Playing – Alleycat - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIm5T2HpwLk)

Chie’s frown deepened, and she felt some tinges of sadness swell up within her.

“Well... I suppose I asked you about your scars, might as well show you mine..”

Chie looked down at the ground as she began. “I had to move out from my hometown when I was a kid… for dad’s job, anyway. When I first moved to Tokyo, I, uh… never really had friends. I was always a bit of an outcast for being 'too boyish' for a girl, and, well… I guess I was bullied a lot.”

She shook her head. "Then I got to Shujin, and Kamoshida... well, he presented himself as a mentor, I guess. Wanted me to try out for his team, get some real friends."

Yukiko paled as she started to think where this is going. "You know, if you want to stop there, I - "

"Don't worry, it didn't go anywhere like that. See, while I was considering it, I met this team member, Yuuki Mishima, and Ryuji had... well, he had a big fight with Kamoshida, it's not my place to say what it was." She shook her head. "Point is, from them, I saw Kamoshida's real face, and I realized he was just like the nastier bullies you'd have in school. You know the kind; pretend nice people. Then I heard other rumors, and realized he was worse."

Her brow furrowed, as she looked away. "But... I was still scared of him. More than that, I thought that if I called him out directly, he'd single me out, and I was... I was too much of a coward to do it directly. So, I tried to spread some rumors, paste some notes, that kind of thing..." She sighed. "Didn't even keep me anonymous. He recognized my work and caught me pasting a note to the bulletin board, humiliated me in front of the school. And because I was so shady about it, nobody believed me..." She sighed. "Hence, Chie the Liar, as you'd have doubtlessly heard of."

She shook her head. “Hell, even my attempt to insult him was half-hearted. Called him a bully than what I should’ve called him; a piece of shit, a son of a bitch… I was just scared of losing my future, but my inability to stand for myself ended up ruining it for nothing. That’s when I felt worthless… like I couldn’t do anything.”

“You’re not worthless, though.”

“Huh?” Chie raised her head to Yukiko, who looked rather determined.

“You we’re scared, Chie. That's natural, for one.” Yukiko nodded. “No person has to be perfect. Hell, I didn’t even have the courage to tell my parents I didn’t want to inherit the inn, but that one time I did intervene got me on probation while an attempted rapist was set free… fear happens to everyone.”

Yukiko’s frown turned around. “But that’s why we got to fight it, y’know? We need to help everyone we care about, protect our friends, family and loved ones… and even then, it’s okay to fail, here and there. You’re a strong person Chie, and to be frank, I think what you had was a good idea. It's not your fault that Kamoshida has the Principal on his side; it's not that you were bad at telling the truth, it's that Kamoshida and the Principal are good liars, and it's their fault you weren't believed, not you. You did your best, and you did it for the right reasons - that's what counts.”

“Yukiko…” Chie bit her lip. She knew she was right; while she still felt ashamed for the half-hearted attempt at exposing him, that didn’t mean she was a bad person. She just needed to accept it went badly the first time and try again with lessons learned from the first try. Maybe the second time wouldn't work, or the third... but she wouldn't be Chie if she gave up when injustice was happening.

“Th-Thank you… Yukiko…” Chie was ready to cry. “You’re a very good person to be around, you know that?”

Yukiko smiled wryly. “Anytime. That’s what friends are for, and, well… you’re my first real friend, you know that? I never really had anybody to call a friend earlier.”

(Music Fades Out Slowly)

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

After the tender moment passed, Yukiko flipped open her phone, and her expression turned serious.

"So, ready to go into the breach again?"

Chie nodded, her resolve returned. "Right with you, Yukiko."

She paused. "But, uh... first, how does it work?"

"See the search history?" Yukiko said, showing her phone's screen. And the words on it.

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

“Hey, isn’t that some of the words we said earlier… when we first met?” Chie blinked innocently. “Huh… let’s say that into the phone.”

"Actually, it has a 'navigate back to', button." Yukiko said, hitting it.

"Kamoshida... Shujin Academy... Pervert... Castle..." The Meta-Nav's mechanical voice began droning on. "Beginning navigation." The screen became overtaken by dark red version of the eye logo of the Meta-Nav, flickering and warping ominously. 

“Holy crap, we did it! We’re in!” Chie chirped joyously, grinning goofily all the while. “Yukiko, you’re a genius!”

“Aww, c'mon, it wasn't that much of a puzzle.” Yukiko chuckled. “But still… some coincidence we got into the castle by saying the right things, huh? That sounds like some pretty dumb chance, if you ask me…”

“Tell me about it.” Chie clicked her tongue. “Well, let’s get a move on.”

Nodding in response, the two girls proceeded down the alleyway that was starting to ripple from their point of view, oblivious to the presence bottle-blond boy who had quietly been following them, and watched them slowly phase out of being.

“Holy shit... they're doing it again!” Ryuji exclaimed to himself, before looking at his version of the app. "But now... I know it's you. And I know how the hell you work."

He cleared his throat. "Here we go. Kamoshida. Shujin Academy..."


(Music – Dark World Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZMZhszd4N0)

April 12th, 2016 – Mysterious Castle – ???

Once again, the eerily ornate castle that the two girls escaped from was in plain sight. Chie felt herself shudder a little upon seeing the castle.

“Ugh, this place brings back bad memories…"

Chie shook her head, a bit oblivious to her surroundings... but not so much that she didn't glance over to Yukiko's outfit and blink in surprse.

“Holy crap, you're in your outfit again!” Chie exclaimed. “Yukiko, are you…?”

She immediately turned red upon seeing the same, curvaceous red-and-pink outfit Yukiko wore.

“U-Um…” Yukiko looked away nervously, clearly catching the clue. “J-Just don’t look too much, okay…?”

“R-Right...” Chie shook the thought of Yukiko’s revealing outfit out of her head. “Let’s just see where we can find that cat. The sooner we find him, the - “

The entryway to the alley suddenly rippled with red and black, disgorging a familiar face.

“Whoa… WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!”

Ryuji stared in complete and total awe upon seeing the giant ornate castle dominating the pink sky. He was even more flabbergasted upon seeing Chie and Yukiko in their outfit.

“W-Wait a minute…” Ryuji stuttered. “Where the eff am I?! What happened to our school?!”

Chie’s eyes widened upon seeing Ryuji. “Oh, crap! How did he get here?!”

Ryuji quickly turned to Chie, still completely struck. “W-What are you doing in that outfit!? And..." He suddenly blushed, looking away. "NOT LOOKING! NOT LOOKING! YOU CAN JUST KEEP GETTING DRESSED!"

Chie blinked. "Um..."

It was at that point that Yukiko finally realized something about Chie's own Persona clothing. And hid her own eyes.

"...Chie." Yukiko began. "You might want to look down."

Suddenly frozen in place, Chie's eyes were dragged down. 

Right to the bandages that were giving her some amount of modesty.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

"AAAAAAAAGH!"  She tried to pull the jacket over her bare midriff and shoulders. "NO, NO, NO WAY IN HELL! I am not wearing this, not in a million years, not now, nope! Did my Persona make this? Is my soul monster some kind of exhibitionist!? Put me in something I won't die of embarrassment in! Right now, damnit!"

Yukiko flushed more. "Can we make that a two-for-one deal please?!"

“Will you two please calm down!?”

A familiar, boyish voice sounded from the rooftop. Morgana had returned – still just as armed with his toy sword and slingshot.

“Morgana!” Yukiko smiled, completely ignoring the color drain from Ryuji's face. “You’re okay!”

Jumping down from the rooftop, Morgana gave a smug grin. “Well, of course I’m okay! I’m a bona fide Phantom Thief!” The grin promptly turned into a frown. "Who, as a rule, doesn't scream at the main entrance-"

“GYAAAAH!” Ryuji immediately broke Morgana's rule. “WHAT THE FUCK?! Wh-What are you, some kind of mutant cat?!”

Morgana gave a very sharp glare at Ryuji. “Okay, blondie, we just met, so, I'm going to explain this once: don’t. Call. Me. A. CAT! Ugh, seriously, how long do I have to keep explaining this?!”

Morgana’s glared faltered as the not-a-cat gave a confused glance at Yukiko. “And more importantly… how did he get here? I don’t think it’s possible that he could’ve left with you guys…”

“Y-Yeah, what the freaky cat said!” Ryuji cried out, still in shock. “I-I said the exact same words into my copy of the app, and BOOM! The sky's red and the school's a castle! NOW CAN SOMEBODY PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?!”

“Calm down! And not so loud!” Morgana hissed before sighing. The feline turned to Yukiko with a puzzled stare. “Well, he got in on his own. What do you say, should we kick him out?”

“Huh?! But…” Yukiko paused for a moment. It was true that this was a dangerous place, but it’d be even more dangerous if Ryuji left on his lonesome…

That, and Igor said he was going to give copies of the app to people who could help, so she was going to trust the more experienced judge on this one.

“Um... why not let him accompany us?”

Chie and Morgana both did a double-take.

“Huh?! Seriously, Yukiko?!” Chie cried out. “C’mon, Ryuji's strong, but you've seen what those guards can do!”

“And he’ll only be in more danger if he decides to go by himself! Remember, he has the app now too!” Yukiko retorted. “Besides… as long as he’ll keep this a secret, I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

The black-haired girl gave a smile that conveyed absolutely no warmth. "You can keep a secret, Ryuji?”

“H-Huh…?” The delinquent shivered at the surprisingly terrified grin. “Uh! Yes ma'am! Sorry ma'am! Zipped mouth!”

Scratching the back of his head, Ryuji gave a puffy sigh. “But man… what’s up with this place? And why did the school turn into a castle?! Can someone please explain to me what’s going on?"

Chie turned to Morgana, his arms crossed. “Yeah… you do owe us an explanation, Morgana. All three of us.”

Morgana paused for a moment, before sighing. “Alright, alright. I might as well explain everything. Strap in; this’ll be a doozy of an explanation.”

(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

“Alright, starting with the basics...” Morgana began, taking a deep breath in. “The castle you’re seeing is called a ‘Palace,’ and the world you’re in is called the “Metaverse.” The Metaverse is a world where everyone’s desires coalesce into one place – everything, from the will to live, to hobbies, to eating, to sleeping… you name it. Those guards we encountered are actually creatures called 'Shadows', embodiments of impulsive desires.”

Suddenly, Morgana’s face darkened. “But for some people, if desires become distorted enough - not just strong, but such overpowering obsessions to the point where it warps the person who has them, those desires fuse with their 'cognition', their mental image, of a real-world place that they regard as their territory and home, and becomes a pocket world inside the Metaverse inhabited by Shadows; a Palace. While there are some Palace owners that are good, the kind of warped obsession that forms Palaces means they're never entirely sane, and the kind of obsessions that form Palaces are usually the kind that come with a complete disregard for other people.”

“And this palace...” Morgana said, gesturing at the castle. “...is Kamoshida’s Palace. His view of the school as it relates to him, given physical form.”

“Huh?!” Ryuji chimed in, before his brow furrowed in thought. “Wait… so this place is literally made of that pervert's opinions of what the school is really like?”

"More or less." Morgana replied, obviously happy Ryuji was catching on. "There's some nuances, but - "

"Son of a bitch!" Ryuji turned to the castle, snarling. "I knew he thought Shujin was his personal kingdom! Hey Kamoshida! You in there, you scheming little - "

“Stop interrupting! You're going to get the Shadows' attention!” Morgana barked in response. “What I’m trying to say, is that this world is a sort of a representation of all of Kamoshida’s twisted desires. His lust, his greed, his malice… it's become this place, his own warped cognition of the school where he feels he rules.”

"And so he does, his Majesty the Creep..." Chie said, before frowning more. "...though wait, if this is his personal, I dunno, ego zone, why didn't he seem to remember how Yukiko kicked his ass?"

"Well, simple." Morgana said, more lecturing this time. "That was his personal Shadow, not his real-world self."

"Shadow?!" Yukiko's eyes widened. "Wait, that was a body double!? Then all the things he's been doing - "

"Are reflected in his Shadow." Morgana cut in. "You forgot the 'personal' part, King Kamoshida is a representation of all the impulses and desires the real one has, in a world where he can indulge them without consequence. Even be praised for them. Think of him like, well, a wild Persona, or his true self without the self-restraint of his "mask" in life."

"A wild what-now?" Ryuji turned to Morgana. "Talk sense you smuuuAAAAAH!"

Grinning, Morgana called Zorro back into himself. "A wild that thing."

Yukiko suppressed a snort at the look on Ryuji's face.

"Before you ask, Yukiko and me have one too." Chie replied with a shrug. "...apparently, so does Kamoshida, doesn't he?"

Morgana looked at her strangely, then face-pawed. "Aw, crap. Sorry, I forgot how new you are... no, it's more like you have Shadows that became Personas."

Yukiko looked up. "Huh?"

"A Persona is the opposite of a Shadow, in the same way the opposite sides of a coin are," Morgana explained. "Everyone has a Shadow, which are the parts of their desire and personality they hide from the world, often even themselves. If you accept those parts - sometimes through self-honesty, sometimes for figuring out a way to use those urges for good ends - those Shadows become Personas, the masks people use to help protect themselves from the world, and in the process define who they are as individuals. By admitting the Shadow is a part of you and mastering it, it becomes another aspect of you."

"...y'know, I think I'm getting it." Chie said, slowly. "When I realized I wasn't wrong to keep standing up to Kamoshida and that my, er, nervousness meant I was alive to oppose him in the future, Shadow Chie became Tomoe, didn't she?"

"You've got a natural talent for this!" Morgana beamed, proudly, before growing a bit more serious. "On the other hand, if you keep on indulging in your hidden wants without admitting there might be a reason you're hiding them, even convincing yourself that it's good to have them for whatever reason, the Shadow just gets stronger, and more than that, gets more bold. If Kamoshida's anything like his Shadow - and he probably is - he probably doesn't even view his desires as strange, only that he has to hide them from jealous rivals."

"So the bastard knows what he is, but is too much of a chickenshit to admit it." Ryuji said with a growl. "As if I couldn't hate him enough..."

He paused. "Wait, does that mean there's a Shadow Ryuji somewhere?"

"You're alive, so definitely, but given how you're in a Palace, you probably won't meet him." Morgana clarified with a small shrug. "Personal Shadows don't like going into the Palaces that don't belong to them, for starters. That's probably a good thing, though; nobody likes seeing their worst self."

"I'll take your word for it." Ryuji said with a shiver. "Freaky..."

“So, I was right. They are the same...” Yukiko mused. “But wait a moment… why were you here then? Are you a Shadow?”

Morgana sputtered. "I - wha - of course not!" 

He paused for a second, though. "...I mean, I don't think so. Shadows don't get their own Personas, and I've had Zorro as long as I can remember. I'm pretty sure I'm a human who got caught in a Palace's own distortions and came out with fur. I've been sneaking into Palaces to find some way to undo this..."

"Hey, if it makes you feel better, man? You look pretty cool right now..." Ryuji said with an encouraging smile. "I kinda want one of those scarfs."

"Aw, thanks! So, to get to back to my story, I was inspecting Kamoshida's Palace, and... uh..." The feline suddenly looked away embarrassedly. “And, well, uh… y’see, I was captured, and had my weapons taken away.”

“Well, that explains why you’re now rearmed.” Yukiko nodded. “You probably recovered your gear somewhere, right?”

“Yep!” Morgana mewled happily. “That basically sums it up!”

“Alright, cool, cool, I'm following.” Ryuji interjected. “Though now I'm wondering what kind of 'twisted desires' that asshole put in there...”

Morgana’s cheerful expression suddenly froze. “Well... generally, Palaces have multiple forms of the desire. And, er, I’ve only seen one part of the castle to know this, but… Kamoshida, he, er - ”

(Music Stops)

A soul-rending scream cut through the air, causing everyone except Morgana to jump.

“...keeps the volleyball team here as slaves." He finished with an awkward wince. "And when he's upset, he gets... especially intent on physical punishments."

A dark, dark silence quickly followed.

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

“Wait… what…?” Ryuji whispered in horror. “Y-You mean… he keeps the volleyball team as slaves here…? Like, torture and all…?”

“Yeah.” Morgana shook his head in sadness. “He likes to call it 'training' - though I've heard him call it 'breaking', and I know he likes to use members as examples. He did a lot of that, trying to crack me, telling me he would stop soon as I said something..."

Ryuji’s hands balled up and began trembling in pure, righteous rage. His face visibly darkened with disgust, sadness and fury all wrapped into one.

“Are you actually telling me...” Ryuji whispered shakily, his voice laden with pure fury. “That the piece-of-shit uses this... As his torture chamber...?”

“Huh?” Morgana faltered a little, off-put by his anger. “Well… yeah. I mean, they're - ”

He didn't have a chance to finish his explanation.

"And you didn’t do anything to free them?! Especially not after being treated like shit here?!” Ryuji screamed in pure anger.

Morgana got angry. “You don’t get it! I didn’t save them because - “

What happened next was a blur.

One minute, Ryuji was there.

The next moment, the front doors were open, cracked down the middle due to the sheer power of his furious rage making him a living battering ram.

“Wait, Ryuji!” Chie screamed. “RYUJI, COME BACK! IT'S NOT SAFE IN THERE!” 

“Oh, crap…” Yukiko muttered, before taking off a mad dash.

Without hesitating for a moment, both Yukiko and Chie were in hot pursuit of Ryuji, leaving behind a bewildered Morgana.

“Are you serious?!” Morgana cried out as he caught up. "Seriously, wait for people to explain things first, blondie..."

Indeed, by the time Chie, Yukiko and Morgana was all in the main hall of the Palace, Ryuji was nowhere to be seen – not a single blonde hair across the stairwell.

Chie and Yukiko looked each other in horror at the situation before sighing grimly.

“Well, now…” Yukiko whispered bitterly. “This just turned into a rescue mission.”


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvMKQzL4tPg)

April 12th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Dungeon – ???

The mad rush that occurred then onwards to find Ryuji was, miraculously, one of short work being made of the different shadows throughout the floor. Chie and Morgana have all unquestionably proven their worth in combating the local shadows, so it was hardly any surprise to either of them that they soon cut a swathe through the different guards by themselves. Frustratingly enough, though, there was no luck to be had, and it wasn't long before Chie glanced at Yukiko with a bit of desperation.

“Any luck so far?” Chie asked as Yukiko ran up.

Yukiko shook her head in response. “No, sorry Chie. We just got to keep looking…”

Both girls and Morgana were in the same dungeon they were in when first caught, searching around the castle for any traces of Ryuji. Yukiko inwardly cursed Ryuji for being so damn reckless - he knew perfectly well they kept slaves here, there was going to be security!

“Ugh, he’s such an idiot…” Morgana muttered. “He's trying to save a bunch of mindless dolls!”

Chie looked up. "Huh? I mean, the ones we passed acted kind of servile, but they've been tortured in this weird pocket dimension for who-knows-how-long. It seems kind of harsh to described them like that."

Yukiko opened her mouth - and stopped.

"...why hasn't there been missing persons?"

Chie turned to her, curious.

"I mean, if Kamoshida or Shadow Kamoshida have been abducting volleyball players, they should have vanished from the real world, right? Except there's nothing..."

"Exactly." Morgana said. "Us three and Ryuji are the only real humans here; the slaves are cognitive humans." 

Both girls turned to Morgana with raised eyebrows.

“Wait… what?” Yukiko blinked. “Cognitive humans?”

“Yeah,” Morgana nodded in response. “You know how I told you that all of Kamoshida’s distorted desires coalesce here, in this Palace? Well, the humans you see here aren’t the real-world humans; they’re the representations or interpretations of how Kamoshida sees them.”

Yukiko caught on. "Oh! So they're extensions of the Palace, then? Like cells in a body?"

Morgana looked a little stumped. "Um... If that's anything like fingernails, uh... yeah. They're more like dolls who act out the master of the Palace's opinions and actions towards the real people. They won't do anything Kamoshida doesn't want to think they would do, and even killing them just means they're going to be replaced by an identical copy later on, because his opinions haven't changed."

"So, basically, everyone here is a person Kamoshida thinks is his property." Chie said with a sour expression. "And he thinks he's so invincible, all his slaves are totally loyal... I wish I could say I was surprised..."

"I'm more afraid of encountering a cognitive version of me, now." Yukiko said, bitterly remembering his attempts to manipulate her. "I really don't want to know what I look like to him..."

As the search continued, Yukiko's thoughts eventually turned to the slingshot strapped to Morgana’s side.

“Hey, Morgana,” Yukiko said. “Can I ask something about that slingshot?”

“Huh? Oh, sure. Ask me anything.” Morgana replied.

“Well, I’m just curious." Yukiko began her theory. “Normally slingshots don’t have any tactical usage in combat aside from harassment or distraction. Since the Metaverse is made partly of cognitions, is that helping out?”

“You're getting the hang of this!” Morgana grinned cheekily. “Yeah, you’re right on the nose. In the real world, this slingshot wouldn’t have much use in a fight, but here, in the Metaverse? Because the owner of this Palace perceives it to be a threat, it has the full capabilities of any gun.”

“Huh? Wait a minute…” Chie paused mid-search. “Wait, Monamona.”

“It’s Morgana!”

“Okay, sorry…” Chie began. “So, theoretically speaking, if a model gun looked real… it’d act as a real gun that shoots real bullets because the owner of this Palace sees it as a threat?”

“Yeah, more or less,” Morgana crossed his fuzzy arms together. “That’s more or less the cognitive effects of the Metaverse, in a nutshell.”

Yukiko almost saw a lightbulb light up over Chie’s head. Indeed, the brown-haired tomboy’s eyes widened with jubilant glee as she rummaged through her bag, searching for something.

A couple seconds later, she popped up with two items in her hands: one being a sawed-off shotgun that could be used with one hand, and the other being what appeared to be a portable flamethrower.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

“Ta-daaaaaaaah!” Chie chirped. “Two model guns, at your service!”

“What the – Chie?!” Yukiko took a step back in shock. Sure, they weren’t real guns, but they looked realistic enough to require a permit saying they were fake. "W-Where'd you get the flamethrower?!"

“Yep! Fake artillery for everybody!” Chie grinned goofily. “Mostly I just got them because they looked intimidating, but if my theory’s correct, then they should actually shoot. Here, you have the flamethrower, Yukiko.”

Giving Yukiko the flamethrower with a silver lining on it, Yukiko glanced at the device with nary a look of trepidation on her face. "You, um... sure you don't want to stay clear and all? I've played enough video games to know how much spread a flamethrower has..."

"Oh! Uh, right." Chie laughed awkwardly, before moving out of the way. "You go ahead, Yukiko."

Yukiko nodded, before aiming it down the hallway. After lining up her shot to avoid any flammable items, she pulled the trigger and -

FWOOOSH!

Yukiko nearly jumped out of her skin when the gun spat an actual jet of flame, leaving behind cinders and singes on the stone. A stray leaf promptly caught fire.

“Oh, my God!” Yukiko said gawking. “Chie, you absolutely sure these are models?!”

“One hundred percent!” Chie smiled. “Bought them in preparation for today’s events from that Untouchable store from Shibuya. Really, I just wanted them for the bluff, but I'm not complaining!”

“Woah…” Morgana suddenly broke into a devilish smile. “Mweheheheheh!”

“Perfect! This is absolutely perfect!” Morgana almost jumped for joy. “This gives us a serious tactical advantage fighting the Shadows. So long as we’re careful with the ammunition, we’ll be able to fill our enemies full of holes!”

"And if there's any zombies, they'll surrender without a fight." Chie said as she hoisted her miniature boomstick, grinning even more evilly than Morgana. 

“Well, I think this is really great.” Yukiko began. “But do remember, we do need to find Ryuji before he’s caught by those Shadows; unlike the slaves, he doesn't come back after Kamoshida's punishments. We’ve already wasted enough time as it is; let’s get a move on!”

“Agreed completely!” Chie nodded. “Alright, let’s go!”

And with it, all three budding Phantom Thieves rushed through the dungeon in the hopes of finding Ryuji.


(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

April 12th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Training Hall of Love – ???

Ryuji thought he knew what to expect.

Ryuji was wrong.

"H... Holy shit." He whispered, aghast the gallery of horrors before him.

'Breaking' students was definitely a better term than 'training.' There was a machine where the students were teased with a water jug on a conveyor belt, students being beaten into submission by the guards for momentary slacking, even a room where one guy was pelted with volleyballs out of a effing cannon.

Nobody deserved this. He didn't care who they were, this place was Kamoshda's personal hell, and they needed to be free.

“Hey!” Ryuji cried out. “Come on! I’m here you rescue you all!”

A boy in a nearby cage shook his head, not bothering to look up. “I-It’s no use…”

“Huh?” Ryuji questioned. “What the hell do you mean, ‘it’s no use’?”

“That’s because there’s no escape.” The boy spoke in complete despair. “This is the only way we'll be worth anything, if we obey King Kamoshida's orders."

“What the f…?!” Ryuji had never heard anything more repulsive to him in his life. “That bastard doesn't give a shit about you! You gotta escape! Please, come on - "

“Ryuji!”

Ryuji was snapped out of his rant, turning towards the source of Chie's voice to find her, Morgana, and Yukiko running towards him.

Chie cried out as both she, Yukiko and Morgana rushed towards the delinquent. Ryuji noticed a little blood was spattered on them, of a dark black color.

“Oh thank God, what the hell took you guys so – what the hell is that?!” Ryuji cried out, suddenly noticing something very dark and organic covering them. “Is... is that goddamn blood!?”

“Ran into a few Shadows on the way here." Yukiko said, completely casually. "They didn't want to leave. But that's beside the point - these people you can't save them!"

“What the hell are you saying?!” Ryuji screamed. "There’s no way in fucking hell I’m leaving people in here! After seeing what Kamoshida did to them, I can’t look the other way! I JUST CAN’T!”

Ryuji turned to the cell. “Forget everything else! I gotta free - “

“CALM DOWN!”

(Music Stops)

Suddenly, Ryuji felt a hand impact him at maximum speed in the face and knock him to the ground.

“Ryuji, get a hold of yourself and for once just listen!” Chie barked, withdrawing from the slap. “These aren’t real humans! They're dummies made by Kamoshida’s mind!”

(Music Playing – Alleycat - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIm5T2HpwLk)

“H-Huh?!” Ryuji was shocked. “D... Dummies?”

“I know, what’s happening here is disgusting and horrible.” Chie shook her head. “But they’re even less real than Shadows - they're just extensions of that asshole's mind. The real humans are in the real world, and this is all Kamoshida’s perception of them.”

“Huh…?” Ryuji blinked. “But... they're hurting...” He said, after fumbling around for a bit

"And that's the trap," Morgana said, sympathetically. "They react with pain because Kamoshida wants them to. But that's literally their only purpose for existing. What thought they have exists to serve him, and they literally can't understand freedom. Kamoshida doesn't think in terms like that. They exist only to suffer for his sake, and the only way to stop it is to destroy the Palace."

"...wait." Yukiko said, suddenly realizing something. "If they are part of the Palace... and it goes..."

"Then the cognitive humans will go with it." Morgana said, grimly.

Ryuji stared at the felid thief. "...wow. That's... that's fucked up, man." Ryuji said, feeling the need to say it. 

"I know. But they are just thoughts Kamoshida is having - and honestly, if the only thing you could feel was pain and gratitude towards your torturer for it not being worse..." Morgana let that hang in the air.

"...son of a bitch." Ryuji said, simply and rather generously to Kamoshida.

“...but this doesn’t mean we give up, Ryuji.” Chie nodded. “These people are clones of the real volleyball team and mimic their treatment, right? If we get records, we can bring Kamoshida to justice in the real world. I know it’s hard to look the other way, but channel that anger and kindness into something good; use it to bring him to the police like the criminal he is.”

Ryuji fell silent as Chie concluded.

“Please, Ryuji. It's time for me to believe in you.”

The delinquent sighed, remembering how overjoyed Chie was for him to tell her it wasn't just her.

Truth was, he wanted to cry a little upon seeing all of this horror first-hand. But, she was right; he had to think of the non-cognitive people first.

“Alright.” Ryuji nodded. “Um… thanks Chie. You really saved me there.”

“No problem,” Chie nodded. “Just be sure to use the camera, okay? I promise we’ll bring Kamoshida to justice.”

“Alright, yeah,” Ryuji brought out his phone. “Let’s take pictures and… huh!? Aw, goddamn it the camera doesn’t work!”

“Huh?” Yukiko asked. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that I can’t take a picture! I can’t even open the app!” Ryuji grumbled. “Guess I just gotta memorize them…”

“Alright, good. Let’s just get this done. The sooner, the better.” Morgana nodded.

“R-Right. Let's do this," he said. "Okay... first guy, brown hair, mole on cheek, brown hair, mole on cheek... crap, right cheek! Mole on right cheek, brown hair..."


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave (Another Version) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtHS36Cw8Hg)

April 12th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Main Hall – ???

After taking some time to memorize the athlete’s faces - and Ryuji figuring out a good mnemonic - all four of the group finally were ready to depart. Ryuji looked at Chie with a small smile on his face.

“Hey, um…” Ryuji grinned. “Thanks for helping me out, there. I don’t know how I could thank you properly.”

“Nah, it’s no problem.” Chie grinned cheerfully. “If it’s any consolidation, I would’ve rushed in too if Morgana hadn't explained things.”

"Yeah, that was my bad." Ryuji said with an awkward smile. "Still, no harm, no foul - and we have all the more reason to take down that piece of shit Kamoshida…”

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

“How dare you talk of your king like that?”

All four escapees froze upon hearing a familiar, demonic voice.

“So that's where he went…” Yukiko whispered.

Shadow Kamoshida appeared from the door leading deeper into, still dressed in his obscene outfit.

He gave a cocky grin as guards fanned out to block all the exits.

“Well, well, well.” Shadow Kamoshida said as he gave a slow clap. “It seems this past couple days had a silver lining after all, even if I'm kind of amazed that most of you knaves haven't forgotten to breathe, making the same mistake over and over again. Guards! Grab Sakamoto!”

Before anyone could react, a gold-armored Shadow guard rushed out, grabbing Ryuji in a tackle as the others blocked his companions from getting to him.

“Ryuji!” Chie screamed out as the guard lowered a sword at his throat.

“Don’t move an inch!” Shadow Kamoshida barked. “Take one step, and the captain here sees how red this annoying little punk's blood is when it's spurting out of his neck!”

“A-Aagh! Someone! Help!” Ryuji screamed out as she struggled wildly, unable to do much against the supernatural strength of the guard.

“N-No! Ryuji!” Chie cried out. “Damnit… what do we do?!”

“First of all, shut up while I'm talking to the other rock in my shoe. I wanna catch up a bit.” Shadow Kamoshida walked over to Ryuji before giving him a dark glare.

“Good to see you again, Sakamoto.” Shadow Kamoshida began, smirking. “Or should I call you ‘The Traitor of the Track Team’? I wonder if you and Satonaka should start a club for catchy insults; lord knows there's some other idiots who'd join up.”

“What the… Kamoshida?!” Ryuji screamed out. “This isn’t funny, you fucking asshole! Leggo!”

“Careful, Ryuji!” Morgana cried out. “Shadow Kamoshida's partly a Persona - he's way stronger than his guards!”

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

Shadow Kamoshida’s face darkened, ignoring Morgana. “Honestly, seeing you in person again… I’m amazed at how far the star runner's fallen.”

Yukiko looked up. "Huh!?"

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

“What, you've been running, or limping, with him all this time. Don't tell me you didn't notice how he slouches when he stands.” Kamoshida scoffed. "It's not a statement. It's so he doesn't screw up his leg worse than when he just had to be a bit short with me."

“Stop it…” Ryuji whimpered. “Fuck, I dunno what you’re talking about!”

“Seriously?! Still lying to protect yourself from the consequences of your actions?” Kamoshida cackled. “It’s because of your incompetence and violence that led you to where you are now. I can't even begin to describe the pain and shame the others felt as they were dragged under the surface by your... selfish act.”

"You asshole... that's not your story to tell!" Chie said, gritting her teeth.

"Why not? It involves me, and by the looks of it, Amagi doesn't know what kind of delinquents she's hanging with." He turned towards her. "Long story short, he betrayed his teammates and crushed their hopes, and he still carries on, carefree as ever. Despite the reminder I gave him."

Ryuji sweat. "That's not true..."

"Oh, my bad!" Kamoshida said in mock surprise. "I forgot, the air was feeling feisty and tried to raise its hand against me that day? Honestly, though, I'm surprised you forgot my kindness in temporarily supervising track practice, Sakamoto."

Yukiko suddenly remembered just how "kind" the real Kamoshida was when he turned Mochida loose on her and Chie.

Ryuji confirmed her suspicions. "Wasn't no practice! It was physical abuse- you just didn't like our team!"

Kamoshida growled. "It was nothing but an eyesore! The only one that needs to achieve results is me! The coach who got fired was hopeless too - if he had been sensible and not brought up a sound argument to oppose me, I'd have been satisfied in breaking his star's leg."

Everyone took a moment to process that. Including Ryuji.

"...what?", the former runner asked, tonelessly.

"Want me to get the other one too? The school will call it self-defense anyway!"

Yukiko brought her hand to her mouth in horrified awe at the scope of this. He's even willing to kill bits of his own school just so he's the center of attention!? How do you keep getting worse every bit I learn more about you!?

Kamoshida gave a grin as he glanced at the three Persona users with a smirk. “Now, let us discuss terms for his release! You girls become my pleasure slaves, and Ryuji gets sent free… sounds like a deal?”

“Huh? ‘Pleasure slaves’?” Yukiko said, stumbling back.

“D-Disgusting! Not in a million years!” Chie barked out.

Yukiko didn’t have much time to understand what he meant as he saw Ryuji look defeated, muttering to himself something.

“Damn it…” Ryuji looked ready to cry. “I got myself into this mess, ruined the track team, and now this… I’m really worthless, aren’t it…?”

“...Ryuji, stop it. You know that isn’t true.”

(Music Stops)

“H-Huh?” Ryuji perked is head upon seeing Yukiko.

“Stand up for yourself, for one! You’re better than this!” Yukiko cried out. "The very reason you're even here is because you don't let this lying, manipulative sack of shit tell you what to do! Don't let him start now!”

Ryuji looked on, and suddenly felt his resolve strengthen. She was right.

He didn't back down before. Why would he back down now?

“You’re right…” Ryuji seethed. “Letting this motherfucker screw with my head… this fucking bastard is behind all of it…”

“Hrm…?” Shadow Kamoshida scoffed, getting closer to him. “What do you have anything to show for it? All you are is a worthless piece of garba - “

Unwisely closer, as it turned out, as Ryuji's legs were still free.

As Kamoshida stumbled back from the sudden kick to the crotch, the guard holding Ryuji stumbled from sheer shock, letting Ryuji elbow him and break free.

“GYAAAGH! FUCK!” Shadow Kamoshida cried out in a bit of a higher tone than before. “How dare you harm the prizes of the kingdom you ill-bred little - "

“Shut up you fucking asshole!” Ryuji screamed out. “Everything’s your fault! You’re the reason why Chie and me have to go through hell every school day! You’re the reason why so many students had their futures ruined! And YOU’RE the reason why the track team is gone! Who gives you the fucking right to be proud of yourself!?”

With a hateful, angry stare of fury, he shouted loudly at Shadow Kamoshida.

“So stop looking down on me, WITH THAT STUPID SMILE ON YOUR FACE!”

(Music Playing – Awakening – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9APGl1dSaw8)

You made me wait quite a while…

Suddenly, a splitting headache shook through Ryuji, and he instinctively clutched his head. Screaming loudly, he began to thrash about, causing the guards to instinctively defend themselves in confusion.

You seek power, correct? Then let us forge a pact. After all, your name has been tarnished and disgraced, so why not hoist the flag and wreak havoc? The other you desires it such. I am thou… thou art I… there is no turning back… the skull of rebellion shall be YOUR FLAG HENCEFORTH!

Suddenly, a mask with a clear, black skull motif was burned onto Ryuji’s face, and he began hearing a voice.

“I… I hear you…” Ryuji whispered, his mind still in shock. “My other self…”

Yes… good, good… you take to this newfound strength well. From the high seas of thy soul’s plunder and piracy, I cometh…

With all his willpower, he ripped off his mask, screaming in pain all the while.

The increasingly familiar blue fire jetted out, knocking the guards away.

Only this time, electricity sparked in the air.

(Music Playing – Will Power – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqqhuZd8IXU)

From the blue, electrical aura stood giant, skeletal pirate on top of a giant ship floated behind Ryuji, who was now dressed in a leather biker outfit with black, red and yellow being predominant colors. 

"Wha...?" Kamoshida began, sounding more exasperated than anything after recovering. "This one as well?!"

"R-Right on..." Ryuji said, his expression slowly turning smug and elated. "Wassup, Persona?"

“Wow…” Chie gawked. “Ryuji had the power too…?!”

"So that's why he got the app!" Yukiko muttered to herself. "Nice work, Ryuji!"

“Ain't it… this effin' rocks!” Ryuji began, clearly excited. “Now that I have this power, it’s time for payback!”

Kamoshida snarled as he fell back. “I'm tired of this... guards! Kill them all!”

“At once, my lord!” Ryuji's former captor said, before dissolving.

The gunk of Shadow-stuff reformed into a rather more impressive red-and-black demonic knight on top of a horse, as two of his fellows became two dark horses with ram-like horns. “You shall know true fear, you brat!”

“Ha! Hey asshole, empty threats ain't worth shit!” Ryuji pointed his figure at one of the horned horses. “Blast ‘em away, Captain Kidd!”

Indeed, with two mighty lightning strikes, a bolt of energy evaporated the equine on the left, with another bolt mortally wounding the one of the right.

“Alright, good job Ryuji!” Chie ripped off her mask. “Tomoe! Freeze ‘em solid!”

With a spin of her naginata, Tomoe encased the demon in pure ice, shattering the other horse.

“Grrr… you have the unremitting gall to defy our lord?!” The demonic knight barked. “You troublemakers shall pay for the King's irritation with your deaths!”

“Kamoshida's cognition ain't changing, right? Then I'll act like the troublemaker I am!” Ryuji barked. “Any day he's miserable is a good day for everyone else!”

Yukiko nodded in agreement. “Speaking of, ready to ruin today?”

“And it sure as hell won't be the last!” Ryuji summoned his Persona once more. “Alright, Captain… SHOCK ‘EM!”

With another bolt of lightning, the demonic knight was mortally wounded, emitting a pained scream as he collapsed.

“Impossible…” The demonic knight wheezed. “I, Eligor, was defeated by you…?!”

“Hmph…” Ryuji smirked as Eligor dissipated into ichor. “Next time, pick a better leader to work with!”

(Music Stops)

As the carnage finally subsided, Ryuji cracked his knuckles in approval.

“Let that be a lesson to you, you effing asshole!” Ryuji barked.

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

“A-Ah…” Kamoshida whimpered, looking on at the devastation of his army, before giving himself a shake, regaining his confidence. "Whatever. More of them show up every day. After all, in my castle, there's no shortage of people who are willing to die for me..."

Yukiko shivered. "...do the lives of your guards mean nothing to you!?"

"Eh, guards come, guards go, and - hell, it's not like you care for them any more than I do, what with how you've been carving through them. Besides, if I really want people to adore me directly, I have others for that." He snapped his fingers. "Ann! Your king has need of you!"

The doors behind Kamoshida opened, and everyone else in the room promptly lost their blissful ignorance as to what, exactly, Kamoshida's view of women was.

The cognitive human who came out of the main hall, settling into the perverted King's arm with a vapid, ditzy expression looked like Takamaki, blonde pigtails and all, but Yukiko guessed the real one would have run screaming from the room, and possibly Tokyo on foot, upon seeing the outfit she was dressed in.

Namely, cat ears, a tiara studded with rubies, a pink, leopard print bikini... and absolutely nothing else.

Welp... Yukiko thought after her inner monologue stopped screaming. I think I can guess why she looks so miserable all the time. I wonder if Igor can induce amnesia...

"...oh, God." Chie said, turning a bit green. "Oooooh, God."

"... Takamaki?!" Ryuji said, still a bit stunned.

Morgana was stunned too-for different reasons. "Oh... what a meow-velous and beautiful girl..."

"Um, we're literally looking at a... pedophile fantasy of a real teenage girl, Morgana." Yukiko began, glaring at Morgana. "Are you sure you want to continue this line of thought?"

Morgana blushed, before looking a little queasy himself, "...she's a teenager? And he's..." He looked over Kamoshida. "... I feel unclean..."

Kamoshida chuckled. "How many times do I have to tell you until you understand? This is my castle - a place I can do whatever I want. Everyone sane wishes to be loved by me."

The cognitive Ann gave a vapid giggle. "Like, totally! My place exists to serve my King!"

Chie gagged. "...I've never been so glad to be nuts, I guess..."

"What, don't tell me you're boyish in more than one way?" Kamoshida began, mockingly. "Not that'd it'd matter; no matter the gender, women aren't drawn to problematic punks like any of you."

And he's kinda homophobic. Charming asshole. Yukiko thought, bleakly. I think my school is partly run by the human embodiment of sleaze.

"And to be frank, I'm done with today, so I'm going to enjoy the benefits of being king while you people leave or die. Don't really care right now." He flicked his fingers at them in a "buzz off" gesture. "Clean 'em up!"

As more guards continued to rush down to the scene, the newly-awakened Ryuji looked at his friends and nodded.

“I think it’s high-time we ran for it.” Ryuji began. “C’mon, let’s go!”

“Don’t need to tell me twice!” Chie grimaced as all four Persona-users ran.


(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

April 12th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Entrance – ???

After another harrowing escape through a vent Morgana had scouted out, all four Persona-users were ready to plop down in exhaustion.

“Alright, I think we’re in the clear…” Morgana muttered. “Mental scarring aside... Ryuji, that was incredible! To think you had the potential too..."

“Heh!” Ryuji gave a cocky grin. “Well, Mom always said that deep down I was special… man, I love Ma.”

“I think all of us are.” Yukiko smiled. “We’re all human, do remember.”

“Yeah…” Ryuji smiled. “Guys… you can't begin to imagine the solid you did for me right there. I don’t think I would’ve gotten out alive without you.” He shivered. "Especially given... everything we saw..."

"Can we not talk about that until tomorrow, please? I'm going to need more than steak to get... that out of my head.” Chie winced, before smiling warmly. “Still, don’t sweat it! That’s what friends are for!”

"Believe me, knowing how he views... everyone would just make us more intent on rescuing you." Yukiko said. "Nobody deserves being stuck in there, you least of all."

"Yeah, so..." He looked down on himself. "I guess the duds come with the Persona? Gotta be honest, I was kinda expecting more skin given, uh... both of you." he said with a blush.

"Yeah, why is that!?", Chie began, annoyed with whatever cosmic deity above screwed her over. "Is there less of a clothing budget for girls or something - "

"Shh!" Morgana cut in. "Listen."

The sounds of clanking guard armor echoed through the courtyard.

"Did you find them?!"

"No! Checking the other hallway!" The clanking got quieter, presumably as the guard sped down a more distant corridor.

"Right..." Chie began, watching her voice. "So... why'd he get the, you know... sensible outfit?"

"It's a side effect of being a Persona-user that opposes the ruler of a Palace." Morgana explained. "When a Palace's ruler perceives you as a threat, your Persona conjures the idea of a rebel that lies in your heart to protect you from distortions. Otherwise, you might end up like me, or worse."

"...so, you're telling me that my idea of a rebel doesn't have a shirt?" Chie sighed. "Freud would have a field day..."

"Leaving aside all that..." Ryuji said, feeling the outline of his mask. "Is this... a skull?"

"I guess you could consider that the physical form of Captain Kidd when he's not out. Hence why everyone has a mask; they're Personas in their most inactive and literal form of 'masks of the self.'"

"Yeah, mostly I'm just relieved this means there ain't a Shadow Ryuji any more. I don't think I'd ever get along with some of the things in my brain."

Suddenly, his eyes widened. "Oh, we're in deep shit!"

"What part of 'quiet' don't you understand!?" Morgana hissed.

"That Kamoshida is kind of real-world Kamoshida's Persona, right!? He's going to tell, and then we've got nothing on that one - "

"I see your point, but take it from experience - they don't communicate," Yukiko cut in. "I think Chie and me would have been thrown back in, after the first time we ended up here."

"If they did, Shadow Kamoshida would be a Persona, not his Shadow." Morgana agreed. "The real Kamoshida doesn't want to see his dark side, so he doesn't even know about him."

"...so we're okay. Phew." Ryuji said. "Anyway, I think I recognized a couple of the guys there. So, I'm thinking-"

(Music Stops)

"Wait," Morgana cut in. "I guided you as promised. It's your turn to cooperate with me. That's why I was super nice teaching you amateurs everything."

Ryuji, this being the first he had ever heard of this, was understandably confused. "Uh... what?"

Morgana turned to the girls in the group. "Remember? I originally came here for an investigation. I need to erase the distortion from my body and return to my original form. That's why we must delve deep into Mementos and - "

"Dive into where!?" Yukiko said, a little annoyed. "You didn't say anything about anywhere else!"

"I was strapped for time!" Morgana said, not sounding guilty at all. "That was part of the agreement to help me regain my human form."

Yukiko looked at Chie, frustrated - before she had an idea.

"Well... If we're talking semantics, you made deal with me and Chie." Yukiko said, turning to Morgana with a mischievous grin. "Quite simply, you're asking him to join it, which is a breach of contract, and renders that promise null and void."

“WHAT?!”

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

Morgana recoiled in shock. “B-But I helped you and taught you the basics of surviving the Metaverse! Aren’t you gonna repay me in some form?! You're part of my master plan already!”

“We’d love to, buuuuuuut…” Chie grinned alongside Yukiko. “Well, it has been an exhausting day, and I need to start working on obliterating all memory of the Palace. So next time!”

"Yeah, you kind of asked for that," Ryuji said with a shrug. "Besides, I need to crash after all that. Maybe tomorrow, but right now? No, thank you!"

“Huh?!” Morgana’s eyes widened. “Oh, hell no! Don’t you leave without me, goddamnit! Is this because I'm not human!? Because I look like a cat?!”

“It’s been a fun journey, Morgana.” Ryuji bowed courteously. “You weren’t bad at all… for a cat.”

With that, the three new friends departed the pocket world.

“Oh, HELL NO! WE HAD A DEAL!” Morgana screamed. “GET BACK HERE! ARRRGH!”

And with that, Morgana scurried off after them as fast as his furry legs could carry him.


(Music Playing – Break it Down (Elp Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

April 12th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome, Alleyway Shortcut – 3:54 PM

"You have returned to the real world." the mechanical voice of the Meta-Nav chirped. "Welcome back."

Yukiko, Chie and Ryuji, back in their school outfits, promptly collapsed into the walls of the alley, breathing heavily.

“Oh, thank God...” Ryuji muttered, releasing an exhausted moan. “We’re back in the real world, aren’t we?”

“Seems like it,” Chie said, rubbing her forehead “I mean, I hope we are… this little adventure is getting more and more surreal by the day…”

“And sleazy. Don't forget sleazy.” Yukiko wiped some sweat from her brow, shivering at the mental image of the cognitive Takamaki.

Ryuji took a few breaths before getting up to his feet. "Yeah, and I'm kinda responsible for you being dragged around a lot... sorry guys." He shook himself a bit. “Well, that really isn’t the important thing here. What’s really important is now we can bring Kamoshida down; if we can get any of the volleyball team to show that any of that crap was real, this is gonna get good!”

Yukiko and Chie glanced at each other before smiling. He was right; their efforts hadn’t been in vain whatsoever.

And when that happened, there’s no doubt in Yukiko nor Chie’s mind that justice would be served, and Kamoshida's would go down in flames.

“Still though…” Yukiko said, thinking. “Ryuji, you didn’t summon any weapons when you awakened to your Persona. Why is that?”

“Huh?” Ryuji cocked an eyebrow. “Wait, you had weapons, Yukiko-chan?”

Yukiko rummaged through her bag before revealing the bladed pink fan she obtained after her own awakening.

“Oh yeah, that’s actually a good point…” Chie rubbed her chin a little. “You do need weapons to defend yourself… say, Ryuji-kun, you up for being shotgun buddied? I've got an unsawed variant in my bag, too.”

“Huh?!” Ryuji was caught off-guard by that. “Dude, we can’t use guns! Besides, how are a bunch of high-schoolers supposed to get one!?”

“Through this!” Chie brought out her model sawed-off shotgun from earlier, much to Ryuji’s bewildered surprise. “Trust me, due to how the Metaverse works, model guns function as real ones as long as they look real.”

“Huh?! For real?!” Ryuji’s eyes were wide with shock. “Well, that would explain why you had that flamethrower slung over Yukiko's back.”

As if changing his tune, Ryuji gave a smarmy grin. “Alright, count me in! Though, I'd like bludgeons for melee.”

“That can be arranged! Granted, I’d prefer if we’d do that later.” Chie looked down at her stomach. “And as much as I'd like to start raking that pervert over the coals now, I’m pretty darn famished! Yukiko, you up for some egg ramen?”

“Huh?” Now that Yukiko thought about it, she realized she was hungry. Apparently, life-or-death stakes burned through calories like - well, her flamethrower and Shadow gunk.

Besides, the potential taste of a good bowl of ramen is pretty hard to beat.

“Alright, count me in!” Yukiko smiled. “Let’s see if there’s any good ramen places nearby…”

“Ooh! Ooh!” Ryuji cracked a joyous smile. “I know a great place! You don’t mind if we head over to Ogikubo, do you?”

“Well, if the ramen’s good, I can hardly complain!” Chie grinned. “Man, now I’m really hungry! Forward, my comrades! To meat and GLORY!”

It took all of Yukiko’s willpower to not burst out laughing as Chie ran forth. Ryuji simply smiled at Yukiko with his arms crossed.

“Hey, um… Yukiko.”

Yukiko turned to meet Ryuji’s eyes, and gave a small grin. “Yeah? What is it?”

“Well, uh…” Ryuji scratched the back of his head somewhat awkwardly. “I, um… want to thank you for helping me awaken to my Persona. I’ve been powerless before that son of a bitch for ages, and you gave me the kick in the ass I needed to stand up for myself. I appreciate it, y’know that?”

“Ryuji-kun…” Yukiko gave a happy smile, and shook Ryuji’s extended hand. He was a genuinely good kid, without a doubt in Yukiko’s mind, she had no doubt that this would be the start of a strong friendship.

“Hey, um… I heard you were on probation,” Ryuji smiled. “Maybe you can explain to me what really happened when we get to the ramen shop?”

For a moment, her old fears of being a pariah again came rushing back...

And then she remembered exactly how little Chie cared even before she knew the context.

“Sure,” Yukiko chuckled. “I’ll be happy to explain to you what happened.”


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

“It would normally be easier for a Phantom Thief to work alone, or with a single partner, like you with Chie.” Sae began with the drugged Yukiko. “But you found benefits in more than one accomplice, with these allies of yours helping you along the way.”

Sae proceeded to slam her hands on the table.

“Who else was involved with you?!”


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

April 12th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome, Alleyway Shortcut – 4:01 PM

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Chariot Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

CHARIOT (VII) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music Playing – Break it Down (Elp Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

Yukiko chuckled to herself as Ryuji pumped his fist into the air. “Alright, let’s go get some ramen!”

And with that, both teenagers folloed after Chie.


(Music Playing – Alright –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26lSlN5Ca0w)

April 12th, 2016 – Ogikubo, Ramen Shop – 4:29 PM

“WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!”

Ryuji and Chie almost dropped their pork ramen bowls in shock upon hearing Yukiko recount the story why she was banished to Tokyo.

...well, Chie didn't. She had heard this already, but did at being point blank range of Ryuji's grenade of a voice. 

“You’re tellin’ me that helping a woman from assault got you put on probation?!” Ryuji screamed out to nobody in particular. “THAT’S FUCKING BULLSHIT! IF I WERE YOU, I’D BE FUCKING PISSED!”

“Lower your voice!” Yukiko hissed. “Do you want to cause a scene, you idiot!?”

“Seriously!” Chie was also yelled. “We're sitting right here!"

“Ugh, both of you are hopeless…” You could almost see a large blob of sweat drop down Yukiko’s forehead.

“Mmfyeah, fhutever,” Ryuji proceeded to continue to wolf down the pork ramen. “Sho lheme get dis streght, yur tellin me yu hilpd out a whomin who whas bein’ shtuffed into a char, and yu got put on probation fhor it?!”

“Eeeugh…” Yukiko almost wanted to gag a little. “Ryuji, please eat with your mouth closed before you choke!”

With a mighty gulp, Ryuji swallowed the mass of meat and noodles. “Alright, alright, cool. I think I kinda get it at this point… still, really?! That’s some grade-A bullshit if I’ve ever heard it!”

“Wait…” Yukiko blinked. “You don’t believe me?”

“Sorry, wrong bullshit!” Ryuji quickly corrected. “It was the reasoning for the system fucking you over that was the grade-A bullshit here… like, you didn’t even do anything wrong, man! You were helping that woman, and what you got for it was a probation sentence?! Ugh… this really pisses me off.”

“Well, um…” Yukiko smiled gently. “Thanks for your concern, Ryuji. Chie, what do you think?”

“Mmruh?” Chie garbled. “Mrrure, mrhtnks tht ish a buncha burrshiet tu.”

“Oh, for the love of…” Yukiko wanted to facepalm. “That applies to you too, Chie!”

Chie gulped the last of her bowl of pork ramen. “Ahhh…! Delicious! Excuse me, I’ll have one meat udon, please!”

“She’s not even listening…” Yukiko exhaled audibly.

“Well, you gotta appreciate her dedication,” Ryuji gave a cheeky grin. “I don’t know many people who can take on a four different bowls of meat udon and pork ramen and still be standing… aside from myself, of course. And I have an excuse of still running, even if I can't do it at professional speeds no more...”

“I can imagine.” Yukiko snorted a little. “She really does seem to love her meat…”

Suddenly, Ryuji’s face visibly darkened, before sighing softly.

“You know…” Ryuji began. “We used to come here after a successful race back when the track team was still here. Whether it’d be practice or a successful match, we always visited this joint for a nice hot bowl of noodles.”

Ryuji looked down, depressed. “Then Kamoshida came along, and he… well, he ruined everything.”

“Ryuji…” Yukiko bit her lip softly. Just like herself, Ryuji was falsely blamed for a crime he didn’t commit; only in this case, it’s less being charged for assault after rescuing a woman from rape and more pissing off Kamoshida to the point where he used it as an excuse to take down the track team. Yukiko simply bit her lip.

“Hey, Ryuji…” Yukiko began. “If you you don't mind me asking... how did Kamoshida take down the track team…?”

Ryuji thought on it. "...screw it. You know the general shape, and I know your story, so, here goes." 

He inhaled, readying for a bit of a story. “One day, our normal coach had to call in sick… got some kind of nasty disease. Kamoshida stepped in as our substitute coach, and the piece of shit did everything in his power to bring the track team down. And I mean everything – he made us run around the school dozens of times with no water, and anyone who stopped was ruthlessly beaten by him. He said it was an ‘Olympian method,’ but it was really a bullshit excuse to get us gone.”

Ryuji bit his lip, looking ready to cry. “Then, one of the weaker, newer kids broke his leg, and Kamoshida began pummeling him for his ‘carelessness’… and that’s when I had it. When I confronted the fucker later that day, I punched him right in his stupid fucking nose. I broke it, but it was exactly the kind of excuse he needed to shut us down… everything about the track team was wiped from the books, I was suspended for a few days, put in the danger zone of expulsion, and everyone hated me for it. It was really a bunch of bullshit when you broke it down.”

"Huh." Yukiko paused. "You and I are far more alike than it first appears at first glance. And you and Chie, come to think of it."

"Yep. All screwed over by bullshitter old men and turned into pariahs." Ryuji merely sighed bitterly before smiling at Yukiko. “But enough of my own pity party of a story. There’s going to be a teacher versus student volleyball match tomorrow. Something for “promoting student fitness” or some horseshit like that. That’s where we find all the abused students and make ‘em confess and bring the fucker to justice!”

Ryuji simply pumped his fists into the air. “Just you wait, Kamoshida! We’re gonna bring you DOWN!”

“Aaah…! Delicious, delicious, delicious…!”

Chie sighed happily as Yukiko crossed her arms.

“Chie? How many bowls did you have so far?”

“H-Huh?” Chie suddenly turned a deep shade of red. “Ummm… six?”

“Oh, Chie…” Yukiko wanted to facepalm right then and there. “C’mon, we’re leaving. Rush hour’s gonna occur soon.”

“Aww, you’re going already…?” Ryuji sighed. “Alright, but can we at least get everyone's phone number and chat ID before we go? It’d be nice if we got to keep in touch.”

Yukiko and Chie gleamed at Ryuji. After exchanging their contacts, the three made their way back home.


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx-6-wAid70)

April 12th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 7:48 PM

“Ah, you’re back! Good to see the map quiz worked.” Sojiro smiled as Yukiko walked in. Upon stepping inside, the inn maiden noticed a teal-haired woman in a punk outfit. Contrary to her outfit, she bowed politely after leaving a tip.

“Thanks for the coffee, Sojiro.” the woman spoke. “You have yourself a nice day.”

With that, she bypassed Yukiko, making that woman the last guest of the day.

"...that woman seemed a bit younger than your usual clients." Yukiko commented. "It's my instincts as an innkeeper, but do you mind my asking?"

“Dr. Tae Takemi. Yes, doctor. Of medicine.” Sojiro shook his head. “She’s a rather, er, unique character, if the title contrasted with the outfit didn't clue you in.”

“Politeness and punk outfits are always an odd juxtaposition. Though strangely enough, not the weirdest person I've ever met." Yukiko shrugged. “So, how was your day, Sakura-san?”

“You can call me Boss or Sojiro if you like. We're a bit better known to each other, we don't have to be so polite all the time.” Sojiro gave a cheeky smile. “And it was good, thanks for asking. Business was really slow, what with the recent psychotic breakdown happening near here.”

As he said that, he pointed to the TV.

“And yet another psychotic breakdown occurred!” A commentator on the TV spoke. “And we’re paying our taxes to a police force that can’t even put these incidents to a close? I would advise the commissioner follow the Minister of Transportation's advice and resign to let someone competent take the reins!”

“I heard they're getting desperate, too.” The other commentator said with a smirk. “I hear they're putting Goro Akechi, age 17, the second Detective Prince on the case.”

“Yeah.” The commentator said with a snort. “Number two in many ways. Such as the fact that the geniuses in the police somehow think even one child playing pretend was a good idea."

Sojiro sighed. “Typical gossip… it's like they're trying to replace the concept of news with pundits these days. But if nothing else, I'm relieved that Takemi didn't have more work today. Anyway, you look tired. Get yourself a nice sleep and get ready for tomorrow, okay? I heard about the volleyball PE tomorrow.”

Yukiko hoped the expression on her face looked like a polite smile instead of what she had termed the Presence of Kamoshida Grimace. "I... hope it will be eventful." In the sense of a bomb going off in that asshole's face. “Have a good night.”

“You yourself.” With a final nod, Sojiro locked the door for the night.


(Music Continues)

April 12th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 7:51 PM

As Yukiko proceeded up the stairs, she was almost oblivious to her phone going off.

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

Ry-yee-ji: man, that was some gooooooooooooood udon and ramen

Ry-yee-ji: i’m STILL full ffs

steak trash: i vomited a little… ༼ ಥ﹏لಥ ༽ ᵘgᵍʰ

Yukiko Amagi: Kinda serves you right for eating that much, Chie.

Yukiko Amagi: Also, Ryuji, what’s up with that username?

Ry-yee-ji: oh, this? it’s…

Ry-yee-ji: well, its gotta be seen to be believed

Yukiko Amagi: Oh, boy…

Ry-yee-ji: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6EoRBvdVPQ

steak trash: w8, what the

steak trash: wow

steak trash: W O W

Yukiko Amagi: awfkak laewfrhawDI ASFAWYU9Q83298EAQWS iondaoswfnaeiosw

steak trash: ryuji, i think u broke yukiko

Ry-yee-ji: RIP yukiko

Ry-yee-ji: press f to pay respects

steak trash: pffft, FPSs are for western plebes

steak trash: JRPGs and bullet hells 4lyfe!!!

Yukiko Amagi: Heey… I like FPSs…

Ry-yee-ji: SHES BACK FROM THE DEAD

Ry-yee-ji: THERE IS A GOD

Yukiko Amagi: Sorry, had a massive laughing fit.

Yukiko Amagi: I think I accidently sent a recording of myself…

steak trash: omfg, really?

steak trash: SHOW IT, PLS

Yukiko Amagi: I-If you say so…

Yukiko Amagi has sent a recording

Ry-yee-ji: holy fucking shit

Ry-yee-ji: yuki terumi, eat your heart out

steak trash: its like spongebob squarepants, the joker and a hyenas respective souls all fused to create Yukikos

Ry-yee-ji: wait, chie. U watched spongebob?

steak trash: yep! even the new episodes

Ry-yee-ji: wow

Ry-yee-ji: THATS dedication

Ry-yee-ji: honestly, the new episodes are so hot garbage that i dont really bother

steak trash: fuck you, the yellow sponge is the best western cartoon ever made

steak trash: and its at least better than some anime…

steak trash: SAO and school days, 4 1

Yukiko Amagi: That isn’t a very hard achievement, Chie.

Yukiko Amagi: But I do agree! The new SpongeBob episodes are quite weak compared to the old ones, but I still find a lot to enjoy, truth be told.

Ry-yee-ji: wow, didnt expect you to enjoy it THAT much

Ry-yee-ji: but eh, different strokes for different folks

Ry-yee-ji: anyway, dont forget we gotta nail the victims of mophead before the volleyball event ends tomorrow, ok?

Yukiko Amagi: Will do.

steak trash: gotcha.

Ry-yee-ji: glad were on the same page, guys

Ry-yee-ji: well, bye-bye!

Ry-yee-ji is now offline

steak trash: i should probably go 2. seeya, yuki! (*⌒▽⌒*)θ~♪

Yukiko Amagi: Seeya!

steak trash is now offline

Sighing to herself, Yukiko couldn’t help but start humming the pizza song from that one SpongeBob episode as she dressed herself in her nightclothes.

Notes:

Hoo boy, what a chapter to end on. Regardless, I do hope it was worth the wait! Stay tuned, all!

And now for the bonus material! Otherwise, have a good one!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 4
Chie: Lv. 4
Morgana: Lv. 4
Ryuji: Lv. 4

Arcana Database: The Victory
Personas: Hamsa (Lv. 6), Ictinike (Lv. 14), Jeanne D'Arc (Lv. 21), Lailah (Lv. 28), Victor (Lv. 35), Brigid (Lv. 41), Lugh (Lv. 50), Sleipnir (Lv. 59), Yggdrasil (Lv. 63), Kazfiel (Lv. 69), Aniel (Lv. 74), Lucifroz (Lv. 80), Baldr (Lv. 85)
Description: An alternative name for the Chariot Arcana in some tarot decks, the seventh card of the Tarot Collection. Those born under the Victory Arcana symbolize victory and triumph, while reversed it symbolizes strife and discord.

Persona Database: Tomoe
Arcana: Victory
Level: 2
Resistances: Resist Ice, Weak to Electric
Skills: Bufu (Innate), Cleave (Lv. 3), Rebellion (Lv. 5), Terror Claw (Lv. 9), Counter (Lv. 12), Vajra Blast (Lv. 16), Apt Pupil (Lv. 22), Assault Dive (Lv. 24), Bufula (Lv. 25), Swift Strike (Lv. 29), Counterstrike (Lv. 33), Revolution (Lv. 37), Rising Slash (Lv. 43), Deathbound (Lv. 46), Bufudyne (Lv. 50), Charge (Lv. 53), High Counter (Lv. 57), Megaton Raid (Lv. 61), Arms Master (Lv. 64), Vorpal Blade (Lv. 69), Brave Blade (Lv. 72)
Persona Compendium Description: "Tomoe Gozen was a female samurai during the time of the Genpei War (1180-1185). After fighting in the Battle of Awazu, it is unclear what happened to her. Due to the number of stories of how her life went and the lack of proof of her existence, she has become a thing of legends."

Chapter 3: Keeper of Lust

Summary:

Enough is enough. The party finally makes their move on Kamoshida at long last. But how will it turn out, in the end?

Notes:

I sincerely have to apologize for having taken so long to update this fic. But we're here at last! I really, sincerely do hope you guys enjoy the revisions we had in mind and everything! ^^

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 4
Chie: Lv. 4
Morgana: Lv. 4
Ryuji: Lv. 4

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Confession/Secret - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ED7kzAmnAY)

April 12th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Outside Commons - 4:18 PM

Far away from where the Phantom Thieves was becoming more than acquaintances, a pair of old friends were being... less than happy with their situation.

Ann Takamaki, quite the most socially isolated teen fashion model in Tokyo, tried to put on a brave face for the one person she could call a close friend in Shujin, Shiho Suzui. Visually, the two were about as far apart as two people could be and still be teen girls on the tallish side. Ann was blonde, pigtailed, wore a semi-customized uniform in the form of a hoodie and bright-eyed (admittedly more due to her blue eyes than any actual joy she felt), while Shiho was dark-haired, wore said hair in a functional ponytail, dressed in a serviceable sweatshirt, and... well, not doing well would be a bit of an understatement. Though one wouldn't need to look in her eyes to see that; the leg brace said enough.

The black-haired student inhaled, raggedly "... -I haven't been sleeping well, lately..." She leaned forward, trying to force herself to remain sitting up on her arms. "Whenever I close my eyes, I keep thinking of too many things..."

Ann looked down. "Shiho..."

"Nationals are coming up soon, so I was thinking..." Shiho spoke softly, biting her lip. "Should someone like me be on the starting lineup?"

Ann's false cheer quickly returned. "Don't worry, just be confident in yourself! Your skills have been recognized! It's all because you work harder than anyone else!"

Shiho glanced up with a look of... disappointment? Frustration? It wasn't easily seen through the misery. "...yeah. Volleyball's all I have, after all."

As she said with a note of resignation, Ann wisely decided to change the subject at that point. "More importantly, is that injury okay? It looked really swollen..."

"No, it's nothing. It's normal..." Shiho whispered. "...especially since a meet's coming up." Ann, please, Shiho thought. Please catch on why I'm suddenly not eager about volleyball...

Unfortunately, Shiho's hinting wasn't allowed to go anywhere.

"Sorry to interrupt, Suzui..." Yuuki Mishima, the blue-haired general scapegoat and gofer of the team said, coming up. "Um... Mr. Kamoshida asked me to get you."

He didn't look quite as unhappy about this as Shiho did, but only because of the spark of animal terror that appeared in Shiho's eyes. "H-Huh? W-What does he want?"

"...he wouldn't say." Mishima said, looking away, guiltily. 

The terror in Shiho's eyes faded. "...Ann. I..." She found herself unable to finish.

"It'll be fine! I bet it's a meeting about the starting lineup or something!" Even the tone made it clear she the person Ann was trying to convince was herself more than anyone else.

For the sake of her sanity, Shiho told herself she believed it too. "...yeah. Well... I better go."

With the air of someone walking knowingly into her own grave, trying not to cry, Shiho followed Mishima out.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Ann's face fell, as she let herself admit what the hints about why Shiho was acting like she wanted to quit were. Sighing raggedly, she sat down and grumpily assumed a forthright position, still lost in her own thoughts.

"...hang in there, Shiho." Ann said, looking away. "If he'd let me stop, if he'd let both of us stop... I would."


(Ambience - High School Gym - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naSThfyOzM4)

April 13th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Gymnasium - 1:20 PM

Much to the surprised relief of Yukiko, Kawakami appeared equally as grumpy as she was, leading her class out of their normal schedule into the volleyball rally that anyone beyond the first years quickly realized was more a chance to showcase Kamoshida against easy opponents, and the first-years themselves appeared largely annoyed with. At least one member of the staff didn't seem to buy into his hype, going by that.

Not that her own frustrations with the man's ego would stop Kamoshida from showing off.

"Ugh, seriously?! Christ!" Chie groaned in frustration as the coach aimed yet another spike at the shy blue-haired student Yukiko had learned was Yuuki Mishima, who was promptly knocked on his rear deflecting it. "I'd ask why you keep on hitting it at a guy in the back, or let him quit, but I guess a human punching bag is too valuable to you!"

She whispered it more than yelled it, though. The staff members on Kamoshida's side of the cour, seemed to be quite willing to indulge Kamoshida's showing off, and their opinions were the only ones that officially mattered.

"Nice shot, Kamoshida!" A bald member of the teacher's team said as he high-fived Kamoshida. "Man, you still got it, Coach!"

Kamoshida beamed. "Thanks. Let's go for one more!" Kamoshida's comment seemed innocent out-of-context, but then again, all it took was ignoring the look of absolute dismay and fatigue from the student team, in particular Mishima. Mishima, for his part, seemed like he wasn't even thinking about the game, more lost in thought on his corner.

Takamaki, for her part, was sitting about as far as she could away from the teacher's side of the field, and still be on a folding chair, looking about as thrilled to be there as Yukiko, Ryuji, or Chie - if not even less, which spoke quite a bit. Curiously, she also seemed to be next to the sole empty seat, and from her constant glancing at the door, Yukiko suspected it shouldn't be empty.

"After all this time, she still sticks out like a sore thumb..." Ryuji sighed wistfully, looking at her. "She really hasn't changed a bit."

Yukiko and Chie's heads spun fast enough that they could've snapped. "Wait, you know each other?"

Ryuji glanced at Yukiko's question, and simply shrugged, giving a "so-so" gesture with his hand. "Bleh. We talked to each other in middle school. Rarely. Truthfully, I borrowed a bit of money from her and, uh, literally forgot to pay it back - I doubt she remembers it though."

Ryuji yawned. "Mostly. I'm just looking at anything to think about other than the Bastard Snoozefest."

"Yeah. Watching something where the winning side isn't even trying is just... eugh. I'm not even the biggest sports fan out there, and it already reeks of self indulgence." Chie slumped back. "Funny thing is, I could've probably gotten onto any team if it wasn't for... well, 'Chie the Liar'."

A pregnant pause occurred between all three Persona users.

Yukiko, breaking the silence, turned to Chie with a frown. "You know you shouldn't think like that. You scarcely deserve to be within that creep's line of sight."

Chie sighed. "I know... man, if nothing else, getting rid of him will free the school from these stupid rallies..."

"That motivation is becoming less selfish by the second." Yukiko nodded reaffirmingly "I think the guy next to us hasn't looked up from his phone since before we got here."

A sudden surge of activity snapped the trio of allegedly-delinquents out of their boredom-induced waking coma, drawing their eyes up to find Kamoshida unleashing an admittedly impressive spike...

...directly at Mishima, who barely noticed it in time to begin moving his arms. Instead, the interception with with his face.

Everyone shrieked slightly as Mishima stumbled back and over, dazed and possibly unconscious. Everyone, that is, except Kamoshida, who simply studied this with a neutral expression before he apparently remembered that he was supposed to be apologetic.

"Ouch! Sorry about that, sport!" Kamoshida said with faux-worry, rushing over about five seconds after the accident. "Hey, are you all right?! Someone, take him to the nurse's office!"

With that, he handed Mishima over to a bespectacled student, not especially gently.

The stray ball rolled up to Ryuji, who threw it back to the court with a disgusted expression, he having picked up on all of this. "...goddamn assfuck. He'll pay for everything soon enough..."

As soon as Mishima left the room, Kamoshida went back to beaming, like nothing ever happened.

"All right, let's resume the match!" He said excitedly, laughing sheepishly. "I'll try to aim more properly this time, ahaha."

Takamaki's cold glare summed up Yukiko's feelings better than words ever could.


(Music Playing - Tokyo Emergency - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf7a_MZXuDk)

A pril 13th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Outside Commons - 2:30 PM

Yukiko had a few choice words for that display of inelegance earlier. But she tried to reign in her swear words as much as possible anyways.

The black-haired innmaiden sighed, standing in the commons alongside Chie and Ryuji - none of them looked all that happy to even begin with. It wasn't until Chie broke the ice that anyone could find even anything to comment on that disaster.

"Gee. Wonderful piece of care for your own team member, Coach." Chie muttered as she finally spoke after getting out of the gym. "Why, I almost believed you recognized humans come before your ego..." 

"No wonder he thinks of himself as a king." Yukiko spat, icily cold in her tone. "The whole thing seemed designed to stroke his own ego, anyhow..."

"And now ya know why I personally despite that chickenshit, Yukiko." Ryuji said, seething. "'Get to know each other better', my ass..."

He inhaled, calming himself down. "Well, anyways. Now we have a chance to track down those guys who were the, uh, slaves in the Palace."

"Given how this is Kamoshida's big day, all the members of the team should be here." Chie said, thinking. "Between the three of us, we'll be sure to find someone willing to spill about Kamoshida's physical abuse."

"...um, as much as I'd like to cover more ground with three, there's somethin' I just realized." Ryuji began, wincing sheepishly. "None of us are exactly people anyone wants to talk to..."

It took a wince from Yukiko before, cheerfully, she reassumed her own confidence with a forced smile. How she could forget this wouldn't be easy?

"...well, I guess we'll have to make it a team effort!" Yukiko said with a cheerful grin. "I'm sure if good-cop bad-cop works so well, good-cop, bad-cop, neutral-cop should be even better!"

Chie smiled, trying to put her own worries to the side. "Yep! Just you wait asshole! We'll be done by the end of the day!"


(Music Playing - Wicked Plan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

April 13th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Outside Commons - 3:10 PM

"Ughhhhh, what, does he train them in interrogation resistance techniques?!" Chie moaned, slumping against a vending machine. "It's like punching a cinderblock wall at this point...!"

The volleyball team, as it turned out, were masters of clamming up. The instant anyone even mentioned training, suddenly even the volleyball members who were complaining suddenly became strident supporters of the idea that harsh training led to national-level skill. Even if said team member was mostly covered in bandages, and limping.

Separation from each other to make the team members feel more comfortable was no help either; pretty much everyone knew the face and vocal opinions of Chie the Liar, Ryuji was only slightly less infamous, and as Yukiko discovered, she was not a distant third.

"They think I carry a knife on me. A knife!" Yukiko exhumed angrily, before pausing. "...well I mean, I often do, but not at school. I'm not that paranoid, when a bottle of pepper spray works just as well..."

"If it makes you feel better, it wasn't a complete waste of walking." Ryuji said with a shrug. "One of the first-years, not completely brainwashed, accidentally let slip that Mishima being knocked flat on his ass like that isn't new. Apparently it happens pretty often during practice."

Chie's face contorted to a face one would make when eating pickled lemons, looking utterly disgusted. "Somehow, I'm not at all that surprised. Absolutely despicable..."

"Yeah, we may need to press onwards with trying to figure this out." Yukiko nodded in agreement, before noticing the sweaty Shujin-brand sweat clothes she was in. "But now? Now I need to put on my school clothes; the rally's over and done with, and they won't let us take these gym clothes home."

"Yeah. After all this running around, it'll be nice to wear clothes that ain't soaked." Ryuji said, turning to Yukiko with a confirming not. "You comin' or what?"

"Actually, I was prepared!" She said with a smile, hoisting her bag. "I figured it was something like this, and since I like keeping close to my dress..."

Chie winced awkwardly. "...seems like unnecessary weight to me, but sure! You do you." Chie ended her comment with a light shrug. 

"Yeah. I'll keep an eye out for Mishima if he comes by here." Yukiko said with a nod. "You guys get the fresh dress."

"Don't to tell me twice." Ryuji said, heading off with Chie, while Yukiko was left with her thoughts.

All by herself, at that.

Yukiko leaned back on a wall and sighed. It was beyond her how anyone in this school would let Kamoshida go completely unchallenged; there was no way any of this would fly with Yasogami High, to which she was expelled from because she happened to try to act on a corrupt, drunk politician trying to rape an innocent women. The whole thing made Yukiko's stomach churn, and it reminded her in a way of how she hated being under the Inn; everything felt decided for her, from how she lived to where she died.

It got to the point Yukiko legitimately questioned whether or not it was a silver lining in disguise that she finally got out of that place.

Let's see... Yukiko said, thinking to herself. Wasn't Mishima the one who took attendance my first day? He seemed pretty upset about the rumors about Takamaki. Does he have a crush?

A pause. ...no, I don't think so. He's not acting like he's trying to work up to talk to her. More like he knows something about how the rumors about her started. Come to think of it, he was pretty badly bruised that day. Maybe he -

"Hey, can I talk to you for a sec?",

Yukiko jerked up. "Hm?"

(Music Playing - Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

A familiar voice suddenly cut through her thoughts, and out strode a blonde-haired girl with a dour look present on her face. She did not look happy to be even having this discussion, but it seemed like she nonetheless felt compelled to - and that was worrying to Yukiko.

For it was none other than Ann Takamaki.

Yukiko blinked, lost on what to say. "Um... may I help you?

"It'll be quick." Takamaki said, obviously focused on what she wanted for this conversation. "Anyways, what's with you? Like, how you were late the other day was a lie and all..." Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

Yukiko paled slightly. "Um... I'm sorry, but I legitimately have that poor a sense of - "

"You manage to find your way school enough awfully well for someone who gets lost for hours on end." Takamaki interrupted. "And there is that weird rumor about you, too..."

Thankfully, Yukiko was saved from having to support her lie by the people she was supposed to meet walking up. 

"Okay, Takamaki, whaddya want with her?" Ryuji began in his typical blunt way as he and Chie came up behind her.

A surprised Takamaki quickly became irritated. "Right back at you! Neither of you are even in our class."

"Um, hello? Lost for five hours together with her? That's enough time to break the ice, I think." Chie retorted.

Ann opened her mouth to instinctive jab back, but held her tongue.

"...point." With that admittance, she turned to Yukiko still concerned. "But... I just want to know... what're you planning on doing with Mr. Kamoshida?"

Ryuji was taken aback, before his eyes narrowed somewhat. "...I see. I getcha. You're all buddy-buddy with him after all..."

He apparently didn't notice Yukiko looking at him like he grew a second head.

"This has nothing to do with you, Sakamoto!" She cried out, sounding a bit offended by the idea.

A bit of weariness and pity came to Chie's face, as she shook her head. "Trust me; he's not your friend. If you found out what he's been doing behind your back, you'd dump him right away."

"...'behind my back?'", Ann said, looking just as befuddled as Yukiko had been a second ago.

Yukiko, however, had caught on.

...oh. So Ryuji thought that she's...

Oh.

Oh, hell no.

"Um, Ryuji-kun! Chie-chan..." Yukiko said quickly, butting in to spare the other teens' dignity. "I think you may have... massively misunderstood something here?"

Ryuji, to his credit, didn't get defensive at that. "What is there to understand? He's a pervert who - "

"Oh! OH!" Ann caught on, gagging before her expression turned to hurt rage. "You seriously think I've - WITH THAT CREEP?!"

Ryuji caught on too, his face making a painfully awkward, wince. 

"Awwwwwwwwwww, fuck me." He flinched away, looking ashamed of himself.

Chie, meanwhile, looked like she wanted to crawl into a hole and die, settling for shrinking into her jersey. "...yannow, if you want to kick me where it hurts, I won't protest..."

Takamaki appeared to seriously consider that offer, before shaking her head. "Seriously, don't believe everything you hear! Especially if it's... ugh!" She turned to Yukiko, still looking rather pissed. "You have any comments yourself!?"

"Absolutely nothing!" Yukiko hurriedly cut in, trying to salvage what was left of Takamaki's dignity. "Nothing at all! I just think the gossip mill is... really gross and awful, that's all!"

"Yeah. You have no idea how effing stupid I'm feeling right now. Geez, I'm really sorry..." Ryuji held his head. "Though to be honest, kind of a relief, too..."

"...yeah. Yeah," Takamaki grumbled, looking somewhat mollified. "But... really, I just came over to warn you. People are already talking about you three, and I don't think anyone is going to want to help you. Whatever you're trying to pull... I'd seriously consider if it was worth it."

She paused, thinking. "But, for what it's worth... thanks for the apology."

With that, she walked off, leaving an air of bitterness in her wake.

"...y'know, I'd ask why she needs to be so aggressive all the time, but I think I just answered my own question." Ryuji said with no lack of mortification.

"Yeah. I'm in the same boat, and I still kind of bought the 'coach's girl' rumor!" Chie said, coming out of her coat. "She seriously used to be nicer, but ever since we started high school... yeah, she's definitely not had a good time of it."

"I can tell..." Yukiko said, before frowning at her friends. "I mean, even you saw her Cognition! Why'd you think she'd want... anything to do with someone who sees her like that?!"

"Most I can guess is that Kamoshida's, unfortunately, just that good at seeming like a charming person when all eyes are on him." Chie said. "Then again, you can say the exact same thing with most sociopaths..."

"Yeah, I know..." Yukiko sighed, looking downcast. "I really didn't think nor want to believe she was his girl, but someone who thinks she's his friend? Definitely possible."

"Yeah, I'm guilty as charged myself." Ryuji admitted with no lack of self-ire. "Truth be told, I was mostly just worried she didn't get he's an asshole, and he'd throw her away like anyone else - but I guess that's spoken for."

He groaned. "Still, weird she hangs out with him a lot... whaddya think is compelling her to hang out with a rat bastard like him?"

Nobody could exactly answer that question. After a few seconds of silence, Yukiko glanced over to Ryuji.

"If I were to guess, it's because something is holding her accountable for having to spend time with him." Yukiko said with an air of darkness. "Trust me, I've seen them talking in the halls. She's not doing it because she wants to."

Chie looked up in shock, her mouth agape. "Wait... you're telling me Kamoshida has dirt on Takamaki-chan?!"

Ryuji grit his teeth in response. "Damnit! Not surprising the asshole has the insight to pull that shit off."

"It's not just that. It makes you wonder just what is causing her to be forced into this. Could it be a dirty secret... or something else?" Yukiko trailed off, hopefully not wanting an answer to what she knows is an inherently sickening question.

Not one among them could've found it in them to answer.

Yukiko sighed, breaking the ice. "Either way, it's more reason to stop him, I guess. So..." Yukiko glanced up at both Ryuji and Chie. "Shouldn't we find Mishima-kun?"

Chie, feeling a lot more comfortable with the discussion changed, eagerly nodded. "Y-Yeah. Probably for the best we focus on that."

"Yeah. Hell, I think he's still in your classroom." Ryuji inhaled. "I think we can catch him before school ends..."

Nobody wasted any more time after that. It wasn't long before they went back to Yukiko's classroom to find Mishima.


(Music Continues)

April 13th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Corridor - 3:15 PM

Mishima, for his part, was thankfully not a fast walker after his impromptu trip to the nurse's office. If anything, he seemed somewhat smaller for a slight hunch due to a limp.

Which, Yukiko suspected, was not directly related to the head injury.

Ryuji, with characteristic grace, all but cut the awkward volleyball team member off. "Hey man, got a second?"

Mishima jumped back. "Sakamoto? Satonaka? And..."

He looked over Yukiko, paling somewhat.

Okay. That's an interesting reaction... Yukiko thought, brow furrowing. Why am I the most pressing?

"Please, we just want to talk." Chie said, more gently. "We just want to know if you've been having... 'difficulties' with Kamoshida's coaching."

Mishima looked away. "...um, no, but I'm not all that good, so, uh, he does focus on me to - "

"I'd say 'make an easy target'," Ryuji said, suspicious. "Sure it isn't just physical abuse?"

Mishima blinked, sputtering for a second more. "C-Certainly not!"

"...Yuki." Chie cut in, gently. "You come in every other day covered in bruises. That's not normal, no matter how intense training is."

"Hell, we saw you spike you today, right in the face too." Ryuji said. "You can tell us, man. We'll keep a secret, if nothin' else."

Mishima sputtered indignantly, clearly trying to refrain himself from bursting into tears. "W-Well, I... I mean, j-just... ah..."

After a shuddering breath, Mishima finally found his articulation, speaking then with a strangely uncertain tone. "He... he just saw a weak person in the line... I-I'm not really all that good at the sport."

"That still doesn't explain all the other bruises. Or the knee brace." Yukiko said, looking out both injuries. "...I promise you, we'll be confidential in the matter if you wish us to. Is he pressuring you to keep quiet?"

Mishima looked ready to cry. "...t-that's... that's just - "

"What's going on here?"

Just like that, any hope Yukiko had in her heart evaporated.

"...hello, Coach Kamoshida." Yukiko said through a forced smile as the sleazebag teacher walked briskly up to the group. "We were just talking with Mishima about practice - "

"Which is what I was coming over here to remind him about." Kamoshida said, forcefully and hurriedly.

Mishima promptly flinched, with drawing with a hand on his stomach. "I-I'm not feeling well today..." This seemed like the most honest thing he had said yet.

"What? Maybe you're better off quitting then." Kamoshida said, voice layered with false, patronizing concern, the petty, sing-song tone of an elementary school taunt. "You're never going to improve that crappy form unless you show up to practice."

 "...are you kidding me?" Chie rounded on the coach. "It's amazing he isn't concussed. No shit he's not feeling well!"

Kamoshida shot her a dark glare, then looked over her at the athlete. "Well, Mishima? Are you coming to practice or not?"

A pause. Mishima only sniffled a little bit of his tears before speaking quietly.

"... I'll go." Mishima said, resigned.

He gave the boy a smug grin before turning to Chie and Ryuji. "I can assess my team on my own, thank you very much. Any more trouble out of the two of you, and you'll be out of this school for sure."

"Bastard..." Ryuji muttered under his breath.

"And that goes double for you." Kamoshida said, glaring at Yukiko. "I believe the principle told you to keep in line?"

Yukiko's teeth gritted, but she kept her smile. "Oh, I'm well aware. Probably because the shining beacon of Shujin Academy needs to look good to impress people, doesn't he?"

Kamoshida's gaze softened, apparently unable to comprehend a woman could make a comment that could be held in the same amount of sneering venue as his own comments, or at least noticing that this confrontation wasn't getting anywhere.

"...tch. You really need to watch your tongue going forward." Kamoshida spoke darkly. "Anyways, just don't get in the way of my practice unless you're joining. All these rumors are making the students anxious, after all."

"Gee, I wonder where they all come from..."  Chie said with enough venom to kill an elephant.

"...bah. This won't get us anywhere," Kamoshida said, turning around. "Let's go, Mishima."

As Mishima started to shuffle off, Kamoshida paused, looking over his shoulder. "Just so I'm clear with the three of you, Shujin Academy is a place where those with aspirations come to learn. Unworthy students like yourselves don't have any right to be here. So get with the program."

With that, he walked off, chest out.

"...asshole." Yukiko found herself wishing her sleeves were long enough to safely gesture her current opinions of Kamoshida safely out of sight - in a way that was just as feathery as Konohana Sakuya's avian form herself.

"...there's no point." Mishima said, having paused in his shuffling long enough for Kamoshida to get out of earshot.

"Huh?" Ryuji turned to him.

"Proving he's physically abusing us... is meaningless. Everybody knows. The principal, our parents... they know, and they keep it quiet." Mishima sighed. 

"...you're joking, right?!" Ryuji spoke, utterly baffled at Mishima choosing to go silent.

"It's not funny, dude!" Chie cried out. "You don't have to keep silent about this!"

"Of course I don't. But it's the truth." He looked up in anger. "You two of all people should know nothing's going to help. So for your sakes and mine, just shut up about it."

And with that, he ran off.

Everyone stared at the retreating blue-haired form.

"...ugh." Yukiko sighed with a grimace. "Well, now what?"


(Music Playing – Confession/Secret - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ED7kzAmnAY)

April 14th, 2016 - Shujin Academy, Outside Commons - 3:23 PM

One could think Shiho couldn't have appeared more miserable than the day before.

One would be wrong, particularly given her new black eye.

"...shouldn't you be heading to volleyball?" Ann said, carefully.

"Uh-huh." Shiho said, just staring at nothing.

Ann realized that trying to act like everything was fine wasn't working. "That bruise above your eye... is that from practice, too?"

"Y-Yeah..."

Ann grimaced something hard. "...are you sure you're not pushing yourself too hard...?"

Shiho looked down. "I'm okay... volleyball's the only thing I can do right..."

Ann immediately opened her mouth to deny that -

And was immediately cut off by her phone ringing.

"...shouldn't you take that?" Shiho said, more relieved to talk about something else than anything.

"I-It's probably my part-time job... I think." It wasn't technically a lie, so much as a prediction Ann had doubts were true, but that really didn't have much of a difference.

Shiho looked away, realizing this would go nowhere productive. "...I should get going..."

Ann swallowed. "Shiho... are you sure you're okay...?"

"...uh-huh." With that final lie, Shiho left as quickly as she could, unable to bear being near Ann much longer.

Ann took out her phone, her already downcast expression deflating when she saw who it actually was. Grimly, she answered it.

"...yes?" Ann's stomach twisted upon hearing who it was. "...t-today won't work. I'm... I'm not feeling so good... Sorry. Bye."

That wasn't going to work much longer, she knew. But, every second it did was one less she had to spend with... him.

It didn't feel much like a victory, though. As she dragged herself off, she heard two of the male students conversing.

"Hey, isn't that Takamaki?"

"Rumor has it she's dating Kamoshida. I heard people saw them in his car together."

"You know... she seems pretty easy. You think I'd have a chance too?"

"C'mon, man! You can't go after Kamoshida's bitch!"

The world suddenly became a blur. When Ann started comprehending the school around her again, she was in the woman's bathroom, curled up in a stall. Crying.

She couldn't really even comprehend turning on the other students to divest them of the rumor. They wouldn't believe her, and besides, if you asked her right now?

It might as well have been true.

"I... I can't do this any more..."


(Music Continues)

April 13th, 2016 - Shujin Academy, Corridor - 3:31 PM

Yukiko's rage had long vanished over the course of the day, leaving behind a pit of absolute frustrated despair in its place. Todaywas not how she hoped it would go.

Not that she was alone in having a shit few days, going by the black-haired student in a ponytail, looking at her phone with a look of... resignation, more than anything else. 

More specifically, going by the volleyball team sweatshirt and the bruises covering the left side of her face.

I'll bet those are completely innocent practice injuries too - agh. I shouldn't think that. Don't take your failures out on others. Yukiko frowned. I didn't see her at the rally, though. Was she the one supposed to sit next to Takamaki?

The girl finally noticed Yukiko, looking up with the languid movements of someone who was only partly alive inside. "Oh... I'm in the way, aren't I? Sorry..."

Yukiko gave a sad smile. "Don't worry. It's hell, we're all stuck here."

A pause. "...can I take that back?"

The girl tried to smile. "Yeah. Um... it's not been a good week. For anyone."

There was an awkward silence. 

"...are you hurt?", Yukiko said, more to confirm she wasn't ignoring the black eye.

Bad idea. The girl flinched back as if Yukiko herself hit her. "Um... w-well..." She paused, taking another look at Yukiko. "Hm. You don't look familiar..."

"I'm the exchange student whom, uh, is the delinquent." Yukiko said without thinking, eager to change the subject as quickly as possible, before she winced.

Thankfully, the other girl didn't seem to be too upset by talking to someone charged with assault. "Um... this might not be any of my business... but don't let the rumors get to you, okay?"

As she said that with an air of uncertainty, Yukiko felt a slightly more genuine smile return to her face. "...thank you."

"I mean it. I have a friend in your class. She's often misunderstood too, just because of the way she looks..."

 Yukiko caught on. "...you mean Takamaki, yeah?"

"She prefers Ann, but... yeah. I think... I think she'd like you, especially if I..." She blinked, before shaking her head rather violently. "A-Anyway. I have to go to practice, but..."

"...do you have to?" Yukiko said, already knowing the answer.

The girl looked down. "...yes. Better just to make Kamoshida happy..."

And with that, she left. 

Yukiko did not believe she could hate the coach more than at that moment.


(Music Playing – Suspicion –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

April 14th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Outside Commons – 3:04 PM

Yukiko sighed to herself as she saw her friends being about as pleased as she was by the events of the past couple days. Yesterday was not how she'd hope it would've went,

Chie bit her lip softly, looking ready to cry, while Ryuji tapped his foot anxiously.

"...it's like none of them care anymore!" Chie cried out to nobody in question, before sinking onto the bench. "It's the same thing we heard from Mishima, at best..."

"Goddamnit!" Ryuji cussed, punching a vending machine. "Kamoshida must've told 'em something..."

"...assuming they haven't all given up." Yukiko said with a grimace. "I talked to Suzui outside the door yesterday, and if she's not talking..."

"...y-yeah. Much as I hate to suggest this, it feels like the only way out is facing Kamoshida himself." Chie sighed. "That or approach the police... but even little old me who wants to be an officer when she grows up doesn't think they'll buy three delinquents who claim to astral projection over his explanations... or an ambush..."

Ryuji perked up his head. "Wait, you wanted to be a police officer when you want to grow up?"

"Yeah." Chie gave a sad, simple smile. "Of course, that plan seems to be on hold for the time being..."

"...I so sincerely wish I could reject your proposal out of hand, Chie." Yukiko said, holding her head. "But now? I have to remind myself we'd get caught..."

“I mean, you’d think that at least one person would be able to speak out at this, y’know?!” Ryuji sighed to himself. “But nobody, not even one! Even Mishima stayed quiet, and he was our biggest lead. Honestly, we need to bring down Kamoshida somehow, and yet…”

“Well, I don’t think it’s anybody’s fault except Kamoshida’s...” Yukiko shook her head. “Still, I don't think that's any excuse in trying to remain ignorant. Even if there’s not much else we could do, that's hardly a justification for letting all of this happen.”

"Exactly! There's gotta be another way, damnit!" Ryuji slammed his fists on the table. “There’s gotta be some way to take the bastard down – any way – we just need to find it. I mean...”

"...could we punish the king?" Yukiko suddenly said.

Both of her friends turned to her.

Chie blinked. "Huh?"

"I mean, if we can't get the cops in the real world... maybe we could get his Shadow to not hurt the cognitive players?" Yukiko paused. "And that'll change how he sees the players in the real world? They are his opinions, after all..."

"...uh." Chie cleared her throat. "Isn't that, like... brainwashing?"

Ryuji opened his mouth - and stopped.

"You know..." He paused. "That is a point... on the other hand, I ain't sure there's another way unless he stops..."

(Music Abruptly Stops)

"And if you stopped long enough to listen to me, you wouldn't have to reinvent the wheel!"

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

All three teenagers’ eyes widened upon hearing a familiar, coy voice from under the bleachers, making Chie jump a little. “Wait… that voice is…”

Indeed, a small, black cat prowled into the impromptu meeting room – a blue-eyed cat with white paws and muzzle, and a yellow collar.

Yukiko caught on. "...no way."

"Yes, way." The cat sourly - and angrily - mewled, jumping onto the table. "Don't think you can get away with not paying me back for helping you!"

Chie jumped back. "M-Morgana?!"

"How dare you up and leaving me the other day!" The apparent Earth form of Morgana said with a miffed expression. "You wouldn't even let me tell you about how you can help yourself just as you'd help me!"

"The cat's effin' talkin'!?" Ryuji said in utter disbelief.

"Not a cat!" "Both Yukiko and Morgana said simultaneously.

"...thank you." Morgana said with the feline version of a blush. "...I know, I look like one, yes, but this is just how I look in this world! Nothing else! Do you know how hard it is to find you three when you don't have thumbs?!"

Chie gaped. "I just... You... Do you have a have a thumbless phone in that ascot or something?!""

Being a cat did nothing to make Morgana look less smug when he wanted to be. "You don't need one when you're at my level!"

An awkward pause. "Though, uh... I still got pretty lost making my escape though..."

“Yeah, I guessed as fuckin' much. That aside, why can you talk?!" Ryuji said, rubbing his temples. "No offense, but you have a muzzle! Not lips!"

"How should I know?!" Morgana flicked his ear in a very frustrated manner.

"I just... this isn't a hallucination, right?!" Chie turned to Yukiko. "We are seeing a feline angrily chewing us out for ditching him, aren't we!?"

“Umm…” Yukiko leaned down to Morgana's eye level. “Meow…?”

Both Ryuji and Chie glared at Yukiko. “THIS IS NO TIME TO BE JOKING AROUND!”

“God, can any of you just quiet down for at least a minute?! All of this going back-and-forth wouldn't have been necessary if you all just listened!” Morgana huffed to himself.

Yukiko inhaled to yell back at him - then realized the fundamental ridiculousness of what she was doing, and not in the funny way.

"I know! I just..." She sighed, dragging her hands across her forehead. "It's just... it's been a very long week."

“So I've heard. Kamoshida's cognition may be warped, but he's not wrong about being the effective king of the school.” Morgana began. “He’s in a position where he’s untouchable by normal means..."

Nobody realized a cat's face could smile. "...which is what I would have explained if you didn't run off like that. Lady Yukiko was coming pretty close a moment ago..."

Yukiko blinked. "...Lady Yukiko?"

"...yeah, I figured as much. This is definitely Morgana..." Ryuji said with a sigh.

"Hey!" Morgana protested. "I call the right to gloat, given how you were busy breaking your hands on - "

"Shhh!" Chie held a finger to her mouth as a pair of members of the Disciplinary Committee came around the bend on one of the outer corridors.

"Ugh, do we really have to be looking for a cat now? I think I heard a meow somewhere near here..."

As they wandered off, Yukiko hummed. "So, they hear meows, not speech... huh. Interesting."

"Looks like it..." Morgana said - quietly, this time.

"Interesting, and likely to give Kamoshida even more ammo if he finds us playing with a stray cat on school grounds!" Ryuji hissed. "Can we discuss this on the roof?!"

"Yeah, but how're we going to get him past the students on the way there?" Chie said. "I mean, he's stealthy, not invisible!"

There was a bit of a pause, before Yukiko looked at her bag.

"You knoooooow..." Yukiko smiled evilly. "Given how I'm not a member of any clubs... these bags are pretty spacey."

Morgana looked at her, confused for a second.

Then his pupils shrank. "You wouldn't dare."


(Music Playing - Wicked Plan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

April 14th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Roof - 3:11 PM

"WHY THE HELL IS THERE SPRAY PAINT IN HERE?!" Morgana shook off a few flakes of dried red that were still in Yukiko's bag.

Yukiko simply shrugged. "I was curious. And, uh... the cans leaked."

"...man, Yukiko, you're really stuck on this graffiti thing, aren't you?" Chie held her nose, groaning. "But, I'm coming back to this later. Kamoshida for now."

Morgana gave himself a final shake. "You're actually right about how changing the Palace would change Kamoshida. The problem is, he's set in his ways, so it's going to be both more and less complex than just beating up his Shadow. That entire world exists to reinforce his self-image and belief he's right to act the way that produced it in the first place; it's his distorted desires made physical. They wouldn't let him change, even if he wanted to."

"But!" Morgana continued, with that strange felid smile. "If the Palace were, to say, not exist any more..."

"...then he wouldn't have those desires any more." Yukiko finished, eyes brightening. "So he wouldn't abuse the team or his position any more!"

"F-For real!? He's gonna turn good?!" Ryuji looked understandably surprised at the concept of Kamoshida at all being able to turn good. "...though, is that really getting back at him?"

"Actually, it is. Erasing a Palace means forcing the owner to have a change of heart." Morgana continued. "However, even though their warped wants disappear, the crimes they committed will remain. And since Kamoshida would then see his crimes for what they were, instead of what his cognition wants them to be..."

"...he'll feel guilty about all he's done." Chie finished, thinking aloud. "And since he's so rotten..."

"Precisely! He'll even confess his crimes himself! And since the Palace itself will be gone, so will all the evidence and even his memory of our involvement!" Morgana beamed.

"That's amazing! You are one incredible cat... shaped... guy!" Ryuji said, quickly correcting himself at Yukiko and Chie glaring at him.

"So, that brings me a question on how to exactly burn down the palace." Yukiko said, thinking. "Do I need to study how to make Molotovs or - "

"N-Nothing that extreme!" Morgana said as quickly as possible. "All we need to do is steal the Treasure at its heart, the physical form of the core distortion from which the Palace's distortions grew."

Chie thought this out. "...so, not burning down his personality, but... stealing a core element of his brain." She blinked. "That's... less extreme?! I'm just worried about the ramifications of going along with this because... isn't that, like, brainwashing?! I really don't know how to feel about this..." 

"It's the best option any of you have, though - and apropos of Yukiko's comment, this version results in less risk of burns." Morgana replied. "I'll tell you more once you agree to this. It's my most valuable, secret plan to regain my human form, after all." 

Yukiko shrugged. "It's not like Plan B: Scream Into Uncaring Void, was going better for us..."

"Good." Morgana turned -

(Music Abruptly Stops)

And keep turning right around, looking serious. "I forgot one thing, though. When you destroy a Palace, it takes all desires with it, not just the distorted ones. Desires, by themselves, aren't evil. In fact, they're necessary to survive, because you have to, say, want to eat in order to think about eating. To say nothing about more complex things like the desire to fall in love, or live up to others' expectations of you..."

(Music Playing - Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

"...w-wait. If I'm getting this right..." Chie frowned. "Does... does that mean Kamoshida is going to lose the will to live or something?"

"Possibly. He might be like those mental shutdown cases I heard about on the way there, only permanently, unable to work up the will to care for himself well enough to survive." He inhaled. "I don't know how extreme it'll be. I'm just making sure... are you three okay with that?"

Yukiko, meanwhile, paused, thinking very deeply on this.

On the one hand, it was Kamoshida. He wouldn't be precisely mourned, especially if he signed a confession first.

On the other hand... it was still reckless endangerment at best. And he was an inspiration at one point - ruining his life would also break his image in the eyes of the public along with everything he attached himself to. And now that I think about it that's kind of more something in the 'pro-death' column. The world needs less student abuse in the name of 'training' and much less sexual harassment.

Still, it was a big step.

Chie blinked, before sputtering. "N-No! I hate the guy as much as all of you do, but... wouldn't that just be wrong to wish on him?! I want to change things, but... at the same time, not like...!"

"...I'm interested." Yukiko interjected, interrupting Chie.

"Wh - " Chie gawked. "Yukiko?!"

"I'm not saying we can agree to it now! But can we at least think about it on the way home?" Yukiko immediately responded, consoling Chie. "I didn't expect to be participating in potential mind control for the greater good today..."

"Yeah. I mean, if we're just gonna around secretly doin' whatever we want, we wouldn't be any better than that fuckin' Kamoshida..." Ryuji said, a little more pale by the understanding.

"I mean... he's a truly awful bully, but... I really don't think he deserves to die." Chie said, sounding... not entirely convinced by that. "I mean, even if this goes well, he'll be a completely different person. Do we really have the right to decide what he thinks? It's kind of creepy to think about, honestly..."

Morgana sighed. "Isn't this your only option, though?"

"I..." Yukiko paused, and rubbed her temples. "...again, can I have time to think on this? I might come up with a better option that leaves everyone... well, alive. And unbrainwashed."

Surprisingly, Morgana didn't protest, simply nodding. "I'll be waiting for you tomorrow. Make sure you've made your decision by then."


(Music Playing - Beneath the Mask (Instrumental) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=330nrS4eoxE)

April 14th, 2016 – Shibuya Station Subway - 3:20 PM

"Steal Treasure... or don't..." Yukiko muttered to herself. "Let him continue... or possibly kill him..."

That this was probably spawning about a dozen competing rumors about her inevitable breakdown going by the weird glanced Shujin's students were giving the delinquent as they passed her on her way to her train was the farthest thing from Yukiko's mind. She needed to hear herself think.

"I mean... it's not going to stop here, I don't think. Or is it..." She leaned against a wall. "...I mean, he did make an entire alternate dimension from his sheer jerk levels, but the Shadows need a place to live too - "

(Music Stops)

“Will you please give it a rest!? I told you, I'm not feeling up to it..."

Yukiko chasing her tail in philosophical loops came to a sudden halt at the familiar voice. She spun around, revealing another student who was not caring about rumors due to current events.

Much more pressing events, going by Takamaki's expression.

(Music Playing - Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

"Wait, what!? That's not what you promised! And you call yourself a teacher..."

Yukiko paled. Oh no... it can't be -

"This has nothing to do with Shiho!  You - ah... did you just hang up!? Answer me!"

...well. That made Yukiko's internal calculus a little easier.

As Takamaki slowly curled up into a fetal position, the innkeeper delinquent cleared her throat, awkwardly.

The blonde nearly jumped a foot back. "...were you listening?"

"Um, not so much as overheard, but... from the moment you identified the other end as a teacher..." Yukiko trailed off, awkwardly.

Takamaki paled. "I...!"

"Takamaki-chan..." Yukiko spoke, softly. "You can trust me. I promise. We won't let you be hurt by that creep."

A long, muted pause later, she shook her head, wiping away a tear. "It's... It's nothing. I just... I'm having some bad grades at school, and Mr. Ushimaru is getting pushy - "

"And the part about a friend. And that the other person is likely... Kamoshida." Yukiko interrupted, laying her cards out on the table.

Takamaki stumbled back, raw animal terror in her eyes.

"Um...!" Her eyes started darting around, looking for an escape route. "I... i-it's, nothing, it's just -"

In that moment, Yukiko suddenly realized a major similarity and a difference between her and Takamaki.

Takamaki didn't have a Chie the Liar who believed her. And could do something about it.

(Music Stops)

"Ann." Yukiko said, emphasizing her first name to get her attention. "The first day at school, Kamoshida told the school counselor to expose my record to Chi - Satonaka. He did it to blackmail me into joining the volleyball team." She paused. "Is he doing something similar with you? If he is... I believe you."

Takamaki looked at her, completely silent.

(Music Playing – Confession/Secret - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ED7kzAmnAY)

And then she started to cry.

"Ah!" Yukiko rushed over. "I'm so sorry, I - mmf!"

Much to her surprise, Takamaki had wrapped herself around Yukiko like a drowning woman clinging to driftwood, blubbering something.

"T... Thank you," she murmured. "Thank you..."

She stayed like this for a good minute, before finally inhaling her tears a bit, breaking the embrace.

"...do you have to go home soon?" Takamaki said, quietly. "We can talk on the phone..."

"Um..." Yukiko paused, before she shot Sojiro a text about a delayed train. "...now I don't."

Takamaki nodded. “...meet me at the Rocket 42 Diner at Shibuya, I'll explain everything there.” She paused. "And, um... please, call me Ann."


(Music Stops)

April 14th, 2016 – Shibuya, Rocket 42 Diner – 4:00 PM

Inside a western-themed diner, Ann and Yukiko sat away from each other, before a waitress came up to the two girls with a smile.

“Anything you’d like, girls?” The waitress said with her best smile.

“Oh, no, I’ll just have water.” Ann shook her head. “I don’t have money on me anyw - “

“Two burgers and fries, for both of us.” Yukiko smiled. “Medium-rare. Two juices as well.”

Ann was caught off guard by that. Meanwhile, the waitress smiled. “Certainly, miss! Coming right up.”

Ann paused as the waitress walked off, before shaking her head. “You didn’t have to do that for me, y’know…”

“I suppose not,” Yukiko gave a wry smile. “But food always cheers me up when I feel sad. Figured you’d get something on me to cheer you up.”

“Just know that I’m here to help you.” Yukiko smiled. “Any victim of Kamoshida’s a friend in need.”

A victim of Kamoshida… Ann felt ready to begin crying any second now. Biting her lip, she thought about how she could explain any of this, not when the story truly showed Kamoshida’s true colors… and besides, what could she do anything about it?

But, Yukiko believed her. Believed she wasn't just a teacher's whore. Which meant, if nothing else, she was owed the full truth. 

Eventually, Ann gave a sigh.

“Alright… I’ll explain everything.” Ann bit her lip.

(Music Playing – Confession/Secret (Piano Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbsUPaii8ak)

“It's not me that's being blackmailed. Not directly.” Ann sighed bitterly. “It's my friend. Shiho Suzui. She always dreamed of getting to become a volleyball star, but she was rejected by the volleyball team. Kamoshida did offer her a spot to become a part of the main team and a college recommendation, but under one condition.”

Ann almost was ready to cry. “I became his girlfriend. He didn’t even treat me with dignity; to him, I was like a trophy, a collectible. At first I'd just be his arm candy, but... it didn't end like that. Eventually, he decided that he wanted me to come over to his house and… sleep with him…”

As Yukiko looked on in horror and disgust, Ann began weeping to herself. “H-He wanted to have sex with me, and if I didn’t, he’d take Shiho off the team, and I really didn’t want to ruin Shiho’s future, but… I wasn’t ready…”

Collapsing into her own hands, Ann gave an ugly sob, knowing full well how pitiful she sounded.

“I hate him. I hate him so much.” Ann sobbed. “I just wanted him gone, and I just didn’t want anything to do with him… a-and now that I refused him, he’s gonna take Shiho off the team, and…”

“You made the right choice, though.”

“H-Huh?” Ann’s face was drenched in her own waterworks, looking on at the smiling Yukiko.

(Music Playing – Sunset Bridge – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxDHyhylKrw)

“I would’ve done the same thing if I was in that situation.” Yukiko shook her head. “I would’ve stood up to him. Granted, I never had the courage to stand up to my own problems, what with my feelings and all… but in times like this, you need to stand up on your own two feet and tell the world that you refuse to even budge. And if Shiho's off the team... well, she's not missing anything. Believe me, she'll be relieved she's not being kicked around by that slime."

Yukiko paused for breath. “You’re not an object, Ann. You’re a human being, with feelings, emotions, capacities for kindness like anyone else… but if anybody considers you a sexual outlet?”

Yukiko simply nodded. “You just tell them to fuck off.”

Ann looked surprised when Yukiko cussed like that; she really didn’t seem like the type to cuss - and going by what little she talked with her, probably wasn't. But regardless, Ann knew she was right - she just needed someone else to tell her that, because Kamoshida was very good at making Ann doubt her own ideas on the matter..

“...you know, you really do seem to be the last person I’d expect to curse.” Ann said with a weak smile. “But… thank you. That means a lot to me.”

“It's the least I can do, Ann.” Yukiko nodded. “People aren't isolated in a bubble. We all need to depend on others to at least some degree to find our footing... even if we all invariably strive to be our own best self."

Yukiko nodded once more. "...and nothing’s going to stop me from doing so. More than that, you've helped resolve a moral dilemma I've been having.”

Ann gave her a strange look, wanting to interject, before ultimately remaining silent. "...you know, I'd ask, but... nevermind. But that makes me wonder..."

Yukiko grimaced, apparently understanding preternaturally what Ann was going to ask next. "When you said Kamoshida exposed your record... aren't you the transfer with the assault charge?"

Yukiko remained silent for a long time, before smirking. "I honestly regret what I've done - I should have punched the dirtbag harder."

Ann giggled, clearly not expecting that. Regardless, some degree of a smile returned to Ann's face. "I'll take your word for it... um, crap, the rumor mill never gave me your your last name..."

“Amagi. Yukiko Amagi.” The girl nodded. “Just remember, I’m here for you Ann.... though I do know your name from rumors. So, we're definitely even.”

“True enough. It's really nice to meet you, Yukiko.” Ann gave a smile as the burgers and drinks were finally delivered. “Oh, it’s here! Chow time!”

As the two girls ate their food, for the first time in ages, Ann felt at ease around someone.


(Music Playing - School Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeAvHUGsvIY)

April 14th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway – 3:31 PM

“...Suzui?”

Mishima walked up to Shiho with a grim expression on his face. "...are you leaving?"

Shiho, already guessing what it was, turned to face him. “...what is it?”

Mishima looked away, knowing exactly what he was asking. “...Mr. Kamoshida's asking for you. He's in the PE faculty office."

If you listened closely, you could almost hear Shiho's heart stop. "...what'd he say?"

"...I-I don't know." But he suspected. "Well... I have to go..."

With that, he all but ran from the scene.

“...o-okay..." Shiho just... stood there, suppressing her fearful tears.

Her phone rang - and yet, if anything, the name on it hurt her more.

"Ann..."

But Ann couldn't save her.

No one could.


(Music Playing – Is It Boring – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID7z4mE_XDM)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 9:11 AM

“Alright, listen up! Today, we’ll be discussing the three branches of our government.”

As Mr. Ushimaru’s lecture on the Japanese political system dragged on, Yukiko sighed to herself, somewhat deep in thought. The last couple of days have been anything but normal, what with the Metaverse, Morgana, Personas, Velvet Room… it all felt so surreal that any of this was happening.

Regardless, Yukiko inwardly vowed to not let any of this bring her down, but even then… with the attempts to expose Kamoshida failing, and a particularly disturbing revelation considering Ann… 

It settled it. They were going with the Treasure plan. Kamoshida's death was not a risk, at least she thought as much.

“Have you mad up your mind?” Yukiko's desk whispered.

A horrifying moment of doubting her own sanity later, Yukiko glanced down to the feline head sticking out from under said desk.

"Wha - Morgana!?" She glanced around. "What are you doing!?" She hissed.

"Just reminding you. There is only the one option - "

"Two things!" Yukiko whispered at the not-a-cat. "One. I have - I'm with you, even though I don't doubt that Ryuji and Chie probably take convincing. Two - maybe you shouldn't talk in the middle of the chalk-toss champ's class!?"

The felid smile promptly fell off Morgana's face as Ushimaru looked up, confused and more than a little angry. "...did I hear a cat just now!?"

"M-M-Meow!" Morgana buried himself as far as possible in the desk, as the rest of the class (including the student behind Yukiko) looked around for said cat.

"Settle down! We're in the middle of an important lecture!" Thankfully, putting the fear of God into felines seemed to satisfy him, as he went back to the chalkboard.

"...so, that's a yes?" Morgana replied, much quieter.

"It is. He's even worse than I thought..." She inhaled. "Live, die, doesn't matter to me, and the world won't miss his passing. But... seriously, why in class!?"

"I... was overeager. And seriously, the guy behind you is a pet lover. He didn't have the heart to expose me." He paused. "He may also be legally blind, given how much he doesn't notice. But... so, you're in?"

"Yes. I don't think it's possible for me to hate him more, either." Yukiko said with a nod.

Morgana grinned. "Great! Meet me off in the rooftop after class so we can discu - "

(Music Abruptly Stops)

“Hey… oh, my God! I-Is she going to jump?!”

Everyone - much less Yukiko - immediately bolted up to look at the window, from the opposite end of the school courtyard, on the roof.

It was Shiho.


(Ambience - Rooftop Ambience - https://youtu.be/vAN7N1TFrqw?t=14)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Rooftop – 9:12 AM

A lone, black-haired girl stood on the rooftop, almost oblivious to Class 2-D below her… almost.

She knew full well that people were watching, she knew damn well that people were going to watch her jump.

Let them watch. End it. A vicious voice in her mind hissed. Let them see what's really going on here.

She wanted, so badly, not to listen to the voice. That there was something, anything else than what was before her.

But the voice was too believable, now. Especially now that she knew the real reason she was kept on, after he was finished with her.

"You think you're here because you have talent?! You're here because Ann is a frigid little bitch, and now even you're not working! You're going to work for your position, and if you don't enjoy it - too bad!"

She was a substitute for Ann, nothing more.

And more than that, a ball and chain for Ann. Blackmail material, binding her to... him. 

You betrayed Ann... The voice hissed. You helped Kamoshida control her. It was nearly her sprawled out with your clothes torn to bits and violated, because you cared more about you and your stupid dream than her. You deserve more than this.

The only way - the only way - to save Ann, was if that chain was... gone.

“A-Ann…” Shiho choked on her own sobs as she looked down. “I’m sorry. This is... this is the only way.”

She prayed that whatever God or kami above would absolve her as she jumped.


(Music Playing – Desire – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 9:13 AM

Upon seeing the body fall from the rooptop, the classroom erupted in chaos. People began screaming, panicking and even filming it, with many students leaving the classroom in a hurry.

As Yukiko watched on in horror, Ann’s eyes widened upon seeing the black pony-tail she was all too familiar with.

“Oh, my God…” Ann paused, before running outside. “SHIHO!

As chaos reigned in the classroom, Mr. Ushimaru attempted to reinstate order. “Hey! Sit down back in your seats, all of you! This is a matter of - “

But nobody listened. As students panicked, ran off, or sat in shock. Yukiko was almost unaware of Morgana’s horror and the phone in her pocket buzzing.

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

“H-Hey…” Morgana whispered in sheer awe. “M-Maybe you should get that.”

And indeed, Yukiko did. Flipping open the phone, she saw a familiar sender on her screen.

Ry-yee-ji: CHIE’S WITH ME, MEET ME AT THE COMMONS

Ry-yee-ji: NOW

She didn’t need to be told twice. Putting her phone away and ignoring Mr. Ushimaru’s angry cries, she rushed over to the commons.


(Music Continues)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Outside Commons – 9:17 AM

The first thing Yukiko was greeted with was masses upon masses of people, the sound of ambulance sirens wailing through the cold spring morning, and the terrified sobs of a familiar voice. It was then two familiar faces swarmed Yukiko: Ryuji and Chie.

“Oh, thank God, Yukiko! You made it!” Chie cried. “What happened?!”

Hell if I know!” Ryuji quickly retorted, eyeing the scene from afar. “A girl must’ve jumped… I-I didn’t catch a glimpse of her, but - “

“Shiho. Her name is Shiho.”

As Yukiko spoke gravely, Ryuji and Chie eyed their friend quickly.

"S... Suzui-chan?!" Chie said. "That was - "

As the three teenagers and other students contributed to the mass of terrified, confused sounds, Ann gripped Shiho’s right hand; her leg was brutally cut open, scraped, and contorted, and blood caked the spring grass as the paramedics hovered over her.

"We need someone to go with her!", one of the paramedics said. "Is there any teachers around?"

"I...I'm not in charge of her class though..."

"W-We should leave this to Principal Kobayakawa..."

Ann shot the two adults a disbelieving look, before raising her hand. "I'll go!"

As the paramedics made way for her, Ann leaned down close to her friend.

“Shiho…” Ann whispered, choking on her own tears. “Why… why did you do this…?”

Shiho was also sobbing as well, but it took a little strength to lean over to confirm why she did so.

"I'm... sorry. Couldn't take... I... free you... from K-Kamo... shi..."

Morgana’s eyes widened from the bag as Shiho slipped into unconsciousness, Ann’s screams for Shiho continuing to wail louder than the sirens. Behind the mass of students, Mishima stumbled back and ran off, uncertain of his footing.

“What…” Ryuji blinked as the scene continued to unfold. “What did she…”

“Kamoshida, Ryuji. She said Kamoshida.”

All three Persona-users quickly turned to Morgana, who had slipped out in the confusion and now looked on in utter horror. It took a brief pause of silence before Morgana finally spoke.

S-Something happened…” Morgana shook his head. “We need to investigate into this. Is there anyone -

"I do," Yukiko began, very quietly. "I think... we need to talk to Mishima."

With that, the heiress bolted off in the direction she saw the blue-haired player run off.

“What…” Chie felt her hands ball up in anger. “What did he do...?!”

Without further ado, all three other Persona-users ran away, leaving Ann whispered to the comatose Shiho all the while.

“Please, God… Shiho…” Ann choked on her sobs. “Don’t leave me…”


(Music Continues)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway – 9:20 AM

I knew there was something wrong... oooooh, God... Mishima thought to himself, rocking back and forth near his locker. I didn't warn her. Could I? No? Would it have - 

After seeing the horrific scene out in the commons, Mishima’s mind raced with possibilities why she attempted suicide. None of them left him particularly guiltless. Biting his lip in anger, he almost was unaware of the Yukiko and company rushing up to him.

"MISHIMA!” Chie cried. “What happened to Shiho?!”

“H-Huh?!” Mishima turned around to see the three teenagers. “W-What do you mean-“

Before he had time to finish his question, an utterly furious Ryuji pinned him to the lockers. Yelping in surprise, Ryuji raised his fist squarely at Mishima.

Don’t play dumb with me, you piece of shit.” Ryuji muttered very darkly. “Kamoshida told you to get Shiho, did he? We asked around, and people confirmed that with us.”

“Well?!” Ryuji barked aloud. “What did you do, you son of a bitch?! ANSWER ME!”

“Ryuji, that’s enough!” Yukiko cried. “He needs to breathe if he's going to answer us!”

Grumbling, Ryuji drew back, letting Mishima breathe.

And think.

...if I don't tell them now...

She definitely won't be the last.

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

“Suzui-chan...” Mishima inhaled. “Kamoshida told me to get her. I thought it was just... well, what he normally does to the team, but now... now I'm remembering something about how he wanted her to be an 'example' of some kind...”

Ryuji immediately let go of Mishima, who was gasping for breath. “Wait… the fuck?! 'Example'? What could he mean...?!”

Yukiko's mind was racing. Damnit! Think, Yukiko! It had to do with Ann, hadn't it?! Nevermind how he's been trying to... sleep with... Ann...

Suddenly, Yukiko felt her stomach twist in horror and do all kinds of knots.

...oh, my God.

"Well, it seems we need to talk this out with Kamoshida, then..." Chie's voice, normally high-pitched and nasally, was in a low growl in her own furor. "...what do you say, Yuuki - "

"...people." Yukiko spoke in periodic pauses, clearly trying to mask her own anger. "Did you know... Kamoshida kept Shiho on the team... to blackmail Ann into sex?"

That caught the group’s attention. “What?!”

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

Yukiko said the next few words completely devoid of emotion, unable to feel anything except hate. “Kamoshida… Kamoshida was attempting to force Ann to sleep with him to keep Shiho on the volleyball team. She rejected his advances, so maybe… maybe he felt he needed to demonstrate why she should obey him. And...” She gulped. "...get the rocks he didn't get off with Ann in the process."

All three students stared in horror, their eyes gradually growing wider upon the realization – and more terrifyingly, the plausibility – of the scenario. Ryuji felt his anger ball up within him, and he clenched his fists together.

“That…” Ryuji spoke, his voice evolving into pure rage.THAT SON OF A BITCH! I’M GONNA KILL HIM!”

As Ryuji rushed away from the group, Chie apparently felt the exact same way. 

“RYUJI, WAIT UP!” Chie bellowed. “HE’S GOING TO PAY, GODDAMNIT!”

As Yukiko ran off after them, Mishima blinked before following pursuit. “H-Huh?! Oh, right!”


(Music Continues)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Faculty Lounge – 9:22 AM

Kamoshida sipped his coffee, annoyed. Of course Suzui had to take the coward's way out - that'd make Ann much, much harder to conquer. Damn millenials. In his day, women of all ages would be crawling over each other to be with the great King Kamoshida. Now people were just a little rough with the brats, and they go sailing off buildings. Really, he considered it a service to the male half of the population, weeding it of delicate little flowers who slit their wrists as soon as they got a man who had something resembling calcium in his spine.

Still, he had more than one iron in the fire, especially with his latest scheme. Really, It filled him with a sick kind of satisfaction to teach his students not to fuck with him, knowing he had the entire school on his side.

His blissful silence was quickly disrupted, however, with the slamming of a door.

“WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO YOU HER, YOU RAPIST PIECE OF SHIT?!”

Kamoshida frowned angrily upon hearing Ryuji’s voice, both he and Chie glaring at the volleyball coach with extreme hatred in their eyes.

“Ugh, what do you want now?” Kamoshida casually waved the two teenagers away. “Can’t you see I’m too busy to play with with the school jesters?”

Ryuji, in blind anger, kicked over an unoccupied chair and hissed. "DON'T YOU FUCKING PLAY DUMB WITH ME! WE KNOW WHAT YOU DID! TO SHIHO!"

“WHY?!” Chie screamed, utterly furious. “SHE’S YOUR GODDAMN STUDENT, YOU ASSHOLE! WHAT, IS IT BECAUSE TAKAMAKI SEES YOU FOR THE DISGUSTING PIECE OF SHIT THAT YOU ARE?!"

“Chie!” Amagi and Mishima finally caught up with their friends and, while certainly calmer, both of them brandished their own unique kind of anger; Mishima uncomprehending disgust, Amagi with... something cold. Even he was a little intimidated by the outright emptiness in her eyes. It was like she had briefly separated from her soul, leaving behind only a portal to an elemental realm of pure malice and hate.

He was going to enjoy taming that will.

“Why…?!” Mishima looked on in horror and disgust. “Why did you do that to her?! I can only imagine the kinds of things you’ve done to her…”

As the room erupted with raucous anger, Kamoshida bitterly sighed before glaring at the four teenagers.

“Alright, let's clarify two things.” Kamoshida sneered. “For one, she acquiesced to me. Yes, I may have been a bit handsy with her, a bit caustic, but women who are honest with themselves like that. You two are the ones hanging around Sakamoto and all; you get it, right?”

“W-What?!” Chie almost had to take a step back upon hearing that, not at all liking the implication. From the suddenly nauseous expression on Ryuji, neither did he.

“And secondly...” Kamoshida glared, standing up for a brief moment. “Don’t act like she’s so special. She's not the first groupie I've been with; it's completely normal behavior. I just needed to show Takamaki that being hard to get can be immensely frustrating, so I felt that picking up her friend was a way to solve two disciplinary issues.”

The horror in the room reached a crescendo upon hearing the revelation. Yukiko felt her anger swell up inside her: out of all the people she met in her life, there was nobody more abhorrent than this man… she had not known hate until now.

Out of instinct, she spat a wad of her own spit directly into Kamoshida's face.

"AGH!" Kamoshida immediately attempted to wipe the spit off. "HOW DARE YOU...?!"

"I could ask the same thing, you unrepentant, spoiled brat." Yukiko spoke in a tone associated with people contemplating murder. "You seriously think you're so above everyone else that you consider rape to be just being a little handsy?!"

Kamoshida looked like he was going to go off on Yukiko in that moment - but with her talking about that, Kamoshida didn't even know whether he should take Yukiko's threat seriously. Immediately, he clutched his head, and laughed.

"Oh, my sweet little songbird..." Kamoshida grinned, clearly more enjoying the fire in Yukiko's eyes than not. "Do you actually think this was only about her?"

“What…?” Yukiko whispered in anger and disgust. “What do you mean - “

“What do you think?” Kamoshida interrupted with a cocky grin, standing up to tower over Yukiko. “Even now, and especially when I was the star of the Olympic volleyball team, women often found themselves misbehaving around me… well, often in rather fun ways for myself, but I digress. Point is, successful athletes get to exercise their manliness whenever they want. Not that any other male here would know that...”

Mishima shrank back as Ryuji got more incensed. 

“Point is, they love good ol’ Kamoshida.” The volleyball team coach gave a smug little smirk. “Some of them are a little shy, but to be frank, I have my ways of making them more... cooperative. It's not my fault if they regret it later."

That did it. Never before has Chie and Ryuji wanted to murder somebody this bad before, and almost out of instinct, both teenagers raised their fist at the volleyball coach.

“YOU FUCKING MONSTER!” Ryuji screamed. “YOU’RE GONNA FUCKING PAY!”

Before both teenagers could attack Kamoshida, Yukiko and Mishima gripped onto her infuriating twins intending to prevent the situation from escalating.

“Chie, calm down!” Yukiko yelled. “Get a hold of yourself before you get yourself hurt!”

As Mishima attempted to restrain Ryuji, Kamoshida grinned wider. "See? Even the wild little birdie gets it. Even if they believed you over me... I'm just the alpha wolf of the school. I can't be blamed for how untoward my students act towards me."

"...do you seriously believe that?" Yukiko said with a hateful leer.

"Why not? It's what Kobayakawa believes." He gave a lecherous stare at Yukiko all the while. “The volleyball team position is still open, by the by. I'd be more than willing to put in a good word for... involved students.” The licking of his lips sent shivers down the inn maiden’s spine.

Yukiko immediately gagged, before resisting the urge to spit in the general direction of Kamoshida.

"Speaking of, just for this little stunt of yours..." With a final wave, Kamoshida dismissed the teenagers. “I'm going to ask for all four of you to be expelled at the next board meeting. You better start begging for mercy, because I’m certainly not going to absolve you shitheads.”

“W-What?! No, you can’t!” Mishima cried. “You don’t even have the authority to-“

“Do I?” Kamoshida sneered. “Here's how the subject line of the report I’ll give at the board meeting will look for you: 'Juvenile delinquents assault upstanding volleyball coach.' That’ll look good on your permanent record, for certain.”

He put a finger to his chin. "Though, I do have another letter about how I'm pleased with Amagi's attempts to reconnect with the school, and how she graciously took Mishima's spot on the team prepared. Really quite ironic, given how he was kicked off for leaking her records... I have no idea how he got the password to her file..."

Yukiko's eye twitched in anger, seething as her hand balled up in righteous fury.

If anything, this seemed to amuse the coach more.

"Heh. We'll see how it is in two weeks, when you've had a chance to consider things." With another wave, Kamoshida laughed to himself. “Get out of my sight, you punks! You’re not worth licking the dirt on my boot!”

As Kamoshida continued to cackle to himself, all four students left the faculty office with disappointment on all their faces.


(Music Stops)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway – 9:27 AM

“I-I can’t believe it…” Chie struggled to fight her tears. “W-We’re gonna get expelled… and he’s gonna get away with everything…”

Yukiko noticed Mishima’s shock before sighing to herself. Instinctively, she extended her hand towards Mishima.

“M-Mishima-kun, I - “

*slap*

...only for Mishima to slap it away. With a sad stare at Yukiko, Mishima ran away in a fit of tears.

Some part of Yukiko realized that Kamoshida was probably telling the truth... but on the other hand, given how he outright said that Mishima was given the password, she had no doubt it was less "leaked by Mishima" and more "plausible deniability provided at gunpoint by Mishima."

Silence reigned. It all felt so surreal to Yukiko; she wasn’t even here a month, and she’ll get expelled fast if she doesn’t do something. And to think he’d get away with everything…

"...um, guys?", a familiar voice mewed. "Remember me?"

...if she was at all into interspecies romance, Yukiko felt like she could kiss Morgana right now.

The other two lit up as well. It was a desperate hope... but it was a hope.

"...well, then. Who wants to lobotomize Kamoshida first?" Yukiko inhaled. "Preferably with a scalpel with tetanus?"


(Music Playing – Suspicion –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

April 15th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Outside Commons– 3:14 PM

Even after classes presuming as normal, the whole school was shaken by Shiho’s attempted suicide.

Much to Yukiko's disgust, it quickly became a field day for resident gossipers, but everyone else’s time was outright ruined thanks to the incident. This was especially for a certain group of Persona-users who would normally have convened on the rooftop, but given the police investigation, were currently in a sequestered corner.

"We can't waste any time at this point, for fuck's sake!" Ryuji said, pounding on a nearby vending machine as he focused. "We gotta hurry up and go to that world and beat the shit out of that asshole!"

"Technically, we're not beating him up, so much as removing a vital component from his brain - but I'm not objecting." Yukiko said, smiling in a way that betrayed no actual mirth.

“...so.” Morgana began. “Can I assume that you've made up your minds on the risk?”

Ryuji went back and sat next to Chie, a look of pure fury on his face. “At this point, I don’t give a shit whether it’s illegal or not. All I want to see is have that son-of-a-bitch get what he deserves.”

Chie’s arms crossed, a determined look on her face. But it wasn't long before she sighed grimly.

"Honestly, before this happened, I was probably going to remain skeptical. Largely because I... I just think community is the right thing to go by, most of the time. Helping others and getting help from your fellow man." Chie sighed. "So in a way, I was always going to be skeptical of this trick we're planning - especially when we're breaking the law to get what we want."

Yukiko looked sympathetic. "Chie..."

Regardless, Chie looked angry. "...but at this point? It's the only thing that's going to ever work. And right now, it feels like I'm putting his needs over Shiho's if I'm prizing his right to be horrible in a system that allows it. No other way, and I'm not sure I want to find one right now! I don't want him to die, but he doesn't deserve a second chance if this is how he's going to up and try to respond!"

"That's two for three." Morgana said with a nod. "You, Yukiko?"

"...really, I was already feeling that him no longer having the will to eat wasn't so bad, after Ann..." Yukiko's brow furrowed, before devolving into a truly intimidating slasher smile. "...but now? Now, I think if he bites it, that's even better."

long pause occurred then on.

Chie, for one, looked impressed and terrified before whistling. "Holy crap, Yukiko..."

Ryuji blinked. "...wow. Okay, there is somebody who hates him more than me."

Morgana shivered. "Well, birds are the descendants of dinosaurs, so that level of anger's not that surprising... not that it's bad to get mad, but still..."

He sat down, finally ready to begin explaining. "So! In theory, it's simple. All we need to do is take the Treasure, and as noted, the distortions based around it will go, causing the Palace to destabilize and collapse."

"...you said something about that yesterday, Morgana-kun." Yukiko said. "The Treasure's kind of the Palace's heart, right?"

"Precisely! Which means it's Kamoshida's too." Morgana inhaled for a long explanation. "A Treasure is basically an item that, in the real world, is a symbol of everything the Palace's master wants, and thus the desires that corrupted them in the first place. In the Metaverse, it feeds the growth of these strange plants called Will Seeds, embodiments of the same desire that is tied to the Treasure. As the desire and its distortion grows, they grow, they warp the world around them until they become the fabric of a new Palace, which exists to protect the Treasure. After that, the Will Seeds aren't necessary to keep the Palace alive, but the Treasure is; steal his Treasure, and you steal Kamoshida's desires with them."

"So, take the Treasure, he turns good. Or dies. Either works, even if I'd prefer the former by quite a bit." Ryuji said. Then, he thought of something. "Wait, what about his Shadow?"

"That's part of why it's only simple in theory. Shadow Kamoshida also embodies the part of him that likes the way he is, no matter how disgusting." Morgana said, more seriously. "He'll do everything he can in order to stop us from destroying the Palace. What's more, if we kill him... the real him definitely won't survive."

Chie blanched. "Come again?"

"Remember how I said a personal Shadow is also the real person's wild Persona? Well, if we kill Shadow Kamoshida, then his ego will be living on borrowed time." Morgana turned serious. "Those mental shutdown incidents that turned fatal? That's what happens when someone's Shadow is killed."

There was a long and awkward silence.

Finally, Yukiko cleared her throat. "So... backup plan, we just riddle Shadow Kamoshida with bullets and run?"

Every other Persona-user turned to her with varying amounts of horror.

"Y-Yukiko..." Chie looked horrified, before trying to explain it gently. "I know you're angry, and I agree with you, but... maybe we can't just settle for stealing his Treasure?"

"Oh, I'm fully aware."

"H-Huh?!" Chie wasn't expecting that answer. And Yukiko turned to her with a clear dark hatred for a certain volleyball coach omnipresent in her eyes.

"I'm not saying we can't nor shouldn't attempt stealing the treasure first and foremost - if stealing a heart wounds up not being a one-time thing, we need to set an example for future reference in us not devolving into a bunch of people no better than Kamoshida." Yukiko spoke coldly, calmly, and perhaps most terrifyingly, entirely rationally. "But I still think humanity's too good for especially rotten people like Kamoshida to be the norm, especially when I'm willing to bet anyone who does have a Palace is only a gigantic jerk in power, hardly a monster. Which means, if we can't steal the Treasure for whatever reason, we kill Shadow Kamoshida and escape after that. Then, he's gone, mission mostly complete; kind of a consolation prize, but he's gone."

A long pause occured as Chie processed that, before wincing.

"...um." The martial artist tomboy inhaled, before speaking gently. "Yukiko... even if you default to Plan A, Plan B's still murder."

There was another silence before Yukiko turned to her friend.

"You think I don't know that?" Yukiko said, her tone chilling the room. "I couldn't even focus on class without thinking about how much Kamoshida ruined Shiho - and if his chest-thumping nonsense is to be believed, she wasn't even the first person Kamoshida raped - and hardly the first student. All of whom in the school body, odds are, are a minor when he's in his thirties."

Yukiko looked even darker with her stare, devoid of emotion except the elemental embodiment of ire. "Besides, after everything he's done to Suzui? To Ann? What he did, and is trying to do to me? I don't care."

Chie paled, but nodded. "...y-yeah. I don't like it, but... he did just try to blackmail you into, uh..." She shook her head. "If it becomes necessary... it was self-defense."

"Yes. But hopefully it won't come to that." Yukiko leaned back, tension leaving her soul. "But know I won't hesitate if I must."

"Yeah... well, anyways!" Morgana said, shaking his head. "Kind of hard to debate with that. But, the other problem is, er..."

His ears flattened. "Remember how I said the distortions ate most of my memory?"

Yukiko's brow furrowed. Yes, but I don't see why...

... 

Oh, noooo....

"You..." Yukiko grimaced. "You don't actually remember stealing a Treasure before, do you?"

Morgana grinned sheepishly. "Eh-heh..."

There was a brief silence before Ryuji's forehead hit one of the soda machines. "I just - you - we - it's okay! We'll learn it as we go!"

Ryuji inhaled. "Okay. So, first, we need weapons... which, I don't have..."

“Oh… oh, right! I forgot! Ryuji's Personas didn't summon weapons for him!” Yukiko began. “Thankfully, Chie actually got our weapons outside the Metaverse.”

“For real?!" Ryuji stared at Chie. "You know a place that sells flamethrowers!?"

"Toy flamethrowers!” Chie quickly corrected.. “I know a place that sells toy guns and melee weapons. They’re not the real deal, yeah, but given how the Metaverse works, they still fire real ammo there."

"...oh. Phew." Ryuji grinned. "So, do they sell fake shotguns?

“That they do!" Chie turned to Yukiko. “And we could use an upgrade ourselves. Same gun as you, Ryuji, albeit more... portable, heh.”

“That’s the second best idea I’ve heard all day,” Yukiko smiled. “Well, c’mon! Lead the way, Chie!”

And with that, the meeting was adjourned. Chie simply motioned her friends over by the door as she lead the way to this store.

Nobody noticed the twintailed blonde watching with a befuddled expression.

"That... is definitely not a normal cat." Ann said to herself, finally. "And... treasure? Brainwashing? The hell's going on...?"

To Kobayakawa, 'I want to stay by Shiho's side after her suicide attempt' was, apparently, not enough of a reason for Ann to be excused the rest of the day. At least she was able to go to the hospital long enough to note that Shiho, while still comatose, had her condition stabilized before rushing into light surgery.

While she had more or less sleepwalked through the rest of the day, she did hear about how the delinquent gang were threatened with expulsion after threatening Kamoshida, and was planning to talk to them if they couldn't take revenge on him one last time... only to discover they were already planning something.

She paused, then shook her head, a determined expression on her face. "To be honest... I was way ahead of you, Yukiko. So, let's see what you do at the store..."

As Ann followed, she didn't notice the notification for a new application download on her phone.


(Music Playing – Layer Cake – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ77kdlx6dM)

April 15th, 2016 – Shibuya, Untouchable – 3:56 PM

“Heeeeeeeeeeey… I know this place!”

Ryuji’s eyes immediate perked up upon seeing the familiar, cramped store with a varying degree of melee weapons and gun models lined up on the walls, displays and anywhere else that held them. Behind the counter was a rather scruffy-looking middle-aged man in an extremely baggy coat who lazily sat back as he read a magazine. He also seemed to have what appeared to be a cigarette in his mouth, but on second glance appeared to be a lollipop stick.

“It’s called ‘Untouchable,’ right?” Ryuji grinned. “I’ve heard of this place before. It’s some airsoft shop, right?”

“Yep! I come here regularly to pique my weapon curiosity.” Chie laughed awkwardly. “I see a lot of kung-fu films, so I usually visit here to look at and occasionally buy something.”

Chie blushed, chuckling awkwardly. "That, and I, er... may dabble every now and then into the cosplay hobby. Ehehe."

Ryuji whistled. "You?! A cosplayer?! Damn, Chie, never thought you'd be like that!"

Chie sputtered, blushing harder. "T-That's irrelevant right now!"

Yukiko glanced over to the clerk, who if he had any reaction, was so incredibly subtle she couldn't detect it.

“...so? Everyone has their hobby.” Yukiko said in a rather interested tone. “...can you show me, someday?”

Chie turned redder, as Ryuji suppressed a giggle.

"What she said." He said, grinning widely. "Hell, it might be a better change of clothes, given what-"

“Well, what’re you kids standing around for?” The man lowered the magazine and took out his lollipop, twirling it around a little - and accidentally saving Ryuji from his own loose lips. “Aren’t you gonna buy something?”

“H-Huh?!” Chie yelped, still a little red-faced. “U-Um, yes, Iwai-san! We, uh… c-came to buy something.”

“Hey... don't I know you?” The clerk's - Iwai, apparently - expression brightened as he recognized her. “Aren’t you that kid who came over for that custom model?”

Both of Chie's friends turned to her, questioningly.

"...they don't exactly stock pocket flamethrowers as a general item." Chie admitted. "I was able to pay to rig something up in about a day, but wow did it wipe my allowance for a month..."

"Don't worry, I'll pay you back. My mom and dad still give me a decent allowance, even given I'm on probation." Yukiko said, before politely bowing to Iwai. "She actually got that made for me. Thank you for your work."

Iwai sat up, bemused. “...wait, you're the flamethrower enthusiast? Was not expecting that...”

Pausing for a bit, Iwai shook his head, before sitting back down. “Well, I digress; customers are customers. What’ll you be having?”

“Ryuji?” Yukiko inquired, prompting the bleach-haired delinquent to walk up to the stand and whisper something nervously.

