Chapter Text
"Everything packed?" Morgana asked, jumping on top of the suitcase, "Boss'll probably send stuff back if you really need it, though." Akira nodded in response and put his bag down so Morgana could hop in. They took a deep breath and scanned the room again, adjusting his red wrist warmers so they sat right before moving downstairs.
"So it's been a year, huh," Sojiro said from behind the counter, "You excited to go back to your folks?"
"Yeah, sure," Akira replied, not wanting to explain how much they probably still despised him. Sojiro's gentle smile fell, his brows knitting with concern, "It's fine, I'll manage,"
"You can come back here anytime, just give me a call. You're family now, got it?"
"Got it," they said. The notion would've provided a trickle of warmth if not for the dark blanket of dread already hovering over them, "I'll survive, don't worry," Sojiro's frown deepened and he came around the counter to give Akira a final hug. For just a moment, The warmth whisked away the cloud above his head.
"Aw, Boss, you're gonna miss us that much?" Morgana asked, popping his head out from the bag.
"Tell your cat to stop making fun of me, or stop whatever he's saying," Sojiro laughed while pulling away, "Now get going before you miss your train. Call me if you need anything,"
"I will d— I will. See you in the summer!" Akira said. The door to the cozy cafe gave its signature chime as the door closed, releasing them into the cool March air.
"What a year it's been, huh Joker! We stole hearts and reformed society and got my memories back and — " Morgana started.
'Got people killed,' Akira's brain interrupted, 'And not just anyone — you killed the one person who understood you,'
" — And we had a ton of good food and made a bunch of friends and overall it was great!" Morgana finished, but his whiskers fell at the expression on Akira's face. The cat cleared his throat before continuing; "Did you uh…look at the letter Akechi left?"
"I'll look at it on the train," Akira whispered, "Sorry to bring the mood down,"
"No, you're right; there were still some bad things that happened. But hopefully, the good memories at least outweigh them?" The good definitely outnumbered the bad, but their severity made up for it. It was difficult to remember the trip to Hawaii without thinking about what happened with Haru soon after. Or remembering the warm feeling in their chest as Goro gently tended to their wounds without thinking about the brutality that caused them. Akira's next therapist (given he learns to trust any of them again) would have a hell of a time trying to help with the past year alone, even if they ignored everything before that.
A loud honk made Akira jump and Morgana's fur puffed out. The pair looked toward the source to see the rest of the Thieves hanging out of a van near the station.
"Akira! Over here, dude!" Ryuji called out.
"We have eyes, you know!" Morgana yowled as they reached the Thieves, "Is everyone here to say goodbye?"
"We figured it would be fun to take you to the next station you need to get to! It's Nagatsuta station, right?" Ann replied, pulling Ryuji aside so they could come in.
"It's like a mini road trip!" Ryjui said, slinging an arm around Akira, "Sure it's only like a 40 minute drive, but still!" Morgana made only a slight sound of protest when Haru picked him up and brought him to the front seat. Makoto was driving, her shoulders unusually tense.
"Driving jitters, Makoto? Or something else?" Akira asked. Makoto remained quiet, so Akira crept closer as Yusuke messed with the door to get it closed and locked again.
"There's a black car with a radio that's been following us," Makoto whispered, "Look in the right mirror," True to her words, there was a black car barely in view, the drivers dressed in full black suits as well. The rest of the car fell silent at her words as they settled into their seats.
"Are they here for Akira?" Futaba asked, "I forgot to bring my laptop with me, but I can try and see when we get home,"
"I'm just going to follow the rules of the road as closely as possible so we draw less attention…" Makoto said, "Is everyone buckled?"
"Or I could drive!" Haru replied, leaning toward Makoto and accidentally dumping Morgana out of her lap, "If they're already on our trail then we should try to lose them instead of blending in," Akira saw in real time how Haru's bright smile wore down Makoto's walls and in less than a minute they had switched seats.
"It's been quite a year, hasn't it? I'm grateful I met all of you — our leader especially," Yusuke started, "Without that, I — "
The van jerked as Haru stepped on the gas and everyone was pushed back in their seats while Morgana slid across the floor before being scooped up by Ann. Yusuke opened their mouth to continue and was cut off by a sharp turn.
"No wonder we only let Akira or Makoto drive; you're gonna get us killed Haru!" Ryuji cried out.
"I said we need to lose them, so I'm going to lose them!" She said.
"Well we can always save the goodbyes — " Another sharp turn, "For when we're at stoplights and at the end!" Ann replied.
"And it's not a real goodbye! You're coming back in the summer and then staying in Tokyo when you graduate, right?" Futaba asked, unaffected by the chaotic motion.
"I will if you'll have me,"
'Will they? Or will you slip out of their mind once you're out of sight?' Akira shut down the train of thought and forced a smile on their face as they continued talking about their summer plans. It's been so long since he felt like he belonged somewhere, and he would go through this year again and again (maybe saving some along the way — ) just to have this closeness.
Despite all the turns and redirects, it still took the same amount of time as it normally would to reach the station in Yokohama. The Thieves breathed a sigh of relief not just with the disappearance of the black car but also that Haru would no longer be driving unless they really needed her to.
"Initiate group hug!" Futaba said, launching herself at her older sibling. The rest followed, piling on top of each other until there was a comforting pressure on Akira from all sides. He greedily ate up the contact, attempting to commit the feeling to memory. There was a flash and Akira looked upward to see Yusuke's outstretched arm holding their phone.
"Let us see!" Ann asked, snatching the artist's phone once it came close, "We look adorable; send that to the group chat!" On the screen was a candid photo of everyone but Yusuke looking at Akira, the boy himself with his eyes closed. But now that they were looking at it, all Akira could think was that someone was missing.
"Everyone's expressions…it feels like something almost like devotion," Yusuke said, taking the phone back.
"Not to break the moment, but we should probably get going before they come back," Makoto replied after a beat. A collective sigh came from the group as they unfurled from Akira, the pressure leaving. Morgana hopped back into his bag as Haru opened the door, the rest clearing the way for Akira to get out.
"Bye, Joker!" "Text us later, Akira!" And various other goodbyes flooded their ears, enough that any response they had would be drowned out. He settled for a wave and the door closed, the van moving much smoother now that Makoto was back at the wheel.
"What's your hometown like? You haven't talked about it much," Morgana asked once Akira started walking to the correct train.
"You'll like it — it's on the water and is known for its fishing industry. There's a nice forest for you to explore, too," Akira replied, pulling out his vibrating phone. Yusuke had sent the picture and Akira was saving it when their shoulder bumped into something.
"And I thought you were always saying to keep my head up," Sumire said, "Heading back to your hometown?"
"Mhm. I'll be back for the summer, hopefully,"
"I…I wanted to thank you — it hurt, but I'm glad to be myself again," Sumire replied with a bright smile, "Can you pass my thanks to Akechi too the next time you see him? She hasn't made any media appearances or texted in a while, so I'm a bit concerned..."
"I'm sure he's fine! Akechi was pretty tough," Morgana said, and Sumire's head tilted a bit in confusion at the use of past tense. The glove at the bottom of Akira's bag felt like a lead weight, dragging him down into the Earth.
"Take care until then! Text me when you get home, okay?" Sumire walked further down the platform as Akira waited for his train to come into the station.
"Do you really think Goro's alive?" Akira asked his cat companion.
"Well…she died in the Metaverse, right? We don't know everything about that place, especially since he was a Persona user and not just a Shadow. It's possible, but I wouldn't bet on it. Which I'm assuming you're doing anyway,"
'Lavenza implied that we would have regrets with returning to reality, which proves Morgana false,' his brain countered, 'You killed him, don't forget that,'
'…I won't,'
"Your friend certainly knows how to drive," someone said from behind, causing Akira to jolt. A hand came onto their shoulder and gripped it hard enough to bruise.
"Akira, what do we do?" Morgana whispered.
"What do you do? Well, kitty, you're going to be left here while we take your leader away for some…further investigation," The voice said, and Akira turned his head a fraction to see that it was one of the men who was pursuing them in the black car, "And yes, I can understand your cat. I was one of the lucky officers to witness your thievery in action back in November,"
Joker would try to run, slipping out of the officer's grasp like a fish through water. Or maybe commanded Morgana to swipe at him and then retreat. But he was only Akira now (stupid, slow, traumatized Akira), and Akira was fucking terrified . Their heart started to beat wildly in their chest as they scanned the area to see several other discrete men in black waiting.
"What do you want with him?" Morgana hissed, taking the lead.
"We just want to ask some follow up questions, don't worry,"
"And the amount of your people surrounding us?"
"A precaution — we're not going to underestimate the leader of the Phantom Thieves. Although…it might be useful to question both of — "
" — I'll tell you what you want," Akira interrupted, "Leave Morgana out of this," The thought of Morgana sustaining any of the same brutal treatment they went through made them sick to their stomach. He…he could survive another interrogation. It would likely result in more nightmares and the handcuff scars deepening, but at least they would survive. Morgana's body was much more fragile and it was the leader's job to ensure his teammates were safe.