"Erm?” Ryuji thought to himself for a moment, picking up a shotgun model. "...besides this, do you have, oh, I dunno... a spiked baseball bat? It's not a dealbreaker if you don't I'm just curious." 

Iwai gave a small smile in response. “Odd choice. But yeah, I do have something like that…”

Rummaging down the supply below him, he placed a barbed wire-wrapped baseball bat that looked eerily similar to the real thing. Upon closer inspection, Ryuji noticed the material was quite soft; an expertly made toy bat, but one that caused about as much damage as a particularly pointy cushion.

“That’ll be 1,200 Yen, please,” Iwai smiled politely before turning to the two girls. “And you want to get something too?”

As Chie turned a bright shade of red out of flustered embarrassment, it was only Yukiko who could speak. Thankfully, as mentioned, she had a fairly decent allowance on her.

“Oh, um…" Yukiko paused for a moment. “Speaking of odd requests… do you have any model armor, war fans or boots? I don't think I have time to wait for another flamethrower, right now, but maybe a few pistols?”

Iwai chuckled softly. “You got weird taste. What’re you planning to do with it, mug a man?”

Oh crap, he's onto us!

“H-Huh?!” Yukiko blushed. “N-No, I would never - !”

“Relax, kid. I’m only teasing.” Iwai chuckled. “But I do have what you ask, yes. Mark my words, if there’s a weapon, there’s a toy model for it. I’m just a distributor of those items.”

Yukiko smiled in response, internally sighing in relief. Iwai seemed friendly enough, despite having an intimidating appearance. Simply nodding in response, the group made their purchases of weapons, guns and armor - alongside some updated equipment for Morgana - before saying their goodbyes.

About two minutes later, Ann came in.

"...um, excuse me. You sell model guns, right?"

Iwai stopped mid-magazine opening. "...yes?"

"...do you have any sub-machine guns and body armor? Maybe with a face plate?"


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvMKQzL4tPg)

April 12th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Entrance – ???

After making their final purchases from Untouchable, the budding group of Persona users returned to Shujin Academy, activated the keyword for entrance, and got ready to tackle Kamoshida’s Castle. Indeed, all three humans walked into the Castle Exterior dressed in their outfits, while Morgana had returned to his humanoid form.

“Urgh…” Yukiko blushed heavily, which was obscured somewhat by her mask. “I’m still not used to this outfit…”

“D-Don’t worry, I think you’ll get used to it. Eventually..." Chie said, her more full-body blush not at all concealed by her mask, or much else.

"...yeah, that's going to take a bit of getting used to." Ryuji chirped. "I'll take the leather jacket any day."

"So would I..." Yukiko agreed, pouting. "Especially given the... current circumstances..."

As Yukiko glanced at the castle, the group fell into an awkward silence that was only broken by Morgana’s attempt to lighten the mood.

Aaaaaaaaaaanyways, let's focus on the matter at hand.” Morgana began awkwardly. “Our pre-heist expedition begins here! Starting from today, I’ll teach you guys all the basics of Phantom Thievery, right down to stealth and ambushes!”

“Wait, hold on...” Chie began. “’Pre-heist expedition’? You mean we can’t just steal Kamoshida’s treasure on the first go?”

“Well, basically, yeah.” Morgana said with a shrug. “This castle is heavily fortified. It’d be a good idea to plan an entrance and escape before we attempt anything. Besides, when we do attempt to steal the Treasure, we only have one shot to do so… I’ll explain everything later, just trust me when I say we need to get to where his Treasure is supposed to be before attempting a heist. Given how he still thinks he can blackmail Yukiko into submission, I think until we have until that teacher conference when he officially recommends you guys to be expelled. He doesn't seem like the kind to well... let it go.”

Yukiko shivered. "I'm somehow not as thankful as I could be for that..."

“Well, if you say so…” Ryuji scratched his head awkwardly. “But wait, stealth? I’m not exactly the best at that, y’know…”

“Never fear!” Morgana grinned smarmily. “Persona-users can channel and impart quite a bit of the power a Persona has already into themselves. Meaning even given the current, low-power state of our Personas, we can channel it into having superhuman speed and strength… so I’ll teach you how to harness your Persona to do stealthy things no normal human should be able to do!”

“Such as?” Yukiko now was curious.

Morgana gave a cheery smile. “Ninja spire jumps, hiding in plain sight, super-speed, walking on tight ropes… all that good stuff and more. The point is, I’ll teach you how to use your Persona powers to act like a ninja straight out of a manga!”

“A… a ninja?! For real?!” Ryuji almost wanted to fanboy in excitement. “Oh, man! That’s SO COOL! Isn’t that so awesome, Yukiko?”

Yukiko simply giggled, if just for her new friend’s sheer enthusiasm. “Definitely. Being in this world has its perks.”

“I mean, isn’t being a ninja EXACTLY what a Phantom Thief is supposed to do?!” Chie butted in, clearly as excited as her friend. “Oh, MAN, this is awesome!”

As her friends continued to geek out, Yukiko remembered why they were there. “Alright guys; I understand your enthusiasm, but do remember it isn’t a game. We still need to steal Kamoshida’s heart, or we’ll be expelled.”

“Urgh…” Chie pouted. “Yeah, I know, I know... we do need to be careful…”

“Well, there’s plenty of time to be excited later,” Morgana nodded. “Just follow my lead, okay? I’ll teach you how to act like a tried-and-true Phantom Thief!”

Morgana suddenly paused for a moment. “Oh… before I forget.”

“Huh?” Yukiko inquired. “Forget what, Morgana?”

“We, um…” Morgana flustered a little. “We do need to use codenames. It’s still a perfect crime, but this Palace is still tied to Kamoshida’s subconscious. We’d best not use our real names just in case he recalls whom it is by accident.”

"Wait, that can happen?" Ryuji spoke, sounding a bit skeptical. "Like, you told me Kamoshida can't recall anything that goes on here, can he?!"

"He can't, but keep in mind that's because this Palace represents the part of him that's sub-conscious, that he represses both consciously and unconsciously - which, as you can tell by how there's almost no difference between real and Shadow Kamoshida, isn't that hard in trying to be repressed." Morgana said with a nod. "Like anything that's unconscious, it can be retrieved - especially if it's a foreign idea that doesn't belong there."

Yukiko thought about what Morgana meant, before immediately standing up. "Wait... so if we use our names, there's a chance he may feel that we're in his... unconsciousness?"

"That's pretty much it, yeah." Morgana nodded. "So it's probably for the best to have codenames to ensure that we can't have it traced back to us."

“Hmm…” Yukiko paused for a moment. "Makes sense. Don't want the human one realizing we're after his soul. Plus, quick reference for orders. Alright, then!”

Yukiko nodded, before thinking. "...hang on, didn't you associate me with a bird before? With that dinosaur comment?"

“That I did!” Morgana mewled happily. “Though I don't know whether or not it'd fit given dinosaurs are brutish and - actually, best I stop with this train of thought.”

As Yukiko's glare to the implications silenced Morgana, she thought about it before perking up soon. "Oh! How about 'Phoenix'?"

As if to illustrate her point, she ripped off her mask - 

...and in a burst of blue fire, out came Konohana Sakuya.

"She does look a lot like a bird, thinking on it. Same with this outfit." Yukiko said, thinking to herself. "And she can use fire magic to, so... Phoenix it is!"

"Heh, sounds fair!" Chie nodded in approval. "Besides, 'rising from the ashes' in wake of what brought her here sounds totally fitting!"

“Really?” Ryuji chuckled nervously. “She reminded me of Fried Chicken.”

It took a short, non-angry glance from Yukiko to shut Ryuji up.

“...to be honest, that isn't bad, but it sounds like too many syllables," Yukiko continued. "'Phoenix' sounds better when barking out warnings."

"Well, anyways, Phoenix it is." Morgana nodded, before turning to Yukiko's tomboy friend. "Chie? What about you?"

“Ooh! Ooh! Call me 'Dragon'!” Chie chirped cheerfully. “If I'm going full kung fu heroine, I might as well go all the way!”

“Alrighty then! Phoenix and Dragon! As for Ryuji… ummm…” Morgana  gave a deep look at Ryuji’s mask, before coming up with an answer.

“Hey, Ryuji,” Morgana smiled. “You cool with ‘Skull’? If we're going by masks, it only fits.”

“’Skull’? That’ll be my nickname?!” Ryuji’s loud voice belied his excitement. “Hell yeah! That totally sounds badass!”

“Cool! Three for four…” Morgana fuzzed his fur. “That said… I can’t think of one for me, given, I, well... don't have a mask.”

Chie gave a teasing grin. “What about Monamona?”

“Oh, hell no!” Morgana cried. “If we're calling me that, I tender a name change to 'Thug' for you!"

“Well… how ‘bout just Mona?” Ryuji chimed in. “I mean, it sounds like the Mona Lisa, but I ended up renting a book from the library about my Persona, Captain Kidd - apparently, Kidd ended up burying his treasure on an island named 'Mona', so... I dunno, just what I thought when I read it.”

Everyone turned to Ryuji, surprised that he can even read.

"Wait..." Morgana gawked. "You read a book?!"

"Well, fuck yeah I would! And I usually almost entirely prefer manga." Ryuji gave a sheepish smile. "Might as well have a general idea who Kidd is and all that shit."

Morgana looked nothing short of being impressed. “Alright, fine. If that’s what you want to call me, I’m okay with it.”

“Great!” Yukiko chirped to herself. “So I’m Phoenix, Chie’s Dragon, Ryuji’s Skull, and you’re Mona, right Morgana?”

“Yep, sounds about right! Oh, man, I can't wait!" Chie giggled cheerfully, clearly giddy as a schoolgirl. “This definitely all seems like a Phantom Thief thing!”

“Well… more or less, yeah.” Morgana smiled to himself. “Granted, it’s not my first choice, but it seems the nickname stuck…”

Morgana joking tone gave way to a frown. “But whenever we’re in the Metaverse, we call each other exclusively by our nicknames, got it? We can’t risk anything.”

“Alright, sounds like a plan." Phoenix nodded, as did Skull and Dragon. "So, to the mission?"

Mona nodded. "Well, we - "

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?"

... ooooh, crap.

A rather panicked-looking Ann Takamaki in police riot gear ran into the mass of Thieves, glancing around in sheer disbelief.

"Sakamoto?! Satonaka?! Yukiko?! Cat?!" Ann sputtered. "I - wha - what the hell happened to our school!?"

"What the - how'd you get in here?!" Dragon shouted.

"I - how'd you get in here!?" The blonde gaped. "All I saw was the world turning wobbly and red, and my phone started acting weird and why is there a castle here!?"

""Uh..." Skull inhaled, then looked at Mona. "Um, you wanna explain this?

A pause. "...Mona?"

Mona, for his part, did not seem particularly eager to explain. Or much of anything, given how he was staring at Ann with starstuck eyes. 

After a second, he slapped himself back to reality. "Er - yeah, sorry! I..." He inhaled. "...wait, is she holding a machine gun!?"

Indeed, held on Ann's arm was a rather intimidating-looking SMG.

Which, Phoenix realized with a start, she was holding by the trigger."Put that down!"

More out of suprise than anything, Ann dropped it - causing the trigger to hit and fire a wild shot into who knows where, sending its owner falling backward on her rear.

"...THAT"S SUPPOSED TO BE A MODEL!" she shrieked, looking at it like it was about to explode.

"It still is, but - slow down, please!" Dragon rushed over, holding her. "Breathe in... breathe out..." 

Slowly, Ann's sense returned to her, going from a mad frenzy to merely scared out of her mind.

"Okay. Okay. Not calm, but - where the hell are we!?" She pointed at Mona. "And what is that!?"

"...we call him the not-a-cat," Phoenix said, mildly. "And, well... kind of an alternate universe version of the school? Basically, Kamoshida's idea of what it's like."

This was not very calming for Ann, who simply now stared at the castle gate like it was a giant blonde-eating mouth, edging away.

Then, she realized what Phoenix was saying. "Wait, so this is related to Kamoshida!?"

"To summarize - yes, it is, and this is how we're going to punish him for hurting Shiho." Phoenix said.

Ann nodded, taking it in. "...take me with you."

Mona winced. "I knew that was coming. But... I sincerely wish we could."

"What??" She spun to face him. "Why not?!"

"Because, well - you don't have an active Persona. Which means you can't do..." Mona looked up at a nearby beam, before crouching. "This."

With that, he leapt, almost faster than what Phoenix could see.

"Ho-ho-holy crap that is awesome." Skull said. 

"Lemme try!" With another flash, Dragon was right next to him, without Mona shifting an inch. "Nice!"

Ann blinked - unlike anyone else, she couldn't even register that level of speed. "...what."

"It's new to us, too!" Phoenix said sheepishly. "But... even beyond that, Mona only looks like a cat because he went in a similar Palace without a Persona."

Ann nodded, but her expression remained hard. "...I don't care."

Skull groaned, rubbing his forehead. "Takamaki, I get it. I do. But it's not safe for you in there, there are these weird monsters called Shadows that'll eat you alive - "

"I have a machine gun!" She hoisted it. 

"And I have a flamethrower!" Phoenix said, revealing her own. "It still doesn't beat them in one go!"

"I..." Ann blinked back tears. "I... I have to do something..."

"And I know how you feel! But as cute as you'd be, I don't want you ending up with fur either! If not worse, because of how Kamoshida's cognition works!" Mona nodded at Skull, who began walking over.

"Phoenix, mind giving me a hand?" Skull said, putting an arm around Ann's own.

"Sure thing." she replied as she bound the other arm.

"H-Hey! Where are you taking me!?" Ann thrashed a bit.

"Outside the Metaverse." Phoenix replied, simply. "I promise we'll explain it, soon as we come back! Just please, be patient!"

Ann began to actively fight back as the two Phantom Thieves began to gang walk her out to the exit. "Oh no you don't! I am going to stand here, until you tell me what of anything is going on right here, right now and - "

Whatever followed the "and" was cut off as her escorts threw her beyond the threshold of the Palace, causing her to dematerialize.

"...for fuck's sake, how'd she even get in here?", Skull said, shaking himself off.

"Backwash from the app, I think." Mona said. "My guess that people nearby when it activates are caught in the wave and drawn into the Palace it's heading too. Best to be cautious from now on..."

A pause, before Mona returned with sparkles in his eyes. "Though I wouldn't mind another not-a-cat, especially one made from such a meow-velous beauty..."

"Yeah, even beyond us turning into ghosts." Dragon sighed. "Still... it is her best friend."

"And if we had time, we'd explain it." Phoenix joined her friends. "But for now - ninjas."

"Don't have to tell me twice." Skull said as he followed them out of sight.

Which was unfortunate, as Ann rematerialized about six minutes after they left.

"WHAT WAS THE BIG... idea...?" She blinked, before unleashing a wordless cry of helpless rage. "Fine! Be that way! I can do this... myself..." 

Even as she was saying it, Ann realized how pointless her rage was, the fire burning out within her. Now that she had a second, she realized that even if she could jump like that, her armor was suddenly as heavy and ungainly as real police armor; it'd just get in the way.

Sighing, she sat down, looking at the castle before taking out her phone to look at the weird red eye covering it. "... What even are you," she said to the Metaverse Navigator. "I mean, I can guess that you're related to here from what the... not-a-cat said. But..."

She shook her head. "I just said what the other three did, and now I'm in some alternate reality where fake guns fire? I mean - "

"Who goes there!?" 

(Music Playing – Desire – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

Three heavily armed guards in black armor rushed out. Ann almost leaped out of her upon seeing the fully-armed knights in front of her.

“W-What’re you?!” Ann cried. “What do you want?!”

“Huh… you are…” The knight paused, looking her over. “Princess Ann! Milady, you cannot be here without the other Princesses. Come now; we’ll take you to your fellow maidens.”

“W-Wait, what the hell?! Princesses?! Maidens?!” Ann reached for her gun. “What’re you saying!?"

The knight dropped into a fighting stance. "My lady, please! You know that King Kamoshida forbids you to carry weapons!" 

“King Kamoshida?!” Ann cried in shock and fear, suddenly realizing why this place was a castle.

"Fret not, we will escort you back to the bower." Another knight said, hoisting his sword.

Ann paled.

"...over my dead body!" She raised her gun in trembling hands.

"It will not come to that." The third guard said before he exploded into red and black fluid. 


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvMKQzL4tPg)

April 15th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Hallways – ???

“Okay, Dragon… you can do it!”

Mona crossed his arms as Dragon clearly hesitated. It only took one more powerful stare at his comrade for the brunette Phantom Thief to take a deep breath and begin her action.

Almost in the blink of an eye, she melted into a black shadow and darted from one wall to another at inhuman speeds. No sound was produced in the lightning fast motion, and Dragon blended in perfectly with the shadows. After a moment of pause, she decided to leave her hiding spot.

“So, umm…” Dragon blushed. “Did I do it?”

“Hell yeah, you did!” Skull grinned. “That was freakin’ awesome Chi – err, Dragon!”

Mona sighed. "Fourth time..."

"This is going to be a running theme, isn't it..." Phoenix sighed. "After this, we are going to practice codenames. Somehow."

Mona perked up. “Inability to remember what names we're using aside, I think all three of you are ready,” Mona began, smiling. “I’ll admit, I’m more than a little surprised all of you guys adapted to your Persona powers this quickly. I'm impressed!”

"Really?" Phoenix pumped her fist. "Thank you! Okay, so, we can run..."

Suddenly, she paused, before looking at Skull.

“Huh? Wassup?” Skull inquired. “…there’s not something on my face, is there?”

“Oh, no, don’t worry,” Phoenix began. “It’s just, well… I remembered what Kamoshida said about the, uh.... stance..." She trailed off.

Skull's eyes widened, before he shrugged. "...yeah, someone had to notice eventually. Long story short, that bastard made damn sure I wouldn't be able to run track again." He paused. "But, tell the truth... I haven't even noticed it. I'm guessing it's due to the superhuman powers, but it's not even sore."

Phoenix let out a breath. "Got it. I was just worried, because, well, we aren't exactly giving it a rest."

"Nah, it's cool." Skull looked around. "Though, I wonder where the Shadows are? They're kind of few and far between right now-"

"HALT!"

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

All four Phantom Thieves nearly jumped out of their skin upon seeing a knight charge into the room.

“Note to self, don't tempt fate...” Skull grumbled to himself. 

"Okay!" Mona said, nodding at Phoenix. "Wanna try out that 'thing' I told you?"

“Yeah!”

Dragon nodded, leaping at the knight...

And over his head, causing the confused knight to face away from Phoenix long enough for her to jump on him.

“Now then!” Phoenix began theatrically. “We’ll reveal your true form!”

CRASH!

(Music Playing – Last Surprise –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvUwPQ2zjsc)

Upon Phoenix removing his mask, the red-eyed form of the guard stumbled a bit, disoriented, before he burst into the familiar red fluid and reformed into... well, a she, actually; a red-haired fairy in a leotard.

Who was still getting her bearings, going by her uneven hovering.

"I knew it!" Mona cried, victoriously. "Those masks must be embodiments of Shadow Kamoshida's influence over his guards! Removing them suddenly like that has got to be a headache!"

"It certainly explains why anything female is a guard for here." Dragon said flatly, as she took aim.

Before the fairy could rebalance herself, Dragon's shot tore through her wings. With a shriek, the fairy was send plummeting to the ground, where the other Phantom Thieves drew their guns on her.

HOLD UP!

(Music Playing - Talk - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3znr-8sP6M)

"Eek!" The Shadow stumbled back, hands up. "Don't shoot! I don't even like working here, I swear!"

"...hm." Morgana thought. "Actually... this seems like an excellent time to teach you something else. Team, it's time I teach you how to negotiate at gunpoint!"

"...oh?" Phoenix turned to him, gun still trained on the fairy.

"You've seen the kind of things Shadows drop when we beat them, right?", Mona said. "Well, that's not the only way we can get money or items from them! I'm... not sure how it works, but if we get them to give up money or items voluntarily, they'll be more valuable."

"Oh? Nice!" Skull grinned at the fairy. "So. Miss..."

"Uh, Pixie!"

"Pixie, got it - like this gear?" He jostled the shotgun, showing it off. "I do, but ain't cheap." 

Dragon caught on. "Yep! Help repay us for our gear, and don't tell Kamoshida, and we'll let you go."

Pixie nodded furiously, reaching into her dress...

Shortly before her eyes widened. "Oh... oh shit!"

Phoenix blinked. "Huh?"

"I left my wallet in my other leotard!" Pixie curled into a ball. "I'm sorry!"

"Oh." Phoenix paused. "Well. This is awkward..."

Mona blinked. "Well. This isn't how I expected this to go... I didn't even realize they had wallets!"

"...huh." Dragon paused. "Do we, just, uh... shoot her?"

"I mean, we can't exactly guarantee she won't tattle..." Skull said.

"C-Come on! I tried, didn't I!?", Pixie wailed. "I swear, I won't tell! I... I don't even know why I'm working for him to begin with! I'm not like Belphegor or Mara, I just came here one day, and the next moment, I was six feet tall and speaking like a guy! Heck, I'm not even sure where the other Shadows went, they just said something about a rogue princess, and... I swear, I won't tell!"

Phoenix paused, before sighing. "She... she has a point. She did try..."

Pixie blinked. "You're... you're letting me go?"

"If you go out the window. We'll shoot you again if it looks anything like you're heading to the other guards." Phoenix nodded. "But, I'll let you live if you do that."

"W-Wow, really!? Thanks! Wow, you're not at all like Kamoshida said bandits were.." She paused, screwing up her face. "...w-wait. I think... I think I remember something..."

Suddenly, the black wisps surrounding Pixie erupted into blue flame.

"What the - !?", Mona said, jumping back.

"I-I remember now! I don't just belong to King Kamoshida alone!", Pixie said, returning to her hovering. "I'm an existence from the Sea of Souls! I can choose who I work for! And since you were so nice, I'll repay my debt by working for free! I'll just slide into your heart now, okay?"

The form of Pixie dissolved into a blue flame. 

"I am thou, thou art I... I'm Pixie of the Lovers Arcana!"

The flame reformatted into a copy of Phoenix's mask, which promptly jumped on the surprised girl's face, apparently merging with the original in a flash of blue.

MASK OBTAINED!

"I just - !" Morgana jumped back. "What the hell just happened?!"

(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvMKQzL4tPg)

Phoenix blinked, running her fingers over her new mask - and a new feeling in her chest. Like Konohana Sakuya, only... doubled.

Experimentally, she ripped it off, causing her Persona to manifest - only it wasn't Konohana Sakuya.

"Hiya!" Pixie waved at the group before disappearing into blue, wispy vapor.

Everyone blinked.

"U-Um..." Phoenix scratched her head. "I think I have more than one Persona now..."

Mona sputtered. "T-T-That's impossible! Everyone only has one Persona, because everyone only has one heart, one Shadow, but..."

He trailed off. "Unless... I mean, it's possible free Shadows are still wild Personas too..."

Phoenix thought. "...the wild card?"

"Huh?"

"The Velvet Room said... I was a wild card..." Phoenix tapped her forehead.

Mona looked at her, blinking. "...what'd you just say? About the..." He paused. "Velvet... something?"

Skull caught on. "...I think I'm really starting to hate Mona's amnesia as much as he does..."

Dragon nodded, then brightened. "Hang on, you know what this means, though? Phoenix can use multiple Personas! And if they retain their abilities they had as Shadows..."

"...then she can use their abilities too!" Mona beamed. "This is an incredible advantage!"

Phoenix thrust her hand in the air. "Go protagonist powers!" She paused. "Though... what was that about a rogue princess?"

Mona frowned. "If they're Kamoshida's cognitions, I don't see how that's possible... Unless he sincerely thinks any woman on the outside poses a threat, he-

(Music Abruptly Stops)

(Sound Effect - Submachine Gun - https://youtu.be/W4qeNmNIyHE)

The talk was cut short by the ring of a machine gun.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" An all too familiar voice cried. "I'VE GOT... oh, shit!"

The machine gun fire suddenly stopped.

"Oh thank God, she's out! Quick, grab her!" There was the sound of a bunch of guards running in clanking armor, followed by a scuffle.

Phoenix slowly turned to the group. "Um... Wasn't Ann carrying a machine gun...?"

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

"Oh. Oh fuck me." Dragon said.

"We just saved her, too... how is she even back here?!" Skull cried out, fully exacerbated..

"You don't think the Meta-Nav downloaded itself to her phone, too...?" Phoenix said, quietly.

Mona looked at her, a little frantic. "That's... all too possible. I don't know how else she'd get here..."

"Ugh! I'm really starting to get annoyed with that thing!" Dragon growled. "No time for a break! I don't need two girls victimized by Kamoshida today!"

"Way ahead of you!" Mona jumped to the rafters, scurrying along. "I'll lead you to where I heard her! Gogogogogo!" 


(Music Playing – Desire – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

April 15th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Pleasure Chamber – ???

Today was, definitively, not Ann's day.

Which was a really laughably mild way to describe, after Shiho nearly killing herself, being fastened to a cross-shaped rack next to removed police riot gear by masked knights in what appeared to be what would happen if Kamoshida was asked to redesign the school as an S&M club with a medieval theme, with help from the Yakuza. And with about as much care for consent, taste, or comfort in general as either designer was shown to have. 

Teenaged girls dressed in nothing both G-string bikinis and bras – sometimes even less than that – alongside all sorts of insulting accommodations to accompany their outfits. From cat-ear crowns to bunny-ears, to the more morbidly disturbing, such as collars and ballgags around their necks, the provocative outfits for these girls alongside their sultry looks and dolled-up makeup made them look less like real people and more like mobile bits of erotic art. The disturbing degree of sexual items laid out on the tables only further emphasized the horrific scene here. She even recognized some of the sexed-up girls from her own class, and – wait. Was that the sound of moaning she heard from the walls?!

"What's all this about!?" Ann shouted at the lead knight. "What kind of gross red room sex dungeon is this!?"

She turned to the girls, helplessly. "What are you even doing!? Help me out!"

The girls did not seem to understand this, simply giggling louder.

"The other princesses know not to speak to others." The lead guard said, evenly. "It is against King Kamoshida's decree."

"Other - ?!" She struggled. "Do I look like I'm royalty or something?!" It was a ridiculous question, but frankly sanity had left the building at the speed of sound.

Never before in her life had Ann felt so terrified, helpless and just flat-out fucking scared. She kept telling herself to be strong for Shiho, but with this chauvinistic, perverted hellhole she was trapped in, she felt as though she wanted to ball up and cry. She was always a sensitive figure, a crybaby even, but she had to be strong for the people she cared for, like Shiho, her best friend… maybe something more, she realized with a lurch.

But with her mortally injured and in the hospital, comatose, and with a brutalized and twisted leg, Ann was all alone. Her light, her strength, was completely absent, and she had nobody here to help her or comfort her in this was except the perversions of all the class students (was all of Shujin part of some weird creepy sex cult?) and the sound of fucking from the other side of the rooms.

It was such a nightmarish setting that it almost felt comical to Ann. But the worst part was that, knowing who was directly linked to, it wasn't truly surprising; it fit the fucker’s mentality perfectly.

And suddenly, the door creaked open.

“So, this is the intruder?”

“H-Huh?!” Ann nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw a face she dreaded for so long: the same Kamoshida, except with golden eyes and a revealing king’s outfit, coupled with two guards, one golden guard and two girls that were just as provocative as the harem in the cell. Except they had Yukiko's face… and hers.

Hers?

"Who... who's that!?", was she could say, unable to fully comprehend the sight of her spitting image, only fed through a fetish catalogue and with all light in her eyes removed. "More importantly, what is this place!? What kind of dimension are we in, and why is the school this way here?!"

"I can't believe you mistook my Ann for someone like her." Kamoshida said to the guard, completely ignoring the chained Ann. "Though I admit, I didn't expect her to be so... feisty. Mm. I'll have to think of some new games, kitten." 

As he said that with an unrepentant lust in his voice, he idly twirled one of the other Ann's pigtails around his hand, causing her to coo and giggle. "It's more fitting that way."

He chuckled, before turning to the real Ann, finally.

"Are you afraid?" Kamoshida asked, tauntingly.

"I..." Ann blinked, trying to regain control of her fear. "What is that outfit? Have you lost your mind - no, actually, what the hell's a Palace, and why are you in charge of it?!"

"Well. Seems the other brats didn't give you the rundown, I'll explain." Kamoshida spoke while smirking. "Quite simply... you're in my world. The one which someone with real willpower, real wants, can build out of this world. Quite simply, you're in paradise. At least, it is for me..."

Ann, for her part, was lazy and a frequently unmotivated student, not stupid. More importantly, she was a gamer, which meant that she did have some reference to understand the metaphor. "Wait... This is some kind of demiplane you made!? And you made it a red-light district!?" 

With the reckless bravery of someone who was already resigned to a horrible fate, she glared at coach... wizard... king-pervert. "You can make worlds, and you used to to create some kind of extradimensional fetish dungeon?! What kind of petty are you?!"

Kamoshida's expression faltered, but he shrugged it off with a "tch". He turned towards his harem. "The girl's decided to tell me off. What do you think of that?"

The other Ann swayed from side to side a bit, idly. "Talking back is like... toootally unforgivable..."

“Aww, you look soooooo cuuuuute!” The Yukiko lookalike mumbled in a ditzy reverie, a mockery of what had to be the real one's own politeness, made even more out of place by the fact in place of true covering for her breasts, she had a pair of thick chains hiding her nipples. “Don’t worry, though; King Kamoshida’s gonna be reaaaaaaaaaaaally nice to you!”

"Hmph. I would, except I don't think that she'd be nearly as controllable now that the other Shiho isn't in my other half's hands," Kamoshida said, turning to her. "We'll execute her instead!"

Ann whimpered as the lead guard advanced.

"...but. There's no use in not having fun first." Kamoshida said, a perverse grin on his face as he slid up to Ann, licking his lips as he loomed behind her.

And stuck his hand up under her shirt.

"A-Aah! S-S-Stop - !” Ann felt a hand grip at her throat while Kamoshida started to grope her. All of her warning sirens went off and it just felt so wrong. The automatic, animal pleasure of an erogenous zone being toyed with ran headlong into the knowledge that she very much did not want this, plus the tight pain of Kamoshida's grip; it was clear he was not only not being gentle, but actively aggressing, reveling in the pain he was causing.

“Relax. Consider it a farewell gift from life.” Kamoshida grinned. “Oh, don’t worry, there’s more to come.”

“Oooohh! Heeheehee!” The Yukiko lookalike giggled airily. “You’re such a peeeeeeeeeeeeerv, Master!”

“N-No. Stop, stop — " Ann sobbed to herself as she felt Kamoshida’s hot breath come closer. “Please, I don’t want this - !”

“Ooh, resilience? I like this.” Shadow Kamoshida grinning sadistically. “But don’t lie to yourself. I know you like thi - ”

“TAKAMAKI!”

Ann's heart soared as four familiar faces barged in the door, Yukiko looking at her counterpart with even more absolute horror than her compatriots. Something deep within Ann - something that believed that she could not have friends, that the ditzy Yukiko was the real one, that it was all some bizarre sadistic roleplay - breathed a sigh of relief.

“You…” Dragon glared. “YOU FUCKING DOUCHEBAG! HOW DARE YOU?!”

“Ugh, you punks again…?” Kamoshida glared, stubbornly keeping his hand up Ann's shirt. “Do you really have to interrupt our private time?”

“S-Stop this… please…”

Kamoshida grinned. “Why not stop this? You enjoy it after all. And besides, why not have slept with me? If you didn’t bear the honor of having sex with me willingly, maybe I wouldn’t have had to settle for second-best with your friend.”

“S-Second best…?!” Ann, in the midst of pain and tears, paused...

...before realizing who he meant.

"You..." Ann's own fear barely concealed her own disgusted glare towards Kamoshida. “YOU BASTARD!”

“Me? The bastard? Don’t be ridiculous.” Kamoshida sneered. "Do you know what I heard Shiho muttering, after I was done with her? 'I have to save Ann.' And, tell the truth, I think throwing herself off the roof was the most perceptive thing she's ever done."

Ann looked up, shocked. "W... What...?"

"Don't tell me you think it's a coincidence I specifically recruited Shiho into the team, do you?", Kamoshida said, grinning. "She's got some talent, but it takes years to get into the starting lineup, even if you're someone like me. Raw ability doesn't excuse experience. But, since she was your friend, I realized that you'd do anything to help her get her dream. To put it simply; she was blackmail material to me. Nothing more."

He leaned in closer. "And the funny thing is? When she realized it was to save you, she let me take her. I'm going to take a wild guess and assume the reason she threw herself off the top of the school was with you in mind, given how she was muttering to herself about the only way to save you. If she's dead, then that means I don't have any more leverage over you. Except, oops..."

He tightened his grip over her breast. "Some idiot decides she wants to rush in and take some halfwitted revenge on me, leaving her completely at my mercy, and in a place where her being hard to get doesn't fucking matter. Basically, Ann? You've not only managed to make Shiho's sacrifice completely irrelevant, you're probably going to be greeting her in hell. How does it feel, not only being the reason Shiho killed herself, but the reason her last act was a complete waste?"

If one listened closely, one could hear Ann's heart shatter. The fire and fear in her eyes evaporated, replaced by a dull, acquiescent despair.

“That’s enough!” Phoenix barked. “I summon you, Konoha - “

“Don’t come an inch closer!” Kamoshida barked, having motioned his guards to raise their blades right over her neck. “I have way more playthings than her - try anything, and she skips straight to being the subject of snuff."

“Nrgh… damn it…” Skull clenched his fists together.

Meanwhile, Ann felt utterly humiliated. Actually, that wasn’t the right word: violated. Here she was, captured, helpless, and even being touched by this godforsaken man, endless amounts of shame washing over her for not only letting this happen, but her body getting off to it while her mind screamed no - but that wasn't the worst part.

The worst part was that now that she knew the context... she might as well have pissed on Shiho's grave. Some part of her wondered if she should just... let it happen. It was what she deserved, it felt like.

“I… I hate this…” Ann choked on her sobs. “Shiho... I'm so sorry...”

“That's more like it!” Kamoshida took a twisted arousal from the blonde’s tears. “Cry for me. You’re submission is the be - “

“No… that isn’t true, and you know it, Ann!”

(Music Stops)

“H-Huh…?” Ann, still sobbing, looked upwards to see Yukiko, smiling at her.

“Please… don’t give up!” Phoenix cried. “It was never your fault. It was never Shiho's fault. Don't forget, it was Kamoshida who did this to her! You made the right choice not letting this bastard get the better of you… you’re still a kind, strong person Ann, and I have no doubt in my mind you’re better than this. It has always been Kamoshida! The only thing you're guilty of is being his victim, and you're not to blame!"

“Not... to blame...?”

Yukiko's words cut through the haze, and Ann realized something - that if Shiho was always targeted as leverage, then...

...then Kamoshida was always planning something like this. There was nothing Ann could have done, because the only person who was responsible for Kamoshida's actions was Kamoshida himself.

"Oh, please." Kamoshida said, annoyed, withdrawing his hands to face Yukiko. "Spare me the buddy-buddy sisterhood crap. She's the one who - "

“Shut. Up!”

Ann shuddered, still crying in shame but feeling the fire reignite within her. “You outright said you were planning this from the start, and you're still trying to say it's my fault!? What're you trying to prove, you pathetic pig?!"

Everyone turned to Ann - especially Kamoshida, who looked utterly baffled his food would try to bite back. "What're you even saying, you wench? Don't you have any idea who you're - "

"SHUT UP, YOU FUCKING DICK!"

Kamoshida took a step back, even he intimidated by the cold, metallic fury in Ann's eyes... all of it, directly pouring into Kamoshida's soul, an elemental embodiment of pure hatred much as were the case with Yukiko when she learned the full extent of what Kamoshida did to Shiho. And much like that, all that was left was pure anger.

“I'm done with your plans, you perverted swine! You hear me, Kamoshida?!” Even in the midst of tears, Ann felt a strong will shine within her. "I'm done playing along to your plans! I'm the writer of my own story, not some lie you made up to make you feel better about being a has-been pervert!"

Resolutely, she gave a hateful glare directly at Kamoshida. Yes, she was scared, and yes, she still wanted to cry… but she was better than that.

Stronger than that.

“YOU JUST PISSED ME OFF, YOU SON OF A BITCH!”

(Music Playing – Awakening – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9APGl1dSaw8)

My… it’s been far too long.

Suddenly, a splitting headache tore through her mind. Tears began to run free, and she let loose scream after scream as if her cranium was being torn apart.

Tell me... who is going to avenge her if you don't? Forgiving him was never the option... such is the scream of the other you that dwells within... I am thou... thou art I... we can finally forge a contract...

Letting loose a final scream, a bright red, cat-like mask was burned onto her. In the midst of her shock, she whispered to herself.

“I… I hear you…” Ann whispered. “Carmen…”

With newfound strength from her other self, she began to rip away at the restraints, much to the shock of Kamoshida and the others.

There you go... nothing can be solved by playing to the scripts of others. We are the writers of our own play, not him and his self-justifying prattle. Understand? Then I'll gladly lend you my strength.

Ripping off her mask with all her willpower, blood caked her face as she screamed, fire blasting outwards, liquifying the false Yukiko into a mess of rapidly disintegrating pieces.

The resulting scene was far different.

(Music Playing – Will Power – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqqhuZd8IXU)

In a bit of irony given the situation, Ann's new clothes had more than a touch of the dominatrix about her, being skintight red leather with a long tail to fit wth the mask. She didn't notice. She was pissed and so was a pink, red and black cigar-wielding opera singer dominating two masked butlers, glaring at Kamoshida with an unamused expression. A whip manifested at her side, but she was too focused on her hatred to notice, instead kicking a sword out of a nearby guard's hand with newfound dexterity and strength, grabbing it and bringing it down on her doppleganger in one fluid motion.

The cognition's last expression was one of absolute shock as black fluid spilled from her torso, followed shortly by the rest of her collapsing like a burst balloon. Or a blow-up doll, Yukiko thought, sourly.

“Enough is enough, you fucking douchebag.” Ann glared hatefully, leaving a Kamoshida ready to run off in horror or panic. “Raping innocent women… abusing children… and you call yourself a teacher…?!”

“Ann…” Dragon whispered. “Ann has the power too…?!”

"You... bitch!" He said, fear replaced by anger.

"And proud of it, if it means being free of you." she said, viciously. "I'm not some cheap girl you can just toy with forever. You? You don't have anything beyond being some cheap publicity. So you stole everything from Shiho... you destroyed her! Now it's your turn!"

“No matter what it takes…” Ann pointed her finger at Kamoshida. “I WLL ROB YOU OF EVERYTHING!”

“DANCE, CARMEN!”

A massive blast of fire rocked the room, incinerating the two normal guards and scorching anyone foolish or unlucky enough to be within the blast radius. All, except for Kamoshida.

Whimpering in terror, Kamoshida began barking orders. “Wh-What are you waiting for, you fool?! KILL HER!”

“At once, my lord…” The golden knight dissolved into shadows. “Kneel or you will be knelt, wench!”

The fluid swirled and bubbled, erupting into...

A giant purple demon on top of a toilet, who looked at the newly-awoken Persona user with a furious expression.

After staring at the incredibly unintimidating Shadow for a second to make sure of her sight, Phoenix turned to the cowering king with a skeptical expression. "This is your definition of high standards, Mr. Olympian?" 

“Arrogant fool! I am Belphegor, Ambassador of Filth! How dare you reject our loving king’s kindness, you selfish lass?!” The demon bellowed. “You shall pay for this defiance with your life!”

“That fucking pig views women as sexual outlets! He doesn’t deserve the dirt on my fucking boot!” Ann glared angrily at the demon. “Now die! CARMEN!”

Screeching loudly, fire erupted underneath the demon, scorching him and causing him to fall flat on his face.

“...I'm not impressed. Especially given my element, too." Phoenix nodded. “Alright, Ann… just follow our lead! We’ll all take him down together!”

Ann honestly had no idea what they were planning. But much to her surprise when the four other Persona users leapt up to the sky, Ann did the exact same feat. By all rights, she should have been marveling at her newfound abilities, but at the moment? At the moment, anything other than screeching rage was somewhat beyond her.

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

“Alright, guys…” Mona nodded. “Let’s do this!”

Immediately, a blur of slashes, gunshots and all other forms of brutal combat swept the demon like a tidal wave. Having led the charge, Phoenix gracefully landed on her own two feet, flipping her hair casually as shadow blood gushed from the demon.

PLEASE COME AGAIN.

And just like that, the giant, porcelain-bound behemoth dissolved into shadows.

“W-What…” Shadow Kamoshida whimpered. “What the hell are you?”

As the sound of anachronistic alarm bells tolled through the building, Phoenix simply gave a smarmy grin of triumph.

“We’re the Phantom Thieves,” Phoenix began theatrically. “And we’re your last surprise.”

"Oh... oh shit!" The mad lustful king promptly did an about-face and ran as fast as his legs could carry him. 

(Music Playing - Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

"Wait!" Ann started off after him. "I'm not... done yet...!"

Unfortunately, she didn't get far, before stumbling to the ground, the adrenaline rush wearing off.

Mona rushed up to her. "Are you okay, Lady Ann?"

Ann blinked, snapped fully out of her rage by the sight of the humanoid not-a-cat. "...oh yeah. Monster cats. I forgot. And... what the hell!?"

It was at that moment that Ann finally noticed her getup - and the boob window.

"AGH!" 'At that moment' was not the time to discover one had somehow ended up in a skimpy fetish outfit. "Why am I dressed like this!? Did Kamoshida put me in this, somehow!?" She crossed her arms, covering her cleavage protectively.

"Um..." Dragon said, blushing. "Look up."

Ann did so - finally noticing certain details of the two female Phantoms. 

"...uh." she said after a long moment, blushing.

"It's a side effect of having a Persona." Phoenix said. "It's nothing Kamoshida did, and you're fine. No, I don't know why the female uniforms are skimpy."

"Y... Yeah. I'm... I'm going to be glad my, uh, underwear isn't showing." she said, taking a look at Dragon with a shiver.

"Uh, guys?" Skull looked out the door. "I hear clanking..."

"Yeah, a search party will be with us soon..." Mona said. "It's best to escape now, and give her time to breathe. She was just a victim of sexual assault."

"Yes, please!" Ann said, getting up faster than was normal for a thief - which meant, to everyone else, effective teleportation.


(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

April 15th, 2016 – Shibuya Station Subway - 4:57 PM

Ann, having regained her breath and bearings, put the entire experience as succinctly as possible. “Well… that sucked…”

“You can say that again.” Morgana huffed from Yukiko’s bag. "That was a mess and a half, and it's only due to luck that it didn't get any worse. But, silver lining, Lady Ann! You got your Persona!”

“Huh…? Who said…?” Ann turned to Yukiko’s bag, only to facepalm a bit. "Right. Talking not-a-cat. I'm sorry, I'm still processing all that about Palaces."

"Yeah; I've been there since before we met him, and I'm still catching up. Having a summary version on the way out from school doesn't really do the whole thing justice." Chie held up a bunch of sodas. "Unfortunately, they were out of the noncarbonated, so, uh..."

Ann shrugged, taking the least fuzzy-looking bottle, before turning to Morgana. "So... Morgana, right? I'm going to guess you're the mysterious phantom cat... only not really..."

"Mm... doesn't ring as well as Phantom Thief, but it's not bad," Morgana said, smiling. "Really, I only found my way into this world a couple days ago, myself."

"Guess we're all kind of lost then..." Ann said, more out of tiredness than anything else.

“You and me both.” Ryuji smiled sheepishly. “Still though, things didn’t go according to plan, but… I’m glad you’re safe, Ann.”

“Ryuji…” Ann wanted to smile, but she didn’t have it within her. Today was one of the worst days of her life, bar none. Her friend is comatose, she was touched inappropriately and held captive by half of Kamoshida's soul in his personal magical realm made of ego, the costume used to protect her from being turned into something with four legs was almost as Freudian as said magical realm… she didn’t even had it within her to break down and cry. She simply sighed darkly, before glancing upwards at Yukiko.

“H-Hey, um…” Ann paused awkwardly. “Um… Yukiko? Er, should I call you Miss Amagi now, given how you seem to be, uh, the boss?“

“Just call me Yukiko, please.” The black-haired inn maiden chuckled. “I don’t like formalities anyways.”

Ann, for the first time for today, cracked a genuine smile. “Heehee. Okay, sure. Um, you see, uh…”

“I, um…” Ann paused. “...wanted to thank you for helping me back there. It’s all you why I got this power now… and I want to use it to bring Kamoshida to justice. Especially since, well..." She frowned. "It doesn't seem like there's any other way..."

"Still though..." she continued, frowning deeper. "You really think it's possible for him to change? Because, well... you saw how he acts. You really think there's anything in him capable of regret?"

"You'd be surprised." Morgana said with a shrug. "Of course, those distorted desires are a large part of his personality; when we steal his heart, it'll be like he's a completely different person to begin with..."

"Hm." She paused in thought. "And... if he doesn't change..?"

“Oh, no worries.” Yukiko smiled viciously. “We have backup plans."

Ann shivered. "I'll, uh... take your word for it. But, it's official; I'll help."

Chie frowned. "You sure? I mean, you did just uh... you know, nearly get... erm..."

Ann shivered, but remained firm. "I know. And I'm done running away from him. He's controlled my life for way, way too long; I'm not going to cower from him any more."

Morgana beamed. "Great! We need as many hands on deck as possible. I'll protect you, Lady Ann!"

Yukiko nodded. "Even if I thought you would go in alone, we'd help. Though that said, it would be nice if we exchanged contacts. Is that okay?”

“Huh? Oh, sure!” Ann hastily brought out her phone, as did Yukiko. After exchanging chat numbers, Ann simply smiled at her new friend.

“And, um…” Ann sighed. “Thank you for comforting me the other day… and now. It’s just… after what Kamoshida did to Shiho…”

“Ann…” Yukiko sighed to herself sadly. This was a woman who endured much pain, but she was certain she had an ironclad will with it; for her sake and Shiho's, Kamoshida would pay. Besides, it wasn't like she wouldn't do she do the same thing for Chie anyway...

“Don’t worry. As of today, you’re a bona fide Phantom Thief.” Yukiko giggled. “And Phantom Thieves stick together.”

Ann smiled cheerily. “Oh, don’t worry. You owe me a lot of explaining.”

Ann proceeded to shake Yukiko’s hand. She still felt uneasy with touching others, especially after being touched without her consent, but even then… she felt safe around Yukiko. Secure even. Both parties knew this was the beginning of a solid friendship.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

"Preternatural abilities aside, there's only so much a group of thieves can do directly.” Sae began, eyeing Yukiko. “There must have been at least one person who was skilled at subtlety and misdirection among you,”

"I wouldn't call her 'skilled'." Yukiko said, flatly. "She's no actress..."

Slamming her hands on the wobbly table, Sae’s stare burned into Yukiko’s hazy eyes.

“Besides the point! If you're listening, then answer me!"


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Lovers Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

LOVERS (VI) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

"Just let me know when you're heading back in. I'll get another gun model on my own coin, given how I kinda lost the first one due to my own stupidity." Ann said, with a sheepish smile. 

"Hey, you managed to get the entire fuckin' castle swarming you before Carmen was even conscious!" Ryuji said, mildly. "That's not nothing."

"...point." Ann said, shrugging. "But, I need to go home. See you around!"

With a final smile, she walked off.

"...what a kind girl," Morgana said with a dreamy sigh. "Such admirable consideration for others... and the courage to cast herself into the jaws of death to achieve such a noble goal..."

Yukiko snickered, realizing just how enamored the not-a-cat was. "That's laying it on a bit thick..."

"What can I say? She's all that, and beautiful too!" Morgana sighed again, completely lost in lovesickness.

"Okaaaaaay..." Chie said, shaking her head. "...actually, I just realized something; we need a meeting place. A hideout of some kind?"

Ryuji nodded. "Gotcha. Actually, why don't we keep to the roof for right now? Trust me, nobody comes up there except whoever keeps that garden, and it's certainly not in the afternoon."

Morgana hummed, before nodding. "Fair enough. We'll need a less public one later, but, for right now? It's not half-bad. Me, I can't contact you from the Metaverse, so I think I'll stay in this world for now..."

He suddenly grinned. "But, I'll need someone to take care of me..."

Ryuji suddenly looked awkward. "Um... pass. There's no way I can keep a pet in my house; mom's deathly allergic, and I'm not sure if weird-mutated-human-fur is any different than cat hair."

"Same here. My dad haaaaaaaaaaaaaaates cats." Chie grinned apologetically. 

There was a long pause before Yukiko brought a hand to her face. "As... thrilling as it would be to Morgana to be kept by Ann, I'll see if Sojiro's fine with a not-a-cat first..."

"Mewhehehe. You should feel honored!" Morgana beamed. 

Ryuji shrugged. "Welp, if nothing else, we have our hideout! Meet you on the roof tomorrow!" With that, he walked off to his train, leaving only Chie.

“Man, though, Yukiko…” Chie giggled. “I never thought you could have more than one Persona! That was incredible.”'

"You're not the only one." Morgana said, shrugging. "Seriously, it's like discovering the first airplane. It's something you didn't realize was possible at all, and then... poof! There it is."

"Yeah. And it helps that Pixie is really cute, too. Can't help but wonder... what effect... she'll..." Chie blinked, looking at a suddenly red Yukiko.

"Um..." Yukiko awkwardly cleared her throat.

"...not that it's, er, necessary! I like her just the way she is!" Chie awkwardly laughed, trying to defuse her own muck-up. "No changes! Nope!"

Morgana blinked. "...Yukiko, can you leave us alone for a sec?"

"S-Sure!" Still red in the face, Yukiko ran off to get her own soda.

Morgana, perched on a nearby stool, inhaled. "Chie, are you attracted to her?"

"WHAT?!” Chie’s cheeks turned redder than Yukiko's phantom thief outfit..

“W-W-W-What do you mean by that…?!” Chie whimpered. “Th-That came completely outta the blue, damnit!”

"It's fine, it's just - I need to know for both your safeties." Morgana paused, thinking over his next words. "You saw how Kamoshida used Shiho against Ann. If he knows either of you is attracted to the other..."

Chie caught on. "...ahhh, I gotcha. That's a really good point, honestly." She thought. "Truth is... w-well, I always preferred guys… but I am attracted to a few girls. B-But it’s none of your business whom I’m attracted to! And it’s by no means or possibilities WHATSOEVER that it’s Yukiko I had in mind! N-N-NONE AT ALL!” She realized what she was saying. "Except when it is, but only then!"

"Okay. Just... be careful. Try not to act on it in school until after he's safely gone," Morgana nodded.

"Right! Right. Okay..." Chie inhaled. "Bisexual energy, grounded!"

A second later, Yukiko came back, drink in hand - with a flier. "Hey, I found this coupon for a new restaurant! Wanna grab something there together before we go home?"

There was a long and awkward pause, before Chie turned even redder.

Morgan snickered.


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask (Instrumental) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=330nrS4eoxE)

April 15th, 2016 – Café Leblanc – 6:31 PM

"Hey, just in time. I was wondering when..." Sojiro trailed off, upon seeing the thing between Yukiko's arms.

"Hi!" Morgana said - or, to Sojiro's ears, meowed. "Please don't kick me out."

Sojiro just... stared at the not-a-cat for a bit, before turning to Yukiko with an expression that was the platonic idea of 'really?'

"I found him stuck inside the school." Yukiko said, launching into her story. "I don't think he has a home, and if so... someone left a cat there and didn't look for him despite the growing search for a cat."

Sojiro did not look convinced. "Or maybe there was something else that distracted them today, and it got lost in the confusion? Look. I get why you kind of want to have comfort after... that, but - "

"For two days." Yukiko quickly corrected. "I won't disagree I'm still kind of floored by today, but the cat search happened long before then. Ask the school, they'll tell you."

Sojiro rose an eyebrow, but given how there was independent verification, he chose to believe her. "...and the collar?"

"Chie got it." Yukiko simply said, with a shrug. "We felt that we needed a way to tell him from other cats."

"Uh-huh." Sojiro sighed. "Look. You do realize this is a normal restaurant, right? Not a cat cafe? We can't have it in here, and I'm certainly not taking it home."

"Which is why he's going to stay in the attic, I swear." Yukiko gave her best winning smile. "I promise, I can take care of a cat all on my own. He won't bother the customers, I know it."

She punctuated this with a slight glare at Morgana, who shrank back.

"...meep. Understood." Morgana made a sound akin to a squeaky toy.

Sojiro, as much as he could only hear meows, got the general gist. "...well. Cats being intimidated into compliance. Things I did not expect to see... ever."

After a pause, he sighed in defeat. "All right. But I'm holding you to it, and I don't want it meowing during work hours, otherwise, it goes. Who knows, maybe good behavior will look nice to the parole board..." He sighed. "Did you name it?"

"Morgana." Yukiko said with a relieved smile.

"Dang. I was hoping I was going to..." He paused. "Wait, didn't you say that's a tom?"

"Thank you." Morgana said, remembering the brief misgendering he had when he first met Yukiko.

"It just... felt right, really." Though I can understand the confusion... "I know it sounds weird, but I think it fits."

"Okay... certainly not the oddest name for a cat, but okay." Sojiro nodded. "There had better not be fur down here when I open up tomorrow." 

With that said, Sojiro began to pack up; Yukiko soon walked upstairs, putting Morgana on her bed.

The not-a-cat spun around, glancing over the room. "Huh. It's a nice attic... but it's still an attic. Don't get me wrong, it's way nicer than a dingy little cell, but... it's still kind of sad."

"I don't get to choose where I live." Yukiko said with a shrug. "But, it's dry."

"Fair enough." He paused. "Still, it doesn't seem fair that I'm rooming with you, and giving nothing back. I can't exactly pay yen for rent, but... hmm..."

He looked over at a spare box. "... How many hair clips do you have that you don't want anymore? We're going to learn how to make lockpicks!"


(Music Continues)

April 15th, 2016 – Café Leblanc – 8:04 PM

“Hey… you’re doing this better than I expected!”

Morgana peered over Yukiko’s shoulder, watching his pupil fiddle with the assortment of lock picks and other thievery tools the elegant inn maiden produced over the course of a couple hours.

All two of them.

"...really?" Yukiko held up a bandaged finger.

"I know it's frustrating, but seriously, this is way better than my first try. I mean, my other form's fingers are kind of stubby, but that's no excuse given how dextrous I am. You didn't even use up your hairpins!" Morgana said, pawing at the small pile of spares.

“Huh…? Um… thanks, Morgana.” Yukiko smiled at her estraz feline friend. “It really isn’t all that hard to get used to, once you get the hang of it..”

“Heh. Looks like somebody’s confident in herself!” Morgana grinned teasingly.

“Still though, I’ll admit…” Yukiko said as she gave him a small pet. “Thanks for everything you've done. I don't think Chie or me would be alive if you hadn't helped us out. To say nothing of everyone else...”

"Believe me, it was only what a gentleman should do." Morgana smiled cheekily. “But still, thanks. And these lockpicks will be invaluable for our expeditions!”

The feline furrowed its brow somewhat. “But even then, well… hm.”

“’Hm’ what, Morgana?”

“Oh, nothing all that important. It’s just I’m impressed with how fast you’ve been adapting to all this. It was only a couple of days since all this began, and yet… well, I’m surprised that you’re adjusted in this mentality as much as you are.”

The frown present on Morgana’s face gave way to a cheery smile as he stood as proud as he could on four legs. “Which is exactly why I’m gonna keep teaching you the art of thievery tools! Cry and scream all you want, I’m not letting you off the hook until I’ve shaped you into a bona fide artist!”

“Morgana…” Yukiko smiled to herself, scratching the back of her head awkwardly. She was lucky to have someone like Morgana watching over her. Without a doubt, this’ll be a useful and mutually beneficial friendship.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

"Skillful infiltrations and escapes to all manner of places...” Sae furrowed her brow. “There's even the possibility that you used special tools and had someone who manufactured them...”

She then gazed directly at Yukiko’s eyes.

“Answer me!"


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Magician Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

MAGICIAN (I) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask (Instrumental) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=330nrS4eoxE)

Morgana gave a cheesy smile. “Alright, let’s get to our next lesson..." He blinked, taking a good look at the clock. "Wait, it's what now!? Sorry, bed time."

“Wait… huh?!” Yukiko blinked in shock. “Wait, it’s only 8:00! Why do I have to go to bed this early?!”

“A refreshed mind is a refreshed body, as they say,” Morgana said, regaining his composure. "And to be honest... do you really want to be fighting against your own eyelids and the Shadows at the same time?"

Five minutes later, Yukiko found herself grumbling to herself as she dressed in her sleep wear.

Notes:

Hoo boy, and what an update this beast is! Apologies for having taken so long to get the draft up and ready.

Special thanks to Leliel, who helped tremendously in getting this fic updated. Anyways, an update should come very soon afterwards! And as a bit of a bonus: I plan on making a spin-off fic detailing each and every social link sans the plot-important ones for the sake of completion! So be sure to stay tuned either way!

With that, I bid all of you goodbye for now! ;)

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 5
Chie: Lv. 5
Morgana: Lv. 5
Ryuji: Lv. 5
Ann: Lv. 5

Yukiko's Current Stock
Konohana Sakuya, Pixie

Yukiko's Confidants
The Magician (Morgana): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 1

Chapter 4: The King in the High Castle

Summary:

Kamoshida's crimes have gone unpunished for far too long. The newly formed motley of rebellious teenagers, heralded by Yukiko, are ready more than ever to use the Metaverse to steal Kamoshida's heart.

Notes:

I welcome you all back, for starters! I'm just glad to be able to return with this in tow, so... yeah. Hehe.

Double-update, baby! Woo!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 5
Chie: Lv. 5
Morgana: Lv. 5
Ryuji: Lv. 5
Ann: Lv. 5

Yukiko's Current Stock
Konohana Sakuya, Pixie, Pyro Jack, Incubus

Yukiko's Confidants
The Magician (Morgana): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 1

Persona Database: Hamsa
Arcana: Victory
Level: 6
Resistances: Resist Nuclear and Bless, Weak to Elec
Skills: Dia (Innate), Me Patra (Innate), Kouha (Lv. 7), Frei (Lv. 9), Resist Wind (Lv. 10), Growth 1 (Lv. 11)
Persona Compendium Description: “An aquatic bird in Hindu mythology and is often used in Indian and Southeast Asian decorations. The Hamsa is said to be a symbol of perfect union, balance, and life, and, if you constantly repeat its name, it changes to 'Soaham' which means 'That I Am'; thus it is identified with the Supreme Spirit, or Brahman.”

Either way, I hope you all enjoy the latest chapter!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Is It Boring – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID7z4mE_XDM)

April 16th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 8:11 AM

Yukiko sighed to herself as Mr. Ushimaru continued the lesson; she understands that she had to pay attention in class as well, but even then… she was kind of in a fight for her right to continue schooling and against an absolutely monstrous pervert from continuing his reign over the school. Life was being the definition of distracting.

She almost didn’t notice her phone go off as well.

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

Ry-yee-ji: ugggggggggggggh

Ry-yee-ji: (; ̄Д ̄)

steak trash: somethin wrong, ryuji?

DanishWeeaboo: lemme guess. Kamoshida?

Ry-yee-ji: yep

Ry-yee-ji: the fucker gave a shit-eating grin when i passed him. its as if he KNOWS i cant do fucking anything to prevent my expulsion

Yukiko Amagi: That sucks. But why not change the subject matter to something happier?

Yukiko Amagi: After all, we need to be in high spirits for the investigation.

steak trash: true that

steak trash: also btw, ann, wtf is with ur username???

DanishWeeaboo: oh, this?

DanishWeeaboo: well, b4 i explain, id like to thank you guys for explaining that weird world to me

DanishWeeaboo: its nice to know whats going on at least

Yukiko Amagi: Heh, no problem!

DanishWeeaboo: (*⌒▽⌒*)θ~♪

DanishWeeaboo: anywayz, to answer chie’s question, umm…

DanishWeeaboo: how do i explain this…?

DanishWeeaboo: well, you know how i have blonde hair?

Ry-yee-ji: i think everyone knows that, ann

DanishWeeaboo: well, basically, my dad was a danish-american whose genetics in the family were pure 100% blonde. so i kinda got the lucky draw in the genetic lottery

Yukiko Amagi: Oh, you’re part-Danish, Ann?

Ry-yee-ji: danish?

Ry-yee-ji: isnt it, like, that pastry

Ry-yee-ji: OH MY GOD ARE YOU PART PASTRY ANN

DanishWeeaboo: no stupid, my father was an american of pure danish descent

DanishWeeaboo: hence the name

Ry-yee-ji: oh

Ry-yee-ji: well, i knew that, yeah

steak trash: (; ˃ᆺ˂)

steak trash: aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaanyways

steak trash: we should prolly get prepped for the expedition on the 18th. we’ll get weapons today, but we need to get some medicine 2morrow

steak trash: yukiko, any ideas?

Yukiko Amagi: Hmm…

Yukiko Amagi: Well, apparently, there’s some clinic at Yongen-Jaya. It’s apparently kinda shady, though.

DanishWeeaboo: the less likely people are gonna report us to the cops, the better

Yukiko Amagi: …you have a point.

Yukiko Amagi: Well, I’m not gonna argue with that. Let’s just get prepped for the 18th.

Ry-yee-ji: sounds like a plan!

Ry-yee-ji: oh, one last thing btw ann

DanishWeeaboo: yeah?

Ry-yee-ji: i now know ur from some country ive never heard of

Ry-yee-ji: but do you like the pastry danish?

DanishWeeaboo: OH HECK YEAH, ARE YOU KIDDING

DanishWeeaboo: pastries are the best!!! Especially the one with cherries

Ry-yee-ji: cherries, huh?

Ry-yee-ji: hehehehehe

Yukiko Amagi: ?

Ry-yee-ji: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ-g0BdpbDM

Ry-yee-ji: rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero rero

DanishWeeaboo:

steak trash: oh my god

steak trash: OH MY GOD

steak trash: IS THAT A MOTHERFUCKING JOJO REFERENCE

Ry-yee-ji: IT SURE IS, MAH GIRL

steak trash: ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA

Ry-yee-ji: MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA

steak trash: ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI ARI 

steak trash: ARRIVEDERCI

Ry-yee-ji: WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

Ry-yee-ji: ZA WARUDO

Ry-yee-ji: TOKI WO TOMARE

DanishWeeaboo: ...i swear to god, both of you clowns are embarrassments to society

DanishWeeaboo: right, yukiko?

"Pfffffffft... ahahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahahahaha!"

Yukiko was unable to respond. Indeed, as the war of JoJo memes began to tear apart the chatroom, Yukiko was laughing so hard she was beginning to asphyxiate, her tear-filled clenched eyes blissfully unaware of Ushimaru preparing to defend his title, the piece of chalk zooming straight at her at the speed of sound.

Really, she wouldn't have stopped even if she did. It felt good to laugh again.


(Music Playing – Layer Cake – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ77kdlx6dM)

April 16th, 2016 – Shibuya, Untouchable – 3:09 PM

Iwai chewed away at his lollipop, almost unaware of the sound of four teenagers coming into the complex. As Iwai’s eyes wandered over to the adolescents, his thoughts were suddenly derailed by the fact he recognized all four.

"That was fast..." Iwai said with an amused smirk, raising an eyebrow.

"Um... eheh..." Ann tapped her fingers together. "I... may have accidentally trashed my riot gear..."

Which wasn't, technically, a lie. She didn't, but she wasn't going to head in to Fortress Pervert to find out if it actually was destroyed or not, especially when the answer was probably 'yes.'

"...Kami above, you serious?" Iwai sighed. "I knew you were a newbie, but sheesh. You're going to upset my regulars with that kind of quote, 'care', unquote, for your stuff..."

"It really wasn't her fault. Her parents ended up finding it and promptly confiscating it." Yukiko piped in, her practiced lie coming to the forefront. "It was... a really, really unlucky series of events. Though, in retrospect, the riot gear may not have suited her... the gun's great, though."

"Uh-huh..." Iwai didn't look convinced, but with a single shrug, he leaned forward. "Though, I suppose if you're paying for it, I can't complain too loud. And, I think that Ms..." He trailed off, frowning. "...what's with the swelling on your head?"

“H-Huh? Oh, um…” Yukiko turned a bright shade of red. “I received a piece of chalk straight to the forehead for laughing out at the group’s… behavior, let's just say.”

Chie and Ryuji simply snickered together.

“That... is one of the more interesting reasons I've heard in my life. And given where I've been, that's really saying something." He sighed. "Though, what now?"

"Uh..." Ann blushed deeper. "You have any model whips?"

Iwai stared at her. "...that's a bit of a shift, if you're going to do cosplay." To his credit, he didn't say that without a straight face. 

"We're trying to show up as original character supervillains." Yukiko said. "She has a whip."

"...you know what, not even gonna question that." Iwai said with a shrug, hauling out a package. "You might want to forgive me for keeping to the beginner section of the selection, though..."

Yukiko smiled. "Trust me, I think we'll manage. Though... the flamethrower?"

"I'd thought you'd never ask." Iwai said with a dark grin.


(Music Playing – Butterfly Kiss – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXzsVT-V54k)

April 17th, 2016 – Yongen-Jaya, Takemi Medical Clinic – 11:11 AM

After the model store was raided for new material, the next was simply getting a stable supply of medical help. Thankfully, Yukiko already had a candidate in mind, and a short conversation with Sojiro later about some of his more interesting customers later, she knew how to get there.

The problem now, however, was two-fold.

Problem number one: convincing the rather punk-tuned doctor slowly rising from the papers on her desk that Yukiko actually needed medicine.

And, perhaps more pressingly, problem number two: the fact that... well, the chairs in Dr. Takemi's clinic were missing stuffing, and it was off a back alley.

Neither of these things inspired much confidence in the quality of said medicine.

But, it was also the only option available, and likely the only realistic one given the fact that she was pleading for non-prescribed medicines. So it wasn't even as though the well-off Yukiko Amagi could afford better options without pushing her luck; she tried to pretend the persistent buzzing of the lights above was just a very stubborn fly.

“Um, excuse me?” Yukiko began. “Does this happen to be Takemi-san's clinic.”

Takemi laid the papers down and gave an amused chuckle. “Please, no formalities with me. Is this your first visit?” 

She paused, before her brow furrowed. "Wait, have we met?"

"I'm Yukiko Amagi. I think we've met at Leblanc?"

"...so, we did." Takemi nodded after a brief pause, satisfied as she rolled up to the counter. “So, is there something you need?”

“Hm?” Yukiko scratched the back of her head nervously, chuckling to herself. “Oh, well… I’m here for some pain ointments or medicine that can be used to stop bleeding. I'm trusting that there'd be no questions asked?"

Even as it left her mouth, Yukiko realized exactly how bad that sounded.

To her credit, Takemi didn't instinctively dial 119 for "potential felon in the making," and instead simply cocked an eyebrow. "...no questions asked? Seriously?"

Yukiko paused, further realizing how she sounded. "...well, let's just say being a delinquent and the new pariah in the school has brought some... interesting surveyors into my life. Sometimes, I wonder if even pepper spray would be enough."

Takemi didn't seem very convinced, simply furrowing her brow - even as Yukiko proceeded to respond to Takemi's scrutiny by showing her the pepper spray. It wasn't long before Takemi decided to drop her suspicions, shaking her head.

"...good God. I don't know what kids like you get yourselves into..." Takemi said with a skeptical sigh. "Please head to the exam room, if you will."

Yukiko, not wanting to make a scene, simply followed her as Takemi walked off. Great going, Birdbrain, she thought to herself all-too-highly. Please, make the doctor who likely has every addict in Yongen-Jaya begging her for meds suspicious that you have a problem. That'll look great on your record. Hopefully she -

"In a case like yours..." Takemi said, stopping suddenly. "I can prescribe some low-level pain ointments and first aid kits. Further medicine is dependent on what kinds of patronage you can help provide for me."

Yukiko whistled. Wow, she doesn't mess around.

"...I see. I'm going to have to think about that... but I'll consider it." Yukiko said, after waiting a while. "Do you happen to also have any medicine that deals with poison, paralysis or anything of the sort?"

Takemi simply stared at Yukiko like she grew a second head. With a mild shrug, she sighed. "...you know, I won't bother." She inhaled. "Look, I can tell you aren't sick. If you do have these sorts of problems, then obviously you'd be in worse wear if this is your first visit. I'm guessing you're here because you heard the rumors about me?"

Yukiko blinked. "...h-huh?"

"The Plague. The back-alley peddler of barely-legal medicines. The angel of death who..." The sarcastic tirade trailed off. "...you didn't, did you?"

Yukiko blinked. "...uh, no?" And now I'm worried for my life. 'The Plague'?

"...huh." Takemi blinked. "I was... not expecting that."

She paused. "...well, this is awkward. I apologize."

"...okay, I'll be honest." Yukiko said, running her fingers through her hair. "If it'd prove beneficial to you, and like I said - no questions asked. I'll be happy to serve whatever 'patronage' you seek, but for now, let's focus on this. I'm still open to branching out if we grow to know each other better."

Takemi paused, deep in thought. "...heh. Well, can't fault you for professionalism, I guess..."

The punk doctor kept thinking, before releasing a tired sigh, and pulling out a prescription pad. "I'm out of the normal pain relievers, but I do have some custom stuff. I can write a prescription for that. And before you ask," Takemi said as Yukiko opened her mouth to object to anything "customized" from someone who called herself the Plague, "These are already known to work. I may not have had human test subjects in a while - all voluntary - but before my last guinea pig was taken, I know that these formulas are safe, and a few hospitals even stock them. They won't do much but help keep wounds from being infected and reduce pain, but to be frank I'm not eager to get into potentially addictive chemicals."

Which, by the laws of the Metaverse, were good enough. Yukiko gave a relieved smile. "That'll be wonderful." She said as she held out a hand.

"Ah!" Takemi snatched the pad away from her. "Payment in advance. My charity extends to even writing these prescriptions out, and they aren't insured. The initial dose I have in mind is 1200 yen, and until I see that, I'm not even touching the medicine closet key."

Yukiko shrugged, handing it over. Takemi smiled politely, before pulling out some stock.

"Thank you for your patronage. I'll be happy to sell more, if you need them, but I expect you to be honest about what you're using them for. No resales." Takemi said with a glare.

Yukiko bowed politely. "You have my word," she said taking her package before heading out - 

And nearly running into a sour-looking man with a briefcase. 

"Oh, I'm sorry..." Yukiko trailed off, seeing Takemi suddenly stiffen.

"...Mr. Oyamada." Takemi said, icily. "I'm sorry, I don't think I do walk-ins for bureaucratic matters..."

"Enough of this!" Oyamada said, barging past Yukiko. "I know you're the only one developing that kind of medicine..."

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about. Please do not make a scene in front of the patient." She said, inclining her head at Yukiko.

Oyamada turned to Yukiko. "Young lady, this woman is known to be developing a super-stimulant. You should not give her your patronage."

"...'super-stimulant'?", Yukiko said, confused.

"The police may not take action, but I can assure you, the media will." He continued, puffing himself up. "I can guarantee, you deserve more than this shady fraud, especially given how when she resigns, she will be - "

By this point, Yukiko began to be reminded of the lawyers in her hearing, and how they seemed to be entirely sure they were arguing about how much Yukiko should be censured by society.

"Free of sudden intruders who interrupt medical appointments to sell pitches to her patients." Yukiko interrupted, icily. "Good day. See you tomorrow, Dr. Takemi." 

With that, Yukiko spun on her foot and marched out the door, leaving a red-faced Oyamanda behind her, and a Takemi trying to hide her smirk.

That was a bit rude of me... but hey. Yukiko admitted to herself, with a satisfied smirk. Nobody deserves being yelled at so suddenly like that. Though...

I do wonder why she's called the Plague...


(Music Playing - Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

April 18th, 2016 - Shujin Academy, Corridor - 9:20 AM

Today was the day.

Well, more like the start of the week, but on the other hand, the operation would get off to a real start today.

No more threats of expulsion... Yukiko thought to herself, amping herself up. No more abuse. No more sex crimes. No more blackmail. No more KamoshidaaaAAAHHH!

The coach, for whatever reason, had decided that on that day, he should be greeting everyone going into Shujin.

"Good morning! C'mon, hurry up and get to class." Kamoshida said this with an obfuscated friendliness, waving cheerfully at the students.

Yukiko, naturally, did not snap out of her "deer in the headlights" mode until he already noticed her, a bit of smug superiority creeping into his smile. "...good morning."

Yukiko's mouth twisted into something resembling a smile and gave the stiffest bow she had ever made. She did not want a scene that would help Kamoshida in his campaign to force her into his clutches.

As she started to curve around him, the coach cleared his throat. "You know, being rude isn't going to help your report to the faculty very much."

The technical smile still present, Yukiko began to take very large steps up to Shujin, skipping two of the steps at a time.

"Ugh. What a snake he is..." Morgana quietly mewed from her bag.

"Don't insult serpents like that." Yukiko lightly scolded. "They're cute, for starters - unlike him."


(Music Playing – Suspicion –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

April 18th, 2016 - Shujin Academy, Corridor - 9:55 AM

Still thinking to herself about what the full plan of attack was, Yukiko almost didn't notice Kawakami suddenly hold out a hand to stop her at the end of homeroom.

"Amagi? A moment, if you will." Kawakami said, leading her into a nearby corridor. "We need to talk."

Yukiko instinctively winced. ...great. What now? I'm already halfway to a nervous crackup.

Regardless, Yukiko kept her manners in one piece. She tilted her head, giving an unassuming smile to hide her own irritation. "Yes? Is there anything wrong?"

If Kawakami noticed Yukiko's reluctance, she didn't show it. Instead, she simply stopped in front of the guidance office, turning to her student with a troubled expression. "There's something I'd like to ask you. It won't take long..."

Yukiko nodded. "Please, ask away!"

Kawakami gave a polite smile. "...earlier today, I was approached by - "

She was cut off by the door to the office opening, revealing the likely winner of Yukiko's Least Favorite Person In The World for hopefully the next decade.

"Ah, Ms. Kawakami!" Kamoshida said, back to his mask of amicability. "I see you're already getting on top of the problem I'd mentioned this morning! I appreciate the support."

Somehow, Yukiko was not surprised to discover that he was the one orchestrating this.

She was surprised to see Kawakami's hand curl into a fist, though.

"Just... doing my job, is all." Kawakami said this all with a fabricated friendliness, her mouth forcing itself into a smile.

...huh. She doesn't like him either? Yukiko wasn't expecting that reaction. Or at least, not him ordering her around. So... that's a plus in her favor.

"Speaking of..." Kawakami continued, still obviously a little annoyed. "What did you need the guidance office for?"

"It was quiet enough to be used for our discussion." 

A vaguely familiar female voice from inside the room said. Two other figures came out of the room, the first being Shujin's vice principal, and the other -

...upon seeing a familiar girl, the blood in Yukiko's veins turned to ice.

No.

Nononononono.

God, no.

"Amagi, yes?" The redheaded student from the subway said with a cheerful smile on her face, blissfully unaware of the danger she was in. "Is something the matter? You've gone a bit pale..." 

You stay away from her, you fucking monster!

"N-Nothing at all! Hahahaha..." Yukiko said, a little shrilly, willing Kamoshida to burst into flames with her mind. "Just... cold!"

"Hm? You know her, Yoshizawa?" Kamoshida asked in false concern.

"Why, yes! She lent me a helping hand earlier." Yoshizawa said, brightly, still unaware of the gravity of her situation. It took all of Yukiko's willpower not to rush at her and tackle her away to safety.

"Hm. As much as I want to believe that's a good sign, I'd advise you to stay away from her for the moment." Kamoshida spoke, laying on the "concern", quote-unquote, thick. "Remember the discussion we just had? There are a number of students it's best to stay away from if you have any consideration for your future." 

He put a hand on Yoshizawa's shoulder, and Yukiko was surprised she didn't explode from the torrent of rage, hate, and fear in her heart. Isolate, seem like a friend... lure... it's me all over again...

"As far as I know, Amagi is near the top of the list, and will remain so until she improves." He looked directly at Yukiko and smiled, putting her in mind of a man-eating crocodile.

Better a man-eating crocodile eat this creep alive... Yukiko thought to herself, darkly.

Yoshizawa's eyes widened. "Wait, she's the delinquent transfer student!?"

That snapped Yukiko out of her fantasies envisioning several painful variants of Kamoshida's death. Oh, you conniving piece of - you know I'd tell her first thing if I knew you were sizing her up! 

Thankfully for Yukiko's heart rate, Kawakami chose that moment to loudly clear her throat. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to use the guidance office." Going by the way she said that through clenched teeth, it was clear she was just as irritated as Yukiko.

"Oh, pardon me. We should be going too." Kamoshida said, smiling brightly. "Wouldn't want to get in the way of guiding this delinquent and all." 

With that he stalked off, followed by the vice principal.

Yoshizawa, in a minor miracle stayed behind for a bit to bow politely. "Please excuse m - "

Without warning, and almost without her own knowledge, Yukiko had ended up directly in front of Yoshizawa, her eyes finally allowing them to express the raw panic those few seconds had nurtured in her.

"Stay away from him." Yukiko whispered into the startled Yoshizawa's ear. "I don't care what he says, what he does for you, or what he offers you. Stay away. And if he catches interest in you and invites you over in private, run, and don't look back."

Yoshizawa blinked owlishly, nearly as pale as Yukiko herself. "I... I see. T-Thank you for the advice..."

Shivering, Yoshizawa walked off, giving Yukiko one last glance before walking off, her normal spring replaced by a restrained, shy shuffle past a stunned Kawakami.

Oh, right. Kawakami.

The shaken yellow-shirted teacher walked into the guidance office, closing the door behind her and Yukiko, and taking a second to breathe while leaning against the door.

After a moment, she caught her breath, turning to Yukiko. "I... would ask if something happened between you and Mr. Kamoshida, but... I think that's been answered..."

"...why do you ask? It's not me that had Kamoshida "happen" to, specifically." Yukiko said this with no lack of suspicion; she didn't have a great deal of trust in her at that moment.

Kawakami remained silent for a bit longer, before finally speaking up. "...truth is, he gave me a brief lecture this morning, and your name came up. Something about the dangers of a lack of supervision, the sanctimonious asshole."

The Japanese language teacher apparently thought she whispered under her breath. "Just... I don't know why you're scared of him, but... don't cause trouble, please?"

Yukiko's mental estimation of who Kawakami was as a person shot up a few notches. But... not enough to fully trust her. Not nearly enough, especially given how the perverted coach could order even his co-workers around. With a grim nod, she exhaled, looking no less happy about the current set of circumstances as Kawakami was.

"I'll endeavor not to." Yukiko said, pleasantly. And it was true; the trouble with him was something he very much started and brought to Yukiko.

"And..." She paused. "What exactly is your relationship with Yoshizawa-san? Did you try to talk to her earlier or something?"

"...I offered to help remove a seat-stealing salaryman who pretended to sleep on her chair when she was offering it to an old lady." Yukiko said, bluntly and after a short pause. There... really was no other way to put it.

Kawakami stared at her a bit, before shaking her head. "I don't know what's worse; that it's completely ridiculous, or utterly plausible, given how she acts..."

She inhaled. "In any case, I know you've been involved with Sakamoto-kun and Satonaka-san as well. Maybe you just get along with athletes - "

A sudden vision of Yoshizawa covered in bruises with torn clothing standing on the edge of the roof conjured itself into Yukiko's traitorous mind.

"Is she trying out for the volleyball team?!" Yukiko shouted, the absolute terror returning.

Kawakami stumbled back. "I - what?! No! She's a rhythmic gymnast!"

The panic collapsed into a wave of partial relief, all as she exhaled loudly in relief. She's safe... only for a bit, given what happened to Ryuji... but she's safe. Thank you, sweet merciful heavens... he's broken enough girls for a lifetime. 

"I... alright then. Understood." Yukiko said, taking a few deep breaths. "I'll... I'll go back to my next class now, if that's okay?"

"I... y-yes. Yes, you may." Kawakami paused. "But... um. If you're still shaken after... Suzui-chan, I can offer to let you off easier, if that's... better..."

"No, no, I'm fine. I think I'll do better when I'm working at something." Yukiko said. Especially given what I'm working towards...

"I... see. See you then..."

Yukiko bowed and walked off, leaving Kawakami to wonder exactly what caused the innocent-seeming delinquent to suddenly seem scared for her life.

Or why Kamoshida had provoked that fear.


(Music Playing - Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

April 18th, 2016 - Shujin Academy, Rooftop - 3:15 PM

"He's doing fucking what?!" Ann shot up, furor returning to her not seen since her awakening.

"Grooming a first-year, like all pedophiles try to do." Yukiko spoke, her voice hushed and very dark. "Her surname is Yoshizawa. I didn't ask for her first name yet, and he's seriously planning on moving to the next already..."

Ryuji did not look happy. His teeth angrily grated, and instinctively, he slammed his fist on a ventilator, almost hoping the rage-fueled strength would somehow punch a hole through it.

"AAAAAAAAARGH!" Ryuji screamed. "That motherfucking asshole! I can't believe him!"

"Neither can I... but given what we know about what that douchebag gets his rocks off too..." Chie spoke in a hushed voice - belying her own anger. "How he views females... there's no other way. We're bringing him to justice even if it's the last thing we do!"

"And now you see why the power to steal hearts is such a powerful asset." Morgana nodded triumphantly. "It gives those in a disadvantaged position to root out those who are untouchable from the outside - largely by making themselves turn them in."

Ann, almost for the sake of everyone else, remained deathly silent. But after taking a deep breath, she stood up, her face locked in a terrifying glare.

"...so that chickenshit thinks he can move onto the next girl after discarding the last one like some cheap toy." Those last two words were uttered with an incalculable amount of hatred in her voice, before pausing. "As our first vote as the Phantom Thieves, can I see a show of hands supporting an immediate change of plans to assassination?"

To illustrate her point, she raised her hand.

Before Yukiko could immediately follow, Chie jumped up. "Whoa-whoa-whoa! I... don't disagree with the sentiment, but, think about this logically-"

"Okay, here's the sequence of events, dumbass; Kamoshida is trying to web another student into his clutches."

To illustrate her point, Ann pointed an angry, accusatory finger directly at Chie's temple. "Every day he tries, he gets one step closer to getting Yoshizawa into being his new 'girlfriend', quote-un-fucking-quote. Ergo, if we don't want him to rape her like he fucking raped Shiho and God-knows-how-many-other-girls, he needs to go now." 

"I don't see any problems with that!" Yukiko said with a devious smile, with the brightness of one eager to commit murder.

"There's the problem - I do!"  Chie exclaimed. "Here me out! Before you set off on assassination - doesn't he seem like the kind of spiteful asshole who has an 'in case of death' plan?"

Ann's fury broke, slightly. "...excuse me?"

"I mean, just listen, okay...?" Chie held up her hands, before inhaling. "In case of him dying, are we sure he won't send off the 'recommended expulsion' letter? And I mean; he gets off on power, doesn't he? I was watching a movie the other day to calm down, and the plot is kicked off by discovering the Triad boss, realizing he might die, put something in his will that would personally ruin the life of the guy who exposed his dealings to his wife, and also his mistress, because he was obsessed with controlling her. So, I'm wondering; doesn't it seem like, even if he doesn't think we'll kill him, he'll still just put that in there as a 'taking you with me' clause?"

Yukiko opened her mouth to find objections.

Much to her fury, no sound came out, as she realized that was a point.

Ryuji, too, was considering it. "And, if we do kill him, and he doesn't confess... doesn't that mean he's, I dunno, a fallen hero? Not some evil pervert hiding behind his fame? Nothing'll change, especially since the Principal will just cover it up if he's at all allowed to."

Even Ann seemed to be listening, slowly - reluctantly - lowering her hand. "...tch. Fine. How easy is it to scout a Palace in one, two days?"

"Not sure, honestly. It depends on how big the inside of that castle is, and in the case of severely distorted areas, gravity and the laws of space can become more of a suggestion than what actually is within the physical confines of the Palace." Morgana said, grimly. "But again; he's not the kind to give up. I doubt he'll really put the moves on Yoshizawa unless Yukiko's either safely controlled, or expelled. Especially since Yukiko warned her and I think arouse Kawakami's suspicions."

"...yeah. Still not that comforting." Ann sighed. "But, all the more reason. Maybe we should get to it before he gives us even more reason?"

Yukiko nodded as rapidly as she could. "Please."

Not one person on the rooftop had a single objection.


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvMKQzL4tPg)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Entrance – ???

With that potential looming nightmare put on the backburner, Yukiko breathed a sigh of relief as the familiar red ripple came, Shujin becoming the structure she was internally calling the Castle of Lust, or maybe the Bastion of Perversion.  

As both Phoenix and the five other thieves bundled next to each other, she noticed Ann was blushing furiously.

“U-Urgh…” Ann whimpered, covering her chest again. “Jesus Christ... there's no way to sue a Persona into getting a better outfit, is there…?!”

Phoenix simply patted Ann on the back, fully sympathizing with her new friend. “I know what it’s like.”

“But even then…” Mona mewled happily. “S-She’s a cougar…!”

“What did you say?!” Ann barked. “Say that again, you little sh - !”

“Alright, both of you! Calm down!” Dragon spoke, immediately rushing between Mona and Ann. “Let’s try to reach the treasure today without killing each other. Which of course reminds me: we need a codename for Ann.”

“Huh? Codename?” Ann looked at Dragon like she grew a second head.

“Yeah.” Skull nodded, before grinning cheekily. “It’s what we use just in case Kamoshida’s subconscious hears our voices… or somethin' like that. I dunno the technicalities, all it is is just some sorta safety measure.”

“Hmm… alright then. And I’m not up for Cougar!” Ann furrowed her brow even further. “Oh, I know! How about Panther!”

“Huh? But a Panther’s a cat like a Cougar, right Lady Ann?” Mona blinked innocently. “What’s the difference?”

Phoenix simply sighed, remembering how young Mona sounded. Ann did not look amused.

"...can I just set him on fire for a little bit?" Ann spoke, with a dark hiss. It took Phoenix's hand falling on Ann's right shoulder to calm her down.

"You know what, he's probably mentally just a kid." Phoenix spoke, reminding the half-Danish girl gently. "Let him be this once."

Mona, upon realizing he made a major misstep, turned a flushed shade of red and mewled awkwardly. "...I said something without knowing the context of it, haven't I? Sorry, Lady Ann..."

If nothing else, the apology was sincere enough that the already on-edge Ann to calm down - a bit. "...whatever..."

“Um… alright then, so we're just gonna pretend that didn't happen…” Dragon muttered awkwardly, blushing. “Anyways, on the point, I’m game for Panther! Totally sounds like a kung-fu epithet, too!”

“Alright, then, so it’s settled.” Phoenix smiled at the newly-christened Panther. “From here on out, we’re calling each other by our code names. Got it, An – err, Panther?”

“I understand. Just no 'Cougar' business, got it?” Panther pumped her fists. “Alright, let’s go nab a treasure!”

Indeed, all the thieves charged forth vigorously. Phoenix smiled to herself seeing Panther’s enthusiasm; everybody needed a bit of pep, after all. After rolling her neck, Phoenix began to run off after her friends -

BANG!

(Music Abruptly Stops)

Abruptly, the red light of the Palace's atmosphere turned blue.

A polite cough sounded beside Phoenix; as she turned, she was surprised to find none other than a familiar young pony-tailed girl in a warden uniform and with a clipboard tucked under her arm.

"It has been a while, has it not?" Justine spoke with no shortage of politeness, it seemed. "My master would like a word with you. Do not be alarmed; your friends will not be delayed."

With a flash, a blue, ethereal jail cell door came into existence next to the nicer half of the Velvet Room's guard staff, before swinging open to reveal a bright light leading to a seemingly endless space of chains.

"...I don't really have a choice, do I?" Phoenix said with a sigh.

"Not really. It is urgent as it is critical for your rehabilitation."

With that, she nodded before jumping into the void.


(Music – Aria of the Soul – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE)

April 18th, 2016 – Velvet Room – ???

Any hopes that actually, bodily entering the Velvet Room would mean Yukiko would be free of the prison jumpsuit and handcuffs was quickly dashed.

Hello, dark cell, my old frieeeend... Yukiko internally hummed to herself upon realizing she was no longer Phoenix, but Teenager In Jail. I've come to stand in you agaaaain...

"The prisoner Yukiko Amagi has returned!" Caroline said, standing at attention next to her sister outside the cell. Yukiko rolled her eyes. Oh look, teleportation. Huh.

“Well done, I say.” Igor smiled to himself. “It seems you have remembered my words... you truly make it worth rehabilitating you."

“Um… thanks, Igor. But…” Yukiko muttered to herself, somewhat lost in thought. “Actually, I'm still not sure of what all of that even means...”

Igor chuckled. "I am not attempting to withhold information from you. The essence of the rehabilitation you must complete will be explained in due time. Once you encounter allies who share your ideals and discover your place in reality; only then, will I explain it all."

Yukiko sighed. She knew that was coming. 

Igor picked up on this, apparently. "Do not worry. Such a day will not be far off. In any case, this time I wish to introduce you to the aid we are providing; a most beneficial side effect to being the Wild Card."

“Oh, we merely request that you listen, for now we are to reveal the true nature behind this room.” Justine said with a blithe smile.

"You're about to graduate to a higher prison program!" Caroline spat. "Cry your tears of joy, inmate!"

"You mean my multiple Personas?" Yukiko guessed. "The fact I can, apparently, harness more than one Persona?"

"Correct." Igor said with a bemused smile, sounding very pleased at how sharp his protege was. "The power you hold is the number zero; empty, but home to infinite possibilities. As part of your Rehabilitation, we will assist you in nurturing and even harnessing that potential."

He paused. "To that end, we must execute your Persona, so it can be reborn anew." Igor said, just as Justine wheeled out a pair of guillotines. 

Yukiko's train of thought came to a sudden halt.

“W-What?!” Yukiko cried. “E-Execute…?!”

The long-nosed warden chuckled. “Do not be alarmed, my child; like I said, it is but a matter of rebirth, not death. Personas are personalities that exist within you. You will only be discarding old personalities to be reborn as new ones - hence, 'execution.'"

"Um..." Yukiko paled. "That sounds... even worse?" How much of 'me' will be left if I keep on casting away bits of my identity?!

"Ah. I believe I see the confusion." Igor said. "Fret not; there is no greater difference between your mind with one Persona and another as there is between one emotion and another. The potential to reclaim your old Personas will always be within you, they will simply be inaccessible until reawoken. You are not truly destroying them; rather, you are recycling their physical forms to become the vessel of a new Persona. Fusion, rather than dissolution, inside a new mask."

Yukiko’s head was still spinning from the sudden request to literally recycle bits of herself, but she was slightly mollified by the realization they would not quite die. Slightly.

“If I have to... um…” Yukiko brought her chained hands to her face, nervously. “I… I choose to fuse Konohana Sakuya and Pixie… if that’s okay, of course.”

“Interesting, if perhaps only chosen since it was the only possible option for the time being, lest you continue to recruit new shadows from within the Palace.” Igor nodded at the twins. “Let it be done.”

With the snap of both wardens’ fingers, two Personas were pulled out and materialized: the Pixie and Konohana Sakuya, her other self.

“H-Hey, what the heck is this?!” Pixie nervously glanced around as Caroline forcibly nudged the ex-Shadow forward with her baton. “Hey, c’mon, please! I don’t wanna be executed!”

"Were you paying attention to the bit about it not being permanent?" An annoyed Caroline retorted. "Consider this a holiday until you're needed again; you'll just be cooling your heels in the Sea of Souls until she summons you again."

"I... I guess..." Pixie stilled slightly. "I guess sudden vacations after neck pain are better than the job I had..."

Konohana Sakuya, far more serene as Justine gently led her foward, simply smiled at her master… as much as a seven-foot tall avian producing flames and eldritch energy could, anyway.

“I am thou… thou art I…” Konohana Sakuya began. “My mistress, my eternal flame… it seems that this is where we shall part for now.”

“But fear not, my other self.” The avian smiled wider. “For though we part for the time being, I shall always be by your side; I shall be the tiny cinder that shall burst into the flames of rebellion upon your journey’s conclusion. Know it well, for no matter where my soul comes to rest, I shall always protect you.”

“Farewell, trickster of cinders…” Konohana Sakuya cried. “’Til we meet again!”

As the guards finally used their magic to forcibly guide Konohana Sakuya down the hall, the avian Persona began cackling in a demonic voice, but one of triumph, defiance and strength of will.

As Pixie slumped down in resigned acceptance, Konohana Sakuya stood alone standing proud, graceful and defiant. 

Or, at least until the wardens drew a pair of blue shrouds over them, chaining them into anonymous bundles that they put inside the guillotines. 

“Alright… here goes!” Caroline grinned devilishly. “Hit the lever, Justine!”

And just like that, the blades came down, severing the two female Personas’ heads.

Much to Yukiko's surprise and relief, there was no blood spurting out - in fact, the two Personas actually both exploded into streamers of energy not dissimilar to Shadows, though colored blue and black rather than red and black. 

The energies mixed in the center, intermingling into a knot, until they burst and merged into a brand-new creature – a blue imp in a jar grinning micheviously at Yukiko.

“Nice to meetcha, miss!” The creature smiled cheerfully, boasting a boyish and nasally voice. “My name’s Chariot Agathion! I'll be guarding your magic 'till the end of the line!”

The new Persona glowed blue before transforming into a new mask, floating serenely in the air.

"How impressive... a stronger Persona has been born from the blood and body of the old." Igor said, obviously pleased at this new development. "This will be your new strength; bring forth more shadows to fuse into stronger Personas, Trickster. That is the most surefire pathway to your own rehabilitation."

Yeah, I can see that... Yukiko thought, bitterly. Still doesn't make me feel very happy, though...

Justine picked up on Yukiko's guilt. "For what it's worth, the value of this ceremony will be made clear on the field of battle. Unpredictability for a trickster is a required skill."

Igor nodded. "Gather Personas, and bring them here. From their executions, even stronger Personas will be made. Developing your powers as such will play an integral part of your stand against ruin."

"And as you show your progress, we will develop new rituals of execution to bring forth Personas of even greater potentials." Caroline said. "Eventually, we will be able to rebuild the physical form of Personas you have executed."

That got Yukiko's attention, and brightened her mood considerably.

Caroline noticed, before smiling smugly. "Cry your tears of joy, inmate."

"Your heart is steadily gaining the power of rebellion..." Igor said, his smile widening slightly. "Your rehabilitation proceeds very well. I look forward to the full blossoming of your potential..."

Yukiko smiled, feeling Igor's high expectations buoy her mood up. It was almost strange how this could all change with the drop of a hat... but it made Yukiko feel... happy, in a sense. Like she was making progress.

And that was good enough for her.

She smiled, a smile that has been dormant since being put on probation. "Thank you, Igor. This... this means a lot to me."

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Fool Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

FOOL (0) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music – Aria of the Soul – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE)

A sudden thought struck Yukiko. "Um... actually, just now, did you hear anything, and can you explain what that was?"

"I cannot, but I know from your expression what it is." Igor said with a nod. "It is the voice of a guiding light within you, helping to understand your bond with others who have lost their place in the world. Through them, your Personas will become better defined, and so gain in strength."

"Ah." Yukuko nodded, before she suddenly frowned. "Hey wait a minute, how long have I been here?"

"To your allies? No time at all." Justine said. "Though, I suppose they might ask why you may be standing around with an unfocused expression for a bit..."

Caroline snickered as Yukiko blushed.

"I... suppose I should get back then?" The innmaiden asked, feeling sheepish.

"I would think so." Caroline said. "I imagine you look pretty foolish right about now."


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvMKQzL4tPg)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Entrance– ???

"Um, Earth to Phoenix? Phoenix?" Skull waved his hand in front of Phoenix's face.

"...uhh..."

Phoenix looked slackjawed and dazed, but finally, some motion appeared in her eyes as she came back to Earth. Upon immediately noticing the train of drool that formed in her mouth, she immediately colored a great big blushed, and squeaked.

"...I'm afraid to ask, but, uh..." Phoenix winced, still blushing. "Er, how long was I out?"

"Uh, not very, you just stopped mid-run and started, well, kind of looking at nothing." Panther said. "...did you fall asleep standing up or something?"

"If you need to get your bearings, we can wait!" Dragon said, smiling comfortingly. "It's been a crappily long week."

"Uh, no. It's, er, not that." She paused, her blush finally leaving her. "Er, remember what I said about the Velvet Room?"

"Yeah, I do." Skull said, thinking back to the discovering of her having multiple Personas. "Why, what about it?"

"Yeah, I just took a forced detour there, and I am back to one, completely new Persona now." Phoenix said with a smile.

Ryuji simply blinked. "Wait... for real?!"

Phoenix simply nodded. To illustrate her point, she simply grabbed her mask - 

...and upon tearing it off, a blue gremlin in a sort of pottery came up: Chariot Agathion. Phoenix smiled warmly as Agathion gave an animal-like squeak before disappearing into blue flames, all while Phoenix's mask came back.

Dragon whistled. "Holy crap! Where's Konohana Sakura and Pixie?!"

"Gone, for now. Which really makes it important that I negotiate with Shadows and get them as Personas. I trust that you're all okay with that?" Phoenix asked that with a bit of concern in her voice, tilting her head.

"Well, whatever it takes for Lady Yukiko to maintain her advantage is of the utmost importance." Mona said with a nod. "Having the ability to use other Shadows against us is seriously an advantage we can't afford to squander!"

"...either way, there's little time we can afford to squander, given that creep is still about." Panther said this, fittingly, with a cat-like growl before suddenly blinking. "Um, Phoenix, mind telling me what's a Velvet Room sometime?"

Phoenix looked at her sympathetically. "I'll tell you as soon as I have any idea."

It wasn't long, then, before all present immediately turned to the entrance of Kamoshida's Palace, foreboding as it was. All that came soon from it was a desire to end the predation that's been going on in Shujin Academy for years now, even if they have to drag Kamoshida kicking and screaming to justice. Yukiko, for one, simply smiled at the other thieves.

"So..." Yukiko said with a smirk. "Who's ready to go get a treasure?"


(Music Continues)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Entrance of Safe Room - ???

Thankfully, the couple days between invasions seemed to have calmed the Shadows, at least somewhat; several doors in the front area in were barred (including, thankfully, the cell Ann was taken) and a bunch of routes were blocked off with bars and locked doors, but the guards seemed to feel that was enough before returning to normal patrols.

"My guess is that Kamoshida thinks you've accepted defeat by now." Mona said as he wiped off a bit of an unfortunate Shadow that Phoenix failed to negotiate with. "So, since he's less nervous, the Shadows are less active and hostile."

"Finally, his ego does something good." Panther muttered.

Dragon grimaced. "Yeah, that's implying an overbloated ego is good for anything..."

After a few scuffles, however, the Phantom Thieves came across something newly odd, as opposed to the old odd of the castle itself.

"Um..." Phoenix pointed at a door that would have been completely normal for the medieval environment of the castle, were it not for the fact that it also happened to be a bit on the transparent side. "...is anyone else seeing this, or is this a giant invisible blue door and Wild Card situation?"

"I lost you around 'blue', but... unless you're not seeing a weird ghost door, the answer is 'no, it's not.'" Dragon stared at it. "What?"

Mona came running around. "Is something the matter - a-ha, yes! Thank you!"

Without warning, the not-a-cat charged through the ghost doors. "Come on in!"

Skull came around the bend just as Mona went through.

"...yannow what, not ot even gonna question it." Skull said this in a flat and bemused tone before following along with a befuddled Panther.

As Phoenix shrugged and went on behind the three, she realized the new odd didn't stop.

(Music Playing - Have a Short Rest - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCkaNhn2oxU)

For some reason, the small, homey-looking area behind the door did not seem sure if it wanted to be part of the nightmare castle version of Shujin or the... more mundanely nightmarish version of the actual school, phasing between a small meeting room and a classroom.

"I knew it!" Mona smiled "We have a safe room!"

"...um, I don't think anything here can be called 'safe'." Panther said skeptically, her brow furrowing.

"It is if it's not really part of the Palace!" Mona continued, still looking relieved. "That's why it's cycling between the rest of the castle and the real school."

Phoenix's brow furrowed like Panther's, before realizing something. "...the Shadows can't get here, can they?"

"Not really. And since it's slightly out of phase with the rest of the Palace, that means people who can enter one can teleport between this Safe Room and other Safe Rooms through our cognition - once we've located other Safe Rooms, of course." Mona grinned. "It's actually interesting; this place corresponds to an area in the real Shujin where Kamoshida doesn't feel as powerful. Since his distortions are based around being a king, places where he doesn't feel like a king aren't properly reflected, and the distortions are weak here."

Dragon listened, thinking, before going over to a sofa that was also a desk, reading the name. "Hey, isn't this Kawakami's homeroom?"

That got both of her students in the area very interested.

"Really?" Panther said, rushing over to see that, yes, the nameplate was indeed the that of perpetually tired teacher.

"That's... a major relief, honestly." Phoenix put forward her entry for Understatement of the Year. "I guess she really doesn't like him..."

"Yeah, I had her last year." Skull said, coming over. "She's... well, she ain't that great, but she's hardly bad, she just doesn't get involved. She gets worried if someone seems like they're falling behind... my guess is that that bastard knows that the only reason Kawakami doesn't report on him is because she'd lose her job. And if she knew about what actually happened with Shiho..."

"She might not care if she has a job." Mona finished. "Sounds like she's not that bad a person - which is great, because hey, safe room!"

"Yeah." Phoenix slumped on a chair. "Breather?"

"Sure thing..." Panther said with a groan, leaning back on a sofa. "Still don't understand this, but hey, if it's a safe spot..."

They just sat for a bit, thinking and letting their stress die down.

Then, Phoenix remembered something - something that, given how they weren't in somewhere as dominated by Kamoshida's subconscious, she should really get to.

"...Dragon, mind if I ask you something?" Phoenix, adjacent to the tomboy martial artist, spoke in an awkward tone. "Remember that discussion you had with Mona?"

Dragon squeaked, before turning a bright shade of pink. "W-What about it?"

Phoenix did an internal calculus how much it was worth to ask this... before Phoenix simply grimaced, shrugged, and turned to Dragon with an apologetic, awkward smile.

"Did you know... the nearest vending machine is in earshot of a shout?" Phoenix's wince portrayed her valiant attempts at hiding her blush.

It took a second for Dragon to process that. Before immediately making a sound equivalent to a short squeak and dying croak.

"...ughk!" Dragon blabbed, turning redder.

"W-Whoa!" Mona looked up, wincing. "That's private! She can deal with her feelings on..."

He trailed off, blushing, before turning to a confused Skull. "If you ever let slip a secret... you have one point before I start yelling at you..."

"I get it!" Phoenix held up her hand. "It's just... well..." She paused. "I'm not making any decisions yet... but I am leaving it open; I'll think about it when Kamoshida isn't menacing us."

"R-Really!?" Dragon brightened.

"Really. Just, uh... don't shout so loud when keeping a secret, please?" Phoenix smiled. 

Panther blinked. "...do I want to know?"

"If this goes anywhere?" Mona said, smirking. "It'll be impossible to miss."


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvMKQzL4tPg)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, East Building - ???

Of course, there was one security system that no amount of bars could compare to:

Disrepair and laziness.

"Are you friggin' kidding me!?" Dragon gawked at a stairwell that had seen better days - which was to say, it was completely fallen apart. "This is his Palace, you'd think he'd at least keep the stairs intact!"

"Somehow, I ain't thinkin' we're goin' up this way..." Skull shrugged.

"Yeah. I guess we need to go around a bit..." Panther turned around.

Mona... grinned. "Who says?"

"...sadly, I don't think the giant holes talk to strangers, but, I think their opinions are fairly self-evident." Phoenix said, flatly.

"Hey! You think I'd be smug about this if my skills couldn't overcome this?" Mona said, not noticing the questioning looks Dragon and Skull were giving each other. "I've been working on a project over the weekend, which iiiiiiiiiiiiiis..."

As he trailed off, Mona pawed through his... pockets before eagerly revealed a bracelet.

A bracelet with a very distinct hook.

"...no way." Phoenix said, awed. "This can't be..."

"It is! It's a grappling hook." He grinned. "Put it on!"

A bit of a cinch-up, and Phoenix took aim at a sturdy-looking head of a ram. A precise click of a button on her wrist and -

"WHOA!" Phoenix wasn't sure who screamed that, including her in that, but, a second later, she was aware of catching herself from accidentally impacting the wall.

"...um." She blinked. "Okay, wow! Didn't know Phantom Thieves had access to super-spy technology..."

"...okay, that?" Skull wolf-whistled, nodding in approval. "That was pretty awesome."

"Everything in me is telling me that shouldn't be possible, but in this world?" Panther shook her head. "I'm just going to marvel at this world right now."

"...please tell me you have more than one." Dragon asked Mona, pleadingly.

"Yep!" A bunch of bracelets showed themselves from the not-a-cat's pockets. "How else are we going to get up there, mysterious to-leader teleportation?"

"Honestly, at this rate?" Panther said. "That would not be particularly odd..."


(Music Continues)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Library - ???

Life was strange enough that Phoenix – the obedient, goody two-shoes heiress of the Amagi Inn – became a criminal and phantom thief stealing the hearts of the corrupt. It was so paradoxical yet bombastic that from this point onwards, Phoenix expected things to only further escalate.

She supposed that, technically, solving puzzles that probably symbolized something very deep within Kamoshida's brainspace - beyond 'ego', given a significant portion of the books in the library were titled "Kamoshida's Something Or Another" - to open up what Mona described as the inevitable secret passageway in was something new... but unfortunately, not in any exciting way. Unless you considered "disgust while annoyed" excitement.

It wasn’t as though they didn’t have their fair share of action along the way: they wiped out a few groups of Shadows on the way here, recruited a few others and so on, so trying to infiltrate the rest of the castle shouldn't have posed problems beyond Kamoshida's obsession with barring up every easy entryway. Still though, Phoenix honestly wished it was either a little more exciting than reading the sordidly pedophilic fantasies from “The Queen” while trying to figure out the internal logic of said puzzle, or a lot less, because she would not be reading it.

God, how the content would make a mortal man shudder.

“Well, we’ve managed to get the King and Slave books slid in…” Panther huffed to herself, crossing her arms all the while. “We just need to know where that book goes…”

“Please." Phoenix said with a brief gag. "Do not say anything with the term 'slide' in it for the next day. Or anything related. Or the word 'full'."

"... I'm beginning to really appreciate being on guard duty and not puzzle duty." Dragon said, mildly.

“Same here." Skull shivered. "No fuckin' way I'm touchin' that shit. You keep the books far, far away from me."

It was then Phoenix noticed a pattern; one of the shelves was purely Kamoshida's egomania, another was purely insulting descriptions of male students, the third... the third she refused to look directly act, given how one book called Panther a "Charming Doll" and she had no special desire to learn what her own title was. But she then noticed a gap inside the female section, and a tiny button inside the gap - and similar buttons in the other gaps.

“Huh… could this be…?” Phoenix blinked for a moment as she slid the sordid fantasy of Kamoshida into the female section hole, and with the King book into the ego section, and the Slave book into the boys' section. 

With the last click, the library suddenly rumbled, as within the walls, there was the distinct sound of gears and cogs starting to move.

“Hey…” Mona grinned. “Phoenix, you did it! Great job!”

“Welp, that’s our Phoenix, for certain!” Dragon pumped her fist. “If there’s anything about her, it’s that she’s one smart cookie!”

"Honestly, I'd feel smarter if I didn't read them first and instead was looking through the sections to find the pattern." Phoenix shrugged, sourly. "But, we managed to open it, so..."

Before Panther and Skull could concur, the sound of a sinking bookshelf tore through the room, prompting the group to turn around.

And immediately wished they hadn't.

“H-Huh…? What… what is…?!”

(Music Playing – Desire – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

Phoenix continued to stare in horror upon seeing what was in the room – and to say it was terrifying would be an understatement.

Pictures of countless women who either stood tied up, gagged, pinned down, or some other combination of restraints – but all of them were naked. And they were either crying, screaming or pleading to stop as they were fornicated by a faceless male… only it was obvious what that faceless male was, what with a fantastical picture of King Kamoshida surrounded by his harem. The presence of other sex toys and bondage equipment combined with the fetishized female trophies lining the halls only further made the room chilling.

Worst, however, was a golden statuette of a nude Shiho in the middle of it, right in front of a similar binding board to what Panther had been in. One with worn restraints as if it had been recently used.

“W-What the... fuck…?” Skull, for the first time in quite a while, was left completely speechless. “What the hell is this place?! Is-Is this some kinda shrine dedicated to all the women he raped…?!”

Meanwhile, Panther looked on in utter disgust, her hands balling up with anger. “That… that bastard… he thinks of all the women he traumatized as sexual conquests, doesn't he? Doesn’t he even care what he's doing to all these women…?!”

"And... his most recent trophy." Phoenix said with a building hatred in her voice, aghast at what the statuette had to be. "The most recent victory..."

“Ann…” Dragon bit her lip, looking ready to cry. At this point, nobody felt the need to shush her; really, it was hard to speak to begin with.

It was then Phoenix caught the glimmer of a golden key - or more precisely, a metal with Kamoshida's grinning face on it, with key-teeth attached. Obviously, the key to somewhere important; Kamoshida's ego wouldn't let it be anything else.

“…we’re going to take this bastard on today.”

Mona nodded, still a bit stunned. "I'd advise you avoid pushing yourself... but at this point, I don't think any of us could sleep after seeing this, and we didn't make any major progress."

"Seriously." Skull nodded, gritting his teeth. "Shiho, you, Phoenix... that junior today... that fucking bastard's never gonna stop, is he?"

"The only time we'll retreat is if some of us literally can't get up." Dragon said, resolute. "And maybe, just maybe, not even then." 

"I second that motion completely." Phoenix said, icily. "...and as an order as leader of the group: if you see any full-body statues of Kamoshida... tell me, okay?"

Panther looked up. "Huh?"

"At this point... I don't just want to beat him within an inch of his sorry life." Yukiko said, her face splitting into her slasher smile. "I want to humiliate him."

And that was the last thing anyone said for a while.


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave (Another Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLUuJ0qunI)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Great Shrine – ???

“Ungh… I feel so tiiiiired…”

Dragon pouted loudly as she trudged onwards. Having used a lot of her Persona abilities to fight the Shadows was beginning to take a toll on her, and she merely huffed tiredly. Phoenix proceeded to ruffle her hair.

“Hang in there, alright Chie?” Phoenix gave an encouraging smile for her friend. “Once we get through, I promise that I’ll buy you six beefsteaks, on the house.”

“B-Beefsteaks…?” Dragon’s voice immediately regained some strength. “Y-Yeah! I can do this! No problem!”

“Heehee. That’s my Dragon!” Phoenix grinned. “Now, c’mon… we’re pretty much halfway - “

“Hey… Phoenix… you may want to see this…”

(Music Stops)

“H-Huh…?” Phoenix blinked, seeing Panther and Skull’s visible disgust. “What’s… wait, what is that?!”

(Music Playing – Desire – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

In what had to be the Palace's version of the gym, Kamoshida's self-worship had excelled to new heights. Or perhaps, burrowed to new lows.

The gym had become a church, several rows of stately pews sat beneath a set of roses, and figurines of feminine legs in the rafters, looking upon an altar.

In the center of said altar, instead of any conventionally holy artwork, stood a gigantic, almost comically-sized marble statue of Shadow Kamoshida, one hand with a volleyball and the other grabbing onto a scale of justice, proudly postng as the plus-sized satin cape glimmered in the stained glass.

"You wanted a full-body statue?" Mona said, flatly. "The bastard provides."

“Ugh, just how ornate can this shitty place get?!” Panther screamed aloud, kicking an adjacent bench.

"Are those... are those scales he's holding?!" Dragon snarled, her own angering points being brought to light. "Does this fucking snake really thinks he's just!?"

"Or at least, that justice is always on his side..." Phoenix said, her icy hatred returning. "Absolutely reprehensible."

“Ohh, I think I get it…” Skull gritted his teeth. “Apparently, he thinks he’s some sorta God in the volleyball team, and that he can't do any wrong. Ugh, as if he couldn’t get any more fuckin' repulsive enough…!”

An ethereal laugh sounded through the chapel, sultry and low.

Heehee… who ever said embracing one's own self was ever repulsive?

Morgana paled. "I knew there had to be a guard somewhere..."

"...hang on, that's a girl's voice!" Yukiko looked up. "Why are you even guarding here!? I mean, you're a Shadow, but surely you get why this place is wrong!"

Ah. You're the one the lesser guards were talking about. The one trying to win us over... The demonic voice echoed, amused. As well as the heretic that destroyed my predecessor...

In a flash of red, a golden-armored guard appeared before the Phantom Thieves, only to immediately burst into what could only be described as a demoness - and definitely not one ashamed of how close she was to a succubus. A pair of bat wings kept open a tiny coat that barely covered her cleavage, while a spade-tipped tail stuck out of a pair of tiny shorts, more a thong with a belt than actual pants. A pair of icy blue eyes brimming with a stern coldness looked over the group. 

"...I think I know what Kamoshida's ideal woman is now." Skull said, any arousal he would feel being more than squelched out by the context.

"You would not be wrong. I am very much a warrior of the real justice here; survival of the strongest." The demonic Shadow gestured at the scaled. "Behold, the teachings of our lord Kamoshida, and the truest form of justice. There’s nothing wrong with ones own desires or forthcomings, for as long as one has the will to achieve that, they can do anything. Our king, or gracious savior, King Asmodeus Kamoshida is merely serving as the teaching of what we should all aspire to: to stand on top those who prove too pitiful enough to earn their own keep while the ones who prove to be worthy ascend to the top."

“Wh-What…?” Dragon, having always been an advocate for egalitarianism, looked in disgust. “That’s disgusting! Nobody actually wants that, you dumbass!”

"Nobody, you say?" She turned to Dragon, amused. "Please, don’t lie to yourself. You'd be a fairly competent enforcer of justice, were it not for your reputation; your concern for how you're seen stops you from your own potential. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if we all removed the petty chains of order keeping us down? Wouldn’t it be easier if we did what we pleased, regardless of the consequences…?"

“Easier…?!” Skull growled in anger. “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, YOU BITCH?! We’re nothing like that sonuvabitch Kamoshida, and we’re fighting him EXACTLY to prevent this sort of thing from happening!”

"Tch… how hypocritical. You could’ve easily used your powers to do whatever you please, but you instead remained chained to such worthless concepts such as 'morality' or 'right'… you yourselves, only enforce this justice because you have a strength the other half of our king doesn't. You work for the lies of society, despite having the ability to rule it, as our lord does."

The demoness dropped into a fighting stance, electricity surging over her hands. “Justice is the ability of the strong to do as they wish, when they want it! Only victory matters! And if you truly choose to remain unaware of the society of lies you inhabit, and shackled by your own immaturity... then I, Devil Lilim, condemn you to obliteration! DIE!”

With a triumphant cackle, Lilim did raise forth her own hands, and lightning began to shoot out of her hand.

(Music – Keeper of Lust  – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfN8V1tB0W0)

Thunderbolt after thunderbolt tore apart the church, blowing the party away in the demoness’ thunderous might. Though Skull merely winced from the lightning mildly buzzing him, Dragon and Mona screamed out in pain as their weaknesses were exploited.

“Urgh… wh-what was that?!” Dragon cried. “Th-That really hurt…”

“Heehee… oh trust me, there’s so much more to come…” Lilim grinned devilishly - fittingly enough. “Now then… Marin Karin!”

“W-What the…?!” Indeed, a collection of hearts swarmed and successfully merged with Dragon, beginning to make her eyes glow a bright color of pink. Rather air-headedly, she giggled, clearly infatuated with the demoness.

“Oh, great…” Mona grumbled. “Dragon’s been brainwashed!”

“Brainwashed…?!" Panther cried out, not liking the implications. "W-What do you - “

Indeed, before Panther could finish, she felt a foot collide squarely with her cheek, the force knocking her backward.

“U-Urgh…” Panther wiped some blood from her cheek. “Exactly what it says on the tin, got it...”

Phoenix sighed to herself. “I'm wondering if she was deliberately hired to fight Dragon… alright! Come forth! BICORN!”

Ripping off her mask, Yukiko's newly acquired Persona came into the forefront: a giant black steed shot out from a blue, light, possessing glowing red eyes and devilish horns. But indeed, this creature was an ally to Phoenix and the group, as evidenced by the blast of wind it had directed at the Lilim.

Lucking for everyone involved, it was the exact weakness the party needed to exploit.

“Argh!” Lilim cried. “Y-You little ingrate! How did you…?”

“No time to waste!” Phoenix nodded. “Alright Morgana, you got this!”

HOLD UP!

Immediately pointing their firearms at each other - and thankfully without Chie in the scheme of things - four of the five Phantom Thieves gingerly pointed their own assortment of guns at Lilim.

"Man, y'know what?" Skull grinned evilly. "For a supposed purveyor of Darwinistic bullshit, you're certainly a weakling."

"That's easy for you to say..." Lilim seethed.

"We had enough to playing by your own rotten rules. If you're not going to stand down, we'll make you stand down!" Mona said, triumphantly. "'Cuz that's what Phantom Thieves do!"

And as if on cue, the students left back, proceeding to jump high into the stratosphere.

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

And indeed, four of the five Thieves lunged upwards, beginning their maelstrom cuts, bullet holes and other forms of extreme violence. And once it was over, Mona landed on an unassuming wheel chair, briefly spinning it around as blood gushed from the now-deceased demoness.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

(Music Stops)

Lilim bellowed as she finally disintegrated into nothing but a pool of ichor, her defeat being laid bare for all to see. Mona simply smirked cheerfully as he leaned back on the seat he spontaneously summoned.

"Alright, clean up complete!” Mona twirled the cigar in his fuzzy hands. “Great job gang!”

“Wait a minute…” Skull cocked an eyebrow. “Aren't you too young to smoke? Where the 'eff did you get that...?”

“Huh…?” Mona turned to the lung-killing object. “Oh, this? W-Well, um…” His brow furrowed. "...cognition? It just shows up with the chair."

(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave (Another Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLUuJ0qunI)

"...fair enough, not gonna question it." Panther said with a shrug. "Though, uh..."

"Ooough..." Dragon blinked, her sense of reality returning to her. Upon immediately recognizing what she did, Dragon turned a humiliated shade of red, and immediately bolted over to the person she just drop kicked.

"...oh, crap!" She immediately turned and bowed before Panther, kneeling prostrate before her. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry - "

"Whoa!" Mona leapt over, the chair and cigar having vanished at some point. "Easy, Dragon! You were charmed, even you weren't fully aware of what you were doing!"

"Y... Yeah, I know. I'm still... agh!" She shook her head, still on the ground. "I'm sorry..."

"Yeah, blame that Shadow, and through her, Kamoshida. Not you." Skull said. "Seriously, her specialty is electric moves, and you and Mona are both weak to it. That lady was hired to counter you specifically; take it as a sign on how badass you are that Kamoshida's outright trying to plan around you!"

"...yeah. Yeah, you're right!" Dragon smiled, getting up. "That's... honestly kind of cool!" A pause. "But..."

(Music Playing - Have a Short Rest - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCkaNhn2oxU)

The smile faded, and she quickly returned to looking . "...still, though... I can't help but think about that whole 'strength' thing..." She sighed. "I know it was to unnerve me, nothing else, but... I don't think she's wrong that we're only able to bring him to justice because we can enter his Palace and he can't stop us from doing so. We are stronger than him... if we weren't, we wouldn't be able to conceive of this, because nobody else knows Palaces exist..."

That hung in the air for a second, before Phoenix realized something.

"...Dragon." Phoenix spoke, plainly. "If everything she says was true, then Kamoshida is even more deserving of our kind of justice."

She looked up. "Eh?"

"Remember what she said about you and your dream? About how you'd be a good enforcer of justice, if only you didn't have your reputation?" Phoenix looked at the volleyball in the giant Kamoshida's hand. "Tell me, what does he have that helps him hide his crimes and abuse his students?"

Dragon's brow furrowed. "He's a coach who is a famous - "

Her eyes widened. "...oh."

Panther got it too. "The only reason he's the king of the school... is because the Principal lets him be..."

"And because of his reputation as an Olympian medalist, people are afraid of damaging his image for seeming like they're jealous." Phoenix said with a nod. "In other words; for someone so eager to denigrate you for your concern with how other people see you, he's awfully eager to hide behind his own PR..."

"I'm gettin' it," Skull said, grinning darkly. "By Lilim's own estimate, the pervert's actually a complete wuss, isn't he? The moment he runs out of use for the school, he's fucked, because he can't stand on his own two feet without Kobayakawa as a crutch."

"Precisely. I'm not sure if I buy all that 'survival of the strongest' yet, but I understand the perspective... and that it's utter nonsense when used as a defense of Kamoshida." Phoenix nodded. "You don't have to buy it, Dragon, but understand it's utter nonsense even if taken in good faith."

"...yeah. Yeah, that feels better." Dragon smiled, relieved. "Really, if anything, he actually comes off as kind of pathetic, if even if his own guards can't come up with good reasons why he's the way he is."

"Yep." Phoenix paused...

...before giving, by and large, the most devious grin Phoenix could possibly give.

(Music Playing - Wicked Plan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

Then, she giggled. "And for my next trick, I'm going to make him even more pathetic. Mona, remember what I had in my bag?"

The not-a-cat rubbed his shoulders. "Unfortunately. Why'd you have to bring that extendable..." He trailed off. "Oh. Oh!"

He slowly started to grin almost as evilly as Phoenix. "Mwehehehee... it's a diversion, but we have enough time... especially for this."

"Yep. I think those rafters and those shoulders are good enough vantage points too, right? Especially with the grappling hooks." Phoenix looked at Kamoshida's statue with an outright predatory expression.

"Uh..." Panther blinked. "Should we... be worried or something?"

Dragon cocked her head. "I... don't know. She seems to be acting... really normal for her, actually."

"Actually there is one thing you all can do." Mona said with a broad grin. "Could you, uh... all stand guard outside for, oh, six minutes? With Phantom Thief strength and agility, the longest part is figuring out what we want... Just don't look inside unless you need us."

"Uhh... okay..." Skull nodded despite his weird expression, and went out, followed by a similarly baffled Dragon and Panther.

Five and a half minutes later... Phoenix whistled.

"Okay... we're ready!" She said, sounding slightly strained.

Silently, the somewhat bored guards turned and went straight back in -

And felt their jaws collectively drop.

(Music Abruptly Stops)

"Oh..." Dragon began, shocked.

"...my fucking..." Skull continued, snickering.

"...GOD." Panther finished, before she broke into giggles. "Wha-haha-haaat?"

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

Kamoshida's statue had had some... renovations. For one, he had a pair of darling red cheeks, or possibly signs of drink. His chin now sported a fine scarlet goatee, the villainous dignity undercut by his newfound cat whiskers, pimples, and bright red missing teeth. His ball was now expressing its opinion on matters by giving him an annoyed glare with a comically red anger vein and emoticon-worthy side-eye. A medal for "Worst Teacher of the Century" now adorned him, shaped like a big red poop. 

All that paled, however, to the health advisory that Phoenix and Mona had so thoughtfully put on his chest:

ATTENTION, GUARDS OF KING KAMOSHIDA:

THOSE OF YOU WITH FOOD ALLERGIES ARE SAFE TO WORSHIP HIS MAJESTY IN THIS CHAPEL.

THIS STATUE, BY ORDER OF SHUJIN'S ACCURACY COMMITTEE,

DOES NOT CONTAIN NUTS.

With a big red arrow pointing to exactly where that pun would make the most sense.

"So..." Mona said, two spray paint cans and the extendable stick in hand. "How do you like the artistic genius of a true Phantom Thief?"

Skull started to howl at the same time Panther, Dragon and Phoenix did, slumping onto a pew. All of them had an absolutely hysterical laugh, with Skull in particular screaming between pearls of laughter. "I am not worthy! I AM NOT FUCKIN' WORTHY!"

"This, right here? This is my happy place!" Panther used her whip to dry her eye. "No matter what happens... I will only regret not being in the room when he sees that!"

"...w-well, hehehe..." Dragon said, having been the first to recover from her laughing fit, and barely managing to keep a valiant, straight face. "I give it four and a half out of five stars, half a point taken off for... bluntness..."

"Well, he's so obsessed with being a man, you have to wonder!" Mona said, grinning widely. "Compensation, thy name is Pervert Teacher."

At that point, only Dragon and Mona were the only ones who remained coherent. Everyone else, was on the floor laughing, especially from envisioning what would soon be the requiem of Kamoshida's dignity... not like he had any, but after all he's done? To Ann? To Ryuji? To Chie? To Yukiko, to Shiho, and wants to do Yoshizawa?

Good God. It felt good to laugh again.


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave (Another Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLUuJ0qunI)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, East Building Annex – ???

That bit of immature but satisfying catharsis aside, the Phantom Thieves went deeper into the castle, towards whatever place seemed most protected.

"Hey, Mona..." Panther said as she finished dusting off Shadow blood from a fight with a Hamsa, a holy bird straight from Hindu myth, whom Phoenix just recruited. "How will we know where the Treasure is, area-wise?"

"Well, obviously there will be tougher guards - more of them, too - but we should be seeing some weirder stuff that couldn't be possible in reality." Mona answered, scouting ahead. "Floating rocks, doors that teleport, really, really big distances - stuff like that. It's the source of all the distortion, so it'll be less tied to what Shujin is like in the real world and more into the master's own personality."

"And that's what I was afraid of... ughhhh!" Panther said in a disheartened tone, before quickly deciding to kick over a nearby rock in frustration. "Why can't anything be simple?!"

"Aww, don't worry, Lady Ann! I can assure that... that..." Mona was going to comfort Panther, but that was before he... paused.

Suddenly, as he passed an open hallway leading to a balcony, he began sniffing. "Hey... wait a minute..."

Panther blinked. "Huh? What do you - "

The feline thief turned down said hallway, leading his friends to an open room - and a door on the balcony opposite to the balcony the Thieves were on.

A door covered in very green vines. Not of sanguine roses, but green ivy.

"Well, would you look at that?" Mona grappled over on a statue on the other side. "Phoenix, come check it out!"

Shrugging, the inn maiden in question grappled over as Mona took out his saber, cutting at the vines.

A very distant, very echoed version of Kamoshida's voice seemed to come out of the vines as he cleared them out, making the similarly grappled Dragon shiver. "Cree-pyyyy."

"Well, these vines are part of his distortions, so... I'm getting ahead of myself." He nodded at Phoenix, who opened the door.

(Music Playing - Wicked Plan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

The room was absolutely coated in the same ivy as the door, with fog covering the floor.

That wasn't what drew the eye, though. Rather, a collection of red, disturbingly blood vessel-like, plants that pulsed with a dark-red phosphorescent light, grew a dais, of sorts. And upon the dais seemed to be a shrunken head.

"NOPE!" Dragon backed up. "Not in a million years! I know how this movie ends!"

"Relax. It's just a Will Seed!", Mona ran over to it, followed by a curious Phoenix. 

On closer inspection, the Will Seed was actually a thick wooden seed pod, cracked open so that it resembled a skull. With a leafy green hairdo. Inside it appeared to be a red crystal, giving the wooden skull an eerie glow.

"...can I keep this as a reading lamp?" Phoenix said with an impressed whistle. "I think it'd really add to the intellectual ambiance of my homework."

"...please tell me you're kidding," Panther's shiver told Phoenix everything she needed to know about her thoughts on that idea.

"That... interesting use aside, I'm not sure if it can even exist outside the Metaverse." Mona explained. "But, you're looking at the physical form of some of the distortions that created the Palace; in a sense, this is one of the seeds of desire and will that the Palace grew from."

"I remember. Not sure how this thing is made of distortions, but I get the plant idea." Skull nodded, before crossing his arms and going deep into thought. "Wait. If this is what helps keep the Palace up - "

"Not a bad idea, but no. The Treasure is the source of the distortions, so all removing the Will Seed does is ensure another one grows in about a month." Mona said. "That being said, though, there's a reason I bought you here; remember how I said that desires themselves weren't evil, just the distortions?"

Phoenix nodded.

"Well, there should be three other Will Seeds just like this, each embodying a different way Kamoshida's desires were distorted. If we get all three, we should be able to combine them into a Crystal that embodies the pure form of the desire - something we can use to really empower our Personas!" He smiled. "Besides, harvesting one exposes you to the vitality of the plant itself, so it should be a good pick-me-up."

"So, get all three, and we get a bonus." Phoenix nodded. "Gotcha!" She walked up to the Will Seed, ready to harvest it - 

"Hey wait a minute!" Dragon said, barging in. "Before you take that... um... isn't Kamoshida's problem he's lustful?"

Panther rose an eyebrow. "It's a bit worse than 'lustful', but - "

"So, if Will Seeds are made from desires..." Dragon continued. "Doesn't that mean that creepy thing is made from lust!?"

Everyone took a second to process this.

Phoenix suddenly realized that, actually, the Will Seed did look rather incomprehensibly terrifying.

"...um. Well." She cleared her throat. "Such a momentous occasion is, er, obviously not worthy of my inexperienced hands... especially not around that thing..."

"No, seriously..." Mona said, edging away from the Seed. "Beauty before age. Please?"

"Not this beauty!" Panther said as Carmen aimed a fireball at it. "I'm not going anywhere near Kamoshida's lusts!"

"Hey, I'm not a fan of touching his big woody seeds either!" Skull said, queasily. "Nope, no thank you!"

"Yeah, I don't think any of us are Kamo-sexual enough to be comfortable with a giant hairy coconut skull of his." Dragon said, standing safely in the door. "And I don't want to know who is! Do we need a Crystal of Lust, anyway?"

"Unfortunately? It's likely..." Mona said with a disappointed groan. "Normal, positive lust is connected to life and a desire for others to be happy. So that's likely going to be a major healing skill we might miss if we don't take it."

"Suddenly, I understand death before dishonor!" Panther immediately retorted.

After a few more seconds of everyone looking about for someone - anyone - else to take the Will Seed of Lust, Skull sighed and threw up his hands in defeat. "Fine... I'll do it. Just... put the bag really close to it and leave it open? Then, can Panther burn my hands? Get rid of the pervert germs..."

"...we'll never forget your sacrifice, Skull." Phoenix said, placing the bag directly under the vein dais, a perfect spot for throwing the Seed. "Your name will go down in legends."

"Uh-huh." He gulped, not even sounding reassured by Phoenix saying that in complete sincerity.

A second later, a loud scream echoed through the premise as Panther made good on the request and sterilized Skull's palms. Everyone, especially him, had a few regrets.

Unfortunately, one of those regrets was the sinking realization there was two more Will Seeds of Lust...


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave (Another Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLUuJ0qunI)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Entry Hall - ???

The Treasure, it seemed, was in a single tower at the heart of the Palace, a keep with no obvious ground entryway, and a strangely shifting interior. On the outside, it also had another Will Seed alcove - with Mona, much to his dismay, drawing the short straw he made from the ivy - and a secret passage back to the front of the castle.

"Oh, gee, of course it's his goddamn portrait!" Mona grumbled, still licking his burned hands. "Ego is as Ego does."

"Don't think I don't remember the other side of this softcore is him as a knight..." Panther said, making a face at Kamoshida showing off his chest on a field of roses. "No matter which side of him, he wants people to salivate over him... you have any spray left?"

"Sorry." Phoenix said, grinning apologetically. "I wasn't sure how much space it'd take up with the supplies, and that advisory needed a lot of it. I'll be sure to stash some more in the next Palace."

"Uh, next Palace?" Dragon looked at her strangely.

"...if there's a next Palace." Phoenix corrected. "It's mostly more realization that this seems like more of a start to a series than an end..."

"...can't argue with that. I just... well I sincerely hope someone just as bad as the Coach doesn't show up and forces this." Dragon shivered. "So. Was there anything we missed, or - "

"Actually, when we were here last, I thought I saw somethin' green and leafy near the dungeons when I was rushing in. Thinking back on it, I think it may have been one of those Will Seed things." Skull said. "So... silver lining?"

"If there is one... ugh..." Mona muttered, before following Skull to the entryway of said dungeons - and what was indeed a vine-covered door near a bunch of cages suspended over a resevoir.

Along with a gold-armored guard in front of it.

"I guess that was inevitable... just like how there's no use delaying the inevitable..." Phoenix grumbled irritably from a hidden vantage point above the cages.

"Yeah. Odds are he's probably one of the strongest guard captains too, given how we've accidentally weeded out the weaklings." Mona agreed. "...you still want to take this? I'm pretty sure there might be a remnant Will Seed from someone less gross somewhere else... one doesn't have to have a Palace to grow one or two..."

"We already have two of those... things in the bag," Dragon said, grimacing. "If we're carrying those around, I at least want something other than the sheer gross factor..."

"And that means the Seed this guy is guarding." Phoenix sighed. "Once more, into the breach."

All of the Phantom Thieves jumped over in front of the Shadow, who stumbled back with a start before raising his shield.

(Music Playing - Blood of Villain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

"There you are!" He shouted in a strange, almost rubbery voice. "You will not take another step, and deprive the King of this tie to existence!"

"Uh..." Panther blinked. "Dramatic sort, aren't you! Guess we'll have to step on you first you... you..."

At some point, Mara had transformed into his Shadow form.

Any commentary promptly died, given how Mara's true form was a green slime. A green slime with a very distinct head shape, one very tied to the perversity of Kamoshida's Palace. The fact his torso was a cylinder covered in veins... very much did not help.

Panther shrunk back like she had been struck. "AAAAAAAAHHHH!"

Dragon shared her sentiment. "EW EW EW EW EW EW!"

Phoenix rounded it out, looking ready to set her eyes on fire. "WHYYYYYY?!"

The... severed penis slime gave a burbling laugh. "Gaze upon the king of desire, and tremble as I teach you the true fear of I, Mara, who will - "

None of them seemed eager to want to find out.

In short, non-anachronistic order, every single Phantom Thief began unloading their guns onto the giant slime.

(Music – Keeper of Lust  – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfN8V1tB0W0)

Nobody - not one, except maybe the giant slime of infernal, lusty doom - wanted to be here any longer. Phoenix promptly brought out her flamethrower and set the slime on fire, while Dragon and Skull began unloading their shotguns each, Panther unloading a torrent of gunfire and Mona his slingshot - 

"OW OW OW STOP IT OW OW OW -" To its credit, Mara didn't seem to take too much damage from the flurry of bullets, but by the time all that was heard was clicking, it looked really irritated. OWWWWW! YOU LITTLE BRATS! That hurt you know!"

Indeed, despite even a single bullet doing only so much damage to it - due to reasons Phoenix only guessed meant that it was resistant to physical attacks - it only looked somewhat wounded, and rightfully pissed.

"You're going to pay for that, you little shits!" Mara bellowed, slamming it's... mass onto the ground. "ASSAULT DIVE!"

Indeed, it was aiming for Phoenix, and the sheer force of the blow sent Phoenix flat on the ground.

"Agh!" Phoenix hissed, feeling blood sputter from her mouth. "You little - Agathion, Eiha!"

As if on cue, Phoenix and the other Phantom Thieves ripped off their masks to summon their Personas - Agathion the odd one out for how tiny it is - and promptly unleashed a flurry of Agathion's darkness - straight from the fusion with Konohana Sakuya - alongside an Agi, Garu, Bufu and Zio from all the others.

It did negligible damage.

"Ahahahaha!" Mara cackled. "Now, it's time to penetrate all of you! Die!"

"Why do you have to say it like THAT?!" Dragon cried indignantly - before Phoenix promptly left forth.

Mara clearly attempted to do another Assault Dive on Dragon, but Phoenix - using every bit of strength a piece of pottery can impart into her - she parried the blow, using her fan and right heel to stomp the slime off of balance, before deciding having blocked a literal penis-slime was the ultimate metaphor in needing bigger guns.

"This isn't going to work..." Phoenix said with a hiss, before grabbing her mask. "Change, now! BERITH!"

And indeed, a familiar face from one of the encounters later on from the chapel sprung forth - a giant blue knight aboard a red, demonic-looking horse, who frankly didn't look impressed by the enemy he was fighting - not that he would exactly comment, given his newfound recruitment.

"Alright, now!" Phoenix pointed towards Mara, blood still trickling from the side of her head after the first blow. "Double Fang, now!"

Eligor charged forth, slicing once - 

...and on the second strike, a gelding blow was launched, sending the slime directly onto the floor.

"Everyone, he's down!" Dragon cried out. "On me!"

HOLD UP!

All five pointed their guns at Mara - for what little it was worth, given they were completely out of ammo. But it didn't matter much, thankfully; Mara was grievously wounded, and he looked pissed.

"You little bastards! How dare you defile me like this?!" Mara screamed in a blubbery voice. "You shall all be thrust straight into Hell you - "

"Okaythat'sgreatshutupyou'refreakingMEOUT!" Dragon leapt back, beckoning everyone else to the forefront before leaping upwards - 

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

And one by one, they cut a swathe of blood against the Mara... and as Dragon landed on her own two feet, she did a roundhouse kick before swiping her own nose just like Bruce Lee himself.

DON'T THINK. FEEL.

With a mercifully small burst of black Shadow-gunk, the slime dissolved.

(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave (Another Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLUuJ0qunI)

"...is it dead? Please tell me it's dead." Mona said with a thoroughly cringing wince.

"Yeah. That thing's gone... thank Christ..." Dragon inhaled. "It costed all of our bullets, but hey, we'll improvise."

"I'm just glad that's over with..." Panther said with a shudder. "I am so fucking done with this place...!"

"No kidding." Phoenix said with a nod. "Motion to never speak of this again?"

"Agreed!" Everyone else said simultaneously.

"Yeah, for fuck's sake, after that, I'd be needin' therapy, for Christ's sake!" Skull said with a shudder, before pausing thoughtfully. "Though thinking about it, most of Shujin's counselors are dogshit, but I have heard rumors we'd be gettin' a new one soon enou - "

"Can we please move on?!" Mona said, a bit desperately. "The will seed's here, and I don't want to encounter any more of this perverse crap!"

As Mona rushed off, Panther, Phoenix and Dragon followed suit. Skull just awkwardly scratched the back of his head, before promptly dropping his train of though. "...eh."

Skull shrugged, before heading into the Will Seed's room and coming out as quickly as possible with a blue one. "All right, just - "

He jumped back with the Seeds in both his and Mona's backpack started to pulse, more of a heartbeat than anything else.

"Wh... What the...?!" Phoenix spoke in a hushed tone of surprise.

The other two rose out of the bag, similarly pulsing as their blue version levitated to join them, streamers of energy congregating as they spun together faster and faster -

In a flash, all three Will Seeds were gone, replaced by a giant, fused version of all three, colored a pure blue, with a perfectly round sphere of a jewel in the middle, scene from any of its three faces.

"...oh, come on! It's even creepier now!" Dragon cried out, wincing.

Then she paused. "Though... it's weird. It looks creepy, but... It's not as, I dunno, ominous as the Will Seeds..."

"In fact..." Phoenix said, taking it as it gently floated down to her. "It feels kind of... affectionately warm? Like a furry pet."

"Because it's been balanced!" Mona said happily, for once. "Behold, a Crystal of Lust - pure lust, devoid of Kamoshida's perversions. This thing is more about desire for affection than attention - go on, try it out!"

Shrugging, Phoenix concentrated on it -

The Crystal glowed before a massive amount of bright Dia magic came out. All the aches, wounds and pains she felt suddenly vanished... though she did feel a bit fatigued, now.

"...nice!" Skull grinned. "Though, uh, the hands - ouch! Thanks..."

"No problem," Panther said, quickly healing them, before everyone rushed away from anywhere Mara once was.

After having wheeled up from the dungeon as quickly as possible, the Thieves looked at each other.

"So, given the circumstances..." Phoenix began, looking sheepish. "I think we're out of ammo... we should still get this done ASAP, but that'll make things harder."

"No worries. We'll improvise - we've already came so far anyways!" Skull grinned.

"Still, it might be better to avoid fights for a bit..." Mona said. "We are kind of running low, and I think it might take a day to restock. We've got to figure out what else is in that weird tower - "

(Music Abruptly Stops)

Whatever Mona was saying was cut off by the piercing sound of an announcement system activating.

"ATTENTION, ALL KNIGHTS OF THE CASTLE!" A deep, booming voice declared. "NOW IS THE TIME FOR THE GREAT KING KAMOSHIDA TO MAKE HIS REGULAR PROCLAMATIONS AND SERMON. PLEASE REPORT TO THE GRAND SHRINE IF YOU WISH TO BE PART OF THE CHEERING CHORUS."

(Music – Tension – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bduzOvnvd0)

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Mona startled. "Sermon!?"

"You don't think they've realized how close we are to the Treasure?!" Dragon said. "Or what we did to his statue!?"

"I'm not sure, but - hide!" At Yukiko's command, Phantom Thieves scattered, grappling to chandeliers and diving behind corners.

"Okay, okay, I think we're safe..." Mona whispered, next to Phoenix's perch. "Time to listen in..."

A minute later, the announcement system came back on, an all too familiar voice coming on.

(Music Playing – Desire – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

"Well, well, well. First of all, I'd like to congratulate the guards on their efficiency in securing the castle." Shadow Kamoshida said, his gloating smugness returned. "The wild bird princess seems to have realized this isn't a cage she or her friends can escape from. Her consent to being a new member of the harem is all but assured."

Phoenix hissed at the ceiling, before spitting on the ground. "The arrogant little..."

"Rest assured, order will soon be restored to the kingdom, whether it be her acquiescence, or being removed from Shujin altogether. Then, we can go back to business as usual, and resume the normal training and seduction. But, I digress. Give it up, for...

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

"For..."

There was a very long pause. In the dead silence, once could here something that sounded a bit like "pfft" or coughing fits.

"W... What...?"

Then the castle started to rumble as a strange groaning sound echoed through the Palace, along with the sound of breaking pews.

"WHAT. IN THE EVER-LOVING. FUCK!" A suddenly even more distorted, deeper, and apoplectic sounding Shadow Kamoshida screamed. "HAPPENED. TO MY. STATUUUUUEEEE?!"

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

The entire membership of the Phantom Thieves looked at each other, slowly comprehending the context. Yukiko, for one, looked ready to burst into laughter, only held in by every reserve of willpower she had.

"...well." Mona inhaled, face valiantly remaining neutral. "I think we can write off one potential reason he's making a speech..."

Everyone else started to snicker.

"M-My king!" A guard's voice echoed through the announcement system. "Please, calm yourself! You know your demonic form requires a great deal of energy - "

"I AM CAAAAAALM!" Kamoshida roared at a volume that should not have sounded so petulant. "I AM EXACTLY AS CAAAAALM AS IIIII SHOULD BEEEEEE!"

"Well." Dragon said, mildly. "He's taking it well."

The snickers grew in intensity.

"But - look, you've already destroyed the pews! It will take weeks to repair the chapel if you continue to rampage-"

"GOOD! YOU IDIOTS DESSSSERRVE IT! YOUR PUNISHMENT FOR BEING SHIIIIT GUAAAARDS!"

"Is he..." Skull suppressed a snicker. "Is he in his thirties or his tens?"

The snickers became outright laughter.

"Please, it's not even water-insoluble! I'm sure a few slaves will easily clean it - "

"I SHOULD NOT NEED CLEANING IN THE FIIIIRST PLAAAAACE! I SHOULD BE PRISTIIIINE, AND PUUUREEEE!"

Panther snorted, desperately holding her mouth closed. "Freude has turned against even him! He's slipping!"

Phoenix collapsed on the ground from her thankfully low perch, tears flowing out of her eyes.

"My king, please, calm yourself - !"

"EEEYYAAAEGHEHERHEHHH!" The castle started to shake as loud, furious stomps echoed over the intercom.

Stomps, and the distinct sound of crashing and wreckage. "ONLY GUARDS MAY CLEAN IT! I EXPECT IT DONE WITHIN THE WEEEEK!" The stomps trailed off.

There was a long silence, before the guard cleared his throat. "Er... It appears that King Kamoshida, in a... truly dignified display of his... absolute strength, has er... demolished part of the Shrine while exiting. For us to... prove our... devotion, we must... repair... without guidance, or.... oh, sod this!"

The intercom turned off in a sudden peal of static, before a golden guard appeared in the foyer, ripping off his own mask to reveal the pure black humanoid for a second before he became an Eligor.

"In the name of my once-pristine honor, I quit!" The horseman roared. "I had a good life in Mementos! My peace form was ugly and unarmored, but I had wonderful battles with all sorts of opponents every day, and every night I would enjoy the scene of the nightlife, kindling attraction and drama among the Shadows of humans! Now? Now I'm a glorified squire to a brat who uses attraction to hide his own advancing age and failures to excel!"

A few more Shadow guards appeared behind their captain. "Captain Eligor! You can't possibly be leaving - "

"Yes, I am!" Eligor glared at the group. "If you seek to oppose me, I thank you for the catharsis of this battle - "

"You didn't let me finish!" The speaker tore off his mask to reveal an Incubus. "You aren't leaving without us! I think the only reason I'm kept around is so I can be used as the less-manly example in his stupid games!"

"You think you have it bad?!" A Silky revealed herself. "Wait until you be the maid after one of his parties, especially when he's around! I think my arse has bruises on it now!"

"Hah! Don't make me laugh!" A Hamsa waddled its way to the front foyer, before angrily quacking. "I was literally used as a friggin' PARTY PROP for that bastard! PARTY! PROP! At least you're treated as a person, even if it's as a servant!"

"Ohoho, if we're playing complaint poker here, I need to show my hand!" A Succubus joined in with the revealed Shadows. "I mean - I'm not complaining of easy access to fantasies, but Old Night, I expect to be actually appreciated! Especially given we're being outshown by an uncaged bird-woman and her titless friend!"

"W... W..." Dragon, by virtue of having not been in a laughing fit like the others, simply roared. "WHAT DID SHE SAY?!"

"C-Chi - snrk - Chie, pl-please - " Phoenix desperately hugged Dragon to prevent her from storming off, her own slips coming to light as she tried not to continue cackling. "C-Calm yourself - "

Dragon, redfaced as ever, angrily exhumed. "I can't believe that little...! I AM NOT TITLESS! I'm just... n-not developed, and... AAAAAAARGH!"

Thankfully, none of the other guards noticed Dragon angrily kicking the chandolier hoist.

"As much as it pains me to ever agree with an infernal witch like you..." The next guard revealed herself to be an Angel - in all of the S&M gear one associated with the Shadow variety. "Just look at me! Look at me, and tell me exactly what kind of harassment you think I get! Especially when I don't have anything resembling lust!"

"And oh yeah!" A Kelpie added. "That stairwell in the East Building? Yeah, he deliberately broke it so that it couldn't be infiltrated as easy! Which makes it really fun to climb when the form you use to do physical labor doesn't have hands!"

"I am officially hee-hovering away from this job for good, ho!" A Pyro Jack said, looking just as furious. "Maybe go over to Alibaba's Palace; the climate's way better for me-hee anyway, ho!"

The other guards grunted in agreement, quickly followed by a bunch of others who manifested in behind them long enough to remove their masks and toss them. By the end of it, a good portion of Kamoshida's guards were trailing out of the Palace.

At some point Phoenix had started to literally roll on the floor, still clinging onto Dragon, pounding the ground while howling with laughter - whom at this point, the shorter girl simply sighed in defeat. "Oh, whatever..."

Of course this was eventually noticed, as the original Eligor had been drawn by the cackling girl, and was waiting patiently for her to finish.

As her fit finally died down, Phoenix tore herself off the ground to meet Eligor's eyes. "Um..." She sniffed, wiping off her tears. "Can I help you?"

"So, you're the real version of the Wild Bird Princess." Eligor looked over her. "I must say, I like this appearance better - but beside the point." 

The knight reached into his horse's saddlebag, and tossed her a key. "That key turns off a swinging blade trap that leads to Kamoshida's most sacred item, and supports the existence of this castle. If you take it, even those Shadows completely overtaken by Kamoshida's influence will be freed."

"Um... I'll keep that in mind." Phoenix said, not wanting to hurt Eligor's feelings by pointing out she knew already. "Thank you very much." She added to the complement more genuinely with a bow.

"Believe me, I'm doing it for the other Shadows, not you. I believe they wish to be reunited with their compatriots in other worlds." He paused, before slowly riding off. "...fare thee well, trickster. May the fires of passion guide thee forevermore..."

And with that, Eligor rode off, leaving the five Phantom Thieves by themselves.

"So, now that that's over with..." Phoenix said, brightly. "We're taking spray paint into the next Palace, right?"

Everyone immediately nodded in agreement... except Dragon.

"Hmph..." Dragon said in a pout. "I-I'm not small-chested..."


(Music Playing – King, Queen, Slave (Another Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLUuJ0qunI)

April 18th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Treasure Room – ???

Given how much of Kamoshida's staff had just quit and a puzzle solved before they were even aware of it, the Phantom Thieves found their way to the vault above Kamoshida's apparent throne room quite easily.

Skull's jaw dropped. "Whoa, what is this place?! Holy shit!"

The entire vault was coated in gold. Said gold was also part of coinage and various trophies too large to carry. Well, that's unfortunate. Phoenix thought glumly. I'd like a nice week of pure luxury after everything involving Kamoshida...

Of course, that didn't change the sheer amount of shiny in the area was rather impressive.

"That Treasure thing's gotta be in here!" Skull said, grinning, before frowning. "Though... how could we tell. I mean, if everything's gold..."

"Maybe that thing?" Dragon interrupted, pointing up.

Following her finger, Phoenix's eyebrows raised a bit as she saw what appeared to be a sparkling rainbow cloud, twisting in the air like a three-dimensional oil slick, with something bright and glowing in the rippling image.

"...well. That's... distinct, all right." Panther said, as concisely as he could. "...if it isn't, it's not dangerous, is it?"

"It is, and nope!" Mona exaggeratedly presented it with a wave of his arms. "Behold, a Treasure! Or at least, the form of one that hasn't solidified, yet."

"Ah!" Phoenix nodded.

Then, she realized something very important. "Uhhh... How do we carry it? Is there a vacuum cleaner we use, or...?"

"Well, that's why we had to scout the castle first. See, right now..." Mona paused. "We can't actually carry this."

"Are you kidding - ?!" Dragon started, exasperated.

"Settle down! We can't carry this yet. But, since we found it so early, we have more than a few options now." Mona inhaled for a long explanation. "Right now, the Treasure, as the source of distortion in the Palace, is more of Kamoshida's desire for what it represents than it is something physical. Currently, it's a thought he's having, because his cognition thinks of it as something that people can't touch, or even really see that well. Hence, the rainbow gas cloud."

Phoenix frowned, thinking.

"...hang on." Phoenix said, catching on. "Are you saying we're going to play some mind games with him?"

Mona blanched a bit. "Whoa! Too fast, I rehearsed th - anyway!" He floundered a bit, before quickly regaining his composure. "Phoenix caught on. We need to make the owner of the Palace think of his desires - his heart - as something that can be stolen."

Skull leaned in. "And... how do we do that?"

"It's simple - we warn him. We tell him someone's coming to steal away his distorted desires; even if he doesn't believe it, the brazenness will spook him, and this will become a physical Treasure."

"...so, we send him a calling card?!" Skull said, excited. "Awesome! We're official Phantom Thieves now!"

"If nothing else, if... the tantrum was how his Shadow reacted, getting an obvious threat will leave a priceless look on his face." Phoenix agreed, snickering at the memory.

"One warning though; when we send the card, the theft of the Treasure has to be within a day or two of the card being sent. Otherwise, Kamoshida will calm down, and I don't think another seemingly empty threat is going to make him nervous enough to make the Treasure physical again." Mona said. "We have one shot at this; hence, why we needed an infiltration route first."

"Fair enough." Panther nodded. "...I think we can send the card tomorrow, wouldn't you say?"

"Agreed... but man." Dragon said with a groan. "I'm so freaking tired from that... but hey. We didn't lose that  much energy, and this way, we can spend the next two weeks de-stressing and..."

She paused, eyes widening as she realized something. "Oh crap, the first bevy of tests is coming up after the teacher meeting, isn't it?"

"Shit! I completely fuckin' forgot!" Skull slapped his forehead. "I'm voting for tomorrow too; I do not need that bastard hanging over my shoulder when I'm working!"

"Same here." Phoenix nodded. "It'll also help relax us, knowing that we did this mission first... which actually leads me to ask. Who wants to write the calling card?"

"Oh! Pick me, pick me!" Skull held up his hand. "I'd really like to give that bastard a piece of my mind, and since Panther had a turn scaring the shit out of him..."

"You sure about this?" Panther looked at him with some concern. "...it's kind of a big thing to do in one night..."

"Eh, no worries." Skull said with a cheerful grin. "I've even been working on a team logo for us!"

Dragon promptly opened her mouth to inquire why, but Phoenix interrupted. "You're the writer!"

"Yes!" Skull pumped his arm. "So, wanna get out of here and fuel up before we take him down?"

Dragon held out her fist. "To the beef bowl!"


(Music Playing - School Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeAvHUGsvIY)

April 19th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway – 9:30 AM

"Well, isn't this a fine morning." Ann said to herself as she looked over the new flyers pasted over the noticeboard of Shujin Academy.

Bright red and black ones, one side with a message carefully pieced together from kanji, the other side an... honestly kind of generic grinning face in a domino mask and top hat, revealing a smile full of shark's teeth, over the English message TAKE YOUR HEART.

Thankfully, whatever menace was lost to an... honestly more cute than anything logo was more than made up for by Ryuji's dedication in absolutely coating the wall with them, making them impossible to miss.

“Hey… what’s this…? ‘Phantom Thieves of Hearts’…?!” 

"What's all this about Kamoshida...?"

"Did he do something wrong?"

"...does this mean the rumors are true?!"

Though the crowd of students certainly didn't hurt.

“Alright then…” Ann looked closer at one, reading out the letter itself and seeing what message Ryuji was so excited about.

Dear Suguru Kamoshida, the Utter Bastard of Lust,

                We know how shitty you really are; your treatment of everything and everyone someone stupidly gave responsibility to an utter shitlord like you to teach is something only the lowliest of scum would consider doing. You consider everyone beneath you in denial of your own failures as an athlete and as a man, and in your ceaseless egotism and need for approval, you force your twisted desires on students who can't fight back. That ends today.

                We have decided we shall shall steal your corrupt desires by the day’s end, and make you confess your crimes. No matter what it takes, you will be brought to justice by your own admission. There will be no mercy asked or given, and by tomorrow, your heart will be in our hands. We hope you're ready.

From,

The Phantom Thieves of Hearts

“…wow. Just… wow.” Ann sighed and suppressed a laugh. “That… is definitely Ryuji.”

“Psst… Ann!”

Ann turned to see Yukiko, Chie and Ryuji wave happily at Ann, and soon enough, she went away from the raucous crowd to see a stupidly proud Ryuji.

“Well, whaddya think?!” Ryuji smiled happily. “Totally sounds like a Phantom Thief card, doesn’t it?!”

“No offense when I mean this, Ryuji...” Ann shook her head, but with no less of a bemused smile. “But you were trying too hard to sound adult. It sounds like what a third grader would think is cool.”

“HUH?!”

“Oh, c’mon, Ann! He literally had one night to work on it.” Chie pouted. “I think it’s awesome! Besides, Ryuji put a lot of effort into it, you gotta admit that.”

“It's blunt, but its short, to the point, and brutal. And it stings his insecurities, too.” Yukiko said with a smile. “I especially love the evil little hat logo! It’s so cute and intimidating! Heehee!”

“Well, uh…” Ryuji smiled sheepishly. “Cute wasn’t what I was aiming for… but thanks, guys. At least you two appreciate it.”

"Well, here's hoping he doesn't just laugh it off." Ann said, sounding a little doubtful of that.

She needn't have worried.

“Who's responsible for this?!”

The growing crowd was silenced by the atmosphere of absolute fury radiating from Kamoshida as he stormed down the hallway, ripping off a card and staring at it with trembling hands.

“Who the hell wrote this crap?!” Kamoshida barked. “Did you do this!? Whoever wrote this will be sent to the principal's office!”

“Well, would you look at that.” Morgana mewled happily from Yukiko’s bag. “Predictable as the life-taking sunshine... especially given how he knows exactly what we mean by 'twisted desires.'”

"See? May not be the most wordy letter... but it gets the job done." Ryuji grinned.

Kamoshida seemed to read it over and over again, growing more and more livid with each scan - the crowd of students wisely scattering - before he finally noticed the delinquent gang standing off to the side.

Kamoshida suddenly turned to the four students, and marched over. “What the hell are you doing there?! Did you write this?!”

“Hm… I dunno…” Yukiko smiled coyly. “I mean, I was busy on my commute on the train... I certainly couldn't have - after all, I'm reconnecting with the school, aren't I?"

She said with all the sweet venom that echo of Kamoshida's own words her voice could provide.

Kamoshida appeared to seriously wrestle with striking Yukiko right there, but managed to hold himself back from testing if "self-defense" would really work if everyone in the school saw it being used on a girl.

Eventually, he managed to gain control of his rage, his expression turning from pure rage and hate to merely a furrow of his brow and glaring resolutely. “Tch… I see you're going to be like that, then. We'll see how smug you are when you're all expelled.”

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gVF3IYGkcc)

Suddenly, Shujin flickered, similarly to the Safe Rooms of the Palace. From the perspective of the Persona users, the world seemed to fade out into utter darkness, leaving only themselves...

And Shadow Kamoshida, dressed in his repugnant cape and with a defiant glare.

“So. It's come to this.” The Shadow growled. “I'm just about done with your immature humiliations too! It seems you all need to be taught some discipline! Steal it if you can!”

SECURITY LEVEL 99%

The real world faded back into view, where the human Kamoshida merely marched away in disgust.

Morgana once again popped out of the bag, having seen the Shadow himself. "Well..." Morgana said with a shudder, shaking himself. "That was an interesting jump scare..."

“Seriously...” Chie crossed her arms, bristling. “I'd ask if it worked, but given the amount of murder both sides of him were beaming at me... I think there's more than one reason we won't have another shot...”

“Definitely. Remember guys, there are no takebacks. This is our only chance, and I think at this point, he'll do everything in his power to retaliate against us in both worlds.” Morgana regained his confidence. "But, given how we're already in his mind..."

“We only need one chance to bust this fucker.” Ryuji grinned smarmily. “Alright, let’s do this!”

"Um, before we start, can I ask we head to the rooftop for a bit...?" Yukiko said, awkwardly.

"...uh." Too confused to protest, Ann led the way out. "Sure?"

Nobody really could fault their leader at this point, in any way. Especially after having saved their asses several times over.


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

April 19th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Rooftop – 9:30 AM

As soon as it looked like nobody was around, Yukiko took a deep breath before smiling.

"Alright, we're here." Ryuji said with a smile. "Whatcha need?"

"Yeah, we need to act on the heist after classes." Chie said with an awkward smile. "I take this can't wait...?"

Yukiko breathed in... and out. And then, she held out her arm.

“Huh?” Chie blinked. “Yukiko, what’re you doing?”

“Forming a “Go, team!” moment, of course!” Yukiko smiled defiantly.

(Music Playing - Swear To My Bones - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTQlTOjabH8)

It took everyone a second to really even begin to process, that.

"A... effin' what?" Ryuji blinked, having cursed less out of annoyance and more out of confusion.

Chie caught on, and laid her own hand on Yukiko’s. “Yeah… count me in! We’re gonna bring Kamoshida to justice!”

“Same! Today is the day he regrets ever crossing any woman!” Ann put her hand on top of the other girls.

“I can’t reach my hand on there like you guys…” Morgana said, awkwardly. “Just, uh, pretend my other form is right there.”

Ryuji paused for a bit, before shrugging and grinning ear to ear, laying his hand on the girls’. “Just you wait, Kamoshida. We’re bringin’ you down!”

Yukiko smiled at her new friends, before inhaling.

“For far too long we’ve remained chained by societies’ lies… and for even longer we’ve remained the victims of the tyrannical and corrupt… my probation, Chie’s reputation, Ann’s friend, Ryuji’s team… we’ve remained a slave to these fiends for long enough."

“But let me tell you how we’re going to handle things from this point onwards: no. More.” Yukiko's tone reached a fever pitch. “If nobody else is going to stand up to these crappy adults, we will. People at the top of society’s latter will call us everything, from delinquents, to criminals, to maybe even terrorists, because they're terrified of what the youth of this country can and will do - change the world for the better."

Yukiko smiled ear-to-ear. "By day we are students, and by night we are Phantom Thieves! By this time tomorrow, Kamoshida will be gone like the bad dream he is!"

And just like that, their hands skyrocketed into the air.

“GO TEAM! WOOHOO!”

And just like that, the plan was set. Kamoshida was going down.

Notes:

Yeet! Kamoshida's heart is about to be stolen! Can't wait.

Nothing much needs to be said otherwise. Thanks to all those who've waited so far! I cannot wait to get to the next chapter soon!

Stay tuned!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 10
Chie: Lv. 10
Morgana: Lv. 10
Ryuji: Lv. 9
Ann: Lv. 9

Yukiko’s Current Stock
Agathion, Bicorn, Hamsa, Silky, Berith, Selkie

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 1
The Magician (Morgana): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 1

Chapter 5: Collapse of Lust

Summary:

The time of repentance has arrived. The Phantom Thieves have come to take Kamoshida's heart! But even if they succeed, what'll be the cost?

Notes:

I genuinely want to thank anyone who's stuck around up to this point in time!

I really do apologize for the wait; I was busy with stuff on my own end, honestly. But I'm so glad to be back, at long last! And I genuinely hope you all enjoy what I have for you on this day. :)

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 10
Chie: Lv. 10
Morgana: Lv. 10
Ryuji: Lv. 9
Ann: Lv. 9

Yukiko's Current Stock
Agathion, Bicorn, Hamsa, Silky, Berith, Selkie

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 1
The Magician (Morgana): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Life Will Change (Instrumental) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-vhDD7gDRM)

April 19th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Entrance - ???

If the drama outside the Palace wasn't known by the Shadows, it wouldn't be for long. The Palace itself was reacting to its master's agitation.

While the physical building itself didn't seem all that changed, a strange ripple, almost like a heat haze, regularly tore through the air, distorting the castle's appearance. Within it, a red light pulsed like an irregular heartbeat - and the air itself smelled of ozone, making the entire area come off as even more oppressive and tense

Dragon cocked a small little smirk. "I'm gonna take a wild guess - he's pissed off, and this is causing the entire place to go a little crazy."

"Well, technically it's because he's on high alert - if we made too much noise while we were infiltrating, it'd be like this anyway." Mona spoke with a happy grin. "Still, not wrong. Wow, we really set him off!"

"Aww, is widdle pervert teacher scwawed?" Skull shouted with all the mocking intent of a middle schooler, before grinning savagely. "You should be, asshole! If we could keep this up for a few days, I'd drag it out!"

"I wouldn't, but that's because what terror he's going through is only a fraction of what he inflicted on Shiho alone." Panther said with a dark glare of determination. "There'd be no point - but I hope him missing his Treasure hurts."

"If it doesn't, I'll sock his Shadow a few times just to solve the issue." Phoenix said a bit too cheerfully. "So! We'll use the Safe Rooms and their cognition teleportation to get as close as possible, then we use them to get the Treasure out?"

"Sounds like a plan!" Mona mewled, jumping up. "Just be careful, a Treasure may be made of thoughts, but that doesn't mean it's any less solid than anything else here. If it's big, we might have to go a longer way if it can't fit through a Safe House door."

"To say nothing of Kamoshida's Shadow himself..." Dragon agreed, with a grimace. "Coward that he is, he's backed into a corner, and a lot of his guards just left - he's not going to let us go without a fight, and since he's low on minions to throw between us and the way out, he's probably willing to get his hands dirty. Not that I'd mind, given how I get to kick his ass, but still."

"Be on the lookout for ambushes, then." Phoenix said, readying her bladed fan. "But we'll cross that Rubicon when it comes."

She hiked up on the entryway, grinning viciously.

"Ready or not, here we come!"


(Music Continues)

April 19th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Treasure Room – ???

As it turned out, having a majority of the staff quit just before a group of thieves was planning to mount a major offensive against security did not imply said offense would be especially long. Especially given how a Safe Room was relatively nearby the target room and the now-physical Treasure.

The sight of it alone was beautiful to behold.

“H-Holy shit…” Skull muttered, in mild shock. “T-This is Kamoshida’s treasure…?!”

“Wow…” Dragon blinked, before looking genuinely impressed. “Imagine how much this’ll be worth in the real world.”

Panther didn't seem all that impressed by comparison. "It's... a big crown."

A crown bigger than any member of the team, but it was a crown. A crown that was just as opulent as the rest of the castle interior, with a frame constructed of pure gold and with a similarly sized interior cap of silk in the richest red. The heart pattern Shadow Kamoshida seemed so fond of was repeated in full force, with heart-shaped rubies appropriately sized for the enormous frame forming a ring around the band, and a golden heart at the top of one of the female torsos so common in Kamoshida's deeper Palace, rising tall and defiantly like the core of a trophy.

"...I don't disagree it's kind of gaudy, but still - that's a lot of gold." Phoenix said with a whistle preceding it. "I can appreciate the vanishing of my money woes for a few weeks, thank you very much!"

"I know, it's just kind of... obvious." Panther sighed, looking not very please.

"Huh?" Skull turned to Panther with a look of worry on his face. "Somethin' up, Panther?"

Panther sighed once again. "I was just... expecting a giant volleyball or a big medal, or a scepter or something else. Just... something this obvious kinda pisses me off. Like, I hate that it's just so... pretty. When it doesn't deserve it in the slighted." Panther finished, hurriedly. "But that's me. "What about you, Mona?"

No response. The not-a-cat stared at the Treasure with wide eyes, and pupils dilated. 

Panther blinked. "Uhhhh... Mona?"

Dragon noticed. "Uh, Earth to Mona? Please tell me there isn't a curse on this."

“T-Treasure…”

“Huh?” Phoenix turned to her feline friend, who looked like he was ready to drool. “Mona, you okay?”

“T… T…” Mona stuttered, stars in his eyes. “Treasure…!”

With that, he leapt onto the giant crown, and begin purring loudly, rubbing his cheek and nose against it.

“Mrrroww!” Mona mewled happily. “Meooooooooooow!”

“W-What in the…?” Panther blinked, her thought process about the Treasure having derailed and fallen off a cliff. “Uh… Mona? You okay?”

No response. As Mona continued to meow in pure delight, Skull scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

“Uhhh…” Skull muttered to himself. “I wasn't expecting 'your curse broke the not-a-cat' to be added to Kamoshida's crimes, but, uh, I guess that's where we are.”

"Er..." Phoenix cleared her throat, trying not to break into giggles. "A-Are desires made of catnip...?"

The notion that he was acting like an actual feline was apparently what was needed to snap Mona back to reality. He promptly backflipped off, his senses returned as his ears drooped in embarrassment. 

“Oh. U-Um… yeah…” Mona squeaked. “Forgive me for displaying such an insolent sight in front of a lady…”

“Awww, don't sweat it." Panther grinned, more amused than than anything. "It was cute, if nothing else!"

“C-Cute…?! Lady Ann called me cute?!” Mona looked extremely happy, to say the least.

"Dude... don't let it get to your head." Skull said with a shrug.

"Though, seriously, what was that?" Dragon cut in. "You were completely out-of-character for a moment there..."

“Well… it was still really strange.” Phoenix crossed her arms. “Why did you act like that? For someone who doesn't want to be called a cat, you sure acted like one...”

Mona paused, before turning a deep shade of red under his black and white fur and blushing. “I-I dunno… b-but I think it's because I'm r-reacting to the concentrated human desires in a Treasure... to think it'd be this strong..."

“W-Wait!” Mona's mood perked up suddenly. “Does that mean I’m a human all along?! It’s gotta be!”

"Hopefully...” Phoenix said with a smile, trying to hide that she has no idea. "But, in any case, we just get this crown out, and the Palace disappears, right?"

"And Kamoshida will change too!" Panther said happily, finishing the thought with a pause. "...hopefully."

"It should be the case!" Mona beamed, before suddenly turning crestfallen. "Except... you guys need to carry it...

It was at that moment the actual size of the crown suddenly became very apparent.

"...um, thinking back to our science homework, is gold a light metal?", Skull said with a wince.

"Unfortunately, no. Dammit, palladium would be a nice alternative to the cliche, too..." Phoenix muttered.

"Well, Mona can't exactly lift it and remain on the ground, so..." Dragon shuffled to the back of the crown, struggling to lift it. "I'm suddenly very unhappy I focused strength training on my legs..."

"Well, it it makes you feel better, I'm amazed it went so well!" Mona said, his cheer returning. "I know, tempting fate and all that, but let's get real, I found four Persona-users to train! And one with Phoenix's abilities to switch them, too... I knew my judgement was correct! I definitely made the right choice in making a deal with you!" He gave a meowing laugh.

Phoenix smiled, watching Mona visibly relax and recover from an episode what she suspected might otherwise have sent him burying himself in the gold pile of the vault out of shame. She could feel her bond with the strange not-a-cat deepening, as she felt him trust the group a little more

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

MAGICIAN (I) RANK UP! RANK 2

Magician Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Morgana’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

(Music Playing – Life Will Change (Instrumental) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-vhDD7gDRM)

Phoenix smiled back at Mona, before grimacing at the Treasure. "If you sprain my back, I'm melting you down for charm bracelets..."


(Music Stops)

April 19th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Throne Room – ???

“Urgh… h-heavy…”

Phoenix grunted to herself alongside everyone else as they carried the Treasure step by agonizing step.

Skull, for his part, had found an interesting way to verbally keep time as he balanced his side. "Please be small enough to fit inside the Safe Room, Please be small enough to fit inside the Safe Room..."

"Every time you say that, I swear, it gets bigger!" Panther said, wincing. "I'm not made for this..."

"Y-Yeah, no kidding... I mean, I'm the guy here, so I should... just..." Skull said this amid doing most of the heavy lifting himself, before turning to his side to see Phoenix, due to her pick of clothes... swaying.

Phoenix thankfully didn't catch on to Skull's face reddening. "H-Huh? Skull, why're you - "

"I-It's nothin'! I wasn't lookin' at anythin'!" Skull barked out immediately.

"Ugh, what the hell does KamoASSHOLE even need this crown for?!"  Dragon vocally complained about her poor, aching back. "I'm guessing it's just to sate his insatiable ego!"

"No worries, Dragon! Just a little farther!" Mona bounded ahead. "This way, quickly, quickly - "

He stopped, his ear twitching.

Mona's eyes widening. "Did you hear something?"

Everyone froze. Then, came the mantra absolutely nobody wanted to hear:

“Go, go! Let’s go! Ka-mo-shi-da!”

More specifically, Panther's voice. When the real one carrying the crown wasn't talking.

Dragon put it best. "...crap! DUCK!"

The Phantom Thieves barely managed to drop the crown and dodge out of the way of a volleyball traveling at inhuman speeds, sending the crown flying.

(Music Playing – Blood of Villain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

Shortly thereafter, an all-too-familiar cape decorated with hearts sailed over the group, exactly as graceful and athletic as the owner thought he was, landing at his throne in a crouch.

With a sinister grin, Shadow Kamoshida reached out for his Treasure. On the ground, the crown shifted and twitched, before suddenly shrinking to a far more manageable size and flying to his outstretched hand.

With a confident smirk, Kamoshida tossed the Treasure in his hand, as the Cognitive versions of Yukiko and Ann came out to embrace him.

"...are you kidding me!?" Dragon cried out, disbelieving. "Do you know how heavy that thing is in full form?!"

"Tch. Not so confident in a straight fight, are you?" Kamoshida said, his expression souring. "But you probably guessed I won't let anyone take this. My desires are just that - mine. This proves I am the king of this castle, and the core of this world!"

"Ugh, why'd they have to come back?!" Panther said, looking with disgust at her Cognition. "You seriously still see us like that?!"

"Yo, pervert! You waiting to ambush us?" Skull said that not sounding that surprised despite his louder volume.

"As if. I just made it easy to find you." Kamoshida sneered smugly. "Frankly, I need to distress after your juvenile prank on my statue, so, I decided to take care of you myself. Right here, right now."

Phoenix growled. "Which has absolutely nothing to do with the fact half your meatshields quit... right?"

A flash of pure rage broke Kamoshida's composure, before he regained his poise, the only sign of anger being him gritting his teeth. "A... minor setback. There's plenty more guards in the recruitment pool. I just have to show them I'm strong, and it'll be like nothing ever happened."

Phoenix broke into a derisive laugh. "Oh sure, you keep telling yourself that, you sexually predatory baby! Don't think we didn't hear how you reacted to the great Kamoshida being tagged!"

Unfortunately, Kamoshida appeared prepared for that particular dig. "'Predatory?' What a misunderstanding..."

Panther's hands clenched, anger instinctively flaring up. "H-How's it a misunderstanding?! You were deliberately hiding it!"

"People around me were the ones who kept it a secret. Maybe an open secret, but still something nobody talked about for a reason." Kamoshida said, his tone even more patronizing than when his real-world self was buttering people up. "Adults who want to share in my accomplishments, students who have the drive to become winners... they willingly protect me, so that we all may profit from it."

His smug grin turned manic. "Or did you forget that Suzui wanted to get on the team in the first place because she wanted to learn from the best, Ann? Even when she threw herself off the building, she didn't even bother leaving a note saying I was the reason; my reputation was too valuable."

"You son of a - "  Skull nearly rushed the demonic coach right there only to be stopped by Ann's arm.

After a second of deep breathing, Panther looked up. "...true. She's a total idiot, being suckered by you, then used as a tool against me, then letting you manipulate her into suicide..."

She inhaled, looking up without betraying any emotion. "And I'm even more of a dumbass, since I could see it happening, and kept on lying to myself about what you actually wanted her for..."

Her calm expression broke, turning to utter rage. "But that doesn't mean you get to call yourself the hero! Nobody needs your permission to live their lives!"

Apparently, only making his target angrier was not what Kamoshida was aiming for. "D-Drop the mediocre attitude, peasant! There is no wrong in using my gifts for my gain!" He thrust out his chest. "I'm a cut above all other humans!"

Dragon sputtered. "'Above?!' You?! You're a high school volleyball coach, not some kind of cultivated god!"

"I think meant beneath." Panther added, rage reaching a breaking point. "I don't even think you qualify as human anymore! YOU’RE A GODDAMN DEMON OBSESSED WITH YOUR SICK DESIRES!”

Kamoshida looked at them for a second, and...

...laughed.

"That's right... I'm not like you..." He said with a more sinister sneer, the natural echo his voice as a Shadow had suddenly becoming even more distorted. Almost like a gurgle, than anything a human mouth could produce.

And then the dark energy Shadows unleashed as they went into their true forms began to swirl around him.

Mona yanked out his sword. "Dammit! He's unleashing his Persona's nature! We're about to see his true form!"

"Kitty's right. My true form... I am a demon, WHO RULES THIS WOOOORLD!"

And then... it happened.

(Music – Blooming Villain –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBy4Ir_Pfng )

Most of Kamoshida's form was obscured by the power entering and merging with him and his two hangers-on, twisting their forms together into one as they grew.

And grew.

And grew.

The Phantom Thieves stood transfixed as the growing darkness stabilized and solidified into the most disgusting creature they had ever seen.

“Wh…” Skull was at a complete loss of words. “What the hell is that?!”

"...Kamoshida's Persona, I guess." Phoenix said flatly, remembering Mona's words about personal Shadows being unawakened Personas. "He has... issues."

Indeed, Kamoshida had turned into a giant, pink ogre of a man, his four arms grotesquely elongated, his legs being pudgy and lacking muscle that, combined with the way he slouched in his throne, put Phoenix in mind of a demonic infant with the torso and head of an adult man. He was nude except for a cape interwoven with golden medals (though thankfully he lacked visible genitals), and a group of rotund slaves, their faces hidden by torture masks, were chained to his throne. Between his legs, a golden trophy filled with the writhing lower halves of female mannequins sat, and the golden utensils in the ogre's lower arms left nothing to the imagination as to what their purpose was. His upper two arms held a riding crop and a wine glass of thick red wine, the latter of which (Phoenix realized with a lurch), held the bobbing forms of the Cognitive Yukiko and Ann, now motionless and petrified. 

It was the head that was most horrible, though. An almost cartoonish parody of Kamoshida's human face, the grotesquely large head bore the now-giant Treasure between two golden horns that bent over his wild hair like a ram's. Beneath that were two bulging, bloodshot eyes that rotated wildly and independently of the other, like a disturbed chameleon's, and were ever so slightly too small for their sockets, occasionally giving a glimpse of the darkness inside of the head. And beneath that was a mouth that had become an almost literal bear trap, lipless and jagged. From within the mouth was an enormous, purple tongue that bore more than a slight resemblance to a slimy tentacle, longer than the mutated Kamoshida's own torso.

Even in his true form, he manages to reach new levels of sleaze. Phoenix thought, sourly. 

“HAHAHAHA! GYAHAHA! I AM ASMODEUS!” The warped Shadow cackled. “IN THIS WORLD AND THE OTHER, I’M ALLOWED TO DO WHATEVER THE HELL I WANT!

“That’s where you’re wrong!” Phoenix retorted, shaking off her disgust and pointing at him defiantly. “We’ll change your heart, no matter what it takes!”

"GRRRAAAAGH!" Asmodeus' warcry sent his tongue vibrating, spewing spittle all over the room, before his eyes briefly affixed themselves to his challenger. “DAMN YOU! YOU GODDAMN, NO-GOOD, SHITTY BRATS… HAVEN’T YOU BEEN TAUGHT NOT TO POINT AT PEOPLE?! HUH?!”

"Ewww..." Dragon shivered. "I think he got some on me..."

"Dammit - of course he has to keep the Treasure out of reach!" Skull said, glancing up at the crown. "Pain in the ass!"

"Then we'll just have to beat him senseless so he falls over!" Mona said, undeterred. "After everything he's done, I don't see us kicking his distorted ass to next week a bug in the plan!"

"HA! YOU'RE WELCOME TO BREAK YOUR HANDS ON THESE MUSCLES, YOU LITTLE ASSHOLES!" Asmodeus readied his riding crop. "MY PERSONAL SLAVES HAVE BEEN TRAINED TO PROFESSIONAL LEVELS! I’LL KILL THE BOY AND THE CAT, AND TAKE THE GIRLS AS MY SPECIAL HAREM! DIE!”

And like that, with a flick of his riding crop, about a couple dozen volleyballs flew from behind him to the slaves chained to the throne, who mechanically spiked them at preternatural speeds, landing a flurry storm of the sports balls that would be comparable to a machine gun.

“Ow! Son of a bitch!” Skull cursed, dodging as many as he could after the first few struck home.

"Are you kidding me?!" Panther gave Asmodeus a disbelieving glare. "You're fighting us directly, and you're still getting others to do your dirty work?! Phoenix, any plans?!"

“The slaves are probably replaceable..." Yukiko said, ducking behind a pillar as she worked out a strategem. "Deal as much damage to Asmodeus as necessary! We’ll improvise as we go along! Now…”

Immediately gripping at her mask, Phoenix ripped it off, a blue light shooting from below. “Come forth! Berith!”

The Persona in question was a blue demonic knight not too different from Eligor, only it’s blue radiance made it look like a knight in shining armor. Spurring his horse, the horseback Persona lunged its spear into Kamoshida’s chest, evoking a squelch from the creature’s flesh.

“AAAAGH! SON OF A…” Asmodeus cursed. “YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT, YOU DELINQUENT BITCH!”

“Hey, don't hog all the fun to one problem kid!” Skull proceeded to rip off his mask. “C’mon, Captain! Shock ‘em!”

And indeed, Captain Kidd – followed up by Tomoe, Carmen and Zorro – let loose with a torrent of elemental energy as they began pelting Asmodeus individually, all while Berith’s spear continued to skewer the demon, dodging through regular flurries of volleyballs.

Eventually, a lucky strike from Tomoe left a massive gash in Asmodeus' side, rimmed with frostbite. Grunting out in pain, the ogre hastily grabbed his trophy.

"YOU WORRRMS!” Asmodeus cursed. “ALL OF YOU SLAVES ARE USELESS... BUT I GOT PLENTY OF PICK-ME-UPS!”

The utensils descended on the trophy, slicing off a pair of legs from the writhing mass in the trophy before Asmodeus quickly snarfed them down, barely chewing. The blackened skin promptly fell away as the ogre's flesh knitted itself back together.

"MMM, MMM, MMM, THAT HITS THE SPOT!" Asmodeus spat, his confidence restored. "COME AT ME YOU PIECES OF SHIT! I AIN'T LETTING YOU SLEEP TONIGHT!"

Oh, I was wondering when the menacing double-meaning innuendo was going to show up. The perpetually calm snarky side of Phoenix's brain growled. Honestly, I'm shocked it took that long.

Mona hissed. “Of course! If the Lust Crystal is healing, he knows how to heal himself through eating those... things in the trophy!”

Phoenix took a look at said trophy - and grinned deviously. "...looks kind of fragile, doesn't it?"

Panther immediately understood what Phoenix was implying, and voraciously nodded. “...I hear you! C’mon, Carmen! DANCE!”

Another flurry of fire, ice, lightning, thunder and physical attacks began to pummel the trophy, each blow creating one crack after another.

“AAAAAAAGH! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Asmodeus bellowed. “YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH THIS IS WORTH! SO STOP TOUCHING IT!"

"I can tell you exactly how much it's worth just by looking at it!" Dragon shot back. "Exactly as much as you! Tomoe, recycle this trash!"

With one more skewering of the lance from Tomoe, the trophy shattered as the mannequins within dissolved into Shadow gunk, leading the demonic king to slump down in utter horror.

“AAAACK!” Asmodeus screamed in despair. “No way... That was from when I won the national...”

“Yeah! Nice one, Dragon!” Phoenix cheered.

“Heh, no problem! Now follow my lead, guys!”

HOLD UP!

Immediately pointing their ranged weaponry at Asmodeus, the demonic king bellowed in sheer frustration and ire over the helplessness of his situation.

“Wow. To think the “high and mighty” King Kamoshida’s like this, huh?” Mona grinned. “Pathetic.”

“GRR… DAMN YOU!” Asmodeus screamed, petulantly. “YOU THINK YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH DOING SUCH A THING?! DON'T YOU REALIZE WHO I AM?! I... AM KAMOSHIDA! DON'T YOU GET IT?!"

“Well, given your opinions on the fairer sex, you know how slow women can be.” Phoenix smirked. “I'll be sure to put my tiny female mind to thinking about it later, when you're rotting in jail.”

Asmodeus sputtered. "BULLSHIT! I AM ABOVE EVERYTHING IN THIS CASTLE!"

“Man, you act so high and mighty…” Skull chuckled. “...but all you are right now is a pathetic loser.”

“Preach the choir, Skull.” Panther sighed. “I'd ask you to just hand over the Treasure and cut this short, but I'm not feeling merciful. Dragon! Lead the way!”

And they wasted no time getting to work. Jumping up in the air, they began their maelstrom of brutal melee and gunshots.

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

At the end of the brutal assault, Dragon landed on her own two feet, briefly doing a roundhouse kick and a kung-fu pose as blood gushed from Asmodeus.

DON’T THINK. FEEL.

“ARGH! DAMN IT ALL!” Asmodeus cursed, shadow blood gushing from a new abdominal wound. “YOU’RE GOING TO PAY FOR THAT, YOU SEDITIOUS LITTLE PISSANT! I'M THE KING! IF I'M NOT, WHO IS?!”

He cracked his whip again, shaking off the pain. "LOOKS LIKE I GOTTA BRING OUT THE BIG GUNS! SLAAAAVES! GET YOUR OVERSEERS, AND BRING OVER YOU-KNOW-WHAT!"

The balls holding the slaves dissolved, leaving them to run off as Asmodeus flipped the utensils in his lower arms into a fighting stance. 

"TIME FOR MY KILLSHOT WHEN FROM WHEN I WAS STILL ACTIVE AND ROCKIN' IT!", Asmodeus taunted. "KILL SHOT - AS IN I'LL MAKE THE KILLLL!"

"...gee, we never would have guessed!" Mona shouted back with a curled lip of anti-laughter. 

"Boo!" Phoenix agreed, making a thumbs-down.

"HA! WE'LL SEE HOW WITTY YOU'LL BE AFTER I PUT YOU ON A RACK!" Asmodeus said before pause, then cracking his whip impatiently. "...WHENEVER MY BALL GETS HERE! WHAT'S THE HOLDUP YOU USELESS CHUMPS!?"

"I-I'm sorry King Kamoshida!" A very familiar voice cried from behind a column, sounding even reedier and nervous than normal. "I-I have it right here!"

Phoenix sputtered as none other than Yuuki Mishima came out from the columns, submissively hiding behind a volleyball he was holding.

"What the - " Skull said, taken aback.

"What's he doing here?!" Panther concurred.

"My god, Yuuki, pick a side!" Dragon shouted.

"Calm down!" Morgana cut in. "Unless Mishima has the Metaverse Navigator somehow, this isn't the real one - just another Cognition! Kamoshida doesn't think the real one would remain rebellious, so..."

Phoenix facepalmed. "Duh. Just another doll - okay everyone, focus on..."

She trailed off, frowning. "Uh, guys? Is it just me, or is he kind of.... hard to look at directly?"

For some reason, while everyone could see Cognitive Mishima, it was impossible to focus on him - any direct gaze would just slide off, and with a start, the Phantom Thieves realized they suddenly didn't know how to attack Mishima.

Mona picked it up. "Why that arrogant little - Kamoshida thinks Mishima's invincible! So he is!"

Skull sputtered. "Uh, are we talking about the same guy?"

"...no, it's because Mishima's his way of spreading rumors!" Dragon realized with a lurch. "Because he thinks Mishima's a perfect way to act in an underhanded way, with no way to trace it directly back to him..."

"Kamoshida's cognition won't let us even see him well enough to hit him!" Phoenix snarled. "Everyone, guard!"

"HA! GOOD WORK, MISHIMA, YOU ALMOST AREN'T A DRAG!" Asmodeus yelled at the Cognition. "NOW PASS IT TO ME - UNLESS YOU CAN'T DO SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS THAT?"

With a final whimper, Kamoshida's version of Mishima threw the ball into the air - at which point it promptly inflated in size to being as big as Asmodeus' crown.

"BEHOLD MY GREATNESS!"  Asmodeus bellowed as he finally jumped from his throne, spiking the ball.

For all of his vanity, he did have a good spike, sending the ball flying at supersonic speeds into the ground, so fast it exploded in shockwave of kinetic energy. The Thieves grimaced, bracing -

And not even knocking any of them over. It hurt, certainly, but apart from some new bruises after the light faded, none of Phantom Thieves felt that much the worse for wear.

Phoenix snorted, smirking facetiously. "...I'm not impressed."

"GRRR... I KNEW IT! I CAN'T GO ALL-OUT WITH MISHIMA PROVIDING BACKUP!"  The demonic ogre bellowed, before hitting the Cognition with his whip, chasing him off. "GET OFF MY COURT, SHIT-FOR-BRAINS! NEXT SLAVE HAD BETTER BE COMPETENT!"

"Hey, don't blame him for your - " Mona stopped, realizing the reason everyone survived that attack was probably exactly because Kamoshida blamed Mishima for some of his failures. "Actually, nevermind, keep blaming him! And everyone else too, especially the next guy!"

"The next guy?" A feminine voice said from behind the Phantom Thieves. "Teehee! And you say our king is sexist!"

Phoenix spun around to see the next slave overseer running in and -

Quickly discovered she could somehow hate Kamoshida even more.

For one thing, the next slave was one of the female Cognitions, dolled up in overly thick lipstick and all the skimpy princess-themed fetish wear as the rest - this one a furry bikini and rabbit ears on her crown.

Being reminded of exactly what they were facing was one thing, but it was the fact that Phoenix knew who this student was as well that somehow managed to turn the giant star of pure hatred for Kamoshida into a singularity of pure, utter loathing.

Namely, she was Shiho.

"King Kamoshida!~" She said in a pleasant sing-song, reminding Phoenix of a maid from a hentai game. "I brought you your ball, just like you asked!"

"NOW THERE'S A GOOD GIRL, SUZUI!" Asmodeus said in the most amiable tone he had spoken yet during the battle. "YEAH, ALL WOMEN SHOULD OBEY MY ORDERS LIKE THIS - AIN'T THAT RIGHT, SWEETHEART?"

The Cognitive Shiho punctuated her master's statement by blowing a kiss at the stunned Panther, winking in what may have been a flirt or a taunt.

"N... No way..." Panther said, whimpering.

"Panther, calm down!" Mona cut in, quickly realizing the wound Asmodeus just salted. "That's not the real one! It's just... him being a gross, cheating asshole!"

"I... I know, I KNOW!" Panther screamed, before stumbling back as her eyes went wide in terror. "I-I just... I can't..."

"...you piece-of-shit!" Dragon yelled at the smug monster. "You still look at her as a servant, after the things you did to her?!"

Asmodeus casually shrugged. "WHY NOT? SHE KEPT SERVING ME WHEN SHE KISSED THE GROUND, HELPED KEEP HER 'FINE' A SECRET - SHE'S ONE OF MY BEST!"

Skull was visibly struggling not to recklessly rush forward to beat up Kamoshida's Shadow.

"...dammit!" Phoenix inhaled. "We can't last through one of those spikes from a Cognition who he thinks of as a good player in any way! We have to stop her from passing!"

Panther gulped. "I... I get it." She inhaled, tearing up trembling. "But... t-the only way to d-do that is... h-hurting Shi..."

There was a pause, before Phoenix inhaled. "...Panther. Plug your ears, and turn around."

Panther looked at her, slowly understanding, before she balled up and turned around, shutting her eyes tight and holding her ears as closed as possible.

"...on the count of one - " Dragon said, looking away from the puzzled Cognition. "...one."

A tornado of energies descended on the fake Shiho, before she vanished into Shadow gunk with a very real scream of surprise - and agony.

"...I'm sorry, Lady Ann." Mona murmured, looking depressed.

Asmodeus' jaw dropped even wider. "WHAT THE - YOU'RE FIGHTING TO AVENGE HER, AND YOU LITERALLY JUST MURDERED HER IN COLD BLOOD!" He gave a nervous laugh. "AND YOU SAY I'M A PIECE OF SHIT?!"

That stung, Phoenix wasn't going to lie. As much as the factual information was screaming at her that she just destroyed a sex doll of a rape victim that was going to help her rapist kill her... it was still a very accurate sex doll.

An unexpected voice snapped her out of it.

"...do you actually believe that?"

Panther's voice was... cold. Almost dead, except for the slight tremble in it.

"Did you just... seriously, say that? And mean it?" She got to unsteady feet, though Phoenix couldn't tell if she was shaking from shock or rage. "You call that... that thing out here, bid it to attack us, and you call it murder!?"

Carmen manifested, looking almost as demonic as the expression Panther's face was in. "WHERE DO YOU GET OFF YOU SELF-RIGHTEOUS DIPSHIT!?"

Asmodeus' eyes fixed on Panther with absolute terror, before his tongue suddenly darted out, wrapping around the closest thing.

"EEEK!" Phoenix shrieked. "PUT ME DOWN!"

"COME ANY CLOSER, AND I'LL BITE HER HEAD OFF!", Asmodeus roared. 

The Phantom Thieves jumped back, startled, and -

Dragon broke into a wide grin. "Predictable as the black sunshine."

"Seriously. Guess that's the problem when you think you're the smartest person in the room, and you're a fucking idiot." Skull said with a gleeful little snicker.

"...huh?"

"Well, it's simple." Phoenix said, having regained her bearings and grinning savagely, her hand drifting to her skirt. "We knew that since you already threatened Panther like this, we needed to come with, oh, insurance. And on the off chance you didn't, we could still leave a smiley face in place of your Treasure."

Asmodeus' eyes widened even further, which was very convenient for aiming the spray paint whose can Phoenix had just fished out of her back pocket. 

"EEEEEYYYAAARGGH!" The grotesque king writhed in pain as he accidentally flung Phoenix away with his crazed writhing, his crown flying off as he desperately clawed at the red paint in his eyes. "HOW DO A BUNCH OF BRATS KEEP DOING THIIIIIISS?! STOP PICKING ON MEEEEEE!"

"The answer to that is simple!", Mona said, cheerfully. "You're a has-been clinging to a stardom that died years ago, and we're just getting started!"

Phoenix shook off her skirt. "Eeeech... I need to get a bath soon. Panther, could you do me a favor and end this?"

She grinned savagely. "The pleasure... is all mine."

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

Wasting no time to exploit the opening, the Phantom Thieves began another All-Out Attack. Panther flipped off, and after a moment's thought, struck a pose almost as flirtatious as the Cognitive Shiho's, layered with mockery of both the fake and her creator, all while blood gushed from the demonic king.

And this time, it was fatal.

OMG, WE ARE SO AWESOME!

“NOOO! DAAAAMN YOOOOU!”

The black blood of a Shadow spewed out of Asmodeus, as he fell off his throne, cracking it as his ogrish body collapsed into black liquid that his entire form folded into like a burst balloon. 

For a moment, the dark pool lingered, before it too burst into vapor, evaporating away until the only thing left was Shadow Kamoshida, broken and defeated.

(Music Playing - Battle Over - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjLWGyx4zoA)

The crown clanked to the floor, shaking before it suddenly burst into light, shrinking to its more manageable size.

There was a second, before the full magnitude of what just happened hit the Phantom Thieves.

“We… we did it! We actually did it!” Phoenix was ready to leap for joy. “YAHOO!”

"Hahahaha!" Skull hi-fived Dragon, before pumping his arms. "Eat that, you sack of shit!"

"...I hope I hurt something permanent, asshole." Panther said, still too angry to really celebrate.

"Well, you just helped break his reputation when we take his Treasure out and - " Mona stopped, ears twitching. "...wait, do you hear movement?"

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

Kamoshida, while weakened and definitely not doing hot from being beaten back into human form, was still an athlete - one who was also realizing just how far up shit creek without a paddle he was. 

Which was enough to force an adrenaline rush, and get him mobile enough to lunge for the crown before running as fast as he could on injured legs in a direction away from the Phantom Thieves.

“What the…? He’s got the crown!” Mona cried. “After him, quickly!”

“Oh, that son of a… doesn’t he know when he’s beaten?!” Largely ignoring Skull’s cry, the group pursued the defeated king post-haste.


April 19th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Balcony – ???

It was the destruction of Princess Shiho that buzzed through his delusions of grandeur first, as he realized that particular bit of emotional blackmail suddenly didn't seem so effective. The sensation of his body literally falling apart as Asmodeus sustained the final wound and the slow, agonizing process of liquefaction and reconstituting in a wounded, weakened form was what dispelled them, and forced him to confront the truth:

He was weak.

The people including his 'trophies' were strong.

They were not grateful to him, and now that they could hurt him, they would.

Escape was the only option, no matter the agony in every spot Asmodeus had been wounded in, which was seemingly everywhere - his true form had made him nothing but a much bigger target.

Escape without looking where you were going was not a particularly good plan though, ending almost as soon as he was dashing in a in a dead end, standing on the balcony overlooking his kingdom.

“What’s wrong?" An all-too-familiar voice with levels of hate he had not fully realized the owner was capable of spoke behind him. "Not running away? You're a great athlete, aren't you? Surely you can run through a bunch of girls, and a cripple, can't you?"

Kamoshida yelped, turning around to see Panther and her friends. Her friends did not look half as angry as Panther combined, but it wasn't because they were sanguine - Panther just looked like the human form of a war goddess, having manifested directly to show her anger at one man in particular.

"It's... It's always been like this!" Shadow Kamoshida sputtered, trying to cover his fear in anger. "All those goddamn hyenas forcing their expectations on me! I'm doing this all for them! What's wrong with demanding a reward for that!?"

Dragon's jaw dropped. "Are you listening to yourself right now?! You sound like an elementary schooler having a tantrum!"

"Dragon, don't compare kids to this loser." Skull said. "For the love of God, please let stealing your heart make you less whiny!"

Kamoshida whimpered.

"...scared?", Panther said, quietly with a zen-like trance of pure anger. "Right now, you're seeing the same view Shiho did. You know, when she 'served' you, one last time." She walked forward, boxing him in even more. "I bet she was scared too... except, she had no choice but to jump. She had nothing to look forward to but more of you... the man whose plan with her was to use her as a way to throw salt on my wounds."

She inhaled, Carmen manifesting. "And... I think that's what pisses me off, most of all. Because to you, she wasn't even a person. Just a pawn."

(Music Stops)

A pair of fireballs manifested in Carmen's hands. "So. Since you're a fan of jumping off balconies to save your fucking reputation... your choice. The ground, or me."

Mona stepped back. "Do you wanna finish him off? It's your call..."

Dragon looked tempted to say something. Only mildly though, as she stepped back too.

The thin illusion of Kamoshida's confidence vanished. "No! Please, wait - I beg you! Just forgive meeeeee!"

"...what the fuck did you just say!?" Panther hissed, unfathomable hatred in her voice. “You break people and throw them away, and you THINK YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO ASK ME FOR FORGIVENESS!?"

(Music – Regret – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGFZHBK2lTs)

Panther snarled, an animalistic-like banshee screech was building up in her throat. "How many times have you stopped to fucking consider what all those other women were begging you for forgiveness over?!  Much less all the people you abused and children you exploited! But no... you... YOU RUINED EVERYTHING FOR THEM!"

And Panther, in the midst of tears forming in the corner of her eyes, screamed as she tossed the fireball at Kamoshida, singing his hair as his shrieked. A second fireball hit his cape, sending him tearing it off to desperately try to wave it out.

"HOW MANY TIMES DID PEOPLE ASK YOU THE SAME, HUH?!" Panther was openly crying, now. "DID SHIHO BEG YOU TO FORGIVE HER, TOO?! YOU'RE EXACTLY THE KIND OF PERSON WHO THINKS THAT ANYTHING YOU DO TO PEOPLE IS JUSTICE, SO I BET YOU TOLD HER IT WAS HER FAULT SHE WAS RAPED!"

A third hit him directly on the hand, burning him severely and forcing him to drop the crown.

"YOU'RE NOT SORRY! PEOPLE LIKE YOU ARE NEVER SORRY! YOU'RE JUST SORRY YOU GOT CAUGHT!" Panther, having screamed out all she wanted to, paused... and inhaled.

"And... And even if I wanted to forgive you... I'm not the person who could." Ann spoke, coldly. "It's Shiho, it's the volleyball team, it's Ryuji, it's the track team... I wasn't the person you took everything from. It was them."

Kamoshida looked up from his hand, tearing up from more things than pain.

Then, slowly, he kicked the Treasure over to Phoenix. "I... I accept defeat. You won - take it."

He collapsed into a kneel, his cape burning away. "Go ahead and finish me off... you do that, and my real self goes down too. You have that right... since you've won..."

Phoenix picked it up, looking at the especially large fireballs forming as Ann looked over the fallen coach over with an unreadable expression.

Before anyone could react, she sent both of them flying directly at Kamoshida -

"PANTHER!" Dragon cried in shock.

"ANN!" Skull cried -

...or more accurately, directly at the ground in front of him.

"...I'm not falling for that. After all, you and him both deserve so much worse than an escape from what you've done." Ann spoke calmly, as Carmen vanished back into her mask. "Besides, if your other self dies, he can't admit to his crimes. I won't let him run away like that..."

Mona sighed in relief, before smiled happily. “You really have a kind heart, don’t you Lady Ann?” 

"...kind?" Panther scoffed. "No. He wants me to let him die with dignity - let him die with his name. I won't give him the satisfaction of exiting stage left gracefully - if he really wants to say he's sorry, then it'll be genuine."

"Besides... he isn't through yet." Panther spoke, a terrifying glare befalling her face. "I want to make sure he suffers the consequences of his actions, and killing him will bereft me of that chance."

Skull blinked owlishly. "Holy shit."

Dragon, who was too exhausted to really be intimidated by Panther's genuinely scary fury, nodded slowly. "...yeah. I agree. Besides, once everyone knows who he really is... then maybe everyone can start healing. The best kind of revenge in this case is not being like him."

Phoenix nodded silently, motioning to the Thieves. "Let's go."

One by one, the Thieves departed, before Phoenix turned to Shadow Kamoshida one last time. She frowned quietly, contemplative.

"You know, I don't know what'll happen when we take the Treasure. But whatever happens..." Phoenix spoke softly. "Accept what you've done. All actions have consequences, and you were bereft of those for far too long."

As Phoenix glanced at the crown, she glanced back to her party members and began walking away.

“W-Wait!” Kamoshida whimpered. “W-What am I supposed to do? You're... you're through when you lose. When I go back, everyone will know...”

Phoenix glanced at Kamoshida, before sighing. “In the end, you're the only one who can decide that for yourself. None of us are in charge of your life, just like you had no right to determine what others' felt. If being a winner is really all you had to your name, then maybe this was better for you in the long term.”

That's the last Phoenix spoke of. As the group began to walk away, Kamoshida's form began to turn transparent, flaking off into golden light. His last words as he proceeded to return to his other self were sobs.

“I… I lost…” Kamoshida choked on his sobs. “When you lose… you’re a loser… but if I atone... maybe I can do one thing… maybe I can…”

And just like that, he vanished in a flash of blue, not unlike a Persona.

(Music Stops)

(Ambience Plays - Collapsing Palace - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63hwhanrrXw)

It was then rumbling took over the castle. Pieces of debris and other architecture began collapsing all around them, much to the horror of the five Thieves.

“Wh-What the hell is goin’ on?!” Skull cried. “Does the Metaverse have earthquakes or something?!”

“Oh, um… w-whoops. I... forgot to tell you.” Mona grinned sheepishly. “Remember how I said that Palaces collapse when the Treasure is taken? It's more accurate to say it does when the Treasure no longer belongs to the Palace owner... like their Shadow relinquishing all claim to it... which he just did.”

“WHAT?!”

(Music – Collapse of Lust –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJrjtApigRM)

The eyes of all the human Thieves began frantically darting around the castle, before turning to the stairway.

Dragon honestly said it best.

“RUN FOR IT!”

And without any further ado, they began their escape with the Treasure in hand.


(Music Continues)

(Ambience Continues)

April 19th, 2016 – Kamoshida’s Palace, Hallway – ???

“H-HEY! NO FAIR, YOU JERK!”

As Mona shifted back into his cat form, he briefly leaped off Skull’s head to jump on Phoenix’s shoulder, all while they ran to escape the ceiling caving in.

“Omigod, omigod, OMIGOD!” Panther cried out in panic. “We’re gonna die! WE’RE SO GONNA DIE!”

“LESS TALKING, PANTHER!” Dragon retorted, breathing all the while. “AND MORE RUNNING!”

As if that wasn't enough to worry about, Skull made a discovery about a protracted run for him, even if it was with Metaverse superhuman agility:

His limp still got in the way.

“Agh!" He tripped on a table, landing flat on his face.

"RYUJI!" Panther cried, as Dragon helped him up.

"Holy shit, watch your leg!" Dragon cried out, trying to run with him on her back.

“Hey, don’t call me weak! I just have a shitty leg!” Skull laughed, his faux-offended nature being immensely grateful as Dragon helped carry Skull to the final stretch.

By dumb luck, that was not too far away, the way back to the real world suddenly blindingly bright from the pressure of the pocket world collapsing upon itself.

With a final lunge, the Phantom Thieves jumped through, as the nightmare world finished collapsing, and returned to the thoughts from which it came.


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

April 19th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome, Alleyway Shortcut – 5:09 PM

As the real world swam back into view, Ann nearly collapsed herself.

“That..." Ann moaned exhaustively, between pants. " That sucked."

"No... kidding." Yukiko agreed, collapsing against a wall. "C-Can we agree... never to do that... again?"

Slowly, Ryuji stood up, rubbing his leg, before a thought struck him. He pulled out his cell phone, checking the Meta-Nav.

"Hey! Check out the Nav!"

Everyone with a phone pulled it out soon enough to notice a "finding signal" bar next to the listing for Kamoshida's Palace, before it switched to an X and the option faded out.

"The destination no longer exists, and has been deleted from the listing for your convenience. Thank you for your continued patronage." The app chirped.

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

Chie had nothing to say. She simply slumped back on the wall and laughed. "H-Holy crap... we... did it... it's gone..."

"M-Man... I'm never doing fucking shit like that again..." Ryuji paused, realizing how it sounded. "Well, unless someone else just as bad comes along..."

Mona was not in his housecat form, catching his breath awkwardly, before shooting up. "W-Wait a minute! Where's the treasure?!"

Yukiko, just as she finished regaining her breath, suddenly shot up, eyes widening. "Oh, crap, I was holding it in my hand, and... huh?"

The innmaiden blinked as soon as she finished saying that, before lifting that hand up - and looking very surprised by what she's seen.

It wasn't a crown - at least, not anymore. It was actually... a gold medal. An Olympic gold medal, going by the five, engraved loops that made the official symbol of the international games festival, as if the blue neck ribbon also garnishing it made clear. Regardless, it shined brilliantly in the afternoon sun, a bright reminder of hope springing eternal even given how quickly things went from bad to worse.

The Olympic gold medal she was now holding reflected off of Yukiko's puzzled face. "...hang on, where did this come from?"

Mona visibly relaxed. "False alarm! Phoenix still has it."

"S-Seriously?!" Ann blinked at it. "Kind of different from changing size..."

"The distortions that caused it to look like a crown are gone now." Morgana explained. "This is the actual source of Kamoshida's desires. Think of the crown like a pearl - this medal was the grain which the rest of the Treasure formed around. To Kamoshida, this was as valuable as the crown would have been in real life."

"...of course." Ryuji sighed, realizing how obvious it all was. "Of course it's his medal. Perv was just clinging to his old glories and couldn't let go..."

"I feel like I should have made a bet. I'd be up on the beef budget for a couple days." Chie said, wincing. "Jeez, how shallow can you get?!"

"But... since it's gone, Kamoshida's heart changed, right?" Ann looked hopeful.

Morgana shrugged his feline shoulders. "Probably."

"...why 'probably'?!" Chie said, nervously. "Expulsions are on the line here! Expulsions and worse!"

"Remember, this is the first successful heist I remember." Morgana said, defensively. "I don't know exactly what'll happen... but given how his entire worldview literally just collapsed, it's not going to be a small effect."

"Ugh, I still feel all antsy!" Ryuji said. "Ain't there a way to check now!?"

"...call up Kamoshida and ask if he suddenly regrets everything?" Yukiko said, helplessly.

Ann, being the only one capable of that due to a forced entry on her contacts list, shook her head at warp speed. "We're waiting to see what he does. I'm not wanting to set myself up for one of his shitty stunts after all that."

"Yeah, I don't blame you. But..." Morgana frowned, a surprisingly visible expression on a cat face. "Come on, why the gloomy faces? Be happy! We did pretty much every objective perfectly, despite the complications."

"It's kind of hard when we don't know if that actually solved anything, though," Chie said.

"Eh, I'm pretty sure it'll be fine." Morgana said, soothingly. "Remember what his Shadow said? How he could do one thing if he atoned? He's the most hidden part of the real Kamoshida - one some level, he's accepted he did wrong."

The not-a-cat's cheer vanished. "Though I still doubt his atonement is total... Suguru Kamoshida is still scum. Still, if he feels he can do something by atoning, I think his conscience returned. To a degree."

"If nothing else, if he really does feel guilty, that's the end of his dominance games over Shujin." Yukiko nodded definitively. 

"Yeah... that's good, at least." Ann agreed, still looking exhausted. "At least that means I've avenged Shiho."

Chie, instinctively, pressed her hand on Ann's shoulder. "You did. There shouldn't be anything to doubt about that - especially when we're striving to be nothing like him, in earnest. Really, the fact you sent him scared shitless shows how much you've gotten to him!"

Ann thought about this, before giggling. "...yeah. I was always that angry with him. I just... was too scared to act on it."

"But you just did. And that's something you should be proud of, Ann." Yukiko nodded, comforting her friend. "Nobody should have to feel isolated for their problems. And yet, in spite of that, we can just as easily overcome it if we put our minds to it. The fact you confronted him head on shows how much stronger you've become."

Ann paused, before... smiling.

"Yeah... yeah, I know." The half-Danish girl felt tears brim in her eyes, tender as she wiped it away. "Thank you all so much..."

"Yeah, anytime, Ann. I'm here for ya." Ryuji said with a grin, before nodding more seriously. "Anyways... I guess the most we can do is wait to see what happens."

"And study, after we've caught our breath." Chie interjected, dreadingly. "That's kind of why we did a heist so early..."

Ann groaned. "No rest for the weary, huh...? Can I just go home and sleep first? Show of hands."

It wasn't a unanimously followed action, but only because Morgana currently had a forepaw to hold up.


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

(Ambience Playing - School Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeAvHUGsvIY)

April 20th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway – 11:39 AM

The next day was... normal. Almost absurdly so. 

Frankly, it was kind of creepy. Yukiko was trying to find the catch all day - and she felt there was something, she just wasn't sure of it. To be fair, she had a good night's rest, finally, so it isn't even as though Yukiko would say she could chalk it up to exhaustive delusions. But it almost felt there was something off, like...

...oh. Oh, right. Kamoshida.

Yukiko paused while continuing to walk. Come to think of it, Kamoshida hadn't appeared all day, hasn't he?

It was only when Chie walked up that Yukiko with an expression of caution when Yukiko realized she wasn't alone in that sentiment.

"Hey Yuki?", she began. "Has our day been kind of... Kamoshida-less?"

Internally, Yukiko slapped her forehead for not noticing it sooner, but externally, she grinned, finally realizing what it was. "Yeah, it's funny, but I just realized that! It almost feels nice to know I'm not being watched." Well, d'uh. I haven't felt in danger for my life or agency today! Not a single lurid or bullying comment or... oh, god when did that become my new normal?!

Putting that depressing thought aside, Yukiko smiled more. "Either way, I haven't seen hair nor hide of him... I was wondering why the school smelled less of cheap cologne and desperation."

Chie suppressed a snort. "Yeah. Think it's because he's really changed?"

Yukiko simply shrugged. "That, or a mental shutdown happened. Still, you'd think the school would be public about that - "

"Oh, there you are!" A familiar, older voice came from behind Yukiko and Chie. "Perfect timing..."

Kawakami rushed up, looking a little exhausted. "Last one... Amagi, I just wanted to inform you that after lunch, I need you to come back to the classroom instead of going to the gym. We have had a sudden schedule change and we are having study hall instead of PE today."

Yukiko blinked. "Really? That's truly unfortunate." Of course, she lied about that last bit through her teeth.

Kawakami didn't buy it either from her raised eyebrow, but didn't press the issue. "Perhaps. Point is, Mr. Kamoshida announced he was not coming in today this morning for unknown reasons. He didn't make this clear until about an hour ago."

Chie suddenly became very interested, leaning. "Really? Any idea why?"

Kawakami opened her mouth - and paused. She apparently ran an internal calculus weighing the pros and cons of saying more, but it only took the reminder that these two have had to put up with the coach's more odious taunting and passive-aggressiveness from the get go. It's then Kawakami felt like it'd be unfair to leave them hanging, given how close to the epicenter of everything Kamoshida was.

"...now normally, this is something I shouldn't talk more on. But given your shared history with Kamoshida, I think you deserve to know this." Kawakami began, carefully thinking how to phrase this. "I can neither confirm nor deny the rumors that he may have placed himself on suspension."

It took all of Yukiko's willpower to not start running through the halls, cackling manically. Instead, she - and going by the angle which she was standing at, so was Chie - broke into the biggest, most uncharacteristically-joyful grin she felt she ever put on in her life.

"...oh. How... tragic."  Yukiko said, the glee almost not creeping into her voice as her polite smile became a genuine grin nearly as wide as her face. HAHAHAHA! Suck it, you wannabe edgelord rapist!

"Please, don't be obvious!" The Japanese language teacher hissed, before continuing after a brief pause. "...but last I heard, Kobayakawa was trying to talk to him, and he was, well... supposedly, he wasn't making any sense." She shrugged. "But given your personal feuds with him, I felt you ought to know, mostly so you don't kick him when he's down."

Kawakami paused again, remembering something. "It may also be because those expulsion threats may not be valid any more, given how he was the one pushing them, and he's, well... stopped."

Chie, having recovered from her shit-eating grin and happy cackling in her mind, simply blinked owlishly. "Um, that's... great, actually! But why tell us this?"

"Because he wouldn't shut up about it - er, because you are not getting out of the test because of inability to take it." Kawakami quickly amended. "Also, because I've noticed how tense you've been around him - I feel this might help calm down the class a bit, if it tunes down your anxiety about encountering him."

She stood up straight. "Anyway, I've relayed what's going on to you - and no more, no talk of suspension rumors. I'll see you after lunch."

With that, she made her way off. As soon as she was out of eyesight, Chie pumped her fist. 

"Yes! Haha!" Chie grinned cheerfully, crying out victory. "Take that, asshole! Score one for the away team!"

"Shh! Don't spread rumors!" Yukiko quickly said, taking Kawakami's advice to heart... before smiling softly. "...but still, if nothing else, at least it's not a mental shutdown. No murder on our conscience... self-defense or not."

"Yup. But even if we do end up expelled... well, no more harassment, hopefully." Chie sighed with relief. "That is a load off my back I forgot I was carrying."

"I was getting that way too, honestly." Yukiko admitted, shrugging softly. "Goes to show just how inured to danger you can get."

"No kidding. But, beyond that, I guess all we can do now is wait." Chie finished, before nodding. "Still, we can wait easier now! Especially without worrying about whatever tricks that asswipe has planned."

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

"Very much so! And far, far less terrifying than not knowing." Yukiko said, resting against a locker.

There was a brief silence, as the two girls reflected their freedom from the coach, before Chie had an idea.

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

“You know, though… I kinda want to hang out with you after school.” Chie began, before realizing how it probably sounded. “I mean, if that’s okay, of course! It’s just that with all that’s been happening, we’ve never actually had some time to hang out, just... fight alongside each other, instead of being... well, normal. Not that I dislike not fighting, but...”

Suddenly, she sprang to her feet, cheerfully. “Maybe we should train together! How ‘bout it?!”

Yukiko giggled to herself. Chie’s enthusiasm was adorable, and she certainly wouldn’t refuse a request like that. Simply smiling to her friend, she nodded.

“So… where do you want to train?”


(Music – Alright (Elp Ver.) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

April 20th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Commons – 5:10 PM

About five minutes in, Yukiko discovered the downside of training with a regular athlete, especially a kickboxer.

What was normal for them was a regular ordeal for those whose heaviest general duties were ostensibly supposed to consist of carrying especially large bags.

“Ugh… I’m beat.” Yukiko fell on the bench. "Please... tell me my agony is worth something resembling improvement..."

Chie sat lazily on the bench, smiling and stretching her sweaty arms as Yukiko smiled back.

“To be honest - yeah, you are!” Chie said with a happy laugh. “I mean, yeah, I was a bit hard on you, but I’m really surprised how well you’re holding your own!”

Yukiko laughed despite herself. “Phew... Thanks, Chie.” Yukiko drew herself up. “In all honesty, I am having a bit of fun. It's just... hard.”

Chie grinned. “Ah, but that's what makes it fun! No challenge, no improvement! I gotta train every day to protect everyone… including you.”

Yukiko slowly sat up, her cheeks flushed a bit. “’Including me’?”

“Um… well, yeah.” Chie shrugged. “Ryuji, Morgana and Ann, too. You guys came to mean so much to me, and…” She trailed off. "...and yikes. I've known only the majority of you for two weeks, and it feels like I've known you my whole life. Seriously, it's a bit scary how fast it happened..."

Yukiko shrugged. "I've heard stressful situations bind people together faster. It's why people tend to come together during disasters."

"Or maybe the ongoing one that is Kamoshida existing?" Chie guessed with a mild shrug.

Yukiko mulled that over. "...well. Silver lining to that man's existence, he is very good at uniting people in the Screw This One Man In Particular Party."

"Ooh, maybe we should start that! We'd likely get the entire metropolitan council in one go!" Chie laughed.

Both girls fell silent for a bit, before Yukiko turned to her friend. “Say, Chie… what do you want to do when you grow up?”

"Eh?" Chie blinked. "That's a bit sudden..."

"I know, it just came to mind when I was thinking about politics." Yukiko shrugged. "That, and I in particular don't seem to have much of a choice in what I can be..."

“...yeah. True enough.” Chie smiled awkwardly. “Me, I want to be a police officer. I want to protect people who can’t stand up for themselves, be a shield for the weak… I just want everyone to be equal and safe, y’know? I’d gladly sacrifice myself so that everyone has a future - especially from overly powerful drunk guys.”

Suddenly, Chie turned red. “And that’s why I want to protect you, Yukiko. You’ve come to mean so much to me. If anything happened to you, I wouldn’t know what to do.”

“Chie…” Yukiko blushed a bit before grinning. “Maybe change the heart of whoever hurt me?”

“Argh, not funny!” Chie pouted loudly. “I've only went with this plan because I didn’t want to be expelled. I don’t like the idea of breaking the law - even if there really wasn't a better option.”

Yukiko smiled. “Actually, given that you are becoming a Phantom Thief to guarantee someone who could not have been brought to task otherwise - I'd say you're more obeying the spirit of the law rather than the letter.”

Chie chewed her lip before nodding. “…actually, yeah. That's a really good point. Still doesn't change that we basically just brainwashed him - but hey. If he really does get how bad he was acting now, maybe he can be better without us.”

Yukiko thought. "...truth is, I think the only reason I'm okay with that is because it's Kamoshida. Show me a Palace master who just has PTSD and is obsessed with making everyone feels safe but is underhanded about it, and I'd have to think over whether their heart needs to be stolen instead of just reasoning with them. It's not their fault their mind is kind of odd, and it's tasteless to force them to think like everyone else..."

"Yeah. I'm praying to all that is holy that Kamoshida is something rare. Because... I dunno, I feel dirty justifying going into his head like that, even if it was the only thing we could do..." Chie shrugged. "I don't want to enjoy making those calls. I've seen it happen in movies all the time, and those kind of movies outright creep me out - it's like taking your laziness and desire for power and calling it justice instead of thinking it out."

Yukiko nodded. "Yeah. I really, really don't think I should be the arbiter of morality, and I don't think I want to be. Please, let the next Palace belong to someone who we don't have to steal the heart of to save everyone nearby..."

A long silence passed between both girls, which ended with Chie raising her head towards her friend and smiling.

“But, before then... thank you, Yukiko…” Chie smiled, her cheeks reddening a little. “I… I promise I’ll protect you. You mean so much to me…”

Yukiko glanced back at her friend and smiled. Needless to say, the young inn heiress felt the exact same way about her tomboyish friend.

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

 VICTORY (VII) RANK UP! RANK 2

Victory Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Chie’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

(Music – Alright (Elp Ver.) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

Feeling her will renewed, Chie leapt upwards. “Alright, let’s go get some grub! I’m starving!”

Yukiko giggled upon seeing her friend’s enthusiasm. 

Though, she did wonder if the beef places knew her by name, now.


(Music – Beneath the Mask – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-1h51WPUtc)

April 20th, 2016 – Café Leblanc – 8:14 PM

Yukiko sighed to herself as she walked through the door. To be blunt, she was more than a little exhausted from her Kamoshida-less day. Good day or not, it was still a long one, and one that was soon something she found fraught with all kinds of rumors that sprung around her and Chie. Honestly, it didn't really make her feel better, but it certainly at least didn't crush her into doubts of self-oblivion. So there was that, at least.

Though, she supposed that was at least partly due to fretting about Kamoshida maybe getting them expelled anyway, so... that was spoken for.

Sojiro looked up from polishing coffee cups as he glanced at the inn maiden, before smiling. “Ah, you’re back! f you don't mind my asking, are you free tonight? Not much, just a little chat.”

“Hm?” Yukiko rubbed her eyes, processing that. After a second - oh, what the hell. I wasn't planning on studying until Ann and Ryuji showed up anyway. “Oh, sure, Sojiro! I’ll go take a seat.”

“You do so. It won't be long, I just need to check in a bit.” Sojiro nodded as Yukiko sat on the stool. “Coffee?”

“Oh, no thank you. I had my sugary drink quota for the day.” Yukiko laughed awkwardly.

“Heh, fair enough.” Sojiro paused before frowning. “Can I ask about school?”

Yukiko winced a little. Oh boy, this should be good.

“So, um…” Sojiro scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “How’s school going? You’ve adapted to your time here?”

“Um…” Yukiko paused for a moment. “Yeah... I suppose so. Things are definitely getting better.” Certainly no thanks to the school...

Sojiro chuckled. “Good to hear that. Moving from a small town to a big city can be tough.”

Yukiko hummed to herself. "...wasn't that hard, if you ask me - poor first day aside. I wasn't kidding about probation not being less of a restriction than being stuck with the inn; I get to explore a lot more in my free time, actually managed to get a few friends, stuff like that."

Sojiro frowned at that, but nodded. "...well, that's good. I'll be sure to put that in the report - er, yeah, I have to submit a report to your probation officer every fifteen days or so. So, it's good I won't have to do more than 'late on first day'..."

Yukiko blushed. "Yeah. Explaining that had to be a pain..."

"Honestly, it's good that it happened as early as it did, I was able to show lack of disciplinary action following that." Sojiro inhaled. “I, um… I might as well explain to you why I trust you.”

Yukiko looked up at him, curiously.

“As I told you earlier, I was friends with your father, Satoshi Amagi.” Sojiro began. “But we’re still in touch. He told me all about what you were like back in Yasogami High; a model student, exceptionally polite, charismatic, obedient… I had no idea how you got on probation, and to be honest, I'm even more confused now. From the story I’ve heard, it seems like somebody pulled a few strings to avert the blame.”

Yukiko's eyes widened. You... believe me?

“That’s the world we live in, though.” Sojiro sighed. “This society is kept in check by laws and authority figures... which means that sometimes, you have to dance to their tune if you want to avoid rocking the boat too hard.”

Yukiko furrowed her brow. “...with all due respect Sojiro, diverting your eyes solves nothing. If you got an idea of what happened, I really didn't have a choice - and I think in terms of raw misery, I think there's less in the world than if that woman had been pulled into that asshole's car.”

Sojiro muttered something under his breath before shaking his head. “I suppose you got a point there. That said, you shouldn’t risk yourself even if it’s for the right reasons. If you fall, who will be there to help others out?”

Yukiko had a feeling this was leading somewhere.

“That said… I want to strike up a deal.” Sojiro. “I’ve learned from your parents that you yearn for independence, but... they're worried if you cook, you'll end up poisoning yourself. As in, cook ever.”

Yukiko winced a little. Thanks for being so blunt, Sojiro.

“That’s where I come in!” Sojiro smiled glumly. “Now usually, I can't really stay here too long these days, if you didn't get the idea from those phone calls I have - for the sake of privacy, I'm going to ask you to not pry." As he said that, his expression suddenly turned serious.

Yukiko blinked, thinking. Why would - wait. He speaks so gently when that person's on the line... I've never seen him use that tone with anyone else. Yeah, whoever they are, they sound like they're a bit on fragile side - and wouldn't react well to a snoop. Point taken.

The innmaiden simply nodded. "Scout's honor I won't tell."

"Good. Anyways, my proposal." Sojiro leaned back before glancing over at Yukiko. "If you help at the shop, I’ll teach you how to make the perfect cup of coffee… with a little curry thrown in. You'll be paid for it, too - I don't believe in unpaid labor, given how you live here, that seems like blackmail. Sounds like a good plan?”

Yukiko mused to herself, before smiling. She always wanted to learn how to cook, and she wants to be independent… there was no way she was going to pass this opportunity up.

She squeezed Sojiro’s calloused hand and shook it.

It was a deal, then.


(Music – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

“You may call yourself a Phantom Thief, but you’re still only a minor.” Sae said, tapping her shoulder in thought. “Someone had to support you. It's unlikely they did so without knowing you were a part of that group."

A drugged Yukiko shrugged. "I'm a bit amazed that nearly wasn't true..."

"Hey! Stop the tangents!" Sae slammed the table. "The owner of that cafe is an accomplice of yours, isn't he?!"


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Hierophant Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

HIEROPHANT (V) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music – Beneath the Mask – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMSDBPntMPE)

Sojiro let go of Yukiko’s hand. “Alright, we have ourselves a deal! I owe you one - I need to leave soon, but as your first job, can you wash the dishes? First part of any kitchen is making sure it's ready for the next day."

This part, Yukiko realized to her relief, was impossible to screw up.


(Music – Butterfly Kiss –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xq-f4FrEX8)

April 24th, 2016 – Yongen-Jaya, Takemi Medical Clinic – 4:11 PM

The next couple of days passed like a storm.

Part of that was studying; now that, as Ryuji put it, the Bastard Factor was no longer stressing them out, Kawakami wasn't wrong in that they should probably study for a test they would probably be in school for. All of the Phantom Thieves took to that bit of information with a bit of ruefulness; every silver lining has a cloud, after all, even if the cumulonimbus that was Kamoshida hanging over there heads has been mercifully dealt with.

On the other end of the scale, Shiho at least appeared stable, though still comatose. Ann was checking on her repeatedly, and from that, it turned out that there weren't many complications, apart from a grievously-wounded leg and an obvious lack of consciousness. Still, an EKG revealed a relatively high amount of brain activity, so hypothetically, she would be able to come out of the coma soon. Hypothetically, and with no real timeframe for when "soon" was. Still, there was hope, which was more than could be said before then.

Yukiko did not envy the process of coming out of a coma, however.

She just discovered what it was like, thanks to deciding to an impulsive human trial for the mysterious "super-stimulant" of Dr. Takemi's.

"What year is it?! Where am I?! Why does the world smell like kusaya?!" She bolted upright, upon her consciousness fully returning - and kept going, moaning pitiably.

Takemi was there right by her side from her chair, looking... well, stunned, for one reason or another, before returning to a deadpan expression. "For future reference, when I say 'down every single drop of this', I am joking. I didn't expect you to just, y'know, down the experimental drug I explicitly said I'd be able to learn things from your autopsy if major side effects happened. When explaining it to you."

"I did that? I - urk." Yukiko suddenly found herself still balancing against herself against the wall while still sitting. "I... don't remember much. I remember me asking about more medicines for... some reason. And then... being forcefed burning sewage?"

Takemi couldn't help but sigh grimly and chuckle. "I'm not sure whether to be offended by that comparison. Actually, I told you that if you wanted more drugs from me, you would have to be my human guinea pig to test the super-stimulant, especially since Oyamada blabbed about it to your face. You said you might actually need it for, and I quote, 'physical purposes', and I told you the only way that I'd start proscribing any more drugs was if you were a part-timer test subject for the stimulant."

Yukiko nodded, the memory before The Flavour Out Of Space invaded her gastric system and transforming it into an environ unlike any seen on Earth coming back to her. "And... you gave me a cup of something red."

"And... you drank it. All of it." Takemi's curling lips betrayed her attempt at professionalism, before taking out her clipboard with a flourish and making an exaggerated writing motion. "Personal note: Subject... does not... understand... obvious... sarcasm. Lacks... survival... instincts..."

Yukiko winced. "You don't have to rub it in, y'know..."

"I feel like I have to, in case you encounter any red buttons with CAUTION: DO NOT PRESS printed over them in bright red kanji." The doctor gave her a glare. "Fortunately, I knew in advance that an overdose isn't fatal - I wouldn't have even handed it to you otherwise."

"Ugh, maybe that would have been better..." Yukiko moaned, before suddenly perking up, eyes wide. "It's still the 24th, right?"

"...goddammit, I knew I should have gotten that fake beard and greeted you with it..." Takemi said with subtle sarcasm before returning to her dour expression. "Anyways, you've been only out for a few hours; good evening. You came to for a couple minutes about midway, through, but the most coherent comment you made was declaring war on gummy bears for stealing sugar from the world and replacing it with laxatives before you fell unconscious again, and it's clear you don't have memory of it, so I'm going to say you were likely delirious. Interesting that a taste did that..."

Yukiko stared at her. "Seriously?"

"You actually made a good guess when you said the world tasted like kusaya. It's known that when that medicine hits gastric juices, it produces a smell similar to surströmming, which is a Swedish form of herring prepared the nearly the same way - and it smells just as bad. Since smell and taste are the same thing, it overwhelmed your taste buds, and well, I discovered what happens when you fall unconscious when on the drug."

Yukiko shook her head, still cradling it. "...yeah, I think I understand why my parents were so nervous about my cooking, now."

Takemi suppressed a snicker. "Believe me, I doubt if anyone could possibly cook as badly to be equivalent to an OD of that medicine. Don't feel too bad - besides, I got some interesting data out of it, and likely, a new guinea pig."

"...um." The inn maiden blinked. "I thought you said you were joking..."

"I was, but then you actually applied for the job. So, I figure, I might as well - who knows, I might actually be able to perfect it instead of of throwing it out. That, and as snarky as I was, I get the sense you might genuinely need it if you're willing to drink unknown medicines for future care." Takemi then turned to Yukiko with a bit of seriousness returning to her face. "Though I will be making you sign an NDA. I'd rather not have the general public - especially Oyamada - know what I'm doing here."

"Understood. Though, can I ask... why do you hate each other so much?" Yukiko asked.

She immediately felt that was a mistake given how Takemi tensed up.

"...I'm sorry." Yukiko winced at her social fumble.

The doctor sighed grimly, before looking Yukiko back in the eye. "...you shouldn't be. It's a valid question... but it's one I'm not going to answer, not until I know I can count on you without blabbing about anything."

Yukiko bit her lip. "...I won't ask. Again, I'm sorry."

"Kid, look, you're fine. It's a mistake... and one that I'm not completely averse to shed some light on." Takemi leaned in, before clicking her tongue. "To be blunt, he and I have never gotten along, and it's only gotten worse since then. Word of advice though; don't ever go to his clinic. He has even less common sense than what you just displayed." She inhaled, perking up. "But, it's a deal. I'm never going to give them out for free, but if you need medicines, I'll be happy to write out prescriptions for them, so long as they're from here. Deal?"

Yukiko smiled despite herself, recognizing that for all of her snark, Takemi was motivated by being pissed off at Yukiko's own stupidity.

"Deal!" She said, shaking the doctor's hand.


(Music – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

“Considering all the actions you've taken, you must have had someone with medical expertise.” Sae began, curlty. “Who? And how did you treat your wounds?”

"Someone I wish was here." Yukiko said, ruefully, as she pointed at a bruise.

Sae gave a sigh of frustration. "It'll be easy to find out if we look into this, you know."


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Death Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

DEATH (XIII) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music – Butterfly Kiss –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xq-f4FrEX8)

“Alright, that’ll be all for now.” Takemi smiled. “I would advise you to go home for now - especially before someone figures out you're missing, and you have to come in with an explanation better than 'I was given pills, and took them'.”

And indeed, she did. Yukiko wasn’t in the mood to go help out Sojiro either; her stomach hurt way too much for her to be effective. Or see food without thinking of Swedish kusaya, and retching.


(No Music)

(Ambience - Crowd Murmuring - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu1ITuYpMV4)

May 2nd, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Auditorium – 8:14 AM

The day of the teacher conference came, without fanfare. Which was also poised to be the day Yukiko, Chie, Ryuji and Mishima would be expelled.

Which is also why the sudden announcement to gather for a special morning announcement was so out of left field.

“What’s with the sudden assembly?”

"Ugh, I bet it's about the girl who jumped the other day."

"They don't have to tell us to not commit suicide."

"Who was she, Shiho? Ugh, she was such a loser!"

The peanut gallery of gossiping girls not bursting into flame right at that moment was probably proof neither Ann nor Yukiko could not yet channel their Personas into the real world.

Oh, so sorry a girl attempting to kill herself is an inconvenience for you, assholes. Yukiko thought, sourly. I'll be sure to tell that to the next depressed rape victim to choose a time and place more convenient to scheduling.

Chie and Ryuji, from their glares, thought the same exact thing.

"There was that weird calling card too, so I guess the teachers are freaking out?"

"Oh, c'mon, that was a bogus stunt, and you know that."

"Who do you think pulled it? Do you think it worked?"

"Here's hoping, random student..." Ann whispered to herself.

Yukiko felt herself fidgeting at that. As much as she felt that they won, and Kamoshida at least still dropped the expulsion threat, she really didn't have much evidence either way. Today was the awful moment of truth, wasn’t it? No way of knowing until the end of the day.

Chie apparently noticed the nervousness. She felt her tension relieve a bit when she felt the tomboy squeeze her hand, much to her relief.

Principal Kobayakawa, already standing at the speech desk, cleared his throat, the speakers amplifying the gesture into something unmistakable, causing the audience to immediately hust down.

“Let's begin the school-wide morning assembly.” Kobayakawa began, businesslike in his tact. “As you may have suspected, this meeting is about the tragic events of the 15th.”

You could bear to sound like you aren't reading off a memorized script, you know. Yukiko thought, as the peanut gallery rolled their eyes in recognition of the lecture.

"Thankfully, we have been informed that Shiho Suzui has pulled through, but it will take time until she recovers." Kobayakawa continued. “Everyone here has a bright future ahead. I implore you to rethink the importance of life and - “

(Ambience Abruptly Stops)

*kreaaaaaaaak*

“…don't turn out like... me...”

The rest of the speech was suddenly cut off by the very loud squeaking of the opening doors to the auditorium.

Everyone turned and gasped upon seeing a familiar face, one that was only barely visible due to being hunched from the sheer amount of shame written all over his face. Yukiko felt her hands ball up in fury upon recognizing this man, her eyes leering at the very person who has proven responsible for so much pain and suffering. From the looks of things, Ann seemed to feel the exact same way.

"M-Mr. Kamoshida!" Kobayakawa cried out, his neutral, placid expression breaking. "What's the - "

“I… I have been reborn…” Kamoshida choked a little, seemingly suppressing some sobs before inhaled. "That is why... I will confess everything to you all. Stop it... happening again..."

(Music – Regret –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGFZHBK2lTs)

As both faculty and students began to murmur in surprise, Kamoshida walked up to the front of the auditorium, all while voices buzz around him.

“No way… is that Kamoshida?!”

“He hasn’t been present for school for almost a month… what’s with him?”

“Did he say 'confess'?”

“Did the volleyball team do something?”

“M-Mr. Kamoshida?!” Kobayakawa cried. “A-Are you sure you should be here after - ”

“Please, Principal.” Kamoshida raised his head, his eyes brimming with tears. “I need to make my amends.”

Amends? Did it... did it actually work…?! As Yukiko saw the solemn Kamoshida take up the microphone, her jaw agape, she noticed the 32-year old coach’s voice waver significantly, all his characteristic smugness and confidence gone and leaving nothing but a hollow emptiness, with only guilt and shame replacing it. It wasn't long before Kamoshida took the microphone, and began to speak, murmuring abuzz as he confessed.

“I… I have repeatedly done things unbecoming – shameful – for a teacher.” Kamoshida’s voice cracked, his eyes filled to the brim with tears. “Verbally abusing students... physically abusing my team... and... and...”

Kamoshida gave a shuddering inhale, before looking down. “…sexually abusing female students. I am the reason Shiho Suzui tried to kill herself!"

“What… what?! Kamoshida… he…”

“That can’t be right… Kamoshida seems like such a nice person!”

"...what rock have you been living under!?"

"Wait, if he sexually abused... oh. Oh."

"Holy shit..."

As the auditorium slowly came to realize exactly what he was saying, Kamoshida slumped on his knees. “The entire time I've been here... I've thought of this entire school as my own castle. There were even students I threatened to expel, simply because I didn't like them - and to blackmail one of them into being a replacement victim for Suzui.”

Yukiko felt her mouth twitch in bitter vindication. 

"I will, of course, rescind those. I am... truly sorry for putting innocent youths through such pain..."

“Oh, my God… what the fuck is wrong with him?!”

“That bastard… how could he?!”

“What a piece of shit…”

"Wait, didn't the rumor mill say it was Satonaka and Amagi being threatened with expulsion?!"

"Jesus... no wonder she was so hostile..."

As the faculty continued to look on in shock, Kamoshida began to break down in sobs, collapsing into a heap. “I… I am a horrible, arrogant, shallow, and... shameful person… no, I’m worse than that…” Kamoshida continued to sob uncontrollably. “Therefore… I will take responsibility and kill myself for it!”

“Is he actually going to kill himself?!”

“Holy shit…”

“What the fuck’s going on?!”

“This is so crazy!”

Kobayakawa ran over to the coach at a rate one would not expect the portly man capable of. "Uhhh... Mr. Kamoshida is... not well! Please, ignore what he's saying! Mr. Kamoshida, please get off the stage! Everyone, return to your classes, while we - "

Ann had other ideas. "DON'T YOU DARE RUN, YOU PERVERTED FUCKWIT!”

“SHIHO'S STILL ALIVE, AFTER ALL THE THINGS YOU DID TO HER! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO ESCAPE THE KIND OF SUFFERING YOU INFLICTED ON HER!” Ann screamed at the top of her lungs, pure fury in her voice. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO RUN FROM THIS!

"AND YOU CALL ME A COWARD!" It was Chie's turn to cry out, her almost as angry as Ann. "YOU FEEL REAL GUILT FOR THE FIRST TIME, AND YOUR FIRST IDEA IS TO MARTYR YOURSELF!? WELCOME TO THE FUCKING REAL WORLD, HERE'S WHAT IT'S LIKE TO HAVE A CONSCIENCE! EVERYONE ELSE DOES!"

"And you have the nerve to still hide your crimes, you absolute cretin!" Yukiko added to the enraged heckling, despite being measurably more composed. "Own up to what you've done, and face the consequences! Don't you dare run away when you haven't even told everyone how you were grooming Yoshizawa!"

In the first-year section, the already-stunned redhead gasped, suddenly remembering how very close she was to Kamoshida when discussing her particular plan for PE.

As the three finished their rants, Kamoshida sniffed on his snot and tears a little. “Y-You’re right. You’re absolutely right… I... I was using Suzui as a pawn to force Ann into sexual relations... and I sensed that Yoshizawa was easily manipulated. So I was scouting her out to... have similar relations to her... I-I don't deserve mercy...”

“Wait, what?! Sexual relations?!”

"She's fifteen for fuck's sake!

“Disgusting!”

"Rapist asshole!"

"Pedophile!"

“Unbelievable. What a piece of shit!”

"...wait, isn't this just like what that calling card said?"

"Does that mean... are the Phantom Thieves real?!"

"C-Come on. There's... there's no way you can steal a heart. It just... it just got leaked..."

"...you have no idea who Kamoshida is, do you? He'd fight it tooth and nail."

"Yeah... scumbag..."

Yoshizawa said nothing, simply collapsing against the wall with a dull expression. "I... how..." That... That could've been me... That nearly was me...

Kamoshida appeared to regain enough of his coherence to look up. "As of today... I will resign from my position as instructor, and turn myself in to have charges processed against me."

The composure vanished. "Someone, PLEASE! PLEASE CALL THE POLICE! PLEASE!"

As the faculty grabbed a kicking, screaming and sobbing Kamoshida, all that was left was big, bulging eyes and tears streaming down his face with snot and drool as he began hollering in agony. A teacher quickly rushed into the center of the crowd, looking almost as panicked.

This assembly is over!" The teacher began, loudly. "Please, return to your classes immediately!

As Kamoshida was dragged out of the auditorium, Yukiko felt a chill go down her spine as she heard Kamoshida shriek.

"I DESERVE TO SUFFER! PLEASE, TAKE AWAY MY POWER! NOBODY DESERVES IT!"

Even after the doors slammed shut, Kamoshida’s sobbing screams and near-incoherent shrieks echoed throughout the building. As chaos overtook the auditorium, the wails of regret would haunt the school for a long time.


(Music Continues)

May 2nd, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Auditorium – 8:32 AM

After chaos in the auditorium finally dissipated, Yukiko and her friends stood in the empty auditorium, stunned. Almost as much as Kawakami, who had briefly stopped by them to dully inform them that if they needed time to process, they were excused from class - even for the Phantom Thieves not in her class.

Ann was the first to point to speak. "His heart... really did change." She said that quietly and almost in a hollow voice, having fully processed it after her rage burned out.

"Seems like it, I guess..." Ryuji said. "I... I dunno how else to put it... doesn't it feel..." 

"...yeah. I was expecting him to confess, but... I... I wasn't expecting how extreme, it'd be." Yukiko spoke gently, still a bit stunned in the wake of his last sobs becoming deafened soon afterward. "Maybe... too extreme..."

There was a long, long silence, as all the Thieves thought about the implications having this power bore. But it wasn't long before somebody spoke up.

“Was… was this really the right choice…?”

Ryuji, Ann and Yukiko turned to Chie, who shook her head as she continued. “Look, I... I know how horrible Kamoshida was, with everything he did. And I know that there was no other way to do this. But isn't this... someone completely new entirely? Like, we made that Kamoshida suffer while the real abuser died when his Shadow returned to himself?"

“Wait...” Yukiko paused. "Can you explain...?"

“Yeah. It’s just… the Kamoshida on the stage was so different compared to the person who we knew." Chie shook her head, looking guilty. “He’s... now a good person now, isn’t he? Everything he was... it's gone. Coach Kamoshida vanished with his Palace, and the guy walking around has his memories and name, but he wanted his last moments as a free man to show how rotten his true self was. Despite what the other teachers tried to do, he...”

Yukiko caught on. "...he's completely different. A stranger who has his memories."

"Yeah." Ryuji sighed. "Honestly... it's good that he got it, but it's way too fast. I hate the guy as much as the next person, but it feels like making him suffer than the person he originally was, y'know? Like - "

"Um... guys?"

There was a cough from behind the group. Everyone turned to face the familiar blue hair of Mishima - though this was the first time they saw him up close without bandages or bruises.

He was also leading two other students, both popular girls.

After a moment, he inhaled, and led the two in a bow. "Takamaki, Sakamoto... we're sorry."

Ann raised her eyebrows in confusion. "Huh?"

"The three you see before you... we were Kamoshida's rumor-mongers. I leaked information to them, and they'd spread it around school," Mishima said, carefully. "We all knew... but pretended we didn't..."

The tall student inhaled. "I had both of you all wrong... even though I was so close to the truth, I never realized - never wanted to realize what was going on." She said, looking away.

"And I was just... stupid." Her black-haired friend said solemnly. "I really thought Kamoshida was just protecting us... I don't know how many levels of denial I was in..."

"I'm sure there's a ton of other people who want to apologize too, you know." The tall girl finished.

Ann gave a sad smile, before sighing. "It's okay. The same goes for me, too... and I knew what he was."

"Still though... thanks a lot." Chie said with a much happier smile. "It'll be nice not to be Chie the Liar again, I guess..."

"Yeah. We'll make sure of it." The black-haired girl bowed. "Well, we'll see you in a bit..."

The two walked off, leaving Mishima.

He sighed. "I can't apologize enough for what I did to all of you. And delaying it so long... truth was, until now, I didn't think Kamoshida had reformed. I thought it was some sort of weird mind game..."

"Hey, you had a gun held to your head for years by that point." Yukiko said with a comforting smile. "I have no idea what kind of crap he pulled on you. The fact you even manned up and told us what was going on - it doesn't excuse you, but I'm more than willing to accept your apology."

He nodded, looking slightly less pensive. "...thank you. But, I swear I'll make it up to you. Someday..."

With that, he walked.

"Looks like Kamoshida wasn't the only one who had a change of heart." Ryuji said, mildly. "Admittedly, he wanted to, but... yeah. Looks like those rumors aren't gonna go away."

Ann shrugged, looking far, far more relaxed than at any point Yukiko had ever seen her. "My thing really doesn't matter, honestly. We made Kamoshida apologize about Shiho, and admit his crimes. As long as he suffers the consequences for once in his life, that's good enough for me."

"That, and we finally broke the hold he has over everyone in the school." Chie agreed, happy. "Even if everyone still views me as some sort of manipulative gossipy witch, better that than the actual sexual sadist being king of the school - and even better that nobody's able to cover up what he was." She smiled. "So, if nothing else... that was a reason to take out his Palace."

Yukiko thought of something. "Hey, Ann? Why don't you tell Shiho that?"

Ryuji nodded. "Exactly what I was gonna say. We'll cover for you."

Ann smiled. "Yeah. See you in a bit."

It wasn't long before everyone left. It was only Yukiko and Chie left. Chie sighed.

"...sorry if I sounded like I was giving Kamoshida leeway, Yukiko." Chie said, smiling apologetically. "I know we made the right choice. My mind tells me that... but... you know..."

Yukiko nodded sympathetically. "I'm definitely not faulting you. If anything, I'd sooner give the consequences of his actions to the original Kamoshida than the stranger bearing his name and face."

"Yeah..." Chie nodded, before forcing a small smile. "Anyways, let's catch up to the others."

Yukiko giggled. "Good idea."

It wasn't long before the others moved onward to the future. A future without Kamoshida.


(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

(Ambience Playing - Rooftop Ambience - https://youtu.be/vAN7N1TFrqw?t=14)

May 2nd, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Rooftop – 12:21 PM

Another silver lining, such as it was, was that the police arriving meant classes ended fairly early. Really, it was more for the teachers than the students; it was quite clear none of the faculty had any idea what to do now that things had derailed so spectacularly. 

Thankfully, the fact that the man who just had a "nervous breakdown" was not really fighting back meant the school was not a crime scene - well, most of the school. The gym and teacher's office had some bright yellow tape decorations on it. But the roof was still open.

Chie sank into her chair. "Not gonna lie, that was freaky."

"You said it. I thought 'change of heart' meant he was just gonna admit he was an asshole, not go full-scale 'for the sake of the world I must suffer'." Ryuji agreed, shuddering. "Still, he's still functional... kinda. His mind didn't break into a coma or anything, so A+ on not messing him up permanently."

"I saw him coming in." Morgana said, having come out of Yukiko's bag. "Yeah, I'm really not going to lie; I was caught a little off-guard too. Still, he didn't undergo a mental shutdown - apart from what his newfound conscience is going through, he doesn't seem brain-damaged or anything. I'm going to guess part of it was that we convinced his Shadow to surrender the Treasure; his subconscious wasn't being pulled in two directions."

Ryuji and Chie looked at the not-a-cat strangely.

"I think he means since Shadow Kamoshida wanted to change, we didn't pull out Kamoshida's desires with his distortion." Yukiko guessed.

"Pretty much, yeah." Morgana agreed. "We almost certainly would have caused one if we actually killed his Shadow, but since we got him to go back to his real self peacefully, his Palace collapsed without taking the rest of his cognition with it."

Ryuji nodded. "Good to know in case we encounter someone with a Palace who we actually don't hate, right?" He said with a grim grin. "Looks like we can get 'em to confess with no bad stuff, so hey, works for me!"

Chie puffed out a cheek. "...well, except for the mind-shattering guilt, but hey. He can come back from that, and probably was for the best of everyone not him, so eh. I'll call it a win on the whole."

"Not that I'd call it anything else if he did die." A familiar voice said. "But hey! Can't fault a completely clear conscience!"

Even as she turned to face Ann, Yukiko could tell she was a lot more cheerful than she had ever known her to be. There was a spring in her step that wasn't before, relaxed hands, and a lack of a tense furrowed brow.

"Though, seriously..." Ann winced, before sending an annoyed glare at Ryuji. "Do you have to be so loud? I could hear you from the door..."

"Seriously?!" Chie winced. "Wow. Our bad."

"Eh, it probably can't hurt if there aren't that many students around," Ryuji said. "But point taken." He paused. "So, uh... how'd it go? With, uh... Shiho?"

"She woke up!" 

Everyone sat up at that.

"For real?!" Ryuji shot up, rendering all questions from the other Phantom Thieves redundant.

"Yeah! Well, uh, for a little while, at least..." Ann continued, her good mood vanishing. "But she's... but she's coherent when she comes to. Enough to be aware, so, she's probably recovering..."

Yukiko picked up on a problem with Ann's mood in relation to the news immediately. "...what's wrong?"

"...it's stupid, and petty." Ann admitted. "For... for one... she apologized to me for being used by Kamoshida. I think she figured it out..."

Morgana gave a comforting felid smile. "She's wrong. Kamoshida's the one at fault..."

"I know, I know." Ann said, recovering her composure. "I'm just really upset because... her mom's thinking of a transfer after she recovers."

There was a long beat as everyone processed that.

"...I so sincerely want to say she is rushing her decision, and you should try to talk her out." Yukiko began, downcast. "But I can't. That's... entirely fair..."

"Yeah. Take it from a victim of the peanut gallery; after all that, people are going to label her as the 'depressed girl'." Chie said, sadly. "Even in the best-case, nobody deserves that hanging over them... to say nothing of the trauma after two years of hell..."

"If anything, it sounded like Shiho had the idea during her last conscious spell." Ann admitted. "And I think it's for the best... but it still hurts..."

Ryuji shrugged. "Yeah. It's gonna get lonely - but on the bright side, she's still alive, and it's not like she's going to be going that far. You can see her anytime!"

That sentiment seemed to cheer Ann significantly, though she was still downcast. "Yeah. But, I need to change too... I can't just be so spineless when a teacher's involved anymore..."

"Uh, I don't think lack of spine is the problem, given how you made Kamoshida's Shadow piss himself into a mistake even when he was as tall as the room." Yukiko said, mildly.

"That, and as much as his fate is worse than death, I still think you were being kind when you spared him, Lady Ann." Morgana said. "It would have been easy to toy with him and then kill him, make his last moments the worst in his life. But, no matter how much he hurt you, you didn't have the will to torture him. You just forced him to understand you."

"Though, really, after what he did? I think the moral revenge was the sweeter one." Chie said with an abnormally malevolent smirk. "Not only did it get him and force him to regret, it made everyone in the school realize how shitty they were being..."

Ryuji whistled. "Holy shit. Yuki, if I ever piss these two off, please kill me before they find me. I'll even help you hide my corpse."

The inn maiden gave a less abnormally malevolent smile. "Mm. Can't hold me to that. You'd have likely made me mad too..."

Ryuji shivered. "T-That aside... was Kamoshida the only one with that Metaverse side? I didn't see any other Palaces, castles or otherwise, in the view from his..."

"That's because a Palace is its own world in the Metaverse, I'm guessing." Morgana explained. "Those other Palaces didn't exist to Kamoshida, so they don't exist in his version of the Metaverse. But, his opinion on whether Palaces exist doesn't matter to the opinions of other Palace owners. Any heart warped from distorted desires can form one - heck, even hearts that aren't so distorted as to form their own worlds have their own Palace, they just share one - it's where the Shadow versions of non-Palace owners live."

Yukiko turned to him. "Really?"

"Yep! It's called Mementos - wanna check it out?", he said, conspiratorially.

"Eh..." Chie made a "kinda" gesture. "I think we ought to lay low for a bit - we have those tests coming up, and besides, if they don't have Palaces, they can't be as bad as Kamoshida, right? No massive distortions from trying to justify themselves."

"You'd be surprised, honestly. But I digress." Morgana said, ruefully.

"That's... alarming." Ann blinked owlishly at that sentiment. "But yeah, it might be practical just to lay low - there's weird rumors of you guys going around, like you blackmailing and threatening Kamoshida into confessing..."

"The hell?!" Ryuji said, sounding mildly offended.

"Well, it's not that far from the truth." Yukiko said, surprisingly less offended by comparison. "Still, that calling card was pretty blatant... if another card and theft hit so soon, it'd be pretty obvious something linked to us was going on... though I doubt the rumor involves being able to go into a dimension made of thoughts..."

There was a brief pause, before Ryuji brought up his phone with a devious grin. "Anyways, we oughta see just how much an Olympic medal goes for..."

Chie rose an eyebrow. "Uh, isn't that still selling stolen items on the black market?"

"Ryuji does have a point." Yukiko spoke, flatly. "Just because it's us doesn't make it's any less stolen - if anything, it's the only thing that can be traced back to us."

Chie ruminated on that. "...yeah, point taken. And frankly, the objection was based purely on the fact fencing that stuff's a crime - I was planning on throwing it in the sea, if anything else..."

"Hey, might as well get something nice after all that trouble the asshole gave us! After all, the search says..." Ryuji's smile vanished, suddenly looking irate. "Thirty thousand yen?! That's it?! These things are only given out every four years, and it's barely worth a new phone?!"

"I suspect it'd be more valuable if people knew the story attached to it, but you'd have to auction it off - and that'd attract attention." Morgana said with a strange rolling motion Yukiko assumed was a shrug. "Truth is, it'd probably be a lie too - the actual medal he won is likely still in its case, this is a clone produced by the Palace. So, it'd likely be worth even less, because it's not an official medal - just worth it for the gold."

Ann seemed to think for a second, before her grin turned her own shade of devious. "And it's a shame, given how there's some compound interest from middle school..."

Ryuji sputtered. "You remember that!?"

"You asked me in the middle of the line home! It's kind of hard to forget when a near-stranger goes 'hey, I need 500 yen to not walk home, can I borrow some' in that getup!" Ann rolled her eyes. "I'm not asking for all of your share, just to pay for me at the celebratory dinner or something."

That got Chie's attention. "We have celebratory dinners?!"

"Well, I figure we gotta blow this dirty money somehow, and nobody really bothers to keep track of it if it's spent on food, so I was wondering if we could have a sign of hands to eat at the Wilton Hotel buffet. Shiho and I were saving up before the... everything, so it only makes sense."

Chie's hand was already up at the word 'buffet.' The rest quickly followed.

"I don't see the problem with that at all!" Ryuji said, grinning. "It'll get my mind off cramming, too!"

Yukiko furrowed her brow. "...cramming? That's never a good study strategy... but, yes. I don't miss being stuck at the inn, but I do miss the quality of the food sometimes. Though, I suppose we could get some really good ramen instead..."

"...I have no idea if you're joking or not." Ryuji said with a raised eyebrow. "But... wanna do it soon, like tomorrow?"

"Why don't we go on the last day of the holidays?" Ann replied. "That way, we can be energized for school and face the study week with a store of energy."

Chie hummed. "Does the 5th, on Children's Day, sound good? It's currently Golden Week, anyways."

"It does, honestly." Ryuji said, before smiling voraciously. "Though uh... who sells this crap in the first place?"

"You can leave that to us." Morgana said, inclining his head at Chie and Yukiko. "I think we know a store that will buy anything..."

Chie paused, thinking. "...yeah. I mean, I don't think Iwai really deals in stolen goods... but if this is a copy anyway, and it's not like we stole it. More like... existed it."

Yukiko chuckled. "It does break the first law of thermodynamics, but I think physical theory violations are misdemeanors. I'll see what he thinks of it - though in the future, you really should pay people back in a week, Ryuji."

Ann nodded. "Do you still have that dolphin, anyway?"

...transporting the medal to Iwai suddenly did not seem like the most important thing.

"...'dolphin'?", a completely baffled Chie said.

Ryuji paled. "Uh... oh, crap, look at the time, I gotta help mom - "

"I think she'll forgive you for being so kind as to clear up the confusion of your friends." Morgana, almost as interested as Yukiko, said that with a devilish grin.

Ryuji glanced around, before blushing and sighing. "Okay... what happened was that I had five hundred yen for the bus fee..."

"Uh-huh..." 

"And... I may have seen a narwhal plushie in my mom's favorite color," he mumbled.

Yukiko snerked. "Oh? O-Oh, okay, that's-"

"Ooooh." Ann nodded, finally understanding something. "I thought you lost a bet or something."

Immediately as she said it, she blushed, suddenly realizing how much of an embarrassing moment she revealed.

A merciless Yukiko turned to Ryuji expectantly, valiantly keeping a straight face.

"...the plushie may also have been a giant one meant to have been worn as a hat, and I didn't bring my bag." He continued, turning red. "And my mom's favorite color... is lavender."

The mental image of the giant purple horned dolphin plushie hat around on the high-school Ryuji's head, in full delinquent getup, manifested in Yukiko's mind.

The next sound was either her breaking into hysterics or her chair hitting the ground as she fell out of it. She starting laughing at about the same time.

Notes:

And what a chapter this was! Sorry for the wait, all. I hope you all enjoyed this latest chapter something quite well! Next up: the aftermath!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 11
Chie: Lv. 11
Morgana: Lv. 11
Ryuji: Lv. 10
Ann: Lv. 10

Yukiko's Current Stock
Agathion, Bicorn, Hamsa, Silky, Berith, Selkie

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 1
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 1

Chapter 6: Aftermath

Summary:

Kamoshida was finally dealt with, and the worst was over. But… now what?

Notes:

Happy new year to all of you fine readers! I hope 2020 was good for you, and I wish you a better year in 2021!

Apologies for not having touched this in quite some time. I do blame the fact I was caught up with Sporting Hopefuls (my Danganronpa rewrite if you don't know) on the whole, and that with Christmas festivities means there wasn't a lot I could've gotten done. But I'm here still, in the flesh!

No use delaying it any further. Enjoy, my fine readers.

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 11
Chie: Lv. 11
Morgana: Lv. 11
Ryuji: Lv. 10
Ann: Lv. 10

Yukiko's Current Stock
Agathion, Bicorn, Hamsa, Silky, Berith, Selkie

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 1
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Alleycat - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIm5T2HpwLk)

May 3th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 10:20 AM

As it turned out, Ann had a really good idea by delaying the celebration a bit.

To explain to Sojiro that no, Yukiko really had other priorities today apart from helping out with the shop would involve some awkward questions about those priorities. 'Selling a mystically duplicated Olympic medal' didn't seem exactly within the terms of her probation, and Yukiko was in no hurry to test that theory out.

So, dishwashing and cooking lessons it was. Besides, it let her have a chance to study. Of course, awkwardness could not be avoided when a rather distinct volleyball coach came up on the news, and the Fall from Grace segment - a special report on Shujin and Suguru Kamoshida.

Sojiro watched in utter silence as the news explained exactly what it was Kamoshida had confessed to - and which school he was in.

As the segment (and to Yukiko's mortification, a couple interviews with other female students who had been touched by him) ended, the cafe owner took a long inhale.

"…son of a bitch." Sojiro said this with a bit of a growl sticking to his throat. "And they had the nerve to do nothing about it?"

"Unfortunately, yes. And on the abhorrence of his actions, on that we agree." Yukiko said that with a curt, dark resolution - and before she effectively realized her mouth was moving. 

After a second, Sojiro realized what that implied, and looked at her with alarm.

No way around this, then - Yukiko planned her response a bit ago. "…in case you're thinking what I think you are - no, he never touched me, but he was planning to." She bit her lip gently. "And… he was making damn sure I wouldn't be able to tell on him. Not that anyone would have believed the delinquent…"

It took a few seconds for Sojiro to process that, before he simply sat down and hit his head on the table. "…goddamnit. I'm sorry for all of this, kid; you think you're going to somehow be able to get a miracle - and then it turns out the school has a literal rapist running things. I bet that's a great incentive to trust authority figures more…"

Yukiko eyes shot up, and she quickly spoke. "Oh, no, no! You aren't responsible for what the school does."

"I know, it's just, well…" A long pause; Sojiro sighed bitterly. "…between you and me, I'm beginning to wonder if there's sort of Cartwright curse I'm under."

Yukiko blinked. "…I beg your pardon?"

"Err, well…" Sojiro scratched the back of his head. "Well, let's just say that there's plenty of young women in my life that seem to always end up being screwed over by fate. It's a miracle he somehow found a conscience before you ended up just as bad as the rest!" He looked up at the sky, slumping back on his stool. "What's with this, huh?! I'm okay if you fuck with me, but what did they do?!" 

Yukiko looked on, unsure of how to parse that. "Umm… may I ask what - "

"...no, thank you. I don't want to talk about it." Sojiro's response on that was as automatic as it could possibly be. "It's just, well…" He slumped down, sighing. "…well, twice is a concidence, three times is a pattern. I'm internally debating if this counts as three times yet." Another long sigh bereft of joy. "…look, if you want a transfer, I can look into what I can get out of the parole board."

Yukiko didn't want to put Sojiro on the spot like that, and she quickly interjected. "Actually, no, it's okay. Now that he's gone, I have some friends who… would like to transfer, but really can't." Yukiko said with a smile. "That, and I'm not sure how well it'd work to begin with. Still, thank you."

"Yeah. Hoo boy, this was not what I wanted to start the day with." Sojiro shook his head. "Still, good on the dishes."

Yukiko visibly sagged with relief on seeing the way out of this conversation, but she still broke into a smile. "Thank you! If nothing else, I will make this cafe a refuge from germs!"

"…I so sincerely wish I was a regular here. There are so many comments that just aren't funny unless you know me."

A taller woman in a black business suit with gray hair - naturally gray, as opposed to the bleaching of age - stood on the front mat, the door swinging shut.

"Welcome." Sojiro said, not missing a beat. "If you look closely, you can see absolutely nothing moving under its own power, due to the lack of germs."

The serious expression of the woman twitched a little before she shrugged and sat down, looking at the coffee jars and inspecting them intently.

After a moment, she cleared her throat. "I overheard that you were a Shujin student. Out of curiosity, are you a part-timer here? This place didn't look like somewhere that could afford one."

Yukiko blushed. "It's, uh… complicated. Can we not talk about it, though? We'd be here all day."

The woman shrugged. "Fair enough. Really, I'm asking more because of the school. Someone I know goes there, and I wanted to see it from another perspective, help develop a picture of the events surrounding it."

Her expression had somehow become even more intense in the process. More... professional, almost. Not cruel, but quite clearly obsessed with getting from Point A to B as efficiently as possible. Yukiko found herself becoming a little unnerved

"…you sound like a detective." Sojiro said with a bit of distrust, with a slightly furrowed brow. "What's this about?"

"You're close." In that moment, the woman flashed a badge. "…Sae Nijima, public prosecutor. I'm here to ask a few questions."

…oh, great. More lawyers who are likely completely certain of my guilt. Yukiko thought glumly. Why the hell must I be dogged by people like this…?

"As for why I'm here - I'm actually here a day earlier than I thought. Someone pulled a favor, asked me to examine the school a day ahead of schedule." Sae said with a curt shrug. "I don't mind - there really wasn't anything else today - but I'm making a stop on the way to inspect the school. I figure if there's a potential witness, I might as well ask."

Yukiko frowned. "I appreciate the police's involvement," (It took you long enough, though… she sourly added in her mind), "but isn't Kamoshida something of an open and shut case? He confessed."

Sae's brow furrowed. "…it is, but I have a colleague who's wondering if it's linked to the psychotic breakdown incidents." Sae sat down. "…listen. He pointed out how people undergoing those events seem to become suddenly different people. Almost like they aren't the same people, all at once. A teacher who has been sexually predatory for over a decade suddenly going into a complete fit in public and making the state's own case against him? It's… certainly a better outcome than flying into a manic state or dying, but I agreed that it's pretty similar. It might be a red herring, but since it doesn't strain the police budget any and the fact we were already investigating Kamoshida, I figured it couldn't hurt."

…shit, she knows. This is not going to be fun...

On the one hand, this sounded more like a hunch than anything actionable - given the prosecutor had simply taken a detour and seemed to be doing it on her off-time, she probably didn't even know the calling card existed yet, let alone the Phantom Thieves. On the other hand, it was a good hunch, "yet" was the operative word there, and any police attention was probably Not Good for her record. Even coincidental attention.

Still, given how Sae seemed more interested in the blends then Yukiko, and the distinct lack of grumpy-looking Special Assault Teams surrounding Leblanc, it probably wasn't worth panicking about. 

No good reason not to make a good impression on the woman who might be drafting a sentence for her someday, though. "Mm. Still, good to see the authorities are taking both him and the shutdowns seriously." Yukiko lied with a smile and bow. "What will you have?"

Sae rose her eyebrow in bemusement at the bow, but nothing more. "The house blend. Thank you, Miss…?"

"Amagi, thank you."


(Music Playing – City Ambience –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws )

May 4th, 2016 – Shibuya Station – 1:19 PM

Of course, after that incident, meeting with Iwai on the same day was out of the question. Even now, Morgana was sticking his head out of his bag to check for gray-haired tails as she made her way to Untouchable, and on his advice, taking a somewhat longer path to the airsoft store.

Which led to one of the most strange events of her life as she passed a small crowd.

To be honest, while Yukiko did expect some knock-on effects from Kamoshida's arrest - in fact, she was on her way to do one of said effects, and pawn off the medal to Iwai - the scene before her was not one of them.

“...teachers abusing their students, the mental shutdown incidents - there has been far too many incidents to ignore! Please, I urge you to listen closely!"

Soapboxing politicians mentioning things she personally caused.

The inn maiden stopped in her tracks as she heard that, turning to face the speaker - a portly, somewhat short man with a prominent nose and thick eyebrows, in a fine suit and a green sash with a motivational message on it - out of curiosity.

“We’re living in a time where apathy is widespread!” The chubby man continued. “We cannot allow our youth to become complacent to a system that cares little for the common person! We all need to rise up together, a pave the way to a brighter future! Living not just for a country that survives, but can give birth to a brighter future!”

Much to her own surprise, Yukiko found herself listening to the man. It was a rather better speech than one would expect out of a guy standing on a box outside a rail station.

He also seemed slightly familiar - enough for her to stop and try to resolve where she was sure she saw him before.

Morgana noticed the lack of motion, sticking his head out to see what the hold-up was - before snickering. "…I didn't take you for someone who cared that much about politics, Miss Yukiko."

"Truth is, I'm not. Which is why I'm standing here…" She whispered back. "He's making it easy to do so."

"We adults must refine our mission!" The portly man continued. "The lines of what are considered right and wrong in our society have been blurred. With common sense no longer our guide, we make decisions based on passing, selfish desires and wants. This has resulted in a deluge of self-centered people who delight in taking advantage of the weak…"

Morgana blinked, before smiling a bit more genuinely. "...huh. That's why."

Yukiko cocked her head. "Huh? Why what?"

"That speech - it's really nuanced for a politician." Morgana mused on the subject with a stroke of his furry chin. "He not only believes what he's saying, he's thought it through and has become sure of it. And he's managing to make it easy to understand. That's a rare trick, and it's even rarer to find people who want to use it."

"…huh. That's… actually a good point." She blinked before smiling. "…actually, listening to him, he's not using any buzzwords, isn't he? And he's actually imploring people to do more than just vote, and there's some deep problems. Kind of… refreshing, from normal pundits."

"Yeah, I've heard the ads about the upcoming election." Morgana said that with a wince. "What I would give for them to shut up…"

"A world where the young exist to be exploited… is a world that must be changed!" The portly man continued. "We - "

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

The man's speech was cut off by an older woman loudly sighing. "Easy for him to say... old-timers like me have their hands full taking care of themselves."

A younger man shook his head. "He's making some good points, but he's a no-name… hell, he isn't even part of a party any more… Nothing's gonna change even if he does win..."

The politician blinked, sweating. "Er… I-if I am chosen to represent the will of the people, I - "

At that moment, several tough-looking men in jackets with an unfamiliar logo on the back came by, suddenly pausing as they saw the scene, before the leader's smile split into a nasty grin.

"Well, well, well…" The leader started with a widening grin. "Look what the cat dragged in."

"Hey, how's the eighth consecutive failure coming along, No-Good Tora?" A weedy companion of his said, joining in the heckling.

'No-Good Tora's' eyes widened, before he slumped over, crestfallen. "I… I think I'll be going now…" He said in a downcast tone, picking up his box.

"That's what I thought. You throwbacks run along now - the United Future doesn't need leaks like you." The leader of the thugs said, making a rude gesture at the retreating man. "This country's got enough holes in its hull for a slave of the establishment who can't see the real way forward." Chuckling he and the others walked off to whatever event thugs enjoyed.

"…wow." Morgana suddenly looked angry. "Jerks. He's literally a guy on a soapbox, he doesn't need hecklers to make him feel worse."

"Yeah, seriously…" Yukiko said with a snarl. "You heard that other guy - apparently he's not even a member of a party. Some 'establishment' he's a part of."

Before Tora vanished into the crowd, defeated, the inn maiden came up to him.

The portly man gave her a sad look, apparently expecting more abuse.

"Um, for the record?" She began, carefully. "That was a good speech before the thug squad showed up. Nice shot at it, I think more people would have come in if they didn't bullrush you."

The look on Tora's face was perhaps the happiest heartbreaking expression Yukiko had seen, because from it, Tora was outright shocked someone praised him. "T… Thank you, young madame." He said that quickly, before he actually did vanish into the crowd.

"Well, if nothing else, he recognizes your face now." Morgana said. "Who knows, that might come in handy? Besides, he needed the pep talk!"

"Yep. So, back to our - "

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDKVkpggpIs )

“Hm?” Yukiko turned to her smartphone before smiling. "…snrk. Well, whaddya know?"

steak trash: yo yuki, how’s finding a buyer going?

Yukiko Amagi: I haven’t gotten to Untouchable yet, Chie.

Yukiko Amagi: But I am going, yes.

Ry-yee-ji: oh hey, yukiko

DanishWeeaboo: hi! d=(´▽`)=b

Yukiko Amagi: Hi!

Yukiko Amagi: Today’s the day Shiho’s supposed to be released from the hospital, right?

Yukiko Amagi: How’s she coming along?

DanishWeeaboo: oh, great! im with shiho right now, tho we gotta do some final checkups, because yknow…

DanishWeeaboo: …unprotected intercourse and STD check-ups

Ry-yee-ji: …man, its understating this, but seriously, fuck Kamoshida

Ry-yee-ji: im sad that hes now a good person bearing his past self’s crimes, but fuck, i wouldnt have it any other way

Ry-yee-ji: let him s u f f e r for what he's done

steak trash: asdfghjkl totally

steak trash: …ughhh, gdi just thinking about what he did makes me want to kick somebody

Yukiko Amagi: Please don’t, Chie. We already looked kinda suspicious with the calling card stunt we pulled… right, Ryuji?

DanishWeeaboo: adkdk

Ry-yee-ji: ¯\_ಠ_ಠ_/¯

Ry-yee-Ji: dont shoot the goddamn messenger, thanks'

Yukiko Amagi: …that forthwith implies you're in any way a competent messenger.

steak trash: Pbfftttttttttt-

Ry-yee-ji: i

Ry-yee-ji: yknow what, ill just stop talkin now

DanishWeeaboo:  s u f f e r

Ry-yee-ji: ╭∩╮(︶︿︶)╭∩╮

steak trash: sapodklla apowdl aldaw;l

Ry-yee-ji: stop keysmashing, bottom

steak trash: gh

Ry-yee-ji:  Perish.

DanishWeeaboo: wtf am I to do with you guys gdi

DanishWeaboo: but yeah, mange hilsner! wassup, Yukiko?

Yukiko Amagi: I'll assume that means "hi" or something in Danish.

Yukiko Amagi: But yeah, I’m aware Shiho’s doing fine physically, but, umm… how’s she doing mentally?

DanishWeeaboo: …oh.

DanishWeeaboo: well, she’s putting on a brave face and all, but… god.

DanishWeeaboo: Well, for a better lack of a word, she’s been traumatized. she'll hopefully get better, but… yeah, she's not in a good place. at all.

DanishWeeaboo: i won't comment on much of it, but she genuinely finds trouble even going outside without feeling a panic attack coming on. not to mention she just… doesn't want to be touched, is cleaning herself thoroughly… fuck, i can't even imagine what it's like for her

Ry-yee-ji: …christ and kami above

Ry-yee-ji: i’m really sorry, ann

steak trash: Yeah, same…

steak trash: I mean, she was a good girl. And with her being hung over her head for it…

steak trash: Crap. I don't blame her for wanting to leave, if that's the right way to put it. No offense.

DanishWeeaboo: none taken. and it really wasn’t any of our faults this happened.

DanishWeeaboo: i… i need to tell that to myself every day just to keep moving on. it fills me with such rage that I just wanna make kamoshida suffer death a thousand times over. there's NOBODY i hate more than him.

DanishWeeaboo: i genuinely hope he suffers an eternity in Hell for what he's done. both alive and dead.

Ry-yee-ji: …can't blame ya one bit, honestly.

Ry-yee-ji: like, i think the rat bastard had it coming to him, and i felt bad about letting the new kamoshida suffer for the old one's crimes, but… this is the best possible outcome, looking back on it.

DanishWeeaboo: yeah… i know.

DanishWeeaboo: …actually, i need to ask you guys something.

Yukiko Amagi: Anything, Ann.

steak trash: ^^^^^^^^^^

DanishWeeaboo: Don’t… please, don’t mention anything about Kamoshida to Shiho. It… may trigger her.

DanishWeeaboo: When you see her tomorrow, she may look happy, but… Christ.

DanishWeeaboo: She’s really been destroyed by this.

Ry-yee-ji: ill take your word for it.

Ry-yee-ji: …holy fuck, this got dark

DanishWeeaboo: yeah, agreed. we should probs change the subject.

DanishWeeaboo: yukiko, how’re you?

Yukiko Amagi: Good, good. Going to Untouchable now. Planning to sell the medallion.

DanishWeeaboo: oh… i see. ( ^_^)/

DanishWeeaboo: um

DanishWeeaboo: i… need some time alone.

DanishWeeaboo: guys, im really sorry i killed the mood like that

Yukiko Amagi: Don’t be. What’s important is that Shiho’s safe. That’s all that matters to me.

Ry-yee-ji: totally agree there, hehe

Ry-yee-ji: i mean, we kicked shadow kamoshithead’s ass and took the crown AND looked like an absolute badass doing so!

Ry-yee-ji: so chin up. youre giving yourself too little credit

steak trash: what ryuji said

steak trash: you can always count on us, ann

DanishWeeaboo: everyone… thank you

DanishWeeaboo: srsly, fuck, i dont deserve you guys

Yukiko Amagi: You do, though… and if anything, you deserve better.

Yukiko Amagi: Never lose sight of that.

Yukiko Amagi: I honestly have my doubts we’ll ever go into the Metaverse for whatever reason, but take it from us, Ann.

Yukiko Amagi: Friends stick up for each other. ヾ(^ิ∀^ิ)

DanishWeeaboo: …thanks, guys

DanishWeeaboo: ily all so much

steak trash: aklss the feelings mutual!!

Ry-yee-ji: infuckingdeed

Yukiko Amagi: ♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)

Yukiko Amagi: …well, anyway, I gotta sell this medallion. Seeya guys.

steak trash: adios, hermano

Yukiko Amagi: …hermanA.

Ry-yee-ji: …fuck

steak trash: here lies senor ryuji sakamoto

steak trash: he died failing spanish for all eternity

DanishWeeaboo: …you should stick to japanese, ryuji

Ry-yee-ji: OH SHUT UP, VIKING GIRL

DanishWeeaboo:

DanishWeeaboo: OH NO YOU DID NOT CALL ME THAT YOU DELINQUENT FUCK

Ry-yee-ji: YOU MIGHT AS WELL GET A HORNED HELMET, YOU PASTRY

DanishWeeaboo is typing…

Yukiko vowed that the mountain of obscenities that followed would never be repeated, for they were too vulgar for public viewing.


(Music Playing – Layer Cake – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ77kdlx6dM)

May 4th, 2016 - Untouchable - 1:25 PM

Iwai blinked from his seat as Yukiko carefully closed the door behind her. "…there something botherin' you, kid?"

"…to be blunt, yeah." She realized a while ago that admitting this was pretty crucial overall, as she casted a glance at two men who stood out like a sore thumb in their fine suits against the dusty corner Untouchable was in. "So, uhh… I'm going to make this quick."

She came up, slamming the former Treasure-turned-medal on the table. "…please tell me how much is this worth, and if can I sell it now-ish? I need the money by tomorrow, but it's not critical - I will have to scrounge a bit and apologize to a friend if I don't get it by then."

Iwai gawked at it for a sec, before picking it up with a completely bemused expression. After a second, he bit it, apparently to make sure it was actual gold, then glanced at the shine before checking the message etched on it.

"…you know." Iwai said after a long while. "We don't generally deal in stolen or fake goods here. I don't think this is fake, but - you know what, I'm not gonna ask." He shook his head. "Goddamn, though. Who lets go of an Olympic medal?"

"Its previous owner doesn't want it any more. Too many regrets attached to it." Yukiko said, telling the best kind of truth (a technical one). "And frankly, I don't want it either. I'm not asking to haggle, just market value - probably worth more once you know its full story. I'll be happy to tell you, it's just, well…" She glanced at the guys outside.

Iwai followed it, before his eyes widened. "Those reckless pieces of - okay then." He pulled out a doggie bag that had been taped shut. "Listen. I'll buy that it was donated, and the medal for 30,000 yen, if you take this with you and bring it back next time you come here - undamaged." Iwai punctuated his statement with a harsh glare. "Believe me, I'll know if it's been tampered with."

"…I guess I shouldn't ask what's in here, either." A somewhat pale Yukiko said owlishly, before taking it.

"You guessed right. It's nothing directly illegal, but yeah - could land us both in some very choppy legal waters. You can check when you're far away from here, but you gotta get out first. But I keep my promises." Iwai spoke hushedly, quickly counting out the yen before slamming it on the table, swiping the medal. "And you may wanna get out of the way."

(Music Stops)

Yukiko blinks. "Huh?"

"Out of the way, kid."

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

The person behind her didn't need to tell Yukiko twice, as she scurried to the corner before the two men barged in like a battering ram. 

"Munehisa Iwai." the man in the tan suit said in a polite but firm voice. "There are some matters we'd like to discuss with you today. Do you know why we're here?"

"I dunno. Looking for evidence?" Iwai said with both a smirk and in a jovial voice that seemed quite at odds with his focused nervousness a moment before. "You tell me, Detectives."

So they were cops. Just not after me, Yukiko thought as she felt the tension sag out of her. …wait, why would Iwai know them by face?

The black-suited detective slammed the counter, leaning in aggressively. "Watch your attitude!" He barked. 

Iwai shrugged, obviously not taken in by the forming good-cop bad-cop dynamic. "Well, you gonna search me? Do what you gotta do."

"…what was that?", the rude detective said, seeming suddenly less certain.

"An upstandin' citizen's got to cooperate with the cops, right?" Iwai continued, having way too much fun with this.

"…you're sure that lead was legitimate?" The polite detective said, having caught on to Iwai's confidence.

"I could've sworn it was…" The rude detective grumbled, before snapping out of it. "…show me your tapes. Now!"

"As you wish." Iwai shrugged, before walking over to let them behind the counter and presumably the security room. "Though… I notice you weren't flashin' warrants first thing. What's this about?"

Both detectives promptly winced, and with that, Yukiko's sympathies went to Iwai. Do they even know why they're here, or are they just wasting the department's time in hopes of a bonus? The magistrate certainly wasn't convinced enough to give them the right to his records…

"…hey, you!" The rude cop said, turning to face Yukiko. "What's in the bag? Show me!"

For a moment, the inn maiden nearly reached out -

Then she realized exactly why Iwai had mentioned their lack of warrants, despite him happily letting them look at his cameras. Without warrants, they couldn't search his customers either.

"I'm sorry. I'm not involved with this." Yukiko said, trying not to grin at the frustrated rage on the face of the detectives. "I'm just a customer. A completely normal customer who came in, pawned off an item, and got this in the process. I'm sorry I'm not able to help you."

With that, she turned around, but as she did so, she mouthed thank you at Iwai.

He nodded, before clearing his throat. "And if you need further convincing, I'll be happy to show you the video…"

Yukiko didn't hear the rest, because she had exited as quickly as possible, not especially eager to hear sudden questions about the particular item she was pawning.


(Music Playing – City Ambience –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws )

May 4th, 2016 – Outside of Untouchable – 1:32 PM

“Wow… that was strange…”

"You said it." Morgana said, after making sure that yes, the detectives had no plausible line of sight to them. "Why is an airsoft store being turned over by cops? It's literally extreme paintball."

Yukiko shrugged, then looked at the bag. "Whatever's in this, I guess."

Both of them stared at it for a second, shortly before Morgana began to paw at it.

"…you're impatient." Yukiko said, bluntly. "We're barely out of sight of those guys, and you already want to take a look at contraband?" 

"There's no harm in a little peek." Morgana said, shamelessly. "You heard the man - we can check so long as we don't break it. Besides, if we're committing a felony by holding this, I'd like to know what we're holding."

…with that legitimate point made by Morgana, there were no objections on Yukiko's part to that.

Careful not to damage the tape, she peeled it open and -

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

"A real gun?!" Both of the lookers hushedly exclaimed such in unison.

Nothing less than an American Desert Eagle, slightly worn by the weather but otherwise in pristine and working condition, glinted in the air. Terrifying as it was to the Japanese teen holding it, the pistol was a beautiful gun, the silver chamber glinting in the afternoon light, the hammer gently curved and almost delicate, the battery pack-

Wait.

Yukiko peered a bit closer. And there it was - a pair of tiny batteries, slotted into the gun's handle. It was subtle - there were screw holes for what was presumably a battery cover, and if it was colored anything like the handle, Yukiko would probably not have noticed it - but the inn maiden somehow doubted that most actual guns were powered by electricity.

"…actually, false alarm. This looks like another airsoft gun." Yukiko said that with relief, in turn visibly relaxing. "…phew. I did not need to add arms dealing and illegal possession of a firearm to my crimes."

"Still, this is impressive!" Morgana said, whistling. "Our guns are pretty real-looking, but this thing? You could threaten people in the real world with this. I'd bet it'd cause some damage in the Metaverse too, given how it looks real already." He paused. "Still… I wonder why he's afraid of an airsoft gun being examined by the police. You could threaten people, but shooting them with a bead isn't going to kill them…"

"Maybe he's counterfeiting actual guns?" A pause, as Yukiko realized how that sounded. "…actually, it's probably is better than selling the real thing, since less people tend to die around these." Yukiko flushed. "Though… I wonder if he has a spare he won't mind me buying..."

Morgana grinned cheekily. "Exactly what I was thinking. A flamethrower version of something like this? Shadows would melt, probably literally. We'll talk about this when we get this back to him."

"That we will!" Yukiko said with a lot more genuine cheer in her voice. "But, for now? Post-victory party!"