"You heard 'em, kitty, now scram," Morgana gave a regretful look to Akira before jumping out of the bag, hesitating once he reached the ground. Akira gave a nod of reassurance before the cat walked away, hopefully slowly heading back to Futaba. The hand on their shoulder pressed and Akira stumbled forward, being driven to the opposite side of the station and away from his train that was finally rolling in.
"My parents are going to be asking for me," Akira said, desperate to think of anything that could get him on that train.
"No they won't,"
'No, they won't,'
As the car came into view, a small spark of Joker finally flared up. Feeling energized, they dashed forward, out of the officer's grasp, and were about to turn when they were slammed into the side of the car.
"You're going to play nice unless you want a repeat of the 20th," The officer growled.
"Fuck off ," Joker hissed, throwing his shoulder back to get off the car. The man didn't budge, instead pressing his full body weight against the Thief and pinning down their head.
"Alright, fine, you little shit," The prick of a needle hit his neck and Akira's vision started going dark at the edges. 'Wait, that's not — ' The crackle of a radio faintly reached his ear as his heart was forcibly slowed and his eyes slid shut.
"I think you'll be getting on a much later train, kid,"
When Akira woke up, he recognized the room as more of a holding cell than the interrogation room he was expecting. If they were going to skip questions and just throw him into prison for a while, that would be much more appreciated than being interrogated again. The prison he was in after Dr. Maruki's reality wasn't pleasant, of course, but Iwai's connections and their own charm helped maintain a fairly painless existence. The sounds of guards shuffling around and talking, the ever-present distant clanging, the subtle page-turning of the prisoners around him — it almost seemed familiar. 'Almost like a murderer should belong here,'
"We already stripped you of your belongings while you were out," A voice said, Akira's breath hitching at the unexpected disturbance, "Didn't meant to scare ya, sorry about that. And don't worry, all of it is still secure. Pretty nasty scars though," This officer wasn't the one that drugged them, thankfully, but he was still an officer as the metal scraping against their scarred skin reminded them. Akira kept his expression neutral, only shrugging his shoulders.
"Cool as a cucumber still, no wonder you're their leader. Well, now that you're up if you'd please follow me to where you'll be staying. Any questions?" The officer said, unlocking the cell door.
"What am I being charged with? It wasn't said to me on my way here,"
"...Now that I think about it, they didn't tell me that. It might be connected to your arrest in November, but still. Even if it's personal or for the department's image, they still need to follow protocol. I'll check into it once you're squared away — follow me now, please," Akira complied and inspected the corridor, trying to remember if this was the same place he was held in before.
The turns they were taking seemed familiar, as did the green paint color, and they were drawing closer and closer to the actual cells when they took a hard left. As they kept walking, the discrete sounds of the prison faded as the walls turned white. Akira's green pants and the officer's outfit were the only dash of color in the whole section. It reminded them of the stark white interior of Dr. Maruki's Palace; meant for rehabilitation with a far more sinister purpose underneath. They kept walking until it was quiet enough that the only source of sound besides himself was the officer's breathing, each door windowless and identical. They finally reached one near the far end of the hallway when the officer stopped.
"I was told we weren't underestimating you or anything, so you'll be placed in one of these cells. The schedule is up on one of the walls, so follow it. Other than that, your only two positions are cross legged and kneeling while staring at the back of the door," 'What? It clearly isn't the normal area, but even the one person cells aren't like — '
"Oh! And not a peep out of you either. We'll be watching and I've been assured that there will be punishment for breaking any of these rules. In you go," The officer finished, pulling open the door. Akira looked inside to see bare, windowless walls surrounding a space almost as small as LeBlanc's bathroom.
No.
No, no, no — they learned what happened to people in here in Mr. Ushimaru's class. Akira didn't want to learn what demons his mind would conjure when left to its own devices.
"I need a reason why I'm in here," Akira pleaded. The chime of a notification ricocheted through the hall and the officer pulled his phone out.
"Seems like I just got a response on that. It looks like… 'concerns about his popularity among both guards and fellow inmates in addition to unknowns about Kurusu's danger toward other parties given the failed interrogation on 11/20/16. For the ease of the administration and the safety of others, Kurusu is to be placed in minor solitary confinement until otherwise stated.' Does that work?" The officer asked.
'You can still run. You're faster than him,' a fleck of Joker spoke up at the edge of their mind, but Akira snuffed it out. The solitude would be enough of a punishment without dealing with whatever running got him. With a shaky nod, Akira stepped into the cell and turned back to face the officer as he got into the kneeling position. Without another word between the pair, the door closed. On the back of it was a full-body mirror, showing himself and a sliver of the four walls around him. The only other word, besides the schedule Akira could barely see out of the corner of their eye, was etched into the back of the door:
'Reflect.'