"Heck yeah!" Morgana beamed happily. "What's the point of being a thief if you can't enjoy the spoils?"


(Music – Life Goes On – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp-1oFWnsxs)

May 5th, 2016 – Shibuya Station – 11:19 AM

It certainly wasn't much longer before one particular spoil that had nothing to do with hedonism presented itself. In fact, it was before the party itself.

Shiho Suzui, looking somewhat recovered, gave Yukiko and Chie a small, slight smile, though it was clear she was leaning on the wall - even a short coma meant that her body was weak and unused to motion so soon after she came out of it, nevermind the cast on her leg that was now a fixture of her body.

Ann did not mind. "Well. I guess we'll be having a guest today! Don't worry, I'm paying for it - really, it's a miracle she was able to attend at all."

"Aww." Morgana said - or to Shiho, meowed. "I kinda wanted to talk about Thief stuff. Not that I mind the reason why I can't - kind of a quick turnaround from, y'know, coming out of the coma."

Ryuji got Morgana's implication, deciding to translate it. "Sure you're okay with this? I mean, after… everything, I - "

"T-Thanks. But… it's okay." Shiho said with her best smile, as Ann helped her fully to her feet. "Doctor… says this is fine. I just… have to watch my intake."

"No worries, I can eat for the both of us!" Ann said with a cheerful grin, before realizing retroactively how that sounded. "…err, well, more than I already do, really. I'm just glad you're on the mend, Shiho."

"I think that makes four of us!" Chie said, with a relieved smile. "You had us worried overall."

Shiho's smile quivered. "E-Everyone… thank you… you're all so nice to me…"

Plus one not-a-cat who we can't admit exists… Yukiko thought. "I can vouch for that. So, you want to share the table with us?"

Shiho… froze.

"…um, Shiho?" Ann tilted her head, looking more than a little concerned. "Are you - "

"Um, a-actually…" Shiho said, face slightly reddening. "You… You think Ann and me could h-have a private table? I need to… talk to her about something."

There was a bit of silence at that.

Slowly, Chie and Ryuji turned to Ann with a strange look - somewhere between surprise, understanding, and annoyance with themselves for having not seen it sooner.

"O-Oh! Of course!" Ryuji said with a wince. "Y-You two keep on your, um, day together!"

"Yep! We'll just, uh, leave you alone!" Chie said with a blush.

Yukiko, to her own amazement, did not crack up into a full fit of laughter upon realizing exactly what was going on, managing to force herself into a coughing fit.

After the disguised giggles died down, a straight-faced Yukiko looked up. "So… ready to make the Wilton wonder why they allowed it to be all-you-can eat at the buffet?"


(Ambience Plays - Diner - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY0GEpbWreY)

(Music – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergzVAkszi8)

May 5th, 2016 – Wilton Hotel, Buffet – 1:23 PM

The Wilton was pretty much exactly as decadent and ritzy as advertised.

This was probably not very good for their profit margin, given how the locust plagues in human form known as Chie Satonaka and Ann Takamaki were launching a two-pronged attack from different sides of the buffet, with Ryuji Sakamoto providing support. 

"Umm…" Yukiko blinked as the mountain of meat Chie was carrying was gently set on the table, right next to Ryuji's slightly (slightly) less extreme pile. "Is that healthy?"

"I work out plenty, and even if I didn't, this is a once-in-a-decade experience. Of course I'm going to try everything!" She grinned back at Yukiko. "If nothing else, it's healthier than Ann..."

"That's… not exactly a high bar to clear…" Yukiko grimaced, watching a significant portion of the sweets table migrate over to her and Shiho's table.

"She eats that regularly, and remains a supermodel…" Morgana marveled with frivolous intent. "Lady Ann is truly blessed by the gods of beauty and metabolism…"

"That… is an honestly good theory." Yukiko said, whistling. "It'd explain some things."

"I don't mind. Between her and Chie, if she went after the meat, there'd be none left for me." Ryuji shrugged. "Though… seriously beginning to wonder how big girls' stomachs are."

Yukiko hummed. "…I'll let you know at the end of this dinner. We only have a little more than an hour and a half here, and…" She peered at the plate Ryuji got. "…uhhh, what's with all the beans?"

"Wasn't sure what you wanted, so, yeah. Beans." Ryuji tried his best to grin despite the awkwardness inherent.

"There was also some weird stuff there, so I asked Ann what you might like - she added some fried bananas, preserved eggs… also some kind of beans!" Chie said with a smile. "Kind of had to mix it a bit to fit it all on, but it should be still good!"

Yukiko shrugged, reaching for her fork - before being blocked by a paw.

"No. Nuh-uh. Absolutely not." Morgana shook his head. "This fine dining is not going to be all... beans!"

"Really? This looks pretty good - I've made curry that looks worse."

Both Morgana and Ryuji looked at Yukiko with absolute horror.

"…yeah, no." Ryuji said bluntly, pushing away the plate. "You're following Mona's lead on this."

"Seriously!" Morgana added. "You need a course in… food. In general."

Yukiko shrugged, letting Morgana into her pack. "I don't see what the big deal is, but sure."

"Excellent!" Morgana said, as Yukiko got a new plate. "First up: fish dishes!"

"You know, for a not-a-cat, your tastes are awfully feline…" The inn maiden said this with an amused grin as she made her way over. "I bet you'd prefer it if this was raw too, huh?"

"Yes - er, no!" Morgana quickly corrected himself upon realizing his slip, ears flattening in embarrassment. "Fish totally tastes better when burned and with gross vegetable spices on it - er, tasty spices!"

Suppressing a smirk, Yukiko began to spoon out her entree -

"Have you heard my dear? The news about that Kamoshida fellow was absolutely dreadful."

Both Yukiko's and Morgana's heads shot up at the mention of Kamoshida's name.

"Ah, right. That teacher at Shujin Academy, caught doing such indecent acts. Shameful, really."

The two speakers were a pair of women who radiated "spoiled offspring of the rich all grown up" in waves, who were blocking the table from the other side, completely lost in their conversation.

"And they still haven't managed to solve those horrible psychotic breakdown episodes, have they? I wish that they wouldn't be distracted by such a tawdry scandal."

"Perhaps it's a sign of how peaceful this country is. I honestly pity those poor Shujin students, though." 

Yukiko finished off forking out her fish, and left, eyebrow having climbed significantly at how a serial rapist of children was apparently not worth the media's time.

"Sounds like the Kamoshida incident is the talk of the town…" Morgana said, humming thoughtfully to himself. 

The two women looked up at the sound of, what was to them, purring.

"Ugh. Who let a ragamuffin like this in here?" One of them said, frowning. "She is well-groomed at least, but in those clothes? She almost certainly bought some thuggish paramour with her. I prefer my meals to remain hooligan-free, thank you."

With that, both women walked off, noses literally held up.

"…there is a phrase I could use to describe you two, you know." Yukiko growled under her breath. "Since this is a formal setting, I will mind my manners, and simply compliment the highly rarified breeding of the most consanguineous degree that produced you."

"What's so bad about kids enjoying a buffet? We're paying customers too…" Morgana agreed, looking more than a little annoyed likewise. "Wonder how other people are reacting, though. Might as well listen in when getting more food."

Yukiko nodded, doing so.

Her already somewhat fouled mood from encountering the gossips didn't exactly improve.

"Yeah, who cares whether or not these 'Phantom Thieves' are a real thing. It gets clicks, and that drives up ad revenue."

"Really, we didn't even have to break down Kamoshida's indiscretions into simple words for the lowest common denominator like we do with most scandals. We just had to describe some of what he did, and watch the ratings soar."

"Ugh. Why'd we have to get saddled with investigating some washed-up coach? I joined this campaign to help the country, not run damage control for schools who can't control their employees."

"So. Apparently, along with food, with have a wide variety of assholes as well." Yukiko said as she threw a meat dish onto her plate with great force. "What is this, the Monthly Rich Jerk convention?"

"Yeah, not a lot of the adults here seem like nice people," Morgana said, depressed. "I know we wanted this to be a celebration, but… yeah. Maybe we should start eating, that'll cheer us up."

"Good idea." Yukiko said, marching back to the table. "I swear, the family inn didn't get this many snobs. It got more than a few, but not an entire eatery filled with them."

"Probably because you don't cater to the elite specifically." Morgana guessed. "You have a smaller pool to draw from. Including the gunk at the bottom." 


(Ambience Plays - Diner - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY0GEpbWreY)

(Music – Confession/Secret – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergzVAkszi8)

May 5th, 2016 – Wilton Hotel, Buffet – 1:31 PM

"Ooh, this part has cream cheese!"

Ann was glad at moments like these she could afford the calorie intake, what with being a model for a magazine; she hardly doubted that her manager would be horrified by the sheer amount of sweets she was woofing down, but as long as she was with Shiho, she honestly didn't care. The miniature mountain of confections continued to be eaten while Shiho herself was helping herself to some expensive sushi and tofu from the "traditional" foods section… Ann was glad to see that Shiho can at least look healthy given… everything…

Regardless of the unpleasant context for which 'everything' implied, Ann shook her head and smiled at Shiho, who was eating rather daintily. "…I'm really glad it's just you and me for once, Shiho. It feels like we couldn't really talk on the same level we have before… well, you know."

Shiho paused to smiled back. "…y-yeah. It's good to be with you again too, Ann. I, um…"

Shiho lowered her head and shook it. Ann frowned in response.

"…Shiho, you don't have to hold back anything with me anymore." Ann smiled. "He's gone. You'll never see him again as far as I'm concerned."

The former volleyball player froze and bit her lip. Nervously touching the corrective knee brace on her right calf, she looked down. "…what I did was really stupid, wasn't it?"

Ann winced instinctively at that. "…Shiho, don't you ever say that about - "

"…no, please, Ann. I literally jumped because I… I wanted to escape from him. I d-didn't want to even see or feel his presence all over me like he did to me, and could've done to you." Shiho said with subtle despair. "Now, because of what I've done? I don't think I'll ever be able to go back to volleyball again."

Ann grimaced… especially upon realizing she didn't have a good retort to that. "S-Shiho…"

Shiho felt tears swell up in her eyes. "I… I thought if I died, you didn't have to worry about me bringing you down anymore. Because that's... t-that's all I ever was." Shiho felt herself seize up as her breath hitched in her throat, tears swelling up in her eyes. "A s-substitute to him. Nothing more, n-nothing less."

The half-Danish model looked personally hurt by that. "That still doesn't change anything about - "

"About what? The fact I'm a coward who looked for an easy way out? Thought it'd be better if I died in order to free you of his obligation of him, when I just wanted to escape?!" Shiho sobbed; tears were streaking down her cheeks. "Face it, Ann, I'm no better than him! I'm ever bit as selfish as him for bringing you down!"

"Shiho, Kamoshida doesn't - "

…Ann realized the slip as Shiho looked pained, before briefly hyperventilating. "I-I need to t-take a breather, please Ann, I - "

"Shiho, please - "

"It's all my fault why you suffered for so long - "

"SHIHO!"

Ann's words cut through the air like a hot knife through butter. Ann's hands placed on both of Shiho's shoulders, and the volleyball player instinctively flinched and seized up as a result, tears swelling in her eyes and threatening a rapid downfall of waterworks. Shiho hiccupped and shook, while focused baby blue eyes met dark brown.

"Shiho, listen…" Ann bit her lip. "I… I still love you. I love you more than anyone, damnit! You're my friend, and I… I'm not strong enough without you! You can't just say it'd be better that you were cut loose, because I care so much about you!"

Shiho grimaced. "A-Ann, please, I… I'm not worth it - "

"…if you weren't, I wouldn't have helped the others in trying to take down Kamoshida."

Shiho's eyes widened as Ann blurted that out, her suddenly realizing just what Ann meant by that. "Y-You mean you - "

"Y… Yeah. I have my ways." A sad smile. "But that's not the point, alright? Look… just know you're completely worth it, Shiho. You're my best friend, and I… I don't want to live in a world without you!"

Ann felt herself tremor with sobs as she hugged Shiho, the latter's entire form shaking. "A-Ann…"

"S-Shiho…" Ann cried. "I love you…"

Shiho pulled her tighter, sniffling her own tears. "Ann, I - "

(Music Stops)

"Can't you two harlots go somewhere else? This establishment hardly has use for overemotional rabble such as yourself."

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

Ann nearly felt herself burst a blood vessel, looking directly at the voice who said that. "What did you say, you little - "

…Ann's eyes widened at the man - and assumingly his staff - who was walking by.

Ann didn't feel on the market for any men after Kamoshida, but the bald, muscular vision of a man with tinted orange glasses coming up to him in a suit and formal jacket almost looked every bit as smug as Kamoshida was, if not more so. His goatee was transfixed into a little growl, a clear condescending glance at the two teenagers readily apparent on her face - he especially didn't seem to take kindly to whatever insult Ann was about to concoct.

"Sorry, didn't realize harlots apparently don't realize manners." The bald man spat. "Can't you save perverse rutting for a proper husband instead?"

"E-Excuse me?!" Ann flushed, apparently not expecting those implications.

Shiho shivered, paling, but drew to her feet. "P-pardon me. But if you m-mind, we were - OOF!"

Before Ann could realize it, Shiho was sinking to the floor, winded from an elbow jab from one the black-suited men with sunglasses.

"Mind your manners, you damn whelp!" The man who elbowed her spat. "You're in the presence of people far beyond the likes of you! Now stand aside!"

The bald man in the middle looked ready to leave. "…let us move, gentlemen. Oh, and…" A brief glance at the two girls. "…if you're going to be two useless dykes, at least use it as practice before finding - like I said - a real relationship."

With that, the bald man waved his left hand and walked off. The two girls looked furious, and promptly looked at each other.

"…he isn't getting away, that son-of-a-bitch." Ann hissed as she suddenly stood up, when the men were out of earshot. "Shiho, wait here," she said at she glanced down at the prone volleyball player. "I'll tell Yukiko."

Shiho looked more than a little shaken by the encounter and still catching her breath, but still smiled. "…o-okay…"

And with then, Ann ran over to Yukiko's table. Who the hell does that asshole think he is?! And why even call me a dyke when I don't… like… uhh…

…it's telling Ann deliberately categorized that train of thought under "Urgent: Fix Cognitive Dissonance Later" as she rushed over to the others.


(Ambience Plays - Diner - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY0GEpbWreY)

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

May 5th, 2016 – Grand Hotel, Main Entrance – 2:13 PM

"HEY! WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA?!"

Chie was naturally the first one in the bald man's face, outright shoving past the wall of bodyguards to the extent she could. "She was having a dinner! What'd she ever do to you, huh!?"

It took a second of bafflement before the man caught on, grimacing in annoyance as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "And now they're traveling in packs. This day has been one irritant after another…"

Ryuji, for all of his school troubles, knew that word. "H-Hey! How do you think she feels after your thug squad knocked her flat on her ass?!"

The man glared through his orange glasses. "That is a bit of an ironic statement, coming from you." The bald man sneered. "And if I understood correctly, it was she who threatened me. Here in the real world, I consider that being a competent guard - if barely." He finished with a growl, glaring at said guard.

"Sir, I really must apologize - "

"I do not pay you to make excuses, I pay you to do your job!" The man hissed. "Be grateful that it seems the day itself is my enemy today - I am in a more tolerant mood towards well-intentioned incompetence today."

Wow, this guy's a real peach… Yukiko thought, sourly. Even when he's forgiving someone, he's insulting them. Though… something's not right about him…

"Yeah, after you spat in her face, you asshole!" Chie said, still trying to get past the guards. "Seriously! You see two women and you immediately assume - "

"Even if they aren't that passing fashion some overly paid, ivory tower academic calls homosexual - they were intruding on important matters and interrupting some important business of mine." The bald man interrupted, archly. "Unless the Wilton has indeed opened a day care, then next time I would advise them to bring some degree of manners and decorum to their next outing here - or more accurately, a similar establishment, given how I fully intend to have you blacklisted."  He sniffed. "And people wonder why I have no time for the degenerate youth of this country…"

"D-Degenerate?!" Yukiko said, more bemused then offended.

"Since you apparently weren't paying attention in middle school Japanese - it means lower, fallen from grace, self-centered, no respect for their elders, effete, and above all else, decadent." He crossed his arms. "I am not your dictionary, so I'd advice you pay attention in whatever elitist, overly sentimental garbage they are calling a curriculum tomorrow. What is it about schools today, anyway? As if I didn't have enough problems with being roped into covering other people's asses..."

"Hey, since we're talking about asses, it'd be nice if you paid attention to someone who's talking to you!" Ryuji growled. "Oh yeah, I bet you're a real tough guy, calling me all 'effete' like you're some kind of goddamned body builder. You look like you haven't lifted anything heavier than a pencil!"

(Music Stops)

The man whipped around. "…excuse me?" His tone was spoken very, very quietly.

"You heard me! The closest thing to a workout you've had in your life is a giant clipboard!", Ryuji said with a savage grin, realizing he got at something that got under the man's skin.

There was a very long pause. Yukiko swore she could feel the temperature drop. 

"…there aren't any cameras nearby, are there?" The bald man asked after a brief pause. "And we're out of sight of any cellphone wielding gossips?"

"I believe so, sir." A bodyguard to his left replied curtly.

In that moment, the man burst into, contrary to his attempts to look cultured, a downright savage grin.

"Excellent." He spoke curtly. "Now then - "

(Music Plays - Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

Yukiko didn't see him move.

All she knew was one second, Ryuji was standing up, and the next, he was on the ground, with a newfound black eye.

"R-Ryuji!". Chie called, rushing over to him.

"For the record." The man said with a genuinely angry but satisfied growl, slowly withdrawing his left hand from the uppercut he delivered. "I was, and remain, an avid boxer. Before I settled on my true calling, I considered becoming a professional in the sport."

He crouched down to look Ryuji in the eye, and grinned, quite possibly the most evil expression Yukiko had ever seen. "When I say effete, I happen to know what I am talking about. And if you are the caliber of future criminal this country is producing, I think decadence is a critique that sticks. In the future, watch your tongue. You know what they say about loose lips and ships, after all."

With that, he flashed a mocking peace sign, before standing up, with a businesslike expression. "Come along, gentlemen. After today, I believe I need a trip to the club to help ease the memory of today. And people wonder why I overdrink…" He said with a hiss, walking off.

Yukiko released a breath she didn't know she was holding, suddenly realizing she was paralyzed. "I'll… I'll call Dr. Takemi! It's probably fine but - shit! I'll help you carry him!"

It was only halfway to the clinic that Yukiko suddenly realized something else -

The man punched with his left hand.

Just like…

"Just like that drunk who grabbed with his left…"


(Music – Confession/Secret – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergzVAkszi8)

May 5th, 2016 - Yongen-Jaya, Takemi Medical Clinic - 2:30 PM

Dr. Takemi, for all her normal black humor, was extremely serious on the job.

"Open your mouth - good. Lot of blood, but nothing's loose." She said, looking up from Ryuji's bloodied mouth. "It should heal in a few days, but try not to speak much. That punch forced you to bite your tongue, it's been cut and swollen."

"Don' haff ta - OW!" Ryuji said through his busted and novacaine-numbed lip, quickly realizing why.

"Still, whoever that was - that was quite the punch…" Takemi said, swabbing medicine over Ryuji's swollen eye. "He knew exactly where to strike, and he put a lot of force into it. I've seen this in other cases of violence; this is the kind of punch to make if you want to seriously injure someone for a long period, even life. Be glad he missed your nose or teeth, they'd likely end up being broken."

Shiho winced, rubbing her torso. "…and I just got the bodyguard…"

Chie shook her head. "Seriously, what was that guy's problem? Shitty day or not, I don't go around looking to start fights!"

"My guess? He was more angry that kids showed up at the Wilton at all than there being two gals being pals - though I suspect that he was trying to be an asshole about that too…" a depressed Ann said. "Just… fuck all, y'all, as Ryuji might put it."

"A bit crasser than I would put it… but not inaccurate." Yukiko sighed. "I'm sorry everything went so… sideways."

"It wasn't your fault, Yukiko…" Shiho sighed. "It was mine. I shouldn't have - "

"Shiho." Ann said, getting up. "If we're going to lay blame for provoking him, I deserve it more than you. I'm the one who actually yelled at him."

Ryuji nearly spoke again, then remembered his tongue. Instead, he pointed at his phone, which Dr. Takemi handed over; in place of his speech, he texted.

Ry-yee-ji: seriously, it'd be more me tbh. i literally got in that asshole's face

"And he's the one who decided that, apparently, insulting his muscles was worth a punch to the face!" Yukiko said. "So, no. Nobody here is to blame, because he started it, and he decided to persuade people with punches."

Dr. Takemi nodded, wincing. "You said this happened at the Wilton, right?" A sigh. "…unfortunately, I doubt this will even be reported."

"What?!" Chie said.

"From what you said, the man sounds like a regular, if not an outright important." she said, a cynical frown on her face. "Not only would censuring him invoke massive retaliation, it's likely most people at the hotel know him - to disrupt the normal order of the place would come off as a bigger social transgression than him making some unwelcome teenagers clear on being unwelcome. Without private documentation, it's likely they'll pretend nothing ever happened…"

Chie gaped in disbelief. "But… why?! Where's their sense of justice?! No, actually, where's being polite?! You'd think high society would care if one of their own was slightly more of a thug than the average yakuza foot soldier!"

"Take it from someone burned by an in-group before." the punkish doctor said, bleakly. "In society, the one who stands out is always in the wrong. If they're right, then it was a necessary evil on the group's part."

Yukiko thought back to her trial. "I think I know what you're talking about…"

Ann nodded, sighing. "Add 'looks different' to that list too..."

A long pause occurred. But Ann soon raised her head as she looked at Yukiko.

"Hey, um, Yukiko?" Ann inquired with a raised eyebrow. "When you have the time… can we just be alone for a bit? I need… advice."

Yukiko blinked, before smiling. "Sure. But after everything's settled for."

"Thank you." Ann sighed, drearily. "I've just been… thinking."

Shiho cocked an eyebrow as the air that particular euphemism left, but decided to drop it. Meanwhile though, Ryuji began texting.

Ry-yee-ji: yeah, what am i, chopped fucking liver?!?!

Ry-yee-ji: fml, wat am i gonna tell Mom!?

A paused. "…I can serve as witness." Yukiko said after a brief beat. "Tell her you told off a jackass for bullying a friend, and he didn't like that." She paused. "Though now I'm wondering what I'm going to tell Boss. I'm the one pissing off an authority figure might lead to bad things down the line."

That hung in the air for a second.

Then, Chie had an idea.

"…actually, why don't I be the witness? I don't think he'll be too mad if he gets what was going on…"


(Music Continues)

May 5th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 3:39 PM

Sojiro could tell something was wrong when he saw the downcast faces of Yukiko and Chie at the door. Not the least because the "all afternoon" party they mentioned didn't even last until the evening.

"…something go wrong?", he asked, hoping his question was rhetorical.

"…there was a fight." Yukiko admitted with a wince. "Some douchebag of a guest at the Wilton basically made homophobic comments at Ann and Shiho. It escalated, and, well, Ryuji's in the hospital now."

"…oh, fucking hell." Sojiro said after a couple seconds of silence, before he sank into the chair.

Right on cue, Chie stepped in. "It wasn't her fault, she wasn't even involved - "

"Huh?" He looked up. "Why would you think it would be?" He frowned. "You didn't tell him to throw the first punch or anything?"

Yukiko blinked. "Uh, no? That guy did after Ryuji insulted his strength."

"Wait, he did? Oh thank heavens above…" he said, visibly sagging with relief. "That means you can put it in your journal, and I'll point out that you didn't have anything to do with it. That didn't need to be your second near-violation, after your first day."

Chie blinked. "Wait, you don't need proof?"

"Why should I? She came clean about it, and hell, wasn't even her fault. Even if it was her fault, can't write her up for honesty. Don't want to, either." Sojiro said with a shrug.

Yukiko gave a small smile. "…thank you." Well, there's the silver lining for today. I know for a fact I can be honest about these things with him.

Chie blinked. "Well. Huh. I wasn't expecting to not need to back up the story…" She paused. "…or at least, not here. I'm going to go over to Ryuji's before his mom strangles him. Though, uh, can we meet later today over FaceTime or something?"

Yukiko shrugged. "Sure. See you then."

"Bye Yuki!" She said, running off to help explain to Ms. Sakamoto that no, it really wasn't what it looked like.

After she left, though, Sojiro sighed. "Lemme guess. Nobody helped you, or ever recorded it."

Yukiko gave her own sigh, shaking her head.

"Let that be a lesson - people don't like it when their normal lives are disrupted. Especially when it's someone out of place." he said, rubbing his temple. "It's a bitter one, but next time you eat out, try a nice sushi bar or something. Not a place crawling with upper-class twits."

"I agree with that!" Morgana cut in.

Sojiro blinked, looking at the bag. "…and who apparently bring their pets to a buffet." He said, wrly.

"Hey! I'm not a pet!" Morgana shouted back, somehow looking even more embarrassed at Yukiko's giggle.

"Don't worry, he was on his best behavior." Yukiko said. "…also, Ryuji said I should take cooking lessons as soon as I got back. Maybe we can use that to get my mind off tonight?"


(Music – Nighttime Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPMojig7oOE)

May 5th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 8:00 PM

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

“Hi, guys!”

Yukiko had to admit it, Chie was a master smiler. Despite everything that had happened, she wore a wide grin over her face cam, and Yukiko, Morgana, Ryuji and Ann couldn't help but join in – as much as Ryuji could anyway, given how his eye was still swollen and his mouth a slightly-less bloody mess.

“So, how did everyone’s evening go?” Chie said without a hint of insincere cheer. “Good, I take it?”

“After you showed up.” Ryuji muttered through the pain meds making his tongue wound bearable. “Mom downgraded to giving me the second degree instead of the third. Still not going to get my games back for a week and going to have to watch my tongue. Not that that's hard right now…" He winced.

“Shiho’s staying with me for the night.” Ann said. “Said she needed to be near someone she trusted, and we should at least finish the conversation without rich jerks. Out like a light - kinda cute..."

“Speaking of, you guys really need to go to sleep…” Morgana said with a wince. "This can't be healthy…"

“It's not really critical we all go to bed at the same time, every night." Yukiko said with a groan. “But enough of that. Chie, isn’t there a reason for scheduling a meeting at this time of night?”

“…so that I was sure everyone was here,” Chie said as she turned serious. “Ever since Kamoshida, I was thinking about this… and today’s events made me make up my mind.”

Everyone glanced at Chie as she took a deep breath and spoke.

“I… I think we should continue the Phantom Thief business.”

(Music – Swear To My Bones – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTQlTOjabH8)

“What?!” The group cried out in shock.

“Yeah, you heard me. I know what we do is morally dubious at best and illegal at worst…” Chie gulped, her voice quivering with fear and hidden courage. “But… I was really thinking about it. Turning Morgana into a human again, that's worthy enough. But after we met that… thing, today, seeing as how he was able to turn the whole place into his playground… I realized it wasn't any different from Kamoshida.”

She held her head, and shook it. "You saw him. He knew perfectly well no matter what he did… nobody would stop him. Nobody would even care. People like Yuki, Ryuji, me - we don't have anywhere to go to. People with power can just ignore the law when they want to. So, a lot of the time… if the only way to stop people who the law serves is to remove their desire to break the law, that's what we'll have to do."

Chie’s voice shuddered a bit. “And… I wanted to look away, and I was afraid of breaking the law… but now all I realize now is that more people will be hurt if we don’t do anything about this. So that’s why I was thinking: why not make the world a better place? For you, me, Yukiko… and Morgana.”

“You…” Morgana looked ready to tear up. “You remembered, Chie...”

“Of course, if there’s any objections in mind, I’ll abstain immediately.” Chie nodded. “So… you still want to do this, guys?”

Everyone paused for a moment, deep in silence. Ever the troublemaker, Ryuji gave a toothy grin, somehow made even more intimidating by the slight red tinge.

“After what that bald piece of shit, did? It made me think there’s plenty of people who can’t take a punch like me.” Ryuji nodded. “We need to fight those people, no matter what. I’m in.”

“After what Kamoshida did to Shiho, it made me realize, some people can only survive if they're helped…” Ann looked downcast, before nodding resolutely. “I want to help those people. Count me in.”

“No offense, but all I want to do is become human again.” Morgana nodded, before smiling. “But… helping people feels nice. Imagine all the people we can help along the way! I’m so game for this!”

“Chie…” Yukiko nodded. “When I saved that woman, I was expelled and put on probation. I know that my life is always going to have its ups and down, but even so… I’ll still try to help people, no matter how many times I’m put down. Besides." She said, with a more sardonic grin, "I think punching people who very much deserve it is going to be rather therapeutic. So I’m in.”

“Guys…” Chie looked ready to cry. “Thanks… this means a lot to me.”

An awkward silence passed between the group, but Ann decided to break said silence.

"So, um, first of all... what was that Mementos place? I think we should at least know what, er, everyone's Palace is before we accidentally stumble into an army of Shadows."

Morgana grinned, obviously in his element. "You don't have to worry, Lady Ann! Mementos is only in one location, and should we meet anybody whose heart needs to be changed but hasn't formed a Palace yet? That's where we'll find them."

Yukiko caught on. "Oh! So, it's basically the mother Palace? Every other Palace is a broken-off piece of it?"

"Eh…" Morgana thought. "Kinda. It's more like the default, with every Shadow that has a potential Treasure getting their own room, but not much more. When the Will Seeds fully sprout and the seed becomes a full Treasure, the room vanishes, because that Shadow's no longer a part of it." He frowned. "Still, those weird vines that grow everywhere look a lot like Will Seed vines… I'll show you tomorrow, when we go there."

"Even if we don't find any shitheads to take the piss out of down there, we've got a big training ground!" Ryuji beamed. "Though, uh… what do we call ourselves? I mean, we're the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, but uh, why not also a code name? Just to hide us a bit better?" 

Ann’s eyes began sparking. “Ooh, how about the Diamonds?! Tough, cute and resilient! I love it!”

Yukiko giggled. “That’s great, Ann… but as the leader of the group… well, I had a name in mind.”

Everyone glanced at Yukiko’s face cam.

“Well… alright. You’re the boss, after all.” Ann smiled. “What should our group be called?”

Yukiko simply gave a small, mischievous smile.

And so, the Phantom Thieves’ of Hearts – the Suzaku-Kai – were born.

Notes:

Apologies for the short (by our standards') chapter, we just wanted to get this one done. Either way, happy new year to all you guys! Hopefully 2021 will be great going forward.

I've made a few revisions to the scene, namely me wanting to give a lot more time relative to Ann and Shiho by themselves than getting them hooked up by the end of Kamoshida's Arc. Shiho's a rape victim, after all, and it's probably better not to rush things. I also really appreciate Leliel12 for making the changes he did; you're truly wonderful dude, I just spruced it up.

With that said, see you all next time!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 11
Chie: Lv. 11
Morgana: Lv. 11
Ryuji: Lv. 10
Ann: Lv. 10

Yukiko's Current Stock
Agathion, Bicorn, Hamsa, Silky, Berith, Selkie

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 1
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 1

Chapter 7: Into the Depths

Summary:

The Phantom Thieves begin to make a name for themselves, and end up getting called to their first task in Mementos… with a direct lead in to their next major target.

Notes:

And now - the tension-relieving chapter!

Apologies for the long, long well-overdue update, everyone. Getting everything in sync with the current status of affairs was already exhausting given the COVID-19 Pandemic and college restarting, but rest assured, we're here, in the flesh! We genuinely, truly hope you enjoy the next update of Rising Phoenix, in which this chapter shall serve as a bridge between Kamoshida's arc and the start of Madarame. I just hope all of you are doing well given these interesting times and all.

Without further ado, please enjoy.

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 11
Chie: Lv. 11
Morgana: Lv. 11
Ryuji: Lv. 10
Ann: Lv. 10

Yukiko's Current Stock
Agathion, Bicorn, Hamsa, Silky, Berith, Selkie

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 1
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 1
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music – Interrogation – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GSY0ZtwD1M)

???-???-???

Sae inhaled, slowly, as she processed what she had just been told.

"…another world in which people's distorted cognitions take shape? Stealing treasure to change hearts?" She repeated, slowly. "And on top of that, a talking cat told you all this?"

"Not a cat…" Yukiko mumbled, automatically. "And… more or less. It's true, weird as it is…"

"Try 'absurd', honestly." Sae said, her tone not even being angry, just baffled. "It's hard to believe this is even worth listening to." 

She sighed. "Still, it can't be considered nonsense… parts of it align with Kamoshida's confession, and it's fairly well-known you have preternatural abilities. The same goes for the testimonies of the officers who arrested you. So, for the moment, I'm considering it plausible enough. So be it…" She finished saying, before leaning in. "You mentioned something more important. Besides this talking - my apologies, Morgana, you mentioned something more important. Your three other accomplices, they're students at the same school, aren't they?"

Yukiko's expression was somehow able to harden through the haze. "…I can guarantee that, unlike Mona, they can be arrested. So… 'maybe.'"

Sae was not impressed. "You know, all you're doing with recalcitrance is annoying me out of advising the judge be more merciful. We will find them, sooner or later. It's best to admit defeat now and get yourselves all off with a lighter sentence."

Yukiko remained mum.

Sae shrugged, recognizing this wasn't going anywhere. "…very well, I'll leave it at that. Let's continue on. The questioning's not over anyway - if you are making this up, the cracks in your story will prove it." 

With that, she pulled out a black folder, opening it to reveal the photo of a distinguished, grey-haired man in traditional clothing. "The next person to receive a calling card; Ichiryusai Madarame, age 72, a master of Japanese arts. While it was clear in the aftermath of his confession that his actions and… shadier practices were enough to trigger your vigilantism motive, I find it difficult for you to have discovered them directly, given how you were nowhere near part of his social circle, let alone apprentices. At first blush, it's even more incomprehensible than Kamoshida as to why this man would be targeted. Where did you come to know him? And how did you learn of his crimes when you weren't a victim of them?"

Yukiko puffed out a cheek. "I guess I'll start with the exams then, since that was where we met someone new. So, a day after meeting that asshole in the Wilton…"


(Music – Aria of the Soul –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE )

May 6th, 2016 – Velvet Room – ???

When Yukiko awoke, she wasn't even shocked to see the blue ceiling of a cell any more. 

Not really surprising… she thought as she yawned. I did just destroy a pocket dimension after beating its master's wild Persona. That's gotta be news…

Awkwardly shuffling up from the prison bed, she strained a bit upon feeling her joints stiffen from the hard mattress, if one could call it that - it was really more of a resting slab. Upon checking to see that she was back in her prisoner attire, she glanced over to the jail cell to see three familiar wardens in front of her.

“Welcome back…” Igor smiled courteously. “It is good to have you back here, young one.”

Yukiko mumbled as she cricked her back a bit. “Urgh… I don't mean to be rude, but can you please give me a more comfortable mat to materialize o – “

SLAM!

“Quiet, inmate!” Caroline barked, still just as feisty as ever. “Our master wants to have a word with your sorry self, so do your part and listen!”

“Please ignore her.” Justine's professionalism never broke a nanometer. “We only wish that you listen to what our master would like to discuss.”

“That will do, girls.” Igor kneaded his hands together, his baritone voice still booming. “But first off, I'd like to begin congratulating you, young trickster, for successfully evading ruin for the first time.”

A slight smile came to Justine's face. "To think our master would give words of praise…"

An even more stern expression came to Caroline's. "You better treasure this moment, inmate!"

Igor simply chuckled. “You have encountered allies who share your ideals, and you have found your place in reality. The time has come, and your rehabilitation will soon begin…"

Yukiko nodded, not sure whether to feel complemented or frustrated that, apparently, beating Kamoshida and freeing the school of his tyranny didn't count as a start. 

…wait, what did count?

"Um, can I ask what 'rehabilitation' means, actually?" Yukiko spoke softly, as if unsure how her question would be received.

"I shall explain it to you now, then." Igor paused for a moment, before nodding. "Your circumstances and will have met to give you a special potential. However, that must be refined into a useful power - in particular, given how you lack a capability I had expected…"

Yukiko winced. "R… Really?"

"It is not your fault." Igor spoke, remaining his normal calmness. "By all rights, you should have the power of the Third Eye, preternatural perception. But, it seems, your power is developing in a different way than expected - however, the very fact you were able to overcome your first Palace without it is proof you do not need it - you are simply no better or worse with perception than everyone else would be in the Metaverse."

Relief streaked through Yukiko. "Oh. Well… that's good." The heck's a 'Third Eye'?

"As for the power you have… it is weak now, but as it is refined, it will give you the strength to against the coming ruin. That is the rehabilitation that was cast upon you."

Yukiko caught on. "So, keep working on my Personas, got it. Next question - what is the ruin?"

"That, I cannot yet explain." Igor admitted. "It would be an unacceptable amount of interference. But I can say that there are various means by which you may gain the power to resist the ruin. While fighting Shadows and refining your combat technique is one way, as is the fusion process I showed you."

"And this is all possible because of our master's guidance, inmate," Caroline spoke with a smug smile, before dropping into a… pout of some kind. "…that, and a very useful, very functional program on your phone."

…wow, that malware comment really stung, if she's still hung up about it. Yukiko thought. I should apologize to her later.

"Though it may be presumptuous of us, we have words of wisdom as well…" Justine added. 

"When you're out in reality, you'd better hone your relationships with those you have contracts with!" Caroline barked. 

"Spending time with those people will lead to the cultivation of your relationships with them." Justine finished.

"Oh, you mean like that spooky voice that talks about 'breaking thy chains of captivity' whenever I make a new friend?" Yukiko asked.

The twin wardens froze, then looked at each other, confusion clear on their faces.

"…uh, yes! The voice! That voice!" Caroline stammered, with a confidence that was almost, but not entirely, completely unconvincing. "The voice that says that! The voice, that wants, to, um, speak more, so if you've got time to waste, you better spent time with your contractors, and make the voice happy! And help your rehabilitation! Trust the voice!

She blushed. "…unless it tells you not that! Then distrust it!"

"…hm. I have not heard of this phenomenon before." Justine admitted. "But this voice has good advice. Your contracts are another source of power to evade the ruin our master has mentioned."

…so even they don't know everything either. Hm. Yukiko furrowed her brow. Though, Caroline's oddly cute when she's flustered…

"Thanks to the contracts you've formed, your heart is steadily gaining the power of opposition." Igor said. "It seems the rehabilitation is going well. This is a truly joyous occasion. I shall grand you an ability befitting of your newfound growth - an extra capacity to the amount of different Personas you can sustain at once. Consider it a gift, and may the devotion to your rehabilitation grow even deeper. I have high hopes for you."

Yukiko felt a swelling of pride and greater connection with Igor.

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

FOOL RANK UP! RANK 2

Fool Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Igor’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

Persona stock has increased to 8 slots!

(Music – Aria of the Soul – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE )

And just like that, the bell rung once more.

"The time is come," Justine said. "Return to your brief moment of rest." 

Caroline wasted no time on slamming her metal baton on the jail cell doors. "That's an order, inmate!" she barked. “No talking to mysterious voices after bedtime! Don't forget to look for new contractors, either!"

And with that, the Velvet Room slowly faded away,


(Music – Beneath the Mask – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-1h51WPUtc)

May 6th, 2016 – Shibuya – 6:39 AM

Yukiko rubbed her head tiredly as she strolled through the busy streets of Shibuya. What was up with all this nonsense in her life? Ruin? Tricksters? It made so little sense to the inn maiden, yet here she was, trapped in the midst of the seedier side of Tokyo with only supernatural summoning powers to back her up. She didn’t know whether she preferred this or the inn.

…Yukiko paused a bit, before giving herself a couple brief slaps on the cheek. What was she thinking?! Of course this was better than the inn!

She was so busy letting her thoughts wander that she almost didn’t realize her phone go off.

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

“Hmm?” Yukiko glanced down at her phone, then smiled. Who else could’ve it been than Chie Satonaka?

steak trash: hiiiiiiiiiii, yukikoooooooooooooo!! (*^▽^)/

Yukiko Amagi: Hey there!

Ry-yee-ji: yo, mah laydays

Ry-yee-ji: how’re yall doin’?

DanishWeeaboo: please never use that term again, ryuji

DanishWeeaboo: were already in the presence of a woman of class

Ry-yee-ji: ???

DanishWeeaboo: c’mon, Shiho, say hi!! don’t be shy d=(´▽`)=b

Volleygirl12: h-hello

steak trash: WAIT, WHAT

steak trash: SHIHO’S ON HERE?!?!

DanishWeeaboo is privately messaging Phantom Thieves Members

DanishWeeaboo: no worries, i labeled up as pt members. she aint one of them

DanishWeeaboo: so she (thankfully) should be unaware of us for the moment

Yukiko Amagi: I hope you’re right there, Ann.

DanishWeeaboo is now messaging Group Chat

Ry-yee-ji: its good to seeya, shiho!! how’re you doin’

Volleygirl12: ohh!! umm…

Volleygirl12: ive been good, thanks!! wbu?

steak trash: well, im honestly happy that things seemed to work out between you guys!!

steak trash: i rEAALY hope shit's going well with y'all mfs lmao

Volleygirl12: hahahaha

Volleygirl12: y-yeah… (´,,•ω•,,)♡

Volleygirl12: im really lucky

DanishWeeaboo: love ya, shiho ꒰⁎˃ ॢꇴ ॢ˂⁎꒱➴ෆ⃛

Yukiko stopped to pause about that for a second.

Didn't something seem a bit…

…off?

Yukiko Amagi: Pardon me for asking, but is there something I'm missing?

Volleygirl12: u-um

Volleygirl12: well, uh -- 

DanishWeeaboo: ill dm you, hold up

DanishWeeaboo: though that said, is it okay if you hold on standby for a moment, pls? i got, uh… homework to discuss with my friends

DanishWeeaboo: not to include you out on anything

Volleygirl12: no, i understand. ill wait (〃・ω・〃)

DanishWeeaboo: thanks, shiho

DanishWeeaboo is privately messaging Phantom Thieves Members

Ry-yee-ji: pffft, homework. Suuuuuuuuuuuuuure

Ry-yee-ji: lets call nearly dying to a psychotic douchebag king homework

DanishWeeaboo: shut up, that's not why i called you--

Yukiko Amagi: Well, I’m just happy Shiho’s with us now. She really is a sweet girl.

Yukiko Amagi: She absolutely didn’t deserve what happened to her.

DanishWeeaboo: yeah

DanishWeeaboo: ughhhhhhhhhhh

DanishWeeaboo: i know im totes beating a dead horse rn, but god, i cannot hate kamoshithead enough

steak trash: join the club

steak trash: i feel sorry that good!kamoshida’s now bearing the guilt of his past self, but i cant say he didnt deserve it

Ry-yee-ji: yeah

Ry-yee-ji: i just hope shiho’s doing well. she’s a good kid.

DanishWeeaboo: oh, shes doing great

DanishWeeaboo: shes meek, but shes a really powerful girl. shes still traumatized (obvs, what rape victim isnt), but shes bearing it with a smile

DanishWeeaboo: just please, obvs, dont mention the k-word in front of her. its kind of a trigger for her now.

Yukiko Amagi: Good idea.

DanishWeeaboo: thanks, yuki

DanishWeeaboo: anywayz, im bringing up a private chat for three reasons:

DanishWeeaboo: first and foremost, i dont think you know this yet, but…

DanishWeeaboo: well… shihos transferring to kosei

Ry-yee-ji: HUH?!

Yukiko Amagi: Wait, really?! That’s a relief to hear she's not leaving the city…

DanishWeeaboo: yeah, uh… sorry for not telling u guys earlier

DanishWeeaboo: her parents are absolute saints to shiho, and shes undoubtedly going to be the victim of rumors and all sorts of nasty bullshit

DanishWeeaboo: so shes transferring to kosei. one of the best schools in tokyo. it’s known for some degree of disability care

steak trash: disabilities??

steak trash: like, autism, adhd, etc. etc.???

DanishWeeaboo: yep. japan’s not really known for caring for disabled folk, but kosei’s pretty much top of the line in that field.

DanishWeeaboo: and its not just for physical or mental disorders, either. its also there to help emotionally or psychologically damaged victims

Yukiko Amagi: …like Shiho?

DanishWeeaboo: yep! her parents hope she’ll get the support and care she deserves

DanishWeeaboo: she really, really needs it

Ry-yee-ji: well, i wish her the best

Ry-yee-ji: heres hopin she gets better!

DanishWeeaboo: yeah, same.

steak trash: so… whats the second and third thing, ann?

DanishWeeaboo: well, uh… just to get this outta the way

DanishWeeaboo: something's been bugging me and everything, and i want to ask you about it when you show up at shujin

DanishWeeaboo: …if that's fine, ofc

Yukiko Amagi: Ann, it's fine! You can confide in us.

Yukiko Amagi: d=(´▽`)=b

DanishWeeaboo: ꒰๑˃͈꒳˂͈๑꒱ノ*゙̥ thank youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

DanishWeeaboo: though uh…that in itself brings up an issue

Ry-yee-ji: nani?

DanishWeeaboo: …apparently we have a fansite

DanishWeeaboo: https://phansite.net/

Ry-yee-ji: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXzEcwYs8Eo

Ry-yee-ji: OH MY GOD, ARE YOU SERIOUS

Ry-yee-ji: WERE FUCKIN’ FAMOUS?!?!

DanishWeeaboo: not quite. current poll asks if the phantom thieves exist. polls only 6% for yes

steak trash: aww, boo

steak trash: well, six percent is better than nothing

DanishWeeaboo: yeah, though that’s the interesting thing

DanishWeeaboo: APPARENTLY theres a whole site dedicated to requests for heart-thefts

DanishWeeaboo: i strongly recommend we check it out sometime

Yukiko Amagi: Holy crap, really?

Yukiko Amagi: Well, I’ll definitely consider it.

Yukiko Amagi: Though is that all?

DanishWeeaboo: yep, and shihos bugging me privately

DanishWeeaboo: lol

Ry-yee-ji: well we did talk for a while bout this

Ry-yee-ji: BACK TO THE MAIN CHAT!!!

DanishWeeaboo is now messaging Group Chat

Yukiko smiled wryly as she saw the chatroom continue to flow forth in the Shibuya morning. But that dropped to a frown. Suddenly, Morgana sprung from her backpack.

“Hey, Yukiko, I read through the chat, and” Morgana shrugged. "Doesn't Ann seem a bit… odd? I really do wonder what's making her sound so insecure and all."

"Me too… she's usually not one to be caught off-guard by weird sociality stuff." Yukiko blinks. "Could it involve… Shiho?"

"That's entirely possible, honestly." Morgana slumped, before perking up. "Oh, that reminds me!"

In that moment, Morgana quickly delved into his bag before bringing up something.

“Huh?” Yukiko glanced over to Morgana, who was holding the said 'something' in his mouth – a bag.

“W-Wait…” Yukiko blinked. “Hey, isn't that the - "

"Yeah, the super-realistic fake gun!" Morgana grinned with a muffled cheer, before dropping it due to holding it in his mouth. "I feel like we should return this to Iwai now. Better fake guns for us."

He paused, realizing how that sounded. "…that said, though, I would like to know why he's making these, though… "

“…and me, I'd like to know why I've been holding on to illegal material, and I totally forgot!” Yukiko winced, holding her head. “Actually, why not knock it out now? I’ve got time and all that.”

“Well, make it snappy.” Morgana chuckled, handing the bag to Yukiko as she rushed forth. “I don’t want you to be late for class.”


(Music – Layer Cake – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9C7DZjL2l8)

May 6th, 2016 – Shibuya, Untouchable – 6:44 AM

Iwai sighed drearily as the morning continued to pass on, reading his magazine. He almost didn’t notice a familiar teenaged girl waltz in - almost being the operative word, as he looked up.

“Well, you’re here again.” Iwai coughed dryly. “Just the right time too - that bag you got the other day? All yours."

Yukiko blinked, not expecting that at all. "Uh…"

"All you have to do is show I never had it. It's a defective model you found in the trash. Do whatever ya want, it just had nothin' to do with me. Got it?"

…so, that was a shift. Suddenly, he wanted the airsoft gun completely eliminated from his mind.

On the one hand, this should've been fine. Who knows, maybe it could be a good backup for herself or Chie - and really, it wasn't her business. Without a battery cover, it was obviously fake, maybe a bit morbid, but hardly illegal.

On the other hand…

"…okay, nothing to do with you." Yukiko said, turning up her brow to maximum frown. "So, it is a completely normal, innocent, counterfeit gun you don't want in the hands of the police, who can tell it's airsoft. With you innocently thrusting it in my hands and telling me to scram, not bothering to inspect possibly stolen pawn merchandise if that meant I would help." 

Iwai looked up, surprised at the suddenly harsh tone in her voice.

Yukiko, sensing an opening, folded her arms. "If I'm involved in something illegal, I'd at least like to know what it is. already have a felony charge hanging over me - so I would like it, if you want me to risk grinding the ruins of my life prospects into gravel, I'd like to know the name of the grinder."

Iwai stared at her for a second. "…felony charge?"

"Assault, actually. Made a drunk asshole eat the curb. He had prosecutors. I didn't." That this wasn't exactly something she intended to do, she did not mention. Iwai needed to know she had a spine.

Iwai, for his part, didn't seem upset by this new revelation. Surprised, certainly, but the expression was a bit more impressed, and… sympathetic?

He simply cocked a small grin. "…huh. Didn't take you for a sukeban." He paused. "Then again, you did willingly help me… do all that, and you're into airsoft, so, I'm not sure what else I was expecting…" 

Yukiko opened her mouth to object… and then remembered she was literally a black-haired female juvenile delinquent who solved mysteries to save a high school from crime in secret. "…shouldn't I be using yo-yos, then?" She asked that with a shrug. 

"Eh, a literal toy is a crap weapon - at least that gun can really sting if it hits." Iwai shrugged. "But yeah. I'll admit it, that gun was literally made to look as real as possible - enough to fool someone else. If those detectives caught it, they'd be wondering if I was making fake goods - which I'm pretty sure I was reported for possibly doin' in the first place, so…"

"I believe it. Gave me a fright until I saw the battery slot." Yukiko spoke with a little back-handed praise, still wary of the man. "You're quite talented, I must say."

"…thanks. I'll take the compliment." Iwai processed that for a second, before leaning back. "And I'll thank you not to reveal it - 'specially since you're an accomplice now. On tape." 

As if to illustrate his point, his finger went into the general direction of the security camera.

Yukiko glanced over it before a bit passed. "…hm. Wasn't going to."

The innmaiden shrugged, remembering how Morgana pointed out that more realistic airsoft guns caused more damage in the Metaverse. "Me, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind a customer for… guns of similar quality."

Iwai's brow furrowed. "…huh."

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence as the store owner mulled it over.

"…wanna talk in the back?" He spoke, still looking a bit perturbed by Yukiko's sudden spine. "I… think I may have a suggestion you'd like."


(Music – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

May 6th, 2016 – Untouchable, Backroom – 6:46 AM

Yukiko's first reaction to the locked back room was as dignified and detailed as she could manage:

"H-Holy… jeez!"

The place was almost a portal into the Elemental Plane of Airsoft - she was quite surprised to see the degree of weapons that lined the walls, the floors, and even the boxes – guns of every imaginable kind were on display, as well as possibly enough melee weapons to arm a thousand-man mock medieval reenactment. For a moment, she wondered if she had actually stumbled on a real gun-running operation, before noticing that a couple were still missing distinctly plastic pieces of the gun, not quite yet complete.

After her jaw rebooted, Yukiko couldn’t help but whistle in amazement. “You seriously keep all of this behind stock?!”

“Well… more or less.” Iwai said with a wry chuckle. “There’s a reason why these items – and, for instance, the gun you received – aren't available on the common market.”

Yukiko, in particular, glanced over one of the Glock-looking airsofts out of curiosity. "That's a fair assessment, honestly. Though I'm wondering who the heck you are, given you have all… this."

Iwai frowned immediately. "…you know what, I could ask the exact same thing for you, kid."

Yukiko glanced in a bit of shock. "…um, I'm sorry?"

"Kid, did I stutter?" Iwai now spoke in an authoritarian tone, almost interrogative. "Who the hell are you, exactly? People don't suddenly just decide they want in upon hearing what the contraband they had was."

That was a good question. Telling him directly what she does nowadays would kind of be a bad look, and it certainly wasn't as though Yukiko was eager to admit her Adventures Of Stealing A Has-Been Sex Offender's Heart. So with a deep breath in, and out, she opted to give the "metaphorically true" angle.

"…well, I guess you can say I'm a sukeban, of sorts." Yukiko began, carefully phrasing her white lie. "…I'll be honest, I attract some bad attention due to my record… and I think a couple might help with warding creeps away."

"And pepper spray won't?" Iwai retorted, before pausing to mull over the instantaneous nature of his response. "…heh. Though, I can see you got the heart of an enthusiast, at least. You're a strange one, kid."

He thought over it. "…wait a sec. Yeah… this could work…"

He looked up. "I think I can make some of the better guns for you. But I expect you to have the money. These things are worth tens of thousands of yen per unit. If I'm feelin' especially hungry or pissed, some even reach the millions."

"Well, I never expected you to work for free." Yukiko admitted with a shrug. "It's not like I expect to need new guns all the time."

"True enough. But forgive me for bein' a little skeptical you can cough up the cash even that often." He said, walking over. "I ain't a bad dude, though. I'm willing to compromise from time to time... If you help me out with my 'business.' Which is going to involve a bit more than just hiding a gun that the buyer didn't want anymore. Smugglin' goods, destroying some evidence - I'm strictly in the gray market side of things, but some stuff, I prefer the cops not to know."

Yukiko began to wonder if she may have jumped the airsoft gun a bit on confronting Iwai, but nodded. "And as a reward, I get discounts on guns, I guess?"

"Along with pay if you work in the shop itself, and the 'special' menu. Including, yes, some flamethrowers." Iwai grinned darkly. "Whaddaya say?"

For a moment, the inn maiden considered backing out…

The next moment, an image of a giant pink ogre manifested in her mind. Along with other potential Shadow Selves, specifically those more resistant to conventional melee weaponry.

"…it's terrible, but I don't have a choice." She admitted, before smiling wryly. "I'm in!"

"You don't know what you're talkin' about. This is a great deal." Iwai said, cheekily. "Gotta fight evil with evil, after all… I need some pawns on my side, too."

Yukiko blinked. "Huh?"

"You'll probably find out, soon as he calls me… don't talk to no one about this. Got it? Just follow my order." Iwai said, seriously.

Yukiko saluted. "Sir, yes sir!"

"You know, the attitude wouldn't look good on your employee evaluation, if I needed those." Iwai snarked back. "As it is, the quality of gettin' dead or seriously injured if you ignore someone who knows what they're doing. But, so long as it's snark, I'll work on that special menu for you."

Yukiko smiled, a bit more genuinely. "And for that, I am grateful."


(Music – Interrogation –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GSY0ZtwD1M)

???-???-???

"It seems you had model guns in your possession as well.” Sae mused over the drugged Yukiko. “Their detail goes beyond a simple hobby. I'm sure some people believed those guns were real. You'll tell me how you procured them, won't you?”

Yukiko raised an eyebrow. "…I bought them? I think we covered that…"

"…besides that." Sae admitted. "Tell me, who was your supplier, and how did you build a rapport with him?"


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Hanged Man Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

HANGED MAN (XII) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

“Well, I think that wraps up business for today, don’t you think?” Iwai began suckling on his lollipop. “Come back when you want access to the good stuff.”

Yukiko bowed. "I won't pass this up. Thank you.

“…also, don’t you have school to attend to?”

It only took those words for Yukiko to realize just how late she was. Needless to say, she ran out in quite the hurry.


(Music – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 6th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Hallway – 10:43 AM

The vow for total secrecy lasted about six minutes of conversation with Chie.

"YOU'RE DOING WHAT WITH AN ARMS DEALER?!" Chie cried out; she looked utterly mortified.

"Keep your voice down!" Yukiko shushed Chie immediately; she thanked her lucky starts nobody was around the private little alley of the school hallway she tucked Chie into for her report. "Also, technically it's a counterfeit arms dealer."

Yukiko thought about what she was saying, before cringing. "…okay, I know that sounds just as bad, but there's a big difference - "

"OF COURSE THERE IS!" Chie yelled indignantly. "One sends people to a hospital, not the morgue! IT'S STILL BAD!"

"I know it's bad, but what choice do we have?" Yukiko cocked an eyebrow, more than a bit amused over Chie's flabbergasted reaction. "It's not like we live in Texas, you know…"

"I… y-you… how are you so casual about this?!" Chie sputtered. "You are playing fixer, and you're like, 'it's a part-time job'?!" She shook herself, recomposing enough to look furious. "No. Not in a million years. That's it, you're not going back to Iwai's."

Morgana stuck his head out. "…and how do you expect us to get better weapons then?"

Chie blinked. "Uhh… well, I, uh… I can modify my cosplay… a… a bit…" She trailed off, realizing the issue.

"Yeah, I'm gonna say not to sweat it…" Ryuji said, rubbing the back of his neck. "If he turns out that bad, we can just, yanno, steal his heart."

Chie opened her mouth, trying to find a reason to object, and finding words failed her; she groaned indignantly.

"…fine." She finally said, sagging. "I know, it's just… I got stuff from him, and I discover he's apparently some mind of black marketeer…"

"I'm not blaming you." Yukiko said, shrugging. "It's uh… a big discovery."

"…that seems downplaying it heavily." Ann spoke with the expression one would wear upon seeing the face of God. "But, I… really don't exactly know any other airsoft stores, so uh… guess we kinda gotta deal…" 

"…doesn't mean I'm happy about it, though…" Chie pouted. "And I forgot why I was here to begin with. Err… oh yeah, the PhanSite!" 

Chie pulled out her phone. "It’s like you said, Ann, right? That somebody put up a part of the site for requests! Most of it's petty junk, but there's something that sounds like they seriously need our help.”

Ann looked stunned. “Wait, what?! Are you actually saying that we already have a request?!“

Morgana came fully out of his bag, now fully invested in the conversation. "Aha! Then that means I can show you guys how to access Mementos!”

“…um, question?” Yukiko turned to her not-a-cat friend. "Who named it that? Were they eating mints at the time…?”

Morgana faltered. "That… is honestly a good question. A memento is an artifact of memory, so I think that's more likely, but still. It is a weird name for a giant Palace…"

Ann didn't seem particularly amused with the distinction 'Palace'. "…um, yeah. If it's anything like Kamoshida's… count me out." 

Morgana grimaced before hurriedly replying. "Thankfully, it's not. It's, uh, kinda boring at first glance, actually." A sheepish smile crept over his felid lips. "You'll see when we get there. But, anyway, what's the request?"

Chie cleared her throat, reading the post out loud.

Sent By: Anonymous

Topic: Please help!

I literally tried everything I could think of to get him to stop stalking me, but nothing’s working. When I saw the news report featuring Kamoshida and the Phantom Thieves, I thought it was a hoax, but… I need to get him off my back somehow…

Anyway, I used to be the girlfriend of a Natsuhiko Nakanohara. He used to be an art pupil, but he eventually fell into depression, and I hooked up with him after sympathy. But things… didn’t work out, and I had to break up. Ever since, he’s been stalking me wherever I go! I tried putting a restraining order on him, but I was dismissed due to him being the teller at the municipal ward! I REALLY am getting really scared… with what that Kamoshida figure did, I don’t want anything happening to me… so scared…

Please… I don’t know if this is a hoax or not, but please, do something! I don’t care what you do, just please, tell him to go away!

The party stood in silence. Ann immediately felt her hands ball out in anger.

“Damn it, that bastard…” Ann’s voice rose to a venomous hiss. “How could he stalk her like that?! Doesn’t he have any respect for her?!”

Ryuji nodded. “Sounds like a Palace owner to me. The sooner we clean up the piece-of-shit, the better!”

It's at that point that Morgana cleared his throat. “Well, uh… actually, he isn’t a Palace owner, Ryuji. That's why he's in Mementos.”

“Huh?” Yukiko – as with the rest of the group – turned to Morgana. “What do you mean by that, Morgana?”

“Y-Yeah, that’s… actually kinda worrisome.” Chie grimaced. “How are we gonna steal his heart if we don’t have a Palace to visit?”

"…we talked about this yesterday, Chie." Morgana said in a deadpan voice. "Mementos has him in there, along with his Treasure. There isn't even security, just a room."

"…oh. Oh, yeah." The martial artist tomboy facepalmed. "Sorry… but hey, if it's everyone's Palace, does that mean we can hit multiple targets if they're all in there?"

"And there goes that penalty!" Morgana said excitedly. "Exactly what I was thinking, as we get more people requesting us on the website."

"Well, that's convenient! If nothing else, we at least have a target now.” Yukiko nodded happily. “Then again, I have to be sharp, what with the exams coming up."

(Music Stops)

The color drained from Ryuji's face. "…ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, yeah… the midterms…"

Ryuji croaked. "...fuck."

(Music – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergzVAkszi8)

Yukiko felt her heart plummet. "You didn't."

"I was studying! It's just, that, well… Golden Week! And… everything to do with that jerk!" He rubbed the scar the bald man had left. "I was so doped up on pain meds I was seeing double!"

"Yeah, but you went off them!" Chie said, exasperated. "And that doesn't excuse you for not studying during Golden Week!"

"Hey, what kind of kid studies on holidays?!" Ryuji loudly yelled as Yukiko's hand started going up, before reflexively adding an addendum to that statement. "…don't answer that. But seriously, why must there be exams?!"

Ann rolled her eyes. "And you wonder why you get poor grades…"

Ryuji seemed more than a little offended. “Shaddup! Who’re you one to talk?! You constantly bomb every exam that isn’t English!”

“Wha – “ Now Ann was the one who looked appalled. “Are you freaking kidding me?! Must you bring up my failures now?!”

Chie, being the natural mediator, immediately stepped in. “Alright, alright guys, calm down! We’ll work this out somehow. Point is, we gotta study! I really don’t want to screw up my grades…”

“Huh?” Yukiko blinked. “Wait, Chie, I didn't see your hand going up…"

“A-Ah?!” Chie froze up. "Uh… of course I did! All week! Certainly wasn't planning on just hoping I'd retain knowledge from the Kamoshida-less week and cram on the weekend! Hahahahaaaaaaa I NEED TO GET TO THE LIBRARY!"

With that, she dashed off, quickly followed by Ryuji.

Yukiko blinked, then looked at Ann expectantly.

"I'm in heeled boots." Ann said as she walked in that direction. "I don't want sprained ankles when studying."

Yukiko looked at her own shoes. "Good point."

Ann was going to leave… before suddenly stopping.

(Music Stops)

"Hey, actually…" Ann looked down on the ground. "Now's probably a good time to ask you something."

Yukiko blinked, legitimately curious. "…oh? Something wrong, Ann-chan?"

The half-Danish girl laughed awkwardly. "Dude, ya don't need to use honorifics with me, now. We know each other well enough. It's just, uhhh…"

Uncharacteristically, Ann blushed. "Um… do you… think I… umm…"

Eventually, though… she spat it out.

"…do you think I have a chance with Shiho?" She spoke in an unusually hushed tone, looking shyer by the minute.

(Music - Confession/Secret - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ED7kzAmnAY)

Yukiko gawked. "Waaaaaaaait. You're… you're not implying - "

"I-I mean, hypothetically! I just… I dunno…" Ann sighed angrily. "…the, uh. The guy who punched Ryuji's lights out, he, uh… made some comments about my relationship with Shiho, called her a…" A pause. "…well, y'know. That word. And then he went off on a tangent how I should date her for 'practice' and all that crap, and…"

Ann grimaced. "…I… it got me thinking. I was just, uh… I was wondering if I… if any of what he said was… applicable."

Yukiko realized she was in a very loaded social situation, gulping slightly. She recognizes that given Shiho's precarious mental health situation alongside her only hearing of second-hand accounts of what happened, she needed to inquire more.

She crossed her arms, wordlessly. "…do you want it to be applicable?"

"No! I mean…" Ann groaned loudly. "Look, I don't know! All of this is just confusing, damnit! I just… I really want to be by Shiho's side, yet I don't wanna look like I'm taking advantage of her - "

"…Ann. You're not." Yukiko spoke, firmly. "You saved her, Ann. You're the last person I'd think of to actually hurt her like that."

"Still…" Ann sighed, looking ready to cry. "I've just… I don't know, goddamnit! I don't want to overstep my bounds…"

Yukiko thought about it. She smiled, quietly walked up to Ann, and placed her hand on her shoulder.

"…Ann." Yukiko smiled. "Did you bring it up with her yet?"

Ann stared dumbly, before turning a flushed shade of red. "…no. Like a disaster, I didn't even think about that…"

"I think you should ask her before you jump to conclusions." Yukiko giggled. "She very clearly loves you."

Ann flushed, before stammering. "Sh-She does WHAT?!"

"I mean… yes! Well, no!" Yukiko tried to correct herself, before breathing in and out. "…point is, you don't know how'd she feel, but… she cares a lot about you. You give her life meaning, Ann." Yukiko nodded. "You can bring up what's said and just… talk about it. There's no shame in doing so, alright?"

Ann's lip trembled. "…you think so?"

"Indubitably." Yukiko smirked cheerfully. "Besides, if my guess is right? It'd be the final middle finger to the Jackass Who Shall Not Be Named."

Ann paused… before cracking into a relieved smile. She awkwardly laughed, before blushing a bit.

"…y-yeah. You're right. I… I need to think about this." Ann smiled, turning red. "Thank you… Yukiko."

"My pleasure. I hope this all works out for you; I'm confident it will." Yukiko nodded.

It was in that moment she shot up. "Oh! Uhhh, don't you have exams to deal with?"

Ann grimaced. "Yeaaaaaaah… I do… um, I better go!"

She nodded, before quickly going off. "Thanks, Yukiko! I'll, um, think about what you said!"

And just like that - and in contrast to her statement from earlier - she ran off, even given the high heels she wore.

With that, Ann vanished down the hall, leaving Yukiko alone with her thoughts. And a not-a-cat.

(Music Stops)

Not for long though, as a quiet voice cleared his throat behind her.

"Huh?" Yukiko whipped around, to find a somewhat familiar shock of blue hair that, to her shame, took a second or two to attach to name of the boy who had it.

That was before she looked mortified he saw all that.

"M-Mishima?!" Yukiko stammered. "Did you - did you eavesdrop!"

Mishima winced. "…ahhhh… yeah, sorry, I did. I was actually wanting to talk with you about sometime."

"W-Well, couldn't you have - ugh, nevermind." Yukiko realized there was no use persecuting Mishima for being a spy when he wasn't even doing anything bad. "So… what did you want to say?"

It took a second for the shy volleyball player to remember what he was going to say. "…you heard of that Phantom Aficionado Website, right?"

As Yukiko continued to look confused, a moment of silence passed before Mishima decided to speak. Taking a deep breath, he found the courage to look Yukiko in the eye.

Yukiko stared at him. "…um, what website?" She asked with a wince, before immediately asking the God of Lies to strike her down for her incompetence. 

"…I'm the one who started it." Mishima cringed before laughing awkwardly, deciding that it wasn't worth the effort to hide himself. "I'm telling you this, because, um…"

He leaned in. "You guys are the Phantom Thieves, aren't you?"  He whispered with the jubilance of a comic book fanboy.

Yukiko felt herself paling. "…eep." 

"Yeah, it's sudden, I know…" Mishima said, more normally. “I’m on your side, don’t worry. I’m not going to snitch on the person who took down Kamoshida. Really, this is… kind of atonement, for being used against you."

Yukiko released a breath she didn't know she was holding. "Oh, thank heavens. I think my life passed before my eyes there…" She shuggered. "Don't scare me like that next time, please?"

"Sorry!" Mishima said, quickly. "…seriously, though, it's not much in the way of nearly getting you all expelled like that. And helping others, too."

Yukiko looked curious. "Hm?"

"There are tons of evil adults out there - not just Kamoshida, sadly." Mishima began, looking out the window. "But I'm sure the Phantom Thieves can do something, after managing to make Kamoshida feel guilty enough to confess. So I made a forum to collect people who needed their help."

"Oh! Well, actually, you've been a great deal of help already!" Yukiko said. "We have one."

"R-Really? Wow, wasn't expecting it that fast," Mishima said, taken aback. "Probably will make the anonymous poll I posted about whether people believe in the Phantom Thieves or not to... Two digits in front of the decimal point. On the dedicated followers' site." He continued, despairing.

"Hey, it's not your fault, man." Yukiko said with a smile. "Raising it is our problem, not yours."

"Oh! Um…" Mishima blushed, looking bashful. "…th… thanks."

He drew himself up. "But I promise this - I'll do everything in my power to make this a support for you. I'll live up to your expectations - I promise!"

Yukiko didn't exactly notice when she told Mishima she had expectations for him, but she felt his earnestness nontheless.


(Music – Interrogation –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GSY0ZtwD1M)

???-???-???

"Besides the public's reaction to your group, there were others who supported you.” Sae said, tapping her food “...Someone who enthusiastically cheered the Phantom Thieves on. Perhaps they were quite close...”

"It was a bit rocky at times... But yeah," Yukiko said, trying to somehow blink out the drugs.

"I see... so what do you have to say to that?"


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Moon Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

MOON (XVIII) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music Stops)

“Well… I should probably get going, huh?” Mishima gave a wry smile. “Good luck on the future exams, too!”

“Wait! I still… have… questions…”

As Mishima ran off, Yukiko pouted over how she didn’t get to finish her thought in time. But that was beside the point. In due time, she had Nakanohara’s heart to change.

And, well, the exams.


(Music – Restlessness – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf9Yyu66HFc)

May 6th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Principal Office – 10:53 AM

On the other end of the school however, a much less enjoyable aftereffect than a new fandom was manifesting.

"Excuse me… did you call, Principal Kobayakawa?”

Makoto Niijima, the brunette third-year president of Shujin's student council, carefully stepped in, her scarlet-red eyes contrasting greatly with the meek and subservient air that followed her into the principal's office.

Kobayakawa looked up, frowning. "You saw the state Kamoshida-kun was in, didn't you? It's as if his personality has completely changed. Something is definitely wrong here..."

Not in any way Makoto would describe as an actual problem, but she held her tongue - best not to rock the boat here, and accomplish nothing except making Kobayakawa upset. 

"I'm not sure I follow…" Makoto spoke with an air of caution, genuinely wondering what she had to do with it.

"From what I've heard, it appears as though some students were meddling in his business." The principal quickly continued. "If they did something to him… who could they be?"

She caught on. "Are you saying the Phantom Thieves may have caused Kamoshida to change somehow? And that they are linked to these students?" She didn't bother with the preamble, having guessed what Kobayakawa wanted and thought.

"That is what I wish to know." In a show of confirmation, the pudgy principal nodded. "Even if it takes some probing into student matters. Which I would like you, as Council President, to do."

Seems a bit intrusive. And pointless. "It is true that there are many rumors surrounding Mr. Kamoshida, but… isn't there there other things I could work on? This seems like a law enforcement matter."

"Yes, but the school does not need further tarring of its reputation after the humiliation and scandal these 'Phantom Thieves' put us through, to be frank." Kneading he hands together, his elbows stood upright on the desk as he peered into Makoto's eyes. "If a student is able to finger the antisocial force that is disrupting our social order, we can show the mass media that it was a fluke."

Makoto felt her heart sink. You… you really don't care, do you? "

"…I'll try to see what I can find out, but I have to warn you up front, my sister is part of the team investigating similar cases." She said that after a prolonged sigh, reaching for the excuse to avoid the issue altogether. "If she gets charged with investigating the Phantom Thieves, it could be a conflict of interests that could make prosecuting them harder."

"…hm." Kobayakawa thought on this. "…I see your point."

Then, his face split into a smile that instantly told Makoto that her scheme to keep out of the school administration's internal politics had failed drastically.

"You know, though… you have been at the top of your class since day one. Your conduct is good, and your instructors favor you. I could write you a letter of glowing recommendation to any college of your choosing."

"I… thank you?" Makoto instinctively winced, dreading where this was going.

"…it is, however, a shame that your sister has to project an attitude of absolute perfection in her career as a prosecutor, giver her gender and age." He continued casually, with a sinister little smile. "Why, any scandal at all might devastate her prospects utterly."

Makoto wasn't stupid. She knew what Kobayakawa was suggesting.

She blinked once, twice in shock, before furrowing her brow. "…I apologize, I fail to see what you are implying - "

"What I am implying is nothing of the sort - but simply a… hypothetical, you can say." He said with a smarmy chuckle, turning to her with that same false smile. "If, for instance, a gossip magazine happened to learn of a… controversial Sapphic relationship between a young, hotshot prosecutor's sister, and, for the sake of argument, a billionaire heiress…"

Makoto felt her blood turn to ice at that moment.

"…you wouldn't dare." She squeaked, not even questioning how he knew.

"Me? I have no idea what you're talking about. It's just a hypothetical, as I am certain I've clarified." The smug smile fell. "I simply hope it remains such, more so than any conflict of interest. The difficulty of a case does not matter in the court of public opinion. So I would appreciate it if you looked into this as soon as possible."

Makoto would have given up one of her eyes to deliver a punch to Kobayakawa's prissy little face in that moment…

…but not the two most important women in her life.

"…yes." Makoto began, stiff with hatred of every phoneme coming from her mouth. "If you'll excuse me, then…"

With that, she forced herself to walk off, casually.

"Ah… young love." The principal said to himself with a dark chuckle. "Truly beautiful."   

He looked down at his phone, grimacing. "Strong enough to lift the albatross off my neck, too…" He turned it on, calling a very important old friend.

"It's me, sir. My apologies for troubling you at such a busy time… yes, it's about the matter we discussed earlier. I have all bases covered. The investigation will begin immediately…"


(Music – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

May 7th, 2016 – Shibuya Station – 3:44 PM

As soon as classes concluded, Yukiko and co. proceeded to meet up by the Hachiko statue in Shibuya Station, in a private enough place that teenagers literally vanishing from reality might be missed from the general consciousness.

As commotion continued to overtake the station, Chie browsed through her phone, thinking to herself.

“Alright, so!” Chie gave a cheerful smile. “This is gonna be the part where we go into… uhh, where now?”

"Mementos, Chie." Yukiko responded, frankly, before glancing over at Morgana. "Hey Morgana-kun, you know how to access this 'Mementos', don’t you?”

Morgana – in all his fluffy glory – jumped out of the bag. “You bet! It's actually simple - I checked your app, and yeah, it recognizes the name. Just ‘Mementos’ in the 'location' field of the App.”

“That simple, huh?” Ryuji said, turning to Yukiko as she proceeded to type in the name into the app. “Though, uh, what about the name of the guy? Natsuhiko Nakanohara, right?"

"Actually…" Yukiko said, frowning as the "name" and "distortion" fields suddenly greyed out as she finished it out. "I don't think we can."

"Yeah, just us being aware of him is going to help us find him in Mementos." Morgana nodded. "Hit it!"

Shrugging, the inn maiden did so.

Match found. Beginning navigation.

In the blink of an eye, everyone disappeared. Everyone – not a single soul surrounded them, and the once bustling Shibuya station was now completely deserted.

“Agh, creepy…” Chie shuddered a bit.

Yukiko’s bag shuffled a bit. “Agh, too small! Gotta get out…!”

And just like that, Morgana in all his cartoony glory, popped out of the bag.

“Urgh, sometimes I forget how cramped that thing can be…” Morgana rubbed his back. “But… yeah. Ouch.”

"So... I guess we're in the Metaverse, now." Ann looked around. "But, where's all the people? Shouldn't there be, I dunno, those cognition things? Or Shadows?"

"There are. They're just not up here." Morgana shrugged, motioning to the subway entrance.

Yukiko frowned. "Huh. I don't think that's where I'd put my Shadow for safekeeping, but… hang on." She paused, looking down at herself. "Where's the Phantom Thieves outfits?"

Ryuji took a glance at his clothes. “Damn it! I was looking forward to the cool clothes…”

"I wasn't!" Chie exclaimed all too happily.

“Don’t worry, it’ll materialize once we enter the subway.” Morgana gave a cheeky grin. “This isn't actually in the Palace, so Mementos doesn't regard us as a threat yet. We'll change as soon as we're in the subway."

"…aww…" Chie took the moment to pout, disappointed.

"Yeah… guess there's nowhere else to go, huh…?" A sigh. "Great. Well, let's go then."

"And hopefully no more pervert teachers to deal with…" Ryuji shuddered.

It wasn't long, then, before Ryuji followed the rest of the Persona users down to the subway station.


(Music – Mementos – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbT5T35aUUE)

May 7th, 2016 – Mementos, Entrance – ???

Morgana walked down the stairs, and the more they proceeded down it, the normal lighting started to become a dark, dim red.

By the actual sublevels, the entire subway had become a hellish red. Adding to the dark, threatening feel, a strange set of vines that resembled nothing so much as blood veins and muscle had overtaken much of the escalator, giving the area the look of the interior of some great concrete monster.

"…okay, I just remembered, I suddenly always had tutoring!" Chie whimpered, before swiveling around 180 degrees. "You guys go ahead into the Train System of the Damned, I'll be… anywhere else!"

Yukiko quickly grabbed her. "Wait! We're doing this for that woman on the PhanSite, remember? Not us."

Chie winced up recognizing how selfish her own cowardice was acting up to be, before whining. "Aghhhhhh, why meeeeeeee…"

It took a bit of fortitude on the tomboy's part, but she walked with the other Thieves down the last couple stairs; a blue flash signifying her changing into her Thief uniform.

"…aaaaaaaugh! As if things weren't uncomfortable enough!" Chie, or rather Dragon, whined loudly, trying to hide her bared midriff while an embarrassed blush creeps on her face.

"…yeah. This is definitely a Palace." Panther remarked, nudging some of the veins with her rematerialized gun suspiciously. "…it really feels different from Kamoshida's, but seriously. Not what I expected from 'everyone's Palace.'"

"As far as I can tell, there's really not much in the way of distortion, here." Mona said with a shrug. "Not in comparison. All we have are the Will Seed plants - which you're touching, right now. They actually have some pretty nice-looking flowers, though they wilt as soon as they're outside Mementos."

"Still doesn't explain why they look so… gory." Phoenix trailed off there, gingerly stepping over a clot. "Or, for that matter, so gaudy."

"My guess? The public's general awareness that they are desire makes them ugly, so, they are." Mona walked over. "Anyway, the problem with exploring Mementos, besides the fact it has lesser Shadows just like a personal Palace, is that it's at least the size of the actual subway, if not substantially larger because it extends deep into the Metaverse's crust… and it changes shape when a conscious will isn't observing it, so any given floor will be different every time we explore it."

Dragon's jaw dropped. "…oh, you're kidding. We're going to have to explore a subway every time we want to stop a stalker?!"

"Yeaaaaaah… sorry." Mona winced. "This place is literally made of the cognitions of everyone who doesn't have a Persona or a Palace… even a strong daydream is going to change how a corridor is shaped. On the bright side, that means that we're not going to encounter random Shadow Selves on the way to our actual targets. We need to know of them and their names for them to exist in our cognitions, and thus, for a door to their rooms to appear. That, and there's plenty of loot down here, so if we need a lot of random items and money…"

"Yeah, but we still need to walk there." Skull shook his bum leg. "My leg can endure a lot in the Metaverse, but I ain't gonna fuckin' push it with explorin' a goddamn Shadow-infested train system. Every damn day."

(Music Stops)

Mona suddenly grinned. "Hehehehe… which is why, as your master, I gotcha all covered."

Skull didn't expect that. "…wait, wha?"

He walked to a bare spot near the escalastors, striking a pose. "The time has come… MORGANAAAA… TRANSFORM!”

A puff of smoke surrounded the feline. Once it dissipated, there was less purring… and a lot more engine-roaring.

Skull looked suitably baffled. “Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me.”

"N-No waaaaa-hehehe-ay… whaaat?!" Yukiko looked gleeful.

(Music – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergzVAkszi8)

Mona went from a cat to a car. It still obviously had feline features, such as a tail, metallic ears, and the headlights being his blue eyes but now Mona was effectively an armored van with black and red coloring, with a big golden stripe down his center.

The party almost had their jaws hit the metaphorical floor.

“Come now, Panther.” Mona didn't have a visible mouth, but Yukiko suspected he was grinning smugly. "Ladies first.”

“Wh – Th – “ Dragon gawked onwards. “HOW DID THE FUCKING NOT-A-CAT BECOME A NOT-A-CAR?!”

"This comes from the way cognition materializes in the Metaverse, plus some extra training! It's similar to how your Phantom Thief outfits work! " Morgana was obviously proud of his accomplishment, but not before pausing. "…though, I have no idea why cats and buses are closely associated enough for me to do this."

“Snrk… heehee…” At this point, Phoenix was lost. “PFFFT, AHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

“Aaaaaaaaaaand we’ve lost Phoenix…” Skull shook his head. "…wait, why didn't ya do this in Kamoshida's Palace?"

"Do I look like something that could fit in there?" Mona retorted, sounding a bit helpless. "Do you really think a bus could help in climbing a chandelier?"

"…point taken." Skull said, before turning to the girls. "You heard him, ladies."

“Wha?!” Panther looked almost offended with Skull’s gesture. “Oh, hell no! I’m not getting into that… that thing! Just listen to the purring sounds! That's not an engine, that's feline anatomy!"

“P-Purring sounds?!” Phoenix cackled. “EVEN BETTER! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

“Ugh…” As Dragon grabbed the helpless Phoenix by the arm, the tomboy shook her head. “Let’s… let’s just go.”

It took a long bit of time to really buckle up, but Phoenix eventually calmed down - when she became aware of her location after being pulled to the elemental portal of hysterics, she was still in a bit of delightful giggling all about.

"Heeeheheheheheheeheeeeee…" Phoenix cackled one last time. "Hahaha…! S-Sorry, g-guys - heehee - I just, t-this is so… oh, my God…"

"Yukiko! Focus!" Dragon cried out, a bit desperately. "D-Do you know how to drive?!"

"H-Huh?!" Skull looked flabbergasted. "Wait, why her?!"

"H-Hahaahaa... aaah... ah, um…" Yukiko, given her laughing fit, soon found herself sitting at the driver’s seat with Dragon adjacent to her. Skull and Panther sat in the back seat. Meanwhile, all traces of humor instantly dissipated (or, rather, dissipated over time, given the length of Phoenix’s laughing fits) upon seeing the controls.

“U-Umm...” Phoenix's confidence disappated. “Should… I be the one to drive this thing?”

"Someone has to." Morgana's voice came from the dashboard. "Besides, you're in the front seat anyways; buses don't exactly have a cognition of driving themselves, after all, so, someone needs to work the wheel. Just - be gentle!"

“You’re kinda our leader. I really don’t want to be driving the car into whatever eldritch horrors we’ll confront…” Dragon gave a comforting smile that instantly dissipated. “Um… you do know how to drive, right?”

Phoenix fell silent for a while.

"…uh, surely our leader has… some kind of experience?", a suddenly very nervous Mona said.

“Um… in video games.” She admitted. “Only driving game I really liked was Crazy Taxi, though.”

After two seconds of processing this information, Dragon, Skull and Panther hastily buckled their seatbelts and began praying to whatever kami was above.

"…eep." Mona added, feeling the seatbelts.

“Alright, umm…” As Dragon looked on with fear, Phoenix turned the key. “This… is how it works, huh?”

The car began purring in both a cat and car sense. “Doing great. This feels goooooooooood. Heehee!”

Skull cringed upon hearing Mona’s purring. “Ugh, what kind of car is this creepy-ass piece of junk?! Just drive already, Phoenix!”

In the years to follow, Ryuji Sakamoto would note this was the dumbest statement he had ever made. None of his co-passengers, or Mona ever challenged him on this.

By the time Phoenix had any modicum of understanding of the car, the entryway to Mementos looked as though an earthquake tore the place apart.


(Music – Mementos – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbT5T35aUUE)

May 7th, 2016 – Mementos, Qimranut, Floor 1 – ???

“Now just to be clear: are we certain that I’ve been permanently banned from driving the Morganamobile ever agai – “

“Yes.”

Upon listening to the party’s stern and unanimous response, Phoenix felt herself slump in her seat. Her attempt at navigating the desolate hallways of Mementos, while eventful, proved to be to be anything but successful… actually, that was being too generous by several degrees of magnitude. And by “anything but successful,” what was really meant by “anything but anything resembling coherent driving that wouldn’t cause a splitting migraine in the collective unconscious.” Her driving was an exponent or three worse than that.

Thankfully for everybody’s sanity and stomach control, Skull seemed more than willing to take the wheel for a change, and despite never having driven a vehicle before in his life, it only took a couple stalls for him to putter down the tracks

Phoenix had to admit she was more than a little envious of that quality. Having that sort of self-reliance was something she always yearned for.

Regardless, Phoenix sat in the backseat next to Dragon, while Skull and Panther were in the driver and co-pilot’s seats respectively. The silence within the Morganamobile was just as dreary as it was outside in the dismal red, and a part of Phoenix felt she was to blame for that. 

“I’m sorry everyone…” Phoenix said, breaking the silence. “I really screwed up, didn’t I?”

She almost didn’t notice Dragon pat her on the back. The black-haired inn maiden raised her head to meet Chie’s eyes, her mouth locked in a tender, small smile.

“Hey, don’t beat yourself up over this, Yukiko.” Dragon smiled, nodding her head. “We all make mistakes; just because you can’t drive doesn’t mean you’re even close to an unfit leader.”

Phoenix thought about the words Dragon said to her before smiling. “You… really mean it when you say that, Chie?”

“Well, duh! Of course I do!” Dragon grinned. “I wouldn’t be able to make snap decisions like you do in a million years; you really pulled through when we relied on you after all. Remember those Shadows we fought on our way here?”

Admittedly, that didn't work as well as it might have, as the Shadows in question were drawn by the sound of the "earthquake." Any doubts about Mementos being a Palace were quickly quashed when the Phantom Thieves saw their masked forms - giant, grotesque humanoids made of melted black slime and dotted with faces. Chie, naturally, had been seriously tempted to take the stairs out after seeing that, along with two of the other human members, but Phoenix's own speed and a quick toss of Morgana's cat form removed the mask of the lead Shadow, revealing it to be nothing more than a Pyro Jack. This made the rest far, far less intimidating.

“Hey… thank you, Chie.” Phoenix smiled, a bit of the weight of shame lifted off of her. “You’re… you’re really a good friend, you know that?”

Dragon bashfully looked away in that moment, blushing a bit. “D’awww, well you know. Friends stick up for each other, yeah? That’s the least I can do for someone who means so much to me…”

Phoenix giggled for a moment before the Morganamobile came to a halt. Both teenaged girls turned to greet the sight in front of them.

“Hey, uh… don't look now, but there's something... real weird ahead.” Skull hollered back at the group. “It's a… I dunno, take a look out the window."

They did so - and promptly saw the issue.

The train tracks, previously completely mundane despite their surroundings, suddenly lifted straight off the ground, twisting around and over each other into the room ahead.

Said room was also the more alarming bit by far - besides being covered in the vein-like fronds of the Will Seed plants, the inside was obscured by a giant portal, a vortex of angry red and black energy sucking in the darkness around it like a hungry beast.

"…I'm going to take a wild guess. And say that's important, dangerous, or both." Phoenix promptly commented, eyes wide.

"It's both, sadly." Mona spoke, currently all business. "That, right there? That's the kind of phenomenon you expect to see around an infant Palace - the same rooms where the Shadows of potential Palace masters dwell."

"And since we can only find the rooms of people we know the names of… this is Nakanohara's room, isn't it?" Panther finished with a raised eyebrow, albeit one not visible due to her mask.

"You're as intelligent as you are beautiful, Panther!" Mona exclaimed cheerfully. "Yeah, this is probably where Nakanohara's personal domain is. That sucking-in effect is not just for show; if his desires are allowed to fester into an entire worldview, he could develop his own Palace."

"So, in that case…" Dragon sighed, grimly. "Ready to head in?"

Yukiko nodded. "A one… a two, and a - "

"Three!" Skull said jumping into the swirling chaos to find…

(Music Stops)

…a completely normal looking room, for Mementos.

Well, okay, not really normal. The entire room seemed carved out of black marble, with red, glowing arcane designs coating it like an occult spiderweb. In the far back, giant veins of Will Seed plants streamed out of barred windows, pulsing energy down a long, enormous shaft at the far back, too long and narrow to explore.

But, apart from the portal, everything seemed like a part of Mementos than a personal PalaceEven the tracks straightened out into a mundane dead end.

"…huh." Phoenix looked around. "Not sure whether to be relieved or disappointed this is a… pit stop for the tracks. Not some kind of pocket world…"

"Given how he's a stalker?" Panther rose her eyebrow. "Relieved. Definitely, very much, relieved."

"Yeah, remember, this is a personal chamber in Mementos, not a true Palace. It's simply a seed that the rest of a Palace, made of distortions, can come from. He's isolated, but not truly separate from humanity yet." Mona commented. "But, he could be, so…"

"Not-a-cat's right. We need to - " Skull was cut off be a sudden distraction. "Uh. Given how you're the expert… what's with… that?"

What seemed to be a flame of pure darkness stood in front of the long shaft. Between the flickering black tongues, a figure in a suit and tie, with glowing yellow eyes, could barely be made out.

"…Nakanohara's Shadow, unfortunately" Mona said, seriously. "That aura… that's the mark of a Shadow starting to dominate his counterpart's personality. It's getting too strong for him to ever ignore…"

"So, basically, his distorted desires." Phoenix sighed, getting out of the Morganamobile. "…let's do this."

With a puff of smoke, Morgana went to his normal self, as the five walked up to the potential Palace master

“Hey… hey! You there!” Phoenix hollered. “Are you Nakanohara?!”

(Music – Blood of Villain –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

The Shadow reared up, obviously having been caught off guard. "W-Who are you?!" The aura faded slightly, revealing a pair of glasses and a bowl cut - more or less a prototypical governmental functionary.

"Are you that stalker?" Ann said, obviously feeling not especially forgiving towards anyone who put a woman at risk for obvious reason. "Haven't you ever stopped to think about what your ex feels?"

Shadow Nakanohara snarled, looking outright offended. "How she - since when does that matter?! She agreed to be with me - that means she's my property! It's not like she didn't do the same thing with me! If she wants to throw me away like a plaything, then it's only fair she gets treated like one too!"

…yeah, Phoenix was starting to suspect why this relationship ended badly. Good on the ex.

Skull caught on too. "You… you can't treat someone like shit just because things didn't work out! What a load of crap." He dropped into a fighting stance. "We're gonna change the hearts of all the bastards like you!"

"Are you being serious? There's millions of people way worse than just some guy who wants his girlfriend back!" Nakanohara shot back. "What about Madarame, huh? He stole everything from me, and left her the one bright spot I had left! How is he fine, but you're picking on me?!" 

Dragon blinked. "…uh. Who's Madarame…?"

The shadow gaped at her. "…oh. I get it now. You're idiots. Well, then - I guess I can consider this a service to everyone else!"

With that, the Shadow dissolved into the same red and black slime of other Shadows assuming their true form, and burst out into what Phoenix assumed was close to being his own Persona: a strange imp with orange skin and a bowl cut not unlike Nakanohara’s. In response, the creature hissed hideously and gave a roar.

“All I ever wanted was to be happy again, to be smiled at again, and to have people mean the smile! And you people want to take that from me, too?! If that’s the way ya want to play, hot shot?!” The creature screeched. “Fine! I, Fool Obariyon, will make sure nothing’s left of you pieces of shit! DIE!”

(Music – Keeper of Lust – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBZ4EBaYpbs )

Obariyon proceeded to attempt to make good on that throwing punch after punch, a full-scale murderous Rampage that knocked all five Phantom Thieves over, giving him the opportunity to conjure a Sledgehammer. Mona had just enough time to curse his life before it gave him a nice smack.

“Holy shit! You sonuvabitch…!” Skull cursed to himself, rolling back upwards. “Damn it! Phoenix, what’s our plan of attack?!”

“Working on it!” Phoenix said, face tight with concentration. "Right now though? Lay down the hurt! Continue using magical spells until we hit a weakness!”

“I like the sound of that plan.” Dragon gave an uncharacteristically bloodthirsty smile. “Alright, guys! Let’s teach this stupid devil a lesson!”

Mona grimaced, an expression made more obvious by his new black eye. "You… you guys do that. I need my depth perception back…"

In spite of his human form's bravado, however, Obariyon wasn't nearly as strong as the last Shadow Self fought, even without Morgana slowly recovering from a bad case of hammer-face-itis. As the party responded to his attack in kind, the demonic cat quickly started losing balance - and then, Skull hit him with a Zio, sending the imp flying.

“Aaaaaugh, OW!” Obariyon stumbled away from the room wall, dazed. “That really hurt, you cheeky little shit…!”

“Guys, I think I found a weakness!” Skull grinned smarmily. "Can I do the honors?"

"Floor's yours, Skull!" Phoenix said.

"All right! On the count of three -THREE!"

ALL-OUT ATTACK

As Obariyon's form burst into Shadow blood, Skull sailed outwards...

And right onto his face.

After an interesting yoga pose as his legs curled over his head, he quickly got up, and made a devil horns gesture.

FREAKING BORING.

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

His friends stared at this for a bit.

Mona and Phoenix both suppressed a snort.

"…yeah, I need to work on the landing." He casually said, before wincing. "Still though, damn - that was a bit easier than I anticipated! Was honestly expecting a bit more of a fight."

Mona shrugged. "It's probably because we're all collectively getting used to this, I suppose. But still, good job everyone!"

"Yeah, I… wasn't expecting that to go down so easily. Shows that we're not going up against actual Palace owners just yet." Dragon suppressed a chuckle, before suddenly becoming more serious. "Speaking of…"

(Music – Sunset Bridge – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxDHyhylKrw)

As the party continued to celebrate, Shadow Nakanohara's human form congealed from the remains of Obariyon, slumped over.

"I…" He sighed. "I'm sorry… I get it. Please forgive me…"

Phoenix came over. "…we will, if you're sorry for the right things. We don't want you to be sorry because you got caught."

"I…" Nakanohara closed his eyes. "I… I knew I was being creepy, and possessive, and all that. I just justified it by telling myself that it was right to do so, after how Madarame treated me…"

"…so, you get to be a total jerk to an ex-girlfriend, because someone else treated you like crap?" Dragon said, disbelieving.

"…yeah, yeah, that was what I told myself." he admitted. "I thought that if someone I truly trusted as a teacher and nearly my father only saw me as his possession, then that was how I needed to be to put my life back together. He's done pretty well for himself that way, so I needed to as well, in my fallback career."

"And you started stalking someone who had eff all to do with it." Skull scowled. "I'm, uh, not followin' your logic."

"I was also terrified of being thrown away again." Nakanohara admitted. "So I got… controlling. Bitter. Paranoid… I was so scared of being betrayed again, I started wanting it, so I wouldn't have to dread it anymore. Then, I would've come away from that damn fraud with life skills, instead of years wasted on a guy who saw me as his personal brush…"

Panther frowned. "Let me get this straight. You wanted Madarame to have taught you something about life, so you, basically, ended up deciding that being used and betrayed was the fundamental truth of what your life is." She inhaled. "Look. I'm sorry, but that's… that's not a way to live. No wonder she left you if you were like this all the time."

"…that's true," he admitted. "Deep down, I think I wanted the old man to have cared about me in some way. He even acted that way of respect to me. And that the way he focused on towards me and everyone else was toughening us up for how cutthroat the art world was… that's a load of bullshit. Ichiryusai Madarame cares about nothing and no one except Ichiryusai Madarame. Not even Yusuke…" He drew himself up. "Promise me this. I'll give you my heart, on the condition you check him out for me. Take his heart before he ruins more people. Please?"

Phoenix nodded. "We'll take it, if you promise to stop stalking your ex, apologize, and to clean up your life. That sound good?"

"It sounds perfect." Nakanohara said as his shadowy aura started to become a blue shine similar to how Shadow Kamoshida vanished. "I need to fix my own life before I can share another… thanks for the wake-up call…"

With that, he vanished, leaving behind nothing but a glowing, floating pearl of light.

"…hm. Sounds like we have a new target idea, then?" Dragon inquired.

"Yeah…" Panther frowned, mouthing Madarame's full name. "Madarame... Where have I heard that name before...?"

"While we're on it… what's with the weird floaty thing?" Skull said, eyeing it suspiciously.

"The bud of a Treasure, actually!" Mona cheerfully responded, mouthing a happy grin. "This thing would have sublimated into that thought-form vapor if Nakanohara developed his own Palace. But, he didn't and it's ours now!", he said.

Phoenix grabbed it, causing the light to fade and revealing it to be a pearl with a heart carved into it. "…must've been a gift from his ex." Phoenix guessed.

Obtained 1x Attachment Pearl

"So, Nakanohara's real self had a change of heart, right?" Dragon inquired with a raised eyebrow. "Um… I think. Wait, how are we supposed to know if we did it right?"

"The lady posted his name on the comment thread, right?" Skull crossed his arms, humming to himself. "She'll prolly post again if he really does change."

"You've got a point there." Mona nodded. "But, even if we can't find out, it's still pretty painless compared to a personal Palace. Pretty good place to look for money and loot too, since the constant changing reveals a lot of hidden treasure alcoves."

"It's also nice to be able to give courage to people who post their problems online, right?" Panther grinned, happily. "So! Was there anything else down here, or…?"

"There was, actually!" Mona perked. "We need to go a floor down; there's something I want to make sure of…"


(Music – Mementos – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbT5T35aUUE)

May 7th, 2016 – Mementos, Qimranut, Floor 2 – ???

“Hey, hold on a sec… you guys hearin' something?"

Skull and the rest of the thieves were following Mona, but it wasn't long before Skull paused as they got off the disturbingly normal inter-floor escalator.

Phoenix, for one, looked up. "…besides the wind?"

Her guess was as good as Skull's. For some reason, the platforms with the escalators had a perpetual gust going on, blowing dust and debris everywhere.

"…no, no, I think I heard it too." Dragon frowned, not sounding too happy. "In fact, it kind of sounds like…"

"Like a train?" Panther gulped, pointing at a section of track behind a barred window.

Where, indeed, a subway car with red, glowing windows was pulling in.

"…ah hell, the trains're totally runnin'!" Skull cried out in total dismay.

"Of course they are." Mona rolled his eyes. "We're in the subway, after all."

"Yeah. On the tracks!" Chie yelped in a panicked tone. "What if we get run over?!"

"It should be fine so long as we're not on the same ones… I think…" Mona said with a wince. "I'm not the expert on how these places work, sorry."

"…well, I feel comforted." Panther said a bit sarcastically, before wincing. "Though… these are Cognitive trains, aren't they? So, this is how everyone views them…"

She looked downcast. "That's… kinda depressing."

"Yeah, I don't think the trains are that uncomfortable enough for the red glow." Phoenix frowned. "Though… what's with this door?"

(Music – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

In front of them was a complex black marble wall, the same kind of construction as it was in Nakanohara's room. Imposing and seemingly impenetrable.

"…alright, yeah, this entire subway is creepy, but this? This is the creepiest!" Dragon shivered. "This place… everything about it says, 'Go away. I totally hate you.'"

"And it's a dead end, too!" Skull growled, sighing in anger. "Why's it even exist, damnit?!"

"Now hold on!" Mona interjected hurriedly. "This is most likely not an ordinary wall. And if my hunch is correct…"

He walked over to it, and tapped it with a paw.

The "wall" rumbled, the center section falling inwards before being pulled out of the way, as the rest opened up like a flower.

"A new area has been confirmed in the depths." The Meta-Nav chirped mechanically. "Updating guidance information."

"See? Just as I thought!" Mona said, excited. 

"Uh…" Phoenix looked at him. "You knew that was actually a door?"

"I guessed, given how I know stronger Shadows sometimes come up from deeper in Mementos. It just wouldn't budge when I came here by myself before." He explained with another shrug. "Seemed weird that the deepest part of everyone's Palace would have trains going through the tunnel past it."

"…wait." Dragon paused, before realizing something. "Did beating that bastard have anything to do with this?"

"Probably! Since people are talking about us more, and whatever else is caused by there being less Palaces on top of the Metaverse being lessened!" Mona grinned. "I didn't tell you this before, but personal Palaces didn't always exist. Before then, Will Seeds just kind of showed up around Mementos, they didn't merge with Treasures to become their own personal distorted universes."

"I get it!" Phoenix guessed. "You think that if we get deep enough in Mementos, we'll be able to figure out how to turn you back from a not-a-cat, because a personal Palace made you like this, right?"

"I'm not sure about whether it was a personal Palace or Mementos itself, but if there's a solution, it's probably down there. This is the birthplace of all other Palaces, after all!" Mona nodded resolutely. "Even if there isn't, though, I'd still try to steal the Treasures of other Palaces, and correct those Shadow Selves still in Mementos. Those people cause incredible suffering."

"I agree with that…" Ann said with a shudder. "Knowing we can fix things… that kind of makes it our responsibility. Great power, and all that." She paused. "Should we head down there, or…?"

"Eh, this was a tutorial run, and we've already accomplished our goal." Mona grinned cheekily. "We should probably head back up and regroup, first."

"Count me in." Dragon shuddered gently. "I had enough of this place to last me at least a week."

Thankfully for Dragon, neither priority was high on the Thieves' individual to-do lists. With a note of finality, the rest of them made an exit for the entrance.


(Music – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 7th, 2016 – Mementos, Entrance – ???

Of course, Mementos had one surprise left in store, like a sting in the tail.

"Uhhh…" Phoenix blinked at the sight that had suddenly parked before her.

"Err…" Dragon agreed.

"Ummm…" Panther thirded.

"Huh?" Skull concurred.

"That's… new…" Mona said with a cringe.

Everyone stared at what appeared to be a blue dune buggy with several dozen pounds of supplies attached to it, sitting next to a floating bubble which contained a bunch of flowers.

In comparison, the young boy with white hair like an eggshell standing next to it didn't seem so strange.

Until he reached out to the bubble, causing the flowers to become a glass of orange juice. With straw.

"…maybe it's this one." he said, talking a sip. "Ooh! Tasty!"

"Excuse me?", Phoenix said, coming fprward "Are you, uh, lost? Or… a Shadow?"

The boy whipped around, and Phoenix gave a start when she noticed his ears were round and inhuman, more like trumpets then proper ears - and his eyes were the distinct gold of Justine and Caroline. Is... Is this the third Velvet sibling?

"Oh?" He didn't seemed scared or that surprised. "I thought I felt something strange for a second... Who are you guys?"

Estranged sibling? You'd think Caroline would have lambasted me, every day…

"We should be asking you that, honestly!" Mona cut in, obviously not happy to discover something alien to Mementos. 

The boy nodded. "Good point. Sorry about that. It's customary for a human to introduce itself before asking another human for its name. Thanks for reminding me, Mister… uh…"

He then trailed off, snapping his finger as he thought. "Tanuki? No, wait, tanuki have rings on their tail… cat?"

Mona blinked at him. "…what took you so long to come up with 'cat'? And I'm not either of those!" He added hurriedly, before puffing angrily.

"…yeah, getting confused about that seems pretty normal to me…" Skull said with a shrug. 

The boy shrugged. "My name is Jose. I'm looking for Will Seed flowers. Though I'm pretty surprised to see some normal humans running around."

…okay, so he doesn't know them. Maybe he's a member of their species? He seems pretty new to the idea of humans. And Personas. "You can thank the Phantom Thief outfits…" She said, bowing. "It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"That, and we're pretty special - wait, that's not important." Mona said, facepawing. "Who you are is what matters right now!"

"…huh. I'd think that Will Seed flowers would remain attached to the vine… not that I'd mind, honestly." Panther said, looking at a clot in disgust.

"That's right, pretty lady! I'm collecting as many as I can because I'm studying humans!"

Dragon just… stared. "And… turning them into a drink… helps…?"

"Yep!" Jose giggled, clearly proud of himself.

"…drinkin' flower juice counts as studying?" Skull said, amazed. "…can you teach me the trick? Pretty please?"

"Sorry, it only works for Seed flowers. I'm looking at the desires and thoughts that feed the vines…" Jose said - to the groans of disappointment from all high school Phantom Thieves not codenamed Phoenix. "…hey, maybe you could help me with my research!"

"Huh?" Dragon blinked. "Um, how?"

"You come down here pretty often right? While you're down here, I'd really like it if you picked up some flowers for me!" Jose said before grinning. "I'm not asking you to do it for free, of course; I've collected plenty of items from all across Mementos, and I'll happily trade you for fresh flowers."

The Thieves turned to each other.

"Well…" Dragon said. "It's not like he's not being honest about what he wants…"

"Yeah, but we still don't know this kid!" Mona growled like a not-a-cat. "We gotta be careful!"

Panther smiled. "Oh, I'm sure he's fine… let's give him a hand. He seems like he could use it, and since we're exploring anyway to get around, shouldn't be too hard to swing by and pick some flowers."

"…any other reasons?" Skull said, a little flummoxed as to why Panther was diving in head first.

She giggled mischievously. "He called me 'pretty lady.'"

One could hear Mona's heart break a little. "No! Lady Ann..." 

Skull suppressed a laugh. "I got it. And yeah, getting some free stuff's always good, help stretch the old wallet a bit…"

"Yeah…" Phoenix said. "That, and he looks like Justine and Caroline. Given they're on our side…"

Jose frowned. "Who?"

It's in that moment the Phantom Thieves realized they were still observed - and going by the rest of the Persona user's odd glance at Phoenix, not a topic that'd die anytime soon. They nonetheless hurriedly turned to Jose with a smile each.

"Nevermind that, Jose." Phoenix said with a smile. "We'll be more than happy to help!"

Jose grinned, before giggling. "Thank you so much!"

Mona, on the other hand, sputtered. "Wait, wait, wait! Hang on! We still have no idea who this kid is!" He puffed himself up, hackles raised, in what he apparently thought was an intimidating posture. "D-Don't go thankin' us just yet… bud!"

Jose stared at him, utterly flummoxed.

Phoenix started to giggle.

"…are you tired, kitty?" Jose asked, genuinely concerned. "You seem a bit grumpy…"

"I am NOT a cat!" Mona said, rearing up. "And I am NOT grumpy!"

The giggles became more of a snort.

"O-Oh! Okay - then, are you hungry? I learned hunger can make a person turn grumpy." He fished put a bag of cookies.

Mona suddenly looked very genuinely conflicted. "T-Thanks, but… I'll…" He looked over the bag, obviously fighting his own pride versus his desire for cookies.

It was too much. Phoenix fell over, laughing hysterically.

"Ah!" Jose jumped back. "W-W-W-What did I do?!" 

"Protip on humans…" Dragon said, sighing. "Yukiko is… unique…"


(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

May 7th, 2016 – Shibuya Station – 4:55 PM

"Well, that was a… really strange misadventure…" Yukiko said, flipping what was now a pendant between her fingers.

"Are you seriously sure that thing does… anything?" Chie inquired, a little concerned. "I'm pretty sure a beef bowl place in Mementos would be a big enough wish..."

After Yukiko had finally calmed down, Jose didn't really have much else to do. His new sources of flowers were leaving anyway, and he had to go back down to replenish his supply.

Before he left though, he gave them a strange crystal that looked like a star as "proof of friendship." Exactly what it did was beyond hi, but he liked to think it granted wishes.

This theory was doubtful, given how Chie, Ryuji, and Ann had channeled all their food-based desires into it, and it did nothing. 

"Could've been just that it doesn't grant, well, things that aren't that big in the grand scheme of things…" Yukiko said with a finite shrug, putting its real-world form back in her pocket. "A desire for food from people who regularly eat is a fad, not a wish, I think…"

"That's… subjective." A still-disappointed Ann added. "Still though - I really appreciate we don't have to keep a Palace around if we want to train our Personas, and that helping people is a lot easier in Mementos!"

"Yeah, for real!" Ryuji said. "Seriously, what if the next Palace master's even worse? Hell, you heard Nakanohara - one guy managed to send his entire moral compass tilted because he was terrified of gettin' burned again!"

"Or… uh…" Chie said with a frown. "I was honestly wondering if Kamoshida was just an extreme example."

Everyone turned to the tomboy - much less Ann, who looked very skeptical.

"I'm… not doubting your optimism, Chie, but aren't Palaces the culmination of extreme desires?" Ann said with a shudder. "Especially really… squicky ones…"

"Oh, I'm not saying that's not a given!" Chie hurriedly added, before relaxing. "It's just… Kamoshida's unique in that even the redeemed version of him was still a total coward - he wanted the easy way out than take accountability for all the lives ruined, and… well, desires are desires because they're an inevitable part of being human, right?"

Chie frowned. "My point is… I don't think all Palace owners are irredeemable monsters. Some could very well run the gamut from total jerkbags, incredibly immoral people with redeeming qualities… the Phantom Thieves exist to protect those that can't protect themselves, solely because those people in question are in untouchable positions of power."

It took a while for everyone to process the unusually-candid comment from the tomboy.

"That's… actually, a really good point, Chie." Yukiko crossed her arms. "Huh! Never thought of it like that."

"Yeah… I thought about it because I don't want to be upending or interfering in others minds without a good reason." Chie gave a wry smile. "I'm still not all that comfortable knowing I can cause personality death to even the worst of people…"

"…yeah, I get that." Ryuji nodded. "And in regards to Nakanohara…"

"It doesn't excuse what he did, and it's possible he could be mistaken about this… 'Madarame' and his actions." Morgana said. "But that is a point. The kind of power a Palace has often, but not always, ends up bringing the worst out of other people, just to survive the power of its ruler… I have no doubt if Kamoshida was allowed to continue, some of his students would have learned that it was a dog-eat-dog world, and the only real goal you should have as an athlete is your own contentment."

"…yeah, I'm gonna admit, if I was expelled… I'd be in a pretty vengeful mood, and I wouldn't exactly care where any money for my mom was coming from." Ryuji said with a dark finality, before grinning. "Though, I think I'd make a pretty cool yakuza!"

"Sadly, that wouldn't be in the cards for me…" Ann said with a long, nightmare-induced shudder. "I'd be… praying for death, probably…"

It took a few moments to process how it could've gone wrong, at that moment.

Chie grimaced. "…jeez, that's not a happy thought to think on." She said with a shudder, before forcing her best smile. "Still, we can all take faith in how it could have been! We still won at the end of the day; the worst with him is long over."

"That's true." Yukiko nodded in agreement. "If I see any really bad stuff on the PhanSite, we'll go back here and steal some more hearts, okay?" A pause. "…or, at least find out if we need to case the joint for other Palaces."

"That's the spirit!" Morgana grinned, happily. "And I think that's a good place to leave it for today!"

The friends said their goodbyes for the day, and went their separate ways. 

None of them noticed the blue, long-haired boy making a sketch on the sidewalk of traffic, though he certainly noticed them. 

Before he could get a good double-take though, the form that had drawn his artistic eye had vanished - and yet, he had an instinct that they would come by again.

Notes:

Behold - the cameo of a certain Eccentric Artist!

If it wasn't too obvious, I've made it a note to really tone back on a lot of the escalation canon had with its Palace owners, which was a mistake I've done as a novice writer when getting up to Madarame's arc. A lot of my ideas for making Madarame "good" were… anything but, and this led to me ultimately contributing to one of the reasons why I shut down the whole project; it was both bloat, time, and a lot of wasted effort. Which sucks, given I love FWTP as my first major fic for two years, but still. There'll be a lot of scenes that won't be as recognizable going forward, in terms of how much I'm revamping it.

As a final note, I'm certain long-term readers would notice that I've removed the second chatroom scene, as well as the fact the Hierophant Arcana increased with it - that's something that I axed because it wasn't really relevant to the whole plot anyways, and besides, I'm planning a spin-off fic with the Confidants in mind. I already stretched things out in scope a bit by including Chie's Confidant here, but that's more-or-less because there's a legitimate story reason for it… thankfully.

But I digress. Here's hoping things are gonna go well! Hope you had fun, and as always - stay tuned!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 13
Chie: Lv. 12
Morgana: Lv. 12
Ryuji: Lv. 11
Ann: Lv. 11

Yukiko's Current Stock
Apsaras, Koropokguru, Hamsa, Ame-no-Uzume, Ippon-Datara, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 2
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 1
Death (Tae Takemi): 1
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1

Chapter 8: Artist's Call

Summary:

The investigation with Nakanohara finishes, and before long a new target makes itself apparent: Ichiryusai Madarame. What will occur now that his pupil is being involved?

Notes:

And we're back! Apologies for the two-month delay, everyone. And on the first-year anniversary of the fic no less! Perfect.

Anyways, not much to say. We're finally introducing Yusuke at long last! How will we affect the story on the wholesale? Let's find out!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 13
Chie: Lv. 12
Morgana: Lv. 12
Ryuji: Lv. 11
Ann: Lv. 11

Yukiko's Current Stock
Apsaras, Koropokguru, Hamsa, Ame-no-Uzume, Ippon-Datara, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 1
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 1
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 2
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 1
Death (Tae Takemi): 1
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing - What's Going On - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRnVhnxRhSs)

May 8th, 2016 - Inokashira Park - 4:21 PM

After the excitement with Mementos, and sudden introduction to Jose, both Yukiko and Chie felt that they could take a brief break from studying to train their bodies while resting their minds a bit. It only made sense, what with the exams being the next week, and there being far, far too much to worry about to do much physical exercise.

This was also was why they were now at the edge of the lake, Yukiko in her runner's wear and Chie in a bit more of a general outfit.

…which was also something of a difficulty, given how the lake… did not have a runner's paved pathway to run on 

Chie stretched, checking out the riverside. "Hmm… this looks like a good spot."

"Uh…" Yukiko looked around. "May I ask for what, Chie? I just realized - I don't exactly know what your exercise routine is."

Chie blinked at her, then blushed. "Right, sorry, should've specified." She stood up on one leg. "I was thinking I could use the air to run through some kickboxing forms… which, uh, now that I think about it, aren't really your thing, are they?" She finished her sentence with a sheepish smile, looking down at the ground awkwardly.

Yukiko gave a comforting grin. "Oh, that's fine! I can do some calisthenics, at any rate. Or spot you."

"Hah! Awesome! In that case, we'll…"

It took a second for Chie to realize something, at which point she winced. "…wait. Duh! Of course you can spot me!" She giggled nervously. "Sorry. I forgot I currently have a gym buddy. Ryuji tries, but he really has a bit too much going on in his life at any given time. Part-time jobs and the like."

"I can't imagine it's fun to be there with his ankle, either…" Yukiko said with a wince, before nodding.

"Yeppers. Every gym rat in the world can see he's got a limp, and the assholes give him grief about it." She sighed. "Though, uh… what do you know about kickboxing forms anyway?"

"Uh, honestly? Not that much." Yukiko gave a wince before laughing awkwardly. "I'll confess, I get most of my exercise from the Metaverse."

"…oh. Oh! Oh, that's perfectly okay!" Chie grinned. "I can definitely work with that. I can actually teach you what I know about Jeet Kun Doe to start!"

"That sounds - " Yukiko's moment of praise was interrupted with a pause…

…and seeing something on Chie's back.

"Uh, Chie - "

"Actually, no, I don't think you'd be able to do what I can do immediately, can't you? Uhh, maybe we can actually - !"

"Chie!"

Chie flinched, before blinking awkwardly. "Uh, y-yeah?"

A movement in the corner of Yukiko's eye thankfully gave her a way out. "There's a… grasshopper on your back…"

Yukiko did not not expect that to suddenly become the topic of conversation.

Nor did she expect Chie to freak out.

"…AUGH!" Chie began flailing about. "GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF ME…!"

Somehow, Yukiko managed to do so without breaking into laughter, the bug flying off with an air of general confusion about the whole thing.

Chie froze, eyes pulpable with panic - and later, blushing embarrassment. "I-It's off…?"

"Y-Yeah - snrk - i-it jumped off." After a few seconds to regain her straight face, Yukiko inhaled. "S-So. Er… I take it you don't like grasshoppers?" 

"O-Of course not! You see how I am with those creepy Will Seed things, right?!" Chie said, defensively, as she swept off her shirt. "Anything creepy or squirmy - I hate it! Grasshoppers, especially, because a grasshopper is a few dozen buddies away from being an all-devouring swarm!"

"Um… heehee…" Yukiko found the straight face suddenly harder to make. "I-I don't think Asian grasshoppers are locusts, much less have a swarming stage..."

"Yeah, they still have skinny, weird legs that don't bend like legs should!" Chie retorted, loudly. 

"…but they're cute, I think." Yukiko said, still amazed at this display.

A long pause occurred after that statement.

"…you are without a doubt the weirdest girl I've ever met." Chie spoke, plainly. "B-But I'm glad it off, anyways." A smile. "Thanks."

"Oh, of course!" Yukiko smiled. "Though I thought you weren't bugged by, well… bugs that much."

"W-Well, that doesn't make it fine or anything! What if we run into a bug Shadow and it just, y'know, tries to suck out my innards or something! I can't run off like some sissy when I see that!" Chie inflated, angrily, before looking upset. "B-Besides, it's… not really something you'd expect to see from little old me, huh?"

Yukiko paused, before offering a sincere smile. "I wouldn't be worried about that last part. It's a really cute habit of yours."

A lingering pause in the air caused Chie to seize up, before turning a deep shade of red - immediately, she protested profusely.

"W-Well, i-it's still not something I should do! Also, w-why're you calling me cute?!" Despite her best attempts to seem angry, Chie looked elated for Yukiko to have said that.

Yukiko nearly lapsed into laughter. "Haha…! Oh, come on, it's fine. Besides, we've already kicked Kamoshida's hide to the pavement. With Tomoe, stomping around some bug-like Shadows should be no problem."

Chie paused, before smiling. "Y-Yeah, I get that… I just worry if I'm really helping contribute."

"Chie, trust me." Yukiko spoke, smiling from ear you ear. "You are. As the leader of the Phantom Thieves, I can say without a doubt you're that useful to us all."

A long pause occurred in that moment, before Chie's smile trembled. "D-Do you really mean that…?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't I?" Yukiko smiled happily. "Unless you'd have forgotten that time you saved my hide when you awakened?"

"I… honestly understand that reaction, given that was do or die… but yeah. Yeah! That does make me feel better!" Chie smiled, the tension gone. "…thanks a lot, Yuki. Hey, you think I could do better if I thought of bugs as Shadows? I'm not scared of them, not unless they're really bad."

Yukiko beamed. "See? You're already better!"

Chie pumped her fist, her confidence restored, and radiating trust for Yukiko.

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

VICTORY (VII) RANK UP! RANK 3

Victory Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Chie’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

(Music Playing - What's Going On - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRnVhnxRhSs)

"So. That embarrassment out of the way…" Chie said, back to her normal self. "You think I could teach you a kata?"


(Ambience Playing – City Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

May 8th – Shibuya Station – 7:41 PM

Getting Chie back home wasn’t really hard, all things considered. That’s something that honestly kind of surprised Yukiko a bit, given she’d never really went to Chie’s house before, and that Chie wasn’t familiar with the area at first. Regardless, the two best friends still managed to get to where they needed to go, and Chie said her friendly farewells to Yukiko before ultimately departing for the night.

Chie… she was such a kind and strong girl, wasn’t she? Then again, Yukiko would’ve found it strange that she only knew the brunette tomboy for little more than a month and they were already inseparable as-is. Regardless of which, Yukiko still found Chie admirable unto herself. She almost truthfully wished she could be closer than she is than just friends… that isn’t too much to ask, isn’t it?

Yukiko chewed her lip quietly upon registering these thoughts, pushing her crush back into her id. She was far too nervous to genuinely consider just asking her up-front that she’s hopelessly in love with her. Given how close the two girls are and Yukiko’s quiet inferiority complex, she dreaded the idea that their friendship would be damage, if not ruined by Yukiko coming out like that. But Ann succeeded in winning over Shiho too, didn’t she? Why can’t she try to win Chie’s hand like Ann did with Shiho? Yukiko simply shook her head and sighed; the only thing worse than being away from the family who loved you in spite of their flaws was having the girl you crush on potentially rejecting you.

…dear God, was she already missing the Amagi Inn? She didn’t know whether to appreciate these thoughts for their sincerity or scorn them for its codependence. Thankfully (or perhaps not), those thoughts were interrupted by what Yukiko’s parents once called the “polite foghorn” tone.

"...as the birthrate continues to decline, we adults must redefine our mission."

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2h95hAu2-c)

Even if she didn't recognize the speaker as what those thugs had nicknamed as "No-Good Tora," she'd realize he was a politician making a speech long before she actually saw him. No matter who they were, what they looked like, or what level of power they were aiming for, politicians always spoke in the same volume and manner when trying to get attention: a delicate balance between being the center of the room and not annoying listeners to the point where they left the room. Given how prestigious the Amagi Inn was, she heard that tone far more than she would want to. Though to be fair, they were mostly asking for staff assistance rather than making speeches to the masses

"We must create a country that can give birth to life," he continued to the few people watching him. "And we must create a country that can nurture that life..."

 "Can't keep a politician down, can you?", Morgana said, popping out of his bag.

"Nope," Yukiko said, not really paying attention. "I swear, I've seen him before..."

"The power of the country lies in the power of its people..." He trailed off. "... You're listening quite attentively."

It took Yukiko a second to realize he was talking to her. "Oh? Ah! Yes, I was," she said, hurriedly drawing herself up. "I'm glad those thugs didn't drive you off."

Tora smiled. "And thank you for that, miss. You have no idea how much I needed that encouragement. Say what what you will about the Liberal Co-Prosperity Party, at least they don't encourage their supporters to, ahem..." His smile grew a bit forced. "Protest so strongly..."

"You mean yell at a rival until they run off?", Yukiko said, bluntly. "Those guys made up their mind a long time ago. You're not to blame for them being loud and dumb - or for making up that name."

He winced. "I sincerely wish they had made up that name... but I digress. I have to wonder though - are you interested in politics?"

“Huh?” Yukiko was truthfully caught off there. After all, politicians usually didn’t cut out the speech to individual people like that, and the ones who did were usually the best ones. “…o-oh, I was! And yeah, I’ve known quite a few in my time and all.” As the raven-haired innmaiden awkwardly laughed to herself, she was relieved at her statement coming off as more honest than it sounded in her head. It wasn’t a lie, but probably not for the reason he thought; a trick she actually learned from the politicians.

“Ah. Well, I’m delighted to captivate the attention of one so young,” he said, and Yukiko got the sense he meant every word after the chilly behavior of the nearby crowd. “Truth is, I am just… err, rehearsing…?” He frowned. “…pardon me, but have we met before the incident with those protestors?”

Instinctively, Yukiko started to study the politician’s square face and a head that was apparently immune to the ravages of time and a rather prominent nose –

…wait a minute.

“I… think we have, actually. When I was much younger.” Yukiko scrunched her face to get a better look at Toranosuke.

“Hrm…” The politician replied with a reminiscing tone, before something clicked in the politician’s. “I thought I recognized that hair – does the name Toranosuke Yoshida ring a bell?”

If one listened, one could hear a soft ding inside Yukiko’s head.

Yukiko’s expression lit up with surprised. “OH! Um, were you seeing a lobbyist in Yasoinaba and got drunk at the hotel about four years ago?” As Yukiko replied, she started internally coloring an alcoholic red onto that nose.

A similar red came to the face of the present Yoshida. “I… fell off the wagon, I guess you can say.” Toranosuke’s voice had hints of shame in it. “Not my proudest moment, certainly. But yes, I definitely remember you; you were a waitress and a maid if I remember correctly. I distinctly recall thinking you were too young to take care of sad old men.”

Yukiko smiled warmly in response. “Heh. I remember thinking it was nice having the sad drunk rather than the mean one. You are not the first, last, or anywhere close to the worst,” Yukiko replied. In truth, she had found Yoshida’s drunken ramblings about how he missed how uncomfortable the Diet seats were hilarious, and then found herself feeling incredibly guilty when he started pleading for her father to tell him he wasn’t a washed-up old failure. “So really, no worries: all is forgiven.”

“Right then,” he said, giving an apologetic smile. “I am sorry for wasting your time, everyone! I will – “

“Oh, shut up, No-Good Tora!”

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

Yoshida flinched at the nickname the middle-aged man gave him from across the alley. The heckler, seeing an opening, grinned savagely. “Hey seven-time loser, protip from anyone with common sense: join a fuckin’ party! That way, when you become the eighth-time loser, you have people who are paid to care!” He laughed, an immature giggle especially from a person with graying hair, and all but strutted off.

“I…” Yoshida inhaled. “…well, as you’ve just witnessed, I appear to be drawing them even before my speeches begin.” he finished, sighing. “Don’t worry about me, I’ve grown used to the sound of – “

“I’ll attend your speech.” Yukiko’s conscience made her response as automatic as a robot’s.

Yoshida’s eyebrows may have rocketed off if they weren’t attached to his skull. “You… what?”

“You don’t deserve to have your speech ruined because some jerk decided to call you a name! Especially after the last time you got run off!” Yukiko said, throwing her hands up in annoyance directed at the bystander. “…that, and I remember enough about you to know what it’s like when you’re depressed and hurting. I’ve been in your shoes fairly recently.”

Slowly, a smile came to Yoshida’s face. “…well, while certain regulations prevent me from employing a minor, would you mind holding a sign during my speech?”

Garnering attention and boosting his self-confidence. Yukiko gave a small little smile to herself; what could be the harm of lending a hand like this?


(Ambience Playing – City Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

May 8th – Shibuya Station – 8:11 PM

“And while our society appears to be prosperous, many of our young people are quietly suffering. They lack jobs, security, savings…”

Upper body strength, Yukiko internally finished. What did he make this sign out of, oak? Still, she jabbed it in the air a bit, hoping to at least get Yoshida to feel happy about himself.

“The next generation will lead us into the future, and yet they have no plan – “

“Ow! Watch where you’re going!”

“Watch where I’m going!? You first, if you’d ever stop looking at your phone!”

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

Whatever Yoshida was about to say next, it was derailed by a salaryman and a well-to-do sort apparently demonstrating what a rude foghorn sounded like. Not that either of them seemed to really care that the seven or so people in the crowd Yoshida had drawn were all looking at them.

Yukiko cleared her throat.

“No, you’re the one who runs into people when you’re – “

“A-hem,” Yukiko outright said, quiet aggravation apparent. “Future leader, here? As… informative and interesting as this conversation is, can you both please take it somewhere else?”

Both arguing men glared at her, but decided to leave, muttering about political thugs for hire. Yoshida mouthed a quiet “thank you” to Yukiko before returning to his speech. “Together, we can create a bright future for the next generation.”

Suddenly, a third man, dressed in a suit Yukiko supposed he thought made him look flashy, rounded the corner. “Next generation? Oh that’s rich, coming from you, No-Good Tora!”

Yoshida all but jumped back. “Eh!?”

“Hey, your groupie know how you embezzled funds? Or how you called your own constituents morons? You criminal!” With that he walked off, gritting his teeth.

Yoshida didn’t seem to notice, though. “N-No! I – t-that was all in the past, but… I… I… g-going back to my speech…”

A noticeably more stuttering Yoshida continued onward, sweating and fidgeting nervously, while Yukiko tried to connect the friendly, somewhat bumbling man with the heckler’s angry condemnation.

It really didn’t match up, to say the least.

Thus, when it became clear that Yoshida’s meager crowd had left, leaving him to sigh and prop up his box, Yukiko opened her mouth.

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

“Yes, it’s true,” Yoshida admitted, already guessing the question. “I suppose I could say it happened twenty years ago, but that does not change the fact that man brought up why I’m nicknamed No-Good Tora.”

Yukiko frowned a bit; that exposing of the past was something fairly unique for any politician, competent or not. “…if you don’t wish to say anything, I’ll just – “

“No, no, you deserve to at least know the man you’ve been holding a sign for the past half an hour for.”  Yoshida inhaled and exhaled. “…I was indeed a member of the National Diet before my losing streak, but in that time, I was a very inexperienced person then – both as a politician, and as a decent human being.” To emphasize his point, he rolled out three fingers. “Strike one, I missed a legislative meeting to take a personal vacation. Second, I was accused of embezzling a great deal of money from my party, and then finally when brought to explain my situation, I called a voter an idiot in an open forum. I haven’t won a single election since.”

Something about the phrasing of “accused of” struck Yukiko as a bit odd, given how Yoshida was pouring out his heart, but she shrugged it off. “Well, you’re honest about it. That’s impressive for anyone, let alone a candidate for office.”

“I never really mastered that trick, nor did I feel I should,” he said, grinning ruefully. “I won’t say I am some ideal leader because I’m not nearly so arrogant as to even make that statement sound convincing, but I try to be frank as often as I can be. It is a valuable commodity in politics, Miss…?”

“Amagi,” Yukiko replied. “Yukiko Amagi.”

“Yukiko… Amagi!?” The full impact of who exactly had not only witnessed him drunk but had unintentionally conned into carrying a sign for half an hour hit Yoshida like a truck, and slowly collapsed his head into his hands. “Have I made a fool of myself to an heir to such a relatively prominent family’s heir?! Twice?! By the kami, can this day get any worse?!”

“Well… it could be raining.” Yukiko said that in a futile effort to cheer him up. “Besides, I don’t think I’m a person who has reputation-ruining privileges. I am pretty much the clan pariah no matter what my parents want.” Yukiko truthfully wished to keep that aspect about her quiet, but given the circumstances at hand…

Yoshida’s head shot up, an expression of utter confusion on his face.

“…it’s a long story. I don’t like to talk about it.” Yukiko responded just as Yoshida was opening his mouth. “Still, I don’t think it’s your past that’s the problem. It happened before I was born; there’s a lot of people who probably don’t even remember politics that far back. The problem’s your self-confidence, I feel.”

“That…” Yoshida paused. “…is an entirely valid piece of advice. The most important part of a good speech is believing in yourself.” He paused. “Actually, if I didn’t know better, it sounds like you may be considering getting into politics yourself.”

“Which isn’t actually a bad idea,” Morgana mewed from the bag, popping his head up in a rare occurrence. “Getting Shadows to listen to you ought to make negotiations a lot easier. Politics is the art of convincing people, soooooo…”

Yoshida’s face suddenly became very neutral. “You… have a cat, in your bag…?”

“Besides the point.” Yukiko said, blushing. “And… well, it’s not like the gossip brigade will let me inherit. A little sweeping under the rug, and I think getting into politics is a good substitute. I’m from a pretty locally important family, so breaking into the conversation probably isn’t as hard for me.”

“Oh? Well then I’m happy to hear that!” Yoshida said that as he broke into the most genuine grin Yukiko had seen from him. “I doubt I can teach you much more than your natural talent, but… really. If I can help a successor avoid my mistakes, I’ll be happy to instruct you. Though, in exchange, since it would be unethical to hire you, I wish for you to continue helping me as, well, speech bouncer.”

Yukiko smiled gently, extending her hand as Yoshida shook it. “Done. And given the kind of hecklers you get, I’d be happy to pay you for the privilege.”

Yoshida smiled as he shook Yukiko’s hand back with a tad bit of force to his right arm. Being able to befriend the newer generation like that… Yoshida saw it as an opportunity absolutely not worth passing up.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

"Staging your crimes with calling cards," Sae mused. "It's hard to believe a student, or a group of them, could manage this alone. If what you're telling me is at all accurate, each one needed a message tailored to each target in a way meant to unnerve them. Perhaps an adult, someone talented with words, coached you in the proper technique to guarantee an emotional reaction from even the most stoic target."

"Beyond the card showing up out of nowhere?", Yukiko said, incredulously.

"Please. I know who your third target was, he was not someone for whom a mysterious, threatening letter would have been enough to feel he was actually endangered - not without some very choice words," she said, narrowing her eyes. "I'm right, aren't I?"


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Sun Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

SUN (XIX) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

“…well, you’ve certainly worked hard.” Yoshida smiled warmly at his new acquaintance. “How about you go home for tonight? I’d be honored to talk more to you about this when I have the time.”

Yukiko couldn’t help but grin right back upon seeing how authentic Yoshida’s smile was. “I’d be honored to. Thank you for letting me assist you, Yoshida-san.”

“Hah! Oh, please.” Yoshida grinned even more. “Just call me Yoshida; no need for formalities in my mind when you’re my apprentice.”

Yukiko giggled to herself, continuing to shake her new friend’s hand. Apprentice, huh? I think I can get used to this…


(No Music)

(Ambience Playing - Crowd Murmuring - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu1ITuYpMV4)

May 13th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Auditorium – 2:32 PM

The discovery that apparently, there was an announcement in the middle of exam week, caused a mix of feelings among the general populace of students.

Some felt they should fake illness. Others that they should burn down the school. A few, the ones with a slightly terrifying glint in their eyes, thought that was excessive - they should just set Kobayakawa on fire.

The majority, however, won out, mostly out of gloomy apathy and a desire for the week to end.

These people, in particular Yukiko herself, were starting to reconsider the "Flaming Principal" plan's merits.

(Ambience Stops)

"Ever since… that specific incident…" Kobayakawa continued, in his droning way. "…many of you have voiced concerns that I could not bare to ignore..."

I wouldn't mind him being a windbag so much, if he actually was making a speech worthy of being a leader! She sourly thought this with a grimace, trying very hard to keep the frustration out of her poker face. Stop making non-apologies and excuses and get to the point, please!

Thankfully, he was reaching the end of his self-excusing drivel at that exact moment. "…we believe the mental health of our student body is absolutely vital, so we have decided that Mr. Mochida's replacement for this term will instead be a professionally recommended therapist instead of simply a teacher."

It took all of Yukiko's willpower to avoid rolling her eyes. Likely at the behest of a possibly-literal gun to your head, Principal Not-To-Blame. But still… good to know I did something good. I think. Please let him not be a crazy mad scientist…

Kobayakawa turned on stage. "The floor is yours, Doctor."

With that said, Kobayakawa stepped away. And off-stage came…

…definitely not what Yukiko expected from a therapist the school was all but forced to hire.

He wasn't an old man; in fact, he seemed to be not that long out of college himself. As a person, he seemed almost… professionally messy. Unkempt hair, khaki slacks, open-toe sandals, a lab coat worn over a tie and a blue shirt… all of which was immaculately clean and whole. This was a person who knew how he looked, and was perfectly fine with it.

What really struck her were the eyes, though. Behind his glasses, he had very soft, very kind eyes.

(Ambience Restarts)

"Isn't he hot?" A gossipy girl said from behind her, and… yes, she could see that. A bit scruffy, but hardly unattractive or otherwise unappealing.

(Music Playing - Ideal and the Real - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTX2Lg1O7-M)

The therapist cleared his throat. "It's… nice to meet you all!" He said with a genuine smile, apparently remembering his speech as he began it. "My name iszzzt-"

The light on the microphone suddenly blinked off, much to the man's understandable confusion.

…don't laugh. Yukiko's mind warned the rest of her, dangerously. Do not make that the first impression on the guy likely set to monitor you -

Which became very hard, as the therapist apparently began to try and fix the microphone by gently tapping its head. Which seemed to work.

"Er, that technological mishap aside…" He broke into a smile, not missing a beat. "My name is Takuto Maruki. Thank you for welcoming me to your school."

And then he bowed.

Right into the microphone.

Yukiko gave up, trying to howl with laughter into her hands as Maruki reeled back from his self-induced mic-related forehead injury. Thankfully, she was masked by several other students.

"No need to be formal with me though… ouch…" He said with a wince, rubbing the newfound bruise. "I'm just here to counsel anyone who's interested."

He paused, apparently thinking of something. "You can even call me Doc, if that would help you feel more comfortable. Any assistance you need, I'll be happy to - oh…" He looked down at his clothes. "I guess I'm not really any good for helping with money problems…"

That broke the tension, eliciting more laughs.

Apparently, this was all too much fun for the principal, who all but bowled Dr. Maruki out of the way back to the mike.

"Thank you, Dr. Maruki…" Kobayaka's expression resembled someone who ate pickled lemons. "As a final word…"

Thankfully for her sanity, Yukiko was able to tune the final part of the announcement (or paragraphs of speech) out.


(Music Playing - Alright (Elp. Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2h95hAu2-c)

May 13th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Commons - 2:45 PM

"Do you ever actually expect this place to give a shit about our mental health?"

After the meeting, Ryuji couldn't help but ask this question aloud. Even if it was purely rhetorical, he almost looked relieved to see that all other Persona users had the same expression of total scrutiny on their faces.

"I suspect the only… fecal matter given was the sort filling the entire PR department's nether regions after Kamoshida confessed." Yukiko said, even more sour. "At least it spurred them into hiring someone who doesn't seem like Mr. What Is Patient Confidentiality 2.0."

"Yeah, it would probably look even worse if they didn't do anything." Ann agreed, looking rather glum - and quietly angry. "Much as I hate them looking after their own hides first, still. It is better than nothing." 

"Even given the motive, Dr. Maruki really doesn't seem like a bad guy." Chie said with a slightly-forced smile, ever the optimist. "Even if he is a bit of a, uh…"

"Clown?" Ryuji offered.

"…well, that's a bit harsh, but yeah. I mean, he can't hurt - as low a bar as Mochida set…"

Ann looked up - and winced. "…of course, we perfectly think that he's going to be very good at this job, and uh, not a dummy at all!" She said that a bit loudly, hoping whatever God was on high didn't strike her down for saying that..

Chie blinked. "Uh?"

"He just walked up and is right behind you." Yukiko pointed out, bluntly, as Maruki patiently waited for the conversation to finish.

"…oh, hey there!" He said with a smile, giving no indication he heard anything. "Sakamoto-kun, Takamaki-san, and Satonaka-san, right? And that would make you Amagi-san."

Everyone stared at him for a second.

"How d'you know our names?" Ryuj expression spoke of his suspicion more than words ever could.

Maruki grimaced, knowing this would come up. "Well… I was informed of certain students before beginning my tenure here. Those that had, ah, previous interactions with Mr. Kamoshida…"

The way he phrased it was clearly meant to be as diplomatic as possible, and that made Yukiko's own brow furrow even more. "We… did. What of it?"

The innmaiden's tone sounded all too suspicious, only causing Maruku to sigh glumly. "I really won't try to mince words, here; what he did to each of his male and female charges was abhorrent, and he selected you largely as what he regarded as a soft target. There are no excuses, especially given you had just been transferred here. I can't begin to imagine how stressful that was."

Yukiko relaxed a bit at the blunt honesty and empathy. "Yeah, it was." Then, before she realized her mouth was moving: "To think that I'd end up in a castle…"

Maruki's eyebrow shot up at the exact same speed of sound her friends paled.

"You idiot - !" Ryuji hissed under his breath.

Thankfully, Yukiko was not a slow thinker. "Yeah, sorry. I guess I had a… waking dream of the school as a castle shortly after my first class." Yukiko strategically admitted. "I think it was stress from being so late, combined with little sleep the night before…"

"Yeah, you should've seen her!" Chie began, desperately trying to live up to her nickname of 'the Liar.' "She spent minutes laughing at these goofy mustache glasses because she thought she heard them talk at her! Ahahahaha…"

Maruki, thankfully, looked concerned rather than skeptical. "…I uh… I may want to talk to you later about that…" He said, mildly. 

"So, uh, what did you want with us?" Ann interjected, desperately changing the subject.

Maruki brightened somewhat. "Ah yes, I'd forgotten. I know I already offered my services to the student body earlier, but would you four be interested in counseli - ?"

"Nope, not at all." Ryuji spoke with a forceful bluntness almost as soon as Maruki said the last phoneme.

He looked a bit taken aback by that. "Huh?!"

"I mean, it's not surprising, is it?" Chie hissed, a bit more gently. "I mean, we're not exactly cheerleaders of the school after Kamoshida…"

A long pause, before the newly-admitted psychologist sighed.

"It wasn't that, it was being a bit more empathic than I expected." Maruki admitted, regaining his composure. "Ah! But, if you can come to my office, you can have free snacks! All you can eat!"

A pause, before an awkward wince. "…would be nice, but there's still plenty to be had. So, how about it?"

For some reason, the whole snack thing sounded the most insincere yet to Yukiko - even when he was giving his initial sales pitch. But still, playing it cool… "What's on the menu?"

Ann looked taken aback. "Hey, don't fall for that!"

"Says you." Chie said, probably sincerely. "If there's meat, I'll happily enter a twelve-step program!"

Maruki grinned… and then apparently realized honesty was the best policy.

He began with a bit of his world-weariness creeping into his tone. "To be frank, I've been explicitly ordered to provide counseling to the students affected directly by Mr. Kamoshida. It's in the school's interests."

He paused, realizing how that sounded retroactively. "…for its students!" He hurriedly added, in the 'my lawyer advised this statement' tone of voice.

This, more than anything else, was what made Yukiko relax. So he is here on the principal's orders - but he admitted it upfront, and he doesn't buy that nonsense either. Phew.

Ryuji was more skeptical. "Ah. The school's interest, huh?"

"I know that asking you to be open to a complete stranger like myself is a lot…" He said, dropping any trace of his initial enthusiastic sales pitch. "Making this mandatory wouldn't do any good either. Might as well make it a worthwhile experience."

"I know the feeling, honestly." Yukiko said, smiling in pained sympathy. "Given what some of the other students dealt with regarding Kamoshida, that pig…" Yukiko muttered those last two words darkly before continuing. "…wanting something that actually feels like people are looking after us would be a nice change of pace."

"I can imagine." He said glumly, before brightening. "Ooh, I know! If you attend my counseling sessions, I'll teach you different ways to improve your mental acuity. Like, ways to hone your concentration before exams, or not getting nervous on dates."

Chie blushed. "…I'd ask you where you were this past year, but I think that's a bit tasteless…"

Yukiko thought it over. Well, on the one hand, he's a self-admitted tool of the school… but on the other hand, he clearly doesn't buy into the school's usage of him as a tool either. A pause as she thought some more. And especially given how Chie's afraid of Mementos, and we're likely going to need to go into nastier Palaces… de-stressing exercises have an obvious use.

Another pause. Well, that, and I think Kobayakawa is looking for any excuse to cut loose a potential embarrassment to the school. Or four of them. So, best not to give him one. Good behavior and all that.

"…make sure there's meat snacks for Chie, and you have yourself a deal." Yukiko said after a long pause. "That, and it'd be more trouble for us if we blocked you from doing your job."

"Really?!" He said, sounding a bit surprised. "…I mean, it's for fairly cynical reasons, but it's not like you don't have reason to be skeptical of most authority figures related to the school. I'm just glad you took me up on my offer!" Maruki said with a smile. "I guess it's a deal, then. I'll be in the nurse's office - feel free to come by whenever it's convenient for you. I promise, I'll do my best to help you - I won't let down your trust in me."

The refreshing honesty of the therapist made Yukiko, in spite of said cynicism, feel like she had not made anything resembling a mistake.


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

Sae tapped on the table, thinking. "…It's hard to believe an ordinary high school student, no matter the background, could accomplish such grandiose heists. One would need a heart of steel, unaffected by outside influences and prepared to act without hesitating."

"…I thought we got over the 'am I a sociopath' stage of questioning." Yukiko gave her interrogator a slightly hurt expression.

"Not at all what I meant! That kind of focus requires training, so there must have been someone who helped strengthen your mental state, served as a stabilizing influence, even beyond your co-conspirators. Sound like somebody you know?"

"Oh." Yukiko thought. "…are you going to ask which shop I regularly got pocky from in order to keep my mind active?"

Sae growled, not rising to the joke. "If it becomes relevant, yes. Give me a name."


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Councillor Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

COUNCILOR (I) RANK UP! RANK 1

"Sorry for keeping you like this." Maruki said, waving them goodbye. "Well then…"

And with that, the counselor and the students went their separate ways.


(Music Playing - Ideal and the Real - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTX2Lg1O7-M)

May 13th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Nurse's Office - 3:10 PM

Maruki did not have to wait long for his first patient.

"Yes?" He said, after hearing the knock.

Ann took that as her cue to walk in, looking almost as awkward as she felt.

After a second, she sighed. "Umm…" 

The truth was, she mostly wanted to get it over as quickly as possible. "Not mandatory", no matter how sincere Maruki was, probably meant something more akin to "passive-aggressive forced attendance" to Shujin. Especially to someone who wasn't fully Japanese.

Which Kawakami had confirmed in homeroom, when she had revealed the school had made visits to him mandatory; they just didn't have it on an official schedule. She decided it was best to get it over with quickly, then.

So, she suddenly realized, she needed an actually good reason to come to the counseling.

Thankfully, Maruki's politeness gave her a chance to think about it. "Welcome. Are you here for a counseling session?"

"…uh, yeah. Is now a bad time?" She wasn't sure if she was hoping for an answer in the affirmative or not.

"Not at all!" Maruki gave a calming smile, before nodding reaffirmingly. "It's always a good time, so long as I'm not already listening to a student. Would you care for a snack?"

 Ann nodded, pouring herself some iced tea while Maruki got out a box of apple juice, as she parked herself on a comfy chair she wasn't sure if Maruki brought with him or not.

After he wrote something down on his clipboard, Maruki looked up. "Shall we get started? Oh - but first, just relax, all right? I'm only here to listen to whatever you wish to talk about."

"…sure." Ann blinked owlishly, a bit uncertain. 

And then realized the obvious actual reason she would be talking with a school counselor. "Although… I really have only one thing on my mind now, anyway…"

Maruki didn't need to guess. "Yes, I'd say that makes perfect sense." He said automatically, dancing around the obvious but likely traumatic deftly. "But don't force yourself into talking with me. You could just grab some snacks for the go, and be done with it! I can mark that down as a session…"

It didn't take Ann long to realize he probably knew about the school overriding his own ability to schedule things, and working with what he had. That actually made her feel able to drop her guard a bit. "…it's alright. I need to talk to someone about this anyway… that is, if you're willing to listen to my super-long story…" 

Maruki nodded. "I absolutely am. Take all the time you need."

Ann paused, then inhaled.

At the end of what felt like a chapter of her autobiography in relation to Shujin, Kamoshida, and Shiho in particular, Maruki's cheer had long dropped.

"…I see." He spoke calmly, masking his anger. "That's such a horrible thing to do to someone."

"Yes. That's why I wanted to get even with him. For Shiho."

Maruki nodded. "Mmhm… and?"

Ann thought about it - more to scrub the next bit of her story of the Metaverse more than reluctance.

"…at first, I thought Kamoshida ought to face the same fate Shiho was going to put herself through," she began, slowly and carefully. "But… later, I realized that wasn't right."

Ann bit her lip, looking down. "I realized, if he took his own life… it wouldn't undo Shiho's suffering. It'd just give him the easy way out, and it wouldn't reveal the truth of what he was. Hell, I think on some level, he's still being an egotistical asshole; he's trying to make it his story of tragedy, not Shiho's."

"While I am not privy to whatever Kamoshida's therapist has discovered with him, and it would be irresponsible to speculate, that is a valid concern. Even collapsed narcissists who seek to become better people are still immensely self-focused." Maruki said, noting down more things on his clipboard. "Still, the fact you were able to think about that shows you're quite the wise, level-headed woman, Takamaki."

This was the most ridiculous thing Ann had ever heard. "Um… I think you have the wrong - "

"Nope. In fact, I think you're more mature than I was at your age." Maruki said this with a silent nod, saying his piece completely sincerely.

Ann was taken aback by the compliment, but nonetheless thought on this. "It's… not like I did anything special, though. If I hadn't gone through my own share of hell, I don't think I'd be so mature, either…"

For a moment, a shadow of a very distant look in Maruki's eyes passed through them. Not a particularly menacing shadow, but certainly not happy. "I see… so what are you thinking now?"

"Right now? Hmm…" She looked to the side. "…I'm just hoping Shiho will get better quickly. We both suffered a lot… but I just wanna get back to laughing and having fun together like we used to. At this point, I don't give a rat's ass about Kamoshida."

Maruki grinned broadly. "Now there's a healthy outlook! You can't change the past, but you still want to keep your chin up and press onward - is that the gist of it?"

Ann shrugged. "Yeah, that sounds about right. I mean, it'd definitely be better if none of this happened at all, but..."

Maruki gave a morbid chuckle. "I definitely agree with you there. But, it's impossible to wipe every tragedy from history."

Ann smiled. "If only, right? Everyone would be so much happier if we could actually do that."

Whatever the continuation of that discussion would be, it was cut off by a bell ringing.

"…oh. It seems I lost track of the time." Maruki said with a slight blush. "We should wrap things up for today; thank you so much for coming to see me."

"Oh no, thank you! I feel a ton better now that that's all off my chest." Ann said, surprised at her own sincerity.

"Hah, good to hear it - you deserve it. Feel free to stop by at any time!"

"Will do!"


(Music Plays – Life Goes On – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp-1oFWnsxs)

May 14th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 3:14 PM

“Oh, my Gooooooooooood… are exams really over…?” Ryuji looked like he was already done regardless of the status of the tests himself - in the sense of sticking a fork in him.

"Thankfully, yes." Yukiko said brightly. "So, it was a good idea to keep up with studying, right?"

"Well, for me? Yeah. Which is to say, I gave up on this one last night, played some games to de-stress; I think I managed to avoid being held back already." He said, rubbing his eyes. "And before you chew me out - I'm better with the next exams anyway, as a rule."

Yukiko rose an eyebrow. "It's still kind of a big drag on grades, though…"

"Unfortunately, I'm not the apparent genius who can do studying and keep up with being, I dunno, some kind of social butterfly." He said with a likewise raised eyebrow.

Yukiko had to admit he had a point there. She would say that catching up with her new friends was why she was wasn't especially stressed, but even being able to juggle her schedule between studying and social interaction in the first place - that was true enough. 

She still appreciated the opportunity to hang out with Iwai, Tae, Ann and Ryuji throughout the lead-up to the exams. She really appreciated the different company all four individuals gave; Ryuji and Ann devolved more about their personal issues to Yukiko, while Iwai and Tae let her hand hang around their stores in their own… particular way.

Still didn't change the exams themselves were dull as dishwater in the best case though. At this point, Yukiko just wanted to celebrate her new freedom.

“Oof…” Ann looked utterly dead, having slumped onto the desk. “I probably bombed a couple exams… not much new there, given how my English has back pain from carrying the rest of my grade…”

“Hey, umm… Yukiko,” Chie muttered quietly. “So, I got this question what was the largest mountain in the solar system. What did you put?”

“Hm?” Yukiko blinked. “That's simple, I put Olympus Mons.”

“What?! Aaaaaaaaaaaugh!” Chie collapsed on her knees in defeat. “I PUT MOUNT EVEREST! DAMN YOU EARTH GEOGRAPHY!”

“What?! Y-You…” Yukiko wanted to burst out laughing, but Chie’s sorrowful expression made her shut up. “Seriously?! W-What – hahaha – m-made you think Everest?!”

“I didn’t study…!” Chie wailed. “I wanted to, but there was this super-cool kung fu marathon on TV the last day…!”

Ryuji snickered to himself. “Welp, so much for Chie getting a major in Alien Geography when she goes to college… why was that even on the test, anyway?”

Morgana popped up from his bag and gave a cheeky grin. “Well, with how many mountains, on every planet, are leveled in martial arts anime, you’d think it’d strike her curiosity… but it seems I overestimated.”

“AAAAAAAARGH! MORGANA!”

The party laughed and continued discussing with each other.

Even if the grades received were terrible, all four teenagers were just glad that tribulation was over with.

(Music Stops)

It was when they prepared to go, however, that Chie suddenly turned very quiet.

"…hey, uh, guys?" She grinned sheepishly. "Is it okay if, like, I can take the long way home? With one of you? Or… all of you?"

Ann paled, realizing this sounded oddly familiar.

"…what happened." She asked, tonelessly.

"Well, ever since we got back from Mementos, there's been…" Chie paused, trying to phrase it in her head before speaking. "There's been… the same person at my route through the subway. A high school kid with blue hair and a white uniform. And yesterday, I saw him holding a sketchpad and looking right at me."

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

Yukiko took a breath, and became all business. "So. Do you just want us to escort you back, or…?"

"No! Nothing violent!" Chie held up her hands. "I just… you know, change the route for a few days, or show I have friends or… you know…"

"Punch the asshole in the face if he gets too close?" Ryuji growled, cracking his knuckles.

"I don't think so." Morgana interjected, quietly. "I was thinking more permanent scars. Mental ones, obviously, but I think someone needs to understand we don't tolerate that. We might be able to get his name, for Mementos…"

"Yeah, that might work. But for now…" Chie gave a somewhat smaller smile. "Just… just be at my back, please?"


(Music Playing – Pandemonium – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYept9efrOw )

May 14th, 2016 – Shibuya Station – 3:57 PM

They didn't need to escort her long before the stalker showed himself.

Chie froze. "…I see him." She whispered between closed teeth.

Whipping around, for a moment, Yukiko swore she saw blue and white everywhere, but as she blinked, there was nothing.

"Ya sure?" Ryuji said, glancing around himself. "The only blue hair I see are some girls. I mean, I guess they could be a girl, but - "

Ann elbowed him. "Don't joke about that!"  She hissed.

"Sorry! Mouth running…" He glanced around. "Heeere, creepy-creepy-creepy…"

"I don't hear anything. Nothing that sounds like sketching, at least…" Morgana said from his bag. "…or rather, I do, but there's a bunch of it. More like hobbyists."

"Damn it, I thought we'd be done with this with Kamoshida!" Yukiko muttered angrily. "Can't he just show himself to - "

Ryuji perked up. "Wait. Got an idea." He started heading up the escalator. "Chie, come on."

Looking confused, she did so, followed by the others.

A second later, she was pretending to look at her phone, all alone on the curb as her friends hid under an overhang.

A second after that, the rather loud jingling of keys echoed through the area before a white-suited figure came out.

And closer to Chie.

(Music Stops)

"GOTCHA!" Yukiko screamed, all but tackling her friend out of the way as she got a good look at the stalker for the first time.

(Music Playing – City Ambience –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws )

And he… did not really conform to the idea of a stalker.

Dressed in what she realized from the lapel design was a standard Kosei High School outfit, the boy was quite tall for a Japanese teen, likely standing at 5’11” – the wavy blue hair Chie noted that covered part of his face, and his eyes were a steely grey.

That wasn't what jumped out of his expression, though.

It was the complete bafflement in those eyes.

"…pardon?", he murmured, tilting his head in confusion. "…is this some sort of performance? Am I being taped?"

Given the air, Yukiko would not be surprised if someone was being taped for a prank show somewhere.

Ryuji got that too. "…you sure this is the guy?" He said, looking him over before turning to Chie.

"Yes! Yes, this is the guy!" She held out an accusatory finger. "You've been stalking me for the past couple weeks! What is your problem?!"

That clued him in. "…oh." He face palmed. "Oh. I did not… oh." He sighed. "I appear to have misread your body language… I thought you were posing, after I got out my sketchbook…"

Ann's jaw dropped. "You… posing… what?!"

The boy cleared his throat. "Well, I suppose I should make it clear then! Ahem!" He inhaled “I… it was never my intent to cause you discomfort. I’m scarcely good with social situations, but even so…”

Either due to proper behavior or pure eccentricity, the boy bowed politely. “…those muscles… that lithe physique! I need to immortalize you into a canvas!”

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergzVAkszi8)

There was a very long moment as that sentence hung in the air, as everyone not blue-haired tried to fit it into a world that was ostensibly sane.

“I’m…” Yukiko gulped, her grip on Japanese lost by there being a situation too difficult to put into words. “Terribly sorry? Are you an artist of some sort?”

Chie found them first. “SERIOUSLY?! YOU FOLLOWED ME FOR WEEKS JUST TO PAINT ME?!” Chie growled, her fear transmuted to anger. "WHAT?!"

"Ain't this some kind of recruit for some shady business…?" Ryuji asjed, helplessly.

Ann just stared. "Maybe…? I mean… why did you chose her over the actual professional model…?"

"Good choice on his part!" Morgana piped up. "…I mean, in person selection! He's highly suspicious otherwise! I would not be jealous!"

The apparent painter realized something. "Oh! This is the part where I’m supposed to introduce myself, is it not? Forgive my insolence…” The boy bowed in a traditional Japanese fashion. “My name is Yusuke Kitagawa; I'm a second-year at Kosei High's fine-arts division. I am also a pupil of the great artist Ichiryusai Madarame. Perhaps you have heard of him?"

They did, but not in a traditional way.

Or at least not most of them.

“W-Wait…” Ann's eyes flew open. "I knew that name sounded familiar! Wasn't he on Good Morning Japan the other day? Like, a couple weeks ago?"

"You know that guy, Ann?" Ryuji asked.

"Yeah, he was introduced as a super-famous Japanese-style artist who's been recognized around the whole world." She gleamed. "Holy crap, you’re so lucky, Yusuke! I would kill to be a pupil of some of my fashion idols!”

“I-I-I beg your pardon?!” Yusuke suddenly looked horrified. “Murder?! Why would you do such a thing…?!”

A somehow even more awkward silence followed. In that moment, Yukiko could almost hear crickets chirping.

Cautiously, the inn maiden leaned over to Ann. “Psst… I don’t think this Yusuke fellow is exactly on the same wavelength as us, Ann… remember, isn’t Kosei High known for accepting all students with special considerations..?"

“H-Huh? What do you – “Ann’s expression lit up. “Oh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh.” She all but punched herself in the face. "I knew that..."

Ann laughed nervously, trying to obliterate the foot she thrust in her mouth. “Er, uhh… forgive us if we seemed rude, hahaha! We didn’t mean to come off as distrustful – you were just following our friend too much.”

“Hmph…” Chie didn't seem especially forgiving. “You could’ve asked me to start off…”

“Er, well… I’m afraid I didn’t know how to approach properly, and later, you seemed to indicate you were interested, so I assumed that you would come to me… I deeply apologize…” Yusuke suddenly looked determined after his moment of sorrow. “But with the utmost sincerity in my heart, I need to discuss with you over being my muse, err…”

“Satonaka.” She hissed. “And the answer’s no. I’ve had enough of your crap to last a lifetime! I’d sooner strip down in public than put up with you!”

“Chie, rude!” Yukiko sighed, before turning to Yusuke. “You have to forgive her, Yusuke-kun; we’ve been on edge during exams and, umm… other stuff. Your shadowing of her hasn’t helped matters very much, I’m afraid.”

“Um…” Yusuke simply looked ashamed. “I deeply apologize. I didn’t mean to frighten you all…”

An awkward silence prevailed across the room. Yukiko coughed awkwardly before giving a comforting smile to the blue-haired boy. “Hey, it isn’t your fault Yusuke. You didn’t know how else to approach us, so I understand the difficulty. Isn’t that right Chie?”

Chie grumbled without a response. 

Whatever would follow, however, was prematurely stopped by the arrival, and honking, of a small black car.

As the group turned to it, the back window rolled down to reveal a cheery old man with rather thick black eyebrows, a finely combed short goatee and mustache, and his scraggly grey hair tied in a ponytail, in a traditional brown kimono.

“My goodness, Yusuke!” he began, warmly. "So this is why you have been staying out recently. Far be it from me to critique where your passion goes. All's well that ends well!" 

The man, who Yukiko was starting to suspect was Madarame, laughed - but in a way that almost struck her as… too warm, somehow. Like he had just told a joke, instead of a statement of fact. "But, I digress. I think it's best if we head home, for the moment? There's some things we must discuss."

Yusuke winced, before bowing at the man apologetically. "Yes, Sensei! Sorry for the delay, I just need to make one last request!" He turned to the rest. "Even if Satonaka-san does not wish to model, may I interest you in his exhibition? It begins at the department store near the station on Monday; there was a bit of a delay due to one of those awful mental shutdown incidents, but everything else is proceeding to plan. I'll be there to help out after my school day ends. Please come by."

With that, he held out an address card.

"…well." Chie began. "You got the 'does not wish to - '"

"Actually, we'll be there." Yukiko said, cutting in. 

Chie looked betrayed. "Yuki, what the - "

Morgana stepped in, using his meows to secretly remind Chie of something. "We heard Madarame's name in Mementos, remember?"

Chie made a quiet oooh sound with her mouth. "…but despite all that…" She still did not sound enthusiastic. "I'll go…"

Thankfully, Yusuke didn't pick up on the reluctance. "Thank you so much! I do hope you change your mind, but until then…"

And without further ado, Yusuke got into the car and was driven off.

"…I think he forgot to ask our names." Ann realized. "I'd tell him, but then he'd probably feel worse..."

"Not that I'd mind." Chie growled, darkly.

Yukiko, in a rare moment of visible frustration towards her tomboyish friend, crossed her arms and rubbed her temple.

(Music Playing – City Ambience –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws )

"Chie-chan... look, I don't blame you for being angry at him, but please? He's obviously trying…" The term not mad, just disappointed perfectly encapsulated her tone of voice.

"He certainly could've started earlier!" She shot back, defiantly. "Wavelength or not, what kind of raised-by-wolves social idiot do you have to be to think someone is fine being followed like that?!"

"Yeah, not gonna defend him there…" Ann said. "I'd be less than happy too… still, we accidentally found a lead here. In fact, we just had a major break in the case…"

"Yep. We know who Nakanohara was talking about now, and we have a face and time to scout!" Morgana said. "…say, didn't he mention a Yusuke too? That Madarame didn't 'even' care about him either?"

Ryuji frowned. "…I'm gonna admit up front. Didn't seem exactly like the Kamoshida type."

"Still." Yukiko said, thinking about the oddly creepy laugh. "Worth checking out...


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

??? – ??? – ???

"Wait. You became acquainted with Madarame's pupil by chance?" Sae said, disbelieving. "Over his brief obsession with one of you as a model? Paranormal traits, I can accept, but that is a bit too convenient to seem honest."

Yukiko shrugged. "Yeah… tell the truth, even Morgana made a comment that it was a bit contrived that night. I pointed out this is reality; there aren't any reviewers chewing out the gods for being hacks. Need I remind you, you stopped by the coffee shop where I work for a random drink? The stage directions for my life lead to my circle of influence being awfully dense…"

Sae opened her mouth, but paused. "…given the other circumstances by which you discovered Kamoshida's Palace, it seems a fair assessment." She admitted. "And given how you already knew Madarame's name, it's not like you could not find him on your own time, easily, once exams were over." She leaned in again. "It's a digression, at any rate. I'm more interested in your methods."

She tapped Madarame's folder. "It's true Madarame was an unforgivable criminal worthy of the scorn he suffered; from what I understand, his confession sparked a massive storm of controversy in the art world as the entire practice of live-in apprenticeships became suspect. But the reason for that suspicion is precisely why he was able to cover his tracks for years; at least a generation, going by Nakanohara."

"Yeah." Yukiko said, shivering. "I read up on cults after the heist… a lot of what he did is a lot like what they do. I don't think could've let myself see what was actually happening. Let alone reveal it…"

"Precisely. This is the kind of situation exit counseling takes years to uncover. How did you decode it in such a short period of time - and don't answer 'using the Metaverse', I know from legal records you had an altercation with him due to some preparation for a civil lawsuit, which implies at least some direct investigation."

"…you'd be right." Yukiko said. "We almost didn't believe it ourselves at first… he's good at seeming nice. Probably because he wants to believe it…"

Sae tapped her fingers, somewhat impatiently. "The capacity of con men to believe their own reputation aside - I could point out that might apply to you. Particularly given how similar he acted to the mental shutdown incidents after you, going by your description, 'stole his heart.' It wasn't dissimilar to the engineer of the train in the accident in April..."

"…I don't know whether to be hurt you're accusing me of that, or relieved you've decided to buy my story enough for me to fall under suspicion." Yukiko said, raising an eyebrow. "In either case… it could be the same thing. It's not like we were the only ones with access to the Metaverse."

Sae's head shot up. "Hm?!"

"Right, sorry… grogginess is getting me ahead of myself. Actually, the first hint we had was at the end of Madarame's Palace, too, so - could we start with that? It'll make more sense that way…"

Sae looked very reluctant to let that go, but eventually decided to do so. "…fair point. Let's get back to Madarame's case, but keep it short and stick to the facts."

"I hear you. So, after we met Madarame for the first time, we went to his gallery… our actress wanted to check out the paintings, even if it turned out he was on the up-and-up… and the posts on the Phansite were rather dry of content…"

Notes:

At long last, it begins. The arc with Yusuke! Finally, and thank Christ too.

Apologies for this update being long overdue, all. There isn't an excuse for why I've put this chapter up for grabs for so long. Really, there shouldn't be; given I've finished my exams not too long ago and given the fact I've had other such business to attend to, it was very much a case of "better late than never". Which is hardly an excuse enough as is given I should be more consistent with my updates, but regardless, I just hope the fic proved to be of your interest.

And Madarame's introduction and Yusuke… like I've mentioned beforehand, I have a lot to fix with him, especially given the last fic had a very mediocre subplot that really went nowhere despite my best efforts. It really came down to trying to strike lightning with what made revised!Kamoshida work - only I didn't ask myself if it could fit with here. Either way, I do hope all that I will change so far will suffice.

What will become of Yusuke? And what about Madarame? Find out on the next chapter!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 13
Chie: Lv. 12
Morgana: Lv. 12
Ryuji: Lv. 11
Ann: Lv. 11

Yukiko's Current Stock
Apsaras, Koropokguru, Hamsa, Ame-no-Uzume, Ippon-Datara, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 1
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 2
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 2
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 1
Death (Tae Takemi): 1
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

Chapter 9: Fear and Loathing in Shibuya

Summary:

Yukiko and the other Thieves begin searching from heads to tails for if Madarame is truly their next target. Could such a kindly old man really be their next choice?

Suffice to say, the answer may very well surprise everyone involved… and set on the path to a new ally of their's.

Notes:

IT'S ALIVE! IT'S ALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE!

Really sorry about the late update, everyone! Not much to say that hasn't been said before - I hope you all sincerely enjoy this long-awaited update!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 13
Chie: Lv. 12
Morgana: Lv. 12
Ryuji: Lv. 11
Ann: Lv. 11

Yukiko's Current Stock
Apsaras, Koropokguru, Hamsa, Ame-no-Uzume, Ippon-Datara, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 1
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 2
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 2
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 1
Death (Tae Takemi): 1
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Wicked Plan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 16th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Roof – 12:05 PM

Getting to the roof of Shujin wasn’t exactly the most difficult thing in the world. Though the front gates were usually locked off, there existed a back entrance that was rarely if ever barred down - and in the post-exam haze, was even less likely to be checked. The Phantom Thieves soon found themselves huddled together on the roof of Shujin Academy.

“So, lemme see if I got this right.” Ryuji began slowly. “We think this Madarame guy is the same guy that drove Nakanohara over the edge, right? Both because we heard his name and Yusuke's?”

“Yeah. Still not trusting the word of the stalker, though…” Ann’s voice was a bit steely.

“Still, you heard the part about him being an art tutor, too.” Chie crossed her arms, sighing to herself. “Besides, Madarame’s not a common surname. I mean, this could be a different Madarame we’re talking about, but seriously, how many of them could be art teachers with apprentices named Yusuke? And, well, we didn't just catch his surname…”

Yukiko nodded, kneading her hands together. "Chie's right. Even if we just heard Madarame was an artist, I'd think he was the same one - but unless I have too much faith in the sanity and lack of contrivance in the world, I would think that Nakanohara's mentor and Yusuke's are the same Ichiryusai Madarame."

“Yeahhhhh, about that…" Ryuji massaged his neck. “I’unno, man… he prolly is, but… he doesn't have the same bastard energy coming off him like Kamoshida."

"That's a good point, actually." Morgana paced in thought. "We know for a fact that Nakanohara's Shadow was not exactly the most unbiased source. We're literally basing our opinions of the guy on the negative feelings of a stalker. It could be Nakanohara misread Madarame's intentions - we cured him of distortion, not misunderstandings or the effects of unintentional wrongdoing."

“Hmm…” Yukiko thought for a moment. "At the same time though, I… kinda got a bad feeling about him. And he's certainly not one to pull in his apprentice's - well, more intrusive behaviors…"

Chie shivered. "Don't remind me…"

“Hmm…” Ann paused for a brief moment, before shrugging. “Well, it’s definitely worth a shot I guess. We just have to visit a gallery tonight - if nothing else, it'll be a nice relaxing day after exams…”

(Music Abruptly Stops)

“Forgive me for asking, but… I have to admit, I don't see why you four see the appeal…" 

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

“Wha – “ Chie panickily turned around to see a average-sized female senior with brunette hair and brown-red eyes, dressed in a slightly modified Shujin uniform. Judging from the audible tremble in her voice, Chie was quite aware of who this girl was. “Niijima-senpai?! What’re you doing here?!”

Yukiko was very glad the older girl wasn't paying attention to her, otherwise she would have noticed her immediately paling. Niijima-senpai?! Her mind flashed to a serious-looking gray-haired woman that had stopped by LeBlanc, and who, on second glance, had a very similarly shaped face to this Niijima. prosecutor's family is attending Shujin?! 

A pause ...did I offend a god in a past life? Is this why this happens? Actually, did she send her own daughter to spy on me? Wow. Jerk move.

“Keep your voice down! And I was asking you a question, not me.” Niijima’s aggravation was readily apparent. “Is there any reason for you to be on the roof, discussing an art gallery?”

“W-Well, um, uh…” Chie fumbled her words. “We were – ”

“This is merely our hangout, of course.” Yukiko quickly interjected. Whatever the elder Niijima wanted, it needed chaff thrown in its path. “And before you harass us further - I would think broadening our horizons a bit isn't exactly against the school rules?"

“Well, that’s…” Whatever the serious student was planning for this conversation, she obviously wasn't expecting such an icy response. “…I’m under orders from Principal Kobayakawa himself to investigate into these matters. I would find it desirable if you were to tell me… about your day. I am simply trying to monitor your education, as your student council president.”

“…the delinquent club would like its activities to remain its own, thank you very much.” Yukiko’s response was automatic. 

Inwardly, her mind was racing. So, good news: this Niijima has no idea. Phew. That means Sae doesn't suspect me yet, or at least, isn't so immoral as to steer a high school version of herself to manipulate me into exposing the Thieves. On the other hand... the principal may very well be.

“You’re really going to choose to remain silent on this matter, aren’t you?” Niijima paused before shaking her head. “…well, fair enough. If your purpose up here is to merely hang out with your friends, I’ll leave you be… but don’t think this’ll be the last of me.”

Yukiko felt her voice turn steely. “I’m sorry?”

“Like I said: this won’t be the last time you hear of me.” Makoto said with a small smirk. “If there’s anything you’re hiding from me, don’t think you can hide it indefinitely: I’ll pursue the truth of this matter no matter where it takes me… Phoenix.”

The world seemingly froze in place.

…okay, then. Yukiko's mind said as soon as it stopped screaming. Ugly news - she inherited the good hunch genes. And then some.

“…for future reference, I suggest that you try not to do something stupid.” The younger Nijima’s response was so blunt it was almost tactless - almost, because it seemed entirely intentional and effective in intent. “Good day.”

The class president left as quickly as she came. Yukiko’s face was completely blanched in shock, her mouth working stupidly to say anything beyond confused gibberish. It would take Ryuji – fittingly, given his generally level of noise - to break the silence.

“Dude…” Ryuji whispered to himself. “Did that fuckin’ bitch say your codename?!”

“W-What the…” Ann was at a loss of words. “I mean, just what was with that – “

“…well, it seems we do have somebody to avoid for the next couple of days. Nevermind how our hideout seems to be compromised.” Yukiko shook her head. “More importantly - can someone, anyone, please tell me how a prosecutor's daughter ended up at Shujin, and the goddamn Student Council President, and why I wasn't informed?!"

Ann wheeled around. "Wait, how - "

"Because her mother was a customer at Le Blanc!", Yukiko all but howled. "She told me! Sae Niijima, and I have to say-"

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

Yukiko was suddenly cut off by Ryuji and Ann both cracking up, more in hysterics than anything else, but also genuine amusement.

"Um…" Chie inhaled, trying to keep a straight face. "I think you… you may have misread how old she is. Makoto Niijima is… Makoto is Prosecutor Sae's sister."

There was a moment while Yukiko processed this.

(Music Playing – My Homie - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ergzVAkszi8)

And promptly turned very red. "Oh no. Oh noooo. She… Makoto probably heard that, didn't she…?"

"…well, then." Morgana began, obviously trying to suppress laughter himself now. "Prosecutor Niijima is a very… distinguished woman. It's very understandable that you wouldn't be able to guess her age…"

"Look on the bright side. At least Sae isn't around to hear you say she looks like her own mom!" Ryuji cracked up. "I've never met her but - seriously, she can't look that old!"

"…it's the hair," Yukiko said, lamely. "She's prematurely graying. I think."

"Yeah, no." Chie grinned, still giggling. "I've seen her at a career fair a year ago, and - her hair has always been gray like that. Though, honestly, it's not out of character, if Little Miss Perfect is any indication of the micromanager complex of her sis…"

"Yeah. Absolute terror aside, that… that was a good one." Ann wiped a tear off, before turning serious.

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

"…in all honesty, though, there is something I gotta be honest about." Ann said, face turning firm. "She's a bootlicker. She was probably fully aware of everything Kamoshida did, and she did nothing. All she cares about is her record."

"Yeah." Morgana nodded. "Keep an eye on her. She's stalking us for the school - better her than her sister, but I'd be wary of Makoto from now on…"

The party silently agreed to that suggestion, before drawing up plans to meet at the opening night of the gallery. Yet that was such a low priority in Yukiko’s mind, especially when factoring in the fact that Makoto knew her codename.

Yukiko had a bad feeling about all of this.


(Music Playing – City Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

May 16th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Commons – 12:31 PM

Makoto sighed drearily as she sat in her private-ish corner, thinking. She figured from what intel she gathered that this ‘Phoenix’ and Amagi were one and the same person, no doubt helped by a certain member’s… vocal nature. Regardless, she still needed to get evidence to make her case, and hopefully find other things to work with on top of it. She was on a time limit and working under a harsh taskmaster, after all.

Of course, as it turned out, Sakamoto had stiff competition for loudest voice in his friend group on occasion (and to her eternal shame, Makoto had to suppress laughter herself). She considered asking her sister about it - but in all likelihood, this would mean that Sae would get involved and make the situation even more fraught and tense, and sooner or later, Makoto would have to reveal the context behind knowing that Amagi had met Sae before.

Even beyond wanting to avoid a confrontation with the principal, Sae would probably explode upon hearing Amagi's assumed familial relationship - she had enough stress from her own office telling her she was too old for her job and being an unmarried woman, she did not need the discovery an effective stranger thought she was old enough to have a high school senior as a daughter.

Okay, let's review the facts… Makoto thought to herself quietly, a low hum as she mulled over the possibilities. I don't know how they did it, but the Phantom Thieves of Hearts definitely had something to do with Kamoshida. No way he changed away from… that. Not that fast. If ever.

It wasn't that she didn't care about Kamoshida, of course. She was furious once word caught up with how many women that bastard molested, but he was a teacher; due to her status as the student face of Shujin, she really didn't have much she could do, lest Kobayakawa ruin her own future… and that of Haru's.

“Mako-chan… are you okay?”

Makoto felt two arms wrap around her torso, and the normally-stoic Student Council President colored a deep shade of red upon hearing that light, sweet voice she had become so familiar with. Squeaking indignantly, the girl behind her gave a light giggle as Makoto bashfully looked away, voicing her protest in the next couple of moments.

(Music Playing – Sweet – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rnu4pRFa-V8)

“S-Sheesh, Haru…” Makoto colored. “Y-You don’t need to sneak up like that…!”

“Why shouldn’t I?” Haru’s voice hinted at some teasing. “I've been in more private places than that…”

Makoto would’ve protested that it was different when at school, but she noticeably relaxed when Haru’s lips met Makoto’s cheek. They had been an item since the first year of high school, really. There wasn't really a major event as to how it happened, it just… did. Of course, the issue was, of course, that Haru was another girl - homophobia was still a thing, and if it was discovered that the hotshot, young Sae Niijima had a lesbian sister? The same rivals who made her age and independence a sign of an emotional deficit would quite happy to use Makoto as a weapon against Sae's career.

But that was besides the point. Nobody was watching except them at this moment and, shyly, Makoto gave a nervous, quick kiss back to her girlfriend. Haru smiled and turned crimson herself, gently hugging Makoto in response to such affection.

“Hey, Mako-chan.” The girl mumbled softly. “Are you okay? You’ve been on edge for these last couple of days…”

Makoto’s mind kind of froze into place there. She always debated internally whether she should tell her of her own mess, but deep down… the last thing she wanted was to worry her. Haru meant so much to Makoto, and she didn’t want to endanger her or this whole mission of hers if she let herself know. Regardless, Makoto tried her hardest to pull off a convincing lie.

“Oh, well… you know. Besides the exams, there's some... petty things involving the student council.” Makoto gave a warm smile. “I’m just exhausted, you know?”

“Hmm…” Haru didn’t sound all too convinced at first, but the tender smile she had signaled that she understood what she meant. “Well… if you say so. Though I do have several suggestions for helping your stress, if you’ll humor me.”

“Hm?” Makoto looked nervously into her girlfriend’s eyes. She knew that mischievous smile anywhere.

“If you really want to…” Haru had a glint of deviousness in her eyes. “I’d be happy to let you unwind a bit.~”

Makoto turned crimson as soon as she knew the meaning of that cryptic statement. “W-Well, I, um… I mean… w-well…”

Haru’s smile quickly evolved into a frown. “Mako-chan… I don’t want you to be to be stressed out, okay? I’m here for you, always. You know that, right?”

Makoto thought to herself for a moment, before giving a small smile. “M-Maybe… um, is anyone present in your penthouse now…?”

God, she couldn’t believe how shy she was right now.

Haru smiled gently. “The servants aren’t going to turn an eye, don’t worry. Shall we relax for a bit?”

Haru let go of Makoto and stood up, the light brown-haired girl offering her hand to Makoto. Nervously, and with a smile, she accepted.

“W-Well… that would be nice, I mean…” Makoto said with a squeak. “And besides… th-there’s always other things we can study together, right?”

Haru gave a big grin in response, before nodding with her. “Yeah. There always is.”

As Haru and Makoto walked back to the former’s suite together, a part of Makoto’s mind wondered if she wasn’t looking too dorky… but all it took was a smile from her girlfriend for her to understand that it was perfectly normal, regardless of what Okumura thought.

Makoto had to protect Haru. She needed to.


(Music Playing – Break it Down - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUlsjdUx2lQ)

May 16th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Entrance - 3:32 PM 

It didn't take much longer than the close encounter with Makoto for the Phantom Thieves to agree to disperse immediately after classes ended, and not just because Yukiko indirectly implied that Makoto's sister was a Christmas cake. She was still cursing herself under her breath for that; seriously, why did she think Sae as Makoto's mother?! Yes, she definitely looked like she would've been old enough to be Makoto's mother, but that didn't exactly do her any favors given her own mom looked much younger than her age implied. Yukiko still shuddered thinking of the off-beat times a drunken visitor to the Inn would try to flirt with mom only to be immediately "shown off elsewhere" (read: quietly kicked out) for disrupting the place so bluntly.

Thankfully for everyone involved, though, the actual opening of Madarame's exhibition was for after the workday ended - which meant that it was far, far later than when school ended.

There was still a train ride to Shibuya involved, but there was a good hour to do some last-minute things and relax a bit after that… narrow miss on the rooftop.

Which was why Yukiko was not all that surprised when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Um…" Ann inhaled. "Heya, Yukiko. Can we… can we talk for a bit?"

Yukiko frowned. She got the request, but… "Is there something wrong?"

"Um, no, it's just it needs to be, ah…" The blonde glanced at the bag. "Alone?"

Morgana, being the man who often fastidiously listens to the half-Danish girl, quickly got the message. "Whatever you wish, Lady Ann! I need to stretch a bit anyway. Thieves need to remain limber, after all." He said that with a small little smile, before doing just that as he walked off in a rather awkward way.

"Okay, I have really no idea what's going on, but…" Yukiko looked up, still a little concerned. "Well… go ahead. Is somebody harassing you again?"

"No! God, no." Ann flustered, waving her hands in a sign that wasn't true. "Okay. Um… I, uhh…"

Ann inhaled. "It's uh… It's a bit dumb of me, but after meeting Yusuke I… realized something. Because, well… he's going to be Shiho's classmate. And I realized I've been… kind of putting off a discussion I need to have…"

Yukiko made an 'oh' sound with her lips. "…o-oh. Um, I don't blame you. We had exams, and it was hard to think of anything else. You need advice?"

"Well… n-not quite. Maybe a sounding board? I…" She shook her head. "I feel like, if I want to talk about what I really need to, then… then it might go worse than I never talked about it at all..."

It didn't take long for Yukiko to realize exactly what Ann meant. "…you're worried she doesn't feel the same way. Or can't."

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

Ann immediately startled upon Yukiko immediately figuring out what Ann meant. Squeaking, Ann almost wanted to hide her head in her cardigan, impractical as it was "…i-t's that obvious, isn't it? U-Um, I'm afraid of disappointment - worse, I'm afraid of… r-ruining my closest friendship..."

There was a pause. Ann quickly stood up, groaningly loudly, before immediately speaking. "Ughhhhhhhhh, this is pointless! I'm really sorry for bringing this up, Yukiko, it's just that - " 

"No, I actually get it."

Ann blinked, then immediately sputtered at Yukiko's automatic response, flushing a deep shade of red. "Y-You do?!"

The innmaiden tilted her head, not getting why Ann was so surprised. "Really? The way I'm seeing it is… well. You confessing and it not working out is a lot less likely to destroy this friendship than trying to avoid her… well…"

Ann's flustered reaction immediately died, looking down again. "…yeah, I'd be crapping myself if something like what happened happened again. You know how school is… the gossip mill is bound to spin a lot of BS, or worse, actively bully her for it."

Ann only saying that made her wince, and look down in guilt. "…which is why I can't be selfish. I don't want to actively contribute to more stress than she's already…!"

"Wait." Yukiko rose a finger. "See, I don't think you came to me for advice, but to convince yourself of something you already know - but you're afraid of. Because I think you know if you put out there that you have feelings for another girl… well, it's not just the fact you're half-Danish that you'll be singled out for, is it?"

A long, long pause occurred, as Ann's expression immediately turned as red as her Metaverse outfit, letting loose and undignified squeak. "H-How did you even…?!"

"Ann… you should know I'm always going to be here for you. And likewise, we'll always be there for Shiho. You are too - you've been there with her several times longer than we've been together as a group. But she clearly likes you… a lot." Yukiko paused to punctuate the impact of what she's saying, before giving a bittersweet, small smile. "Which is why… I think you should try. Because she loves you, Ann; even if it turns out to be a platonic love, it's love still. And I don't think that she resents you or anything… okay?"

Ann paused for a second. It was then she immediately pricked tears, smiling awkwardly.

"I have no idea how you do it, Yukiko." Ann spoke barely above a whisper, her voice shaking all the while. "That's exactly it."

There was a pause after that statement. Yukiko only smiled in response.

"Well, then… telling her should be easy, right?" The black-haired probate gleamed at Ann. "You've already done something an order of magnitude harder."

"…h-huh?"

"In a word, you stood up to a teacher when his Shadow had you at his mercy, and promptly kicked his ass to the curb to protect the one you love the most." Yukiko spoke with a sincerity that can only be described as austere. "There's a reason you have Carmen as your Persona - last I've checked, you're the strongest parts of what she embodies."

There was a pause, before Ann let out a breath… and then began sobbing.

"Ah! Oh, I'm sorry!" Yukiko grimaced, immediately fearing her saying the wrong thing. "I didn't happen to say anything bad, did I…? Um - "

"N-No, no! It's fine! I'm happy!" Despite bursting into tears, she immediately proved they came from joy with an awkward, sobbing laugh. Ann wiped her tears from her face, and looked far more relieved, far more safe than she ever looked before. She was still crying by the end of it, but her lips curled into a massive smile, and shakily, tears rolled from her cheeks in the afternoon light.

"Thank you so much." Ann speaking softly, before raising her volume. "You… you don't know what this means to me. It really does feel I've had such a massive weight lifted off my shoulders…"

"Ann…" Yukiko, relieved she didn't screw up, bursted into a massive smile. "…of course. That's why I'm here, yeah?"

 "Y-Yeah... yeah, that's it!" Ann giggled, still wiping tears from her eyes. "I'm really sorry if this seems petty, I just… I really needed to hear that…"

"Yeah." Yukiko nodded happily. "Moreover, I can hardly imagine you really give a damn about whatever the hell anyone else would think."

"Yeah… at this point, if people are going to judge me for it…I really, really don't give a shit anymore." Despite her cursing, she still looked extremely happy. "It was Shiho I was worried about… I care about how she feels, and I'd hate to be up responsible for worsening things…" 

"But now you know that's never how she felt about you, Ann." Yukiko grinned even more. "Even if Shiho can't feel that way, then at least you know you're being honest with you, and she does too."

The Innmaiden paused for a minute, only to grin even more. "And honestly. Does Shiho really strike you as a person who wouldn't let you down gently?"

Ann laughed at that, before taking a deep breath in. "Haha! Well, to be honest, I was trying to tell myself she would, because then I would chicken out from saying it if I didn't." Ann facepalmed at how dumb she was being, giggling. "…but no. At most, it'd be awkward for a few weeks. And… thank you."

"It's why I'm here, Ann. Don't make any mistake about it." Yukiko nodded cheerfully, before immediately looking upwards. "I'm going to need to to console Morgana, though…"

"Yeah, I don't envy you being with him when he's going through the comfort food and sad music stage…" Ann, despite genuinely sounding sad at having the child-like cat's heart broken, still laughed due to her state of relief-induced euphoria. "So… you mind if we take the train together?"

Yukiko looked at her personal clock. She only smiled gleefully as a result.

"I don't mind in the slightest…" Yukiko grinned mischievously. "But you owe me to tell it how it goes, alright?"

"Done deal. I'll… I'll tell her after we clean up half of this Madarame business." Ann nodded, finally coming down from her worries. "Right! Let's go, partner."

Yukiko nearly bursted out into a laughing fit hearing that. "P-Partner?! Ahahahahaha…!"

"Augh… don't begin laughing now…"

Despite sounding annoyed, Ann looked the happiest Yukiko ever seen her. The two got on the train and then parted with mutual smiles. As Ann went back to her own home, Yukiko was left dwelling on the train ride home, before ultimately smiling.

So this is what it's like to help others… 

Yukiko paused, before smiling.

Honestly? It really does feel good.


(Music Playing – Break it Down - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUlsjdUx2lQ)

May 16th, 2016 – Madarame’s Art Exhibit – 5:22 PM

“Holy effing shit, you'd think this was a rock concert. Not, y'know, a painting gallery. No offense to any fans of fine art.”

"None taken." Morgana muttered, looking around at the sea of people. "Ugh, so crowded…"

The one-day delay to Madarame's gallery exhibition had apparently raised his fans' desires to a fever pitch. The entire entryway was a sea of people surrounding his various works - and Yukiko was the first to admit, whatever his flaws, he deserved them. It felt almost like not just a modern gallery, but a museum of classic Japanese art, with beautiful scenes that seemed almost alive coating the walls.

"Yeah, I'd keep in the bag, Mona." Chie spoke with a wince, not wanting the fear of felines to be put into either of them. "Don't think they want not-a-cats in here…"

Yukiko quickly zipped up said bag as he ducked in. "Yeah, good point. Though I'm a little sad for him - this is some really good stuff, no matter who the artist is…"

"Yeah, this is reminding me of why you don't get attached to celebs, no matter how awesome they are at their work." Ann smiled ruefully before her expression suddenly turned wistful. “Y’know, Shiho would love to come here too… I'm definitely gonna need to, um…" Ann flustered, immediately looking down. "…catch up with her as soon as we get this over with."

Yukiko nearly broke into an uncouth snicker while Ryuji and Chie looked on at both girls, immensely confused.

"I… don't know what exactly that means, but I don't particularly want to know!" Chie exclaimed, a bit too loudly. "Now then, let's - "

“Um, pardon me… can you kindly keep your voice down?”

Ann froze up and turned as red as Carmen’s dress when she saw Yusuke right behind her, slightly bemused from her sudden burst of energy. Yukiko had to reign in another laughing fit from the accidental comic timing.

“In any case, though… you all came!” Yusuke smiled, happily clasping his hands together. “Welcome to the Ichiryusai Madarame Art Exhibit of 2016! You’re going to have to forgive me if I was pulled into other affairs so suddenly; things have been very busy, especially with opening night being on a school day. I never would’ve dreamed this exhibit getting as much attention as it does now…”

“Yeah… still better than the last time.” Chie grumbled darkly, remembering the accidental stalking.

“Well, it’s wonderful to see you too, Yusuke.” Yukiko smiled gracefully, before bowing. “If you wouldn't mind taking us on a slight tour - I would love to talk about what it's like to be an apprentice of Madarame."

"It would be my pleasure." He replied to the innmaiden with his own courteous bow. "It would also give me a chance to talk about the sketch I had in mind - if Satonaka wouldn't mind, of course."

Chie debated on how to answer that for a second, then shrugged. "If it's just talk…"

"Ah. That would be excellent, then!" Yusuke said, his brief self-consciousness forgotten.

Ryuji looked awkward. "Uh… is it okay if I go on my own tour? I, er… like appreciating the art on my own." The delinquent spoke while obviously scratching his mind for the white lie covering his actual reason of I have no idea what people see in this.

"Please do!" Yusuke smiled, as he led the girls off. "Now then… oh."

He stopped mid-stride, turning to face a gaggle of reporters. "Ah… I was going to call Sensei over himself, but it appears her is occupied…"

It took a little craning for her to see him, but Madarame was at the heart of the press pool, obviously enjoying himself.

"We continue to be surprised by your imagination!" tThe interviewer said, brightly. "You have such expansive styles, it's hard to believe it all stems from more than one person…"

Out of the corner of her eye, Yukiko swore she saw Yusuke's posture stiffen.

"Well, I find it… a little hard to believe myself," Madarame said, holding his chin in a way that conveyed an incredible amount of "aw shucks" in one pose. "It can be almost alarming at times, when inspiration comes forth and I simply must complete a painting. It is like inspiration wells forth from my heart like bubbles coming, one after another, in a spring."

The more she listened, the more she was sure she wasn't imagining it. Yusuke looked… uncomfortable.

"Naturally, you say?" The reporter chirped, obviously not noticing Yusuke.

"What's important is to distance oneself from worldly desires like money and fame." Madarame continued, and a sudden suppressed snort trailing off into a forced cough from Chie put Yukiko's opinions on that last word better than she could. 

Yeah, no. She thought to herself, carefully raising the eyebrow not facing Yusuke. You're acting like the leading man of a blockbuster giving an interview. It's not bad to like the spotlight for your accomplishments, but seriously, you're not fooling anybody…

"My atelier is a modest shack…" Madarame looked down in a perfect if understated show of humility. "…but it is more than enough to pursue true beauty."

"I see. So, the act of emptying one's mind gives rise to inner beauty, then?" The reporter clearly was mesmerized by the artist. "Still, to think we would hear the word 'shack' coming from the great artist Madarame…"

Wow, I must be pretty hideous on the inside then. Yukiko thought with a bit of self-deprecation. Though, it is kind of… humble, given how he's been acting…

Madarame chuckled, before giving a kindly old shrug. "You would understand if you saw it."

…and no, Yukiko very definitely did not imagine it, Yusuke looked very much like he wanted to leave the area, looking away in thought.

Ann picked it up too. "Um, should we get back to the tour?" She said, looking a little unnerved herself.

"…let's." Yusuke murmured, pensive for a second more before resuming his polite cheerfulness. "We should probably leave before Sensei's fans notice him. People have been trampled before…"


(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

May 16th, 2016 – Madarame’s Art Exhibit – 5:58 PM

"I had no idea that there were so many kinds of Japanese art…" Chie said, blinking. "Seriously, it all looks… well, like traditional art, to me."

"Indeed." Yusuke said, obviously put in a better mood by talking about his favorite subject. "Usually, one concentrates on their own style. However, Sensei creates all this by himself. He's special."

Ann whistled, looking it over. "That's seriously impressive. I'm not the biggest fine art fiend in the world, but there's a ton of different brush techniques on display."

Yukiko nodded, despite the fact that an eerie feeling that had settled into her ever since the interview. There was something not right here - something at the edge of her mind, trying to resolve itself into a full thought.

Though given what happened in the next three seconds, it could have been the old artist coming into her peripheral vision.

"There you are, Yusuke!" Madarame explained, having somehow extracted himself from the gaggle of fans that Yusuke predicted (Yukiko could have sworn she saw a bottle blonde friend of hers yelp as he was dragged under the crowd). "…and the girls from yesterday!  It’s good to see you’ve been socializing as of late! Painting by yourself has to be quite lonely…”

Yusuke smiled, and nodded. "Sensei. And I would call them acquaintances at the moment, more than friends. We have only recently met, after all."

“And you're certainly no friend mine just yet…” Chie huffed quietly to herself. Thankfully, nobody heard her mumbling.

"A fair point. But, it is good you are coming out of your shell a bit." Madarame clasped his hands, before turning to the girls. "Are you enjoying the exhibits?"

Yukiko cleared her throat. "Well, I certainly am. I… don't know a lot of the vocabulary for the art world, but your work is amazing."

Madarame smiled proudly. "You're sensing something from the artwork… that alone is enough to give us artists satisfaction."

Ann giggled. "Yeah… you know, you're actually a lot more friendly than what I'd imagine a lot of artists to be."

Madarame shrugged. "I find it pays dividends to pay attention to social niceties - I am no Van Gogh, I have no desire to have my art only looked at because of a… spectacular end, as they say." He gave a rueful smile. "Far better to enjoy life while alive, wouldn't you say? In any case, I hope they help you develop a wonderful piece, Yusuke."

A small but growing part of Yukiko was starting to wonder if there wasn't a weird coincidence, and there was two Ichiriyusai Madarames in Japan. This one just seemed too… grandfatherly. A little proud, certainly, but way too friendly and outright paternal with Yusuke -

…why did Yusuke seem pensive? Not making eye contact, with his lips pursed in an uncertain expression - he did not look like someone slightly annoyed with a morbid dad joke, he looked hurt.

"Well then, if you'll excuse me…" He smiled happily, going off back to hobnob with the other patrons.

It wasn't long before Ann got back to the impromptu tour. "Hm? Oh, this is the painting I wanted to see in person!" 

She came up to a portrait of a forest in bloom.

Yusuke stared at it for a second. "…this one?" The tone was one of utter disbelief that she was looking at the painting in question, as opposed to anything else.

"Yeah. Saw it in the brochures, and I thought it was a bit… strange." She peered closer. "Now that I look at it… it's supposed to be all sweetness and light, but the brushstrokes are angry. Like that the entire thing is frustrated somehow. It's still good, but it's a paradox I found really interesting. To think such a cheerful and gentlemanly person could make such a piece…"

Yukiko would not be able to tell a brushstroke from a Sharpie, let alone the specific kind of stroke, but what was clear was that Yusuke wasn't exactly eager to look at it, balling up his fists and everything. Very anxious, almost frust -

(Silence)

The wheels in her mind ground to a halt, then began playing back some very particular words from Nakanohara.

"Then, I would've come away from that damn fraud with life skills, instead of years wasted on a guy who saw me as his personal brush…"

"…personal brush." Yukiko muttered to herself, eyes slowly widening.

Chie noticed. "Something wrong?"

(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

"…Yusuke-kun." Yukiko began with a bated breath, before speaking with delicacy of holding a dozen pieces of china. "Would you say a lot of Madarame's paintings are… inspired by other works?"

Yusuke reared back as if he had been struck. "That's - that's absurd!" He yelped, a bit too forceful to be genuine. "S-Sensei's work is… entirely his own!"

"Right, sorry, that came out wrong…" Yukiko half-lied, a bigger and far less wholesome picture of the situation starting to form in her mind. “…actually, can you give us a moment? I’d like to track down Ryuji and talk with my friends for a bit."

“Huh?” Chie blinked. “What do you – owww!” Chie winced as Yukiko stepped on her foot.

“Psst… sorry.” Yukiko whispered before smiling to Yusuke. “I’ll be right back, okay?”

As the art student nodded bemusedly in return, Yukiko hastily led her fellow blonde away from the blue-haired pupil, to the front of the exhibit, where a crowd-bruised Ryuji was frowning at his phone.

He looked up at the two as they came over. "Well, that's some good timing. I actually found somethin' that - "

"Madarame's a plagiarist…" Yukiko walked in without a word, still breathless. "…and I think he's using Yusuke to make paintings for him."

There was a bit of silence as Ann was knocked straight out of slight confusion to utter disbelief.

Ryuji was a bit disbelieving too, but not for the same reasons. "…you sure that Persona don't actually affect the real you?" He said with a light laugh, a bit bemused. "'Cause I swear you just read my mind…"

Chie blinked. "Wha…?"

Yukiko thought on this, and shrugged. "Actually, you start."

"Well, after I crawled out of the fangirl stampede, I noticed we got somethin' new from the PhanSite. Somethin' that seems kind of related to Madarame…" He showed his phone.

Morgana, eager to stretch after having been inside the bag so long, popped out to read it. "'A master of the Japanese arts is plagiarizing his pupil's work. Only his public face is shown on TV.'" The not-a-cat paused. "…okay, yeah, if that's a coincidence, I'll eat my collar. It's contrived enough having met Yusuke to begin with..."

"P-Plagiarizing?!" Ann whispered in shock as she fully processed this. 

"It gets better… or worse, so to speak." Ryuji said with a large grimace, before returning to the post. "Listen to this - 'his treatment of the pupils who live with him is awful. He teaches nothing and bosses them around. He treats them inhumanely, as if disciplining a dog…'"

Yukiko thought to Yusuke's incredibly tense reactions around Madarame - certainly not what she would expect around a trusted teacher. "That's… that's sounding disturbingly plausible right now…"

 "…you think he posted this?" Chie's brow furrowed trying to piece the information in her head together. "Though now that you mention it… he clearly doesn't seem happy. But he seems really eager to protect Madarame, if that's the case…"

"That, and… well, he's not exactly Kamoshida." Ann pointed out. "I mean - this Madarame and whoever Nakanohara was talking about are the same guy. But Madarame seems so nice - I've still got doubts."

"Me too." Yukiko nodded in agreement. Though I wish I had enough to feel comfortable, honestly. She thought to herself. "And this post is anonymous, anyway… both the writer, and the guy it's about."

"Good point. And we can't exactly approach Yusuke on this - not only would explaining Mementos and Nakanohara's Shadow to him sound crazy. we might alert Madarame we're onto him, if he is a plagiarist." Morgana sighed. "There's still too little to go on…"

“I know that feeling…” Yukiko felt her head droop down a little before suddenly surging upwards. “Hey, I have an idea… but I don’t think Chie’s gonna like it.”

“Pfft, anything for a friend!” Chie smiled cheerfully at her best friend, before frowning. “…unless you want me to actually be that 'muse' or something for Yusuke, and in that case… no thank you.”

Yukiko’s pleading look towards her friend and the awkward silence with it gave Chie all she needed to know.

“…aw, crap.” Chie winced. “You’re not actually thinking that – “

“Please just bite the bullet for now, okay Chie?” Yukiko gave Chie her best puppy-dog eyes. “If we find out more while playing covert as a muse for Yusuke, maybe we can learn more about all of this. And when that happens…”

"Then we'll know if Nakanohara was wrong or not…" Ann finished, nodding in understanding...and wincing as she realized the full and embarrassing implications. "Still, not gonna blame you for this being… awkward."

“Hm? Oh, thanks for the concern, rather than the protest, Ann.” Chie sighed, releasing her aggravation in a single noise. “And… I guess I can do it… but you so owe me steak when this is done, Yukiko!”

“Hehe, consider it a done deal.” Yukiko smiled warmly.

“Well, that’s settled then…” Ryuji smirked, his voice returning to its usual tone. “Alright, let's see how this shakes out."

And with that, the Thieves broke from their little huddle and hastily returned to Yusuke, who seemed to have grown slightly tired of waiting.

“Well? Have you finished your business?” Yusuke sounded a tad bit aggravated.

Yukiko looked over to her best friend, to which Chie nervously nodded. As Ann and Ryuji nodded as well, Yukiko smiled softly and spoke to Yusuke.

“About that idea you had for Chie being a muse…” Yukiko continued. “…are you still taking offers?”


(Music – Beneath the Mask –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMSDBPntMPE)

May 16th, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 7:12 PM

“You’re back late.” Sojiro smiled warmly as Yukiko entered the café, the day and time for Yusuke's sketch session for the painting. "Really kind of convenient. I was just about to leave, so you managed to catch the curry and coffee I was making as leftover dinner." 

“Sojiro…” Yukiko’s eyes sparkled, her still-pensive mood instantly cleared up by the promise of his expertise in both dishes. “Thank you!”

Sojiro laughed, giving a warm smile. “Heh, anything. Feel even if you started off as the world's most clean two-bit punk, you've shown you're willing to turn your life around - feel you deserve the reward for that. Best eaten fresh, I think."

And Yukiko did just that, longing for the day her cooking was at least a fraction as good as Sojiro’s; then, independence was almost guaranteed!

But that was beside the point. After a few minutes, Yukiko finished, and Sojiro raised an eyebrow. “You enjoyed it?”

“Mm. I'd think I'd have to have seconds to make extra sure. But in all seriousness, yes.” Yukiko bowed politely. “Thank you very much for the meal, Sojiro-san. You really didn’t have to.”

“Hey, remember, don't need to do formalities with me,” Sojiro gave a joking smile. “It makes my skin crawl.”

Yukiko smiled happily…

…and then she remembered her growing suspicions of a different elderly father figure, and the mood soured.

She didn't think Sojiro being like Madarame was increasingly seeming likely at all, but the very existence of how selfish a guardian could be cast a squall over that otherwise happy scene.

So, she decided, she had to know his reasoning. “You know… you really don’t have to be so nice to me, Sojiro. By all accounts, I am still a delinquent… I don’t understand why you’re acting so nice to me.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Sojiro looked skeptical. “I’d definitely be more on-guard and acting like a jerk if I’ve got some smart-aleck student I knew nothing about. But Shigeru and Chiyoko – your mom and dad – are friends with me nonetheless. Granted, they didn’t tell me much about you, but I really didn’t buy it when the report read that you overpowered a man… so I gave you a chance.”

Sojiro smiled. “You really didn’t disappoint me. How you’re even on probation is beyond me…”

“Sojiro…” Yukiko smiled. “Thank you. You’re like a father figure to me…”

“Hah! Don’t go that far.” Sojiro smiled. “I already have a daughter already. Well, stepdaughter, but eh, close enough.”

The balding man shook his head, suddenly frowning. “Though, uh; don’t tell anybody this, but… she’s not as happy as she could be. The details are mine – and her – business alone, but you’re reminding me of a time how happy she was. I wish I could find a way to help herself out of her pit, given how much she’s shutting herself off.”

“Sojiro…” Yukiko sighed. “I’m really sorry to hear that. If you need a peer closer to her own age to help with her, I’d be happy to – “

“No really, it’s fine. I don’t want to upset her further.” Sojiro nodded, appreciation on his solemn face plain. “But… thank you. I wish I could be a better father to her… she’s already gone through so much.”

A solemn silence befell the room, but Sojiro removed something from his pocked: it was an envelope.

“Huh? Who’s that from?” Yukiko blinked.

“Your parents.”

(Music Stops)

Well. Suddenly her worries about Madarame seemed rather petty.

Yukiko’s stomach immediately twisted with conflicting emotions. She really didn’t know what to think of her parents, Satoshi and Chiyoko Amagi – on the one hand, she wasn't ungrateful by any means, they loved, cared and genuinely wanted their precious Yukiko to be happy – but that love often felt like a chain to a life she was pretty sure she didn't want, as though Yukiko had no choice other than to be the next Amagi in line to manage the inn.

She wasn't kidding when she said she felt being arrested had a silver lining of at least breaking the tethers that bound her to the inn... but at the same time, it felt like it hit the tie she had to her parents in the process. The fact she felt she had done nothing wrong only made her feel worse for disappointing them, since there was nothing she could actually fix in herself, no lesson to be learned. 

But, ignoring their words was even worse. She gripped the envelope and opened it.

“Um… I’ll let you read that.” Sojiro nodded. “Good night; take care.”

Yukiko almost immediately braced herself for what was to come.

Dear Yuki,

                If we were being honest with you, your arrest from that man was one of the worst days of our lives, and scarcely because we were disappointed with you at the time – it meant that we wouldn’t be able to protect you for whatever was in Tokyo; we trust in your ability to remain safe with the right people, but its quite honestly our worst nightmare if something bad happen to you. We’d never wish that on you.

                Which is why we want to apologize for acting so furious with you when we argued with you. We didn’t have the opportunity to understand the real circumstances of that night at the time, but we still are at fault for not understanding how much stress you’ve been put through. And that's the irony unto itself: we didn’t see that you were been set up by the law as part of some shady favors, yet we care so much about your safety and happiness – as do others.

                The innmaidens, the waitresses, the cooks, your friends, family and relatives… and I still didn’t forget that brunette girl you were so close with. She left home at such a young age, and you were so devastated that you never got to say goodbye. That’s proof alone over how many people want you to be successful and happy – even Chie, wherever she is now. Especially Chie.

Yukiko nearly froze up for a moment, the full memories of her childhood coming back.

After a few seconds, she grit her teeth, forcing herself to read to the end.

                Yet I wish to make something very clear to you, Yukiko: we love you so much. There’s so many people here in Inaba who are rooting for you and in agreement how wrong it is that you’ve been mistreated. Know that all of us are here for you: we’re a community, and we all love you Yukiko. I will always, always love you, my dear Yuki.

With love,

Mom and Dad

And that point, Yukiko began sobbing.

(Music Playing – Traumerei –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L_CgMfnVy0)

As Yukiko wept bitterly into her hands, she was a mess of emotions: Chie’s departure, so long fogged over by time and trying to forget the pain she felt on that day, her parents' love, Yasoinaba… Yukiko was even more conflicted now.

She thought all she was destined to be was some inn maiden bound at the hip to the town, but now, she was wondering if the tether binding her to the inn was also what was keeping her tied to Earth, stopping her from flying off into space – from her mother, her father, the same people who scolded her so harshly for being arrested and expelled.

Now, for the first time in what felt like ages, Yukiko wanted to go back to them – and in one of the most bittersweet ironies of existence, wanted to go back to Chie, who she now realized was something else; her last remaining tie to the person she was before that awful day.

“Mom… d-dad…” Yukiko sobbed, her face wet with tears. “I wanna go home…”

Yukiko would cry some more until she had no more tears to cry.


(Music Playing – Morning Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fi-sG5D1pyY)

May 17th , 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yukiko’s Attic – 6:14 AM

Yukiko almost didn’t have it within her to get up that morning.

To say that yesterday felt really long was a gross understatement, what with that bombshell of a letter she read. Morgana tried his best to comfort Yukiko in the morning, but not to much  avail.

Regardless, Yukiko found herself lazily staring at the ceiling while on the bed, deep in thought. Okay, Yuki, she thought to herself. That was heavy. So, focus on the things you can do. For example, go to Madarame's house this afternoon.

Yukiko eventually found the willpower to sit up, rubbing her temples. Oh yeah, and tell Chie she's apparently my long-lost childhood friend. That's going to take a bit. Probably something we should do in private...

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

(Music Playing – Confession/Secret -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ED7kzAmnAY)

“Hm?” Morgana lazily raised his head. “Maybe you should get that.”

Yukiko blinked for a moment before flipping open her phone. She cracked a small smile once she realized it was Chie texting her.

steak trash: hi, yukiiiiiiiii!! o(〃^▽^〃)o

Yukiko Amagi: Hey, Chie!

Yukiko Amagi: Something up?

steak trash: well… yeah, kinda

steak trash: i talked with ryuji and ann, we should probably relocate elsewhere from the shujin rooftop

Yukiko Amagi: Huh?

Yukiko Amagi: I’m sorry, why do we need to go elsewhere?

steak trash: …do i really need to say it??? .( ̵˃﹏˂̵ )

steak trash: yaknow, makoto!! we gotta keep a clear eye out for her if we don't wanna be caught

…Yukiko processed that for a second, before wincing.

"Uh, well… crap." Yukiko whispered, dope slapping herself before replying. I forgot about that! Whew… thanks, Chie.

Morgana snickered, having picked up Yukiko forgetting. "What, was the Student Council President putting the fear of God into you wasn't enough to help you remember?"

"Be quiet, you." Yukiko puffed her cheeks, before typing her reply to Chie.

Yukiko Amagi: …you just reminded me. Thanks a lot, Chie.

steak trash: ofc!! no problem, but that only begs the question

Yukiko Amagi: …yes?

steak trash: well… this is obvious, but given we're doing a mission today to get to the bottom of the mystery… we're going to need to set up a new base of operations

Yukiko Amagi: I… beg your pardon?

Yukiko Amagi: Where to?

A brief pause later, almost out of an attempt to save her dignity, Chie replied.

steak trash: uh, well on the up side… there's a great view, at least…


(Music Playing - Subway Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNpL6bt3ZNc)

May 17th, 2016 - Ginza Subway, 3:40 PM

"Phantom Thieves going by train, from school…" Ryuj puffed out a cheek. "This wasn't exactly how I expected a mission to start…"

"Yeah…" Yukiko agreed, still annoyed at the clear smell of city in her nostrils. "It lacks a certain… panache, I guess…"

Ann shrugged. "The train is the fastest way to go - plus, we can bring pets on here."

(Music Playing – Wicked Plan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

"Hey, who you calling a pet?!" an irate Morgana said, his head popping out of his bad with the most irate expression a feline face could convey.

Seeing him promptly reminded Chie of a very important detail. "…ooooh, crap. I forgot to pay the pet fare."

There was a beat before Ryuji, teeth clenched, tried to force the not-a-cat back inside. "Shh! Be quiet, I don't wanna get fined!"

"Hey, I'm not done!" He continued. "I'm the one who was training you, remember? If you're calling me anything, it should be 'Master!' Furthermore - "

"Ooh, kitty!" An elementary schooler in an orange coat rushed over from her parents.

"…shoot." Ann said, wincing.

"Is that your pet, Miss?" The girl asked Yukiko, excitedly. "I heard it meowing!"

"Uh…" Chie mumbled, trying to think of some way to respond that did not end with an annoyed ticket inspector and a large bill. "Ummm…"

Yukiko, thankfully, was quicker on the draw. "Actually, no, little Mona here is an advanced stuffed puppet from a movie set." She spoke carefully, smiling kindly. "He just looked so lifelike and cute, I had to show him off."

"Yyyyeah, it's just a toy," Ann continued, catching on. "There's a button on its head that makes it meow - there's a lot of recordings."

"Um, yeah, that!" Chie forced herself to look honest. "Press on Mona's head, he meows."

A mischievous look came to Ryuji's face. "…why don't you show that off, Yukiko? One for the little girl."

Morgana looked up, somehow looking more irate. "This is ridicu-"

That made the decision for Yukiko, who proceeded to press down on the not-a-cat's head to disguise the meow the little girl would hear.

Defeated, Morgana inhaled. "M-Mewww..."

This seemed to convince the squirt. "Wowweeeee! Again, again! What other noises can it make?!"

Yukiko thought long and hard on that. Well, I don't wanna disappoint her. But how to make it obvious I'm… doing… something… differ…

She looked down, and suddenly remembered how irritating Morgana's sleep schedule could be.

Chie blinked. "…um, Yuki? Why is the air chilling? And what's with that look in your - "

"Wellll," Yukiko began. "There's a simple way to make a more goofy sound. You ever play a video game where you.... button mashed?"

Morgana had just enough time to register a look of absolute terror before Yukiko grabbed the area behind his ears, and proceeded to unleash every ounce of elite gamer finger dexterity she possessed onto the top of Morgana's head.

"Mew...meowowowowowowowwww!"

Her point made, she released the not-a-cat from his torment.

"…BLERGHHH!" He slumped over, dazed.

The little girl laughed. "That's so funny! I wanna hear it again!"

Before Yukiko could return to repetitive motion-based terrorizing, Chie cleared her throat. "Yukiko, aren't you supposed to, uh, not waste batteries on that?"

Both Yukiko and the little girl made the same exact awww sound.

Morgana moaned. "I just threw up in my mouth..."


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

May 17th, 2016 - Central Street, Shibuya, 3:51 PM

Button-based torture of eldritch felines out of the way - and Yukiko being assured, at the top of said eldritch feline's voice, that he would not stop telling her when to go to bed, thank you - the Phantom Thieves made the walk to the address Yusuke gave… and quickly discovered that "shack" was putting Madarame's house a bit lightly.

Ryuji goggled at the pile of corrugated rusty metal with windows and a wooden door. "Is… Is this the right address?"

"I… think?" Ann looked at the door. "Yeah, it says 'Madarame' on the door plate…"

"Uh, you wanna ring the door bell?" Chie looked over the house with great trepidation. "…lightly? I'm afraid a strong push might bring a wall down."

"Especially with her button skills…" Morgana said with a bit of stink-eye aimed at Yukiko. "…but yeah, no one sneeze. We might send the whole thing flying."

Yukiko shook her head. "Who lives like this…? I'm sure he has the money to move somewhere nice, especially if he's into plagiarism, so…?"

Shrugging, the group headed up, Ann - very carefully - hitting the doorbell and voice box.

"Who is it?" Yusuke's voice came over the speaker. "Sensei is currently-"

"Um, it's Satonaka and guests." Chie called. "Remember?"

"Ah, my apologies! You're early - I'll be right out!" The speaker clicked off.

"…people really do live here." Ryuji muttered, before grumbling. "That's just plain sad…"

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

The sliding door opened. "Satonaka-san! And… everyone else!", he said with a blush. "…I must really ask your names at some point - I must say, I get caught up in things."

"Yeah, we noticed." Ann said, awkwardly. "So, um…"

"Is it true that Madarame - " Ryuji began, before a slight elbow from Yukiko.

"Time and place, gorilla!" Morgana hissed, frustratedly.

Yusuke blinked. "…you brought a cat along?" He spoke slowly, sounding a little disgruntled. "You do realize that there is a lot of wet paint here, that a cat could knock over or track?"

"Hey, as proof I'm not a cat, I'm very - oh who cares, you don't understand anyway." Morgana mewed.

It didn't take long for Yukiko to come up with a good reasoning though. "Um, this is going to be awkward, but uh…" She gave an embarrassed smile. "Do they have therapy animals at Kosei…?"

Yusuke caught on the implication very quickly. "Ah. I see. My apologies - I won't ask. Though, I would expect one to be a dog…" He shrugged. "Just keep it away from the materials, thank you." He stepped out of the way. "Please, come in."

All four human Thieves bowed - at which point Yukiko's phone slipped out of her pocket.

"Dang it!" She said, fishing it off the ground. "It's always like this after I get my clothes-"

She trailed off, noticing her phone was on the Meta-Nav screen.

And more precisely, that it had detected valid search terms for "Madarame", "shack", and "plagiarism."

She stared at it for a while.

"Is something the matter?", Yusuke interrupted, sounding concerned.

"Nothing! I just - " She pretended to scrub some dirt off. "I was just distracted…"

Which was half-true.

Discovering that there was indeed a Palace attached to such a seemingly kind old man was very distracting.

Notes:

And thus, we finally get to the real meat and potatoes of the arc - Madarame. Definitely one of the weaker Palace owners in terms of memorability if we were being honest, but at least he isn't a mistake like… some particular targets are (*sticks needles in voodoo doll of the idiot responsible for Okumura's Palace*).

But yeah, I've mentioned this before, but I intend to finally change up a few things, because part of my problem with Madarame in the old draft was that I tried to have lightning strike twice - I thought "escalating Kamoshida's crimes made him more memorable, so why not Madarame?". An understandable novice mistake, but one that continues to haunt at me especially as I ended up taking a bad idea without my modern-day sensibilities in how they would tie into the plot. I wanted to potentially give a link to Kaneshiro and effectively set him up in the scheme of things as a later part of the story, but I really don't know how well that would go on the wholesale.

So, this is part of my redemption arc for this particular bit of chapters - giving a finality to the whole ordeal in a way that's satisfactory to myself and in good quality and/or taste to everyone else. I really will attempt to deliver here where Madarame hasn't delivered in canon, especially now that I've identified much more effective ways to write him.

And with that all said and done? See you all next time! Here's hoping my next update will be less of a dumpster fire in terms of wait time. ;)

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 13
Chie: Lv. 12
Morgana: Lv. 12
Ryuji: Lv. 11
Ann: Lv. 11

Yukiko's Current Stock
Apsaras, Koropokguru, Hamsa, Ame-no-Uzume, Ippon-Datara, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 1
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 2
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 2
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 1
Death (Tae Takemi): 1
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

Chapter 10: A Woman

Summary:

Yukiko and the other Thieves return to begin their exploration of Madarame's supposed 'Palace'… to both much surprise and unexpected events.

Notes:

ANGUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISH.

…don't mind me, that was me having a short aneurysm from blood rage. Anyways, if you want to know where that came from, it's because I was at the end-point of finishing the update to this fucking scuffed chapter, only for it to wipe all my progress because Google Chrome yeeted itself like a fucking cock-end! So I'm pretty pissed, and if my internal dialogue seems a bit more mean-spirited than usual, that's why.

Either way, Yukiko's adventure continues for all to see! Will it go anywhere in the time allotted by this piece of crap? Probably not.

Enjoy.~

Party Levels
Yukiko: Level 13
Chie: Lv. 12
Morgana: Lv. 12
Ryuji: Lv. 11
Ann: Lv. 11

Yukiko's Current Stock
Apsaras, Koropokguru, Hamsa, Ame-no-Uzume, Ippon-Datara, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 1
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 2
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 2
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 1
Death (Tae Takemi): 1
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack – 3:54 PM

"…well. This is, uh… humble…"

Yukiko took a deep breath in as she looked around the room - and subtly reaching for her handkerchief in case of a dust-induced sneeze. Madarame's shack was not, as she was hoping, a book that should not be judged by its cover. In fact, if anything, it made her appreciate LeBlanc's attic a bit more. At least the attic was built in a sturdy environment, and the walls were wood.

The shack, on the other hand, was sparse. 

She supposed a more polite term for it could be 'spartan', but 'spartan' implied some level of self-care; the original culture that term came from were warriors who believed in minimal comfort, not barely functioning sleeping quarters. Can't exactly fight if you spent the entire night before waking up because you tried to sleep on sharp rocks or your barracks caved in on you. And Morgana's comment about a sneeze blowing the shack off its hinges seemed, if anything, optimistic. The entire interior was almost stripped of anything that seemed like a typical home - plain concrete walls, bare planks for a floor, and paint supplies everywhere. To say nothing of the dust.

"Erm…" Yusuke looked confused, almost shrugging. "…being in disrepair is a sign of virtue?"

Ryuji looked a little relieved to be able to admit his thoughts candidly. "…we meant it's kind of a dump, dude. Ain't your fault, but jeez! You'd expect a famous artist to sell enough paintings to stop…" He drug his finger over a wall, leaving a very visible streak.

Yusuke was not offended, though he was obviously embarrassed. "M-My apologies. Sensei spends most of his money on paying off a massive student loan debt he acquired while in art school. Enough for a regular diet of bean sprouts, but we must often chose between more filling meals or a better array of paints."

"…or, uh, hiring a cleaning service?" Ann muttered awkwardly, worried that a mere cough would cause the shack to collapse on itself.

"It was not nearly so dust-ridden when we had a larger array of apprentices, but currently, we are a bit short on spare hands to clean." Yusuke admitted, looking a bit upset by the situation himself. "I have kept my workspace hygienic, at the least."

Yukiko frowned internally. Not enough hands, huh… Well, it makes sense for everyone to join in, but… Does Madarame help his students at all? Or am I being paranoid…?

She shook her head, remembering what Morgana told her about Palaces. Plagiarism or not, it could be that Madarame's just of the 'warped cognition, good person' variety of owner. We really need more info on him…

"Speaking of, how did Madarame become a painter, anyway?" Yukiko asked, looking a bit curious. "I know he's pretty famous, but everyone starts somewhere, right?"

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

Yusuke smiled, obviously relieved for the change in subjects, pulled out his phone, and pulled up a favorite image of his. "Well - not to boast on his behalf, but this! This is his maiden work."

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

As everyone looked over it, even art-blind Ryuji whistled. "Okay, not gonna lie - that's impressive."

It was a fairly basic painting on its surface; a portrait of a woman in a red kimono, looking at something in swirling blue mist with a slight smile. But the details? The details, in particular the simplicity of the smile contrasted with the mystery of what the mist contained, made it something special.

Ann recognized it, her eyes widening. "That's… that's the Sayuri…"

"It is indeed. Sensei is a prodigy, all things considered." He smiled warmly. "This is the painting that inspired me to be an artist."

"It's beautiful,… Chie agreed, even her reluctance forgotten.

Yusuke carefully turned to the brunette. "When I first saw you, I felt the same powerful emotions I did when I first saw this painting."

She looked a little taken aback. "R-Really?"

"I wish to pursue beauty like this." He said in a joyous smile, putting away his phone. "And I believe drawing you will be part of that pursuit. So, again, I must thank you for your assistance."

"N… No problem!" Chie grinned awkwardly, still a little uncertain. "B-But I'll be happy to help, still!" A pause, as she rolled it around her head a bit. "…I think."

"Yeah. We're glad we can help you!" Yukiko exclaimed with as much enthusiasm as she could fake. Especially if it involves avoiding that beauty being stolen…

"Excellent. Truly, our meeting was a chance encounter I'm incredibly grateful for. Now then…" Yusuke paused, turning to the shack. "Shall we head in?"

The general direction Yusuke was looking in inspired a brief awkward pause. Even Morgana, who was hidden in Yukiko's bag, peeked his head out only to gape at the state of the ramshackle "house," quoted liberally.

"Are you serious?" Morgana whispered, looking shocked. "A stiff breeze would cause the whole thing to collapse!"

"Shhh, quiet!" Yukiko scolded in a likewise whisper, before putting on her best fake smile towards Yusuke. "Ahem, yes, let's! Sorry, let's go then."

Yusuke looked at Yukiko with a bit of confusion, before dropping how odd the scene looked in favor of a smile. "Indeed. Follow me."

And with that, Yusuke opened the doorway to Madarame's shack, following in the other teenagers.


(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack, Yusuke’s Studio – 4:02 PM

"…if you don't mind my asking, is there a particular reason why you are... sitting in on this?"

“Well…” Yukiko turned to Yusuke, forcing her face into what she hoped was a bright smile. “I did introduce the idea, so I suppose I am her… talent agent, of sorts?”

Internally, Yusuke flinched at the strained, forcefully tone. He didn’t read emotions that well, but he knew anxiety when he heard it. He weighed the merits of asking what he did to offend her, but decided it was probably not worth angering her further. Probably was just overprotective, like Madarame was.

“And, uh, yeah, wouldn’t you get nervous too, if it was just the two of us?” Chie smiled, which contrasted her more growly tone of voice quite nicely.

Yusuke’s head tilted. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, think about it! You’re a boy I just met, and now you’re asking to be a secluded, private area…” Chie trailed off, hoping the blue-haired artist got it.

He did, thankfully - perhaps tellingly, his cheeks immediately tinted red as he sputtered a bit. “Oh! Oh! My apologies; while I do not mean to offend, I have absolutely no interest in you as someone of the opposite sex. It is strictly professional.”

Ann’s brow furrowed, apparently surprised to hear that. “Huh?”

“Is there a problem?” Yusuke asked, genuinely curious.

“No, not at all, that’s fine! Seriously!” Internally, Chie breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t know how much more stress she could take after that accidental stalking. She didn’t need him drooling over her like an intentional stalker too.

“Good. Then if you will just sit on the stool and pose…” Using a colored pencil as a guide, Yusuke finished his sentence to center his view on the sitting Chie, and turned to his easel.

And then he began to sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch some more.

“…so, I was thinking.” Yukiko began, hoping to strike up conversation. “Err, Kitagawa-kun?”

And sketched.

And sketch some more.

“Um, do you hear her?” Ann asked, looking a bit bewildered at the blue-haired boy's focus.

And sketched.

And sketch some more.

Ryuji couldn't help but whistle. “…hot damn, I wish I had this guy’s focus when studying. That or we’re looking into another planet, across the soundless vacuum of space.”

Morgana mewed loudly (an actual meow this time, the verbal equivalent of snapping his currently nonexistent fingers), popping out of the bag before shrugging. "Certainly not the weirdest behavior I've seen today… but seriously, hello? Anyone in there?"

Unresponsive, Yusuke continued to sketch.

And sketch some more.

“…it’s no use.” Morgana groaned, sounding resigned. “If he’s going to give us a bigger picture of what kind of person Madarame is, it’s not going to be anything we say when he’s at work.”

“You’re telling me!” Ann replied, now genuinely impressed with Yusuke's concentration. “It’s like talking to a very creative wall.”

A few more moments passed.

Yusuke continued to sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch some more.

Yukiko considered herself a woman of patience - she kind of had to be, given she often dealt with some very rowdy and very drunk guests at the Inn. But even this was testing her patience. She crossed her legs and folded her arms in the hopes her body language wouldn't give away how frustrated she was, while Chie looked like she was having posture strain, Ryuji yawned, and Ann began looking at her phone in the hopes of passing the time.

After a few more moments of this, Morgana winced sheepishly at Yukiko. “Err, maybe Yukiko and I should be outside the room, then? I think if she’s not given something to do she’s going to spontaneously combu - ”

“YES! LET’S!” Yukiko cried out in irritation, jumping to her feet before blushing. "…s-sorry."

Everyone not named Yusuke flinched.

“Please hold still." He spoke as he sketched, his voice a monotone from concentration.

Yukiko, feeling herself turn almost as red as her blouse, cleared her throat. “I um, haven’t had the, uh, best day, and I think I’ll just make things worse if I stay around. May I take my leave for a bit so I can get myself together?”

She wondered if Yusuke could even hear her, given he didn't flinch once from his sketching.

The innmaiden cringed. "…riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight, so I’ll be taking my bag and heading out here, and uh, seeyouinabit!”

She haplessly got out of her seat as she bolted for the doorway, hoping her ploy wasn't telling of what she intended to do. Ryuji yawned some more, burying his head in his hands.

"Oh, dear God, this is gonna take an effin' while…" Ryuji grumbled, a bit delirious from boredom now. "How long are we gonna sit here?"

"Says you." Chie spoke in a venomous tone while still posed like a statue, trembling slightly from the strain of having posed for as long as she have.

"Stand still, please." Yusuke responded monotonously, not a care in the world given as he continued to sketch.


(Music Playing – Shack Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh63phquoYk )

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack, Common Hallway – 4:16 PM

It took all of Yukiko’s foresight not to slam the door behind her. As soon as she had left, though, the raven-haired girl breathed an audible sigh of relief.

"…okay, then. Now that we're outside…" Morgana hopped out of the bag with fittingly cat-like tread, and gave her a skeptical look. "I can feel it in the bag when you tense - and you've been a shaking reed the entire time we've been in here! What gives?"

"I'm sorry, but - this does!" Yukiko pulled out her phone, opened the Meta-Nav, and showed Morgana the location list.

A second later, his eyes widened to the size of saucers.

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

"We're inside a Palace's real-world version?!" Morgana hissed silently. "Do you want us to be sucked there in full view of Yusuke!?"

Yukiko blinked. "Uh - "

"That Meta-Nav? I don't think it cares where we are, just that it hits the keywords!" Morgana began to groom himself furiously, obviously upset. "We could have been dropped in a barracks for whatever his Shadows are!"

"Oh?" A pause, before a sudden grimace. "…ooooh."

Yukiko turned as red as her shirt. "Sorry. I didn't think about that…"

"It's fine, just - don't do it again!" The not-a-cat shook himself, then sat down. "But still - this is proof something is seriously wrong here. So, not all bad - not hardly!" He paused. "It is kinda surprising that he has a Palace after all, though, given how highly Yusuke thinks of him."

"And steals art from others, too. Can't forget that." Yukiko put a finger on her lip. "But… he's obviously not Kamoshida. So I'm wondering - is Madarame doing it intentionally?"

"…you think that he might be one of the other kind of Palace owners, right?" Morgana spoke, nodding in partial agreement. "It makes sense - after making a classic like Sayuri, he could have snapped from the pressure of trying to fill his own boots. Especially if he's in debt…"

"Very true." Yukiko paused. "So, I'm thinking - we could warn the others over a text, and take a look around, see if we find any proof of what he is before we try investigating his Palace - and possibly hurting someone?"

"Hrmm…" Morgana paused, mulling over his options. "On the one hand, we could just figure out what the last keyword is… but on the other, I can't help but feel we'll know what to expect if we snoop. Besides, he's taking forever…"

He thought some before, before inhaling. "Okay! But don't alert anyone yet. Just say you'll take a while. And try not to say all three of the keywords in the same sentence."

Yukiko blinked. "Why are we keeping this hush-hush?"

"You know how Ryuji is. Don't exactly trust him to not blab." Morgana compounded that with a feline shrug. "Besides, Yusuke's just taking some preliminary sketches. It can't be that long before they talk with him…"

Yukiko almost wanted to object to that, but closed her mouth when she realized how obnoxiously loud Ryuji could be when excited. She simply shrugged. "…yeah, fair point. So, you want to check around?"

"Yeah, it'd be a good idea to do that." Morgana spoke hesitantly, before fully standing up. "C'mon, let's go."

Morgana waved his paw, signaling the two's start at looking around. It wasn't exactly much longer afterwards when Yukiko worried about how Chie's doing.

She winced. "I hope the others' are doing okay…"


(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack, Yusuke’s Studio – 4:24 PM

Yusuke continued to sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch some more.

Ann continued her interest to her smartphones, while Ryuji snored loudly. And Chie, while still posing and smiling, was a madwoman's step away from screeching internally and tossing the chair she was sitting on out the window.

Her lips and body twitched as what felt like hours - that she logically knew to be mere minutes - continued to pass by. For the love of all that's good and holy, am I that hard to sketch?! Wonder what Yuki’s doing that's taking so long?


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack, Common Hallway – 4:40 PM

”How. Can a man. With a Palace. Be. This. Frugal?!” Yukiko, ner anxiety long replaced with frustration, she sank her face into a wall as she resisted the urge to scream into her hands.

Madarame’s shack was empty. No television, no computer, not even a full library, just piles of books on art theory. There was nothing to suggest Madarame or his students did anything except eat, sleep, excrete, and paint.

“You know, I think I can actually respect him now! No, actually, I think I feel sorry for him!” Yukiko growled in frustration. “There is nothing here. He has nothing in his life other than his profession! Screw student loans, how sad and desperate do you have to be to become like that?!”

“He’s still a plagiarist.” Morgana pointed out. “He may be that desperate, but that doesn't excuse – wait.”

Yukiko stopped banging her head against the wall. “What?”

Morgana stared at the end of a hallway turning off from the main one. "That… is a very flashy door."

Yukiko walked up, curiously poking her head around.

It took her a good couple seconds to process it. "…okay, wow. That is gaudy. Yikes!"

The sliding door in question was almost a painting in and of itself, a colorful peacock with spots on his that that looked almost like the insides of pearl oysters and surrealistic feathers that seemed to slow into each other. Were it not for his orange-feathered head and body near the bottom, Yukiko would have guessed it for some abstract piece taking up the entire door,

“…okay, I wasn't expecting to see this." Morgana began, making an odd sound with his mouth as he did the closest thing to whistling he could with a felid mouth. “Yusuke's door has a checkerboard, so it's not like having paintings for doors isn't common here… but yeesh! You'd think that if Madarame's having money troubles, he'd sell that."

“Yeah, it seems like something you’d find at an art museum - “

…just as Yukiko heard her obvious observation verbally, a thought struck her, and she shot up immediately. “You think this is Madarame’s room?”

“I mean, we haven't exactly found anything except students' rooms.” He nodded at a similarly colorful padlock. “Would explain that, too. Man likes his priva… cy…”

Morgana trailed off, frowning. "…isn't there something really strange about that? I don't want people suddenly charging in either..."

"Well… it wouldn't be strange, if we didn't just do the same with four other rooms…" Yukiko, regardless of her response, nodded in agreement. "…but then why is this room locked? I mean, not just locked, but obviously locked. Why's Madarame so trusting with students until they involve his own privacy?"

She rolled that around in her head that as she poked at the padlock. "…hm."

Her Phantom Thief training dawned on her and she reached into her hair, looking for a pin.

Morgana caught on, but made a negatory noise. “I get what you’re planning, but I don’t think your hair pins are hardy enough to get past the mechanism. More likely they’d break in there and leave evidence we tried to jimmy it open.”

“Right. This is a place for another day, then." She said with an immediate shrug. “Let’s see if there’s anything else we can find - ”

She stopped mid-step. "…come to think of it, where's his bed, too?"

Morgana stopped mid-step too, now looking very curious. "…I'm sorry?"

"I mean, think about it. We've seen bedspreads in rooms without art supplies, and even Yusuke doesn't have one in his studio." Yukiko continued, slowly piecing together the image of a mystery. "So, either that's a studio or a bedroom… and assuming that's Madarame's, either suggests that he's hiding something…"

"…I honestly can't say for sure." Morgana said with a bit of perplexed grimace, tilting his head as he thought. "I mean, it's a point, but it's kind of conjectural evidence… we wouldn't know unless we checked on the other side of that door, and as noted, that's just only going to leave evidence behind…"

"Yeah. Again, I - " Yukiko froze as she pulled up her phone for messages. She immediately blanched.

DanishWeeaboo: yo, yuki, it looks like we're almost done

DanishWeeaboo: can ya show up soon???

DanishWeeaboo: hello?

Last Message Sent from DanishWeeaboo: 4:42 PM

"Holy shi - !" Yukiko felt her blood turn to ice. "We need to get back with Yusuke, he was probably done twenty minutes ago!"

And with that, Yukiko made an expeditious retreat to the art studio.

"Seriously?! Why didn't you check sooner?!" Morgana mewed in exasperation, before immediately running after Morgana. "Hey! Hey, wait up!"


(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack, Yusuke’s Studio – 4:43 PM

Yusuke continued to sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch.

And sketch…

…at this point, Ryuji was in a deep snore.

Chie’s smile had turned to a grimace of utter agony, her inner voice adequately expressing the pain she was in. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA - 

Ann looked ready to throw her phone out the window. "How long is this gonna TAKE?!"

Thankfully, it was at that point where Yusuke suddenly groaned and threw his pencil at its box, causing the true blonde to slightly yelp at the sound.

Chie immediately felt her muscles deflate as she recognized per instinct that Yusuke was done sketching. She practically collapsed on the ground.

"Body… sore…" Chie whined pitifully. "Ow…"

Ann, meanwhile, had the most exaggerated expression of impatience on her face. “Ugh, are you done?!”

“No, but it’s…” Yusuke sighed, slumping back. “It’s no good.”

Chie immediately looked upset. “Oh, crap, sorry! Was I posing wrong? I need to work on my endurance…”

“No, not at all.” Yusuke admitted. “It’s just… I’m having trouble staying focused. I’m sorry but we’ll have to do this another time…”

A single thought ran through the present company of Phantom Thieves: That was you having trouble focusing!?

Chie's worries immediately turned to abject anger. “Oh, hell no! How many hours do you think you made us wait!?”

Ann glanced at the clock. “It hasn’t been even one yet, Chie. Not that I blame you, or the snoring man over here…”

She yawned, pointed at the fast-asleep Ryuji.

Yusuke looked mortified at Ryuji snoring loudly. "…how in Heaven's name do any of you maintain focus with him snoring like that?! Goodness!"

Ann immediately snorted and repressed a giggle, while Chie resisted the urge to dope-slap Yusuke up the side of the head.

“Okay then… um, sorry you’re having trouble, but…" Chie spoke with several pauses, desperately not wanting to go through this again. "…say, can we ask one thing before we leave?” 

“Oh, yeah… sorry, but we wanted to ask you about some rumors out of public.” Ann continued, not meeting Yusuke’s eyes.

Yusuke’s already dark mood soured. “Ah yes… my master’s ‘plagiarism’ and such.”

That woke Ann up. Immediately, she grimaced.

…oh, shit, he knows. She thought with a dreading wince. …okay, wow. These rumors have been around for a while then!

“That painting I saw at the exhibit…” Ann continued, pretending not to notice the sudden dark change. “The reason you were so ambivalent about it was because you painted it, right?”

(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

Yusuke’s eyes flew open in surprise. “That’s… that is to say…”

“Yep, called it.” Chie finished, any remaining doubt vanished. “Look, Yusuke, he’s nothing more than a greedy little thief. Actually, no, a thief works to steal what isn’t theirs. He just slaps his name on things and pretends he always had them.”

Ann was less "so done with this" than Chie was, but she nonetheless balanced out her empathetic response with some sternness. “…listen, Yusuke, I know this has got to be hard to hear. But… he really doesn’t give a damn about his students. Why on Earth would he let you live… like this? Even if he's got a massive debt to pay off, certainly he couldn't afford some ability for comfort! It’s why he doesn’t care if he steals their work - you're just a tool to him!”

Yusuke started to glance around, reminding the three there of a frightened fox looking for a way out. “I… I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He said that with every syllable enunciated like he was practicing a new line in a play.

“Wow, you’re a worse actor than I am," Ann muttered in self-depcrecating amazement. “That’s just plain sad.”

“Look, he’s just an old man.” Chie said, smiling encouragingly. “We can back you up if you call him out.”

“I…” Yusuke inhaled and exhaled, lowering his hands like he was deflating a balloon. “I… It is as the rumor suggested. The students repay their master in artwork, in return for our tutelage. It is a way to help keep him afloat of the debts, and we float with him.”

Something about that line seemed fake, but in a different way than a line. Almost more like a mantra.

“Then why aren’t you pooling resources or something!?” Chie nearly shouted in exasperation. “It’s not like anyone’s going to be upset that the artist line is ‘Yusuke Kitagawa, Madarame helped’ or anything! The best art teacher in the world is still the best!”

“Because if it was announced Sensei was retiring, it would devalue him in the art world.” Yusuke replied, his frustration apparent. “He is simply suffering from a case of artist’s block right now; it would be difficult for him to rescind his retirement. So, his apprentices let him use our artwork to keep his name.”

More of that “rehearsed” tone. Chie paused, before beginning to speak slowly. “…Kitagawa-kun, does that make any sense? If your Sensei suddenly announced that his retirement was over, that would be a comeback story! Surely he doesn’t have to steal your spotlight to keep himself together.”

"And even if that's true…" Ann spoke, gently and nurturing in her voice, "…aren't you the only student left? That puts way too much pressure on your talents for what's practically his gain."

“I…” Yusuke sucked in his cheek, turning away from the group. “I…”

(Music Abruptly Stops)

The door suddenly opened.

"Augh, sorry!" Yukiko immediately yelled, pushing the door open.

"Zzz - WHAA?!" Ryuji shook awake, his eyes shooting comically wide.

"And you were asleep to… figures." Morgana spoke exasperatedly, sighing. "Damnit, Skull…"

"Oh, shaddup!" Ryuji spoke in a bit of sleep-coma slur. "You tell me how your end of looking through each room went, cat!"

…dead silence.

Everyone presence. could swear they could feel the temperature dropping by a few degrees.

“I apologize.” Yusuke said, voice devoid of all emotion but genuine anger. “Why are you letting your cat out of the bag?!"

Morgana winced. "…meep."

"And I believe I misheard that. Did you just say…” He spun around, looking angrier than any of the Phantom Thieves had ever seen him. “You. Were. In. My sensei's bedroom!?

(Music Playing – Tension – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

Yukiko began to suspect she hit a sore subject with him - and had kept going. “Oh… um, sorry, it’s just that everywhere was unlocked and - “

“I’m sorry, what part of ‘stay in my studio’ did not penetrate the sable towel you call your hair?!” He was outright growling now. “Do you understand how many rules I am breaking by allowing you over here for even one day!? And how violated I feel when you abused that to trespass everywhere!? With a pet, no less?!"

“H-Hey man, she didn’t mean effin' anything by it!” Ryuji shouted, attempting to defuse the already-lit bomb. “She was just concerned about living conditions, that’s all!”

A moment later, Ryuji realized he should have said 'her cat' instead.

“Concerned? Why would she be - “ Yusuke’s eyes brightened with understanding, before narrowing to slits. “Oh. I believe it’s becoming clear now.”

“...oh, goddamnit.” Morgana’s voice came with a fearful wince.

“That was the primary reason you came here, was it not? You wished to find information to sully my master’s good name?” Yusuke’s voice turned dangerously calm. “I see…”

“L-Look, Yusuke - ” Ann began, before being silenced by Yusuke’s glare.

Quietly, Yusuke got out a cell phone and typed something. “If you're not deaf from apparently not have heard my rules from the countless times I told you to keep away… that was me alerting the police to a possible burglar.”

Every single one of the Thieves felt their heart drop on the floor. Yukiko immediately hid her face.

"W-We're really sorry…" Yukiko murmured, a short yelp escaping her voice."

Ryuji, dreadingly, gave a wince. "…I fucked up, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did!" Chie exclaimed, exasperatedly.

Yusuke currently wasn't giving either of the two the attention he felt neither deserved, and glanced sympathetically towards Yukiko. “I won't lie, I felt more than a little betrayed by this. Especially given I hoped we'd get along well…"

Yukiko cringed even more. "S-Sorry…"

"…however, I consider myself a man of empathy and mercy." Yusuke then smiled, glancing at all four present. "So, let us make a new deal: I will say that I was mistaken, and there was instead an accident and false alarm… on one condition.”

He turned to Chie. “I want you to continue being my model, Satonaka-chan, for the duration of Sensei’s exhibition at the gallery.”

Chie blinked. “Uh… o-okay, thanks, but - “

“…alone. With no potential intruders holding me back through unconscious modesty.”

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

Ann tilted her head, not liking where this is going. “Wait, what exactly do you mean by – “

“Yes, you may have abused my hospitality, but I guarantee that you have given me the opportunity to put my heart and soul into creating the best nude painting ever!”

If time itself could grind to a halt, it would have in that exact room.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

It’s a miracle Chie’s jaw didn’t hit the floor, her cheeks flaring into a bright red crimson. “W… W-W-W-W…”

“WHAT?!” Ryuji screamed out, rearing back from an invisible punch.

“Nude?!” Ann repeated in dumbfounded shock, her expression slowly morphing into utmost anger. “As in, not clothed?!”

“That is the implication behind the term, yes.” Yusuke replied, giving the world's most polite possible case of smirking. “To think I would be able to create a nude picture of the most ideal model… this day has spun towards the better for me.”

“…W-W-W-W-W-W…”

“I, um, ah…” Yukiko inhaled, still a bit stunned herself. “…isn’t this a bit, err, excessive?”

"Not to mention freaking CREEPY!" Ann cried out, genuinely looking angrier by the second. "Haven't you seen the news at ALL, you dunce?!"

“I don't pay attention to the news, I'm afraid." Yusuke spoke tacitly before turning away from a gradually-more irate Ann to a bewildered Yukiko. "…and yes, I will confess it was, and then you escalated by violating my personal spaces and rampaging across my shared home. Be glad I am being relatively merciful.” Yusuke replied again, the smirk growing wider. “Besides, I need to submit a new piece to Sensei soon, to prevent… ahem, inconveniences. Of course, I expect you will speak of this to no one.”

“Uh, s-sure man, but, uh, seriously, isn’t that kind of…” Ryuji searched his brain for the proper term. “Embarrassing? Creepy?”

“…W-W-W-W-W-W-WhhhhhaaaaAAAAAT?!”

Chie squealed wordlessly as she instinctively covered herself, her cheeks reddening even more. Ann immediately shoved herself directly into the conversation. “D-D-Doesn’t the model get a say, you idiot?! Especially given the entire scandal that went on in April?! I mean, seriously, WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU IN THE LAST FEW DAYS?!" 

"Y-Yeah, seriously!" Chie genuinely tried to sound menacing with her anger and discomfort, but her second-hand embarrassment made it look like a kitten's squeal than a lion's roar. "I mean, I’m the one… N-N-NAKED!”

“If you wish to cover up the more private areas with loose cloth, that is both more comfortable and entirely appropriate for the aesthetic I am going for.” Yusuke said, oblivious to Chie turning even more red. “It emphasizes the perfect androgyny I saw before and wish to capture.”

It only a couple seconds for Chie to realize the two major reasons Yusuke might think that.

Thankfully for the artist, as well as preventing potential property damage, it only took her friends a second.

“Okaywe’llcontactyouonagooddayBYEFORNOW!” And thus, was Chie saved from assault charges – by Yukiko’s running tackle, followed closely by Ann and Ryuji backing her up when Chie's stunned face took a second or two to warp into genuine fury.

…and as soon as they were gone, Yusuke erased the letters he had put in his messaging app - unsent - and let out a breath.

That was… upsetting, he thought to himself. But it will ward them away. Better privacy than models.


(Music Playing – Wicked Plan –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4m2JkRDWts)

May 17th, 2016 – Outside Madarame’s Shack – 4:57 PM

Yukiko thanked whatever God or kami there were there wasn't anyone around to observe Chie embarrassing herself…

…with her anger.

"LET ME AT THAT SLACK-JAWED SON OF A BITCH!" Chie screeched into Yukiko’s chest and Ryuji and Ann's arms, flailing ineffectually. "LET ME AT HIM!"

“Come on, Chie, you know he didn’t mean it that way!” Ryuji desperately consoled her, holding her arms. “You’re cute that way!”

"YEAH, BUT I LOOK LIKE A GIRL! GIRL!" Chie shouted perhaps a bit too dramatically. "I'M NOT SOME WEIRD, SEXLESS MANNEQUIN FOR HIM TO DRESS UP, THAT PUPIL OF A CHEAPSKATE BASTARD!"

It took a bit more dramatic flailing before Morgana leapt onto Chie's back and immediately bit at her nape.

"OW!" Chie tumbled back, immediately grabbing the thankfully-invisible mark Morgana's fang left. He clearly didn't even go skin-deep.

"Get a hold of yourself! You're in public!" Morgana cried out, exasperated now more than ever. "Imagine if some random reporter came up to you and got a story to play on national television about "schoolgirl nearly assaults upstanding artist's pupil"?!"

Ryuji blinked, more bewildered than anything at the reporter analogy. "That's, uh… quite the analogy ya got there, not-a-cat."

Morgana huffed furiously. "And Kamoshida's bogus report he would've sent to get everyone but Ann and Yukiko expelled wasn't?!"

Noticing the rise in tensions, Ann immediately stepped in to mediate between the two. "Look, guys, I get why you're all upset, but c'mon, take a breath. And that doesn't mean Chie's at all unjustified for being so furious right now - if I was in her shoes, I'd be just as livid as her, especially given Kamoshida's whole scandal."

"Exactly!" Chie cried out angrily, albeit her tone deflated with her now minding her public rant. “Where does the creep get off, huh?! First, I get a leg cramp from something that didn’t even work, then we get yelled at for trying to help him – “

“We did kind of betray his trust, to be fair.” Yukiko began, giving a bit of a wince in response.

“That’s no excuse! He said he hasn't even checked the news, and I call bullshit!" Chie threw up her hands. "Like, what, doesn't he live under a rock or something?! I can believe that, but I can't believe he'd be so damn unconscious – “

“…actually, I think he telling the truth when he says he really doesn't know.” Morgana interrupted, jumping on a nearby bike stand. “When Yukiko and I checked around, there wasn't a single television or even point of contact with the outside world.”

Chie’s tirade ground to a halt.

Perhaps tellingly, Chie's expression morphed into one representing both a pout and a scowl. “…it’s still freaking creepy, though!"

“Yeah, I’m on Chie’s side here too.” Now that the mood was more logical, Ann spoke up looking genuinely skeeved. “Christ, I get that he's got his reasons, but it's still creepy!"

“And that I understand that, both of you. I'm not disagreeing that Yusuke definitely went a step too far there.” Yukiko replied, smoothing back her hair. “Thing is, I get the sense he may be kind of, uh, brainwashed.”

“It needs washing, that’s for sure.” Chie said with a growl, earning a brief snicker from Yukiko.

"Seriously, though…" She turned to Yukiko, eyebrow up. "What the hell was that?! I don't blame you for looking around, but why'd you ditch me like that!?"

Yukiko turned even redder. "Well… uh…"

(Music Stops)

Morgana popped out of the bag. "Because she was trying to find proof of what we'd find in Madarame's Palace. Check your Meta-Nav apps and look for him under 'shack' and 'plagiarism.'"

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

All three of them did, eyes widening, as Yukiko quietly mouthed thanks for the save at Morgana.

"Huh?!" Ann blinked dumbly in shock, stumbling back. "No way!"

"Seriously?! This isn't a glitch, right?!" Chie continued, looking a bit saddened. "He's just poor and a bit proud of himself, not, y'know…"

Ryuji snapped his attention to Morgana. "Why the hell didn't you tell us?!"

Morgana's expression turned a bit smug as he turned to Ryuji. "Why do we keep telling you to turn it down with the Phantom Thief talk?"

"I am not - !" Ryuji began to yell.

Yukiko rose an eyebrow at him.

"…gonna argue with that." Ryuji finished with a sheepish expression, realizing this isn't a battle worth being fried or galed over. "Still, don't see why ya couldn't say we already found a Palace or somethin'…"

"Because I only noticed when we were in there, honestly." Yukiko admitted. "And I was trying to avoid letting Yusuke in on the secret… dumbly, as it turns out. If we mentioned the keywords in there, we'd have been dropped into the middle of the guards!"

Chie paled. "…yeah, for future reference, secrets matter less than being dropped into the Shadow convention."

"So, he's definitely got one - maybe not as bad as Kamoshida's, but it's still enough distortion to make one, and he's a plagiarist after all… though I think we knew that." Ann said, shaking her head. "There's not an upper limit on guessing keywords once we have the majority, right?"

"I don't think the Meta-Nav is a video game, so - no, I don't think so." Yukiko spoke silently. "So, any first takers?"

"Let me try." Ann stepped, clearing her throat. "Kamoshida thought of the school as his castle, so - castle!"

No candidate found.

“Yeah, that was too easy…" Ryuji scratched the back of his head. "It sounds like this shack is not a place he likes, so - prison?"

No candidate found.

"…I'm beginning to see the problem with the 'random guess' method of finding keywords." Morgana grumbled. 

Ryuji responded with his own groan. "Warehouse! Guidance counseling office!"

"…farm!" Yukiko added, her mind going somewhere squalid given the winning theory she had on Madarame and her pupils.

No candidate found. No candidate found. No candidate found.

Telling, Ann gave Yukiko a strange look.

"…because he's plagiarizing his metaphorical crop." The inn maiden sheepishly replied. "And it'd be hilarious to fight Shadows on tractors."

Chie joined in. “Carnival? Fortress? Pizza parlor?”

No candidate found. No candidate found. No candidate found.

The strange look turned to Chie, multiplied by four other Phantom Thieves.

"…hilarious Shadows?", Chie said with a meek grin, trying not to burst into laughter.

Yukiko suppressed a snicker. "S-So… as disappointing as a lot of it is to not have those keywords… w-we need a better range of guesses, or we'll be here all day."

"True, true." Ann paused, thinking. "How would an artist think of his home… especially if they have a bit of an overinflated view of themselves…"

"Hm…" Chie tapped her foot. "I'd say 'art school,' but given how bad Yusuke said his debts are, he probably doesn't think of that as a safe place to rule…"

"Still worth a try in my book." Ryuji said with a shrug. "'Art school'."

No candidate found.

"Called it!" Chie grinned as Ryuji frowned more. "I shoulda bet money on that…"

"We'll save that for guessing what his Treasure's gonna be." Ryuji said with a challenging grin.

"Alright, enough you two." Yukiko responded gently, much as she'd like to wager on that too. "What would he view as a safe place to rule in terms of art?"

A pause. Ryuji scratched his head awkwardly.

"…uh, 'art supply store'?" Ryuji shrugged audibly.

No candidate found.

"Damn it!" Morgana groaned, tapping his paw on the rail. "What kind of building is more important to an artist than their store?! You need it if you're going to make are in the first place, let alone put it on dis… play…" 

Morgana trailed off, something immediately clicking.

Yukiko blinked. "Uh, something wro - "

"…wait." He looked up at Ann. "Lady Ann: try, 'museum.'"

Preparatorily, Ann cleared her throat. "Alright - museum!"

The world rippled, as the final part of the destination entry was filled in.

Match found. Welcome to: Madarame's Palace.

"Aw, yeah!" Morgana said, doing a little dance. "Who's the master thief? That's right, me! Behold my - "

"Uh, Morgana?", Chie said. "It just went to that weird symbol it does when we're transporting..."

The ripple returned, more extreme.

"Well, at least we're outside." Yukiko said with a smile. "Away we go!"

With that, the Phantom Thieves started to vanish from Earth's reality into the Metaverse.


(Music – Dark World Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZMZhszd4N0)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Entrance – ???

"Wh-Whoa!"  

Mona's suddenly bipedal form nearly fell off the bar he was clinging to, but he managed to right himself at the last second. It certainly wasn't long before he, Phoenix and the rest of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts graciously glanced behind them to see a neon-coated city skyline at night.

"And…" Phoenix looked down at her less-than-modest thief outfit, and sighed exasperatedly. "For my own sanity, someday I will get used to this outfit."

"Lucky you." Dragon grumbled with a darkness unbecoming of the preppy girl, covering herself with her jacket. "Given the circumstances going on in the real world, couldn't I will my other self to make me not look like an exhibitionist?!"

"I… think you've made that comment at some point, Dragon." Skull said with a shrug.

Panther, meanwhile, shook her head brusquely. "Well, silver lining! We got it right!"

"…cloud, apparently that thing doesn't have an off switch." Skull added. "Someday, we're gonna end up havin' a normal talk, then suddenly, Pala - "

"Don't jinx it!"  Mona hissed, his eyes fearful, before turning back to a less comically exaggerated expression of worry. "…but yeah, this was what I was worried about. Remember how the area outside of Mementos looked normal, and I was still on four legs? If there's a place in the Metaverse with minimal cognitive distortion, it looks like the real world, and those thief outfits won't manifest to protect from distortion that isn't there. In any case, it'd be a waste of a Persona's energy."

With his mini-lecture finished, the not-a-cat looked around. "Still, though - I do like the skyline better. Dark-blue night seems a lot more at home than garish pink."

Phoenix looked up, to see an obviously alien - albeit lesser, compared to Kamoshida's - sky with a dark blue azure tint, filled with roiling clouds. She couldn't help but whistle in genuine amazement "True that! Seriously, that off-pink hue was really starting to look like a poor man's Danganronpa sky. So, that's a point in Madarame's favor, for sure."

The non-gamer members of the thieves - Morgana and Chie - turned to Yukiko with a confused expression.

"…I was on a binge of the series before probation, in 2015." Yukiko admitted with a bit of rosy cheeks.

"Uhhhh, sure…" Mona, ever the little one of the bunch, looked perplexed before quickly breaking into a smile. "…dunno if I'd recognize the context, but the sky is an improvement!"

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

"…sky nothin', man." A wide-eyed Skull murmured, clearly focused on other things. "Look!"

Phoenix turned around.

Her jaw dropped.

(Music Playing – A Woman – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWizFF5fn-I)

Madarame's Palace - remade shack did not look like her image of a museum. It looked like an Art Deco skyscraper crossed with a castle made of solid gold, covered in intricate designs. Here and there, windows stuck out at odd angles, releasing a clear blue light, hiding anything with in. Here and there, abstract designs dotted the area like statues in a lawn.

"Um… wow." Dragon blinked, genuinely both impressed and surprised.. "…uh, guys, we're sure the keyword was 'museum', not 'treasury.' Right?"

"The sign says it's a museum, looking at it from this distance." Panther confirmed Dragon's worry at having accidentally stepped into the Metaphysical Domain of Ostentatious Displays, pointing at a huge post that indeed read "The Great Artist Madarame's Museum" in equally golden kanji. "So, I think we got the museum right. It's just… really, really extravagant."

"Uh, I'm gonna assume that's another word for 'gaudy,' man," Skull said with a slightly disbelieving frown, looking significantly less impressed than he did mere moments ago. "Seriously, the old coot thinks of his old shack as… this?"

"And not just that." Mona glanced and pointed towards the main entrance, looking almost as skeptical as Skull did. "The guy apparently thinks it's a h-heh-hot property too, which is… well, something."

An understatement, given Mona nearly corpsed at speaking the words 'hot property', which in real life was a shack where beggars went to die. By contrast, this version of the real-life locale boasted an enormous line of cognitive people stretched from the entrance around the block, multiple times, nearly as far as the eye could see.

It took the rest of the Thieves several minutes to even comprehend the implications - a man having this much of an ego that he'd think Tokyo was divided between either 'appreciators' or 'philistines'.

"…okay, I'll admit upfront." Phoenix began, still a bit flabbergasted. "When I said the guy was obviously enjoying the spotlight, I didn't expect 'the place made from his own wishes has the entire population of Tokyo wanting into his gallery' levels of reveling…"

"You'd think that'd be kind of a point, though." Panther said, finger tapping on chin in thought. "He already has his work, or at least things he claims is his work, in museums already! Why does he want his house to be the biggest and flashiest, if people already respect him?"

"Ain't exactly related to plagiarism, abuse, or those debts Yusuke kept on about, too." Skull agreed. Then he grinned. "Can't say a museum is a bad thing for us, though - ain't it a must for Phantom Thieves?"

Phoenix mirrored his grin, high-fiving him.

"Yeah, it's obviously a classic target, but I'm a bit worried…" Dragon looked a little uncertain. "It's probably filled to the brim with traps, too."

Skull's enthusiasm deflated a bit almost in response to that. "Yeah, ain't arguin' with that. All his real fans were super-strong too…"

"Well, given the fact that was in the real world and we're already well-equipped to deal with this, I dunno if it's gonna be that much of a problem." Phoenix busted out into an uncharacteristically candid smile. "Well then, shall we begin the expedition?"

Everyone turned to Phoenix, warmed by her enthusiasm. Not one of them turned down the proposition.


(Music Continues)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, SP Exhibition Room – ???

They didn't go through the front door, obviously - besides the wait time of 'the sun's natural lifespan' going by the size of the line, they were self-respecting Phantom Thieves. Their entrance was a convenient skylight.

A wrong turn in the well-manicured courtyard on the way there informed them of something else, though.

"Owwww…" Dragon, having been blindsided by one of the Shadows packing Electric spells, grimaced as she shrugged off the electric burns on her backside. "How… how is a Shadow… in the form of a security guard… that's wearing a Valentine's Day heart for a mask… stronger… than armored knights?!"

"I know, right?" Panther ripped off her mask to heal Dragon's wounds with Carmen's Dia, but she didn't look that pleased either. "You'd expect the whole thing to be a step down, but nope! Guess the human hierarchy of threats is kinda out of wack in the Shadow world, huh…"

"Not just that, but a doll with a boomerang nearly swept us! A boomerang wielder that he didn't even throw at us!" Skull muttered achingly. "And for Chrissake, don't get me started on a girl with butterfly wings punting me across the room…"

"Hey, don't knock fairies. I had one as a Persona for a while." Phoenix said with a tandem shrug, having just finished healing Skull's wounds. "Still, even though those guys hit your weaknesses, I did feel I had to work a little harder than I was with Kamoshida's guards."

"Could be that Madarame's distortion is stronger, so he gets stronger Shadows, too." Mona said with a shrug, not having any better theories.

Panther, who was already willing to believe that something was very wrong with Madarame's mentality, glanced at Mona very skeptically. "Really. So the literal serial rapist clinging to former glories has less delusions than the world-famous artist clinging to real glories, if admittedly plagiarized?"

Mona winced, raising his hands reflexively. "…or, alternatively, it could be because more of Mementos is open, letting stronger ones be caught by the Palace's pull. Still, they weren't that much stronger, so, we still just need to remember to ambush them instead of them ambushing us… still."

Panther paused, before relaxing her otherwise-firm stance. "Well, I won't debate that. Though… since when was Madarame a sculptor?"

Dragon blinked. "Come again?"

Panther merely pointed further down the direction they were already heading in.

The hall was filled not with paintings, but of statues - golden models of young men and women, posed in odd ways - rather than heroic or calm, they appeared as if each of them was carrying an enormous burden, even if their detailed expressions were forced in a smile. Whatever the burden was, one could almost feel it stitched into their expressions and postures, their stoic looks bearing a platonic display of vigilance yet utter pain.

“…alright, that's effin' creepy." Skull grimaced as he walked up to one of them, checking the stands next to them for their titles. “And… huh? This ain't a title! And…"

He checked the next one over. "Neither is this. They're names - like, real people names, and their age. Satoshi Matsuoka, age 20, Ryoma Kanashi, age 23…”

"These statues have just the name and age on their placards, too. From the looks of it, there's no notable differences between any of them." Panther added, looking more than a little worried now. "I don't think these are proper names for artwork - more like artists and the age they made them? Except, this is Madarame's museum."

Not a single soul present liked how that sounded.

"…we should keep going." Mona said with a visible frown, focusing on the statues. "There's something I want to check out."

As they continued through the doors of the exhibition - which, Phoenix realized with a snicker, resembled portrait frames tipped on their corners - Dragon grew more and more unnerved.

Eventually, and after beating a potential laughing fit at the museum's architect being unable to commit to a theme, Phoenix decided to ask. "Dragon, is there something wrong?"

"Not quite. But…" Dragon sucked in her cheek. "…is it just me, or for someone who is famous for having a variety of styles not having the same artwork, but with different subjects, kinda out-of-character?"

It took a bit for the eerie implication to settle in, but even Phoenix realized there was something off about this.

"…yeah. Now that you mention it…" The leader of the group looked around. "Even if part of him wants a different medium instead, this is - wait a minute!"

The raven-haired phantom thief did a double take, then turned to face a rather familiar statue. "Hey, isn't this…?"

Mona doubled back to check, only for his eyes to lighten up in surprise. "…Natsuhiko Nakanohara? It says so right on his nameplate."

"Exactly. And has the same age listings as the other statues' nameplates." Phoenix groused, her frown only deepening even more.

And indeed, the spectacled ex-stalker was reproduced in metal, trying to hold up something very large and invisible despite the grimace of a smile.

Panther looked over it for a bit, before her eyes widened. "Hold on!"

"Huh?" Skull turned around to see Panther dashing off. "Panther, what're you – "

"I knew it!" Before Skull could finish, the group heard her making a loud finger snap. "Guys, come over! Take a look over here!"

All the Phantom Thieves quickly joined her - and quickly saw what she was.

It was the biggest and most detailed statue, with the most precise detail - except that wasn't what got their attention.

It was that it was of Yusuke Kitagawa, and with a glance, the age part of the nameplate was left blank.

"…guys." Skull began, echoing their thoughts. "Ya don't think… these are all…"

"Madarame's students?" Phoenix finished. "Seems like it. All of them, former and current. My guess is the age portion is the age at which they left…"

Panther frown deepened. "That's what I thought too… but I'd expect them to look a lot happier than they do. Why does Madarame think of his students as being in great pain or supporting something?"

"That's exactly what's creeping me out!" Dragon agreed. "I can understand why he thinks of his students as gold - but why do they all look like they're smiling through the torture? Especially that, I'm expecting these things to come to life and try to kill us!"

"Hey, I wouldn't mind." Phoenix said cheekily, as she noticed a nearby map stand and pocketed one of the flyers for ease of navigation. "That means we'd be able to sell the debris for mass…ive…"

(Music Playing – Dark World Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZMZhszd4N0)

She trailed off, as she noticed the last sculpture, surrounded by banners of Madarame's stern face.

"Uhh…" She stumbled back. "Guys? I… think I now know why Madarame has a Palace…"

The other Phantom Thieves dashed over - and were dumbstruck just as completely.

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

If the student statues were mildly disturbing, this was outright macabre. It was golden, like every other sculpture so far, but rather than depicting a single student, it depicted several - each of which had torn open their torsos with a gleaming knife, each blade carefully decorated with a gleaming ruby as a blood drop. From their wounds issued a golden tide decorated with tiny paintings in an upward spiral that speared the next student in the cycle, as they cried in wordless torment. At the very top was a model of the very same museum they were in, and a mask of Madarame's face, serene and uncaring of the agony beneath him.

It took a few moments for the others to snap out of their dumb trance.

Panther, gingerly, walked up to the gold-plated plaque and began reading out loud. "'The Infinite Spring'… a conglomerate work of art that the great Madarame created with his own funds…"

She read dully, too shocked by the sudden turn to the grotesque to display emotion. "…'This is a dedication to all the students immortalized in these halls, their generosity in giving up all their ideas and creativity to him to support his glorious name, and their trials in both painting new masterpieces in his place to support his continued fame…

And then, finally, genuine emotion: anger.

"…and the anonymity they must sadly be condemned to in order to protect his reputation'?!" Panther growled, realizing fully of what the statues meant.

Skull's jaw dropped as soon as Panther finished. "Wait… so that old coot… he not only steals their ideas, but he sabotages their fuckin' careers?!"

Mona only had a darkened look omnipresent on his face. "It only makes sense, doesn't it? He takes his students for all they're worth, and when he's done with them, he doesn't just dispense with them - he cuts them loose so thoroughly that nobody realizes that he's been cribbing from their ideas for what has to be decades by now!"

"Hold on!" Dragon immediately shot forward to the plate, before reading it very carefully. "…isn't that thing saying 'his fame' and 'his own funs'? Nothing on his supposed 'debts'?"

After visibly reading it, her expression only visibly tightened into a platonic display of utter disgust.

"That son of a… is he even poor?!" Chie exclaimed, now utterly outraged. "His students aren't being tapped to pay off an expensive college, he's plagiarizing them so he gets to be the toast of Japan in their place!"

"Not only that, but he hobbles them because he doesn't want the competition!" Panther had snapped out of her shock and had gone back to rage. "He's ruining their lives so his can be a bit easier, for no fault of their own!"

Skull was long gritting his teeth at this point. "So this is why it's a museum. He doesn't even see his students as people - he sees them as his projects! Just a bunch of statues to hide behind!"

Phoenix, meanwhile, had remained deathly silent throughout all this.

Panther was the first to recognize how quiet Phoenix has been in these last couple of moments, slowly walking up to the other girl. "…hey. You okay?"

Phoenix breathed in very shallowly. "…no."

"Hey, listen Yuki, we don't have to continue today if you don't want." Dragon said. "We still have a lot of time before the exhibition ends, and we can - "

"Oh, it's not that." Phoenix continued, her mouth morphing into a terrifying smile. "We're going as far as we can today!"

"That's…" Dragon blinked, more than a little intimidated by Phoenix's visible promise of great pain. "…hwuh?"

Morgana caught on pretty quickly. "…you trusted him, didn't you? Or at least, thought he was something better that Kamoshida."

"A bit wrong, actually. I specifically didn't mysteriously back out and get everyone to explore the Palace because I was looking for something - anything - that could tell me he was just a kind old man." Phoenix ranted, nearly breaking her fan in a tight grip. "And to discover he's this?! This, I don't know… art slaver?! I am sincerely, honestly pissed right now! And I want him to tell the world - to tell Yusuke - exactly what he is, and what he does. To show Yusuke exactly who I exposed Chie to humiliation to find excuses for!"

There was a long pause.

"…no names." Mona said, lamely, more out of delayed reflex than anything.

"I'm not sure if I'm encouraged or terrified he set that bomb off…" Skull said with a surprised and impressed whistle. "Still, I ain't gonna complain about the Palace. Could at least beat a Guard Captain or two before we gotta leave…"

Panther and Mona nodded, then ran off after him.

(Music Playing – A Woman – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWizFF5fn-I)

Phoenix made motions to go too, only to be stopped by Dragon.

"Um…" Dragon inhaled, looking genuinely concerned for her friend's well being. "I… I take it you're just as pissed about the nude painting thing?"

It took something of an awkward pause for Phoenix to sort out her thoughts to be somewhat legible, but she did so regardless, giving a bitter grimace. "…yeah, sort of. Chie, I…"

A long pause occurred in that moment.

"…I want to apologize. I feel guilty, especially now that I know we should've just taken the plunge with him. And…" She looked away. "You suffered for my hesitance."

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

It took a few more moments of that darkened silence, before Chie responded to Yukiko in the best way she knew how.

Chie hugged Yukiko.

(Music Plays – Alright (Elp Ver.) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

"O-Oh!" Phoenix's cheeks immediately flushed red.

Dragon smiled. "…apology accepted, dummy. You're still my best friend."

A long pause occurred in that intermittence.

Best… friend… She thought to herself, nearly putting that thought on loop in her head.

The thought only dawned on her now of all times, hasn't it? Of all places, here in a Palace? That she cared so much for Chie's well being, and shouldn't be arbitrarily devising internal justifications not to be a little more selfish in wanting to protect her. She knows Chie felt the same way, but… she doesn't want her to leave her side. She knows she'd have to when her probation ends, but still… the thought continued to ring hollow in Yukiko's mind. That she wasn't good enough for this, or even worthy of being the leader of a menagerie of Persona users. But moments like this… it reminded her she had things to fight for.

That she had to protect that smile of hers.

Yukiko quietly flinched, looking down in silence. She felt her cheeks rush blood, turning a bright red color as she felt her heart skip a beat. Hoping to break the mood, she coughed awkwardly, hoping to signify that she wants Chie to break the hug.

She luckily noticed. "O-Oh! Sorry, sorry."

It took a few moments of silence, and Yukiko was still blushing.

Chie frowned. "Yukiko, what's - "

"L-Let's go before we lose sight of our objective." Yukiko spoke a bit frankly. "Alright… Dragon?"

It was Dragon's turn to have her cheeks color, reassuming their code names. "R-Right. Sorry, Phoenix… let's go."

"Right. U-Um, follow me!"

Phoenix immediately bolted off after the other three Thieves.

"H-Hey, leader!" Dragon reached for a silent Phoenix, before she was long out of sight. Dragon didn't have anything to say, merely coloring red underneath her metal mask, nearly shrinking into the shadows. "I-I swear… she's just full of it… is she?"

…she didn't know how to answer that, for once.

Dragon said nothing, only continuing after the Thieves before more Shadow guards conveyed on their position.


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

May 17th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Principal Office – 4:16 PM

A quiet voice in the back of Makoto’s mind nagged how she shouldn’t be attempting to pull a stunt like this. It was, after all, snooping on a teacher - and not just any teacher, but the principal.

A different, much louder voice, drowned out said voice with how this was Kobayakawa's office. If there was any teacher that deserved not being respected, it was him. Especially since she needed to know why a bunch of angry students for incredibly legitimate reasons was so pressing to him.

Makoto breathed in and out. Nothing too loud, but nothing too soft that she’d begin hyperventilating from her internal screaming. Quietly opening the door leading to Kobayakawa’s office, the Student Council President breathed a quiet sigh of relief upon seeing nobody present in the dreaded room where the fat bastard sat. Thank Christ, a chance to get out of this unscathed. Of course, as she quietly walked over to the computer, she only took a quick moment to look at the USB drive Haru gave to her as a favor on her end. She’s rather not know where the heiress got such procurements. All she was told by her to only insert it into a computer of the person she a.) hates so freaking much, and b.) wants to get information. Obviously, both applications applied to Makoto’s opinion on Kobayakawa, so it’s a given she’d strike the metaphorical iron while it was hot.

…Haru was such a strange individual, wasn’t she? She had no idea where she got a USB drive with a literal password-breaking bug, but then again, she is a heiress. Makoto would’ve guessed that modern royalty politics were something she was better left out of the blue over, and given how Haru was constantly under pressure for being sold off to a forced marriage that very few people had any delusion was selling her off… well, she’s only really privy to this side of the heiress due to both being in a romantic relationship with her, and -

Makoto punched herself in the face. Stay focused! Her inner voice told herself. This is what you do when you panic - you go off embarrassing tangents! Makoto deeply regretted having that thought spring to the back of her mind like that. She turned a deep-hued color as she quietly motioned over to the computer before looking back at the flash drive in her right hand. 

“Hope this works…” Makoto’s desperate reassurance was met with a quiet gulp as she inserted the USB drive into the port of Kobayakawa’s desktop. In the span of the next few seconds, the computer violently and erratically sprung to life, and incomprehensible mess of glitches and errors plaguing the monitor - but only for a second.

A second later, it stabilized, a password screen hopping up and rapidly cycling through common ones before a "Loading Desktop" message came up, having disabled the self lock-out for too many incorrect passwords and brute-force guessing common ones.

Makoto breathed a sigh of relief when the home page of the computer came up, completely unaware she wasn't the principal. “Yes!” She quietly announced her victory to only herself before sitting down on the chair to look through the computer. “Now let’s see what we have here…”

As Makoto quietly went through the files present throughout the computer, she finally caught in the back of her eye something that she’s been looking for this whole time: a document on Kamoshida of some kind. Going by the date, it seemed to have went back all the way to 2014. Curious, Makoto quietly clicked on the document only to be surprised at what she saw.


Entry Date: 8/24/11

God fucking damnit, Kamoshida. You really couldn’t keep it in your pants this time as well, now could you? You just HAD to set your sights on Mayu and fuck her up like that. Thanks to you now I have to deal with the entire mess of keeping the incident of her molestation off the records. What a pain in the ass that bastard can be. But he brings good PR and status to the school otherwise, so I really shouldn’t be complaining in hindsight.

This is, what, the third time this happened since the end of summer break? I’d almost say that I’d be shocked that Kamoshida is going around making some girls his bitches and what-not, but at this rate, I’m really non-plussed to do so. He brings in a good deal of profit, and that's what matters to me in the end.

Speaking of profits, I am making a reminder to tell Madarame to swallow his pride and do his part of the job. We don't get to chose our associates, especially when money is involved. But either way, all I can really say or do is express pity at how I’m lumped together with these freaks and weirdos, with apparently one still clinging to being self-righteous. Just another day, I can only imagine.


Deep within Makoto’s heart, all that really built up within her was object fury. On some level, she had convinced herself that Kobayakawa was, on some level, unaware of how bad things were with the coach - mostly for her own peace of mind.

This had stolen that delusion from her, leaving only a dark pit of sheer rage in its place. Not only did Kobayakawa know that Kamoshida was raping students behind everyone else’s back, he covered it up! Pure anger and disgust coursed through her veins like liquid lightning, and it took serious self-control on her part to not punch a nearby valuable object, only possible by reminding herself she didn't want to leave evidence behind.

A few long breaths later, she quietly reigned herself back in, though she made certain to get even with Kobayakawa for this at a later date – which was exactly what she ultimately chose to do. She brought out her phone and promptly snapped a few pictures of the journal entry before deciding to do one last thing with the doomed-by-virus desktop – look up who this “Madarame” figure was and what his deal was. So without wasting any more time, she ended up finding the entry relevant to Madarame on Kobayakawa’s desktop and reading through its contents before ultimately signing off for the day.

The truth, needless to say, was more than a little surprising.


(Music Playing – A Woman – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWizFF5fn-I)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Central Garden - ???

Getting through the myriad assortment of death traps, shadows and other miscellaneous threats was a lot easier than Phoenix anticipated, thankfully for her fury.

Admittedly, it wasn't completely without difficulty - there was a moment where Mona got stuck clinging on a golden vase in a cloud of security lasers, but the brief aside to hack the security system was just a bit of a detour, and Morgana vowing to warn his friends when he had another "valuable item magnetism" moment like with Kamoshida's crown. It wasn't even unrewarding, given how the vase contained a rare Shadow that Mona recognized as highly valuable to find.

Could've been easier to knock out, though. Phoenix silently grumbled in her head, recalling the headache that was figuring out that mess.

There was also a Will Seed growing behind a skylight, but given how Madarame's vices were, they weren't as personally gross to handle. The beginning and end of tossing it in the sack was Skull saying "Hey, you got this, Panther?" and then Panther obliging.

To be honest, given certain revelations, it was… rather boring. Boring to a point that actually started to raise the hairs on the back of Phoenix's neck.

None of them had caught glimpse of Shadow Madarame once so far, despite the real man's obvious narcissism. To the point where, as her fury cleared, she started to wonder if there was a worse trap she wasn't seeing.

Dragon caught on in the garden, turning to Phoenix carefully. "…something wrong?"

Phoenix apparently recognized that Dragon noticed too, flinching, before immediately deflating. "…it's paranoia. I keep on expecting when Madarame's Shadow shows up, it'll be with a bazooka loaded with paint buckets."

Dragon giggled and even the nearby Skull cracked a hearty grin at the mental image, but Mona continued to frown even more. "You too, huh? You'd almost anticipate him to show up, but I think he's comparatively smarter about that then Kamoshida was."

"Yeah, at this stage I figured he'd be just observing for now." Yukiko corrected, still looking a bit nervous. "But even if that's the case, it's still eerie. We haven't even seen any really weird thematics yet. Just… mundane security measures."

“Hey, no worries, Yukiko.” Chie reaffirmed quietly. “We’re gonna figure this out together, right?”

Yukiko paused for a moment before smiling. “Right. Thanks, Chie.”

She knew they weren’t supposed to be using their codenames, but at this point, she needed her real name - and given his silence, Mona probably agreed. She turned to Panther and Skull, whom were having their own discussion at that very moment.

“So, uhh… I actually wanted to ask you somethin’, Panther.” Skull was unusually quiet, rubbing the back of his head with his left hand. “If, err, ya don’t mind. I didn’t quite have the opportunity to ask ya this earlier.”

Panther cocked a quiet eyebrow. “…oh, don't tell me you think Madarame has a paint-bucket bazooka, now!”

“Aw, c’mon, she found it funny!” Skull’s unusually whiny voice made Phoenix giggle a bit, before the delinquent thief suddenly grew serious. “…okay, well, it’s not that. I’m honestly kinda worried about Shiho. Given how she's going to, uh…"

Panther immediately got it. She frowned in that moment and sighed. “…you read my mind. Madarame's probably even more of a golden boy than Kamoshida ever was. Can you imagine the scandal if this came out?”

The unspoken message between the two, of course, was so why wouldn't Kosei High cover his abuses up as well?

Dragon politely intervened. “I don’t blame either of you guys. After what Kamoshida did to Shiho? I would be protective of her myself.”

All the teens present fell into a grim silence. Mona quickly came over out of the blue to motion the Thieves to follow him.

“Hey, uh, guys?” Mona fell quiet. “We kinda hit an obstruction from earlier.”

Panther, once again, cocked another eyebrow. “…what do you mean, Mona?”

After following the feline, the five Phantom Thieves soon found themselves standing in front of a red, electric wall that gated off the rest of the Palace.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

The red electricity crackled through the individual "wires," pretty much killing any chance of being able to enter the area. The rest of the rest of the Thieves looked on in a mild case of despair.

Phoenix growled. "Oh, you're kidding me."

Dragon grimaced. "Guess the buck stops here, huh…"

Panther guffawed. "Well… that sucks."

And Skull only looked more determined, cracking a grin as he walked over to the fence. “Aw, c’mon guys, it’s just a bunch of electricity! My Captain Kidd should be able to absorb most of it, right?”

Skull only looked more determined as he reached out for the fence - 

"SKULL, DON'T!"

"YOU IDIOT!"

"STOP IT, YOU MONKEY!"

"RYUJI, YOU DUMBASS!"

Skull went over to the electric fence despite the rest of the party’s shocked pleads. “Why, we can get through it no proble – BZZZZTZAAAAGGGGHGHHGHGHGHGHG!”

In a spectacular display of the power of magic-enchanted gigawatts coursing through the thief's veins, Skull chattered and squealed in the most unmanly sense as he felt his entire system fried, temporarily becoming a glowing red beacon that left his skeleton visible in-between flashes as a crackling beam of red energy shot through the heavens and into the stratosphere, the beam of light becoming the sixth visible celestial body to encompass the sky alongside the spotlights, the vistas, the stars, the moon and the skyscrapers. And if any of the Thieves had a spaceship, one could assuredly see the beam from space.

It took sixty-nine seconds, Yukiko noted methodically in her head, for the voltage to dissipate.

Skull breathed out a puff of ash, before collapsing in an unnatural heap.

"SKULL! ARE YOU OKAY?!" Panther rushed over to the collapsed thief, tears pricking in her eyes. "PLEASE, ANSWER ME!"

"Mmrmghthg, I-I di'nnth know 'dere was panchakesh shaped like buildingsh…"

As Skull slurred and babbled incoherently, Panther sighed in relief as she summoned Carmen to heal the worst of the burns. “He’s unconscious. Thank God; I didn’t want to lose him then and there…”

Mona was significantly less impressed. “And so, natural selection takes its course. Shouldn't we just leave the sorry bastard like this?”

"Of course not!" Panther immediately chimed in, defending her friend.

"Whwwhwhwhosh the preeshy women in the skyyyyyyyyyyyy…"

Panther paused. "…okay, maybe that was a bit stupid of him, but we shouldn't leave him like this!"

"What, did you actually not realize I was kidding when I said that?!" Mona grumbled in abject frustration. "Of course we're not leaving him, tempting as he is given I had to track him down in the real world for ditching me!" A pause. "…okay, maybe barring that last part, but I ain't helping him this time! He did this to himself!"

"ShshsshshhhhUPIDSH cat!"

"I'm not a - " Mona scowled, before growing silent. "You know what, his brain's scrambled eggs at this point. I'll let him off the hook for once."

Dragon drooped her head. “Yeah… but, um, how do we get pass this? We can’t advance further into the palace without shutting this gateway down.”

Mona, seeing the opportunity to show his knowledge of the Metaverse, intervened. “Well, do remember a Palace is a distorted realm of how the Palace Owner sees the world. So maybe Madarame sees something in the real world as impenetrable?” He looked up.

One could feel the lightbulb going on as they saw a very familiar peacock.

“…the locked door! Of course!” The two exclaimed in unison, before Phoenix blushed. “Um, sorry. You were saying, Mona?”

“Oh, don’t mind me. Um…” Mona blushed before continuing, before responding to the weird glances Panther and Dragon were giving him. “Um, we encountered a door that was thoroughly locked from earlier, if you’re wondering. We couldn’t get it open, but whatever it was… it may be the key to shutting down this electric wall.”

“But we can’t just sneak in after he threatened us like that! Then we’ll all get arrested!” Panther threw up her hands in frustration. "Dang it, it's it enough we pissed away time just waiting for him to do nothing?!"

An awkward pause occurred as the two nearly began glancing at Chie - before she read the room, and hastily stepped in.

"Look, I know how you guys probably feel about this, but Skull's not in any shape to continue on! Let's heal him up and then bring him back outside the Palace. We'll discuss there what we can do then!"

"Good plan. Though hopefully Dia spells alone would be enough to mask the burns per masse Skull's got right now…" Panther said with a frown.

"It will be, no worries. He'll be fine." Mona brief moment of comfort nearly crashed and burned as he thought it twice. "…I think."

Chie looked exasperated. "That's not comforting!"

"Well, anyways, we gotta bring him back out, given he's not even thinking right." Mona dismissed, ignoring the cacophony Skull was making.

"PAAAAAAAAAIN, OOOOOOOH PAAAAAAAAAAAIN, AAAAHGOPEING PAINNNNNNNNN!~"

As Skull… sang with the grace of a drunken toddler, Phoenix rubbed her temple. "Mother of God, this is just the onset of a headache coming."

"It's worse than that, I'm afraid." Mona frowned. "Given my stubby form, you three are gonna have to carry him."

All three girls' reaction to that was properly timed.

"WHAT?!"


(Music Continues)

May 17th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, SP Exhibition Room – ???

"I CAN FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELSH MY BOOOOOOOOOOOONES! WHYYYYYYYYY?!"

Skull's comical anguish as he writhed, slurred and sung continues as Phoenix, Dragon and Panther trudged the barely-lucid Skull through the Palace, hoping desperately no Shadows would get in the way of their… return trek.

Panther, being far more squishy than Dragon or even Phoenix, panted exhaustively with each step. "H-How… is… huff… a motherfucking… t-teenaged male… huff, huff… MORE… HEAVY… THAN A FREAKING CROWN?!"

"I have… haaah… no idea…" Dragon cursed under her breath, and she was the athlete of the two. "Goddamnit, Ryuji, can you afford to be less heavy…?!"

"One, two, three, four! One, two, three, four!” Mona continued his encouragement. “You can do it! YOU! ARE! A! WINNER!”

Phoenix whined internally as the 160-pound despair she was carrying with the others nearly crashed down on her. Laws of the Fairer Sex, why hast thou forsaken me?!

Mercifully, no other incidents occurred during the retreat. Mostly because Phoenix would be embarrassed having to fight off Shadow guards in this state, as they'd probably be laughing too hard to fight this travesty.


(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 17th, 2016 – Outside Madarame’s Shack – 6:34 PM

Things definitely did not go according to plan in that moment, but Yukiko had to admit, she was surprised she could've salvaged her dignity considering today.

Apparently, neither was Ryuji.

"…I don't remember what effin' happened, man. Ow…" Ryuji grimaced, having just come to. "The second I touched the fence, everything went black…"

Nobody was particularly eager to speak to him after today.

"Uh, guys?" Ryuji asked a bit desperately. "Hellooooooo-o-o?"

"Hm, do you hear something?" Ann's voice, in defiance of all elemental affinities, had the tone of frostbite. "It's probably the wind. A really annoying wind."

Ryuji guffawed. "What'd I do?!"

"Oh, gee, what didn't you do, damnit?!" Chie exclaimed furiously. "First there was your spill that got me having to do a nude painting! And now this?!"

Ryuji immediately looked defensive. "L-Look, I didn't think the electric fence would'ved knocked me out, damnit! Captain Kidd resists electricity!"

"Still though, honestly! The nerve!" Mona scolded from the safety of Yukiko's bag. "Would you do the same in the real world?! Especially given you did it in a cognitive world where the literal laws of that world's reality were subject to the Palace owner?!"

"Well, that's - !"

Yukiko, Chie and Ann simply gave a mix of disapproving stares at Ryuji. He immediately gulped.

"…honestly a fair-enough point." Ryuji corrected himself, fear evident in his voice. He then proceeded to groan. "Look, gals, I'm really sorry you had to go through that, if I'm gettin' the play-back right… but seriously, given all of your Persona's resistances, wouldn't you do the same thing with a wall of fire or ice or some shit?!"

"Nope."

"No."

"Nuh-uh."

All three girls' response left Ryuji alone in the matter. He only sighed exasperatedly.

"You're really gonna leave me to dry like this, huh…" Ryuji grumbled.

"Well, anyways, what's prominent beyond this is that we gotta discuss how to potentially get around that electric fence…" Chie said with a frown, before she too began wincing. "Though I suppose that only leaves only one alternative then, huh…"

"…I'm really sorry to say this, but that'd be correct." Morgana spoke, apologetic towards Chie. "I… can't think of any other way to find out how to open the electric fence without Madarame feeling like it's impregnability isn't broken into."

Morgana grimaced even more. "Sorry, Chie… you may have to bite the bullet for the team, here."

Chie's whine of disapproval was audible.

"Well, why do we?!" Ann spoke, looking more than a little fierce at the mere suggestion. "I get there aren't exactly a lot of options open up to us right now, but does it really have to involve the objectification of a friend? The very kind of shit we had to put to a stop to back with Kamoshida?"

"Yeah, just because this is the only way doesn't mean we'd have to be okay with it. It's just… very questionable to subject Chie to this." Yukiko frowned. "As my vote as leader, I immediately bring forth a request to potentially search for other possibilities for entering and - "

"Well, let me put it like this, then." Morgana spoke, this time a bit more certain. "By all metrics, we're effectively banned from entering the Madarame residence unsolicited. If we do, and heavens forbid it's the point where we openly try to break into the place, that's asking for Yukiko's chances of ending her probation on a good note going down in flames!"

"But is it really the only effin' way? Why?" Ryuji crossed him.

"Because unfortunately, you blew our first shot, and Yusuke has made under no uncertain terms that only Chie can come." Morgana shot back, rolling his eyes.

"Hey!"

Ignoring Skull's protest, Morgana continued. "Sure, I can sneak into her bag, but at most, that's only me and Chie. Nobody else, and even that poses a huge risk. But it's basically the only set-up we have left."

"Right, but why am I still getting a nude painting for it?!" Chie exclaimed, still not at all pleased by this.

"Simple." Morgana responded, finally smiling. "You don't have to; you can stall for time."

(Music Stops)

A long, long silence occurred in that moment.

"…what." Chie said with a flat affect.

(Music Restarts From the Beginning)

Morgana took a breath in. "…I mean, I never was particularly happy with Yusuke's demands on the matter. I don't think anyone is. But not only is it the only choice we have at this point, but that doesn't mean Chie has to undress in the slightest. All we have to do is have Chie find an excuse to take a moment to herself, and Chie will bring me over to the door, and I use my claws to lockpick and bust the door open. Then, we show Yusuke the truth as to what Madarame's been doing this whole time. Problem solved, everyone gets to go home with their clothes on."

"And if that doesn't work?" Yukiko crossed her arms, looking a bit skeptical.

"If that doesn't work, our only real recourse is to have Chie bring Yusuke to the Palace with the MetaNav app, and then show everything with his own eyes. Either way, foolproof!" Morgana smiled, before frowning. "…in theory."

Chie twiddled her thumbs, still looking a bit uncomfortable. "…and you promise I won't have to undress, right?"

"We'll make damn sure of it, Chie." Yukiko nodded, vigorously. "That's a promise!"

"Yeah, and besides, I was already… m-manhandled by that creep just before you guys arrived." Ann shuddered softly, before shaking her head. "This ought to be nothing by comparison, insofar because Yusuke just seems to be more interested in art than anything worse than that."

"Yeah, I know, but…" Chie sighed. "…you guys promise to back me up if push comes to shove?"

"Completely." Morgana nodded firmly. "I wouldn't have went through with even this plan if that was the option that Chie would be less comfortable with. The much riskier alternative would be simply storming Yusuke and kidnapping him with the MetaNav app to skip the process."

Everyone stared at Morgana incredulously.

"Do you guys have any better ideas than even that, a backup backup plan that poses that much of a risk to us?" The not-a-cat merely shrugged.

"No, I don't. But…" Chie frowned. "Again, just making sure: I don't have to… undress, do I?"

"Absolutely not. Just play along then come up with an excuse for us to rendezvous inside the house." Morgana nodded.

Perhaps recognizing Chie needed incentive, Yukiko smiled at Chie, placing her hands on the other girls' lap.

"Chie…" Yukiko smiled. "I promise this: I'll go ask my parents to lend some funds if this plan works. And if it does… I'll treat you to a four-star steak dinner."

That caught Chie's attention. "Woah… really?"

"And if that's not enough, I'll splurge some extra to find some sort of quality meat buffet for us to eat." Yukiko giggled sheepishly. "Anything to help ensure you can get through this in one piece."

The very promise of that made Chie's lips curve. "You… mean that?"

"Of course! Given the risks involved, I want to make sure you get an ample pay-off for this." Yukiko nodded. "It's only fair to repay you for the favor, right?"

Chie paused again. "And… you promise, guys, to fulfill your ends of the bargain?"

"Yep!"

"Dude, of course!"

"I'll chip in if I have to!"

"Of course, Chie!"

Everyone smiled at Chie. And in that moment… Chie took a deep breath in, then out.

"Alright… as long as you keep your promises…" Another deep breath. "I'll… play along. But you guys owe me big for this!"

"Woohoo!" Yukiko cheered. "That's my Chie!"

"Y-Yeah, of course… oh, man, ahaha…" Chie gave a nervous laugh, chuckling in worry. "…this is not gonna be pleasant…"

"And I'd like to remind you, it's only for a moment - excuse yourself, then try to bust in." Morgana mewed, nodding. "Now then - any last-minute objections to the plan, raise your hands."

Not a single hand went up, thankfully.

Chie's twitched a bit, though. "Yeah… I'll do it as long as you guys live up to your end of the bargain. And I doing this for you guys, certainly not Yusuke."

"And we appreciate it, Chie." Yukiko smiled happily.

“Hey, kids? Can I, um talk to you for a sec?"

(Music Playing – Restlessness – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VMCmDfSbFs )

Yukiko blanched in response as she turned around to be met with the gaze of a black-haired woman in her mid-twenties that screamed 'paparazzi, and proud of it' from her dress alone. Everything from her look, from the graffiti-like design on her overshirt, to the well-worn shoes, to her bright orange sunglasses, to the pink fanny pack right next to a water bottle to the, uh, actual expensive camera around her neck, screamed "low-level low-class journalist." 

If the slight perfume of cheap alchohol didn't give away the 'low-class' bit. Though… huh. I swear I know that voice...

“H-Huh?” Chie jumped out of her skin all the same as her best friend. “Hey, what’re you doing here?! I didn’t see you coming!”

“Oh, sorry.” The photographer broke into a small little saleswoman's smile. “I should've been more clear. I'm a writer for Maiasa - I heard you mention Madarame, and I'm looking for people who know his pupils. There's this painting, Sayuri, that was supposedly stolen in the past.”

That was new. As well as something that apparently completely escaped Yusuke, if he was as devoted to that picture as everyone else.

"R-Really?" Ann said, genuinely sounding surprised. 

"Yeah. There's this rumor that one of his students in retaliation for being abused," she continued, turning a bit more serious. "Have you heard anything like that?"

Wow, really? Yukiko thought. This has been going on a while then. Not that I blame whoever took it, but wow. But on the other hand... 

"Sorry." Yukiko said with a shrug, shaking her head. "We… know of neither of those things."

"Wait, don't we know - " Ryuji began.

"Do you want an obvious journalist getting interested in the people the police might want?!" Morgana cut in, not wanting Ryuji to screw up for a third time today.

"…uh, wait, you said Madarame's pupils," Ryuji quickly lied, after a moment of blanching in mortification. "Sorry, wrong guy."

Thankfully, the woman didn't catch on to Ryuji's tell, sighing drearily. "Damn it! There's no case unless there's a victim, and if there's no proof of abuse… I can't write either." She shrugged with a dour look. "Back to vapid gossip pieces, I guess..."

Yukiko quickly caught on to what she was implying, and found herself revising the "low-class" assessment, much to her own surprise.

"If it makes you feel better…" Yukiko cut in, hoping to encourage the journalist a bit. "I appreciate you actually making sure rumors are true first. Don't feel too bad."

This cheered up the woman instantly. "Yeah… yeah, thank you." She paused, before taking a business card out. "Actually, if you got any good leads, can I ask you to call me here? There's some good money in it."

More out of confusion with the journalist's forthrightness than anything else, she took it. 

"Sorry for taking your time. See you if you need me!"

With that, she walked off, leaving Yukiko to stare at her card.


Ichiko Ohya, Entertainment Reporter, Maiasa Newspaper


And then a phone number for tips. Presumably, different from her cell phone to avoid crank calls and allowing screening of actually worthwhile leads.

Unless, of course, Ohya was really low-level, in which case, wow, that was kind of sad.

"Huh."  Ann blinked. "…that was sudden. And felt like I was listening to stereo. She has a voice that really sounds like yours, Yuki."

"At least she wasn't bugging us for anything she could use." The inn maiden groused, grimacing. "The inn has dealt with paparazzi who are… well, much worse."

After a moment's thought, she pocketed the card anyway. You never knew when you needed a journalist contact.

"Well anyways, I dunno about you guys, but having been nearly deep-fried, I… might wanna call it in for tonight." Ryuji said with a grumble. "We're totally doing this plan tomorrow, though."

"Sounds good!" Morgana nodded. "Alright then; let's split. We're already a bit too close to the palace, anyways…"

Everyone nodded in agreement, particularly Ann. "Yeah, I just want to make sure to check on Shiho, too. I'll definitely come check with you guys first thing tomorrow."

"And that's done." Yukiko smiled. "Alright; see you guys!"

Everyone was waved away in that moment. Before long, all that's left is Yukiko, Chie and Morgana.

"Hey, guys…" Chie smiled. "Thanks for sticking up for me. You're awesome, the both of you."

"Of course, Chie." Yukiko said, nodding happily. "We'll get through this - together. That, I'm certain of."

"Yeah." Chie giggled. "Alright then, seeya tomorrow, Yuki! You too, Morgana!"

And with that, Chie walked into the sunset. Morgana popped his head out, smiling.

"Well, Sojiro's probably gonna wonder why you're late at this rate." Morgana gave an audible shrug. "Shall we head back to catch some early eye-rest?"

Given how exhausted Yukiko currently, was, she - for once - had no objections to that.


(Music Playing - Confession/Secret - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ED7kzAmnAY)

May 17th, 2016 – Kosei Academy, Entrance – 6:54 PM

Ann made it a personal note to check in on the way back tome to check on how Shiho's doing.

Just because the girl moved doesn't make her feel any less responsible for wanting to check on her. All she wants is her to be safe. Safe from all the shit that happened to her beforehand in Shujin Academy, where the bad rumors flowed like the water, and the school actively fostering and protecting actual abusers like Kamoshida. She doesn't blame Shiho one bit for wanting to move out of Shujin, and hell, the only reason why Ann feels compelled to stay is because she is worried if something worse would happen if she didn't have a grip on the situation as it stood. There was really no winning from running away in her case. Especially now that she had the power to ensure changes happened even if she was powerless in her day-to-day life.

But Shiho? She didn't blame her one bit for wanting to distance herself from this. Hell, if their perspectives swapped, Ann would've done the same thing.

She put those self-dreary, crappy thoughts to herself as she stood outside of the gates. She always knew Shiho stayed back while classes went on for counselor therapy, so she wasn't surprised that it took her a while to eventually show up. All she knew was that it wouldn't be much longer before she'd appear…

Eventually, though, she did.

In the distance, an auburn-haired classmate waved towards Shiho. "Alright, Suzui-chan; I'll talk to you later!"

"R-Right. Bye!" Shiho forced her best smile as she waved back to the student, and immediately began walking towards the entrance of Kosei Academy… before immediately stopping in her tracks.

Ann's eyes then locked with Shiho's.

"Um… h-hi." Ann smiled, her lips trembling. "How was Kosei today?"

Shiho thought about it, but her lip twitched into a rather weak smile. "…pretty good. Went to counseling and all. Made some progress."

Shiho noticeably hushed her talk even more than usual upon mentioning 'Made some progress'. The cast Shiho still walked with made Ann's lip twitch a bit more.

"…you're doing okay with that bum leg of yours, right?" Ann spoke, softly.

Apparently, that hit some nerve, as immediately afterwards, Shiho balled up her fists and looked ready to cry.

"Y-Yeah. It's fine." Her voice trembled as she glanced down at the ground solemnly. "The doctor… doesn't know if I can really play again… like I had any chance anyways."

"Shiho, I…" Ann didn't know how to respond to that. The only sort of experience she could relate insofar as that was Ryuji having his leg broken by Kamoshida, but as far as Ann knew, Ryuji didn't tie his outright dreams to the track team. Shiho, as far as her ambitions for volleyball, did, only to discover she wasn't even good enough and put on the team solely as leverage for Kamoshida to predate on Ann. The very reveal probably shattered what little was left of Shiho and motivated her attempt at suicide - alongside other things.

"You think you're here because you have talent?! You're here because Ann is a frigid little bitch, and now even you're not working! You're going to work for your position, and if you don't enjoy it - too bad!"

She still recalls the calls she had late at night when Shiho had a panic attack and sobbed into the phone. What Shiho described was still etched into the back of her skull.

Shiho had nothing to say, but she forced a smile - one that, thankfully, seemed to have been grateful. "…thank you for coming though, Ann. It's really good to see you again."

"It's… good to see you too." Ann smiled, tears pricking in her eyes… but one can see Ann's hands ball up as she internally howled in her frustration with her feeling the way she did about the girl, and having no way of being able to say it without, in Ann's mind, crossing a gap too far.

Nonetheless, she took a deep breath in, and sighed.

"…I want to ask you something about Kosei." Ann admittedly, frankly. "It's about a student who goes there, Yusuke Kitagawa. Does that at all ring a bell?"

Shiho's eyes widened, before she suddenly nodded. "…yeah. Yeah, it does. Why… do you ask?"

"Well, I was hoping of asking you a few things on the way home." Ann said with a sad smile. "If it's okay, I mean - I was just wondering if Kosei knows about Yusuke's living conditions."

"His… I'm sorry?" Shiho blinked. "Is something wrong?"

"I, well…" Ann paused, looking down. "I… dunno if I should tell - "

"Ann, please. I'm hurt, but I'm not frail." Shiho said a bit sadly. "I want you to tell me, alright? What's going on with Yusuke?"

"Well…" Ann sighed, before smiling. "Let's walk home. I'll tell you along the way - and I want your opinion on something while we walk. Sounds fair?"

Shiho paused. But it wasn't much longer before the shorter girl smiled a bit warmly. "…I'd like that. Thank you."

"Hey, anytime, Shiho." Ann smiled. "I love you, you know that?"

Shiho blushed, something that surprised Ann enough for her to raise concern.

"…Shiho?" Ann said, her cheeks tinting.

"I-It's nothing, really." Shiho smiled warmly, before giving a giggle in good cheer, even if staged. "C-C'mon! I want to talk about everything Kosei does. They're a good school! Much better than Shujin?"

"Okay, then…" Ann blinked a bit confusedly, before grinning. "Let's go!"

"Y-Yeah!"

Shiho and Ann laughed a bit, and the two walked. They conversed…

…there's so much I want to tell you about, Ann.

And conversed…

A lot I've just kept… bottled up about you…

And as they conversed…

And I was too scared to tell you… too fucking scared…

…Shiho's hand reached for Ann's…

…and I don't know if I'm brave enough to tell you now, Ann.

…and went back, having not once touched Ann's hand.

And they conversed. And conversed.

How much I love you.

Notes:

Ooohohohohohoho. That's some good angst to end it off on a note. But it's progress! Well, sort of. lol

Either way, I fully encourage and anticipate an update at some point regarding the state of affairs of Ann and Shiho's relationship - and how it ties back to the current affairs. God, though, it's so good being able to write this wholesome as fuck duo again. I love 'em!

Not much to say otherwise, then. What do you think in the comments, below? Please tell me what you think, and remember: Yusuke's coming home soon!

With that, I wish the lot of you a good night!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 17
Chie: Lv. 15
Ryuji: Lv. 15
Ann: Lv. 14
Morgana: Lv. 14

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 1
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 3
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

Chapter 11: Fox's Howl

Summary:

Yukiko and the Phantom Thieves end up planning to get around the issue of Madarame's cognitive protections, but quickly run into several steep issues… alongside the awakening of a new, vulpine ally.

Notes:

GREETINGS. I HAVE RETURNED… FROM HELL. *plops*

Man, I've waited way too long on this update. Seriously, it's about damn time we're here, finally! Sorry for the semi-late update everyone, but I hope you enjoy the new Persona Awakening that's to come - specifically, Yusuke's!

Anyways, there's really not too much that hasn't been covered beforehand with this chapter. I mean, what else would there be to say as far as that goes? Madarame's arc started in the flesh and blood, and we're about to induct our newest member to the team! I'm really excited to start work as such, in no short part because it'd be good practice going to my writing and eventual development of a full-on Persona fangame (yes, that is a threat).

But enough talk! Let's get straight into the fox's hunt, shall we? ;)

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 17
Chie: Lv. 15
Ryuji: Lv. 15
Ann: Lv. 14
Morgana: Lv. 14

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 1
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 3
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

Persona Database: Ictinike
Arcana: Victory
Level: 14
Resistances: Drain Fire, Resist Bless and Curse, Weak to Ice
Skills: Maragi (Innate), Giant Slice (Innate), Tarukaja (Lv. 15), Kouha (Lv. 17), Agilao (Lv. 18), Regenerate (Lv. 19)
Persona Compendium Description: "A knowledgeable hero of Sioux lore and son of the sun god. Cast out of the heavens for angering his father, he lived a life of mischief and trickery on Earth. But when he tried to trick the beaver, kingfisher, squirrel, and muskrat, who were believed to be the creator gods, he was punished. He also taught the Sioux to fight."

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Aria of the Soul - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE)

May 18th, 2016 – Velvet Room – ???

Of course, given how there seemed to be a big development in the current target's case, Yukiko realized she should have been expecting that when she went to bed, she would wake up on a familiar cot.

Baggy, stereotypical prisoner clothes, a ball and chain attached to her ankle, and a familiar, ethereal blue prison with a long-nosed man and two little girls in warden uniforms accompanying it. If this didn’t feel quite like home, it probably never will.

“Welcome back to the Velvet Room.” Igor clasped his two hands together and gave his trademark Cheshire smile. “We are delighted to make your acquaintance once more.”'

"Hello, Igor." Yukiko said from her cot, still sitting on it. "Hello, gir - "

In hindsight, she should have been expecting the distinct SLAM! of Caroline's baton hitting the bars, causing her to jump out of it.

“Pay attention inmate! Stand up straight!” Caroline barked, irritable as ever. “When our Master speaks of you, you’re well-expected to adhere to his presence!”

“We only wish to prepare you for the ruin you’re about to fight.” Justine said in her airy, professional way. “So please, do listen.”

Yukiko internally shrugged while rolling her eyes in the present. …well, good to see I haven’t missed out too much.

“That’ll do quite nicely, girls.” Igor nodded before turning to Yukiko. “Now, you are aware of why you’ve been called here, yes? It is time that we’ve informed you of the… ahem, shall we say miscellaneous services the Velvet Room can offer you… which will come at a fee, of course.”

A catch. There’s always a catch, isn’t there? Yukiko was going to say her thoughts aloud, but a quick glance at the leering Caroline shut her up quite quickly. “…what is it that you need, Igor?”

“Well… first of all, I am merely a humble servant of Philemon, humanity’s own protector of the sea of souls.” Despite trying his best to uphold a sense of pleasant politeness, Igor’s voice hinted at some… frustration? It sounded like he was describing a politician he didn't especially like more than an employer. “And yet, we require some specific sacrifices and tests of strength to bring forth new means for yourself to fight and detain ruin; the ability to make your Personas stronger without killing them, the ability to forge weapons from the sea of souls… all of this and above, if you’ll help my two assistants with their request.”

Yukiko’s eyes turned to the warden twins. Caroline kept her glare focused on the innmaiden while Justine explained herself.

“What we require is a certain… oh, shall we say element present of a Persona you obtain or fuse in order to get you the materials we need. If you do this, then that will be quite a blessing in disguise. For instance – and I’m using this as an example of what our first Persona will require – we need a Jack Frost with Mabufu. That way, we’ll be able to – "

“OH! Wait just a moment!” Yukiko suddenly interrupted. “I think I'm way ahead of you on that.”

The two girls gave each other, as Caroline inhaled to make a barking statement, but the sudden summoning of a blue and white mask from Yukiko’s hand served testament to that. Upon giving the mask to Justine, she began studying the mask quite intently.

“I… well, I’m duly impressed!” Justine’s comment was genuinely laden with appraisal. “I am not sure how you obtained a Jack Frost with Mabufu without using any sort of fusion, but… well done! This is exactly what we need!”

"In truth?" Yukiko shrugged. "I think I pushed slightly further into the current Palace today than was strictly wise. But it worked out fine, I think."

"I… uh." Caroline blinked, still stunned. "That is… adequate. But I, er…"

Yukiko smiled. “I found one when I made my excursion into the castle. I really do appreciate the feedback, and – “

SLAM!

“WHAT DID I TELL YOU ABOUT INTERRUPTING US, INMATE?!” Caroline’s face was in a furious blush, somehow looking even more embarrassed. “I can’t believe you’d interrupt our assistance for your selfish needs! Jeez, be thankful, damnit!”

Yukiko tried to stifle a laugh, but Justine gave a disapproving stare to her twin sister. “Caroline, that’s quite enough. It’s quite surprising our guest did what she did to obtain this Jack Frost, so maybe we shouldn’t judge her too harshly?”

“B-But that’s…” Caroline’s one weakness was clearly her sister; she puffed her cheek, sulking in quite possibly the most adorable pose she had ever struck. “…fiiiiiiiiine. UGH.”

Yukiko stifled a laugh as Justine turned to her and smiled. “Still, this is going to prove invaluable going forward. I will confess this will hardly be the last request we make of you, but for now? This’ll prove quite useful.” Unusually for the normally stoic warden, Justine reverted into legitimate childishness and giggled softly.

Yukiko, as amusing as she found the wardens' mutual break in their poker faces, simply reacted with a smile. “Thank you, Justine. And thank you too, Caroline. Ironic, given the theming of the Velvet Room, but… I’m really happy you look after me as much as you do.”

Caroline simply blushed and looked away bashfully. “Bah. Don't think this is us being nicer - it's not like you have a right to turn it down. Hard work is what you're meant for, inmate!"

Justine ended up smiling in far more genuine a way than Yukiko was used to when she was doing her half of the “good cop, bad cop” routine. “Hehe… we eagerly anticipate seeing more of you to come, trickster.”

Yukiko simply nodded and smiled happily. Almost instinctively, she reached her hand out to shake Justine’s, and Caroline – for a change – didn’t take enough offense to react. As Justine’s smaller hand shook with Yukiko’s larger one, the innmaiden thought to herself how much of a sweet – if downright bizarre – friendship this was turning out to be.

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am  thou , thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a  new  vow…

It shall  become  the wings of rebellion

that  breaketh  thy chains of captivity,

With the  birth  of the Strength Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to  freedom  and new power…

STRENGTH (XI) RANK UP! RANK 1

 

(Music Playing – Aria of the Soul - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Fc3PxsXzE)

And just like that, the ringing alarm echoed throughout the jail cell - and the cue for Caroline to snap right back into her “bad cop” persona.

“Alright, enough of that mushy crap! BACK TO THE REAL WORLD, INMATE!” Caroline barked while nearly hitting Yukiko’s hand with the baton, to which he avoided it narrowly. “You’ve got ruin to avert, you know!”

“Time, even if it is currently in relative abundance, is vital." Justine continued, her apparent aloof serenity sliding right back into place. “We only wish to see you cooperate with us to secure humanity’s safety.”

Yukiko nodded. “Alright, I’ll keep that in mind, girls. Thanks a lot.” Yukiko, not wasting much more time, looked at Igor, whom gave his final set of words before nodding in approval.

“I wish you a safe journey, Trickster. I continue to watch your rehabilitation with interest.” Igor’s expression was inscrutable in its bug-eyed Cheshire smiling, but Yukiko assumed the best and merely bowed gracefully.

“Thank you, Igor.” Yukiko smiled. “I’ll see you again sometime.” And with that, she didn’t waste all too much time leaving the Velvet Room; she did have some hearts to steal, after all.


(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 19th, 2016 – Aoyama-Itchome – 7:19 AM

“Morning, Yukiko!” Chie had already joined Ryuji by the time Yukiko passed by them, half-asleep; Chie’s smile turned into a frown upon seeing her friend's bleariness. “…um, Yukiko? You gonna be okay?”

“Hm?” Yukiko gave a languid smile. “Oh, um… yeah. I’ll be fine. I… I just worked late, is all.”

Ryuji blinked. "Uh, ya sure, man? You look a bit on the languid side. Gotta have ya ready for the heist, y'know?"

Yukiko’s smile collapsed and inverted upon remembering the time limit she had to bust Madarame as-is, and the plan. …damn it, can’t life ever be easy? Relatively, at least, for a Phantom Thief? Just a loose timeframe for needing to do something and a lack of plans that might traumatize a friend, that's all I'm asking.

Regardless of the innmaiden's thoughts, she gave her best smile. "No worries, I can focus. I promise on that much."

Chie almost outright cocked an eyebrow in response to that. "Well… long as it doesn't have to involve anything with me actually nude modeling, it'd be the ideal time to discuss our plans. Right, Ryuji?"

"Yeah, yeah." Ryuji rubbed the back of his head. "Speaking of, where the eff is Takama - "

"…sorry! I'm a bit late."

Ann ran over rather hurriedly, catching the other students a bit off-guard. "…did I miss anything?" She asked, frowning upon seeing the rather grim air among the group.

"Nah, nah, it's nothin'." Ryuji said with a toothy smile. "Our leader's just been a bit exhausted from the circumstances is all."

"And as a matter of fact, we had to wake up early to help Sojiro with stuff." Yukiko gave a sheepish grin. "Observe: "

She unzipped her back, promptly revealing a snoring Morgana.

"Zzz… Lady Ann…" Morgana mewled happily, making kissing noises.

Ann nearly bursted into laughter, as is Ryuji, but both refrained themselves upon Yukiko zipping the back.

"…so yeah, not too loud. Difference between me and him is that I had coffee. He didn't." Yukiko said a bit frankly. "…so. Ann, any news on the report relative to Shiho?"

Ann smiled, suddenly looking serious. "Yep! That's what I'm here to discuss anyways." She then turned over to the side, her cheeks flaring up a bit. "Amid, uh… other things."

Ryuji and Chie apparently looked confused with Ann looking unexpectedly bashful. Yukiko tried her damndest to stop her face-splitting grin. Don't laugh, don't laugh, don't laugh…

Thankfully for Ann's dignity and Yukiko not embarrassing her in laughing, Ryuji cut in. "So, tell me. Is there anythin' new goin' on with Madarame? We already know the bastard leeches off of his students, so if he's abusing him likewise? That'd be even worse…"

"…and as much as I hate the guy, I don't wish that on anyone. What's he to do when he outlives his usefulness? Starve?" Chie said, frowning. "Though given how poor he seems, that'd feel accurate…"

Yukiko gave what's less of a glare so much as a "disapproving, scolding stare". "Chie?"

The brunette grimaced. "Aheh, uh… s-sorry."

Ann got serious too. "Well, I actually asked Shiho what she knew, and while I didn't quite got to find out what she knew, she did direct me to the school's official registry. Just to make sure nothing suspicious was going on, I emailed the school and got a reply this morning."

Yukiko's eyebrow raised. "And?"

"And what I found was… surprising." Ann made no attempt to hide her wince, before shaking her head, immediately darkening in expression. "Short version is? Kosei High is not doing anything shady, and actually acting like a school often should. They've sent several complaints to Madarame for the living status that Yusuke often lives in, and to make matters more complicated, apparently one of the reports from what I was told was over "living expenses for rent" as it described… actively taking a significant cut of what would've been Yusuke's pay in order to pay off "living fees"."

…it took a few seconds for the crew to exactly process what they heard.

Ryuji, fittingly, reacted the loudest. "I'm sorry, he's WHAT?!"

"N-Not so loud! And… yeah, that's sadly what seems to be the case. Madarame has been pretty consistently housing Yusuke, feeding him, clothing him, even serving as an advisor and guardian… and not much other than that." Ann growled, deathly serious. "Even if that 'advisor and guardian' part means he treats Yusuke well emotionally, that still doesn't change him leeching off of Yusuke's success!"

Another long pause occurred. And in that moment, Yukiko took a breath in, then out.

"…be sure to prepare for a call later today about the meeting you had with him. After classes." Yukiko spoke, looking genuinely irate. "We're taking that bastard on now - potentially even show what Madarame does with Yusuke."

"H-Huh?!" Chie cried out. "What say do have in this?"

"Does Yusuke have a say, though? He's having his talents leeched by a hack who keeps him in this screwed up one-way relationship!" Yukiko cried out, looking furious and sympathetic towards Yusuke. "He has no ability to decide for himself, even if Madarame is anywhere near as halfway decent as Ann's report says he is."

"Which he isn't, obviously." Ann said with a roll of her eyes.

"Thank you." Yukiko groaned, before returning. "Point is, we're not leaving him like this. If we have to show with our own two eyes what we need done with the guy, we have to. He's a plagiarist and a con-artist, and Yusuke's steps away from being the next throw-away!"

A long pause occurred. Chie blinked, before slumping in defeat.

"I… yeah. I know this is the best way to steal his heart… and I may not like Yusuke too much, but…" Chie shook her head. "…if this what it's gotta take to knock sense into his stupid head, then let's do it! No time to waste!"

"And that's why I love ya gals." Ryuji grinned cheekily. "Women's intuition and all that!"

Ann snickered. "What, are yo saying something, Ryuji?"

"W-Well…" Ryuji rubbed the back of his head. "My ma's really nice and cool with me, so it just came to mind, heh. Though I suppose that crap's off the record either way."

"Yeah." Chie nodded, before taking a deep breath. "Anyways, shouldn't we head off to classes now? We're already late as is."

"Good plan!" Yukiko nodded. "I'll be sure to follow quietly after y - "

"…err, wait."

Everyone turned to Ann, who suddenly looked bashful.

"C-Can you, uh…" Ann whispered, flushing red. "M-Maybe help let me and Chie have some alone time together? Just so we can, uh… talk…"

Even Ryuji could see it, grinning from ear to ear. "…oooooh. Is it Shiho-chan?"

"S-Shut it!" Ann squeaked, before dialing back. "…a-and maybe."

Chie and Ryuji snickered. Yukiko just shook her head.

"Alright, we'll be sure to meet up and prep everything soon enough." Chie began walking off, waving the duo off. "Later, Yuki!"

And just like that, four of the thieves were off.

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

"Alright." Yukiko said with a breath in, then out. "…what's it this time?"

Ann blushed, looking down. She grimaced, then fluttered, then look like she was in a halfway state of her heart feeling light and everything else.

"I…" Ann spoke, looking more and more flustered. "…I had a sleep over at Shiho's place. We, uh, both talked about how things have been going for us. A-And I… I…"

She held her chest, heart pounding.

"I… I think I love her." Ann spoke, softly. "…a-and I… think she loves me…"

(Music Playing – Sweet – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rnu4pRFa-V8)

…it took a bit of time for Yukiko to process that.

When she did, though, she blinked. "…s-she does? Really?"

"W-We haven't, uh… confessed yet… o-or more specifically, haven't… but…" Ann spoke, whispering while looking more and more heartfelt. "…I d-don't know how to act. I-It all just comes as a bit sudden to me, but she almost admitted outright she was into me and, I… I…"

Yukiko blinked sympathetically. "Ann…"

Ann breath felt light. "…s-should I go for it?"

The innmaiden paused… before gently smiling.

"Why shouldn't you?" Yukiko said, grinning. "Try to consider talking about it with her, just to get a good feel on it. You can do it, alright?"

Ann froze in that moment. She still felt her heart was so light, almost like she had not the slightest idea of what to say. But in that moment, she smiled, wiping away a tear from her eye.

"…thank you, Yukiko." Ann spoke, genuinely sounding relieved. "I… I owe you so much."

"And it's why I'm here. To help." Yukiko said, nodding. "So… that's the other end of the coin, huh?"

"Y-Yeah." Ann laughed nervously, wiping another tear in her eye. "…t-thanks. I…"

The half-Danish girl frowned. "…don't tell anyone just yet. I… I need time to think about what to say, and I can't have any judgement on me just yet. Not like that, anyways…"

"Ann…" Yukiko paused, before nodding. "…alright, I understand. Okay?"

"Y-Yeah. Thank you." She laughed, before nodding. "W-Well then… let's get out of here, shall we?"

Yukiko nodded. "Yeah."

In that moment, everyone went their separate ways to Shujin Academy.


(Music Playing – Is It Boring – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID7z4mE_XDM)

May 19th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 8:24 AM

Yukiko genuinely couldn’t find it in her to focus.

For once, the school couldn't be blamed directly; it wasn’t as if she lacked interest in the subject matter Ms. Chouno was iterating in English for; out of all the Phantom Thieves, she was the one who cared the most for her grades. Given the fact that Yukiko already had to contest with being the leader of a motley band of vigilantes, she had to keep her wits sharp even beyond the realm of academics. And Ms. Chouno was a person who made her subject interesting, unlike some others Yukiko had to try to pay attention to.

The issue was that, suddenly, she had a lot more on her mind.

On top of risking a lawsuit from Madarame for the incident that made up yesterday, it still ate at her how Madarame could've been leeching off of this for nearly as long as she has. It was something she couldn't just turn off, such as it was present in her mind. It only made her wonder about what her course of action from here, clear as it was, because she didn't know exactly if the gambit she decided is gonna make things better or worse. Knowing her luck, it'll probably make it worse, but she can't fault that exactly. Especially given she's the only one who can help this situation.

She had no intention of quitting the heist that was planned today, oh no; her more cynical prospects were right, if someone tried to bust Madarame from the more legal angle, he could cut his losses and run without a single lost iota of PR. 

That didn't mean she didn't suddenly have a much more acute awareness of her own mortality.

"Ahhhhhhh… that's a good nap." Morgana slowly yawned out of the school desk. "So… got a plan now?"

"Vaguely." Yukiko whispered with an audible shrug. "I've certainly have plans now, but just for what it'd involve…"

Morgana frowned. "You're worried about this going awry, aren't you?"

"Yeah… there's a lot that can go wrong, given we'd be deep in enemy territory. I…" Yukiko sighed. "…I don't want to be a burden on anyone else more than I have to be. It's really worrisome, honestly."

"Yukiko…" Morgana frowned, crinkled his nose, than nodded sympathetically. "…I get you. But keep your head up high, alright? A Phantom Thief is not a quitter, no matter the odds!"

"…do I hear a cat?" Ms. Chouno spoke unamusedly, switching to her native language.

"…m-meep!" Morgana squeaked, before hiding in the desk. "S-Sorry, Yukiko…"

After an awkward silence, compounded by some giggling students (and some snoring, owed to the snoozing kid right behind Yukiko), Ms. Chouno looked satisfied. "…good. Silence. Now then, let's talk about how English pronouns work once more…"

Yukiko grimly sighed. …frankly, at this point, I'm more surprised Morgana hasn't been caught yet.

And just as suddenly…

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

…her phone ringed at a notification.

"Hm?" The black-haired girl silently brought open her smart-phone, glancing at the inscribed text; she merely shook her head and gave a muted laugh. Without further ado, she flipped open her smart-phone and indeed, she saw her best friends discussing in arguably the most spectacularly meme-tastic fashion possible.

Yukiko Amagi has joined the chat

Yukiko Amagi: Hey guys, anything that I missed?

Ry-yee-ji: CMON ANN, ARENT YOU GONNA TELL ME WHAT YOU DID TOGETHER?!?!??!

Ry-yee-ji: PLEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASE

DanishWeeaboo: lolno

DanishWeeaboo: pay the fee if you wish to learn

DanishWeeaboo: ( ̄ω ̄)

Ry-yee-ji: ANN YOU FUCKING TEASE YOU BETTER TELL ME OR ILL TELL EVERYONE OF WHEN YOU ATE GLUE IN ELEMENTARY!!

Yukiko Amagi: ???

steak trash: fucking what

Yukiko Amagi: …apparently, I missed quite a bit.

DanishWeeaboo: …you sniveling shitflinger

DanishWeeaboo: I THOUGHT WE AGREED TO NOT SPEAK OF THAT DARK PAST GODDAMNIT

steak trash: Ann… ATE GLUE WHEN SHE WAS A KID?!

steak trash: EW LMAO

DanishWeeaboo: CHIE YOU TRAITOR I TRUSTED YOU

steak trash: hey, just because we're friends doesnt mean i cant mess with your head, hehe (*≧▽≦)

DanishWeeaboo: …touche

Ry-yee-ji: soooooooooooooooooooooooo is nobody gonna point out the fact that apparently ann, shiho and i knew each other longer than we’re made aware of??

DanishWeeaboo: oh, i havent told any of you yet, huh?

DanishWeeaboo: i knew ryuji since elementary, and i was buddies with shiho since she transferred from nagoya in 2011

Yukiko Amagi: Wait, Shiho-chan’s from Nagoya?

DanishWeeaboo: yeah. my dad moved due to his job

DanishWeeaboo: he’s working now for a foreign company from Canada

Ry-yee-ji: tbh only thing i know about canada is maple syrup and pancakes

Ry-yee-ji: …fuck, now im hungry. guys, can we stop for pancakes before going into madarame’s palace??

DanishWeeaboo: oooh, i'd love that!! pancakes are the absolute best (* ^◇^)_旦

steak trash: given how many sweets you ate at the buffet, this doesn't shock me

steak trash: like, at all

An awkward pause occurse. Then:

Ry-yee-ji: im actually ngl guys, i kind of feel bad for yusuke

Ry-yee-ji: i don't really think that he's really is doing that thing on purpose, or wants to escalate…

Ry-yee-ji: like, he's definitely the stern type, but he ain't aggressive

DanishWeeaboo: i honestly just feel bad for him, tbh. he REALLY needs more control over his life…

DanishWeeaboo: still, doesn't justify his means of looping chie into the nude modeling

steak trash: YES THANK YOU FFS

Ry-yee-ji: yeah, which is why i said i feel KIND OF bad

Yukiko Amagi: True...

steak trash: well hey, theres a silver lining to all of this

steak trash: at least we can unanimously agree that his heart needs to be stolen, amirite? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

DanishWeeaboo: haha, tru

DanishWeeaboo: at least ill have no problem branding his ass in with carmen §ԾᴗԾ§

Ry-yee-ji: kinky

DanishWeeaboo: UWU

Yukiko Amagi: Really though, I’m just relieved we have the right guy. Which is honestly kinda ridiculous in hindsight, especially given how uncommon Madarame is as a surname, but still.

steak trash: hahaha ( ^∇^)

steak trash: rly tho, imagine if this was all just a big misunderstanding LOL

Yukiko Amagi: Heh. Yes, I’m quite certain there’s all a reasonable explanation for all of this.

DanishWeeaboo: its just a prank bro

DanishWeeaboo: see the cameras right there

Ry-yee-ji: ART PRANK GONE WRONG (GONE SEXUAL) PERSONAS SUMMONED! (MADARAME ALMOST DIED)

steak trash: its not a prank its a S O C I A L E X P E R I M E N T

Yukiko Amagi: hadawodkpapAAAAAAAAAAkpakfoe

DanishWeeaboo: i think u broke yukiko, chie

steak trash: shit ur right

steak trash: better call the ambulance; possibly some earplugs too

steak trash: i literally hear her laughter next door

Ry-yee-ji: lol, hopefully said ambulance doesnt run her over

DanishWeeaboo: yukiko amagi wants to live a quiet life

DanishWeeaboo: she just wants to live peacefully like a plant

steak trash: “Konohana Sakuya has already touched that doorknob.”

DanishWeeaboo: adkfr fUCK IM DYING

Ry-yee-ji: My name is Chie Satonaka. I'm 16 years old. My house is in the northeast section of Tokyo, where all the middle-class residences are, and I am not married. I go to Shujin Academy every day, and I get home every night by 8 PM at the latest. I don't smoke nor do I drink, because I'm too young for that. I'm in bed by 11 PM, and make sure I get eight hours of sleep, no matter what. After having a plate of warm steak and doing about twenty minutes of stretches before going to bed, I usually have no problems sleeping until morning. Just like a baby, I wake up without any fatigue or stress in the morning. I was told there were no issues at my last check-up. I'm trying to explain that I'm a person who wishes to live a very quiet life. I take care not to trouble myself with any enemies, like winning and losing, that would cause me to lose sleep at night. That is how I deal with society, and I know that is what brings me happiness. Although, if I were to fight I wouldn't lose to anyone.

DanishWeeaboo: HAHAHAHAHA ASA;AKFSDF;OAESKAESWAEK;SWAQWOEFK

steak trash: ok bottom

steak trash: omae wa mo shindeiru

Ry-yee-ji: NANI

Ry-yee-ji: HIDEBU

Ry-yee-ji: *fuckin dies*

Indeed; as the chatroom below devolved into gibbering insanity, Yukiko was literally howling with laugher until she was outright crying. Unfortunately for her cranium, Ms. Chouno would subsequently prove that she, too, was educated by Ushimaru on the chalkier points of ballistics.


(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

May 19th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack, Yusuke’s Studio – 3:41 PM

To be honest, the moment he got the phone call acquiescing to his demand, Yusuke began wondering if he had made an error.

He wasn't being serious with that threat, after all - he just wanted the intruders to leave! Frankly, it was… honestly rather alarming.

At this point though, he didn't know what else to do now that his threat turned out to be a lot less empty than intended, so he just followed along with it.

“To think you’ve actually come!" He began, packing every bit of what he called his 'stoically cheerful voice' into it - the same voice he used when Madarame was asking him to cut back on something due to money issues. "Honestly, I was worried you’d turn down my offer after last time’s… scuffle.”

“Uhhh, hahahaha." Which Satonaka apparently had as well - he wondered if she had money issues as well. "Yep! Yeppers. Here I am, in the flesh, at loooooooooong last… heh. Um, w-when do we begin the nude modeling…?”

Yusuke used the fact that he was looking away from her to hide a wince. Damn it all. I truly asked something she does not want to give… I fully understand how Sensei feels when he does these things to us. I must apologize to both Satonaka after this - and him, for those occasions when I prove recalcitrant…

“As soon as you are able, Miss Satonaka." He replied, having finished organizing the needed materials for what he hoped was maximum comfort for her, and to minimize time.

Some part of him hoped it was never - if that was the case, he would be able to feign a crisis of conscience and, from there, bow out of this uncomfortable moment gracefully.

Although… I suppose I could say that I thought about it, and changed my mind. he thought to himself. I cannot expose that was a fake attempt - otherwise, we may have an investigation on our hands, and discovering Sensei's troubles may result in a scandal he doesn't need. Though, what to eeeEEEHHH!?

Yusuke blinked, finally noticing something important.

"Though, um… before we begin… if I may ask so myself…”

Chie smiled, innocently. “Huh? W-What’s up?”

“Why did you bring... a butcher shop's worth of yakisoba with you?”

(Music Humorously Stops)

Chie instinctually froze up then and there, laughing awkwardly as she eyed the absolute mountain of steak behind her.

(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

Chie felt her palms sweat and a shiver rush up and down her spine, fearfully awaiting what next will become of this balls-to-the-wall plan… there were so many things that could go wrong, and so few things that could go right. Granted, when Yukiko gave her own advice on how to best infiltrate Madarame’s shack, his advice was quite forthwith:

“Do it at your own pace, Chie.” Chie recalled Yukiko saying. “No need to rush things beyond your ability.”

Well, going by that advice, Chie decided to do her best in the only was she really knew how: steak. And lots of it. Honestly, it was a good thing Yukiko was so well-off, as otherwise there’d be no way she could outright buy this much protein fuel. Chie simply laughed nervously, and thankfully, Yusuke laughed with her: for one reason or another, he was simply (and miraculously) terrible at reading people.

“Well, I won't judge. As… terrible as this business is, I will not begrudge any attempt to make it work better.” Yusuke blushed a bit. “D-Do you intend to put on some girth for the nude modeling? Or… or is this just comfort food?”

“Of course it's comfort food you fucking prick, there’s no way you’re making me do this!” was what Chie wanted to say, but her superego pushed that statement to the back of her head. She was too deep in now, and if they didn’t do something to help the situation out, they might as well be done for. Regardless, Chie took in a deep breath and nodded shakily, as if trying to assure Yusuke that no, she wasn’t planning to pull anything shitty. At least, that’s the impression Che hoped she gave off.

“W-Well, you know! Ahahaha, I just need some fuel before I begin… m-modeling nude!” Despite her best efforts, a deep hue of red flushed over her face. “Well in any case, can you give me a second to digest all of this meat?”

“H-Huh?! All of it, you say?!” Yusuke was utterly stunned. “Is… Is that entirely health-"

“I’msorryIcannothearyoulalalaI’MEATINGNOWOKAY?!” Chie’s objection was to the point as she nervously yet swiftly began chewing at the steak, leaving Yusuke in awe as he saw it with his own two eyes as Chie ate.

And ate.

And ate.

And ate some more.

And ate a little more.

And –

Yusuke was beginning to suspect she was repaying him in kind for the last sketching attempt, and forcing her to wait in that pose for a while.

…not that he didn't think he deserved it, at this point.

But I still don't think that is at all good for her. I do understand the impulse, but at this point, if she is on a budget too - then, would it not be a risk for some of that to have not been properly inspected for - 

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

“AAAACK! F-FOOD POISONING!” Chie screamed in her best acting voice, doubling over.” “OH THE HUMANITY, I HAVE FOOD POISONING! If I don’t go to a bathroom, I… I THINK I MAY DIE!”

“W-What?! Die?!” Yusuke’s jaw was agape.

…and then snapped back, when he realized this was a way out of his threat as well. Silver linings.

 “H-Hurry then! Go forthwith to the commode to release yourself!" He shouted, rushing to a phone."I shall call an ambulance so you – “

“OKAY, BATHROOM BREAK, GOTTA GO BYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYE!” Chie was out like lightning, spilling the stack of steaks all over the floor before he could even leave the room, a bit stunned at her speed.

And then realized she was heading in the wrong direction. "Er - ! That is not - excuse me, let me lead you!"


(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

May 19th, 2016 – Madarame’s Shack, Locked Door – 3:44 PM

“Well, that could’ve gone better. But frankly, it could’ve gone worse.” Morgana huffed to himself as he finished picking the lock. “It’ll take a second or two to fully unlock, but a little force here and dexterity there annnnnnd… presto!”

As if in perfect sync to Morgana’s claw lockpicking, he opened up the door just as Chie was rounding it.

“Huh. I, uh, guess opposable thumbs are optional for lockpicking.” Chie blinked dumbly, crossing her arms. “Alright, I’m opening the door.”

As she said that, Morgana left it alone where Chie’s right hand gripped it. “Hopefully we can find what we’re looking for, and in that instance, we should be good to go!" She said, rushing in, eager for this day to end.

"Okay, Mr. Forger…" She said, fumbling for the lights.

Right on cue, another, rather familiar voice piped up.

“Miss Satonaka…" an out-of-breath Yusuke began. "I… I do not know how this door was unlocked, but it is very much not the bathroom - "

Chie found the light before Yusuke could drag her out.

(Music Stops)

And with a soft click, the sheer scope of what kind of "art" Madarame was doing became clear.

Rather than being a bedroom, or even a small studio, Madarame's room was a storage closet. There was an easel and portrait in progress, but the primary purpose of the room was obviously to store drying paintings.

Or more specifically, copies of painting, one Chie had become recently familiar with.

“S-Sayuri…?” Yusuke murmured.

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

It was lined up for almost the entire rooms. Copies of paintings Chie knew she saw in Madarame's exhibit, almost as large as it was lined up for. It, frankly, dawned upon the two of them that Madarame wasn't just a plagiarist.

He was a forger as well.

"H… Holy shit." Chie muttered, a little stunned. "Is… are they all copies…?"

"All copies…?" Yusuke echoed a bit weakly, immediately recognizing some of his handiwork. "Did you… did you know about this…?"

Chie paused, thinking about the benefits of honesty, and coming down in their favor.

"…not to this level." She admitted. "…crap. I just… I just wanted to make sure, but - "

"Get out!"

Some distant part of Chie's mind remembered that Madarame himself was probably still in the housebut she was still a bit too overwhelmed to notice the old painter storming in, an expression of genuine rage on his face.

"…Sensei, what is the meaning of this?!" Yusuke said weakly, looking at Madarame with a confused and hurt expression. "Was… was the real reason for your slump…?"

Madarame's expression turned unreadable, before he looked down. "I suppose I can't keep quiet now that you've seen this," he began, arms crossing defensively. "…I've been lying about how bad the debt is. And who I owe it to." He shook his head. "In order to pay for my colleges… I was suckered into a loan from organized crime, and they do not exactly have a point where they consider you solvent. Worse, however, the real Sayuri was stolen by a pupil of mine, long ago - I assume they developed a distaste for my strictness."

He shook his head, the perfect image of a tired old artist in way over his head. "When my creditors realized the truth, they came upon a scam - if I made forgeries of Sayuri for them, they could market it to private collectors as 'the original' and make a great deal of money from the unwise and greedy. It not only worked, but now they're having me copy my other works as well, in case they think of a way to do the same scam with other paintings. The pressure they are putting me under - it's ruined my sense of inner peace, and I've had no ability to paint beyond what I must do to satisfy their forgery business. My students, thankfully, were immensely accommodating... even if they had to sacrifice their own work to me to hide my own lack of inspiration."

A very tragic tale, and Yusuke's hurt expression was softening.

Chie's probably would to, if she hadn't seen a certain Metaverse museum.

You… you lying, narcissistic asshole! She thought, aghast. You rehearsed this sob story just in case! You're not under any pressure, you just don't want the competition! And to play victim!

"I… needed money to further your talents, and to meet the expectations of my own fame," Madarame finished, looking at Yusuke with a pained, sorrowful expression. "I couldn't handle it - I yielded to blackmail, and now I fear for you as well, if they figure out you know about my burden now. It's not nearly enough to cover my faults, but - I hope you can forgive your cowardly teacher…"

Yusuke rose his hands placatingly. "Please, don't - "

"Whoawhoawhoa! Hold on…" Chie's brow furrowed. "I might not be an art buff, but I got enough from your gallery to realize that copying isn't just looking at a photo - you have to mimic the brush technique pretty exactly too, if you're going to fool people who want the original…"

Madarame was not expecting that, going by his suddenly shrunken pupils, but he recovered quickly. "I… happened to find an old sketch of it while searching for it, and let my motor memory do the rest."

"…uh-huh. And you remember every brushstroke you did…" Chie frowned.

A bit of Madarame's anger broke through the mask. "What would you know?! It's far harder than it seems!"

That's when Morgana cleared his throat. "Psst. There's a version under the purple tarp - there's something weird about it..."

Before Madarame or Yusuke could react to the quiet sound of a not-a-cat, Chie lunged over to said tarp, tearing it off.

On it was another version of Sayuri...

Wrapped extremely delicately in protective plastic. Almost as if Madarame couldn't risk damaging it.

Yusuke strode over, looking at it closely. "Wait… this… this is the original!"

Slowly, an uncomprehending Yusuke and an even more furious Chie turned to a very pale Madarame.

"…alright, I base my replicas off a counterfeit I bought before it was stolen!" Madarame growled, obviously trying more to protect his lie than convince anyone at this point. 

Chie just gawked at him. "…okay. Do you honestly think you're surrounded by zombies or something? How gullible do you think I am?"

"Sensei, please." Yusuke said, pleading. "Just tell the truth…"

A look of actual pain flashed on Madarame's face. "…you too?" He said a bit sadly.

Then he whipped out his phone, clicking a few buttons. "Enough of this. I'm calling my private security."

Chie sputtered. "Your what?!"

"A friend of mine recommended a firm that specializes in removing annoying paparazzi after that horrible Ohya woman started snooping around. I do not think they will mind escorting trespassers to the police," he proclaimed, his confidence restored in apparent victory. "And witnesses too, unfortunately." He said with a glance at Yusuke.

"Sensei, please - "

"They've already been alerted, and will be here in two minutes." He replied with a note of finality. "It'd be harder to call them off."

That was when Morgana realized it was time for an escape route, one that rent-a-cops couldn't follow.

One that was everywhere in Madarame's shack.

"Chie, run! We need somewhere private to jump to the Palace!" He said, dashing out past a startled Madarame.

Chie didn't need to be told twice, the old man being knocked back slightly by wake of her running past at top speed.

"…Satonaka!" Yusuke said, before following, not sure if he was trying to do so to hold them still for the security to arrive… or to follow them to an escape route.

He didn't notice a new application beginning to download itself to his cell…


(Music – Dark World Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZMZhszd4N0)

May 19th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Central Garden – ???

You would seriously think… Phoenix thought, breathing heavily as she finished inputting the "cancel all" signal for the electric fence in the security room before it came on again. …that waiting would be the easy part.

Not so. Just a few minutes outside the electric fence, waiting for the door to open in response to Madarame's cognition changing without even knowing if it would work that way for sure - it was agonizing. It gave her time to think of ideas, and frankly, she would never, ever complain about people with anxiety again after the waiting. Dread was not an emotion that did not lend itself well to optimism, or low blood pressure.

In fact, it was bad for a plan, since it took until Skull noting the fence was down and the door open for her to actually notice it was gone, wasting precious seconds.

Panther and Skull came in, breathing heavily after having defeated the guard protecting the room - it turned out the Shadow was a Nue, a giant, troll-like monster with tiger fur and a snake for a tail. Given how Phoenix was the fastest, and thus able to stop the security reactivating after Madarame inevitably relocked the door, they let her go ahead to find the room.

"Woo, go team…" Panther leaned against a wall. "In the future… let's not fight bigger guards as pairs…?"

"Yeah, moments like these make me still wish Konohana Sakuya was still in my stock." Yukiko spoke, unamused at the group they had to fight. "That sucker was thankfully really weak to Agi, but as it turns out, just because you're big doesn't mean you can't be quick."

"Yeah, I dunno if it was the pressure or somethin' else, but we just couldn't land a hit on the bastard…" Skull smiled wryly. "But, we got 'em! No more fence."

Phoenix was too exhausted by the tension to feel anything but relief, but she smiled. "Yeah. So… I need a moment to catch my breath, but - you wanna keep pushing? There's probably a Safe Room nearby, and - "

Whatever plans she had were cut off by two familiar screams, plus one, from the courtyard.

“WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!”

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!”

“MRRRRRRRRRRROWWWWWW!”

(Music Playing – A Woman –   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWizFF5fn-I)

For a horrifying moment, Phoenix's dread-induced theories came back, and she almost wasn't aware of her moving out-

And then she saw the three sources perfectly fine, just a bit frazzled, with Dragon crashed on top of Mona, who was on top of Yusuke. So, bad transport, but - 

…wait.

Phoenix rechecked, and fully processed the extra person.

…welp. Welcome to the Museum of Disillusionment, Yusuke. Yukiko thought with a wince. This is going to be so, so awkward...

"Aaagh… ow…" Mona slowly rolled off, as Dragon adjusted her mask.

"Okay... For the future..." She inhaled. "We are never going to go into the Metaverse outside of the entrance again…" The brunette groaned in dizziness as she stood up. "Though hey, at least we managed to escape with no… tagalongs…"

She looked down, simply sighing in exasperation. "…ooooooh, crap."

“Aaaaaugh… Gods above!” Yusuke groaned as she jumped off. “Chie, where are you…?”

He trailed off, as he realized exactly where he was, seemingly shutting down as he processed what was around him.

"…oops." Mona's ears drooped. "Guess I wasn't as sure we were as far from him as I thought, huh…?"

"You okay, Chie?" Phoenix asked, delegating the artist to second priority. "That… didn't seem like a planned entry."

"That's because it wasn't!" Dragon silently shook her head, grumbling. "Madarame has a thug squad! He literally sicced a bunch of rent-a-cops on us, and we had to get here to escape… a story above ground, I guess…"

“Well, at least it ain’t me this time…” Skull sighed in relief…

…before being harshly elbowed by Panther. 

"Ow!" Skull gave a comically exaggerated wince. "Jeez, I was just expressing effin’ relief! Sheesh!”

(Music Stops)

“Enough!” Yusuke hollered, suddenly coming out of his stunned mood. “Where… where are we…?”

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

The Phantom Thieves looked onwards as Yusuke looked dazed and confused. His confusion grew to understanding, and eventually horror, to see the museum dystopia laid in front of him.

"How… wha… when did you find that costume…?" He looked around, before seeing Morgana. "And… who are you? It is quite the accurate cat suit, I must say… but it can't help if it's hot…"

Mona opened his mouth, then paused, clearly just relieved to be put as "person in a cat costume". "…you get a pass this once. I'm a human, Morgana!"

Yusuke didn't seem to pay attention that. He looked around, before shaking his head. "What on Earth is this place?"

"…we're inside Madarame's heart." Panther said grimly, deciding to cut to the chase.

This was not any less confusing for the apprentice painter.

"Inside… Sensei's heart?" Yusuke repeated, dumbfounded. "I'm sorry… Takamaki-san, I believe… but… are you sure you're feeling okay?"

"Are you entirely serious - " Dragon near-shouted, exasperated.

"Hey, from his perspective, we're the ones in the colorful costumes - and the ground doesn't look like cardiac muscle." Phoenix cut in. "It's kind of a jarring shift."

"And she ain't lying, either." Skull continued. "It's gonna take a long time to explain, but - this gold-plated eyesore? It's what he's like deep down - a greedy little money-grubber who doesn't have restraint in shiny for shit."

That got Yusuke's attention… but not in a positive way.

"…enough of this rubbish!" He immediately said, defensively. "Is… this what all of this was built on the back of? To lure me into whatever this domain is?!"

"Kitagawa! Hey!" Dragon snapped her fingers. "You saw what was behind that door too - you know he doesn't even regard his own art, let alone his students' art, as worth anything more than forging material! And you've already suspected something was up with him!"

While Phoenix was wincing at the sheer bluntness of her friend, it had the desired effect.

Yusuke looked away, looking ashamed. "That's…"

"You may not want to believe it, but this is another reality formed of how Madarame sees the world." Panther began, a bit more gently. "This… is his true nature."

Slowly, Yusuke looked up at the gold leaf covering everything, the shifting, yellow mess above him, and the luridly colored peacock door. "This… repulsive world…?"

After a second, he plugged his ears, and started to hum a small, tuneless song.

"…uh." Mona looked up, wide-eyed. "…did we just break him?"

"Give him time." Panther said, looking sympathetic.

After a bit, Yusuke seemed to find his inner balance, inhaling. "Just… just who are all of you?"

"People with the ability to change the heart of awful people." Phoenix said. "We got involved after we heard how badly Madarame treated Nakanohara."

Yusuke made a small "oh" shape with his mouth, and blinked. "Then… if what you say is true…" He trembled. "Then… the Sensei I know… doesn't exist…"

"I… I honestly don't know." Phoenix shook her head. "He might… but that's only a front part of a much larger picture…"

Regardless of what Phoenix could theorize, Yusuke quietly drew himself up. "…regardless of if it's the truth of not, he has kept me safe for the past ten years. My gratitude for that won't just disappear in an instant." 

"…are you freaking kidding me?!" Dragon's jaw dropped, before suddenly looking furious as her patience fully and utterly ran out. "You're just going to forgive him?!"

"I - urk!" Yusuke fell over.

"Oh, crap, the distortions are getting to him!" Mona said. "And I think the security level is going to go through the roof after the real Madarame saw us in his room!"

"No, no - it is just my emotions. I get nauseous and hot flashes when… overwhelmed. Urk…"

"Either way, it's not safe." Phoenix said, immediately going over to Yusuke. "C'mon, lean on my shoulder, we'll get you out through the entrance - wait, can we use Safe Rooms to teleport him out?"

"A guy without an awakened Persona or a Thief outfit to protect him from distortion, using something that is a product of distortion to get out? Yeah, not risking it." Morgana helped hoist Yusuke out. "C'mon, let's go - just try to avoid fights!"

And with that, the entire group, partly slowed by one very confused artist, dashed out.


(Music Plays – Regret – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGFZHBK2lTs)

May 19th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Exhibit A – ???

Unfortunately, while the guards were missed, mostly streaming over to the unlocked inner part of the museum, there was one danger to Yusuke's wellbeing that could not be avoided.

His mental wellbeing, but still.

"This… this statue!"

Yusuke gaped at a former female apprentice's golden representation.

"…yeah." Panther looked down. "Remember how we said that this is how Madarame thinks of his house? This is how he sees the real person who this statue looks like. And presumably, all his other pupils."

"But… but the expression!" Yusuke pointed at the figure's obvious agony. "Did… did Sensei know how miserable she was, if this is how she's immortalized?"

"…'fraid so, man." Skull said with a morose shrug. "That's kinda why we sent Dragon - sorry, Chie, that's her alias in here - to scout out his room. Because we know for a fact that he doesn't see 'em as more than just objects."

"Technically, they're cognitive versions of Madarame's students… but the fact they aren't even mobile shows just how little he cares about their agency." Mona continued, a bitter tone in his voice. "He doesn't even see them as his apprentices, more like his creations."

"You're in here too." Phoenix said in an awkward counterpoint. "If it makes you feel better, you're bigger than the rest…"

"I just…" Yusuke took a breath. "Surely… you must be mistaken. We are gold, so… so we must be…"

Even Dragon, with her bad impression of the blue-haired artist, couldn't really stay mad at Yusuke's denial.

"Valuable property is… still property." She said, gently as she could manage. "But... come on, let's go."

Yusuke, unfortunately, seemed to have the statues stick in his mind, murmuring to himself. "…it's not really… the lack of animation… symbolically, it could be safe… but he exiled, so…"

Hearing that mumble did not make Phoenix particularly eager for when they passed The Infinite Spring.

She was right not to be, as Yusuke tore himself from the group to look at the placard.

"'…and… the anonymity… that they must be…?'"

He finished reading, numbly, seeing in full lurid detail exactly what the statues were truly meant to be - sacrifices for Madarame's own glory.

Yusuke wanted to be shocked, but… for some reason, he couldn’t. All he felt was numbness.

After a few seconds to fully comprehend the sight before him, he simply sunk to his knees and wept bitterly. He was trying his hardest to grip onto the floor out of shock.

"…Yusuke -" Phoenix began, only to be swatted away.

After what had to be a couple minuted, he inhaled.

"…leave me." He said, hoarsely.

"Uh…" Mona began. "That may not be a good idea. See, I - "

"Do I look like I care at the moment?!" He snapped, furious and devastated. "My Sensei, my effective father, sees me as nothing but… but some kind of disposable tool?!"

Panther stepped forward. "Yusuke, I - "

"No. No. I will remain here." He said, slumping into the placard. "The Spring spoke the truth - this is my purpose. My fate - anonymity."

He cackled, the kind of laugh that was made by someone too emotionally compromised to scream. "What better place than in this vain hell outside reality? Within his heart? It will be the only place I am known, so… why not dwell here forever, among the other faceless creatures?"

"…Kitaga - Yusuke." Dragon began, correcting herself. "I know this hurts. But… but we can help you out of this, after this passes - "

(Music Stops)

"Out of what? Don't all the textbooks say that art is supposed to show something real?"

Phoenix immediately shot up wide. "That… that voice - "

"He's just describing the reality of the situation to you." A sneering laugh. "Good old Yusuke, always the brightest and most perceptive of my pupils." 

Phoenix paled. "SHIT!" 

Thankfully, her reflexes were faster than the manifesting guards, able to barely dodge a nightstick.

Unfortunately, the burly Shadows didn't need to hit her to block the exit, as a long, arrogant laugh of victory echoed through the area, as its source rounded the stairs.

(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

So that's where his Shadow got to… Phoenix thought, looking rather disgusted. On one hand, can't fault him for sticking to a theme. On the other, though…

Shadow Madarame was as gilded as everything else in the museum - which was to say, he looked ostentatiously ornate. He still wore a kimono, but that was the only similarity between his supposedly humble real-world self and his inner one. The kimono was far more finely tailored, for one, looking precisely fit to its wearer - but one could be forgiven for not noticing that, given how every single inch of it was golden, with a shimmer that gave the distinct impression he was wearing oddly flexible metal rather than the cloth. That was the most blatant difference of course, but one look at his face would show perhaps more important ones - while the real Madarame was hardly a slob, the first thing that occurred to Phoenix upon seeing the grooming his Shadow did was "dandy." His mustache, beard, and hair were all slicked back and carefully groomed and fluffed out until they shone, and in place of a ponytail was a topknot that probably not coincidentally resembled a paintbrush. Even his eyebrows were groomed, bushy and painted black, which combined with some slight mascara around his eyes to make the golden color even more striking and intense. This was the face Madarame hid from the world -  a face that cared very highly about appearances and impressions, and wanted people to look at a carefully crafted image of himself as wealthy, intense, and powerful.

Also, in a bit of an especially excessive twist, he had put on bright red lipstick, of all things. Just around the center of his mouth, in a traditional nobleman style, but it was something even the fashionista side of Phoenix was gawking at and wondering exactly where "too much" was, because Shadow Madarame had passed it so long ago it wasn't even a point on the horizon.

"Talk about bullshit clothes!" Skull muttered. "First a king, now a shogun?"

Phoenix couldn't quite agree nor disagree. As repulsively tacky as this outfit was, at least this Shadow was simply gaudy, instead of mind-scarring.

"Welcome to the museum of the master artist Madarame!" Shadow Madarame proclaimed, with a showman's enthusiasm. 

Yusuke just stared. "Sensei…? Is that… you?"

"Yes… and no." The golden-robed forger replied with an exaggerated shrug. "The Madarame you know and I are different faces of the same person; I am he without any of that ridiculous 'old master' act the world wants so-called 'intellectual' entertainers to be - as if the world would know what 'intellectual' means if a philosopher came out of a sewer and etched the work into their backsides with a bite." He sniffed imperiously. "That intruder wasn't wrong - we are indeed surrounded by people who are functionally the walking dead - not a hint of inner life."

…okay, that's legitimately impressive. Phoenix thought, looking a bit more reviling than she did a second ago. I am in awe of the hypocrisy of the person who wears that and hates everyone around them for being shallow. Projection, thy name is Ichiriyusai Madarame.

Yusuke didn't catch on to that - nor had much room in his mind at the moment for thinking about it.

"This… this is all one big lie, isn't it…?" The blue-haired artist pleaded, rather desperately. "Sensei… it's all a joke, r-right?"

"…Yusuke, please. Pay attention to what I just said." The annoyed Madarame replied. "My usual ragged attire is the act I put on for the cameras and press; I take absolutely no joy in having to roleplay a starving artist like a performing monkey. Besides, who ever heard of a famous person living in a shack made of spare metal? No, I have another, more comfortable home… under a mistress' name of course."

"…hold on." Dragon stepped forward. "You have another home, one you probably sleep in and you deliberately store Yusuke in that wreck?!"

"Ever hear the saying 'three people can keep a secret if two of them are dead'?" Madarame shrugged matter-of-factly. "It is simply better for the image if nobody except the Madame herself knows that I am more wealthy than I let on. Besides, I was genuinely poor before Sayuri dragged me out of obscurity and into something worthwhile - it builds the same character and perspective that allows painters to become successes, at least according to the pretentious idiots of art critique."

Panther gaped, before quickly looking furious. "…so, Yusuke has to suffer because you did?! Even as a selfish old man, you can't be original at all!"

The Shadow made a blunt "brush-off" gesture. "Originality is impossible anyway; if you're looking for ways to upset me, you might want to try some better insults, mutt."

…okay, I'm not sure whether to try and punch you for that, or thank you for immunizing me against any sob story you're going to weave about your life. An aghast Phoenix wondered this, borderline amazed (in the most disgusted use of the word) at the sheer sleaze the alleged 'shogun' radiated.

Yusuke stepped forward. "If the Sayuri was stolen, why was it in the storage room? And why did you lie about being in debt to the mafia to excuse making copies? If it's really you Sensei… please tell me!"

The smug expression Shadow Madarame was wearing dropped a bit. "…reallym Yusuke? I know you are not the most perceptive in the world, but you can see the scam, can't you? This is why I keep you on the inside - you cannot protect yourself."

The shogun of glitz cleared his throat. "I was the person who came up with the rumor of the painting being stolen! The one on display currently is a fake, but there was nothing illegal involved - I just expressed worries about an art thief and secretly exchanged the real one for a copy the curators are aware of. But."

He continued as his smirk returned. "The buyers don't know that - in fact, they think that simply protecting a maiden work by keeping it out of reach is a worse scandal, so they line up for the privilege of the grift!"

Yusuke shot up. "…what do you mean?"

"Let me see… how does this sound…?" Madarame cleared his throat, falling into a secretive, conspiratorial expression. "'I've tracked down the real painting, but if I admit a student stole it in public, it would be a massive scandal that would affect us all… but given how you, good sir, obviously appreciate the value of fine art, I can let you keep it for a special price.' And they keep falling for it!" He laughed. "Art snobs are suckers for even the smallest hint of flattery, and pay good cash for it!"

Yusuke collapsed. "No… what happened to the Sensei who painted from the heart? You aren't this… nihilistic con man…"

"To put it simply, Yusuke? The artist I was grew up." Madarame said, his undercurrent of bitterness nonetheless belying the old Shadow taking a gentler, sympathetic tone.

Yusuke looked even more aghast. "'Grew up'?! What do you mean by that?"

Madarame sighed, glumly. "As disheartening as the notion has to be to hear, the true value of art is pure illusion - if everyone decided tomorrow that, for example, Impressionism is not a real thing, it would promptly cease to exist. It isn't like the color red or gravity, it only continues to be because people just agree that it does. All artists provide that illusion to paying customers, I am simply providing a more… complex one than others." He frowned. "And the fact you are still lost in the idea of there being a core message to it, a spirit you can find, proves just how little you understand about the world. So I continue making that illusion of there being something true in a bunch of paints to you as well, to avoid you cracking apart. Like, for example, now."

Yusuke did not respond, simply returning to his humming.

"…see what I mean?" Madarame continued with a sad sigh, before smiling wryly towards the others. "The moment anything goes wrong, he shuts down like this. So he remains the one student I don't kick out when it's time for a new crop to mine ideas from. Even beyond his talents, he probably couldn't survive in the real world."

"…sweet merciful crap." Dragon shook her head, looking more and more furious. "I think I understand why he doesn't understand boundaries, if he learned all he knows about them from you."

"'Money this, money that', blah, blah, blah!" Skull continued, growling angrily. "Y'know, for someone who talks a lot of shit about how 'life ain't fair' and you're the last deep person left, you really ain't got much to stand on, when your own museum's the most basic, shallow-ass golden shitpile I've ever seen!"

"And even if you're entirely right, and it really is just about showmanship and income - where the fuck do you get off of, hoarding all the money to yourself, and not even letting someone who might as well be your own son eat regularly?!" Panther shouted at him, genuinely irate now. "We know you've been swiping his checks too - I'd understand if you spent your wealth on anything but yourself, but you'd rather let him rot in what's effectively a sweatshop for you! Would it kill you to be kind for once in your life?!"

"I am being kind!" The Shadow retorted, growling furiously. "I am teaching him the true nature of poverty, so he knows how to develop a work ethic to avoid it in the future! Far better me than homelessness, especially with his own eccentricities! They'd throw him in an institution if it wasn't for me!"

"…and when he is an adult?" Phoenix finally said, quietly. "We've seen the Spring. We know you sabotage your own students..."

Madarame paused, looking slightly pensive.

"…it is survival, sadly." He said after a long pause. "In the end, there can only be so many famous artists - anybody I teach would ultimately become a rival of mine. So it's best to stop that before they have a chance to fight back - they will succeed or fail on their own merits, but long after I have retired - my objection stalls their careers until I am safely insulated from potential drains on my own reputation and fame. Besides, it's not like I take apprentices in out of the goodness of my heart." He said, a bit of his bravado coming back. "Plucking talented, but troubled artists gives me ample opportunity to take their ideas as apprentices, and continue escalating the amount of work the public expects the great Madarame to produce, and so, I remain newsworthy."

That had the opposite effect of what Madarame wanted, as it seemed to snap Yusuke out of his stunned state.

"To think…" He began, growling on a hard note in his voice. "That I was under the care of this wretched man…!"

"Do you allow cows to run free on your lawn when the milk has run dry, or for horses to devour grain when they can no longer pull carts?" Madarame shot back. "No! You kill them and recycle them for hide, meat, and glue! It is a brutal business, but ultimately a necessary one to keep life going! The farmer is not to blame for the vagaries of his profession."

"And the fact I've searched for your Palace under the keyword search of being a farm?!" Yukiko said, looking genuinely horrified. "That was a joke! I didn't expect even you to stoop that low, you thieving little snitch!"

"And certainly you'd understand the world me as an artist is trapped in…" Madarame sighed, before turning sympathetically to Yusuke. "Yusuke, my boy… we can rule together."

As if he hadn't dropped the most cynical bomb yet in his tide of rationalizations, he reached out a hand to Yusuke.

Yusuke's voice was half-trapped in a grimace. "S-Sensei, you…!"

"…Yusuke, I understand. This is hard… but this is just how the world is… but you, you can be so much more." Madarame said with a genuine smile, which arguably made the whole thing more sick. "But, that is a discussion for later. Come along - as hard as it can be to believe after hearing me rant for a bit, I still have only your best interests at heart. I have been considering making you less of a student and more of a partner for a long time - the best forgers need the soul of an artist, after all, and mine is a bit shriveled after my life, on the off-chance you couldn't tell."

He smiled. "Whaddya say? Shall we go into business together, master and student, and rob every self-satisfied upper-class nitwit blind?" He accentuated it with an almost roguish smile, one that genuinely looked honest in his eyes. Even the other Thieves could see that he was genuinely looking after Yusuke…

…that, of course, was what made it more sick to everyone present.

(Music Stops)

Yusuke especially.

“You…” The hard note turned into a growl. “You are… unforgivable.”

Shadow Madarame's brief kindness vanished, his face contorting into an ugly sneer. “…so this is how you repay me for keeping you safe all those years? You brat!"

“SHUT UP!” Yusuke’s voice was in a dark hiss. “You… you’re telling me that you’ve built my 'fortunate' lifestyle on the backs of those you have betrayed and deceived… and I should be thankful for that…?”

Silence. And then Yusuke began laughing.

No, laughing’s not the right word. Cackling.

As if something built up in him for years finally snapped into pieces, he began cackling gleefully, oblivious to the fact he was worrying his allies and doubly so his enemies. Madarame’s face was in a mixture of disgust and horror as he bore witness to what was in front of him.

“W-What’s so funny?! Why are you laughing?!” As Yusuke continued to cackle, Madarame grew furious. “WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING?!”

“Because it is only now I have just realized how much of an unforgivable miscreant you are!” Yusuke glared fiercely. “My eyes were blind… blind, and unable to see the true self behind this one horrible man…! You're no artist! You are a confidence man who has created an entire ideology to justify his own greed, selfishness, and vanity - you project your own shallow and hollow life on the world to excuse it! And then you have the temerity to take people who suffered the life you did, and victimize them for your own, worthless name! If the world is as empty and superficial as you say, it is because of people like you who strangle truth in its crib so that everyone is as embittered and materialistic as you!”

Yusuke hissed as he pointed an accusatory finger at Shadow Madarame and shouted. “Never in a thousand years shall I pardon your atrocities, YOU VILE, MISERABLE CRETIN!”

And then… it happened.

(Music – Awakening – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTQoFPmC7ZA)

"Have you finally come to your senses?”

Yusuke cringed as an incorrigible pain swept through him. He knelt down and began thrashing, biting his lip so hard as it began bleeding in his attempts to not scream, the most of which he’s mustering is a whimper. “How foolishly you averted your eyes from the truth… a deplorable imitation indeed… best you part from that aspect of yourself!"

Yusuke clawed at the floor, desperately trying to gain some resemblance of control over his awakening powers. All that it amounted to was blood trailing from the floor, his hand gripping so hard it began to bleed. “Let us now forge a contract… I am thou, thou art I… the world is filled with both beauty and vice… it is time you teach people WHICH IS WHICH!"

And with that, a mask – a Japanese inari mask – burned onto Yusuke’s face. The blue-haired man only hesitated for a moment more, eager to gloat his newfound powers to the monster he once called his father.

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

“You… have blinded me for too long, you fool.” Yusuke’s voice was in a dark hiss. “Blind to your crimes and administrations I shall be no longer! COME, GOEMON!”

And with that, he ripped off his mask.

(Music Playing – Will Power - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqqhuZd8IXU)

A radiant, blue light enveloped Yusuke, as did a new pair of clothes: a leather, white rockabilly vest with ice blue gloves and his inari mask ripped clean from his hands. Unlike Ryuji and Ann, his persona spawned weapons which was a blessing… he wanted nothing short but to tear this pretender to pieces, and bring something close to dignity back to the world of art.

“I hope you put up a fight, old man…” Yusuke grinned darkly. “For no matter what it takes… I will bring you to justice! GOEMON, STRIKE!”

And with that, as if a prelude to the kinds of powers Goemon has in hand, a tidal wave of sub-zero ice flooded the room, bringing his allies to a chill. Thankfully, the attacked was aimed at the horde of guards, vanquishing them before they could reveal their true forms.

“F-Freezing!” Panther yelped. “Crap, I’m cold!”

“Amazing…” Mona stood in awe. “Is this the power Yusuke’s Persona has…?!”

Yusuke stood valiant as the Shadows morphed into an Ippon-Datara and quartet of Koppa Tengus, looking at Phoenix with a small smile. “I see this is the power you hold within you! ‘Persona’, is it not?”

“Yep. Now…” Phoenix smirked evilly. “Tear them apart.”

All things considered, with how powerful the party has gotten, wiping the floor with supposedly Madarame’s best Shadows was no sweat at all.

All it really took was a wave of ice to eliminate the flunkies, only for Phoenix to switch to Ictinike to lay on the hurt when she learned the middle Shadow was weak to fire. “Alright, it’s down! Lay on the hurt, Yusuke!”

“With pleasure!” Yusuke and his newfound allies leapt forth, beginning a tidal wave of devastation.

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

As Yusuke delivered the final blow with his katana, he simply stood there and wordlessly sheathed it. He did a little flamboyant pose, and with that, the leading Shadow erupted into a tide of black blood.

IT WAS FUN WHILE IT LASTED. GOODBYE.

And the path was clear. As the Thieves hustled to make their great escape, an awe-struck Madarame looked on at the now-rebellious Yusuke as he made his way towards freedom. “W-Wait! Don’t tell me you’re going to leave your life for… t-those rabble!”

Yusuke glared fiercely at his guardian, before spitting into the ground. “Better rabble than a slave, you insipid fool. Especially to my own insecurities.”

And with that, his newfound powers allowed him rush forth faster than the eye can track, evaporating into the night. In hindsight, when Shadow Madarame was bested by his new adversaries, he wondered if he had any role in contributing to how own, frozen-over downfall.


(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

May 19th, 2016 – Shibuya, Rocket 42 Diner – 6:41 PM

“So that thing I summoned… Goemon… was my Persona?”

After successfully escaping Madarame’s Palace, the Thieves took the time to relocate themselves to the very diner Ann had first explained her problems to Yukiko in. It "seemed fitting", as she put it.

Morgana promptly popped out of Yukiko’s bag to address Yusuke. “Pretty much! Shadows are the representation of the psyche’s id unleashed, and a Persona is the mastery of it. In short, Shadows are what people keep repressed from the outside world, and a Persona manifests when that aspect is tamed.”

“That’s… more or less the gist of it, I guess.” Ryuji gave a sheepish smile as he patted Yusuke on the back. “Welcome aboard! Trust me, all of this Persona shit’ll be a lot easier to understand in practice than in theory.”

"I see. And…" He looked down. "Your experiences… with Kamoshida…"

"…yeah." Chie looked up from her ample meal. It was hard to remain especially pissed at Yusuke after he had his self-image and view of his effective father shredded - which, given how she still felt a mote of rage over the painting, was really saying something. "I get the sense you didn't know, but - holy shit, that was a bridge too far…"

Yusuke slumped over, hiding his face. "Heavens above… I didn't even alert anyone! I just wanted you to leave - I sincerely thought we would not meet again… I don't think any apology will be enough to even begin to equal the harm inflicted with that…"

"Yeah. And in that context, that's the only reason why I'm considering forgiving you. You lashed out - but still…" She made a 'watching you' gesture. "At least it wasn't Ann."

"For which we can all thank every god of fortune for - I think I would move from Tokyo if that were the case." Yusuke agreed. "If I did so, I'd be no better than… others…"

He returned to his pensive, glum expression. It did not take a telepath to guess why.

“Hey, Yusuke-kun…” Ann, reached out. "You're not Madarame's clone, any more than anyone else."

"Then why did that last remark tempt me?” Yusuke softly threw his fork in frustration and buried his face in his hands. “My Sensei, my guardian… all of the aspirations I had to becoming just like him were a lie. He isn’t just a plagiarist and counterfeiter, but a profiteer! One with absolutely no care for his artwork, or anyone else… and yet… why does some part of me still crave…?”

Yukiko cleared her throat. “Well, I think you’ll have to remember that Shadows are the parts people repress.”

“I’m… sorry?” Yusuke turned his head towards Yukiko, who had a comforting smile on her face as she stated that.

She inhaled. “Well in the case of Kamoshida, he was… well, he was almost the same entity as his Shadow. Difference was that Shadow Kamoshida openly gloated about his actions. Shadow Madarame… he's different. He's still proud of getting one over on everyone, but he doesn't seem to really enjoy the fact he has no faith in art itself, and he still tries to rationalize it. I think any kindness the real one showed you is genuine... which is probably why he has a Palace.”

"Palaces are distorted desires, not just wishes, after all." Morgana agreed, nodding. "I think if Madarame was just a forger, and he was open about his doubts in his profession - and especially if he shared his wealth with others - he wouldn't have a Palace. But he's so afraid of breaking his image that he sells people down the river rather than risk competitors, and doesn't support people though he has the means - that's the distorted part. He knows it's wrong and it's not a good thing, but he continues to do it - whatever his excuses, that's the distortion."

"…though of course, that ain't ever gonna excuse him." Ryuji said, glowering. "Shit hand in life or not, he's actively making things worse 'cause he knows he's a fraud, and he don't care if he drags everyone down with him."

"I see…" Yusuke nodded. "Truth is - I was so defensive because I suspected already. The plagiarism was already a daily thing, and he frequently had strange and shady clients over. I was deep in denial, and did not want to face the truth."

"But, you ultimately did." Ann said with a grin. "So, you don't have to beat yourself up over it. You had to step out of something that was 'normal' your whole life - that's impressive!" 

Yusuke nodded quietly in reply. “Well… I can’t say I’m ever going to forgive him. Sabotage of his own students, counterfeiting, plagiarism, money hoarding - and from the sound of it, actually taking away the source of his inner disharmony might actually do him some good, and get him out a rather dark place, trapped by his own despair and want.”

“That’s generally where Palaces form. Desires.” Yukiko nodded grimly. “Kamoshida’s Palace was formed out of lustful desires, and it seems that Madarame’s was formed out of vanity… at least, that’s the impression I’m getting so far… ”

“Huh? Vanity?” Ann blinked. “Is that even a sin?”

“I’ve looked it up; it’s basically a broader version of egotism and pride.” Yukiko nodded. “The big thing is deception; if he was more honest about his lack of faith in art and greedy side, he probably would be fine, but he's willing to destroy others to support a reputation he knows is fraudulent, and going by how much he looks down on art critics, he doesn't even like all that much.”

"That… definitely fits what we saw there." Yusuke agreed, tapping to fingers together as he thought on things. "The level of gilding we saw is often a symbolic visual technique to indicate a sense of decadence and decay under seeming prosperity… it certainly fits his claims of still being a great artist while demeaning the idea of art, if he believes the very concept of being an artist is more about image and shallow entertainment rather than finding beauty. So on some level, he wonders if the title he defends is even worth it…" He frowned. "Though, even if it is just his reputation, I can't help but wonder why he sent me a text ranting about how he plans to sue all of you…"

The Phantom Thieves' heads whipped to the artist.

"S-Sue?!" Ann sputtered.

"…should I have started with that?" He asked sheepishly, as he showed his phone. "Let me start over; the good news is, he thinks I got lost trying to chase down Satonaka and is not aware of what his Shadow said, as you yourselves put it. The bad news is, in between him chewing out the private security for losing track of a single teenage girl, he mentioned he has begun a motion asking for pressing charges for trespassing on, well, everyone whose name he knows… which is everyone minus Morgana…"

"…damn it!" Ryuji hit the table. "Mom can't afford a lawyer for that shit!"

"It's even worse than that. What if the court requests phone records, and they find out about us?!" Chie said. "I don't want to be paying him damages through the bars of a prison!"

"If it makes you feel better, I asked, and he says he asked his lawyers only to prepare briefs - he has no intention to begin the process until after the exhibition ends, to avoid the scandal." He shrugged. "So, we are ironically on a real time limit that was originally my fake time limit…"

"…though, you raised a good point," Morgana interjected. "Even Chie, or you, go public with that forging studio - it's just our word against his, and is just going to be, at most, a talking point on an episode of a celebrity gossip show, if at that. There's definitely something else going on, something he's afraid of people finding out, if he's willing to risk tainting his name with his involvement in a legal case."

“Something to keep in mind while exploring the Palace, I guess." Yukiko said, before turning to Yusuke. “If you don’t feel comfortable coming, that’s fine; we have a habit of going to the end of a Palace as quickly as possible as to send a calling card and get the Treas – “

“Wait, what about a calling card and treasure?!” Yusuke gave her a baffled look. “Actually, not here - I am confident I’ll know in due time. For now, just know I’m coming with you, whether you like it or not. I… want to confront the man I’ve blinded myself for, with my own two eyes.”

“Yusuke-kun…” Yukiko nodded before smiling. “Alright, I understand; we’ll get you outfitted with the necessary gear for a trip into the Metaverse! Welcome aboard!”

Yusuke bowed with a smile on his face. “I shall assist you in any means necessary, Lady Yukiko!”

The innmaiden turned a bright shade of red. “L-Lady Yukiko…?!” Meanwhile, Chie huffed in frustration.

As it turns out, everybody had a great time getting to know Yusuke. And with him on board at long last, it’s hard to say that he’s not going to prove to be an invaluable member to the team.

“By the way, I wish to thank all of you for letting me eat here! It’s been ages since I’ve had myself a meal.” Yusuke laughed before blushing.

“You’re welcome! Though, uh…” Yukiko paused, before seeing the waitress.

"Here you are, kiddos." The young adult waitress delivered a helping of American burgers and fries, before bowing. "Please enjoy."

Of course, that's when people noticed Yusuke's portions.

(Music Stops)

"I-Inconceivable…" Yusuke's eyes widened, mouth immediately watering.

Chie gasped. "Yukiko!"

Yukiko giggled. "Consider it on the house as a treat for being a good boy, Yusuke. It's long overdue."

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

Frankly, while the other four teen's proportions were quite typical at the American-themed diner, Yusuke's meal was… gargantuan. Five different sandwiches of both burgers and fried chicken, two servings of french fries and three drinks. It was enough that everyone else combined wouldn't be able to eat all of that. But Yusuke?

It didn't take a genius to say that Yusuke was likely starving.

"Holy crap, Yukiko!" Chie cried, guffawing. “HOW MUCH DID YOU SPEND?!”

Yusuke, meanwhile, looked almost entranced by the buffet. "I… I can… eat this…?"

"All of it." Yukiko said, giggling. "And what you don't eat, we'll make sure you package so you can bring it back."

It almost took two seconds before Yusuke could actually respond.

Largely because, it took second for him to begin gorging.

It was rather eloquent in a way; like a starving wolf being ready to eat and devour a freshly-killed straggling elk, Yusuke began devouring the food around him. He only barely started with his burger, before moaning orgasmically as his stomach felt the joy of upper-middle class foodstuffs.

"…ohhh!" Yusuke cried out. "T-This is - so good!"

"Y-Yusuke, uh…" Ann reached out her hand, as Yusuke only stopped eating to breathe. "Um, t-try not to choke - "

Ryuji's hand stopped Ann's arm, the delinquent grinning cheerfully.

"Let him be, just this once." Ryuji grinned. "A man's gotta eat when a man's gotta eat."

Indeed, Yukiko nearly began giggling with laughter as Yusuke ate the pile of food at a rate that was downright prodigious, but mostly due to how starved he was. Ryuji grinned while Ann giggled loudly as well, and even Morgana mewled happily, shaking his head. And Chie?

Well, let's just say Chie was a bit envious.

"…oh, well! Enjoy the meal, Yusuke." Even Chie didn't have it in her to admonish Yusuke. "But don't blame me if you get a stomach ache…"

And so, the fox's feast continued.

Notes:

Goddamn. All I have to say is, thank God for Leliel12. You seriously helped make this chapter way better.

Anyways, not much else otherwise! All that can be said from here is that I hope you guys enjoyed the fic! I'll try to get another update done by the end of the month, but sadly no guarantee. Otherwise, here's to the newest member of the Phantom Thieves, Yusuke!

See you all next time. ;)

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 18
Chie: Lv. 16
Ryuji: Lv. 16
Ann: Lv. 15
Morgana: Lv. 15
Yusuke: Lv. 15

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 1
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 3
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

Chapter 12: The Gilded Museum

Summary:

With Yusuke on board alongside the Phantom Thieves at last, Yukiko and the group make the decision to clear Madarame's Palace in one sitting… amid other things.

Notes:

Apologies for the late update, all! Boy, you have no idea how eager I was to get this chapter done with.

Not much to say here otherwise, so let's start! Anyways, seriously, major thanks to Leliel for helping out with this chapter. he has no idea how helpful he was here.

Hope you enjoy!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 18
Chie: Lv. 16
Ryuji: Lv. 16
Ann: Lv. 15
Morgana: Lv. 15
Yusuke: Lv. 15

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 3
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Is It Boring – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID7z4mE_XDM)

May 20th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Class 2-D – 8:04 AM

Going through class made Yukiko almost wish for the cold embrace of a Hama spell.

Key word: almost.

On the one hand, Ms. Kawakami had earned a lot of brownie points with Yukiko given her obvious dislike of Kamoshida, and as Shujin went was one of most tolerable in temperament. She always seemed inexplicably baggy-eyed and exhausted at most times of the day, but otherwise? She was definitely not a bad teacher to be around.

The problem was that, possibly due to said inexplicable exhaustion, she didn't so much walk her students through her lessons as sleepwalked. She could, and would, help if you got her attention, but snapping her out of her haze was an issue.

More pertinently, she was dull. Seeing her drone through a lesson of literature Yukiko herself wasn’t all that keen on, when it seemed like she was in the exact same boat, only made the innmaiden wish she was in Madarame's Palace, where something was happening.

That was ultimately the rub here, wasn’t it? The fact that she’d become so accustomed to risking her life in the Metaverse that she almost wished she was dodging Shadows. Just a month ago she was fighting off a pedophilic creep and stealing his heart, and now she was doing the same exact thing with a grouchy con artist. Only this time, she had on stand-by a new party member for training on the job.

God almighty. When was her life ever going to get easy? ... Honestly, talking to Dr. Maruki seemed more appealing every day. 

*bzzt-bzzt-bzzt*

“Hm?” Morgana popped out of Yukiko’s bag, like he always did. “Hey, you gonna get that?”

Yukiko paused, almost as if to make sure nobody was watching at the moment. Regardless, she flipped open her phone to be greeted to an… unexpected sight, to say the least.

Yukiko Amagi has joined the chat

steak trash: FOR THE LOVE OF GOD YSUKE YOU BETTER GIVE THE MEAT BACK YOU FOX FUCKER

Yusuke Kitagawa: I’m sorry, that’s awfully coarse language, don’t you think?

steak trash: DON’T BE A SMARTASS HHHH

Yukiko Amagi: Okay, what’s going on you two?

Ry-yee-ji: oh, chie and yusuke are at each others’ throats

Yukiko Amagi: Oh, God, what happened this time?

DanishWeeaboo: …uh, well

Yusuke Kitagawa: I sympathize with your aggravation, Chie-chan, but isn’t this a bit too much?

Yusuke Kitagawa: I don't think the literal cart of meat you've brought into the shack is safe for human consumption anymore.

Yukiko Amagi: I...

Yukiko Amagi: What?

steak trash: QUIET THAT CRAP COSTED ME MY ALLOWANCE FOR THE MONTH, I MIGHT AS WELL EAT IT

Ry-yee-ji: i mean, it is mean smh

DanishWeeaboo: still, I think Yusuke's got a point… idk if it's safe to eat. sorry, chie ¯\_(⊙_ʖ⊙)_/¯

Yusuke Kitagawa: Trust me, I was at times so hungry I ended up eating meat left over past its expiration date. Don't ask me how I was okay. It was…

Yusuke Kitagawa: …unpleasant.

steak trash: shut up you friggin furry i don't need to hear this

A full minute passed before somebody eventually responded.

Yusuke Kitagawa: …I beg your pardon?

Yusuke Kitagawa: What’s a furry?

Several people are typing…

It literally too all of Yukiko’s willpower not to burst out into hysterics then and there.

DanishWeeaboo: oh my god

DanishWeeaboo: yusuke you pure, pure soul

DanishWeeaboo: never change, lmao

Yusuke Kitagawa: You say ‘never change,’ but you’ve only known me for a matter of days.

Ry-yee-ji: figure of speech my bro

Yukiko Amagi: Snrk. Okay, y’know what? I’m gonna do it.

Yukiko Amagi: I’m gonna explain to Yusuke what a furry is.

steak trash: yukiKO NO DONTDO IT

steak trash: IM BEGHING YOU

DanishWeeaboo: oh god i would PAY to see this

Yusuke Kitagawa: Truly, I do not know what a ‘furry’ is.

Yusuke Kitagawa: Explain to me what this ‘furry’ is. Post-haste.

steak trash: oh no

steak trash: oh noooooo

steak trash: OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOO

steak trash: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

DanishWeeaboo: oml i can actually hear chie yelling no

DanishWeeaboo: this is absolutely precious FFFF

Meanwhile, Yukiko was all but a lost cause.

She was rolling around her seat laughing hysterically at this stunning new revelation. It felt, for once, good to laugh around a bit - even if it was clear as day they still had their work cut out for them, it was nice to see everyone be able to relax like kids their age are often supposed to.

Thankfully for her cranium’s integrity, Kawakami was of the opinion that chalk toss was not a valid discipline style.

Still… given that Yusuke seemed comfortable for the first time in a while?

Worth it.


(Music Playing – Days of Sisters – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqxvwpMRinE)

May 20th, 2016 – Niijima Residence – 3:04 PM

“So… how was your day?”

Sae wished she sounded a little bit more friendlier when she asked that. Still, Makoto seemed to be in a rather happier mood than she had been for a couple days; she gave her older sister a bright smile as she entered into the apartment which they resided it. “It was good. Student Council meetings went on for a lot longer than I thought.”

“That’s nice.” Sae smiled rather astutely. “I assume there wasn’t any involvement with Haru-chan today?”

Makoto was just removing her shoes when she froze into place after hearing that.

It was not a secret from Sae, of course. Even if Makoto felt the need to hide that particular aspect of herself from her older sister, Sae would probably have figured it out on her own time. She had a finely honed prosecutor's intuition. Being honest with her guardian was just Makoto making things simpler and less fraught. 

Even so, that was… sudden. Makoto felt her cheeks dust a little pink, and she coughed rather nervously.

“Uhhh, it’s… fine. Yes, it’s fine.” Makoto coughed. “I, um, wasn’t doing anything suspicious with her, sincerely! I was just, um, well - !”

Sae shook her head and sighed out of exasperation. “Let me guess. You two had another “private moment,” didn’t you?”

The pink cheeks turned red. “I-I… well, that’s, um…!”

“Relax. I’m only teasing.” Sae smiled, before returning to her usual dour self. “Though I do advised you shouldn’t be as swayed by Haru… or open about it. Remember, she has her responsibilities too; Okumura Senior would not be pleased if rumors got out…”

Makoto’s happy feelings vanished, as the reality of the situation crashed into her. “Ugh. Don’t remind me; the way Haru’s used as a bargaining chip is unacceptable.”

Sae gently chewed at her lip in response to this. She could definitely sympathize with her younger sibling here… well, mostly. Sae Niijima had many difficulties when growing up as a woman, but was straight as an arrow - she never had to deal with the sudden realization that she did not love how most culture said she should love.

Still, she knew more than most what it was like to have your chain yanked around constantly, especially given her job as a prosecutor ran headlong into her gender. Life was frustrating to her in that respect.

*ding-dong*

Which wasn't helped by sudden guests.

“Ugh… who could be calling now of all times? Wait right here, Makoto.” Sae shook her head as she motioned over to the door, only to be quite surprised with the sight in front of her.

(Music Stops)

“Prosecutor Niijima! Sorry to bother you!"

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

The photogenic smile of Goro Akechi failed to improve Sae's mood in any sense.

Pinching the bridge of her nose, the prosecutor inhaled. "…please tell me this is urgent business, and not a house call."

"Thankfully, it is the former." Akechi said, returning to his normal, relaxed, eager-to-please demeanor as he held out some files. "I actually am here because the SIU Director asked me to talk with your sister."

That… was even worse. Makoto peaked her head over, curiously, as Sae's eyes narrowed.

"…may I ask why?" Sae inflected those last couple of words with a downright unconscious amount of venom, despite it being said as politely as she could manage with the sudden nose stuck into her privacy.

Akechi, to his credit, read the room. "It's… it's nothing that she must do, and I am asking guardian permission first." Akechi looked away guiltily. "Really, I'm just the errand boy at the moment."

"The point, please." Sae said, slightly mollified by Akechi's more conciliatory tone. Slightly.

"Well… er…" Akechi was obviously trying not to come off as accusatory, so he took a deep breath and decided to rip the band-aid off. "Has she been around any… suspicious characters, lately?"

Sae looked at her sister, who…

…suddenly seemed rather pensive.

"…I don't know." Sae muttered, her brow furrowed. "Has she?"

Makoto picked up on Sae's tone instantly, and immediately deflated. "…she has. The Student Council has been having trouble with some delinquents, but they aren't violent or criminal, I don't think. I'm attempting to reach out to them."

Sae sighed. "Makoto…"

"Ah! Well, that's something if you aren't agreeing to an interview with her, Niijima-sensei." Akechi said brightly, smiling.

Niijima-sensei? Really? Sae wasn't one to criticize being a lickspittle when she had to kiss the boots of her and Akechi's mutual boss, but at the same time, it was just as insincere when she did it, and she wasn't enough of a narcissist to bask in the flattery. "I can schedule an appointment at the police station over the weekend, if Makoto agrees…"

"She doesn't have to go down there, really - I'm fine playing houseguest for that." Akechi winked, turning on the charm even more.

It took all of Sae's willpower to avoid rolling her eyes at the Second Detective Prince's desperate cloying. "I think a table at a sushi restaurant would be more suitable, wouldn't you agree? With guardian supervision?" She put a tiny bit of emphasis on the last statement, in the code of 'only with guardian supervision'.

The prodigy got the hint. "Ah. Excellent. I'll contact you later to figure out a good time and day! Thank you, and again, sorry for the inconvenience."

With that, Akechi bowed, and walked off.

Sae closed the door, and turned to face Makoto with an unamused expression.

Makoto grimaced. "Sis, I know what you're going to say - "

"It isn't our responsibility, nor is it yours." Sae cut in, looking more than a little irritated. "I know you think you're going to save the world - but we're just two small people in a big world we're at a fundamental disadvantage in. It won't even thank us if we try - we'll just be nails to be hammered down, getting us in trouble for reasons we aren't at fault for."

Makoto looked down. "…yes, sis." 

"Good. I'm not going to do anything more, but Makoto…" Sae sighed. "Ask yourself if these delinquents are even capable of being saved. All the dreams in the world don't matter if you don't have a way to achieve them."

She nodded. "I will."


(Music Playing – A Woman –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWizFF5fn-I)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Entrance – ???

“So… this is really Madarame’s Palace, hm?”

Fox looked onward intently, subconsciously weighing the katana at his side and the assault rifle strapped to his back. For the first time in a while, he thought about his mother - not that he had ever known who she was. He imagined, and on some level hoped, that she would be appalled by the sight. He understood that's what mothers were supposed to do.

Frankly, discovering that his foster father was a fraudster made it harder not to focus on his heritage.

Which, to be honest, he currently was not impressed with. "…I can understand the gold, but why is it so… abstracted? Is there a reason it is modern art?"

Panther shrugged. "Given how cynical he is, I wouldn't be surprised if he's the same kind of guy who makes cracks about modernist statues being random blocks…"

"Fair enough, but the structure is so… unsound! If he is that pragmatic, he would probably at least have his personal world be… feasible."

“To be fair to him, he's a painter, not an architect.” Dragon laughed nervously. "Harder to steal blueprints, I guess."

Fox’s expression was largely hidden underneath his inari mask, but he gave an unmistakable glare to Dragon, causing the girl to laugh nervously. “Uh, heheh. J-Just a joke, Fox!”

Phoenix took the moment to facepalm.

“By the way, I do have to admit Yuki – err, Phoenix.” Fox was still getting a handle on the whole “phantom thief” business he was now a part of. “Your own outfit… is it me, or is it a bit, well, revealing?”

…he just noticed that? She thought with a slight lampshade, both embarrassed and a little stunned that it took him that long. Please let this obliviousness remain with Chie, she'd probably melt from sheer mortification. 

“Oh, um… not really?" Phoenix responded with cheeks slightly red. "I mean, it is, but I’m kinda getting used to wearing this.”

“Lucky…” Panther pouted. “I still feel mortified whenever I go out in this crappy outfit…”

"At least you have one…" Dragon muttered darkly.

Mona was quick to interject. “Well, I don’t think we should wait much longer than we have to, gang! Let’s go scout out the treasure ASAP!”

“Yeah, happily.” Skull gave an unusually evil grin at that moment. “And once we’re done, I finally get to stick it to that Wannabe Picasso!”

(Music Stops)

Silence.

“W-Wannabe Picasso…?! That’s… that’s…!”

(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

For the second time today, Phoenix begin howling with laughter.

“Pfffft…! Ahahahahah…! W-Wannabe Picasso?! T-That’s so gre – ahahahaha! Hahahaha!” For whatever reason, Phoenix was now on the floor rolling around, laughing. “R-Ryuji, oh my God, tha-that’s amazing! That’s – pffft! Ahahahahahaaaa…!”

As Phoenix continued to cackle, Dragon shook her head. “Oh, smooth move, Skull! Thanks to you we’ll be staying here for ten more minutes before we set out! Jeez!”

“Well, effin’ sorry for pushing the Big Red Hyena Button on the girl!” Skull huffed, shaking his head. “I-It was unintentional anyways, dumbass!”

Fox reared back. "E-Excuse me! As much as I regard my former father as the man he trust is, I would prefer that you not refer to him as…"

A pause. Phoenix continued to cackle maniacally and happily.

Fox winced. "…can she even hear me?"

The answer seemed to be 'no', as Phoenix gave no indication of anything other than laughter.

“Um, just to ascertain what I’m witnessing…” Fox blinked dumbly. “Does… Phoenix usually do tha – “

“Yes, Yusuke.” Panther sighed, shaking her head wistfully. “Yes, she does. This is a good omen - situation is only normal levels of weird…”

Phoenix took exactly the estimation Dragon put out to recover: ten minutes. Not that it would help too much, given how giggly Phoenix would be for the rest of the initial trip.


(Music Playing – A Woman –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWizFF5fn-I)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Treasure Hall Lounge – ???

Navigating throughout Madarame’s palace was… well, it was much less difficult than anybody was really expecting.

Nevermind the notion that the Thieves had grown quite a bit in terms of actual power; a lot of the encounters in this castle had proven surprisingly easy due to the combined efforts of everybody involved.

Including, as it turned out, the newbie; for whatever reason or another, Fox's newly manifested Persona was at a similar level of strength to everyone else's – Phoenix could only hazard a guess whether this was another unpredictable faucet of Personas like if you spawn with weapons or not, or something else she wasn’t aware of. Phoenix made a mental note to inquire with Igor on the subject.

Regardless, everybody was going at a surprisingly stellar pace in navigating the increasingly-extravagant hallways of the museum. The innmaiden was concerned with the fact that all the opulence on display no longer shocked her.

Or maybe that was her eyes shutting down the ability to perceive yellow to prevent overload. If the halls in the outer part were overly opulent with their blue coloring everywhere, the shift to full yellow everywhere was an outright eyesore.

“Uggggggggh. For crying out loud, damnit! Jeez, how much gold is on display here?!” Dragon huffed exasperatedly. “It isn’t just greedy, it’s tacky too! Isn’t Madarame, like, supposed to be an artist or something?!”

“I am beginning to feel that this coloring does not have an underlying message, or if so, it needed more subtlety.” Fox agreed as he took a minute to observe the decaying corpse of a Shadow guard the party recently disposed of. “I already have a low opinion on Sensei's vanity, but truly… how much avarice can you stuff in a place?”

Panther merely sighed, before shaking her head. "Well, at least it isn't the worst of the Metaverse we've ever seen, not by a long shot." She immediately looked a bit darker, expression-wise "King" Suguru Kamoshida and his 'kingdom' has that award."

Fox cocked an eyebrow. “Was it… truly that bad…?”

Skull gave a sheepish grin – one that almost hinted of teeth-grinding anger over a certain chain of events. “Oh, fuckin hell', yes. At least all this gold isn't goddamn skeevy - that pervert's wonderland was fuckin’ bad. Though I don’t think we have time for a recap, though, as Mona’s – “

“Hey guys! I found some more pamphlets!”

Skull felt his enthusiasm droop as he saw that Mona's expression did not seem very joyous for having discovered a map. “…lookin’ at me funny. Ugh…”

The not-a-cat rushed over. "Bad news, though - I checked ahead, and it seems like every passage is trapped with security lasers. My guess is that since Madarame in the real world is on edge, security was beefed up; it's similar to that peacock door, in reverse."

Phoenix bit back a swear, and sighed. "So. Alternate paths." She looked around. "See anything?"

Skull stepped forward. "Nada. All I see is some paintings, and…" He trailed off, frowning. "…hey. Does that picture look kinda… funny to anyone else?"

On the floor was a giant portrait of a bamboo forest. It was honestly rather generic, Phoenix thought - a prototypical example of "traditional Japanese art" someone would come up with if just asked to describe it.

As she looked at it, though, she started to notice a couple other things.

For one thing, it was huge. Big enough for all five Phantoms to stand nearby and not have to get close to remain in the frame, covering most of the wall. For another, despite that, it seemed divided in half; the other one was a different portrait that was directly over a seemingly inaccessible walkway.

And uh, the surface was rippling.

Fox didn't even need any prompting to check it out himself. "... how odd. The perspective seems to be abnormally deep. Almost like it has a third dimen… sion…"

He trailed off, eyes widening, then pulled out his sheathed sword, and gingerly reached to touch the painting.

Where it should have hit its surface, it kept going. Followed shortly by the rest of Fox.

"…okay, not gonna lie." Panther whistled. "That's really cool! You okay in there?"

The slightly sepia form of Fox turned around and nodded. "The color palate is making things somewhat disorientating, as I am quite clearly clashing with its style, but otherwise, I am more than fine. Do you believe we could take this as well for ourselves, if at all possible."

"Unfortunately, I think this is part of the Palace - it can't move." Mona said, walking up. "Still, it's worth checking out! Phoenix, you ready?"

The inn maiden nodded, and jumped inside herself.

"How dare you trample on my tranquil bamboo garden with those grimy feet! You shall not leave alive!" An all too familiar voice called out.

"AGH! MADARAME'S BACK, MOVE MOVE - move...?" Dragon's building panic upon hearing Shadow Madarame's voice subsided nearly as soon as it appeared, as she glanced around, and noticed a distinct lack of guards or security measures.

"…huh." Mona looked around. "Normally, when security raises, there's a change in the air, but…"

"…hm." Fox looked thoughtful. "A painting contains the thoughts of its artist… could that have been Sensei's metaphor he wanted to get at for this painting?"

"That's… actually really insightful, Fox!" Phoenix smiled, looking legitimately impressed…

…and then instantly grimacing, when she realized what Madarame's message was not saying. "…kind of rich he thinks of us as tracking mud into his domain, when he's the one who was defiling his own profession…"

Fox winced, not able to argue with that despite wanting to. "True enough. Though…" He looked to the right of the painting, over a group of hills. "There seems to be a continuing landscape behind here… it isn't just this subsection of the garden."

Phoenix perked up. "…I have an idea." She walked over the hills, and to Yusuke, simply seemed to be on the other side of them.

On the other side of the painting, however...

"Whoa!" Skull saw it first. "How the hell you'd get up there?! Don't pull that stage magic shit on me!"

Panther and Dragon looked at the walkway, to see Phoenix in its half of the scene.

"…I see. Each painting is connected to the rest in its set. Ingenious, if a bit obvious in hindsight." Fox walked between the two areas himself, checking it out. "More pertinently - I believe we have found our way past security. Does anyone want a hand in?"


(Music Continues)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Treasure Hall Gallery – ???

“Ugh… how much farther do we have to go at this rate…?”

Of course, the fact that the bamboo paintings led straight to an air vent didn't exactly stop the hallway on the other end from being, once again, very long. Phoenix was honestly starting to wonder if Madarame just liked hallways.

“Didn’t you just say that you didn’t feel as exhausted as last time, Dragon?” Mona rose an eyebrow.

“No, it’s not that!” Frankly, Dragon looked a bit offended. “It’s just… this place feels way bigger, y'know…?”

“…fair enough. Seriously, how big can a second building be?!" Panther complained.

"You're telling me…" Skull said, stopping to massage his leg. "This tile is murder on the injury…"

“Don’t worry, Chie! Once we pinpoint the treasure, I promise we’ll have some steak on me!” Phoenix smiled. “So… hang in there, alright?”

“Mm… yeah, okay.” Dragon pouted. “Sorry, Yuki.”

“If it makes you fee better, the treasure shouldn’t be too much farther from here. I’m already picking up on some unique scents around here, and… huh?” Mona was just going to answer his question with some degree of irritation before sniffling gently. “Hey, is it just me, or do I smell… sand?”

“Huh? Sand?!” Panther blink. “Wait, are you sure you smelling something right, Mona?”

“No, it’s definitely sand! I swear!” Mona bobbed his head up and down. “I just don’t know where it’s coming from, or how - !”

"Perhaps that?" Fox said, pointing ahead, to an enormous wall covered in paintings and lifting equipment.

Very large paintings with surfaces that rippled. Including a nearby one with camels walking through a desert.

"…looks like more of those dimensional paintings." Mona agreed. "Though… is something off about these?"

"It's more accurate to say what isn't off." Panther said, pointing at the other two - a shrine arch on a montaintop and a placid valley meadow. "These don't match at all! And… There's two of them that don't even have paintings!" 

Phoenix looked up to see a pair of giant blank canvasses.

"Don't be so sure…" Fox hummed. "All three of these actually do have a theme… it's not much of one, but they are all landscapes. It is simply not as blatant as the others. Perhaps, once we hear Sensei's thoughts, we can understand the mindset behind them…?"

"Well, ain't gonna learn anything out here." Skull said, before hopping into the desert picture.

Right on cue, Madarame's voice echoed through the air.

“Alas, this world is a desert filled with laymen who cannot understand true beauty…! The slow drain of my skill is inevitable when I am surrounded by such mediocrity… why must I struggle forth through the heat for the water of inspiration when I am not sure it exists…?!”

“So in simpler terms… he’s blaming everybody else for his failures.” Skull spat out. “Christ… I wish I was surprised… bet that bastard never had any real talent to begin with!"

Fox bristled, but sighed. "…it is a rather understandable angst, but to remove the water from others does not excuse your own thirst." He said with a sigh, his mind on the metaphor. "To drain the oasis leaves the entire caravan impoverished…"

"Uh…" Dragon gave a hesitant thumb's up. "You said it… not me…"

Phoenix shrugged, hoisting herself in. "So, the only place to go is with the camels, it seems…"

Both painting-bound Thieves went off to the right, to end up in the arch's picture.

"The gods, even in their dormancy, are worshiped constantly." the golden shogun's voice rang. "People gather under shrine gates, offer their money, and return home satisfied. Art is much the same - in the end, it is all a matter of imagination!"

One could hear the sound of Phoenix's eyes rolling. "You and every other edgy teenage atheist…"

"It certainly doesn't excuse robbing from the till!" Panther agreed, having caught on to the metaphors herself.

"Quite. But…" Fox furrowed his brow. "Phoenix, you go through the arch! Skull, you go off the side you did not enter from!"

"I hear ya!" Skull said, rushing off, as Phoenix vanished into the mists.

Sure enough, they were in different paintings.

"Ah, hell, it's one of those weird looping level mazes!" Skull groused, noticing he was back with the camels. "Damn it! Phoenix, we gotta find a hint or poem or book that tells us where - Phoenix?"

"Hey!" Phoenix said from the valley painting. "Though, I wonder if - "

"Hard work is not what makes a sapling grow thick with green leaves. Too many young people do not see the true value in youth these days. What fools..."

"And he's complaining about kids today!" Dragon groaned, nearly throwing her hands up in exasperation. "Sorry, Fox, but your Sensei is the most stereotypical cranky old man this side of Shibuya."

"…I am beginning to see that." He admitted grimly. "But I see the theme now. Each painting is a common aspect of angst as an artist who had come to disbelieve in their own profession. Which means that we should have one for abandonment of ethics and another for materialism." He nodded at the blank paintings. "I suspect that those are actually parts of this set, but are being hidden as a security measure."

Phoenix paused, then poked her head out of the painting to look at a nearby platform. "…and I see a switch! Looks like you just solved this level!"

Fox looked at her, genuinely confused. "What? No I did not."

"Really?" Dragon cocked her head. "Because you certainly - "

"I am trying to figure out how the ivy and ropes connect to this." He said with a huff, pointing straight up at an archway covered in both.

Mona followed him, and sniffed.

His hair stood on end. "…oh. Oh crap."

Everyone turned to him, looking alarmed.

"Hehehehe… good news is, we just found Madarame's second Will Seed." He grinned sheepishly. "Bad news is… did you know Will Seeds can smell a lot like Treasures?"

There was a moment of dawning horror, as the entire group realized that probably meant the not-a-cat had not smelled the core of the dungeon.

"…leader?" Skull said, monotone. "You know that doctor?"

Phoenix immediately grimaced "Yes?"

"…does she give out pain meds for a leg?" Skull said, looking dreading of the long, long walk ahead of them. "Because - I'm tappin' you for that."


(Music Continues)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Treasure Hall Lounge – ???

Fox began, looking at the green Will Seed in his possession with an uncertain, mildly disgusted expression. "…might I ask why it is that a fruit born of vainglory resembles a shrunken head?"

"Beats me." Dragon said with an inaudible shiver. "Unfortunately, they're all like that... I thought it was just Kamoshida's Seeds, but nope, they're all skulls! As if the idea of them being literal fruits of the dark parts of the unconscious wasn't bad enough!"

Fox processed this, before shrugging and putting it in the bag. "To be honest… it does have a certain draw to it. A dark allure of temptation and power... I suppose that is the nature of desire. But I digress. You said you had the first, correct?"

"Yeah. We made a detour in the outer part of the Museum - thankfully, since Madarame isn't a creep, we were just able to pop it in without burning our hands clean of filth." Phoenix said, reminiscing none-too-fondly of the pedophile germs being seared off the founding Phantom Thieves' eight hands and two paws. "Apparently, if we get all three, we'll be able to tap into their power."

"Hm. That will be inspiring to witness what is born of fraud…" Fox nodded, before rushing down the corridor to the next door, not far ahead. Without ceremony, he opened it -

And stared.

"…oh." He opened the door wider, his eyes comprehensively widening. "You… you may wish to see this."

(Music Playing – A Woman (Another Version) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mr0GziWdTKI)

As she stepped through, Phoenix couldn't help but whistle. Okay, this? This is the kind of trippy I expected from a world born of the mind.

The room beyond had lost all basis in normal reality. In place of a normal corridor, the Palace had become a series of Escher-esque staircases floating in the glowing void, leading to-and-fro without regard for gravity, dotted with paintings. Significant portions of them also lost a dimension, becoming long, streaming papers fluttering gently in the wind, making it look even more disorientating. It was alien, but… also rather peaceful, in a sense. A sense of timelessness pervaded the area.

Of course, there was one feature that made the area a bit more difficult to appreciate - the color.

"Agh…" Panther closed her eyes. "All this gold is hurting my eyes..."

"Seriously! It's pretty ostentatious as is!" Dragon shook her head, shielding her face. "Leaving aside you put some kind of weird pocket dimension inside a weird pocket dimension… did the air have to feel gold too?!"

"Dude, is no one gonna comment on the fact that we just walked into some kind of crazy dimensional maze?" Skull cut in, raising an eyebrow.

"I am." Mona said, checking the flyer. "This place isn't on the map… I think we may have just walked into the most distorted area in the whole Palace. Something here is so heavy on Madarame's mind that it's created a sort of mini-Palace inside the Palace as a security mechanism. The only way to get to what's on the other side of the door in the Museum is through this… spatial warp."

Fox seemed to catch onto something. "…so, the only way through is to rely on our visual senses, and find the truth of the matter to navigate the otherwise impossible maze." He paused to look genuinely impressed. "Very insightful and thematic, Sensei."

"You, uh…" Phoenix cleared her throat. "You realize he can't hear you, and wouldn't thank you even if he could, right?"

"…I can appreciate Madarame's taste in security measures without praising the man himself." Fox replied, a bit stiffly.

Panther saw where this was headed, and decided to derail it before Fox shut down. "Right! Uh... Maybe we should get cracking on it?


(Music Continues)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Labyrinth of Frauds - ???

Easier said than done.

"The longer we stay in here…" Dragon retched slightly. "The more seasick I get… why'd there have to be guards too? Acrobatics in here gets dizzy…"

"To say nothing of the tricks…" Phoenix agreed, looking both dazed and annoyed. "Skull himself saw that curtain - I doubt that's the last thing this place is throwing at us…"

The curtain in question was, in fact, an extremely well-camouflaged fake wall - a fight with a Shadow patrolling nearby had dislodged it to reveal a glowing blue portal, and with it, some actual progress.

To another staircase entirely, and with gravity apparently flipped.

"Okay, now it's the weird looping level maze." Skull had said that after regaining his balance.

"Yeah…" Panther trailed off, as she noticed something on two stands next to her. "Hey! Are these copies of Sayuri?"

Which was the case. 

Except, Phoenix realized, one was wearing a blue kimono, making it obviously a fake.

Fox caught it too. "How bizarre…" He walked up to it, glancing between the more accurate painting and the blue one. "The closer I look, the more details beyond the obvious seem wrong. The brushstroke is all wrong, for example… but the other? The other seems to be the real one - or at least, a very good copy…"

"Well, they're both products of the Palace, so they're both just cognitive copies." Mona said. "Still… It's weird that he has an obvious fake as well as a clone of the real one…"

After a second, Skull paused. "…wait a minute." He walked over to the accurate Sayuri. "…Fox. Would you say this is the real one? Apart from it, y'know, being made of bad vibes?"

"…I have no idea what kind of paint a vibe is, but that I would - ah!"

Fox jumped back, as the painting faded away into a ball of light, which quickly rushed behind the Phantom Thieves into a portal, turning it gold.

Panther, the other gamer, caught on. "…so the painting is the hint to get through this maze! Find the real one, find the exit out of here!" She beamed. "Nice work, Skull!"

"Eh, it's a pretty basic puzzle." He said modestly, even with his grin betraying his attempt at humility. "Still - phew. Makes mapping this a lot easier!"

Dragon, having gained her sea legs, frowned. "Except… why the Sayuri? Everything ties into an aspect of Madarame's personality, right? So if this place is so distorted it ended up its own mini-Palace, why is the Sayuri key to it? Is it causing the distortion?"

"…maybe this place is the result of guilt he feels over squandering his potential?" Fox said, a bit too hopefully.

Maybe. Or maybe there's something even darker about that painting than him just selling copies as the original… Phoenix thought, sourly. But I'm not dropping that on him yet. 

"We'll think about this later." She finally said after a few moments. "For right now - we know where to go."


(Music Playing – A Woman –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWizFF5fn-I)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Main Treasure Hall – ???

A few rounds of Follow The Real Painting later, Dragon moaned with relief as the final portal deposited them in the Museum proper. "Holy merciful crap… I am never taking gravity for granted again."

"Note to self, find a Safe Room ASAP." Skull said, massaging his leg. "I really don't wanna go through that when we're exploring…"

Phoenix could not disagree with either assessment. Come to think of it, I think I can do without trippy. Please, may the next Palace be somewhat mundane…

Fox took a look around, seeing as how most of his compatriots were regaining their balance.

"…a-ah!" Yusuke said while immediately blanching and stumbling back. "That is…!"

Mona looked up, curious.

And immediately dashed behind a couch, followed by Fox.

"Madarame's here!" The not-a-cat hissed, ducking for cover. "Hide!" 

He didn't need to tell the the others twice.

(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

And indeed, the painter's Shadow was in the hallway facing them, in front of a grid of lasers.

Feeling a bit suspicious as to why, Phoenix peeked out for a quick look, and saw a familiar rainbow cloud.

"Thought as much. Looks like he's reinforcing security on the Treasure, even before it's solid." Phoenix whispered, looking genuinely complementary. "Smart move."

"Annoyingly…" Panther grumbled, shaking her head. "We've gotta find a way around those lasers..."

"That is an intermediate form before a calling card forces it into physicality, yes?" Fox said. "I wonder what form it will take."

"Self-portrait?" Skull said with a blackly humorous grin.

Everyone stared at him, with expressions ranging from reproachful to deadpan humorlessness.

"Ryuji…" Panther said through seething teeth, not wanting to upset Fox."

Fox, thankfully, wasn't too upset - albeit, not without a short grimace. "…I cannot say that it isn't impossible." A brief sigh. "This is a place of vanity, after all. But I cannot help but think that whatever distorted his desires this much must be something more important."

Skull sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, sorry about that, man…"

Dragon shook her head. "Anyway, we got to the Treasure room. Think it's safe to say we got our route set?"

"Hmph. Not sure…" Mona said, worried. "We know where it is, but just from eyeballing it, I'm not sure if we've got a good route to get at it. That, and right now, getting it out looks like it may involve trying to navigate that maze again - and I'm pretty sure nobody here wants to do that when there's already Madarame and a bunch of Shadows on our heels."

Dragon gave an involuntary nauseous gag. "…yep."

"Combine that with how Madarame's reinforcing it, the outer parameter is probably swarming with guards; even if we find a convenient Safe Room, it'd still be way too difficult to force our way through the garrison. Whatever else can be said about him, he can't be faulted for being cautious."

"Certainly more than Kamoshida…" Panther agreed with that sentiment immediately. "Hm. This is a tougher job… maybe there's another security room around here, somewhere?"

"…possibly behind that entrance?" Fox said, pointing over at an out of the way door. 

"No point in not checking." Phoenix said with a nod.

And with that, the Phantom Thieves rushed over and opening it to indeed find a security terminal.

"Alright!" Dragon said, following her. "You see an off switch for the lasers there?"

"Uh-huh!" she said, typing a command. "And…!"

The computer gave an "error" beep. 

ACCESS FORBIDDEN. An automated pop-up voice said. ONLY LORD MADARAME HAS AUTHORIZATION TO SWITCH OFF THE CORE SECURITY FOR VALUABLE ITEMS. PLEASE CONSULT HIM FOR ASSISTANCE IN DUTIES.

"…I really should have seen that coming, huh?" Phoenix sighed with a sheepish shrug. "Honestly, I'm a little relieved, I'd be really worried for him if he left that for Podunk guards to switch on and off after he was already checking it…"

"…then, no dice?" Dragon said, looking downcast.

"Actually…" Fox cut in. "There appears to be more than one choice."

As he said that, he came over to hit an option.

Skull looked skeptical. "Fox, man, I really don't think if one option's locked - "

His thought was cut off by the lights going out, leaving only the softly glowing lasers.

"What the - ?!" A Madarame that was as startled by this development as the Phantom Thieves were. "What is the meaning of this?!"

"I-I'm not sure!" A Shadow in their guard form said. "There's some electrical problems - backup generators for lights should be going on in three… two - "

The lights came back on.

"…okay. Power switch is okay for Podunk guards." Phoenix admitted, mildly. "Weird priorities, but okay."

"Still only out for a few seconds, though…" Panther hummed. "Guess we'll keep that in mind. Though, I have to wonder if Madarame has the best idea of security, if he's letting people play with his power switch - "

"Electrical problems?" A confused Madarame asked. "How do you get electrical problems in here?"

"There are some Shadows that like to chew on wires. Especially those who enjoy electricity, sir!"

There was a pause. Madarame's expression twisted into a scowl, both at the Shadow's incompetence and the implications.

"Or maybe…" Madarame said in a faux-surprised tone, one quickly dropped into sounding irritated for not realizing it sooner. "There are some other rats after the light of my inspiration. Guards, check the security room!"

"…not a bad idea though." Phoenix hurriedly corrected. "Scatter!"


(Music Continues)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Main Treasure Hall – ???

Thankfully, the guard sent to investigate was fairly weak. A quick battle later, and the Phantom Thieves were prowling in the back.

Which was convenient, when they saw the last Will Seed door.

Inconveniently, it seemed the Shadows had caught on, as a red-suited captain was glowering in front of it.

"…so, if we wish to tap into the power of Sensei's desires, we need to get in there before we take the Treasure?" Fox asked, slowly reaching for his katana.

"Unfortunately, yeah." Mona replied a bit too grimly, nodding. "Maybe Jose can find a copy, given how he's usually around vines anyway, but given how them sprouting a Seed outside of a Palace is ludicrously rare, he'd probably charge use through the nose for it."

Fox looked at him, then Phoenix, expectantly. 

It's upon Phoenix feeling Fox's eyes that the heiress cleared her throat. "He's, uh… an explorer of Mementos, everyone's shared Palace." An awkward pause. "He lets us trade him flowers for supplies."

"For… ink?" The blue-haired Phantom Thief sounded even more confused then and there.

"Juice, actually! Yeah, don't ask me where he does get that juice from." Dragon said with a brief shudder. "It's kinda easier to show than tell. But, this guy is probably pretty tough - on the count of three?"

Skull readied his bludgeon with a pretty bloodthirsty smile. "Ready as every, guys."

"Right…" Yukiko nodded, reaching for her pistol. "On three, then. One - "

"HEY!"

(Music Playing – Blood of Villain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

Unfortunately, the Shadow was perceptive too. Immediately running over to the group, Phoenix internally dreaded whatever savagery she had to go through next. Welp, there goes the element of surprise…

"…how'd you all - never mind!" The red Shadow didn't seem particularly wont to negotiate, quickly dissolving into a puddle of ichor. "Now that you've seen this place, you aren't leaving alive!"

For a long, horrible moment, the founding members of the Phantom Thieves remembered Mara, and stared at the reforming puddle with dread.

"Please not a giant penis blob, please not a giant penis blob…" Panther whined, hoping not for a repeat of Kamoshida's Palace.

Fox looked immediately disturbed. "A giant what blob?!"

Dragon immediately assumed a martial pose. "Too late! Get ready!"

…and with a burst, the pool reformed into an oddly-proportioned, big-eyed statue with a blue, clay-like substance largely forming around a borderline robotic look to it.

"I am Arahabaki, god of the people of Nagasunehiko." The claydoll droned on. "And I swear on your promised demise!"

Relief ran through Phoenix, immediately sighing in relief. "Oh thank God, you're just a forgery…"

Skull relaxed slightly to snicker aloud. "Ohhhhh, it's a forgery here, then? Hah, ain't that fitting!"

"I…" The Shadow idol immediately looked and got defensive, impressive given the inscrutable expression of the doll. "The Tsugaru Soto-Sangunshi had some true elements!"

Fox wasn't even offended by the notion of Madarame's ace Shadow being a fraudulent god, at least not at this point. "Somehow, I am not surprised that a notorious bit of fake archaeology is a captain in Madarame's Palace…"

A brief pause for snickers almost made Phoenix wonder if they had seconds to react before the giant, clay doll of pure anger and spite kills them all.

Thankfully, it occurred to everyone they only had a second.

"Grr…" Arahabaki, for one thing, looked incandescent. "YOU INSOLENT WRETCHES! I WILL PAINT THE WALLS WITH YOUR BLOOD!"

(Music Playing – Keeper of Lust - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nciaaDQTPZc)

Chaos erupted.

It only took a half of a moment before Phoenix and Dragon unloaded their handguns and sawed-off shotguns into Arahabaki, while Mona immediately summoned Zorro.

"'Paint the walls with our blood'?" Mona said with a snide scoff. "You and your Master wouldn't know painting if it bit you on the tail!"

Mona defiantly shot back as Zorro conjured a great fist to strike him with a Magic Punch -

…which he didn't even flinch at, the great boxing glove flattening harmlessly against the stone Shadow.

Mona grimace. "Uh-oh."

Dragon had long ran out of ammo before she and Phoenix's miniature barrage was out of ammo. "WHY ARE YOU SO DURABLE TO BULLETS?!"

"Ha! Gods cannot be harmed by earthly weapons!" Arahabaki taunted. "You know what we can harm, however? The mind!"

The clay doll reared back to give a massive blast of psionic energy - 

"What's that?!" Skull mouthed in shock.

Mona knew what to expect going by his eyes going wide in panic. "GET DOWN!"

The multicolored rays that'd give a epileptic seizures blasted into the psyches of everyone present. Phoenix gave a short cry of pain as she felt intense mental pain, nearly keeling over. She looked over to see that the rest of the Thieves weren't much better… or that they weren't wounded, owing to the psychic-induced scars as well as blood rushing from the group's orifices.

"Owwwwwwwwch…! Christ!" Skull cussed. "The hell was THAT?!"

Mona wasted no time casting a Media spell. "Psy attack of medium strength. Be careful!"

It didn't take much longer than that for the fight to continue. Having ran out of ammo from the barrage on Arahabaki, Phoenix and Dragon promptly decided that there was hardly any use in trying to harm him with physical attacks, so Dragon quickly unleashed the hurt on Arahabaki with Panther and Skull in a hail of ice, lightning and fire. As for Phoenix…

"…this isn't working." Phoenix grabbed her mask. "Change, now! Makami!"

With the swipe of her mask, a new Persona project she wounded up working on quickly manifested: a lanky white dog with a fierce aurora to it. The titular Makami quickly roared at Arahabaki, and without much ado - 

"Huh?!" The clay doll cried out, after blasting away another psychic blast at Skull. "What is that?!"

"Frei, go!" Phoenix commanded.

It was a gamble; she was well-aware of that. Makami howled and channeled a blast of nuclear energy - 

…and Arahabaki was flatly knocked to the ground, giving a robotic screech of pain.

Phoenix looked pleased for one thing. "Well, that worked!"

Dragon relayed the information quickly. "He's weak to nuclear attacks! Get 'em, Yukiko!"

"ARGH! That… really hurt!" Arahabaki, unfortunately, got up quickly. "You know what?! Fine! WORSHIP ME, OR DIE!"

The statue danced in place, a pink energy forming around him - 

What felt like the mental equivalent of a battering ram seemed to hit the spot directly between her eyes and brain. Screaming with a sudden migraine, she reared back.

As soon as it was there, it was gone, however.

"OW!" she said, shaking her head. "The only thing that is making me worship is the god of headache medicine! Is everyone okay?"

A pause.

"…everyone?" Phoenix asked a bit more hopefully.

While Fox and Dragon nodded, Panther, Skull, and Mona just... stared blankly.

Phoenix blinked. "…guys?"

"…meeow?" Mona droned, still blank. "Meeeeyooowwww?!"

And then he turned around and started attacking Panther with his sword.

"What the f - " Dragon's swearing was cut off by Panther's whip striking her, as Skull lunged at Phoenix.

Arahabaki laughed. "Behold, the power of the Brain Jack! They barely know what is going on at the moment, and only know how to serve me in their confusion!"

"You have mind control?!" Phoenix said, conjuring a Dia from Makami to heal herself. "…why can't I have that?! Not fair!"

"Not the time or place to commiserate!" Fox said, defending against Skull flailing against him.

Jerking around like a puppet on a string, Panther summoned Carmen to erase the slight burn Phoenix made, as the otherwise unmoving face of the Shadow did an impressive simulation of smirking.

"Really, Panther?!" Dragon complained. "Ugh, how do I - wait!"

As Mona came closer, Dragon dropped down, causing him to jump -

Right into a hard slap.

"MEW!" A blink. "…whoa, where am I? Thanks!" Shaking off the brainwash, Mona turned to the statue with an enraged expression. "You're gonna pay for making me hurt Lady Ann, you asshole!"

"…you have wind, yes?" Fox suddenly realized. "If it is too dense for physical attacks to hurt, then perhaps it is heavy?"

Mona's eyes widened, before his face split in an evil smile. "You heard him Zorro!"

A green flash of wind later -

"ARGH!" Arahabaki flipped over almost a full 360 degrees, bouncing off the wall before skidding to a stop on the floor.

The sound seemed to snap the remaining two Phantom Thieves out of it as they stumbled back.

"…sorry, guys," Panther said sheepishly, as she became aware of what she was doing.

"Sorry later, jackass now!" Skull cackled, getting back into business. "Ready?!"

"Am I ever!" Dragon grinned devilishly, leading the charge.

And with the brief period of grace, the Phantom Thieves promptly tore into the clay doll with everything they had. Comprised with Dragon doing a roundhouse kick before swiping her nose…

DON'T THINK. FEEL.

And with that, the mind-warping statue dissolved into black ichor with a screeching death cry.

(Music Playing – Victory - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnfx4FKvSTY)

"HahahahahaHAAAH!" Skull cackled. "In your goddamn face, you phony-ass deity!"

"Well, that went better than I feared it would." Fox immediately sheathed the katana - while not letting go of it. "But that brings other questions… everybody's fine for now, yes?"

"Yeah, I'm a bit beat-up, but I'm good!" Panther gave a cheerful grin.

"Could be in worse shape!" Dragon giggled. "Landed the finishing blow, after all."

"Well, at least it's not a Mara slime…" Phoenix shuddered. "Still… what was that ability of their's?! And why can't I have it?!"

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

After the victory jubilee quickly wore off, about half the Thieves suddenly became very interested in not looking in the other half's direction.

"Eheh, uhh…" Dragon winced. "Guys, I - "

"No, no talk." Mona immediately looked apologetic. "That was… I knew I should have been worried about brainwashing Shadows. That isn't going to be the last…"

(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

Fox frowned. "How, may I ask?"

The not-a-cat perked up. "Eh?"

"How in the world where you supposed to know that without experiencing that ability?" He asked, honestly. "That was out of left field for this Palace - nothing linked to any theme at all. If anything, I would expect a Shadow born of a notorious fraud to be themed after illusions, not worship…"

"And given how weird you were acting - the only person to blame is that thing, not you." Phoenix nodded in agreement. "I'm mostly peeved at the fact Madarame put that there more than anything else."

This seemed to mollify them. "…right. Thanks," Panther nodded, shaking the whole episode off. "So… the final shrunken head?"

Dragon grinned. "Fine by me! Let's get it."

Fox nodded. "I'll handle it, then. Excuse me…"

With that said, the vulpine masked man walked over with the rest of the Phantom Thieves to the final seed.


(Music Continues)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Main Treasure Hall – ???

Fox crinkled his nose, staring at the completed Crystal of Vanity born from the three Will Seeds merging. "…I must say, this is rather… disappointing. It still resembles skulls, albeit ones merged together…"

"You're telling me…" Dragon grimaced, memories she'd rather burn in a fire coming back to her. "At least I don't feel unclean with it in the pack..."

Fox blinked owlishly, then he tilted his head slightly to the right. "…I trust there's first-hand accounts of what happened there, then?"

Phoenix gagged. "You have no idea."

"Hey, less talk, more scout!" Mona said. "Skull, you found anything yet?"

Skull, who was presently peaking through a door, looked back. "Actually, yeah. It's weird, but I found another security room."

With that, he fully opened it to reveal a series of servers and a computer terminal. 

Phoenix whistled. "Wow. He is really paranoid about his Treasure…"

"…not necessarily." Fox pointed to a large handle on the far wall, attached to a winch. "Take a look at that crane. I saw some hanging sculptures in the exhibition hall - this is more likely the control center for the winches that hold them."

Panther walked over to the handle, and then out a previously unseen window with an impressed expression. "The observational skills of of an artist are out of this world… guys, there's a way onto the scaffolding out here!"

She didn't have to tell the rest twice. A second later, all the Phantom Thieves were directly over the formless Treasure's laser grid, and couldn't help but notice a very important detail.

"Looks like he didn't cover the top with lasers too… we've found a hole," Phoenix said, looking directly down.

"Okay, so we got an idea. Question number two…" Dragon blanched. "Who here wants to jump down to get it, and isn't me? I value my leg bones too much to test gravity like this…"

Skull snorted. "Jokes on you, then!"

Mona shook his head in protest to the idea. "Even if we did try to jump, it's probably not a good idea; we'd be in the middle of some very angry guards with broken legs, and whatever Madarame's Shadow Persona form is. But…"

He looked up. He immediately placed his paw on his chin.

"Hmm…" Mona thought to himself. "If we had help…"

Everyone did so.

(Music Playing - Tokyo Emergency - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf7a_MZXuDk)

A crane with a hook hung directly above the Treasure's cage. A very large, very sturdy hook.

"Well, well, well…" Skull grinned. "Finally, these weird-ass Palaces make somethin' helpful!"

"Going by where the cable is coming from, that crane is operated with the switch in the other room, and since there were only two positions, it only goes up and down. How convenient…" Fox said with his own small smile. "Though… I wonder how we are able to steal it without Sensei or the guards noticing as we are doing it. The person on the crane would be a very slow moving target for spells."

"Oh, I saw this movie! Er…" Dragon thought. "We can toggle off the lights from the actual security room, right? Just for a minute or so, but it should be enough to lower the crane and grab it, right?"

"Yeah - it won't be long before the Shadows notice, but it gives a head start for us to get to the Safe Room." Mona nodded at a window. "And up here, we have multiple escape options."

"And since there's six of us, it'll be easy to split up and keep backups for each team," Phoenix finished. "I think we have a plan, people!"

"One question - who's gonna be on the hook?" Skull rose an eyebrow. "That ain't exactly comfortable-lookin'…"

"Who else but the master, of course?" Mona beamed gleefully. "Seriously, I'm the lightest, the smallest, and… let's face it, the only one shaped not in a way that the hook is going to give a rather uncomfortable pinch to…"

Every other Phantom Thief winced at the thought.

"…Mona it is then!" Panther said all a bit too hastily. "So, we'll figure out details at the hideout, right? I think we've finally nailed the slippery jerk down, right? Everything's ready - "

(Music Abruptly Stops)

"No it's not!" Phoenix said, an absolutely horrified expression on her face.

Everyone whipped to her, panic in their eyes.

"We forgot the most important bit - the tag! I brought the cans and everything!"

A combination of relief and annoyance echoed everywhere among the friend group.

"Of course..." Skull rolled his eyes for a split second, before nonetheless grinning cheerfully. "What do you have in mind, O artist of fiery feathers?"

As Skull (and distantly, Dragon and Panther) giggled unsubtly, Fox stared at her blankly. "The… tag? Is there a mattress somewhere I should be concerned about...?"

"Watch and learn, Fox." Mona said with a wry grin. "Watch and learn…"


(Music Playing – Desire - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p7utuOjF-Y)

May 20th, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, SP Exhibition Room – ???

"So, all electrical systems are separate? They cannot disable the protection grid without destroying the generators themselves?" Shadow Madarame asked as he made his way to his gallery - always calming to remind himself of previous successes and capers when something rose his ever-present anxiety about the authorities discovering his true nature.

"P-Precisely, Lord Madarame, sir!" The unfortunate Shadow drafted to serve as "calming duty" said, mask shifting as beneath his, he licked his lips nervously. "I can assure you, that - "

"Enough with the assurances! If I wanted lickspittles, I have the general public! I expect you to do your job!" He gave a grouchy "hmph!" sound before stepping in front of the main attraction of the hall. "Now, what do you see here?"

"…the Infinite Spring?", the guard replied, confused. 

"Excellent. And what does it represent?"

"…how you survive in a world which can only have a few great artists capable of a comfortable life on art alone, sir." The Shadow already saw where this was going, and is very glad the heart masks prevented Madarame from seeing him roll his eyes.

"Good. Look up at it." he said, gesturing at it. "What do you see the students doing, in tribute to the master?"

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

"They…" The Shadow trailed off, as his looking at the statue to mollify his boss suddenly indicated to him something very important about the statue.

"…they what?" Madarame leaned closer, glaring. "Spit it out, you imbecile."

"They… er…" The Shadow inhaled, more to prevent any sign of laughter escaping. "They… appear to be holding a strike… sir."

Madarame stared blankly at the guard, before turning around in utter confusion.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

The strangled, absolutely dumbfounded noise Madarame made really put the Shadow's forced stoicism to the test.

Apparently, someone had taken red spray paint to the statue, and painstakingly put comedically exaggerated anger veins and furious brows on each of his students, along with drawings of protest signs demanding better pay and recognition on each of them.

With Madarame's face himself being given his Shadow's distinct lipstick.

"B… B… Wha…?" Madarame shook his head, then closed and opened his eyes again, trying to make the vandalism disappear.

After about a minute of this, a look of pure, elemental fury came to his face. "I WILL HUNT EACH OF YOU VERMIN DOWN, NAIL YOU TO A STAND, SKIN YOU WITH A PALETTE KNIFE, TAN THE SKIN, PAINT EMOJIS ON THEM, AND DONATE THE PROCEEDS TO A DISUMBRATIONIST CONTEST AS AN EXAMPLE OF MODERN ART! STOP LAUGHING!"

The last threat had finally set the Shadow over the edge. He could not stop the urge to fall on the floor laughing.


(Music Playing - Ideal and the Real - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTX2Lg1O7-M)

May 21th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Counselor's Office - 3:30 PM

That bit of tomfoolery aside, everyone agreed that going straight to the Treasure and calling card the next day would be a bit exhausting.

Besides, Yusuke had taken a single look at the current logo, and declared that he would make a better one. One that had "just as much energy, but obviously not a childish prank."

(Ryuji had made quite the sad noise at that.)

So, there was a bit of a lull period; a day or two, for everyone to catch their breaths. And for Yukiko to remember something - she was supposed to be seeing a counselor semi-regularly.

Well, now… Yukiko smirked as she thought to herself looking at Dr. Maruki's office …maybe some mental focus techniques will… hm. That's a hair color I didn't expect to see here…

Coming out of the therapist's office was none other than the distinct red ponytail of Yoshizawa, who seemed to be finishing up a conversation with the young counselor.

"Ah, hello, senpai." Yoshizawa turned to Yukiko, smiling gently. "Are you here for a session as well?"

Yukiko blinked, wondering exactly what it was that sent someone who seemed so… stable to the psychiatrist's office. "Honestly… I've had one for a while, but I kept forgetting. You too?"

"Yes, that's right!" Yoshizawa smiled, stars in her eyes. "Dr. Maruki is a wonderful counselor. I've actually been seeing him since before he ever came to Shujin."

That… raised further questions. Ones Yukiko felt would be rather sensitive to ask. It's not my business even to speculate…

Maruki looked a bit embarrassed by the praise, massaging his neck. "Oh? I didn't know you were acquainted."

The inn maiden shrugged. "We've passed each other once or twice in the halls." She didn't mention the second time was giving her a horror movie caliber warning about Kamoshida, but she didn't blame her junior for not wanting to talk about it. 

"I see. Though, er…" Maruki gave a sheepish look. "Don't go overselling me. I'm really nothing special…"

"Maybe. But, you did provide help with I needed it most." Yoshizawa said with a distant look in her eye that quickly vanished, replaced by her normal cheer. "Well, I need to get going. Please excuse me!"

With that, the gymnast walked off, leaving Yukiko a bit more confused about who she was. She seemed a bit… subdued, right there. Compared to how she normally is. I wonder if she needs a friend…

"What say we get started?" Maruki said, interrupting her thoughts.

"Ah! Yes, sorry." She said nodding gently, walking in. "I've been delaying this long enough… so, so many things. Many of them pressing."

"I don't blame you. But you fit me in as soon as you felt you had an opportunity, and I appreciate that." Maruki said, closing the door behind her.

"Hey, I don't break promises." Yukiko looked serious. "My word is my bond."

"Ahahaha… well, I'll try to make sure it's worth the trouble." Maruki replied, slightly amused at her bluntness.

What followed was a long conversation that, in truth, Yukiko felt was honestly a rather preliminary look at exactly what kind of pit she was in, legally and educationally speaking. It was, however, a chance to air her grievances about fate. Politely.

"I see…" Maruki said at the end of it. "…I think you've gotten a good grasp of the situation you're in, Amagi-chan."

"That I am up crap creek without a paddle?" She replied with a cynical shrug. "You don't have to sugarcoat it - I know I'm not in a good spot."

"Full disclosure - that is not surprising. The school gave me a brief rundown of the circumstances surrounding your transfer here. I mostly wanted to hear it in your words." The therapist said, nodding as he spoke.

"Not a bad idea, though… truth is, I'm just glad I hit rock bottom, and silver lining, I'm not bound to being the manager of the inn any more. I've gotten something I dearly wanted out of all this, so for the moment, I think I'm okay." I wouldn't be if Madarame's lawsuit was tomorrow, though. Or that I didn't know a way out of it.

"But you weren't before, I take it? Try not to push yourself too hard, okay?" Maruki paused. "Now that you've told me more about yourself, I think I've realized something. It seems you've largely been able to reconcile your internal world with your external one."

"Really? I'm not making a sitcom-worthy snide joke every three minutes or less, so I'm not sure about that." Yukiko replied, pointing to her temple. "Believe me, I have what feels like an entire chatroom full of sarcastic edgy internet reviewers up here."

Maruki suppressed a laugh. "Besides that - you do seem to understand where and when that's acceptable. And that reconciliation is impressive, really and truly; even most adults can't reliably manage that."

Unbidden images of two Palaces came to Yukiko's mind. "…I can see that. Though, what do you mean? I want to make sure we're thinking of the same thing."

"How to put it - you know how everyone has an internal reality? Some conception of themselves they're striving for? Wanting to be a model student, wanting to be loved and relied on, that sort of thing?"

"…or utterly invincible and the center of the universe?" She said with a wry smile.

Maruki winced in sympathy. "…I'll be honest up front and say while that man can't hurt you any more, I don't blame you for him looming large in your mind. To be targeted by him so soon after that trial in your life - nobody would blame you for having some trauma."

"Thanks. Though, I don't think Kamoshida is everyone…" Yukiko didn't know what to make of that, but she was grateful. "So, back to you?"

Maruki seemed a little troubled by her trying to avoid the subject, but shrugged. "That idealized reality we were speaking of - that one and the actual are often far apart. That gap is responsible for a lot of people's pain. Not everyone can ace their exams, and not everyone can be the heroes they wish they could be."

Maruki leaned back, thinking. "You've already been through so much. That kind of suffering is usually enough to twist people up into dark places. You aren't immune to this - you yourself are aware your internal monologue is a defense mechanism, finding the gallows humor of a situation to relieve tension. But you're still standing up to it, and confronting a tough, painful reality. To me, that's incredibly admirable."

And I wonder how much of it is the superpowers providing a relief valve instead of stewing in my own helplessness. Regardless of what the most dour part of the chatroom piped up with, Yukiko smiled. "…thank you."

"You're welcome - though, I'll admit it's a little weird to hear that from a guy you just met, right?"

Relief shot through Yukiko as the growing cognitive dissonance resolved itself. "Kinda. It's not wrong, but it is kinda unnerving..."

Maruki winced. "I'm sorry. If you feel I'm pressing too close to something you're not ready to talk about, feel free to tell me. I'm here to help you feel comfortable, not make you feel you need to throw up more defense mechanisms." He looked up. "And… this does seem to have taken a bit longer than expected. Somehow this conversation took on a life of its own..."

He thought for a second. "I've actually got one last request… if you don't mind."

Yukiko nodded. "Go ahead."

"I'm actually doing certain research along with my duties as a counselor. It's not quite counseling - more like a type of psychological treatment." He thought for a second. "Basically, it's a project to learn more about people's metaphorical hearts. What they think, how they feel. If I get far enough, I think I'll be able to help a lot of people! So…?" 

…well now. Isn't this convenient. Yukiko blinked owlishly, before slowly speaking. "…can I know what this involves, though? I'm not donating my brain to a paradise virtual reality."

"Oh, sorry! I… would like you to help with that research, but it's just interviews. I want you to listen to my theories, and see if they spark any ideas or realizations on your end."

"Playing Devil's Advocate, then? I can do that." Yukiko smiled, looking much more warm to the idea. "Though, fair warning - you're going to have to accommodate me as well."

"Wouldn't dream otherwise." Maruki said with a laugh. "And, uh - there's a lot of snacks in the bargain too!"

"And sold!" Yukiko cheerfully exclaimed.

"Really!? YES! You're a life saver!" He said, sounding utterly relieved. "And - I'll make sure to use them to give you tips on that mental training. If you're dedicated enough, I'm sure we could draw out your full potential!"

…the brain-in-a-jar thing is starting to sound more plausible, Counselor Mad Scientist. But it's clear you need help, so... Yukiko nodded happily. "Sounds good to me!"

"Okay! I guess that's our second deal." He smiled broadly.

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

 COUNCILOR (I) RANK UP! RANK 2

Councilor Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Maruki’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

(Music Playing - Ideal and the Real - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTX2Lg1O7-M)

There was a pause, when Yukiko thought of something. "Actually, if I'm going to be your peer for this paper, can we exchange contact information? Seems more convenient, and you can remind me of having to see you."

Maruki's eyes widened. "…is that okay?"

"Of course! Though, I expect you only to contact me when you really need my input?"

"Most certainly!" He said, texting it over. "Though, that reminds me - it'd be incredibly untoward of me to break my word too. So, onto mental training and presence…"

Which is very important… Yukiko thought. Tomorrow, you're going to have quite the case study in what happens when an internal world is broken…

Notes:

Yep, Maruki's playing a more central role, here. Who doesn't love the guy?

Funnily enough, when me and Leliel wrote and revised that section, he had SMT II on his mind... to which him bringing up given [REDACTED] was literally perfect. Can't fault the idea, now can ya?

Anyways, next chapter we finally get to Madarame's finale! I really hope you enjoyed the last chapter!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 19
Chie: Lv. 17
Ryuji: Lv. 17
Ann: Lv. 16
Morgana: Lv. 16
Yusuke: Lv. 15

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Eligor, Makami, Onmoraki

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 3
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

Chapter 13: Ghost Artistry

Summary:

The pieces are put into place, and the Phantom Thieves are now reaching to take down Madarame once and for all.

Notes:

Well, it's about damn time we've returned!

Genuinely sorry it took this long to get the update down pat. I really do hope it was worth the wait, for what it was worth. Anyways, let's begin the heist for Madarame's heart, in all it's glory!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 18
Chie: Lv. 16
Ryuji: Lv. 16
Ann: Lv. 15
Morgana: Lv. 15
Yusuke: Lv. 15

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 3
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 3
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 21st, 2016 – Ogikubo, Ramen Shop – 5:11 PM

Of course, the actual process of planning for a heist was only one part of the prep process.

The other part? Ensuring supply, in particular nutrition for what was inevitable going to be a very, very long day.

“Ahhh… it’s sooooooooooo good to be back here!”

Chie gave a mirthful, happy sigh of pure relief as she devoured the bowl of meat udon right in front of her. Ryuji was also chowing down rather aggressively; apparently, the fight with Kamoshida had utterly famished them, and they had no desire to be starving at the end of Madarame's heist.

Yukiko looked on with a mildly suppressed giggle all the same.

“Jeez, Chie, you sure you can pay for all of that?” At this rate, Yukiko was far less bothered by Chie’s appetite than she used to be. “Or do you want me to pitch in?”

Chie slurped up a stream of noodles. “Nuh. Ah cahn paye fur eet. Nu wurfies, Yufikoh!”

Of course, Yukiko wasn’t so used to Chie that she wasn’t repulsed by that. “Agh! Just… just eat your food, for crying out loud!”

The rest of the Thieves were gathered with Yukiko and Chie in the Ramen Shop of Ogikubo – common experience taught that Yusuke was generally starving for nourishment a lot of the time, so it really came as a bit of a surprise to the rest of the Thieves that he was… picking at his food? At some point or another, Ann noticed this, and it really didn’t take a detective to figure out what was on his mind.

“…I’m guessing you’re thinking about the heist, huh?” Ann said with a wry smile. “I don’t blame you, Yusuke-kun. I… have things I've been thinking on myself.”

Yusuke internally scolded himself for making his emotional tells so obvious, and in a display of uncharacteristic irritation, he tossed his chopsticks back into the bowl. “How can I not? I have completed the new design for the calling card and composed an ultimatum, ready for tomorrow. After all, it is a tactic of this particular group to clean up a heist as soon as possible, yes?”

“You shouldn’t beat yourself up over it, man.” Ryuji paused from his own devouring to give a small little smile towards Yusuke. “We’ll figure things out; we already got a plan set up and everything, don’t we?”

“Yes, I know that. I just…” Yusuke sighed in place of what he was going to say. “It’s just… difficult. I really do hold a lot of contempt for the man Sensei truly is, and yet, I realize that I am still attempting to rationalize his actions. I had to keep reminding myself to be sharp-tongued with my accusations rather than apologize for the circumstances that led to them…"

It was Yusuke turn to go completely quiet. At this point, everybody turned to Yusuke with more than a little concern – even Morgana, who popped out of Yukiko’s bag to look at the artist-turned-thief in the eyes.

“Listen, Yusuke… you shouldn’t feel responsible like you had anything to do with this.” Morgana began with a bit of a pause to his statement. “We understand your conflict with Madarame, but – “

“Oh, do not get me wrong. I believe I have told you my own feelings about the man now, yes?” Yusuke scoffed. “What he did… it is simply unforgivable and abhorrent, even if he was "forced" into this role as a meritless thief as he so claims. I have nary a sliver of pity left to give to him, and yet…"

A sigh. "…I still wish to end this. For my sake… and whatever respect I have left for him.”

Everybody fell silent upon those words.

Yukiko gently chewed at her own udon before giving a polite response. “Yusuke-kun, I… I can empathize with you. It’s times like this I wanted to clear out Kamoshida’s Palace when we first stole his heart… and I don’t want you to be mistaken for even a moment. We are not putting a delay on this any further, and we’re only taking our time here to get ourselves back up. Besides…”

In that moment, Yukiko pulled something from her back – an envelope with a custom symbol on it. And with it, Yukiko gave a rather cat-like smile. “…we do have a calling card to send and a plan to execute, don’t we?”

(Music Playing - Tokyo Emergency - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf7a_MZXuDk)

The way the innmaiden gave such a self-assured smile right then and there caused all eyes among the Thieves to turn on Yukiko. Rather expectedly, Morgana – who has been touching base with Yukiko since the Thieves left the Palace – was quick to add.

“Yep! The nutshell is that we find a way to distract the guards, use the crane to grab the Treasure, and make it out of there! Problem is, of course, well…” Morgana laughed rather nervously. “Heh, the roof is unexplored territory for all of us… but it’s also our quickest escape too. With all things in mind, we should be well and away ready to steal the Treasure right under Madarame’s nose!”

“Hmm…” Yusuke fell silent before forcing himself to smile. “Yes… I do suppose that will work. I have no doubt we will have to adapt the plan as we go, but it is not difficult to go from a solid and well-made base. Oddly like a painting, in that regard..."

A pause. “…well, ensuring that the proper dimensions are in place – and ensuring Madarame does not recognize the sender.” Yusuke gave it a bit more thought to himself. “Hmm…"

Yusuke wasn't the only person that Yukiko noticed wasn't really in a good mood. She turned to Ann, and nudged her gently. "Ann-chan, you have been… awfully quiet. Is something wrong?”

“Huh?! Oh, um…” Ann colored a bit upon realizing people caught her when she was spacing out. “Nah, it really isn’t important to our current topic. I was moreso thinking about Shiho, though… I just, well…" A blush. "I kind of, um, want to tell her about how I feel when all of this is done with. And, possibly on the side, uh…" She stammered, blushing more. "P-Potentially explain to her the circumstances I'm, uh, in."

Nobody really had a good response to that possibility, but Chie simply managed her best one possible. “Well, uh, should we trust her with then nature of the Metaverse? Or is she a bit loose-lipped?”

“N-No! No. She can definitely hold a secret. That isn’t what I’m really worried about, as much as… well…” Ann gave a little cough to obscure what she was trying to say: “Hkk – Kamoshida – hkk, hghk.”

Ryuji, Yukiko, Chie and even Morgana all lit up in sudden understanding, while Yusuke remained confused.

"Oh. Oh." Ryuji grimaced. "Yeaaaah… uhh, even I see how that'll be a problem on that front, man…"

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

“Hm? What is of the matter?” Yusuke blinked rather innocently. "It sounds to me like necessary information."

“N-No, I know it's necessary information! It’s just that when we have to touch on the matter of the Phantom Thieves, we’ll have to touch on the matter of Palaces and that inevitably leads to…” Chie paused. “…well, Kamoshida’s Palace, and the virtual mountain of evidence linking his sorry self as an abuser and serial molester. And I seriously doubt that Shiho-chan wants to even think about that. Much less discover how much of it we saw…”

“That’s… pretty much where I was going at.” Ann managed a relieved sigh, before only looking more downcast. “And it’s why, well… I was trying to make sure how to address this once the heist is over, y’know? And frankly, I… I am at a bit of a loss right now…”

Everybody fell silent there.

“…agh, nevermind! We have more important things that we should be focused on – the thing we should be focusing on is where to put that card and what to do in case things go sideways. Again.” Ann shook her head, still obviously frustrated. A deep breath later, she was smiling again. “So, leader - any objections?”

Yukiko gave hardly a response, other than a smile and nod. “We’ll definitely figure things out, Ann, I promise. But until then, don’t worry; we just gotta work together for that to happen, alright? Especially since Shiho is your… ahem.” A sly smile. "'Protégé'."

As Ryuji, Chie and Yusuke blinked owlishly while Morgana grinned cheekily, Ann's cheeks flushed as she laughed nervously. "Ahahaha! Y-Yeah, yeah… I'm, um… a-aware of that."

Ryuji blinked. "…I feel like I'm missin' out on something…"

“N-No! Um, it's… fine.” Despite sounding sure of herself, Ann’s cheeks lit up into a light blush. She then took one last deep breath in, and smiled warmly at Yukiko. “…thanks, Yukiko-chan. I… just care for her and all, y’know? And I really wouldn’t have this… any other way.”

Yukiko smiled warmly. “That’s what I want to hear. Now, I take it we should eat now and eventually talk about this later? Our food’s going to get cold at this rate.”

Chie immediately lit up. “Oh, shit, you’re right! C’mon Yukiko, let’s finish this up! Don’t want this bowl of noodles getting cold now, huh?”

And with it, she began aggressively eating at her meal, causing Yukiko to suppress another laugh – and from the looks of things, Ryuji was already finished.

“Ahhh… that hit the spot!” Ryuji grinned. “Yo, I’d like another one, waiter!”

Yukiko gave an unusually goofy grin and life and joy returned to the table… even if this was undoubtedly the calm before the storm. But the Wild Card knew that everybody would be ready for tomorrow… and possibly more than that, for everybody who suffered by Madarame’s hand.

They had to be ready. And frankly, they wouldn’t have it any other way.


(Music Stops)

May 22nd, 2016 – Madarame’s Art Exhibit – 8:44 AM

The most recent intrusion on his privacy aside, Madarame had a good month.

Alright, there was an awkward wall that had emerged between him and Yusuke. Ever since that incident, Yusuke had grown abnormally quiet and evasive around his Sensei. Several times, Madarame tried to broach the subject, but something in his subconscious told him it wouldn't work out. Which was only made more awkward by Yusuke being present just outside the press pool.

But being in the center of attention in these press pools helped his mood immensely. He didn't even have to resort to what he internally called his Smile #5 ("Humble Center of the Art World"), his expression entirely genuine.

“Pardon me, sir. There’s a matter we need to notify you about...”

Which was why the quiet, nervous line from a staff member caused Madarame's stomach to sink. Either this was pointless, and Madarame's precious time was wasted...or it was going to spoil the rest of his day.

"Please excuse me for a moment," the artist said, seamlessly transitioning into his fake smile as he disengaged himself from the press pool.

As soon as they were in a blind spot for the cameras, Madarame let his actual, serious expression show. "What is it?" he hissed.

"We found this outside," the staff member said, handing over a letter. "It's...uh..."

Madarame blinked before taking a look at the (honestly rather harsh - dark red and white did not a calming combination of colors make) letter.

And in that moment, his eyes widened.

(Music – Restlessness – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VMCmDfSbFs)

Sir Ichiryusai Madarame, a great sinner of vanity whose talent has been exhausted,

                You are an artist who uses his authority to shamelessly steal the ideas of his pupils. Moreover, we have learned of your deep cynicism and your utter lack of respect for people other than yourself, depriving others of food and resources out of your fear of exposure of a fraud. Such as you are as to claim it’s for the good of everybody involved, but more than anything else, it is to keep your reputation safe - one you have sacrificed dozens of others to build when you yourself think it fraudulent and without worth. The sheer callousness of your actions is matched only by their pettiness and their lacking depth.

                We have decided to make you confess all your crimes with your own words. We will take your distorted desires without fail, and we will prove to the world the Phantom Thieves of Hearts do exist in the flesh and blood! Embrace yourself, for we will show no quarter.

                From,

                The Suzaku-Kai, aka The Phantom Thieves of Hearts

Underneath was an admittedly quite good icon of a detailed top hat over a mask and a blazing white eye. Something about it seemed dimly familiar, but right now, there were an infinite number of other things to worry about than a logo.

“Who… who’s doing is this?! What is with this slander?!” Angrily tearing apart the letter, Madarame’s expression was the exact midpoint of rage and terror. “I want you to find whoever sent you this letter and track them down! I am not standing for such baseless accusations. Are we clear?!”

“A-As much as I want to say I know, um… we’ve already checked. Footage shows nothing but a cat, and suddenly, these letters were everywhere!” The staff member winced, as if bracing for a physical assault. “I-I’ll be sure to investigate this now! Please, excuse me, Madarame-san – d-don’t hurt me!”

“And get rid of all of them all the while! I will NOT stand for such baseless slander! Especially when the cameras are active!” As Madarame twitched with anger, unbeknownst to him, a certain not-a-cat was standing behind a sofa, with a disturbingly human-like grin written all over its face.

“Mwehehehe… things are going according as planned!” Morgana mewled. “Can’t wait to break the news to the gang…”

Almost not unlike Kamoshida’s Shadow heightening of security, reality distorted for a second more – and with it, a gold-plated shogun flickered into view amid the darkness.

“Those damn brats… how dare they shame me like this!” Shadow Madarame hissed. “It is time to brace myself for the worst… but it still means nothing, doesn’t it? At the end of the day, they’re only as free as the exhibit goes on… oh, yes. I’ll be ready… I’ll be ready for them, damn it all!”

SECURITY LEVEL 99%

And just like that, reality restored itself. All Madarame was left to do was angrily storm off – leaving only Morgana and Yusuke.

"Will that do?", the latter whispered at the not-a-cat. 

Morgana chuckled, not needing to lower his voice. "Believe me, if Ryuji's scribbling was enough to make a Treasure materialize, that certainly was. Nice work!"

"Can we drop that already?!", Ryuji's voice came over the speaker on Morgana's collar. "But yeah, the Phan-Site's already buzzing with the new letter. This is gonna be huge, I can tell!"

“Mona to Phoenix, you read?” Morgana chuckled. “Operation: Golden Slumbers is a go!”

A pause. And then:

“Wait, we’re calling it names now?”


(Music Playing – Life Will Change (Instrumental) –  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FkTZckxdec)

May 22nd, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Entrance – ???

She shouldn’t be nervous. She really shouldn’t be nervous, now that she had stole Kamoshida’s heart. She knew how to do this.

So what made this so goddamn nerve-wracking?

Phoenix gently chewed on her lip as she contemplated these thoughts as she and her fellow Thieves stood outside of Madarame’s Palace. She really did hope the letter got through – actually, why worry? The plan was clear, and as foolproof as possible before it came into contact with the enemy, to bring the golden shogun down. The same person who, whatever his reasoning, treading his students and effective adoptive son as disposable slaves.

And it goes without saying a man like that, on top of all of the plagiarism, was unforgivable.

Phoenix, regardless of her concerns, took a sharp breath and stood in front of her Phantom Thief compatriots. She expelled her nervousness as she forced her best smile, assuming the full mantle of a true leader of the Phantom Thieves as she should have done a long while ago.

“Okay everybody! Today’s the day that we’re going to steal Madarame’s heart!” Phoenix nodded as she continued. “Just to recap: everybody knows what we’re going to do?”

Mona, ever the astute one, was quick to interject. “Why, of course! It’s to use the crane in the Treasure Room to take up Madarame’s painting and run off with it! Which, of course, means one particular thing…”

The lack of enthusiasm at that last bit wasn't lost on Panther. “Yeah… that means we’ll have to go through the roof – which we haven't mapped yet. We can find anything up there, though hopefully we won’t run into Madarame all the same.”

“It is disconcerting, though.” Fox murmured quietly. “I have this feeling we could be playing into Sensei’s hands if all doesn’t go according to plan… though if it is a trap, I will act to the best of my abilities to protect Phoenix and Dragon from harm.”

Dragon, of course, rolled her eyes a bit. “Yeah, I don’t need protecting, thanks.”

“Well, regardless of who’s gonna do what, why the fuck are we sittin’ about?!” Skull howled. “We’ve gotta treasure to steal, so let’s steal it!”

Skull’s enthusiasm more than made up for Phoenix's lack of it. Dragon changed her dour mood into something more enthusiastic as she pumped her hands in the air.

“Hell yeah! Let’s get goin’, guys!” Dragon grinned. “We’ve took care of Kamoshida, right? How bad could an old fart be?”

Phoenix would’ve given a more genuine smile at that optimism if it wasn’t for her instincts telling her that Dragon jinxed it with the classical “what could possibly go wrong?” line. Regardless, she pushed it to the back of her head as she gripped hands with Dragon.

“Yeah… you’re right. We do this right, and we’ll be fine.” Phoenix smiled. “As long as everybody does their part… what is the worst that could happen?”

Damnit. I’m doing it too. Phoenix was quick to push these thoughts to the side as she and the rest of the Thieves made off to change the heart of a corrupt painter that plagued the lives of so many others for so long.


(Music Continues)

May 22nd, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Treasure Room – ???

*kzzrt*

“Alright! Everybody in position?”

“Loud and clear, Mona! You’re tied to the hook, I take it?”

“Yep, sure am! Man, I’m so excited! Moments like this define being Phantom Thieves!”

“Man, I don’t blame ya. Meanwhile though, holy shit, these portable comms speakers are effin’ cool!”

“Pfft. Of course you’d find our latest gadgets cool, Skull! Anyway, Fox, you doing okay with yours? I’ve heard people on the Spectrum have trouble with loud – “

“Let me assure you, Panther, that sound sensitivity is not one of my issues.”

“Um, h-haha…! Yeah, sorry. I, uh, kinda assumed there…”

Phoenix, who was standing right on top of the railings that led to the Treasure, gave an aggravated sigh as she rolled her eyes. The Phantom Thieves had to leave the Treasure room before getting visual confirmation of the Treasure's physical form, apart from "too small to be seen over the tops of a small army of guards." Which was good for Mona and the plan, given how it was likely light and mobile as well, but it was still frustrating to be stealing something unknown.

Knowing Madarame’s bad sense of taste, it would probably be a gold-framed portrait of his ugly mug.

Regardless, the dark-haired girl felt a smile return to her face once the comm crackled to life once again.

“Alright, we’ve taken control of the crane! Bringing up the good stuff as we speak!”

Phoenix’s smile evolved into a cheeky little smirk as the crane – just as Dragon said – began moving on its own volition.

“Okay – Mona, you ready?”

“Mwehehe! Ready as ever.”

“Alright… deploying the crane.”

Phoenix had a moment to look on as Mona was slowly lowered to where the treasure was. She also could see Fox on his lonesome, on the floor below – he had a rather amused smile on his face, at least as far as what the innmaiden could tell from there.

*kzzrt*

“It’s like Skull said: you really do seem to be enjoying yourself, aren’t you?”

“Hehe! Of course! A-Anyway, visual confirmation on the Treasure’s right there! And yes, you’re right – it’s a painting!”

Phoenix pumped her fist in the air as an audible groan came from Dragon’s comm. "Auuuuuugh, damnit! Now I really do owe Phoenix a thousand yen! Ugh…”

Phoenix giggled as she pressed her hand against her earpiece. “Look on the bright side, Dragon! We’ll at least have some celebration once this is done – right?”

A sigh. “Yeah, yeah, I know. But still, I was really assuming it’d be a bust of himself…”

“Well, don’t feel too bad! You’re not far off, given how much both instances would show his ego… ” Phoenix said this with a genuine smile, but her moment of small comfort was interrupted by Mona.

“Wooooooo! Got the Treasure! SO EXCITED!”

And just like that, the crane began returning in full force. Mona returned to the top of the above floor with a dumb grin written all over his face, one that nobody faulted him for. Before long, the rest of the Thieves regrouped with Mona, complete with the painting - covered in an expensive-looking purple cloth.

“Nice job, Mona! We’ve got the treasure hand in hand!” To emphasize his newfound enthusiasm, Skull gave a cheerful little thumbs-up. “Now let’s blow this fuckin’ popsicle stand before my leg cramps up again!”

“You can say that again.” Phoenix smiled happily. “Though of course, this all means we’re going to have to traverse through the roof again, right…?”

Everybody fell silent in response to that. Dragon was quick to attempt to lighten the mood.

“Aww, chin up, guys! We’ll figure something out.” The brunette thief laughed nervously, pounding her fist on her lithe chest. “We just, like, gotta take care of whatever that jerkface has in store of us, right? Nothin’ me and Tomoe can’t handle!”

Doing a pose and kiai as if to emphasize her point, Phoenix broke into a giggle. “See? We’ll be fine, no problem. Now, let’s get this thing on the move, right Mona?”

Everybody turned to Mona for an answer – only to see the feline thief mewling and rubbing against the portrait.

“Mrrrrrrrrowwww…!” Mona happily meowed. “Treasure…!”

As Fox looked on in more than a little shock and disgust, he awkwardly cleared his throat to break the mood. “Umm… not to assume I am to judge Mona’s moment of religious larceny worship here, but… did he do that when you all stole Kamoshida’s heart?”

Panther rolled her eyes. “Unfortunately? Yes.”

Mona spent a few more moment obliviously cuddling with the manifestation of a Palace Owner’s desires for a few minutes more before snapping out of his. Hurriedly, the rest of the Thieves made it to the floor upstairs.


(Music Stops)

May 22nd, 2016 – Madarame’s Palace, Rooftop – ???

“Alright, we’re in the clear!" Morgana bounced around as much as his stubby little legs could carry. "I can see a path straight down!"

And there was… much to Phoenix's relief, a bit of the roof jutted over the the wall separating the Palace from the Metaverse's Tokyo. 

"Oh thank all that is holy…" Skull exhaled. "Jumping I can handle. Not like the run from Kamoshithead's place…"

"Yeah. Phew. And…" Dragon frowned. "Mona, why are you tugging on the Treasure cloth?"

"Mrr… meeeoooooooww…" Mona eagerly looked up from unwrapping it. "…since we're safe, I figure a quick glance couldn't hurt…"

Phoenix crushed her nose, sighed, and smiled. "You know what, that's fine. We can take a peek, since it won't look the same after this place is kaput…"

Mona literally jumped for joy, dismounting and putting the covered portrait on the ground in a single, fluid motion as he uncovered it

Not wanting to be left out, the other Thieves swept up behind him.

"Treas…ure?" 

Mona processed for a second just what the hell he was seeing.

"That is…" Fox blinked. "More humble than I was expecting..." 

(Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

The expression of the hehenonomoheji put the utter confusion of the Thieves into better terms than actual words could.

Which was quickly cleared when guards started materializing around the roof, pulling out their nighsticks.

"…Mona?" Phoenix felt her stomach sink as she slowly started to piece together what was going on. "If Will Seeds smell like Treasures… is it possible to make a red herring smell like one too?"

Slowly, the not-a-cat bent down, and sniffed the doodle, and then the rug.

A look of utter mortification and rage came to his face. "That cheating son of a - he must have rubbed the cover on the Treasure and switched it for this fake! Dammit, I knew he was a liar - I'm such a dumbass!"

"Yeah, um…" Dragon grimaced. "I'd yell at you, but we have other issues…"

“Meddlesome vermin…"

Speaking of, here came the voice of one of said issues. 

Madarame cackled in all his golden glory, two familiar guards trailing his step every bit of the way - one of which had a sparkling painting under his arm. "For the record, I actually took the cover from the real one and draped it over the fake one. I was not expecting the insult 'dog' to be so hilariously accurate however - but I'm not complaining!"

Phoenix calmed herself with a sharp intake and exhale of air. “So, looks like we have to go out through you… I'm not especially sad, either, this has got to be really therapeutic for Fox!"

Fox, for his part, did not seem all that enthused - but also, curious. "…you knew it was going to be a panting once it turned physical. And the dimensions needed to be able to disguise the fake without the cover appearing excessive. You knew what physical form it was going to be in advance. How?"

Madarame's victorious expression faltered. "The moment I realized this world was made in the image of my cynicism, I realized the core could not be anything else. The painting made in the moment I understood that I was doomed to be more obscure than my students…"

By this point, Panther had enough of his self-pity, and was faster on the draw than Phoenix. "Oh for the love of - just cut to the point, you old hoot! What is it!?"

Madarame growled. "Tch, no respect for the elders, then - fine!" A wave of the hand. "Guard, hold it up!"

The Shadow mutely obeyed, revealing a rather familiar picture…

…or it would be, if it didn't look devoid of details that were previously present.

"…is that…" Dragon spoke dully, not entirely recognizing the gravity of what she was seeing.

"The… Sayuri? How?!" Phoenix blinked owlishly, not understanding why that was here. "But… where's the fog? And is that a baby?"

Indeed, the famous portrait was the Treasure - except in place of trailing fog, the model was clearly fondly regarding an infant cradled in her arms.

An infant, Fox realized with a start, had a distinctly blue-ish tinge to his hair.

Fox immediately turned pale upon recognizing instinctively what it was. "…Mom…?"

The rest of the Phantom Thieves quickly spun to face him.

"W-Wait a minute!" Skull looked stupefied, glancing between the painting and Fox several times over. "Y-You mean to actually say that thing's a picture… of his Ma?"

"More than that - it's a self-portrait, if I may so proudly admit." Madarame chimed in, looking relatively pleased with himself. "After her seizures got worse, Himari realized she might not have enough time in this world with her own son - so, she made that as a way for him to remember her by. I had to make some… marketable alterations for the fine art snobs, but I have no shame in admitting that she was my finest creation - she was the greatest talent I've ever brought to personal fruition."

Slowly, exactly why the Sayuri was covered in another distortion on top of the museum's own became perfectly clear.

"…you seriously stole a woman's dying message so you could milk it for MONEY?!" Panther yelled, looking both outraged and disgusted. "What the bloody hell is WRONG WITH YOU?!"

"I would personally call it 'having a sense of proportion,' thank you very much." The fraud artist shot back, clearly displeased by what his wounded ego felt like a gross exaggeration of the truth. "I was the one who taught her and paid for her room and board even after her husband died, and she lacked the income to pay tuition - Himari's skills were my own creation, and by proxy, so was her work! I simply made sure it would sell worth a damn - those pretentious critics would have rejected something so 'mundane' as a mother's love out of hand!"

Fox was deathly silent, merely looking more and more horrified with each passing second. "I… Sensei… why…?!"

Dragon sputtered, utterly incandescent with rage. "You - YOU PAINTED OVER A DYING WOMAN'S SON SO YOU COULD SELL HER GRAVESTONE, YOU ASSHOLE!"

"And what, because you were jealous of her own talent potentially surpassing yours?!" Panther continued. "Is that what this is? That you can't paint, so you stole the name of someone who could?!"

"You've never had more talent than you put into that scribble, you crusty old hack!" Mona hissed, kicking the fake painting rudely. "And now, I'm not sure if you're even ever tried to for once in your life! What, was completely burying her memory 'necessary' too for yourself?!"

“Are you joking?" Madarame looked entirely undeterred. "Without a sliver of doubt."

A seconds-long silence occurred between Madarame's brutally calm statement on the matter.

Panther’s rage faltered as she was caught off-guard by the sheer bluntness of the statement. “I… w-what…?”

“You are too young to understand the burden of adulthood." A heavy sigh. "With all the fame I have accrued in the past… I’ve made some terrible mistakes. I’ve associated with people I feared of associating with for quite some time - I wasn't entirely lying when I said I have some more criminal clients who expect me to perform. And possibly more than that, I…”

Madarame trailed off, before looking more result. “…I have done some deplorable things, even beyond my sabotage of my students. But all this time, I have realized it’s a necessary step on the path to my own security.”

Skull felt his anger rise just from that alone. “So next you’re tellin’ me that everything you did was for your own security?! WHAT THE FUCK?!”

“Yeah! Christ, what is wrong with you?!” Dragon hissed. “Don’t you tell me you’re so fucking full of yourself that you’re willing to accost everybody else in your life for your own stupid, stinking, selfish benefit! THAT’S ABHORRENT, DAMNIT! THAT’S EXACTLY WHY I STOOD UP TO KAMOSHIDA, AND WHY I’M STANDING UP TO YOU!”

Tomoe’s silhouette briefly flickered in the air, but Phoenix was quick to calm her friend down. “Dragon, hold!”

"Pah! I'd scold you for your seeming misappropriation of the situation, but I suppose hastiness is endemic in today's youth. But no matter." Madarame calmly walked down the flight of stairs, before dismissively waving off his Shadow flunkies. "Leave us, and leave the painting. This is a matter of personal business."

The Shadows bowed, vanishing as they set the portrait down.

Madarame's serene smile turned a twinge more malicious, simply tilting his head and smiling with a smirk so subtle as to be condescending. "Now, if you don't mind, I am going to have to discipline all of you - I apologize, Yusuke, but I will not be holding back on anyone, or especially you. You will probably survive, but it is time for the farmer to reap his crop."

Fox, who had watched all this in utter silence, looked up, expression blank.

(Music Slowly Fades Out)

"'Reap his crop'…" Fox repeated in a monotone voice. "You so often destroy your 'art' once they outlived their usefulness…'"

His eyes turned steely as his voice slowly rose. "Tell me, Sensei. How literal is that sentiment, when it came to my mother?"

Madarame suddenly looked very uncomfortable.

After a couple seconds of apparently debating with himself, he spoke.

"There is no point in denying further. Your mother was truly an admirable woman by heart - one that I genuinely regret having to maneuver around." A dark sigh. "…it broke my heart that I neglected informing her of the proper dose of her seizure medication."

Phoenix's blood turned to ice, as she realized instantly what he was getting at.

(Music Playing – Blood of Villain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

"…you heartless murderer." Phoenix quietly spoke in a furious concoction of rage and abject, silent disgust.

Madarame looked more offended by the mere idea he is a killer than even the admittance of such an action. "Phoenix, my dear, is it really murder to be a bystander in somebody's final hours? Or is it moreso the misfortune of being lumped into the same category or murderers for the inconvenience of acting?"

Panther's face slowly morphed more and more into abject anger before prompting screeching. "HOW HOLIER-THAN-THOU DO YOU HAVE TO BE TO ACTUALLY THINK THAT?!"

Madarame wasn't interesting such a question, simply shrugging. "Regardless of what your input is, the truth is that Himari had a major attack shortly after she finished her self-portrait. A abject tragedy in the motions, undoubtedly so, but it was then I realized she was also the only other person who could claim credit for her self-portrait, let alone recognize it." A drawn-out, artificial sigh of sadness. "I could edit it to my heart's content if natural causes took her life. So I've… well, let me clarify I've left her proper dosage up to fate."

Skull just stared at him before mutely shaking his head, too shocked to be angry. "…good God, where in the fuck do you get off?! No wonder you're in the same league as King Asshole!"

"I take offense to that! I made sure to take care of her son after she passed!" Madarame retorted in a response too defensive to be reasonably seen as innocent. After composing himself, his frown deepened. "…admittedly, I realized that I had a good thing going when he proved to have inherited all of her talents. To be honest, I was inspired to start crafting art students to bring out their talents for my livelihood because of that unfortunate incident. So I sincerely thank you, Yusuke; you are the one who showed me that growing the youth who could not contest my skills was far more effective in enabling the good of the craft!"

Mona's jaw just dropped in mute horror.

"…holy fuck." Dragon looked equal parts disgusted and horrified. "And you still think you're the hero of this story! I just… how? You're the kind of evil sensei that would be regarded as an unrealistic cartoon villain in my wuxia flicks, for crying out loud!"

"…I believed in you. But you're really no better than Kamoshida." Phoenix added quietly, more in amazement at her past self's naivete than anything else.

Fox just… chuckled.

"…Yusuke?" Panther looked somber. "It… it wasn't your - "

Fox cut off Panther with a raucous, broken cackle.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!" Fox laughed, one unmistakable from pure pain.

Mona grimaced. "Y… Yusuke?"

Fox's broken laughter subsided with a dark chuckle, before a glare Phoenix personally was terrified of.

"I thank you… Madarame. For making me realize calling you 'Sensei' is a blatant disrespect to any half-decent teacher out there." Fox spoke in a low, visible hiss. "Every reason I've once had for me to stay my hand has just been burnt to ash."

He stood up to his full height, an expression that was a psychotic smile visible on the uncovered part of his face. 

…Yusuke… Yusuke's raising his voice… Phoenix thought, still in shock. I've only been with him for barely a month, but… he's raising his voice. I've never seen him do that before…

And it was at that moment, Fox’s anger bloomed into pure fury as he gently trembled, reaching for his katana. “You, Madarame… are not even close to being the artist you so claim yourself to be. No, you wear the flayed, dripping skin of an artist, hiding behind lies of necessity and security to shield your hypocrisy! Any love I have once had for you has died in this very moment, you vile, pretentious TROGLODYTE!”

(Music Stops)

In that moment, shadows began gathering around Madarame. Mona, who has remained quiet up to this point, was quick to point this out.

“N-No! He's assuming his Persona form!" Mona immediately assumed battle positions. “Get back, all of you!”

“You don’t get it, do you Yusuke? Those who have the connections make the rules… and those who don’t must follow them.” Madarame gave a nightmarish smirk. “And the value of art is subjective, anyways - what rules there are belong to the celebrity of the era, and until the day I die, that will be me. Vanity isn't even an insult - it means I am that wretched thing called 'art' incarnate! BAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAA!”

And in that moment, Madarame’s face distorted, giving way to a nightmarish new form as shadows melded into an abomination.

(Music Playing – Blooming Villain – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBy4Ir_Pfng )

Five portraits. Two eyes. One nose. And one terrifying smile. Calling Shadow Madarame’s true form a gallery would be putting it in the loosest sense possible; a terrifying, uncanny of hyper-realism stretched out to represent a deformed, amalgamated mass of terror and pure nightmares. And with a chilling howl, the five floating portraits gave a howl of laughter.

"VANITY, VANITY, ALL IS VANITY! THAT IS THE TRUE NATURE OF ART - MY BRUSH, MY PAINT! AND I, AZAZEL, WILL MAKE AN EXQUISITE PIECE FROM THE  MEDIOCRE CANVAS BEFORE ME! AHAHAHAHAA!"

"Well, another reason to beat you, then!" Phoenix spat, reading her bladed fan. "A poor craftsman blames his tools!"

"FEH! WE SHALL SEE WHO THE  TOOL IS! LET'S BEGIN, YOU VERMIN!"

A mere moment later, carnage ensued.

The five uncanny parts of Azazel’s composition roared and lunged forth. The rest of the Thieves barely had enough time to react, but Dragon seemed quite well-prepared to deal with Azazel as he stood.

“You’re dumb as bricks if you think you can beat me down like this!” Dragon howled. “Protect me, Tomoe!”

Chie’s Persona came forth to attempt a swipe of its dual naginata on Azazel’s mouth. Much to the tomboy’s horror, it didn’t just void the damage, it drained it, absorbing it fully as the smile only looked more vitalized.

“AHAHAHA! YOU ACTUALLY THINK THAT WOULD WORK?! MY GLORY IS FAR TOO MULTIFACETED FOR SUCH AN ARTLESS TACTIC!” Almost as if to further rub salt on the wound, Azazel’s teeth sunk into Dragon’s arm, leaving a nasty gash as all the girl could do was stumble backwards in pain.

“Augh! Y-YOU BASTARD!” Dragon howled. “You’ll pay for that!”

“Stay focused, Dragon!” Phoenix barked orders a moment more. “There’s no telling what he’ll try next! Experiment with different elemental types and we’ll find what works! Now… ICTINIKE! COME FORTH!”

Blue light enveloped Phoenix, and with it came the figure of a Native American demigod – all of the Aeon Arcana. “I’ll focus on the mouth; if physical attacks don’t work, then I doubt guns will either! Skull, Panther, you two try to hurt the nose with your elemental spells! Mona, you and I will focus on the mouth! And Fox, Dragon, try to find some way to take care of the eyes too! You have your orders, so get to work!”

Panther couldn’t help but grin at just how much confidence Phoenix exerted when barking out orders like that. She wasn’t to judge, of course; she was quick to follow suit as the battle raged on.

As the rest of the Thieves’ dealt with their own portraits, Fox and Dragon both had a spin of trying to eliminate Azazel’s eyes… but both of which ended up having no effect whatsoever.

“YOU PUTRESCENT WHELPS! MUST I REPEAT MYSELF? Azazel howled darkly. “YOU NEED TO KNOW YOUR PLACE!”

“Goddamn it! Nothing we do seem to harm him!” Dragon hissed. “And Tomoe seems to be outta range too… Fox, any ideas?”

“Well, ice attacks are void, and I am out of range too…” Fox steeled himself. “In that case, then… Goemon! Elevate Dragon to where the eyes are!”

Dragon had to do a double take there. “Whoa, wait, what - “

Before she could fully process this, Goemon had grabbed hold of her legs and started bouncing her in a prep for a toss.

“U-Uh, Fox?" Chie squeaked a bit hysterically, knowing exactly what to expect. "Y-You do realize these kung-fu stunts are rehearsed before weeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEYYAAAAH!"

Dragon whooped and yelled as she was sent careening into the eyes at terminal velocity, but thankfully, in the Metaverse, human reaction times were apparently faster, as she rolled into a powerful kick, spinning through the both of them and falling into a rather graceful crouch as she hit the ground, thanking all that was holy for the fact that Phantom Thieves were superhero-level speedsters.

“YOU ACTUALLY THINK THAT’LL BEST ME?! HOW NAÏVE YOU ARE!” Azazel howled. “THERE’S ONLY ONE OF YOU AS IT STANDS! I WON’T FALL FOR THE SAME TRICK TWICE!”

“That’s the thing – we don’t need to!” Dragon said as she summoned her other self “C’mon out, Tomoe! GO FOR THE EYES!”

“W-What?!”

Dragon did a double kick on Azazel’s left eye while Tomoe cleaved the other one in two, leaving the painter howling as he clutched his eyes in pain. Tomoe’s landing was graceful, but Dragon… decided less so; she landed face-first into the pavement as Azazel bellowed from afar.

“AAAAAAAAAAGHH! YOU’LL PAY FOR THAT, DAMN YOU!” Azazel howled.

“Oogh… I’m gonna pay back Yusuke for this…” Dragon recovered from her failure of a landing only to see the rest of the Thieves eliminate the remaining body parts. Skull seemed more than a little enthused by this victory.

“Hell yeah!” Skull pumped his fists in the air in victory. “Now let’s see what else there is to deal from this asshole!”

The fallen paintings submerged into the black ichor that Shadows are known for, coalescing and spiraling like a mockery of the arts. But before anybody could truly let sleeping dogs lie, a familiar, elderly madman stood tall from the shadows he emerged from.

…okay, “stand tall” isn’t quite the right word. Moreso “shivering in terror.”

“Madarame’s out!” Mona exclaimed. “Let’s knock him down, guys!”

HOLD-UP!

It wasn’t long before the Thieves leapt into position and – one by one – began pointing their wide assortment of firearms at the Palace Owner. Fox, for one, was pointing his assault rifle directly between his teacher’s eyes.

“Words cannot duly express how tempted I am to kill you and be done with it.” Fox hissed. “But that is not the Phantom Thief way, yes? No, I will make you repent your crimes for the whole world to see!”

“Damnit! I’m the great Madarame!” The old man cringed internally, nonetheless steeling himself for what was to come. “The Madarame who gathers a full crowd every time he opens up an exhibit! I AM NOT SOMEONE THAT WORTHLESS BRATS LIKE YOU ARE TO DEFY…!”

“You still have the nerve to say such things?!” Fox hissed, only further readying in a battle position. “You will fully taste the wrath of those who were preyed upon by you!”

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

The Thieves unceremonious began a maelstrom of cuts and flurries in that moment. Phoenix, ever the leader, gracefully emerged from an acrobatic leap to give a rather trademark pose of her.

PLEASE COME AGAIN. 

The human form of the painter stumbled back, groaning.

"Eyargh… clearly, the art of that form was as worthless as most critiques…" He grumbled darkly, sweeping himself off. "Nonetheless! You must fight my master craft directly!"

"Guys, I'm still getting a lot of power from him!", Mona said. "He's still Azazel - he's just fighting in human form right now!"

"Be on your guard!" Fox cried, as the Palace's master called up a storm of golden energy and Shadow gunk, merging to reveal…

"…oh, hell no!" Skull groaned. "He's one of those bosses!"

While Azazel hadn't transformed again, now there was five of him - one of which was in the normal golden kimono, but now joined by duplicates in yellow, red, blue, and green.

With swirling elemental auras.

"Behold, the rage you have unleashed, as it burns you away!" The Azazel in red said, looking even more furious than his original self as he directed his fire at Dragon, knocking her off her feet.

"So, even your 'true talent' lies in the ability to make copies. I'd express my surprise, but I'm afraid I've hit my sarcasm limit for the month." Phoenix had to resist the urge not to roll her eyes, before immediately turning to the group behind him. "Well, you heard Skull! We need to find the just need to find the weaknesses of these fakes - "

"Counterfeits are accepted in the world of Japanese art!" Azazel shot back, not missing a beat. "Now, let my Sorrow freeze your very veins solid with the biting cold of my alienation!"

The blue Estraz, as Phoenix was internally calling the duplicates, gave a put-upon sigh and extended his hand half-heartedly, sending a blast of ice straight at Skull as he barely ducked out of the way.

"Ugh, I hate these kind of 'match the element' puzzle fights!", Panther grumbled, calling out Carmen. "Are wind and lightning opposed… somehow? Whatever, just Agi and move on!"

With that she blasted the Estraz Sorrow with fire, knocking him off his feet - only to be blasted herself by a shock from the yellow Estraz.

"My brilliance strikes like a flash of lightning - and now you'll taste it for yourselves!" The yellow Estraz taunted, before trying to hit Skull with the same shock…

…and frowning as Skull failed to react beyond grinning, even as the electricity surged over him.

"Fun fact - we've got elemental affinities too!" He said with a gleeful smirk as Captain Kid set a Zio at the red Estraz -

…which impacted a materializing shield.

"But not, apparently, the power of passion itself!" The red Estraz gloated, cackling. "For what is Fury, but electrifying?" With that, the spell was sent directly back at a rather stunned Skull.

"…I see now!" Fox shouted. "Mona, unleash your power at the Joy!"

"…and that is?" The not-a-cat said with a bit of a helpless look.

"Sorry - the yellow one! It's obviously the embodiment of his pride! Really, wind being the thing to disillusion is the kind of thing that I was trying to chase - "

"Green beats yellow, got it!" Mona cut in before Fox could leave himself open with his ramble, and sent the Joy flying.

Straight over the edge of the roof, Estraz Joy screamed angrily as he plummeted to his death - as signified by a satisfying splat on the ground.

"Great going!" Dragon said, flipping back up. "One down!"

The original Azazel smiled darkly "Don't be so sure, philistine…"

A fountain of the Shadow energy burst from the Estraz Joy's impromptu grave, flowing into the Fury. A flash later, suddenly the duplicate was wearing both his old red and the Joy's yellow. With lightning mixing with fire in his aura.

Okay, if this wasn't enough of an MMO raid boss, Phoenix thought, sourly. We have difficulty scaling mechanics.

"What is both joy and fury, if not drivers of activity and focus? And how may you stand against their combined power?" The fused Estraz said, unleashing a storm of electricity at Mona, who barely ducked out of the way.

"And… thank you for reminding me of your own talents, I dare say!" Azazel gloated, striding forward. "I will show you exactly how I can hide them!"

The inn maiden noticed something black dripping from his fingers as he reared back -

…and then the world turned black.

Not in the sense of her going unconscious, but suddenly her eyes being covered with something wet and very black, blocking her vision completely, the only indication of what was going on being a large splat noise. Along with the rest of her.

Coughing, she wiped it out of her eyes to reveal…

She looked over the lacquered, dripping blackness now covering her.

"Is this… paint? Your special ability is throwing paint at people? And we're immature?!"

"You obviously have no sense of symbolism, you plebeian!" The green Estraz almost sung rather than said, looking like he didn't have a care in the world. "The artist that has been blacked over has had all identity erased, and without identity, an artist is nothing - dust upon the wind!"

With that, the calm Estraz directed his own green wind to Phoenix, who had enough time to wonder if he knew Ictinike was resistant to Garu -

…the next coherent thought the Wild Card has was recognition that she was no longer upright, and that she was in a rather large amount of pain.

"Holy - Yukiko, are you okay?!" Dragon cried out.

"I… I think so." Phoenix replied with a grimace of pain, not at all sure of that. 

"That paint! It's some kind of curse; it nullifies resistances!" Mona spouted the logical conclusion, blasting at the merged Estraz. "Ictinike isn't normally weak to Wind, after all!"

"As if we didn't have enough shit to worry about!" Skull said, zapping the green Estraz with a Zio.

Too late, he realized his mistake, as the dissolving duplicate merged with the Sorrow.

"Sorrow and Mirth - the introspective passions!" the newly born green and blue Estraz said. "Took look deep within in calmness or pain is the true path to insight and glory!"

"And you really need to stop acting like a cartoon - wait, Mirth?" Panther wondered. "That thing is Mirth? Shouldn't it be, I dunno, Zen or Content or - "

It was in that moment Fox realized something. "…Panther, destroy the first of the false Madarames to fuse!"

Panther immediately realized an issue. "Um, won't they probably - "

"No time to explain!" He shouted, running back as he picked up a confused Mona. "Keep their attention!"

Shrugging helplessly, both she and the recovering Phoenix focused their best fire upon it - and proving it wasn't altogether that strong, as it melted under the assault.

Not that it mattered, as it merged with the other Estraz, all four colors represented on the final duplicated Madarame's kimono. With a major difference being that he was also made of gold.

"BEHOLD, THE ULTIMATE FORM OF MY PASSION, THE IMAGO!" The ultimate Estraz proclaimed. "MY GREATEST WORK, MY NAME AND GLORY, CONSTRUCTED CAREFULLY OVER MY ENTIRE LIFE FROM ALL MY WISHES AND CUNNING, THE TRUE LORD OF ART! NOT A SINGLE WEAKNESS IN MY GILDED GLORY!"

"Except, perhaps, the fact you didn't make any of it?" Mona cut in, shouting.

Which was a surprise to the original Azazel, as he was no longer darting about the roof, but directly behind him, having been tossed there by Fox.

"Wait, what are you - " The real Shadow began, cocking his head.

"Bet you just hate it, knowing that absolutely nothing you make is your own idea, huh?!" Mona kept taunting, doing a little bounce to emphasize his point. "I'm gonna guess that all those thugs that buy your counterfeits know what a fraud you are, and you've never actually made anything worth remembering, just put your name on others' work - all you can do is copy!"

The Estraz Imago roared, unleashing a blast of elemental energies at Mona, completely unaware that Azazel was between them.

"AGH! IDIOT!" The black paint shot out from the shogun's hands in reflex, a tide of darkness that drowned the spell in it -

…and hit the Imago.

As the newly black copy looked down at itself, the dawning expression of horror proved that if nothing else, Madarame was a detailed and precise forger. It and the original's face looked exactly the same in that moment.

Nobody had to tell the Phantom Thieves twice. A new storm of fire, wind, lightning, and ice converged on the final Estraz, obliterating it entirely with nowhere else for the energy used in its creation to go.

"I… what… how?!" Azazel blubbered, trying to comprehend how badly he was played, dropping his guard.

"It's rather simple, Madarame." Fox glared fiercely, bounding up with gun in hand. "For all your pretensions of being above your own image, you put your passions into your copy, heart and soul - including what is left of your pride as an artist. You care very deeply about your false identity as a skilled painter, Madarame, and that kind of painter would not enjoy being reminded that he has done nothing with his talents. Congratulations, you made the perfect image of the sincerity you so scoff at."

He hoisted his gun. "And now it is time to end this, wouldn't you say?" 

HOLD UP!

Once more, the Thieves found themselves pointing their firearms directly at Azazel; all he could do in his position was cringe into a defensive crouch.

“D… Damn it! Is… is this how you show your gratitude to the man who raised you?!"

Skull glared. “Ya still got the nerve to try to play the victim, even after all this time? What a joke!”

“Not as much as a joke as this fight. Frankly, your were easier than Kamoshida by a long shot.” Phoenix nodded. “Alright, let’s finish this! Fox, you lead!”

“With pleasure!” Fox drew his katana from his scabbard, readying himself for a killing blow. “This is for all the lives you have ruined, Sensei!”

ALL-OUT ATTACK!

A flurry of cuts. A storm of blunt attacks. A dance of macabre violence permeated the weakened true form of Azazel, and without further ado, Fox landed the final blow.

And with a graceful pose, was happy to see the end of a dark chapter that shadowed over his life for so long.

IT WAS FUN WHILE IT LASTED. GOODBYE.

Azazel had no final words to give.

The most he could do was writhe pathetically as he collapsed onto the ground, the black energy that had empowered him erupting in geysers from his wounds; first his knees, then his entire body, as he struggled to stay up before collapsing to the ground as just Madarame.

It wasn’t anything dramatic like with Asmodeus; this was a man who, obsessed with vanity, took the most plain and arguably most pathetic fall to his demise. And the rest of the Thieves were there to savor their victory.

(Music Stops)

“Victory!” Mona jumped up happily. “We did it all! We totally – huh? Wait, why aren’t you guys celebrating?”

It was clear to see. Madarame, still conscious if massively drained from his power as Azazel being destroyed, had clawed a grip around Sayuri in his cold, wretched hands as she slithered off in a measly attempt of escape. Fox didn’t have to run, of course – he simply, slowly, walked up to the man he had called a father figure for so long with an icy expression and colder glare, sending chills directly down the spine of his mentor.

“Eek…!” Madarame fell back a bit more. “Come now, Fox, ease yourself! Y-You wouldn’t actually kill me, right? Not your father who’s raised you, not your mentor of all things, and especially not an elder! Y-You simply cannot – “

Fox offered nothing but silence. The most of which he could give in a gesture was rip the portrait from Madarame’s hands, and inhale.

(Music Playing – Regret – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGFZHBK2lTs)

“Shut. Up. Just… shut up. A fiend like you has no right to attempt to make any pitiable excuses… even if I loved you, as my foster figure.” Fox looked tired, merely looking away for a split second before showing nothing but pure rage for his mentor. “How hard is it for you to truly understand? It was never about art! And never was! Heavens’ sake, I was in denial about all the terrible things you have done for the sake of your own security! And that it what it has always been about, yes? Security? Wealth? Posterity? Those are the only things you have ever held in virtue, or you would have not let my mother die or destroy your students out of fear of losing your own vaunted fame! Do you not have a shred of dignity in that self-pity of yours?!”

“B-But I…” Madarame weakly whimpered. “I just – “

“I do not want any more excuses. I am through with you.” Fox wasn’t even angry; he was just visibly tired. “And in truth… I do pity you. I only came up with that scheme when I heard those fakes talk about their passions - for all your cynicism, I realized, you still had some kernel of respect for the profession left. And I realize how to turn it against you."

"Then - then you understand!" Madarame pleaded, desperately. "No one cares for true art - all they want is easily recognizable brands! I'm a victim in this too - wouldn't you agree?!"

"Well, I can say for sure the answer to Yusuke's question is no." Dragon sighed, rolling her eyes. "He really doesn't have any self-respect left…"

"The art world revolves around money - you can't rise up without resources, and you need to rise up to make money." Madarame continued, oblivious. "Being a poor artist is truly miserable - I taught that!"

"…no, you enforced that, you vain hypocrite!" Fox growled, grabbing him by the collar. "When given the chance to help anyone avoid the issues you faced and surmounted in your past, you forced others to suffer the way you did - and worse, you made sure they would never escape it! You are continuing the cycle of pain knowingly, for your own fears and spite - the only redemption you have left is to reveal it, AND AT LEAST TRY NOT TO BREAK IT!"

“S-So you…” Madarame was going to cry at this rate. “Y-You’re not going to kill – “

“SHUT UP! IF YOU HAVE EVER ONCE CARED ABOUT ME, AGREE TO RETURN TO REALITY AND CONFESS YOUR WRETCHED SINS!" Fox yelled. "DO YOU HEAR ME?! SWEAR IT!”

Madarame shrieked as he jumped back. “O-Okay! Okay! I swear!”

“And that is all I needed to hear.” Fox relaxed his posture, dropping his mentor. “Perhaps you will end up having actually saved some other young artist from the misery you suffered - or that I did.“

“W-Wait! What about the other one, though?!” Madarame cried out. “The one with the black mask?!”

A pause came over the group.

“Hm…?” Fox blinked. “Who…?”

“Yeah… barring the fact this guy’s a scumbag and all…” Phoenix continued, softly. “Who has a black mask? Only Skull does, if I recall…”

“One I am very proud of.” Skull’s sheepish grin was cut short by Panther elbowing him.

“Hold on! A black mask…?” Panther puzzled for a second. “Just… who is he talking about…?”

Dragon was never quite a born detective, but she immediately lit up. “Wait a minute… couldn’t he be talking about a different Phantom Thief?”

It was Mona’s turn to light up in horror himself. “W-Wait a minute! Could that mean that somebody else beat us to the punch in this Palace?!”

Almost as if one cue, tremors wracked the Palace.

 “H-Huh?!” Fox almost lost his footing. “Wait, I thought that these Palaces were supposed to remain stable until - “

“That was before we knew we'd be fighting Madarame!” Skull barked. “Now c’mon, we gotta take the Treasure before everything comes collapsing on us!”

Mona immediately flipped the Sayuri onto his back, attaching his grappling hook to the escape ledge to start scaling down. “C’mon, hurry up! We’ve got a couple of minutes, tops! We’ve gotta hurry back!”

The Thieves gave no response to that, except hurrying off the roof.

All except for Fox and Madarame.

“H-Hey, Yusuke…” Madarame whispered weakly. “W-What should I do now…?”

Fox paused, before shaking his head. “Put an end to this madness, and use your own artwork for once. You were someone with dreams once - maybe your guilt will inspire you like fame never did.”

His single, final look into his teacher’s eyes was one of pure wrath. “And mark my words. I want all of your sins confessed.”

And just like that, Fox calmly walked away as Madarame helplessly bellowed.

“No wait, please! Don’t leave me behind!” Madarame cried. “Yusuke! YUSUKE!”

Madarame collapsed once more, sobbing as the newest Phantom Thief repelled down the side of the museum. All Fox caught from his peripheral vision was the Shadow dissipating and melding back to his true self.


(Music Playing – Sunset Bridge – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxDHyhylKrw)

May 22nd, 2016 – Shibuya, Outside Madarame's Shack – 4:32 PM

"The destination no longer exists, and has been deleted from the listing for your convenience." With the materialization into reality came a message from the Meta-Nav. "Thank you for your continued patronage."

Ryuji, breathless. signed in relief. “So, uh… we’re in the clear now, yeah?”

“We should be, Ryuji. And good riddance.” Yusuke did not sound as enthused as the words would imply - he just sounded massively tired, both physically and emotionally.

"Yeah. Woo, that got hairy there for a sec…" Chie agreed with a wordless shudder. "Good call on that trick, Yusuke-kun! I don't think we could have beaten those damn copies even if there was just one of them…"

“And… yep, knee's hurting from the drop from the roof.” Ryuji massaged his leg, wincing. “But holy shit. Two us, bastards none."

“And we helped put an innocent woman's soul to rest too." Ann nodded before gleaming with a smile. "All in all, it's been a good day!"

Morgana popped out of the bag. “Great point, Lady Ann - but we should leave before people start getting suspicious of us."

The Shibuya square was busy – as per usual. Yukiko has been on probation long enough to know that the hustle and bustle of Japan’s capital never saw an end. Regardless of this, Yukiko did feel quite hungry and felt the need to splurge at any given restaurant – the Thieves have accrued an obscene amount of money just from their ventures into the Metaverse alone, as for whatever reason, the Shadows seemed keen on dropping loads of yen. Not that they were one to complain that much, of course.

Still, Yukiko felt the need to ask about the Treasure.

“Yusuke, you still have it?” Yukiko inquired politely, smiling softly. “Sometimes, well… treasures change form…”

Thankfully, she didn't have to worry about letting him down gently, as pulled the painting from the ground. "Not this time, thankfully…"

Chie let out a sigh of relief. "Man, I would have been really pissed if that turned into, I dunno, a plain paintbrush or pill bottle..."

"Such as it is, I do not think we should stay here more with a copy of a painting that should not exist much longer - and to be frank, I have no desire to see this place again." Yusuke looked up, studying the shack one last time with an unreadable expression. "…Goodbye, Sensei."

And Yukiko knew that this would be the last time Yusuke would ever call Madarame that.


(Music Continues)

May 22nd, 2016 – Outside the Madarame Art Exhibit– 4:40 PM

Ironically, the best refuge from prying eyes was in close distance to the shack was on the bridge leading to the very spot where the Phantom Thieves had discovered how mendacious Madarame was. After all, if anyone asked why Yusuke was holding something that looked like Sayuri, he could claim (while hopefully not literally holding his nose to stop the smell of irony getting to him) that he was tracing the original from a photo to work on his own skills.

"Weird how police tape makes everything look haunted." Yukiko frowned, looking at the gallery. "I guess he was freaking out about the letters being thrown around the place."

"That is likely why there is a minimum of people here." Yusuke spoke absentmindedly, still focused on the painting. "I can only hope the next time any art in it is shown, it will be properly credited…"

"Yeah, that's poetry or somethin' like that." Ryuji said through his coffee. "…like how this is the most bitter stuff I've ever tasted! Come on, Chie, why'd you get it black?!"

"'Cause the flavored dispenser was closer to the place with tape that makes everything look haunted, of course." Chie bluntly shot back. "I am not ruining this day by freaking myself out…"

"So… Himari Kitagawa…" Ann said a bit quietly, looking over the true painting. "Seeing how much care she put into this… she seems like she would've been a great mom… if she had a chance." She finished awkwardly, looking a bit solemn in practice.

Yusuke shook his head. "To be honest… looking at this now, I still feel like I am beholding a stranger. My rage is more due to discovering a peer was the first and most injured victim of that man…"

"…what did he tell you, anyway?" Chie asked carefully, not wanting to upset Yusuke.

"That my father had died in an accident, and she died of grief not long after. In other words, what I believe he told himself as well - all the better to distance himself from his own actions." He shook his head. "'Sayuri'… that name probably meant nothing in particular. Just a 'marketable touch', as he would put it…" He shook his head. "How poetic it is, that this became the source of Madarame's distorted desires, the rationale for his guilt… the one saving grace is that my mother will not know what transpired. Sadly, the original has been altered in a way I don't think we could explain mundanely - we cannot let the true image be acknowledged by society any more."

"Yeah…" Yukiko sighed glumly. "Unfortunately, even if he confesses to being a murderer and altering the painting, we can't correct the record without exposing ourselves…" 

"But in any case…" He smiled wryly, placing the Sayuri on his back. "I am glad I was right about the rush of emotion I felt when I first beheld this painting. I think that would have pleased her - that her art inspired her son, even unknowingly, to pursue beauty as she had."

"So, what are you gonna do now?" Skull asked, rising from his knee. "We're gonna keep on targetin' big shots."

"…why do you do such things?" Yusuke looked more than a bit cautious. "It is not for the monetary motive - you could get much more yen safely simply by fighting those Shadows. Fame?"

"Eh…?" Ryuji made a 'kinda' gesture. "But we wanna do it for the right reasons. Get back at scumbags and society in general, 'cuz it certainly ain't doling out justice on its own. Give courage to the people who are sufferin' because of selfish adults."

A long pause occurred as Yusuke mused on that.

"Courage, huh… what good does that do? Unless people stand up for themselves, all the ability to stoically endure does is result in less screams of agony. Even if they do, will standing up for themselves make them happy?" He frowned. "I doubt standing up for yourselves without that power would result in much more than being more criminally liable…"

"That's the thing…" Yukiko stepped forward. "It might not. But I can guarantee if nobody stands up for themselves, things will definitely not get better. Won't know unless you try, right?"

"…in other words, it all depends on the person…" He thought out loud. "I suppose I would be a terrible counterexample. I did - and in so doing, developed a power of my own and solved issues I was not aware even existed. Besides, the mind is the limit in Palaces - greater exploration might allow my to expand my inspiration…"

"Then it's settled - welcome to the team!" Chie said with a grin. "Though quick note, we have to vote unanimously to start a heist - no stealing from a guy who was just being a pain about procedure, okay?"

"I will try my best to live up to those expectations - and thank you all, sincerely. Though…" He winced. "I suppose I need to get to cleaning my dorm at Kosei. I believe I will be living there for a while…"

Yukiko chuckled. “We'll help. It's the least we can do. Now… I suppose none of you are opposed for the hopefully traditional celebratory dinner?”

Everybody turned to each other before giving the biggest grins they had all day. Needless to say, nobody had objections with going to Ogikubo for a late-night meal.


(Music Playing – Beneath the Mask - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx-6-wAid70)

May 22nd, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 7:54 PM

What a day.

Those three words echoed throughout Yukiko’s mind as, at long last, she set foot in the café she called home. She was officially out of energy, unable to stay up much longer; with the whirlwind of events that occurred today (complete with Chie, Ryuji and Yusuke eating far more than their fair share; Yukiko’s wallet wept tears of blood), it would be nigh-impossible to blame her for following Morgana's advice and just wanting to go to bed.

Strangely, however, Sojiro wasn’t here today; Yukiko blinked tiredly in surprise at this absence, something Morgana peeped out of Yukiko’s bag to notice long before she did… and something else.

“Hey, Yukiko…” Morgana poked his head out. “Is that a letter on the counter?”

“Hm?” The inn maiden shuffled over, where she saw a letter neatly taped to the wooden counter of the café. Forcing herself to stay up for a few seconds more, she scanned it.

Yukiko,

                I’ve closed shop earlier than usual. Ran into familial problems on my side.

                I want you to lock things up before going to bed, okay? Sorry I wasn’t there to greet you like I should have. I’m already dealing with another teen in my life… and that’s all I’m gonna say on the matter. I’m remaining tight-lipped about everything related to that going forward.

                Still, get some rest. Tomorrow’s another big day at school.

                ~Sojiro

"Oh yeah, he has a stepdaughter, doesn't he…" She mused aloud. "Though he hasn't mentioned her mother…"

It was at that moment she realized she didn't know a great deal of Sojiro's personal life. He wasn’t married… was he? No, that couldn’t be right either way; Sojiro would’ve absolutely been seen with a wife at some point - and if that weird, overly polite creep who came in on her first day of Yukiko's cooking tips was a jealous ex-husband of Mrs. Sakura, it would certainly explain why he and Sojiro did not like each other. And yet, Sojiro seemed like he was up for dating advice… which subsequently led to the image of Sojiro going on dating sites. The cringing that followed caused a part of Yukiko’s innocence to die a little.

Mercifully, Morgana seemed fast to distract from that traumatic mental image. “Well… I don’t think it’s within our jurisdiction to necessarily pry. Everybody has their own fair share of familial drama they have to contend towards, after all.” To illustrate his small comfort, Morgana smiled warmly. “But it doesn’t matter either way! Point is, we’ve managed to steal Madarame’s heart! That’s the important thing to consider amid all of this.”

“Yeah… I know.” Yukiko nodded, before yawning. “I just… well, Sojiro’s kinda like a secondary father figure to me by now. I should be worried about whatever’s going on in his life, y’know?”

“I know that. But we’ll deal with it when it comes up. Sounds good?” Morgana smiled. “For now though, it’s a good time to go to sleep!”

Yukiko, for all her exhaustion, still had enough snark to crack a joke. “Heh. You always say that, Mona.”

“It always is!” Morgana’s cheerful smile told Yukiko all she needed to know about her feline companion’s temperament… as if she didn’t know enough about that by now.

Yukiko simply smiled and rolled her eyes. “Whatever. I’ll see you in the morning, right Morgana?”

She didn’t even hesitate walking up the stairs and just falling on the bed. She didn’t even open up her journal to write her latest entry; indeed, she just fell asleep at the drop of a hat, drifting away to unconsciousness as she failed to notice the buzzing of her phone.


(Music Playing – Morning Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3PUrua7N5k)

May 23rd, 2016 – Café Leblanc, Yongen-Jaya – 6:31 AM

“Up and at ‘em. Time to go to school.”

“Nnnnh… five more minutes…” Yukiko’s eyes fluttered as she was slowly woken up by a familiar, bald figure standing by her bedside – Sojiro. He seemed pretty unenthused that he had to wake up in the morning himself, but all signs pointed to him ultimately dealing with it. Regardless, he simply shook his head and extended a hand.

Yukiko gripped onto it without hesitation.

“When I arrived here, you were comatose. I was not expecting 'literally shaking you awake!” Sojiro chuckled good-heartedly, nonetheless pulling Yukiko on her feet. “Still, I’m not gonna ask what’s gotten you in such a sleepy state… other than I hope you’ve rested well?”

“Mmm… yeah, I did.” Yukiko smiled warmly. “Thanks, Sojiro.”

“My pleasure.” Sojiro shook his head. “Though, I couldn't help but notice you were tense the past couple weeks. Something just came off your shoulders?”

You don't know the half of it. "Yeah… turns out a homework assignment I was really not confident on was fine, actually. So that's a relief."

"…you are the most academic probate I have ever met." Sojiro spoke in slight surprise, raising an eyebrow. But he seemed to buy it.

He seemed ready to go down the stairs without her, before pausing for a split second – instead, he turned to Yukiko with another reminder to give the innmaiden.

“Oh, breakfast should be ready in a bit. I think five minutes can be left behind for that much, yeah?” Sojiro chuckled. “Anyway, do what you need to clean yourself up. I’ll be opening up shop in a bit.”

And just like that, Sojiro walked down the stairs. Morgana seemed to nuzzle out of the backpack that he slept in; apparently, he too was so tired he didn’t even leave his bag! Which is hard to blame him for, given all of the stress that invariably came from yesterday’s heist.

(Music Playing – Break It Down (Alp. Version) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOt6qs2S7bU)

“Man, doesn’t it feel great to be finally free of the looming lawsuit?” Morgana chuckled, as much as a cat could anyways. “I’m just relieved we don’t have to worry about Madarame until things on his end wrap up.”

“Yeah… I don’t blame you.” Yukiko smiled. “I’m happy I am making the world a better place, but… well, to say I didn’t miss the days where there was less adventure would be undercutting things a bit. Really, I’m just surprised I’m saying that much in particular.”

"Mhmm! A Phantom Thief's work really is never done." Morgana snickered, before immediately frowning. "Though actually… doesn't some our members have to deal with other things? Like, Ann with… you know?"

The black-haired innmaiden immediately shot up upon hearing that. Oh, right… A grimace. We still gotta sort out that promise Ann made to Shiho.

Perhaps tellingly, Yukiko gave a nervous chuckle. "Let, me, uh… check to text Ann later today. And if I forget, remind me, alright?"

Morgana mewled happily. "Sure thing, Lady Yukiko!"

Yukiko then opened up her phone. Before immediately looking in shock. 

"Wait, how’d I miss that?!” She exclaimed to nobody in particular.

“Hm?” Morgana poked out. “Missed what, Yuki-chan?”

“…speak of the devil, apparently Ann wanted something. Really bad.” Yukiko paused for a second. “Okay, she stopped after text four, but yeah - hope I wasn't too comatose for an emergency.”

With that, she started texting back.

Yukiko Amagi: Please tell me nobody died.

DanishWeeabo: oh hey!

DanishWeeabo: and thank fuck no

A pause, then.

DanishWeeabo: unless you count ryuji

DanishWeeabo: 23ndof embarrassment.

DanishWeeabo: dont wanna partake in text though; meet me at lunch!!

…this did not answer any of Yukiko's questions.

But, what was the harm?

Yukiko Amagi: See you then.


(Music Playing – City Ambience – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

May 23rd, 2016 – Shujin Academy Commons – 12:03 PM

Somehow, the awkward feeling did not abate when Ann came up to Yukiko in the flesh.

And blushed before she even said anything.

"So." Ann inhaled. "Uhh…"

The curiosity and confusion Yukiko had been feeling was replaced with mild dread.

Ryuji… what did you do?

"Er…" Ann's eyes scrunched, picking her next words carefully. "Let me start this with a preface. I walked Yusuke to the dorm to get an idea where it is, and it's… a mess. It's clear it hasn't been dusted in months, and he was mostly using it for spare art supplies, and one of them spilled, but he's going to have to live there soon, and so I - "

"Ann!" Yukiko raised her hands. "Calm down. What did you want?"

"Well… it's more about what Yusuke might want and - " The penny dropped, as Ann finally broke into a flustered squeak. "Look, just take a look at this!"

With a rather fluid gesture, Ann pulled something out of her uniform in one fell swoop, her now entirely red face looking away from her friend.

The inn maiden looked at…

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

…the single pinkest flyer she had ever seen.

Victoria's Housekeeping Service and Health Delivery

Our Cute Maids are Just A Call Away, Masters!

We will do ANYTHING for you! <3

To emphasize the point, underneath was a photo of a rather attractive woman in a classic French apron and bonnet, which would be quite classy were it not for the cat ear headband.

As she looked closer, Yukiko also couldn't help but notice the maid was a bit… underdressed as well, given her completely bare arms. And shoulders.

The inn maiden looked up at Ann, then back at the flyer, and then back at Ann.

After a long few seconds, she had to suppress a laugh. "Um… Ann?" She snorted. "Did… did you take Shiho to a maid café or something?"

"It isn't mine!" Ann all but pleaded. "Ryuji found it in his mailbox!"

Somehow, the theoretical chain of events that led to Ann having it somehow became even more embarrassing, and thus hilarious. "And you… asked him for it…?"

"No! I mean, yes, but only in passing, and because I was thinking of hiring - that's beside the point!" Ann pocketed it, breathing deeply to reset herself. "Truth is, I called Ryuji about maybe cleaning the dorm, and he made a crack about Yusuke maybe being inspired to paint cat eared maids, and well, I asked him, and...this!" 

Ah. That made… perfect mundane sense.

With the exception of this being obviously some kind of otaku catering fanservice business.

But, it was a plan, at least that's what Yukiko told herself before inhaling. "So… rather than clean it ourselves, you want a maid to do it?"

"It makes sense, right?" Ann said with no small amount of relief. "I mean, maids are trained to clean up paint, I didn't see an age requirement, and a night of services looks like just 5,000 yen, so we can afford Victoria - "

"What's this about a maid?"

As if things couldn't possibly get any more awkward, Yuuki Mishima came rushing up, looking very interested.

Ann's eyes shrunk into her skull. "…Maid… m-made a statue, of Queen Victoria, for our International History class! That we have! I…" Midway through, Ann collapsed, the acting too much of a stretch even for her. "Shit…"

"Mishima…" Yukiko's expression turned teasing. "How much did you hear? And how interested were you in the idea of maids…?"

The former volleyball player blushed. "I-I'm not into it! I overheard you talking about cleaning and - it's just for research!" He puffed himself up in what he apparently thought was a heroic stance. "How is this company keeping its costs so low? And when they say these maids will do 'anything', what do they mean by that?"

Ann blinked owlishly at him. "…since when was 'anything' mentioned?"

"Uh…" Mishima blushed, before taking out his own copy of the flyer. "I… kinda got this in the mail too, and I figured… if the Pha - er, my friends also had the same exact flyer, it must be fate telling us to investigate this company, and watch the maids closely!"

"…sure you do, Mishima." Ann rolled her eyes. "Please - you can tell the truth, and we're doing to this to help a friend, not… oogle maids!"

"Actually…" Yukiko murmured, leaning forward in thought. "I think we might need him."

Ann had a double take to that. "We… we do?!"

"Think about it: the service clearly caters to guys, right?" She continued. "So, if a girl calls them, especially from a boy's dorm room… it'd seem awfully suspicious… like the girl happened to spend a lot of her time in that room, with that boy…"

"I… er…" Ann tried to think of a way out of that logic, and why it would be less embarrassing to seem like Yusuke's rather forward girlfriend than Mishima seeming like a guy calling in for a buddy. "I mean… we could, uh, clean it ourselves…"

Yukiko rose an eyebrow. "Says the woman who instantly leapt on an embarrassing maid service the moment it was presented to her rather than get paint out of the rug?"

Ann slumped in defeat, unable to deny the truth of her own laziness, as Mishima beamed.

"I will do everything in my power to not let you down!" He proclaimed. "Though, uh, we would have to do it at night…"

"More than fair. It'll give us time to ask Yusuke first and let him stay out while his room is being spruced up." Yukiko smiled. "If he says okay though - Operation: Maidwatch is a go!"

Both of the others turned to her in bafflement.

"…we are going to watch her, make sure she doesn't do something that might upset Yusuke, right?" The inn maiden added with a shrug. And then, gave a side glance towards Mishima.

"And nothing else, right?" She said with a glare.

The Shujin bluenette felt like someone had just passed over his grave.


(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 23rd, 2016 – Kosei Academy Dorms. Yusuke's Dorm – 7:15 PM

Operation: Maidwatch began how it was planned.

Very awkwardly.

"Holy - !" Mishima gagged, covering his mouth with his shirt. "…are we sure we just need the one maid?"

Yukiko would have been offended on Yusuke's behalf, except she would have said it less politely. The dorm could be politely described as "dusty", more accurately "coated in fine gray dirt and dust bunnies." The soon-to-be-owner-in-residence had mentioned that Kosei didn't clean dorms without permission when Ann was running the idea by him, and fearing being a financial burden (under Madarame's advice), he had skipped the seasonal check… for three seasons. 

Also a couple of the cans had indeed sprung a leak.

"Yeah… exactly what I was thinking. But if nothing else, she probably knows more about getting up the paint than we do…" Ann shrugged. "So, what are we waiting for?"

She gave Mishima an expectant look.

Mishima, naturally, suddenly looked very nervous. "Ah… y-you know, one of you could claim to be his, I dunno, sister - "

"And if Kosei asks who the maid was, and she was called by the sibling of an only child?" Yukiko pointed out. "They're already on edge - Yusuke has a pretty shady foster father."

"Ah…" The bluenose inhaled, and quickly input the number, putting it on speaker.

"Thank you for calling!" A male voice responded, very professionally chipper. "This is Victoria's Housekeeping! 

"EEK!" Mishima nearly dropped the phone in surprise. "Right - I - ahem! Hi, I'm actually trying to hire a maid for someone else named Kitagawa is that fine?!"

Yukiko blinked at the sheer speed he got that out, suppressing a laugh. Wow, he really wasn't confident about this at all, was he? I almost feel bad - but on the other hand, this is a joy to watch. What to do… what to do…

The receptionist, at least, was apparently used to it. "That you may! We appreciate your kindness for your fellow master at Victoria. Is there anyone in specific you wish to request?"

"Why would they ask - " Ann began, only to be shushed by Yukiko before she alerted the secretary to a girl in the room.

"Uh - no one specific! Just - just someone who doesn't mind cleaning dry paint up!" 

"Very good! And… ah! A maid with that exact qualification is available in, oh, fifteen minutes. May I ask for the master's address?"

Mishima managed to slow himself enough to report the directions, and with a final polite sign-off, the shy athlete turned off his phone with a sigh of relief.

After a few minutes of waiting around, the trio began to think.

"…you know, if she gets done with the paint early, we could ask her to cook for us." Ann began, looking a bit eager.

"You aren't satisfied from the previous two days?" Yukiko paused, thinking about what she just said. "Wait… of course not. I have to admire your metabolism in that…"

"It sounds great, until you realize you're always a little hungry." Ann admitted. "Still, I'll bet this is the first time that maid has ever had girls as her clients… especially two high school girls."

"Yeah…" Mishima thought. "Wait - you did say Victoria allows high school students to use their services, right?"

"First thing I checked!" Ann replied, beaming. "Apparently, they specifically note you just have to be 16 or over to use them, though they did note that they forbid some services like massages and haircuts. Also, maids offer haircuts. I was today years old when I learned that."

Yukiko frowned. "Massages I get, but why are haircuts age gated?" A pause. "…do I want to know?"

"...probably not!" Both Mishima and Ann answered simultaneously, blushing.

A few more minutes. Then…

"Wait…" Yukiko frowned. "Does Kosei allow maid services? It seems like a fetish-y maid showing up would result in the school facing awkward questions…"

There was a long pause.

Ann's mouth slowly turned into an "oooh" shape. 

"…you're telling me we may have just broken a law?!" A very pale Mishima exclaimed. "What if they find out who we are?!"

"How would I know?!" Ann shot back. "And if they're letting minors do it, it's not like the maids are call girls or something!" She paused. "At least, I don't think they are… that pamphlet had a lot of pink and hearts on it…"

"Ugh. Thank all that is holy I blocked my caller ID…" Mishima said with a bit of relief. "We really would've been screwed if we ended up in the records of a borderline sex service - "

(Music Abruptly Stops)

(Sound Effect - Door Buzzer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kSYTMyO_as)

The trio spun around as the doorbell went off.

"Good evening~! Is this Kitawagawa's residence? I'm from a housekeeping service! Your friend sent me here!" A cheerful voice rung out.

Mishima spun to his phone. "…she's eight minutes early!"

Huh. Punctual employees. Assuming I don't get busted, this job just earned a star, Yukiko thought, dumbly.

"Crapcrapcrapcrap - I'm not prepared - " Ann began.

(Music Playing – Sweet – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6TRo-6Dylw)

"Oh, the door's unlocked! Um, may I come in?"

"Please do!" Yukiko said, automatically. And winced.

"Oh dammit now we have to - I'm not ready for this!" Ann rushed over to the inn maiden. "You're Kitagawa now - just don't let her find out you're a Shujin student, or ideally, a highschooler at all! Mishima and I will intervene if there's a problem!"

With that, she ran into the bathroom, followed closely by Mishima.

Yukiko was still processing this, not noticing the presence creeping up behind her.

"Excuse me…" From the corner of her eye, the inn maiden saw a bit of a uniform, and a brown pigtail. "Kitagawa-sama, I believe?"

"…hello." Yukiko said, dialing down her voice in attempt to seem older. And trying to suppress giggling at the overly respectful suffix.

"…welcome home, Master! Or Madame, if you would prefer?" The maid giggled, the pigtail bobbing as she curtsied. "I'm going to fill your heart full of lovely energy! Meow!"

Yukiko felt glad she was facing away from the maid at that moment, lest she see her wince in sympathy at the obvious character she was playing. 

As well as the furrowed brow. Something about that voice...

"I'm Becky, and I have the pleasure of serving you today…" The maid's voice trailed off as she noticed the job she was hired for. "Though, I may wish the pleasure of serving you again. This seems like a two-day job!"

At no point did the cheer falter, though Yukiko suspected that Becky's jaw had dropped at some point.

"…nice to mee-ow-t you, too." She said, deciding that it might be best to play along.

"We are going to get along so well! Meeeoowww!" The cheerful tone intensified a bit, to the point where Yukiko suspected the most sincere part of that mew was the "ow" part.

"…if it makes you feel more comfortable, I can stop the roleplay on my end." She said with a smile.

Becky let out a breath that sounded suspiciously like oh thank God, and Yukiko's brow furrowed further. "Oh, but I am the servant here! I appreciate your kindness, Madame! Which reminds me, I should explain my services to you! What would you like me to do today? The basics include cooking, laundry, cleaning… but we provide other services if you desire..."

Ah, hell. Victoria is something that sells itself on sex… Yukiko thought, unhappily. Why did they give out flyers to high-schoolers, for crying out loud?!

A pause …wait, does she know this is a high school dorm?

Immediately, she changed course. "Cleaning is fine, actually!" She interjected, the octave slipping. "Really, that's all I wanted to do - as you can tell, I'm trying to move back in here, and, well…" She gestured at the paint.

Becky paused for a second, as she walked closer. "Hmm? But… this is for students, isn't it? You look rather young, Madame…"

So she did know it was a dorm. Which raised further questions about what the script for Victoria's maids were, if they were still required to flirt with clients regardless of age or gender. It certainly did not speak well of Becky's employers. 

But she had to keep her own age secret, so, mind racing, Yukiko thought of a good role for "Ms. Kitagawa" to be.

The free association process she went through involved a certain painting.

"I'm actually a mom." She said instinctively. Somehow, she resisted the urge to slap herself for her stupidity and possibly defilement of the dead. 

"…wow! Your skin's so… healthy!", Becky said, in a tone that almost disguised her skepticism.

…okay, screw this. Plan B.

"…yeah, this isn't working," Yukiko said, dropping her false voice. "Listen, I'm sorry, but I actually wasn't the person who called you - I wanted someone to help me with this paint, and I guess a friend thought you were just a maid service, and - "

(Music Fades Out)

The scheme to apologetically explain what happened (the truncated version) was sadly cut off by, in the bathroom, Mishima accidentally stepping on Ann's foot. "Ow!"

"Sorry!" He said - not realizing how perceptive Becky's hearing was.

"Huh!?" The cheerful tone vanished. "Is someone there?!"

"…crap!" Ann hissed.

Becky walked forward, and Yukiko got a good look at the back of her head for the first time. "Mishima-kun? Takamaki-kun?"

It took a second for the bombshell to land in "Kitagawa's" head.

…huh. So she knows us.

…SHE KNOWS US?!

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

"…and you!?" She said, spinning around. "Did you request me specifically?!"

For a single, blessed moment, Yukiko did not connect the dark brown eyes, the thin nose, the hair color, and the pensive, stern expression to the voice, or process the voice was familiar to her.

Then her mind's eye removed "Becky's" pigtails, made her hair a bit disheveled, made her expression downcast and rich in self-loathing, and dressed her in a yellow shirt and denim skirt.

After a few seconds of staring, Yukiko became vaguely aware her mouth was hanging open, jaw unable to work.

How?

Just… how?

What led to this?

Why did she moonlight as a maid?

How was she the closest employee to a different school entirely?!

WHY DID SHE HAVE A CLEAVAGE WINDOW?!

Sadayo Kawakami, Japanese Language Teacher and Apparently Paint-Certified Maid, glared at Yukiko expectantly. "Did Ms. Chouno put you up to this?! I am going to murder that harpy - "

There was noises of sputtering as the other two unknowing students of Becky put it together, and rushed out to see for themselves.

The most awkward moment in the history of moments passed as Kawakami turned to fact the two of them.

After a few long seconds, Ann inhaled. "…huh." A pause. "…What. The fuck."

"…ebwhaaaaaaaaaaaht." Mishima agreed in the only language left to him at this point.

Kawakami gave the longest sigh Yukiko had ever heard from her - not a small feat - and looked up to the heavens.

"Why?" She asked the Man Upstairs pleadingly. "What have I done to deserve this?"

The sheer absurdity of the situation hit, and Yukiko forced herself to not laugh, despite everything in her lungs telling her to.

"Uhhh…" Ann realized she needed to defuse the situation fast, and cleared her throat. "Actually, what Yukiko said is true - nobody put us up to this, we were just trying to clean it for a friend - ask Yusuke Kitagawa, he'll confirm it!"

Kawakami's eyes just turned sad. "So, in other words…" She slumped. "It was a total coincidence. And it was my own students. I'm done. I'm so done."

Yukiko held her breath to avoid destroying the teacher's dignity even further.

"Aaaah - " Mishima cut in, desperately trying to help. "I promise, we won't tell - we'll even help you get Ms. Chouno off your back, if you promise to not, er… tell anyone…"

"Uh-huh? And how are you going to do that?" She slumped against the wall. "She's been so involved because she's scared of another Kamoshida being on staff. If she found out I'm around teenage boys and dressing in… this…" She looked down at her cleavage, leaving the implication obvious.

Yukiko began to feel faint from the effort.

"…if it helps, you look really cute in that!" Ann said, desperately. "…that's not actually any better, is it?"

"Look - it's an awful coincidence, but it's just a job - we don't think any less of you…" Mishima trailed off. "Um, why is she turning blue?"

Yukiko looked up. Funny, nobody looked blueish.

Though, they were kind of dark.

And blurry…

And then she was aware that she was on the ground, vision darkening into black.

"…I'll get my car!" Kawakami's voice echoed from a far-off distance, before Yukiko lost consciousness completely.


(Music Playing – Suspicion - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

May 23rd, 2016 - Yongen-Jaya, Takemi Clinic - 8:25 PM

"You know…" Dr. Takemi said, as she swam into view. "If I had two hundred yen for every time you woke up here due to your own stupidity, I would have four hundred yen. Which isn't much, but it's alarming it happened twice."

Truth was, as her breathing had reverted to autonomous reflex as soon as she passed out, Yukiko had regained consciousness in the back of Kawakami's car, at had enough presence of mind to at least help get herself into the clinic.

That was the good news. The bad news was, this had reinforced Yukiko's desire to never be knocked unconscious ever again. The trip was awful, being spent swimming in and out of unconsciousness and the nightmares of a brain that realized something was wrong.

"Ugh… and it didn't even work to save Kawakami-sensei's dignity…" She gestured to the outside, where Kawakami had hurriedly changed out of her uniform and into casual wear that was… a lot like her teaching wear, albeit with a brown coat.

Unfortunately it was a bit late, as Ann had instinctively called the other Phantom Thieves to help with getting their leader to medical help. And in the drive, Kawakami didn't have a chance to change out before two EMTs of convenience got a good look at her in full apron.

Ryuji, for his part, looked like he was still debating between the entire episode being the best or worst day of his life, while Chie was busy looking anywhere other than her teacher. 

"So…" Ryuji began, hesitantly. "Victoria. What's it like?"

"Mostly teenagers…" Kawakami mumbled from the seat she had curled up in, head on her knees. "Late high school and college girls, trying to pay for it."

"Ah. Makes sense." The bottle blonde shook his head. "…wow. Dodged a bullet there I guess. I'm in enough trouble without hirin' my teacher to clean dishes' on my record…"

"Yeah. Except Yuki has it now…" Chie rubbed her temple. "…why a maid, anyway? Are there… any better moonlighting jobs than 'cater to gross otaku'?"

"Actually, there are. But most of them aren't around Shujin." Kawakami groused. "This allows me to get straight to Shujin after my shift's over. And it's the only one that pays enough to deal with my money problems…"

"…and this is why you're so tired all the time, I take it?" Ann finished, sympathetically. 

"Got it in one…" She yawned. "I… I barely have enough energy to get through the lessons without falling asleep…"

"…you know, we could help out with that." Ryuji said, looking a bit sad for Kawakami. "You gotta be one of the only ones in Shujin who gives a crap if we succeed."

Kawakami gave a thin smile. "Thanks, but - no thanks. I really don't want to - "

She got cut off by her phone ringing. "…ah, shit. The staff meeting… which means…" With an expression of absolute dread, she rose it to her ear.

"…hello, Ms. Chouno." she began, dully. "I know I'm late. It's an emergency." She frowned. "With a student - I know I didn't alert you, but why do you want proof - she probably can't even speak right now - I was there to - "

An idea, and possibly a way to save Kawakami's job, sparked in Yukiko. "…sensei, put her on speaker. Mishima, stay quiet for a second…"

Confused, but looking desperate enough to try, Kawakami hit the button.

"Ms. Chouno, right?" Yukiko said, raising her voice.

"…Amagi?" The confused voice of the somewhat sultry English Language teacher came over. "You're the one with the emergency?"

"Yeah, I am." She said with a deep breath. "It was my own fault - I was trying to juggle her tutoring sessions with my part-time jobs, and I neglected my own health…"

Kawakami caught on. "Y… Yeah! I needed the money, so I've been taking a public tutoring job!" She seized on. "She's not the only one either, her friends are here in the hospital too! Say hi!"

"…hi!"

"Yo."

"…please don't fire her…"

Chouno made a noise of understanding. "…wow. I was way off. And…" She inhaled. "I owe you a sincere apology. I admit, I was kind of singling you out, because I assumed you were skipping the work, not moonlighting. Don't worry, I'll keep this on the down-low, in case Kobayakawa isn't as understanding."

"You… you will?!" The other teacher-cum-maid said, shocked.

"Believe me, America has a pretty f… fragged education system, but even they've got a clue when it comes to teachers caring about the difficult cases. I'm not going to pry - gotta go, meeting's starting, I'll say you had car trouble." With that, she clicked off.

Kawakami looked like she was about to burst into tears of joy. "Th… thank you…"

"No problem, Sensei." Yukiko said with a smile. Followed shortly by a frown. "Though… now for your other job, given how you rescued a 'client'…"

Kawakami paused. "Actually… could I have a pen for a sec?"

Takemi, who had been watching this all with rapt attention, handed it over.

"Here's my private number for a call - use a public phone to avoid leaving a record. I think we might have something to discuss…"


(Music Playing - What's Going On - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRnVhnxRhSs)

May 24th, 2016 – Shibuya, Main Street – 5:14 PM

After the… rather unique set of circumstances that was the day before, everyone involved agreed that their brains needed a break. Thankfully, school was at an ebb, so that meant that they could goof off - and enjoy some cheerfully mindless movies.

“That was awesome! We totally need to go again, Yukiko!”

The Innmaiden smiled warmly at her friend’s enthusiasm, having just walked out of the theater with her, having watched the premiere of The Cake Knight Rises on the recommendation of Ryuji, a rather silly film about a baker superhero who goes on to save the city from crime.

It was exactly the kind of dumb film one expected from the premise alone, but no less entertaining in Yukiko’s eyes. After all, with her friend’s irrational fear of horror, a compromise of some kind had to be made. It helped that the movie knew exactly how dumb it was and milked it for intentional comedy between the pastry-based acrobatics.

“Heh. Yeah, I’ll admit I had a lot of fun spending this time with you!” Yukiko smiled happily. “I absolutely wouldn’t mind doing it again with you.”

“Haha, you think so?” Chie rubbed the back of her head sheepishly, laughing awkwardly. “Well… I wouldn’t mind all that much either.”

Smiles were exchanged - shortly before Chie seemed distracted by something, and an awkward silence befell the pair.

Yukiko, astute as ever, picked up on this. “Hm? Is there something wrong, Chie?”

“Huh? Oh, uh… nothing, really.” Chie laughed awkwardly. “I was just thinking about the last time we hung out.”

Yukiko remembered quite clearly - the Grasshopper Incident was kind of hard to forget, as shown by it being worthy of capital letters.

Regardless, Yukiko swallowed these thoughts and smiled. “…to be honest, that grasshopper was a jump scare.”

Chie shuddered. “Y-Yeah. Even after that pep talk, though - I realized I might have blocked you from seeing something you wanted. I’m sorry for freaking out like that, Yukiko.”

“Hey, c’mon. It isn’t your fault; I can assure you that much, at the very least.” Yukiko nodded with assurance. “I can catch Human Ichneumon 3 when it comes out on video - I mean it is a sequel to a sequel to a surprise horror movie, how good can it - "

(Music Abruptly Stops)

“H-Help! Please, somebody help!”

"God, why do you have to be such a pain in the ass? Just cough up the money and we’ll be on our way!”

(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

“…huh?” Yukiko stiffened. “Hey, do you hear that Chie?”

Chie frowned immediately, before turning to a nearby alleyway. “…yeah, I did. C’mon, Yuki!”

Both girls continued to press onwards down the alleyway, and before long, a young boy and three delinquent-seeming figures were in full view.

“W-What do you want with me?!” The boy cried fearfully. “I-I wanna go home! M-Mama, help – OOF!”

The young boy gasped for air as the leader of the three delinquents – an oddly charismatic sort of punk – punched him hard in the gut, leading to the young boy to keel over. “If you know what’s good for you, you little bitch, I suggest you give us what money you have! You don’t want to go back to your “precious widdle Mama” with a few broken bones, do you?”

“Huh?! Hey! Hey!” Chie quickly intervened. “What the hell are you doing?! He’s a kid, damnit! Just lay off, already!”

“Huh?!” A muscular-looking punk looked at the two girls before cracking a stupid smile. “Aww, if it isn’t a cute knight in shining armor! What’s your problem, girly?”

“Eh, just ignore her, Joichi. She’ll know what’s best for her if she gets the hell outta dodge.” The leader of the group kicked the boy’s stomach, provoking further responses from Yukiko and Chie.

“Agh…” Yukiko looked utterly disgusted.

“I SAID KNOCK IT OFF! What’s your deal like that, bullying that kid?!” Chie seethed with pure anger on her face. “IF YOU’VE GOT A PROBLEM WITH SOMEBODY, TAKE IT OUT ON ME DAMNIT! I’M THE ONE YOU WANT!”

The delinquent to the right gave a cheeky smile before glancing at their leader. “Hey boss, who the fuck is this little bitch? Should we kick both of their asses?”

“Pfft, you’re kidding, right? They’re not worth the bruises.” The leader snorted. “I’m sure they’re only here to give themselves self-gratification for helping this little runt, don’t you, ‘heroes’?”

“Hell no!” Chie barked. “It isn’t right to prey on a child like that! LAY OFF, GODDAMNIT!”

“What the fuck is your problem, huh?!” The right punk named Joichi seethed. “Do you wanna die, you little whore?!”

“Joichi, lay off.” The leader motioned, barely keeping him constrained. “…fine, we’ll go. But you’re not gonna be as lucky if you keep this bullshit up, y’know. So fuck off if you know what’s best for you; it’s only out of good grace that we’re letting you walk.”

“Guys, c’mon…” The delinquent nodded. “These bitches aren’t worth it. Let's go.”

And just like that, the delinquents ran away, leaving a sobbing, bruised young boy and the two female teenagers.

(Music Stops)

“What an absolute scumbag…” Chie seethed. “Preying on the weak like that? Disgusting.”

Yukiko would’ve had more to add to that hateful comment, but she merely nodded in agreement.

Almost as though in an instant, Chie’s expression became far more tender and understanding. She kneeled on one leg to meet the crying little boy, before softly speaking. “Hey, are you okay?”

A moment of silence, before a strangled sob. “No.”

Chie winced. “I’m really sorry that those bullies hurt you like that… do you want me to call the police and get those guys to – “

“W-Why would you?” The little boy seethed angrily. “The police don’t do anything with those jerks.”

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

“Wait… what the hell?!” Chie’s jaw nearly hit the floor. “What do you mean the police don’t do anything about it?! Isn’t the whole point of the police to protect and – “

"Serve? Don’t make me laugh.” The young boy growled. “All cops are bastards - and bastards do what they're paid for. That's Yoshiki Kagiyama - richest asshole in town. You call the cops on him, they'll help him beat you. You get something to stick, his parents will sue you, and the judge will thank them for protecting their little snot. Cops help you, because you have money."

Chie looked taken aback. "…has anyone ever tried? I mean, I get that spoiled kids are bad, but - "

"My big bro did. He's serving two months because he slapped Yoshiki off me."

Chie was utterly stunned into silence by that. For the first time in seemingly ages, she was at a complete loss of words.

Yukiko was too - this kid had grown up fast.

“I…” Chie muttered weakly. “I never knew that – “

“That’s what the police you say “protect and serve” really do? Well now you know, lady.” The boy seethed. “Get out of my sight. I’m done.”

The boy tried to sound intimidating, but the light sob in his voice indicated how hurt he was. Chie just stood there long after the boy left, her mouth agape and Yukiko further in this awkward silence.

“They’re…” Chie said, in complete and utter silence. “They… they arrested his brother for standing up to a bully?!”

I could ask the cops who took me in the same question, frankly. Yukiko thought, sourly.

Chie’s face contorted as she clenched her fists tightly, trying to ignore the pooling sense of anger and sadness within her. Yukiko too the moment to rest her hand on Chie’s right shoulder, which helped untense Chie quite a bit.

“Chie… it really isn’t your fault,” Yukiko nodded. “Let it go.”

“But…” Chie bit her lip. “I just can’t let it go! I can’t just watch and sit as this thing happens! Not when the police aren’t doing anything…!”

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

Chie noticeably relaxed a shook her head. “I’m… I’m sorry. I really shouldn’t have acted out like that. It’s all my fault…”

“You’re kidding, right?! It isn’t!” Yukiko looked aggravated. “You had no control over that situation, Chie! Quite frankly, you’ve done the right thing by trying to intervene! Who cares if you didn’t succeed, trying to make things better is certainly a step up from apathy!”

“I know, but…! But…” Chie lost her will to fight back as she realized how much sense Yukiko made. Instead, she teared up a bit. “You’re right… you’re really right about this… it’s just…”

Chie, quite notably, began crying a bit. “I… I thought the police cared about people… that they wouldn’t side with the bully…!”

“C-Chie…” Yukiko, for once, didn’t know how to respond. She quietly remembered how Chie wanted to become a police officer one day – she knew that protecting those who can’t stand for themselves meant a lot to her, and she undoubtedly sympathized with that cause. Quietly, she placed her left hand on Chie’s shoulder while her right hand wiped some tears from her best friend’s eyes. Chie didn’t resist.

“You didn’t do anything wrong, like I said,” Yukiko gently smiled. “I promise you, we will fix this. Together. As long as it has to take, I promise.”

“Y-Yukiko…” Chie sniffled a bit, before smiling gently. “Th-Thank you so much… Y-You’re such a good friend, you know what?”

“Hey, friends are there to stick up for each other, right?” Yukiko grinned. “If I recall correctly, you mentioned that sentiment a while back.”

“Heh. I don’t really remember whether I did or not…” Chie smiled weakly. “But either way… it still holds true. Thank you so much, Yuki.”

Yukiko blinked. “…actually, I just realized… why do you call me that?”

“H-Huh?! Oh, you don’t like being called that nickname? It just kinda came out of the blue when I said that to you… it’s what I called a friend back when I lived in Yasoinaba, haha…” Chie rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

For a second, Yukiko nearly told her that it was likely that she herself was that friend...

And suddenly, it became impossible to move her mouth.

…GOD DAMMIT, I HATE THIS IN ROMANCE MOVIES! She internally screamed, trying to force her treacherous tongue to move. TELL HER, DAMMIT!

It, however, was apparently far more into clichés than she was. For all of her boldness… admitting that Chie was her childhood friend and likely her crush was just a bridge too far.

"…Yuki?". Chie said after a second. "You okay?'

Giving up on the fight, Yukiko smiled. "S… Sorry. I was just reminiscing on my own past. And… Yuki is fine."

Regardless of her self-sabotage, Yukiko opened up her arms and Chie happily hugged her friend. If absolutely nothing else, Chie and Yukiko’s friendship was even stronger now.

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

VICTORY (VII) RANK UP! RANK 4

Victory Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Chie’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

“W-Well, uh… this was nice, I gotta say.” Chie smiled. “We’ll… we’ll get even with those jerk Kagiyama punks, right?”

Yukiko squeezed her friend’s hand a bit tighter in reassurance. “Yeah, don’t worry about it. We’re certainly gonna get even, Chie.”

“Yuki…” Chie smiled, tearing up a bit. “Th-Thank you so much…”

Yukiko had a small smile as she ended up parting ways with her best friend.

Not yet… but perhaps, one day I will.

Notes:

IT. IS. DONE. And good riddance!

Genuine apologies for the wait, all. I was… well, caught up in a lot of shit, but I'm glad I got to update it! I just hope I did Madarame justice here, as with Yusuke. But while Yukiko didn't get to say anything yet, Ann will soon - next chapter, guaranteed!

I wonder what'll happen then, yes?~ ;)

Anyways, see you all next time!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 19
Chie: Lv. 17
Ryuji: Lv. 17
Ann: Lv. 16
Morgana: Lv. 16
Yusuke: Lv. 16

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 4
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 4
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

Chapter 14: Fall of Vanity

Summary:

Come the end of the Madarame heist, Yukiko finally has a chance to sit back, relax, and more fervently enjoy the leisure of life at her own pace. Alongside… other things.

Especially a unison between a blonde and a broken volleyball player.

Notes:

Good to be back! Really, I must give my own thanks to Leliel12 for helping prove so crucial to revising this chapter; to say he's gone and outdone himself would be greatly undercutting it. So thanks a ton, Leliel, for helping me out while my knowledge of Persona tends to the rusty for the time being.

Anyways, enough of that! We have a lot of new stuff to deal with regarding this time period; and with the fall of Madarame in sight, that means… *gasp* Ann and Shiho time! So that's something I'm wholeheartedly looking forward to, and I hope you enjoy it. :D

Not much else to say now. Let's rock and roll!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 19
Chie: Lv. 17
Ryuji: Lv. 17
Ann: Lv. 16
Morgana: Lv. 16
Yusuke: Lv. 16

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 3
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 4
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 4
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 1

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Tokyo Daylight – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GBciQVf_PI)

May 25th, 2016 – Tokyo, Shibuya Station – 7:04 AM

It was a beautiful morning in Tokyo; the birds were chirping, the people were lively, the sun was bright… and best of all, Yukiko had the first good night of sleep since being targeted by Madarame’s legal team. Best of all, they cleared the entire Palace with aplomb.

And absolutely none of that stopped Yukiko's mood from having turned rather dark and depressive.

The innmaiden drearily grumbled as she double-checked to make sure she had enough change for the train ticket; bullet trains waited for no one, after all. By all rights, she should have been a hell of a lot more happy across the board; they stole the heart of another Palace owner, saving themselves and Yusuke from a bad lawsuit, and thanks to one more Palace down, another section of Mementos was open to exploration, much to Morgana's joy. (“C’mon guys! The sooner we learn more about who I am and where I came from, the better!”)

Yukiko couldn’t fault Morgana’s enthusiasm. Nobody could, not straight after coming off of the heels of an entire heist that was, oddly enough, starting to look routinely by the numbers. Though one thought led to another and Yukiko was soon muttering some dark things, just thinking about Kamoshida’s sexual abuse and Madarame’s sociopathic rationalizations for his treatment of both Yusuke and earlier Himari. And finally, discovering that apparently, bullying children apparently was not a crime for the right price. Especially that last part.

Silver lining, it showed why she was ironically fortunate in getting exiled from the Inn after all this time. Misanthropy was looking more appealing by the day, and inn management meant dealing with all people - including and especially rich assholes.

…well, maybe not entirely unironic. Her leaving home was a good thing, being free… right?

Yukiko Amagi wisely chose not to dwell on that question for long, as it would’ve brought her mood further down into the depths of agonizing angst Hell.

“W-Wait!” Before long, Yukiko barely squeezed through the train doors before it shuttered close, sighing heavily in relief. Amid the dozens of people condensed on such a crowded train, she grabbed onto one of the hand-rails at the last possible moment, causing her to nearly fall over as the train lurched to life.

“Next stop, Aoyama-Itchome. Repeat: next stop, Aoyama-Itchome.”

The train began speeding without too much hesitation.

“Well, you certainly got lucky you squeezed through in time.” Morgana peeped out of Yukiko’s bag to give a rather smarmy grin. “Otherwise, well… you’d have to explain to the teachers why you’re late, huh?”

Yukiko simply shook her head in a rather dreary fashion. “Yeah, I know. You don’t need to remind me now, though.”

The mascot winced upon realizing his joke failed to make the landing, given his audience’s mood. “Ouch! Sorry, I’ll leave you be. I can see you’re not exactly in the mood for teasing, huh?”

I can only imagine why. Yukiko wanted to snark, but decided Morgana didn’t deserve her rare moments of pure sarcasm. Instead, she rolled her eyes, before nonetheless putting on her best smile. “Well, nevermind me. You’re really excited that we’re going in Mementos soon, aren’t you?”

“Yep! Born and ready to, no less!” In Morgana’s bag, he did the closest equivalent a felinoid figure could do to a karate post. “Cower before me, eaters of memory! For I, Shinobi Morgana, shall reclaim my memories, AND MY REVENGE!”

“Excuse me, but… is there a way to calm the cat? It's making it hard to focus on my next match…”

“…huh?” Yukiko quickly turned to see a woman in a Kosei High blazer, with odd red streaks in her hair… and a… shogi board?

“Oh, sorry miss! Is there something you need?” Yukiko shook off her surprise to fake the best smile she could, glancing down at the girl from Kosei High.

The girl paused, before awkwardly clearing her throat. “…not really. Excuse me.”

She moved to the next seat over, out of sight, all after giving a courteous bow.

“Huh… she was out in a hurry.” Yukiko blinked before turning towards his furry companion. “Morgana, wasn’t that a Kosei High blazer she wore?”

“Yep, got a clear sight of the blue and white.” Morgana nodded. “'Next match'… you think that's a professional shogi player? Actually, you think Yusuke may know her?”

“Beats me. I should probably ask him later.” Yukiko smiled a bit more genuinely, getting a pretty small chuckle. “I was… actually never all that into chess or shogi. I know, surprising given my heritage of the Amagi Inn, but still…”

"Maybe you should get into it - helps with tactical awareness. And besides…" The felid felon chuckled with a rather wicked expression. "Few things cheer up a bad mood than schadenfreude at a raging loser you just beat."

An unbidden image of Yukiko cackling maniacally as she declared checkmate over a purpled-faced egomaniac in glasses came to her mind.

"…heh." She smiled, feeling the mood clear. "You're not wrong. I do feel better."


(Music Playing - What's Going On - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRnVhnxRhSs)

May 25th, 2016 – Shibuya, Outside of Untouchable – 3:14 PM

A little under a weak passed ever since Madarame’s heart has been stolen – and in defiance of the concept of down-time, they were dense in terms of life events for Yukiko.

Fairly minor life events, but some important underpinnings to making sure there was a life outside of Phantom Thievery. Yukiko took it upon herself to catch up on some of her other relationships with both fellow Thieves and some of her growing contact list: both Ann and Ryuji were now closer to her than ever before after they opened up some of their issues with Yukiko, and Yoshida, Caroline and Justine all managed to get along well even moreso than before – nevermind how her relationship with Sojiro was a bit stronger now to wit. There was a bunch of time was one rife with the for potential social interaction, and Yukiko was not going to waste it,

Most notably, however, was her relationship with Chie evolving quickly, what with her opening up about long seated worries she had with Yoshiki and his gang harassing children on the street with impunity. Which resulted in an idea she had to gather evidence, and force the issue some other way; if the police wouldn't help, the Yoshiki's parents might.

Which was why they were in carboard boxes, coiled like vipers with binoculars and cameras.

“I just wanna say I’m really thankful you’re doing this for me, Yuki.” Chie smiled sweetly. “So thanks! It’s really gonna be a helping hand to have somebody make sure those assholes harassing those children are brought to justice!”

Yukiko’s reply to her (she wasn't kidding herself) crush's enthusiasm was to suppress a light giggle and simply smile and nod. “It’s really the least I can do, Chie. I’m just grateful I have the opportunity to be with you on this.”

“Haha, hell yeah! Nobody preys on the weak without Chie Satonaka’s say on the matter!” Chie pumped her fists in the air. “Imagine: cruel bullies preying on those weaker than themselves… but then! Like a dragon in the night, a green-clad martial artist promptly whoops their butts and ends up dragging them STRAIGHT TO THE DEPTHS OF HELL! HWAA-CHA!”

“Snrk… heeheehee… C-Chie, that was – that was – “

Unfortunately, Chie’s martial arts pose caused Yukiko to, once again, burst in one of her trademark laughing fits, giggling profusely as she desperately tried not to fall on the floor, rolling and laughing around. Chie simply pouted and sighed softly in reply, shaking her head gently.

“Oh, jeez… how much do you end up doing this to me, huh?” Chie sighed, shaking her head. “Good grief, Yukiko, you’re gonna kill me here…”

“Umm… excuse me?”

(Music Playing – Suspicion – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_cAs1sD5-8)

“Hahahaha… snrk… h-huh?” Yukiko just finished her latest laughing fit only to turn around to a young boy in a face-concealing hoodie who was right behind her. For a moment, she thought that the Kagiyama gang had a spotter… but, no, he looked genuinely concerned.

“I, um… overheard you talking about Yoshiki and his, umm… posse.” The young boy seemed hesitant on the choice of words, almost as if he was afraid of being beaten up. “They’re, uh… out today. The Kagiyama family’s having a reunion in Nagoya.”

“W-What? That’s not what I heard…” Chie paused to think about what this boy said, before turning red. “Um, how much have you overheard us?”

The young boy minced no words. “Everything. Including what sounded like hysterical laughter.”

Yukiko turned deep read upon that being brought up, lowering her face in shame. “…s-sorry.”

“It’s fine. I understand you found it funny.” The boy sighed. “Well, I suppose I should introduce myself. I’m Takeshi.”

"Takeshi. I…" Chie blinked as she got a good look at his face. "…wait. Aren't you the guy they were bullying?"

"Yeah…" He shrugged. "I… kinda know their daily patrols by now…"

It took all of Chie’s restraint to shrug off what he said in that moment. “N-No. Umm… it seems awfully convenient for you to notify he’s not here, but thanks! Guess we’ll have to do the stake-out another day…”

Chie sounded less enthused than she wanted to come off as. Regardless, the young boy nodded. “Mm. And uh… I actually wanted to say I'm sorry for snapping at you like that. I was upset, and like mom said… you tried.”

Yukiko got the sense Takeshi really needed a vacation, especially from the forlorn, defeated tone in "you tried", but she nonetheless nodded. “Well… regardless, make sure you get home safe, okay? Don’t want you being mugged or anything, right?”

“Mhmm. I’ll be sure. And… thank you.” The boy smiled, a wan, small thing. “You… you’re all doing the place a favor, being so earnest. Well… bye."

And just like that, the boy left the area in full, leaving a depressed Chie.

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

Chie simply sighed. “People, I present to you… someone deeply broken. I kinda feel bad for seeing him like this, it's like gawking at a body in a car crash.”

A pause. But Yukiko walked up to Chie and patted her friend on the back. “Hey, look at it like this. The boy knows good people exist – the fact we’re here to solve problems like these are evident of that, right?”

Chie bit her lip, but she was nonetheless comforted by that. “Mm… yeah, you can say that. I just… bear a lot of guilt over how that bastard Kamoshida got away with so much and I didn’t do anything. I just… made some mean posts, and convinced myself that was enough… all to make me feel better.”

Chie, in that moment, began tearing up. “All because I’m such an idiot who wants to be a cop, 'scept the cops are the bad guys, but I tell myself that I'd be the honest one, then I would just be able to fix everything through, I dunno, positive thinking, and then – “

Yukiko unceremoniously hugged Chie.

“W-Waah?! Y-Yukiko?!” Chie turned beet red. “Let go, people are seeing!”

Yukiko simply giggled, clinging Chie tighter – she knew despite her protest, Chie wasn’t exactly opposed to it. Regardless, Yukiko relented, simply smiling at her friend.

“Relax… you’re doing the right thing, Chie.” Yukiko smiled. “If you weren’t, why are we here then? To no longer feign ignorance to how others are suffering… that’s what it means to be a Phantom Thief, right?”

Chie processed this… before nodding. And before long, giving a genuine smile, albeit a very shaky and sad one.

“Yeah… that’s true. I… forgot about what we did under cover for a second.” Chie smiled softly. “Thanks… Yuki. Hearing that from you makes me feel a lot better.”

“My pleasure.” Yukiko smiled. “That’s what friends are for, right?”

Chie, as with all things, nodded. “Yeah… it is. Though, ahh, I would appreciate it if you didn’t hug me without warning again!”

“Heehee! Alright, noted.” Regardless of the lack of events transpiring today, Yukiko felt like she understood Chie a bit more now… and in that moment, the two girls’ already-strong relationship strengthened and steeled into something even more powerful.

(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

VICTORY RANK UP! RANK 5

Victory Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Chie’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

“Well… important thing is that I feel better now.” Chie smiled. “Wanna get some beef bowls at Ogikubo, Yuki?”

Yukiko paused for a minute, before smiling. “Yeah… yeah, I would love that.”

The first time Yukiko held hands with Chie in walking home together was something she didn’t notice at first. But now, she did – and she was more comfortable with that gesture than before.

That's when Chie thought of something. "So, uh - what are you going to wear to the park cleanup?"

Yukiko blinked. "The park cleanup?"


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

May 26th, 2016 – SIU Director’s Office – 2:19 PM

“You called me for something, director?”

Sae Niijima tried to sound eager rather than murderously annoyed. She honestly did not think anyone, let aloe herself, had any love for the SIU Director who oversaw her cases. The man was worse than just a constant obstruction to her work, he was somebody who feigned help to actively sabotage potential rivals or force others into helping him play politics. Sae hated people like that; people who hid behind deception and manipulation to make a point.

They were also the people in charge, as people like her father learned the hard way. Ethics were a luxury the minions could not afford, including herself.

But she’d have to put her own issues to the side as she entered the rustic, but nonetheless lavish, office of her boss – his beady old eyes glued to a television that seems to be a few generations out of date. As Sae expected, he was watching a news report pertaining to rumors surrounding Madarame.

“It’s been a month since the exposé that showed the world Shujin Academy’s fostering of an ephebophile within their own faculty. Now, as it stands, there’s rumors that renowned painter Ichiryusai Madarame may be treading down the exact same path towards Suguru Kamoshida; rumors are abound regarding his sudden disappearance from public eye, but as it stands, we do have confirmation he is with Tokyo custody and is – “

The Director unceremoniously cut the TV, just as Sae herself was getting focused. The old man turned to her younger subordinate, and gave a look that almost appeared to be a mix of resignation and irritation. “You understand what that means… right, Niijima-san?”

Sae knew she couldn’t play dumb, even if her knowledge about the rumors flying about were not exactly in vogue. “Yes, Director. I’ve heard about hints of what was going about.”

“Oh, it’s more than just hints, Prosecutor. Haven’t you noticed a pattern going on here?” The SIU Director leaned back in his seat, giving the false impression he was relaxing his aging frame a bit. “The mental shutdowns that have occurred since the beginning of the year, the fact a goddamn serial rapist was found in Shujin Academy for years now, and now this? Doesn’t this seem off to you? What is happening to our country?"

Something that you can't exploit to make yourself look good, which means there's no silver lining. Sae thought with no hint of its bitterness present in her expression. Even if she has to admit she was hardly knowledgeable on the subject, she had enough social savvy to pick up what the director was getting at. “Yes… I assume you wish me to research what’s happening and gather information?”

“Thoroughly. And by that, I don’t want you to spare any expense, either.” The SIU Director lit a cigarette to give a small puff. “You are lucky enough to have a partner of sorts, at least.”

You wouldn't think so if he kept on bugging you too, and making you seriously wonder if he knows you're an adult. “Akechi-kun has been helpful in that regard, yes.”

“I am glad to hear it.” The SIU Director turned to Sae with a look that spelt business. “Do your homework – I want you to find those responsible and do a… similar exposé on the matter, knead the news cycle to show the police are competent.”

Sae felt an urge to protest. “But are we certain there’s people involved in th – “

“Without question, Niijima-san. Which is why it’s imperative you investigate who these people are.” The director shook his head. “Are we clear?”

Sae paused. In her long line of work she knew it was a bad idea to cross somebody like her boss; best do as required and get the worst of things over with. Sae didn’t like it, but knew a refusal to comply would result in some… benefits being taken away from her. And between her being the only one there for Makoto? She couldn’t take a risk.

She wouldn’t take a risk.

“…I’ll call up Akechi, and organize a plan of inquiry. Excuse me.” Bowing courteously, Sae left the room almost as quickly as she entered it, grumbling to herself.

Once the SIU Director was certain nobody was watching, he brought out a phone and dialed a number of certain… benefactors.

“Hello? Yes, it’s me, sir.” A pause. “…yes, we’ve gotten another person for the manhunt here. She’ll be put to work as soon as possible.”


(Music Playing – Wicked Plan – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdimY1_Vh1U)

May 30th, 2016 – Inokashira Park – 8:35 AM

"Dear universe…" Yukiko mumbled to herself as she drug herself to the plaza. "I am siding with litter from now on. The environmentalists know what they did."

The "park cleanup", as it turned out, was a recently announced school event the inn maiden had completely missed. And frankly, an item on the list of growing motives to strangle Kobayakawa. 

The principal had, for whatever reason, decided that an excellent use of Shujin's time was to dedicate an entire school day to picking up trash around Inokashira. 

In the late spring.

On a sunny day.

Starting from normal school hours.

Under the watchful eye of Makoto Freaking Niijima.

…sometimes, Yukiko just hated life.

"Hey, it's not that bad!" Morgana popped out of Yukiko's bag, and smiled wryly in response to Yukiko's grousing. "Justice starts from the small things!"

"…also because you think it's karma for the whole button mash incident, don't you?" Yukiko didn't even give Morgana a side glance; she was so focused on getting this done that she didn't even pay attention to Morgana outside of passive conversing; an art she learned from the Amagi Inn and the constant bussing she had to deal with in response to that…

…though if she looked at Morgana's smug little smirk for even a second, she'd realize that Morgana was relishing in this. "No comment. Mwehehehe…" 

"And frankly I'd agree, except I'm not the only one!" She looked up at the sky, cussing out Ususama-myō-ō - Buddhist god of waste - for putting her up to this task. "Why did you have to pull the innocents of Shujin into this mess, huh, God?! Is your aim that bad?!"

Morgana shook his head at Yukiko's rubbish-induced rage at the heavens. "Hey, I'm not the one who decided to leave early so you could get your gym clothes on at school! That was your self-flagellation!"

"In case there isn't a good changing room because all the other girls occupied it. That means I either suffered unnecessarily, or the agony is exponential." Yukiko grumbled, still in a bad mood. "Welp, off to community service - "

(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

"Let go, please!"

The sudden cry of distress snapped the inn maiden out of her trance.

That voice… Yukiko's legs began moving faster than her mind. …isn't it that first-year?

Sure enough, the familiar red hair and ribbon of Yoshizawa was present, and the gymnast they were attached to was the source of the cry.

The cry being due to her arm being grabbed by a drunk-looking middle-aged man who was eyeing her lasciviously.

…ewww! And I thought Ann had bad luck with aging, gross perverts…

"C'mon, there'sh no need to be shshy…" The drunk slurred in a way that only showed what he thought he was speaking seductively in his shit-faced state. "I can shshow you a good time at the hotel…"

"Like I s-said." Yoshizawa stuttered while on the verge of tears, obviously trying to reach a confidence she didn't have. "I… I can walk myself… now please, l-let me - "

Yoshizawa tried walking around the drunken man, but for all of his inebriation, he side-stepped and blocked her. "If you're busshy, I can put my number in your shell so I can pick you up. Sshounds like a plan?"

"Stop it…" Yoshizawa nearly whispered, eyes darting around like a cornered deer. 

And with everyone who was looking at the scene hurriedly walking away.

…oh, son of a bitch. Yukiko looked on feeling her temper rise. Hell no! I did not save you from one rapist to get picked up on a random street cretin!

"Like I shsaid…" The drunken man continued to slur. "I can shshow you a good time - "

Yukiko immediately stepped in. "Okay, you need to stop."

Yoshizawa gasped, looking relieved. "W-Wha - oh, thank God…"

Yukiko quickly devised her plan and put her phone into action by taking it out immediately. "Listen, back off from her. Don't you have a family to go back to?"

The man, surprisingly, did not blanch, but glared at Yukiko in what he probably thought was an intimidating stance. "Hey! I'm jussht being helpful here - you shshould keep track of a piece of fine ass unlike some ugly bitch like my wife!"

…so he's a misogynist too. Charming. But as I've expected, time for Plan A… Yukiko brought up her phone, and clearly showed the screen of NicoNico Video on it.

"W-What the hell?" The young man slurred.

"I've recorded everything that's occurred in this moment." Yukiko spoke with a bit of a smug smile. "I can happily upload all of your philandering online for the world to see - including your wife." The smirk widened. "After all, a man I assume who's in his thirties creeping on a high schooler is the kind of thing that's brought up controversy before… like with Kamoshida. Right?"

Yoshizawa flinched. "C-Cold…!"

A look of unbridled terror fell on the drunk's face, before quickly turning into pure rage. "Y… You bitch! What, you think I can't run you down…?!"

Yukiko was unimpressed. "You think you can run down the heiress of a wealthy, influential family?"

The rage fell apart as the drunk realized what he's done. "U-Urk…!"

"Get out of here." She spoke coldly. "I may delete that recording if you never show up near my friend again."

Much to Yukiko's relief, the man only looked more terrified. "You crazy wench! You'll pay for this one day!"

With that, the drunkard ran probably faster than he had in his entire life in the opposite direction.

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

With the man out of site, Yukiko's stoicism finally gave way to a sigh of relief. "Whew, my bluff worked…" She smiled at Yoshizawa. "Well, technically, it isn't wrong that I'm the daughter of that kind of family. But nowhere near, say, a multi-billion conglomerate."

As soon as he vanished, Yoshizawa sagged in relief, letting out a long breath, before she apparently remembered something.

"Ah! Thank you so much! I'm sorry for the trouble!" She bowed to her upperclassman, overly polite as always.

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

Yukiko smiled, before shaking her head. "…we have really got to get you some better luck with gross men. Two for two, now." Despite the onset of a migraine, Yukiko smiled even as she was rubbing her temple. "You okay?"

"I'm fine now, thanks!" She gave a brief smile. "…it was pretty scary, though. He saw I was a Shujin student, and decided to 'comfort' me after… that incident…"

Yukiko stared at her, trying to comprehend what she just heard. That guy knows… and he was still trying to get under her skirt!? What does he think this world is, a corruption fetish doujin!? Oh, God, now I'm seeing it in my mind. Whyyyy…

Yoshizawa did not notice Yukiko internally calculating how she would convince Dr. Takemi to perform a lobotomy on her memory centers, however, lost in her own thought. "…may I ask you something?"

"Please…" The inn maiden replied with the expression equivalent to eating pickled lemons, desperate to escape the hell of her own making.

Yoshizawa seemed to have ran what she wanted to say in her head once more before speaking slowly, almost cautious to avoid offending her savior. "What… what made you step in to help me?"

Yukiko's brain skipped again, though this time her brain spared her any scarring images. "…because I don't want anyone else victimized. I was the only one willing to help, it seemed."

"…I see." Yoshizawa said, expression unreadable. "I… I apologize for asking something so strange. You're headed to the cleanup as well, right?"

"Yeah, that's why I got the gym clothes on. I was already cutting it kinda close, and I didn't want to block anyone from using the changing room." Yukiko said with a wry smile. "I assume your sweatshirt is in your bag?"

"Why yes! That… it…" As soon as she looked by her side, the color slowly drained from Yoshizawa's face. "…oh, no. Oooooh, nooooooooooo! I picked up my phone, I forgot my gym clothes at school!"

She hastily bowed. "I'm sorry, I can't thank you properly, I'll see you at the cleanup later!" She didn't even punctuate her sentences properly before dashing off.

After she was out of sight, Morgana popped out. "…she's not the most confident gymnast in the world, isn't she?"

"Seems not." Yukiko's frown was unreadable. "I wonder if that's why she's seeing Dr. Maruki…"

"Well, either way, that was some nice bluffing you did to get her off of your back." Morgana smiled. "Phantom Thieves: 2! Gross perverts: 0!"

Yukiko giggled, before rubbing Morgana's head like a cat - prompting the not-a-cat to mewl a bit happily. "Well, come on, Morgana. We're gonna be late anyways, and we already have enough clean-up to take care of…"

Morgana grinned. "Sounds like a plan, then." Morgana grinned. "Let's roll, Lady Yukiko!"

And with that, the two were off.


(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

May 30th, 2016 – Inokashira Park – 8:50 AM

"Yo, what took you so long?" Ryuji asked with a mildly raised eyebrow as Yukiko drug herself to the scene of her latest shared tribulation.

"I got lost - some wise-ass had removed the direction sign, presumably in an attempt to save us all…" Yukiko yawned. "I was not meant to get up that early…"

"Um, can I ask… did you wear your gym clothes all the way here?" Ann blinked owlishly, surprised. "Isn't that… hot?"

"It is - but it skips the line to the changing rooms and bathroom." Yukiko replied, jerking her thumb at the trail of girls. "Chie said that it may not be normal for girls… but frankly, it's not going to be any less sweaty than it will be at the end of the day…"

Ann winced. "That is a good point. Frankly, I don't want to see that changing room once everything's done, and I kind of regret my decision all the same…"

Speaking of Chie, she arrived next, with Mishima in tow. "Ugh… isn't it just typical? We have a perfect day, and we're condemned to manual labor to make the school look competent in the cruel sun…"

"I bet some Kichijoji clean freak hung out paper dolls and prayed for clear skies today - and in their infinite malice, the gods granted their request." Mishima chuckled wryly at his own joke. "Noticed there ain't a single teacher here, either…"

Yukiko was quietly consoled by the idea that Kawakami wasn't having any more fun either - maids really didn't have off days, just overtime. Actually, calling her for dusting seemed like a good idea now, her muscles were going to be gelatinous by the end of the day.

As if to prove both her and the bluenette wrong however, a familiar voice cleared his throat. "Morning everyone!"

"…Dr. Maruki?" Chie exclaimed in surprise, as the counselor came into view. "You're part of the cleanup, too?"

An awkward pause, as Chie surmised Maruki's choice of clothing. "In, er… uniform?"

Namely, it was Maruki being in his counselor clothing that caught Chie's eye, plus some kind of case he was carrying under sling. It almost made her assume that he was sitting out the clean-up before his awkward laugh tipped Chie that he was pretty much saddled with much of the same laboring as anyone else. "Um, no. My tie might animate and attempt to strangle me if I did." He laughed awkwardly, fishing out a cooking spoon from his lab coat.

"I'm actually part of the cooking team. Pork miso soup for lunch, soon as everyone gets done with their section of the park." True to his point, he brandished the cooking spoon away from himself like it was going to come to life and shove itself down his throat in an act of attempted homicide.

Yukiko blinked awkwardly. "…are you sure you don't need the help?" Her puzzled frown turned into a bright smile. "If it means I can sit out the work, I'm happy to help."

Maruki genuinely seemed relieved by that. "Y-You mean it?! Thank you! I - "

"DON'T DO ITTTTT!" Morgana screamed in horror, popping out of the bag upon instantly realizing the disaster that would befall them had Yukiko gotten involved.

Maruki stared at Morgana a bit. "…um. I, er, are you sure it's safe to bring a cat here? Because, it's kind of hot, and he seems… a bit antsy…"

"Morgana's fine, Doctor." Yukiko said as she took him out. "He doesn't wander around, and I have a leash…"

"…if you make that statement true, I will tie you to the bed with it." Morgana mewled back, a bit dangerously. "Don't think I won't!"

Maruki looked a bit uncertain, but slowly, comprehendingly, nods. "If you say so… and, actually, we bought a couple of spare pots, since the idea is that we're trying to make as much soup as possible…" He shrugged. "I'm going to want you to do some cleanup, but I don't mind you going back to the pot to check…"

Yukiko pumped her first as Morgana made a terrified noise. "Great! I'll show everything Sojiro taught me!"

"I look forward to it. Now, uh… can I take the cat? Please?" Maruki awkwardly smiled, before Yukiko lit up.

"Oh, sure." Yukiko grinned evilly. "I hardly need the extra weight on me, anyways."

"What the - hey! HEY!" Yukiko grabbed the not-a-cat and handed it to Maruki, who opened up the locked case to put the poor cat inside it. "YUKIKO, WHYYYYYYYyyyyyyyyy - "

…and with the case closed, all that was heard to Maruki was angry meowing. He sheepishly laughed, looking down.

"Uhhh, you sure this is a good place to put him?" Maruki laughed.

"There's worse places." Chie said with a smile that hid vengeance under the guise of innocence.

"Heh… okay then! Again, I look forward to seeing you cook for us, Yukiko."

"As am I." Yukiko grinned, before awkwardly pausing. "Though I do need some help…"

Chie seemed eager to avoid having to do the kind of labor ahead of her, and immediately perked up. "Uhhh, how about I help?"

Ann whistled. "You can cook, Chie?"

Chie blinked awkwardly, before laughing. "U-Uh, yeah! My, um… my dad taught me a lot of cooking! Steak, TV dinner, steak, popcorn… err, steak…" Her sheepish grin only barely hinted that Chie wasn't woefully unprepared for cooking rather than simply inadequately prepared.

Ann blinked. "Uhhh… okaaaaaaaaaaaaay…"

Ryuji shuddered. "…I dunno why, but I feel a chill run up my spine when that was said." A grimace. "Like some kinda bad premonition is about to - "

Thankfully, or perhaps unfortunately, a bunch of girls descended on the good doctor in that moment. "There you are, Dr. Maruki! C'mon, we gotta get cooking together!"

"H-Hey, I'm not done - w-woah!" Maruki gave an unmanly yelp as the giggling girls towed Maruki away, dragging him off to the cooking pavilion.

"…More like Dr. Popular. Seriously, I wish I had that kinda attention…" Ryuji said with a bit of a pensive look.

"Given my experiences over the last month, I'd be glad if I got less attention…" Ann winced in response to that comment. 

"Well, if Maruki's that big… I'm sure the Phantom Thieves will be even bigger someday." Mishima beamed happily, looking optimistic. "C'mon, chin up! I've heard the news on the PhanSite; there's already going about several rumors about Madarame being the next target!"

That caught Yukiko's attention. "Wait… seriously?!"

"Yeah, I'll show you sometime later today. But, uh…" Mishima gave an awkward smile. "We kiiiiiiiiiiiinda need to get to work later on. So, maybe we should save it for a later date. Sounds good?"

"I'm not objecting! But regarding being more popular than Maruki, he kinda has the head start of being competent in Shujin…" Chie muttered to herself, before immediately turning cheerful. "Anyways! We should really - "

They were swiftly and unceremoniously interrupted by a familiar voice amplified by a microphone.

"Good morning, Shujin Academy students and staff…"

"And there is the Great Inspector of the Student Council herself…" Yukiko spoke with a short glare, turning to where the younger Niijima had set up a temporary post, megaphone in hand.

From the reaction of every other Shujin student - or more accurately, lack thereof, continuing to talk slightly louder to be heard over the megaphone - nobody else was especially willing to give the Class President the time of day either.

"Please pick up all trash located in the areas assigned to your group." She continued to drone on, turning up the volume on the megaphone a bit. "Afterwards, you may report to Dr. Maruki's lunch table for your soup. Also, note that for the sake of furthering social bonds between students, all groups of four are randomly assigned, and will not have students from the same classrooms."

That got everyone's attention.

"WHAT!?"

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"

"TALKING WITH REIKO WAS THE ONLY THING MAKING THIS BEARABLE - "

"Ahem!" Makoto interrupted, looking irritated. "This is for your sakes! You may find yourself making an unexpected friend…"

Yukiko felt a migraine coming on, rubbing her temple. "Well… crap. Looks like this delinquent is on her own, unless Ryuji somehow ends up with me…" A sigh. "Dollars to donuts that the allegedly random process puts her on one of our teams, and oh look, she forgot she had a magnifying glass and tape recorder in her pocket…"

"That, or she mysteriously ends up on the same team as Haru Okumura." Mishima cut in, pointing at a third-year girl with the fluffiest hair Yukiko had ever seen - and the only one seemingly paying Makoto any respectful attention. "Those two are attached at the hip, from what I hear…"

Ann, curiously, was suddenly interested. "…really? Like… that kind of 'attached to the hip'?"

Mishima glanced around to make sure there wasn't any listeners; after he felt there was no authority figures (including Makoto) to ruin the secret within earshot, he leaned in.

"It's something that's been mostly an online rumor, and out of sight of the staff - I think." He whispered, keeping his voice as down-low as possible. "Okumura is pretty much Niijima's core supporter as Student Council President. And they're seen together a lot - which is even more noteworthy, because Niijima mostly keeps to herself whenever she's not doing council duties. Studying or beating up a punching bag. So, a lot of the circles I'm in are wondering if they're… well, a bit more than friends, if you know what I'm saying."

Ryuji whistled, almost forgetting to keep his own mouth shut himself. "Damn… that does sound like a pretty juicy rumor…"

"…and it sounds like Okumura has bad taste in women." Chie replied, sourly.

"Chie, that isn't nice." Ann said in a gentle scold. "We know them as well as we barely knew each other when Yukiko first came here; I don't think they're necessarily bad people at all. But…" She beamed. "That… is partially encouraging to hear. Especially given my own business…"

"Hey, what do you mean by - " Chie then immediately understood. "Oh… oh. Um… got it…"

Chie blushed in that moment. Yukiko had to internally strangle herself to not burst out in laughter.

Ryuji said with a wry smile. "Well, either way, let's just get this done as fast as possible, get the pork miso, and head out."

With the grim determination of soldiers, the delinquents for justice mustered out…

…well, all except Chie and Yukiko, as before they can help with cleaning up the rubbish littering Inokashira Park, a bit of a frazzled Maruki quickly stepped in between them.

"…hey, sorry to call you in earlier than expected, but we've run into a bit of trouble with the cooking." Maruki said with a grimace. "Can you, uh… girls lend a hand? We need all hands on deck based on the amount we have to serve the others, and I dunno if I have the time or ability to do so at the pace I'm going at…"

Yukiko and Chie only served each other an awkward glance, before turning to Maruki with the best smile they can bring up.

"Sure, Doctor!" Yukiko smiled. "We'll do our best."

"Oh, thank God…" Maruki muttered under his breath before immediately beaming. "Ah, uh, thank you! I'll be sure to write for why you weren't part of the clean-up team. Now, then… can you come with me for a while, girls?"

"I mean… sure!" Chie grinned, before internally wincing. "It's just two extra people helping out the kitchen. What's… what's the worst that could happen?"

Entirely unknowing to herself at the time, both Chie and Yukiko retrospectively wished they had a time machine to immediately slap her for saying that.


(Music Playing - Confession/Secret - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ED7kzAmnAY)

May 30th, 2016 – Inokashira Park – 9:13 AM

Ann almost didn't realize when she began picking up litter how much choosing to change normally unlike Yukiko was going to cost her in terms of focus and general well-kept appearances.

She grumbled a bit to herself as she brought the impaled shish-kebab of litter with the skewering stick over to the bucket where she dumped it into it. She took a long breath of relief. She was really out of shape, wasn't she? Especially with everything else that's been happening up to and including her own health being on the line, but Ann always figured she always had to answer for that herself, now didn't she? She almost shook off her feelings of frustration at that moment as she redirected herself to the matters at hand: actually doing enough of a serviceable job to actually make it be presentable.

But… that only brought up other feelings Ann would much rather express right now.

Namely… thinking about Shiho's gotten Ann thinking. Well, that's not quite right; hearing the rumor that Okumura and Niijima were together got her thinking - what did she have to lose holding out? Sure, she told herself to some degree it was to preserve her friendship with Shiho, but part of that makes Ann wonder if she was really having too little faith in Shiho's ability to handle the truth. It… made her nervous, honestly. She almost didn't know what to say about it, other than that she wanted to tell Shiho she loved her - and not just as a friend, but as a partner too. It made her heart race thinking she could have a girlfriend in the form of Shiho, and it just… made Ann wonder and ask herself what she did have to lose in that moment. She didn't know… she couldn't say for certain. But…

"…umm, hello Ann."

…Ann nearly froze out of her reverie upon hearing the spoken devil's voice.

She turned around so fast she was lucky not to have whiplash. "Shiho?"

It was Shiho - mostly in her Kosei Academy uniform, tellingly, but that only made Ann wonder more. She looked really… pretty in that outfit, honestly, enough so that Ann had to restrain herself from immediately commenting on it. But it seems like Shiho wasn't really focused on herself - not by the look in her eyes, which befell that of a smile.

"So, um… nice seeing you here." Shiho giggled, tilting her head. "I… I didn't know you were doing community service."

"O-Oh, well…" Ann sighed, immediately deflating. "You dodged a bullet transferring when you did, Shiho. We got mandated by the Principal to go clean up everything." A wry smile. "So, uh, we've been pretty busy, for sure!"

"Heehee! That's good." Shiho's smile brightened.

"But… nevermind me, Shiho. What're you doing here?" Ann asked, quizzically tilting her head. "Aren't… you supposed to be in school?"

Shiho looked down immediately upon that being brought up. "Well, I would be normally, yes. But I've been given a pass by the school to come in late to check up with my psychologist. Kosei was… really understanding, and helped provided the accommodation."

"…ah. I've heard Kosei was abnormally good about treating students with mental disabilities; best ranked in the country, from what I hear!" Ann smiled. "I see… umm, I should probably let you get going; I'm gonna be here for a - "

"…no, wait."

Ann immediately quieted herself, letting Shiho speak. The black-haired ex-volleyball player sighed glumly. "I… want to ask you something. And… I have to know. Because I… I've been doing research on my free time, thinking about… the incident…"

Shiho's tone immediately quieted down upon mentioning those last two words, almost choking in any potential weeping. Ann grimaced. "Shiho…"

"…so, I've been hearing rumors among my classmates about the cause of… his change of heart. Alongside some other person. Natsuhiko Nakanohara was his name, right?" Shiho let up. "I've met his girlfriend by chance, and she's mentioned to me he had his "heart" stolen and he changed for the better…"

…oh, no. Ann immediately dreaded where this was going.

Shiho took a deep breath. "Ann… what did you do to him and Kamoshida…?”

Oh, no.

Ann awkwardly laughed, trying and failing to come up with a lie. "W-What do you meaaaaaaaan? I, uhh, have no idea what you could possibly refer to whatever you're - "

"…Ann, please…" Shiho looked pleadingly at Ann. "Nobody… nobody else in Shujin cared enough to help me when it all went down… how… how I was nothing more than just leveraging for his personal desires…" Shiho shook, trembling gently as she struggled not to cry. "I… I've got the news about him going into seclusion after the 19th of April… he would've… never done that if he had his pride… but you… you, and your friends, they… they did something… they made him stop…"

Shiho gently began weeping, wiping tears from her eyes. "What… what did you do to help that…? How did you do that?! I… what aren't you telling me…?"

Ann trembled, shaking gently. Shiho cried, and then… Ann exploded her feelings.

"A lot." Ann spoke, bitterly. "A whole damn lot! I… there's so much I want to tell you too, Shiho… but… I don't want to put you or me at risk, okay…? Not… not when I'm already - "

"Already doing what?! Is how much I love you not good enough?!" Shiho spoke loudly, angry and crying. "Why can't you tell me?! I need to know! I NEED TO KNOW - "

Ann, hoping to the kami above nobody was looking, hugged Shiho.

"…I promise… I promise I'll tell you June 5th…" Ann paused to recall the date of the lawsuit Madarame threatened her with. "Then… then I will tell you everything… just promise me to meet me on the roof at Shujin by then, okay…?"

"On a Sunday? There?" Shiho spoke.

Ann realized she fumbled pretty much immediately, or so she thought. "E-Err, that was reflexive, we can do - "

"…no. Ann, it's fine. If anything…" Shiho sniffled, breaking the hug. "Doing it there… might give me closure. And… let me rid me of him…"

Ann trembled, trying not to cry. "S-Shiho…"

Shiho stepped back. "…promise me then, you'll tell me about it all. I trust you… okay?" She smiled.

Ann paused. It hurt not telling her best friend, her crush about how much she loved her… but… she understood. Ann, slowly, surely, nodded.

"…okay. I…" She smiled. "I… promise. Wait for me there, Shiho… okay?"

"Okay…" Shiho smiled. "I… I love you…"

…why?

Why did those words…

…not feel like she meant love as a friend?

Before Ann could ask her that, Shiho quickly ran off.

They told each other they loved each other. As friends, of course. Completely as friends.

But…

Was it me… Ann paused, realizing something. …who didn't realize she meant it as a… partner?

She didn't know.

That only frustrated her.

Drying her tears, she looked at the barrel and the skewering stick, and then her phone. It's been ten minutes. She really needs to get back to work…

Glumly, she sighed, continuing her work. Well… that put me in a bad mood…

But did it really? Wasn't it herself to blame for feeling this way?

To somebody she wants to protect?

Tellingly, her bad mood tried to shift the subject. Now I'm wondering how Yukiko and Chie are doing…


(Music Playing - So Boring - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFE8iT1Ll2Y)

May 30th, 2016 – Inokashira Park – 10:25 AM

Two minutes after she started heating her pot, Yukiko and Chie collectively realized a problem in the "use soup as an excuse for shade" plan, namely that soup was not curry.

Fifteen minutes after that, everyone around her noticed - or rather, smelled - the problem.

"What the - is that a gas leak?"

"There's no gas lines out here…"

"Yeah… no, no, it's worse. It's… way worse…"

"Wait, is that Amagi and Satonaka's pot…?"

The inn maiden blushed furiously. "Eh-heh… I… I think this was supposed to be the main meal… wasn't it?"

"It was…" Chie grimaced. "We are gonna die…"

Unsurprisingly, Maruki came over shortly thereafter, using his shirt as an impromptu gas mask. "Er… Amagi? You… you need some help? T-That's supposed to be our main meal for this course…"

"No! No, I'm fine! I just… I just need to balance the spices a bit!" She chuckled nervously, as the counselor looked in.

And paled. "…girls. I mean absolutely no offense, but… why is your soup… grey?"

"…it is?" Yukiko waved away the billowing smoke. "I… I honestly couldn't see it."

"I mean… I-I dunno! Grey soup can be tasty you know!" Chie laughed a bit hysterically, desperately trying to look like she had any idea knowing what was going on.

"…uh-huh." Maruki nodded, blankly. "And… were you following the recipe laid out on the wall?"

"Well… at first, yes." Yukiko glumly admitted. "But I'm still darting back to my group too, and, well… I'm not sure what the poster means by a 'pinch', and since I was trying to make as much soup as possible, I upgraded to a handful…"

Maruki grimaced, realizing where this was going. "I… see. And, uh… was Chie watching the pot?"

Chie shrugged awkwardly. "…mostly? …I think? I didn't want to interrupt the cook time, so I left it on while I was picking up trash…"

Maruki made an expression that made it quite clear he was trying to think of something to say that wouldn't hurt the girls' feelings too badly.

His quest was interrupted when Haru Okumura, apparently noticing the commotion, came over. "Ah! Is something the matter?" She asked in a tone that made it clear that she had eyes and nostrils, and was just being polite when diagnosing the pot that was now a chimney.

"I…" Yukiko motioned with her head.

Chie squeaked. "…fuuuuuuuuuuuuuck."

"I see…" The brown-haired girl smiled. "Well, I do not mean to boast, but my family is highly involved in the food industry. So I am quite involved in cooking in general!" She said with a happy smile as she walked over. "I am sure I can diagnose the issue if I just take a sip - "

(Music Stops)

Before Maruki could tackle Okumura away for her own safety, Niijima's microphone sounded through the place.

"Attention, all students! The first course of lunch will now be served for the classes as part of a work break. Cooks, please bring out the soup from the kitchen and begin to serve!"

(Music Playing - RUN, RUN, RUN! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0CvQa6KBNA)

"S-Shit! Uhhh…" Chie grimaced. "Um, m-maybe we can probably convince there's some kind of chemical hazardous waste of some kind…?"

"Umm… what did I miss…? It looks fine… from what I can tell…" Haru grimaced.

Yukiko has long given up on maintaining her composure. She's since pulled her hoodie over her head and buried it in her hands, desperately hoping it to go away.

Maruki just looked at Yukiko and Chie sympathetically. "…tell them to toss the food out. I… I'll take full responsibility for it."

"Toss out the food?! Are you crazy?!"

Niijima, tellingly, appeared in that moment. Chie grimaced.

"Oh, fuck me." Chie cursed herself.

"U-Uh, Niijima-san, I would strongly reconsider against that notion…" Maruki grimaced, trying to reason with the Student Council President.

Niijima didn't look impressed. "Listen, we're already on a tight schedule, and the last thing we need is ingredients being wasted. Besides…"

A deep breath. "…Principal Kobayakawa gave direct orders to put the food out regardless of the state it was finished in. I don't intend on going back on that word, so… it needs to be served. Right now…"

"E-Errr…" Maruki had no idea how to get out of this situation…

Okumura spoke up. "Err, Mako-cha - um, Niijima-san, do you… mind reconsidering before serving the food? I… would reconsider if I were you… I don't think that I'm supposed to hear ticking from a Geiger counter…"

"A what?!" Chie shrilled loudly.

Okumura, regardless of her showing the impromptu Geiger counter, got weird looks even as she motioned it over to the soup.

"…I don't know why you're looking at me as if I did something wrong." Okumura winced. "I just have this kind of thing on me for occasions like this!"

Niijima cleared her throat. "Well, regardless of our personal feelings on the matter, we're bringing out the food. No buts, understood?"

Chie panicked. "N-No buts - ?!"

"Understood?" Niijima shot a glare.

"U-Urk!"

Chie simply grimaced. Maruki, meanwhile, laughed awkwardly.

"Well… guess we… have our work cut out for us…" Maruki laughed awkwardly. "Let's go, then… s-shall we?"

Yukiko, by all accounts, still hid her embarrassment under her hoodie.

I regret everythingShe wailed in her head. I regret everything that led to this point.


(Music Playing - Alright - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26lSlN5Ca0w)

May 30th, 2016 – Inokashira Park – 10:31 AM

Ryuji wiped a bead of sweat from his brow as he sat down with a wide smile. Ann and Mishima walked over to their friend, before sitting down.

"So?" Ryuji smirked. "How was cleanin' up?"

Mishima, tellingly for his lack of fitness, was out of breath. "Not… great…"

Ann groaned angrily. "Not great at all… ughhhh!" She fell face-first onto the table. "How is it that so many people let all this crap lying around?! Seriously! The nerve!"

"I dunno man, but I'm pretty excited for today's meal!" Ryuji said with a cheerful grin. "Like, I ain't expectin' much from Chie, but Yukiko's, like, from one of the most famous inns in all of the prefecture! Certainly she's gotta know some kind of cookin'!"

Ann glared. "So, you want a woman to cook you your meals, huh?" A groan. "Oh, Ryuji, never change…"

"Oh, like you're any better!" Ryuji grimaced. "Remember that time you wolfed down an entire strawberry shortcake in one sitting?"

Mishima bursted into snickers as Ann's cheeks immediately colored. "T-That… I thought we agreed not to speak of that since middle school! Ugh, if word gets out, my modeling company will consider dropping me!"

"I wouldn't worry about that." Ryuji said with barely contained snickered. "'Sides, the calories clearly went somewhere."

After internally weighing which of the two (technically, three) places which Ryuji could be referring to, Ann simply threw the spoon directly at Ryuji.

Thankfully, while his leg has dulled, his reflexes hasn't. "The eff, man?!"

"Goddamnit, Ryuji, I thought I told you not to tell anyone about that!" Ann pouted. Meanwhile, Mishima was laughing so hard that he only barely gasped enough air to move to wipe the tear in his eye.

Then, of course, the microphone sounded from Miss "I'm legally bound by the school to tell you to eat this" Student Council President herself.

"Attention! The eatery for the soup is available! Please come for your own servings - and wait in line!"

"Hah! It's about time." Ryuji stood up. "Let's get our grub."

Chie and Yukiko, exhaustively, went over to the general direction of the other Thieves.

"Yo, girls!" Mishima smiled. "I heard you were the ones who cooked this course. Compliments to the chef!"

Chie murmured embarrassedly, while Yukiko had a stone-cold glare on her face.

"…Mishima." Yukiko spoke like she was going to hurt somebody. "You and everyone else will eat every last morsel given to you for the sake of my dignity."

Everyone but Chie stared at Yukiko with wide eyes.

"…'for the sake of your own dignity'?" Mishima lampshaded. "That can't be good…"

"Quiet!"


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

May 30th, 2016 – Inokashira Park – 10:34 AM

It took a bit for Ryuji to effectively realize something was wrong when Niijima and Okumura arrived at the scene with a very worried expression.

It took even sooner to realize that soup wasn't supposed to be colorless grey.

"Uhhh…" Ryuji, for the sake of his sanity, desperately toned out the general outcry of nausea and vomiting around him. "…this is supposed to be our… soup?"

( Music Playing – Tension - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

"Y-Yes…" Niijima bowed in an even more worrisome fashion. "I'm afraid this is all I have for now… you may still want to eat it, because… um… it's good for your strength!"

As Niijima blushed, Okumura objected on the grounds of moral decency. "Mako-chan, you can't just - "

"Quiet!" Niijima said a bit shrilly. "You think I don't hear the general sickness going about the place! I'm done! I'm done for!" Niijima buried her hands in her head. "Once Kobayakawa hears of this, we're both finished!"

As Niijima in that moment began to cry, Okumura - unbeknownst to what Niijima is crying about - tenderly hugged the brunette. "There, there… it's going to be alright…"

Ann, after what felt like a solid minute looking at the ooze she was about to eat, pleadingly looked at Yukiko. "Um… Yukiko? Not that I… doubt that it's better-tasting than it looks, but…" A shudder. "My mom makes a lot of soup, and I don't think that soup is supposed to look like that…"

*squiish*

"IT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO MOVE LIKE THAT, EITHER, WHAT THE HELL?!" Ann shrieked in mild terror, nearly falling back from her chair.

Mishima laughed nervously. "E-Err… can we… pass, per chance, on eating lunch? Suddenly I'm not that hungry…"

Chie blubbered angrily, still on the verge of tears. "Mishima, if you don't eat that damn soup, I'll beat you with an inch of your LIFE!"

"A-Ack!" Mishima grimaced. "Y-Yes, ma'am…"

"Well…" Ann internally weighed the pros and cons on dumping this into the trash, before deciding she didn't want to risk contaminating the water reservoir with this venom. "D-Down the hatch, I guess…"

Ryuji laughed awkwardly. "C-Can't be that bad… it couldn't be that bad… r-right?"

It took a full minute of hesitation and puppy-eyed coercion from Yukiko and Chie for Ryuji, Ann and Mishima to take a drink of the soup - 

(Music Abruptly Stops)

…!!

Ann wailed and keel over as both she and Mishima convulsed and threw up, before collapsing in a gormless fashion. Ryuji threw up all of his contents and, by the looks of his trembling, very nearly passed out. And whatever was in that soup, ominously, withered and crawled as the grass it fell on top of soon quickly rooted away like a caustic mess.

"R-Ryuji…?" Chie blinked.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

"AUGH! AAAAAAAUGH… W-WATEEER…"

"E-Eek!" Yukiko flinched; Ryuji clearly had the constitution required not to be knocked out by the soup just as Ann and Mishima were, even if Ryuji began coughing wildly and looking ready to throw up.

And perhaps more tellingly, Ryuji rushed over to the water dispenser - 

…and promptly put the canister's cap over his mouth and began chugging.

"W-What the - ?!" Chie gawked as Ryuji chugged what had to have been a gallon of water, and after being satisfied, he put the canister back. He coughed up some spit, and began a coughing frenzy, even if the foul taste had been vanquished.

Okumura grimaced. "Sakamoto-kun, are you oka - "

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIIIIIIIIIIIS?!"

"W-Wah?!" Yukiko flinched as Ryuji, half-furious and half-nauseated, stumbled to the two girls before wailing to the heavens.

"YOU COULDA FUCKIN' KILLED ME WITH THAT?! WHAT - THAT - I - " He screamed loudly, completely unaware of the volume he was carrying outside of his verbose explanation. "IT WAS LIKE YA MIXED SOME LIQUEFIED DEAD ROADKILL CARCASS AND TOXIC WASTE INTO WHAT WOULD'VE BEEN A BUTCHERED MISO SOUP! I - THAT'S - HOW DO YOU EVEN LIVE WITH THAT COOKING ABILITIES! THE FLAVOR BURNED THROUGH MY FLESH, AND THE SMELL, OH, GOD, THE FUCKIN' SMELL! IT WAS RAW! IT WAS RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWW!!"

Ryuji collapsed on his knees to sob - or moreso, inelegantly blubber as tears, drool and snot hideously (and, rather, comically, to Yukiko's sense of humor) poured from his face like three different faucets opened up in a three-sink kitchen.

Niijima,  meanwhile, recovered enough to immediately object. "Oh, in the name of - it can't be that bad! It's just soup! Soup! Anything can be disgusting if you exaggerate it!"

Ryuji coughed vulnerably. "T-That's not any mere 'soup', Niijima…"

"Q-Quiet! I expect you to eat it so we can get back on track!" Niijima ordered. "I'll start, then!"

Okumura grimaced. "M-Mako-chan, don't! I don't think - "

Niijima immediately shot a smile back at Okumura as she immediately grabbed a bowl of the soup. "Relax, I'll be fine."

"N-No you… won't… don't… do it…!" Ryuji cried out, now constipating. "I WOULDN'T WISH THAT SLOP ON MY WORST ENEMY!"

"H-Hey! That isn't slop!" Yukiko verbally objected to that statement.

"Are we done?! Because we have a meal to finish!" Niijima, regardless of the pleas around her, took one swig of the soup -- 


(Sound Effect Playing - Ambulance Siren - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmB0Nfdo3wg)

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

May 30th, 2016 – Inokashira Park – 10:59 AM

So the good news was that the park cleanup activity had been cancelled.

The bad news was that Niijima contracted a massive allergy and is being loaded onto a stretcher to be delivered to the hospital.

Okumura was holding hands (and, briefly, shooting a teary-eyed death glare at the general direction of Yukiko and Chie) with the comatose Makoto before the ambulance rushed off.

And as such, the head of the serpent was cut off. The battle was won. Yukiko thought monotonously, and only semi-sarcastically. But at what cost?

(Sound Effect Stops)

Chie, meanwhile, was mortified. "We're…  we're so sorry…"

"…we are never letting either of you girls near a kitchen ever again." Ryuji spoke like he's seen the end of the world. "No questions asked."

"Agreed!" Ann loudly proclaimed. "I…  don't recall much of what happened after I ate it, but man, I woke up with a headache…"

"I woke up having needed to change into my clothes due to throwing up on top of it!" Mishima cried out. "After sweating half to death!"

"Agreed!" The mention of that seemed to have triggered war flashbacks in Ann.

"Well… " Yukiko awkwardly smiled. "At least… at least we can all go home…  r-right?"

"Yeah, I guess…" Ryuji sighed glumly. "But it feels like a pyrrhic kinda victory…"

"Huh! I didn't expect you to know what pyrrhic meant, Ryuji… impressive!"

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

Maruki walked up with Yoshizawa in tow - who looked both healthy, and simultaneously very grateful.

"Oh. Uh, hey Doc." Ryuji grinned, cheered up by Maruki's compliment.

"…I'm so, so glad I didn't hear the announcement when… that started, Senpai…" Yoshizawa huddered. "R-Reminds me of my own cooking…"

"Urp… don't mention cooking…" Ann whined. "Please…"

Yukiko, meanwhile, looked like it was the ultimate game over. "…I'm done for, aren't I?"

"No, no, you don't have to worry. If it was anyone else this happened with, then… uhhh… okay, maybe, yes, it'd be bad." Maruki admitted how bad this was with an apologetic look on his face, which temporarily disheartened Yukiko. "But! Given I was the one who asked you to help, I'll take responsibility for it. I can definitely afford the trouble; you can't. And given you've only meant to help, well, it'd feel wrong to have you suffer for this when you really didn't do anything maliciously wrong."

Chie and Yukiko both simultaneously exhaled in relief. Oh, thank God, there is a silver lining to today. Yukiko thought before pausing. But wait, wasn't I the one to suggest helping - 

"W-Well, at least, uh… we can go home!" Yoshizawa spoke sprightly. "So, um… let's… do so, I guess…?"

"Please." Mishima whined aloud. "Let's go home…"

"I feel like I died, man…" Ryuji grimaced.

Ann shuddered. "Said the one who didn't pass out…"

And so, the three teens left, leaving only Yukiko, Chie, Yoshizawa and Maruki left… and then Yukiko realized somebody was missing.

"O-Oh! Doctor Maruki!" Yukiko yelped. "Can you, um, open up that container on your back?!"

"…a-ack!" Maruki shot up. "I forgot about the cat! Crap, hold on…"

He hastily put the case down and opened it up -

…and Morgana gasped for air, springing up.

"I. HAVE BEEN TRAPPED IN THIS PRISON." Morgana shrieked out. "FOR TWO HOUUUUUUUUUUUUURS!"

Yukiko chuckled nervously. "U-Um… sorry, Morgana…"

"BRING ME THE MAKER OF THIS BOX'S HEAD!" Morgana roared. "ACTUALLY, BETTER YET: I'LL CRAP ON YOUR PILLOW FOR THIS, YUKIKO!"

"Please, don't…" Yukiko grimaced as Morgana frustratedly hopped into Yukiko's bag.

"Well… I suppose I have to go, now." Maruki said with an awkward smile. "But, um… police may want to ask you for this, Yukiko…"

Tellingly, Maruki handled a bag of the… substance Yukiko and Chie cooked. "There's gonna be an investigation from the Ministry of Food Safety… so you might want to hold onto this, ahem, Mystery Food X for safe keeping…"


Obtained Mystery Food X (x1)

"The essence of despair. Guarantees Despair ailment to target Shadow regardless of resistance."


Morgana frowned. "So, you've done it without me… ugh, well, what's done is done, I guess…" The not-a-cat paused, before thinking about it. "Hmm… though this would make a good weapon of intimidation against Shadows…"

Yukiko screamed out. "DON'T DO THAT TO THE POOR SHADOWS!"

Everyone looked at Yukiko like she grew a second head, all while Chie and Morgana grimaced.

Yukiko awkwardly laughed. "U-Uh, today's been stressful, so I honestly am just blurting things due to how tired I am…"

Maruki looked concerned. "You… might want to talk about that the next time we meet…"

Yoshizawa only looked somber by comparison. "Mental health is a serious thing, Senpai. You shouldn't stress yourself too hard, okay?"

Yukiko only sweatdropped in response to that.

"W-Well, we should be off. Sorry to disturb you!" Maruki gave a friendly wave. "See you! I'll cover everything with Kobayakawa-san. Now, excuse me…"

As Maruki left, Chie smiled awkwardly. "Uhh… so, I'll leave you two be. Uhh… bye…"

Chie grimaced, before running off.

Yukiko was so done. Her back hurts enough as is - and not just from the gravity she already carries on the front, either. Just from… everything. Getting wiped from all that work and mental exhaustion does a lot to a person like her…

…the misery of making that culinary abomination all day, though? That was enough.

"Yeah… definitely calling Kawakami for night chores. I think my spine is plotting against me now…" She whimpered. "And of course, my team ditches me ASAP. Won't even give me an ice pack…"

"Um… is now a bad time?"

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

Yukiko looked up in surprise to see a concerned Yoshizawa.

"No, I'm fine. Really, it was quiet - could've been worse…" Which was the unvarnished truth; apart from those stupid rumors, she was mostly left alone.

"Well, that's good!" Yoshizawa said with a smile. "I'm just glad I found you, so I could thank you properly for helping this morning. And, er…" She looked sheepish. "My group sort of left without me too. So… want to walk a bit together?"

Yukiko shrugged. "No issue. It's a two-person group, then."

Yoshizawa beamed, before walking back to the station with Yukiko at her side. 

After a couple minutes of walking in silence, Yoshizawa looked up. "I want to thank you again for this morning. And before then, for… Kamoshida…"

Well, didn't that just put a pall over everything else. Yukiko discarded her cynical voice to smile warmly at Yoshizawa. "I think it's time apologized, actually. I definitely… well, went calculating there, that's for sure…"

"Huh? No, I should be the one to apologize!" The gymnast replied, seemingly genuinely shocked. "I should have asked you later why you were so frightened of him, but then once I realized you were the delinquent with that reputation, well… I assumed you were pulling a bluff…"

Yukiko gave a sad chuckle. "Don't I wish you were wrong. That would have spared a lot of people a lot of pain…"

Yoshizawa made a pensive noise. "That is… putting it mildly. Honestly, you would probably be on a watchlist somewhere if half the rumors were true. Burglary, murder… elephant tusk trafficking?"

The inn maiden snapped her fingers. "Damn it! I knew Shakir wasn't on the up and up! Remind me, I need to make sure the cheetah claw network isn't compromised."

Yoshizawa laughed. "And it's true! You aren't anything like the rumors say at all… and actually, I feel bad for even listening. I'm not normally that kind of gossip…"

"Eh, you apologized." Seventy times today. "I'm fine with that."

Yoshizawa nodded, then blushed. "You know what, it just hit me! I haven't introduced myself yet!" 

"Ooh, I knew I was missing something." The innmaiden smiled. "I'm Yukiko Amagi, miss...?"

"Ah, I'm sorry to make you go first, Amagi-senpai…" She quickly replied, bowing. "I apologize this was such a long time coming, but I hope we can get along well. You already know my last name from earlier, but - "

A passing child cried in shock as a balloon drifted from her hand.

In about half a second, it had ceased to drift, as Yoshizawa had grabbed it from mid-air in a graceful pounce from her position.

Yukiko looked only baffled.

Morgana shared her opinion. "What the hell just - huh, she dropped her pocketbook."

Yukiko stopped gawking long enough to look down, shrug, and pick it up - and spot the name of the owner written inside.

"Kasumi Yoshizawa"… finally. She sighed in relief. At this rate, I was expecting her autobiography before getting it a month from now.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to run out on you like that…" The newly monikered Kasumi said after handing the balloon back. "And… oh." She blushed as she saw what Yukiko was holding.

"Yeah, sadly gravity is the ultimate pickpocket." The inn maiden said, handing it back. "I think it was angry you just spat in its face by flying."

"Well, you've cracked the case! I'm Kasumi Yoshizawa, a first-year!" She said, retrieving it. "And that was just some basic gymnastics. It's not that difficult once you get the hang of it - just a hop, a skip, and a jump!"

Across the Pacific Ocean, for advanced versions…

"Hey…" Morgana piped up. "You don't think some of those moves…?"

Yukiko got the idea - not that she would have closed off Kasumi from friendship now.

"Um…" Kasumi looked over. "…you brought your cat to cleanup?"

"Don't have a sitter." Yukiko said flatly. "And… actually, could you teach me some of that?"

Kasumi's eyes widened. "Wait - you're interested in gymnastics?"

"If I can dance across the trees as an intermediate skill? Yes."

"That makes me so happy!" Kasumi exclaimed with a beaming smile. "I'd be honored if you allowed me!" 

After a second, the smile began to fade. "The only problem is… I have a favor to ask myself. I hope you don't mind…"

The downcast, uncertain expression returned. It's like she's two people, one overly peppy, the other can't go two steps without apologizing to microbes she's stepped on…

"Lately, I haven't been getting the results I wanted from my performances, and I'm worried that I'm overthinking things… it would be wonderful if you could offer me advice from time to time…"

…she wants life coaching advice from the class delinquent? In a rare form of synchronicity between her mouth and brain, Yukiko blinked wildly. "…are you entirely sure about this?"

"Of course I am. I'm not looking for technical coaching, so much as lending me an ear from time to time."

Yukiko paused. That was what I was afraid of… but given the luck she has, I think I need to bodyguard her.

And in that moment, the innmaiden smiled. "Hope I'm helpful, then! Thanks… Kasumi."


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

Sae did not look amused. "…so that's why Makoto went to the hospital that day…"

"Yeah… you probably know this, but she's very much somebody who often gets in over her head." Yukiko slurred, still shaking off the drugs.

The prosecutor looked a bit miffed by that. "And why do you bring her getting an allergic attack up?"

Yukiko glared. "We get there when we get there!"

Sae sighed. Regardless, the silver-haired young woman tapped her book. "Regardless, on the subject of Yoshizawa - I've read in the reports that the Phantom Thieves are more acrobatic than the average person… even outside this supposed Metaverse. You gained an aptitude for specialty equipment as well… wouldn't a natural conclusion t draw be that you were trained by an expert in that field as well?"

"I…" Yukiko frowned. "I think? You're not wrong, but there's… something off, about her…"

"I'm not hearing a no. Tell me the truth as you understand it, then."


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Faith Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

FAITH (V) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music Playing – Alright (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwDH_QALISg)

"…oh, why don't we exchange contact information?" Kasumi said cheerfully, pulling out her cell. "…as soon as it turns on. My cell phone's been acting up lately - there we go!"

Believe me, after certain supposedly-not-malware programs got on my phone, I'd pray to just have a finicky battery. Yukiko smiled and connected her phone.

"Alright, stay safe, Senpai!" Kasumi cheerily waved as she went of. "I'll see you later!"

"See you!" Yukiko smiled, before sighing. "Ugh… today was quite the day…"

"Indeed. Seems like you're not in the mood to clean up." Morgana smiled. "So - call the maid?"

Yukiko smiled. She liked the sound of that.


(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

May 30th, 2016 – Cafe LeBlanc, Attic - 8:32 PM

"You know, it's almost a shame I have to lie about you being a client." Kawakami deadpanned. "I'd probably have won the bet on today being the day you hired me…"

"Sorry. But…" Yukiko slumped against the couch. "I can't stand anymore today… not even to dust the room…"

"Fair. Actually you kind of spared me having to 'enjoy' the environmentally friendly sauna, thank you very much." The moonlighting teacher said with a shrug. "Ms. Chouno realized I needed the money, so I told her that, instead of the teacher conference, I was going to do overtime, and Dr. Maruki volunteered to be the head chef instead. Which isn't a lie, technically - it was still hard work, but at least it was air conditioned hard work." She looked around at the rather dingy space. "Though, uh… about that 20% bonus you mentioned for doing it as one last job for me…"

"I know, it's an attic. Even when trying, it gets dusty faster than I can clean it." The inn maiden shrugged. "So… yeah. I know you probably just wanted to talk when you gave me your number, but I actually need a maid right now…"

"Which is rather refreshing, actually." Kawakami said with a smile. "Actually having someone who just wants their room clean and are too dead-tired to do it themselves." She thought. "Though… can we do both? I've only gotten a little more curious about all that…"

Yukiko smiled. "Go ahead."

"To be honest, I can't figure you out." She admitted. "I'll admit, the moment I learned someone with a criminal record ended up in my class, I was expecting, at least, a problem child. No offense. But you're quite possibly one of the most well-behaved teens I've ever met. You don't really interact with teachers much, but you try to avoid trouble with peers. About the only person you copped an attitude with is Kamoshida, and… well, I think that isn't exactly a mark against you…"

"Careful about saying that." Yukiko said, looking conspiratorial. "You don't want to impinge the star by claiming the delinquent might have been right…"

"Correction, Kamoshida and the principal. My point still stands." She put a hand on her hip. "So… now I'm wondering… was there any… er…"

She trailed off, making it clear that she knew she was in uncertain territory.

"…no home trouble, really. Kind of stifling, but in the sense of listening to loud music to annoy parents rather than rob people to get attention." Yukiko said after a pause, catching on. "What happened was… I won't say I feel guilty, but it was a series of bad events."

Kawakami sat down near her. "…do you want to… talk about it?"

The inn maiden rolled it around her head. On the one hand, this could end up in the rumor bin with teachers. A bit of private information she didn't want Kobayakawa, or Makoto, to leverage against her.

On the other hand...Kawakami was trying to be an adult. And after accidentally violating her own dark secrets...

"Well… one night, I was coming back home…"

Yukiko told Kawakami everything.

By the end of her story, Kawakami's concern had mutated into rage.

"…what." She said after a scant, brief moment processing that reveal.

"Exactly my reaction! I dunno who that guy was, but he pretty much ruined my life because he blamed me for a drunk tumble!" She threw up her hands. "And now you know - this is why I'm so closed off to authority figures!"

"I… I just… that son of a bitch!" Kawakami growled. "What're the odds he blackmails people into money, too?!"

"…odd example, but wouldn't surprise me!" Yukiko sank back. "And then I end up at Shujin, where a perverted creep thinks I'm vulnerable, and starts immediately trying to pressure his way into my skirt… it hasn't been an easy few months."

"Yeah… at this point, it's a miracle you haven't tried to burn down the school yet. Or maybe become part of organized crime somewhere…" the teacher said, rubbing her temples. "How the hell did I miss this…?"

"Well, like you said, I'm mostly closing myself off to anyone except the delinquent contingent. I didn't want people to reopen that wound…" The inn maiden shrugged.

"And now I feel like I've been adding to that stress." She thought. "Actually, here's an idea; if you need a period to de-stress, I'll let you slack off in class a few times."

Yukiko looked up. "Pardon?"

"Make no mistake, this is only a possibility because your grades are consistently high. They drop, and I'm canceling slack privileges until you get them back up. In addition, nothing we spoke about leaves this room - and if you call me for another job, we can talk about how your relationship with the rest of the school is going if you need someone other than Dr. Maruki to talk to. However…" Kawakami turned serious. "In exchange, nothing about me being a maid is mentioned. By you or your friends."

"Way ahead of you on that." Despite the best efforts of Ryuji's lack of a volume control.

"I know, but I feel it deserves repetition. Do we have a deal?"

Yukiko beamed. "Deal!"


(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

"Supernatural powers or no, I doubt you had the ability to control time. You had to juggle your mundane life and school attendance at the same time." Sae said, tapping her fingers as she thought it out. "Someone in the school staff had to be helping you with the time and stress crunch."

Yukiko gave a slight chuckle. "My wallet still weeps for every time I paid her… and before you ask, I don't think it's legally bribery…"

"That isn't for you to decide, and even if so, this person was a critical component of your support network. Tell me about her."


(Music Playing – The Spirit – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow…

It shall become the wings of rebellion

that breaketh thy chains of captivity,

With the birth of the Temperance Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

shall lead to freedom and new power…

TEMPERANCE (XIV) RANK UP! RANK 1

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

"Great. And now…" Kawakami sighed. "Now I'm wondering what I'm doing here with a student. I'll dust, but, uh…" The maid puffed out a cheek. "I'm going to have to request you pay me for cleaning services when you call me out."

"What? Goodness of your heart not enough?" Yukiko asked wryly.

"Given that heart is approaching its late twenties, no." Kawakami said with a sigh. "I wasn't kidding when I said that Victoria mostly hires high schoolers and college girls. I don't exactly get a lot of repeat clients."

Ah. That makes sense. Yukiko thought. …actually, that also means she can do housework when the Phantom Thief stuff is more of a priority. This is a better trade then she realizes. "No objections, then!"

"Excellent. So…" With the expression of a woman marching off too war, Kawakami took out her broom. "Let's get to work."


(Sound Effect - Cameras Flashing - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQd84RfHxv4)

(Ambience Playing - Crowd Murmuring - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu1ITuYpMV4)

June 5th- TV Station – 9:00 AM

Madarame hated irony.

Today, after all, was the day that he had set for beginning full legal proceedings against the intruders in his secret studio - now it was the day he was airing what he originally was trying to hide.

"Madarame - sir…" his lawyer, hovering behind him began again.

"Don't bother…" He mumbled in what he was too guilt-ridden to force into a growl.

"But sir, think of your fans - "

"Who do you think I'm doing this for!?" He snapped. "I… I've taken them for granted. Them and everyone else… they deserve to know."

The director of the press conference began counting down. "And in 3… 2…1- "

(Music Playing – Regret – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGFZHBK2lTs)

"People of Japan…" Madarame began. "I am Ichiryusai Madarame, perhaps the most famous artist in Japan today…" He paused, working up his courage. "And… possibly the most vile fraud in Japanese history…"

Once he started, it was almost more difficult to stop, as he went over his various crimes and abuses. How so much of his work was actually those of his pupils, the shady way he hid a large amount of finances, how he regularly copied his own works to sell on the black market, how he condemned said pupils to live in a barely standing shack while he enjoyed luxury at his mistress' house.

"But… but all of that pales to my first crime. Because…" He inhaled. "Sayuri… Sayuri is not the product of my brush either. It… she is a self-portrait of a woman named Himari Kitagawa. The only thing I painted was the name, and mist over her holding her infant son...she was also one of the pupils I stole from. The very first…"

His eyes stung. "And I… I loved her, I taught her, and… and I killed her."

The tears were really flowing now. "I can't… how can I possibly apologize for what I've done?! I'm no artist - I'm a parasite! And knowing that… that Himari will only be a footnote to who I am… I'M A DISGRACE TO SOCIETY! I DESERVE NOTHING BUT ERASURE!"

The reporters' questions were already flying, and the part of Madarame not breaking apart reflected on another irony - that he was now going to be famous as one of the art world's greatest villains. There would be books about his life, now - perhaps even movies where he would be the focus character, perhaps an anti-hero of a tragic story where bitter envy and lack of talent led him to regretful evil - mostly because anyone who watched an accurate-to-his-personality Madarame would likely not be involved in such a pretentious cretin.

Fame never tasted so bitter.

But at least it was for things he actually did.


(Ambience & Sound Effects Stop)

(Music Continues)

June 5th- Shibuya Crossing – 10:01 AM

The giant screen on the side of the office building clicked back to the anchor.

"And that was from the urgent apology conference called by Ichiryusai Madarame just an hour ago…" The newsman picked up, professionally. "After reporting to both the Association for Japanese Artists and the police, Madarame complied with the police's request to turn himself in. A search of his primary studio has revealed proof of his claims of copying the famous painting Sayuri, and several apprentices he claims to have contacted have stepped forward to corroborate his story. Official investigation into the death of Himari Kitagawa has been recently opened as well…"

Of course, most people were not artists or connected to the art world either, so most of the onlooking crowd didn't really seem all that rapt or stunned - though they were still interested.

"…well. Things I did not expect to hear this morning…"

"Some mystery novelist is probably having a party. Weird murders just became a lot more plausible…"

"Wasn't he on the TV recently?"

"I feel bad for his fans - having your own idol tell you he's a fraud and a murderer? Yikes…"

"Due to his age, Madarame is being kept in a police hospital for interrogation. However, initial statements from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department have indicated they believe he is mentally sound and likely responsible for his actions. Police have refused to comment on how this event seems to mimic the vandalism incident at his museum shortly before, where a group calling themselves the "Phantom Thieves" pasted several notes claiming that they would quote "steal Madarame's heart" and force him to confess, noting a recently opened investigation into them and their relation to this case, though the police have noted they are not suspects for the crimes Madarame allegedly perpetrated." 

"…hey, I know that name! Those bandits caused a bit of a big stink a couple weeks ago…"

"Wouldn't that old geezer die if they stole his heart? Kinda need that for blood to move around your body…"

"Uh, I don't think they mean that kind of heart… more like the evil part of his soul."

"Wait, didn't they do the same thing to that Olympian guy? And he ended up confessing to being a total creep?"

"…still sounds impossible…"

"And so is being visited by three spirits on Christmas Eve and suddenly going from a miser to paying for a new school to be built. Yet that also seems kinda plausible - people just don't pull a 180 and confess like that..."

"Well. If they really did that, that's… impressive."

For the most part, it was surface-level stuff, simple idle commentary on the bizarre. 

For two particular high schoolers in the crowd, the story was incredibly relevant, for two different reasons.

"…Phantom Thieves, huh?" Goro Akechi murmured. "Sounds almost like the mental shutdowns… looks like I have another case on my hands…"

"…looks like Phantom Thieves are at it again." Makoto Niijima thought aloud as she tapped her bag. "…I guess you aren't stopping after all. But… why Madarame? What's his link to you… I need to investigate deeper."

And for different reasons, both investigators vanished into the crowd, lot in thought.


(Music Playing - Break it Down - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0w7nCLqEss)

June 5th, 2016 – Outside the Madarame Art Exhibit– 10:40 PM

Ryuji had called everyone to the bridge as soon as the news alert hit.

"Check it out! It's just like Kamoshida!" He said beaming, showing the story of Madarame's confession.

"And they mentioned the Phantom Thieves!" Ann added cheerfully. "We're really starting to get off the ground!"

"The more people who know about us, the more requests we can have, and the more people we can save." Chie agreed. "With this, we might even be able to really help people, rather than just get some bad people in jail - not that I'm complaining!"

"Hm…" Yukiko scrolled down her phone. "Apparently there's an update about the Association chairman fending off criticism about allowing live-in pupils, especially with people like Madarame...apparently the board of directors just announced a referendum on a vote of no-confidence, seeing if a majority wants to replace him."

"Somebody's in troo~ooouble!" Morgana sang, before grinning evilly. "Being forced to answer for how he protected Madarame is likely to force at least some reforms, if he wants to remain the boss…"

"Let's keep pushin' on then!" Ryuji exclaimed, pumping his fist. "As for me, I just hope we keep gettin' more and more famous! Everybody needs to know somebody's got their backs against crappy adults."

"And given how this happened twice? I'm pretty sure everyone is going to at least consider we're real." Yukiko agreed. "Too much to be a complete coincidence."

"If we continue doing this, we're definitely going to be able to give courage to everyone who needs it." Ann said, beaming.

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

Yusuke, who had been listening quietly, suddenly noticed something out of the corner of his eye. "…we may want to quiet down a little…"

Ryuji looked behind the artist, and bit back a swear. "Yeah… crap…"

(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

Behind Yusuke was a policeman in full uniform and a man in a professional-looking suit and sunglasses.

"Do you know them?" Ann asked, having never apparently had a run-in with truancy police.

"Attendance officers." Chie whispered. "And while it's a Sunday, something tells me they're after the vandals of Madarame's exhibit…"

Realization dawned on the other girl's face as color drained from it.

Naturally, the two of them, having noticed the gaggle of teenagers, came over.

"Hello there." The suited one said politely, bowing. "May I speak with you for a moment?"

"Aaaaah yes! How can we help you?!" Ann began, with an expression Yukiko guessed was supposed to be innocent, but looked more like an alien was attempting to bore into and suck out her brain as she was fully aware of it.

"…Lady Ann really needs acting lessons…" Morgana muttered.

The inn maiden couldn't help but agree. The suited officer's expression had turned suspicious. "What are you all doing here? Are you friends?" He said that with an edge creeping into his voice.

"…e wanted some tea…" Yukiko mumbled, still thinking of a lie.

The uniformed officer frowned. "Hm? What did you say?"

Thankfully, her brain rebooted. "…okay, you got us. We heard about the vandalism and we wanted to see if we could grab a stray poster from the vandals, since we live nearby…"

"Y-Yeah!" Chie interjected immediately. "I mean… Madarame just made history! We kinda wanna have a part of it…"

That satisfied both of the officers, who nodded in understanding. "…young lady, you are aware that those stickers would be part of an ongoing investigation, and would need to be turned over to the police, yes?"

The girls bowed. "We know. We're sorry…" Yukiko said.

"Good. Now please stay out of the police's way and disperse before too long, alright?" With that, the officers left.

The inn maiden let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "…I've become way too good at lying…"

"From now on, we'll need to be even more cautious then before." Morgana said. "Look at us! Right after the second Phantom Thief incident, two victims of Palace owners meeting up? Those guys were just school officials, but any detective with a brain is going to be able to smell a lead."

"…well. I needed the paranoia of possibly being watched like I needed to kick myself in the head…" Chie said with a grimace, before shivering.

Ryuji shrugged. "Eh, it'll be fine. Look around, we're the only people worrying about it. And… speaking of detective work…" He turned to Yusuke. "…you've been nearly completely silent about this Yusuke. How do ya feel?"

Indeed, the entire time, Yusuke was… silent.

"Yusuke…" Ann whispered worriedly. "You… alright?"

Yusuke sighed. "…I don't know."

Yukiko looked concerned. "You don't know…?"

The artist sighed. He said nothing more than that.

Ryuji tried to think of something thoughtful to say. "…I know you were living in the dorm, mostly, but… did you talk to Madarame at all? 'Cuz I think he would've talked about that guy in the black mask…"

The artist hummed. "…I did try, actually. Mostly I was attempting some restitution, but… I do not believe he understood what had happened to him to begin with. He seemed more… broken, than anything else. It was actually quite sobering to witness…"

"And it's not like he saw his desires actually get stolen, after all…" Ann added, thinking. "Just his Shadow."

"In any case, he may be sent to prison soon." Yusuke looked past the point of caring so much as wanting to move on. "Getting any information out of him at all will be difficult."

"…though, uh…" Yukiko cleared her throat. "You're fine with the dorms, though?"

(Music Playing - Break it Down - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0w7nCLqEss)

Yusuke sighed.

"…to be honest? The silver lining is that I will never see that house again." Yusuke said, bluntly. "I cannot draw there any more, in any case. My dorm is still a bit dirtied, but it has far less toxic memories associated. In any case, I have recently discovered that, as a scholarship student, I do not even need to pay for it, so I have a fairly large budget from the grant."

"Whoa, really?" Chie said, for once putting her enmity aside to smile. "A scholarship? That's impressive!"

"And now that he's living alone, it'll be easier to meet up." Yukiko said, thinking. "…or will be when we find our next target. Pray on the world's behalf we don't find as big a fish to make a Palace soon after Madarame…"

"Please!" Ann agreed. "The baseline personality for having a Palace is… really bad! We should probably just act like normal students while waiting for the next target."

Ryuji shrugged. "I can deal with that. Frankly, with the pace we take Palaces at, we need long breaks anyhow…"

"Ooh, maybe we can find the Treasure in a day next…" Morgana thought aloud. "That'd be a record…"

"Let's think about speedrunning after we know the level name," Yukiko said. "See you around!"

With that, the Phantom Thieves dispersed… all except Ann and Yukiko.

"Um…" Ann smiled. "I… should go to Shujin now. Thanks a lot, Yukiko."

Before Ann could leave, Yukiko stopped. "Wait. Why do you have to go?"

Ann froze.

"I… may be making amends with somebody." She spoke, quietly.

Yukiko knew exactly what she meant. "It's with Shiho, right…?"

Ann paused.

"…yeah. I… will tell her how I feel, most likely." Ann spoke, quietly. "Wish me luck…"

And with that, Ann went off.

"Ann…" Yukiko said with a frown… stay safe, okay?"

Yukiko sighed, before walking away.

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

They didn't notice the brunette third-year with reddish-brown eyes in the crowd, watching them intently.

Yusuke Kitagawa… Makoto thought to herself. …that explains why Madarame was targeted. Can't fault him if he's an ally of the Phantom Thieves now. But it's clear you won't stop… and Kobayakawa is going to be even more down my throat.

Well, that… and I really want payback for the allergy…

Though thinking about that just makes me nauseous…


(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

June 5th, 2016 – Shujin Academy, Rooftop – 4:01 PM

Fittingly, not a single entrance was barred to this place.

And even more fittingly, almost like some kind of sick joke from God, the sky became a gloomy downcast.

…exactly like… Ann thought glumly. …the day Shiho nearly…

She was so antsy that she almost didn't notice Shiho entered.

Quietly, she smiled. "…yo."

Shiho walked up - moreso hobbled - to Ann. The two gazed at the scenery together for a while.

Ann wanted to comfort her then and there. She really did. But what could she have said? Was anything she could've done to help comfort her enough? No, what Kamoshida did to Shiho… it… it really was something words cannot heal. And that made Ann almost wish Shiho had a Palace, or that her heart was somewhere in Mementos… but she didn't want to subject her to that. Not like this. Not after all she suffered, everything Ann did for her and everything she kept secret. Today was the day she had to share everything.

Everything… including the truth.

"…this was the spot I would've ended my life if I landed on my head." Shiho spoke, her voice trembled. "Just… my brains, spilled all over the side walk."

Her lip trembled. "…almost makes me regret I landed on my legs. But I'm not that stupid. Even after all that, I… I wanted to live. It was just an easy answer for despair, I think."

Ann looked down. "…Shiho…"

(Music Playing - Aurora - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFLq87hL4SU)

Shiho took a deep breath.

"…Ann… I saw the news with Madarame. I know it was you." Shiho spoke. "Tell me… everything. I'll believe you… I promise."

"Shiho…" Ann paused, bit her lip…

…and then told Shiho everything, only omitting the circumstances that Kamoshida had befell Shiho, or at least heavily neutering it.

And Shiho was just… silent by the end of it.

"…I hope you believe me, after all that. After me risking my life so something like what happened never happens again." Ann looked down, biting her lip. "Being nearly… touched by that bastard… all the injustices people suffer… I refuse to let it happen to somebody ever again. Not you… not me… not anyone. I refuse."

Shiho bit her lip. "So… you risk your life… all for me…?"

"…yeah. And… I know that sounds crazy." Ann spoke, silently.

A pause, before Shiho spoke.

"…I believe you." Shiho spoke. "A man as prideful as him… he… he's too proud to just confess everything and unravel it all. When the mind is that distorted… it's subject to corruption… and then… lies…"

Shiho began tearing up. "People dehumanizing other people… treating them like they aren't even human just for the sake of their own biases… it isn't right, Ann… i-it's not right…"

Shiho cried, wiping tears from her eyes. Ann frowned, thinking about it.

"…I think bias, to some degree, is inevitable." Ann spoke, quietly. "People's own experiences… however subjective, they're all real. So is people's pain, please, hope, despair, life, death… all of it has the meaning we attribute to it." A sigh. "Which is why I want to do this. Precisely so that everything people suffered… it has meaning in this flawed world. That… that's what I want to do with my life. Help others."

A pause. "…including you."

Another long pause occurred.

"…so you do that by risking your own life while I just sit on the sidelines?"

Shiho glared at Ann, with a single tear rolling down her eyes.

Ann grimaced. "Shiho, that isn't fair - "

"Oh, don't 'fair' me! NOTHING OF WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU OR ME IS FAIR!" Shiho screamed. "Especially you risking your own life and limb to protect me, when I want to protect you too, damnit! SINCE WHEN IS ANYTHING ABOUT THAT FAIR?! LETTING PEOPLE LIKE YOU DO ALL THE HARD WORK WHILE THE PEOPLE THAT CARE FOR YOU ARE FORCED THE SIT LIKE SOME KIND OF HELPLESS THING TO BE WON OVER, ESPECIALLY WHEN I LOVE YOU?! AND NOT JUST AS A FRIEND!"

Shiho gasped, still teary-eyed, upon realizing her outburst.

Ann… was just left stunned silent.

"T-That's… I… I didn't mean to…" Shiho whimpered. "Say that…"

(Music Playing – City Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElU8g7xi6ws)

"Shiho…" Ann paused.

A deep breath.

"…I love you too. And… not as a friend." Ann spoke, crying. "Because I… love you. In love, I mean."

Shiho froze. She wasn't expecting that.

"I… I was just scared of sharing it to you… because I…" Ann spoke, voice trembling. "I didn't want to ruin our friendship…"

Shiho froze again.

"…you can hate me if you want." Ann trembled, shaking as she was crying.

In that moment… Shiho's heart broke.

"…I'm sorry." Shiho whimpered.

"W-What?"

"I'm sorry! I'm so stupid!"

"S-Shiho, wait!"

Shiho immediately tried running away. "Stupid, stupid, STUPID - "

…but her broken, fractured leg caused her to fall on herself bruising and cutting her cheek open.

"SHIHO!" Ann cried out. "Listen! It's okay, alright! I… I love you too!"

"No it isn't! NO IT ISN'T!" Shiho sobbed. "I WAS ALWAYS JEALOUS OF YOU! HOW MUCH STRONGER YOU ARE THAN - "

(Music Abruptly Stops)

…in that moment, time stopped.

Ann cupped Shiho's cheeks, one cut and staining Ann's hand with her blood, and kissed Shiho.

(Music Playing - Sweet - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtfM00JWoPU)

"Mmmgh…?!" Shiho's eyes widened, tears blinking from her eyes as Ann kissed her… and…

…she felt warm.

Warmness was the first thing she felt.

She hated to admit it, but her first experience with being kissed was with… him. It was nauseating and disgusting. The lingering of cheap alcohol on his breath. But this… this was softer. This was… warm. It… it was hard to explain, but Ann's lips were… warm. Warm. And all without the tongue like him. It caused Shiho to feel her heart skip a beat, nearly stop, and twist over in a pile.

Briefly, Ann and Shiho broke up the kiss, both girls crying.

"A-Ann…" Shiho sobbed. "I…"

"…I love you, dummy." Ann cried, tears streaking her face. "I… I want to protect you, too. I want to hold you… be there for you… and…"

Ann sobbed. "I don't want you to leave me."

Shiho felt tears streak down her face.

She then immediately hugged Ann.

"A-Ann…" Shiho sobbed. "A-Ann…!"

Shiho clutched Ann's jacket, sobbing as Ann pulled her in to shed her own waterworks too. The two girls held each other, crying and crying and muttering 'I love you' again and again as they faded together with each other… they felt warm. That was the word to describe it. Warm like a fire on a water night… it was just warm. And Shiho… didn't want to let go.

She didn't want to let go.

Eventually, she had too. Ann, teary-eyed herself, brushed tears off of Shiho's face.

"A-Ann…" Shiho hiccupped.

"Shiho… I love you too." Ann cried. "You… you're so kind, strong and dependable. You say that you're jealous of me, but… was jealous of you. You show so much resilience given everything, that I… I want to make sure… you're happy." Ann cried. "T-That's all I wanted… and… I promise you'll protect me too…"

Shiho froze. "I… Ann…"

Ann nodded. "I… I hope you understand."

A pause. And then, Shiho smiled.

"…I'm sorry. Again…" Shiho hiccupped. "I… I came up to this roof just to scream at you… but it was really me being mad at myself… but after everything… 'Personas', 'Shadows', you… I want to find some way to protect you… just as you're protecting me."

Ann smiled. "…yeah. I… I promise."

"Ann…" Shiho hugged her once again, and once more, it felt warm.

The two spent what felt like an eternity in each others' arms, the cold overcast of the day belying the happiness the two felt. And eventually, they broke up, smiling at each other.

"…s-so…" Shiho squeaked adorably. "D-Does that… make me your… g-girlfriend?"

"…I-I suppose it does." Ann giggled embarrassedly. "I… I always wanted this…"

"M-Me to…" Shiho leaned in closer, pulling her in… and felt her crying once more.

And so, she too cried.

"…please, promise me, Ann…" Shiho weeped. "Don't… don't die on me. I… I need you… I want you, Ann… please don't… put yourself at risk…"

Ann felt tears shed off of her face. "…I promise. I… I'll protect you. Just… protect yourself too… okay?"

"Mm…" Shiho nodded, smiling as tears of joy rolled off her face. "That's better…"

Time passed. An indescribable amount of time, for their embrace was all they've known.

Eventually, the overcast faded, and the sunset came out.

"Hey…" Ann giggled. "Look, Shiho… it's the sunset."

The orange rays shined on the two like a gift from whatever kami was above. Shiho giggled, smiling warmly… and feeling a massive burden eyes.

"…thank you. Um…" Shiho touched her cheek, to notice it's caked with blood. "U-Uh, we should… get this checked…"

Ann noticed the cut on Shiho's cheek, and her eyes widened. "Shoot! You're right; I know a clinic in Yongen-Jaya we can get that checked on." Ann smiled. "So… let's go there together… okay, uh…"

She squeaked. "H-Honey?"

A pause.

"Err, Shiho - "

"Snrk… heeheeheehahahahaha…!"

Shiho giggled, bursting into a fit of happy laughter. Ann's cheeks colored in that moment.

"E-Eh… not funny…" Ann blushed. "I-I never had a partner before, s-so… it's new to me!"

"B-But it's so cute!" Shiho said in laughter. "I love it!"

Ann couldn't help but smile. "Y-Yeah… heehee…"

Eventually, the laughter subsided. Ann, wearily, smiled at Shiho.

"Well…" Ann giggled. "Let's… let's get that cut checked. Okay, Shiho…?"

Shiho giggled. "Sure thing… dear."

"Y-You too?!"

The two laughed. But in the end… peace of mind came. Like they've overcome a massive hurdle together.

And so, they've walked to the clinic together…

…and for the first time…

Ann held Shiho's hand.

And it was a gorgeous day, just like her.

Notes:

And we are DONE! About time too. And hell yes, we're on the Ann/Shiho hype train, baby!

Also, fun fact: the Faith Arcana is meant to stand in for the Hierophant Arcana on traditional tarot decks, as the Faith Arcana is from the Cary-Yale Visconti-Sforza Tarot Deck, or the Visconti di Modrone set; see the similarities between the Faith and Hierophant here and here.

Anyways, sorry for the wait, y'all! This took a while: again, massive thanks to Leliel for this fic. Seriously, Leliel, you are a GOD. And of course, many thanks to the readers who waited this long for the update! You're all truly lovely.

Have a good one, my delightful worm babies. <3

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 19
Chie: Lv. 17
Ryuji: Lv. 17
Ann: Lv. 16
Morgana: Lv. 16
Yusuke: Lv. 16

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Faith (Kasumi Yoshizawa): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 4
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 5
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 4
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 3
Temperance (Sadayo Kawakami): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 2

Chapter 15: Down The Rabbit Hole

Summary:

The Phantom Thieves clean up one mess only to be freshly embroiled in another. Yukiko can't catch a break, but perhaps there's another Target which to zone in on…

Notes:

AND THUS WE RETURN. At last!

Thanks for the wait, y'all, but boy am I happy to get this update a rolling. Today's gonna be a chapter largely on the side of things, but it will lead up to Kaneshiro as the next target as a wholesale. Not much to say - I hope you enjoy!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 19
Chie: Lv. 17
Ryuji: Lv. 17
Ann: Lv. 16
Morgana: Lv. 16
Yusuke: Lv. 16

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Ame-no-Uzume, Archangel, Berith, Jack Frost, Koppa Tengu

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 2
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Faith (Kasumi Yoshizawa): 2
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 4
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 5
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 4
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 3
Temperance (Sadayo Kawakami): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 2

Persona Database: Jeanne D'Arc
Arcana: Victory
Level: 21
Resistances: Drain Bless, Null Ice and Nuclear, Weak to Fire
Skills: Kouga (Innate), Diarama (Innate), Makouha (Lv. 22), Freila (Lv. 23), Myriad Slashes (Lv. 25), Hamaon (Lv. 26)
Persona Compendium Description: "A French heroine who appeared towards the end of the Hundred Years War. She is nicknamed "the Maid of Orleans." Upon receiving a vision from God at the age of 16, she took a stand to save France. After meeting with King Charles VII, she drove the English out of Orleans. Later she was captured at Compienge and was burned at the stake by the Rouen diocese, occupied at the time by the English."

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

(Music Playing – Interrogation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XFUA3lDvSI)

???-???-???

"…let me see if I'm following the timeline correctly. After Shiho Suzui, you stole a heart as a favor to someone you barely knew?" Sae clicked her pen, thinking. "You were sent away twice, threatened with being reported to the police, and still wanted to help him?"

"Spite's a powerful motivator, frankly." Yukiko, even in a lurid state of drug-induced fogginess, was still proud enough of herself to give a small grin. "I don't think I'd have been so keen on it, if I didn't feel Madarame scammed me as well…"

"A valid point, but at the same time, it still seems riskier than you seem to prefer." Sae leaned back some more, not exactly all that impressed like Yukiko was - at least, going by the testimony. "Moreover, I'm still giving you the benefit of the doubt about this 'changing someone's heart' business being supernatural, but an entire museum instead of a castle, now? It strains credibility."

The innmaiden couldn't let that slide. "More than people suddenly confessing to deeply held secrets after we send them calling cards?"

"If anything, you actually having paranormal abilities makes the possibility of you lying even more reasonable." Sae sighed. "I do not know your capabilities, after all - it could be that you instead use some form of telepathy or mental alteration…"

The prosecutor trailed off as she realized what she was saying. "…ugh, I sound like one of Makoto's manga. In any case, the truth will become apparent once your conspirators are in custody. Speaking of - tell me who your newest member is, Fox."

Yukiko leaned back, crossing her arms.

"There was only one pupil left at Madarame's studio, as you yourself noted. All that this silence is going to do is waste time and annoy your prosecutor."

"Yeah, sorry, but no." Yukiko stood firm in her stance. "I know fully well the SID personally hates me for making them look bad. Annoying them to keep my people safe is the only pleasure left to me in my life at this point."

Sae cocked an eyebrow. Internally, she felt herself developing a tiny amount of respect for Amagi. Far too many crime lords turned out to be utter cowards when faced with any amount of consequences; she could admire the gumption and will needed to be as loyal to one's subordinates as they were to the boss, if nothing else.

"…so you aren't going to turn in your teammates, still." Her lips curled up into the faintest trace of a smile before resuming her normally severe expression. "I see…"

"I have to bring it up that I have standards." Yukiko said with nary a hint of interest of betraying her friends. "A magician doesn't give away their secrets. Why'd a thief like me give away their contacts?"

Sae blinked. …at this point, I actively wonder how it is a teenager from the boonies has more dignity than my own publicly-funded employers. Actual lack of grift has something to do with it, I'd assume…

Regardless, the silver-haired woman shook her head. "…fine. There is much more that you seem willing to speak of, and I wish to know."

Yukiko sluggishly raised an eyebrow. "…such as?"

Sae pulled out her book. "Such as your point in that Madarame's arrest was the Phantom Thieves' breakout into public consciousness. I must say, your celebrity made tracking down actionable intel extremely irritating - the internet was flooded with rumors and lies over who you helped or who got calling cards - and given this 'Mementos', I cannot say they are all false. But we do know about this man, and he's a rather notable break in the pattern…" 

With that, she opened the casebook to the picture of a stout, rather chubby man in an immaculate purple suit and a disdainful, shark-like expression on his face. "Junya Kaneshiro, age 37. Rather than a public figure, however, he was a hangure gang leader and criminal kingpin who was only known by name to the police, and even his face evaded us until he turned himself in."

"Ah yeah. Him." A sour expression came to Yukiko's face. "Sleazebag… the Yakuza themselves didn't want anything to do with them, from what I recall…"

Sae frowned. "The Yakuza try to stay out of any direct business that could harm their public image, even given their hands in illegitimate businesses. They have to, given the position of their legal ventures tie back into a considerable proportion of the economy. And from what Kaneshiro was involved with…"

As Sae trailed off, Yukiko darkened. "…he treaded places they feared to tread. Hard drugs, extorting minors, human trafficking of students and young girls…" She shuddered. "…absolutely nasty stuff. I have no idea how he could even sleep at night with all that money when nobody wanted so much as a piece of that bastard."

"Given what his organization was involved in? I cannot disagree." She leaned back. "Truthfully speaking, if you have come to us for his arrest, I would have helped ensure you were in witness protection."

Sae's brow furrowed as she frowned once more. "But you were obviously able to influence him in spite of his paranoia, and his own power in the Underworld. Tell me how."

Yukiko gave a shaky exhale. "…I was worried about this, honestly."

"Really? What do you mean?" A note of concern got into her voice. "…did his lieutenants somehow retaliate?"

Yukiko took a deep breath, then sighed outwards.

"No. Because it involves your sister."


(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

June 2nd – Class Hallway, Shujin Academy – 1:11 PM

“Yukiko? Can I, um, have a word?”

“Yipe!” Yukiko gave a start, suddenly aware of Mishima’s presence. Maybe it was how incredibly generic his appearance was, but to be frank the blueish haired boy may or may not have had the capacity to become invisible.

“Um!” Recovering her composure, Yukiko gave an embarrassed grin. “I’m sorry! I just, um, wasn’t expecting you!” She giggled, making an odd jerking motion with her head.

Mishima blinked, confused. “Err… I just wanted to talk to you about – “

“I’d be perfectly fine talking about it. In private.” She jerked her head again, a little more desperately.

Mishima blinked. “Um… is there something wrong with your neck?”

Yukiko would've willed Mishima to burn to a crisp for his obtuseness. “Yes, I have a bit of tension that’s been at my heels for the past few days – “

“…oh!” The penny dropped in Mishima’s head. “You mean the class president?”

Makoto Niijima, Mistress of Stealth, squeaked as the collected first volume of the Featherman manga flew out of her hands. After a second of Yukiko glaring at her, the upperclassman awkwardly cleared her throat. “Oh, um – I uh, don’t mind my, um, classmates discussing anything! I, um, apologize for the rudeness, I – I find the lighting in this room is… good… casual reading material. I’ll, uh, let you talk!” She gave a smile that looked strangely skull-like in its strain, as she gathered up her book and apparently tried very hard not to run to the exit.

“…so, you noticed?” Yukiko gave a rueful grin. “I noticed she became very interested in reading in my proximity a few hours ago. I started to wonder if it was coincidence the third time, when she was holding that book upside-down.”

“So has the rest of the school.” Mishima shrugged. “The going theories are that she has a crush or is trying to find some way of expelling you - and given how Haru acts, my money's on the latter.”

“I was wondering about that.” Yukiko said with an embarrassed smile. “I get the sense she’s really not doing it because she wants to – even if she did, she’s really not suited to stalking.”

Mishima shrugged once more. “I’d warn you about the danger, but I think that’d be kinda insulting to your intelligence. But, um, we have a couple requests that showed up after everything with Madarame. Small stuff, but it's linked directly to Shujin.”

Yukiko perked up, her posture becoming much more serious. “What can the Thieves do?”

“Couple of bullies, actually. But here’s the weird bit – one of them made a request against the other.”

That was interesting. “Huh? Territorial war?”

“More like disgruntled henchman - the first bully, Daisuke Takanashi, is a huge thief of younger students’ lunch money; he’s actually known to shake down middle schoolers. Thing is, though, I’ve actually got a request that sounds like him, saying he’s being forced to shake down people by a bigger bully, Yoshimori Sakoda. Tell the truth, I had written it off, because he put a lot of self-pity in that request – you know, ‘it’s not my fault I hurt kids smaller and younger than me’ and that – but yeah, turns out he’s gotten worse recently because Sakoda’s being running a Ponzi scheme, he forces other bullies into sending him a cut of their take, and if they refuse, he bullies them worse.”

“Bully pyramid schemes.” Yukiko sighed. “How… innovative. I’ll see what we can do.”

“Thanks!” Mishima smiled, looking relieved at the albatross lifted from his neck.

Well, they were going to Mementos today anyway for Morgana's sake, and to trawl for other targets – three birds with one stone, including one that she really didn’t want going into business school without his heart stolen. The world did not need more shitty bosses who ran pyramid schemes.


(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

June 2nd – Mementos, Shibuya Entrance – 3:02 PM

“Match found. Beginning navigation.”

Of all the things Fox was hoping to see with how excitedly Skull had been talking about ‘Mementos’, the subway station suddenly being replaced by a reddish hellscape covered in disturbingly fleshy plants was not what he expected. Or wanted.

"Er…" He cleared his throat, awkwardly. "I was not imagining the collective consciousness to humanity to be so… macabre."

"Yeah… me neither, Fox." Dragon moaned. "I'm never getting used to this…"

"I don't think the Will Seed plants are all that bad, though." Panther tried to comfort the two. "Then again, that's also because they haven't animated and tried to eat anyone yet…"

“A fair point. Relatedly - there is… nobody here.” Fox’s concern was written all over his face. “Is this normal? Even Madarame had cognitions.”

“More or less.” Mona said, shrugging. “The only people in here are the Shadows, and they’re in Mementos itself, not the station. There's too many perspectives for cognitions to form.”

Fox still looked uncomfortable, but his tension eased a bit. “I… see.”

He paused, looking around. “And it’s… very red. It gives the area a sort of… post-apocalyptic feel. Not something I would normally associated with desire - are the majority of those who pass here as morbid as our leader?"

"Don't I wish…" Phoenix muttered.

“Keep in mind, Mementos is still a Palace - it's made of everyone’s warped desire.” Mona corrected, hopping up. “Shadows are the embodiments of desires we don’t want to admit exist; while a single person’s Palace can look nice, that’s because their personal Shadow is able to think of their desires as a good thing, and so it’s like putting a coat of delusional paint on. Mementos is the domain of conflicting corrupt desires, including those of people who aren’t so warped as to not realize their desires are unhealthy, so no Shadow is able to disguise how frightened they are of their own wants - too much static from other Shadows.”

This mollified Fox. “Ah. So the dissonance provokes the manifestation of a color everyone dislikes.” He smiled before nodding. “Excellent. I was worried I needed to buy a completely different set of hues in the future - in fact, I think I just found inspiration…”

Dragon rolled her eyes and groaned. "I wonder how he's going to fit Jose into this…"


(Music Playing – Have a Short Rest - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU44Lx_jCFo)

June 2nd – Mementos, Aiyatsbus – ???

At this point, Fox had gotten used to at the dark, dreary depths of Mementos, and was sketching them as they passed. There were two reasons for this.

For one, it’s Mona’s flat-out excitement to explore the depths of Mementos some more. It really emphasized to the blue-haired Phantom Thief how much of a child he was. Not to an annoying degree, thankfully; Mona’s enthusiasm was very infectious, to the point Phoenix broke the silence with her usual giggling fits.

The second was having seen Jose and his car - it was kind of hard to remain intimidated by an eldritch dungeon of a subway when the path down involved suddenly passing by a boy in a toy-like dune buggy with way, way too much stuff in his trunk and a cracked-egg helmet. Especially not once the Morganamobile pulled up to his temporary shop and Fox got to know the eccentric-but-nice alien a bit better while Phoenix was scrounging the area for a couple flowers to trade.

"I see..." Fox nodded. "So this juice contains the purified form of the desires that feed these vines?"

"Pretty much!" He said with a giggle, before sipping at his juice. "I'm also studying how those crystals you guys made from the Will Seeds can have their power tapped fully - they're plenty strong as is, but I think they're still kind of corrupted, so they're not tapping into their full potential. That Crystal of Vanity could be a really potent form of defense, and if the Crystal of Lust can already heal pretty well in its base form..."

"I see. So the vines are emblematic of distorted desires, but their flowers are a pure form…" Fox hummed. "A lovely contrast. The bright yellow and white of potential, risen from the black and scarlet of distortion… I can see it now…"

"Uh, it all looks like a bunch of really nasty vines and flowers to me, but I've been down here a while. When everything constantly changes, it all looks the same." Jose shrugged. "Still, glad to see you got over the, er, red. It's creepy the first time you're down here."

"And the second…" Dragon cut in, with a very uncomfortable smile. "And the third…"

"Here's hoping the lower levels don't get worse…" Panther agreed. "Though, how's the flower hunting going?"

"Eh." Jose made a 'kinda' gesture. "I'm getting a pretty good bounty, but it's really not giving me anything to work off of. Though… is the star I gave you helping any?"

Phoenix, having returned with a large bag of flowers over her back, grinned apologetically. "Sorry. Right now, it just looks pretty - our wishes apparently don't pass the sniff test."

Jose frowned. "…huh. Swore something that was proof of friendship could do more. Especially in the Metaverse." He cradled his chin and tapped his foot, thinking.

Then he lit up. "Say… have any of you tried, like, a combo attack? One that's more… uh, what's the word for 'has directions', like a play, or movie, or dance…"

"'Choreographed'?" Fox suggested.

"That's it!" Jose began beaming. "Yeah, something more choreographed than just charging a bunch of downed Shadows for quick strikes? Like one of you distracts, the other sneaks up from behind?"

Mona hummed in thought. "…oh! There's this scene in this action comedy manga I saw once, it'd really fit Lady Panther and me!"

Panther rose an eyebrow. "…would this happen to be a parodic romantic scene?"

Mona blanched. "Uh…"

The blond Thief giggled. "No, no, it's okay. It's just an attack, I don't think Shiho would care if it saved our lives."

"Oh. Phew." The not-a-cat cleared his throat. "Well, you see, there's a moment where the male lead needs to sneak some guns to his assassin partner in Valentine's Day…"

What he described… certainly sounded like a shonen, Phoenix thought with growing amusement. Where are we even going to get roses - ah!

The leader of the group nearly jumped back as the star suddenly glowed and shook.

"Whoa! We gonna get that beef place now?!" Skull said.

"I think it'd happen faster if it was a wish, honestly." Jose said, smiling. "But by the looks of it, the star is resonating with your friendship - it ties into both of your personalities to the point where it could probably warp the Metaverse long enough for a single, well-practiced attack. It wouldn't work for every idea, but it is probably good if both of you are fighting Shadows."

"Awesome!" Mona said, pumping his paw. "We'll have to try that later…"

Phoenix nodded - and then thought of something.

"…hey, Dragon?" Phoenix gave an almost cat-like smirk. "Is there any movies you've seen recently that involve rich damsels that kick ass?"


(Music Playing - Dark World Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nc5LeZbAHk)

June 2nd – Mementos, Aiyatsbus – ???

Reality warped briefly before the six Thieves as a familiar sight bore in front of the four. It was just as with Nakanohara – a darkness-shrouded person with golden eyes, all at the end of a dead end up in the endless subway, with Will Seed vines trailing off into infinity in a hole in the black wall. As Mona was the first to exit from the portal to the private room, he took a second to glance around at his surroundings.

“So, is this Takanashi or Sakoda?” Mona mused. “From the sound of it, Takanashi feels forced into this, so his Shadow’s likely weaker.”

“Takanashi.” Fox corrected as he hopped out. “From what the report has been telling me, Sakoda seems to uses a camera to take videos of his bully minions to blackmail them into going along with his tax. I am willing to bet his Shadow would have it too.” Readying his weapons, he seemed ready to press forward an attack. “I doubt Takanashi deserves that hanging over him, but it is pretty ruthless of him; if we don’t take his heart, he could get just as bad as Sakoda once out from under his thumb.”

“Well, it ain’t right to hurt others just to avoid getting bullied yourself!” Skull agreed, hopping out. “Hey asshole! You heard all that? Well, it’s your lucky day! We’re considerin’ your heart payment for the request you made!”

“…my heart!?” Shadow Takanashi said as he recovered, an absolutely furious expression coming to his golden eyes. “I go to you for help, and this is how you treat me!?”

“Aw, jeez…” Panther readied up Carmen. “Welp, so much for getting the drop on him.”

(Music Playing – Blood of Villain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

“No, no, you have the wrong idea!” Mona clarified, an air of tension surrounding the young boy-cat.  “Someone else came to us, and they made a request on you. Sakoda’s a jerk, but what you’re doing isn’t any better! In fact, it’s worse, because you know how bad it is to struggle under a bully’s thumb.”

“Don’t give me that shit! It’s just the way of the world!” Shadow Takanashi retorted, crossing his arms. “There’s always going to be bullies, and people too weak to stand up to bullies. I just made a couple mistakes stopping Sakoda, that’s all!”

“I… what?!” Panther snarled, just as much from disbelief as anger. “You think the victims of bullies deserve it, so you ask for help with your bully?! How the hell does that make any sense?!”

“I stood up for myself! Sakoda’s the one you want, not me!” Takanashi paused, before glaring even more. “Oh, I get it! You’re some kind of gang! Just like those wannabe yakuza goons Kaneshiro always sics on us!”

One could almost hear the record scratch in Phoenix’s head. “…Yakuza goons?”

“Yeah! They’re the reason Sakoda’s been making me get more cash!” Takanashi’s glare only escalated into pure wrath. “You’re just like them, a bunch of weak people ganging up on strong ones to make them work for you! Protectors of Justice, my ass!” The dark aura around Takanashi started to flare as his human form started to distort. “Don’t act like you know anything about me, you hypocrites!”

“You’re the one who doesn’t know anything!” Skull said as he took out his pipe. “Let’s get ‘em!”

With that, Takanashi’s human form melted, the bubbling blob of Shadow-stuff exploding into…

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

…perhaps the least intimidating form Takanashi could have possibly taken.

It took exactly four-point-seven seconds for all five of the Thieves to collapse into laughter at the Shadow form of Takanashi, a Jack Frost.

“W-What the hee-hell is your problem, ho?!” The horned snowman jump-danced in anger. “Just because I’m cute doesn’t mean I’m not dangerous, ho!”

“I k-know, b-but… pffft!” Panther cackled. “We’ve fought you before! This is gonna be cake! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

“Grrr… fine! If that’s hee-how you wanna play, ho…” Flaring up an attack, Takanashi pointed directly at Panther. “Eat my Bufu, ho! Hee-HO!”

And just like that, violence erupted.

(Music Playing – Keeper of Lust - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfN8V1tB0W0)

An encasing of ice enveloped Ann’s still-laughing body, knocking her directly on her feet as Ann doubled over. “OW! THAT HURT, DAMNIT!”

“Welp, seems somebody can’t take a joke…” Mona aimed his slingshot directly at the snowman’s head. “Get ‘em, all!”

And just like that, the violence erupted. Skull, Fox and Mona began their assault by unloading all of their ranged weaponry directly at Jack Frost and unleashing a maelstrom of projectiles and bullets. This barely seemed to have phased the snowman, having gained momentum from exploiting Ann’s weakness to ice.

“Damn you, ho! You’re real-hee annoying with that thing, ho!” Unleashing a wave of frost on the four Persona users, he successfully knocked both Skull and Mona onto their feet – while they were thankfully neutral to ice spells, the sheer force of the flash freeze was enough to make both of them stumble backwards.

“Jeez, have some humor, Frosty the Snowman!” Ryuji screamed out as he hurled a Zio spell back with Captain Kidd. “We were only laughing at ya for, like, five seconds!”

“Hee-ven a child has more discipline than you, ho!” Jack Frost retaliated with a frost blast of his own. “Don’t you dare tell me I’m not better than you, hee-ho!”

The carnage continued on for another indiscriminate amount of time. Skull and Dragon were doing all they could with their physical attacks - especially them, who correctly guessed their Bufu spells would do more harm than good - while Mona ran over to Panther and healed the wounded girl back to full capacity.

“Lady Ann, are you okay?!” Mona growled in a surprisingly catlike-function. “How dare they lay a finger on you!”

Panther smiled. “Thanks! And don’t worry, we’re even, now…”

The half-Danish student gave a glare directly towards the Jack Frost; if looks could kill, it’d be an outright Mudoon spell. “You! You’ve got some nerve hitting me like that, asshole! AGI!”

The snowman was promptly swept off his feet by the fireball - and then there was a surprised cry from Phoenix.

"Um…" She held up Jose's star, which had begun to pulse light. "…I think you may have turned it on…"

Mona perked up. "Really? Neat! Lady Ann, let's punish this rude jerk for how he treated you together!"

"On it!" Panther paused. "Just… it's just an attack, okay? Let's show them what's what!"

With that, they took to the air, as the Metaverse warped around them.

SHOWTIME!

To Shadow Sakoda's befuddlement, suddenly the entire room was replaced with a field of wildflowers that seemed straight out of a cheap shojo romance, with only himself, Mona, and Panther in it. And...were those petals in the breeze?

"A gift as beautiful as you!" Mona began, pulling an enormous boquet of roses as large as he was out of...somewhere.

Jack Frost blinked. "Hee… huh?"

Panther reared back in apparent shock. "It's gorgeous..."

The snowman looked around, apparently looking for a prank show's camera.

The two leapt towards each other, rather simplified and overly sappy drawings of each other appearing behind them-

"Er, this is cute and all, but um, weren't we fighting a second ag-ho-"

"I WON'T LET IT GO TO WASTE!" With that, Panther pulled out the pair of freshly stocked machine guns in the bouquet, as Mona yanked out a cartoon bomb, the momentum from the leap being translated into a backflip carrying them over Sakoda's Shadow form as Panther emptied her guns and Mona let the bomb fly.

"Oh-ohh! I get it noooOOOWWW! HEE-HAAAAARGH!"

The bomb exploded as the two of them posed, ignoring the bits of Shadow gunk being flung everywhere. "NOW THAT'S STYLE!"

With that, the field dissolved, leaving only the slowly dissolving remnants of Jack Frost...and some rather dumbstruck fellow Phantom Thieves.

(Music Playing - Victory - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnfx4FKvSTY)

Well, dumbstruck except for Phoenix, who had somehow managed to stop the laughing she started around the time the drawings showed up enough to applaud uproariously.

After a few seconds, Fox cleared his throat. "Er… perchance, can you tell me how much that manga cost?"

Mona blushed. "Uh… truth is, I found it in a dumpster… along with a bunch of other copies… behind a book shop…"

"Yeah, um… no offense, but…" Dragon gulped. "I suspected. The proportions on those drawings were a bit… off."

"But, hey, it worked!" Skull said, pointing at the dissolving Shadow behind them. "We just won!"

“Gyaaaaaaah! Please, don’t kill me!” Takanashi bowed gracefully. “I’m sorry! I’m so, so sorry! Please, don’t hurt me anymore!”

(Music Playing – Sunset Bridge – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxDHyhylKrw)

Catching her breath, Phoenix turned serious. "See how it feels? Being completely at the mercy of someone you thought was trustworthy?"

"Seriously - Takanashi, I'm going to be blunt here." Panther began. "What Sakoda's doing to you is wrong. I'm not gonna dispute that. But to turn around and keep doing it? You're not surviving - you're just continuing the cycle you're stuck in."

"Because, man, while you ain't responsible for that jackass, you're responsible for you." Skull added. "If you ain't gonna be the one who stops it, who is? Eye for an eye and all that - 'scept it's not even that, you ain't even picking on the guy who did this to ya in the first place."

Shadow Takanashi ruminated on this for a bit, and sighed. "I… I guess. And… yeah. Guess I should've seen one of my targets go after me… I really need to stop projecting my own flaws on people…"

"Before you go, however…" Fox frowned. "This… Kaneshiro figure. Who is he? Because… well, the idea that yakuza are harassing high schoolers is a bit alarming…"

The bully shook his head. "Honestly? I just know his name - and the thugs Sakoda got involved with before he got really bad. Something about a loan… really, that's another reason I called you. After Madarame, I figured someone could stop whoever he is. Because a lot of the delinquents in my school are scared of him…"

Dragon nodded. "We'll find out who he is. I promise - so long as you apologize to all the people you bullied, too."

Takanashi nodded, starting to fade out of Mementos. "Yeah… thanks. See you there…"

And with that, the Shadow vanished, leaving behind a bottle of powder.

Obtained x1 Protein

Phoenix stared at it for a bit "…huh. Inferiority complex about his muscles?"

Chie shrugged. "…we'll ask Sakoda, when we meet him. C'mon."

Not one Thief objected to leaving on the spot.


(Music Playing – Mementos – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbT5T35aUUE)

June 2nd – Mementos,  Aiyatsbus – ???

"Jose wasn't kidding…" Skull rubbed his eyes. "Mementos kinda starts blurrin' together after a while…"

While Aiyatsbus was at least blue in comparison to the dark red above, it was hard to disagree with Skull. Even a game of I Spy became a bit more difficult and tedious when the vending machines were the same thing, just in multiple different areas. 

"The sooner we can get Sakoda over and done with, the better…" Panther agreed, yawning. "Still… better boring than attacked, right?"

Phoenix nodded. "Yeah… those Shadows seem to know what's good for 'em."

She wasn't kidding - the weird, melted monsters that served as the passive form of Mementos' natives had suddenly stopped seeming interested in the Morganamobile. In fact, the instant they seemed to realize what it was, they turned tail and ran.

"Mwehehehee…" One could feel Mona purring. "I guess they realize they're weak… since they don't have a Palace master controlling them, they have common sense to get out of the ways of badasses. We're way stronger than what they're used to."

Skull demonstrated his own strength by blowing a raspberry at one as it skedaddled. "Not exactly scary now are you, you little - "

"Skull, road!" Fox cut in, pointing at a curb.

A quick swerve put them back on the tracks, while tossing the Phantom Thieves around.

"…sorry." Skull said with an apologetic grin. "I just… it feels kinda nice, not being scared of some effin' spooks…"

“Actually, that kind of reminds me. Our next guy’s Takanashi's boss, right? Yoshimori Sakoda, if I’m remembering right.” Dragon said, continuing with her point. “You think that’ll affect what his Shadow looks like? Like, in some of the kung-fu flicks I watch, the boss of an antagonist is usually a bigger and badder version of that martial style, so…”

“…Dragon's onto something, actually.” Mona said, slightly surprised. “I haven’t seen a lot of the Shadows of goons of other people who have Shadows here, because a lot of the time, a goon isn’t as distorted. They’re just trying to get paid and don’t have any illusions about it, and if they are, that’s no guarantee they’d be the same kind of corrupt as their boss. But it would make sense if Sakoda has the same kind of distortion as Takanashi, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s a different kind of Jack. Especially since there’s a lot of Jacks.”

“So, stock up on fire, I guess?” Panther frowned. “But it's weird… Takanashi's form hit a lot harder than the Jack Frosts in Madarame's Palace."

“Keep in mind these are the Shadows of people, not random ones drawn from the Metaverse like the Palace guards.” Mona explained. “They’re more unique because they reflect real people, and as they get more powerful, they’ll get more unique. That’s why we don’t see Shadow types when one of the Palace keeper Shadows assumes their battle form.”

“I see. So, they are the original portraits, and not the copies…” Fox said, nodding. “I wonder, could it be that they could develop different weaknesses?”

“Actually, trying out weaknesses that work on the generic versions of Shadows probably can’t hurt.” Phoenix said. “It's not like Takanashi was that much stronger than a normal snow gremlin.”

“Yeah, and if he's, what, a Pyro Jack? Fox can probably freeze him just fine." Chie said with a cocky grin.

In hindsight, as the Morganamobile pedaled along to its destination, the tomboy wondered if it was truly that simple.


(Music Playing - Dark World Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nc5LeZbAHk)

June 2nd – Mementos,  Aiyatsbus – ???

In time, the tracks started to lift up and into a rather familiar red portal, which when jumped through, came to a rather familiar looking dead end with a rather familiar tangle of blood veins overhead.

“Is it just me, or does being a Palace-less Shadow give you rather similar tastes in Brutalism and décor?” Fox walked in, an expression of curiosity written all over his face.

“Yeah, it is weird. Everybody with a Treasure seed has this kind of room.” Mona said, changing back to cat form as the others departed. “I guess that it’s kind of like the seed for a Palace; if the seed becomes a true Treasure, these rooms split off into their own pocket worlds in the Metaverse; my guess is that it looks like the rest of Mementos because up until that point, it’s being overwhelmed by the influence of everyone’s Palace.”

“Hmm… alright, I think that makes sense. I’m fine with that too, I really don’t want to know what a king bully has for his personal world, so I’m cool with the boring room.” Dragon looked up at the Shadow standing at the far end of the dead end. “…and I’m guessing that’s the king bully in question.”

“…is he smirking at us?” Panther said, narrowing her eyes. “Oh, he’s smirking at us.”

“Wow. How smug can ya get?” Skull shook his head. “Even if he wasn’t organizing a bunch of people who pick on little kids, I’d smack him out of principle. Dude, do we look like we’re playing games?”

(Music Playing – Blood of Villain - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvhEYbzToK4)

Shadow Sakoda, who was apparently listening in, sniffed condescendingly, adjusting his camera bag. “Well, I can tell why you feel sympathetic to little kids.” He said his retort with a laughing sneer. “You look like some elementary schooler’s idea of oh-so-scary heroes of justice.”

“Pardon me?!” Fox said with genuine offense. “I will have you know I am quite proud of the thematic of this mask, it signifies the dual nature of a vulpine trickster!”

“That aside…” Dragon said, rolling her eyes. “You have no right to call us out! Nothing gives you the right to go around, blackmailing people!”

“What gives you the right to stop me?” Sakoda shot back. “Ever heard of this thing called a businessman? The weak who can’t survive in this world become prey for the strong. In fact, I think I’m doing those ‘little kids’ a service; the sooner they learn it’s a dog eat dog world, the better. I just prey on bigger dogs than them - hell, I think when I'm out of college, I'll be able take on that creep Kaneshiro! Then everyone'll know my brain trumps his brawn, every time.”

“Oh, you gotta be kidding. This crap again?!” Skull began, exasperated. “How many times do I have to pound in how moronic of an ideology that is?! That’s not being ‘strong,’ that’s being a fuckin’ coward who won’t dare get his hands dirty!”

“Ha! And you’re a stupid dog who’s all bark and no bite!” Sakoda stepped forward, his dark aura growing thicker. “Actually, no; dogs are stronger than cats, and cats are stronger than mice. You’re what the mice prey on – trash! Now get out of my way, or suffer the consequences!”

Yukiko, frankly, had enough. She walked up to the kingpin bully and funneled a dangerous looking glare. “Try me. Let’s see what happens to you if you do.”

Famous last words, written as the epitaph of peace’s grave.

“Suit yourself, you bitch! Now, get ready!” With that, Sakoda’s human form melted into the familiar red fluid before it burst into demonic form.

As Sakoda cackled gleefully, Dragon assumed a kung-fu stance before turning to Dragon with worrisome eyes. “What do you think we’ll be going up again?”

“I dunno…” Phoenix gripped her mask, ready to change her many personas at will. “But it seems we’re gonna find out, aren’t we?”

And just like that, out of the darkness emerged a figure that was both different and familiar.

Indeed, Sakoda’s monstrous form was clearly a different type of Jack Frost. In fact, he didn’t exactly look much different from his subordinate; the main changes were that he was bigger, his snow was black, and his expression was much eviler; his teeth were canines, and his red eyes were narrowed in a snark, given his expression a decidedly sinister cast.

This didn’t stop it from being absolutely adorable, though. Just an eviler form of adorable.

(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

“Hee-hohohohahahaa!” The demonic Black Frost bellowed. “I am Black Frost, hee-ho! Slayer of gods and conq-ho-rer of light, hee! Tremble before me-hee, puny mortals, ho!”

A pause. Then, uproarious laughter. Phoenix’s laughter.

“Pffft… ahahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahaha!” Phoenix giggled uncontrollably as she fell onto the floor. “I-It’s so cute! Oh my God, that’s – pffffffffffft! Ahahahahaha! Hahahahahahahahahaa!”

“Hee… huh?” The Black Frost almost looked confused at the menagerie of giggling and/or amused responses from the Thieves. “Why aren’t you afraid, ho?! Are you supposed to be at lea-heest a little ho-horrified, hee-ho?!”

“Why should I be afraid when I was right on the money, eh?!” Skull immediately out into a grin, he himself immensely proud for his correct guess. “Hey, when we get done with this, someone needs to pick up their phone, because I fuckin’ called it!”

(Music Stops)

“Grrrrrrrrrrrr! I’ve had enough of this, ho! Get out of my way be-hee-fore I rip you apart, hee-ho!” With a mighty roar, the giant Black Frost raised his fist and lunged at the Thieves. “Take this! Mabufu, ho!”

And with that, the battle begun.

(Music Playing – Keeper of Lust - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfN8V1tB0W0)

And it couldn’t have opened up in a worse way either; a torrent of ice knocked the Phantom Thieves straight onto their feet; Yukiko had Bifrons equipped, so the flurry of ice knocked her down as quickly as it did for Panther. Skull, Mona and especially Fox and Dragon were left unharmed, though, and promptly began retaliating with their own spells.

Fox immediately noted when his ice spell had virtually no effect on the Black Frost. “Ice attacks do not work, I’m afraid! Try something else for this endeavor!”

“Yeah, well, ya don’t need to tell me twice!” Dragon hollered back as she let Tomoe so a sweeping slash on the Black Frost in concordance to her own ice spells failing.

Despite the rest of the Thieves’ best efforts, everything thrown at the behemoth did little more than a dent against him – it felt as though nothing hurled or lunged at him was going to do significant damage, and the Black Frost was all the more cocky for it.

“Hee-ho-hahahahaha!” The demon guffawed. “You’re gonna nee-hee-d to try more than that if you want to hurt me, ho! What shade otherwise do ya got for me, hee-ho?!”

Shade… Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in Phoenix’s brain, causing her to immediately switch out her Persona. “Change, now! Come forth, Jeanne D’Arc!”

“H-Huh?!” Dragon looked baffled. “Phoenix, didn’t we agree to use Bifrons for buffs?! I – wah!”

Suddenly, a radiant light emitted from the palm of Phoenix’s hand, and out came a female paladin wearing the French flag on her back. Despite the inherent holiness permeating the summoned saint - which Yukiko found ironic, given the inherent unholiness surrounding her career as a rebel - the Persona of the Victory Arcana raised her sword, and vigilantly pointed at the Black Frost.

"Démon infâme du monde souterrain…” The French paladin bellowed. "…je vous bannis par la présente, au nom de Dieu!"

The evil Jack Frost looked confused. “Hee-huh…?”

“Maybe you should take more secondary language courses rather than skip out on school, huh Sakoda?” Phoenix smiled evilly. “Now… Kouga.”

A blinding, searing light emerged underneath the demon, bursting forth with an unseen vigor. The Black Frost screamed out as he fell onto the ground, utterly incapacitated.

“AAAAAAAAUGH!” The Black Frost screamed out. “IT BURNS! AUGH!”

Skull grinned from ear-to-ear. “Halle-freakin’-lujah! Way to pull the holy hand grenade, Phoenix!”

"And that's our cue!" Mona said, taking his part for the showtime. "Ready Panther?"

"On it!", the other half of his routine said.

That's when Phoenix noticed something - 

The star wasn't pulsing.

Before she could say anything, Mona reached for his pocket.

"A GIFT AS… huh?" The not-a-cat looked at his empty hands.

"Uh…" Panther glanced around. "Where's the set?"

It took them only a second to realize it wasn't working.

It took Shadow Sakoda half of that to flip to his feet.

"Okay, kids, you win! I'm going to take you seriously, hee-ho!" A dark aura manifested around him. "MAMUDO!"

A group of straw dolls appeared before the Black Frost - to the Phantom Thieves, it seemed almost in slow motion as needle-like swords descended upon them, spraying fountains of blood everywhere.

For most of them, they felt something cold and ancient brush against their souls, but nothing else - but it felt like they might have caught a passing glance at the Grim Reaper.

Dragon was not most of the Phantom Thieves.

"EUYARGH!" Wounds that imitated the cursed doll materialized on body, not spraying blood so much as leaking, but the crunch noises indicated breaking bone. She crumpled where she stood, whimpering in pain.

"CHIE!" Phoenix cried.

"Hee-hohohohahahaha!" The Black Frost somehow grinned wider. "Wish that could've hit more, but hey, one's more than none, right? Now, who the hee-ho-ell wants another death curse! Maybe the cat! MA-"

The spell died on his lips, as Phoenix adjusted her mask enough for him to see her face.

(Music Plays - The Spirit - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCqPOjWDqmY)

And if the Mudo line of curses put one in the presence of Death, the look on Yukiko's face would be best described as witnessing Death directly - and knowing that Death personally disliked you.

Because Sakoda's Shadow had made a fate mistake - laughing at Chie after maiming her.

"…Jeanne." She began, in a tone slightly colder than the heat death of the universe. "Execute him."

Only to Phoenix’s surprise, it wasn’t the Persona of the Victory Arcana to emerge.

Rather, it was Konohana Sakuya. And she was pissed.

“H-Huh?!” Both Black Frost and Phoenix were shocked as Yukiko’s original Persona manifested and screeched, like a furious eagle rearing to protect its hatchlings. Lunging forth with unprecedented speed, without any of Phoenix’s input, Konohana Sakuya began laying a repeated stream of Agi explosions directly at the dark snowman - one or two could be withstood, but not all of them.

And Phoenix would be calling it back, if she wasn’t so pissed.

“KONOHANA SAKUYA! BURN HIM TO A CRISP!” And Phoenix’s orders were upheld to the letter. Bursts of orange flame charred every bit of Sakoda’s screaming body as it went past the limit of pure overkill. She didn’t know how her initial Persona held this much power, but she didn’t care.

She wanted the murderous bully to pay.

As a final combustion of incredible power blasted across the now-charred room, Black Frost's scream enveloped across the room as he melted into the darkness… and with Phoenix her wave of exhaustion from such a repeated stream of castings wearing on her. Phoenix’s knees buckled as she collapsed onto her own two feet, breathing heavily at the victory she barely obtained.

And just like that, Konohana Sakuya gave a triumphant cry like a bird, before returning to the sea of Phoenix’s soul.

(Music Playing – Sunset Bridge – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxDHyhylKrw)

By the end, Sakoda's room looked more like the aftermath of a bombing run at a haunted house, as what was left of his Shadow form started to reconstitute.

Phoenix didn't care, rushing over to Dragon. "Please tell me you're okay!?"

To Phoenix's relief, Dragon immediately answered with a pained moan.

Mona snapped to attention, going into Morganamobile form. "I'll take Phoenix and Dragon to a Safe Spot - there should be one near here, and her speed's a benefit! Others, stay behind, make sure we get through this idiot's thick skull!"

With an efficiency that seemed almost practiced, the other Phantom Thieves loaded up their friend, before Phoenix took off, wheels skidding down the tracks as Shadows in the way screamed.

By the time the remaining three had turned their attention back to Shadow Sakoda, his human form had dragged himself back together. "Damn it… pushed too far…"

"Ya don't say?" Skull said, leveling his pipe at the bully. "So are we gonna have to finish the job, or…?"

"…no. No, you don't." Sakoda cradled his head. "What she just did… I'd leave my gang on the ground until I got the threat gone, if that. They'd do the same. Dog eat dog - being known for biting a threat back is better than ignoring it. Even if it hurts those close to you…"

"…and tell me," Fox began, narrowing his eyes. "Has that made you happy?"

"…it really hasn't." he admitted. "And even when I was puffing myself up… beating Kaneshiro's delusional. Don't even know his face, just that he was the guy his goon made a loan in the name of…"

Panther frowned. "His… goon?"

"Claimed he was yakuza, was missing a pinkie, but didn't have the tattoos. And he didn't seem like a classic gangster type, just slimy - didn't dress like one. But I needed the money."

"…uh-huh." Skull looked at the camera bag. "An asshole lugging that around needs money to buy food. Sure. I buy that - and the bridge you're sellin', where do you get off?"

“You’re right. But – I got suckered.” Sakoda closed his eyes. “I really wanted to impress my friends with what I could buy, but I started promising more than what I could afford. Eventually, I realized that I had to make a lot of money fast if I didn’t want my parents to notice, so I tried to win big at this shady casino. It… didn’t go well. I was told I had to pay off the loan I took out to hide how much debt I was in or they’d tell the school I was gambling underage. That or take a job with them.”

“So, you got this tithe system to pay for your freedom.” Fox said, nodding. “There’s some irony to becoming a blackmailer to pay for blackmail.”

“Only it didn’t stop, did it?” Panther said, eyes narrowed. “If you were still working off a debt, your heart wouldn’t be distorted enough to form a Treasure seed. There’s something here that speaks to real greed.”

Sakoda sighed. “Yeah. I actually paid the price and was able to destroy proof I gambled after a week; they still come around to see if I’m open for jobs, but I think they realized I’m not someone they can bleed dry again after I found a way to avoid getting hooked. But then I realized the money could help me stay popular, and I would look weak if I relented in blackmail…” He shook his head. “I’m really pathetic, aren’t I? I only escaped the Shibuya mafia by becoming the junior version. And I wasn’t even good at racketeering; I don’t think mobsters regularly get beaten up by teens in masks.”

"Shibuya, huh…?", Panther murmured, thinking. "If it makes you feel better, you've given us a lead. Someone who thinks teenagers are prime targets for racketeering probably should be a target if he wasn't already."

"…is that so?" Sakoda said, looking up, a bit more hopeful. "Actually… I know their scam, now. I could warn people away from it, especially with the network I've built…"

"After you apologize, and return the money you extorted." Fox cut in. "Shibuya has enough issues with this 'Kaneshiro', it does not need your help in losing money under threat of violence."

"Yeah… you're right." Sakoda nodded. "It's back to the straight and narrow path for me. I'm no criminal - it's time I stopped acting like the one who's threatening me."

With that, the Shadow vanished, leaving something unique floating in the air - a glass poker chip, covered in a Black Frost design.

Obtained 1x Evil Snow Crystal

"I'm gonna guess this is from that casino." Skull guessed, flipping it over. "Speaking of - this Kaneshiro asshole sounds like a good target. Ain't a person anyone would miss, and he's not hidin' behind fame or nothin'."

"Still…" Panther grimaced. "I've watched some yakuza movies. They aren't supposed to prey on high schoolers. Is it because it was making them nobler than they are - or is Kaneshiro even worse than literal crime clans…?"

"More pertinently…" Fox said with a motion at the portal. "Where did our transportation go? And our injured friend?"

There was a long moment as the other two Thieves realized the issue.

"For the record…" Skull said, slumping. "…one of you is paying for knee pain pills."


(Music Playing – Tension – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrdMXoqp8Q4)

June 2nd – Mementos,  Aiyatsbus – ???

As it turned out, Phoenix did have some competence when she was driving - the time it took to get to the station at the Safe Place was quartered, and all it cost was safety, the Morganamobile's tires, and a few unfortunate Shadows that didn't get out of the way fast enough.

"Here… we are… urk." The Morganamobile vanished and rematerialized back into Mona as soon as Phoenix took Dragon out of the back of the truck, shortly before collapsed face first on the ground, his paws scorched.

"Chie! Chie, you with us!?", Phoenix said, laying her out on the seats.

"Mmngh…" a slightly more conscious Dragon replied, opening her eyes. "…hate dolls. Haaaaaate."

"Oh, good, you're aware of what happened, means you aren't concussed - I think…" Phoenix mumbled, looking her over. "Where - "

"Everywhere…" Dragon mumbled. "Felt like those damn needles were being poked through every joint… but, you got mana left, right…?"

"I…" It was at that point that Phoenix realized a problem with using fire to incinerate a fire-resistant Shadow: it was a lot of fire, and a lot of strain on her reserves. "…shit."

Dragon nodded, still smiling weakly. “T-That’s fine. We can wait until Panther gets here or Mona revives so I – “

“I can't take the risk! You’ll bleed out by then!” Phoenix cried. “We need stitches, now, and I'm not a paramed-!”

Suddenly, a lightbulb immediately went up in her head, as she remembered a particular Persona.

(Music Stops)

“Hey…” The inn maiden summoned Ictinike, one of her most agile Personas, as she retrieved some string from her backpack, originally more meant for stitching up their outfits more than anything else. It wasn't an intended use, but better then just leaving every one of the curse-induced gashed.

“I’m gonna regret this… forgive me for doing this, Chie!” Phoenix winced as she gripped onto Dragon's leg, which was not bending in right direction.

“H-Hm…?” Dragon blinked. “W-What’re you going to – “

Suddenly, Yukiko’s Ictinike pulled the leg into proper position and began sewing at the nearest gash in short order. Dragon screamed in pain, even worse with the stitching, before the wound was finally stapled shut.

Okay, not stapled. But given the lack of anesthetic, it might as well be.

(Music Playing – Ristorante Bar – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDAB3-xSxH0)

“OWWWWWWWW! WHAT THE HELL YUKI – AAAAAAAGH!” Chie moaned loudly in pain as she felt another part of her body be stitched up. “J-Jeez, what’re you doing! I-I’m fine! Please! Let go and let Panther or Mona help out!”

“That’s why I said I was sorry! There’s no way you’ll be okay until I patch you up!” Phoenix protested. “Look, it’s just, what, a dozen or so opened wounds? Give me a sec! This’ll be over soon, and I’m improvising now that I’m low on mana! Ictinike! Seal the wounds shut!”

“N-No, wait, come on – KYAAAAAAAAAAAH!” Dragon immediately gripped onto Phoenix’s waist. “Gentler, please! I – aagh, ow!”

This continued on as Dragon’s yelps echoed through Mementos, triggering Phoenix gripping her friend’s hand as she sewed her friend back into shape.

It should be noted it was at that point that Mona rolled over, beheld the scene before him, and promptly fainted.

Needless to say, it sucked.


(Music Playing - Dark World Ambience - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nc5LeZbAHk)

June 2nd – Mementos, Aiyatsbus – ???

“H-Hey, I’m hearing Chie screamin’! I’m following the source now!”

“Chie screaming?! Shit!” Panther cussed in panic from the comms device – Skull still had his bad leg, yet due to his care for his best friend (and by being the most energized from the fight out of the group), he was well ahead of everybody else. “Find her! And get that creep right off of her!”

“Right, gotcha!” Ryuji immediately noticed the absolutely blasted remains of the safehouse, as well as louder screams and wails. “Hey, it’s Phoenix! I found some tie marks, I think she was skidding to a stop – “

“Kyaah! Yukiko!”

(Music Playing – Spiritoso – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIX_Sdz5ojE)

Poor Skull had to grace a very unfortunately scene – a squirming and writhing Dragon, with parts of her uniform removed, as Phoenix and her Persona stood on opposite ends, holding her down.

“A-Aaah! Ahhh! Y-Yuki, please, don’t – “ Dragon squaled. “Ahh! N-Not there! I-I’m really sensitive there! Please, don’t – aah! AHH!”

Skull just stood there. And in shock, he dropped his weapons.

Needless to say, he reacted appropriately.

“W… W-Wh…” Skull mouthed, before flying back. “WHOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH?!”

Almost doing a backflip, Skull landed on his posterior, his unmanly scream causing the comms device to crackle to life again. This time, it was Fox.

“Skull, we heard you! What was that?!” Fox cried out. “Are you okay?! What did you see?!”

“S-SEE?! I, uh… y’see, I…!” Skull’s brain scrambled to come up with a lie, before he simply settled for covering his hands over his virgin eyes. “N-NO! WH-WHAT IS THIS GARU SPELL THAT’S BEEN BLOWN INTO MY FACE! MY EYES! MY EYES ARE FILLED WITH DUST! I CAN’T SEE SHIT, MAN! AND I CAN’T SEE THEM, DAMN IT!”

As Skull ran off beet faced, Dragon gave one last squeal that echoed through the halls of Mementos… a squeal that made everybody involved thankful that Shadows didn’t have access to social media, lest memes pop up through the collective unconscious:

“PLEASE BE GENTLER, DAMN IT!”

Thankfully it did not last much longer, as Mona recovered fully at that point.

Though his terrified yowl upon realizing the horrible sight was not a crazy-driving-induced nightmare was just more reason to be thankful for lack of Shadow social media.


(Music Playing – My Homie – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkyCSrq_UyQ)

June 2nd – Mementos,  Aiyatsbus – ???

As it turns out, a literally purring engine did absolutely nothing to make the silence in the Morganamobile less deafening on the drive away from Takanashi’s personal area.

To be fair, it hardly was impossible to see why that was. After Phoenix and Dragon recovered from their wounds, they had the difficult task ahead of them of explaining that Phoenix was stitching up Dragon and not what it had looked like to the others. It wouldn’t be long before the ice mired in a glacial Bufu freeze was broken, though.

Eventually, Dragon cleared her throat. “I know it sounded bad, but – “

“Don’t talk.” Panther said, dangerously. “I have enough traumatic mental images right now. To say nothing of Skull.”

Skull, for his part, covered as much around his ears as he possibly could with his hands on the steering wheel and had started humming a sea shanty very loudly.

"Skull?! WHAT ABOUT ME?!" Mona shrieked, causing the Morganamobile to backfire. "HE JUST SAW IT ONCE!"

“…I would ask what it was you thought occurred there, but I am beginning to think I might be glad for not understanding.” Fox began, mildly. "Though I swear that situation was straight out of some manga I read…"

Skull started to mouth the words as he hummed louder.

Phoenix, eyes firmly on the road outside the window, let out a sigh of relief along with her explanation. “It was first aid. During a panic.”

Panther looked up, confusion and desperate hope on her face. “Huh?”

“We were actually trying to treat each other’s wounds after Takanashi wailed on us.” Dragon said, glad to explain what was going on. “We… weren’t very good at it.”

Skull’s growing rendition of The Hog-Eye Man stopped in its tracks. “…f’real?”

“Yep. That’s all it was. I promise.” Phoenix said, showing her hands and their uncrossed fingers.

If one listened closely, one could hear the ever-present wind of Mementos suddenly increase for a second, as if it itself was relieved.

 “Oh, thank God.” Skull said, rubbing the back of his skull. “Thanks. I really needed that. I can feel the image…” His cheer faded. “Not going away. In fact, it’s getting clearer. Whyyyyy?!”

“Behold, the power of artistic suggestion.” Fox said, in what he probably thought was sympathy. “The implication creates beauty more acute than any stroke. Though that is more of a literary device…”

“Yeah, and I’d like some whiteout for my brain…” Panther said, holding her skull. “Can we talk about something else!?”

“Maybe we can plan a strategy, so this doesn’t happen again?!” Mona said. “I mean… I kinda deserve it, going for the Showtime instead of just an All-Out, so I caused it, but - just, what happened there!?

"You started off on it before I could tell you - the star wasn't reacting." Phoenix cut in. "I don't know why, it was fine earlier, but - right now, it just wasn't."

"…I see. So it can't activate on command - just when something provokes it." Fox said. "Annoying, but hardly a killer. But we need a system for telling us if it's on or off in the future…"

Dragon thought of something. "...hey. Can a phone pick up if something next to it is glowing?"

"…I'm not the one you'd ask for that," Phoenix said, realizing that if Caroline was able to program the Meta-Nav, she could probably add a feature. "But I can talk to someone who is. That is something we can do on the surface, though. I'm officially bone-dry of magic, and Panther's not far behind after setting Chie's bones back together, so we're leaving after finding the way down." She grimaced. "And I don't think any of us want to be down here much longer."

One could wake a hibernating bear with the chorus of "NO!".


(Music Plays – Mementos – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbT5T35aUUE )

June 2nd – Mementos,  Aiyatsbus – ???

“Well…" Panther said with some annoyance. “It seems our little adventure just came to an end. Guess we have an extra reason to get Kaneshiro now.”

Just like the previous terminal from Qimranut to Aiyatsbus, the hall between Aiyatsbus and the next part of Mementos had a great stone wall between it and the next Path. Unlike the last wall, it didn’t exactly look especially eager to open.

“Didn’t we defeat Madarame, though?” Fox said, raising an eyebrow. “Isn’t this the wall his Palace was supporting?”

“Actually no, you’ve kind of got it backwards, Fox.” Morgana corrected. “These Paths only open because of the fame of the Phantom Thieves. While Madarame’s confession definitely brought our profile up, they're still mostly talking about him. It'll probably open soon, but I think we dived in too early - we should try again after we get an interview about us specifically."

"Well, ain't that just great.” Skull made a sound between an angry growl and a resigned sigh. “Can't go farther down, because the big fish ain't even seen yet, let alone caught. And he's off there making pyramid schemes of assholes.”

“Getting him as soon as possible sounds like a good plan,” Dragon agreed. “Which brings me to my point: how can that guy be that big and nobody notices him?!”

“You’ve seen how terrified people are of him, right?” Phoenix said, looking downcast. “I'm betting that if you know who he is, you’re already caught in his web and don’t want to talk. Omerta, Japanese edition.”

“Om - wha?” Dragon said, tilting her head.

“It’s Italian.” Panther said. “It’s the code of silence practiced by the American mafia and they instill in areas they operate; it’s the belief it’s actually worse to involve the authorities in solving criminal activities, that actually calling out crooked behavior makes you a snitch and the worst kind of person.” She grimaced. “Given my personal experience with how codes of silence work, I’m kind of skeptical that being honest makes you worse than the crooks. In fact, it's weird for the yakuza, most of them usually advertise themselves - it's kind of their thing, since they want you to think they're a part of the community.”

“Yeah. Make no mistake, the mafia don’t exist in a vacuum. Someone has to let them operate, and keep paying them. Otherwise, they’d just be, I don’t know, bank robbers.” Mona sighed. “Still, the fame we’d get from putting away a crime lord like Kaneshiro would probably blow this door right open. Unless anyone has a PR department who wouldn’t mind advertising for the Thieves?”

Phoenix froze. “…oh. Oh dear.”

Dragon spun around. “What? What is it?”

“The PR department. We have to attend one.”

“I – oh. Oh yeeeeah.” Dragon nodded. “The field trip.”

“Er…” Mona began, looking sheepish. “Mind filling me in?”

“We’re going to attend the filming of an interview with this Detective Prince guy, Akechi.” Skull said. “Kind of a ‘look behind the set’ of a TV Station. Kinda a waste of time, if you ask me. I really don’t need to know about what the hell goes on in a friggin’ talk show, of all things.”

“Well…” Phoenix said, feeling very slightly offended on said Detective Prince’s behalf. “It’s not his fault that interviews aren’t that interesting.”

“True, but I don’t see how it’s that hard. Get camera, put camera it set. Put people in front of set, start camera, end of story.” Skull groaned. “But, we gotta get back to reality to sleep for that. Probably it’ll be on the next eight quizzes or somethin’, so that everyone pays attention.”

“I volunteer to drive out!” Panther interjected, before Phoenix could.

“Much obliged.” Fox said. “We will wait for Phoenix and Dragon to stop screaming.”

Even the wind seemed to stop blowing for a bit.

“…uh?” Phoenix said, wondering if she should be blushing.

“Well, I think that, while that battle went fairly well, it is advised to look for injuries we missed to suture up,” Fox was quick to add that bit of comfort. “That evacuation could easily have injured Phoenix's legs or hips from whiplash, so if Dragon wishes to check inside her pants – “

The sound of Skull and Mona running up the escalator five steps at a time echoed loudly through the room.


(Music Playing - What's Going On - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRnVhnxRhSs)

June 3rd - Inokashira Park - 4:48 PM

To the surprise of no one, Chie was not especially active the next day, and Morgana had hid himself under Yukiko's bed and claimed a mental health day. Which was fine by her, as it allowed her to catch up on some training with Kasumi.

"Not bad, Amagi-senpai." Her tutor said as they finished up a routine. "You're pretty flexible, and you catch on fast! At this rate, you'll have the fundamentals down in a heartbeat."

What Kasumi didn't know, of course, was that this was actually because Yukiko was used to the basics already - admittedly, she had Metaverse-born preternatural agility, but she actually understood the basics of acrobatics and gymnastics in theory - the issue was just practice in the mundane world.

Which is not to say it was easy.

I didn't even know I could pull those muscles… Yukiko thought with a wince. How does she stand straight after doing some of those poses?

Kasumi seemed to notice her partner massaging her aching bits. "Yeah, it can be a bit of a shift to use some of those muscles. If it makes you feel better, it's all about the harmony between the internal and the external oblique muscles. You'll get there!"

"Can we keep going then?" Yukiko murmured. "I'd like to harmonize as quickly as possible..."

"No problem! Good goal-setting, though I might recommend a more positive attitude - it's best to think of it as a journey, not a necessary sacrifice. But you're not wrong in that expert-level gymnastics require a lot of stretching, so… let's get to that!"

Another round of stretching later, Yukiko all but oozed into the nearby bench. "I now know what it's like to be made of gelatin…"

(Music Playing - Break it Down (Elp Version) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZnqfniQseE)

"Well, I can't fault you for effort!", Kasumi said, brightly. "And… actually, that's kind of fortunate, because…"

Like a switch, the gymnast turned from her happy mood to her pensive one. "I'm… not sure if I can manage something more strenuous. I'm not doing so great at the moment…"

Yukiko frowned. "…are you sure? You sort of overpowered me there…"

That seemed to cheer her up slightly. "Honestly, at this point if we kept it up, you'd be wobbling for days. Like a newborn kitten!"

And by the end of those days, I'd probably have gone insane from Morgana's teasing and comparisons. So, that's good. "Certainly wouldn't help my delinquent street cred. I'm still worried about that soup…"

"It is a miracle Dr. Maruki was able to call a catering service on such short notice - everyone I know donated to replace the money he lost." Kasumi stated with a blunt expression. "No offense, senpai, but your cooking is worse than mine, which I didn't think was possible."

Yukiko blinked. "…note to both of us. Never cooperate with each other or Chie."

"I shiver to think of what kind of monstrosity we'd make - or possibly life." Kasumi grimaced. "But… if you'll permit me to be serious…"

She sighed, staring out into the river. "Truth is… I feel like I've been stuck in a slump. No matter how much I practice, I can't seem to get any better. Even my coach says I should take some time off. Not quit, but 'think about who I really am'."

"Sounds more like a plateau than a slump…" Yukiko replied. "It's not that you're failing, you've just hit a point where you're so good at it all the obvious things to fix have been solved."

"I appreciate the kind words. But I've never had an issue that practice couldn't solve. But now… I have no idea what to do." She sighed. "So. Um… I want you to help me, senpai."

"…forgive me, but… how?" Yukiko grinned apologetically. "I'm not exactly a gymnast…"

"That's okay. Because…" Kasumi paused. "Even if we're not doing gymnastics… will you still keep on going out with me?!"

The last few words were blurted out in less than a single breath.

The inn maiden blinked owlishly. "Uh…" She cleared her throat. "You are aware we aren't girlfriends, right?" And that would probably be adultery at this point? 

The realization of how it sounded caused a pink blush to come to Kasumi's face. "That… came out wrong. What I meant to say is… I've heard my coach say that 'Kasumi's greatest weapon has always been her boldness'."

Yukiko could not help but look at the easily flustered and self-deprecating girl before her and wonder exactly who this coach was kidding, but she kept her mouth shut.

Kasumi seemed to catch on regardless. "That used to be true. I was totally fearless, confident… gymnastics was a fun challenge. But ever since I've started high school… it started with a growth spurt that changed my center of gravity, and then there were…" A look of absolute anguish flashed over her face. "…complications…"

The way she said it promptly dissuaded Yukiko from asking - at minimum, that was 'parents divorced' levels of pain. "And you feel like it's given you off-days. You can't focus."

"More than that - it feels like I don't even own my own body anymore. It's… strange, to me. Like I've forgotten how it moves by instinct - and I kind of fell into a depression. It got pretty bad…" She looked up, smiling. "But when you helped me on the way to the park, something occurred to me. When I saw how fearless and confident you are, I knew you were the right one for the job!"

"For… life advice?"

"For learning to be confident again!" She said, the peppy Kasumi coming back.

Yukiko stared for a beat. On the one hand, the inn maiden had no confidence in her own ability to be a good role model…

…on the other, Kasumi seemed like she was the only one who didn't realize she was desperate for a friend. 

"…I'll try. Just… ignore all the parts about playing hooky." Yukiko said after a while.

"Thank you!" She giggled. "You're a strange one senpai. I didn't think you'd accept. But, I promise I'll return the favor through our deal!"

The gloom vanished, and Yukiko felt an invisible weight on Kasumi's shoulder shift.

FAITH (V) RANK UP! RANK 2

Faith Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Kasumi's Confidant Skills Have Improved!

That's when what sounded like church bells went off in Kasumi's pocket, and she checked it.

Shortly before stuffing it back in with a panicked expression. "I completely forgot - I have a meeting with my coach! I need to get going - but I promise, you won't regret this!"

And with that, she sped off, leaving Yukiko to ponder her increasing amount of questions about the younger student and her home life.


(Music Playing - Ideal and the Real - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxeOcFzxbP4)

June 4th, 2016 - Shujin Academy, Counselor's Office - 3:32 PM

A day later, everyone had sufficiently recovered for Yukiko to start asking around - but first, there was a counseling session she needed to catch up on.

"You know, I've been getting a lot of students ever since I've arrived here…" Dr. Maruki said, thinking.

"So I've heard. Ryuji told me you helped him air a lot of dirty laundry, though he feels it was more about him finally figuring out how he feels about the track team." The inn maiden shrugged. "But you helped."

"That's a relief. I'll be honest and admit I was trained as a researcher first, not a therapist - so I wasn't sure how well I did. He was honestly one of my earlier students." He smiled. "But I'm glad everyone is helping with my job. I was called here because of that mess with Kamoshida after all."

In truth, that same counseling session with Ryuji was part of the reason Yukiko hadn't been quite as willing to go to the counselor at first. Ryuji had said that the whole thing was a bit awkward, like Maruki was only half talking about Ryuji - a lot of it seemed uncomfortably personal, and he seemed to fixate on the track team. After talking about it, both got the sense Maruki was trying to lead the conversation into what he wanted, which made the former runner come out of the session feeling a little bit like he had just walked out of the room with the world's friendliest interrogator. Not bad, but definitely weirded out.

Discovering this particular tidbit - that Maruki was not originally a therapist - explained so much. As well as the flashes of applied mad science he had.

"Yeah, that did shift the mood of the school a lot…" Yukiko said, keeping her realization to herself. "Bastard pretty much touched everyone here." A second later she realized what she said. "…I am truly sorry for that mental image…"

"If it makes you feel better, the volleyball team gave me direct reports of his behavior." Maruki replied with a wince. "I've seen the bottom of this shaft already. But in truth, not a lot of people were there to talk to me about Kamoshida - most weren't."

That wasn't expected. "Oh?"

"Mostly they're worried about college entrance exams, relationship problems - typical high school student anxieties, in other words." He looked thoughtful. "A few did open up about deeper issues, but not the majority."

Given how Ryuji was a recipient of that, I can't help but wonder if it's because they felt like they couldn't talk about it as much with you leading them on. But you seem to realize the issues with your approach, so… "That does sound like a silver lining. But I hope the deeper scars recovered a bit?"

"I'm glad to report they did - at least a bit. I don't think I've done much, but if I even helped one person…" He smiled. "I know I'm not the most reliable guy, but remember you can always talk to me if something's bothering you."

"And thank you sincerely for that." Yukiko replied. "You are actually a good listener, I feel."

"Thank you very much for that." He said, looking enthused. 

And then sheepish. "Which… makes me asking for your help again a bit awkward…" 

Yukiko remembered "Your research, I believe? I was wondering when you'd bring that up."

"Ah, good. It's nothing too difficult or intensive - I just need you to listen to some things I have to say, and then work through some questions with me. So, if you'll let me start at the beginning…"

He leaned back. "What I'm studying now is pain felt in the mind - or more fancifully, the heart. Some specific examples include the pain felt when hurtful words are used against you, or separation from ones you love. Or in clearer language, if more technical - pain defined by abstracts, like trauma or stress."

"I'm with you, yeah." Yukiko said, nodding.

"Bodily, physical pain can be thought of as something necessary - in fact, not feeling pain is a serious and life-changing medical disorder, since those with it can't even tell when they are wounded or ill without consciously seeing it for themselves. It is an important warning signal, if often overwhelming." He held his chin. "But what about pains felt within the heart? That isn't born from any material condition that the body recognizes as hazardous, right? It's something strange and immaterial. And the fact people have it at all shows many mysteries about both thought and feelings. And...well, I want to learn more about these internal, psychological pains."

"Well, you came to the right place - there's a bunch of existential questions I've developed," Yukiko said. "Hit me."

Maruki leaned forward. "As a baseline - when would you say you've felt the most acute pain in your heard, Amagi-san?"

Yukiko puffed out a cheek. "...you know, if you asked me a couple weeks ago, I'd say that it was feeling betrayed by society…but now?" She frowned." Now it's more the moment I realized I got way too good at lying. Not over the lies themselves, but the realization I've learned how to spin a yarn on command. Both because I'm not an honest person anymore - and because it often feels like a survival skill rather than a flaw…"

"That's actually a very insightful comment. Realizing we can't live up to who we think we should be is a very direct form of shame and pain. We'll have to discuss why you feel you think you need to lie in the future, though." He adjusted his glasses. "It can be rough, living with that kind of pain… but…"

His expression turned a bit wistful. "With that in mind… how about the pain of a broken heart, then?"

…that's a bit of a shift. Yukiko thought. We're talking inability to live up to your own standards and then, I dunno, being unlucky in love?

Taking he silence for affirmation to continue, Maruki continued that musing. "That kind of pain only exists because you fell in love in the first place, right? Do you have any thoughts on this kind of pain?"

The inn maiden's mind flashed back to how Ryuji said Maruki tried to lead off by talking about romantic issues, as she slowly started to realize that the counselor might have had not the best history with romance. "…I always thought of it as a seed for new love." She began, neutrally. "It's a risk you have to accept, and embrace."

Maruki appeared to roll over the answer in his head. "I… am ambivalent on that last part. But it is quite a poetic statement. A very positive way of looking at it. Internal, emotional pain can be difficult to deal with - especially when you consider how many say it's always coupled with other feelings. And while I think it's a fair assessment… I think pain should be avoided, if it can be. Perhaps it shouldn't even exist."

…recent breakup or widower. I'm calling it now. Yukiko's mind snarked. But I really shouldn't press - he's not going full misogynistic self-pity at all, he doesn't deserve it being reopened. The inn maiden shrugged. "There are many among the grieving that would agree totally."

Maruki nodded with an affirmative noise. "Wounds of the heart are much harder to detect, and much of the time, they're far more complex than physical injuries. That's why I'm doing this research. To save people from internal pain they keep holding onto. And you helped me realize that purpose again. Thank you"

"No problem…" Yukiko said. "But… I'm not sure what I did…"

"Helped me articulate my thoughts for once, mostly." Maruki said with a sense of genuine gratitude. 

 COUNCILOR (I) RANK UP! RANK 3

Councilor Fusion Bonus Has Increased!

Maruki’s Confidant Skills Have Improved!

"And… I think that will do for today." he said, getting up. "…if I haven't forgotten something. Have I?"

"The mental training?" Yukiko idly noted.

"…gah!" He winced. "I am so sorry! I completely missed that! Can this be a ten-minute training then?"

Yukiko giggled. "I'm more than fine with that."


(Music Playing – Layer Cake – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp3IENE0Wlc)

June 4th, 2016 - Shibuya, Untouchable - 5:50 PM

Iwai was obviously not happy for Yukiko to slide in just before he closed shop, and seeing the look on her face, he wasn't any more pleased. "…you got something on your mind, kid?"

Yukiko inhaled. "…I know you got out of that life, but are you still informed about the yakuza underground?"

A bit of context: shortly after the heist of Madarame's Palace, Yukiko had been part of a homemade stakeout of the buyer of the realistic guns. To make a long story short, during the conversation, it became clear said buyer, Masa, was an old compatriot of Iwai's from a criminal past. It wasn't long before Yukiko, having seen Iwai's neck tattoo, guessed he was part of the yakuza or other organized crime at some point. 

It was not like her to suddenly approach Iwai like this, so he kept his face carefully neutral. "Say I am. Over what, I might ask?"

"Have you heard of a Shibuya boss named Kaneshiro?"

(Music Abruptly Stops)

Yukiko had grown used to Iwai's stone face. About the closest he got to genuine laughing was a small smile, anger was a narrowed glance, and sadness - if Iwai ever felt sadness, he never let anyone else see it.

So when his eyes flew open as color drained, Yukiko had a bit of a feeling she had stepped in something big.

"K-Kaneshiro? As in, Junya Kaneshiro?"

"I don't know his first name… but he's based in Shibuya." The inn maiden said with a growing pit in her stomach. "A friend of a friend of mine got suckered into a loan by him… and he's a high schooler."

(Music Playing – Restlessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9LIt2xh_gU)

The fear vanished, but Iwai's grim expression and slight glance as though looking for threats said everything she needed to know.

"…motherfucker." He cursed to himself after what felt like a good long minute. "Backroom. Now."

Gulping, she went with him, shortly before he spun around.

"I'm gonna tell you, but first - the moment you leave, find your bud, and tell him to get the fuck out of that mess. Now." He said with grim seriousness. "Jail time is prolly preferable, as there his goons can't reach."

Yukiko herself paled now. "…the hell did he get into…?"

"A big reason why I ain't part of that life anymore - not the main one, but Shibuya ain't a place for small fry with a conscience anymore." he said, very seriously. "Because Kaneshiro… he ain't a yakuza. He's what the yakuza like to think of themselves are protectin' civvies from."

Yukiko nodded, licking suddenly dry lips. "…I'm starting to feel like a small fry now…"

"Good, 'cause you are. Hold on to that, 'cause it's how you're gonna survive as a delinquent." Iwai sighed, leaning against the shelves. "See, I dunno anyone who's seen his face, but I know enough. Kaneshiro's never been a yakuza, but he wanted to be one, a while back. Used to be an accountant for a big clan - which is to say, a money launderer. Thing is, most accountants are people who already had an in with a bank or white collar, but Kaneshiro was born on the streets, like a lotta more classic yakuza. Thing is, man had a head for numbers - and he had a real good nose for blackmail. So he managed to get ways into legit businesses by gettin' people already there by the balls."

"So… he's a self-made scumbag." Yukiko corrected, wincing. "Great..."

"And if that was all he was, he'd probably be patriarch of his own family by now. But Kaneshiro… he's bred different." Iwai's eyes narrowed. "Man never gave a rat's ass about honor, or brotherhood, or stuff like that - he cared about one thing, and one thing only - money. Getting as much of it as he could, and fuck everyone else who wanted to cut into his take. At first, his patron clan was glad for it, then they realized he didn't care if they suffered if it made the numbers go up. Eventually, they learned he was tryin' to lean on kids - bleed em' dry, and leave em' so helpless they couldn't do anythin' but join the clan. And that was one of the less bad things he did."

"So, he got kicked out, but he didn't learn any lessons." Yukiko mumbled with a grimace.

"Oh, he learned alright - learned just where to stick the knife." Iwai replied, with his own grimace. "See, he caught on he was gonna be sold out, so he moved first. His clan doesn't exist no more - all of the foot soldiers that weren't on his side got rounded up by the police when they suddenly had a windfall of evidence. As for the higher-ups… well, they just got dead."

If Yukiko was pale before, now she doubted there was any blood in her face at all. "Holy shit…"

"Ain't it." Iwai replied grimly. "Shibuya doesn't have a major yakuza problem anymore, but I think they'd like it back after havin' a Kaneshiro problem. Because, now he's realized he ain't ever gonna be a yakuza - well, he realized he didn't need to be public about it either. Learned how to be subtle and under the radar, made sure his name only came up to people who can't expose him. Doubt if the cops as a whole even realize what his real name is. That means he ain't gettin' the same spread of rackets he'd get as part of a clan, but he's figured out a way around that, by having rackets no self-respecting yakuza would want. He's got the high schooler blackmail business, but he's also got hard drugs, counterfeiting medical supplies, murder for hire, and…"

Iwai grimaced. He, unusually for him, ran in his head the nicest way he could say it.

Yukiko blinked. "…are you hesitating with what you want to say?"

Iwai remembered who it was he was talking to, so he worked up the courage to say it. "…I ain't gonna lie to you, kid. I'm really hoping you ain't sayin' you're the one who owes him money. 'Cause…" He winced. "…you're a girl. A young one, at that."

It took a half-second to realize exactly what was being implied by that. Yukiko quickly clarified. "…no, thank God. Just the male friend."

"Good, 'cause I'd tell you to leave the country if it was you." He paused. "You… do know what sex trafficking is, right?"

Yukiko blanched. "…slave trade, right?"

"A bit blunt, but… accurate." Iwai frowned. "Thing is, Yakuza have the sex industry as one of their big businesses - they often go to poorer countries to promise the women there work abroad, only to force them as sex workers while forcin' them with some kinda debt to pay off." He grimaced. "It's done discreetly for the most part, as the business is largely concentrated in stuff like soaplands - the girls are there because they're employees, not to mention they're usually a bunch of no-names who are drawn off the census. But even then, employees don't get drugged up, and they get paid."

A very dark expression passed over Iwai's face. "Kaneshiro realized that even in that case, it was too little for him. He outright does what he can to pressure students - sometimes literal fucking children - to "disappear" for his own business."

It took only a second for Yukiko to realize what he meant by "disappear". She immediately paled. "…o-oh."

"Child pornography, slave trade… he touches the locals for those who wind up in their debt, and if they can't pay, they have to "work it off" - which is nice speak for effectively getting send to some service shops or potentially sold out to go to some sick fuck halfway across the world." Iwai recoiled in disgust. "Ain't no oyabun in their right mind would support that without riskin' the wrath of Amaterasu brought on 'em by the SIU. That's what makes Kaneshiro so dangerous - he effectively has no limits, and can and will do whatever he wants if there's a materialistic reward in it. He's the kind of fucker who shonen anime villains of Yakuza think are too cartoonish."

Yukiko shuddered however briefly. "I… I see…"

Iwai leaned back. "…the least advice I can give your friend is that he bails the fuck out of that before it's too late - assumin' it isn't already too late."

He then leaned in some more. "And for the love of all that is good and holy… do not put your nose in his businessI dunno what it is you got involved with, but you're gonna wish you were dead if you give Kaneshiro a reason to want to ruffle some feathers of yours."

Yukiko, considerably shaken by the blunt threat, nonetheless gulped and nodded. "…I understand. I'll, uh…" She blanched. "Keep my head outta this one…"

Iwai looked only slightly mollified, but seemed relieved regardless. "…you're a good kid. Don't waste your life away tryin' to play a hero - especially when there's so much you can do with your life that isn't bein' subject to a monster's own hell."

A sigh. "…now then, are we done here?"

The innmaiden nodded. "Yeah. Um… you were closing, right?"

Iwai. "…yeah. Just to bring it up, this conversation never happened. Capisci?"

Yukiko gulped. "Crystal."


(Music Continues)

June 4th, 2016 - Shibuya, Outside of Untouchable - 6:04 PM

After Iwai locked up shop, Yukiko was left on her lonesome… and as soon as she was certain she wasn't with anyone hovering over her shoulder, she flipped open her phone and got texting.

Yukiko Amagi: Everyone, let's meet up when we can.

Yukiko Amagi: I think we have a new target.

Notes:

Kaneshiro's whole dilemma's gonna be interesting, for certain - and I'm looking forward to it!

Thanks for everyone's who's been with me up to this point. See you all next time!

Party Levels
Yukiko: Lv. 21
Chie: Lv. 19
Ryuji: Lv. 18
Ann: Lv. 18
Morgana: Lv. 17
Yusuke: Lv. 17

Yukiko's Current Stock
Ictinike, Suzaku, Archangel, Eligor, Matador, Jeanne D'Arc

Yukiko's Confidants
The Fool (Igor): 2
The Magician (Morgana): 2
The Councilor (Takuto Maruki): 3
The Hierophant (Sojiro Sakura): 2
The Faith (Kasumi Yoshizawa): 3
The Lovers (Ann Takamaki): 4
The Chariot (Ryuji Sakamoto): 5
The Victory (Chie Satonaka): 4
Strength (Caroline & Justine): 1
Hanged Man (Munehise Iwai): 2
Death (Tae Takemi): 3
Temperance (Sadayo Kawakami): 2
The Moon (Yuuki Mishima): 1
The Sun (Toranosuke Yoshida): 2